Well Excuse Me: Pop's Top Apologies. Embarrassing!

Hugh Grant on Leno - To Forgive is Divine:

"What were you thinking?" Has public sentiment regarding a celebrity scandal ever been captured as succinctly as through those four simple words? Leno's irreverent, yet penetrating, opening question during Hugh Grant's 1995 'Tonight Show' interview was a cultural turning point.

The 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' star was caught with prostitute Divine Brown in a car while still dating the bodacious Liz "Now THAT'S a dress" Hurley. Grant got through the scandal relatively unscathed, using his self-deprecating charm and floppy locks to extricate himself from this mess and set the stage for a career resurgence. And Leno used the attention the appearance attracted to his advantage, finally overtaking David Letterman in the ratings, a position he held until leaving the 'Tonight Show' in 2009. By the way, speaking of Dave...

Not Lewinsky. ANOTHER Intern. The David Letterman Sex Scandal:

Man, did Dave have a couple of bumpy months in 2009. After a CBS News employee attempted to blackmail him for $2 million, Letterman eventually confessed in his preferred court of public opinion (e.g. on 'The Late Show with David Letterman') by stating that he had affairs with some unnamed female staffers. What probably should have been a time of unbridled joy after marrying long-time girlfriend Regina Lasko, the mother of his son Harry, became, well, difficult.



Goodbye Ms. Congeniality Title. Hello Carrie Prejean's Beauty Pageant Tumble:

It's always when you take the moral high-ground that you get knocked off your proverbial moral high-horse. When Miss USA 2009 pageant contestant Carrie Prejean was asked (some would say ambushed) about her views on gay marriage by gossip blogger Perez Hilton, her answer started a storm of controversy. But that was only a Category 1 hurricane. Law suits, an awkward interview on 'Larry King Live,' windy topless boat photos and a scandalous solo sex tape bumped Prejean into Category 5. And her hair still has not recovered.




Charlie Sheen + $50,000 + Heidi "Hollywood Madame" Fleiss = One Entertaining Trial:

Another classic celebrity sex scandal. Charlie Sheen had just become married to model Donna Peele and everything was looking good for this notorious Hollywood bad boy. Then came the trial. You know, the one involving all those prostitutes.

Sheen testified in the case of "Hollywood Madame" to the stars Heidi Fleiss that he frequently used her call girl service, spending over $50,000 on prostitution services.

Then, after his marriage fell apart, he openly dated two adult film actresses -- Ginger Lynn Allen and Brittany Ashland. Quick, somebody get Charlie a PR agent! Stat!



Disturbia: An End to Chris Brown and Rihanna's Fairytale:

A doozy of a celebrity couple scandal ushered in 2009. Popster Chris Brown, arguably one of the best singer-dancers since Michael Jackson, allegedly assaulted then-girlfriend Rihanna after a furious argument inside a car. Pictures of the battered pop songstress were as disturbing as they were public. Neither has completely healed.

Despite an apology, Brown's career has yet to right itself and Rihanna's most-recent confessional album, which touched on the incident in question, did not sell as well as expected. But give her props for confronting the incident so publicly and with such class.



"These peanuts are making me ... racist?!?" 'Seinfeld's' Kramer Implodes on Stage:
As Jerry Seinfeld's lovable neighbor Cosmo Kramer, Michael Richards was all goofball sensibilities and insane physical comedy. A wacky-but-lovable boy next door. Just don't go to a comedy club with him.

A patron's cell phone at West Hollywood's Laugh Factory caught Richards screaming, "Shut up" to hecklers as well as some horrific racial epithets. He later apologized on 'Letterman' and to civil rights leaders Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. He has since retired from live stand-up comedy. Acting parts have been few and far between, with the exception of the Seinfeld cast's recent reunion on 'Curb Your Enthusiasm.'

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