Priscilla's Doc BS'd Star after Star
The phony doc who injected Priscilla Presley with industrial-grade silicone used to lubricate auto parts had a scam that proved irresistible to Hollywood's elite.
Someone who got injected by Daniel Serrano spoke with TMZ about getting lured in. Serrano, who was a doctor in Argentina but unlicensed in the U.S., told patients the serum, which he claimed would remove wrinkles, was much better than Botox -- an all-natural drug he said was used by all the top models in Paris. Serrano told his victims they could not get the drug in the U.S. The patient we spoke with said that made all the women go crazy, thinking they were getting something special, and they were -- a lube job.
Serrano was a major name dropper. We're not sure if he really injected all the women he claims, but trust us, there were a lot. The patient we spoke with says she was injected with a needle that was just sitting on a table, unprotected. He didn't clean the needle or clean her face before injecting it.
The injections were "extremely painful." Serrano said there would be no swelling. The patient we spoke with says she blew up like a balloon, and when the swelling finally went down, the drug didn't eliminate lines.
And get this. With Shawn King, Larry's wife, Diane Richie, Lionel's wife at the time, and other famous women, you would think this would be a sign -- he only accepted cash. One woman had to go to the bank because he wouldn't take her personal check. Trust us, that woman had enough in her account to cover it.
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Shirley MacLaine: Out (of Breath) on a Limb
Where's a home health care worker when you need one?!
Wearing cataract shades and orthopedic platform wedges, 73-year-old living legend Shirley MacLaine nearly hacked up a lung as she huffed and puffed through Malibu on Monday -- while carrying her own dry cleaning.
Infirm of endearment!
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Priscilla Presley Victim of Phony Cosmetic Doc
TMZ has learned Priscilla Presley is the victim of a botched cosmetic procedure. What's worse -- it was at the hands of a gigolo who was sent to prison for perpetrating an injectable scam on Hollywood's elite.
Priscilla, whose face looks ... strange on "Dancing with the Stars," went to Dr. Daniel Serrano around 2003. Serrano was a good-looking doc from Argentina who hooked into Hollywood's social A-list and started giving them what he claimed were miracle injections that worked better than Botox.
In fact, Serrano was injecting industrial, low-grade silicone similar to what's used to lubricate auto parts in Argentina into the faces of these women. Several women, including Shawn King, Larry's wife, and Diane Richie, Lionel's wife at the time, held injection parties in their homes, with Serrano needling them with the non-FDA approved drug that he had smuggled in to the U.S. Shawn King has said the injections created a lump in her lip that made it difficult to speak and drink liquids. Serrano charged between $300 and $500 a pop.
But wait, it gets worse. Serrano wasn't even a licensed doc in the U.S. The injections caused lumps, paralysis and holes in the faces of some of the women (and some men) he injected.
Serrano, who was nicknamed Dr. Jiffy Lube, was indicted by the Feds for smuggling drugs, and the conspiracy and use of unapproved drugs. He was convicted, and last week he was released and is currently being investigated by federal immigration officials and could be deported.
BTW, Diane Richie was also indicted as an accomplice. She pled out and was placed on probation.
As for Priscilla -- who had no idea she was being injected with silicone -- we're told she's undergoing corrective work.
Gavin DeGraw Loves the Bitches!
Where would helpless pups be without Gavin DeGraw? The musician was in L.A. last week when a TMZ spy spotted him saving a stray dog.
After seeing the deserted pup was hurting, Gavin and his brother Joey went into 911 mode. According to Gavin's dad, Gavin and Joey took the stray to the vet and paid for all the Rx. And then they found doggie a new home.
Gavin's lick-a-licious!
Soleil Moon's Scary Sunday
TMZ has learned paramedics from the L.A. Fire Department responded to the home of "Punky Brewster" star Soleil Moon Frye Sunday, to treat someone at the home for a possible allergic reaction.
We're told the call to 911 came in around 1:15 PM. Units spent about 15 minutes on the scene and then left, without transporting anyone.
Frye and husband, "Punk'd" creator Jason Goldberg, have a two-year-old daughter Poet Sienna Rose, and just had their second child, another girl named Jagger Joseph Blue Goldberg.
Lindsay's Grandma Injured in Car Wreck
TMZ has learned Marilyn Lohan -- mother of Michael, grandma to Lilo -- was involved in a one-car crash in New York.
We're told Granny Lohan lost control of her Nissan after swerving to avoid an oncoming speeding car and hit a pole and a tree on Woodbury Road in Woodbury, NY just a few hours ago. She was taken to the trauma unit at Nassau University Medical Center, but luckily the hospital tells us she was treated and released about an hour ago.
It has been a rough one, as of late, for the Lohan matriarch as her husband Richard is currently at another Long Island hospital battling cancer.
Wow! Nice Shiner!
WTF happened to jurassic supermodel Lauren Hutton??
The 64-year-old hottie left Mr. Chow with no makeup on Saturday night, accompanied by a big ol' black eye. We're told she injured herself on a photo shoot.
Guess it's hard damn work being a model!
Tejano Star Emilio Navaira Critical After Crash
Grammy-winning Tejano singer Emilio Navaira was critically injured after his band's bus crashed in Houston.
Navaira and his band Rio had performed at a Houston nightclub on Saturday night. Cops say around 5:00 AM Sunday the band's bus slammed into traffic barrels on Interstate 610 northbound in Bellaire, a posh area west of downtown Houston.
Navaira is currently in critical condition at Memorial Hermann Hospital. His brother Raul was also injured in the wreck, along with several other members of the band.
The 45-year-old Navaira and Rio have released more than a dozen albums. "Acuerdate" won the 2003 Grammy for best Tejano album.
Cedars Fined Over Quaid Twin Screw-Up
TMZ has learned the state of California has fined Cedars-Sinai Medical Center $25,000 for giving overdoses of a blood thinner to three infants, including the newborn twins of actor Dennis Quaid.
After investigating, the California Department of Public Health found that hospital personnel failed to follow their own procedures for safe medication use, and that resulted in what they called "preventable medication errors."
Brokefoot Mountain?
Having hurt his ankle playing basketball, Jake Gyllenhaal hobbled on crutches to an L.A. charity luncheon on Wednesday.
With Reese Witherspoon nowhere in sight, looks like Jakey could use the help of a fishin' buddy.
The Ghost Of CoCo's Future
TMZ has exclusively uncovered what Ice-T's legally bound sexual companion, CoCo (who says she is 29), will look like in a few months years -- 77-year-old former B-movie sex kitten, Mamie Van Doren.
It's the breast she'll ever look!
We're just sayin'!
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Ed McMahon Alive, Bent Outta Shape
Ed McMahon looks like he's in serious need of a dip in that pool from "Cocoon."
The 85 year-old was spotted sipping from a McDonald's cup while wearing a neck brace. The "Star Search" host took a nasty tumble last year which left him with a broken neck and two follow-up surgeries. He's currently seeking treatment in rehab, not the Lindsay kind, the physical therapy kind.
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Brit's Psych Ward -- No Cells, No Laptops!
The UCLA psych hospital where Britney Spears spent a 5150 stint earlier this year is now officially a cellphone- and laptop-free zone, after patient photos popped up on the 'net.
It doesn't look like any of the snaps, which appeared on an unnamed "social networking" site, are of the Britwreck, reports the L.A. Times. Still, the hospital is concerned that even though the psych patients supposedly gave their consent to be photographed, they "might not be well-reasoned or fully competent" enough to know what they were getting themselves into.
Dr. Thomas Strouse, the medical director of the Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital, says in a statement that patients will still have access to landlines. The ban actually went into effect March 3, before it was reported that UCLA canned at least 13 workers and suspended six others for snooping in Brit's medical records. The hospital stresses that the two incidents aren't related.
What's Eating Amy?
Is Amy Winehouse really suffering from impetigo? We talked to several board-certified dermatologists for the lowdown.
One doctor said Winehouse might be suffering from MRSA, a dangerous staph bacteria that's resistant to antibiotics.
Another doctor said the problem in figuring it out from the picture is that Amy has so much makeup on, it's hard to see the exact nature of the skin condition.
And still another doc said he didn't think the condition is caused from drug use (not that Amy uses drugs), because the lesions were not oval-shaped, which is a marker. But the plot thickens ... yet another doc said if she picked at the sores, that could change their shape. Dinner, anyone?
BTW, one of the docs -- famed Bev Hills skin doc Arnie Klein -- said, "Amy Winehouse should not be coming into close contact with other people while she has open sores." You'd have to be crazy to do that. Then again, Amy's friends are ...
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Steve-O Is Outta His Freakin' Mind
Steve-O and Britney Spears now have something in common: a 5150 72-hour hold at a Los Angeles hospital. But according to his blog, Stevie boy knows exactly what his problem is.
Steve-O just honest to blogged this morning, hoping to explain his recent problems. Under the headline of "You should all know I am in the looney bin" it reads, "They call it "code 5150," that means "psycho,"legally, f*ckin bat-sh*t, certifiably. I'm outta my mind, believe-you-me. How'd I get this way? How can this be? It's gotten so bad there's nothing left of me."
Steve-o (whose real name is Stephen Glover) also claims his Jackass buddies are the reason he's now getting help, "Johnny Knoxville, Jeff Tremaine, Big Regg, Swizz, Rick Kosick, Dimitry Elyaschevich, Cordell Mansfield, and Trip Taylor came to my home and, physcially [sic], forced me into the hospital."
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Hogans Told To Stay the H*** Away
Tired of what they think are PR stunts, the family of seriously injured John Graziano has reportedly banned the Hogan family from his bedside.
Graziano family attorney Kimberley Kohn told the St. Petersburg Times that she believes the Linda, Brooke and Nick's Valentine's day visit to the hospital was a "a total (public relations) stunt" because pictures of the trip appeared on several celeb websites.