This Jack Nicholson Mess



(image via laggoune)

Eew. The belated reports on what actually happened at Jack Nicholson's birthday party -- which happened in April at his Mulholland Drive manse -- are trickling out -- Eew -- and they are really kind of creeping us the fuck out. We're not kidding. Yes, we have seen or hears everything under the sun -- but not from 70 year old men. The creepy laughter is still echoing in our domes .. From DailyMail:

"As we saw this week, Jack Nicholson's piled on the pounds. But even at 70, he's still seducing waitresses and chasing starlets (not to mention trying his luckwith an outraged Nicole Kidman)

"Given his advancing years, Jack Nicholson's landmark 70th birthday celebrations were, by his own famously hard-partying standards, a subdued affair.

"A select list of a mere 600 of his closest celebrity friends were on hand to sip 1,000 bottles of Cristal champagne served by 70 scantily-attired waitresses - one for every licentious year of his life.

"...According to those present, his friends were treated to non-stop bursts of his maniacal laughter, interspersed with deep rumbles of satisfaction that were so debauched they would surely have fallen victim to the censor had they appeared in one of his films."

Okay, a pause for the cause. Alright. Let's run through that again in slo-mo case someone out there reading isn't shivering in the foetal position rocking back and forth praying for their Mama: ".. non-stop bursts of his maniacal laughter, interspersed with deep rumbles of satisfaction that were so debauched .." The prosecution, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, rests it's case. But No.. there's MORE:

"It could not have made pleasant listening, one suspects, for two of his most notable exes, actresses Anjelica Huston and Lara Flynn Boyle, who were also invited to the festivities in April, a few days after his birthday."

Oh, that's so creepy (Almost as creepy as the fact that Lara Flynn Boyle used to call David Spade "peanut")... And, finally:

"... With age, however, Jack has had to get used to having his advances spurned.

"Last year, he issued an apology to Nicole Kidman for making a pass at her when they appeared together for photographers at the Oscars, despite the fact she was there with her husband-tobe Keith Urban - although he refused to say what he used as a chat-up line which was said to have elicited a gasp of shock from the Moulin Rouge actress.

"He admits: 'I'm still playing the field a little, though not nearly as much as some people think.'"

Ya think? (DailyMail)

Ron Perelman and Gina Gershon: Just a Friend



Billionaire Ron Perelman and the darkly sexy Gina Gershon (She just strikes us as a drrty rock and roll grrl, yknow?) have been an on again-off again thing for some time. Our favorite superhero gossip duo Rush and Molloy delve deeper into this possible nautical romance:

"Ron Perelman and Gina Gershon are cruising the coast of Italy on his Ultima III — but friends assure us the 188-foot yacht is no love boat.
Our spies wasted no time phoning in after they saw how giddy the Revlon billionaire and the actress seemed at dinner on the Riviera Wednesday night.

'They were holding hands," says one witness. 'He was putting his head on her shoulder. They were being very playful.'

"The snitch also found it suspicious that Gershon hid her face behind her purse when a photographer snapped her with Perelman.

"Gershon has been turning up with Perelman at New York parties since his bitter split from fourth wife Ellen Barkin. But insiders swear he and Gershon are just friends."

We believe Biz Markie had a sone about that, and it went a little something like this ...

Media-Whore's D'Oevres

"While waiting for the ladies room at Suki Zuki last night, I overheard a beautiful woman saying the strangest thing, 'I’m a hairdresser slut! I just can NOT stay faithful to anyone I see!' She lingered around the bathroom area chatting to friends for a while, and I went back to the bar (because I like to sip a Saketini while I wait for my take-out). Then I realised that the slutty-hair-talker was Carey Lowell, and sitting at arm’s distance from me was Richard Gere, patiently awaiting her. The cutest part was that Richard appeared to be scarfing the rest of their food down while she was away from the table." (DansHamptons)

"Ron Mwangaguhunga reports: It's July, so that means that the chattering class big guns are out and about in Sun Valley, Idaho, at investment banker Herb Allen's mogul retreat for a little "deep think" interspersed with rounds of golf. There is always, lurking in the green, the possible dramatic tension of the merger-subplot-scenario. Heather Godchild, chief media analyst at Standard and Poor's credit rating service, told the Seattle Times: 'Bucolic it may be, but this is a chessboard. You've got major, major players there thinking through some big questions.'" (FishbowlNY)

"VH1 is trying to capitalize on one of the most popular Hollywood sites on the Web. Net has picked up a show that will star celebrity blogger Perez Hilton. A series of six one-hour specials have been ordered for what is tentatively titled 'What Perez Sez.' Shows will be based on Hilton's on-site interviews and reporting from the red carpet of large-scale Hollywood events such as the Oscars. Blogger will riff on current celeb foibles as well as offer gossip. World of Wonder is producing." (Variety)

"Senator Obama is joining John Edwards in calling for hedge funds and private equity firms that go public to pay higher taxes, increasing the pressure on Senator Clinton to take a stand on an industry facing mounting scrutiny in Congress. A spokesman for Mr. Obama told The New York Sun late yesterday that the Illinois senator had asked to co-sponsor legislation that would treat all publicly traded partnerships — such as hedge funds and private equity firms — as corporations, forcing them to pay a 35% tax rate on income." (Russell Berman via NYSUN)

"Austin is the paparazzo with the best gimmick -- he's only 14 -- but not everyone is a fan. TMZ cameras were outside of Il Sole last night, where the fair-skinned Rose McGowan got her first glimpse of Hollywood's youngest photog. With a shocked look on her face, the once one-legged zombie killer exclaimed, 'What's wrong with this town?!' calling his snapping 'just so wrong.' She then, of course, posed for him .." (TMZ)

"After a few more days of deliberation than was required by her leading rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination, Senator Clinton has decided to join those calling for an end to a tax policy that allows some hedge and private equity fund operators to pay just 15% on most of their income." (NYSun)

Media-Whore's D'Oevres



(image via seattletimes via ap)

"The moguls are in session. This, finally, after dozens of their Gulfstreams dropped down Tuesday in nearby Friedman Memorial Airport, with families often in tow, for that annual schmoozefest sponsored by Allen & Co. Among the first making his way past a journalistic gauntlet that Barry Diller would later call 'a gaggle' was, fittingly, host Herbert Allen. It’s his 25th year of bringing media and entertainment biggies together, and he’s smartly expanding the 300-something guest list to include digiterati as well. Allen, whose arrival at the Sun Valley Inn preceded the 7:30 a.m. kickoff session by an hour, reported the opening would feature a presentation from Time Warner Inc. captains Dick Parsons and Jeff Bewkes. A while later, within a distance of 20 yards, Rupert Murdoch and his wife Wendi Deng trailed Diller, his wife, Diane von Furstenberg, and at least one of the wife’s offspring. Murdoch played coy as he ducked past journalists, who are denied access to the sessions, until asked if he wasn’t about to yank his $60 per share offer for Dow Jones & Co. 'You never know,' he said, hurrying past security." (TheDeal)

"In a further sign of Iraq's deepening sectarian divisions, security chiefs in Iraq's Shia-dominated government have formed a shadow intelligence service to rival the Iraq National Intelligence Service (INIS), created and funded by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and that is manned largely by Sunnis and former members of Saddam Hussein's mukhabarat (secret police). The head of the INIS is General Mohammed Abdullah Shahwani. The hostility between these two services is intense. The overall Shia objective seems to be to eradicate, or at least drastically reduce, US influence within the security establishment and put intelligence gathering firmly under Shia control. This is at a time when speculation is growing that a large-scale US military withdrawal may be ordered in the coming months. The emergence of this new service could be bad news for the US because it might facilitate penetration of Iraq's security establishment by the intelligence services of neighbouring Shia-majority Iran." (JanesDefense)

"On the eve of negotiations between Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and the Writers Guild of America, some high-level entertainment execs created a burst of publicity by holding a rare on-the-record briefing to lay out their case. CBS chief Leslie Moonves, Disney’s Anne Sweeney, Warner Bros. chairman Barry Meyer, and chief studio negotiator Nicholas Counter explained why they want to defer the decision on the pivotal issue of multi-platform pay by doing a study." (Paidcontent)

" Cooperation, not mutual destruction, is a major theme at this year's summer gathering of the media and technology elite in Sun Valley. And the Scandinavian founders of new online video service Joost -- Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom -- perhaps embody this new spirit best.Friis and Zennstrom, who once terrified the media industry with file-sharing technology company KaZaa, and then the telecommunications industry with Skype, are first-time guests at Allen & Co's 25th annual media conference in Idaho." (Reuters)

"CHAD Hurley appears to have gone from rock star to falling star. Last year, the YouTube co-founder was the cause célebre at Allen & Co.'s mogulfest at Sun Valley, Idaho, a position that helped him sell his video site to Google only a few short months later for $1.65 billion. As of yesterday afternoon, he had yet to show up at this year's event, leading to speculation that he was either too busy - or had not been invited. An early version of the guest list for this year's confab listed Hurley as an invited attendee, according to a source. But in a later copy reviewed by The Post, Hurley's name was absent; only the names of Google's brass were listed. Roughly 25 percent of the guest list changes every year, and an invite is not only a coveted status symbol among the media elite, it's also a telling indication of who's in and who's out in the media world." (NYPost)

"Mario Testino gave New Yorkers a peek at the inside of his London town house at the Tuesday-night opening of his show At Home at the Yvon Lambert gallery .. 'I like to hang everything together, salon-style,' said Testino, in between greeting Vogue's Anna Wintour, Vanity Fair's Michael Roberts, and Marchesa's Georgina Chapman and Keren Craig. 'The [art] is all mine; I've been collecting for a long, long time.' Afterward, the chic gang gathered at Ian Schrager's yet-to-open boîte Wakiya in the Gramercy Park Hotel. Sienna Miller breezed in Edie Sedgwick-style, wearing a short glittery shift by Stella McCartney and large vintage hoop earrings. Upon seeing the shutterbug, she broke out into her trademark megawatt grin. 'We've been practically living together for the past week,' she said, noting that they were in Rome together for a Vogue shoot and the Valentino anniversary. With that, the Peruvian began to rub the actress' flat stomach. 'We're announcing our engagement,' he said with a laugh. 'This is Mario the fourth.'" (Style)

"Macy’s Herald Square windows turned into art installations, while their second floor Impulse section transformed into a cocktail fête Tuesday night when the Macy’s Sidewalk Gallery Exhibit opened with Art Under Glass Summer 2007, a mixed media exhibition that celebrates the fusion of art and fashion ..From the windows overlooking the city, decorated with drawings of major New York City landmarks by Florence Deygas, to Maxence Cyrin’s performance of 'Yellow Variation,' an original piece created specifically for Veuve, everything was a tribute to the hue. Cellar master Jacques Peters celebrated his interpretation of yellow literally, allowing guests to taste the champagne—normally a treat only his wine makers are privy to—while Jay McInerney gave guests the opportunity to continue a short story he began just for Veuve. At least five languages were represented by the end of the evening, making the story an international pastiche that even McInerney couldn’t translate. 'It’s certainly interesting to think about how stories germinate,' quipped the writer." (Fashionweekdaily)

"Saturday, July 7 .. At dinner in the candlelit courtyard of the Hotel di Russie, we were privy to a fashion moment. The well-heeled guests of the Valentino gala congregated at the bar waiting for their limos. Tom Ford held court in his usual white dinner jacket. Jennifer Hudson (barefoot!) was laughing with the ever-commanding Andre Leon Talley" (TheStar.com)

Very busy week

Please excuse the lightness of postings ..

Media-Whore's D'Oevres

"Miami Fashion Week: South Beach kicked off their fashion week with a new swimsuit collection by Jacquelyne Love, as her Beach Boy husband Mike Love jammed with 'ER' charmer John Stamos. Not exactly David Bowie performing 'Jean Genie' in Bryant Park, but its a start!" (Stylehive)

Corsair Classic

Media-Whore's D'Oevres

"Barack Obama pulls in more than $100K in a swing through Alabama." (Politico)

"Suddenly told that their magazine would be shutting down after a not-so-secret uphill struggle to increase ad pages and circulation, staffers at Jane reacted only as one would assume the founder of the magazine, Jane Pratt, would: They got drunk. After spending much of the day packing up their offices, nearly the entire staff rendezvoused at Lakeside Lounge, a dive bar on Avenue B in the Lower East Side best known for its live rock, nifty jukebox, and Coney Island-style photo booth, for one last hurrah. 'Everyone was in shock at first and then it was like ‘get a beer,’” said one editor. “No one really wanted to go home.'" (Fashionweekdaily)

"The key element uniting the two countries is oil. Venezuela and Iran are the fifth and second largest members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), together accounting for about 20 per cent of OPEC's total output. It was in 2000, when Chavez hosted an OPEC heads of state summit in Caracas aimed at 'refounding' the cartel, that the Caracas-Tehran axis began to develop. Iran's then president Mohammed Khatami was an enthusiastic OPEC participant at the Caracas meeting. Following the summit, both countries became the two most ardent price 'hawks' within OPEC, lobbying for deep output cuts to force prices higher and increase their countries' export revenue. This Iran-Venezuela alliance within OPEC has caused friction with Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter and a nominal ally of the US, which favours more modest crude prices by seeking higher output." (janes)

"Jon Bon Jovi dropped into Ron Perelman's East Hampton pad for a party Saturday - literally. The rocker took a helicopter from his appearance at the Giants Stadium Live Earth concert to Perelman's annual bash. Among the 400 other guests (very Mrs. Astor) who picked their way through heavy police and private security were Mayor Bloomberg, Chevy Chase, Gwyneth Paltrow (on crutches), Shirley MacLaine, Richard Meier, former jailbirds Martha Stewart and Al Taubman, Kelsey and Camille Grammer and Ed Burns. The Revlon mogul served a summery menu of fried chicken, brisket and macaroni at his Georgica Pond estate. " (Gatecrasher)

"The National Urban Technology Center held its Annual Fundraising Gala at Capitale. The event raised over $600,000 and was attended by Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana, Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., Senior Managing Director of Lazard Freres, Hugh Price, Senior Fellow, Brookings Institute, Former NY Mayor David N. Dinkins; Arthur Barnes, as well as Oscar winning actress Tatum O’Neal and actress, Callie Thorne of Rescue Me and Richard Kind of Curb Your Enthusiasm and Spin City who served as the evening’s live auctioneer. " (NewYorkSocialDiary)

"Yesterday, I wrote that Estee Lauder's John Demsey thinks P. Diddy is the 'hip-hop Ralph Lauren,' capable of inspiring the masses to buy a piece of the Sean Combs lifestyle. Well, here's a trend we won't be copying anytime soon: Sean Combs' 18 karat Gold shoelaces. At the BET awards, P. Diddy (or is it just Diddy? What exactly is he calling himself these days?) wore a pair of Upper Echelon Sneakers, which featured a pair of the company's signature gold-plated shoelaces. Retailing for about $500 ..." (Fashionista)

Corsair Classic

77 drummers in brooklyn, live; sick:

Media-Whore's D'Oevres



""Those who know that Steve Buscemi's new film, 'Interview' is a remake of a 2003 film of the same name by Dutch filmmaker Theo Van Gogh, who was brutally murdered in 2004 by a militant Islamist for his outspoken condemnation of Muslim treatment of women, may be surprised by how commonplaceness the film is." (Indiewire)

It Must Be The Bloat and the Bleched Blonde Hair: "TMZ caught up with (David) Spade in Vegas over the weekend, getting kissed by the fantasy babe all boys want to be kissed by -- Pamela Anderson! The pair showed up together to JET nightclub at the Mirage and drank champagne and Red Bull vodkas together. Pam, as usual, sported her high-beam headlights and glow in the dark camel toe." (TMZ via jossip)

"On Saturday I went to the park under the Brooklyn Bridge to see what was (and will quite possibly remain) the best show I've ever seen in my entire life. Vice and JellyNYC brought the Japanese art rock band, The Boredoms together with 74 other drummers to create 77BOADRUMS. Drummers came from all over to participate and included members of bands like Gang Gang Dance, Tussle, Excepter and even Andrew WK (who was apparently incognito). After the show I went up to Yamataka Eye (frontman of The Boredoms) to congratulate him and ask him what he wanted to do next. He said: 'Next year, more drummers.'" (Papermag)

"New York magazine contributing editor Jada Yuan is looking for a new place to live, ideally in Williamsburg with a move-in date of September 1 and three-digit rent price-wise; her current landlord sold his house." (Fashionweekdaily)

"Earlier today we wrote about IAB’s efforts to standardize web video metrics. Now, news that Nielsen/NetRatings is planning a major shift in web metrics, moving, according to the AP, from page views as the key metric to time spent on a site. This comes as more sites are using Ajax, which allows updating without reloading a page and has been wreaking havoc with page view rankings. Page views also don’t account for video streams. Nielsen has been measuring average time spent and average sessions per unique visitor. Under the new method, it will report total time spent and sessions for all visitors with the aim of gaging actual site popularity. This is going to shift some sites’ status considerably. For instance, under the current system, AOL ranked sixth in total page views for May but first in total minutes: 25 billion. Using total time, Google drops to fifth from third in page views. (The reason given is Google’s mission to send people off quickly for answers; that’s probably true but ignores Google’s other mission now, which is to keep people engaged on its own sites.)" (Paidcontent)

Note to Les: Less Is More



We know his gut is Golden (Eew), and his balls made of brass, but the evening News is not prime time television, Les Moonves. It is a different kettle of fish altogether. Joe Hagan's longwinded -- some might call it "gassy" -- profile of Katie Couric left us with the impression that Dark Lord of the Empyrean, Les Moonves, might have oversold Katie to the American public in the run-up to her taking over CBS anchoring duties. From NewYork:

"... (T)here is no shortage of people (many of them inside CBS News) who believe that Moonves unintentionally laid the groundwork for her downfall with the excessive buildup.

"On this question, Couric is careful but clear. 'Um, I think he, you know, probably could have been told, ‘Easy, Les, don’t overpromise,' she says. 'But he was excited and enthusiastic and he saw this as an opportunity to push the envelope.' Couric says she was advised by at least one friend to downplay her arrival. 'I remember Barry Diller saying, 'Just be very low-key about it,' she says. 'And if I had my druthers, would I have not been on every bus in New York? Especially the ones that almost ran me over, which would be the ultimate modern-day O. Henry story? Yeah.'

"Moonves, a TV executive with a barrel-chested confidence in his gut for good TV, says he bears no responsibility for how the show has failed: 'Nope. I really don’t.'"

You do your thing, Les Moonves, you .. do your ... whatevs. (NewYork)

Catherine Zeta Jones Washes Her Hair With Caviar and Truffles



(image via thisislondon)

Yeah. We know. You too have been "Catherine Zeta-Jonesing (Averted Gaze)." She's our favorite Welsh theatre geek turned Hollywood starlet. Granted, the following blog post has Zero nutritive news value, but it goes a long way in showing how the Zeta Jones-Douglas union is rapidly approaching the Kirstie Alley-Parker Stevenson days of wretched Hollywood excess and Caligulesque decadence. It involves what can only be properly construed as hair Mink-ification.

The well-rubied heiress, perennially bejewelled, apparently has a rather eccentric morning hair routine that fully utilizes the gazillions that she and her hubby, Michael "Leatherface" Douglas earn by the boatload producing hugely suspect cinematic shit. Greed, apparently, is good -- and so, dear readers, is sturgeon roe caviar on your locks (Yeah: we're hating a bit on CZJ; we're entitled). According to ThisisLondon:

"Miss Zeta-Jones's hair is washed with a truffle-based shampoo, then smeared with the caviar, which is combed through and left to set.

"The sturgeon roe are liquidised prior to use, which is said to remove any odour.

"... But she credits the gourmet delights for giving her long brown tresses an unbeatable shine.

"The Beluga caviar is apparently flown in from Iran five days ahead of her treatments at a beauty salon in South Kensington."

Stop. Please stop.

"'Catherine discovered the caviar treatment last summer and was astounded by the difference it made to her hair,' said a source.

"She has an incredibly rich and vibrant natural hair colour but the creamy, almost oily nature of caviar really brings this out, making the colour even richer and making it so much more glossy."

Oh, wretched excess stop. Please .. stop.

Picture Pages, Picture Pages ..



Her chemical "Bromance."(image via thecobrasnake)



In another second, Tom Ford's chest hair will prevail over the crisp silk restraints, spreading elegant buttons flying at the socialites like some insidious IED. (image via newyorksocialdiary)





Winner of the 2007 Zonker Harris Cocoa Butter Tanning Competition -- Valentino!(image via newyorksocialdiary)

Media Whore's D'Oevres



"Rick Rubin is considered the most successful producer in the music business - but that's what worries staffers at Columbia Records, where Rubin was given power equal to the label's chairman in May ..Rubin has never been an executive. 'How is he going to have time to do the business [side] when he's in the studio?' one source asks. 'That can take months' .. It doesn't help that Rubin, who was raised here but has a 1923 estate in L.A. and a home in Malibu, won't come to New York. Indeed, when we called Columbia, no one was able to say what Rubin's exact title is." (RushMolloy)

"As my colleague Mike Allen points out, Newsweek has a detailed article about Barack Obama and race today, one in which Obama makes a pre-emptive strike against the notion that simply electing him president will solve America's race problems.It may just be coincidence, but Obama is headed to Birmingham -- a key site in civil rights history -- for his Alabama state kick-off tonight, with no less than Charles Barkley as his special guest." (politico)

Emmy Dish: "'I saw in the Envelope forums some people questioning how 'Friday Night Lights' went over' at the Emmy panels, notes Judge #1. 'It was fine. Very predictable, but def. not bad. I don't think it will be enough to make it into the top 5.'...'Two and a Half Men' once again seems to be . . . the show that impresses the most. I am told that it occupied the number 1 or 2 spot on almost every single ballot my friend could lay eyes on. Others to mention that made the top of lists are 'Entourage' and 'Betty.' My friend really loved 'Extras,' ranking it very high on the list. The bottom 3 spots were given to 'Office,' 'Earl' and 'Scrubs.' She says that those three shows in addition to 'Desperate Housewives' dominated the bottoms of ballots.'" (Goldderby via Popwatch)

"The White House no more expected Domenici to jump overboard than it did Lugar. The shock of Lugar's speech was the reason Hadley quickly scheduled sessions with senior Republican senators such as Lugar and Chuck Hagel, the top two GOP members on the Foreign Relations Committee, and John Warner, former chairman of the Armed Services Committee. 'The president has sent me up here on a scouting mission,' Hadley said to begin the meetings.Always deferential, Hadley took copious notes. But he did more than listen. Based on what Hadley said, one senator concluded that "they just do not recognize the depth of the difficulty they are in." (Novak)

But What About Tina Brown's Talk launch? "In Rome ... the temperatures were running at a nice Mediterranean mid-60 (F) but the place was sizzling because Valentino and his partner Giancarlo Giammetti staged a weekend of parties that the rich, the chic and the shameless of this world will never forget. 'Unbelievable,' sang the choir of VIPs, celebrities, socialites, royalty, European aristocracy and even Mick Jagger. One friend said 'I’ve seen fantastic parties in the world– the Forbes Party in Tangier, the Blenheim Ball, Prince Albert II’s coronation, Marie Chantal’s wedding to Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece, the Safra Ball in the South of France, Lynn Wyatt’s annual birthday parties at her villa in St. Jean Cap Ferrat, but nothing beats the two day celebration of Valentino’s 45th anniversary this past weekend.'" (NewYorkSocialDiary)

"In the Grill on the lot of NBC Universal studios here, Ben Silverman has arrived for lunch; and for the moment, almost all activity ceases. As often happens in Hollywood after the coronation of a new prince, attention must be paid. At almost every booth, Mr. Silverman, the new co-chairman of NBC’s entertainment operations, is stopped by well-wishers and supplicants. Several get back a reply of 'Hi, sweetheart.' This reception is not unusual for Mr. Silverman, who has become, in less than a decade, one of the premier networkers in a town where the quantity and quality of relationships often define success." (NYTimes)

"Could 2008 be the year that Americans put an end to an unbroken 218-year streak of electing white male presidents? Large majorities report a willingness to vote for either a woman or an African-American candidate for the office, according to the latest NEWSWEEK Poll. But those numbers drop significantly when respondents are asked whether the country is ready to accept a black or a woman in the White House." (Newsweek)

"Friday's exhibition opening at the Meier-designed Ara Pacis Museum followed by a dinner at the Temple of Venus, then Saturday's presentation of Valentino's couture collection and a black-tie ball on the grounds of the Villa Borghese. So, plenty of opportunities for Val's gals to work their way through a wardrobe of his outfits. His tribe included an empress (Farah Diba Pahlavi of Iran), a clutch of princesses (Firyal of Jordan, Caroline of Hanover, Marie-Chantal of Greece, Rosario of Bulgaria), show-biz royalty (Joan Collins, Sarah Jessica Parker, Uma Thurman) and a small army of Italian aristocrats and American socialites.'Nothing looks old,' a bedazzled Elizabeth Saltzman Walker declared, speaking for everyone at the Ara Pacis." (Style)

Tina Brown: "(The Talk Launch) Was The Last Great Party of the 90s"



(image via nymag)

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. One can almost hear the melancholy theme of BBC's Brideshead Revisited as Tina Brown -- our swishy, Chattering Class narrator -- takes us through the glorious, pellucid flameout of Talk Magazine (RIP, 2001), her own personal Great War. Maer Roshan as the ethereal Sebastian Flyte; Harvey Weinstein as the oily Rex Motram; and, of course, Ron Galotti as Boy Mulcaster (Exaggerated cough suggesting feigned detachment). From Timesonline:

"It was like a total eclipse of the sun, a maelstrom of bad karma. There was a real feeling of darkness after 9/11. Our world had changed for ever.

"Professionally, nobody wanted to commit to anything long-term, including advertising, and it soon became obvious that our backers weren’t going to wait.

"There was this awful feeling — the end was coming. This malaise was going to continue and we weren’t going to survive it. It was a heartbreak.

"Talk had begun with a great launch party on Liberty Island. It was a fantastic hot summer night, in late August, and we hired this huge ferry to bring the guests over. One boatload disgorged Madonna, Salman Rushdie, Demi Moore, Sting… We lit the island with Chinese lanterns, we gave each person a picnic box and we had blankets spread out on the grass. We had Macy Gray, who was just breaking, as the entertainment. People climbed up the Statue of Liberty with no guides. It was the last great party of the 1990s. It was so high-profile, it was probably too much. But I don’t regret it."

Et in arcadia Ego, Tine Brown; et in arcadia ego.

Amy and The Winehouse



(image via thesun)

Reports of the unevenness of her live performaces will have pleanty of ammo when they hear that Amy Winehouse skipped out of a concert to get her drink on. From TheSun:

"The Camden Caner disappointed thousands of fans by pulling out of her sell-out Summer Pops gig in Liverpool on Wednesday night, claiming she was 'exhausted.'

"But I can reveal the singer was actually propping up the bar at her London local The Hawley Arms when she was supposed to be entertaining paying fans.

"Eagle-eyed Bizarre reader and Hawley regular Amber Locke sent me a snap of Amy with husband Blake Fielder-Civil at the puband ordering an ale at 8.45pm."

Picture Pages, Picture Pages ...



What do Paris Hilton and Yoga have in common? Both can be orally transmitted. (image via ohnotheydidnt)



For your consideration: "Lee" to replace Lie as the past tense of Lay. (image via acesshowbiz)



Fresh-squeezed Guatemalan Peasant cocktails, followed up by slightly sauteed Aztec virgin hearts. (image via newyorksocialdiary)

Media-Whore's D'Oevres

"Bill Clinton, accompanying Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in Iowa (this past week) ..At the Dairy Treat in Nashua, Iowa, the former president whipped out $60 and bought malts for reporters following his wife." (Novak)

"Sitting serenely beneath the Bronzino portrait in his office in a 16th-century palazzo near the Spanish Steps, it is impossible to imagine Valentino — 'Va-Va' to the press, and 'Rudy' (as in Rudolph Valentino) to Elizabeth Taylor — worrying about anything, at least for very long. At the age of 75, he still has the charmed air of the golden boy, who smiles at the world knowing that it will smile right back. And he retains all the hallmarks of those paparazzi shots of him lounging on his yacht with Gwynnie, and hosting balls at his Louis XIII chateau. There’s the caramel tan. The helmet of hair. The impeccable suit. The impossibly big Cartier watch. Beneath the Bronzino is a desk loaded with photographs of the 'very close friends' that Valentino has dressed through the decades: Babe Paley, Marella Agnelli, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Sharon Stone. Snoring contentedly at his feet are five pugs, impeccably groomed by their dog butler." (NYTimes)

"The website quotes an unnamed Japanese source and the information is unverifiable. However, it corroborates and elaborates on a story released by Bloomberg on 14 June that (Kim Jung-il) underwent heart surgery in Pyongyang. The South Korean report states that Kim received percutaneous transarterial coronary angioplasty from Berlin Heart Centre doctors to widen a narrow artery. The leader's health was described as good, save for some symptoms of diabetes and kidney hypertrophy." (Janes)

"There are persistent rumors that partisans try to game the online political stock markets, like Intrade. These are the sort of rumors that markets like this always drive, and the best political market rumor was that, in 2004, George Soros was doing it. Who knows if it's ever true." (Politico)

"I just got in. It’s after midnight, the end of my Independence Day. Around 9:30, I went over to Lagerfeld’s for a party he was having with Dom Perignon. Lagerfeld wasn’t there—I don’t think anyone honestly expected him to arrive before 11—but there were a lot of people in the downstairs salons and out in the garden, where the grass was covered with a platform. It was a beautiful night, with a light breeze. I saw Rick Owens, Sidney Toledano, the chief executive of Dior, and Olivier Theyskens. I stayed for about an hour. On my way out I saw Amanda Harlech and Daphne Guinness, who looked really great. Amanda has a streak of emerald green in her black hair." (Runway.Blogs)

"This is Holly Peterson’s moment. Actually it’s been her moment for some time now. Years actually. Since she first got an idea for a novel and first sat down to write it. You’ve probably heard about it now because it’s Out There. 'The Manny.' The life and times of a healthy, bright, enthusiastic, good looking, hunky young guy working for wealthy family looking after their kids .. The book party in East Hampton was hosted by Vogue and Ralph Lauren (the business) and Michael Peterson and Alan and Susan Patricof. All the right names to make a party ample, cozy, well-attended and down-home, Hamptons-style." (NewYorkSocialDiary)

"The red-soled shoes of Christian Louboutin are already fetish objects in their own right, but the designer went one step further for his collaboration with director and sometime photographer David Lynch. On display at Pierre Passebon was a series of nudes Lynch took of two dancers from Paris' renowned Crazy Horse cabaret, cast by Louboutin for 'their perfect arches' ... In the crowd were Fanny Ardant, Roland Mouret, Laura Dern, Ben Harper, and Cécilia Sarkozy. The French 'First Lady' showed up in an elegant black pantsuit sans security team and didn't appear to notice, much less inhale, a certain burning herb that perfumed the First Arrondissement gallery." (Style)

Tina on Murdoch



Update: Rupert has not bought the WSJ (as previously reported; sorry). Tins Brown, who has a tangled history with Rupert Murdoch, has a fgew things to say about what a Murdoch-owned WSJ might mean. From FT:

"Like Diana, Brown married into royalty, in her case the newspaper variety. Harry Evans, one of the most revered figures in British journalism, had just been made editor of The Times - by its new owner, Rupert Murdoch - when they married in 1981. But Sir Harry, as he is now, was forced out months later and bitterly attacked Murdoch’s stewardship of the paper. He famously claimed Murdoch dismissed the measures put in place to prevent him interfering with The Times’ editorial content as 'not worth the paper they are written on”.

"So, when I ask Brown about the prospect of Murdoch owning The Wall Street Journal, her reply is hardly surprising: 'It would be a horror show. Very sad.' But why would Murdoch do anything to the Journal that would undermine its value? “They said that about The Times.”

Corsair Classic

Miles Davis ( a personal favorite Gemini), one of the most interesting artists of the latter half of the 20th Century: