AFP - Ronnie Biggs, who won notoriety for his role in the 1963 Great Train Robbery, was on Saturday celebrating his 80th birthday as a free man after being released on compassionate ground due to severe illness.
AP - The family of TV pitchman Billy Mays said they were never aware that he used cocaine or other non-prescription drugs before his death and they were considering whether to have an independent review of an official autopsy.
AP - The family of TV pitchman Billy Mays said they were never aware that he used cocaine or other non-prescription drugs before his death and they were considering whether to have an independent review of an official autopsy.
AP - A concert promoter's insurance on Michael Jackson's London shows has provisions that may deny a multimillion dollar payout if the pop star was found to have illegally possessed drugs or was involved in the "illicit taking of drugs."
AP - A concert promoter's insurance on Michael Jackson's London shows has provisions that may deny a multimillion dollar payout if the pop star was found to have illegally possessed drugs or was involved in the "illicit taking of drugs."
A concert promoter's insurance on Michael Jackson's London shows has provisions that may deny a multimillion dollar payout if the pop star was found to have illegally possessed drugs or was Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:26 am
Taiwan born actor Jay Chou, 30, has been cast as the superhero's sidekick Kato, a role played by the late Chinese-American martial arts icon Bruce Lee about 40 years ago, in the movie remake of popular... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 10:33 pm
Taiwan's pop singer Jay Chou will star alongside Nicolas Cage and Cameron Diaz in the movie remake of popular US television series "The Green Hornet," reports here said on Saturday. ... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 10:33 pm
AP - Monotone TV personality Ben Stein has been stripped of his Sunday New York Times business column because of his work as a pitchman for a credit monitoring company.
Politicians have used swimsuit photo ops to signal virility from the Kennedy era through to Obama's surfing shots during last year's presidential run, but no world leader disrobes for the cameras with quite as much gusto as Vladimir Putin. The Russian ruler's first batch of topless vacation snaps, which came out in 2007 and paired his oddly bellied bulk with a fishing rod and a Panama, were a tame if tasteless display of masculinity. The appearance last week of a second collection, however, defies all reason. Here's Putin astride a horse, in a tree, breaking a branch, emerging from the depths mid–butterfly stroke. It's a far cry from Brezhnev's famous hunts (where the secretary general favored jaunty sweaters and pine-decorated Tyrolean hats). These pictures seem designed to illustrate a kind of mythical communion with nature itself. This Putin is less likely to shoot a bear than to wrestle it, make love to it, or ride it into the sunset.
What the hell is going on here? Is Putin engaging in some sort of Freudian flex-off with Obama as Russian subs prowl the Atlantic? Tweaking his pal Berlusconi, whose recent exposure to the telephoto lens was less voluntary? (And which, sadly, we can't include in our accompanying slideshow of politicians in bathing suits through the ages.) Or is the audience for these shots strictly domestic? Some in Russia have noticed that the 2007 photos coincided with a nationwide campaign for higher birth rates. Perhaps they were a kind of state-sponsored aphrodisiac for the homeland's ladies. This time around, though, according to the Guardian, Putin actively courted Western photographers to join him on his Siberian trip, so he seems to have had an international audience in mind.
Russia is actually on the cutting edge of a new trend in political personality cults: It is now possible for a politician to be a respected, feared, or hated ruler and a lighthearted celebrity story without contradiction. This foliation is markedly different from the usual attempts to "humanize" a leader. It is tantamount to creating two separate avatars — man-as-his-office and man-as-tabloid-fodder. There is Prime Minister Berlusconi and "Il Cavaliere," the priapic jester. President Sarkozy and "Sarko," Carla Bruni's husband. Prime Minister Putin and a Siberian centaur-merman.
You can see this happening Stateside as well. The Obama administration, as Jennifer Senior describes in her cover story from last week, "The Message Is the Message," skillfully feeds media interests high and low; as one result, the president's approval ratings and his ability to sell magazines have become two distinct indicators. Hundreds of thousands of people who detest Obama's policies will happily flip through a pictorial of Michelle's dresses or coo at Bo.
The upside and the downside of this is that it may now become harder for a personal scandal to remove a politician from office. Once a head of state moves into the tabloid sphere next to Jon and Kate, we expect scandal. The tabloid-fame contract requires constant acceleration. We're now done with Putin's pecs — the next batch needs to be funnier, darker, or more obscene. On the one hand, this means a politician's private misdeeds will be more likely forgiven if they don't impede his performance or involve misuse of state funds. On the other, this opening-up of the celebrity dimension further muddies the issue of whom people vote for: the public figure or the tabloid avatar. This is how we end up with Sarah Palin, and they with Vladimir Putin rearing his head from the icy waters of the Baikal.
OK, obviously Jon Gosselin and Hailey Glassman are still, at the very least, very fond of partying with each other.
So what does that mean now for Kate Major, who quit her job as a Star...
Monotone TV personality Ben Stein has been stripped of his Sunday New York Times business column because of his work as a pitchman for a credit monitoring company. New York Times... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:55 pm
LOS ANGELES - George Lopez riffs on modern parenting, President Barack Obama and the nation's first Hispanic Supreme Court justice in his live HBO standup special, "George Lopez: Tall,... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:53 pm
The show really must go on, apparently.
A judge signed off Friday on several business deals proposed by the executors of Michael Jackson's heavily indebted estate, who had stated...
Sure you've all seen the Twilight girls, Nikki Reed, Ashley Greene, Noot Seear and Rachelle Lefevre (clockwise from top-left, natch), looking gorge in Glamour magazine. Seriously flawless on...
Mr. OxiClean wasn't as clean as we thought.
In June, an initial coroner's report said pitchman extraordinaire Billy Mays had died of heart disease. Now, we've learned cocaine...
Jordin Sparks is not happy about the Paula Abdul situation over at American Idol.
"It was dumb on American Idol's part," the winner of season six told us earlier today at...
Reuters - It's been a good summer for the major labels' litigators in their battle against individuals charged with copyright infringement. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment News | 7 Aug 2009 | 6:59 pm
NASHVILLE (Billboard) - Judging from the upcoming touring schedule, death metal is, er, alive and well. So are other subgenres of hard rock that still inspire passion from fans. Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 6:58 pm
George Lopez says he's fit and ready to riff on modern parenting, President Obama and more in his live HBO comedy special Saturday night. Lopez says he's worked hard to prepare for... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 6:56 pm
NEW YORK - The wife of Monkees vocalist Micky Dolenz pleaded guilty Friday to charges that she defrauded a public housing program in New York City. Authorities in the city's Department Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 6:37 pm
The insurance taken out on Michael Jackson for his London concert series does not cover cancellations if the pop star was found to have illegally possessed drugs or was involved in the... Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 6:35 pm
Cheating sucks, as does being wrongfully accused of it, so we were glad to hear that Jillian Harris and Ed Swiderski appear to have survived their first big bump in the road.
"I ...
E! News has learned that the pop icon's family has reached out to a longtime friend—who also...
Reuters - Less than a year after the debut of Dolly Parton's "9 to 5: The Musical," here's another pre-Broadway tuner based on a film comedy from yesteryear about fed-up women scheming to wreak revenge upon chauvinist-pig men. Source: Yahoo! News: Entertainment Reviews | 7 Aug 2009 | 5:18 pm
Special Olympics founder Eunice Shriver, 88, is in critical but stable condition in a Cape Cod hospital at the moment. Shriver is mother to California First Lady Maria Shriver, and sister to Ted, Robert, and John F. Kennedy. Many members of her family are with her at this time. [Bloomberg]
We've spent plentyof time rejoicing over Garrett Neffunclothed, and so today, in the interest of trying new things, we'll take a moment to enjoy him clothed. In a new editorial for Japanese GQ, Neff models the latest in summer chic, which is all about three things: navy, short shorts, and ankle-baring pants. Finally Thom Browne's preferred cut is catching on. We've been fans of short pants on men for ages. White pants are usually another story, but Garrett is one of the few people on this planet blessed enough to pull them off. See the whole editorial on Design Scene.
Today the Times reports, somewhat anecdotally, that the use of subscription cards (or "blow-ins," as they're called in the industry) in magazines might be on the wane. "Everybody seems to be subscribing online, so it doesn’t make sense to pay for them to be cut up and inserted into each issue, to say nothing of the postage," read an announcement in The Believer, one of a few magazines recently to give up the practice. We've always been torn about subscription cards (which New York uses, by the way). On the one hand, they're great for keeping your place, and they are actually, to our knowledge, the way we first began subscribing to all of our favorite magazines — before they started sending us a card every few weeks trying to terrorize us into thinking our subscription has to be renewed right now, regardless of the fact that we just upped again for two years. But on the other hand, they give you paper cuts and can be annoying and litter-y.
What troubles us most is when they fall out of our magazine on the subway. There's this terrible moment when you look down at the card, sticking slightly to the Starbucks, mud, and DNA-soaked floor, and you're like, "Can I just pretend I didn't see that fall, so I don't have to put my hand in contact with all that hepatitis C?" Of course, when this happens to us, we always end up picking them up because we are very easily motivated by the prospect of public shame. But the trick is, if you don't react quickly enough, someone else will pick it up for you. Which is one of those insane things about New York City. People will go for months without making eye contact with a stranger, but they will bend down and touch the disgusting subway floor to hand you back something that you obviously don't want or need.
Anyway, the Vanity Fair subscription cards are the best because they have a narrow detachable part on the top that is perfect for bookmarks.
Ryan McGinley: "I had a Caesar salad, fish tacos with chipotle mayo, and plantain chips, and I shared the fish tacos with a dog named Goose, a pig named Emmit, and a cat named Noodles. They all live in the lab. The AC was broken at the lab and it was like a sauna in there, so I had a six-pack of Coronas with two limes. I shared it with Donnie and Julie Pochron and everyone who was working there, since we were baking [from the heat]." [Grub Street]
2. Drake, “Best I Ever Had”: Drake’s knee had a big moment in the media, and yes, we’re including the Twitter account. This song has spawned a world unto itself.
3. Pearl Jam, “The Fixer”: Judging by the chatter in rock circles (they still exist!), this is, if nothing else, the trad song of the summer.
4. Jeremih, “Birthday Sex”: And just like that … Can a song jump the shark? We’re suddenly hearing “Birthday Sex” as a punch line more than coming out of car stereos.
5. Tim McGraw, “It’s a Business Doing Pleasure With You”: The album won’t be out until fall, but what’s more Song of the Summer than talking about buying spinners for your woman’s Escalade? (Summer of 2003, granted, but still.) Country radio’s one of the few places to get a properly laid-back summer tune, and this, for now, is the winner. Hey, it sure beats Toby Keith’s “American Ride.”
6. Demi Lovato, “Here We Go Again”: Our imaginary little sister keeps coming in and putting this on in our room. And we like it.
7. Young Money feat. Lil Wayne, “Every Girl”: What more is there to say (that’s printable on a family website)? This song seems to keep, appropriately enough, respawning.
8. Shakira, "She Wolf": Club tracks are summer tunes, too, and if you visit the right dance floor, this one’s the hottest.
9. Mariah Carey, “Obsessed”: Our love for Mariah is undying, but can we expect the world to keep loving this song when Nick Cannon won’t stop yapping — he now says this song is about him! — and Eminem’s firing back startlingly brilliant dis tracks? Let it fade out …
10. T.I. feat. Mary J Blige, “Remember Me”: Assuming it takes off — which, with tight performances from Mary and T.I., we don’t see why it wouldn’t — this song promises to last into fall on the strength of its autumnal vibe. For now, though, it’s making its first appearance on the charts. Sing on, Mary!
An autopsy report issued Friday by Hillsborough County, Florida, cites cocaine as a contributing factor in the death of TV pitchman Billy Mays, who died last month at age 50.
So upon examination of Time magazine's splashy cover story "Why Exercise Won't Make You Thin," it doesn't have art as cool as our nearly identical story from two years ago did. But it does have the advantage of a touching anecdote about how writer John Cloud got fat after a breakup. It was "a period when I self-medicated with lots of Italian desserts," he wrote, which is the kind of national reporting we can totally get behind. [Time]
Taiwanese actor and pop star Jay Chou has been cast as Kato in Seth Rogen's upcoming Green Hornet movie (following the recent departure of Stephen Chow). Explains Michel Gondry in a press release: “Jay is incredibly unique and charming and fights like a wild dog!" Since Turtle might not get around to it until 2014, we'll say what everybody's probably thinking: There's not a chance Seth Rogen could get a masked manservant as hot as Chou in real life. [DHD]
FRAGRANCE
• Justin Timberlake: "The greatest scents in the world are pheromones. Just the actual smell of a person’s skin." [StyleWatch/People]
• Uma Thurman is the face of the new Givenchy fragrance, Ange Ou Démon Le Secret. The ads were shot by Mario Testino and the scent lands in stores in 2010. [WWD]
• Acne founder Jonny Johansson says he thinks a fragrance for the label is a possibility in the future. [BlackBook]
HAIR
• Cassie wore a bun and pompadour (on the side of her head that still has hair) for a recent photo shoot. [Bossip via Spoiled Pretty]
SKIN
• Carol's Daughter signed a deal with Disney to produce bath and body products inspired by the upcoming film The Princess and the Frog. The film features Princess Tiana, Disney's first African-American princess, as the heroine. [WWD]
Front Page: Recent shows prove extended stays possible -- A recent string of offerings propelled by strong reviews and promising sales are working to prove that an extended stay on the scene isn't unattainable.
There are certainly plenty of reasons to feel ambivalent about Universal's 2009 holiday release It's Complicated. First off, it was written and directed by Nancy Meyers, whose past projects include the cloying house-swap comedy* The Holiday and the menopause-fest that was Something's Gotta Give. Secondly, this particular rom-com revolves around the harried love lives of well-to-do white fiftysomething divorcés, not typically considered to be a group that is particularly pathos-ridden. That said, we have a nagging suspicion that this movie might turn out to be ... gasp ... actually good! From the looks of the trailer, the cast — led by Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, and Steve Martin — seems to have developed a definite chemistry on the set. In particular, we are excited to see the pairing of Streep and Baldwin as a formerly married but currently divorced couple rekindling their long-since-extinguished flames of desire. And call us old geezers if you must, but any movie that pits Baldwin against Martin in a love triangle has our stamp of approval. Break out your liver pills, this one could be a DOOZY.
We want details from you, the recently married. Not about the amazing D.J. who complied with your drunken friend’s repeated requests for Journey. Or about the incredible caterer that managed to whip up exact miniature replicas of Central Grocery’s muffulettas. Or even about the progressive little church in Brooklyn that allowed you to be married by your aunt, the Wicca practitioner. Nope, all we want to know is whether you got busy on your wedding night. That’s right, we want the goods on the goods. Replies will be published (anonymously of course) in the winter "Weddings" issue.
And if you have anything extra to share about the experience, or, well, lack of experience, please feel free.
The best college in the country? That would be the U.S. Military Academy (otherwise known as West Point), believe it or not—at least according to Forbes, which just issued its list of "America's Best Colleges":
The best college in America has an 11:30 p.m. curfew. It doesn't allow alcohol in the dorms, which must be kept meticulously clean. Students have to keep their hair neat, their shoes shined, their clothes crisply pressed. They also receive a world-class education, at no cost, and incur no debt—except for a duty to their country.
You may not incur debt, fine, but we'll assume the fact that you're probably 100 times more likely to die before your 21st birthday wasn't something that was factored into Forbes' ranking system. But as long you're cool with that—and you're not gay, of course!—well, then, you really can't do much better.
We will be the first to admit that the glories of HBO's True Blood are many; after we worked our way through the first few bumpy episodes of the show's debut season, we quickly became addicted to the many charms of Alan Ball's soapy dramedy. But even though our allegiance is strong, we can't help but admit that there are a few things about the program that rankle us on a near weekly basis. As fans, we do our best to push these concerns to the side, but after nineteen episodes, we couldn't hold them in any longer.
1. Bill deserves a hotter maker. The women on True Blood are a mixed bag. The majority fall just short of knockout — like the B versions of the A-list. But the most egregious is Mariana Klaveno, who plays Lorena, the vampire who made Bill. Surely in all of Hollywood there was a more seductive actress to play a woman who says, among other things: "People would die to be with me for one night." Where are the female equivalents of Bill and Eric on this show?
2. The special effects suck. And we don't mean in the vampire sense! Case in point: the supremely cheesy shaky thing Maryann does when she's going into one of her trances. It's like when the crew would simulate turbulence by throwing themselves around the deck of the Starship Enterprise on the original Star Trek. Also, that vampire hotel? We wholeheartedly concur with Gabe's assessment of the situation over at Videogum: "It makes sense that Vampire Bill would want to stay in the Vampire Hotel forever. It is conveniently located at the intersection of Ha-ha Boulevard and Photoshop Street." This is supposed to be premium cable, people, not the SyFy network!
3. The god-awful accents. We are cognizant that part of the appeal of the show comes from its campy nature, but that doesn't excuse the cast from sounding like they're still working their way through their Accents and Dialects for Stage and Screen CDs. In particular, Anna Paquin's vocal performance as Sookie Stackhouse will go down alongside Kathy Bates's (admittedly hilarious) vocal mannerisms in The Waterboy as some of the most contrived and false-sounding Cajun accents of all time.
4. The whole Jessica-Hoyt relationship. We realize she's a vampire, but at the same time she's still just 16 years old, and he's 28. Doesn't matter that he's a virgin — it still gives us the creeps, and not in a cute Harold and Maude kind of way. When we saw them cuddling in bed last week, we couldn't help but wonder if the statutory-rape laws of the state of Louisiana have been amended since vampires were introduced into society. Also, like Bill with Lorena, couldn't Jessica do better than this lunkhead?
5. Bill's chalky-white pallor. So, yes, we get that vampires are deathly pale until they feed. But how come Bill's skin never warms up? Every time we see his face, we can't help but think that he could use a powdered wig to go along with that powdered face, kind of like Tom Hulce in Amadeus. Couldn't someone please introduce him to spray tanner?
We know Gilles Marini can act, we know he can strut his stuff on the dance floor and we know he poses quite nicely for the camera. But can he sing?
According to him,...
It was revealed last week that Kim Zolciak went to the police in April with allegations that NeNe Leakes choked...
A groom in China surprised his bride with the gift of a 1.2-mile train on their wedding day. It was affixed with 9,999 red silk roses and took guests three hours to unfurl. While it is perhaps the most cumbersome gift ever in history, dealing with over a mile of fabric, not ripping it, pinning 10,000 roses to it, and convincing that many people to hold it takes a lot of effort, time, and thought. So he must be a real keeper. Unless he's just really selfish and wanted to get in the Guinness Book of World Records for something dress-related. [MSNBC via StyleList]
John told me about why he left Hollywood just a few years earlier. He was terrified of the impact it was having on his sons; he was scared it was going to cause them to lose perspective on what was important and what happiness meant. And he told me a sad story about how, a big reason behind his decision to give it all up was that "they" (Hollywood) had "killed" his friend, John Candy, by greedily working him too hard.
Jenny Sanford, the woman who suffered through her husband's humiliating international affair, has finally moved out of the South Carolina governor's mansion. Photographers today snapped her retrieving her things. This is bad for Mark Sanford, who had previously resolved to work things out with her. For one thing, the healing of his family was to be a key part in his public-image rehabilitation. For another, Jenny Sanford basically crafted his entire political career for him. Even though his hopes to be a GOP presidential nominee were long shot, he may have harbored hope to continue in public life — and that's pretty much shot. On the bright side, one-way flights to Buenos Aires are pretty inexpensive these days.
This week, it was revealed that Paula Abdul would not be returning as the country’s favorite judge on American Idol. And even though her AI grave is still warm, people are already speculating as to who will be brought in to replace the inimitable Paula. While we could never imagine the show working without Paula, we’ve come up with 10 suitable replacements. And here they are:
10. Rosie O’Donnell. It’s been too long since we’ve heard from Rosie O’D, and American Idol seems like the perfect place for her to bring her trademarked brand of over-the-topness. We know she loves singing, and she’seven expressed interest in filling the slot. Plus, who wouldn’t want to see her makeout with Simon?
9. Miss South Carolina. If it’s incessant rambling you are after, Miss South Carolina might be the only woman in the world able to fill up Paula’s insanely rere shoes.
7. Posh Spice. Posh has been rumored to be the actual replacement. The bad news is, she has no personality, but the good news is, janitors can use her head to mop up the stage sweat after the show…
6. Adam Lambert and Yours Truly. Need I even explain why this twosome would be genius?
5. Gloria Estefan. Probably the closest replacement you could ask for. Most Americans probably wouldn’t even notice.
4. An Old-Timey Coke Dispenser. Why beat around the bush any longer, Idol producers? Just put a f**king Coke dispenser in her chair and get your DeLorean detailed 4 lyf.
3. Martin Lawrence. Martin is probably one of the funniest people in the world, who for the past few years has been raking the money in with less than hilarious projects (rhymes with Mild Pogs. Ah, f*ck it, it’s Wild Hogs.) What better way to bring back the Martin (oblig theme song reference) we used to love than giving him a prime spot on the world’s stage?
2. A Punching Bag For Simon. He’ll need something to beat on.
1. A Sign That Just Says “Yes”. Slightly cheaper… but gets to the point much faster.
Leave your dream replacements in the comments.
You don't want to hear them in your home or in your car—and you certainly don't want to hear them on an airplane.
Transcripts of...
MONDAY
• The first 500 people to spend $117.50 or more on Diesel Only the Brave merchandise at select Macy's locations will receive two general-admission tickets to a private concert with Common on August 26. Starts 8/10. Various Macy's locations: Herald Square, Rego Park, Kings Plaza, Garden State Plaza, and Cross Country.
• Former New York Yankees player Bernie Williams will be signing autographs at the new JCPenney. Manhattan Mall, 901 Sixth Ave., at 33rd St. (212-295-6120); 11–1.
SALES STARTING TOMORROW
• The spring/summer 2009 collection of bags and scarves is 40 percent off at Ananas. The Coco leather clutch is $58 (originally $98), and the Vanessa leather messenger bag is $318 (originally $530). Through 8/16. 248 Elizabeth St., nr. Prince St. (212-925-2502); daily 11:30—7:30.
ENDING TOMORROW
• Spring ready-to-wear and swimwear is up to 80 percent off at the Mara Hoffman sample sale. Bikinis are $30 (originally $170) and silk dresses are $60 (originally $385). Prices start at $15. 120 W. 28th St., nr. Sixth Ave.; Th—F (10—7), S (11—6).
• The in-house collection is 40 percent off and garb from new designers is 50 percent off at No. 6 boutique. 6 Centre Market Pl., nr. Grand St. (212-226-5759); T—S (noon—7), Su (noon—6).
STARTING SUNDAY
• Lauren Wolf's sterling silver and steel jewelry is up to 70 percent off at TheSavvy.com. Through 8/11. Online only.
ENDING SUNDAY
• Men’s and women’s T-shirts, knits, skirts, sweaters, shoes, and more from brands like Miss Sixty, Energie, and Staerk are $29.99 or less. The Miss Sixty Rose St. bubble-hem dress is $29.99 (originally $199) and Energie short-sleeve button-down shirts are $29.99 (originally $159). 260 Fifth Ave., nr. 28th St. (212-725-5400); M—F (9—7), S—Su (11—7).
• Take 30 to 75 percent off men’s and women’s apparel from designers like Isabel Marant, Acne, Steven Alan, Vena Cava, and more at the Stuart & Wright sample sale. 85 Lafayette Ave., nr. S. Elliott Pl. (718-797-0011); Th—S (10—8), Su (noon—6).
• Find discounts of 25 to 75 percent at Epaulet's summer sale. 231 Smith St., nr. Butler St., Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn (718-522-3800); T—S (noon—8), Su (noon—6).
• Ready-to-wear, jeans, shoes, accessories, and the exclusive Acne x Lanvin capsule collection are up to 50 percent off at Acne. 10 Greene St., nr. Grand St. (212-625-2828); M—S (11—7), Su (noon—7).
STARTING MONDAY
• Women's runway, ready-to-wear, and accessories are 50 to 80 percent off at the Richard Chai sample sale. Through 8/14. 107 Grand St., nr. Mercer St.; 10—6.
ENDING MONDAY
• Dresses, jackets, shoes, and more from Venexiana designer Kati Stern are 70 to 80 percent off. Items that were originally $170 to $1,750 are now $50 to $350. 335 W. 35th St., nr. Eighth Ave., eighth fl. (212-629-6868); F—M (10—7).
It's been more than two years since restaurateur (and drama magnet) Nello Balan filed suit against Amy Sacco's Bungalow 8, accusing the club's bouncers of beating him up during a visit to the former hot spot back in May 2006. Nello came forward in the spring of 2007 to say that a bouncer had punched him in the eye and hit him over the head with a metal object (he also said his 21-year daughter was pushed), and the altercation left him with 10 stitches and a fracture to his eye-socket.
The timing of the suit was a tad suspicious. The incident came a few days after Balan, himself, was sentenced to domestic violence classes after pleading guilty to beating up his ex-girlfriend. At the time, Sacco laughed off Balan's claims, suggesting it was all a press stunt on Balan's part.
If it was a stunt, it seems to have gone terribly wrong. It's been two years now, each side has filed countless motions, and the case is still winding its way through the courts with no resolution in sight.
Considering Sacco and Balan happen to both be facing serious financial difficulties at the moment, maybe it's time for the two to let it go and make up? They could sit down for dinner at Nello, then go for a drink at Bungalow 8—accompanied by a reporter, so both would get a little publicity out of it—and once and for all put the acrimony behind them. What do you say, guys? Your lawyers probably won't be happy about it, but the inner peace will be priceless.
The two senators were examined for accepting sweetheart mortgages from Countrywide Financial last year. The committee found "no substantial credible evidence" that this broke Senate rules, but the pair were reprimanded for not being more careful anyway. [HuffPo]
Though their honeymoon in Bali was cut short by a bout of food poisoning, newlyweds Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan made sure to mark the occasion in a permanent way -- with matching tattoos that spell out "side by side" in Balinese.
"It's like, 'I can't update! I can't update!' It's just one of those bugs that gets in you," 24-year-old Christina Cimina told CNN of yesterday's temporary Twitter blackout (which it turns out was all targeted at one dude in the Republic of Georgia). "I was pretty upset, actually. It feels like a lifeline for me ... Pretty much everyone knows almost every detail of my life by what I'm doing on Twitter." [CNN]
Behold the new ad for Padma Lakshmi's jewelry line, shot by Steven Meisel. She looks absolutely stunning, as usual. Actually, it kind of reminds us of her nude photo that ran in Allure this spring. And maybe even her Carl's Jr. commercial. Hmmm, we think we spy a Padma trend. Meisel shot a whole catalogue of images for Padma to use for advertising and other promotional purposes, like her website. WWD notes:
The photos show a glistening, nude Lakshmi draped in her delicate gold and gemstone spices, which take inspiration from foods such as lentils and cardamom pods.
Over on his blog, the Projectionist, New York's David Edelstein remembers John Hughes: "I often found his films difficult to watch. I didn’t buy the relationships, and I couldn’t get past the self-pity and anger. But I did realize, more and more, how wrong I was in thinking Hughes — with his plundering of pop hits and self-conscious use of teen slang — pandered to the youth market. His vision was consistent, his movies of a piece. He was a very personal commercial director ... Of all the big, commercially successful American auteurs, he has always seemed to me the most mysterious, the most conflicted, the most unfulfilled." [The Projectionist]
Padma Lakshmiannounced in January that she was branching out with a "food-inspired" jewelry line. The items went on sale at stores like Bergdorf this past spring, and they've been selling briskly, according to WWD. So now it's time to expand, apparently. An ad campaign for the collection kicks off this fall, one that, per usual, plays to Padma's passion for not wearing clothes unless it's absolutely necessary: "The photos show a glistening, nude Lakshmi draped in her delicate gold and gemstone spices, which take inspiration from foods such as lentils and cardamom pods." [WWD]
Michael Kors, Project Runway judge for six seasons (and counting), had no idea the show would be so popular. "At first, I kept thinking, O.K., gay men will watch it, fashionistas will watch it, and we might have a few people hoping to see Heidi Klum in a bra. What normal person is going to watch this?" he told Vanity Fair. "I think we managed to pull the curtain back and show the world how interesting this all is and how hard it is — and, let’s be honest, how insane fashion people are." Oh yes, Michael. They are insane. [VF]
Well, that's exactly what best-selling author Phil Carlo is alleging. Carlo, the author of The Ice Man: Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer, had his book optioned by embattled movie producer Lorenzo di Bonavenutra a few years back. However, according to the always-to-be-trusted folks over at "Page Six," just as the project was about to move out of the development phase and into production, Carlo pulled the plug when he learned that Di Bonaventura was set on casting oft-shirtless pretty boy Channing Tatum (Step Up, G.I. Joe) as the titular Ice Man. "I had to turn him down," said Carlo. "I really hated the idea of Channing Tatum. I told Di Bonaventura that this is not the guy to play one of the most feared killers of the Twentieth Century." While we have our doubts as to the veracity of these claims (*cough,* sour grapes, *cough*), we do side with Carlo's preferred choice to portray the notorious Mafia hit man: one Mickey Rourke. After all, if Carlo could punch up that script so that Rourke finds himself with an exotic bird with a penchant for booze as a sidekick, something beautiful is bound to happen.
Bernie Madoff's Montauk estate hasn't been sold off yet. Court-appointed trustee Irving Picard has yet to pick a broker(s) to handle the sale yet—possibly because he's been too busy counting his money—although the competition for the listing is fierce, according to Dan's Papers. And while Dan's debunks one myth that's been making the rounds—"Reports that a group of untidy pot smoking surfers are using the pad to hang out, party and chill is false"—it does offer up a rather tantalizing new rumor, one that may have you rushing over to pay Casa Madoff a visit this weekend:
There are those who believe that Bernie, in the days before coming clean, must have hid tens of millions in unnumbered accounts spread throughout the world to support his lifelong bride and mother to his children...
Is there buried or hidden Madoff treasure on the property? Money in the walls or metal boxes of cash in the garage, attic, basement or buried under the shrubs? I suppose that soon, those guys with metal detectors will be walking the property, not looking just for loose change.
Soon? If you leave the city now, you can start the treasure hunt before dinner.
"Matt Weiner, the creator, had thought of Joan as pinched and tightly wound, but she's more of a sort of sexual character. I just went in and did the character as I had read her, which was bossy, brassy, everyone-listen-to-me. And then when wardrobe got involved, doing the pilot, I put on this dress, and all of the sudden I had a different walk than I normally had, and Matt turned to me and said, 'That's Joan.' I have my hair brought up a couple inches, and I have heels. I look like an Amazon." —Christina Hendricks is Joan [Esquire]
"The flag's at half-mast in Shermer, Illinois: John Hughes, the man who spoke for geeks way before anyone else did." —Kevin Smith [Movies Blog/MTV]
"Truly saddened by passing of John Hughes. Was an idol to this magna-zoom-dweebie." —Diablo Cody [Movies Blog/MTV]
“I eat whatever is at craft services. I’m a big eater. I’m from South Dakota, so meat, potatoes, carbs. [We are] encouraged NOT to work out. We want soft; we don’t want any muscle definition. They tell us to gain weight, gain weight, gain weight, because they want a soft, voluptuous woman, which they were [back then].” —January Jones, the only woman on television being told to fatten up [Ok]
“I have this phobia of becoming someone’s ‘girlfriend.' I have guy friends who have been dating a girl for six months and our other friends don’t know her name. They just ask, ‘Hey, where’s your girlfriend?’ And I want to scream, ‘OK, her name is Sally, and she’s awesome, and you’ve known her for months. Where did her identity go?’” —Charlyne Yi, advocate for girlfriends everywhere [Daily Beast]
"I'm a big coward and I'm really afraid of live audiences. I used to really want to do stage one day and then the last couple of years I've done some presenting at awards show. I was so nervous I thought I was going to be sick, so I don't think me on stage for any length of time would work because I would inevitably throw up, and that would be embarrassing." —Katherine Heigl [Female First]
Ho hum, kind of a boring Friday, bummed out about John Hughes, stuck on the internet when it’s beautiful outside…
Maybe something’s going on over at the Daily Mail:
Whoahoa, now we’re talkin’! Good ol internet — coming through with a long, unweildy headline about a woman claiming she didn’t set a dude’s genitals on fire.
Check out the guy, he’s all, “I didn’t set my penis on fire when lighting a cigarette, that Greek woman who assaulted me did it!”
Whew. And to think, I almost WENT OUTSIDE for a second. That was a close one.
From George Wayne's chat with Michael Kors in the new issue of Vanity Fair:
Wayne: G.W. will go there and declare that the next Kors accessory ought to be called Michael Kors L'Orangerie Tanning Butter. Kors: Now that Valentino has retired, I believe someone must wave the too tanned flag.
Do you know how I know you’re gay? You just read this essay in Slate about the rap meme “no homo.” The phrase, in case you’re not familiar with it, is commonly appended to lines in rap that could possibly be interpreted as, well, gay. The essay — which gives a nice primer on the phenomenon, including how it originated as a way for rappers to distance themselves from closeted “down-low brothers” — argues that there’s a possibility that it’s “helping to make hip-hop a gayer place.” Once upon a time, the story goes, rappers would go around telling other men to, say, “suck a bowl of dicks,” and no one found this anything other than just plain macho. (Which, given the nature of rape and sexual assault — it is violence, pure and simple, not sex — really kind of makes sense.) But today, “no homo” “tweaks this dynamic because it allows, implicitly, that rap is a place where gayness can, in fact, be expressed by the guy on the mike, not just scorned in others.”
The idea that this phrase represents the glimmers of a new awakening in hip-hop certainly makes sense when you consider that for gays to be considered equals, they must first, in some primordial stage of social understanding, be understood to even exist. (By the way, full disclosure: The essay’s writer, Jonah Weiner, is a colleague and friend of ours. Obligatory “no homo.”) But to call this progress might also be premature. After all, getting playful with gay-sounding phrases isn’t the same as winking at gays. Wordplay is what rappers do, and, in this case, they’re still doing it to explicitly call out what is “gay.” In a sense, “no homo” is just a more evolved way of calling someone a “faggot” — and evolved partly in that it’s more clever. (It also, let it be said, just sounds good. Weiner highlights a line of Lil Wayne’s where, incidentally, he further extends the rhyme: “no homo, though.”)
Cam’ron, the originator of the phrase, might be the most macho rapper going, and was once, arguably, the most creative. His use of the phrase — and his onetime obsession with the color pink — were both innovations and ways of announcing that he’s such a man, he can get away with dressing “gay” or saying “gay” things. A world where people talk about Brüno, Judd Apatow movies, and homoerotic rap wordplay is indeed a world where gayness comes to the fore. However loose it may be, “no homo” is still meant as a lid on such eruptions.
With a budget of more than $170 million, it's no surprise that Paramount Pictures' final blockbuster release for the summer, "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," has more than a few jaw-dropping scenes.
Is there a more universally likable comedy-person right now than Ed Helms? Maybe Paul Rudd? Steve Carell? The fact that he’s even in the discussion is a well-earned compliment, because he’s awesome.
To reaffirm said awesomeness, Helms dropped by the Tonight Show last night to again prove that he’s basically a less stupid version of Andy Bernard in real life, engaging in a wacky improvised scat-session alongside the Jonas Brothers.
Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald can make love, give birth to a superchild, and have that child eat his effing heart out (Scat-time starts in the last minute of the clip):
A pedestrian holds a print of the famous Abbey Road Beatles record cover while standing at the same pedestrian crossing in north London. Fans of the Fab Four are flocking to the most famous crosswalk in... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 10:18 am
A sign on the Abbey Road is pictured in north London,. Fans of the Fab Four are flocking to the most famous crosswalk in Britain for the 40th anniversary on Saturday of the taking of one of the greatest... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 10:18 am
Actors perform in "Theodora" during the Salzburg Festival 2009 in July 2009. "Theodora" was George Frideric Handel's penultimate work in the genre of oratorios and he composed it in 1749, just 10 years... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 10:10 am
Actors Christine Schaefer as Theodora (L) and Bernarda Fink as Irene perform in "Theodora" during the Salzburg Festival in July 2009. "Theodora" is a pretty sombre affair, a four-hour tale of martyrdom... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 10:10 am
Actors Joseph Kaiser as Septimius (L) and Bejun Mehta as Dedymus perform in "Theodora" during the Salzburg Festival in July 2009. "Theodora" was George Frideric Handel's penultimate work in the genre of... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 10:10 am
Actors Christine Schaefer as Theodora (L) and Bejun Mehta as Dedymus perform in "Theodora" during the Salzburg Festival in July 2009. "Theodora" was George Frideric Handel's penultimate work in the genre... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 10:10 am
Now that we’ve had an evening to overcome our numbness from the breaking news of John Hughes’ heart attack, we might as well turn the topic positive and open up the discussion to our favorite John Hughes movie moments.
Michelle and I discussed this topic for a while yesterday, and after some difficult deliberation — and counting Hughes’ super-iconic moments like the Ferris Bueller ending or the Home Alone burglar stuff (my favorite thing ever until age, like 20) as givens — I’ve always been partial to Steve Martin’s extremely random F-word tirade in Planes, Trains and Automobiles.
It’s not one of Hughes’ greatest movies, but this one scene just taps into a level of cathartic frustration-release we’ve all dreamed of before, plus the fact that this scene is just randomly in the middle of an otherwise extremely-clean family-ish film is just awesome in itself (scene starts at 2:15 – language NSFW):
Favorite John Hughes movie moments? Leave ‘em in the comments.
After starting a new workout regimen three months ago, "The View's" Sherri Shepherd made a splash on the daytime talk show by revealing her new bathing suit body.
The internet is full of “Hey remember this thing from our childhood?” t-shirts (it’s actually the only thing on the internet, besides “Chocolate Rain” and Ask.com) but the following G.I. Joe-themed shirt not only made me laugh, it also answers a question that has plagued us ex-children for over two decades.
If “knowing is half the battle,” what’s the other half of the battle?
US singer Madonna performs during a concert in St Petersburg on August 2. Madonna has cancelled her concert in the Slovenian capital Ljubljana on August 20, the organizer of the Sticky and Sweet tour said... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 9:32 am
Members of the Brat Pack reacted to John Hughes’ death. I don’t even want to imagine how Kevin McAllister took the news.
Rihanna, Jay-Z, and Kanye West will perform on the inaugural episode of the new Jay Leno show, in an effort to confuse the f*ck out of the audience.
Vanessa Hudgens’ legal team is threatening to sue anyone who spreads around her nude photos, beginning with her and her publicist.
Tom Sizemore was arrested for domestic abuse last night. On the plus side, he’s only one purchase away from a free Subway sandwich on his prison Subway punch-card.
And finally, Chris Brown has been dropped by Wrigley after his guilty plea in the Rihanna case. Wrigley’s new spokesperson? Tom Sizemore.
John Hughes, whose 1980s films such as "Sixteen Candles," "The Breakfast Club" and "Some Kind of Wonderful" offered a sharp-eyed look at teenagers and their social habits, has died, according to a statement from his representative. He was 59.
Sienna Miller burned her boobs when she took on a butt-kicking villainous role in "G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra." Source: FOXNews.com | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:26 am
From left) US actresses Kristin Davis, Cynthia Nixon, Kim Catrall and Sarah Jessica Parker arrive at the Odeon Cinema in London's Leicester Square for the world premiere of the Sex and the City film, 2008... Source: RSS feed - channel BNImagesEnter | 7 Aug 2009 | 4:10 am
The pilots of a Learjet that hurtled off a runway heard a noise and warned controllers they were going to crash just seconds before the fiery accident last year that killed them and two others and injured two celebrities Source: FOXNews.com | 7 Aug 2009 | 3:40 am
OK, obviously Jon Gosselin and Hailey Glassman are still, at the very least, very fond of partying with each other.
So what does that mean now for Kate Major, who quit her job as a Star...
The show really must go on, apparently.
A judge signed off Friday on several business deals proposed by the executors of Michael Jackson's heavily indebted estate, who had stated...
Sure you've all seen the Twilight girls, Nikki Reed, Ashley Greene, Noot Seear and Rachelle Lefevre (clockwise from top-left, natch), looking gorge in Glamour magazine. Seriously flawless on...
Mr. OxiClean wasn't as clean as we thought.
In June, an initial coroner's report said pitchman extraordinaire Billy Mays had died of heart disease. Now, we've learned cocaine...
Jordin Sparks is not happy about the Paula Abdul situation over at American Idol.
"It was dumb on American Idol's part," the winner of season six told us earlier today at...
Cheating sucks, as does being wrongfully accused of it, so we were glad to hear that Jillian Harris and Ed Swiderski appear to have survived their first big bump in the road.
"I ...
We know Gilles Marini can act, we know he can strut his stuff on the dance floor and we know he poses quite nicely for the camera. But can he sing?
According to him,...
It's been more than two years since restaurateur (and drama magnet) 
