Magic Johnson is making some serious power moves!!

The NBA legend and his investment group Guggenheim Partners sealed a $2.15 billion dollar deal to purchase the Los Angeles Dodgers last night.

With the team previously being owned by Frank McCourt, GP CEO Mark Walter will now be taking over as the controlling partner.

As part of the deal made on Tuesday, McCourt will be able to purchase land surrounding the stadium for $150 million.

“I am thrilled to be part of the historic Dodger franchise and intend to build on the fantastic foundation laid by Frank McCourt as we drive the Dodgers back to the front page of the sports section in our wonderful community of Los Angeles,” Johnson said in a statement.

Congrats Magic and the guys!

Comcast officially announced yesterday that they will be working with Sean “Diddy” Combs and Earvin “Magic” Johnson to launch their own branded cable channels!

The move comes as part of a congressional mandate given to Comcast to support TV networks owned by minorities. The independently owned channels will be broadly distributed to Comcast Cable systems between July 2012 and July 2014.

Diddy’s new network will be called “Revolt,” and will reportedly target young people. The channel is set to launch in 2013.

Watch Diddy talk about his new cable TV channel below:

According to the a press release from the network:

REVOLT is a revolution in music on television, a place where artists and their viewers come together and engage with technology and social media. It’s a channel where new artists can share their work in the way it was meant to be: raw, uncut, and uncensored. REVOLT was selected by Comcast to be the first music network to truly leverage the power of social media, fueling the live music dialogue and influencing the music culture for the video-centric generation.

Also launching their very own cable channel is Magic Johnson.

His TV network, called “Aspire,” will focus on what Johnson himself calls positive, uplifting images of African-Americans. The network will launch sometime in 2012.

Magic Johnson said in a statement, “Aspire will be a network that encourages and challenges African-Americans to reach for their dreams and will appeal to all generations. Aspire will celebrate our heritage, our groundbreaking achievements and the fearless talent that has shaped American culture. I’m most excited about Aspire creating opportunities for the new voices, new visions and the next generation of storytellers.”

Lots of people are comparing Diddy and Magic Johnson’s move to launch their own networks to Oprah launching her own network last year. However, hers isn’t doing so well right now, so it will definitely be interesting to see how this goes for Diddy and Magic.

Will you be tuning in to Diddy and Magic Johnson’s new TV channels?

Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz attended Angela Bassett and Samuel L. Jackson‘s big Broadway debut performance in “The Mountaintop” last Thursday night (Oct 13) at the Benard Jacobs Theater in New York City.

Other celebrities spotted at the theater in support for Angela Basset and Samuel L. Jackson during their new Broadway show’s opening night were Magic Johnson (with his wife Cookie), Gabourey Sidibe, Star Jones, Tisha Campbell-Martin and many others.

Check out the pics below:

Lots of celebrities participated Friday night (Feb 18) in the annual Celebrity All-Star Game. The all-star line-up included Trey Songz, Rob Kardashian, Romeo Miller, Rick Fox and others repping for the West; and Nick Cannon, Common, Scottie Pippen and more representing for the East Coast.

In the end, the East came out victorious (54-49) with Justin Bieber (from the West) scoring the coveted MVP trophy (as voted by the fans). Also spotted at the 2011 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game were Magic Johnson, Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom.

Check out 15+ pics below!

Thoughts on the pics?

Balling!!

President Barack Obama recently put together a master dream team of current and former NBA stars…and guess who all were included??? Miami Heat’s very own LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Denver Nugget’s Carmelo Anthony...and of course a few greats were thrown in there as well… Bill Russell and Magic Johnson. The crew all gathered together to entertain troops at Ft. McNair in D.C. No media coverage was allowed to take a part in the event.

We know that was good game!

Master P and his son Romeo are getting ready to put on a free basketball camp for over 1,000 kids, who will get an opportunity to meet retired NBA players Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Mark Jackson. The “Game of Life Basketball Camp” is designed for children ages 7 – 16 and will feature basketball lessons from the former NBA champs, who will also teach the campers the importance of good health and mental well being.

“This will be an experience that these kids will remember for the rest of their lives. My basketball coach help save my life, hopefully I can do the same for this generation,” Master P told AllHipHop.com.

Romeo also commented on the camp:

“The purpose of the camp is to allow children to have the opportunity to exercise their bodies and their minds…just because you come from a low-income community it doesn’t mean you can’t strive to be better,” Romeo stated. “We are hoping that with our camps we can inspire these kids to have vision, follow their dreams and believe in themselves. They need to know that education is essential and that they do have options.”

The free camp will hold its first session this weekend (Sat. Jun 26) at 8 AM at Pasadena High School in Pasadena, CA and will be followed by a celebrity basketball game scheduled to kick off at 4 PM.

Source

Lots of celebs headed to Las Vegas Saturday evening (May 1) to catch the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs “Sugar” Shane Mosley welterweight fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Some of the famous faces spotted in the crowd included Diddy, Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon, Will Smith, Jamie Foxx, Earvin “Magic” Johnson and singer Chris Brown, who performed the National Anthem before the opening bell. Even boxing legend Muhammad Ali was spotted ringside at the big fight!

Check out 10+ pictures of everyone mentioned below and continue reading for the video of Chris performing the Star Spangled Banner…

It appears that the Former Lakers GM and NBA Legend Jerry West is preparing to release a new book entitled “Jerry West: The Life and Legend of a Basketball Icon” and an excerpt from the book talks about Magic Johnson‘s wild lifestyle with women. Here’s the excerpt:

That November, as a new season was set to open, Magic Johnson announced to the world that he was HIV positive, a stunning event that brought revelations about the climate of sexual frivolity around the Lakers. Johnson admitted he had been sleeping with 300-500 people a year.

The team’s locker room, and its sauna, had been a place where the star and other players had entertained women, even right after games. Johnson would retire to the sauna after a game, have sex, then put on a robe and return to the locker room for his post-game media interviews. How far had the team gone in condoning such questionable behavior? ‘I cared,’ West said in his interviews for this book. ‘I did things for those guys. It was ridiculous, some of the things I did for those guys. If the public knew they’d be outraged. It was a pretty crazy period for us.

Wow! 300-500 women per year? We all have heard stories about his wild lifestyle back in the day, but damn Magic! That’s like 2 – 3 women per day!

There were many celebrities and athletes spotted in Cowboy Stadium in Dallas, TX Sunday night (Feb. 14) watching the 2010 All-Star Game from their VIP court-side seats. Drake, Gabrielle Union, Lala Vazquez, Chris Tucker, Diddy, Common, Ludacris and many more were all seated amongst the biggest crowd in All-Star Weekend’s history enjoying the match, which ended with The East defeating the West with a final score of 141 to 139. Check out the pics below and after cut…

PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES / WIRE IMAGE

Athletes and celebrities alike came together Friday night (Feb 12) for the 2010 All-Star Celebrity Basketball Game in Dallas, TX. Young Money rapper Drake, who plays a basketball coach in his “Best I Ever Had” music video, played assistant coach to former NBA player Magic Johnson for the game.

Drake, Magic and the West team won with a final score of 41-37 over the East. Check out pics of Drizzy, Magic, Common, Terrell Owens, Rick Fox, Chris Tucker, Terrence J and more below and more when you continue reading…

PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES

Actress Holly Robinson Peete and her husband, former NFL football player Rodney Peete, hosted the HollyRod Foundation’s 11th Annual DesignCare Fundraiser at a private residence Saturday (Jul 25) in Beverly Hills, CA. Holly recently spoke out about the treatment of autism, calling it “expensive.” She and Rodney have a son with the disorder and have been trying to raise funds for his treatment through their HollyRod Foundation.

“We started the HollyRod Foundation years ago to help people with Parkinson’s disease – my dad had Parkinson’s and then about five years into the foundation, my son was diagnosed with autism… Much like Parkinson’s, autism is very expensive to treat so we started raising money for the quality of life for people suffering from both because of our personal experiences,” she revealed at the 11th annual DesignCare event in Hollywood.

“You can’t even know how expensive it is to treat a child with autism, especially families who don’t have insurance – it’s next to impossible. It destroys families.”
Holly added: “We raise money through these fundraisers and we beg people to use their gorgeous homes, we beg all of our friends to get dressed up and play with us.”

Other celebrities who showed up to support the cause were Ciara, Sanaa Lathan, Gabrielle Union and more. Continue reading for all of the pics!

PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES

Here is the final batch of photos from Michael Jackon‘s public memorial service. On Tuesday, July 7th 2009, celebrities, dignitaries, and MJ fans alike all packed into the Staples Arena in Los Angeles to celebrate the life of an icon that was taken away from us way too soon. Above, R&B singer Usher can be seen posing with a very pregnant Jennifer Hudson backstage just before the memorial commenced. Continue reading to see photos of the different celebrities (Chris Brown, Wesley Snipes, Spike Lee, Kim Kardashian and more) who attended the ceremony.

PHOTOS: WIRE IMAGE / GETTY IMAGES

Wearing dark sunglasses and a single yellow rose pinned to his jacket, a noticeably emotional Usher performed “Gone Too Soon,” a track from Michael Jackson‘s 1991 Dangerous album, at the King of Pop’s farewell service Tuesday (Jul 7) in Los Angeles at the Staples Center.

Other celebrities and important public figures who spoke and/or performed at the public ceremony include Queen Latifah, Smokey Robinson, Rev. Al Sharpton, Mariah Carey, Jennifer Hudson, and more. Continue reading to check out all of the pictures.

PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES / WIRE IMAGE

Perhaps the most touching moment of Michael Jackson‘s public memorial at the Staples Center in Los Angeles was when his 11-year-old daughter, Paris Michael Katherine Jackson, made her impromptu speech about her dad:

“Ever since I was born, Daddy has been the best father you could ever imagine. I just want to say I love him so much.”

She then broke down in tears and was immediately consoled by her aunt Janet, who was standing right beside her the entire time. A very sad and touching moment indeed. Continue reading for that video and videos of all of the people (Brooke Shields, Queen Latifah, his brother Marlon Jackson and more) who went up to say what Michael Jackson meant to them and to the world.

MJ’s Daughter Paris Michael Katherine Jackson

Brooke Shields

Queen Latifah

Kobe Bryant & Earvin “Magic” Johnson

Barry Gordy

Martin Luther King III and Bernice King

MJ’s Brothers Jermaine & Marlon Jackson

Smokey Robinson

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee

Rapper Kanye West and WNBA star Lisa Leslie were among the many celebrities who spent their Thursday (June 4) evening at the Staples Center in Los Angeles as the Lakers took on the Magic during Game One of the NBA Finals. Other celebrities in the house were Tyrese, Soulja Boy, Cee-Lo Green and more. Continue reading to peep all of the photos!

PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES

Actresses Jurnee Smollett, Vanessa Williams and Terri J. Vaughn smile for the cameras at the 8th Annual “Heroes In The Struggle Gala.” The event was held last night at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, CA. Continue reading for more photos and to see who else attended the event!

PHOTOS: WIRE IMAGE

I’ve been a little detached from the internet over the past couple of weeks due to a few offline obligations and what-not, but I’m slowly getting Gossip On This back into the groove of things. I’m not sure if many other blogs have shown a lot of these but here are a few photos of some of the biggest names in Hollywood watching history in the making as Barack Obama was sworn into office as the 44th President of the U.S.

PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES