Katherine Heigl Has Gone Too FarThe ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ star is asking for more money than Julia Roberts and Anne Hathaway on her new film.
ByKatie Goldsmith
gossipmonger
Meghan McCain Has a Temper Just Like Her Father’sThe daughter of the presidential hopeful sulked outside the White House Correspondents’ Dinner the other night, and more in our daily gossip roundup.
Heath Ledger Has a Supermodel in His SightsHeath Ledger has been stalking Gemma Ward around town and also tried hitting on (taken) Heather Graham. The server who brought Chelsea Clinton the wrong appetizer at Irving Mill may or may not have been fired. Calvin Klein is vandalizing his Houston Street billboard for the opening of the New Museum on the Bowery. NBC honcho Jeff Zucker doesn’t want the strike to end because retail advertisers have already bought up ad space, and now production costs are zero. Kimora Lee Simmons was overheard saying that the reason she invited Russell Simmons’s new girlfriend, Porschla Coleman, to meet the “major players” at Simmons’s birthday last month is because she “wants this stupid bitch to get a clue.” Seagram heir Edgar Bronfman Jr. just bought an $18.75 million condo in the Carhart mansion on East 95th Street.
company town
Falling Glass a Metaphor for Bank of America’s Finances?FINANCE
• The debris falling off the new Bank of America tower at 42nd Street may have been metaphoric. The firm just reported steep losses, and their wannabe investment-banking unit, set to anchor the new tower, performed the worst. [MarketBeat/WSJ, Deal Journal/WSJ]
• Congrats, James Cayne — nobody wants anything to do with Bear Stearns. Contrary to reports, both Warren Buffett and China’s Citic Bank denied any interest in the bank. [DealBook/NYT]
• Today’s the real anniversary of the 1987 stock-market crash, but at least one veteran thinks parallels to the present are overblown. “The market is just like generals — everyone prepares for the last war.” [MarketBeat/WSJ]
gossipmonger
‘Gorgeous’ Ben Affleck Skips His Own PremiereBen Affleck slipped out of the premiere of his Gone Baby Gone to go watch the Red Sox game. (Ben says he left because he gets nervous during his screenings. Cindy Adams thinks he’s getting “gorgeouser and gorgeouser”). Fifty of the world’s greatest chefs are having dinner tonight at Le Bernadin to celebrate the book My Last Supper. Le Cirque owner Sirio Maccioni shelled out $7,000 for a 1.1-pound Italian white truffle. Tim Robbins had his birthday party on Tuesday at the Beatrice Inn. Barneys creative director Simon Doonan thought Phillip Bloch had gone blind, though he was actually just preparing for a movie role.
gossipmonger
Michael Jackson Checks Out Other Masks and Wigs at ‘Lion King’Michael Jackson took his three kids to see the Lion King on Broadway, and they were all wearing wigs and baseball caps. An art dealer in Chelsea sued Christie’s for $7 million for allegedly selling him a fake Basquiat. Kanye West’s album is outselling 50 Cent’s, though 50 is still worth more money according to Forbes. Jennifer Lopez may be expecting twins, but that’d be news to Marc Anthony. The Dalai Lama likes eating at Masala Garden on West 79th Street. Vince Vaughn went into Marquee at 2:45 a.m. to hit on some girls. Hugh Grant cruised down a deserted strip of road in Southampton in a red convertible. Representative Charles Rangel subconsciously thinks Hillary Clinton is going to be president.
intel
Lily Allen Knew She Was Going to Be Arrested
Our favorite blog-happy pop star, Lily Allen, was arrested last week — but she knew it was coming. “I’m about to be arrested,” she told us when we spent a day with her in New York last month, “just as soon as I get back to England.” She wasn’t coy about what she’d done. “I punched a paparazzi in the face,” she said. “There were 70 of them surrounding me. And I left the country the next day. They’re saying I’m going to be arrested as soon as I get back.” This was the same day Paris Hilton was sent back to prison after briefly being released for unspecified health reasons. “I could be Paris Hilton soon enough,” Allen said as she watched the scene play out on CNN from the Heatherette offices. “Oh, my God, her life is so fucking insane,” Allen groaned. “She doesn’t even do anything. I can’t wait until Lindsay Lohan goes to jail. ‘Boo hoo. I’m going to jail.’ Good. Does that mean you’ll stop showing me your pussy now?” Allen clearly thinks herself tougher than those two Yanks. “I bet English jails are nastier than American ones,” she said with a hint of pride. We’re not sure that they are. —Jada Yuan
vulture
Lily Allen, at Loose in New YorkNew York’s Jada Yuan profiled Lily Allen for the current issue, checking in on the British popster’s “working holiday” in New York. It only got 600 words in the magazine, but the two gals spent all day hanging out — riding the subway, visiting Heatherette, walking the Brooklyn Bridge, scarfing down pizza. Allen sounds off on bikini waxes, L.A.’s friendly paparazzi (really!), Bloomberg, the Hamptons, and her first carbohydrates in three weeks. It’s all at Vulture.
Bikini Waxing, Lesbian Dreams, and Mayor Mike: Lily Allen, Uncut [Vulture]
gossipmonger
Happily Eva AfterOK! magazine paid more than $2 million for the rights to Eva Longoria’s wedding photos, much to the chagrin of People. Lily Allen was so drunk during a performance she referred to hostess Tinsley Mortimer as “Ashley Winksdale,” which, actually, is kind of awesome. Courtney Love has been licensing Kurt Cobain’s likeness for a bunch of lame products. (Certainly Al Pacino wouldn’t approve.) The Queen of England uses e-mail and has an iPod. Rachel Roy and Damon Dash got into a public spat at Dash’s club Socialista. Ryan Cabrera and Riley Keough — she’s Elvis’s granddaughter — are on the outs. Renée Zellweger might be dating an agent at CAA.
gossipmonger
Chuck Schumer, Lady’s ManAfter college, Chuck Schumer picked a girl over a scholarship. 50 Cent is really rich. Gay activists don’t like John Travolta in the Hairspray movie because he’s a Scientologist, not because of his performance. Brian Grazer is getting divorced. Eliot Spitzer banged his head on the trunk of his car. Rufus Wainwright defends Anderson Cooper’s lifestyle and choice of gym. Maggie Gyllenhaal might come to Broadway as Nellie in South Pacific. Kevin Spacey partied at Lotus. Lily Allen put on a bad show at the Roseland Ballroom, then she hung out with Josh Hartnett. At Graydon Carter and Anna Wintour’s party for Nicholas Coleridge’s A Much Married Man, Ron Perelman thought the book was about him.
new york fugging city
The Fug Girls Crown the Next ‘It’ Party Girl
With Paris Hilton summering in the slammer and Lindsay Lohan going cold turkey (again), America’s paparazzi, bartenders, and boy toys can breathe a sigh of relief. But it’ll be brief: With the tabloids’ two most popular subjects locked away, there’s a gaping hole atop the celebustarlet hierarchy, and Hollywood, like nature, abhors a vacuum. Who’s most likely to seize the “It” Party Girl crown?
gossipmonger
Breaking: NBA Stars Get ChicksNew Jersey Net Jason Kidd likes the company of women. Supermodel Maggie Rizer was busted for throwing away garbage behind a pizza parlor. Jennifer Lopez is starting to sound more and more like a Scientologist. Former New Jersey Governor James McGreevey has a boyfriend but still likes creepily cruising the town for new guys. Lily Allen performed at Irving Plaza a little drunk, but it went smoothly. Abigail Breslin is set to play a doll in an upcoming HBO movie. Seann William Scott was reported to be sighted at a gay bar with David Geffen, but the bar doesn’t exist and he actually dates a Victoria’s Secret model.
cultural capital
Lily Allen, Hero at Hiro
Lily Allen, the buzzy British singer newly signed to Capitol, had her American premiere in the lantern-bedecked Hiro Ballroom last night, and a hopped-up crowd of well-heeled indie types, industry honchos, and more than a few suburban dads packed the Maritime Hotel space for the experience. The British songstress-of-the-moment was scheduled to take the stage at 10, and by 9:30, it was nearly impossible to find an available line of sight to the stage anywhere in the packed, overly small venue.
Impressively enthusiastic D.J. and hype-man Mark Ronson busily whipped the crowd into a vodka-fueled frenzy with countdowns to the moment when the diminutive singer would take the stage and promises of the impending “awesome”-ness of the event. Franz Ferdinand singer Alex Kapranos momentarily stole the spotlight by arriving with girlfriend Eleanor Friedberger, of the Fiery Furnaces, but quickly disappeared into the overheated mob. With all eyes glues firmly to the stage, the impossibly tiny Allen finally meandered out, preceded by a jubilant three-man brass section and a bassist. Clad in a hipster-appropriate black-and-white dress and draped with oversize gold jewelry, she proceeded to put on one of the most enchanting performances — debut or otherwise — in recent memory.