A Little of the Old In and Out

In: Avril Lavigne, keeping in character as the tough grrrl, making it in the seedy music industry on her own terms, by her own wits, has snubbed the House of Windsor, according to The Sun (link via Ananova):

"HE has met just about every gorgeous pop star � but PRINCE CHARLES isn�t good enough for AVRIL LAVIGNE.

"The Canadian rocker pulled out of meeting the Prince of Wales at Capital FM�s Party In The Park in London yesterday with just hours to spare, throwing organisers into a panic.

"The pop rocker and R&B star JAMELIA were due to sit either side of Charles as he watched the end of the show in aid of the Prince�s Trust in Hyde Park.

"But flustered flunkeys were told Avril would not be showing. A backstage insider told me: 'Avril wasn�t keen on the idea. She wanted to get away as soon as she completed her set.'"

Is Avril's bad nutrition to blame? Or is she just a surprisingly strong and independent young woman. We like.


In: Stefano Pilati has been annointed with holy oil, according to British Vogue:

"YVES SAINT LAURENT has given the ultimate seal of approval to YSL Rive Gauche designer Stefano Pilati by agreeing to attend his spring/summer 2005 show in October. 'I'm completely confident in him,' the 69-year-old designer told Women's Wear Daily. 'He's a real worker. I feel liberated.' Laurent famously disapproved of Tom Ford, who played creative director of YSL Rive Gauche from January 2000 to April 2004. Accusing him of 'destroying everything' at the house, Laurent said Ford's work was 'contrary to Yves Saint Laurent. It was Saint Laurent in name but not in its vitality.' Pilati, however, is expected to save the day. 'I think [he] will be able to repair the damage that's been done to the YSL culture and to re-establish the dialogue with the YSL customer,' he said recently."

Out: I see white people. As Fashionweekdaily notes, 'Vanity Fair is throwing a party to launch Abercrombie & Fitch�s new A&F Magazine on Wednesday at The Gansevoort Hotel.' Be sure to wear your sunglasses, true believers, because, otherwise, you just might get blinded by the white (check out the 2nd item) as the combination of Amercrombie and Fitch and Vanity Fair break bread. You know what kind of bread.

In: Fashionweekdaily reports on the September Vogue issue:

"The Daily has learned exclusively that Vogue�s September 2004 issue will be its largest issue ever in the history of the magazine. According to sources on the publishing side of Vogue, the annual fall fashion issue�one of the most highly anticipated issues of the year�will contain over 620 pages of advertisements (the previous record for ad pages was 619) and combined with the estimated 200-plus pages of editorial, the final page count could teeter well into the 850-plus page range, as ad pages continue to come in. 'This issue will set a record as the largest monthly magazine ever published,' said a well-placed executive inside Cond� Nast."

Out: Gwyneth Paltrow. Medieval medicine, of which The Corsair has more than just a passing interest, explicitly warns against Libra's partaking in the ancient art of "cupping." Perhaps this was the subterfuge that compelled Hollywood Libra Paltrow to act in such an appalling manner, as The New York Post's resident cutie-pie Elisa Lipsky-Karasz to report:

"The star hosted a bridal shower for childhood friend Mary Wigmore at a private home on Perry Street last week but shocked guests by acting aloof and antisocial. And when Wigmore opened a present from her future mother-in-law, Paltrow apparently took one look at the gift and smirked, 'Filene's!'"

Cupping or not, the fact that Paltrow is -- in essence -- a snooty blonde Spense girl at heart may have something to do with her demeanor. For those of us who have known and loved these rare, shallow beauties (The Corsair sulks, bitterly sipping Cutty Sark, recalling his past) -- trust us on this one -- this is quite actually in character.

In: LA.com/blog's blind item is interesting -- fuck if I know who it is, though:

"You know him. You love him. If you buy into that straight-arrow-active-guy image carefully constructed by him and his well-paid but overworked peeps, you probably think he hit Hollywood straight from Mayberry and now lives in a cottage on Sesame Street. It turns out there are more than a few twists and turns in this jovial dude�s internal roadmap. Just ask the new owners of the posh vintage LA manse they purchased from the movie favorite. Being typically paranoid Angelenos, they didn�t bat an eyelash at the speaker system that had let the big shot former owner eavesdrop on any conversation on the entire property, let alone at the tiny security cameras that let him snoop in every nook and cranny. But you would have thought that before the guy started packing up all those Bekins boxes, he would have plastered over the super-secret peepholes he had drilled in every guest bathroom and bedroom."

Why are people from LA so goddamned wierd and into "surveillance"? When did spying become a part of LA chic? It's all so ... oily ... so Stallone.

Out: Newly cyber friendly A-Lister Will Smith, gearing up to the gear heads as his film, I, Robot, rockets to screens, tells TeenHollywood (link via Ananova) that he sees downloading piracy as linked to oceanic piracy and, therefore, is inevitable and unstoppable ... what the fuck?!

"My take is, 'OK, there were pirates 1,000 years ago - there is no reason for us to think that we'll live without them in the year 2004.'

"'It's always going to be there. In keeping with my intuitive comprehension of the universe, it would be foolish of me to upset myself with something that always has been and always will be.'"

In keeping with my intuitive comprehension of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, it would be foolish of me to upset myself with someone who, while at the top of his game in Hollywood, allowed himself to play Bagger Vance, a stepin' fetchit role if The Corsair -- a blog pirate -- ever saw one.