March 28, 2008

Another Australian Publication Bites The Dust

Australian Post Posted by Clem Bastow at 4:46 PM on March 28, 2008

new_woman.jpgNew Woman, the mag that was never quite saucy enough to muscle in on the Cosmo/Cleo crowd, not fashionable enough for the Marie Claire/Harpers Bazaar crew, and not quite grown-up enough for the Women's Weekly audience, is set to close at the end of April.

Since publishing behemoth ACP took over Emap Australia's titles last year, they have apparently noted New Woman's "challenges", which in mag publishing trade-speak essentially translates as "it's fucked".

ACP Magazines chief executive Scott Lorson said ACP had made the decision to close down the magazine "sooner rather than later".

"The title has enjoyed some success in the past, but has struggled to establish a unique and sustainable position in the highly competitive women's lifestyle category," Mr Lorson said.

"When we purchased the Emap business, we were aware of the significant challenges facing New Woman."

Don't be too quick to shed a tear for the staff, however, as ACP are particularly good at absorbing and reabsorbing staff from one magazine to another - witness the career trajectory of, for example, Mia Freedman (through the revolving doors of Cosmo, Dolly and so forth) and Paula Joye (from Cleo to Madison) and Bronwyn McCahon (Cosmo to Dolly and back to Cosmo).

Amy Winehouse Round-Up: Winegums Forgets To Remember Her Husband

Australian Post Posted by Clem Bastow at 4:22 PM on March 28, 2008

showimg.jpgLooks like all this worry about her scabs and fish'n'chips and whatever else has left our Winegums a little scatterbrained and Her Blake Incarcerated has fallen wayyy to the bottom of the "to do" list.

(Well, "to do" is probably an unfortunately live metaphor, but you know what we mean.)

It seems "poor" Blake sat around like a puppy in a shop window when prison visiting hours ticked around, but wifey was nowhere to be seen.

Disorganised Amy Winehouse failed to turn up on time to see her beloved husband Blake during visiting hours at the north London prison he has been remanded to.

The singer's chaotic lifestyle has taken a toll on her timekeeping, as well as her terribly scabby skin, which looked worse than ever when she stepped out today in the hope of seeing her incarcerated husband.

It's true, her face is looking a little worse for wear, but if she really was turning into one of those characters out of a Government 'say no to drugs' campaign, wouldn't she be scabby all over?

Maybe she just went to see Priscilla Presley's cosmetic surgeon??

Girls Aloud: Coming To A Big Screen Near You?

Australian Post Posted by Clem Bastow at 11:41 AM on March 28, 2008

girlsaloud1.jpgOne thing we have been hoping the whole Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana et al phenom might bring about is a return to the good old bad old days of "official" movies put out by pop groups. SpiceWorld, Head, er, the rest of them, there's nothing better than a bunch of pop stars doing their best method acting while surrounded by slightly bewildered celebrity cameos.

Well, it looks like we may get our dying wish, with the news that Girls Aloud are quite keen on the idea of doing their own feature. We're just not so sure about the vibe they're thinking of going for:

Kimberley Walsh said: "We want it to be a Friends and Sex And The City kind of thing, all morphed into one."
Man, we love SATC, but combined with a) Friends and b) Girls Aloud's delusions of dramatic grandeur, we're not so sure about it.

What would've been better would be if they proposed a heart-wrenching drama about a bunch of girls from the commission flats who band together to give it one last shot at stardom before the ranga of the group dies of a Fatal Illness backstage after they've won their first Brit Award. With Ray Winstone and Judi Dench as Sarah Harding's alcoholic parents and special guest starring a fake-tanned Clive Owen as Ashley Cole.

Leona Lewis Needs Throat Op; Cosima Sends Moral Support

Australian Post Posted by Clem Bastow at 11:31 AM on March 28, 2008

leonaRK1003_468x356.jpgLeona Lewis, the UK X Factor winner whose stardom really eluded us for a long time (people were saying she was the new Whitney/Mariah/Aretha, we were like, "whut whut?") is the first British female artist to hit the top of the US charts in 20 years - but her more pressing concern involves probable surgery on her throat.

In rather old-fashioned fashion, Leona may need to have her tonsils out!

Feel free to make an inappropriate Bleeding Love joke here.

She said: "I've had tonsillitis for the whole of the past week. I've been desperately trying to get better."

A representative for the 22-year-old singer has confirmed she may be forced to have surgery, adding: "Leona would like to reassure fans this is a routine operation which will not affect her voice. She has sought specialists' advice."

So, in other words, she has nothing to worry about? If anything, not having the surgery is probably worse for her!

Sounds like The Sun et al need a basic course in anatomy - one doesn't sing with one's tonsils, dearies. Maybe Leona can swing herself an ice cream or Jello endorsement deal during her recovery?

When Kenny Met Taarna

Posted by Seth at 11:12 AM on March 28, 2008

· Yesterday, we promised you a brainmeltingly awesome new thing, and dare we say, you got it. We only wished the entire episode could have existed inside the cat-pee-induced, hallucinatory world of Heavy South Metal Park [South Park]
· HuffPo's Allison Hope Weiner, who's dutifully provided us with every juicy tidbit to emerge from the Pellicano trial thusfar, may be subpoenaed by the defence. That could transform her into the Hollywood Wiretapping Trial of the Century's own Judith Miller, Patron Saint of Source Protection. [THR ESQ.]
· Will Paul Giamatti's next role as a U.S politician require him to wipe his arse with the historical document John Adams helped create? [Vulture]
· As Kate Bosworth giggled with Paul Shaffer, UTA wept. [DHD]
· If you live in the Hills, a blog called The Daily Coyote isn't something you'd likely need or want. For everyone else: Look! Coyotes! Daily! [The Daily Coyote]

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Posted by Seth at 10:27 AM on March 28, 2008

Lindsay Lohan will return to the feel-good realm of cold-blooded murderers she's already explored in such previous cinematic outings as Chapter 27, I Know Who Killed Me, and Confessions of a Teenage Homicidal Maniac, as E! News is reporting the actress has signed on to play Manson Family member Nancy Pitman in Manson Girls. So invested is the actress in getting the details just right, expect to see her on red carpets and at area hot spots in the coming weeks sporting styles from the period, with the word "PIG" smeared across her forehead in what we hope will only be pig's blood. [E Online]

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Judy Greer Forced By Movie Producers To Dye Her Hair In Deference To Jennifer Aniston

Posted by Mark Graham at 10:12 AM on March 28, 2008

Judy Greer has been orbiting around stardom for the better part of the last 10 years. And although she's had a couple of delicious supporting turns over the years (13 Going On 30, Adaptation, Jawbreaker), she's never quite broken through into the leading lady category ... until now. Ashton Kutcher picked her to be the lead of his new ABC comedy, Miss Guided, and now the lovely and talented Miss Greer is getting her first taste of hitting the promotional circuit as a star. And guess what? She's eating it up. She was as giddy as a school girl during her appearance on The Late Show With David Letterman last night, but also managed to rein in her emotions enough to tell Dave a funny story about how she's still forced to endure some of the humilities that the Hollywood machine puts second fiddles through.

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Kate Bosworth: 'No Sober Sex Scenes For Me, Thankyouverymuch'

Posted by Molly Friedman at 9:50 AM on March 28, 2008

This may shock many of you, but we've been hearing rumours for years that giving girls a few drinks can make them feel more romantically adventurous. And, according to People, this very rumour was put into action when 21 star Kate Bosworth shot her love scenes with co-star Jim Sturgess. As she recently admitted at a New York screening, "We were both so drunk...Jim and I became such good friends, we decided to have a couple of drinks, loosen up and go for it." Which got us thinking: seeing as how Kate's been required to do the whole sex scene thing with quite a few actors over they years, what other combination of sedatives, drugs and drinks must she have had to pop and sip in order to get down and dirty with the likes of James Van Der Beek and (gulp) Kevin Spacey?

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An Open Call For 'Gayest Looks' Showers Jay Leno In Fabulous Middle-Finger Salutes

Posted by Seth at 9:26 AM on March 28, 2008

Hollywood's highest-paid scab Jay Leno's recent solicitation of Ryan Phillippe's "gayest look" for his cameras, part of a longer, excruciatingly unfunny and offensive bit about the actor's role as TV's first gay teen on One Life To Live, has now spawned a website, called My Gayest Look For Jay Leno: It invites people to send in their gayest looks, which seem to involve a great deal of creative bird-flipping. The site was co-created by Avenue Q playwright Jeff Whitty, who previously penned an open letter beseeching The Tonight Show host to stop making homophobic jokes in his monologues. Leno apparently called him up for a half-hour talk about Whitty's concerns, but has since returned to his egregious ways. We fear it's time to call in Ross the Intern to mediate what is quickly growing into an ugly and contentious affair between Jay and the Gays.

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Blackpool Councillor Overturns Stones Ban, Makes Dad Joke Heard Around The World

Australian Post Posted by Clem Bastow at 9:00 AM on March 28, 2008

mickandkeith.jpgGiven that they are, in most people's eyes at least, the bastion of granddad rock these days, it's worth remembering that there was a time long ago in a galaxy far, far away when The Rolling Stones were public enemy #1.

One of those places was in Blackpool, where the Stones were banned from playing in 1964 following rioting at a gig they played there - and the ban remained in place until yesterday (though we don't really imagine there were too many times when Mick and Keef and co tossed up touring options and said, "You know, boys, as much as I love Wembley and all, what I really want is to play Pleasure Beach in Blackpool... oh yeah, we can't," before they all drowned their sorrows in a round of quadruple whiskeys).

But what struck us was the way in which one of Blackpool's councillors was clearly so excited to make the Stones joke he'd been sitting on for the past fifteen years or so that he just had to slip it into his official statement. See if you can spot it:

"They are icons and I for one would certainly welcome them back,'' council leader Peter Callow told The Gazette newspaper in Blackpool.

"It would certainly give me some satisfaction if they did play here.''

Oh Peeeeterrrr!

We're surprised he didn't go on to say that he was close to his 19TH NERVOUS BREAKDOWN after telling the people of Blackpool that YOU CAN'T ALWAYS GET WHAT YOU WANT for the millionth time before he realised it was time to START ME UP and let his people RIP THIS JOINT.

Peter Callow, DON'T STOP, you make us so HAPPY when you get your ROCKS OFF!

Here endeth the punning section of today's Defamer Australia edition. We now return you to your usual coverage.

How I Met Your Bueller

Posted by Seth at 8:24 AM on March 28, 2008

Sometimes, two seemingly mismatched things from disparate backgrounds and decades can come together in unlikely harmony. Just tap Catherine Zeta-Jones on the shoulder the next time you spot her sucking face with Michael Douglas and ask her. Or, alternately, you can watch the video above:

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Ali Lohan May Have Gone Under The Knife At 14; Colour Us Unsurprised

Posted by Molly Friedman at 8:00 AM on March 28, 2008

Is Ali Lohan's new look just a matter of spiffing up her hair and makeup for the Living Lohan camera crew, or could she be the latest victim of Ashlee Simpson Syndrome? As you'll recall, Ashlee wasn't able to escape the shadow of her big sister until she went under the knife, and now it appears that lil' Lohan might be following her lead. Some recent shots of her out and about on the red carpet show a nearly unrecognizable version of her former clean-faced, mousy-haired, age-appropriate self. After the jump, we took a look at a few before and after shots to try and figure out if Ali's new hotness is the result of a knife or if she just found herself one hell of a hairdresser.

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Kylie Is Engaged To Olivier Martinez! Or At Least She Will Be On May 12th...

Australian Post Posted by Jess McGuire at 7:57 AM on March 28, 2008

Kylie.jpgThis report seems thoroughly plausible to us, and in no way like a cheap attempt from Czech concert promoters to get their gig mentioned in papers around the world.

Australian actress turned pop diva Kylie Minogue will announce her marriage to French actor Olivier Martinez at a concert on May 12, a Czech website says. Minogue, who turns 40 in May, will announce the marriage in Prague, Czech organiser Jarda Hainzel was quoted as saying today on the website www.idnes.cz.

And how do the Czech organisers of Kylie's concert know this wonderful secret? It's so obvious!

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Harrison Ford Pulls An Ed Norton, Demands Rewrites On A Pro-Bono Ad Campaign

Posted by Molly Friedman at 7:10 AM on March 28, 2008

When it comes to celebrity endorsements, Harrison Ford isn't exactly known for splashing his chiseled face across billboards shilling for shower gels and cell phones (Japanese beer, as you'll see after the jump, is whole 'nother story). But according to Mediabistro, Ford recently agreed to partner with powerhouse advertising agency BBDO to develop a series of environmentally angled ads. And, apparently, Ford's developed a case of the Nortons:

"He's finicky about scripts, mainly because he's so concerned about his voice and face being attached to the project...He's apparently so finicky that his demanded changes completely decimated a scheduled shoot in Latin America to get the campaign rolling."

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Behold! 'The Moment Of Truth!' Destroyer Of Lives!

Posted by Seth at 6:21 AM on March 28, 2008

After billing The Moment of Truth as a brilliant Frankenshow combining the most intriguing aspects of F. Lee Bailey's Lie Detector, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, and Cheaters, the culmination of a life's work for Fox's President of Apocalypse-Expediting Alternative Entertainments Mike Darnell failed to really deliver on its life-destroying promise. Not even a desperate casting stunt that replaced the show's evil robot voice with a string of celebrity she-bots (Small Wonder, Rosie from The Jetsons, Richie Rich's Irona) managed to really hook viewers.

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Miley Cyrus Sleeping With The Enemy. Figuratively! (Praise Jesus.)

Posted by Seth at 5:35 AM on March 28, 2008

· Most Powerful Tween on the Planet Miley Cyrus manages to finagle her way out her billion-year Disney contract for one magical evening, headlining their blood rival Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Awards. Still, she must return to Cinderella's Castle in Anaheim by midnight, or her career will be turned into "a fucking Debbie Gibson state-fair-touring pumpkin, mark my words," said her fairy Bob Iger-mother. [Variety]
· Tobey Maguire is attached to produce Afterburn, an adaptation of a futuristic comic about treasure hunters who venture into the half of the planet scorched by a solar flare to retrieve valuable surviving artifacts, like the Venus de Milo and Cher. [Variety]
· After the story about the kid who lived at his parents' house who sold his first script to Ridley Scott for $650,000 vs. $1.1 million with Leo D. attached to star, we thought God had doled out all the screenwriter miracles for the month. Wrong! "A Staten Island tollbooth worker in desperate need of a car wrote a crime thriller spec titled Brooklyn's Finest last year. Now he finds himself rubbing shoulders with some of Hollywood's finest, including Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke and Antoine Fuqua." Why do we get a feeling the next time our mum calls us at work, it'll be to tell us she just sold her first spec to Sony "for mid-sixes?" [THR]

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Unfortunate Ad Placement Brings Disney Into Brave NSFW World

Posted by Defamer Hollywood at 5:15 AM on March 28, 2008

Occasionally, when the planets align just so and the sun strikes the Earth at the exact right location, we witness that rarest of phenomena known as Disney Ads on Smut Sites. Or at least that's what gutter-minded rabblerouser Drunken Stepfather calls it, having caught as many as six different instances of Walt Disney World Web ads aligned beside Egotastic's recent coverage of sex tapes, flashings and other NSFW (and definitely NSFDW) mini-scandals.

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Posted by Defamer Hollywood at 4:07 AM on March 28, 2008

Our tireless observation of the Liz Smith Dirty Old Lady beat has yielded its second bounty in a week, with the lesbian gossip icon waxing fanciful about Nicole Kidman's glorious, supple, unaugmented breasts. "I do recall Nicole saying to me in the distant past that she always felt she wasn't well-endowed and she wished she were," Smith wrote today on her site Wowowow, directing readers to a photo of her and Kidman. "Does this look like a girl who needed breast surgery? No, this is Nicole all natural as the good Lord made her at the Vanity Fair party Oscar night. I admire a fine belle poitrine as much as anyone, but I can't stand these added-on half grapefruits that look as unnatural as can be. I have known Nicole for a long time now and her natural assets were quite good enough to start with." No fans of bolt-ons ourselves, we're happy to have at least this modest overlap in taste in common with our hero; really, for a while there we thought we'd lost her. [Via Queerty]

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Angelina Jolie Set To Break The Elusive, Eight-Figure Baby-Photo Barrier

Posted by Seth at 3:28 AM on March 28, 2008

As the country plods along to what seems like inevitable recession, not all trends suggest our economy is necessarily swirling clockwise down the shitter. Take the celebrity-baby-photo market, a financial spit-up bubble seemingly incapable of bursting. Leading the way is People magazine, who apparently have a budget surplus in the trillions to lavish on Hollywood's most recognisable faces and the powerblobs they spawn. They rocked the status quo back in 2006 by shelling out $4.1 million for a glimpse of Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, and more recently paid $6 million to Jennifer Lopez for a stunning photoset in which her adorable newborns were woven into a plexus of mother's hair extensions, like nested baby sparrows awaiting their next grub feeding.

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'LAT' Comes Correct About Their Bogus Tupac Story

Posted by Seth at 2:52 AM on March 28, 2008

After an independent investigation into yesterday's stunning report by The Smoking Gun that the LAT had managed to be duped by a federally incarcerated Turtle-like, who forged FBI documents implicated Sean "Puffy" Combs's entourage in the 1994 shooting of Tupac Shakur at the Quad Recording Studios in Times Square (five bullets, including one through his head and one through his scrotum), the paper has now officially issued on apology:

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'Grey's' Star Justin Chambers Sleeptalks, Bitchtalks, Then Promptly Passes Out

Posted by Molly Friedman at 2:35 AM on March 28, 2008

Justin Chambers, of Grey's Anatomy "fame", is one of those actors you have a really tough time figuring out whether you'd rather slap across the face or take him home for a one-night stand. In the end, of course, you'd like to do both. But after reading this story regarding his behaviour while going out solo in Palm Springs this week, we're more inclined to team up with his wife Keisha, don The Bride's yellow onesies and stage a formal attack directed by Tarantino. (Maybe Rodriguez could even lend us a machine gun leg-strap-on?) According to Star:

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Ian McKellen Surfaces on Web with 'Hobbit' News and Not-Needed Castmate Sexuality Updates

Posted by Defamer Hollywood at 2:00 AM on March 28, 2008

Even though the Warner Bros. ax has yet to fall around New Line headquarters and the Tolkien family still wants its cash for The Lord of the Rings saga, Sir Ian McKellen took to his blog (We know! We're as stunned as you are) Wednesday to confirm he's "keeping [his] diary open for 2009" to reprise his role as Gandalf in The Hobbit. But that's only the half of McKellen's big gay update, which also includes hot nose-tweaking action and yawning confirmations of his LOTR co-stars' heterosexuality:

I did feel the need to tweak (New Line co-founder Michael Lynne's) nose once, when he seemed to be trying to diddle the cast of LOTR out of their well-earned share of the profits. It was at a party in Berlin after the opening of The Return of the King. I said "That's for all the trouble you've been causing!" I don't know who was more surprised: Michael, that I had taken his nose in my finger and thumb and twisted it gently, or me for having dared do it! At least one of us enjoyed it.

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