Amerie

Celebrity Models asks local beauties, 'Are You the Next One?'

While some people watch videos for the love of the song or the even the flavor the director brings, there are a select few (men especially) who prefer other video assets (no pun intended).

"Buffie [the Body] blew up in the Tony Ya-Yo 'So Seductive' video because she was in every scene," says VanSilk, CEO of Celebrity Model Bookings and TitaniumGirlz DVD. "Every time he [Tony Yayo] rapped she was right there, that took her to the top."

If you feel like you have what it takes to make it modeling, this weekend could be your big break. VanSilk as well as some of his gorgeous clients of Celebrity Model Booking and Titaniumgirlz DVD will be in Wilmington partying it up while trying to find the next "it" girls.

A little skeptical? I was too until VanSilk ran down his clientele of known faces. "My mostly recognized clients are Sundy Carter, Lyric and Hoopz of the first season of VH1's Flavor of Love."

These beautiful women have capitalized on their looks through magazine covers, music videos and hosting star-studded events, including those held by Vivica A. Fox, Morris Chestnut and a host of athletes.

Before people get the wrong perception and think these women are groupies, VanSilk says everything is strictly business. "There is nobody [models] leaving the club with people, regardless of their status. We all arrive together, we all leave together. People, especially those intoxicated, have a tendency to get disrespectful. I am very protective of my clients. I am running a business" says the 32-year veteran of the entertainment industry.

This all sounds good, right? But how easy it is for somebody to talk fast and sell fantasies. Mr. Silk sensed my apprehension, so he put me in touch with a few of his clients who convinced me that Celebrity Model Booking and TitaniumGirlz DVD are the real thing.

"Van is really good with imaging, says model/actress Sundy Carter. She was featured as the lead and only female in Jadakiss' video for "U Make Me Wanna" featuring Mariah Carey. Carter also played opposite rapper Beanie Sigel in the hip-hop films "State Property and State Property 2." "I have even gone on to host events in Africa," she says. "I have done really well [with Van]."

Video vixen Lyric of 50 Cent's "Candy Shop" video and numerous magazine covers including Black Men Magazine and King Magazine agrees. "I was looking to take my career to the next level and I have with Celebrity Models," says Lyric, who also will be staring in Mike Jones' film "American Dreams."

Of all the names mentioned, there is one that is easily recognized: Hoopz, the winner of the first season of "Flavor of Love." Since the show ended, she has gone on to host parties all over the country. "I love working with Van, he understands me and he knows how I am," she told me.

Fellas, this is an event you cannot miss -- an entire club filled with beautiful women and potential models.

Revolutionary Entertainment presents Are You the Next One? Model Search hosted by Tasha Ford, Michele Cortez and VanSilk Saturday at the Carribean Lagoon, 212 W. Ninth St., Wilmington. Ladies $5 before 10 p.m. Doors open at 9. Ages 23 and up a preference. Call 545-0723 or visit www. revolutionary entertainment.net.

New federal rule has air travelers scurrying for the documents

Travel tip to folks flying to Mexico during spring break: Apply for a passport now, or you may be sorry.
For years, U.S. air travelers needed only a birth certificate and a government-issued photo identification,
such as a driver's license, to fly to Mexico, Canada and other nearby countries.
But on Tuesday, a new rule took effect requiring air travelers to have passports to fly to Canada,
Mexico, Central and South America, and the Caribbean.
The rule change is an attempt to bolster border security - and it has prompted tens of thousands of people
nationwide to apply hastily for passports at designated post offices and other public offices that accept
the applications on behalf of the State Department.
But the demand hasn't led the U.S. Postal Service to hire new workers to handle the increased business.
At the downtown Eugene post office, that's meant some long lines and waits.
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"I stopped in yesterday, and I had 25 people ahead of me at 3:30 in the afternoon, so I decided to come
back today," said Jessie Tillett of Eugene, as she waited in line.
Tillett, a Parker Elementary School teacher, will visit Mexico during spring break with her 1-month-old
daughter, Amerie.
Frank Earle, customer relations coordinator with the Postal Service in Portland, said twice as many
people as normal are visiting post offices for passport business.
Nationally, the State Department expects to issue about 18 million passports in the year ending Sept. 30,
compared with 12 million last year.
The State Department takes about two months to process a passport application, Earle said.
With spring break at the end of March, Earle advised people to get their applications in no later than
Friday.
Adult passports cost $97, and passports for those ages 16 and younger cost $82. The surge of 6 million
additional applications should yield about an extra $500 million for the federal government. Renewals
cost $67, and an expedited passport can be had in 10 days for an extra $60, Earle said.
For now, the new rule affects only air travelers. Land and sea travelers to the neighboring countries will
need to have passports for travel starting Jan. 1, 2008, he said.
To avoid long waits in post office lobbies, passport applicants should arrive early because things get
busier later in the day, he said. The downtown Eugene post office's passport unit opens at 8:30 a.m., but
on a recent morning, a line of applicants already had begun forming a few minutes after 8. The line
swelled to about 30 people by late afternoon.
Earle suggested that people can save time by downloading passport forms from the State Department's
Web site, http://travel.state.gov, and filling them out before they arrive at the post office.
To meet demand, the State Department has hired 250 more employees to approve and process the
applications, and also has hired more contract workers.
At the downtown post office, however, two workers are processing applications, the same number as

usual, Earle said. A third employee helps in the late afternoon, he said.
"We are doing the best we can with the crews that we have," Earle said.
During a recent lunch hour, about a dozen applicants waited in the post office.
Marylou Lewis had been sitting on a bench with her 9-year-old twins, Austin and Nathan, for about 45
minutes.
The boys needed their first passports because their mother is taking them on a Caribbean cruise during
spring break. Their father, Hersel Lewis, also was there.

Today in History - Jan. 12

Today is Friday, Jan. 12, the 12th day of 2007. There are 353 days left in the year.
Today's Highlight in History:
On Jan. 12, 1945, during World War II, Soviet forces began a huge offensive against the Germans in
Eastern Europe.
On this date:
In 1519, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I died.
In 1773, the first public museum in America was established, in Charleston, S.C.
In 1915, the U.S. House of Representatives rejected a proposal to give women the right to vote.
In 1932, Hattie W. Caraway became the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate.
In 1942, President Roosevelt re-established the National War Labor Board.
In 1948, the Supreme Court ruled that states could not discriminate against law-school applicants
because of race.
In 1966, President Johnson said in his State of the Union address that the U.S. should stay in South
Vietnam until Communist aggression there was ended.
In 1976, mystery writer Dame Agatha Christie died in Wallingford, England, at age 85.
In 1986, the shuttle Columbia blasted off with a crew that included the first Hispanic-American in space,
Dr. Franklin R. Chang-Diaz.
In 1987, Anglican Church envoy Terry Waite arrived in Lebanon on his latest mission to win the release
of Western hostages; however, Waite ended up being taken captive himself.
Ten years ago: Two recently enrolled female cadets at The Citadel announced they were not returning
for the spring semester, citing harassment by male cadets. The shuttle Atlantis blasted off on a mission
to pick up American astronaut John Blaha from the Russian space station Mir. The Green Bay Packers
defeated the Carolina Panthers, 30-13, to win the NFC Championship while the New England Patriots
beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, 20-6, to claim the AFC Championship.
Five years ago: The United States intensified its anti-terror campaign in eastern Afghanistan, dropping
bombs on suspected al-Qaida and Taliban hideouts. Michelle Kwan won her fifth successive U.S. Figure
Skating Championships crown and sixth overall. Former Secretary of State Cyrus R. Vance died in New
York at age 84.
One year ago: Mehmet Ali Agca, the Turkish gunman who'd shot Pope John Paul II in 1981, was
released from an Istanbul prison after serving more than 25 years in Italy and Turkey for the plot against
the pontiff and the slaying of a Turkish journalist. A stampede broke out during the Islamic hajj
pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, killing 363 people. Supreme Court nominee Joseph Alito completed four
days of testimony at his Senate confirmation hearing.
Today's Birthdays: Actress Luise Rainer is 97. Country singer Ray Price is 81. Singer Glenn
Yarborough is 77. The Amazing Kreskin is 72. Country singer William Lee Golden (The Oak Ridge
Boys) is 68. Former heavyweight boxing champion Joe Frazier is 63. Singer-musician George Duke is

61. Rock musician Cynthia Robinson (Sly and the Family Stone) is 61. Actor Anthony Andrews is 59. Movie director Wayne Wang is 58. Radio commentator Rush Limbaugh is 56. Actress Kirstie Alley is 56. Writer Walter Mosley is 55. Country singer Ricky Van Shelton is 55. Radio personality Howard Stern is 53. Rock musician Tom Ardolino (NRBQ) is 50. Broadcast journalist Christiane Amanpour is

49. Rock musician Charlie Gillingham (Counting Crows) is 47. Actor Oliver Platt is 47. Actor Olivier Martinez is 41. Rock singer Rob Zombie is 41. Rapper TBird (B-Rock and the Bizz) is 40. Model Vendela is 40. Actress Farrah Forke is 39. Rock singer Zack de la Rocha is 37. Rapper Raekwon (Wu Tang Clan) is 37. Singer Dan Haseltine (Jars of Clay) is 34. Rock musician Matt Wong (Reel Big Fish) is 34. Singer Melanie Chisholm (Spice Girls) is 33. Rhythm-and-blues singer Amerie is 27. Actor Will Rothhaar is 20. Actor Andrew Lawrence is 19. Thought for Today: "Being young is a fault which improves daily." - Swedish proverb.

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