Top Ten 2006 Celebrity Embarrassing Moments, What Were They Thinking?

As 2006 draws to an end and we take a moment to reflect on the past year, it's time to recall a few embarrassing celebrity moments. These are celebrity moments that make you wonder, "What were they thinking!" And, lets face it, for several members of this list of celebrity shame, "What were they drinking...and how drunk were they when they did or said this?" From bad choices to out right tragedies, this year has a full list of noteworthy celebrities.

Part of being a celebrity is getting your face and name in the news and being talked about. It comes with the territory and is an intrinsic part of the job. Not all press coverage is positive and career building, as these examples clearly show. The coverage these celebrities received has been career or image damaging at best, some circumstances are even tragic. One slip of the tongue, drunk tirade or foolish choice can be remembered for years to come. Talent, good looks, charm and box office draw can all be forgotten in a second and overshadowed by one moment of stupidity or just plain human imperfection.

To be fair, none of us are perfect and we all have bad days. But these celebrities have had some very bad days indeed in 2006. It must be very difficult to have cameras catching your every move, your every mistake. But I'd like to think that if most of us had cameras following us, we'd never put ourselves in the embarrassing or scandalous situations these celebrities were caught in.

1) Michael Richards - Wins the 1st place award for most public racist tirade.

Michael Richards has been known for years for portraying the kooky, eccentric, but lovable character of "Kramer," from the hit television show "Seinfeld." While performing in a comedy club, he was supposedly heckled by several men who happened to be African-American. No one likes heckling, it's frustrating and just plain rude. But Michael Richard's reaction to this heckling was excessive, uncalled for and unacceptable.

Mr. Richards retaliated at his African-American hecklers with a profanity and racially slurred tirade. He repeatedly used the "n word," in a context in which he appeared to be calling his hecklers the "n word." Usage of the "n word" is unacceptable and is generally considered violently racist toward those of African-American decent. These racist remarks were witnessed not only by the audience members but by the television viewing public also. A "bleeped out" recording of his remarks was heavily aired on the media. Even with the editing, the profanity and racial slurs were clearly understandable to those listening.

There was a lot more than just the anger and frustration of the alleged hecklers' rude behavior. Sheer rage and racial hatred were clearly shown in his remarks and in the way he delivered him. This has caused a huge blow to his career. It's unclear if he can redeem himself and his career. Public apologies, while a nice start, can't clear this one up by themselves. He needs to start with some anger management courses and education on why this word is so offensive to those of an African-American heritage. Then more public apologies are in order combined with some community service activities geared toward helping African-Americans. Perhaps some public donations of time and money to African American charities and organizations? Michael Richards, WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!

2)Mel Gibson-Wins the 2nd place award for most public racist tirade. Honorable mention for worst public drunkenness and drunkdriving.

I listed Michael Richards before Mel Gibson only because his initial remarks were heard by a larger audience than Mel Gibson's were. It is not listing racism toward African-American's as more serious than toward those of Jewish faith or descent. Both acts are equally inexcusable.

Mel Gibson has been a fixture in the movie industry for well over twenty years. His many films such as the "Lethal Weapon" series have made him a bankable box office star and a household name. Mel Gibson is very public about his faith as a devout Catholic. His controversial film, "The Passion of the Christ," was a bold undertaking and a huge career risk. There is some irony about Mel's antisemitic remarks, as everyone knows-Jesus was Jewish. For a man who professes a great love and respect for Jesus, a Jew, making anti-Semitic remarks is somewhat contradictory.

Mel Gibson was pulled over for driving under the influence of alcohol. When arrested he angrily made some anti-Semitic remarks that were leaked out by the arresting police department. Mercifully, at least there wasn't a video tape leaked out of this. Gibson has publicly apologized, using his drunkenness as an excuse.

First of all, no one should get that drunk. Second of all, if one foolishly decides to get that drunk, they should absolutely never get behind the wheel. Drunk driving in inexcusable for anyone. Personally, I feel that the very first time one is caught drunk driving they should loose their driver's license for at least a year. Drunk driving endangers many innocent lives and is a very selfish, careless crime. To me, the drunk driving alone is enough to boycott Mel Gibson's movies.

Being drunk does not make one say things that just "magically appear" out of nowhere. Drunkenness loosens inhibitions, it doesn't create prejudices. The racial prejudice had to be there before the drunk comments were made. Like, Michael Richards, Mr. Gibson needs both anger management and racial tolerance training. He needs to tour the Holocaust museum in Washington, DC.. Or even better, tour some of the actual concentration camps in Germany. If seeing the human cost of racism didn't change someone's heart, than nothing will. He also needs to make more public apologies and involve himself with some Jewish-American charities donating time and money. Will this ruin Mel Gibson's career? Will "Apocalypto" be the last movie he makes? Mel Gibson, WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!

3) O.J. Simpson-Wins the award for most brazen disrespect of his family (and possibly for murderer of the year. Did he or didn't he? )

Is O.J. Simpson a murderer? Only he, his victims and God know for sure. O.J. Simpson was acquitted at his criminal trial but fined in civil court for the brutal murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman in 1994. With a highly publicized and televised car chase and murder trial he brought just as mixed verdicts in the court of public opinion as he did in the courtroom. Simpson fathered two children with the late Nicole. I can only imagine the pain and agony those poor children went through loosing their mother and having their father accused of being the murderer. Weather or not Simpson is the killer, and weather or not those poor children believe he did or didn't do it-for them they really lost both parents. Besides their mother's murder and the obvious loss connected with that, they lost their father too in a way. Their relationship with their father was changed forever, seeds of doubt and distrust placed-weather rightly so or not.

To publicly dredge up the waters and make his children and the family members of both Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman relieve their pain and loss is inexcusable. Simpson wrote a book, "If I did it," that was supposedly a hypothetical examination of how he would have committed the murders-IF he did them. Because of the rules of double jeopardy, Simpson could shout from the rooftops that he killed them and was glad he did it-and he could never be tried again in criminal court for the murders. Is this a thinly veiled confession or is it a very sick and twisted publicity stunt for money? It's hard to say. For those who thought he was innocent, this may make them rethink their opinion. Mercifully, the book and many of the interviews related to it, were not released. Did he do it or is he just incredibly twisted-or both? O.J. Simpson, WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!

4) Britney Spears - Wins the pantiless pop tart of the year award.

Just a few short years ago Britney Spears was a top pop artist. Love her or hate her, you have to acknowledge her power. Her midriff baring, Lolitaesque gyrating made her an icon and a sex symbol. Millions of young girls wanted to be like her and dress like her in her overly sexy, inappropriate outfits-much to the horror of their parents. After marrying the rather unkempt, much joked about Kevin Federline, her life and her career slipped further into turmoil. Several years and two baby boys later, she's finally dumping the creep. She appeared to be trying to get her life together and move on with her career. And then came Paris Hilton...

Britney wasn't exactly a clean cut young girl anymore long before she befriended scandalous quasi-socialite Paris Hilton. Britney was repeatedly seen out with party girl Paris Hilton. For a young mother trying to clean up her image, this was not a smart move. And then the panties came off...Britney was photographed several times getting out of vehicles obviously not wearing any underwear. As any woman will tell you skirts do ride up getting out of a car, and that is just one of the many reasons decent women wear underwear-especially when your skirt is a short as Britney's was. I haven't personally seen the pictures, but from what was publicized about them-the crotch shots leave nothing to the imagination. Britney, we don't want to see your naughty bits!

Britney isn't a stranger to controversy. Between her risque career and her mishaps with her children, her image has been severely tarnished. Last year she was photographed driving with her infant son sitting on her lap instead of the car seat he was supposed to be in by law and by common sense and decency. She was also photographed with the car seat facing the wrong direction. Britney was also filmed almost dropping her infant son on a sidewalk of New York City. Britney succeeded in enraging indignant mothers everywhere by her negligent, dangerous behavior. Between the negligence and excessive partying, it won't come as a surprise if at some point in the future she looses legal custody of her children. Britney needs to take some parenting classes, quit partying and go home and take care of her children-and for goodness sakes, girl, wear some panties! Britney Spears-WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!

5) Dick Cheney- Wins the award for worst hunting buddy.

Dick Cheney, vice president of the United States, is a powerful and influential man. Agree with or disagree with his politics and views, there's no denying that he's in a position of great power and responsibility. For those who hate guns, this is an example of their evil. For those who love guns, this is an example of why you really need to be very careful or you might hurt, maim or kill someone. Those who find hunting morally wrong, will especially gloat in this story. And hunters, please be careful! You really don't want to pull a "Dick Cheney."

Dick Cheney was hunting with a friend when a shooting mishap occurred. Mr. Cheney accidentally shot his friend in the face and chest with bird shot. His friend, mercifully survived, but was badly hurt. Accidents will happen and can be forgivable. Besides the embarrassment factor, there's a worse problem with this accident. It's the way it was handled, or rather not handled by Mr. Cheney and his representatives.

After the story was reported on the news, it came out that the reporting of the story was delayed by the White House. Mr. Cheney also didn't speak about the incident publicly until several days later. It's understandable that it was an accident and that he wanted to put it behind him. But what is inexcusable was the bad attitude he had when he spoke about it. Mr. Cheney came across as unrepentant and not very sorry about the accident. He didn't seem very concerned about his friend and the pain he had caused him, although inadvertently. He just seemed irritated that he had to answer to the public about what had happened.

Myself, I'm not a gun person or a hunter. But if I were a famous person and this happened, I'd want to be profusely apologizing to my friend publicly all day long. When Mr. Cheney's friend made a press statement while recovering from the hospital, this just made things worse. His friend looked terrible and was in pretty bad shape. What his friend was basically saying in the conference was, "Don't bother Dick Cheney about this..." It was like he was blaming himself. I felt so sorry for that man. Dick Cheney needs some gun safety classes, and to make a very big public apology to his injured friend. A bit more humility and sensitivity wouldn't hurt either, nor would a large and expensive gift to his injured friend. Dick Cheney, "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!"

6) Tom Cruise - Wins the award from most insensitivity to post-partum depression.

Despite what you may think about his couch jumping on the "Oprah Winfrey Show," his May-December romance with Katie Holmes or his being a pushy Scientology spokesman, Tom Cruise is still very much a bankable movie star. Sure, he's been over exposed the past few years with the couch jumping and all. And yes, most folks think Scientology is pretty weird. But his remarks about Brooke Shields and women with post-par tum depression could be potentially dangerous.

While I cannot agree with his criticism of Brooke Shields or others who have taken psychiatric medication, I do share his concerns about many psychiatric medications such as anti-depressants and tranquilizers. Yes, they are over prescribed, can have dangerous side effects and are often like putting a band-aid on a gaping hole and hoping it heals itself. Some good talk therapy should almost always be prescribed with the medication to help one get the tools to work through depression. Personally I've seen several people close to me have very bad reactions to antidepressants. One person I know very closely who was never suicidal before, became suicidal from just a few doses of a common anti-depressant. Mercifully friends and family members were there to realize what was going on and speak with her doctor about her sudden change in her state of mind and the medication being the cause of the problem. This is a dirty little secret the doctors and drug companies don't tell you about. Don't even get me started on chemical dependence to medications and how violently ill people become when they have to discontinue them.

Depression is a very real, serious disease that can be life threatening if one becomes suicidal. Psychiatric medication, just like all medication, has it's risks and benefits and everyone reacts differently and sometimes unpredictably to it. But, sadly, sometimes it is an absolute necessity. Brooke Shields battled a severe and debilitating case of post-partum depression, as do millions of other women. It was very brave of her to speak out about it to educate and help others. It had to take a lot of courage to admit to the fact that she was afraid she could actually hurt her child in the mental state she was in. While I obviously don't know Brooke Shields, she doesn't seem like the type of person who would deliberately hurt her child. Her story speaks of the severity of post-partum depression. It was a good thing she realized she needed help before she harmed herself or her child because of an unbalanced mental state that she had no control over. It was a very good thing that she took the medication she obviously desperately needed and that it helped her get though this.

Tom Cruise, being a man, has no first-hand knowledge of how powerful female hormones can be. I can guarantee you that if Katie Holmes, the mother of his child, had gotten in such a severe mental state and couldn't get out of it without medication, he'd be grateful for her taking the medication. I truly think in his defense, that he really thought he was trying to be helpful and save people from the potential dangers of medication. But his remarks felt like a slap in the face to women everywhere with post-partum depression and everyone who's ever had to take psychiatric medication. Urging caution about medication is one thing, and probably a good thing. But saying that medication is never necessary is a foolish and risky thing to say. The idea that someone who desperately needs medication might stop it or forgo it because of these comments is dangerous. What if someone hurt themselves or someone else because of listening to what Tom Cruise said? That would truly be a tragedy.

At least Tom Cruise apologized to Brooke Shields. She was reportedly in attendance at his recent wedding to Katie Holmes. That was a very nice gesture, but more is needed. He needs to publicly apologize and acknowledge the severity of post-partum depression. If one has never been severely depressed, it's very easy to write it off as less serious than it is. He needs to educate himself and then publicly state that sometimes medication is necessary and that if you have thoughts of hurting yourself or others-you need medication, even with all the risks. Will all the couch hopping and excessive publicity of his romance with Katie Holmes harm his career? Will he be sued by the family of someone who kills them self and leaves a note saying, "Tom Cruise told me to stop taking medication...?" Tom Cruise, you were probably the only one on the list who actually meant well, but-WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!

7) Nicole Ritchie- Wins the award for most scarily skinny celebrity caught driving under the influence.

Even if you're not a fan of Nicole Ritchie, one look at her tiny emaciated frame tells you this poor troubled girl needs some help. Nicole is famous for being the daughter of pop singer Lionel Ritchie. She is also famous as Paris Hilton's on-again, off-again best friend and for starring in the "Simple Life" reality show with Paris. There is a lot of pressure in the entertainment industry for unrealistic expectations of beauty and being ridiculously underweight is praised, if not a requirement of the industry. A few examples of dangerously skinny celebrities are "Posh" Spice, Laura Flynn Boyle, Mary Kate Olsen, Kate Bosworth and Calista Flockhart.

Now Nicole Ritchie tops this list with her weight being reported on her arrest report as 85 lbs on her tiny 5'1 frame. As is obvious just from looking at her, this girl is in trouble and needs some serious help. Nicole was recently arrested in California for driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. There is absolutely no excuse for taking illegal drugs nor abusing prescription drugs. If a person is hurting emotionally so badly that they feel the need to self-medicate with illicit drugs or even abusing prescription drugs-they need to get some serious professional help and perhaps psychiatric medication. There is no excuse for anyone to ever drive drunk, or even under the influence of alcohol at all. Because of her past legal troubles for drugs, Nicole Ritchie may be in serious legal trouble in addition to her personal troubles.

Nicole needs to start eating, and enter a good treatment program for eating disorders, drugs and possibly alcohol. She needs help even more than she needs to be punished for her driving under the influence. But she should loose her license and perform quite a few hours of community service for her drunk driving. If she doesn't get her act cleaned up, and gets caught again-she may even go to jail, and frankly if she doesn't chose to save her self-this could be the wake-up call that saves her life. Nicole Ritchie, eat some food, get some mental health help, quit the drugs and excessive drinking and never drive drunk again!-WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!

8) Pamela Anderson- Wins the what did you see in him and we knew it wouldn't last awards.

I can't say that I'm a big fan of Pamela Anderson, but must admit that even she can do far better than Kid Rock. After breaking up a few years ago, they got back together and wed in three different wedding ceremonies. Kid Rock is not exactly husband of the year material. One look at him and you can see he is just not a good guy. Pamela Anderson, while not the sharpest knife in the drawer, can surely do better than him. Pamela Anderson is famous for her role on "Baywatch," as well as her ample figure. Her past marriage to another loser, rocker Tommy Lee, produced two children and an infamous sex tape. Reportedly she also caught hepatitis from him. So obviously she doesn't have a good track record or good taste in men. When she foolishly married Kid Rock it was just a matter of time before the marriage imploded.

I think Pamela could clean her act up and find a nice guy, if she wanted to. She needs to leave the bad boy rockers alone and find a nice guy. Pam, quit making the same mistakes over and over again. Pamela Andersron-WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!

8) Anna Nicole Smith-Wins the award for being publicly evicted from her home and the most publicly fought paternity battle.

Anna Nicole Smith is famous for being a former Playboy Playmate, the former face of Guess Jeans, and for her former bizarre self-titled reality show. She is also famous for her short marriage to the extremely elderly and extremely wealthy J. Howard Marshall and her court battles over his fortune. Anna Nicole's bizarre behavior and slurred speech on her reality show made many wonder what she was under the influence of. She was recently the face for Trim-Spa diet pills, which allegedly helped her loose much of the weight she had gained.

She gave birth to a daughter, Danilynn, in a hospital in the Bahamas. Within days of her daughter's birth her son was found dead in her hospital room. This of course, is a tragedy that must have been horrible for her. There was much public speculation about the cause of her son's death. It was last reported that it was combination on psychiatric drugs and illicit drugs that caused his sudden, youthful death.

In the midst of all her tragedy, Anna has been embroiled with a paternity battle with Larry Birkhead, a photographer, who claims to be the father of her child. Anna claims that her longtime lawyer, whom she may or may not be legally wed to, is the father of her daughter. Anna and Howard K. Stern, her lawyer, had a commitment ceremony just weeks after her daughter's birth and her son's sudden death. This spawned a lot of controversy that this was not appropriate behavior for a grieving mother. While a bit unexpected and poorly timed, I say let her try and find some happiness. It's good when someone tries to move past grief, even when others may not understand their motives or appreciate the timing.

Now Anna, her daughter and Stern are reportedly being evicted from their home in the Bahamas that they claim they properly own. Who owns the house? Who is the rightful father of her daughter? Are Anna and Stern legally married? Is he just using her for her money? Anna, needs to get a paternity test and a new lawyer. Even if Stern's being honest with her as a lawyer, it's best she have a lawyer that she's not romantically involved with. And, Anna, please no more reality shows-Anna Nicole Smith-WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?

9) Madonna - Wins the most offensive desecration of a religious icon for her faux crucification on her stage show.

Madonna has always been controversial and probably will always continue to be so. Now a married woman and mother of two in her 40's, she continues reinvent herself, keeping her long running career afloat. From her pornographic "Sex," book, to kissing an African-American Jesus in her "Like a Prayer," video, Madonna has shown that she doesn't care what anyone thinks. From suggestive lyrics and dancing as well as a turbulent personal life, she's had her share of criticism, much of it rightly deserved. Although, the recent uproar over her adopting a son from Africa, is quite ridiculous. People should just be glad when a child gets a home instead of suffering in an orphanage. I don't know what kind of a mother she is, but the poor kid has a better chance for a good life with her than in some third world orphanage.

Madonna, who was admittedly raised a Catholic has been embroiled with much religious controversy. Her involvement with the Jewish mystical movement of Kabbalah has raised a lot of attention. But her faux crucification on a cross on her "Confessions on the Dance Floor" tour may have gone too far. Madonna climbs up upon a mirrored glass and metal cross, her arms out stretched in a crucifixion pose-not to mention she's wearing a crown of thorns. The Catholic church was outraged and this was banned from many of her performances due to local prohibitions and outrage. To many people, she desecrated a religious symbol that they hold sacred. Madonna needs to use more caution about bringing her religious beliefs of disdain for certain religions into her performances. She is risking ruining her career. Madonna-WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!

10) Steve Irwin-Wins a posthumous award for most ironic death.

Poor Steve Irwin. Beloved by many for his popular show, "The Crocodile Hunter," his loss was felt around the globe. He truly loved all animals and wanted to educate people about them. His work with dangerous animals, reptiles and fish was dangerous by nature. But Steve Iriwn always seemed to have a confident recklessness about him. His show was different than anything anyone had ever seen before. No where else did any naturalist take such unwarranted risks with animals. It was like a train wreck about to happen, you just knew that one day one of his near-misses would be the death of him. Personally I thought a snake bite or a crocodile attack would be what would cause his untimely death.

Alas, he was swimming with sting rays, when a freak accident occurred. Sting rays are generally known to be gentle. Tourists often swim with them in tropical locals. Children pet them at theme parks such as "Sea World." It's unclear if he startled the sting ray or if he just moved to the wrong place at the wrong time. Either way, he was impaled by the sting ray, leading to his death. He left behind his wife, Terri, and two children as well as millions of fans.

Even if he appeared quite reckless when dealing with dangerous creatures, his enthusiasm and genuine love for all creatures was contagious. His controversy a few years ago over an incident when he was feeding a crocodile while holding his infant son was a cause of much well deserved criticism. Most sane people wouldn't even get that close to a crocodile, mush less allow their child to be that close to a crocodile, much less while feeding one. The worst part was the "baby dancing" when he appeared to tease the crocodile by jiggling his infant son around in front of the crocodile. This was, in my opinion, wanton child endangerment. As sad as I am Steve Irwin is gone, I am however glad that he didn't end up getting his wife or children killed in a stunt for his show. If he were still with us, I'd encourage him to be more careful and to leave his family out of his act. It's a shame he's not here to ask him, Steve Irwin-WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!! Steve Irwin, we'll miss you...

Honorable Mentions:

Rush Limbaugh -Award for calling a truly sick person a "fake" - for his accusations that Michael J. Fox was faking the severity of his illness.

Rosie O'Donnell-Award for being overly sensitive about homophobia - for her accusation that Kelly Rippa's comment about Clay Aiken's putting his hand on her mouth allegedly being homophobic.

Denise Richards-Award for stealing your best friends husband - for playing a role in the breakup of her friend Heather Locklear and Ritchie Sambora's marriage.

Paris Hilton-Award for the worst pseudo-celebrity rock album - for her incredibly bad debut CD.

Lindsey Lohan-Award for being publicly reprimanded - for a movie studio executive publicly dressing her down for her tardiness and bad behavior on set.