Trump pageant chief in hot water
Nevada has a new executive director of Miss Nevada USA, and Donald Trump has another provocative personality to boost ratings.
Shanna Moakler, a former Miss USA and co-head of the Miss California USA organization, confirmed on Friday that she has succeeded Maureen Atwell as Nevada's executive director.
It didn't take long for Moakler to find herself knee-deep in hot water.
A check of Moakler's Twitter feed revealed a racy bio for the former Miss New York USA.
Under her name and Twitter handle were the words: "Wicked Awesome in bed."
About 10 minutes later, it read: "In Bed Wicked Awesome" and the "Wicked Awesome" line was moved under her photo.
Asked to comment on the bio, she emailed: "lol, no comment." LOL is a social media acronym for Laugh Out Loud.
"I look forward to making Nevada the next power state," she added.
Brenda Mendoza, public relations director for Trump's Miss Universe organization, which includes the Miss USA competition, also declined comment.
Moakler, a director of Miss California USA for three years, helped Alyssa Campanella with the Miss USA title a year before a nasty split with co-director Keith Lewis.
Atwell, of San Diego, ran the Miss Nevada USA competition for the past eight years. Atwell took a job with the Miss Universe organization.
Trump's pageant has had its share of recent controversies.
Miss USA 2006 Tara Conner was sent to rehab by Trump after drinking underage and testing positive for a number of illegal drugs. Photos surfaced of her kissing Miss Teen USA Katie Blair of Montana.
Miss Nevada USA Katie Rees was dethroned for lurid party photographs.
Miss California USA 2009 Carrie Prejean, the Miss USA first runner-up, was asked to resign by Trump for "continued breach of contract issues." She was partially nude in a steamy video.
The 1991 Miss USA winner, Kelli McCarty of Kansas, went from pageant queen to porn films. While pursuing an acting career, she played Beth in the soap opera "Passions" before moving into adult films.
THE SCENE AND HEARD
An HBO crew was filming the final hours of freedom of boxing champion Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s on Friday when he started serving an 87-day sentence. HBO plans to air it this fall. ... The Playboy Club will close after tonight's farewell party. The Playboy logo was removed Wednesday. It was destroyed in the process, at the request of Playboy officials, who had in their agreement that many of the trademarked items would be returned or destroyed, according for former Palms owner George Maloof. He was allowed to keep a table featuring a montage of photographs taken during the past 6½ years. ...
Miss Rhode Island USA Olivia Culpo and Miss Texas USA Brittany Lynn Booker are narrow favorites to win the Miss USA 2012 competition, according to the Wynn Las Vegas sports and race book director John Avello. Culpo is the 9-1 favorite. Booker is 10-1. Miss Pennsylvania is 11-1, Miss Alaska, 12-1; Miss Ohio, 15-1 and Miss California 16-1. The odds are posted for entertainment value only, no wagering. ...
SIGHTINGS
Andy Cohen, the Bravo executive behind "Top Chef" and the "Housewives" franchise, dining at Blue Ribbon Sushi (Cosmopolitan) on Friday after a book signing for his memoir "Most Talkative: Stories of the Front Lines of Pop Culture."
THE PUNCH LINE
"Hello 9-1-1? It's me again." - From David Letterman's Top Ten Things You Don't Want to Hear at a Barbecue.
Norm Clarke can be reached at 702-383-0244 or norm@reviewjournal.com. Find additional sightings and more online at www.normclarke.com. Follow Norm on Twitter @Norm_Clarke.
