Gossip

Picture of Britney Spears on the cover of OK celebrity gossip mag

Like Lindsay Lohan and Anna Nicole Smith, Britney Spears is undergoing a serious crisis. While I could write a book on what is going wrong with her, here are a few incidents that really trouble me:

1. There are swimsuits for a reason. They allow us to enjoy being in water but still maintain decency. Not so for Britney. When she saw the (cold) water on a beach in Malibu, she simply took her clothes off and stepped inside water in her red bra and pink sheer panties. Just one way to get attention.

2. While doing a photo-shoot with OK!, she used the restroom without even closing the door. Of course, I am crazy about our celebrities but I don't want to hear or see what they do in the toilet.

3. Britney the thief. The celebrity gossip magazine is reporting that an interview and photo shoot that never happened resulted in either loss or damage to clothes and accessories worth more than $20,000.

Britney, I love you, even more now that your divorce is final, and your music is great, but please come back to who you used to be.

Picture of Catherine Zeta Jones and Aaron Eckhart

Older men have always dated and married much younger women and in recent years the opposite has also become popular. That is why it is stupid to even ask a younger woman why she is in love with an older man, but Rob Chilton of OK! did it anyway while talking to Catherine Zeta Jones about her movie "No Reservations."

Her response was predictable. How could she say that she hated Michael Douglas? She says, "...it's more of a blessing than anything else. We're at different places in our lives and careers. We're not vying for the attention that two actors together around the same age are vying for."

It may be somewhat less true for mere mortals like us but in my opinion if two people like each other, age makes no difference.

Remember this guy in the photo above? He is Vito Spatafore; the gay mobster, in HBO's hit series The Sopranos. Joe starred in the Sopranos from 1999 appearing in 43 episodes. He was finally whacked in episode #11 during season 6. Vito was brutally beaten to death with a pool cue when the mob found out he was gay.

Now you can have that pool cue (well, something similar). The cue is named "A Cue to Die For" following in Joseph Gannascoli's theme from his cookbook novel "A Meal to Die For" and the way he was killed.

Despite the fact that a wedding is more about fun and entertainment (and marriage is merely a legal formality), it is still the most important event in a couple's life (and cause for wedding stress as reported by Rebecca Romjin). What that means is that you have to really plan it out so that it can be a moment of joy for the couple and their friends and family.

Is that what Usher was hoping to do?

That is what it looks like but it also seems that he was dating a much older woman Tameka Foster and she also became pregnant with his child (though Usher is clearly responsible for this). None of this made his family happy (especially his mother Jonetta Patton was very unhappy), though, you wonder if they have any business having an opinion on this.

What is horrible is that the wedding was canceled. While a cancellation like this can be devastating for the couple, it is much better than getting a divorce later.

Is Eddie Murphy a loser, according to my definition? Yes, because unlike what a man should do, he continued to deny that he could be the father of Angel Iris (Related: Are you the father of your child?), who was conceived during his relationship with Melanie B (or Mel B or Scary Spice, one of the members of the band Spice Girls). He agreed to the DNA test only when he had no other choice legally. I can understand why you can tell a woman that it was nice to know her but you want to move on, but you can never do that to a child (especially one that shares the birthday with him). In an interview he strongly argued that he was not the father. Thankfully, he has promised child support but that still doesn't forgive what he has done. In summary, he is a useless man for a woman.

And now to make things even more complicated he is engaged to Tracey Edmonds. He has been married to Nicole Mitchell and has five children with her. She was married to Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.

Ashlee Simpson, who many of us think as a woman without any talent, performed in Chicago musical, and did well. Kelly Osbourne, another celebrity without much talent but a lot of attitude is playing the same role that Queen Latifah played in the movie. Like her brother Jack Osbourne who lost weight through diet and exercise and unlike her mother Sharon Osbourne who became skinny through a plastic surgery makeover, Kelly has lost all her weight through aggressive dieting.

The Internet is simply wonderful but it has also given criminals an easy path into our lives. If you do not have all the latest protective softwares in place, your web-connected computer has an open door for hackers and spammers who can do all kinds of mean things to you. There is also news that when you bring your computer for repairs (particularly to Geek Squad/Best Buy), the employees often look for "sensitive" data (e.g. private photos, financial information, etc.) and then steal it for "fun" or criminal activity.

Celebrity couple Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes had a similar problem when a clueless photographer brought the hard drive containing their Italian wedding photos to a repair shop and all the private photos were copied. Since they are celebrities and rich, the police acted on their complaint and the criminals are being charged but if you are just another Joe or Jane who took those "fun" photos with that digital camera for your private viewing, be careful saving them on a computer connected to the web and never bring that computer for repairs. Plus, if your computer dies, don't just throw it away (and of course, never give it to someone). Make sure that you take the hard drive out, destroy it with a hammer, and then throw it in the trash.

Previously, Marcia Cross learned the lesson about the wonders of a paper shredder when her private photos were stolen from her trash.

Well we have to thank Canada for all the wonderful singers they send our way. To that list we can now add the name of Stevie Jewel, who like Britney Christian, is in her teens. For her self-penned single, "Seal the Deal," she is teaming up with DJ Junior Vasquez, who as worked with the biggest names in show business, including Michael Jackson, Madonna, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, Beyonce, Elton John, Justin Timberlake and Barbara Streisand, and he remains in demand to remix new pop artists like Rihanna, Kelly Rowland and Maroon 5.

For men over 18, Jenna Jameson is an icon - she is an adult entertainer. She has boatload of fans and she deserves them. Now if you don't get her fix through videos alone, you can read her comic books starring, who else, her. The series is titled "Shadow Hunter." It is the story of a provocative super-heroine who survives a brush with death only to find herself fighting the legions of hell for her very soul. Cover art for the first issue (shown in the photo above) has been created by Greg Horn, a top illustrator of comic books and video games. The story, while provocative and sexy, contains no nudity and is intended for a mainstream audience. That is how most Japanese manga are.

Looks like Madonna, Prince never seems to go out of fashion. So it is great for him to come out with "Planet Earth," which as you guessed it right, does refer to global warming. We also have other excellent CDs out from Sum 41, which has released "Underclass Hero." And our dear friend Billy Ray Cyrus (whom the rest of America came to know on "Dancing With The Stars") is out with another excellent country music album "Home At Last." Here is an excellent video report along with clips from the music videos.

The past tells us why we are the way we are today. Plus, it is nice to know how the world was like in the olden days. It helps us better appreciate the elders in our family. That is why I love to watch retro films and thanks to the Museum of Modern Art, you can now watch movies like The Battle of Algiers, Mafioso, and Army of Shadows. It may require a little bit of getting used to, but once you get hooked to these timeless classics, you will love them. Here are the trailers of some of these movies.

There are times when things do happen in Springfield, Vermont. Yes, while this may be a state where it is always peaceful, green in summer, and white in summer, but the Simpsons movie is "based" in Springfield. After a lot of drama the town was chosen to host the premiere of the film and the locals loved every moment of it.

Jude Law may be a bad boy but he is doing something good. He is fighting for peace on behalf of the United Nations. The film "Peace One Day" highlights the importance of peace - a message so important today considering the level of violence in the Muslim world, particularly, in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iraq - and includes clips from his visit to some of the most dangerous parts of Afghanistan dominated by Taliban. Watch the video about the movie and Jude's message about world peace.

Catherine Zeta Jones is a remarkable actress and that is what they do: act. They don't necessarily have to master the role that they are playing. It does not mean that they don't practice since the more knowledgeable you are about the role, the better you can act. Naturally, for "No Reservations," she actually learned how to cook and what chefs do in real life. Here is a video interview of Catherine Zeta-Jones about the film and how she prepared for it.

John Cryer and Kyra Sedgwick announced the Emmy nominations for this year. Of course, there are the usual suspects ("Grey's Anatomy," "Heroes," "Ugly Betty," "Entourage," "The Office," "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee," and of course, "The Sopranos") but, like any other year, there are a few surprises too. Watch the video to find out all the nominees.

I don't even know if I can keep count of the number of times Hollywood celebrities, and more specifically Lindsay Lohan, go in and out of rehab, so it shouldn't be news, but this time it is. She managed to complete her whole program without incident.

Maroon 5 is a band that we all have started to enjoy tremendously but buying a CD and listening on your iPod is one thing but nothing like going to a concert and rocking with the band members. Well, the good news is that they are now touring, and guess, what my favorite MC Ryan Seacrest makes the announcement in this video. You can also watch what the band members have to say about their tour and music.

Sienna Miller is an interesting personality. She is a fine actress but she also knows how to party. So unlike some of the serious actress, she works hard and plays hard. No surprise then that she does not want the name "party girl" attached to her name because no serious actress wants to be in the same category as Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, and Britney Spears. Watch her video interview in which she talks about the movie "Interview" and also defends her image.