If you go to the supermarket, you can't miss the many stories about Britney Spears and her custody battle with Kevin Federline.

I don't know the facts of her life, but if you look around the headlines and actually look at the photographs, you see what appears to be a fairly normal family. And, if you bother to read the stories (click the mags), you'll find that a lot of the accusations are that she prefers for the nannies to change the kid's diapers and to see them to bed; she's sometimes naked in front of the kids; some of the staff, whom she considers to be her friends have seen her undressed; she drinks and takes a prescription medication.

None of those things are really outlandish and other than the time, when she nudged a car in a parking garage recently, almost all of the stories are coming from unnamed sources and they always appear in an article surrounded by quotes from his lawyer.

Well, we all know how unnamed sources or senior White House officials sometimes go.

I don't know if she's a normal, single mother, who is worth about $120m and isolated from society by the paparazzi or a trainwreck, nor do I know if she's going to keep living in the limelight or eventually head back to Louisiana. All I know is what I see and among those things that I have seen over the years have been stories about the occasional millionaire's ex-spouse collecting tens of thousands in monthly child support, so I have to take all of the Britney character assassination with a grain of salt.

Usually when I'm making a mid-evening run to the grocery store, I quickly flip through my radio presets for something to hear.

Sometimes, I'll land on Alice Cooper's show (brought to you by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America); Sometimes it's Dr. Drew and because it's only a two minute drive to anywhere, I occasionally land on a syndicated program called "The Tom Leykis Show" which is sort of a chauvinistic, male-centric advice program. (Sample quote from this evening: "When you look at Victoria Beckham, don't think that all girls in England look like her. For every Victoria Beckham, there's a hundred fat girls with bad teeth")

For years, whenever I've heard Tom Leykis, I'd wonder if he really was Jay Thomas doing a show under a different name because the voice sounds very similar to me. Not to mention the fact that the Leykis program is distributed by CBS Radio and is broadcast from the Paramount lot, which is where, I believe they did Mr Thomas' last couple of television shows.

Tonight, I took a couple of minutes to look-up Mr. Leykis and found on his Wikipedia page that he's quite likely a real person, who has been in radio since the '70s. After I was fully satisfied about the person to whom I've been listening, I flipped over to read Jay Thomas' entry and though I knew he still has as good of a film career as he's ever had, I also discovered that he's on Sirius Satellite Radio and he moonlights as a licensed real estate broker, working with a Coldwell Banker office in Santa Barbara.

( More, Completely Useless Information about Similar Subjects after the Jump )

For the past several days, I've been thinking about writing a book about something closer to home, but if I had the time and the inclination, there's probably another one which could be seeded from the following clips, which I'm putting under a cut.

( A Modern Day Soap )

I posted the following offtopic comment to a gossip blog's post about Donald Trump's war on Rosie O'Donnell. At the beginning of the comment thread, someone suggested Rosie invite Trump's ex to guest host The View and the focus of the original post was a YouTubed teaser for Entertainment Tonight. Hopefully these bits of added info will help explain some of my references.

Speaking of "ET" and Ivana... A million years ago, Leeza Gibbons and John Tesh had an afternoon talk show which was broadcast live. The show "borrowed" heavily from Regis' format and it started with a host chat segment.

One day Ivana was scheduled to be a guest, I believe she was planning to promote a book and I know that it was after Donny had dumped her for a younger model. Anyway, Ivana was running late and got to the studio during the opening segment, so Gibbons and Tesh had to fill time while she was getting made-up.

It was during this time-wasting banter that Leeza said something along the lines of "Ivana is everywoman" and Tesh almost fell off his chair laughing. He obviously couldn't believe what she had said and wasn't making any secret of it, plus he repeatedly pointed-out the utter ridiculousness of such a claim, live on the air.

When they came back from a commercial, the hosts said that Ivana had left without coming on stage and if memory serves; "John & Leeza from Hollywood" soon went into showing only reruns, perhaps as quickly as the very next day and the show completely disappeared within a couple of weeks.

Hopefully Donny will shut-up after The Apprentice premieres on Sunday, opposite a new Desperate Housewives.
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Note: I actually didn't remember the show's name and had to get it from IMDB. Though, it does seem that it aired on NBC.

The more that I think about the upcoming Dakota Fanning film which will certainly be the talk of Sundance, the more I consider partial parallels to a couple of pics starring Evan Rachel Wood. Primarily, I'd have to say that Dakota's unreleased work sounds to be much darker and much more disturbing than those which evoke Miss Wood, plus Miss Fanning is also considerably younger and thus, the whole thing promises to be increasingly more controversial as the film gets closer to release.

Much has been whispered about the rape scene in the movie with the working title, Hounddog. Over in the ohnotheydidnt community, someone has scanned an article from the current edition of Premiere and by using it along with the other press, the copyright violator was able to create the following bullet points;

In the movie, Dakota;

• Makes a boy drop his pants and promises him kisses


• Shares a bed with a fully naked grown man (played by David Morse)


• Tells two kids to take of their clothes at gunpoint and wraps a snake around them


• Is raped by a boy who promises her Elvis tickets


• Walks around in her underwear a lot

Now, I'm not going to make an argument for kiddie porn. Twelve is just too young to be desireable to any sane, modern adult, but I do have to say that the movie sounds important. It's a story that probably needs to be told and though it's most likely going to be relegated to those darker recesses like Monster, Monster's Ball and that thing with Kevin Bacon, those trying to censor the film or deny it distribution should probably hold-off on the prior restraint.

In the article, the writer/director of the film is liberally quoted, but two bits stand out;

There were so many stories I needed to tell in "Hounddog", about motherlessness, the cycle of abuse, the triumph of this girl's spirit, and the power of female sexuality.
÷÷÷
Exactly how I was going to film the rape scene was articulated quite specifically in the script, and her mother, her agent, and her teacher/child welfare worker were all present for the filming of the scene, which was carried out exactly as we discussed it. There was so much I had to hide [during filming]. I had to hide the fact that this girl is not naked. I had to hide the fact that there is not a boy on top of this girl having sex. One of the choices I made as a director is, I shot her face. I didn't shoot flesh against flesh, his leg touching her leg; I shot her face because I wanted to capture a soul going through this experience, not a body. The assumption that [Dakota] was violated in order to give performance denies her talent.

It was within these two quotes that I was reminded of Evan Rachel Wood.

In a 2005 submission to Sundance, Pretty Persuasion, the young actress' character and two of her classmates accuse a male teacher of molesting them and she sleeps with a trashy reporter played by Jane Krakowski. I haven't seen the film because it only played "select cities" and it's not available at my local video stores, but based on the reviews and the press, it seems to make some kind of statement about "the power of female sexuality" among other things.

And in the film Down in the Valley, there's a scene where Miss Wood's character is supposedly having sex, but I couldn't help but wonder if the actress has ever had intercourse, or if she's ever done it in that particular position because it just didn't look right.

In the Premiere article about Dakota's upcoming release, Ms Kampmeier says;

I think to some extent what they're accusing me of is putting Dakota through some ordeal or simulation of rape, but that's not the case. The scene was never run through from start to finish; it was shot in increments, over and over, never in a single take.

Elsewhere, I've seen the rape described as violent. I don't really know if that's an accurate description, but one does have to wonder what kind of line Ms Kampmeier had to walk in order to elicit a realistic performance from such a young star, all while shooting the scene in increments and without damaging Miss Fanning's psyche.

As for myself, if this picture does come back as high art and if it is an important story as I suspect and not just something gratuitous, I will most likely see it at some point in time. Though, I find it extremely doubtful that it'll ever play around here and it may never be available in any small town video stores, unless possibly, Miss Fanning scores an Oscar® for the performance.

Though only time will tell, as will its limited release and whether or not, I can keep my daughter out of the room.

First, the candy...

The New York Daily News reported last week that Miss USA had been sharing a Trump Tower apartment with Miss Teen USA, Katie Blair and that she recently moved-out to get a better handle on her image. This same paper also quoted an unnamed source in another story, as saying the eighteen and twenty year-old beauty queens would go out for some wild nights on the town, where they'd drink and occasionally kiss.

Unrelated, but equally sweet: Miss Nevada has apparently posed for some risqué photos, a few of the more candid shots also show her playfully kissing other women.

...and now for the buffoon;

On a recent The View, always provacative Rosie O'Donnell said something disparaging Donald Trump's "family values". FoxNews reports her as saying; "Left the first wife, had an affair, left the second wife, had an affair. Had kids both times, but he's the moral compass for 20-year-olds in America. Donald, sit and spin, my friend."

To which "The Donald" has offered this long video reply, where he mostly calls Rosie disgustingly fat and ugly, over and over, plus he says something about knowing some people who could steal away Rosie's partner because "why would she stay with Rosie, if she had another choice?"

Obviously, not only is Mr Trump quick, but he also has a lot of respect for homosexual unions. </SNARK>

Update: TMZ now has the full set of Miss Nevada's racy photos and all I can say is "you, go girl".
2nd Update: Now someone is hosting the complete Miss Nevada set, uncensored, except for a big watermark.

(via Defamer)

Is anyone else following this whole Amanda Congdon vs Andrew Baron situation?

I had thought about putting together a formal post with a map, but since she announced her departure yesterday morning, it's been hard to keep up with all the she-said/he-said stuff, especially with all the job offers, histories and analyses flying.

Obviously, she was the star of Rocketboom and if her allegations about him having no part with an increasing number of productions is correct, I don't think anyone could fault her for taking advantage of her newfound, more mainstream fame (video, transcript). And, though I doubt it, but if this thing started as a half-hearted publicity stunt, the way the 'net world has abandoned him and embraced her, plus all of the current mainstream press causes one to think that their plan may have backfired.

In conclusion, though it has been fun watching an e-world version of A Star is Born, what also needs noting is that one of the most successful online redefinitions is being undone by a single departure and arguably the world's biggest Web 2.0 star is currently holed-up at her mother's house because she has no place else to go.
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Semi-Related: Gawker Media redirects and redefines.

The following are among the unedited comments that I've made to other blogs during the past week about Star Jones and her exit from The View. If anyone would like to express their own feelings or make a comment on the subject, be it from a Livejournal account or from without, please feel free.

I realize this comment isn't snarky, but I've got to agree with ABC's decision. My dad used to watch Star Jones on some kind of syndicated lawyer show and though there was some aloofness in her presentation on her own show, when she started "The View", it was like she knew that her ticket had been punched and there was some semblance of accessibility to her persona. As the years have progressed, Meredith and Joy had remained pretty real, Barbara will always be Barbara "freaking" Walters, but Star seemed to become more distant from her audience and the wedding fiasco was much too far over the top.

÷÷÷
Star - Your Q-rating went way down and there isn't a clamoring of people seeking your redemption. Your bridge has been burned, so please go quietly into the night.

Now, if Debbie Matenopoulos and Lisa Ling had gotten into such a row, I would've wanted it to turn into a cage match, but that's the kind of guy I am.

÷÷÷
Perhaps she thought that by staying in front of the camera, she'd be able to find a new gig, but if she continues to remain and delude herself into thinking that she can outflank Barbara Walters, she's probably sealing her fate; Coming Soon - Star Jones lives the "The Surreal Life".

According to his website, the young lady on the right is the eighteen year old daughter of former Chattanooga Mayor and current Senatorial candidate Bob Corker from Tennessee. Her name is Julia and yesterday, the Wonkette posted a couple of racy pics from her Facebook. Last night, as I was contemplating a comment and wishing that I could use my Paris Hilton icon on the Wonkette site, I read through a lot of her father's site and discovered the above three-quarter length, campaign picture.

This marks only the latest Facebook entry to be publicly disclosed by one of the Gawker sites and the blogosphere in general. If you follow their link, you'd see that they recently revealed a photo from Senator Bill Frist's middle son's collection and that they suspect it could be tied to a "cease and desist" order from the networking site. Obviously they are contesting the order because Miss Corker's images are post-letter and they've even tried to do a little investigation into the relationship with privacy and the founder of Facebook. Also, I'm supportive of Gawker's position for the reason cited by editor Nick Douglas in the comments to the letter; If you go to Ohio State, your Facebook can be viewed by more than 50,000 people, so it can't really be considered private. Of course, I also don't have access to Facebook because I don't have an university email, so I may be basing some of my beliefs in my own prejudice.

The easy thing that may first spring to mind, when you look at the ganked photos from the children of Senator Frist and the man who hopes to succeed him is that the children of Tennessee politicians are a wild bunch. This could even be further evidenced by the publicity which surrounded the time that Al Gore III was clocked doing 97mph in a 55 zone. But, I think it goes more to show that though the children of politicians and celebrities should be extra aware of the public face of the internet; I'm sure many people remember when the blogosphere outed the daughter of noted homophobe Alan Keyes and though they had to publicly work through the thing, she seems no worse for wear and according to her current blog, she's even getting a few speaking engagements from the deal. As a recent New York Times article discussed, pretty much everyone should be conscious of exactly what they're putting online, how it might be viewed in the future or under different circumstances and be fully aware of the permanence of the 'net.

In January, the SEC proposed that Hollywood studios and entertainment companies should accurately disclose the top salaries of their non-executive employees (IOW: actors, directors, etc.) and just before the comment period ended, several studios said they would fight the new rule. Now, I haven't been following the story religiously, but most of the press have not been in the studio's favor and several gossip sites joked that some household names would think of it as comparing penis size.

Today, Entertainment Weekly is reporting that star salaries have been coming down as costs have increased and I expect similar stories to appear. To some extent, they may be correct, but also as George Costanza might exclaim; "There's been shrinkage!"

I'm sure that most people have heard about Dick Cheney's "tour rider". And yesterday, Bill Kristol of the Weekly Standard joked about the naming of Tony Snow to Shepard Smith, "Fox News will just take over the Bush White House, now" and suggested that Greta Van Susteren could be named White House counsel. Of course, I don't know the validity of today's fun fact, but I've seen a transcript in a couple places, so I'm going to link to a blogpost hosted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. It seems the outgoing Press Secretary was asked if White House policy requires all televisions on Air Force One and in the White House to be tuned to Fox.

Semi-related: A link to the transcript of an exclusive interview Tony Snow did with Brit Hume of Fox News, yesterday.

Edited to Add (4/28)

The Air Force One story has now been verified by the reporter involved. In a Washington Post live chat, it was confirmed and the situation was clarified that despite what is being said on some conservative blogs, the press corp were just asking for freedom of choice, some people wanted CNN and others would've preferred ESPN.

I should start this post by admitting that I also enjoy a bit of Hollywood gossip. There are a couple of tattler sites which I regularly read and I do it mostly because there are real people involved, it gives me glimpses into their lives and occasionally you'll find an interesting story in the mix. Lately, I've been halfway following the Anthony Pellicano investigation because it sounds like the man thought he was Jim Rockford and it's interesting how the Hollywood detective is getting called for doing precisely what television private eyes have done, since the early days of the genre.

Unfortunately, there's a lot of other people who subscribe to this kind of gossip and because of the meanness displayed by some people on the web and outright ignorance by a lot of the masses, it's easy to find things getting too far out of line. To illustrate this point, please allow me to point toward a couple of recent situations.

1. The other day, I ran across some photos of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt getting into an airplane, where they've supposedly been taking flying lessons. The opening paragraph of the gossip post is focused on the fact that they were headed to St. Tropez for a week of vacation and it not only reminded me of how much I like St Tropez, but it once again spurred me to dream of purchasing a tiny place in the area, a pipedream that I've entertained from time-to-time. It also caused me to think about some of my friends who purchased their own airplanes for the sake of convenience and to do a little googling to see what they've been up to lately. All in all, I'd say that I saw this little tidbit as a simple walk down memory lane.
   
   Included in the post was also a couple of quotes from Micheal Douglas, widely reported to have been taken from the new issue of GQ. Perhaps it shouldn't have been a big surprise, but I was taken aback by the vitriol spewed in the 400+ comments toward Mr Douglas and Jennifer Anniston, plus a lot of back and forth about the couple's parenting skills and personal life. I'm sure that the couple takes a lot of comfort in the familiarity obsessive fans express toward their selves and their union. Also, I wasn't aware that the world is divided in Jennifer Anniston and Brad Pitt camps, but I know it now. I thought they were simply a couple that might've gotten married a little quickly and had grown apart. Things like that happen in the real world just as it does in Hollywood, but thankfully most people don't have to go through their breakups on the world stage.



2. Due to the fact that a lot of corporate-owned gossip sites don't update over the weekend, a nonsense story based entirely on rumor and innuendo is going to be at the top of the chain throughout the weekend. Personally, I see no connection to any form of reality, except for the fact that a marketing department may not be actively fanning the flames, but they're probably also not going to fully douse them because it wouldn't serve their commercial purpose.
   
   As I understand it, Issac Hayes quit South Park because he felt that they weren't being tolerant of other people's religious beliefs. Matt Stone, one of the creators of the flagging series immediately jumped onto the fact that Mr Hayes is a Scientologist and this information was edited into most of the stories on the subject. I've seen nothing from Mr Hayes connecting his departure to Scientology, but because it's currently vogue to slam that particular belief system, Mr Stone released a statement and provided a couple of quotes that are being treated as gospel.
   
   Supposedly, a repeat of the cartoon's anti-Scientology, Tom Cruise might be gay episode was scheduled to rerun on Wednesday night. Back in January, a week before the series was made available for download via iTunes at $1.99 per episode, a British tabloid reported that the scientology/gay episode was being withheld from UK broadcast due to fears that Mr Cruise might sue and they theorized that it could also be pulled from US rotation for the same reason. When the episode was not rerun on Wednesday night, the internet and some well-placed whispers blamed it on Mr Cruise threatening to not promote Mission Impossible: 3, a film which he is producing on behalf of Paramount, a division of Viacom, parent company to Comedy Central and the producer of South Park, plus the program's distributor.
   
   Both Comedy Central and the spokesperson for Tom Cruise have denied that any threats were made and that the actor had any hand in pulling the episode. Considering the reception that Mr Cruise received when he was promoting his most recent project, I find it pretty doubtful that he has any plans to do a lot of promotion for MI:3, especially considering that the villain in this installment is being played by the recently-honored Phillip Seymour Hoffman. It really makes more sense for him to take the lead in promoting the flick because he'll have two things to discuss. So in addition to the denials by everyone involved and not the rantings of a couple of cartoonists from Colorado, plus a bevy of blogs and commenting netizens, we're really only left with the knowledge that the DVD for South Park: Season Seven has long been scheduled for release next Tuesday.
   
   Internet, I believe you've been pwned.