Posted Nov 17th 2009 1:10PM by TMZ Staff
Far be it from ABC to pay for interviews -- something they say they don't do -- but they will pay to stuff the stomachs of those they interview and then drive them comfortably to their hotel ... which is exactly what happened with the Heene family last night.
We got the entire Balloon Family out for a fabulous sushi dinner at Ocean Grill in NYC.
Sources told TMZ that ABC paid the tab. We contacted ABC and they acknowledged they broke tuna rolls with the Balloons and did foot the bill.
Now here's the best part -- a source at GMA says, "We did not pay for a limo to drive them around the city. We did have a car service (SUV) take the family as they required a bigger car. "
Filed under: Exclusives, Balloon Boy
Tags: balloon boy, balloon dad, BalloonBoy, BalloonDad, falcon heene, FalconHeene, mayumi heene, MayumiHeene, new york, NewYork, richard heene, RichardHeene
Posted Nov 13th 2009 10:46AM by TMZ Staff
Richard and Mayumi Heene just pled guilty to a felony and misdemeanor charge, respectively, stemming from the Balloon Boy hoax.
Neither will be sentenced today. Another hearing has been set for December 23.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Balloon Boy
Tags: balloon boy, balloon dad, BalloonBoy, BalloonDad, falcon, guilty, hoax, plea, plead, pled, richard heene, RichardHeene
Posted Oct 20th 2009 2:18PM by TMZ Staff
Richard Heene had a well-documented criminal history with a common thread -- going ballistic under pressure.
First of all, we've now found three criminal cases against Balloon Dad. In 1984, Heene was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon -- a gun -- and received three years probation.
In 1991, in San Bernardino, CA., Heene was arrested for corporal injury on a spouse. It appears he was not convicted.
Now get this ... we broke the story yesterday that in 1997 Heene pled no contest to vandalism and spent four days in jail. Wait 'til you hear what happened.
Heene, a contractor at the time, had an employee who didn't get paid. The employee went to Heene's home to get his $300 and an argument ensued.
We're told Heene got physical with the guy inside the house, the employee walked out and Heene gave him $140 of the $300 he owed. The employee, Benito Ortiz, was dissatisfied and the argument continued.
According to the arrest report, Heene got in his pickup truck, backed up and apparently tried to hit the dude. The employee got out of harm's way and Heene struck the employee's VW.
After hitting the VW, Heene pulled forward several feet, then put the vehicle back in reverse and collided again with Ortiz.
But wait, there's more. Heene did it a third time.
Finally, Heene parked, got out of his truck, picked up a wooden beam, held it over his head and screamed at Ortiz, "Get the f**k away."
Heene later told cops .... during the conflict Ortiz struck him, he became "incoherent" and didn't know what happened next.
In addition to four days in jail, Heene was sentenced to house arrest and ordered to pay $100 in restitution.
Filed under: Celebrity Justice, Exclusives, Balloon Boy
Tags: balloon boy, balloon dad, BalloonBoy, BalloonDad, charges, criminal, gun, jail, probation, rage, richard heene, RichardHeene, vandalism
