Russell Crowe splits from wife

Danielle Spencer was snapped in Sydney today as news came out that her marriage to Russell Crowe is over. Picture: Adam Taylor Source: Supplied

Danielle Spencer is driven from her home to a record company in Surry Hills the day news came out that her marriage to Russell Crowe is over. Picture: Adam Taylor Source: Supplied

Danielle Spencer has been silent on the split. Picture: Adam Taylor Source: Supplied

Danielle Spencer is accompanied by a friend to a record company in Sydney's Surry Hills. Picture: Adam Taylor Source: Supplied

Actor Russell Crow with wife Danielle Spencer and their sons in 2010 on Hollywood Blvd

• Couple is said to have split on amicable terms
• Children will remain with Spencer in Sydney
• Crowe's busy schedule said to be a factor
• Split comes after Spencer's night out with DWTS partner

DANIELLE Spencer was seen out in Sydney today after it emerged she and husband Russell Crowe were getting a divorce after nine years of marriage.

She was driven from her home to a record company by a friend.

It is understood the split was amicable and that the couple's main concern is protecting their two sons Charles, 8 and Tennyson, 6, from the public spotlight.

Melissa Hoyer: 'They always seemed like the perfect couple'

Russell Crowe and Danielle Spencer life in pictures

There is a vast fortune thought to be at stake, including the couple's newly renovated $10 million Rose Bay mansion in Sydney which the family only moved into in March, as well as farmland and investments.

It's thought Spencer will remain at the Rose Bay property with the children while Crowe will reside at the couple's $14 million Woolloomooloo apartment which is close to the gym he owns.

A reported prenuptial agreement could guarantee Spencer a minimum payout of about $15 million because the couple stayed together for at least three years. There is also reportedly a $3 million trust fund for each child.

Crowe, 48, has thrown himself into his work filming his biblical blockbuster, Noah, post the split.

The news is a shock as the couple were thought to have had a solid marriage.

However, the demands of Crowe's acting career may have been a factor in the split. He has been away from Spencer, 43, and his children for much of the past year, filming Man with the Iron Fist, Les Miserables, Broken City, Man of Steel and Noah.

Crowe kisses Spencer at LAX after newspapers reported she was getting close to her DWTS partner. Picture: Splash News

Russell Crowe and Danielle Spencer's $10m Rose Bay residence, and their $14m Woolloomooloo Bay Wharf penthouse apartment. Picture: Splash News Source: news.com.au

When Spencer was photographed on a night out with her Dancing With the Stars partner, Damian Whitewood, in June many believed that her marriage was on the rocks and that she had turned to Whitewood out of loneliness, Crowe and Spencer dismissed the rumours and they made a big show of their love at Los Angeles airport several days later.

The usually guarded Crowe happily locked lips with Spencer in front of the paparazzi and many commentators believed he was in "damage control".

Crowe and Spencer married at Crowe's cattle farm near Coffs Harbour in April 2003. Spencer is said to have calmed her husband's wild ways and softened his temper.

So proud: Crowe made a suprise visit to the DWTS set. Picture: Channel Seven

Spencer reportedly turned to Damian Whitewood out of loneliness. Picture: Channel Seven

This picture of Spencer and Whitewood had tongues wagging. Picture: Splash News

She once said of her husband's fame and fortune that "all that stuff has nothing to do with me as a person".

They met 22 years ago on the set of the movie The Crossing, but they didn't get serious about each other until more than a decade later, after Crowe's much publicised romance with Meg Ryan.

Crowe realised post-Ryan that Spencer was the woman he needed in his life and asked Spencer's father permission before proposing to her in 2002. 

Crowe got close to Spencer while they were working on the 1990 film The Crossing. Picture: Beyond Productions

Spencer stood by her man after his phone-throwing incident in New York in 2005. Crowe was arrested for assault after a fight with the concierge at the Mercer Hotel over an international call to Spencer.

She said: "I'm not condoning his behaviour. I don't want to make excuses for him because I'm certainly not. But I do understand when you're apart that the loneliness kicks in."

Neither Crowe nor Spencer has commented on the report.

Crowe's last posting on his Twitter account was asking followers if there were "tickets still available for tonight's show at the gramercy" and updating them on his exercise regime: "Yesterday 11.6km bike ride to work,30 mins yoga,light weights today so far 14.5 km stat bike,20 mins light weights."

Quiet about the split: Crowe out riding his bike this weekend in Los Angeles. Picture: Splash News

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'I just wanted to come back alive'

Watch as daredevil Felix Baumgartner plummets from the edge of space and lands safely, breaking the fastest freefall record - and the sound barrier.

DAREDEVIL Felix Baumgartner reached a top speed of 1342km/h, or 1.24 times the speed of sound, in a record-breaking freefall from the edge of space.

The speed, revealed at a press conference  after the unprecedented leap from 39km up, was significantly higher than that given earlier by a spokeswoman, who had put his maximum speed as 1136km/h.

No one has ever reached that speed wearing only a high-tech suit.

The 43-year-old floated down to Earth on a red and white parachute canopy.

Felix Baumgartner celebrates with Art Thompson, Technical Project Director, after successfully jumping from a space capsule lifted by a helium balloon at a height of just over 128,000 feet above the Earth's surface. Baumgartner landed in the eastern New Mexico desert minutes after jumping from his capsule 24 miles (38.6km), above Earth AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin

At the press conference, Baumgartner also spoke of some of the problems he encountered during the record-breaking jump, including fogging on his helmet visor, which coud have aborted the mission and a flat spin as he fell.

"When I was standing there on top of the world, you become so humble, you do not think about breaking records anymore, you do not think about gaining scientific data. The only thing you want is to come back alive,'' he said after the jump.

Baumgartner says that traveling faster than sound is "hard to describe because you don't feel it.''

A screen grab from the live YouTube feed of Felix Baumgartner's jump from space.

With no reference points, "you don't know how fast you travel,'' he told reporters.

"Sometimes we have to get really high to see how small we are,'' he said.

Mission control erupted in cheers as Baumgartner made a near-perfect jump from a capsule hoisted aloft by a giant helium-filled balloon to an altitude of around 128,000 feet (39km).

A screen grab from the live YouTube feed of Felix Baumgartner's jump from space.

"Sometimes you have (go) up really high to (realise) how small you are," Baumgartner said shortly before he jumped, watched in live footage beamed around the world.

"I think 20 tons have fallen from my shoulders. I prepared for this for seven years,'' he told German-language ServusTV in Austria in his first interview after the leap.

 Live stream breaks YouTube record

A screen grab from the live YouTube feed of Felix Baumgartner's jump from space.

More than eight million people watched the livestream of Baumgartner's jump on Red Bull's YouTube channel.

The video sharing site posted on its blog that as well as his other records Baumgartner's now held the record for "creating a livestream with the most concurrent views ever on YouTube".

Mashable reported the Austrian diver had already broken an online record before he even jumped with 7.1 million people watching in anticipation of the freefall dive.

Moments after he landed, Red Bull posted this image of Felix Baumgartner on its Facebook page. The image immediately got hundreds of thousand of "likes" and was shared more than 50,000 times. Picture: Red Bull via Facebook

The 'live' online feed of the jump was delayed by 20 seconds in case something happened to daredevil Baumgartner.

Talkback radio in Australia operates on just a seven second delay, which is enough time for producers to cut any caller who makes vulgar or defamatory comments.

It is unclear why the Stratos producers needed the full 20 seconds. One theory doing the rounds is that if Baumgartner got into trouble, it would have been difficult to tell if he was unconscious or just falling in an ungainly manner.

Red Bull Stratos, a mission to the edge of space. This animation shows how Felix Baumgartner will be going up to 120.000 feet in a capsule attached to a helium balloon. Once he's up there he'll jump doing the highest parachute jump ever done by a human.

A few extra seconds would have proved handy in allowing the crew to analyse data from its 30 cameras on the ground, in the capsule and aboard a helicopter.

Fortunately, the mission was a great success so the delay proved to be nothing more than a sensible precaution.

 Minor glitch

Felix Baumgartner of Austria sitting in his trailer during the final manned flight for Red Bull Stratos in Roswell, New Mexico, USA on October 14, 2012.

Referring to a helmet problem that nearly forced him to abort the mission at the last minute, Baumgartner said: "Even on a day like this when you start so well, then there's a little glitch.

"And you think you'll have to abort -- what if you've prepared everything and it fails on a visor problem. But I finally decided to jump. And it was the right decision.''

He had taken more than two hours to get up to the jump altitude. Baumgartner had already broken one record, before he even leapt: the previous highest altitude for a manned balloon flight was 113,740 feet, set in 1961.

Felix Baumgartner seen onscreen in a screen at mission control center in the capsule during the final manned flight for Red Bull Stratos in Roswell, New Mexico.

The Austrian had been due to jump from 120,000 feet, but the balloon went higher than expected, to 39 kilometers.

The Red Bull Stratos mission was the second attempt for the skydiver after an initial bid last week was aborted at the last minute due to winds.

Risky ride

As the sun rises, workers prepare at the launch site, ahead of an attempt by Felix Baumgartner to break the speed of sound with his own body. Picture: Ross D. Franklin

The biggest risk Baumgartner faced was spinning out of control, which could exert G forces and make him lose consciousness. A controlled dive from the capsule was essential, putting him in a head-down position to increase speed.

More gruesomely, the skydiver's blood could have boiled if there were the slightest tear or crack in his pressurized spacesuit-like outfit, due to instant depressurisation at the extreme altitude.

Temperatures of minus 68 Celsius could also have had unpredictable consequences if his suit somehow failed.

Felix Baumgartner waves to his ground crew after landing safely following his record-breaking freefall from the stratosphere. Picture: Red Bull

The leap went off flawlessly though there was a minor problem as the capsule ascended: a heater failed on Baumgartner's helmet faceplate, meaning it was becoming fogged up when he exhaled.

After considering the options they decided to go ahead with the jump.

Baumgartner's 100-strong backup team includes retired US Air Force colonel Joe Kittinger, who had held one of the records he was trying to break: the highest freefall jump, which he made from 102,800 feet (31,333 metres) in 1960.

Felix Baumgartner's mother Ava Baumgartner, middle, watches with other family members and friends as his capsule lifts off. AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin

"Let the guardian angel take care of you," Kittinger told Baumgartner shortly before he leapt into the void.

The giant balloon - which holds 30 million cubic feet of helium - is needed to carry the Red Bull Stratos capsule to the stratosphere.

It is made of near transparent polyethylene strips even thinner than a dry cleaner bag, which are heat-sealed together. Very thin material is necessary to save weight.

The capsule and attached helium balloon which will carry Felix Baumgartner to the edge of space. Picture: Ross D. Franklin

The Austrian has been training for five years for the jump. He holds several previous records, notably with spectacular base jumps from the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur and the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The jump was a hit on social media, with Twitter, YouTube and Facebook going into overdrive.

Here's a look at how the world, through the Internet, watched the jump.

Felix Baumgartner, of Austria, waves to the crowd after successfully jumping from a space capsule. Baumgartner landed in the eastern New Mexico desert minutes after jumping from his capsule 24 miles (38.6km), above Earth AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin

YOUTUBE: As Baumgartner ascended in the balloon, so did the number of viewers watching YouTube's live stream of the event.

Its popularity grew as the moment of the jump drew closer, as people kept sharing links with each other on Twitter and Facebook and websites embedded the stream.

Nearly 7.3 million viewers were watching as Baumgartner sat on the edge of the capsule, moments before the jump.

Viral sensation puts Lego Felix up into space ready for free-fall. Vision: Stratos Jump

In the United States, the opportunity to watch the jump on TV was limited to the Discovery Channel, though more than 40 television networks in 50 total countries carried the live feed, organizers said. It was streamed by more than 130 digital outlets.

FACEBOOK: After Baumgartner landed, sponsor Red Bull posted a picture of the daredevil on his knees to Facebook.

In less than 40 minutes, the picture was shared more than 29,000 times and generated nearly 216,000 likes and more than 10,000 comments. Immediately after the jump, Red Bull solicited questions for Baumgartner through Facebook and Twitter, promising to answer three at a post-jump news conference.

TWITTER: During the jump and the moments after Baumgartner safely landed, half the worldwide trending topics on Twitter had something to do with the jump - pushing past tweets about Justin Bieber and seven National Football League games being played at the same time. Celebrities of all kinds weighed in, including athletes, actors and high-profile corporate executives.

``It's pretty amazing that I can watch, live on my computer, a man riding a balloon to the edge of space so he can jump out of it. #TheFuture,'' tweeted Wil Wheaton, who acted in the iconic science-fiction series Star Trek: The Next Generation.'

``Felix Baumgartner is a boss,'' tweeted Jozy Altidore, a soccer player for the U.S. men's national team.

REDDIT: Two threads related to the jump made the front page of Reddit.

Users quickly upvoted a request for Baumgartner to participate in an ``Ask Me Anything'' on the site, where users pepper someone on the site with questions about anything they want.

President Barack Obama held court as the subject of a similar thread in August.

Nearly 29,000 users weighed in on a separate thread about the jump itself, voting it up and down and robustly commenting.

Speaking before the launch, Baumgartner said he would be proud to be the first person to break the speed of sound in freefall.

"But really, I know that part of this entire experience will help make the next pressure suit safer for space tourists and aviators," the jumper pointed out.

The launch coincided with the 65th anniversary of American pilot Chuck Yeager breaking the speed of sound.

 Austrian leaders were quick to congratulate Baumgartner .

"I warmly congratulate Felix Baumgartner on this great success, which was achieved with courage and perseverance and is finding worldwide attention,'' President Heinz Fischer reacted on his Facebook page almost immediately after Baumgartner had landed safely in New Mexico.

"Austria is proud of your accomplishment,'' he added.

Chancellor Werner Faymann also hailed the achievement in a statement.

"His jump from a height of around 39 kilometres was a fascinating event for millions of people worldwide,'' Faymann said.

"But I'm first and foremost happy everything went well.

"I congratulate Felix Baumgartner and his team for this impressive achievement. Together they went to the boundaries of human possibility and of physics.''

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'World's worst internet troll' exposed

THE internet troll behind a an online message board where users post sexual photographs of unsuspecting teenage girls has been revealed as a cat-loving grandfather from Texas.

Michael Brutsch, who uses the Reddit name 'Violentacrez', was the main moderator for the social network's 'Creepshot' forum which sparked outrage last month for encouraging the vile pictures, The Daily Mail reports.

Now, after years posting offensive messages across the internet and earning the moniker of the 'biggest troll on the web', Brutsch has been found working as a computer programmer for a financial services company in Arlington, Texas by Gawker.

The 49-year-old lives with his wife, who suffers from diabetes and is also an avid Reddit user, a son, two dogs and seven cats. Brutsch, who has a granddaughter, also has a son in the Marines, according to social networking sites.

"My wife is disabled,' he pleaded with Gawker's Adrian Chen. 'I got a home and a mortgage, and if this hits the fan, I believe this will affect negatively on my employment.

"I do my job, go home watch TV, and go on the internet. I just like riling people up in my spare time."

But, even though he has become a massive internet troll after setting up a number of sickening Reddit forums, including 'Rapebait', 'incest' and 'misogyny', he refused to apologise.

"I would stand by exactly what I've done,' he added.

Brutsch also would create Reddit forums on topics such as incest, Hitler, and some whose titles are difficult to even read—not necessarily because he himself was interested in the content, but to provoke a reaction from other Reddit users.

Outraged users would complain about the content, thus getting it more attention—sometimes even on the website's front page.

His speciality is distributing images of scantily-clad underage girls, but as Violentacrez he also issued an unending fountain of racism, porn, gore, misogyny, incest, and exotic abominations yet unnamed, Gawker reports.

Reddit is a a social news website where users submit content and vote for or against it to determine its position on the front page.

Users can discuss any subject, and the site is regularly used by celebrities for interviews, including Barack Obama, who recently took part in an 'ask me anything' debate.

Read more on Michael Brutsch's outing at The Daily Mail and Gawker
 

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Things to know before saying 'I do'

There are many things you should sit down and ask your partner before you say I do. Picture: Supplied Source: Sunday Mail (SA)

BEFORE you take the plunge, have a think about your values and what it is that you want out of this life together.

Thinking about spending the rest of your life with someone? There are some questions you should ask first.

What are your and your partner's financial goals?

Money often causes conflict, so airing your views before tying the knot is important. "Ideally, you should have the same financial goals, whether you want to save for a house, a holiday or to have a baby," says Sydney-based financial expert Analaura Luna.

"Being financially intimate is essential if you're going to create, and reach, shared financial goals. Talk honestly about what matters to you, such as how many children you want, whether you're bringing debts, savings or assets to the union, and what you'd like to achieve in the future."

Ms Luna says a recent PayPal survey revealed that 30 per cent of Australians regularly argue about finances. "Be open about your financial habits and work together to create strategies to reach your goals," she advises.

Who will be in charge of our money?

The days when women looked after the house and men looked after the money are gone. When considering who is going to control your finances, you need to play to your strengths. "If the woman is more organised, she should be in charge of budgets and bill paying," Ms Luna says.

"And if your partner is more experienced with investing, then perhaps they should handle the investments. We also advise that couples have three bank accounts: a personal account each and a joint account to cover combined household expenses."

Ms Luna says having personal accounts brings a level of independence to your marriage."It's demeaning to have to ask your partner for 'permission' to spend your money, or to have to justify everything you buy."

When will we have kids, how many will we have and who will look after them?

"The issue of children is so important, especially if the relationship breaks down and kids get caught in the middle," says Eric Hudson, vice president of the Australian Association of Relationship Counsellors. Decisions about children will be largely influenced by a couple's own family experiences, he says. "But the truth is that families come in all shapes and sizes."

Child care is another issue, especially if both parents have good careers. "There are many more dads taking time out from full-time work to become full- or part-time at-home parents," Hudson says. "Hopefully, the 'absent father' issue is becoming a thing of the past and parenting will be seen as an important role for both parents."

How involved will our families be in our daily lives?

Ask any couple and they'll tell you that in-laws can be a blessing or a nightmare. While some newly-marrieds depend on support from their families, others see marriage as a time to strike out on their own.

"Every pyramid has a pinnacle block and that crowning stone symbolises the primary partnership of a husband and wife," says body+soul's relationship psychologist, Toby Green. "It's an exclusive space. Everyone comes down from there, including children, parents and family."

Mr Green says that once a monogamous relationship forms, the couple must graduate from being their parent's children. "It is their duty to defend their partner over their parents," she says. "But to a certain degree, it is also important for both to compromise when accommodating their respective in-laws."

Is there anything you're not prepared to give up?

Whether it's spending Friday nights with the guys or buying expensive shoes, we all have behaviours that may need to be reviewed aft er marriage. "It's imperative that a couple discuss what they're willing to sacrifice from their single existences before committing," Mr Green says.

Money and past friends are the trickiest to negotiate, she says. "If she has an old male friend she wants to retain, for example, it must stand the 'cup of coffee' test. That means if all three can sit down and feel comfortable, any insecurities should be reduced." Mr Green says that once a couple has agreed on shared values, it's healthy for each individual to pursue earlier interests. "It brings new energy into the partnership."

What if one of us gets offered a job somewhere else?

This can be a major upheaval for a couple, especially if both have good careers. Although many companies will pay for the cost of relocation, you will have to leave behind family and friends and, in an overseas move, there might be legal issues surrounding whether your spouse can work.

"If one partner has to sacrifice a job, or put their career on hold for the other, both parties need to agree that accepting a position elsewhere is worth any impact it may have on their relationship," says CareerOne expert, Zsa-Zsa Bowie-Wilson.

Tips to fire up your love life
 

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Commercial complaints: Ads we love to hate

NOT OFFENSIVE ENOUGH: An image from the Lynx ad in which Sophie Monk demonstrates how Lynx can 'clean a variety of balls'. Complaints about this advert were dismissed. Source: Supplied

SMUTTY slogans on camper-vans, lingerie ads that could lead to "perversion", concerns over selling fast food to children and the bullying of the letter of the alphabet.

These are some of the complaints Australians have made against advertisers this year.

Advertising Standards Bureau data has revealed the industry watchdog has so far adjudicated on almost 400 ads which have drawn complaints from the public in 2012.

Seen an offensive ad?  Let us know the ad and why you think it's offensive, in our comments section below.

Allegations of promoting violence, unsafe behaviour, bullying and racial and gender discrimination all feature but it is complaints relating to sex, nudity and sexuality which dominate.

So far this year, concerns about raunchy underwear ads from the likes of Bonds and Target have been dismissed, while controversial vehicle hire company Wicked Campers, was not so fortunate.

The ASB has upheld numerous complaints against offensive slogans painted on the sides of the company's vehicles, while Shear Ewe Live Stock Services - which issued a brochure featuring a woman in a pink jump-suit being shorn - also received a slap on the wrist on the grounds its promotion was "exploitative of women" and "degrading".

In another case, the ASB dismissed complaints advertisements forming part of the Commonwealth Bank's "CAN'T" campaign - in which other letters are mean to "T" - could promote bullying.

While industry watchdog investigations may be feared in some sectors, that's not always the case in advertising, according to experts.

University of Queensland media and advertising ethics academic John Harrison said generating a controversial ad could often work in a company's favour.

An adverse finding by the ASB did not mean a promotion had to be withdrawn by law.

"Brands like Wicked Campers probably actually have a strategy of deliberately being provocative so that they get a lot of free publicity," he said.

"We also know that Windsor Smith got something like $43 million worth of free advertising about seven or eight years ago just for a couple of dodgy billboards."

With the vast majority of complaints investigated by the ASB ultimately dismissed, Dr Harrison said complaints generally related to matters of taste, rather than genuine ethical concerns.

"Just because something is in bad taste doesn't mean to say it is ethically questionable and that distinction is not always well understood by the general public," he said.

"Violence is rarely complained about and it's usually naked flesh that people are worried about."

THE COMPLAINTS

Advertiser: Unilever Australasia (Lynx)

Medium: Pay-TV/internet

Description: Depiction of an infomercial-style scenario with a presenter and guest Sophie Monk (above). She demonstrates how Lynx can clean a variety of dirty balls before audience members accept the challenge of getting their balls cleaned.

Sample of complaint: "The entire ad is offensive.

"Focuses far too much on 'balls' and the implied meaning."

"It's demeaning in the way that it uses women to talk indirectly about balls and uses them as a lure to get people to buy the product."

Ruling: Dismissed

----------

CANT: The Commonwealth Bank was forced to apologise when a controversial ad involving a bomb hoax outside an Olympic event was posted on the company's YouTube account. The ad was one of a series featuring the letters C, A, N and T which attracted viewer complaints. Source: news.com.au

Advertiser: Commonwealth Bank

Medium: TV

Description: Series of advertisements featuring the letters C, A, N and T and a selected Australian Olympian. The other letters essentially gang up on T after he expresses negativity about the athlete's performance.

Sample of complaints: "I found the use of harassment and threats from a group of three letters against another letter highly offensive."

"These (ads show) potential violence towards the outsider as well - especially with the depiction of the hockey net being tipped on to the outsider."

Ruling: Dismissed

----------

Advertiser: Yum Restaurants International (KFC)

Medium: TV

Description: The man tries to leave the KFC store but cannot open the door because his hands are full. He pulls the door open with his foot. We then see men tenpin bowling, high-fiving, fixing a car, rubbing sticks to light a fire, undoing a bra and creating a superhero sculpture. Feet are used in all instances as the man's hands are full with the KFC Five Stars Box. The ad ends with the voiceover saying: "Man one, world zero. KFC's new Five Stars Box. It's not a mouthful, it's an armful."

Sample of complaint: "Ads like this just reinforce disrespect for the female gender and promote competition between men and women, and teach boys it's good to be blokey misogynists."

Ruling: Dismissed

----------

Advertiser: Target

Description: A woman wearing peach-coloured underpants turns and walks away from the camera. We then see various women wearing various styles of underwear while a voiceover describes the Target range of underwear for all women.

Sample of complaint: "This shocking advert must be taken off the screen to prevent perversion."

"I imagine the pervs watching TV think it is a real hit."

"It has blatant sexual overtones."

"I would expect to see images like that in a MA15+ movie, not in an ad that is showing during family television time."

Ruling: Dismissed

----------

Advertiser: McDonald's Aust Ltd

Description: A billboard advertising McDonald's The Serious Lamb Burger depicts an image of the burger. The text reads: "Mary had a little lamb, fries and a Coke."

Sample of complaint: "This advertisement uses a nursery rhyme to attract children to McDonald's food."

"The theme includes reference to a very common nursery rhyme and would catch children's attention."

Ruling: Dismissed

Seen an offensive ad?  Let us know the ad and why you think it's offensive, in our comments section below.

Sensual Durex advert gives complaints the slip

Lady Gaga is at her eccentric best with her advert for her new perfume Fame.

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'I've had crippling depression', Thorpe

Ian Thorpe has said he has suffered crippling depression. Source: Herald Sun

OLYMPIAN Ian Thorpe says he has spent much of his life battling "crippling depression", and often drank huge amounts of alcohol to manage his moods.

Thorpe opened up about his depression in the book, This is Me: The Autobiography, written with Robert Wainwright, and set to be released next month.

In an extract published in Fairfax's Good Weekend magazine, Thorpe said he had never spoken openly about it. "Not even my family is aware that I've spent a lot of my life battling what I can only describe as a crippling depression".

The 30-year-old said he had striven to be perfect and had wanted to keep what he felt was a "character flaw" from his family.

After the Sydney Olympics and while training for Athens, Thorpe decided to get answers and had a "clandestine visit" to a doctor, where he got "some help", including medication.

While he said he was not an alcoholic, he began succumbing to alcohol as time went on.

"I used alcohol as a means to rid my head of terrible thoughts, as a way of managing my moods - but I did it behind closed doors, where many depressed people choose to fight their demons before they realise they can't do it without help," he writes.

"There were numerous occasions, particularly between 2002 and 2004 as I trained to defend my Olympic titles in Athens, that I abused myself this way - always alone and in a mist of disgrace."

He said he was able to hide his drinking from sports psychologists and coaches, and at times considered suicide.

Other themes touched on in his book include media intrusion and speculation about his sexuality.

"For the record," he writes, "I am not gay and all my sexual experiences have been straight. I am attracted to women."

He said: "It's taken me a long time to accept that being depressed wasn't my fault and rising above it is actually a strength of character."

* Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.

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One cool little dude cruising on the Harley

Mr Pettibone strapped in for the ride / Pic: Andrea Francolini Source: The Daily Telegraph

HE is one pooch that knows how to ride in style. Mr Pettibone, the motorcycle-loving canine, rides in a sling attached to his owner on the back of a Harley-Davidson.

Henry, the owner of the seven-year-old west highland terrier, said Mr Pettibone "loves" going on the bike.

"When I pull the harness out he starts jumping up and down and steps into the harness. He loves it," Henry said. "He's probably the most photographed dog - a big bloke covered in tattoos with a little fluffy white dog on his back."

Henry said safety has always been a priority for him when riding with Mr Pettibone on his back. "I would die if anything happened to him. He's the light of my life, I love him more than life itself. I ride a lot more carefully with him on it," he said.

Photographer Andrea Francolini came across the pair in Enmore and couldn't believe his eyes. "I was sitting at the lights when I saw it. I found it quite hilarious. I thought it was a kid with a funny furry hat on until it turned around," Mr Francolini said.

"I've seen dogs in a basket or at the front, but never strapped to the back like that enjoying the sun.

"There was no barking or distress, so I imagine the dog was having a good time.

"It looked comfortable on the back. It was just one of those moments."

04.30 | 0 komentar | Read More

Rich Dad, Poor Dad author goes bankrupt

Author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad files for corporate bankruptcy. Picture: Supplied Source: news.com.au

AUTHOR of best-selling financial help book Rich Dad, Poor Dad has just filed for bankruptcy.

Financial guru Robert Kiyosaki filed for corporate bankruptcy after losing a court judgment to The Learning Annex, The New York Post reports.

Mr Kiyosaki's company Rich Global LLC was ordered to pay almost $US24 million to the Learning Annex and its founder and chairman, Bill Zanker.

A US District Judge ordered that Mr Kiyosaki must give Mr Zanker a percentage of the profits he made from speaking appearances which he'd organised through Learning Annex.

Mr Zanker told the The New York Post that he was responsible for making Rich Dad, Poor Dad into the global name it is today.

"I took Kiyosaki's brand and made it bigger. The deal was I would get a percentage and he reneged," Mr Zanker said.

"Oprah believed in him, and Will Smith believed in him, but he didn't keep his promise to us," he said.

Mr Kiyosaki first published "Rich Dad Poor Dad" in 1994, and has since written 11 other books.

Rich Dad, Poor Dad has sold more than 26 million copies and earned Mr Kiyosaki widespread fame.

Mike Sullivan, CEO of Mr Kiyosaki Rich Dad Co., told reporters that Mr Kiyosaki, was still doing well thanks to investments in other companies but that they thought the judgement was unfair.

"I can't do anything about a $20 million judgment…We got hit for what we think is a completely outlandish figure," he said.

Follow @sarah_ocarroll on Twitter.

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Armstrong responds to USADA report

11 of Lance Armstrong's former teammates have testified against him in the US Anti-Doping Agency's report on the US Postal Service doping program.

'OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE': Lance Armstrong faces his US Anti-Doping Agency accusers. Source: AP

LANCE Armstrong's first public words since the release of a report detailing his systemic cheating had little to do with the drug storm that has surrounded him.

Armstrong finally posted on Twitter, hours after the US Anti-Doping Agency released a 1000-page report into the disgraced seven-time Tour de France winner's doping conspiracy.

But his post offered nothing to explain his endemic use of banned substances while he was a professional rider with US Postal Service.

"What am I doing tonight? Hanging with my family, unaffected, and thinking about this (a link to a page detailing the 15th anniversary of the Lance Armstrong Foundation)," Armstrong tweeted.

He then posted a link to a music video for the Elliot Smith song "Coming up roses".

The legendary cyclist engaged in the biggest doping conspiracy in sports history to win the Tour de France seven times, according to the USADA.

Race boss: Lance could have won Hawaiian Ironman

USADA chief executive Travis T. Tygart said the agency had submitted to the International Cycling Union and World Anti-Doping Agency a report on why in August it banned Armstrong for life.

USADA released more than 1000 pages of supporting evidence gathered in a probe of Armstrong and the US Postal Service team.

"The evidence of the US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team-run scheme is overwhelming," Tygart said.

Read the full USADA submission

"The evidence shows beyond any doubt that the US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team ran the most sophisticated, professionalised and successful doping program that sport has ever seen."

That includes testimony from 26 people, 15 of them with knowledge of US Postal riders and doping activities, including George Hincapie, who admitted in a statement he took performance-enhancing drugs.

"It's extremely difficult today to acknowledge that during a part of my career I used banned substances," he said.

Timeline of Armstrong's doping controversies

Armstrong walks out of the Tour de France's anti-doping control bus. Source: AFP

"Early in my professional career, it became clear to me that, given the widespread use of performance enhancing drugs by cyclists at the top of the profession, it was not possible to compete at the highest level without them.

"I deeply regret that choice and sincerely apologise to my family, teammates and fans."

Other former Armstrong teammates who testified include Frankie Andreu, Michael Barry, Tom Danielson, Tyler Hamilton, Floyd Landis, Levi Leipheimer, Stephen Swart, Christian Vande Velde, Jonathan Vaughters and David Zabriskie.

SORRY: Former Lance Armstrong team-mate Christian Vande Velde has issued a statement on the USADA report, describing being ''pressured'' into using banned substances Source: AP

Van de Velde has issued a statement on the USADA report, describing being "pressured" into using banned substances.

"I have failed and I have succeeded in one of the most humbling sports in the world. And today is the most humbling moment of my life," he said.

"As a young pro rider I competed drug-free, not winning but holding my own and achieving decent results.

"Then, one day, I was presented with a choice that to me, at the time, seemed like the only way to continue to follow my dream at the highest level of the sport.

"I gave in and crossed the line, a decision that I deeply regret.

"I was wrong to think I didn't had a choice the fact is that I did, and I chose wrong.

"I won races before doping and after doping.

"Ironically, I never won while doping, I was more or less just treading water. This does not make it OK. I saw the line and I crossed it, myself.

"I am deeply sorry for the decisions I made in the past - to my family, my fans, my peers, to the sport that I love and those in and out of it I'm sorry. I always will be."

"Different categories of eyewitness, documentary, first-hand, scientific, direct and circumstantial evidence reveal conclusive and undeniable proof that brings to the light of day for the first time this systemic, sustained and highly professionalised team-run doping conspiracy," Tygart said.

Armstrong was banned for life by USADA and stripped of his seven Tour de France triumphs from 1999-2005 after declining the chance to challenge the doping charges against him before a USADA arbitration panel.

Armstrong, who has denied any wrongdoing, said he was weary of years of allegations against him and tired of fighting, instead hoping to focus on his Livestrong foundation and anti-cancer fundraising activities.

The decision not to press ahead with a defense against the charges and take the chance to contest the evidence against him came after Armstrong lost a legal fight in US court to challenge USADA's system of hearing doping appeals.

World cycling's governing body is considering an amnesty for riders to confess to doping, after the Lance Armstrong ban. Source: AFP

"Lance Armstrong was given the same opportunity to come forward and be part of the solution. He rejected it," Tygart said.

"Instead he exercised his legal right not to contest the evidence and knowingly accepted the imposition of a ban from recognised competition for life and disqualification of his competitive results from 1998 forward."

The UCI has challenged USADA's authority to bring charges against Armstrong but WADA backed USADA's jurisdiction and power to press the case.

Armstrong holds a placard reading 'six' for six-straight wins of the Tour de France. Source: AP

The UCI could appeal the sanctions against Armstrong to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Three US Postal team members - director Johan Bruyneel, doctor Pedro Celaya and trainer Jose Marti - have chosen to contest the charges and face a public hearing on the matter, likely later this year.

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Gillard slams 'deeply offensive' Credlin joke

A COMEDIAN'S off-colour remarks about Tony Abbott and his female chief of staff has led to a rebuke of a major union from Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

The joke at a CFMEU dinner last night was unacceptable, the Prime Minister said today.

She was not at the dinner when the comment about Mr Abbott and his chief adviser Peta Credlin was made by a comedian known as Fair Go For Billionaires.

"I was not in attendance when these remarks were made at the CFMEU dinner last night but I did hear this morning that offensive remarks had been made,'' Ms Gillard said.

"Let me be very clear on the reports - to me the remarks that were made are deeply offensive. They are wrong. The comments should never have been made. It was wrong for them to have been made and offensive for them to have been made.

"In those circumstances as soon as I possibly could I rang the national secretary of the CFMEU and indicated that I thought these comments were offensive.''

Ms Gillard said that "clearly there is no place for offensive comments of this nature''.

The battle over who is sexist continued in Parliament House today but Mr Abbott was given strong backing by Malcolm Turnbull who said there was no evidence the Opposition Leader treated women badly.

The shadow communications minister who regularly rates as more popular than Mr Abbott in polls said the Opposition Leader was "doing a very good job''.

"I don't see how you can reasonably say on the basis of the objective evidence that this is a man who either hates women or treats women with less respect than he treats men,'' said Mr Turnbull.

The Turnbull endorsement came as the Government renewed its attacks on Mr Abbott for sexism and claims he dislikes women.

He said the accusations were not "washing'' with the public: "What is the objective evidence for the proposition that Tony Abbott hates women or treats women with a lack of respect?'' he told the TEN network.

Mr Turnbull said he would "struggle to see why they pursue it''.

He urged Mr Abbott to be authentic'' to convince voters.

"Tony Abbott is who he is. He's a very well known public figure. He's been around a long time. And people can fork a judgement on him.''

The Prime Minister said she would continue to "call out sexism and misogyny where I see it''.

"And I made that point very clearly in the Parliament on (Tuesday), as for the reaction that's a matter for the people who have reacted. That was my purpose,'' she said.

"I believe Mr Abbott should be held to account for the things he said in public life. What I referred to on Tuesday actually, when the House first sat. What I referred to in the House on Tuesday weren't ancient statements. They weren't statements that he's made at private events.''

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