Whitney Port Is Moving On Quite NicelyThe ‘City’ star was spotted “getting smoochy” with Robert Buckley. Plus: Beyoncé buys a bling-y bra, and much to the tabloids’ consternation, Jennifer Aniston is still not pregnant.
Chuck and Vanessa Go Bowling, Do Jäger BombsThe ‘Gossip Girl’ kids hit Bowlmor Lanes! André Leon Talley had a hissy fit! Lindsay and Sam played tongue tennis at Beatrice Inn! All in today’s gossip roundup!
Anne Hathaway Finally Gets Smart!Reports that Anne Hathaway broke up with boyfriend Raffaello Follieri go undenied by her reps, Ivanka Trump reveals a childhood trauma, André Leon Talley threatens to style again, and other celebrity reports in our daily digest.
Seinfeld Loves BozoJerry Seinfeld says the first comic he found funny was Bozo the Clown. Model Agyness Deyn celebrated her 25th birthday at Don Hills by throwing cake at the crowd. Neil Strauss offers pick-up tips to Rush and Molloy. Pegu Club bartender Erin Williams is currently in Kittila, Lapland, competing in the tenth annual Finlandia Vodka Cup. Diff’rent Strokes star Gary Coleman got married to a Utah redhead a foot taller and eighteen years younger (and he lost his virginity – thanks for ruining our breakfast, “Page Six”!).
in other news
The Life of HsuWe’ve been obsessed with Norman Hsu, the Chinese immigrant and would-be clothing entrepreneur who became one of the biggest Democratic fund-raisers in the nation, ever since he was arrested earlier this fall for running a “massive” Ponzi scheme. The Wall Street Journal today closes the book on Hsu with a lengthy and at times cinematic profile that begins with Hsu partying with politicos in his Soho loft and ends with his attempted suicide on a cross-country Amtrak. “Am I in jail?” a sleeping-pill-addled Hsu reportedly asked the conductor. “No, you’re in Colorado,” the conductor replied. But our favorite part of the retelling of the Life of Hsu was his interaction with a goon called “Shrimp Boy.”
Raymond Chow, who acquaintances call Shrimp Boy, says he confronted Mr. Hsu in 1990 on behalf of friends who had invested in the glove business. Mr. Chow — who stands 5-foot-4, is heavily muscled, and has a dragon tattoo on his torso — says that at that time he was an enforcer for the Hop Sing Tong, an association that prosecutors have said was involved in crimes ranging from prostitution to heroin trafficking. Mr. Hsu suggested they collect money stashed at his house. Mr. Chow took the wheel of Mr. Hsu’s new, white Toyota 4Runner; Mr. Hsu rode in the passenger seat.
Following Mr. Hsu’s directions, Mr. Chow made an illegal turn and was pulled over by police. “I’m being kidnapped,” Mr. Hsu told the officers, according to police reports. Mr. Chow and two associates were arrested. But Mr. Chow denied the charges and Mr. Hsu refused to testify, so the case was dropped. “He outsmarted me,” recalls Mr. Chow, who abandoned his collection effort.
And promptly after that, he goes and throws a birthday party for Hillary Clinton. If that’s not the American dream, we don’t know what is.
How a Business Flop Became a Political Force [WSJ]
Earlier: Intel’s coverage of Norman Hsu
party lines
Tilda Swinton’s Halloween Costume Will Be Better Than YoursWe all know that starting tomorrow night, the subways will be filled with drunk people in costumes, all the way until Halloween on Wednesday. In case you’re still without costume inspiration, despite our best efforts to help your asses, we trolled last night’s Fashion Group International Night of Stars gala to ask celebrities what their costumes would be. “It won’t be from Ricky’s,” said Jane Krakowski, who has been wearing a fat suit on 30 Rock. André Leon Talley wrote our jokes for us. “I always go as myself,” he said. Not a bad idea: You can do it, too, readers: Just throw on your graduation robe and call yourself an “Editor-at-Large.” Princess Alexandra of Greece is dressing her 5-year-old son as Darth Vadar, but she recalled her most memorable costume? “My husband and I were once Catwoman and Catman or something,” she said. You mean — BATman? “I don’t know — we both wore matching cat masks.” We tried Tilda Swinton, another foreigner. “I’m from Scotland where Halloween was invented. We have very different traditions. I’m not really sure what the American tradition is,” she said. “I did see a woman on the subway the other day here who was looking through a very sexy lingerie catalogue, picking out her Halloween costume, but we don’t switch it that way.” Well, we explained, American girls like to look slutty. “Right. Well, I’m looking forward to it — when is it? Wednesday?” Sure is! “I think I’ll probably wear my birthday suit.” —Amy Odell
Get fashion tips from Jean Paul Gaultier, Mayor Bloomberg, and Joan Jett at our complete coverage of the Fashion Group International’s Night of Stars.
gossipmonger
Boobs at ‘Jane’Jane magazine asked girls to bare their breasts for a picture spread but canceled after a staffer mistakenly unveiled the identities of the participants. Jake Gyllenhaal and David Fincher had some “artistic differences” on the set of Zodiac. Phillip Bloch was not impressed by how Vogue’s André Leon Talley styled Jennifer Hudson’s thighs at the Oscars. Rosie O’Donnell and Elisabeth Hasselback got into (another) fight at The View, which ended with Hasselback (again) in tears. Graydon Carter and Jim Kelly hosted a book party for Kurt Andersen at the Waverly Inn, and a lot of media bigwigs showed. Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes are not looking to buy an apartment in the Dakota, according to a rep. Spike Lee hung out with Mayor Bloomberg at City Hall.
party lines
Woody Allen Fights AIDS, Bores Us
Speaking of Wednesday’s amFAR benefit, it also brought out Woody Allen for a rare public appearance. (He presented an award to an old friend, Dr. Mathilde Krim, amFAR’s founding chairman.) After a charmingly bumbling speech, he sat, quite oddly, across the table from Soon-Yi and listened to Garry Shandling tell the room about watching Allen years ago on a short-lived Saturday-morning TV show, Hot Dog. “It was a show where they explained to kids how things worked and Woody Allen was one of the people who explained things,” Shandling said. “I’ll never forget the time he came out and told us that baseball bats were made of halvah, so that when you strike out, you can eat it.”
Later we approached Allen to ask for an interview and were shocked to have him agree. Suddenly, visions of brilliant, hilarious, angst- and Yiddish-filled quotes leaped to our mind. We were thrilled. And then he proceeded to give us a series of totally boring replies. (Except for one tiny bit of news, that despite his last few films, he hasn’t forsaken New York forever.) Feh.
gossipmonger
Anna TV!Anna Wintour has agreed to let filmmakers shoot a documentary about life at Vogue as they put out their huge “Fashion Bible” September issue. (And Vogue editor-at-large André Leon Talley marched with the Reverend Al Sharpton at the Sean Bell demonstration.) A dead deer was found on the lawn of Dick Cheney’s residence, the U.S. Naval Observatory, though the veep probably didn’t shoot it. A woman who had an affair (and a kid) with Knicks legend Willis Reed in 1990 claims he is a deadbeat dad. (And New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick has an adultery scandal of his own.) The girls at Scores East Side say Lindsay Lohan was awkward working the pole when she came in with Kate Moss one night, express surprise that she got a movie role as a stripper. A 29-year-old woman is claiming to be the illegitimate daughter of Mel Gibson. “Page Six” prints a nasty item about Keith Olbermann, mentions his one-night stand with a fan, notes that his audience is smaller than Bill O’Reilly’s. Shocking. Former Secretary of State James Baker, Democrat Warren Beatty, and Republican Merv Griffin all got along in Iraq for one night, though it was probably the booze. Tennis great Chris Evert is dating golf great Greg Norman. Bruce Springsteen got some lovin’ from Nick Lachey so he could go home and brag to his daughter. Led Zeppelin lead singer Robert Plant tried to get flowers sent to Atlantic Records founder Ahmet Ertegun, but the receptionist he talked to didn’t know who Ertegun was. “Page Six” asks, “Which ‘socialite’ has high-society circles buzzing that she originally joined their inner circle as a high-class hooker?” (Really, who is it?) A woman popped Valium on a transatlantic flight to London with Courtney Love.
