Marino fathered child out of wedlock
From Tiger Woods to Brett Favre, the list of philandering pro athletes is long. But at least publicly, Dan Marino, the Miami Dolphins’ hall of fame quarterback and one-time NFL Man of the Year, always seemed above reproach. That All-American, good-guy image, we learned this week, wasn’t the entire truth.
Marino is the latest jock to fall hard from grace, admitting to fathering a child with a former CBS Sports production assistant. The New York Post broke the story late Wednesday night of Marino’s 2004 affair with Donna Savattere, who gave birth to their daughter, Chloe, the following June. Marino has been married to wife Claire since 1985, and the couple has six children.
“This is a personal and private matter,” Marino said in a statement. “I take full responsibility both personally and financially for my actions now as I did then. We mutually agreed to keep our arrangement private to protect all parties involved.”
The Post reported that Marino paid Savattere “millions” to take care of the child, and presumably keep the story out of the news. That secret was kept for more than seven years before being exposed this week.
Beyonce admits singing along to track
Beyonce answered critics of her Inauguration Day performance the best way she could – with another sterling performance of the national anthem. The difference?
On Thursday, it was live: She admitted during her Super Bowl news conference in New Orleans that when she performed for President Barack Obama and the nation, she decided to sing to a prerecorded track because she didn’t have time to practice. Calling herself a self-proclaimed “perfectionist,” she said she wanted the day to go off without a hitch.
“I practice until my feet bleed and I did not have time to rehearse with the orchestra,” she said, adding that she was also emotional that day. “Due to no proper sound check, I did not feel comfortable taking a risk.”
But with the controversy growing each day, the inauguration performance threatened to overshadow her planned Super Bowl halftime show. So the 31-year-old, wearing a tight, cream minidress, addressed the issue as soon as she took to the lectern Thursday afternoon.
She asked everyone to stand, and, with an image of the American flag behind her, performed a live rendition of the national anthem that mirrored the one on Inauguration Day. After, she said with a laugh: “Any questions?”
The birthday bunch
Actor Stuart Whitman is 85. Singer Don Everly is 76. Actor Garrett Morris is 76. Jazz musician Joe Sample is 74. TV personality-singer Joy Philbin is 72. Blues singer-musician Sonny Landreth is 62. Actor-writer-producer Bill Mumy is 59. Actress Sherilyn Fenn is 48. Lisa Marie Presley is 45.