<![CDATA[Gawker: defamer, rumors]]> http://tags.gawker.com/assets/base/img/thumbs140x140/gawker.com.png <![CDATA[Gawker: defamer, rumors]]> http://gawker.com/tag/defamer/rumors http://gawker.com/tag/defamer/rumors <![CDATA[Guys, We Were Just Kidding About that Jamie Foxx as Frank Sinatra Thing]]> The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.Last week we made a joke that Jamie Foxx should play Frank Sinatra in Martin Scorsese's upcoming biopic about the singer. Well, now Brit tabloids are making the same joke, except they call it "reporting."

It appears that the Daily Express heard from an "inside source" (who we suspect either doesn't exist or reads Gawker) that the Ray Oscar winner was in the running for the role, because of his innate abilities:

Magnificent singing voice, totally convincing acting ability, like Frank himself, born the wrong side of the tracks, rags to riches, makes it big against the odds, has his brushes with authority. The guy's a gift.

So giddy with this bizarre news were other tabloids that they ran with it, even though the whole thing is obviously bollocks. But try telling that to publications like the Telegraph, who heralded the "colour-blind casting" rumor with abandon, and to Brit-in-exile Tina Brown, whose Daily Beast website posted the news this morning.

But yeah, we bet you quid to quinces that someone's just having a laugh. Though who knows! I mean, guys, we have a black president. Anything can happen! Racially speaking!

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<![CDATA[Which Star Loves Underage Thai Hookers?]]> Blind items—on the weekend?!? Why not, god damn it? Today: a chain-smoking, clothes-scamming actress, a 'spiritual' weedhead actor, and a party boy addicted to too-young Thai girls:

1) "This C list movie actress with A list name recognition who used to be kind of a big deal, but now is only a big deal in her mind chain smokes constantly when she is doing any kind of photo shoot. The reason? Her goal is to make the clothes smell so bad that the designer or magazine will give them all to her for free." [CDaN]

2) "This former A/B list movie and television actor is driving producers crazy with demands on the set of his new movie. It seems that our actor has some very odd spiritual beliefs and he is willing to only shoot during certain hours of the day because to do otherwise will harm his soul. I think he has smoked way too much pot." [CDaN]

3) "This star, who has recently become popular for his work and partying persona, has some problems. Let's call the problems, more of an addiction. Let's call the addiction more along the lines of an illegal obsession. In Thailand. With underage girls. He claims it only happened once, and he was ignorant to her age. Why have his phone bills then, been calling repeat ‘agencies' in Thailand almost every day?" [BlindGossip]

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<![CDATA[Sundance Rumor: Ewan McGregor Sacks Stephen Huvane]]> Ewan McGregor seemed perfectly fine at last night's I Love You Phillip Morris after-party (when he wasn't accosted in the coat check room), but the juicy new Sundance rumor is that things went down afterwards.

According to some of our tipsters, shortly after he left the Morris party, McGregor fired superflack Stephen Huvane...at the airport. Was the actor dissatisfied with the film, or had he tired of his publicist's steroidally mendacious ways?

Developing...

[Photo Credit: AP]

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<![CDATA[Leah Remini Ready to Drag J-Lo Away from 'Suppressive' Marc Anthony]]> America's favorite love affair between a former Fly Girl and a Puerto Rican skeleton may be coming to a tragic end. That is, if Leah Remini has anything to say about it!

According to Us, both Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony have been sighted lately without their wedding rings on, the Hollywood equivalent of wearing a novelty t-shirt that says, "DON'T ASK ME ABOUT MY FAILING MARRIAGE" in block type. So who's to blame, and who's ready to offer her friend a comforting e-meter to cry to?

Lopez — who once commanded $15 million per film — "blames Marc for her career going down the tubes," says a mutual pal, adding that she's bitter about the failure of their 2006 drama, El Cantante, which only grossed $7.5 million. (Her 2002 flick Maid in Manhattan earned over $94 million.)

"Jennifer looked around and said, 'This is my life now? I'm a Long Island housewife?'" a pal says. "She hates that everything she worked for went down the tubes."

Lopez isn't the only one with growing resentment toward her husband. Her best friend, Leah Remini, also can't stand him.

"It if was up to her, Leah would just break them up today," a pal says.

Duly noted, "Leah Remini's pal"! We had wondered why Lopez hadn't worked in film since 2006, and now we know who to send flowers to was responsible. However, we question the logic behind fleeing one controlling home for a Scientology-approved safe house. J-Lo, you may think you want your acting career back, but is a recurring guest arc on My Name is Earl really the best comeback you can muster?

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<![CDATA[After Saving Mickey Rourke’s Career, Darren Aronofsky Sets His Sights On That Old Chestnut Known As ‘The Bible’]]> Even though The Wrestler hasn’t even come out yet, isn’t it about time we started discussing what Darren Aronofsky’s gonna do next? Rumors have circulated that he’ll be helming the Robocop reboot, but according to a recent interview with /Film, the director has set his sights on far nobler pursuits—namely a huge religious epic about the story of Noah.

It’s a project he’s wanted to work on since before the days of Pi, and he’s already pretty far along. So says Aronofsky: “We have an amazing screenplay. It’s a great script and it’s HUGE. And we’re starting to feel out talent. And then we’ll probably try and set it up.”

Now all he has to do is get a studio to greenlight it, which, according to the director, shouldn’t be a problem.

“It’s the end of the world and it’s the second most famous ship after the Titanic. So I’m not sure why any studio won’t want to make it. I think it’s really timely because it’s about environmental apocalypse which is the biggest theme, for me, right now for what’s going on on this planet. So I think it’s got these big, big themes that connect with us. Noah was the first environmentalist. He’s a really interesting character. Hopefully they’ll let me make it.”

Sounds interesting, and everybody is totes in love with Aronofsky right now, but remember, this is the same dude who made The Fountain, which is one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen. (To be fair, your humble managing editor Uncle Grambo loves that P.O.S.). Be that as it may, I’m willing to give Noah the benefit of the doubt. Pi and Requiem were awesome, The Wrestler looks great, and movies about the great biblical flood always work. Take Evan Almighty for example. Oh wait…

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<![CDATA[Philip Seymour Hoffman on 'Batman' Rumors: Why So Erroneous?]]> In recent weeks, rumors that Philip Seymour Hoffman would play the Penguin in the next Batman installment have become so widespread that even Michael Caine began to repeat them as fact (claiming that he first read of them in a newspaper, then confirmed the rumors with a WB executive). However, if Hoffman is soon to don a monocle and top hat, this is the first he's heard of it (and he's totally going to miss his call time). Speaking to MTV News at the Toronto Film Festival, Hoffman said that much like a persistent archvillain, the Penguin rumor is one that reappears to torment him every few years:

“No one has talked to me about it ever — never,” replied Hoffman. “It happened, like, five years ago, too. It was a rumor back then and it’s still a rumor. [laughs] It’s just in the press. It’s funny.”

...“I’m such a fan of those movies,” related Hoffman. “Comic book movies in general I look forward to — I am a real cheerleader for them. I want them to do well because those are terrific stories. As a kid I was a big comic book collector. What [Nolan]’s doing is taking it in a whole other exciting great place. I’m more a fan, so the interest of being in it isn’t that great. It’s more the interest in wanting to see the next one. It’s probably better that way.”

When further pressed for his level of interest in the role if Warner Bros. approached him about the role, Hoffman said, “I don’t know. I think I’m more interested in seeing someone else do it. I don’t know if I’d be a good Penguin to be quite honest. [laughs]”

Truth be told, we could never quite believe the rumors that placed both the Penguin and Catwoman in Christopher Nolan's next film — does he really want to remake Batman Returns? Similarly, we don't expect Johnny Depp as the Riddler, since that villain already toplined the third installment of the prior series. If, as he's said, Nolan intends to dip much deeper into Batman's rogues gallery, let's start the rumors right here, right now. Can we get an "amen" for Shia as Killer Croc?

[Photo Credit: AP]

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<![CDATA['SNL' Wants You To Want Tina Fey as Sarah Palin]]> When we mused last week that this 2004 cover of Life was the closest we'd ever get to our dream of seeing Tina Fey playing Sarah Palin, we thought we were speaking practically. After all, Saturday Night Live already has at least two performers capable of the role (the Palin-resembling Casey Wilson and the Phelps-derobing Kristen Wiig), and Fey's hands are too tied as a full-time Baldwin wrangler for her to keep making cameo appearances at her old stomping grounds. Today, though, we stumbled on this Vulture interview with 24-year-old SNL scribe Simon Rich (son of NY Times political columnist Frank Rich), and while the writer is perfectly chatty about most matters, he clams up provocatively when asked about rumors that Fey might return to SNL for this Saturday's season premiere:

So in your roughly six months of work on SNL, have you written anything in hopes of seeing a particular guest host fill the role?
Oh, yeah, definitely. Everybody always tries to write stuff that will showcase the host’s talents, whoever they are. The first sketch I ever wrote, which was cut, involved a man complaining about his memory foam mattress. He slept in it with his wife every night, and he couldn’t understand how every time he got home from work, there was a LeBron James–shaped indentation in his bed. That was definitely written with the host in mind.

Tina Fey bears a striking resemblance to Sarah Palin. Are you planning to take advantage of that?
[Silence.]

She’s totally going to play the governor of Alaska, isn’t she?
[Silence.]

Okay.

Are Rich's silences a major hint, or just some savvy SNL promotion? And if it's the former, does that mean we can expect to see Fey triple-dipping on SNL, 30 Rock, and the upcoming Thursday night SNL installments? Between those gigs, her omnipresent AmEx commercials, and her upcoming movie with Steve Carell, girl's gonna need a lot of lip gloss.

[Photo Credit: AP]

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<![CDATA[Three Reasons Why We Don’t Think Mary-Kate Olsen Needs To Go ‘Back To Rehab’]]> The upcoming issue of Star breathlessly reports that Spencer Pratt Attack ringleader and excellent on-screen kisser Mary-Kate Olsen might be headed back to the floral pastures of celebrity rehab any day now. The mag's sources cite a quasi-recent “collapse” outside an LA club, ongoing depression over her “lover” Heath Ledger’s sudden death, and brewing tension between MK and her more low-key twin, Ashley. But, as we pointed out earlier this month, the twinset’s more rebellious (and interesting) half is on a roll. After appearing on her first Elle cover solo, starring in a critically praised indie movie and, of course, teaming up with David Letterman in a campaign to destroy everyone’s most hated reality villain, Mary-Kate hasn’t shown any signs of crumbling. We took a closer look at this alleged collapse, the odds that Ledger and the itty bitty billionaire were in any way involved romantically, just how grave the tiny twosome’s differences are, and came up with three reasons why we don’t buy it.

1) The “Collapse” That Wasn’t: First of all, who hasn’t tripped once or twice when leaving a bar? Secondly, when someone like little MK leaves a bar, she doesn’t find herself in some empty vacant parking lot — she’s surrounded by handlers, paparazzi towering something like twelve feet above her head, and maneuvering her way to a ride involves all kinds of obstacles, from curbs uneasily managed while wearing four-inch heels to flashbulbs making it nearly impossible to see where the hell she’s going. Stumbling (kind of gracefully) briefly during a clusterfuck like that does not a “collapse” make.

2) The Mythical Heath/Mary-Kate Romance Remains Purely...Mythical: We won’t point any fingers (since pointing one of those fingers at ourselves just isn’t fun), but more than a few gossips and reporters launched a baseless theory immediately following Ledger’s tragic death, that he and Olsen had been dating at the time. A few scattered clues, including his masseuse’s decision to call MK before the police, the possibility that Olsen owned the apartment Ledger had been renting, and her total silence post-tragedy, sort of suggested a possible romance. But for Star to affirmatively call the deceased Joker Mary-Kate’s “lover” is off the mark. Even if the two were in some way together, Olsen’s so-called grief arrives at an odd time; Ledger’s legend may include an Oscar come next winter, and MK is finally hitting her acting stride.

3) If Any Olsen Is Suffering Twin Envy, It’s Ashley: More than a few stories have popped up lately regarding the growing friction between Mary-Kate, who’s all but abandoned her Dualstar responsibilities for trapeeze lessons in China, and Ashley, who has so far kept up appearances as an active co-president. But everyone knows these girls have had stars in their eyes since ruining television before they could even speak. We don’t care how vehemently Ashley defends her working girl persona; need we remind her of a little role on her horizon in which she’ll partner with an ensemble cast to successfully destroy yet another Bret Easton Ellis novel by just not getting it on-screen?

[Photo credits: X17]

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<![CDATA[More Details On Matthew McConaughey's Boozy Nicaraguan Nights: Did A Late-Night Tryst Turn Ugly?]]> As we sadly noted earlier this month, soon-to-be-dad and LA’s resident surfing community iconoclast Matthew McConaughey had quite the rambunctious stay in Nicaragua earlier this month, “dirty-dancing” his way through every girl at a bar and drunkenly diving into sewage ditches searching for his beloved flip-flops. But more details about the chest-baring rabblerouser’s boozy nights are now coming out, and despite his endless attempts to kiss and “put the make on every woman in his path,” McConaughey reportedly wound up going home with two male bar buddies instead. And his two new guy pals in question made it all the way to his hotel room. What happened once the threesome got there, after the jump.

According to a Star source, Matthew's evening didn't exactly end with a sorrowful search for his beloved sandals amidst toxic waste. Mid-sewage dive, Matthew allegedly "accepted a ride back to his villa at a nearby resort from two locals. 'Matt was so out of it when they reached the resort that the two guys had to carry him to his villa...They used his key, took him inside and put him to bed, then left — but they left the door unlocked.'" We'll temporarily abandon our dirty-minded thoughts regarding what may have occurred between the good samaritans and the alcohol-infused "hunky actor," mainly because what followed makes us feel sorry for the guy: "When he woke in the morning, he was missing $2,000 and his blackberry/phone!" Strangely, though, McConaughey failed to file a police report for the missing goods. If we were to lose $2,000, we'd certainly reach out to the local law enforcement in an attempt to recover it. That is, unless we didn't want anyone to know what had happened at our place that night ... Sketchy much, Matthew?

[Photo credit: Star]

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<![CDATA[Lindsay Lohan's 'Secret Half-Sister' Surfaces, Michael Lohan Excitedly Fuels Rumor's Truthiness]]> Not that claims like these are shocking when you’re part of that wild fame-chasing bunch currently Living Lohan, but Star is reporting that one of Michael Lohan's old flings has taken a paternity test to prove her 13-year old daughter is the newest member of everyone’s favorite dysfunctional family. According to the mag, a Montana woman named Kristi Kaufmann is coming forward to “make sure the truth comes out...‘My daughter has a right to know who her father is — and it’s Michael.’” Now married to a new cowboy hat-wearing realtor, the 44-year old’s claims aren’t exactly being denied by the wig-loving Born Again. Michael’s ambiguous response, and whether or not the details and timing supplied by Kaufmann support the possibility that Lindsay Lohan has yet another little sister who will inevitably want to "be just like her," after the jump.

As Michael told Extra this morning,

"I met Christie [sic] in 1982 in Houston. In 1995, when I was separated from Dina, she contacted me that she was moving to Long Island...I was with her for a week...Years later, while I was in prison, she contacted to me to say she had a paternity test done that revealed the child's father was not her husband. She said I was the only other man she had been with. My lawyers are dealing with this. When we find out the truth we will deal with it in the appropriate manner.

Michael told Star a similar tale, also ending with a remark about his notoriously excellent lawyers and their plans to "sort this out."

But OK!, who claims their story on the possible Lohan family addition is "exclusive," teases us with this juicy assurance:

"OK! has seen letters Michael wrote to the girl's mother where he says that his secret daughter 'is beginning to look a lot like Linds, with a mix of [younger brother] Cody, believe it or not.' He also sent his daughter a photograph of himself while he was still in Collins Correctional Facility which he signed 'Love Daddy.'"

While the timing and supplied details appear to line up, our excitement over whether or not the allegations are valid or not is lower on the anticipation scale than seeing actual copies of these prison love letters from Papa Michael. Mainly because we suspect they outshine those thought balloon-adorned cartoon homages Uma Thurman's stalker memorably crafted, based on Michael's history of artistic talent and prowess when it comes to freakish drawings lovingly drawn from the clink.

[Photo credits: NY Daily News, Aisha Music]

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<![CDATA[Mary-Kate Olsen Vs. Spencer Pratt: The Backstory Behind Their War Of Words]]> Right on the heels of Mary-Kate Olsen’s passive aggressive jabs at ex-classmate and David Letterman punching bag Spencer Pratt last night, the professional Hollywood sleazeball has promptly retaliated by releasing a few downright cruel and unoriginal insults to Us today. As Pratt tells the weekly:

”I don't really get why she'd use my name to get press for her little indie film that no one's going to see...I know I've made it in Hollywood when a famous troll is talking about me on Letterman...I forgive her, though. She's had to go through life as the less cute twin, which must be tough."

As the war between actual working actress Olsen and reality trash-talker Pratt heats up, we dug up evidence that this battle has a much longer history than we thought. After the jump, the sordid high-school photo scandal that sparked the Olsen vs. Pratt battle years ago.

In the Us piece, Spencer throws a curveball into the mix by stating he and Mary-Kate didn't even attend the same high school, which is (not scientifically, by any means) actually evident on several "news" sites. But whether or not Olsen's quietly harsh comments about Pratt's soccer game hissy fits are slightly tarnished by this info, the two most certainly spent time socializing before Olsen hit her NYU hobo years and anyone on the planet knew who Pratt even was. After revisiting a Details profile on Spencer and his then-partner in crime Brody Jenner from last year, we noticed this plum detail: "the guy...will proudly tell you he made $50,000 in high school by selling a photo he took of Mary-Kate Olsen drinking at a party." One search through an Olsens fan site later turns up the picture in question, which looks less to us like evidence that MK is a "drunk" lush, and more like evidence that MK has always been the pruney-smiling party girl we've grown to know and love. Not to mention that Spencer, pictured upper left, has always been incredibly scary to look at. Team Olsen is where we remain.

[Photo credit: Olsen-Twins-News.com]

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<![CDATA[Diamond-Spotting: Cameron Diaz Latest Star Teasing Us With Rumor-Sparking Sparklers]]> Shouldn’t single actresses know by now that giant diamonds worn on a particular finger shouldn't be flaunted in public? Cameron Diaz was photographed sporting an ostentatious sparkler yesterday in Santa Monica, suspiciously displaying the gory piece on her engagement ring-reserved finger in a very blatant manner. But considering she’s just barely started dating former cokehead/Jennifer Aniston ex Paul Sculfor, and has been linked to half a dozen other canoodling partners in the past few months, we’re not jumping on the “Diaz Engaged!” bandwagon quite yet. The notoriously anti-paparazzi actress might have just wanted to fuck with her camera-flashing enemies. Still, whenever a star makes the decision to debut a big ol’ gem there, it’s proven tough to gage those inevitable engagement rumors’ validity. We looked back at celebrity diamond-spotting of the past, from the most firm denials that led to splashy weddings, to the sure things that turned out to be false alarms, after the jump.

The Fake-Outs: Mid-2007, before Britney was deemed an American Tragedy, she was on her way by tragically dating the poor man's David Blaine, Criss Angel. And photos of her blonde-weaved sunglasses-at-night self wearing a sparkler set the Britney-hungry gossips ablaze, only to disappoint us when no marriage plans surfaced. Another Bimbo Summit alum, Lindsay Lohan, was rumored to be on the soberific path towards married life with then-beau Harry Morton in 2006 after showing up to a premiere purposely placing a ring-adorned hand on her hip. But we all know how that union turned out. And the most recent and admittedly exciting engagement rumors were sparked after photographs of Kate Hudson wearing a real-life wedding band surfaced just as gossip started spreading that she and Owen Wilson were back on. But a major "D'oh!" was heard loud and clear after realizing Kate was filming this flick called Bride Wars and merely in character.

The Real Things: Beyonce Knowles started wearing massive diamonds on all her fingers ever since she could afford them, but the one she wore this January while sitting next to Jay-Z at a concert ended up being the engagement variety after all. And just days after being photographed candidly in her car with a new rock, Jessica Alba confirmed her engagement to the confusing man of mystery that is Cash Warren. As for Mariah Carey, poor girl sparked engagement rumors by publicly showing off her ring from Nick Cannon, only to learn soon after the actual wedding that it was recycled. Oops.

[Photo Credits: Fametastic, Showbiz Spy, Female First, Babble, Stupid Celebrities, Hollyscoop, Daily Mail]

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<![CDATA[Blind Item Analysis: Which 'Hunky Actors' Just Can't Quit Each Other?]]> A vague and incredibly mysterious blind item in today’s NY Daily News initially gave us a headache because not a single “groovy”-like hint was included:

"What two hunky actors are refraining from any public displays of affection now that spies on their set are suggesting they're more than friends?"

But then we remembered an old love lesson from kindergarten: boys tend to be most cruel to their objects of affection. So after racking our brains trying to think of every male/male couplet currently filming a movie somewhere out there proved useless, we took the very few clues supplied in the piece, added in that old grade-school dictum we just referenced and voila! We think we might be onto something.See the puzzle pieces connect after the jump.

Based on all the reports of on-set squabbling, competition and battling egos from the set of Jim Sheridan’s Brothers, our top suspects are the film’s “hunky” co-stars Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal. Before Var even announced the remake’s cast back in September, the pair already had a history of tension between them following rumors that Jake would replace Tobey in any upcoming Spiderman sequels. And as soon as filming began in November, gossip spread that the two were bitching and moaning over sharing the same makeup artist. The next month, Star reported that the divas were “competing over who gets along better with castmates and crew...while Tobey gave crew members new 8GB iPod Nanos, Jake gave out gift certificates to tony Koi restaurant.”

Interestingly enough, the relationship turned from sour to sweet seemingly overnight, as photos of Tobey in tight latex and Jake in his Brokeback beard schmoozing in LA emerged, followed by stories that Jake spotted Tobey and his family in Brentwood and “pulled his car over for a chat.” And yet, no happy paparazzi shots or friendly tales have come over the wires since then, leading us to wonder if this PDA-free pact is behind the void. But you tell us: are we just wishfully thinking? And if so, who are we forgetting?

[Photo credit: Flynet]

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<![CDATA[Britney Spears Suicide Alert! Hide All Umbrellas, Meds, And Morphine-Laced Lollipops!]]> Just when we thought Britney’s 378th comeback attempt (you know, the real one) was on its final wobbly legs of materializing, a salacious cover story from Life & Style paints Britney as a suicidal and unstable girl (but not yet a woman). Using the headline “Britney’s Suicide Drama,” details are promised regarding the currently slimmed down doting mother who’s finally perfected that weave nonsense after years of failing, along with her battles with repeated suicide attempts. As the weekly’s source claims, “I spoke with her many times and I’ve gone to her house...She’s on major medications...like a zombie now. She’s a shell of her old self.” But after getting past the enticing glossy cover, we found several holes in the exclamatory top story, a few of which we unveil after the jump:

As it turns out, these two suicide attempts have very little to do with the Britney we’ve recently begun to muster up a bit of pride for — after romping around new father figure and sobriety expert Mel Gibson’s Caribbean retreat all smiles and apparently dating a guy who neither wears wifebeaters nor makes a living taking pictures of stars flashing their, well, Britney, we’d joined the Package on her most recent recovery train. And after reading excerpts from the not-so-shocking story itself, we’re still aboard. Despite the source being Celebrity Undercover author Ian Halperin, the scribe who spent years undercover in the COS as a gay actor impressively revealing the inner workings of Scientology’s bizarre practices, the dates Halperin supplies for Britney’s alleged suicidal tendencies are ancient in Hollywood years.

As a Spears family insider chimes in, “the singer regularly hinted at suicide...her suicidal tendencies began after the birth of her second son Jayden James in September 2006. 'It really became an issue once Jayden was born and it became clear Britney's marriage to Kevin was crumbling.'” 2006?! Two years ago, Bald Britney, Umbrella Swinging Britney, Pink Bobbed Britney, nor Gurney-Riding Britney had yet to even make their thrilling debuts! Who wouldn’t consider taking one too many sleeping pills after realizing you’d wasted years with a poor man’s Vanilla Ice and kinda, maybe, probably shoulda waited a few years or never to pop out babies prone to matricide? Revelations, shmevelations indeed.

[Photo credit: Life & Style via Daily Mail]

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<![CDATA[Were Salma Hayek And Penelope Cruz High As Kites While Filming D.O.A. Comedy Caper?]]>

UPDATE (6/14/08 @ 7:20am): Both Ms Hayek and Ms Cruz have released statements denying any connection to Mr Villarreal Barragán, his associated groups or any knowledge of who the house belonged to. In a statement, agents for the actresses said that "the production of Bandidas arranged the accomodation for all the actores, which is common practice in the film industry". The statement also said that "Penélope Cruz chose a hotel but Salma Hayek prefered a house because she was travelling with her pet dogs. Hayek never knew who owned the house or had any contact with its owners or with anything associated with the rented place, which was paid for by the production company."

If you’re among the five or six people who saw Bandidas, the 2006 Bonnie & Clyde: The Girl-On-Girl Edition! bomb co-starring Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek, the first thing you should be is ashamed of yourself. Now that we've scolded you, it's time to learn the possible reason why the “comedy” caper was so downright awful. Yes, Salma and Penelope wore very cute little pink lacy numbers, the film had a scene featuring Hayek jumping spread-eagle on to a horse, and Steve Zahn provided some slight comic relief just by being in the damn thing, but a revelation involving where the two chicas called home while filming may explain why the film went awry: “The stars slept at a [cocaine] trafficker's house for several days during the 2006 shoot. The property belonged to Sergio Villareal Barragán, known as 'El Grande' or the 'Big One.'” We took a look back at the cringy trailer to see if there may be any truth to the suggestive allegations that Salma and Penelope spent some time living the glamorous drug den life while on set.

Despite Salma's painful over-acting and Penelope's seemingly bipolar mood from scene to scene (one moment she's just! so! perky! and the next she's staring into space like a zombie coming down from one very long binge), we highly doubt the ladies were partaking in any of their alleged temporary landlord's stash. Salma tends to overact (Ugly Betty guest spot, anyone?), and Penelope tends to zombie-act her way through roles, the notable exception being her phenomenal role in Volver. So even if the trial witness who made these claims is telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth (which, mind you, is a trait not commonly found among those embroiled in drug trafficking), we'd still be on Team Hotties. After all, even if they were hitting the slopes while filming, it's not like this disaster of a movie could've been salvaged anyway.

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<![CDATA[Jeremy Piven Takes It Upon Himself To Cast New 'Entourage' Star After One Too Many Fruitinis In First Class]]> Jeremy Piven is important, he will have you know. He can pick up girls in a hooptie. He can cut Stephen Dorff in bathroom lines. He can tell Billy Bush to fuck off on the red carpet and his own mother to fuck off over brunch. And, as Janet Charlton reports today, he can also cast wildly eccentric and ill-suited stars in cameos on Entourage based solely on fun chatter he has with them on airplanes. As the piece claims:

“On a recent weekend, Jeremy rode the Planet Hollywood private jet from Las Vegas to Los Angeles and...started chatting about Entourage. [Piven] suggested that it would be fun to have [his seatmate] make an appearance...Jeremy was overheard calling a producer and telling him as soon as the plane touched down in LA.”

So which diva extraordinaire tickled Piven’s pickle so well she earned herself a much-needed spot on the HBO hit? Details after the jump.

Apparently Piven was seated next to one Miss Whitney Houston on the short plane ride in question, and something in her dilated eyes, crack pipe-wounded chuckle, and most importantly, her tightly packed and newly improved cleavage, inspired Jeremy to give this bitch one hell of a hug and offer her a cameo on Entourage. The mind reels just picturing what Piven has in mind — a competitive power agent who lures clients away using a goodie-packed drawer in her office? Turtle's new S&M-loving cougar crush? Ari's ex-wife's new lesbian lover (remember: lesbians are so hot this season)? We can hardly wait for the inevitable gossip stories involving ongoing on-set epic bickering between two of the most self-important stars around today.

[Photo credits: FilmMagic, Wireimage]

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<![CDATA[Newest Power Lesbian Couple In Town Give Lindsay And Sam A Run For Their Hickey]]> It’s become clear that the one of the biggest trends of 2008 thus far is the emergence of lesbian chic. Girls can marry girls, starlets can publicly make out with their female roommates, and even though The L Word was canceled, its real-life L Word stars can still get it on with other lesbian cable stars. The two scissor-kick sisters in question? Well, one of our favorite indie actresses, Catherine Keener, has a little sister named Elizabeth, who starred in the Showtime series as Dawn Denbo. And while she's never publicly ‘fessed up to preferring ladies, those rumors have been an elephant in the collective lesbian community room for years. As for Keener's alleged makeout partner this past weekend, she's quite the opposite: she's loud and proud about being out. Details on Keener’s game of tongue twister over the weekend, and who she played with, after the jump.

As Janet Charlton reports, Gay Pride weekend had such a buoying effect on Keener that the actress stepped out in public not one, not two, but three times with rumored new lady love Jackie Warner of Bravo's Work Out. According to sources, they were seen "passionately making out" on a sidewalk and held hands in two different clubs. Now don't get us wrong — we've spent many a Sunday eyes glued to the television during a marathon as Jackie and her impossibly gorgeous minions sweat their way from beach to hot tub to gym in their skivvies. But every time the "power lesbian" gets just the teensiest bit upset with one of her trainer slaves, she seems capable of crushing their beautiful heads to a pulp using a simple inner-thigh squeeze. Which, now that we think about it, may be a prime reason that this relationship appears to be blossoming.

[Photo credits: Getty]

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<![CDATA[From 'Making The Band' To 'Making The Bed']]> What would happen if Hollywood’s most boy-crazy, sex-obsessed serial dater hooked up with Hollywood’s most lady-loving, satin-sheet-sex-obsessed player of all players? Well, for one thing we’d write about it. For another thing, the couple in question would most likely spend a sample evening locked in a private New York bar’s room, lorded over by a bodyguard just because they were so frisky they needed 20 minutes to themselves...that very second. Something else they might do? At a private concert thrown by Prince at his infamous party palace, they might escape immediately after feeding each other that always seductive aphrodisiac, bread pudding, into the “labyrinthe corridors leading to [Prince’s] basement” and do, well, what these two stars in question apparently do best: the dirty. Join us after the jump to put some faces to these places:

According to the NY Daily News, Cameron "Sex Is The Best!" Diaz and Puff "Sex Is The Easiest Thing To Get" Daddy have been playing fuck buddies ever since March when they had an intimate dinner (translation: they ate in the same restaurant), and last month they (No! Way!) hugged at a Walk of Fame ceremony (translation: um, they hugged.) But things have allegedly gotten interesting ever since last month when the private room escapade occurred in New York, and last Friday at Prince's house, when "Diddy was bringing his lips toward hers when he realized someone was approaching. Smiling, they closed the theater's door and locked it. We heard them giggling inside." Translation? See, there's this movie? Called What Happens In Vegas? And Cameron's in it? Oh and also? There's this new show on MTV? Called Making The Rock Band? And Diddy is the producer? Translation executed.

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<![CDATA[Bill Clinton 'Libido Tour' Reportedly Has a Fan For Life in Gina Gershon]]> Just in time to wring the last drop of anemic lifeblood from his wife's doomed presidential campaign, Bill Clinton's pervy, protective inner circle gets a close look from Todd Purdum in the new issue of Vanity Fair. And oh, the class: Model-schtupping moguls Steve Bing and Ron Burkle aside (the latter of whose private jet "Air Fuck One" has apparently acquired prime status among the ex-president's transportation modes), we're particularly intrigued to read about Clinton's more comely Hollywood company:

Recent high-end Hollywood dinner-party gossip [suggests] Clinton has been seen visiting with the actress Gina Gershon in California. ... None of these wisps of smoke have produced a public fire. But four former Clinton aides told me that, about 18 months ago, one of the president's former assistants, who still advises him on political matters, had heard so many complaints about such reports from Clinton supporters around the country that he felt compelled to try to conduct what one of these aides called an "intervention," because, the aide believed, "Clinton was apparently seeing a lot of women on the road."

Not to mention in the skies, where a certain "Air Fuck One" voyage yielded an especially persistent rumor about a donor meeting, so to speak, between Clinton and Gershon — and we hear she gave him a lot more than a check. It hardly seems newsworthy in some ways, but on the other hand, we kind of like the idea of a whirlwind, testosterrific Lewinskygate 10th anniversary tour featuring Burkle, Bing, Jeffrey Epstein and the rest. No wonder Bill's doing all he can to keep Hillary on the trail; we'd vote for her right now if it kept us in sex scandals for another four years.

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<![CDATA[The Tragic 'Sex And The City' Premiere: Tears, Double D Cups, Wedgies, And Only One Pretty Dress]]> What would a Sex And The City movie premiere be without bouts of drama worthy of the show itself? While last night's premiere in New York looked glamorous on camera, on the scene it was another story entirely. From a controversial remark made by the franchise’s token villainness to fashion mishaps to thousands of ticketless die-hard fans ending up in tears, the scene outside Radio City Music Hall last night was chaotic and Cosmo-drenched. And that was just the crowd! As for the stars of the film, there were signs that sex-despising Sarah Jessica Parker's co-stars weren't entirely pleased to pose in front of the movie's poster (you know, the one that they don't even appear on). All the scandals and controversy, plus the highs and lows of the cast's fashion choices, after the jump.

As the Daily Mail reports, Cattrall's metallic dress started bunching up 'round her rear end, forcing Kim to cheekily dig out the material from in between her very toned ass, all the while winking. But Kim didn't stop surprising the crowd by allegedly telling reporters at a previous premiere that she "hopes we get to come back and make another." Which is very sweet, but judging from the NY Daily News' report from the scene, a repeat performance of the mob scene isn't something we'd like to see anytime soon:

"Organizers of the celeb-studded event overbooked the 6,000-seat theater, leaving bounced fans fuming. The angry crowd surged against police barricades, cursing and stomping their Manolo Blahniks."

Even Chris Noth, who's still clinging to that charming rep like a security blanket, blowing kisses to the furious crowd did little to numb the pain. As one fan said, "We waited in line 21/2 hours. I guess we'll go drink a Cosmo or five now." Which is quite possibly the saddest comment made by a woman we've ever heard.


And of course, there were the requisite horrendous fashion choices, notably made by Ashley Olsen in pants so oversized she could have comfortably fit both herself and MK inside, plus Jennifer Hudson's decision to shove approximately 95% of her breasts in photographers' faces and, unsurprisingly, legendary SATC wardrobe wench Pat Fields sporting what may be the most cringeworthy combination of purple and red hair dye we've seen to date. To be fair, dressing horribly is sort of her "thing," so we'll go ahead and forgive the kookiest of all kooky stylists.

[Photo credits: Wireimage, Getty, Splash]

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