Media-Whore D'Oeuvres



"MADONNA has clearly got religion-no sooner has she dumped JESUS than she's taken up with MOSES .. Madge, 50, enjoyed a string of secret dates in London last week with Jewish millionaire businessman Abraham Moses Schimmel." (Newsoftheworld)



"Even if (Mel Gibson) did make $600 million from 'Passion of the Christ,' he had to slice and dice that up between all of his agents and managers. And he has to pay taxes on it. It's still a lot of money, but it's not $600 million ..Under California law, if there's no pre-nup or agreement, she gets half of whatever he earns during the marriage from services rendered -- plain and simple. That's the public policy. Plus, she raised all of those kids, and there's something to be said for that .. I would hope they would settle. There's enough money to go around, and they have very able lawyers and business advisers working for them. Unless there's something to fight about, I'd think they want to keep it quiet. And they can do their fighting with a retired judge, like Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt did. Charlie Sheen's divorce was public because of domestic issues. But these two, I would hope, should do it privately." (Attorney Stacy Phillips/ TheWrap)




(image via brenancenter)

"Karl Rove follows me on Twitter. That’s creepy. I joined Twitter a few months ago; so far, it has been a liberating way to transition from political to personal blogging. It’s allowed me to share the less serious aspects and humorously uncensored moments of my life. But there’s also been a downside: I am now being followed by Karl Rove, and my local sheriff, and God knows how many other political pundits. We need to take Twitter back from the creepy people." (Meghan McCain/TheDailyBeast)



(The Mignot sisters via luxist)

"What do Jade Jagger, Alice Temperley, Devendra Banhart, Alan Faena, Damien Hirst and Maia Norman, Nicolas Malleville and the Mignot sisters have in common? They're all, according to writer Julia Chaplain, modern-day 'Gypsetters' (a fusion of the gypsy and the jet-setter) and fashion icons in their own right. 'Gypsetters are people I've met-or been inspired by-in my travels who have perfected a high-low approach to life that fuses the freelance and nomadic wile of a gypsy with the sophistication and global references of the jet set,' says Chaplain." (Fashionweekdaily)

"Unless Texas secedes or is invaded by pirates this week, Congress is set to finally downshift into a more reasonable gear from now until Memorial Day. The House especially, which has taken the lead in reacting to a flurry of emergencies since even last September, is about to finally get some relief from the new-crisis-a-week pace that the chamber has worked under almost without fail since gathering for the start of the 111th Congress in January. Between rushing to pass an economic stimulus bill, working quickly on key holdover priorities that always met the Bush veto pen or died in the Senate – including an expansion of the children’s health insurance program and two gender pay equity bills – or dropping everything to deal with emerging crises, such as the $150 million in executive bonuses paid out to American International Group, the House has been in overdrive. The furious pace has been due to a combination of factors, some of which were planned for, and some of which were not." (TheHill)

"VANITY Fair writer Bob Colacello just inked a sweet deal for himself. Colacello signed an exclusive contract with the Halcyon Co., owned by Victor Kubicek and Derek Anderson, which just produced 'Terminator Salvation.' Halcyon now has first film and TV rights for all of Colacello's work, past, present and future. The group celebrated at the Waverly Inn the other night with Josh Hartnett, Carolina Herrera, Lee Radziwell, Vogue's Alexandra Kotur and Aileen 'Suzy' Mehle. Also there was Princess Gloria von Thurn und Taxis, who told friends she 'manages to get by' in her 1,000-room castle in Bavaria." (PageSix)



"Last Tuesday saw the death in England of Sir Clement Freud, one of three grandsons of Sigmund Freud. Sir Clement, or 'Clay' to his friends and family, is survived by his two older brothers – the elder Stephen, and the painter Lucian. Having arrived with their parents in London at the outset of the Second World War, escaping the Nazis. The Freuds, because of the brothers Lucian and Clement, became quite famous and accomplished aside from the reputation of their grandfather." (NYSocialDiary)



"According to estimates provided by Rentrak earlier this afternoon, Adam Del Deo and James D. Stern’s ode to a 'A Chorus Line,' 'Every Little Step,' marked the fifth week in a row a doc topped the iW BOT (which ranks specialty films by their per-theater-average). Following 'Valentino,' 'Enlighten Up' and last week’s champ 'Anvil! The Story of Anvil,' Sony Pictures Classics’ release of 'Step' grossed $72,616 from 8 locations, for a $9,077 average." (IndieWIRE)



"BOMB Magazine’s 28th Anniversary Gala and Silent Auction was held last Friday evening at The National Arts Club. The evening started with cocktails, canapes, and the silent auction, during which attendees bid on pieces by Cindy Sherman, Mickalene Thomas, and others. Toasts were made to 2009 Honorees Laurie Anderson, Lou Reed, Alanna Heiss, Laurie Simmons, and Carroll Dunham." (Guestofaguest)

"Georgia Republicans faced a multi-candidate 2010 primary for governor, even with Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle in the race as the consensus favorite to win the nomination to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Sonny Perdue. But Cagle’s surprise announcement last Wednesday that he was withdrawing from the race, citing health problems, has thrown the contest even more up for grabs — and has still more candidates thinking about joining the field. The crowded field of contenders has been forming since 2006, when Perdue was re-elected to a second consecutive term, the maximum allowed under Georgia’s term-limit law. Cagle’s announcement fueled talk that Cobb County Commission Chairman Sam Olens and state House Speaker Pro Tempore Mark Burkhalter could join a Republican primary field that already includes state Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine, Georgia Secretary of State Karen Handel and state Rep. Austin Scott. A bruising battle for the Republican nomination would be a pleasing prospect for Georgia Democrats, who long were dominant in Georgia politics but have lost major ground in recent years. But they may face a primary brawl of their own." (CQPolitics)