The Boston Newspaper Guild — which rejected a deal with the Globe's parent operation, the New York Times Company, earlier this month — has tentatively agreed upon a similar deal in order to avoid deeper cuts. The cuts add up to $10 million in savings for the Times Company, which could make it more attractive to sellers (it has hired Goldman Sachs to oversee a sale). The deal is not so different from the one originally offered, though it provides a smaller pay cut of 5.9 percent in exchange for larger benefit cuts. Also, the pension plan would be frozen, and employees who currently enjoy lifetime job guarantees will no longer have the privilege. The deal still needs to be ratified by the union's 700-member body. It's expected to go to a vote on July 20, and it's expected to pass handily — the last offer only failed by twelve votes, and that didn't have the approval of Guild leadership. Also, the alternative is to be forced to accept a 23 percent pay cut, so that's, you know, compelling.
AP - Former Czech President Vaclav Havel will direct his first movie, a film based on his latest play about a leader of a country who leaves politics after many years in power. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 24 Jun 2009 | 1:53 pm
AP - Actress Daryl Hannah and NASA scientist James Hansen were among 31 people arrested Tuesday as they protested mountaintop removal mining in southern West Virginia.
Reuters - If misery loves company, then reality TV couple Jon and Kate Gosselin had plenty of both Monday night when millions of viewers watched on television as the parents of eight announced they were breaking up. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 24 Jun 2009 | 1:12 pm
AP - "The Tonight Show" host Conan O'Brien paid tribute to Ed McMahon as a "truly funny man" whose partnership with Johnny Carson on the late-night show was an indelible part of TV history.
AP - Albanian writer Ismail Kadare was awarded Spain's Prince of Asturias literature prize on Wednesday in recognition of the social commitment in his work. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 24 Jun 2009 | 12:34 pm
Iconic Designer to Celebrate Grand Opening Independence Day QUEENSTOWN, Md., June 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Prime Retail, a Baltimore-based developer of outlet centers... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 24 Jun 2009 | 12:32 pm
Nick Lachey and Vanessa Minnillo are over.
A publicist for the actress and former MTV VJ, confirmed to E! News that she and the 98 Degrees alum "have amicably split but remain good...
Ben Moody predicts that his just-unveiled new band, We Are The Fallen, will enjoy a peaceful co-existence rather than mortal combat with his old group, Evanescence.
Have Jon and Kate Gosselin been forcing those camera-ready smiles for some time?
In divorce papers filed yesterday in Pennsylvania's Montgomery County Court, petitioner Kate refers...
UPDATE: Later Tuesday, Hilton summed up his indignation over what happened between him and Will.i.am, basically concluding that violence should never be condoned, ever—even when the alleged...
The CW confirms that Callum Blue, a British actor you may know from the WB's short-lived Related or Showtime's Secret Diary of a Call Girl, has been cast as Phantom Zone baddie Zod for...
With headliners Weezer and Blink-182, organizers say 35,000 free tickets will be given away to the newly branded Virgin Mobile FreeFest, to be held Aug. 30 at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Md.
Some say that Vikram Pandit has been sluggish to make changes at Citigroup. They wonder if he is up to the task of reining in the banking giant, streamlining it for the new economy. But today, an officewide memo from North American Markets head Suni Harford, subject line, "Action Taken," proved that business has been gotten down to. That shit is getting done. For instance:
Many of you noted the poor shape of our pantries across the trading floors at 390G and in the tower at 388G. At the request of the VOE Committee, the pantries were inspected and a full inventory done. You will notice that the pantries have been cleaned, and many of the out dated or malfunctioning equipment (microwaves, coffee makers, hot water dispensers etc) were repaired, replaced, or replacements ordered. Door handles and hinges were fixed, tile regrouted, rugs and refrigerators cleaned. Building maintenance has or will fix all of the ice machines. We’ve also asked also building maintenance to step up cleaning of the refrigerators to a weekly schedule instead of monthly.
And once Suni had strapped those rubber gloves on, he could not be stopped.
The Citi never sleeps, indeed! And they didn't just stop at the kitchen!
Over 30 broken fax machines were removed or replaced (most of us have moved to PC based desk top faxing) on the trading floors. No more running from machine to machine to figure which ones work and which don’t. We were also able to save some money by shutting down numbers that have gone unused. Finally, we have added scanners in several places to accommodate the creation of a PDF from a hard copy document.
August 25. On Bravo. All we know so far is filming of the second season hasn't quite wrapped. Zoe has only said "it is going to be an amazing season," made all the more disappointing for lack of detail since she tweeted it. Anyway, we'll eagerly tune in, wearing the "I LIVE. PINEAPPLES." T-shirt artist Christopher Sauvé kindly custom-made for us. Stuffing our face with bananas, natch. [Fashionologie]
Stephanie Winston Wolkoff resigned as Vogue's director of special events on Thursday. The special events she leaves behind include the all-important Met gala, which Wolkoff ran for the last ten years. Vogue wasted no time replacing Wolkoff with Sylvana Soto-Ward, former accessories editor. Sylvana joined Vogue in 2003 as Anna Wintour's assistant, so her rise to the top was pretty swift. Heading up the Oscars of the East Coast is no easy task, and Sylvana's first year doing so could be one of the most challenging in the gala's history. Fashion Week Daily reports that event budgets have been slashed across Condé Nast. So, in addition to the usual challenges — like lining up the stripes on the zebra carpet — Sylvana might have to make her first Met gala a budget affair. Anna Wintour will undoubtedly want it to at least appear to be just as expensive as always. Good thing Anna is forcing Vogue staffers to learn all about doing things on a budget look at price tags in the recession. But it won't be that bad! All Sylvana has to remember is that everything at the gala only needs to last for a few hours. And if she serves guests vast quantities of cheap liquor as soon as they arrive, they'll forget about the plastic cups in no time.
Over the Christmas holiday, Christopher Lynn, a former top Giuliani aide and founding member of the gay and lesbian Stonewall Democratic Club in New York City, took one of his closest friends, a Democratic state senator, to a performance of Liza Minnelli's Broadway show, Liza's at the Palace ... ! During the poignant rendition of Charles Aznavour's drag-queen ballad, "What Makes a Man a Man?" ("I know my life is not a crime/ I'm just a victim of my time"), Lynn turned to his friend and saw that he was choked up. "Diaz was in tears," says Lynn. Yes, that Diaz — Bronx senator Ruben Diaz Sr., the Pentecostal Puerto Rican minister and scourge of gay marriage.
Lynn, who was the highest-ranking openly gay official in the Giuliani administration, is counsel to Diaz's Senate Aging Committee and perhaps Diaz's most ardent defender. "He's my friend, and I love him," Lynn told New York. The two first met in 1993 as appointed members of the Civilian Complaint Review Board, which investigates allegations of police brutality. Before joining the board, Lynn says he was warned by then-Bronx borough president Fernando Ferrer of Diaz's hostility toward gay rights, but Lynn found Diaz to be a compassionate ally. Diaz supported Lynn's demand that the board hire gay and lesbian investigators and joined Lynn in trying to expose abusive stop-and-frisks in the the Bronx's 43rd precinct.
Their enduring friendship is a buddy comedy of sorts — but one that's not so amusing to the gay-rights community. "Why would you put up somebody who is so full of hate toward people like you?" asked a fellow Stonewall member who wished not to be identified. Diaz has been leading the charge against proposed legislation that would legalize same-sex marriage in New York, organizing protest rallies around the city, and holding a sword over fellow Democratic senators who want the bill passed. In 1994, when the Gay Games came to New York, Diaz wrote that "You don't have to be clairvoyant to realize that this can and will lead to sexual encounters with the risk of exposure to AIDS." He later recanted, but recently griped of his opponents over marriage equality, "The gays are calling my office. They're jamming my phones."
Lynn, 59, is a former criminal-defense lawyer who describes himself as a "longtime gay activist with the scars to prove it." He explains his loyalty to Diaz this way: "It's a moral issue to Diaz. He's not saying, 'I castigate your lifestyle.' He doesn't say people who are opposed to him are sinners. He refuses to vote for something that he feels would imperil his soul. It has nothing to do with civil rights as far as Diaz is concerned. Rather than vilify people like Diaz, you have to appreciate the total human being."
Diaz, who has not one but two gay brothers, says, "I'm not homophobic. I have a problem with gay marriage. I have no problem with gays." Even Liza Minnelli won’t change his mind about that, but her deft, shaky hand did stroke at least some part of his soul. "It touched me, something touched me," Diaz told New York about the performance that moved him to tears. "Something got to me."
Jeremih’s Song of the Summer stalwart — currently at No. 4, it scored Biggest Gainer late last month — finally portrays the titular sex (heh) on film, and we have to admit that the video’s a disappointment. J’s a handsome guy in the skinny-mustache, Nas and Fabolous mold, but he hardly manages any chemistry with his green-eyed co-star, and their intimate moments — on the kitchen floor, exchanging looks from different parts of the room — hardly seem the thing of drunken post-party birthday coupling, or even romantic birthday-morning lovemaking. Shouldn’t there at least be an intimation of him doing something, you know, special for her? (We don’t mean bringing home a fruit basket and whipped cream.) And one more thing: They couldn’t work candle wax into this?
AP - "My Sister's Keeper" is a shameless weepy, one of the most manipulative and fundamental of genres, but it also raises some surprisingly difficult and thought-provoking ethical questions.
So far, Paramount has issued posters for every actor in this summer's G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra — except for Joseph Gordon-Levitt. His appearance in the movie, as Cobra Commander, is still something of a secret. So, when we spoke with the actor for a feature in this week's magazine, we asked him to explain a little — and he did! His characteristically intense answer is after the jump.
"Yeah. My face is in it. There's this crazy kind of getup that I wear. It's got makeup and it's got all this other stuff, and it's a mask, basically. You can hardly tell it's me. And that, to me, is the best. That's why I love Daniel Day-Lewis or Gary Oldman. Actors like that, where they're so different as each character, the actor disappears. Doing G.I. Joe made it real easy to disappear because of all the elaborate stuff on my face. And it demands a totally different kind of acting style. You sort of check your realism at the door.
I was thinking of Slava's Snowshow the whole time [Gordon-Levitt is a producer for the avant-garde Russian clown show]. In Snowshow, they put on makeup; it's old-fashioned makeup, totally different, of course, than what we did in G.I. Joe, but they put stuff on their face to create a character. Now, the guy who put stuff on my face, Kazuhiro Tsuji is his name, the protégé of Rick Baker — he's an artist, man! He's such an admirable artist, and to watch him do this work and have it be all on my face, it's just so fun. And then I get to play with that and create a performance out of that, instead of my own face. It's so much fun for someone like me who gets off on different acting styles, playing with the craft. That's what G.I. Joe is about for me."
An Oscar-winning songwriter was indicted on charges of sexually assaulting women whom he would fly in to New York under the impression they were auditioning for movie roles, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office said Tuesday.
Looks like James Wilkie Broderick and the rest of New York's double-celebrity children are going to have some competition. The Village Voice theorizes this afternoon, mostly based on the testimony of a loose-lipped doorman, that Suri Cruise might be moving to New York permanently. Even though it was reported in October of last year that her parents were buying up apartments in the East Village's Felt Building (Tom Cruise has held an apartment there for years), the places were not linked and were scattered throughout the building. While it's not listed who purchased the $15 million brownstone on West 12th Street near Fifth Avenue, and everyone involved signed a confidentiality agreement, and Cruise's reps denied it, the doorman's hints seem unignorable. "I can tell you the owner won't be there much because he'll be filming in LA a lot, and I can tell you he bought the house for his wife, who was in a Broadway show," he told the Voice. "But I can't tell you who it is. I could lose my job." Yeah. Good luck with that.*
Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes Moving to the Village? [Runnin' Scared/VV]
*In all fairness, this description could apply to a number of celebrity couples, including Julia Roberts and Danny Moder, soon-to-be-married Claire Danes and Hugh Dancy, and heteronormative gays Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka.
At the end of April, Alexander McQueen revealed that he planned to show his men's collection in a "very special" format that would not be a runway show. A titillating pronouncement from the man who made Derelicte real. That very special format turned out to be a film directed by photographer David Sims. Dazed Digital explains, "the film represents a journey as artistic ideas metamorphose into their physical manifestations, and as the artist himself submits to the painstaking process of invention." That can only mean it consists of a pale, crouching dude clad only in tightie-whities drawing fitfully on his own arm with a marker, running down a dimly lit hallway, and making a house out of small sticks. It's wonderfully angsty, but we have other media — like Gossip Girl — for that. The film is definitely worth a watch, but we miss McQueen's runway magic.
In this week's New York Magazine, Anne Hathaway talked to Amy Larocca about the difficulty of being a celebrity, the pressures of being a target of the paparazzi, and a Method-acting experiment she tried for her role in Twelfth Night, when she ventured off-set dressed in the masculine garb her character Viola wears to disguise herself as a man.
“I was feeling like I could do more to get into my character,” she explains. So I decided, What if I walked around New York trying to pass for a boy? What if I had to make people look twice to figure out what I was? I kind of got dressed up, and there were six photographers outside. I was walking my dog, and they know my dog, so all of the sudden I’m in a terribly unflattering outfit, I look like I’m auditioning for West Side Story, and it’s on the Internet! And it’s just like, I’m doing this for my job!”
Knowing this, we assume the wig she was wearing while having lunch at Cafe Gitane yesterday was also in service of the Craft. But for what role? The title character of The Rainbow Brite Story?
Nick Jonas might not have the same kind of pull with the ladies that his older brother Joe does, but what does that matter when he's got the ear of the president? That's right, Nick is set to testify tomorrow in front of the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee regarding government funding for diabetes research. As exciting as this is, we're even more pumped for Taylor Lautner's inevitable one-on-one with Barry O. to raise awareness of the perils of Restless Leg Syndrome. [People]
Daryl Hannah made quite the splash in West Virginia today.
The actress and longtime environmental activist was arrested along with 30 others Tuesday for blocking traffic on a major...
• Kelly Clarkson was asked about the Perez-will.i.am. nonsense, and she had a hard time not making jokes about it even though she agrees no one should ever be punched in the...
In an unpredictable retail environment, consignment shops are among the few to have gotten a boost from the recession. New resale boutique Second Time Around soft-opened on Friday and is hosting an official opening party tonight from 6 to 8 p.m. This is the independently owned chain’s first New York location, though it touts over fifteen outposts throughout the Northeast. (Happily, much of the current stock has been cherry-picked from the existing stores.) The spot carries new and resold clothing from a slew of designer labels for up to 50 percent off, including Lacoste, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Gucci, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Diane Von Furstenberg. (Consignment sales are split 60-40 with the seller.) The selection is organized by category (basics, tops, pants, dresses, etc.), and a packed rack of denim near the entrance sports discounts on brands like 7 For All Mankind, Gucci, and Citizens of Humanity. On a recent visit, we spotted DVF dresses for $80 to $120 and new Gucci jeans for $76 — though the stash ranges from $18 L.A. Made tees to a $9,000 black Louis Vuitton couture dress. Another potentially entertaining reason to stop by tonight: Real Housewife Alex McCord is consulting for the store and is expected to attend.
262 Mott St., nr. Prince St. (212-965-8415); M—Th (11—7), F—S (11—8), Su (noon—7).
"Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" -- the most terrible revenge since Montezuma's -- is a big, loud, awful movie, says Tom Charity. But the Transformers sure look nice.
Joan Rivers is serious about her move to Los Angeles. Not only is she selling her gilded Upper East Side condo, she's now listed her country house — a 5,730-square-foot "rustic" mansion so filled to the brim with campy knickknackery that it almost looks découpaged — for $6.5 million. We were just flipping through Architectural Digest's slideshow of the place from 2003, whereupon we made a wonderful if not entirely unexpected discovery: Joan keeps a picture of herself on her bedside table. [Real Estalker, Architectural Digest]
Over the course of his nearly 40-year career, Bruce Springsteen has worked very hard to build and maintain his image as an everyman rock star. Regardless of what you think of his music on a personal level, you would be hard-pressed to find many other artists who give back — both financially and in his performances — as much as the Boss. However, after Springsteen went on the offensive back in February after learning that Ticketmaster had prematurely and unfairly redirected some of his fans to their more expensive TicketsNow reselling site, some cracks in his armor began to show. The New Jersey Star-Ledger's Peggy McGlone recently published a report that revealed that at Springsteen's most recent (and Vulture-approved) gig at New Jersey's Izod Center, only 108 of the 1,126 seats closest to the stage were made available for public purchase. Additionally, it turns out that 12 percent of the nearly 19,000 available seats at said venue were reserved for Springsteen and his band, his record company, his agent, and the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority, a percentage that actually violates New Jersey state law.
While Springsteen himself has remained mum on the subject, his longtime manager and former rock journalist Jon Landau jumped into the fray by posting his response to the controversy on Springsteen's official website yesterday. The basic premise of his response is twofold: (1) Springsteen does, in fact, release more than 95 percent of the "best" seats — which, more often than not, are the standing-room-only tickets on the floor of these venues — to the ticket-buying public, and (2) his "holds" (an industry term for the seats set aside for the artist) are not really any different than any other touring act that headlines arena tours:
Yes, we do hold significant numbers of tickets when we play New Jersey, New York and Los Angeles, as does every arena headliner. These holds are used by Bruce, his band members, and longtime members of his extended organization, their families and close relations; by the record label for their staff, for reviewers, and for radio stations; by charities who are provided with tickets for fund raising purposes, such as special auctions; for service people who help us on a year-round basis; and for other similar purposes. Unlike some Ticketmaster managed artists, no tickets are held for high dollar resale on TicketsNow, or through any other means.
Regardless of who you side with on this one, it's pretty hard to disagree that this whole mess has left a lot of egg on Springsteen's face. Ever since the runaway of success of Born in the U.S.A. in the mid-eighties, snide contrarians have taken every opportunity to bash Springsteen's "man of the people" positioning as nothing more than an act. We're certainly not of that mindset, but we're with Lefsetz on this one: Rather than Jon Landau posting a note that effectively says "We don't make the rules, we just play by them," the band would be best suited by trying to use their influence to help bring transparency to the generally dirty world of concert promoters and ticket sellers. Then again, that didn't exactly go over so well for Pearl Jam, did it?
AnnaLynne McCord thinks it's time for 90210 to jump over to Gossip Girl.
McCord says her 90210 character, Naomi Clark, would be a perfect match for Ed Westwick's Chuck...
We're usually not quick to judge a book by its cover, but this goes to Team Jacob! The wolf gets the girl, but Edward's clearly the one ready to howl at this...
Christina Ricci on June 19, Victoria Beckham on June 10, and Megan Fox today.
Trends don't always go from the runway to the masses overnight. And looking, um, cold is no exception. London's spring 2009 runways were awash in nipples showing clearly through sheer tops, glorifying the areola to a level never before seen. But with much of the world not quite comfortable walking around essentially topless, the trend has adapted to (more or less) real-woman celebrities, who flaunt their nipples through opaque fabrics. Recently, it seems an increasing number of famous gals are stepping before cameras with nipples unabashedly ablaze.
Statistics also point to a rise in nipple pride. According to the Daily Mail, London's Harley Medical Group has seen a 30 percent boost in nipple surgery over the last twelve months. These procedures include nipple lifts to push them up and out, surgery to reshape asymmetrical nipples, and the correction of inverted nipples, which can interfere with breast-feeding. Many of these surgeries are performed on mastectomy patients, but an increasing number of women are getting them for purely aesthetic reasons. Those unwilling or unable to go under the knife are getting fake nipples, like the ones Samantha had in that one episode of Sex and the City. Bosomfriends.co.uk, a website devoted to prosthetic nipples, has seen a "significant increase" in sales over the past year.
Since Victoria Beckham caused quite the stir when she stepped out with erect nipples on June 10, debate has ensued over whether hers were real or fake. That issue aside, a doctor at the Harley Medical Group says Victoria is a nipple pioneer, ushering in an age of "nipple role models." Patients used to come in and ask for breasts like Pam Anderson, but now this doctor predicts women will start asking for so-and-so's nipples. Already Beckham, Megan Fox, and Christina Ricci stand to be that so-and-so. Surely, there are more.
But has good old-fashioned cleavage really become so passé? Are purposely erect nipples not vulgar? Tell us, do you think nipples are fashion's best new accessory? Or do these ladies need a once-over with a hair dryer and a lesson in decency?
Liev Schreiber plays a cross-dresser in Ang Lee's forthcoming Taking Woodstock, and he'd like you to know that he's totally okay with dressing as a woman: "I've done it once before," he told us last night at the Gates, at a party celebrating his cover story in Hamptons magazine. "I'd just gotten out of school the first time I did it. I was such an excited drama student back then that I did a ton of research that I guess I kind of borrowed from this time." He continued: "But there isn't really a tremendous need for that. Putting on women's clothing and acting like a woman is something that comes naturally to men," he said. "All men do it, whether publicly or privately. I personally believe that all men enjoy it." But how, exactly, did Schreiber win the role, and the chance to showcase his superior cross-dressing ability in an Ang Lee movie? "He really did like my legs. When I went to his office, the first thing he said to me was, 'Wow, you have really nice legs.' I thought, 'This part is mine.'"
• The 18-year-old who claimed she fell asleep when she got 56 stars tattooed on her face admitted she lied. She said she initially loved the look, but changed her story after seeing her father's reaction. [BellaSugar]
MAKEUP
• The cosmetics company Best in Beauty sent out a press release announcing its new Malia Obama gift basket, full of nontoxic, non-allergenic products. If only Malia had given them permission to use her name. [US News & World Report]
NAILS
• Beyoncé wore metallic-red nails by Minx at her Madison Square Garden concert this weekend. They're available at Bliss Spa if you want to try them for yourself. [Beauty Counter/Style.com]
HAIR
• Robert Pattinson's allure may all be in his hair. When Photoshopped in other dos (like those of Chace Crawford, Ed Westwick, and Zac Efron), he lost some of his sex appeal. [Spoiled Pretty]
A new robot that has the ability to cry has been revealed at a special showcase at the Waseda University in Tokyo today. The Unhappy Robot, named Kobian, has an expressive, humanoid face that can reveal feelings of happiness, disgust, and sadness... and has even been programmed to wipe away its own robo-tears.
While robots expressing emotions is clearly the first step to our country eventually being run by Robo-Presidents, it's still a pretty amazing feat. Though, by the looks of it, Crying Robot seems like she'd be a real downer at Robot Parties. Take a look:
The MTA offered a new deal to Atlantic Yards developer Bruce Ratner yesterday that allows him to pay $100 million over the next 21 years, instead of up front. Ratner will also be building a smaller rail yard than originally envisioned. While some critics of the project are clamoring for the MTA to reopen bidding, the city seems to have become resigned, at this point, to getting whatever they can out of Ratner. "Would you really suggest that we start this process, that's gone on for almost a decade, all over again?" Mayor Bloomberg said. [NYDN]
In March, rumors surfaced that Richard Chai was being considered for the creative-director position at Bill Blass. Peacock Holdings bought the bankrupt label formerly helmed by Peter Som late last year, with plans to revive it and put on a runway show at September Fashion Week. But though almost two months ago Peacock heads promised to make a decision on a new creative director within a month, the position remains unfilled. "We're talking to people, but there's nothing I can divulge," Peacock executive Scott Patti told the Daily. So, sadly, Blass probably won't walk this September. Maybe Chai isn't being considered anymore? [FWD]
In completely unsurprising news, Paramount and Warner Bros. have both passed on Steven Soderbergh's orphaned Moneyball movie, reports the L.A. Times. This comes after Sony torpedoed the baseball-statistics film on Friday, giving Soderbergh just three days to find it (and its $57 million budget) a new studio home. The paper also confirms that it was Soderbergh's updated draft of the original script (written by Steven Zaillian), which Sony chairman Amy Pascal found "unacceptable" — plus, to a lesser degree, the director's insistence on shooting Moneyball in an "improvisational documentary style" — that set off alarms.
So, to recap, Zaillian's original script was so good that it made Sony want — nay — need to spend $57 million on a film about baseball statistics, even though such a movie would have limited appeal overseas (and anyone else wary of sitting through a movie about baseball statistics). Then, a week before shooting was to begin — with cameras and catering vans already on their way! — Soderbergh himself turned in a revised version that was so odious it made Amy Pascal completely reverse her earlier decision, likely forfeiting the $10 million Sony had already spent on preproduction. So how bad must Soderbergh's new draft have been? Surely it's worth somebody's $57 million to find out, right?
After roughly ten minutes of squabbling between Democratic and Republican state senators, members of the GOP began accusing their opponents of "holding the bills hostage." This provoked a big laugh from the Democrats. Malcolm Smith, who still claims to be president pro tempore of the body, said that Governor Paterson did not send the bills that he wanted voted on early enough to be copied for everyone, so they were merely awaiting photocopies. After some more overtalking, Republican senator George Winner banged his gavel on the side of a desk and called the Democrats out of order. Democratic senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson shouted back: "The Senate is at ease. You're out of order!" Then (and we know this is getting harder to follow, but it is for us, too, and we're watching the whole thing) the Republicans gaveled out. The Democrats, wielding an even bigger gavel, banged it louder and tried to ignore the GOP, claiming they'd already called a recess. Now most of the Republicans are off the floor, and some Democrats are left, speaking with reporters. Turncoat Democrat Pedro Espada, who also claims that he is the president of the body, says he just spoke with Paterson. The governor, apparently, insists that all senators report to the floor to vote on the bills he sent over. Paterson indeed has the power to call everyone to session, but he cannot make them vote. As it looks now, some sort of further session circus will reconvene at 5 p.m.
Update 6:25 p.m.: There were no further sessions today, but this afternoon David Paterson called in a press conference for another special session on Wednesday at 3 p.m. He also issued a list of bills that he wants to see taken up at that session. Number one on the list is same-sex marriage. The Republicans are now hard at work trying to sway Democratic senator Ruben Diaz, a staunch foe of same-sex marriage, to flip to their side. About ten minutes ago, Diaz suddenly entered the office of Republican leader Dean Skelos. He emerged five minutes later, saying only that they had a good sandwich for him. Diaz hinted as recently as yesterday that if gay marriage comes up for a vote, he might be ready to bolt.
With a Central Saint Martins degree in fashion journalism and a lengthy list of celebrity clients, Annabel Tollman has an impressive résumé (several years as the fashion director of Interview magazine made her quite the New York insider). The leggy blonde now has her own styling company based out of the West Village, and a large-scale obsession with glamorous, old-Hollywood style. And her client list boats Scarlett Johansson, Mariah Carey, and the Olsens. In between fittings with Brit musician Jamie Cullum for his new album, we caught up with Annabel to talk about her personal style, designers that start with the letters A and B, and where to shop for vintage in New York.
How did you get into fashion and styling?
I loved fashion and magazines when I was growing up. I was good at English, so my mother convinced me to study fashion journalism rather than design at Central Saint Martins, a wise move, as I have very little patience and hate sewing. At school, while wearing a black dress with major accessories (a huge Vivienne Westwood handbag and silver shell-toed Adidas sneakers, I believe), I had a tutor tell me that I was probably really a stylist and not a designer or journalist.
What’s the inspiration behind your own look?
Elizabeth Taylor meets Brigitte Bardot. I'm a big believer in bombshell glamor. If it ain't broke … I’m also very inspired by literature. I get very inspired by literature because certain authors just paint such wonderful pictures. Nancy Mitford and Truman Capote are two of my favorites.
What was the first designer item you bought or wore?
It might be the aforementioned Vivienne Westwood handbag — it was huge and black patent with a big orb on it. I went through a big Westwood phase in my Saint Martins days.
Who were some of your favorite designers growing up? What about now?
The first designers that I loved and identified with were Rifat Ozbek and Katharine Hamnett, though I never owned any of it (it's sort of hard to pull that off at age 12, living in the sticks). Now I love designers whose names begin with A or B ... Alaïa, Azzaro, Balmain, Antonio Berardi — but Roland Mouret remains an enduring favorite. I love some of the new Brit designers too: Meadham Kirchoff, Louise Goldin, and Richard Nicoll are all very exciting. My enduring love, however, is vintage.
What are some items you can’t live without?
I love belts. I'm particularly enamored with my black Alaïa belt because it adds some badass punch to an otherwise soft and pretty look. I bought these strapless bullet bras at a vintage show and I've been wearing them over T-shirts — people laugh and point, but as long as I'm happy, then they can laugh all they like.
Where do you shop most in NYC?
I love New York Vintage on 25th Street. Jeffrey and Barneys are amazing for shoes.
Is there an item you are currently coveting?
The Chloé white shorts with the scalloped hem. But they're totally sold out and I don't own a pair.
What trends are you into this season?
I try not to dress according to trends. I think that a woman should wear her clothes rather than the clothes wearing the woman.
Any trends you wish would just disappear?
Neon. Uggs.
What’s something every woman should have in her closet?
It's a cliché, but it's true: a black shift dress.
Finish this sentence: I never leave the house without ….
Changing at least seventeen times.
Anyone looking for a roommate? The Village Voice may know someone ...
"I am into music - having had experience performing in band & orchestra while in HS... Also, I like Mariah Carey type pop stuff, so... Would love to hear about your interests in music... Loved Adam Lambert on American Idol... he is far out unique & different. Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, Bon Jovi, I love old time voices as well as new age stuff. Enya, Kitaro, whatever else emerging there is of which U may know more about & have access to?!! Like Whitney Houston, Madonna, Pattie LaBelle, Jonie Mitchell, Arnie Guthrie, Simon & Garfunkel, Duran Duran, Lionel Ritchie, Anita Baker, Roy Orbison, temptations, Disco stuff, Bee gees, Broadway musicals, Many of the songs from original Grease, Phantom of Opera, Les Miserables, Rent, Chorus Line...
& PLUS!
WHat are your work hrs like- & what times in the morning do U need the bathroom by? I am kindly flexible w/ bathroom time in the mornings so,. U can have it first if U need it, except if I need it in emergency... {esp. PMS intervals..} . hahaha!!!"
Why does she make that face in every picture? What are we supposed to do when there is bad news about her?
So Elisabeth Hasselbeck is getting sued by a Cape Cod woman over similarities between the View star's book The G-Free Diet: A Gluten-Free Survival Guide and an earlier tome, Living With Celiac Disease. The latter book's author, Susan Hassett, says that she sent Hasselbeck her book when she heard Hasselbeck suffered from the condition (which means eating gluten, which is found in tons of everyday foods, causes her all kinds of trouble). There are similar passages, sections, and words of advice, according to legal documents obtained by TMZ. Which, to be fair, could be damning but also not out of the realm of possibility, especially as both women talked to doctors about their books, and the category is pretty narrow. But let's get to the larger point: Did anyone ever think Elisabeth Hasselbeck actually wrote that whole book herself? That she hunkered down in her kitchen and crafted recipes to hand-make gluten-free bread? Or that she typed out every paragraph and period herself? She is a celebrity who has two kids under the age of 5 and another one on the way. Surely lots of assistants, if not a simple ghostwriter — and likely, many uses of Ctrl-C and Ctrl-V — were employed along the way. Jessica Seinfeld, herself accused of plagiarizing a gimmicky cookbook, even talked about the scandal on The View: Surely Hasselbeck would have known better than to directly plagiarize in such a similar fashion.
EVENTS TONIGHT
• Inven.tory is celebrating its first pop-up shop for 80%20 shoes. Drinks and food will be provided by La Esquina. 237 Lafayette St., nr. Spring St. (212-226-5292); Party: 6–8 p.m.; Pop-up shop, through 6/28. M–S (noon–8), Su (11–7).
• Upscale consignment shop Second Time Around is hosting an opening party, including an appearance by Real Housewife of New York Alex McCord. Wine and cupcakes will be served. 262 Mott St., nr. Prince St. (212-965-8415); 6–8 p.m.
TOMORROW
• Support up-and-coming designers at the I Heart Gen Art 15th Annual Benefit. Works from over 60 artists will be on display and available for purchase, including items from Gen Art alums like Peter Som and Michelle Smith of Milly. VIP tickets are $135 to $150, general admission tickets are $75 to $90. All tickets must be purchased in advance. 7 W. 34th St., nr. Fifth Ave., eleventh fl. (212-255-7300); 8 p.m.
• Cricket-inspired menswear boutique Jack Olive kicks off its inaugural concert series with master pianist Eric Lewis (a.k.a. ELEW). Hors d'oeuvres and drinks will be served. 87 Mercer St., nr. Spring St. (212-966-9692); 7–10 p.m.
• Daniel Silver and Steven Cox of Duckie Brown are presenting their new collaborative range of men's footwear, Florsheim by Duckie Brown, at Scoop. The pair is hosting an in-store shopping event, offering attendees the opportunity to buy fall 2009 styles that won't be available until August. E-mail rsvp@maguiresteele.com to attend. 430 W. 14th St., at Washington St. (917-675-6107); 6–9 p.m.
SALES STARTING TOMORROW
• Harlem vintage boutique B.O.R.N. hosts a three-hour sale, offering 20 percent off pieces from designers like Louis Vuitton and Cynthia Steffe. Call to RSVP. Through 6/24. 52 W. 125th St., nr. Lenox Ave. (212-995-2075); W (6–9).
• Get 20 percent off non-sale items at Billy Reid. Through 6/24. 54 Bond St., nr. Bowery (212-598-9355); W (11–8).
• Savvy & Co. is hosting a Bulga handbag sample sale, offering bags for up to 70 percent off. The sale also runs online at TheSavvy.com from 6/24 at noon to 6/27 at midnight. Through 6/25. 145 W. 18th St., nr. Seventh Ave. (212-388-0339); W (8–8), Th (10–8).
• Apparel starts at $25 at Amanda Uprichard. Bright silk tunic dresses are $60 and jersey dresses are $45. Through 6/26. 226 W. 37th St., nr. Seventh Ave., third fl. (212-719-0320); W–Th (10–6), F (10–3).
• Take 50 to 70 percent off shoes by Brazilian brand Melissa. Through 6/28. 520 W. 27th St., nr. Tenth Ave., Ste. 601; W–Su (noon–7).
ENDING TOMORROW
• Women's ready-to-wear, handbags, small leather goods, and fur are discounted at the annual Fendi warehouse sale. Metropolitan Pavilion, 123 W. 18th St., nr. Sixth Ave.; T (8–8), W (9–3:30).
• Hugo Boss apparel is up to 70 percent off at the Soiffer Haskin sale. 317 W. 33rd St., nr. Eighth Ave. (917-606-6795); S–Su (9–6), M–T (9–7), W (9–5).
ONGOING
• Select merchandise from Peter Som, Thakoon, Nina Ricci, and more is 60 percent off at Kirna Zabête, in-store and online. Lanvin shoes are $378 to $398 (origianlly $945 to $995), Alexander Wang dresses and tops are $94 to $238 (originally $235 to $595), and Rick Owens leather jackets are $1,587 (originally $2,645). 96 Greene St., nr. Spring St. (212-941-9656); M–S (11–7), Su (noon–6).
Colum McCann — an Irish-born, Manhattan-dwelling novelist you should know a lot more about — is one of those restless authors constantly in search of new territory (Dancer fictionalized the life of Nureyev, Zoli the story of an itinerant Romani singer). He hadn’t set a novel in New York since 1998’s This Side of Brightness, about homeless people living in subway tunnels, until September 11 made him go back. But his sprawling, lyrical new book, Let the Great World Spin, takes place almost entirely in 1974, hardly a banner year for the city, around the time of Philippe Petit’s tightrope walk between the Twin Towers. McCann spoke to Vulture about his search for seventies hookers, the 9/11 “grief machine,” and his Don DeLillo worship.
Why did you decide to use the tightrope walk to anchor the book?
I suppose it’s not a very original image. Halfway through writing this novel I heard about the documentary [Man on Wire], which sort of freaked me out. But I went to see it and realized they didn’t intrude on one another. The book pretends to be about him at first and then it becomes something else, because I’m much more interested in those who, I suppose, are walking the tightrope on the ground, and it’s a shorter fall but sometimes it thumps a lot harder.
You’d originally wanted to do a September 11 book?
I was a little bit perturbed by the whole big grief machine that grew out of 9/11. I knew that I wanted to write about it, but I wasn’t sure about how to go about it. I always feel that it takes about fifteen, twenty years for fiction to resolve these things. So it seemed a nice thing to go back 30 years. I was going to write a novel about the walk and have him fall three-quarters of the way through, mess with this idea of history. And it was so over-the-top that it’s ridiculous even to think about now.
But Don DeLillo wrote about 9/11 right away, in Falling Man. There do in fact seem to be some echoes of DeLillo in this book. Absolutely. If I could write Underworld, I wouldn’t hang up my boots, but I’d be a very happy person. In fact, the very first sentence of the novel was “The prospect of the falling man.” Obviously I had to cut that. When I found out he had written Falling Man, I called him up and said “Listen, you stole my first line,” which of course he didn’t. What I loved about it was he went right to the heart of the matter. That isn’t the way I wanted to go but I did think it was enormously brave of him.
You’re big in Europe, and I know your editors are hoping this will be your American breakthrough. Are you banking on that?
I’ve been sort of happy they haven’t sold enormously. You have to work then out of a reckless inner need rather than conform to any market. The contemporary American novelist benefits in a way from being ignored. It makes you angrier and makes you want to go into all of those places where you shouldn’t.
Did you go to those places — like the South Bronx projects, where two of your main characters are hookers working under the Major Deegan?
Yeah, I hung around. To be totally honest I’d feel more at risk walking down O’Connell Street in Dublin at midnight than I did at any time in the South Bronx. But it’s impossible to find a hooker who was around in the seventies, because she’s either stuffed herself with so much heroin that she’s six feet underground or she’s 60 years old now and she’s not going to talk about it.
It seems like the character most similar to you is also the most unlikable — a selfish striver with Yuppie tendencies. Am I reading that correctly?
I would say yes; in fact I’m going to do a recorded-books version and I’m going to read that chapter. There’s a scene in the book where the tightrope walker guesses everybody’s birthday at a party — he goes around and pickpockets their drivers’ licenses. But the one person he doesn’t get is this idiot who says, “Oh, I never carry my driver’s license” — like me. And then the walker goes out the door and says “28th of February” — which is my birthday. You’ve got to be a little self-deprecating. I happen to be in New York, I’m middle-class, I live on the Upper East Side for my sins. But the thing I’m attracted to is the edges.
In yet more stunning visual evidence that "Black Don't Crack", American Idol judge and Grammy Award winning producer Randy Jackson celebrates his FIFTY-THIRD (53!!!) birthday today. And a big thank you to Ryan Seacrest, who shared the above "vintage" photo of Randy (probably taken last month) via his Twitter.
On first glance, we feared we were having our Russell Crowe in A Beautiful Mind breakdown... but upon further inspection, we realized we were having a suffocation-by-Arsenio-jacket seizure. And that guitar! It just screams "Always Bet on Randy."
We're feelin' it, dawg. Source: Best Week Ever | 23 Jun 2009 | 7:36 pm
M. Night Shyamalan has channeled his passion for increasingly underwhelming films into the digital realm, unveiling the new MNightShyamalan.com, your one-stop shop for two pieces of information about Shyamalan's movies and a whole bunch of really slow-loading flash crap that literally is nothing.
Here's the homepage, ripped right from EdgarAllenPoe.biz:
The rest of the site plays like a crappy early-90s CD-ROM PC game, like Alone In The Dark if nothing in the game worked or did anything.
Some of the highlights after the jump:
The site allows the user to feel like they're really in one of M. Night's movies, doing exciting things like deciding to go up to the second floor (sppoooooooooookkyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!!!!)
Or if you dare, you can venture up to the ATTIC! Except it's broken. But it'll still take your phone number and "code":
And last but definitely not least, the staple of all 90s PC games, a key that you can't pick up and does nothing:
Fashion Wire Daily - Leave it to Miuccia Prada to come up with some properly new fashion in a Milan men's fashion season where the overriding impression is of designers tweaking their own previous body of work.
Joseph Brooks, who until today was best known for being the Oscar-winning songwriter of "You Light Up My Life," is set to be arraigned in a Manhattan courtroom this afternoon on charges that he sexually assaulted and raped women who answered audition ads he placed on Craigslist. Brooks is 71. [AP]
Reuters - Andy Murray may be snapping at Roger Federer's heels in the world rankings but the Briton still has a good deal to learn from the Swiss maestro when it comes to making an eye-catching entrance.
Award-winning Iranian film-maker Bahman Ghobadi, in Paris after being released from jail, on Tuesday called for the youth to take control of the reins in Iran. Duration: 01:01 Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 23 Jun 2009 | 6:47 pm
Award-winning Iranian film-maker Bahman Ghobadi , seen here in Paris after being released from jail, urged the world to come out in support of the country's young protesters. Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 23 Jun 2009 | 6:47 pm
The world was saddened to learn that television legend Ed McMahonpassed away at 86 years of age last night. But thanks to magic of the internet, we can all relive some of Ed's best and most hilarious moments with the click of a button. BWE.tv Intern Zack Mast has compiled 10 of Ed McMahon's most genius moments in a list we are calling 10 Best Ed McMahon McMoments. Some will seem familiar, and others will completely blow your mind...10. We here at BWE.tv would like to remember Ed for his career and not the credit woes that plagued his late-life reputation, but this commercial featuring a self-aware “Ed McGangsta” trying to take back his big checks (from winners, if 0:40 is any indication, still living in the '80s) is an instant classic:
9. In one of the most ingenious clip show framing devices ever, Ed McMahon plays along as everyone’s favorite sitcom puppet other than Brad Garrett -- the inimitable ALF -- guest-hosts The Tonight Show, replete with Ed remaining the ever-loyal straight-man sidekick:
8. This classic Budweiser commercial stars Ed McMahon and Frank Sinatra, the two least-likely-to-be-cowboys celebrities around... taken hostage by Indi... Native Americans. Still, in spite of it all, Ol’ Blue Eyes and Ol’ Johnny’s Side find the time to kick back and enjoy a cool, refreshing Bud label (BONUS: Note the eerie but awesome mention of “non-returnable” gold, foreshadowing Mr. McMahon’s epic last hurrah):
7. In this clip from 1979’s Legends of the Superheroes, hosted by The McMahon Man himself, Ed steals the show with a single line. We won’t spoil it for you. (Hint: It’s a message for Batman, and there may or may not be trouble in Gotham city!):
(More footage of this genius special over at Warming Glow)
6. Now, every '80s celebrity needs a catch phrase, and Ed McMahon was no exception. His constant shouts of “Yes, sir! You are correct, sir!” on The Tonight Show are a staple of his legacy. Too bad he never actually said it. That was the legacy of another late comedy legend, Phil Hartman, in one of his many immortal impressions:
5. What would a Dean Martin Celebrity Roast of Johnny Carson be without a little time spent knocking around Ed McMahon, too? In this clip, coming to you from way back when comedy roasts were still classy, Pat Buttram and Steve Landesberg hurt Ed’s feelings and warm our hearts all at the same time:
4. No tribute to Ed McMahon can be complete without a mention of TV Bloopers and Practical Jokes. It just can’t. So, for the sake of completing this tribute properly, here’s a clip featuring both a TV Blooper and a Practical Joke that stars none other than a young and possibly stoned Jason Bateman:
3. We could show you a clip of Phil Hartman taking his impression to new heights in that classic “Carsenio” SNL skit, but instead, here’s the real Ed soaring to real heights on the real Arsenio Hall Show (BONUS: This clip includes a brilliant dog food commercial featuring Ed finally getting a “leg up” on Johnny Carson - that joke will make sense once you see it, trust me):
2. Whoa, whoa, whoa—what? Remember the Jackson 5, that old boy band from the '80s that still puts New Kids on the Block to shame? You know how, in terms of television style, presence, and programming, Ed McMahon and the Jackson 5 are complete opposites? Well, here they are together on The Jackson Variety Show, proving that all variety shows need to succeed is the right combination of incredible and incredible (sorry, Nick and Jessica):
(Note: We can’t embed the video, so just click the image to watch the magic unfold.)
1. And finally, here’s a poignant reminder that Ed McMahon is a treasure to be remembered and valued forever, an icon and a legend of American television who will be sorely missed. Mr. McMahon, you are gold, and we would never cash you in. Ladies and gentlemen—Mr. Jerry Lewis and Mr. Ed McMahon:
When ?uestlove of the Roots tweeted yesterday afternoon that "thurston moore is wearing the riskiest tshirt ive ever seen on broadcast tv....gangsta move son," we made sure to override our DVR season pass for the repeat episode of Larry King Live (one hour a night just isn't enough, people!) to watch Sonic Youth's performance on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon. Sadly, the combination of the placement of Thurston's guitar and some creative camerawork on behalf of the Late Night director all but made it impossible to see exactly what got ?uestlove so riled up, but that didn't stop us, your inquisitive Vulture editors, from doing some digging to get to the bottom of the story!
We reached out to Sonic Youth's record label, Matador Records, to see if they could shed any light on the situation. Here's what the label's publicist, Nils Bernstein, told us:
ok, so it was a guy sitting on the ass of a girl with her legs crossed up over her head (making her ass stick up) with his hands pensively clasped in front of him. for the record, it's a hand painted one-off, made from a stencil [artist Chris Habib] used for a limited-edition handpainted watercolor. that is, there is no t-shirt 'product', the design was used for something else, and he just handmade a t-shirt for thurston as a special treat.
While not quite as envelope-pushing as the time when Anil Dash wore a goatse shirt to a New York Times photo shoot, we still applaud Thurston Moore for going the extra mile to prove that a shirt that depicts people in the midst of a salad-tossing session does, in fact, belong on late-night television. However, we are a little bit disappointed that he had a last-minute change of heart that resulted in his opting not to wear another of Habib's T-shirt designs, one that shows "a perpetual circle of fisting contortionists." Maybe next time!
And oh yes, just in case you were wondering, their smokin' performance of "No Way" kicked all sorts of ass. Some serious shredding going on here, folks.
UPDATE: Looks like the Village Voicedid some independent research of their own (nice work!). Here's the design that stirred up the controversy:
We pick up where we left off: with Jekyll Jackie balancing domestic quasi bliss with her daytime druggie personality. It begins at the start of the day, when Jackie sneaks away from the family bed for her morning jolt.
Like the common caffeine addict botching a morning brew because they can’t operate light machinery before their fix, Jackie fumbles her dose, which she’d stashed high atop the bathroom cupboard. It tumbles down the drain. Without missing a beat, Jackie fashions a MacGyver-like contraption out of caffeine gum and a dental tool, which she’s jamming into the sink as her husband sneaks in behind her. He’s concerned about their daughter, Grace, who’s become increasingly fascinated with apocalypse. Can he meet her for lunch later so they can talk? Nope, it’s gonna be a bear of a day, she says, offering a rain check. “It’s been raining a lot lately,” he says. Jackie proffers a conciliatory blow job, whoring herself again in exchange for a partner’s generosity.
The day’s diagnoses can bring the obvious hospital-drama convention — the foreshadowing of a moral. An old man refusing treatment in favor of the “Jewish penicillin” of his wife’s chicken soup: Love Is More Important Than Meds. But others aren’t as readily discernible. A Midwestern newlywed suffers from soaking sweats, painful stomach cramps, and a predilection toward excessive apology. Perhaps she’s pregnant? Nope, turns out the innocent-faced young woman is experiencing withdrawals from the Vicodin she’d been abusing since having her wisdom teeth extracted. The drug, she says, gives her a sensation akin to the best, most perfect day of your entire life. “And that’s not easy to feel in Toledo, Ohio.” Neither, apparently, is it for a disgruntled nurse in New York City. Jackie returns to the nurse station, fishes out her MacGyver tool, and swallows the pill stuck to its end.
Jackie’s addiction is imperiled when she learns that her pharmacist paramour, Eddie, will soon be replaced by a pill-dispensing robot named Pixus. She panics, protesting the gall of modern medicine’s move away from human beings to machines. Hugging Jackie with what she calls his “sad hands,” Eddie tells her, with a hint of derision, “I’ll miss you, too.”
A patient comes in with a scrotum brutally scratched by his cat. Jackie’s gay-nurse sidekick, Mohammed, smilingly compares the wounded organ to a “little pink mouse swinging from a vine” — irresistible, obviously, to gay men and cats alike. Mo’s attraction extends to Dr. Cooper, whom he hungrily stares down as Coop waits for the elevator. Jackie scoffs (“disgusting”). Mo’s self-diagnosis: “Sometimes the people who disgust you the most are the hottest fucks.” Perhaps the lady doth protest too much.
More lighter fare comes in the form of newbie intern Zoe, who’s all sunshine and deference. O’Hara had snatched Zoe’s stethoscope; Zoe’s too in awe of the physician to ask for it back. Jackie’s not having it. She tells the intern to suck it up because “doctors take shit — sandwiches, stethoscopes, credit — it’s what they do.”
Meanwhile, during their lunch session, the steely Dr. O’Hara dines on what Jackie refers to as a “spicy money roll,” and offers Jackie a hypothetical scenario: If Eddie and her husband were on the sinking Titanic, who would Jackie save? She avoids the question, fiddling with her earrings — a humanizing tic.
Focus on the Family would beg to differ, but Jackie proves it’s possible for a prescription-drug addict to be a good mother, and for a nurse to have a love-hate relationship with her doctor co-workers. It’s also possible (maybe even probable, despite our initial impression) that she has real feelings for both her husband and her pharmacist paramour — and that they don’t necessarily cancel each other out.
After 10 years of marriage, eight kids and a popular reality show documenting the ups-and-downs of life with two sets of multiples, Jon and Kate Gosselin are officially separating.
Before clicking play on the below video -- which we strongly encourage you do -- be warned. We had no idea what we were getting into when saw an article entitled "Which way to Bay? Baby sea lion rescued on freeway", along with video. Then, we watched it. AND THE AIR WAS LITERALLY KNOCKED DIRECTLY OUT OF OUR LUNGSACKS. What follows is raw footage of a small baby sea lion who was nabbed by the San Fran Po-Po -- or, taken into fuzztody, if you will (and you won't) -- just hanging out in the backseat of a police cruiser. That is... until he escapes. Why are sea lions at once the most hilariously funny looking and yet Mortal-Kombat-My-Fallopian-Tubes-dorable things in the universe???
The Roots will debut the title track from their upcoming album, "How I Got Over," tomorrow (June 24) on "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon," where they currently serve as the house band.
AP - A joyless cacophony, an insistent and seemingly endless onslaught, "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," director Michael Bay's follow-up to the 2007 smash "Transformers" plays more like a parody of a Bay movie.
A Crystal Globe Award is displayed during the press conference of the 44th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF) in Prague. John Malkovich, Antonio Banderas and Isabelle Huppert will receive... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 23 Jun 2009 | 5:42 pm
From Maxwell to Lil Wayne to Snoop Dogg, Fabolous and Three 6 Mafia, The Alchemist stocks a pretty potent guest list on his upcoming second studio album, "Chemical Warfare." But the New York-based producer and DJ doesn't hide the fact that he's most proud of snaring Eminem, for whom he DJs regularly, to feature on the title track.
Cameron Diaz received a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame today in the "Annoying, Repetitive Laugh In Every Sh*tty Trailer" category (which replaces "Radio"):
I don't hate Cameron Diaz with the same fiery passion as every single one of my female friends, and even though her career has been essentially ignorable for the last 10 years, she was in There's Something About Mary, which is a hell of a lot more than some people on the Walk Of Fame have ever done.
On the other hand, there's this photo from the Walk of Fame ceremony, which sums up how most people will remember her forever:
Why does Hollywood's hottest leading lady find herself in a state of panic when she sees herself on screen? Source: FOXNews.com | 23 Jun 2009 | 4:38 pm
Ladies with Big B's, remove d's from your ears and listen up: Do you find it difficult to fall asleep at night because your heaving fleshsacks are weighin' ya down? (nodding and laughing) I know what you mean! Havin' big b's might be a damn treat during the daytime, especially for those girls who prefer not making eye contact, but once the sun goes down and the nightcaps go on, they can be a real hassle. Well not any more. That's because someone out there -- probably a man with large hands or a small Asian man -- has invented the "Kush Support", a small breast pillow that helps take the heave out of your buzzy.
Check out the infomercial -- including the amazingness at 00:38 -- but then read on for some money saving tips!
OK, so the Kush Support is a great idea, we can all agree, but $55? I-hi-hiiii don't think so. Here are 5 cheaper alternatives for the Kush Support pilluh:
5. The arm of Wilt Chamberlain.
4. Rolled up knee socks.
3. A stale hot dog bun.
2. A Temperpedic foam penis.
1. War and Peace.
Feel free to leave your own Kush Support alternative ideas in the comments. Source: Best Week Ever | 23 Jun 2009 | 4:31 pm
Fashion Wire Daily - The screaming started early, while the sun was still shining brightly over the Mann Village Theater in the heart of Westwood on Monday, June 22, where director Michael Bay and company skipped down the red carpet for the Los Angeles Film Festival's premiere of "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," and kept on going late into the night as Linkin Park took over the street with a live concert at the massive after party.
I haven't posted anything on BWE about the Penguins winning the Stanley Cup, partially because I have a separate place for that now, but mostly because I wouldn't be able to post anything funny, it would have just been a bunch of bragging and self-congratulating and pompously pretending to feel sorry for people in every other sports city (except Boston).
I will therefore step aside and allow Yanni to do the congratulating for me with this brief, synthesized, and in no way creepy video congratulations to the Penguins:
Reuters - From soft suits to sporty leisure wear, designers at Milan's fashion week sought more to reassure rather than provoke with easy, familiar styles and vibrant colors for men next spring.
Can the Jonas Brothers follow the Beatles, Justin Timberlake and
Christina Aguilera?
In the new issue of
Rolling Stone, on stands now, the Jonas Brothers open
up about courting rock credibility while hanging on to their
bubblegum image. Here's a rundown of more acts that made the leap
from the teen idol scene to the world of grown-up rock &
roll.
Former Czech president V㡣av Havel seen here in April 2009. Havel will direct a film based on his last play, "Leaving", the DNES daily said on Monday, quoting a producer of the planned movie. Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 23 Jun 2009 | 4:13 pm
Kind of a slow news day so far, outside the McMahon sadness, but there's nothing quite like an internet rumor about Britney Spears starring in a time-travel holocaust movie to perk things up:
...it is claimed a script for a film called The Yellow Star of Sophia and Eton has been handed to Britney to look at.
If she accepts the role, Britney will reportedly play the main role of Sophia LaMont, who creates a time machine and travels back to World War II where she meets a Jewish man called Eton at a concentration camp.
They then fall in love and travel back to the present day with the intention of getting married but they are both killed by Nazis.
Couple things:
1) How bout a spoiler alert? Christ.
2) "...it is claimed" from the "National Ledger" sounds pretty iron-clad and factual. The movie has probably started shooting as we speak.
3) What a coincidence - Variety was just saying this morning that there haven't been enough Oscar contenders this year. Careful what you wish for.
4) Who wants to see this movie with me? Seriously. Even when it doesn't happen, I'm gonna go sit in an empty theater and imagine it.
(via Film Drunk) Source: Best Week Ever | 23 Jun 2009 | 3:48 pm
Fashion Wire Daily - At a moment when transparency is all the rage in finance and democracy, few menswear collections for spring 2010 seem more prescient and relevant than Calvin Klein's show Monday, June 22, in Milan, where half the clothes were super light, see-through and frequently translucent.
The Oscar-winning songwriter and director behind "You Light Up My Life" has been indicted on charges of raping or sexually assaulting 11 women. Source: FOXNews.com | 23 Jun 2009 | 3:04 pm
Every movie genre has special lessons to impart. Serious dramas offer sober reminders about how miserable people were in the olden days. A decent horror flick will teach you not to camp out in the woods with a group of rowdy, sex-crazed teenagers.
Pioneering Seattle rock band Sunny Day Real Estate will return to the road with its four original members this fall and will reissue its first two Sub Pop albums on Sept. 15.
Nick Lachey and Vanessa Minnillo are over.
A publicist for the actress and former MTV VJ, confirmed to E! News that she and the 98 Degrees alum "have amicably split but remain good...
Have Jon and Kate Gosselin been forcing those camera-ready smiles for some time?
In divorce papers filed yesterday in Pennsylvania's Montgomery County Court, petitioner Kate refers...
UPDATE: Later Tuesday, Hilton summed up his indignation over what happened between him and Will.i.am, basically concluding that violence should never be condoned, ever—even when the alleged...
The CW confirms that Callum Blue, a British actor you may know from the WB's short-lived Related or Showtime's Secret Diary of a Call Girl, has been cast as Phantom Zone baddie Zod for...
Daryl Hannah made quite the splash in West Virginia today.
The actress and longtime environmental activist was arrested along with 30 others Tuesday for blocking traffic on a major...
• Kelly Clarkson was asked about the Perez-will.i.am. nonsense, and she had a hard time not making jokes about it even though she agrees no one should ever be punched in the...
AnnaLynne McCord thinks it's time for 90210 to jump over to Gossip Girl.
McCord says her 90210 character, Naomi Clark, would be a perfect match for Ed Westwick's Chuck...
We're usually not quick to judge a book by its cover, but this goes to Team Jacob! The wolf gets the girl, but Edward's clearly the one ready to howl at this...
Kind of a slow news day so far, outside the McMahon sadness, but there's nothing quite like an internet rumor about Britney Spears starring in a 
