The death of 39-year old Anna Nicole Smith yesterday, in a South Florida casino hotel, comes as a shock but not as a surprise. Her life has been filled with drama which has been taking a dark turn since the birth of her daughter late last year and the sudden death of her son a few days later.

Now there are many questions that remain unanswered, at least for now:

• Was her death an accident, a suicide, or something more?
• Did she accidentally contribute to her son’s death? Did her new husband?
• Who is the father of her daughter? Her new husband? Her ex-boyfriend? Or the third man no one wants to talk about?
• What will happen to her daughter if paternity tests ID an unexpected father?
• Was a pre-nup in place when Anna Nicole married Howard K.? Or does he inherit the massive fortune still being fought over in the courts?
• Or does that fortune pass to Anna Nicole’s infant daughter and the parent or guardian yet to be determined?
• And, on a much lesser note, how will her death affect TrimSpa’s current court case and future advertising? 

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Today, a friend forwarded this email to me. Before I panicked or forwarded it to my list of friends, I searched to see if there had been any postings about this. Turns out this urban legend started making the rounds in 2000:

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This morning I watched the music video “Runaway Love” by rapper Ludacris, featuring singer Mary J. Blige. I’m from the generation that grew up watching “Ozzie and Harriett” (I can hear the majority of you asking “who?”) and listening to love songs by Frankie Avalon, Fabian, and Elvis.

Back then, nobody “did it” before their wedding night, at least that’s what they claimed.

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I try to stay away from all the reality shows on television but, for the past couple of seasons, I’ve been hooked on a couple of Bravo TV’s shows: Project Runway and Top Chef. Most of the time I agree with the person the judges choose for the top prize. This time, they picked the wrong person when they chose Ilan as Top Chef.

Because these shows are “entertainment,” keeping the tension going between contestants draws a larger viewership. The fine print, wedged among the credits at the end of each show, says that the judges discuss their decision with Bravo producers and that may affect the outcome. No doubt it has for many of the shows, eliminating a talented competitor so that a more controversial one could move forward.

For the final competition for this season of Top Chef, Marcel, the chef nobody liked, and Ilan, the chef who got along with almost everyone, went head to head. In the end, Ilan, the lesser talent, got the Top Chef crown and $100,000.

Throughout the competition, Marcel produced extraordinary food under extremely difficult conditions. Throughout it all, he kept a sense of calm which didn’t go over well with the other competitors who let the stress get to them. Perhaps if he had broken down, thrown things, gotten upset, they would have liked him more. Instead, he didn’t let situations sway him from his goal of producing the best food possible.

For the final challenge, four former competitors were brought back to assist the two finalists. The fact that all four wanted Ilan to win didn’t help Marcel in the kitchen and yet he prepared a magnificent meal despite shortcomings by the two assistants he chose.

Despite the politics behind the judges’ choice, and the immature behavior of other contestants, Marcel consistently proved he was and is the Top Chef. Sometimes the better man doesn’t win. This was one of those times.

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