The Hollywood 5 & 1 09.06.08

Posted by Steve Gustafson on 09.06.2008

This week I'm Lohan free! Who has the best pout in Hollywood? Who was lucky enough to have David Spade's baby? Kate Hudson vs. Anne Hathaway! Where am I going to be Saturday night? All this and Joe Pesci too!

Hey! Welcome back to the Hollywood 5 & 1! I'm your host, "Gentleman" Steve Gustafson, and I peep through every gossip tabloid, scroll every celebrity related web site, and call my vast network in Hollywood to find the slightly offbeat news you might have missed during the week. Or just ignored. Do you have something to contribute? A celebrity sighting? A funny story? Shoot me an email at [e-mail]. Open 24-hours. Hey, make this site some money and click on that ad right there for me-------------->

Five Things That Got Me Through the Week
Mad Men: Season 1: Alright, I'm guilty of not getting on this show at the beginning. But I waited for the DVD and it's worth it. Great writing and after watching a few episodes I have to wonder what was HBO thinking to pass on this?
UFC Announcements: Randy Couture vs. Brock Lesnar! This news hit just about every department here at 411mania.com. That's what I'm talking about! Oh, if you live near Columbia, MD you can catch me at Champs next to the mall for watching the PPV tonight.
Watermelon: Ah, my end of Summer treat. No special reason. I've just been eating a lot of it this past week. Seedless all the way!
Suncoast $4.99 movie sale: Red Dawn, Rocky IV, Colors, Spaceballs...tons of those little movies you should own but don't.
Sushi Sono (Columbia, MD): If you don't live around here then I apologize. But if you happen to find yourself in the metro area, stop by this little joint and tell them Steve sent you. This place should be in a big city...it's that good!

Do Me a Favor
If you happen to run into Jeff Foxworthy, Wendi Richter, Foxy Brown, or Elizabeth Vargas today, wish them a happy birthday.

Quote of the Week
"It's always really uncomfortable to have to swap spit with someone and rub bodies. People (actors) always say, 'In a lovemaking scene, sex is the furthest thing from your mind because you're worried about the crew and lighting'. Bulls**t! If you lie naked against someone of the opposite sex, things happen. The plumbing department doesn't always get in touch with the brain. It just happens! You're simulating sex so your body is very confused."
Actor John C. Reilly dreads filming sex scenes, because he worries he will become aroused by his female co-stars. He does have a point, you know.

THE STUFF THAT JUST MISSED THE LIST STARTS...NOW...
Retro TMZ! Hedy Lamarr once blackmailed a movie bigwig to land a film role opposite Bob Hope. Give that chick points for creative thinking. The revelation comes from Lamarr biographer Devra Hill, who recounts the story in her new book What Almost Happened To Hedy Lamarr. Hill says, "He (executive) was married and had children and Hedy had told him she had caught him having an affair and he got a little upset. She wanted to do a certain movie at the time and he wasn't that enthusiastic about the movie, and yet she got the movie made, because she told him she saw him having this affair. She made a funny movie with Bob Hope, My Favorite Spy, and Hollywood didn't think of her as a comedienne, so that may have been the movie. She never said what film it was." In other news man lands on the moon!..........A sex tape featuring former child star Jeremy Jackson and porn queen Sky Lopez is about to go public after thugs threatened to beat the actor up if he didn't hand over the footage. The image of that makes the story! Who is this guy? Oh, he played David Hasselhoff's son Hobie on the TV show, Baywatch, has confessed to 'starring' in the explicit footage, but claims he was blackmailed into handing over the tape by a gang of thugs allegedly associated with Lopez. In a statement issued to website TMZ.com, Jackson says, "Listen, this video was made by my best friend. (It's) between me and a casual sex partner, who just so happened to be a former porn star. I was later physically threatened if I didn't turn the DVD over to some drug addicted thugs. They said, 'Sky wanted it back... that she had turned to God and was changing her life.' So I gave it up for her and so they would not beat me up and 'make my life hell' as they had threatened. I was blackmailed. This private recording becoming public kinda sucks. But I thought people out there should know the truth and how far some people will go to make a quick buck." Looks like he's on minute 15 of his fame time.........Britney Spears will open the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday with a heartfelt message to her fans. In a statement, Spears says, "MTV has long played an important role in my career. How can I not be there to kick off their 25th VMAs? I'm excited to open the entire show, to say hi to my fans and to be nominated." Phase 2 of Operation Career Makeover proceeds as planned..........I would bet the farm that he starts 99% of his own rumors. Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag have shot down reports they're planning to open a bar in New York City. Style magazine W claimed the real-life couple was in talks to open a place called The Hill in the Big Apple's Murray Hill district, but Pratt insists the rumors are false. He says, "It's not true."..........First Rosanne now this! Joan Rivers has taken aim at adoption queen Angelina Jolie, branding the sexy actress "stupid". She used the Tomb Raider star as the centerpiece for her gags while being interviewed on U.K. TV show GMTV. And Rivers unloaded. She told reporters, ""Well, I've worked with stupid actresses, I've worked with Angelina Jolie, she saw a sign that said 'Wet Floor' one time, and she did! I mean she's attractive, but not a bright girl. Stunningly beautiful but stupid. She would have asked Stevie Wonder, 'What's your favorite color?'" It's not the first time Rivers has attacked celebrities on British TV, in June she was asked to leave an interview on U.K. show Loose Women after she called actor Russell Crowe a "f**king s**t" Looks like someones clinging to the spotlight..........Cat fight! Actress Kate Hudson has fired back at reports she and Bride Wars co-star Anne Hathaway are caught up in a tense war of words after falling out on the set of the upcoming film. The pair teamed up for the film earlier this year, playing best friends-turned worst enemies, and their on-camera issues became off-set problems when real-life mirrored fiction, according to reports. A source tells Us Weekly magazine: "She (Hudson) was just awful to Anne... (but) she (Hathaway) never played into Kate's cattiness." But a spokesperson for Hudson insists the reports are complete fiction, stating: "She and Anne have always been good girlfriends and remain food girlfriends. This is ridiculous and couldn't be further from the truth."..........Mr. Trump, you kill me! As reported last week and kinda confirmed this week, Donald Trump's second season of Celebrity Apprentice will pit jailbirds against straight stars. Joining Girls Gone Wildfounder Joe Francis on the challenge will be Kim Kardashian's sister Khloe. Both minor celebrities spent time in jail in 2008, Francis ended a 12-month stint behind bars on federal tax evasion charges in March and Kardashian spent three hours in prison in June for a probation violation. Francis tells HollyScoop.com, "I will beat Khloe Kardashian on the Apprentice. It will make me very happy to beat Khloe." There's still hope. Show bosses are still refusing to confirm Francis and Kardashian will be a part of the program..........Socialite Paris Hilton has forced organizers of the Toronto International Film Festival to cancel two screenings of her new documentary, in a bid to raise the profile of the film. The hotel heiress is the focus of Paris, Not France, billed as a behind-the-scenes look at her life, which is due to premiere at the Canadian event on Tuesday. But two advance screenings have now been scrapped, because the star would prefer to only host one showing as it will create "more hype". Her representative Jason Moore tells gossip column PageSix, "We wanted to create more buzz, create some hype. We felt the impact would be more extreme if we had one screening." Really, what can this show us that we don't already know or want to know?..........Here's a new one. Gwyneth Paltrow can add fitness guru to her resume, she has reportedly been asked to release a fitness DVD. The star, once famed for following a strict macrobiotic diet, will share her tips for staying trim without using gym equipment. A source tells The Sun, "She will show what she does each day to stay slim, mostly pilates, yoga and resistance training." Not sure where the jokes lies in there. I know there's one...just not sure. Eh, let's keep this column moving.

RANDOM LIST OF THE WEEK
L.A. Confidential has topped a new list of films made about Los Angeles culture. The 1997 cop drama beat Boogie Nights and Jackie Brown in the new Los Angeles Times newspaper poll. 1997 appears to have been a vintage year for city at the movies, the top three films all came out that year. The movies polled were all released in the last 25 years and feature the city as a "main character".
The top 10 is:
1. L.A. Confidential
2. Boogie Nights
3. Jackie Brown
4. Boyz N The Hood
5. Beverly Hills Cop
6. The Player
7. Clueless
8. Repo Man
9. Collateral
10. The Big Lebowski

BONUS LIST!
British actress Keira Knightley has topped a poll of the world's best pouts! The 23-year-old actress saw off competition from Hollywood beauty Angelina Jolie and Australian singer Kylie Minogue to take the title in a survey by lip balm manufacturer Blistex.
The Top 5 is:
1. Keira Knightley
2. Kylie Minogue
3. Angelina Jolie
4. Scarlett Johansson
5. Victoria Beckham

STEVE SALUTE!
Goes to 3 greats who passed on this week. Jose 'Bill' Melendez, the animator who gave Charlie Brown's dog Snoopy a voice, passed away on Tuesday. As a fan of the cartoon, I became a fan of Bill's. Voiceover legend Don LaFontaine also died after suffering from a collapsed lung. The dramatic star, known as the King of Voiceovers, passed away at Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on Monday. During his lengthy career, LaFontaine lent his booming vocal chords to more than 5,000 movie trailers and 300,000 radio and TV commercials I know you've heard him. His signature introductory phrase began with the words, "In a world where..." A true icon in the voiceover arena. Legendary entertainer Jerry Reed died of complications from emphysema. Reed began his career as a guitarist, before launching into songwriting, singing and later rising to fame as an actor with 1977 film Smokey and the Bandit. Many of you may remember him when he later starred alongside funnyman Adam Sandler in The Waterboy. Thank you gentlemen, for the memories.

Alright, let's get down to business. What's the Hollywood 5 & 1? It's real simple; I go through 5 things out of Hollywood this past week that made me scratch my head and 1 item that's not so bad. Got it? Good. Let's go!

The 5

Almost Lost One, About to Gain One
**SIGH** Actor-tuned-singer Terrence Howard has hit back at reports he has turned to music to become a bigger celebrity, insisting he recorded his album to help a friend launch her own music career. C'mon Howard! You can do better than that! Amazing that actors just don't learn. The 35-year-old star, who released his debut album Shine Through It this week, is desperate for record label bosses to give his new protege a chance. He claims his young friend is talented beyond words but she has been forced to endure years of rejection from music executives, who told her her unconventional looks would impede her hopes of superstardom. I have to see a picture of this girl. He says, "The main reason I did this album was, initially, I met this young girl named Ilsey Juber, who's in my band now. "I tried to get her a (record) deal, but she doesn't look like Beyonce (Knowles). She's the most incredible writer and singer... The only way I could get her a deal was, go get a deal myself. And now she'll be opening for me and now she'll get her deal, because she's the truth." Has anyone heard this album yet? Let me know how it is.
Next up...we were THIS close to getting rid of her! Jessica Simpson was on the verge of hanging up her microphone in 2006 after she botched her performance at a Dolly Parton tribute. The star ran off stage in tears after abruptly ending Parton's song 9 To 5 with the words "so nervous" at the Kennedy Center Honors tribute to the country singer in 2006. I remember that. It was hilarious. What's up with that family and live performances? Seems she was so traumatized by the mistake, she considered putting an end to her career. She spoke to Marc Malkin of E! News, "You know, (after) what happened at Kennedy Center, I really thought I was done singin'. I was just at a place where I'd lost a lot of confidence and I didn't even know who I was." But theshe insists it was Parton's encouragement which helped her recover from the incident, sparking a friendship and leading to their duet on Simpson's new country album Do You Know. She adds, "Dolly totally took me under her wing and helped me up and over the cares of the world. It went from the Kennedy Center to her being a part of this record and getting letters from her of encouragement. She told me she's never been more proud of anything in her whole life. And I have it written down in her handwriting! I do owe a lot of my confidence to her." So we all have Dolly to blame.

Fun With DNA
Do I feel bad for this kid! David Spade has become a first-time parent after DNA results proved he is the father of ex-girlfriend Jillian Grace's baby. The couple dated briefly last year and former Playboy playmate Grace announced she was pregnant with the actor's baby earlier this year. Spade, who happens to be 21 years older than the model, claimed he would accept responsibility, but only if paternity tests proved the child was his. Now, that's a real man! (SARCASM! Don't flood my email with hate mail, ladies) The star's representative has confirmed he accepts he is the father of the tot, who was born in August. What a loving way to come into the world. Lucky kid. The publicist says, "David and Jillian have been in close contact throughout her pregnancy and he plans to go see the baby during his first break from shooting TV sitcom Rules of Engagement." You show those priorities, Davie! Since DNA has been a hot topic recently, let's stay with it! Legendary comedians Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz have returned to the spotlight following a resurgence of rumors the couple fathered an unknown child. "Lucy, jou got sum 'splainin to do!" Madeline "Linda" Jane Dee was allegedly given up for adoption by Ball in 1947 amid fears a baby would impede her plans for stardom, according to her daughter Cassandria Lucianna Carlson, 38. Now the New York Post has reported Private Detective Vito Colucci has urged the couple's two publicly known children, Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz Jr. to "put this (the case) to rest" by providing DNA samples to prove paternity. He adds that he believes Carlson's account, based on facts "accumulated over the years". Dee was born four years before the 1951 debut of hit U.S. TV show I Love Lucy and immediately given up for adoption to California nurse Ruth Smith. Carlson claims she discovered her mother's paternity after phoning Smith from a funeral home to help locate Dee's birth records following her mother's death in 2003. Records name Helen Elizabeth Barnes as Dee's mother. There is no listed father. But according to the newspaper, several attempts made by Carlson to establish the truth have been shunned by her allegedly estranged family. In a letter written by Lucie Arnaz to Carlson in 2004, she protests: "I must inform you we're almost certainly not related. In 1947, my parents were married and wanted nothing more than to have a baby together. They struggled for 10 years with infertility and miscarriage until I came along in 1951. My mother would never have given up a child of hers nor would my father have let her." I'm kinda intrigued by this, I must admit. Anyone have the odds she's a legit kid?

The Celebrity Meets Politics Corner
I got a whole grab bag today. This is kinda like a bizarre version of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants...but just a whole lot crazier. And with pregnant girls. Teenage mum Jamie Lynn Spears has sent troubled Alaskan 17-year-old Bristol Palin a baby gift package following the scandal surrounding her pregnancy. Spears, who revealed she was pregnant last Christmas, when she was just 16, feels a kinship to Palin, the daughter of U.S. Republican vice-presidential hopeful Sarah Palin, and decided to show her support by sending designer baby burpcloths. Now there's an endorsement for you! Access Hollywood has revealed Jamie Lynn's mother Lynne Spears called Los Angeles baby boutique Petit Tresor on her daughter's behalf to order a small gift. A store insider explains Lynne and Jamie Lynn wanted to send a gift worth under $100 to Bristol, and chose a collection of Plain Mary white burp cloths with pink writing. The note attached to the gift read, "Dear Bristol, Hang in there. xoxo, Jamie Lynn." You know you are near bottom when a Spear daughter is showing you sympathy. Next! Actor Jon Voight has been caught on camera choking back tears (again), this time over the Palin's pregnant teen. What's up with this guy? The apparently very emotional actor, who fell out with his daughter Angelina Jolie after making a dramatic TV appeal for her to seek help for an alleged mental issue, was asked for his opinion about the Alaskan governor and potential U.S. Vice-President's predicament by Access Hollywood (Them again! They were making the rounds this week!) reporters at the Republican National Convention, and he struggled to keep his composure. Voight says, "Like all families, they have their dramas and I'm sure they're taking care of it nicely." Holding back tears, the actor added, "I think about the daughter and what she's going through. All the fear and trauma and the worry... I feel for her. I wanna take care of her." You know, it's even awkward writing that. I can't imagine how the camera people felt. Here's something with a little less heart and a little more venom. Susan Sarandon has launched a scathing attack on former presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton, branding her a "whiner" for allegedly blaming sexism for her failure to land the Democratic nomination. The actress has vowed never to play Clinton in a film, insisting she doesn't have enough respect for the politician, who was the first woman to run for U.S. presidency but lost to rival Barack Obama earlier this year. That's quite a statement...never going to play her in a movie. When asked if she would ever like to portray Clinton, she responded: "No... At this point, to say after what's happened to her campaign and how they squandered all that money and all the different reasons her campaign fell apart, to blame it on sexism, I find so destructive to every young girl who dreams about making a difference through government. Instead of saying, 'Look how far I've gotten and you can do it too,' and all the positive things she could have done, she's turned into such a blamer and whiner, as if that was the reason, when clearly she wouldn't have been in the position she was in if she hadn't been a woman. To now turn around and say it was sexism I find so dishonorable and really destructive to women all over, young women all over. So I don't really respect her enough to want to play her, and I find it sad and disappointing." She really lays it out there. I guess her portrayal in Team America wasn't far off.

Finally! A Movie of His I Can Watch!
Shame, shame, I know your name! Actor Josh Hartnett has reportedly received a verbal warning from security bosses at a London hotel after he was allegedly caught on camera getting intimate with a female friend in a public library. The "star", who is preparing to take to the London stage for a theater adaptation of Rain Man....wait. That's being turned into a play? What?...Alright, he was allegedly spotted enjoying a frisky good time with an unidentified female at the Soho Hotel, and security guards witnessed Hartnett's every move. They were forced to warn him not to repeat his steamy actions. A source tells Britain's Daily Mirror newspaper (cool name, by the way), "Josh and the girl were getting pretty hot and heavy. After stumbling in quite late, they legged it (ran) to the library and immediately closed all the curtains so that no one could see in. Unfortunately the hotel has security cameras all over the place, the library included. This means their every spit and cough was recorded, and cringing hotel workers saw all of Josh's X-rated moves. No one quite knew where to look and there was a very awkward silence. Josh didn't seem bothered that the library wasn't locked and anyone could just burst in. He just kind of went for it. After the event, someone had a quiet word in Josh's ear and he was asked to take his personal business elsewhere in future. Josh took it on the chin (acknowledged it) and didn't kick up a fuss. He's been as good as gold since." What can you say? He's a literary man.

In Honor of Entourage
Here's a twist. Actor Adrien Grenier has spoken out in defense of the paparazzi, insisting celebrity photographers are just "trying to earn a buck". The Entourage star has been plagued by swarms of photographers since beginning his stint on the hit show in 2004, and Grenier admits tabloids have become a guilty pleasure. He says, "They're (paparazzi) trying to earn a buck in a fun way. Right now this sort of exploitation is accepted and embraced by mass culture, so they're doing what they can to feed that demand and make money." But the actor insists he hasn't considered going behind the camera lens for a career-swap. He adds, "It's not a choice that I would make because a lot of times it's degrading to people. But we're all susceptible to buying into it. Tabloids can be fun. I see stuff sometimes and have a good laugh. I enjoy pointing fingers and casting stones, but ultimately, I try and balance my media diet with things that are healthy." You know, this is actually a smart move on his part. Befriend the media. Not too shabby, Mr. Grenier. He goes on to say that he has learned not to take stories he reads about himself so seriously, after an embarrassing article helped him realize tabloid stories are "insignificant". He admits he now enjoys reading about himself and his famous friends in the press, but he hasn't always had a high tolerance for humiliation. Grenier says, "I remember the first piece of bad press that came out about me. They said I was kissing some girl at some club, which was only half-true, because I was hoping that I could kiss somebody, but I never actually did. I was devastated. I had cold chills... I've realized how insignificant all that is, because I know who I am. Take one part truth and 1,000 parts speculation and hearsay, and you've got yourself a tabloid story." Ok , here's where Grenier loses me. He has rushed to the defense of paparazzi darling Paris Hilton, congratulating her on her "ballsy" relationship with the media. C'mon! The pair sent gossips into a spin last year with rumors of an alleged romance. And though Grenier insists their relationship is purely platonic, he admits he holds the heiress in high regard because of her artful way of dealing with reporters. He says, "I have a lot of respect for Paris. She's ballsy. She's learned to play with the paparazzi attention and have fun with it, and she creates little mysteries in the tabloid arena.
She's an artist painting on a different canvas. I have fun with her, but it's always been platonic. (Our relationship) wasn't sexual, though I can understand that sex sells." And let's segue right into some Entourage news. Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps has been offered a recurring role on hit TV show after impressing the cast and crew with a recent cameo appearance. The eight-time gold medal winner landed a role on the series when he happened to walk by the New York City set and producers offered him a part, as himself, in a scene with actor Kevin Connolly. And Connolly's co-star's are keen to get Phelps back in front of the camera. Actor Jeremy Piven says, "I could see him coming back as one of the boys. I can see (my character) Ari being very aggressive in recruiting him to represent him and also stopping at nothing to poach him from another client. That's what Ari would do." Show creator Doug Ellin doesn't seem opposed to the idea, admitting he was stunned by the mass hysteria that ensued when Phelps was spotted by fans on the street. Ellin adds: "It was the coolest thing in the world. When he showed up, I'm not exaggerating, city buses stopped and people started yelling and within five minutes we couldn't even shoot." I'm down with that.


& 1

Joe Pesci = The Man
Joe Pesci has sparked reports he has rekindled his romance with former fiancé Angie Everhart after they were spotted leaving a Los Angeles restaurant together on Tuesday night. The 65-year-old legend called off his engagement to supermodel Everhart in April, nine months after proposing to the 38-year-old. The couple had been together for seven years. You know, I was looking for an excuse to throw Pesci in here and this is a great example of why I love Joe.


Thanks again and be safe out there.

Courage!