Media-Whore D'Oeuvres



(image via smh)

"Topshop, the U.K. clothing chain opening its first store in the U.S. this week, has a strategy that may help American shoppers forget about the recession: supermodel Kate Moss. The four-story shop, a similar design to the Oxford Street flagship in London, opens in New York’s SoHo neighborhood tomorrow after six months of construction delays including fire and flooding. Moss’s new fashion line for the brand, her ninth collection for Topshop, goes on sale globally the same day. Topshop, owned by billionaire Philip Green’s closely held Arcadia Group Ltd., is entering the U.S. during the worst recession in at least 25 years." (Bloomberg)



(image via sky.com)

"Within seconds after Gordon Brown and Barack Obama finished their joint press conference Wednesday morning, the embattled British prime minister had reached for the popular American president’s hand, entered the space by his podium and turned to the flashing cameras for a triumphant smile and pose more fitting for running mates than heads of state. The dour Scotsman had much to grin about. Facing grave political problems and demands that he apologize for his role as finance minister during the go-go financial times that led to the current economic crisis, Brown’s meeting with Obama offered a welcome reprieve. While he may be encountering his own difficulties back in Washington, the new American president is political gold on this side of the Atlantic. 'You’ve given renewed hope not only to the citizens of the United States of America but to all citizens in all parts of the world,' Brown said in introductory remarks. The Yanks may be blamed for triggering the worldwide recession, but that finger-pointing doesn’t make Obama any less valuable a political asset." (Politico)

"DON'T put 'Two Lovers' director James Gray in the same room as his star, Joaquin Phoenix. Gray is still furious that scant attention was paid to his movie when Phoenix, who was supposed to be promoting it, grew a beard and started behaving weirdly -- an act, many say, he's putting on for a mockumentary he's doing with Casey Affleck. Gray seethed to the Times of London: 'It's like, Letterman was trying to get the movie out there, but the only thing that's out there now is a crazy person with a beard making a fool of himself.' Gray called Phoenix a 'clown' and said he's not convinced Phoenix's act is a hoax. He said, 'Towards the end of the movie he kept saying, 'I'm tired . . . I don't want to act anymore . . . But I must say, I've seen him in his house, and he has his own recording studio . . . if this is a hoax, then it's the most elaborate thing that I have ever seen.'" (PageSix)

"The Astor trial is about to begin in New York. The late Brooke Astor’s 86-year-old son, Anthony Marshall, has been accused of wrongful behavior in regards to his mother’s estate and will. I had planned to write something about the man whose fortune was the source of all this, William Vincent Astor. Vincent Astor, as he was known all his life, was born in 1891 and died in February 1959, leaving most of his inherited real estate fortune to his wife and to the foundation which she eventually controlled, and which in its way, made her famous in the world." (NYSocialDiary)

"Republican leaders in the Senate are clashing with John McCain, their party’s 2008 presidential nominee. He wants to offer an alternative to the Democratic budget and they don’t. The behind-the-scenes battle is part of a larger split in the Republican Party. Some in the GOP believe their best strategy is to resist President Obama’s agenda and take carefully chosen shots through amendments they all agree on; others want the party to do more to demonstrate how a Republican imprint would be different. As Congress works on setting broad budget caps for fiscal 2010, McCain appears to be in the minority among Republicans, most of whom seem unwilling to stand behind a full-size alternative to the Democrats’ budget (S Con Res 13). By making that choice, the GOP risks being cast as the party that can only say what it doesn’t want and not what it would do, if given the chance." (CQPolitics)



(image vfia cbc)

"Just in from London: Obama looks into Medvedev's eyes -- sees Putin's soul." (Robert George/Twitter)

"..(T)he old boy *was* spotted taking notes at the Senate Finance Committee's hearing on the emotionally disturbed asset relief program, presumably for the new flick .. (Michael) Moore wore his trademark baseball cap, standing out among the sea of suits. He sat in the third row, chatting with a dark-haired man as TARP cop Neil Barofsky, Elizabeth Warren, who as Congressional Oversight Panel head is overseeing the banking bailout, and U.S. acting comptroller general and Government Accountability Office chief Gene Dodaro addressed lawmakers. Moore slipped out of the hearing before it ended, avoiding the reporters." (Dealbreaker)



"Topshop hysteria launched with a bang Tuesday night at a private dinner right around the corner from its’ brand new Broadway location at Balthazar hosted by Topshop owner Sir Phillip Green. The city has been covered with Topshop billboards for months and you might have even spotted one of their gift-card-dispensing trucks about town. The wait is officially over as doors open Thursday! NYC socialites and celebrities were on hand to celebrate the opening for the first US location of the mid-budget, high fashion retailer and to catch a performance by DJ and producer, Mark Ronson along with the ever so cool and talented Santigold, Spank Rock, Daniel Merriweather, The Dap Kings, Phantom Planet’s Alex Greewald, and even Jimmy Fallon who took the mic for his own version of Sting’s 'Englishman in New York.'" (Guestofaguest)

"Seven years after the premiere of MTV’s The Osbournes, the show that launched the era of celebreality on cable, the Osbourne clan is returning to television hoping to redefine an older genre – the long-flailing variety series. Osbournes: Reloaded gets a plum premiere spot tonight at 9:30 p.m. on Fox, behind a special 80-minute episode of American Idol, where the new show is sure to draw a fair bit of sampling. Reloaded is unlike anything on broadcast right now. It combines live-audience interaction, bizarre stunts and prerecorded comedy bits, such as Kelly and Ozzy working at a fast-food drive-thru. In one segment, an audience member is blindfolded and ordered to kiss a complete stranger; in another, Ozzy and Sharon reminisce about their first date ..(A)t last check, the U.S. television audience seemed to have had its fill of Ozzy, Sharon, Kelly and Jack." (Medialifemagazine)