This is the version of the John Mayer mugshot posted on TMZ.com.

UPDATE: John Mayer just posted this on Twitter:

per @harveylevintmz, 25k to be split between two charities: Pet Orphans (http://bit.ly/PXG02) and Ace of Hearts (http://bit.ly/zgXv0).

John Mayer himself promised a $25,000 donation to charity in the event the John Mayer mugshot was found.

We’ll get into the possible reasons that he might have for offering to pay $25,000 for airing his, sort of, “dirty laundry,” but first, let’s talk about the challenge. And the twist!

The challenge

John Mayer issued this challenge via his Twitter account, posting this late last night:

Challenge: if Harvey Levin at TMZ can produce my mugshot, I will donate 25k to the charity of his choice.

Within 14 hours Levin did indeed find the John Mayer mugshot, and it was posted on TMZ. Apparently TMZ won’t be waiting around for an installment loan. Under the headline “John Mayer’s $25,000 mugshot,” the web site wrote “Time to fork over the dough, pal.”

The twist

After the John Mayer mugshot was posted on TMZ, they posted an update:

So The Smoking Gun put the mug up around 5 minutes before us. Before we had it in our hands, we put up a post saying we found the mug and the arrest in Atlanta … which we posted before they got the mug up.

So why would another web site bother to track down the John Mayer mugshot in response to him issuing a challenge specifically to Harvey Levin? Well, let’s ask them …

As you may have read, the musician John Mayer has offered a $25,000 charitable donation for the publication of a mug shot that was taken following his arrest several years ago. While he technically made this offer, via Twitter, to the gossip site TMZ, we figured it applied to any other bounty hunters. Like The Smoking Gun, for example.

A valid argument, I suppose, but I don’t think it’ll stand up in court. But what will John Mayer do? Will he stick to the letter of his challenge or the spirit? The part of TMZ’s post that says “we put up a post saying we found the mug and the arrest in Atlanta” is relevant because the toughest part of locating a mugshot is finding which police department has it. So, it’s possible the Smoking Gun saw TMZ write “Atlanta” and found the John Mayer mugshot after that.

The story behind the John Mayer mugshot

Tuesday, the frontman for Fall Out Boy was arrested on a two-year-old warrant for driving on a suspended license, and apparently that inspired John Mayer to reveal his criminal past on Twitter. Just before John Mayer issued the mugshot challenge, he posted this:

I was arrested for the same offense as Patrick Stump. (FTA). It’s the lamest answer to the question “why you in here?”

John Mayer was arrested in Atlanta in 2001 for driving without a license.

Why the challenge?

So why would John Mayer want to pay someone $25,000 to produce his mugshot? I actually think it a smart idea for a celebrity to lead the charge for getting his arrest record out there.

If a celebrity gossip site had gotten a hold of the fact that John Mayer (or any other celebrity) was arrested, regardless of what it was for, they’d have posted it with big, bold headlines revealing what he’d done, and that would be the story. John Mayer was arrested in 2001.

You don’t think so? Come on, we’ve all seen them post way lamer stuff. Anyway, now the headline is John Mayer mugshot means $25,000 for  charity. What a brilliant way for him to put a very positve spin on it. And to get some extra attention right after announcing his next record’s release date. (It’s Nov. 17.)

No, Jon Gosselin isn’t fired, but it seems he’d certainly be glad if he were. Popular opinion at the time of Jon and Kate’s divorce filing was that “Jon and Kate Plus 8″ should just shut down. Or at lease change its name. Well, there is apparently a shakeup in the works now, as TMZ says Jon Gosselin is trying to start up a different reality show.

He’s also doing things that make TLC very angry, such as wearing clothing with designer labels all over so the network has to blur out all of his clothes. I guess because he doesn’t need a cash advance to get expensive clothes anymore he feels it’s his right. TLC seems to disagree. Here’s the scoop from TV OverMind:

Jon seems to be working overtime lately when it comes to pissing off TLC by dressing up tip to toe in designer duds, prompting the network to blur 90% of his body. Now word comes from TMZ that Jon has been negotiating to appear on another reality show – the negotiations themselves are probably a violation of his TLC contract – called “Divorced Dad’s Club.”

Say what? A new reality show?

Apparently TMZ has reason to believe that Jon Gosselin getting fired is exactly what he wants because he might be able to make more money on a new project. The project would still have cameras on him 24-7, but he wouldn’t have to play second string to Kate anymore. TMZ reports that Jon Gosselin is “wheeling and dealing” for a new reality show.

Jon Gosselin wants to be fired because he is talking to producers about a new show featuring celebrity divorced dads. Rumor has it he’s been talking to Michael Lohan as well as Lindsay Lohan’s manager Mike Heller  and the guy who is producing the show, which has the working title “The Divorced Dads Club.” Even if Jon Gosselin doesn’t get fired from TLC, production company Endemol says “Divorced Dads Club” will be a reality anyway.

Why does Jon Gosselin need to get fired?

TV OverMind makes a good point about why Jon Gosselin should not be working on developing a new reality show:

What would the legal ramifications be for Jon if he were to willfully break his contract with TLC to the detriment of their show. I’m no lawyer, but if Jon Diva’d out because he was scheming to pad his bank account wouldn’t TLC have legal recourse?

The answer, of course, is yes — unless Jon Gosselin gets fired. But of course TLC is not going to fire Jon Gosselin because he’s doing something they could sue him for. The network will probably just wait until he does break his contract; that way TLC won’t be financially liable to Jon Gosselin.

Money troubles

Apparently, the whole Jon Gosselin getting fired thing has been a subject on the minds of “Jon & Kate Plus 8″ producers for a while. TV OverMind says:

Turns out he quickly blew his share of the show money last season, and this season was cut out of financial control by a court order after he was found to be ‘irresponsible.’

Yikes. I guess that explains why Jon Gosselin wants to get fired.

Nona Paris Lola Ankhesenamun Jackson, if that is her real name, has re-filed her civil claims petition alleging that she was Michael Jackson’s secret wife. Just in case this is the first time you’ve heard of Nona Paris Lola Ankhesenamun Jackson, I’ll emphasize the word “re-filed.”

This woman has been trying for quite some time to get her hands on Michael Jackson’s fortune, and his death has given her another opportunity to continue her charade. I don’t know if she’s using short-term loans or Kool-Aid to pay her legal counsel, but her story is so full of holes a lawyer would have to be crazy to help her.

From StarPulse:

The woman who claimed she was the biological mother of Michael Jackson’s three children has re-filed her family law case in Los Angeles Superior Court

Nona Paris Lola Ankhesenamun Jackson, who has claimed to be Jackson’s secret wife, filed for a legal separation from the King of Pop in December and prior to that went public with claims she carried the pop star’s children, Paris, Prince Michael and Prince Michael II, to term – and called Jacko’s official ex, Debbie Rowe, an impostor.

The woman, who has described herself as “a black Jew born in Britain,” also went to court in 2006 in a bid to lay claim to Jackson’s Neverland Ranch, child support payments and shared custody of the pop star’s three children. Nona Jackson claimed she’s known Jackson since he was a teenager, and that she’s written over 3,000 songs for him.

The lawsuit was thrown out in 2006 and rejected again in 2007, but the case wasn’t dismissed completely – Nona Jackson was told to make a better presentation of her evidence.

The biggest Jackson joke

I have heard many, many, many punchlines about Michael Jackson — we all have. But this has got to be the biggest joke that Michael Jackson is involved in I’ve ever heard. This woman filed for child support and custody of her alleged kids before she filed for a separation?

Of course, I could continue to point out the countless facts that make her case nothing more than a laughing matter, but that almost seems like it would validate its existence. Instead, I’ll share Nona Paris Lola Ankhesenamun Jackson’s “demands” included in the petition she filed today. From TMZ:

Nona Paris Lola Ankhesenamun Jackson, who lives in London, asks “that all my husband’s properties, monies and assets must be transferred to me immediately” and “my husband’s body must be returned to the coroner’s body [sic] or the mortuary immediately.”

Here is my favorite part of the document Nona Paris Lola Ankhesenamun Jackson filed L.A. County Superior Court:

She now claims, “Though he died to this earth he lives with my father [Satan the Devil] Khalid Lucifer.”

The doc says “For any questions, I can be contacted at [email address removed] or leave my children alone.”

Rep. Barney Frank wrote a strongly worded letter to Northern Trust asking for repayment.

Chicago-based Northern Trust bank got $1.6 billion in cash advances and bailout money from the government.

Nevertheless, the company hosted a pricey event this weekend, complete with celebrity rock concerts, Tiffany party favors and luxury hotels.

Government wants cash advances back

Now, Congress wants Northern Trust to give the government the money it spent on the soiree. The bank’s response: “We didn’t ask for a bailout.”

Northern Trust says it did not approach the federal government for bailout funds, but rather “agreed to the government’s goal of gaining the participation of all major banks in the United States,” according to ABC News.

Banks says it’s doing fine

Furthermore, Northern Trust says it is a lucrative company that made $641 million last year. It says it should not have to pay back the money spent on party expenses because it didn’t use any government cash advances. The company insists it paid for the party itself, and that the event was an important part of the bank’s marketing strategy.

Ex-employees: “Ouch”

That $641 million figure might be particularly difficult for about 450 people out there to stomach. Last year, Northern Trust laid off that many employees. Back then, the bank said “The macroeconomic environment has been extraordinarily difficult.”

Busted

Sheryl Crow is no discount show.

The environment at the bank’s party, which was held in Los Angeles, was anything but difficult. Celebrity gossip web site TMZ had camera operators stationed all over the party, so much of it was caught on tape. TMZ’s footage shows Sheryl Crow and the band Chicago performing at upscale venues.

Amazed and confused

Regardless of whether the bank should have to pay back the party money, I am still left with two questions.

What is a bank that says it is making plenty of money doing taking cash advances and taxpayer-funded bailout money? And what on earth is the government doing giving it to them?