Back in early April, we were inundated by The Most Gorgeous, Amazing and Maligned Woman In The World, a Daily Mail columnist/essayist named Samantha Brick. I don't have the willpower to go through the whole sordid history – just check out our archives. The basic gist of the "scandal" was that Samantha Brick, a average-looking woman of scant intelligence, publicly claimed that she's been hated, criticized, held back and pushed aside by petty, jealous women all her life because all women feared her magnificent beauty and sexiness. Brick's first Mail essay went viral, and Brick ended up doing a slew of television appearances – I thought the best appearance was on a British morning show in which an attractive feminist deconstructed and destroyed Brick's JELLY H8R thesis bit by bit.
Well, Brick is back. And you know what? I get it. The Mail is totally trolling all of us. But does that mean that we can't call out Brick for her insanity and delusions? Why not? It's kind of fun (if you consider rage strokes "fun"). You can read Brick's new piece here, and here are some highlights – hint: this piece is all about how her marriage is better than yours because she submits to her controlling French husband. And her marriage is better than yours because she's so pretty, of course. Some of my favorite quotes from the piece:
*My husband sets me a £250 allowance each month for my wardrobe, I ask his permission before booking a hair appointment and discuss with him what I will have done. He even has an opinion — which I adhere to — on how I dress and what I weigh. He prefers I wear classic ladylike attire and, at 5ft 11in, he insists I tip the scale at no more than 10½ stone. In fact, he's there when I weigh myself.
*At this point, many of you will be thinking I'm little more than a trophy wife for my husband, Pascal, and you're right. I am a trophy wife — and what's more, I'm proud of it. Pascal has built up a very successful business, he earns more than I do and I'm lucky enough not to need to bring a salary into the home, though I still work part-time to keep my wits about me.
*Pascal is a Frenchman with particularly traditional views. He is a decade older than me and unashamedly tells people he chose me for my looks. But that doesn't make me a designer-clad airhead who's only interested in getting my hands on his cash. People disapprove of relationships like ours because they assume love doesn't enter the equation — that our marriage is merely an exchange of commodities: my youth and good looks for his wealth. They couldn't be more wrong.
*Whatever else the naysayers may throw at us, I'm comfortable with my trophy-wife status for two reasons: Pascal and I are deeply in love and I adore being treated like a princess. And even in these egalitarian times, many people enjoy this kind of marriage — even if most are shy of the 'trophy wife' tag.
*I was in my mid-30s when I met my second husband, Pascal. From our first date I knew he was a man who cherished physical looks. He complimented me on my legs, my eyes, my figure. He would endlessly tell me how beautiful I was. He wasn't attracted by my career or my bank account. Instead he viewed me as a prize to be won and, to my surprise, I found his approach seductive. Pascal likes being a proper gentleman — the idea of going Dutch in a restaurant is abhorrent to him. On our first date it was the first time anyone, other than a chauffeur, had opened a car door for me. I loved it — it made me feel special. Throughout our courtship I received flowers, and was taken to boutiques, where he would hand over his credit card.
*Since the time of our blossoming romance, a day has not gone by where I haven't made an effort with my appearance. It pains me to read that women such as Hillary Clinton feel they've reached an age where they no longer need make-up.
*If a woman doesn't make an effort, it's perfectly logical that her husband will assume it's because she feels he's not worth making an effort for. Can you then blame a man for looking elsewhere? A trophy wife, however, would never make such a mistake. It's part of our job description to look good and support our husbands at all times. Pascal and I understand what the other wants. It's not something we've ever discussed, but we both know my role in our relationship is integral to its success.
*Most of the other wives are older and are focused on their families first, their husbands a poor second. My day is organized around my husband: isn't that what all wives should do? I know my place in the home — in the bedroom or the kitchen, I'm a consummate professional.
*A man who covets a trophy wife has nothing in common with those in-touch-with-their feelings metrosexual men. Accordingly, I don't witter on about PMT or yell at him when I'm stressed. That's what my friends and mum are for. If I'm poorly I keep out of his way. I knew from the start he was ill-equipped to deal with me when I'm not bright and cheery.
*I'd be lying if I said there weren't downsides to being a trophy wife. I know I'll have to maintain my figure and looks. Pascal is adamant that even as I get older, it's no excuse to let myself go. As a younger wife, you battle against the assumption you're a gold-digger crossing off the years until your beloved is six feet under. But I have my career and own income, so my lifestyle wouldn't suffer if I wasn't with Pascal.
One of her more interesting points was when she discussed her first husband, and described how she made more money than him and she ended up paying for everything in their marriage – which goes a long way to explaining how and why she ended up with a controlling bastard who provides her with financial stability (but no emotional support, it seems). It's not that I don't think Brick has the right to have whatever kind of marriage she wants – but I'm irritated that she seems to denigrate and deride women who make different choices, or women who just happen to be mothers or career women or, you know, any woman who doesn't want to be weighed-in by their husband every day. Ugh. This bitch.
Here are some photos of Brad Pitt at the Cannes Film Festival photo call for his latest film, Killing Them Softly. Bitch got old!!! I mean, I like Brad and everything, and I'm not trolling for 20 million comments about "Angelina sucked out his hotness." But he looks really old here. Part of it is that he's rapidly approaching 50 years on this earth, and he doing it (somewhat?) naturally. Another part of it is that Brad doesn't seem to be taking very good care of his skin, right? Maybe it's less about Angelina sucking out his hotness and more about Brad needing to borrow Angelina's night cream, moisturizer and "eye lift in a bottle". Sidenote: I think Brad and I are wearing the same white V-neck. Sidenote #2: Is Brad's haircut "The Rachel"? LOL.
Speaking of Angelina, she's not there. She didn't come with Brad to Cannes, like everyone hoped she would. Brad told reporters that she didn't come because "she's prepping a movie" (Maleficent), so no Brangelina photos on the red carpet tonight. That's so disappointing! WORST CANNES EVER.
Brad was also asked about his wedding plans, or lack thereof. He told reporters, "We have no date. We actually, really, truly have no date." He dismissed the story of a summer wedding as just a "rumor" too. And he made it seem like the wedding would be a long way away, saying, "I hope we figure out marriage equality in the states before that date." Good God! Did Pres. Obama come out for gay marriage just to get Brad and Angelina down the aisle?!?
Brad's Killing Them Softly costar, Ray Liotta, was also at the photo call. Would you still hit it? Liotta is looking pretty rough too, but I have to admit… I have such a residual, long-standing crush on him, I would probably still hit it. I love his eyes and his voice.
We haven’t paid attention to the Usher custody drama yet, because to be honest the stories broke late in the day yesterday. This Usher story is juicy gossip-wise, but there are kids involved so that makes it more sad than salacious. As background, Usher and Tameka Foster divorced in the summer of 2009. They have two boys together: Usher Raymond V, four and a half, and Naviyd, three and a half. It’s been about three years since Usher filed for divorce and they are still fighting over custody issues. It may have to do with the on-off nature of their relationship, at least toward the end of their marriage, (Usher’s song “Papers” is said to be about Tameka) but it sounds more like petty fighting. If Usher’s testimony is to be believed, it’s all Tameka’s fault.
As background, Usher, 33, has a history of dating older women and letting them take over as managers of his career. He did this with Tameka, pushing his mom out as manager, and he did this about a year ago with his current girlfriend, 44 year-old music executive Grace Miguel. Usher testified in court that during a routine hand-of of Usher, Jr., Tameka spit on Grace, took a swing at her, and threw a plate of food at their car. According to Usher, Grace was back in the car at the end of the driveway. Tameka got so mad at him for daring to bring him with her that she trounced down to the car and started screaming at Grace, saying things like “I’m going to kick your ass,” and “Bitch get out of the car.” When Usher tried to block Tameka from attacking Grace, she hit him instead.
Usher blasted his ex-wife in court today — testifying that Tameka Foster flew into a jealous rage, hitting him, throwing food, and worst of all … spitting on his girlfriend.
Usher took the stand in his ongoing child custody trial with his ex, and under questioning by his attorney, revealed how Tameka once went ballistic and “wanted to fight” … when he showed up at her house with his new sidepiece.
Ush testified Tameka walked to his car and said, “I’m gonna kick your ass. Bitch get out of the car. How dare you bring this woman into my subdivision in my house?”
He added, “She continued to spit. At this point she pulled the door open, tried to swing at her.”
Usher claims he had to get out of the car and block Tameka … who then hit him. Usher said he pleaded with Tameka to calm down, but claims “she threw a plate of food at the car” … as he fled the situation.
You gotta hear Usher describe the intense showdown — and remember, Tameka previously testified she once told the gf, “I will f**k you up.”
Usher seemed really earnest, and honest, when he was recalling this. (Video is below and available on TMZ) Either he’s an excellent actor, which is possible since he’s a celebrity and an entertainer, or he’s telling the truth as he saw it. We’ve heard all sorts of stories about what a whack jobTameka is, so I believe it. Usher married her, though, and he knew what he was getting into, considering that he backed out of the first marriage ceremony at Clive Davis’ house at the last minute. He probably realized within a few months that he never should have gone back and made it official.
TMZ has another clip from Usher’s testimony, in which he cries over allegations that he’s a bad dad and parties in front of his boys. He denied that, and it was hard to hear but I think they showed a photo of him smoking pot. He countered that he was in Holland at the time. This whole thing really made me feel sorry for Usher.
Usher is shown at the BMAs over the weekend. I actually like his blue suit. Credit: WENN.com. Tameka is shown in 2008
Last year, Angelina Jolie debuted her new jewelry line in association/partnership with jewelry designer Robert Procop. The profits from the "Style of Jolie" line go to charity – we covered a preview of some of the pieces here. While I don't think the "Style of Jolie" line is full-on awful, I do see Angelina's 1970s-style-influences all over these pieces. She loves a smoky topaz. She loves emeralds. She loves yellow gold, and she likes jewelry that I would call "chunky". Best case scenario: I like some of earrings and I would probably wear some of the rings. But in general, this is not my aesthetic, although I should note that "The Style of Jolie" is getting some love from Hollywood.
Anyway, Procop and Jolie have designed even more pieces for 2012, and Procop gave an interview to People Magazine to talk up the line:
Her engagement ring caused quite a stir, but Angelina Jolie is hoping the latest gems from her jewelry line, Style of Jolie, attract even more attention.
"It's a labor of love," Jolie's co-designer, Robert Procop, tells PEOPLE. That's in part because 100 percent of profits benefit the actress's charity, the Education Partnership for Children of Conflict. In fact, she's planning to break ground on a school for girls in Qala Gadu, Afghanistan, using funds from jewelry sales.
"Our commitment is always supporting the children's charity, which remains the overall intention and purpose of the collection," Procop adds.
But there's fun involved, too; Procop says the pair "strive for nothing less than artistic innovation with every jewel," like the newest offering, a sleek emerald bracelet.
"She is very classically chic," he says of Jolie. "We cultivated this style, which echoes a woman's timeless allure. When you see the collection, it has a distinction. When you look at it, you recognize that it's the Style of Jolie."
Last year, Procop told PEOPLE that Jolie was involved "every step of the way" in the design process. "[The collection] is what she enjoys wearing on the red carpet, but also what she enjoys when she's at home," he added.
She enjoys wearing it on her ring finger, too; Procop created her engagement ring with input from her longtime partner, Brad Pitt. According to a rep for the jeweler, "the feedback [on the ring] has been wonderful. It's all about love."
We can’t use the image of the new emerald bracelet (it's just an emerald tennis bracelet set in yellow gold – it's pretty but kind of dated), but you can see it at People online. I also looked around and Procop does have a site and there are lots of photos of The Style of Jolie line, which you can see here (I'm including some images below). I could totally see my mom wearing this stuff – back in 1979, while wearing a fashion-forward muumuu.
These are some new photos of Kristen Stewart at LAX yesterday. We had a nice story about Kristen yesterday too – I really liked the way she talked about her cat "roommate" and her co-parenting relationship with her "child" – a mutt named Bear that she and Robert Pattinson (mostly him) adopted in Louisiana. K-Stew is cute when she talks about animals, and I had the realization that she's probably more of an animal person than a people-person, which makes me like her a little bit more. But I've also come to this conclusion: Kristen is so much more likeable in small doses. When she does a major magazine or newspaper interview, her personality starts to grate – at least on me. Kristen has a new interview with The Guardian, which… is not very good. It’s not bad, it’s just a whole lot of Kristen. The Guardian's intensive interviews are notoriously difficult, so I wonder what idiot publicist let Kristen speak to this outlet. The full piece is here, and here are some highlights:
How Kristen decided to become an actor: Her parents were crew members, and she had spent time on film sets where there was a feeling that: “we were all in this together, and we were making something worthwhile”. She takes one of many deep, meaningful breaths. “And then I would see a kid walk around and people would be like: ‘Shhh, that’s the actor, don’t talk to him.’ And I was like, I want a job, I want you guys to talk to me like I matter!”
Feeling trapped in hotel rooms: “I mean, if I walked out of this hotel” – Claridge’s – “obviously I’d be screwed. But in London, I am perfectly fine, unless I have a trail of parasites behind me." The paparazzi are at the hotel entrance when I leave. “But I’m good at evading those little twits. Once I lose them, once no one’s trying to make a buck off you, you know, I’m fine – I know at this point that there’s a buck to be made, which is weird considering I’m just walking down the street with dirty hair.”
The original Disney Snow White: “In the original she totally represents what a woman wanted to be back then: the ultimate maternal figure. She cleans house really well. It’s just that [women] do more than that now.” Instead they created a “bad-ass, girl power movie”, she says, in which the character’s strength is represented in a realistic way. “We’re not built to take out big guys in armour. So it was really more about being faster and smarter.”
On beauty: She starts talking about how beauty is ruined “if you’re not cool as well. If you don’t have the heart to back up your looks, you are ugly. I’ve met so many people that I thought were so gorgeous and talented and amazing. And then you meet them for one second and you’re like,” she heaves another breath, and spits out emphatically, “‘you are wearing a costume, you are a fake, you are so unattractive’. And it doesn’t always come across in a picture, but you can be really beautiful in a still frame, and then, in life, moving around, you’re ugly. And that’s kind of what the movie’s about.”
Comparing Twilight and SWATH: There’s a big similarity between Snow White and Twilight, she says, in that, “there’s a stage of life represented in both movies that is so impassioned, and it doesn’t know why yet. Do you know what I mean? That was what I really liked about Bella. The fact that she trusted that at some point these feelings are going to make sense, and that she’s not going to let everyone tell her she’s f–king crazy. Also, it was just so,” she takes a big breath, “it was so intense,” she laughs.
She's intense too: “Yeah, I’m still a very intense person.” She’s 22 now. “I’m chilled out about some things. I’m cool. But definitely, I take things far too seriously … I am just a serious person. I love joking around, and it’s obviously about mood, because sometimes I can definitely be a silly idiot. But most of the time I am like this.” She makes a sound as if her mouth has been suctioned shut. Quite private? “Yeah,” she says. “And I’m overtly aware of f–king everything. I’m always like,” she mimes picking things out of the air, “details, little things. Just obsessive, analytical.”
On Twilight and whether Bella is weak: “I always just very honestly said that that’s not why I did the movie, and it’s not why the book was written,” she says, adding that she finds it frustrating when people read the characters differently to her. “Mostly in this idea that Bella is a weak girl who is just obsessed with these two boys, and doesn’t really think beyond her own needs, and is selfish. And she is, completely, but that’s like the way to live, man! You’ve got to follow your heart. That is actually a really bold way to live, not making concessions, or giving things up … I don’t know why people ignore the sacrifices that Edward makes. I don’t know why the power thing has been viewed the way it’s been viewed, because I just view it so differently.”
Seriously, she always goes off script: “I think in order to do [On the Road] right, in order to make everyone happy – because there’s a lot of people sitting around going: ‘OK, let’s have it’ – it had to be spontaneous, it had to have that feeling of never quite knowing where someone’s going to jump or scream,” she says. “So sometimes it was a truer reading of the line to just forget it, and say it your own way.”
On being a commodity: “When you make moving pictures, it’s so easy to become disingenuous,” she says. “It’s so easy to just become a commodity, and I think that’s so embarrassing.” And with that, she finishes her milk.
The Guardian also notes how twitchy Kristen is, and how she's not the most eloquent young woman, but they also say that it seems like Kristen tries very, very hard to come across as genuine and honest, and that quality is endearing. Still, I have to think The Guardian would have been better off interviewing Charlize Theron or Chris Hemsworth. Poor Kristen – some of this stuff isn't her fault. She gets bad advice from publicists.
Before we start in on The Cracken's latest, you definitely need to go check out THESE PHOTOS at The Mail. Lindsay Lohan has already begun fittings for Liz & Dick, and The Mail does a side-by-side comparison of Elizabeth Taylor's magnificence next to The Cracken's busted hooker face. It's pretty rough.
Anyway, Lifetime's Liz & Dick begins production in a few weeks (or sooner). And they still don't have a Dick. That's right, Richard Burton has not been cast, despite all of our quality casting suggestions, ranging from Eddie Cibrian to Wilmer Valderrama to Charlie Sheen. But Lindsay is still playing the diva, demanding that they need to find her a better Dick.
Lindsay Lohan is extremely unhappy with the casting choices of the male actors who have auditioned for the role of Richard Burton in the Elizabeth Taylor Lifetime biopic, and filming is scheduled to begin in just a few weeks, RadarOnline.com is exclusively reporting.
As we previously reported, the decision to cast Lohan as the screen icon has drawn criticism from Rosie O’Donnell who recently said, “I feel very sorry for her. I think she needs a lot of time away. … She’s had a lot of trouble doing every single movie, including SNL. She was out and not in rehearsal. I think she’s not in a place to work.”
Choices to play the role of Richard Burton have come down to Gossip Girl star Matthew Settle, Sean Maguire, and CSI hunk Craig Robert Young, but after watching the audition tapes last weekend, “Lindsay declared that none of the actors were the right fit and that she wanted to go to London to look for a possible Burton actor there,” a production insider tells RadarOnline.com.
“Lindsay is being an absolute nightmare about who should play Burton. She believes Matthew Settle is too old to play the role, and she wants a major A-list star to be her co-star. However, her salary for the role took up a major portion of the budget, and the Burton gig will likely only pay $200k, max. The producers don’t need to get Lindsay’s approval of who will play Richard Burton, but they want to keep her happy.”
Making matters worse, is that filming is slated to begin in just a few short weeks, and they are no closer to signing an actor to play Burton.
“They are already in pre-production and it’s very hard to conduct any rehearsals without the pivotal role of Richard Burton,” the source says. “There is also cause for concern because Lindsay partied all night last week with Paris Hilton, Barron Hilton and Brandon Davis. All three, including Lindsay, have been arrested for DUI and/or drug charges previously. Lindsay shouldn’t be out partying all night long, no good can come of that.”
So will Lohan get her wish to jet across the pond to find her ideal Richard Burton? “Hell no!” The source says. “There just isn’t any money in the budget, or time, to do so. The producers will try to land someone that Lindsay likes, but, if push comes to shove, they will just cast the role without her approval.”
"Matthew Settle, Sean Maguire, and CSI hunk Craig Robert Young"???? OK, I only know one of those dudes, I had to look the other two up. I mostly know Matthew Settle because of Band of Brothers (he was so awesome in that), but he's on Gossip Girl now. He's really hot – very sexy, in my opinion, and an underrated actor. So, obviously, he should stay FAR AWAY.
Sean Maguire is the Meet the Spartans guy. He's a comedic actor for the most part. Which kind of fits, because Liz & Dick will end up being a cracked-out comedy classic. At least this guy is English (although Burton was Welsh, which is not the same difference).
Craig Robert Young is…zzz…. Um, he looks nothing like Richard Burton! WTF?
So, basically, Lindsay is treating this Lifetime project as yet another platform to act like a crackhead diva, and she can't get it through her crack skull that any actor of any kind of quality wouldn't want to touch this project with a ten-foot pole.
Sean Penn’s Haiti Benefit at Cannes on Saturday raised over $2 million for charities including his own, The J/P Haitian Relief Organization, his girlfriend Petra Nemcova’s Happy Hearts Fund and director Paul Haggis’ Artists for Peace and Justice. In a press conference ahead of the event, Penn alienated some with a remark about how how the whole world had forgotten Haiti. It was an understandable sentiment from someone so dedicated to a cause, but it came across as angry. He said “It's not only celebrities who went for a day [to Haiti]. It's the whole f#$*ing world. It's all of you.”
In a new interview with Ann Curry on the Today Show, Penn came across much better than some of the quotes from the press conference made him sound. He was intense, but you could tell he cared so deeply and that this was a cause close to his heart. This may sound rude, but it was funny for me to contrast Ann Curry’s milquetoast concern, which is her approach to basically all interviews, and Penn’s impassioned pleas. Their styles worked together and Penn really seemed to open up. The dude is dedicated to this cause. He started crying and I wanted to give him a hug. Here’s what he said at the beginning, when he got choked up.
Curry: I detect an emotional component in this for you. Penn: It’s emotional because you see how it can work, and you say ‘Oh God, it better work this time.’ Curry: What in your view, does victory look like in Haiti? Penn: Victory looks like a brilliant young Haitian kid, who had no better choice than to go to the United States and get an education, make a decision to go home. [starts choking up] It looks like where people have a chance, where kids get to say “I was born here, I can get the education here, and I can do it.”
Then Sean told a story about a man affected by the earthquake who lost his whole family and became a hero. This made me cry.
Curry: For many people who go to these kinds of places, there is an… image that doesn’t leave you. Penn: I could give you a story image of a policeman who rationed his cigarettes because of the expense… Went home, he would see his children, his parents, his wife, downstairs… Went upstairs, took off his police uniform… walk outside to have that smoke. Then the earth shook and he turned around to the two level home behind him with his whole family in it, and it was up to his knees. He dove into it after his family, he reached into the concrete to get them and all he got was his uniform. So he put it on and he became the one guiding the emergency traffic that saved about 500 lives in the first two days.
As for his known anger, Penn laughed and explained that he gets pissed off at relief workers who come to Haiti for the glory and not to help people. He laughed about it, and said he needs to work on his temper. I thought this was funny. I’ll use the Today Show’s writeup for this part, because it puts his other comments into context:
Curry asked Penn about his demanding nature, particularly when working with helpers in Haiti, and he was unrepentant: “Most of the people I’m angry at are usually international volunteers who are coming over to stamp themselves with a do-gooder label. … I don’t control my temper well, I guess.”
Penn has long been a supporter of humanitarian causes, including journeying to post-Katrina New Orleans to help rescue people, though he drew some fire for bringing a photographer to document the event. But, he adds, he’s not out to prove he’s more moral-than-thou.
“I’m not going to accuse myself of being moral. … I recognize a lot of the things that are less than good in me, and similarly there is a very powerful thing that comes when something is good despite me,” he said.
And on the subject of morality, Penn has some ideas about the afterlife: “I prefer not to go to hell,” he said. “I’d like to think that heaven is a little sexier than generally portrayed … but if it is black and quiet, that’s OK too.”
I came away with much more respect for Penn and for the incredible hard work he’s doing. Toward the end of the interview, around 4:00 in, they showed clips from some of his seminal roles. Curry asked Penn if he accepts that he’s “one of the greatest actors of our time,” and he answered it extremely well, basically admitting that he’s a good actor but chalking it up to a character flaw.
“I am constantly embarrassed by my own personality. Maybe I have a strength in that as an actor, in that maybe it’s because I’m willing to give it up. I have a very tough time with people. It’s not that I’m totally anti-social, it’s just that I don’t want to socialize with the people I already know.”
Then Curry called him an idealist and they had a laugh. It was probably one of the best interviews she’s done. Sometimes her approach works.
These are photos from the Haiti Carnivale party at Cannes, featuring Penn, Petra Nemcova, co-host Georgio Armani and guests Jessica Chastain, Diane Kruger and Joshua Jackson, and Jada Pinkett Smith. I’m impressed with how great everyone looks. Credit: Fame Flynet
The Facebook IPO was one of the most anticipated of all time. It made 28 year-old hoodie-wearing founder Mark Zuckerberg one of the richest men in the world, with an estimated net worth of nearly $20 billion dollars. Zuckerberg of course married his longterm girlfriend, recent medical school graduate Priscilla Chan, in a small private ceremony in his backyard just one day after Facebook went public. It was a surprise ceremony in that guests thought they were coming to a graduation party for Priscilla, but instead were treated to a wedding. Reports claimed that the event was planned for over four months. People were buzzing that the timing was suspect in that Priscilla would have no claim to the Facebook billions since Mark grew and “sold” the business prior to marrying her. Well TMZ consulted a lawyer who said that this isn’t true, since Mark grew the business prior to marrying Priscilla. Even if Facebook went public the day after the marriage, it’s not like she would be entitled to half the proceeds in the even of a divorce. It’s not like Mark was somehow trying to shaft Priscilla. She’s a highly accomplished, smart woman and she knows what’s up. Here’s more:
There’s talk that Mark Zuckerberg timed his wedding to cut his new wife out of the $20 billion he raked in Friday, when Facebook went public, but it’s simply not the case.
As you know, Mark married Priscilla Chan the day after his portfolio ballooned. But here’s the deal … Under California law, if one person grows a business before marriage and sells it right at the time he or she gets hitched, the new spouse has no legal claim to the proceeds of the sale.
Disso Queen Laura Wasser, who reps almost every celeb in the throes of divorce including Britney Spears, Angelina Jolie and Maria Shriver, tells TMZ it’s pretty simple: “Facebook is a separate property asset of Mr. Zuckerberg. It’s like a painter who paints a painting prior to marriage and sells it shortly after marriage. Any proceeds from the sale of the painting are the artist’s separate property.”
Now, if Facebook continues to increase in value during their marriage, Priscilla would have a 50% interest in proceeds from the growth. But if today is any indication … Priscilla shouldn’t hold her breath — the stock plummeted 10% today.
BTW, we don’t know if Mark got Priscilla to sign a prenup.
They talked about this on TMZ live (about 10 minutes into the video on this page). TMZ head Harvey Levin, who is a lawyer, explained it more clearly than this article does. He said that “All he’s done was cash in on what he created. Cashing in doesn’t give her the right to claim it.” Another staffer at TMZ asked if Priscilla would have rights to Facebook since she’s been with Mark for nine years, from when he created it. Harvey said no, and that “this is not a palimony situation… She’s been in medical school. She was creating her own career… She really didn’t give up anything, it was not that kind of relationship. So she wouldn’t be entitled to palimony. The bottom line is, it didn’t matter when he married her… the 20 billion dollars is his money alone.” Harvey went on to explain that she’s entitled to half the growth of Facebook during their marriage, but that it depends on if these two have a prenup or not, which is unknown.
Well there you have it, Zuckerberg married a woman he’s been with for nearly a decade, who has her own career. He’s not trying to bogart assets from her, and his choice of a mate makes him look like a stand up guy. If he wanted to he could easily be partying with supermodels on yachts with helicopter pads on them every weekend, but he’s not. As Kaiser mentioned in our earlier story on this, I’d love to see what’s next for these two. They can achieve amazing feats of philanthropy with that kind of money.
I'm starting to grow somewhat suspicious of the strategic anti-Brandi Glanville information that Radar seems privy to. Remember, it was Radar who got the story about Brandi not getting her RHOBH promotion because Eddie Cibrian wouldn't allow his kids to be on camera with their mother (only their step-mother) – a story which Brandi spent days refuting and bitching about in the press, mostly because it seemed like Brandi and Eddie's private custodial issues were being aired in public. Now Radar has another suspicious story about Brandi being a "hard-partying Mean Girl" in this season of RHOBH. Eh.
Eddie Cibrian’s ex-wife, Brandi Glanville, one of the stars of Bravo’s The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, has been partying hard during filming recently and is turning into the new mean girl on the reality show, RadarOnline.com is exclusively reporting.
As we previously reported, fellow "Housewife" Taylor Armstrong has also been hitting the bottle and had a catastrophic meltdown during a recent trip to Ojai, which left her co-stars fearing for her future if she doesn’t seek treatment for her drinking.
“Brandi has been extremely chummy with Lisa Vanderpump this year,” a source close to the situation tells RadarOnline.com. “She just doesn’t seem to be in a good place right now, and she has been definitely hitting the bottle a lot harder this year during filming, which is cause for concern. Brandi becomes much more aggressive when she drinks and she is turning into the new mean girl on the show. It’s hard to tell if it’s the alcohol that is the cause for the drastic mood changes, if it’s just Brandi trying to be provocative, or if she feels pressure to act a certain way during filming.”
During an episode last season, the cast went to Maui for Kyle Richards’ husband’s birthday party and Brandi admitted on camera that she had taken Xanax and had been drinking. Glanville certainly appeared to be under the influence during the episode and was slurring her words.
Glanville recently revealed in an interview with Australia’s NW HQ magazine that she once felt like killing Cibrian’s new wife LeAnn Rimes after the country singer surfaced at one of her son’s soccer practices!
“I remember walking up to soccer practice and there she was with my baby in her lap,” Brandi — who has two sons with Eddie, Mason and Jake — told the magazine. “My blood was boiling, and I thought I was going to kill her. I really thought I was going to physically hurt her. But that was the first time I saw her that way — she was sitting in my soccer chair, under my tent, she’s got my kid on her lap, and she’s with my husband, and that was that little moment of total irrational fury.”
However, the blonde beauty went on to say that things between the country singer and herself had gotten better. “We’re never going to be best friends but she’s good to my kids, they love her and that’s all I could ask for,” Brandi said. “If they didn’t like her, I’d be in court right now, fighting. It’s not about me — it’s about them.”
“What is absolutely obvious is that Brandi is extremely insecure and very unhappy. it’s truly sad to see,” the source says. “She is a totally different person than she was during the second season and it’s not for the better.”
The third season of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills will air this fall on Bravo.
I do think that when Brandi parties, she parties hard. And I think alcohol mixed with her already TMI-laden personality probably isn't the best combination. But maybe it's just her storyline, I don't know. It's not like I watch the show. Don't producers encourage the Real Housewives to drink to excess to help facilitate the drama? Aren't producers looking for someone like Brandi to move the show along – a mouthy, pushy party girl? Eh.
Some newish photos of Brandi and an unknown dude (unknown to me) at Andy Cohen's book party last week:
The 2012 edition of Maxim’s “Hot 100″ list has been revealed by the men’s magazine, but this year is a bit different because readers were actually allowed to participate within the election. The very top spot on the list has been secured by none other than Bar Refaeli, and I actually agree with this selection. Bar is gorgeous and has a very well-proportioned body that just doesn’t quit. She also seems to have an adventurous spirit and (for a supermodel) a relatively quick wit as well. In a (well-rehearsed?) display of humility, Bar has spoken out on her surprise at being named in the #1 spot by Maxim’s readers. Surely, she can’t be surprised at being called utterly gorgeous on a near daily basis, right?
The supermodel (and Leonardo DiCaprio’s ex-girlfriend) tops Maxim’s Hot 100 list this year – and it’s not hard to see why.
Refaeli tells the magazine in its issue, on stands May 29, that she was “shocked that among all these beautiful ladies, I’m number one.” Meanwhile, Maxim’s editors say the Israeli beauty “puts the ‘promise’ in the Promised Land.”
Refaeli has made the list before – landing in last year’s top 10, in fact.
Other beauties included in the new issue include Blake Lively; Charlize Theron; Rihanna; and Amanda Knox.
The rest of the list is, well, interesting because for some reason, Stephen Colbert shows up at #69. Amanda Knox also sneaks in towards the end of the list as well. Here’s the top 10 after Bar: (2) Olivia Munn (really, so high?); (3) Mila Kunis; (4) Katy Perry; (5) Olivia Wilde; (6) Jennifer Lawrence (oh yeah); (7) Emma Stone; (8) Megan Fox; (9) Malin Akerman; (10) Adrianne Palicki. The full list can be viewed here. So do you think that Bar deserves the top spot, or have her days as a hot, lad-mag babe passed her by already?
Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet and WENN
You are subscribed to email updates from Cele|bitchy To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.
No comments:
Post a Comment