Media-Whore D'Oeuvres

"More than 200 Belgian police officers and authorities in two other countries on Wednesday swept up more than 30 people and recovered some of the $50 million in diamonds stolen in a carefully orchestrated robbery in Brussels in February, investigators said. The raids in France, Belgium and Switzerland took place on Tuesday and Wednesday and rounded up middlemen, intermediaries and at least one man suspected of being part of the team that held up a Brink’s armored car at the Brussels airport nearly three months ago. The vehicle was carrying 120 packets of rough and polished diamonds from Antwerp, the gem trading hub in Belgium. The heavily armed robbers, disguised as police officers, struck with lightning precision just 18 minutes before the diamonds were to be transferred to a flight bound for Zurich. They got away in minutes without firing a shot.

A Swiss investigator, who declined to be named because of the continuing inquiry, said that almost a third of the stolen diamonds were seized in Geneva, where authorities also confiscated about $110,000 and a number of luxury cars. Those arrested in Switzerland, including a Geneva lawyer, were all middlemen and intermediaries involved in efforts to cut and sell the diamonds, the investigator said. Caroline De Wolf, a spokeswoman for the Antwerp World Diamond Center, a trade organization that promotes the diamond business in Belgium, said the group was still waiting for more information about which diamonds were recovered." (NYTimes)

 

 

 

"Soon after moving into Liberace’s gaudy Las Vegas mansion in 1977, Scott Thorson, then a teenage hunk in the foster care system, learned that the jewel-smitten showman could love just as extravagantly as he decorated. Touring the premises before their relationship began, Liberace pointed out some decorative highlights, which included 17 pianos, a casino, a quarry’s worth of marble and a canopied bed with an ermine spread. On the ceiling was a reproduction of the Sistine Chapel with Liberace’s face painted among the cherubs. When the pair became a couple, Liberace, who was 40 years older, was just as excessive. He couldn’t bear to let Mr. Thorson out of his sight. 'We were at a hotel in Florida and Liberace had the manager give us another suite, with windows that faced the beach,' said Mr. Thorson, now 54. 'He knew I’d be near the water and he wanted to be able to look at me.' Liberace even wanted Mr. Thorson nearby when he worked. So for years, Mr. Thorson would don a chauffeur’s costume covered in rhinestones and drive 'Mr. Showmanship' on stage in a bejeweled Rolls-Royce. Mr. Thorson would put the car in park, then open the door for Liberace, who would emerge in a fur coat with a 16-foot train.  If you missed this routine, which ran for years at the Vegas Hilton, you can catch a re-enactment in an upcoming HBO movie, 'Behind the Candelabra,”' which is based on Mr. Thorson’s autobiography of the same name and stars Matt Damon as Mr. Thorson and Michael Douglas as Liberace. One person who may miss the movie’s debut, on May 26, is Scott Thorson. He currently is an inmate at the Washoe County jail here, and while the place has its share of amenities — including television — HBO isn’t one of them." (NYTimes)

 

 

 

"Life is definitely beautiful…as long as one can see, that is, which for two miserable days last week I couldn’t. Having had a glaucoma operation on my eyes two months ago, I needed to use drops for a while but didn’t pay attention—too many girls in their summer dresses, and things like that. The next thing I knew, a pain started in one eye, I ignored it and went out and smoked and drank, then woke up the next day, opened my bleary eyes, and felt nothing but extreme pain in both. I quickly shut them and the pain went away. I tried opening them again, and it got worse ... Like Dr. Johnson said, imminent death, or blindness in my case, concentrates the mind, so I lay around with my eyes closed and the brain working overtime. I tried to think of the beauty of women—past and present—but it was too frustrating. So I switched to art. Edward Hopper and Childe Hassam, to be exact. No one captured American life like Hopper, the loneliness and loveliness of the seaside and its haunting aesthetic. Hopper’s stillness is art at its finest. It engages the viewer’s psyche and imagination, the latter as necessary to appreciate the artist as the eye. While his contemporaries were switching to abstract bullshit, Hopper continues to be a true painter, churning out tranquil vacation spots, gritty city scenes, and hauntingly beautiful and poignant scenes of everyday life. Childe Hassam, who died a year before I was born, is my second-favorite artist. His Impressionist style is just right, depicting gardens, nature, and—the picture I’d give forty of the best Picassos for—5th Avenue on Easter Sunday, the very same canvas that got Brooke Astor’s son in trouble with the Feds. She had it hanging in her drawing room, but she was gaga and thought she was Agamemnon. Her son sold it for little and helped himself to some of the moolah that was coming to him anyway. Now he’s facing two years, which I find disgraceful. He’s an 85-year-old gentleman who served in World War II with distinction and a man who has never broken the law. The streets are full of vicious criminals and bombers, and the state is sending a gent to jail because his mother was a socialite and gave some of the Astor money away." (Taki)

 

 

"I went to lunch at Michael’s with Liz Peek who heads the Couture Council at FIT. Their annual luncheon that opens Fashion Week every September will honor Michael Kors this year. This was the only time I was there this week.Very busy. Bill vanden Heuvel was lunching with his daughter Katrina, publisher of The Nation; Tory Burch was lunching with Cathy Horyn of the Times; Dr. Gerald Imber was with Da Restuvem: Kramer, Greenfeld, Bergman and della Femina. Judy Price was with Linda Buckley head of public relations at Tiffany & Co. Linda was wearing a pearl necklace that you’ve seen in the Tiffany ads here on NYSD. When I told her I recognized it, she told me she was going to be wearing it to the Cannes Film Festival which begins next week. The occasion: Tiffany’s relationship to the Baz Luhrman 'The Great Gatsby' for which Tiffany created a special collection of jewelry. Peggy Siegal, who was one table over with Peter Greenberg the Travel Editor of CBS News, will no doubt be making the trip. Moving on around the room: Roger Friedman of Showbiz411 with Jill Brooke; Andrew Stein with Christine Taylor; Desiree Gruber with Peter Castro of People; Star Jones and Dr. Holly Phillips, Peter Brown with Pat Kluge; Lisa Linden with Tiffany Moller; Sanford & Stein; Jean Doumanian; David Kohl; David Landau; Alexandra Trower; Catherine Saxton with The Countess de Lesseps; Beverly Camhe; Bernard Gershon; Joannie Danielides; Jack Kliger; Diane Clehane with Dave Zinczenko and Patrick Connors and Stephen Perrine. Dave, who wrote the blockbuster “Eat This, Not That” series (7 million copies in North America) for Rodale Press, is movin’ on up to his own imprint at Random House, Zinc Ink. He will also write three health/fitness books for the imprint, among other projects. Good news for everybody." (NYSocialDiary)

 

 

 

"To: Anthony Weiner From: Acme Strategists, Inc. RE: Weiner for Mayor 2013 It was terrific meeting with you last week. We are honored that you are considering hiring us at this incredibly complicated turning point in your life, as you wrestle with a final decision about jumping into this year’s race for mayor. No doubt it’s a tough, deeply personal call for both you and Huma. But we’re pretty sure that you, like us, were up late last night cheering as the returns came in from South Carolina. If Mark Sanford can hike the Appalachian Trail all the way back to Congress, why can’t Anthony Weiner tweet his way to City Hall? We know that time is tight. On May 15, you’re required to file fund-raising documents with the city’s Campaign ­Finance Board, and the press will be combing the reports to see if you’ve begun paying consultants. And by June 10 you need to declare your candidacy in order to be eligible to receive taxpayer campaign financing. So, as you asked, we’ll be blunt in our assessment of your chances and in our advice about how Acme could assist in waging the fight. Frankly we are surprised you are interested in our help, because it’s clear you’ve been meticulously plotting a comeback pretty much since the day you quit Congress in June 2011. You obviously haven’t lost your gift for manufacturing media attention: That confessional April cover story in the Times Magazine was a masterstroke—just enough disclosure and contrition—and no doubt you’ve calculated every other chess move between now and Primary Day in September. Your intention to enter the mayor’s race as late as possible is wise, and suggests a metaphor. You’re a hockey nut, so we know you loved the heightened drama of the strike-­shortened NHL season. Most city voters with real lives aren’t paying attention to the 2013 campaign yet—and those few who are listening find the declared candidates duller than a mid-season Avalanche-Lightning game. You’ll be the Rangers, sprinting into the playoffs. Yet part of what startled us about your soliciting our input was that it plays against your reputation for keeping your own counsel. In preparing this analysis, we reached out to some of our clients who hold high-­ranking political office, including some who remained your friends through the recent unpleasantness, and whose support would be crucial to Weiner 2013. “People like to be asked, ‘What do you think?’  a senior Democrat told us. 'But my conversations with Anthony weren’t him asking for advice. It was him telling me what he intends to do. He’s changed less than you’d expect. Someone who had genuinely changed would have done his penance working for, say, Habitat for Humanity. Anthony thinks his penance is running for mayor.' You elicit strong reactions inside the firm as well. We don’t pretend to be purists; we’ve represented our share of despots, thieves, and egomaniacs. But your situation presents unique hurdles." (NYMag)

 

 

"Yesterday was the Women & Science Lecture and Luncheon at the Rockefeller University on York Avenue and 67th Street. I’ve attended one other luncheon of theirs a couple of years ago. It’s a Springtime luncheon, in a large white, airy tent on the rather cramped yet astoundingly beautiful campus overlooking the East River. Wherever there aren’t buildings or public spaces in use, there are flowers and fauna.This is a very prestigious luncheon in the New York scheme of things. Its roster of supporters are some of the most active philanthropists in New York and the world. Rockefeller University, a/k/a Rockefeller Institute, and at the time of its founding more than a century ago, Rockefeller Hospital, once upon a time ministered to patients. During the Depression of the 1930s, children of financially stressed working people, a/k/a the poor found excellent free treatment there. It is one of those great Rockefeller-founded philanthropies that makes tangible differences in the lives of individuals and the health and welfare of society. Today it is the first institution in our country that is devoted solely to biomedical research. The Women & Science luncheon is a fund-raiser, organized by large group of women and men. They contribute more than $1 million annually to support research and education at the university." (NYSocialDiary)

 

 

 

"The last time I met the Archbishop of Canterbury was on a bumpy helicopter ride over the North Sea. He was wearing a bright red jumpsuit. I can’t remember anything else about him – partly because I was concentrating on not being sick but also because, back then, he wasn’t an archbishop at all but a random oil executive. As group treasurer of Enterprise Oil, Justin Welby was taking a party of journalists to visit an oilfield. That was in 1987 and he was two years away from quitting Mammon and starting on what was going to be a dazzling career with God, that would propel him from being a humble curate in Nuneaton to spiritual leader of 77m Anglicans worldwide.The 57-year-old who now enters the crypt of St Mary-le-Bow in the City of London is in work uniform of a different sort: round his neck is a cardboard dog collar and a plain crucifix. None of the handful of diners who have swapped the glorious sunshine outside for the gloom of a church basement takes any notice of the slight, bespectacled figure as he moves across the stone floor to meet me. 'So sorry to have kept you waiting,' Welby says, glancing at his cheap watch to see that it is three minutes past one." (FT)

 

Howard Stern interviews Mark Wahlberg

Media-Whore D'Oeuvres

"Despite denials from Beijing, there seems little doubt that China’s computer hackers are engaged in an aggressive and increasingly threatening campaign of cyberespionage directed at a range of government and private systems in the United States, including the power grid and telecommunications networks. The Obama administration had carefully avoided naming a specific culprit. Now it has. In the Pentagon’s annual report to Congress on China, the Chinese government and, in particular, the Chinese military are explicitly accused of mounting attacks on United States government computer systems and defense contractors in a systematic effort to steal intellectual property and gain strategic advantage. The report adds urgency to talks expected to begin in July with the Chinese about cyberissues. It does not discuss America’s own considerable investment in disruptive computer capabilities. These, too, must be on the agenda. China’s ambitions have been discussed on a background basis by senior officials and were the subject of an earlier report by the computer security firm Mandiant that was disclosed by The Times in February. The new report to Congress adds depth and detail. Its clear purpose is to increase pressure on China to rein in its hackers, who Mandiant has said, are largely run by Chinese Army officers or are contractors working for military commands. But for anyone broadly interested in the possibility of a global disruption caused by government-directed hackers, the report suffers from one conspicuous omission: It does not address America’s own role in the expanding world of cyberwarfare nor that of other countries with active programs, like Russia, Britain and Israel. The report said that the primary goal of China’s cyberattacks on the United States was to steal industrial technology but that many intrusions were designed to obtain insights into American policy makers’ thinking. The report also warned that information gathered on American defense networks, logistics and military capabilities could be exploited during a crisis. The United States has spent billions of dollars defending its computer networks, as it should. But, increasingly, it is also investing billions more in offensive capabilities, including malware that can disrupt an adversary’s networks like the American-Israel Stuxnet virus did to Iran’s nuclear program in 2010. Cyber is one of the few growth areas in the military budget; Congress and the Obama administration will need to take care that the Pentagon is not exploiting the China threat to boost the budget even more to make up for other reductions." (NYTimes)

"A strange thing happened to Mark Sanford on the way to his comeback victory over Elizabeth Colbert Busch in South Carolina’s special Congressional election: He became a media darling. Once the butt of Appalachian Trail and stalker jokes, a different portrait of Sanford emerged in the final days of the race, as the national reporters who flocked to South Carolina encountered a candidate who not only answered all their questions, but put them on the phone with one of his sons and even personally chauffeured them to his campaign stops. As Slate’s Dave Weigel put it after tagging along with Sanford this past weekend, 'This got lost in the winds of scandal, but Sanford has an incredibly easy charm and — maybe by necessity, now — a welcoming, humble campaign style.' It was that campaign style that ultimately sent Sanford back to Washington. Sure, the race never should have been close. In a Congressional district where Mitt Romney beat Barack Obama by 18 points, any Republican should have been a shoe-in. But after his nasty split from his ex-wife Jenny reared its ugly head again a few weeks ago in the form of trespassing charges — Sanford heads to court on Thursday — it looked like he was toast. National Republicans pulled their support and Colbert Busch soon took a nine-point lead in the polls." (NYMag)

"If a typical break-up calls for vats of Ben & Jerry’s and repeated viewings of The Notebook, then we suppose a highly publicized divorce from a top Hollywood actor and devout Scientologist calls for a cross-country move and a gorgeous new apartment. That’s pretty much what Katie Holmes got last summer when she took up residence at the Chelsea Mercantile—the spectacular, star-infused, 21-story building at 252 Seventh Avenue. The actress reportedly signed the lease just a few days after announcing her split from husband Tom Cruise in June 2012. As you might expect from Ms. Holmes, who has also transmitted her fashion sense to daughter Suri, these are some stylish digs. The actress has been settling into her New York lifestyle pretty well since then. Last winter, Ms. Holmes took the stage as Lorna in Theresa Rebeck’s Dead Accounts, which ran from late November to early January at the Music Box Theatre. Though the show received mixed reviews, Ms. Holmes’s performance stood out, at least to The New York Times. Ms. Holmes 'appears much more at ease playing a worn-down country mouse to the hyped-up city mouse of [Norbert Leo Butz],' Ben Brantley wrote. 'Ms. Holmes and Mr. Butz summon an appealingly natural family rapport … You may even forget that Ms. Holmes is Katie Holmes for a moment.' It’s no problem that Dead Accounts closed earlier than expected—Ms. Holmes is already at work acting in another project, a Spike Lee production called Mania Days." (Observer)

"Last Thursday night at 583 Park Avenue, Lighthouse International held its annual 'POSH Affair' honoring Lorry Newhouse and Alex Hitz. The evening, which was preceded by a preview of the Annual POSH sale, was emceed by Robert Verdi." (NYSocialDiary)

"Is former 'Love Gov' Eliot Spitzer getting any big ideas from Anthony Weiner’s comeback attempt? At The Atlantic and the Aspen Institute’s New York Ideas dinner at Del Posto on Monday night, Spitzer was overheard telling a guest, 'If I do run for something, it would have to be something that would show I’m willing to work my way back up.' The former Client 9 wasn’t the only pol talking about potential races. Newark Mayor Cory Booker — who’s all but officially declared he’s running for the Senate — told Norah O’Donnell during a Q&A, 'Unofficially, I’m running.' A spy said Booker also explained to a guest, 'I can’t announce now because of the [New Jersey] governor’s race, but as soon as it’s over, I’ll announce.'” (PageSix)

Media-Whore D'oeuvres

"The United States believed that the Soviet conquest of Western Europe would integrate Soviet resources and European technology. This same fear led the Americans and Europeans to fight Germany in two wars from two very different perspectives. For my European colleagues, it meant the devastation of their countries, even if NATO won the war. The Dutch, for example, had lived under occupation and even preferred devastation over capitulation. For me, it was an abstract exercise, both in the strange mathematics of the war games and in the more distant consequences of defeat for my country. At the same time, there was a shared sense of urgency that formed the foundation of our relationship: War might come at any moment, and we must consider every possible move by the Soviets, and we must propose solutions. The Americans were always haunted by Pearl Harbor. This is why 9/11 was such a blow. The historical recollection of the attack out of nowhere was always close. Doctrine said that we would have 30 days' warning of a Soviet attack. I had no idea where this doctrine came from, and I suspected that it came from the fact that we needed 30 days' warning to get ready. The Europeans did not fear the unexpected attack; rather, they dreaded the expected attack for which preparations had not been made. World War II haunted them differently. They were riveted on the fact that they knew what was coming and failed to prepare. The Americans and Europeans were united by paranoia, but their paranoia differed. For the Americans, staying out of alliances and not acting soon enough was what caused the war. The United States was committed to never repeating that mistake. NATO was one of many alliances. The Americans love alliances. It is interesting to recognize now what the Soviets were afraid of. When World War II came to them, they had no allies. Their one ally, Germany, was the one that betrayed them. The Soviets were both taken by surprise and fought alone until the Americans and British chose to help them. The Soviets had played complex diplomacy with traditional alliances, and when it failed the Soviet Union committed itself to never again depending on others. It had the Warsaw Pact because the West had NATO, but it did not depend on its allies. The Americans threw themselves into alliances as if an alliance solved all problems. The Soviets, however, acted as if allies were the most dangerous things of all." (STRATFOR)

"I went down to the Metropolitan Club before noon for City Harvest’s annual On Your Plate luncheon. City Harvest, if you don’t know already, is in the business of collecting food that is left at the end of the day from restaurants, markets, and distributors, and re-distributing it among the citizens of New York.  There are more than 1.7 million New Yorkers now living in poverty. Basics, like food, rent and medical are often financially out of reach ... Yesterday’s guest speaker was Martha Stewart. I don’t know her well but I have observed her for two decades, and was well aware of her as far back as the early '70s when she was first getting started. She is a remarkable woman, in my book. She started out in business baking and selling cakes and cookies and desserts, and catering in Westport, Connecticut back then. She went public with a little space selling her baked goods in an up market clothing boutique for men and women. The quality of her product was so good that her business naturally flourished, and she became a 'name' locally. In the early '80s she published her first cookbook, and the rest is history. But what is remarkable about her to me is not only her enormous business success but her capacity for work and for actualizing her ideas, be they for her personal life or for her businesses – which may be all part of A Life." (NYSocialDiary)

"The paranoia and influence of Fox News CEO Roger Ailes have been well-documented, although the more colorful aspects of the most important man in cable news's personality were absent from Zev Chafets's recent fawning, essentially authorized biography. Not so in the forthcoming book from MSNBC contributor and Bloomberg View columnist Jonathan Alter, The Center Holds: Obama and His Enemies, which covers the last two years in American politics, most notably the presidential election, and comes with a chapter on Fox News. Stories about Ailes cutting the mike on Geraldo Rivera notwithstanding, the CEO's views are so embedded in the network's DNA, Alter explains, that he rarely has to tell his employees what to do. They know what produces ratings. Alter calls Fox News the 'validator' of stories that originate from conservative websites like Newsmax, the Washington Examiner, the Daily Caller, and Red State before winding up on Drudge, who filters those that will most rile the conservative audience. Fox News producers, who Alter claims are mostly 'political centrists or even liberals,' take their cues from there, often anticipating Ailes's desires. As an example, Alter points to the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court in 2009: 'a Fox producer (whose colleagues believed him to be nonpolitical) sent out an email saying that of the two still photos the network had of Sotomayor, the unsmiling, less attractive picture should be used on the air.' Rupert Murdoch, Alter reports, 'routinely' says Ailes is 'cuckoo,' 'bonkers,' 'nuts,' and 'crazy,' according to two former News Corp. senior executives, but he sees the humor (and, of course, the dollar signs) in keeping him around." (NYMag)

"South Carolina’s suspense-filled special election between Republican Mark Sanford and Democrat Elizabeth Colbert Busch comes to a close Tuesday — and it’s anyone’s guess how it will end.
Will enough Republicans hold their noses and vote for Sanford, despite their misgivings about his personal conduct, to put him over the top? Or are there enough energized Democrats in the heavily GOP district to carry the day for Colbert Busch? Colbert Busch seemed to be in the driver’s seat a week ago, but the late momentum has been with Sanford. The race is now so close — a weekend survey by the respected Democratic firm Public Policy Polling had Sanford up by a single point — that a recount isn’t out of the question. Who ultimately ends up on top will come down to a handful of factors. Here are POLITICO’s five things to watch in South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, where polls close at 7 p.m." (Politico)

"There is always a lot of chatter in the fashion community leading up to the Costume Institute's Met Ball, what Vogue regularly refers to as 'the party of the year.' It took place on Monday night, celebrating the museum's new exhibit, 'Punk: Chaos to Couture,' which examines the influence of the punk movement in the 1970s on high fashion. Most often the chatter involves how little the Vogue staffers and the rest of the attendees are eating in anticipation of the first Monday in May, or, more accurately, what juice cleanse they might be on.  On Sunday and Monday afternoon, there was more talk about what after-parties might be the hottest, especially for those who are not lucky enough to get invited to pay a large sum for a ticket, or are not famous enough to be invited by one of the many fashion houses that purchase a table. These days, thanks to live streaming mechanisms, one could, ostensibly, have your own Met Ball party at home, though, once the red carpet is done, there's no ceremony or awards to be given out. It's back to your regularly scheduled programming of vegetable chow fun, a Magnolia cupcake and a new episode of 'Two Broke Girls' One of the biggest conversations leading up to the big day is, naturally, who's going to attend. And then, of course, the question is: What is she going to wear? Punk Tartan? A Union Jack print? Spiked hair? ... Some of the more surprising attendees, who came for a dinner of loin of lamb with herbs and a mint-mustard sauce, served with artichoke stuffed with Maryland crab, at least for a high fashion event, included Miley Cyrus (whose hair was at least bleached blonde punk), Kim Kardashian and PSY." (WSJ)

"How many people do you think tuned in to watch Howard Kurtz's public shaming on Reliable Sources Sunday? Go on, take a guess. Two million? One million? Five hundred thousand?  Not even close. The actual number, according to Nielsen ratings data supplied to Buzzfeed by Brad Adgate of Horizon Media, was a paltry 359,000 total live plus same day viewers (which are viewers who watched the show on DVR playback later Sunday). The figure ranks as the show's lowest-rated broadcast since January 13, according to Nielsen data, and is well below the 752,000 and 518,000 total viewers it recorded the two weeks prior. You'd be forgiven, however, for thinking the ratings were higher, particularly if you were on Twitter last Thursday when Kurtz got fired from The Daily Beast for, among other reasons, claiming the recently out basketball player Jason Collins hid the fact that he was once engaged to a woman . Collins had, in fact, disclosed that fact.  Media reporters like Politico's Dylan Byers (who was one of two reporters selected to interview Kurtz on Reliable Sources Sunday, along with NPR's David Folkenflik) and Huffington Post's Michael Calderone, academics such as NYU's Jay Rosen, and others in the industry lit up the social network with comments and reporting when the news broke. But the low ratings lend credence to the claim that few people outside of the media world care about media reporting." (BuzzFeed)

"MSNBC.com is staffing up ahead of a major relaunch later this year. The relaunched site will focus on the world of politics and the personalities that populate MSNBC’s programming. There will also, however, be plenty of political news and information.To that end, the channel is adding a number of reporters, including Talking Points Memo’s Benjy Sarlin, who joins as a political reporter in Washington, The Washington Post‘s Suzy Khimm, who joins as a reporter at “All In,” and Rothenberg Political Reports’ Jessica Taylor, who joins the team of “The Daily Rundown” and NBC Politics. Other additions include Adam Serwer as a national reporter focusing on civil rights issues, Amy Pereira as director of photography, Jason Fields as director of design, Emma Margolin, Evan Puschak and Michele Richinick." (TVNewser)

Pete From Mad Men Sucks

Howie Kurtz gets Grilled on CNN's Reliable Sources

Media-Whore D'Oeuvres

"The house in Nashville is gleaming white, with symmetrical wings and four twenty-foot-high Victorian columns. Under the soaring portico stands Al Gore, dressed in his casual uniform—a button-down blue dress shirt, jeans, and cowboy boots. This is Gore’s White House, a 10,000-square-foot mansion he and Tipper renovated in 2007. It’s currently uninhabited but for his dog, Bo (by strange coincidence, the name of the dog in the real White House, too), a chow mix, who is barking wildly. 'I’ve got the house to myself most of the time,' Gore says ... The image of Albert Gore Jr. as a man for whom the sky is always falling was created in the five weeks after November 7, 2000, a day when he believed he’d won the presidency (and many still believe that he did). The Supreme Court, by one vote (and Sandra Day O’Connor, a retired justice, has just suggested that the court perhaps should not have taken the case), put an end to that dream. 'For two and a half decades, he was on a trajectory that was supposed to end in the presidency,' says one of his closest advisers, Carter Eskew. Then it was ripped out of his hands, and that changed everything. Part of Gore’s gift is that he’s always managed to make light of the situation. He’s developed a big banging laugh and a talent for self-deprecation—'I used to be the next president of the United States,' he likes to say. Or he play-acts. 'How hard was it to be so close?' ­Charlie Rose pressed one recent evening at the 92nd Street Y. How, in other words, could you bear it? Onstage, Gore, in a suit that looked too small for him, mock-blubbered: 'Oh, Charlie, you have no idea.' In the absence of direct testimony, those close to him have filled it in. 'He endured a long night of the soul,' says one aide, echoing the standard view of Gore after 2000. Gore shifts us inside—it’s gotten a bit cold, and the host is hungry. There are relatively few signs of the wealth he’s lately accumulated. There’s a sideboard with dishes on display, a compact living room facing a flat-screen TV, and a dining area where the table is set for three—we’re joined by a young aide, Betsy ­McManus,­ who addresses her boss as 'Sir.'" (NYMag)

"One of the biggest jobs in media is a new position and a high-risk opportunity: running Al Jazeera America.The job running the Qatar-based network recently bought from Current TV has high visibility and no doubt a high salary attached. But it also bears the burden of building an audience in mainstream American with the name of a Middle Eastern brand unfamiliar to most U.S. viewers and probably off-putting to some. TheWrap has learned of several of the candidates that Al Jazeera has contacted for a job that needs to start ASAP for the network to get on the air and running this year, as is planned. As it happens, there are a goodly number of experienced TV news professionals available at the moment. But who will it be?" (TheWrap)

"Which is the most infamous bite in history? Surely Adam’s, but the one Steve Rubell took off Halston’s leg was far more expensive. Let me explain for you whippersnappers who’ve probably never heard of these men  ...I was reminded the time Rubell bit Halston by the story of Luis Suárez, no stranger to controversy in Britain but a hero in his homeland of Uruguay, where biting is the equivalent to our kissing, or so the volatile Liverpool footballer wants us to believe. Suárez bit a Chelsea rival during a match and got a ten-match ban as a result. Mike Tyson, way behind in points against Evander Holyfield years and years ago, bit part of Evander’s ear right off and spat it out on the deck. He got disqualified, hence depriving Holyfield of an out-and-out victory. Rubell’s bite was less violent but almost as expensive ... I broke the Halston-Rubell-Bowes-Lyon-Princess Margaret story more than 30 years ago in The Spectator. I recently saw a documentary on Halston, a milliner who became famous because he designed the pink pillbox hat Jackie Kennedy wore the day her husband was assassinated. Halston was a talented designer, but I wouldn’t know about such matters so I will stick to his constant partying in Studio 54 and his profuse cocaine usage. Halston partied exclusively with gays, which made up the Andy Warhol group. The owner of Studio 54, Steve Rubell, partied with everybody, even unknowns, something Halston and Warhol did not. When Halston’s fame went international, as silly matters like fashion tend to do, he asked his friend John Bowes-Lyon, known as Bosie to the rest of us, to front a party for him in London and to produce Princess Margaret. Bosie did both but also asked yours truly, who dutifully reported the ensuing shenanigans to The Spectator, which back then sold around ten thousand copies if that.  We were having dinner at the Savoy. Bosie stood in front of the dining room with Halston a few feet behind. Bosie did the greetings and introductions until Rupert Galliers-Pratt sauntered in with his faithful wife walking a few paces behind him. (In the original story I called him Rupert-Pilkington-Boreham-Wood upon his request.) 'Hi Bosie,' said Rupert cheerfully and then quickly headed for the bar and free hors d’oeuvres. 'I’m Halston,' said the milliner in his very stiff manner, sticking out his hand. “Thank you, Halston,” boomed Rupert, throwing his Anderson & Sheppard coat on poor Halston’s extended arm while rushing to the bar. (Rupert later said that only Ancient Greeks and butlers had one name, hence the gaffe. Poor Taki.) End of story, but not quite. Once we sat down, Halston was at the top table with Bosie, Steve Rubell, and Princess Margaret. I was later told that the situation was uncomfortable to say the least—downright catastrophic would be more to the point—as Halston was ludicrously polite and inane when not on coke, whereas Rubell was bored, drunk, and falling asleep. He signaled to Halston for the coke and got a furious look in return. After an interminable minute or two he again made the sign and got a loud 'Never!' back. That’s when he decided to take the bull by the you-know-what, slipped underneath the table, grabbed Halston’s leg, and bit the calf hard enough to make it bleed." (Taki)

"Last Wednesday night a week, the Versailles Foundation, Inc./Claude Monet Giverny held its annual fundraising dinner at the Cotillion Room of the Pierre. The proceeds from the evening will go to support the Statues Restoration Campaign in the Parc of the Chateau de Versailles. The foundation’s supporters have financed the recently completed the restoration of the statue Leucothee (1687) by Joseph Rayol who lived in the time of Louis XIV –1655-1718. This year ths Foundation is restoring Claude Monet’s 18th-century cylindrical desk and commode in his bedroom at Giverny. Also, at Monticello, they have commissioned the design and the 'Petit Point' embroidery for Thomas Jefferson’s 18th-century Georges Jacob chairs. The annual dinner always features a guest speaker who belongs to a European royal family, as well as Russian royals. Almost all are descendents or children of deposed monarchs. Queen Elizabeth’s son, the Earl of Wessex has been a guest speaker twice. All of the guest speakers are interesting for their historical backgrounds and knowledge, much of it more intimate than published history, and sometimes more insightful ... This year’s guest was Her Royal Highness, The Crown Princess Margarita of Romania and her husband Prince Radu. Princess Margarita is the daughter of King Michael I. Michael who was born in 1921 was King from 1927 to 1930 and again from September 1940 through December 1947 when he was forced by the Communist Party of Romania to abdicate. A great-great-grandson of Queen Victoria, he is a third cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. In 1997, Michael officially made his eldest daughter Margarita the Crown Princess of Romania, Custodian of the Romanian Crown and his heir presumptive. Romania is no longer a monarchy but after the breakup of the Soviet Union and the downfall of Ceausescu, the royal family was allowed to return." (NYSocialDiary)

"Hamish Bowles is looking forward to tonight’s punk-themed Metropolitan Museum Ball, otherwise known as the Fashion Oscars, for several reasons — but mostly to see Vivienne Westwood’s outfit. “I will be looking out for Vivienne [Westwood] and Zandra Rhodes, but Vivienne for sure. She’s the godmother, grandmother, the evil genius of punk,” the international editor at large of Vogue told us at the Cinema Society party for “What Maisie Knew” at Gallow Green. He added, “I’m always thrilled to see how people take a theme and run with it. Whether it’s going to be very subtle or overt or oblique or literal.” Others expected at the ball include a host of top designers and stars including Jennifer Lawrence, Jennifer Lopez, Gwyneth Paltrow, Marion Cotillard, Debbie Harry, Emma Roberts, Jessica Alba and top models Kate Upton and Gisele Bundchen. " (PageSix)

Matt Lauer: "It's Been An Interesting Year"

via TVNewser

Media-Whore D'Oeuvres

"Not many people get to have lunch with Xavier Niel. 'Each week,' explains the French telecoms billionaire, 'I try to have three lunches with my children, one working lunch, and one lunch with mates.' Niel, sometimes described as 'the French Steve Jobs', is worth around €6bn and co-owns newspaper Le Monde. However, the moment he walks into Senderens, a Michelin two-star restaurant in Paris, you spot that he isn’t a card-carrying member of the French elite. A touch overweight, unshaven, tieless, in a rumpled white shirt and with long black hair swept back, he isn’t instantly surrounded by fawning staff. Indeed, throughout our lunch, the waiters will show no sign of ever having seen him before, though he’s been coming here for 20 years. In insiders’ Paris, Niel is a proud outsider: 'un self-made man' (as the French say), from an unlovely Parisian suburb, who started his entrepreneurial career as a teenager in the 1980s with sex chat sites, and who never studied beyond high school. At this low point for France’s international reputation, here comes Niel, whose rise symbolises a different country. He has an outsider’s view of France’s problems – which he thinks he can help solve." (FT)

"On board with us were people who run Washington, New York and Hollywood, and a glitzy boldfaced manifest made up of movie stars, media, socialites, operatives and diplomats. We're in need of a week on a beach. But what it proved is that if it wants the honor, the WHCA dinner can be the East Coast Golden Globes. Overall, the weekend turned out to be better than expected, and the reason may be that some of the members of the organization, and even its leader, were in the mood for revolt, or at least significant change. Possibly by this time next year, when WHCA celebrates its 100th anniversary, we’ll have a fresher landscape, with the parts that are old being over and the elements of the new setting a course for the future. The long-time power players aren’t down for the count, yet, but they should watch their backs and also remember that good manners make a difference. The only real drama of the weekend also helps make my point. This WHCA event has moved out of the realm and ownership of the media people who started it long ago, well-meaning but still closer to being amateurs than pro's, and into that bigger orbit of global 'red carpet' events — not quite Cannes, but, seriously, a lot like the Golden Globes. A comparison with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association is apt ... In other words, it’s time for the WHCA to bring an A-game to their weekend, and not just Vanity Fair’s Graydon Carter and Sarah Marks winging in for their one party, though what they do so well is a template for the bigger picture. Keep an eye on BuzzFeed. It is a truly buzzy website, fun to read, chock with items, but it could also become, if it wants to, a breakaway renegade social force. They hosted an impromptu 'alternate' party this year — counter to the WHCA dinner — and it got traction. They have it within their reach to go bigger next time around. BuzzFeed and anyone else who wants to go rogue. The WHCA Dinner weekend is not going away. No matter how much hand-wringing is done by moldy old-guard media. It’s here to stay and it will get bigger each year, and eventually it will be sold by Disney as a fantasy package or be given away by the Price is Right as a coveted prize. I'm kidding, but hey, it’s already covered live on E and C-Span." (NYSocialDiary)

"This year, as anyone of a poetic temperament cannot fail to have noticed, is the 50th anniversary of Sylvia Plath’s suicide. Her death occurred a month after the publication of her autobiographical novel, 'The Bell Jar,' and not long after she completed a manuscript of her influential poetry collection, 'Ariel.' Plath’s estranged husband, the poet Ted Hughes, published a version of 'Ariel' in 1965, ordering and choosing its poems as he saw fit, assuring her posthumous fame — and directing the shape that fame would assume. In 2004, six years after Hughes’s death, his daughter Frieda restored the collection to the form her mother had intended. And this month, on May 26 at the London Literature Festival, 40 British actresses and poets (among them Miranda Richardson, Juliet Stevenson and Anna Chancellor) will correct the record viva voce, reading 'Ariel' aloud in the order Plath set. In the United States, she is also undergoing a kind of resurrection and image overhaul, spearheaded by young women and by poets, male and female, like Mark Wunderlich, who created a class at Bennington College a few years ago called 'The Problem of Plath.' When he announced the course description, he recalls: 'My colleagues all thought I was insane. They thought I was going to attract every depressive at Bennington; that every cutter on campus would sign up for this class.' In the event, 50 undergraduates — out of a student body of 600 — applied (most of them reasonably well adjusted). Plath 'is one of the first poets a lot of young women find who they can really claim as their own,' he said. 'What she does is give them permission to express a particular kind of rage that is not self-annihilating and is not simply bitchy. It’s something deeper and more significant and more important.'" (Liesl Schlessinger)

"In 1991, Kathryn Harrison published 'Thicker Than Water,' a novel about a young woman struggling to come to terms with the sexual relationship she’d had with her father. Three books later, she published 'The Kiss,' a memoir in which she examined, in excruciating detail, the sexual relationship she’d had with her father. In reading both of these impressive books, the line between novel and memoir unavoidably blurs. More recently, the gifted Canadian author Sheila Heti wrote 'How Should a Person Be'— 'a novel,' as its subtitle proclaims, 'from life.' Sheila is the protagonist, surrounded by friends with the same names and occupations as those in her life off the page. This is a relatively extreme case in autobiographical fiction, more experimental than confessional, in which the niceties of inventing characters are dispensed with entirely. It’s an intriguing and sometimes unsettling decision, resulting in a sort of hybrid: not quite fiction, not quite memoir. Sitcoms have used this device for years, with stars from Ozzie and Harriet Nelson to Louis C. K. creating irreverent alternative realities modeled closely on their lives.If a writer with autobiographical impulses goes the traditional route, however, presenting only minimally changed plots and faintly disguised characters, it raises the question of why she would opt for fiction rather than memoir. The preservation of privacy is one easy answer, but most authors know that whether their novels are based on their own lives or entirely invented, they are often read as veiled memoir. Perhaps it is simply Camus’s oft-repeated line, 'Fiction is the lie through which we tell the truth,' at play. Yet reading Kathryn Harrison’s story first as fiction and then as memoir, many critics understandably wondered aloud why she would turn to both. One was left with a sense of obsession and a writer’s need to decipher her experience. This kind of obsession could sustain the writing of many books. Some events in life are just predisposed toward it. " (Molly Ringwald)

"When a media company – old or new – presents new programs featuring John Stamos or Gwyneth Paltrow, why wouldn’t an advertiser throw money at some of them? Ad buyers have a couple of answers. Shows like AOL’s 'Second Chances' (which features Paltrow) or Yahoo’s 'Losing Your Virginity with John Stamos' would seem to have the exact elements that win ad dollars – celebs whose past shows have performed well and the imprimatur of new-tech distribution for which so many marketers are clamoring. More intriguing, perhaps, they come from media outlets trying to turn online streaming video into a viable business, and were part of a series of glitzy presentations made in these last few days called the “newfronts,” a ploy by digital-media concerns to wrangle some of the billions of ad dollars advertisers commit to TV at this time of year in a process known as the 'upfront.' But for all the desire to use YouTube, Hulu and so many others to reach younger viewers who have abandoned the watch-this-show-at-this-time-on-this-day thinking behind the prime-time grid, there are a lot of questions about why Big Digital won’t use the techniques that have made Big TV an ad venue that draws around $74 billion annually across broadcast, cable, Spanish-language and local outlets. In their decades-long dealings with TV, ad buyers have grown accustomed to some accountability. They understand a) how a TV network is going to draw audiences to a new program; b) how the shows perform against specific audiences week in and week out; and c) get a heads-up when a program has something unique about it – like a finale or plotline – that could draw their clients in further. As one buyer suggested this week between “newfront” sessions, the digital players seem to be unveiling all sorts of interesting properties, but it’s impossible to tell whether any of the new programs will be around for more than a few months – or if the digital streamers will ever mention them again (Conde Nast Entertainment’s 'newfront' pitch included a promise to match every dollar put into production of new content with a dollar put into marketing and promotion of that content, but, tellingly, it came from a former TV exec – Dawn Ostroff, who spent many years at the CW)." (Variety)

The Black Angels: Don't Play With Guns

Media-Whore D'oeuvres

"When U.S. President Barack Obama travels to Mexico on May 2, he will arrive amid a period of sweeping transformation in the country. Embroiled in myriad political battles and seeking to implement an extensive slate of national reforms, Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto's administration has been focused almost solely on internal affairs. Meanwhile, after years of delay, the U.S. Congress has been debating gun control and immigration reform -- two issues of serious interest to the Mexican government ... While Mexico reorients its internal focus to structural changes that its leaders hope will lay foundations for economic development, the country could also be affected by domestic issues under debate in the United States. For years, Mexico has been pressing the United States to enact stricter gun laws. Though a prominent gun control bill failed in the U.S. Senate on April 17, the issue will likely re-emerge later in 2013, and at least some gun control measures currently enjoy broad popular support. Meanwhile, demographic changes in the United States are driving a debate about immigration reform that, if implemented, would require collaboration with Mexico, many of whose citizens would seek to legalize their residential status in the United States. Though the passage of these reforms will similarly be determined solely by U.S. domestic political factors, their success would be a significant boon for bilateral relations with Mexico. Indeed, for Obama and Pena Nieto, the effects each feel of the other's policy decisions will be magnified by the unique demographic, geographic and economic ties binding their countries. Yet, the domestic environment and political calculations in each country will ultimately shape the effects of this period of political change. The U.S. political decision-making process is largely isolated from international influence, and the Pena Nieto administration likewise appears to be consolidating key policy areas under Mexican control at the expense of U.S. influence. Still, Mexico's steady emergence as an economic power in North America sets the stage for a bilateral relationship much more heavily focused on opportunities for economic cooperation." (STRATFOR)

"They say, ‘She’s fat.’ They get really nasty. Nothing is out of bounds,' Carla Bruni tells Vanity Fair’s Maureen Orth in the June issue about how she was criticized in the press for her appearance immediately following the birth of her daughter, Giulia. Bruni, who tells Orth she was particularly stung by these comments, states, 'It was a very fragile moment in my life. I’m kind of tall, with good-size shoulders, and when I am 40 pounds overweight, I don’t even look fat—I just look ugly. Having children when you’re older is not easy.' Forced to balance the constant campaign appearances with the needs of her newborn, Bruni says, 'I was dead. Breast-feeding the little girl, waking up every two hours at night because she was hungry. And then during the day following my man. Exactly at the time of my life when I would beg not to be photographed. It becomes like a war.' When Orth mentions Bruni’s having made headlines for leaving the Élysée Palace for the last time wearing a nondescript pantsuit and T-shirt that caused speculation that she was subtly telegraphing, 'Good riddance. I’ve had it,' Bruni responds, 'Not at all. Those were the only pants I could get into!”

Being a mother at 43 may have been difficult, but Bruni proudly shows Orth a picture of Giulia. “She is so Sarkozy,' she says. 'Nicolas has found his master. I think between our age and the fact that she’s a girl, we’re both melting, basically, you know?' 'That’s crazy,' Bruni tells Orth in response to rumors that Bruni would leave Sarkozy once he was no longer in power. In fact, Bruni states, the opposite is actually true, 'because power was one of the problems that we had to face together. Power is not a pleasure. It makes you vulnerable.' She continues, 'Power is brutal, and you have to be very structured inside to cope with power without getting blown away.' Bruni, who describes her style as First Lady as 'laid-back' and 'non-interfering,' says she 'never used that power I was supposed to have, not even one day.” Bruni tells Orth the only times she ever actively involved herself was to 'help people sometimes—when people asked me for help, people who were in hospitals or in difficult situations.'" (VanityFair) 

"Last night was another busy one in New York. Down at Pier 60 of the Chelsea Piers, the International Center of Photography hosted its ICP Infinity Awards and featured a presentation of actor Jeff Bridges who is also a serious photographer.  And down at the Joyce, They were holding the Petronio Spring Gala, featuring the world premiere of Like Lazarus Did (LLD 4/30). While up at the Academy Mansion at 2 East 63rd Street, the Financial Times was hosting its 125th anniversary party. I didn’t make it but I’m sure it was fun because the FT staff has an entirely different vibe from American newspapers. Also last night there was the annual Jazz at Lincoln Center Gala benefit. This featured a concert with the Jazz @ Lincoln Center orchestra and Crosby, Stills and Nash. Ashley Schiff Ramos produced the concert. She thoughtfully invited me months ago. It was a privilege. I love CSN and I love Jazz@Lincoln Center." (NYSocialDiary)

"Biotechnology and investment entrepreneur Arthur Altschul Jr. and Rula Jebreal are engaged, we can exclusively reveal. We hear wealthy Altschul, who is the son of former Goldman Sachs partner, philanthropist and art collector Arthur Altschul, proposed to journalist and screenwriter Jebreal in late April. Page Six reported in March that the two were dating, having been spotted together at several restaurants and events. This will be the first marriage for Altschul. Jebreal previously dated Julian Schnabel for five years, before splitting in 2011. She also has a teenage daughter from a previous relationship. Reached for comment, Altschul said: 'We are engaged. We’re very much in love, and look forward to being married.'" (PageSix)

"A former Republican governor of a deeply Republican state is running for a deeply Republican U.S. House seat, but he is best known for claiming to be walking the Appalachian Trail while he was actually visiting his mistress in Argentina, and he has a court date two days after next Tuesday’s special election because he allegedly trespassed on his ex-wife’s property. His Democratic opponent has never run for office and would be totally unknown, except that her brother is one of the nation’s most popular comedians. They aren’t called special elections for nothing. The circumstances in the race for South Carolina’s 1st District between ex-Gov. Mark Sanford (R) and Elizabeth Colbert Busch (D), sister of comedian Stephen Colbert, are so odd that the result, no matter what it is, won’t have much predictive value for next year’s midterm. What future race will look like this? But that’s just the thing with special elections: They are all unique in some way, because they are generally not waged on regular election days, they generally have poor turnout, and they come about because the previous occupant of the office either died in office or resigned, oftentimes under duress. No wonder why the Crystal Ball’s Alan Abramowitz has found that 'the results of special congressional elections do not accurately predict the results of the subsequent general election.' Kooky circumstances are common in specials, and they can help create strange upsets. Nearly two years ago, the national political world was transfixed on another special election, this time in Western New York’s 26th District, where Rep. Chris Lee (R) resigned after the married man was found flirting on the internet. The district had gone 52%-46% for John McCain in the 2008 presidential race, yet Kathy Hochul (D) was able to win a three-way race, and her messaging on Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R) budget plan was largely credited as the reason." (CenterforPolitics)

Media-Whore D'oeuvres

"People have used books as a reliable tool to transmit and preserve information, ideas, and stories for hundreds of years. E-books have enjoyed wide use for only about six years — counting from when Amazon introduced its Kindle in 2007. Yet e-books have rapidly upended so many facets of the traditional book world that the changes they’ve caused have inspired a documentary, 'Out of Print,' by director Vivienne Roumani, which debuted April 25 at the Tribeca Film Festival.Through interviews with historians specializing in the history of books, as well as key figures in publishing, libraries, schools, bookselling, and cognitive science, and by presenting statistics culled from recent literacy surveys, 'Out of Print' presents a portrait of a literary landscape in the midst of rapid change, both positive and negative. The advent of e-books has made reading more efficient and affordable for many and has increased access to and acceptance of self-publishing. But on the other hand, 'Out of Print' portrays young people who are unable or unwilling to read long sections of text, and can’t retain or synthesize the snippets of information they skim. 'A book is something I’m being forced to read, so I spend my time thinking about how I’d rather be sleeping,' says one teenage boy in the film.
Another teenager describes the bewildering experience of visiting a library to conduct research. Although he may be hamming it up for his fellow interviewees, he describes it as 'probably one of the hardest experiences of my life. There were so many books, each book specific to one thing. It’s not like you could find one book with everything that you needed in it. I was like, ‘this is terrible. I just want to Google it.’'" (PBS)

"And yet skyscraper hatred makes no sense. Manhattan without them would be an expensive Queens, and there are fewer than 20 buildings in the city that top 800 feet. We have the Great Depression to thank for the way the city’s shape dips low south of Midtown, and we have 9/11 to thank for the new glass pillars going up in the void left by the Twin Towers. The stratosphere is not as yet crowded, the brownstones are still uncrushed, and the undertow of nostalgia is still strong. Here are the origins of the futuristic New York, as in the great Fritz Lang’s film Metropolis: Detained overnight as a German alien soon after the end of the Great War, Lang saw the city at night as an illusion. Its glaring lights and tall buildings helped him conceive Metropolis. Manhattan’s skyscrapers helped Hollywood create the playground of superheroes, headquarters of super-big corporations ruled by masters of the universe. The symbolism of strength in height and size is unmistakable and has made Hollywood’s life easier as a result. 'Skyscrapers,' proclaims Ayn Rand’s hero Howard Roark in The Fountainhead, are “the greatest structural inventions of man.” He then dismisses Greek temples and Gothic cathedrals as mongrels of every ancient style they copied. (That’s good old Rand for you.) Her philosophical belief in the value of the individual versus the collective somehow reminds me of the great lady the Brits just buried with style—a friend, Nick Scott, rang me after her funeral and told me it made him proud to be English. Hear, hear, just as it made me never want to set foot in the place after some of the remarks I heard by those ghastly lefties of the BBC. But back to Rand and her supermen. She set her novel in New York because New York means one thing only: power. Power is an active, dominating presence throughout the book, and even more in the movie made from the novel, with the sweeping skyline of the city, especially down Fifth Avenue, seen by the audience from the interiors of offices through enormous glass walls. Raymond Massey, impeccably dressed in double-breasted suits in his office with spectacular views of Downtown as background, is no one to mess with. And the movie knew what it was doing, even back when it was made in 1949. Roark’s dream was of a sleek, dynamic, individual edifice, not the boxy bores that the UN and Lever House are. Massey’s press baron was Rupert Murdoch long before Rupie baby owned a single newspaper. Massie dismisses neoclassical designs as “great big marble bromides.” Murdoch would most likely have said the same in a different accent, and that’s what bothers me about The Fountainhead." (Taki)

"Many regard TV as a dinosaur of the past. With the rise of social media and other new technology platforms, new media types predict that its days are numbered, soon to be buried under an avalanche of disruptive change. Yet it lives on, despite the skeptics. In fact, it thrives. TV programming has never been more diverse or of higher quality. My 3-year old learns math concepts on Team Umizoomi while I never miss an episode of Game of Thrones. For all the talk about cord cutting, viewership remains strong and TV’s share of the ad market is actually higher than it was a decade ago. In fact, the industry is going through a renaissance of sorts, where old models are mixing with new ones to create a vibrant new marketplace for content. For sure, the economics of TV are changing, but for the better." (Forbes)

"Supermodel Naomi Campbell’s five-year relationship with her Russian billionaire boyfriend, Vladimir Doronin, is on the rocks, sources exclusively tell Page Six. We’re told the pair, who have been dating since 2008, 'have been taking a break' as the British beauty’s career continues to soar with her TV show 'The Face' a hit in the US and taping in the UK, while she also appears in a sizzling shoot on the cover of Vogue Brazil. Doronin was noticeably not with Campbell as she attended numerous Oscar parties in Hollywood in February. The couple were last seen together on the beach in Miami in March.  A source told us, 'Naomi and Vlad have broken up, and he’s been out partying in New York.' A spy added that Doronin was recently spotted at the Rose Bar at the Gramercy Park Hotel, flirting with a blonde. Another source said, 'Naomi and Vlad have a complex relationship, and sometimes break up and make up.' The source added, 'In many ways their relationship is like a business arrangement. Naomi brings glamor to his hotels and properties, and he treats her extremely well. But they spend a lot of time apart due to work commitments.' Campbell, 42, threw Doronin an extravagant 50th birthday bash last November in Jodhpur, India, with guests including Kate Moss, Eva Herzigova and Karolina Kurkova. Doronin, who has been building a futuristic mansion for Campbell in Moscow, is expected to be among the guests at her 43rd birthday bash May 22, which is reportedly taking place in Ibiza. Despite his long relationship with Campbell, Doronin has not divorced his wife, Ekaterina, even though they are believed to have separated in about 1998." (PageSix)

"When asked to describe a favorite vacation spot, rapper Theophilus London wrote on a postcard how he was fond of Monte Carlo 'because of how slow the rich walk.'" (PageSix)

"'Boys breastfeed longer . . . and then they never stop,' says Julia Restoin Roitfeld. The 32-year-old daughter of former French Vogue editrix Carine Roitfeld is posing in a skintight Victoria Beckham nude dress, her cheekbones as sharp as her curves are soft, and she can’t stop talking about breasts.'My boobs have gotten a lot smaller since giving birth,' she tells the photographer. 'They got huge and then poof, disappeared. It was very, very sad' ... 'Tom Ford gave me high heels for the baby,' says Roitfeld. 'They’re a little kitten heel with a velvet rope that you tie. It’s like a collection piece. I have to put it on the bookshelf, framed. I got leather diaper pants from Alexander Wang. And I got an amazing Givenchy shirt from Ricardo [Tisci] and this you can wear. It’s from the season with the black panther.' 'She’s been so spoiled,' adds Roitfeld. 'I just try to store everything. Her closet is a whole museum now.'" (Alexa)