The Hamptons Get a Visit From LesbohanLindsay Lohan and her companion, Sam Ronson, had a fun weekend getaway. Plus, dish about Jeffrey Epstein, Alex Rodriguez, and Sean Avery, all in our daily column roundup.
Oh, Jeez: A Stripper Who Says She Slept With A-Rod Takes Cynthia’s SideIn an effort to class things up a bit in the divorce proceedings between Alex and Cynthia Rodriguez, the Boston ‘Herald’ uncovered a woman (who used to uncover herself for a living) willing to speak out on A-Rod’s alleged adultery.
The Rodriguez Divorce PapersCynthia’s lawyers file for her divorce from A-Rod. The papers are short and sweet, but they promise big battles ahead.
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C-Rod to A-Rod: Give Me a D-RodThe Yankee slugger’s wife decides that tales of his relationship with Madonna are the last straw and files for a divorce today in Miami.
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Lenny Kravitz: Cynthia Rodriguez’s Grand Slam?The best gossip story of the summer just got even better. The ‘Post’ reports that A-Rod’s ex is shacking up with the rocker stud muffin, who’s Madonna’s ex!
Hal Steinbrenner Calls His Dad ‘George’We’ve always thought it was kind of nice that Hal Steinbrenner, unlike his brother, Hank, keeps his mouth shut. He doesn’t talk himself into a tizzy, he doesn’t battle with the press, and he doesn’t even bluster when events call for it. But this week, he talked at length with GQ and explained a lot of what he has been thinking in a calm, non-obnoxious way. It’s a great interview. “I’m more introverted than extroverted, for sure, but I’m definitely not a recluse,” he told staff writer Nate Penn. “I can’t speak for Hank, but for me, I had my hands full. I didn’t have time to sit down like I am with you. I’m glad I’m doing it now.” Here are some of the highlights:
• On reports that he “hates” and “avidly disdains” the media: No truth to that. That was Bill Madden [of the Daily News]. Look, first of all, I don’t hate anybody. It’s a useless emotion. It accomplishes nothing.
• On whether he always expected to take over the Yankees: My dad would say, “Someday this is going to be yours. We’re counting on you; we’re counting on Hank. I’m not going to want to do this forever.” I don’t know [laughs] if that was true. George was very involved, and he loved it.
• On calling his father by his first name: That’s purely an office thing. I guess when you’re right out of college and working in the office, you don’t want to go around saying [puts on little-boy voice], “Well, Daddy said this. Daddy—” Throughout the course of fifteen years, I think it took on a life of its own here, but certainly not at home. [Steinbrenner adds the he doesn’t call his dad “George” to his face. “That would be completely disrespectful.”]
the sports section
A-Rod Hires Guy Oseary, in Order to Better Entertain UsThere’s a new boss in the house of A-Rod, and sadly it’s not Cynthia Rodriguez. The Yankee third-baseman, who famously just renegotiated a $275 million contract with the Steinbrenners without the help of his longtime agent Scott Boras, has hired talent manager Guy Oseary to help steer his career. “He’s focusing on baseball and needs someone whose interests are aligned,” Oseary told Variety, seeming to imply that he will be A-Rod’s only management. “This is to help him have more control of his image and brand.” Now, we watched 60 Minutes on Saturday and A-Rod definitely said that he would keep Scott Boras onboard (Boras is getting $15 million from the A-Rod’s new contract, even though it was A-Rod’s wife, Cynthia, who coached him through it). “There hasn’t been a lot of talking back and forth” between Boras and A-Rod, the Yankee explained, but it seems like they’re still working together. Which is confusing, considering that Variety says they’re not. But it’s not as confusing as the fact that A-Rod hired Oseary in the first place. Oseary, who co-founded Maverick Records in the eighties, only has entertainment clients like Madonna, Lenny Kravitz, David Blaine, and the show Last Call With Carson Daly. Which we can only guess means that television, music, or magic is somewhere in A-Rod’s near future. We’re hoping for all three.
A-Rod Bats for Oseary’s Team [Variety]
Earlier: Scott Boras Out, Cynthia Rodriguez In?
gossipmonger
Donna Karan Accepts CougarhoodFifty-five-year-old Donna Karan’s boy toy is 30-year-old model J.J. Biasucci. Ethan Hawke allegedly started dating “secret” girlfriend (his former nanny!) Ryan Shawhughes before he was divorced from Uma Thurman. Steve Martin played the banjo and read funny poems at the Cutting Room. Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin shared a happy dinner at BLT Fish. Eighty-eight-year-old Manhattan district attorney Robert Morgenthau may step down from his post, which would allow Governor Spitzer to appoint Cyrus Vance Jr. Michael Kors served mini-cheeseburgers at his store opening in Soho. Madonna kicked 25 yoga students out of a studio at the Reebok Sports Club on Columbus so she could practice by herself. Howard Stern is annoyed at Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner for bringing paparazzi to his Upper West Side block.
the sports section
Bloomberg Thinks the Big Guy Is Worth the Big PaycheckOh, Bloomberg, you’re such a kidder. Today on his weekly WABC-Radio show, his co-host John Gambling asked Hizzoner about A-Rod’s potential $275 million contract with the Yankees. “You know John, I work for one dollar a year so I really don’t have anything in common with A-Rod.” See, that’s so funny. We love it when people who are billionaires eleven times over joke about not knowing what it’s like to be rich. Bloomberg went on to hint, though, that he thinks Rodriguez is worth the paycheck. Most sports fan think, he says, that A-Rod is “probably the best athlete — physical, pound-for-pound, just raw talent — playing baseball today or playing in any professional sport, and that may very well be true.” “He’s a very nice guy when I’ve chitchatted with him,” Bloomberg added. “I remember when we tried to convince him to come to New York. The Yankees asked me to have dinner or drinks, I forget which, with he and his wife. And I said [to A-Rod], ‘The New York press is tough, but this is the Big Apple.’” Yeah, we probably were a little harsh on the ol’ guy over the years. But that’s nothing compared to what will happen when he comes back and stops living up to his price tag
Bloomberg: I’m Not In A-Rod’$ League
the sports section
Scott Boras Out, Cynthia Rodriguez In?As we all know, living in the world, hubris never bites people in the ass the way we want it to. Karl Rove left the White House before anything brought him down, people still read Perez Hilton, and Donald Trump still retains the power of speech. But could it possibly be that Scott Boras, the man who thought he was bigger than the World Series, is finally getting thrown from his high horse? Since it was announced last night that A-Rod went back to the negotiating table with the Yankees — alone — everyone’s been speculating on what this means for Boras. L.A. Times columnist Bill Shalkin even calls today “Schadenfreude Day” (which is funny, because we thought every day was Schadenfreude Day).
