AP - An up-and-coming fashion designer who has worked with A-list celebrities was convicted Thursday of sexually assaulting seven girls and women, some of them aspiring models lured to Los Angeles with promises of jobs and stays at luxury hotels.
AP - An up-and-coming fashion designer who has worked with A-list celebrities was convicted Thursday of sexually assaulting seven girls and women, some of them aspiring models lured to Los Angeles with promises of jobs and stays at luxury hotels.
AP - Race car driver Helio Castroneves' attorneys and employer asked a judge to delay his March trial on tax evasion charges until next November so he can continue racing, according to court documents filed Thursday. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 14 Nov 2008 | 12:26 pm
AP - On a night when the theme of change and cultural fusion echoed in lyrics, performances and acceptance speeches, a Colombian rocker who's become a voice for social issues walked away as king of the Latin Grammys.
AP - On a night when the theme of change and cultural fusion echoed in lyrics, performances and acceptance speeches, a Colombian rocker who's become a voice for social issues walked away as king of the Latin Grammys.
-4.6 Million Shares Repurchased Since 2006- BOULDER, Colo., Nov. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- New Frontier Media, Inc. (Nasdaq: NOOF), a leading producer... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsEnter | 14 Nov 2008 | 11:05 am
North American Dates with Hinder, Theory of a Deadman and The Last Vegas Kicks Off February 2nd in San Diego, CA; Tickets On Sale Beginning November 21 Pre-Sale Begins Friday,... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsEnter | 14 Nov 2008 | 11:00 am
MIAMI, Nov. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- The legendary Fontainebleau Miami Beach is rolling out its red carpet for tonight's highly anticipated unveiling of its $1 billion dollar... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsEnter | 14 Nov 2008 | 11:00 am
The Purina(R) Dog Chow(R) Brand Introduces One-Of-A-Kind 'Marley & Me' Ornament In Celebration of the Upcoming Movie and To Honor Rascally 'Marley-type' Dogs Everywhere Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsEnter | 14 Nov 2008 | 11:00 am
Reuters - Amid the current financial crisis, at least one thing is going up in value: the U.S. dollar. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 14 Nov 2008 | 10:53 am
Reuters - You can call "Slumdog Millionaire," the Fox Searchlight movie with more plaudits and awards expectations than Barack Obama, many things. A dark horse isn't one of them. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment Reviews | 14 Nov 2008 | 10:48 am
Reuters - You can call "Slumdog Millionaire," the Fox Searchlight movie with more plaudits and awards expectations than Barack Obama, many things. A dark horse isn't one of them. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 14 Nov 2008 | 10:48 am
Jennifer Aniston had a busy week.
There she was in Vogue saying Angelina Jolie had been "uncool," chatting with Oprah Winfrey about saying that Angelina had been...
Jennifer Hudson continues to mourn her family tragedy.
Still, the Gap has just launched its new holiday ad campaign, which features a cheery photo of Hudson smiling and...
Review in a Hurry: It's like Casino Royale with cheese: Daniel Craig's second outing as 007 has all the action it needs and then some, but lacks the focus of its predecessor.
The...
La vida has provided many good raticos for Juanes.
The Colombian rocker took home a leading five trophies Thursday at the 2008 Latin Grammy Awards, including Album, Song and Record of...
Manila Cathedral. A novel by Filipino author Miguel Syjuco, that touches on 150 years of often turbulent Philippines history, has won a major Asian literary prize, organisers said Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 14 Nov 2008 | 3:18 am
There are only so many weeks left to survive Gabon.
Last week, after another tribal shuffle, Kota got Crystal Cox and Ken Huang—hence, it cracked, finally losing an Immunity...
Front Page: Stock closed at $6.43, up 6% -- Were a global financial meltdown not in process, a casual observer might call Thursday a pretty good day for CBS.
Front Page: Film based on Brooks novel 'World' -- Paramount has set "Quantum of Solace" director Marc Forster to helm "World War Z," based on the Max Brooks bestselling novel about a worldwide infestation of flesh-eating zombies.
Front Page: Studio acquires rights to Asimov novel -- In its first big acquisition since being reconstituted, New Regency has acquired rights to "The End of Eternity," an Isaac Asimov time travel novel first published in 1955.
Hélio Castroneves isn't feeling the need for legal speed at this time.
The toe-tapping IndyCar driver has asked a Miami judge to postpone his upcoming trial on tax-evasion...
Compared to James Bond, Jason Bourne is a punk.
As a movie franchise, the Ian Fleming-conceived spy has it all over Robert Ludlum's in volume, longevity, international appeal, and...
Being James Bond isn't easy. Daniel Craig has the scars to prove it. The "Quantum of Solace" star earned a few stitches and bruises for his troubles. But what's emerged is a James Bond for the 21st century.
AP - An up-and-coming fashion designer who has worked with A-list celebrities was convicted Thursday of sexually assaulting seven girls and women, some of them aspiring models lured to Los Angeles with promises of jobs and stays at luxury hotels.
Commercial success stories triumphed over critical darlings at the 2008 Latin Grammys, with Juanes, Julieta Venegas, Wisin & Yandel, Flex and Kany Garcia emerging victorious during ninth annual awards in Houston. Juanes won album of the year and best male pop vocal album as well as record and song of the year. Source: Billboard News - Daily | 14 Nov 2008 | 12:00 am
Motley Crue will follow up this summer's Crue Fest amphitheater tour with a North American arena trek, beginning Feb. 2, 2009, at Cox Arena in San Diego and wrapping March 18 at the Cumberland County Civic Center in Portland, Maine. Source: Billboard News - Daily | 14 Nov 2008 | 12:00 am
• For the second British interview in a row, Angelina Jolie is talking about whittling down her film career into nothing. Will Jen Aniston declare this "not...
Lauren Hope never thought she'd be sent home from Top Chef because of apples.
But that's what happened last night during the premiere of season five. She was...
We knew Ed Westwick was starring in the K-Swiss ads, but we didn't know they were shot by Zach Gold at Splashlight Studios, which is just one floor below our office. To think that just one floor beneath our chairs eight days ago, Ed Westwick not only looked exquisite in dapper dress (Chuck Bass in the flesh!), but also made kissy faces at shoes. This feels like those times when there are free cookies in the kitchen but no one tells us about them until they're all gone. But, you know, so much worse. See more Basstastic shots from the campaign on Just Jared.
Front Page: Videogame sales down nearly 50% from '07 -- "Guitar Hero" hit a sour note in its October launch as the videogame biz saw its formerly stratospheric growth tempered.
No surprise that the Comme des Garçons for H&M line is already on eBay. But we are surprised one seller is trying to unload the $350 showpiece dress for $700. No bids yet, but if you're a size 8, recession-proof, and missed the launch this morning, do your thing. [eBay]
A man shows the Apple iPhone. Travel-planning website GoPlanit.com has launched an iPhone game in which players shake, tap and blow on devices to defend nature on a "Pet Earth" and earn world-greening... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 13 Nov 2008 | 11:20 pm
Designer Anand Jon was convicted on sixteen counts of rape, possession of child pornography, and other sex charges in Los Angeles Superior Court today. Jon was seen as a rising talent in the industry, made a guest appearance on America's Next Top Model, and dressed Paris Hilton and Janet Jackson before he was arrested in 2007. The criminal acts took place between 2001 and 2007, and his accusers were nine aspiring models from 14 to 21 years old. Prosecutors argued the 34-year-old designer enticed the ladies to L.A. with promises of modeling work, attacked them, and kept a "brag list" of the incidents. Jon's defense team argued the nine aspiring models "hoped to use Jon’s status for their own gain and then turned on him when they didn’t succeed," WWD reports. A sentencing hearing will take place on January 13. The maximum is life in prison.
This morning, someone told "Page Six" that A-Rod, né Alexander Rodriguez, of the New York Yankees, "has the heart of a poet trapped inside an insanely gorgeous body," and that he has, of late, taken to penning "sweet, personal and rambling expressions of his feelings" to his lady-love, Madonna. Now, Daily Intel can EXCLUSIVELY REPORT that this is true. This afternoon, an Intel spy found, crumpled up on the side of the street in front of 41 Central Park West, a poem that we believe to be an original A-Rod composition. Fall in love all over again after the jump.
Front Page: ABC show averaged 4.7 million viewers -- After a dozen years on the air, "The View" finally became the week's most watched show in daytime.
"[Sarah Palin's] star-making turn was more sudden than even Barack Obama’s ... I think a lesson for anyone picking a running mate in the future would be not to pick someone who looks exactly like one of the most famous comedians in America.” —Saturday Night Live head writer Seth Meyers, discussing Palin and Tina Fey at today's Time Person of the Year luncheon with editor Richard Stengel
FRAGRANCE
• P. Diddy on his new I Am King fragrance: "When you see Barack Obama, you see a strong, elegant black man, and when people see my ad, it's almost like that's the trend." Yes, but would Obama wear Diddy's scent? [WSJ via Jezebel]
HAIR
• Miley Cyrus on her hair at the CMA Awards: "My daddy said that I should wear it up and put it in a 'Get your hair as high and close to Jesus as possible' type hairdo. I said, 'Daddy, I don’t think I can get it any higher, but I did my best.'" In case you're wondering, she wore a low ponytail. [E!]
• Prince Harry considers his hair "auburn" not "ginger." We disagree. [Telegraph]
• If you don't have time to take care of your hair, try an overnight treatment, like Kérastase’s Noctogenist. This leave-in conditioner helps restore shine and texture to hair while you rest. Sounds greasy. [Beauty Counter/Style.com]
NAILS
• The new colors from Shades by Barielle are enticing: Date Night is a shimmery emerald green, and Misbehaving Mistress is a chrome gray. [All Lacquered Up]
In the early part of this decade, when people still cared about Harlem's the Diplomats, Jim Jones was known as the crew's capo, the cartoony second-in-command to Cam’ron. But in 2006 Jones shifted to the spotlight with his hit single "We Fly High, then, to the surprise of most people familiar with his music, managed to parlay the modest success into a jump from independent Koch Records to a 50-50 deal with Columbia. Which makes sense given the support of Damon Dash, who's been as active a partner in the "Jim Jones for Superstar" movement as Jones himself — together, they’ve worked on a documentary, a coffee-book travelogue, a workout DVD, and … a play! Before tonight's closing performance of the Hip Hop Monologues, a slightly ill-advised (we saw it) stage adaptation of Jones's life story, Vulture spoke with both Jim and Dame to figure out just what, exactly, they were thinking.
Could you see that Dipset was falling apart, that Cam’ron wasn’t going to maintain his place in the industry? Jones: I just know there were a lot of things going on. You find out who really wants to be around one another once money comes into play. See, for a minute, it was one-sided. He was the breadwinner, obviously. For the most part, I was just trying to stay above water, because I wasn't in the streets hustling anymore. I finally figured out what I needed to do to get enough money to control my own destiny in the industry. [But] we were like brothers. That was a hard blow. They see [Cam] in Harlem all the time and stuff like that. I don’t think he’s hiding underneath a cave or anything like that. But the communication between us doesn't exist.
Now the high-profile partnership is between you and Dame. Jones: To be here right now and be able to work with him, have him consulting me for the moves I make in the industry, so I don't fuck up? He's already made history. Dash: With me, I was so focused on the fashion that I didn't even really hear what people were saying about me in the business. On the ego side, I want to show motherfuckers, look, I left the business, it’s not because I had to. And when I come back, I’m gonna change the economy as well. Since I’m coming from fashion, I understand the concept of building a brand. I have these resources that most rappers at this point in their career don’t have: He’s not the kind of guy that people expect to be in the same room with the likes of an Anna Wintour or do records with groups like MGMT. If I had these resources when I was doing Reasonable Doubt, I would have made a billion dollars.
Jim isn’t really considered a lyrically gifted M.C. How are you gonna change that? Dash: If you come down and listen to his album [Pray IV Reign], and I’m not sure if I’m too close to the music or the project, but shit sounds like a classic. I’m a make a bold statement and put it in the same league as Reasonable Doubt and The Chronic.
Dame, are you gonna stick around in music after this project is done? Dash: You never know what opportunity will present itself. It’s a component to everything I want to be doing. We also did a documentary, a movie, a play. I don’t have a Tony, and I don’t have an Oscar. I need those things. We’re gonna reinvent the way you sell records. And we will get copied. We’re gonna change the economy of the music business. I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, but it seemed like the day I stopped doing music was the day the music business went down, not to sound arrogant or cocky
What about the Dipset brand? Is that something you’re going to build back up? Dash: I feel that it’s never reached its top potential. What I smell right now with the Dipset is Death Row, Bad Boy, and Rocafella combined. Because they’ve already been through all the stupid shit, and they work hard. All they need is organization, and that’s me.
Are you worried about the play being an embarrassment? Jones: Definitely it’s a gamble. But let’s do it. Shit, if it don’t work, what are they gonna say? He bombed? All over every newspaper, media, press, everything? Shit, it’s all for the publicity at the end of the day. Hopefully, they hail me like a genius.
You may think that these guys aren't like you, but notice the cardigan. The berets. The facial hair. They ARE you.
Hey there. We're glad you came. Don't be alarmed that we're all here, there's just something we wanted to talk about. Please sit down — no, it'll just take a minute. We're not mad, just take a seat, please. Okay, here goes. We know this is hard.
You need to stop drinking on your stoop. It's just gotten out of hand. It used to be every once in a while, and then it turned into an every-summer-night thing. And it seems like lately you're just not in control of it anymore. You're even getting your friends into it! It's getting embarrassing for us to go out the door now. You're always there, with your Yuengling. Last month, you stopped even using the paper bag.
What? Oh, we know. You're not being a public nuisance. In fact, you're just being neighborly. You're very friendly when you're drinking on your stoop. But you don't have a gate in front of the steps to your building, so it's technically a "public place." And your Yuengling, even though you recently switched to the light kind, is still 3.8 percent alcohol. The legal limit for liquids drunk on stoops is .005 percent.
We know this is difficult. If you don't stop drinking on your stoop, there are going to be consequences. It's just going to end so badly for all of us. Your family could be humiliated. Your lover might leave you. You could lose everything. You could even get a court appearance and a $15 fine. Think about it, it's not worth it.
Here's a story. You might want to read it. Just think about it:
Both Brooklyn at large and American Jews voted for Obama by big majorities … but in Brooklyn's Hasidic enclave of South Williamsburg, McCain got more than four times as many votes as O, even though the area is overwhelmingly Democratic. And apparently it's not because of the fear that O won't protect Israel, but the perception that he is "not so stable," in the words of one resident. Because, you know, Obama does have that sort of scary, neurotic, borderline, could-explode-at-any-minute, loose-cannon energy. Any fool knows that. [Brooklyn Paper]
At last night's blowout opening party for Terence Koh's new show, "Flowers for Baudelaire," questions of taste predominated. Not about whether Koh — who created a scandal in England earlier this year by showing a statue of Jesus with a huge erection — had gone too far, but about whether people had actually tasted the art. The show, which rising 23-year-old dealer Vito Schnabel (son of Julian) curated in the seamless, immaculately white photography studio of the late Richard Avedon's East 75th Street townhouse, featured an ethereal array of 51 white granulated canvases that were hypnotically blurred by the haze of a fog machine. Viewers were encouraged to remove their shoes before entering the space, where Koh, dressed in a black suit and bright white sneakers, was inviting guests to eat little flecks from the paintings. "You can lick them — let me show you, it's very sweet," he said. "I was just trying to make the simplest paintings possible. It's just plain canvases, corn syrup, and powdered sugar."
While one reporter followed his lead, not everyone was so eager to trust the artist, who has been known to use his own bodily fluids and other unpleasant materials in his work. The art dealer Jeffrey Deitch, who deemed the show "magical," wasn't biting. "The question is we don't know if it's powdered sugar or crystal meth," he said. "I travel with an official taster, so I have to wait for my taster to come." Artist Agathe Snow balked too. "I don't taste paintings," she said. "Did it taste like cocaine?" (No, it tasted like sugar.) Schnabel — who had set up the show through his friend Olivier Sarkozy, the half-brother of the French president and the owner of Avedon's finely appointed house — showed his faith in the artist by sampling the work but warned against overindulging. "I just imagine that titanium pigment wouldn't be good to swallow," he said, adding, "There might be some semen in there, I don't know. Who knows."
Upstairs at the party, an art-world crowd featuring Alanna Heiss, Klaus Biesenbach, Kembra Phaler, and Todd Eberle were joined by glossy figures like Anna Wintour and Salman Rushdie, with people spilling out onto a two-story patio. Sarkozy had installed two of Koh's paintings in his living room, and as the night progressed, the jostling of the revelers created a minor snowstorm of powder. Ann Dexter-Jones was wearing a black coat, but the entire back of it was white. "I bought a painting," she said. "I talked to Terence, and I said I needed to have one. And then I accidentally leaned on one and this happened. Now I'm a little worried." Lyor Cohen's black coat was similarly whitened, but only on the sleeves. He said he hadn't gotten near a painting; he'd just run into a lot of powder-covered friends who kept grabbing his arms, saying, "Lyor, how you doing?" Indeed, the paintings were shedding all over Sarkozy's bookshelves, which lined the floor of the room and an entire wall by the bathroom. (The shelves by the bathroom contained dozens of diet books: Digestive Wellness, Marion Nestle's What to Eat, The Omnivore's Dilemna, etc., as well as Connect Four and a DVD titled Scientology: An Overview.) At some point, guests noticed all the powder on the shelves and started making lines, then took turns scampering about the room with a lampshade on their heads. Whatever was in the paintings, they provided fuel for a memorable night, and an excellent show.
From left to right: What to Wear: J.Crew dress, Calypso dress, BCBG dress. Accessories: Simply Vera by Vera Wang earrings, Pollini shoes. Wedding Gowns: Melissa Sweet gown, Anna Maier/Ulla-Maija Couture gown.
If your head is spinning with visions of gowns, cakes, bows, and more, don't fret. A wedding takes months of planning, which is why we're here to help. Think of us as your unofficial online bridesmaid, here to serve your wedding fashion needs. We simplified your planning process with our latest Shop-A-Matic featuring 102 bridal gowns, 110 wedding accessories, and 110 options for what to wear to your engagement party, bridal shower, and rehearsal dinner. Just don't toss us the bouquet.
WEDDING GOWNS Capri Gown by Melissa Sweet Price: $2,800 Why we like it: Part of the dramatic-back trend, the dress also has cascading rosettes down the train.
Plaisance Gown by Anna Maier/Ulla-Maija Couture Price: $4,800 Why we like it: Soft chiffon creates the tuxedo-pleating (a trend) and gives this dress a soft, ethereal feeling. Plus, it cuts away from the body, which means it's flattering on many body types and shows a floaty, feminine look for the modern bride.
WEDDING ACCESSORIES Bead Drop Earrings by Simply Vera by Vera Wang Price: $18 Why we like it: Affordable and re-wearable, the dark pewter earrings are perfect for an evening wedding since they add a subtle sparkle.
Grosgrain Evening Shoe by Pollini Price: $445 Why we like it: If you’re going to buy accessories for your dress, skip the Dyeables and cheap wedding shoes to splurge on something that would look equally as perfect under a cocktail dress or evening gown a year from now.
Bridal Shower: Paperbag Waist Dress by BCBG Price: $288 Why we like it: This dress gives the illusion of being two pieces and is still polished enough for an elegant bridal shower.
Front Page: International hit hopes to break U.S. records -- Sony and MGM’s latest James Bond installment "Quantum of Solace" is expected to break more records as it opens Friday in North America after a dazzling early run internationally.
That's what CBS News would have you believe. According to their exit-poll analysis, 16 percent of McCain voters would have pulled the lever for Hillary had it been her instead of Barack on the ballot. Gonzo statistician Nate Silver, however, lists all the reasons why these numbers are meaningless. [FiveThirtyEight]
Kanye ponders how to politely suggest that his friends begin wearing deodorant.
"Amazing" and "Tell Everybody That You Know" — the latest tracks from Kanye West's much-anticipated, much-leaked, and boldly rap-free 808's and Heartbreak, dropping November 24 — do feature rhymes, but from Jeezy and Weezy, not Kan-yeezy, who sticks with the imminent album's T-Pain-inspired Auto-Tuned crooning style. Kanye's oddly flat vocals, while they may evoke heartbreak, hardly match those of Mr. Pain — especially stacked against T's irresistibly cool current hit "Can't Believe It" — and the addition of two rap talents doesn't really add much to either song. Young Jeezy maintains the feel of the solid "Amazing," but even if Lil Wayne had turned in a great verse (which he definitely did not), it still wouldn't have been enough to save the lackluster "Tell Everybody." We never thought we'd say this, but Kanye needs to get back to rapping about himself.
Among the many things we learned about Ben Stiller at the Museum of the Moving Image tribute — that he's driven; has a small dick, according to Robert De Niro; and, as Triumph the Insult Comic Dog pointed out, is a Jew — the most surprising thing we found is that he's a true romantic. He met his wife, Christine Taylor, ironically, while making Meet the Parents, but her father bore Stiller no Focker-style enmity. "I do remember Ben being uptight, because he had to bring my dad down to our basement," Taylor told us at the dinner. "He was trying to find a place to sort of secretly ask my dad if it was okay to ask my hand in marriage." Her father obviously gave his blessing, but, she says, the forced situation was uncomfortable for Stiller. "It seems like it should be natural, but I think Ben was more excited to just get out of the basement of our house — even though it was a finished basement," Taylor said.
Her mother, she explained, facilitated the negotiations. "My mom was the one sort of signaling for them to get down there and do it quickly, because she knows I'm perceptive, and she didn't want me to be cued into it." So how did Stiller pop the question? "I thought he was in New York working on Meet the Parents, and then I showed up in L.A. at my house, and he had opened the house and had a whole surprise for me. I had no idea," she told us. "It was very fairy-tale; it was beautiful."
Today host Hoda Kotb holds herself to a rigorous standard of truth. At Tuesday's night's Tribeca Institute screening of Quantum of Solace, Kotb dispensed with the frivolity and spoke openly about the issues raised by all Bond movies. "I’m not really into the gadgets. I’m not into the villains," she said. "I’m just really into Daniel Craig." Learn more secrets to box-office success from Debra Messing, Becki Newton, and others by viewing our Party Lines slideshow.
Naomi Campbell might have a burgeoning Bollywood career. She has reportedly recorded a duet in Hindi with Indian actor Akshay Kumar. The song is for Jumbo, an animated feature, and Campbell will also star in the song's music video. Naomi has appeared in many movies and music videos in the past, but we think the finest example of her onscreen work is Cool As Ice — perhaps better known as the Vanilla Ice movie — in which she played a singer. She also sings with Vanilla Ice on the track "Cool As Ice" and appears in the music video alongside him. It's break-dancing, neon, early-nineties magic, we tell you. If you're ready to transport yourself to 1991, click through.
That is not Smug himself with Leighton. Smug remains, as always, behind the lens. Watching. Waiting.
Our amazing commenter comfortablysmug managed to take the picture of two Gossip Girl stars yesterday — Jenny, and Leighton Meester. "I almost ran into her after turning a corner," he told us in an e-mail of his Blair-spotting. "She is stunningly beautiful, I was actually impressed." We wrote back when we opened the picture. The email exchange went kind of went like this:
Pressler: Wow, you got up all close. Did she say anything to you? Like "Get out of my face"?
Smug: She didn't say anything and I was very surprised by that. She just smiled and the bodyguard guy with her just said don't stand in the way. I stood around for a couple minutes and she was being pretty nice to the girls who were lined up at the shooting. Again, I have to say she is just stunning in person.
[Later]
Smug: You know I was just thinking about this and maybe she didn't say get out of my face or anything like that because she thought i was hot. Does she have a boyfriend or anything?
P.S. Can I get another sex diary if i were to sleep with another sex diarist?
Renate Aller’s show at Dumbo’s Klompching Gallery through December 20 is a series of neat photographs of different versions of the same seascape, in moods ranging from mellow to dazzling to dark and stormy, as if Aller spent her latest LSD trip sitting on the shore with her camera.
Renate Aller's Seascape 4 (2007)Courtesy of Klompching Gallery
We've called Jan on The Office some not-nice names in the past (witch, evil, monster, etc.), but we hold no real grudge against Melora Hardin, the actress who plays her. So we were quite excited to receive a press release today informing us of her continued employment: "Melora Hardin, star of the hit NBC comedy The Office, will make her Broadway stage debut this winter as fame-hungry murderess Roxie Hart in the Tony Award-winning smash hit musical Chicago. Hardin will play a seven-week limited engagement beginning Monday, December 29." Break a leg, Melora, and good luck with the singing! We know you've been practicing.
AP - "Casino Royale" came along just as the James Bond franchise was sinking into a lazy rehash of all that had gone before. It jump-started 007 with its seamless mix of action and emotion, and now "Quantum of Solace" keeps it humming along in a familiar, but forgettable, gear.
This morning, commenter SouthernYankeeBelle alerted us that she schlepped all the way over to Tenth Avenue and 36th Street for the Mike & Chris sale only to arrive and nothing, no one, nada was there. Bunk! You might be from Los Angeles, Mike & Chris, but that's not how we roll at sample sales in Nueva York. We called a representative for Mike & Chris, and she told us there was a "major shipping error" with the boxes of merchandise they planned to sell, and the company is "incredibly sorry for the major inconvenience to the people who went to the sale," which was supposed to feature tops, bottoms, fleeces, bags, and leather goods for up to 75 percent off from today until Saturday. However, it might not be a total lost cause for anxious shoppers — the rep said that they will reschedule the sale within the next four to six weeks.
Update: Regarding rumors that Mike & Chris is folding as a brand, the representative released this statement: "The future of the brand is very much intact, they have been moving offices this past week and unfortunately that has caused them to be out of communication. The cancellation of the sample sale was an regrettable incident based on a shipping mishap and they expect to reschedule the sale within the next four to six weeks. As you know, Mike & Chris has great success over the years and look forward to many more years in business. "
Now, the New York Times has a story explaining the whole Eisenstadt hoax. The folks behind the think tank, its Website, the Wiig prank, and "Eisenstadt" himself are Eitan Gorlin and Dan Mirvish, a couple of writers hoping to pitch a TV comedy based on the character. Their latest prank was to completely fool MSNBC, with only an e-mail. "Eisenstadt" fired off a missive to someone at MSNBC claiming that he was the "McCain source" who leaked the story about Palin's Africa confusion. MSNBC reporter David Shuster went on the air with the news about the fake source, which the network later had to correct. Fox News stands by its original story. It's a convoluted tale, but the short version is this: MSNBC was taken in by a known hoax, we were too (earlier when the pranksters were less well known), and the story about Sarah Palin not knowing whether Africa was a country or continent has yet to be debunked.
We’re big fans of director Ilya Chaiken’s unbelievably compelling low-budget street epic Liberty Kid, which finally hits DVD this week from Kino Video. (We featured another short by Chaiken on the Picture Palace early this summer.) Shot on a dime for the Blackout Film Festival (read all about it here), Blackout is a funny, genuinely unsettling look at an unfortunate hookup in the midst of the big power outage of 2003. But in the same way that Liberty Kid reaches back to the recent past and captures the emotional vortex of post-9/11 New York, this short captures the bizarre electricity (ahem) in the air during a brief, similarly uncertain time.
The December 2008 Vogue — featuring a crabby-looking Jennifer Aniston and a cover blurb trumpeting yet another wronged-woman comment about Angelina ("What she did was very uncool") — could easily have come out in 2007. Or 2005, for that matter: Three years and nine months after Brad Pitt and Aniston separated, we're hearing stale scoop as if it happened yesterday. Fueled anew by Vogue's out-of-context cover line, the split's increasingly ugly tabloid life may eventually exceed that of the marriage itself. And it's in good company: In honor of The Feud That Won't Die, here's our highly scientific (read: based on our memories) list of the top ten other worst Hollywood breakups in recent memory.
1. Heather Mills and Paul McCartney: With most of the British press calling her a money-grubbing tart, Mills fired back by alleging Paul was an abusive and boring drunk who hid her prosthetic leg and forced her to crawl to the loo. They spewed vitriol for almost two years until the settlement was finalized, at which point Mills pocketed $38.5 million and punctuated it by chucking water in Macca's lawyer's face. Melrose Place would've loved her.
2. Anne Hathaway and Raffaello Follieri: Anne Hathaway herself called her bust-up with the now-jailed Follieri earth-scorchingly bad. We can’t disagree: Anything that ends with your pathological-liar boyfriend under investigation by the FBI for cheating church officials and others out of large sums of money and requires you to surrender all your jewelry to the authorities is tough to beat. Unless you are Heather Mills.
3. Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards: Their tacky, gross behavior took divorce to new, fascinating levels of tacky gross-itude. Two years of rapid-fire mud-slinging — she claimed he threatened to kill her and ogled underage naked boys online; he painstakingly issued repeated passive-aggressive denials — ensured that the biggest losers are their kids, who have countless tabloid souvenirs of how much their parents hate each other.
4. Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez: Remember the heyday of Bennifer 1.0, when a faux-tanned Ben made bum-massaging cameos in J.Lo’s videos? And she went on Dateline to gush about how she loves to make Ben Shake and Bake chicken? And then the Enquirer claimed Affleck cheated with a bunch of Canadian strippers, the wedding was “postponed” at the last minute, and next thing you know, they were kaput? That was fun. Although probably not for them.
5. Madonna and Guy Ritchie: Rumor has it Madge cheated on Guy with A-Rod, but rumor also has it that Guy is a total jerk. We’ve also heard there isn’t a prenup, so this fresh but festering one could get spectacularly nasty. Time will tell, but we wouldn’t want to fight Madonna on anything, especially since she’s hired Paul McCartney’s divorce lawyer. Also, we’ve seen her biceps.
6. Tom Brady and Bridget Moynahan: Kids, don't have ex sex, or else you might end up skulking around Los Angeles looking (understandably) sour-faced and hugely pregnant while your hot quarterback baby daddy shacks up with a Victoria's Secret model. The tabloids branded him a hopeless cad; she allegedly refused to speak to him at the birth. On one hand, we feel you, sister. On the other, isn't it dirty pool to use your baby to make a point?
7. David Duchovny and Tea Leoni: It’s a tale as old as time: Husband allegedly sleeps with his tennis instructor; husband claims to be a sex addict and goes to rehab; he and wife ultimately divorce … in part because she’s allegedly been hooking up with Billy Bob Thornton. Bonus points for the surprise ending there.
8. Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman: He allegedly, and so very gently, called their ten-year marriage a "passionless hell" and then explained its demise thusly: "Nicole knows why." Apparently, his chatty, couch-jumping side was on vacation. The more Nicole waxed confused, the less Tom said, leaving the grapevine to seek answers everywhere from possible infidelity to Scientology to her sad rumored miscarriage — all of which got dredged up again once he hopped on the marriage-go-round with sudden love goddess and fertile-myrtle Katie Holmes. It's dizzying, and we're tired.
9. Sophia Bush and Chad Michael Murray: This didn’t get as much press as the others, but think how awkward it would be if your husband allegedly cheated on you with Paris Hilton, you had to annul the marriage less than six months into it, and then you still had to go to work with him every day and occasionally make out with him. This is why they advise against dating co-workers.
10. Balthazar and Rosetta Getty: When your husband is snapped frolicking with a topless Sienna Miller in a twee little sailor hat, there is no more Mrs. Nice Mother-of-Four. Rosetta stayed above the fray, but the war of words — and smug photos of the couple "in love" — turned ugly when Miller's apartment got tagged with "SLUT" graffiti. Unsurprisingly, now they've BOTH dumped his ass.
Honorable Mention: Certain celebs attract drama no matter who they’re dating. Here’s a special shout-out to Sienna Miller (remember Jude Law and Nannygate?); Anne Heche, whose splits with Ellen DeGeneres and Coley Laffoon were dramatic and bitter; and John Mayer, who’s never met a breakup he couldn’t use for attention, blog fodder, and/or PR. Jennifer Aniston, consider yourself warned.
"This is all news to me but this is fantastic. That is going to be awesome." —Jason Priestley on the rumors that Brenda Walsh will develop a terminal illness on 90210 [Access Hollywood]
"Oh … You know, whenever I hear that, I take it as such a compliment. The bottom line is, everyone's a loser in their own right." —Kristen Bell on "cornering the market on losers" [A.V. Club]
"We chose one [plotline] to service in the best way possible, and Aaron [Harberts] and Gretchen [Berg] wrote the shit out of a script." —Bryan Fuller on the Pushing Daisies finale [TV Week]
"It is a reverse Punk'd. Instead of the worst day of your life and then a joke at the end, this is the reverse. This is the best day of your life, and then we arrest you." —Fox President of Alternative Entertainment Mike Darnell on Smile, You're Under Arrest [Broadcasting Cable]
"Oh, oh, that, sure, we would never change that. We're not allowed to. I mean, Universal bought us – we're only allowed to do crazy. So if you call us with a warm uplifting story, we're required to send you to another show." —Jerry Springer on changing the focus of The Jerry Springer Show while retaining all the infidelity and lesbian fist fights [Chicagoist]
"Noises? Not out of the top part." —Will Arnett on his 2-week-old child, Archie [People]
Images of Hayden-Harnett's diffusion line of handbags and an umbrella for Target are out. Yes, the line is all handbags save the lone umbrella. Pieces range from a small clutch to a large tote in brown and black "leather" and a fun violet and chartreuse pattern. Prices range from $19.99 to $44.99 (hence "leather"), and the line hits stores December 28 for all your belated holiday gifting needs. See the whole line in the slideshow.
Is there no justice? Bargain shoppers snapped up most of Richard and Kathy Fuld’s drawings collection last night at Christie’s. The Lehman CEO and his wife, a vice-chairman at MoMA, had arranged to sell sixteen Abstract Expressionist drawings at auction shortly before Lehman Brothers said it would have to file for bankruptcy. Last night they finally hit the block. All but three sold, most for slightly less than the suggested prices. All told, the Fuld art (just a small portion of their large art collection) brought $13.5 million against an estimate of $14 million to $20 million. The shortfall wasn’t their problem, however: Christie’s had offered the Fulds a guarantee regardless of what happened at the sale.
“Whatever you want to say about them, they’re great drawings collectors,” said private dealer Andrew Terner, who overseas The Four Seasons’ art collection. “As for the overall sale, given what’s going on in the world outside, this was okay — but just okay.”
It felt like the whole room winced early in the sale when a Francis Bacon self-portrait expected to bring $40 million didn’t get above $27.5 million, and didn’t sell. Auctioneer Christopher Burge raced through similar “passes” of works by Warhol, Dubuffet and Brice Marden. Among the bidders sitting on their hands were John McEnroe, tennis star and onetime art-gallery owner. Amid the economy's slump, Christie’s sold two-thirds of the art it offered but only raised $113 million, less than half of what it had hoped to. More than 50 of the works that did sell brought less than the suggested bids printed in the catalogs.
There were just a couple of bidding wars. Seemingly everyone wanted a delicate painting by Yayoi Kusama, possibly because star-making dealer Larry Gagosian has just begun to show the veteran Japanese artist’s work. It brought $5.7 million, double its estimate, selling to New York dealer Philippe Segalot, who has sometimes bought for billionaire François Pinault. Another bright spot was the $13.5 million a telephone bidder spent on Jean-Michel Basquiat’s huge painting of a boxer. It was being sold by Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich.
Tonight’s last big sale of the fall art-auction season may be the most nerve-racking of all, as Phillips de Pury offers cutting-edge art — exactly the sort of unproven works that may head south as the art-market bubble bursts.
For reasons totally unclear, Lil Wayne showed up at last night's Country Music Association Awards in Nashville under the hilarious pretense of being an invited performer. While Kid Rock sang his slightly derivative hit "All Summer Long," Wayne appeared onstage holding a guitar, which he didn't even pretend to play. At no point did he rap, sing, or do anything requiring a microphone. Why was he there? No one knows! Viewers were apparently so confused that no one even batted an eye when Kenny Chesney won the award for Entertainer of the Year for a fourth year. See some poorly recorded video footage, after the jump!
The 16th edition of the Vienna Jewish Film Festival opened Thursday with 35 feature films and several short subjects and documentaries on the programme of the two-week event. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 13 Nov 2008 | 5:32 pm
Pedestrians look at German artist Johan Lorbeer performing his still-life act titled "Tarzan-Standbein" (Tarzan-main pillar) on the facade of the city hall of Chemnitz, Germany, in 2007. Several fire trucks... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 13 Nov 2008 | 5:26 pm
After his recent split from country cutie Taylor Swift, Joe Jonas has moved on to a new romance, People magazine is reporting. Source: FOXNews.com | 13 Nov 2008 | 4:54 pm
Reuters - Italian luxury brand Versace put on a glitzy and glamorous first fashion show in China on Thursday a stone's throw from Beijing's central Tiananmen Square, raising more than $100,000 for charity.
In most households, photo albums sit on shelves or in drawers for years on end collecting dust. But Jonas Cuaron turned his collection of family photographs into a feature film.
Kenny Chesney won only one of the seven awards he was nominated for at the CMA Awards, but he sure made it count Source: FOXNews.com | 13 Nov 2008 | 1:59 pm
Mitch Mitchell, drummer for the legendary Jimi Hendrix Experience of the 1960s and the group's last surviving member, dies at 61. Source: FOXNews.com | 13 Nov 2008 | 12:51 pm
A Francis Bacon self-portrait failed to sell at auction in New York Wednesday, in another sign the souring economy is having a crushing effect on fall season art sales. Source: FOXNews.com | 13 Nov 2008 | 12:09 pm
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