Gevinson's meteoric rise — she made the cover of Pop magazine, and became a darling of Kate and Laura Mulleavy, the sisters behind Rodarte, all before apparently graduating middle school — has culminated, for now, with a column in this month's Harper's Bazaar magazine. (Gevinson also blogs for Pop.) Yesterday, there was a flurry of Tavi-related news, with the announcement of the Harper's Bazaar column, and the release of a video about the Rodarte for Target collection that Gevinson had been working on since August.

Apparently, not everyone is enamored of this precocious 13-year-old's considerable talents. The Tavi Gevinson backlash has officially begun, with big-name editors like Elle's Anne Slowey and prominent fashion writer Lesley M. M. Blume leading the charge.

Gevinson's magazine piece is a pretty self-assured piece of work — and not even necessarily "for a 13-year-old." Her writerly voice is striking: school hallways have "berainbowed motivational posters" and the Mulleavy sisters sent "California condors, draped in burnt cheesecloths and distorted leather" down the runway. The column is a short, considered wrap-up of a fashion season for a general audience. Which means, apparently, that there's no way she could have written it.

Blume writes off Harper's Bazaar's hiring of the adolescent as "a smart marketing move" while Slowey characterizes it as "a bit gimmicky." Blume — who would no doubt prefer that Tavi were reading her young adult novels, rather than competing with her for freelance gigs — then refers to Tavi three times as "a novelty."

Slowey also dismisses Gevinson's writing, saying that the voice of the Harper's Bazaar story "doesn't sync up with" the way Gevinson talks about fashion in the Rodarte video. (This isn't exactly a fair comparison, since the Rodarte video is mostly off-the-cuff, and very few people talk the same way they sound in a piece of writing that they have the chance to revise and edit.) Bizarrely, Slowey says the video clip had "this vacantlike quality where it was like everyone was on Vicodin. Like everyone was uncomfortably dumb except for me."

"Will she end up on morning shows? Yes she will," Blume says. "I don't think she's a fashion sage, I think she's a novelty and I think she's going to be used as a marketing device as a novelty." Slowey doubts she writes her own work at all. "She's either a tween savant or she's got a Tavi team," notes the editor.

Ever since Gevinson's blog first was noticed by the mainstream press — beginning with another post on The Cut last July, followed by a rote online safety trend piece by the AP, and coverage in the New York Times Style Magazine — questions have been raised about Gevinson's involvement in the site that bears her name. "We're not sure if a 12-year-old is actually doing all this or if she's getting some help from a mom or older sister (some of the photos of her were definitely not self-shot)," wrote The Cut. (It turns out Gevinson sometimes uses — wait for it — a digital camera on a tripod with a timer to take pictures without encountering the dreaded self-taken arm-in-shot problem.) Steve Gevinson, her father, says he was only dimly aware of his daughter's blog before the media coverage. "I may have known, but to me it was a kind of a non-thing to know," says Gevinson père, a high school English teacher. "I didn't look at it. I wasn't terribly interested in seeing it."

But the main argument for Tavi Gevinson's authorship of her own blog and associated freelance work isn't her parents' proclamations of non-involvement, it's the consistency of her writerly voice, as evidenced by just over 18 months' worth of frequent posts. Whether she's talking about Darfur — her bat mitzvah service project benefited the charity STAND — or drawing connections between collections across seasons, or detailing a school art project that involved making a miniature model of a Jeff Koons dog, Gevinson sounds like nothing more or less than an uncommonly smart 13-year-old. Because that's what being 13 kind of is: you're young enough that having too much free time is still a problem — hence the ability to devote extraordinary levels of concentration to extracurricular obsessions — but old enough to be developing in curiosity and understanding of the grown-up world. Saying that Tavi Gevinson couldn't possibly be authoring her own work because of her age just underlines our society's innate prejudice against adolescents. Why should our expectations be set so low? And, perhaps, it shows just how willing we are to forget our earlier selves.

A quick survey of the writers for this site revealed a raft of early over-achievers. At 13, Latoya Peterson was writing poetry that people assumed she must have plagiarized. Anna North won an essay contest and met the mayor of Los Angeles. I sent a short story in to New Zealand's oldest literary journal, without mentioning my age — and they published it and sent me a check. Anna Holmes was picked by visiting Irish dance experts to perform a complicated jig, in tap shoes. Irin Carmon wrote a novel when she was 12, "which I hoped would be published before I was a teenager and the novelty wore off." Dodai Stewart had been in a commercial, recognized Andy Warhol on the street and took his picture, and got to light the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center one year. Then she wrote a screenplay, which she imagined would star Bruce Willis. Is it really that preposterous to think that Tavi Gevinson's talents and interests are her own?

I've always thought that a lot of Gevinson's appeal to the fashion crowd relies on the fact that she, with her unapologetic bookishness and self-described intense fashion "fangirling", reminds some of the major players of themselves, at her age. Perhaps this backlash is coming from people who remember how they were at 13, too — and recognize that they weren't at Tavi Gevinson's level of proficiency. Not by a long shot.

Editors Like Tavi But Don't Take Her Fashion Advice Seriously [The Cut]
Style Rookie [Official Site]
Exclusive: Rodarte, Tavi, And Target Team Up On Video [Style.com]
Tavi Gevinson Reviews The Collections [Harper's Bazaar]
Meet Tavi, The 12-year-old Fashion Blogger [The Cut]
Young Fashion Bloggers Are Worrisome Trend To Parents [AP]
Post Adolescents [NYT Style Magazine]

In "No Way Out?" Rachael Combe explores the "scientifically, mathematically, and economically proven" notion that women are "kinda bummed out." She proposes several reasons for this, one of which is that we're all disappointed in the way the women's movement panned out. You see, now that women have more choices, "it has opened our eyes to new ways we might fail." Also, according to Combe, while women and men are logging in equal hours of housework, men actually enjoy it. Furthermore, now that we have this feminism-given right to complain, "misery has become a badge of honor" sending women in a downward spiral of unhappiness. Combe concludes that women can increase happiness by giving back to the community. While this is a noble notion, it seems kind of lost when the pages surrounding her article are inundated with all sorts of other "choices", namely expensive shit to buy, thin models, and gift suggestions that are unlikely to make anyone feel festive. For example, does your mom like to travel? Give her this super-useful, $50 leaning tower of Pisa replica. Does your friend like to eat food? How about a salad plate that looks like a lettuce leaf? Or a $2,730 pearl choker with gigantic strawberry charms? Below, the other "gifts" Elle is bestowing upon us this season.

• Pictures of the new Kate Moss Topshop collection are out — and they prominently display the supermodel's breasts, which she just recently up and grew, like she's some kind of experimental woman built by science, or something. [Telegraph]

• Seeing the Alexander McQueen runway shoes side-by-side with a normal 4.5" pair of stilettos, it becomes apparent just how otherworldly those 12"-tall creatures really are. We still want to a cross-sectional view, because we're having a hard time imagining where the feet go once they're inside. [UK Vogue]
• Marc Ecko sold a controlling 51% share of his brand to Iconix. Just last month, he told a reporter on the record that he would never give up control of the trademark he'd spent 16 years building. [NYPost]
• Roberto Cavalli was dining with a tableful of models at Serafina, an Italian joint, when he was overcome by the desire for Mexican food. So he ordered in from the place next door. Vittorio Assaf, who happens to own both the restaurants, says, "Roberto loves his guacamole. Sometimes he comes in alone in the afternoon to sit in the back and order it. At Serafina we let him have the Mexican food delivered, but we don't tell our chef — he would walk out." Letting him know by reading it all over the Internet is surely the kinder move. You should recommend it to HR! [The Cut]
• Meanwhile, fellow Italian designer Giorgio Armani, who earlier this year battled hepatitis, is mulling succession. "I'm already organizing staff who will continue my work," he said in Moscow. "Of course I am not eternal, there comes a time when you must hand it over." Perhaps he'll take that Senator For Life gig in his twilight years? [Reuters]
• Finally, an explanation of the Olsenboye brand-name: it is, apparently, the Olsens' ancestral Norwegian surname. [NYPost]
• Cindy Crawford says it: "I would not have become a supermodel in 2009. I look too healthy." She told a German magazine called Bunte, bodies "with big breasts, normal thighs and toned upper arms" do not currently interest the industry. [Telegraph]
• Dutch Elle, in truly groundbreaking territory, ran a cover featuring a naked model. Can you imagine! Her name is Lonneke Engel. [IMG]
• Yves Saint Laurent has been named, by Forbes (who else?) the top-earning dead celebrity. [Reuters]
• Tamara Mellon's Jimmy Choo is launching a limited edition accessories collection. Part of the proceeds will go to the Elton John AIDS foundation to fund post-exposure prophylaxis drugs for rape victims in Cape Town, since taking the drugs within 72 hours can reduce the rates of HIV transmission by up to 79%. Mellon has worked with Sir Elton John before, and traveled to see the medical center in Cape Town, where she met victims of rape and incest. "One woman at the Simelela centre was sexually abused by a male relation from the age of 13," says Mellon. "She told me how the centre had given her the strength to get her life back. These women are dealing with AIDS, they are dealing with rape, they are dealing with incest. But it really hits you when you see where the money [we've raised] has gone. It's real, it's in front of you and it's a success. It's given me great hope." [Telegraph]
• Ivanka Trump's wedding dress, by Vera Wang, consisted of three different layers of lace — including Lyon and Chantilly — and took about a month to make. It was partly based on Grace Kelly's marital attire. It also was not strapless — something Cathy Horyn says, "made a fresh statement." [On The Runway]
• Thierry Mugler is looking to re-launch itself as a brand, with designer Rosemary Rodriguez at the helm. Although the collection is being shown at Moscow's fashion week this season, rumors are flying that the next step will be Paris. [FWD]
• Sarah Mower is looking back on the spring 2010 collections and seeing women designers on top of their game, from Rodarte to Phoebe Philo to Isabel Marant. [Telegraph]
• Joe Zee wants your boyfriend. For a makeover! He says, on Facebook, "Do you have a style-challenged boyfriend, husband or brother? Is that guy in your life screaming "untapped potential"? Is his hair more Don King than Don Juan? Then I want to make him over for my column. Let me give him my A to Zee treatment. Email me a picture of yourself with this fashion-clueless guy to AtoZee@hfmus.com by Nov 2nd." [Facebook]
• Trouble already for Naomi Campbell's new perfume deal — a fragrance partner with whom the supermodel inked a deal in 1998 is suing her for breach of contract. [NYPost]
• H&M, which already has 169 stores in the United States, would like to expand — especially in the South, where it is under-represented. [WWD]
• Jones Apparel Group is reporting an 11% year-on-year increase in third-quarterly profit, to just over $30 million. Jones owns Nine West and Jones New York. [TS]
• Versace, which recently shut its Japanese stores after nearly 20 years in the market, is now cutting 350 jobs. [WSJ]

Katie Holmes, Emily Blunt, Julianne Moore, Renee Zellweger and Zoe Saldana all look amazing — although poor Emily is… obstructed in her pretty shot. But instead of famous-for-being-famous ladies like the Kardashians, these are women who are using their talents: Katie just finished shooting The Extra Man and Don't Be Afraid Of the Dark; Emily is filming The Adjustment Bureau with Matt Damon and just wrapped Gulliver's Travels — plus she's in The Wolfman; Julianne has four films coming out in 2010; Renée has a flick called Case 39 coming later this year and two more in production (including the Bridget Jones sequel; Zoe Saldana has six movies scheduled for 2009/2010.

While it's great that Elle picked some stunning, impressive ladies to feature, why do all of these women have to share the month of November? Couldn't each have had a month of their own? Because if Elle has, as the saying goes, blown their load, then next month we might get stuck with Jessica Simpson wearing plaid. Again. As in, for the third time.

Women in Hollywood [Elle]
5 Covers For Elle's Women In Hollywood Issue [ONTD]

Earlier: Why Do Women's Magazines Pick Cover Girls Who "Don't Work?"
Jessica Simpson's Elle Cover: Waist Not, Want Not

I'm starting to fly into a rage whenever I read some lifestyle piece based on the recession. (This is different from the rage I feel when I read an investigative or financial piece.) My latest bout of hatred was brought on by an Elle article written by Laura Hollinger called "My Year of Living Frugally."

Yes, I should have known better. But I read it anyway, wanting to holler in frustration. Some assorted sentences:

"Over the years, I've cultivated a look that says rich, even though I'm not – my six-figure salary allows me to live well in New York but hardly extravagantly [...]"

"Gaining entree to the social elite pays for itself with invitations to places and experiences way out of financial reach. Why not have as much four-star fun as possible?"

"A bad day at work would send me to Bergdorf's shoe department, or to Henri Bendel to drop $300 on makeup I'd never wear. Now I found new pleasure in resourcefulness. I took my favorite boots to the shoe repair guy, and had dresses and jackets tailored to this years' shapes. Financial responsibility was empowering, and, in its way, more addictive than shopping had ever been."

I read through the whole piece giggling at first - I thought it was a cute tongue-in-cheek piece about those are faring just fine in the recession suddenly doing silly things like hiding their purchases in brown paper bags. The part about scamming a Vail trip was pretty amusing:

"Through a vast network of friends-of-friends, we arranged dinners and party invitations for each night, meaning we'd only need to spring for one meal a day (and a couple of nights we made do on WheatThins).

"When the famous heiress next to me rolled her eyes and groaned about missing "wheels up," I nodded in a way that said, "I hear you, sister."

But the idea that this was a comedic piece didn't last. Hollinger returns to NYC, but loses her will to save when catching sight of store markdowns. She explains:

I vowed to hunt for value, investing in pieces that would last for years and seeking out those few wardrobe additions (the perfect date dress, the best fitting long sleeve T-shirts to layer with anything) that would carry me from season to season. I did fall off the wagon just once last spring at the sight of $800 Lanvin silk sandals at Jeffrey, but paid for my sin when it rained for the next three months and they stayed in the box. [...]

Today, I maintain my expensive highlights and haircuts but spend less on blow outs and hair products (drugstore brands really do measure up. ) I take the bus to work instead of a taxi, and then I don't blink at dinner out with friends. Then I put every single expense, from groceries to doctor appointment on my AmEx card to earn points, which so far I've used toward a vacation and a new stereo system. In one year, I've saved roughly $6,000 - almost enough to buy that new Cartier watch I have my eye on...or to feed my savings account.

Huh? Now, this is not a simple case of sour grapes on my part. After all, if Hollinger has the money to play, it's her life. But I am really confused at why so many women fueling these trend pieces are creaming themselves over pretend frugality?

Especially when they don't have to?

Being financially savvy as a woman is an important and powerful thing. Understanding money, making it work to your advantage, and not being afraid of its possibilities are common themes that most people struggle with through the course of their lives.

But, if you are one of the lucky ones who managed to get through this recession with only minor tweaks to your lifestyle, then why are you doing a part-time game of make believe about coming hard times?

Over at my home blog, Racialicious, we were really feeling the recession. Four of us out of nine got a pink slip (or had the axe hanging over our heads) and most of us couldn't find work for months there after. Some of us have not found a steady paying gig yet.

Looking at my increasingly dire (as in, have to go round to the rental office to explain why rent will be ten days late this month dire) situation, I toyed with the idea of penning my own Recessionista-like tale to sell to the glossies:

"Upon realizing that my cheap ass fast fashion clothes wouldn't survive the withering gaze (let alone the needle) of a tailor, I tried to cobble together an interview outfit knowing damn well I was about to choose between repairing my one suit jacket and buying a day or so worth of groceries..."

"Making my way to the check cashing spot since my accounts were frozen from identity theft..."

"As I listened in disbelief, my editor explained she was pushing back my article for a third time, delaying yet again the $300 payment that I sorely needed before they cut off my cable again..."

"I smiled at the client, using $35 of the last $50 on my credit card to settle the tab, smiling harder as he apologized for forgetting his wallet back at the office..."

"I crossed my fingers and promised T-mobile another $100 on Friday, knowing damn well my next payment wouldn't drop for a couple of weeks..."

On second thought, I realize now why they publish these flights of financial fancy. Our lives are fucking grim. Hollinger is writing about her broke ass trip to Vail, I write about my broke ass trip to Safeway.

No matter what anyone is saying, broke is not the new sexy. Or the new rich. RICH is the new rich.

Can I sign up for Laura Hollinger's recession?

Official Site [Elle Magazine]

Earlier:

"Frugalistas" Must Cease And Desist
"Investing" In Your Closet Not Recommended By Actual Investment Experts

In an interview for Elle magazine, Ehrenreich blasts the ideology surrounding thinking positively which changes an optimistic outlook into a demand for complacency in the face of life struggles. She argues the need for people to silence those who are critical is stifling the development of society. However, what I found most compelling is what she says in Elle about the impact "positive thinking" has on social justice:

BE: Two weeks ago, I was in Fort Wayne, Indiana, at a meeting where people who were about to be laid off told their stories. A woman next to me said that when her unemployment insurance runs out, she'll live in her car. Then, another woman said, "Well, we have to remember to be positive, and that means don't watch the news, don't read the newspaper, just concentrate." Oh my God, I ask, how can this be happening? It's about how unattractive whiners and complainers are, and how they should be shunned.

ELLE: Can we draw out any other dynamics between positive thinking and the kind of winner-take-all social order we've shaped ourselves into, beyond the way business has employed the doctrine to manipulate employees and sell mortgages?

BE: You don't worry about social inequality if you're a positive thinker, because you, too, can become rich just by modifying your thoughts. So why be concerned that some people are off in the stratosphere in their personal jets while you're waiting for the bus?

ELLE: And if you're poor, you must not be thinking right.

BE: It's your own fault. In fact, most of the measures of quote-happiness-unquote that positive psychologists offer are really about how much we can accept the status quo. So even though I consider myself a fairly energetic and upbeat person, I never do very well on happiness tests.

ELLE: Surveys are always showing that conservatives are happier than liberals, traditional moms are more happy than feminist moms.

BE: If you're not at all bothered by human suffering – great. But if you have a vision of human happiness that includes all those people who are currently suffering, you've got to do something about it.

I believe, in some ways, agitating for social change is the most positive form of thinking there is. In order to do so, we must believe that one person can make a difference, that our opinion is worth voicing, and that the world can become better – if we are willing to make an effort to shape it that way.

Bright Sided [Barbara Ehrenreich]
Positively Perverse [Elle Magazine]

The story, shot by Dusan Reljin, opens — ahem — with a crotch shot. Now, a crotch shoot in and of itself is not necessarily low brow, but those jean shorts? In a hotel room? With the words "naughty by nature"? It just doesn't look very high end.

The very next image is not much better; Amber's famous asset is the focal point, instead of her absolutely glorious face. She's been signed by Ford, and she is capable of having a fresh, clean look. this ain't it.

While there's nothing wrong with Amber Rose showing off her famous derriere, there is a problem with it being in Elle. Because, in the context of a fashion magazine, it doesn't seem right, it doesn't seem "fashion." All we ever see of Amber Rose is her posterior. We've seen Kanye grab it, Madonna touch it, and Complex put it in a cage. As LaToya wrote about black models pictured nude while white models are photographed clothed, "It's about the roles of black women in fashion being limited to animals, sex objects, and advertising, but banned from higher fashion and catwalks." Elle had the chance to photograph Amber Rose like we've never seen her before — in couture, maybe, or just a head-and-shoulders beauty shoot. Instead, they chose to sexualize an already sexualized model. What's new, fresh, inventive, interesting about that?

This shot of Amber lying submissive on a bed — with the camera looming over her from the position of power — is almost as disheartening as the ass shot. What's additionally upsetting is that there are other celebrity models inside, and they are not photographed this way.

Posh, of course, gets the Posh treatment. Amber Rose would probably look amazing in a $3,000 cashmere dress, but they just didn't give her the chance.

Or, if they wanted to go sexy with Amber, why not sensual and cinematic, like (former model) Diane Kruger's shoot?

Better yet, they could have turned Amber's overtly feminine physique on its head and put her in menswear, as they did for (former model) Jamie King.

It's not that they didn't pull some good stuff for Amber's shoot: Her sunglasses are Fendi; the butt-baring bodysuit is $3,775 from Giorgio Armani; the dress on the bed is Blumarine, ringing up at $4,255. But the concept, vision and execution of the shoot is a shame, and a waste. But maybe you saw on the first page: It was styled by Kanye West.

When Karp "became another statistic," after a layoff, she started blogging about her life. This came to the notice of Elle's E. Jean Carroll and led to an internship, then a blog that's roused the ire of those who feel she's insufficiently homeless. "We should point out that your clothes are from Elle," says Kathy, which is nice, since the internship seems to be unpaid, and she's still homeless. Oh, and in case you, too, were wondering how Brianna achieves her hair color, she dyes her hair at the gym. Amazingly, the poised Karp maintains her considerable dignity throughout - no small feat with this crowd.
Homeless Blogger Scores A Job [MSNBC]

Jobless And Homeless, Blogger Scores Elle Job [MSNBC]

Earlier: Today In Homelessness & Fashion: An Internship, An Ill-Advised Photo Shoot

• It's confirmed: Katherine Heigl and husband Josh Kelly are adopting a baby girl from Korea. In an episode to air on Friday, Katherine tells Ellen:

"She was actually born the day before me in November, which I thought was really serendipitous and just kind of like a sign. I realized just recently that I basically forfeited my birthday for the rest of my life." And: "Her name is Naleigh. Well, I am naming her after my mother and sister Nancy, Leigh. So we call her Naleigh. I wanted to tell everybody so you don't think I stole a Korean baby." [People]

• Kate Gosselin is "beyond angry" at Jon Gosselin for saying he "despises" her, blah blah blah. [MSNBC]
• Jennifer Aniston is really sick of the haters, yo. That means you, Elle magazine: "It's just their headline of 'Lonely Girl' that's sort of bullshit," Aniston says.  "I agreed to do it because how many times have I done an interview-every time-and you're misquoted and stupid sound bites get taken out of context and all of that….still happened with this. It's unavoidable. I'm not upset about it. I just find it funny." [E!]
• Fans are divided about Ellen DeGeneres being the newest American Idol judge. On the one hand: She's "the people's point of view," because she has no formal music experience. But as one Idol blogger wrote: "Is she going to be a real judge or some kind of joke?" [AP] 
• Prodcers for Sex And The City 2: Electric Boogaloo have cast a "hunk" named Max Ryan to be a European architect who crosses paths with Samantha. He is rather handsome, I must say. [The Hollywood Reporter]
• Chris Brown's community service will involve 8-hour work days. He'll begin at 8 AM, get picked up by a Department of Corrections van (along with 40 other offenders), wear an orange reflective vest and pick up trash and litter along highways and roads in Richmond, VA. [TMZ]
• Yes, George Clooney "went public" with new ladyfriend Elisabetta Canalis at the Venice Film Festival earlier this week, so consider him off the market. [NY Daily News]
• Did Demi Moore snub British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's wife Sarah Brown on Twitter? [Telegraph]
• The company that owns Neverland Ranch has filed a bunch of trademarks with the US Patent Office and submitted paperwork requesting to use the Neverland name in association with a museum. A Michael Jackson museum. Of course, Joe Jackson says the company cannot do so without the family's permission. [TMZ]
• Meanwhile, Michael Jackson's family is upset over the charities that are supposed to get 20% of Michael's estate, for reasons unclear. [TMZ]
• After actor James Nesbitt made a joke about shagging Kate Moss at GQ's Men Of The Year Awards in London and Kate reportedly said: "He's so fucking rude. I'll never come to one of these fucking awards ceremonies again!" [Gatecrasher]
• Mary-Kate Olsen was seen "chain-smoking and throwing back shots." [Page Six]
• BREAKING: Kim Kardashian has gone back to brunette. [NY Daily News]
• Hugh Hefner claims soon-to-be-ex-wife Kimberly Conrad cheated on him early on in the marriage, but they are only getting divorced because she sued him over the sale of a house or something. Mo money mo problems. [TMZ]
• Zooey Deschanel will get married in Seattle at the end of the month, FYI. [Page Six]
• Ivanka Trump will get married on October 25 at a golf club. A Trump golf club. [Page Six]
• Do you care about America's Got Talent? Then you may care that columnist Courtney Hazlett thinks the show should be renamed America's Got A Very Broad Definition of Talent. [MSNBC Scoop]
• Eddie Cibrian and LeAnn Rimes: Shacking up. [National Enquirer]
• "It's a Georgian manor. We basically redid the entire thing, from the floors to landscaping to the closets, which are inspired by my New York apartment, with a men's and women's department store-esque feeling! Of course, I have the salon and Nick has a basketball court, which is his favorite place in the house. And I love having the outdoor space so the dogs can play. It's not too small; it's not too big; it's not a monstrosity. It's a home." — Mariah Carey on her new place in L.A. [Elle.com]
• "His movies make money. His movies play everywhere. If I looked like Tom Cruise they just wouldn't say such a thing." — Todd Solondz, on being compared to Woody Allen. [Reuters]
• "[Jessica's] always saying, 'Oh, I want a baby!' Being a mom's so empowering and incredible. I'm one of those people who believes that life brings things to you at a certain time for a certain reason, and if you just go with it, that's where the best moments come from. I've grown up so much. Your body is changing, and it's such an amazing time to feel that connection ... Being pregnant was the healthiest I've ever been in my life. Except for the cupcakes." (Do you envy your sister's freedom as a single girl?) "I really don't." — Ashlee Simpson. [People via Redbook]
• "People can have rhinoceros skin, but there's a point when something's going to hurt you. Not everyone is stone, stone. I haven't watched the news in weeks. I had to ask my chef, 'How's Obama doing?' I haven't read a newspaper." — Janet Jackson, on dealing with her brother's death. [NY Daily News via Harper's Bazaar]
• "I'm so dangerous right now I scare myself." — Shawne Merriman, the San Diegos Chargers linebacker accused of choking Tila Tequila, to Playboy. [NY Daily News]
• ''Somehow during the last Genesis tour I dislocated some vertebrae in my upper neck and that affected my hands. After a successful operation on my neck, my hands still can't function normally. Maybe in a year or so it will change, but for now it is impossible for me to play drums or piano. I am not in any 'distressed' state - stuff happens in life.'' — Phil Collins. [Telegraph]
• "How do I put this like a gentleman... I have never high fived Kristin Cavalari with my penis. My Milli has never slam danced with her Vanilli. I have never Bensoned her Hedges, nor have I attempted to Bartle her James. I'm sure she's a wonderful gal but we have never tasted the Skittles Rainbow together." — John Mayer. [ONTD via Twitter]

After a quick glance through this issue, we automatically deem most of the featured clothes unwearable in real life (i.e. metallic leather shorts). We know that these items are supposed to be inspiration as part of trickle-down fashion economics and that only rich and/or those in fashion actually wear such styles. But apparently, there are times when even the boldest of fashion editors don't want to be that fashionable, especially in front of men. According to Elle Creative Director Joe Zee, some of the "girls in the fashion department" typically say "I work in fashion, I don't want him to think I'm obsessed with it." He concludes that "women basically have two wardrobes—-one to wear for other women (or themselves!) and one to wear for men." This is the premise for a feature in which Zee enlists SNL cast member Andy Samberg to represent men in a battle to pick the best outfits for the fashion department to wear for non-work occasions. The result is as you would expect: Samberg picked out more classic items while Zee leaned towards the weird, fashion-forward choices. Cute, yes, but one question: if the editors of this magazine are too self-conscious to wear the very same duds they peddle, why are they pushing them on the rest of us? Find out what else the Elle is pushing in the September issue.

• GLAAD is concerned about Sacha Baron Cohen's depiction of homosexuality in Brüno:

"We have very mixed emotions about the movie," says GLAAD's Rashad Robinson. "Those of us who saw the film agreed that you can't critique it as a single film because it's more like 90 minutes of individual sketches. Some are funny and hit their mark but others hit the [gay] community instead." GLAAD is asking for a bit where a baby is sitting in the same hot tub where two men are having sex be cut. "As someone who sat at the back of a focus group audience outside of Los Angeles, I felt they were laughing at us at times." [E!]

• Sacha Baron Cohen, dressed as Brüno, showed up outside of Buckingham Palace yesterday and announced: "I hope Prince Harry is coming to the premiere – I've heard he's a total slut!" [Telegraph]
• Brüno on prime minister Gordon Brown: "The guy needs a total makeover. He needs a fake tan, he needs to wear some tight slacks." [Telegraph]
• In the UK, you can't see Brüno unless you're over 18. [Telegraph]
• WTF: "Two police chiefs are under investigation for allegedly breaking into the Martins Ferry, Ohio, home of Sarah Jessica Parker's surrogate in an attempt to dig up dirt they hoped to sell to the tabloids." [Gatecrasher]
• Elle magazine says it has "no reason" to believe that Lindsay Lohan is responsible for $500,000 worth of Dior jewelry missing from a photoshoot. [Gatecrasher]
• Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have donated $1 million to the UN Refugee Agency, to help displaced people n Pakistan. This comes one week after Brad donated $1 million for a pediatric cancer center in Missouri. [People]
• Jersey Housewives' Danielle says of the showdown in the finale: "My kids deserved to see how Mommy was going to grow from this and move forward. My children needed to learn from that, and that is why they wanted to stay in the room." [Yahoo News via E!]
• Housewives' Dina says of Danielle: "I never denied that I was part of [exposing] the book. I just literally never had the book in my hands. Literally. Like, I never had possession of the book. So how can I go around showing something that was never in my hands? So Jacqueline misunderstood what I was saying. She thought I was saying I never had anything to do with it. But, no, I had everything to do with it." [People]
• Oh dear: Morgan Freeman had an affair with his step granddaughter??? [National Enquirer via Perez]
• Madonna is calling on Gwyneth Paltrow to help her decorate a room for new child, Mercy. Her Madgesty's "wish list" includes "porcelain dolls, antique teddy bears, a library of leather-bound children's books and ancient maps of Africa to adorn the walls." Plus! Lourdes is super excited about having a sister: "She's bought piles of leggings, hipster T-shirts, tutus and sneakers for the new arrival." [The Sun]
• This essay argues that Madonna's "acquisition" of Mercy just helps baby traffickers. [Daily Mail]
• "Madonna 'banned Kate Winslet's musician father from appearing on Snatch film soundtrack.'" [Daily Mail]
• Good news: Bret Michaels will not sue the Tony Awards, even though he was injured by a set piece: "I'm taking the high road." [People]
• Has Sean Penn gone back to his wife after Natalie Portman broke his heart? [Page Six]
• "Michael Jackson is looking for a child who is missing limbs or in a wheelchair to appear on stage with him at his O2 gigs." [The Sun]
• Wow: E! is asking fans if the site should be a "Speidi-Free Zone." In a poll, the site asks, "Beginning today through Sunday, we are putting it to the fans to decide whether to banish Heidi and Spencer from E! forever, or at least until they do something truly newsworthy." [E!]
• Billy Joel's daughter and ex-wife speak out about his split from wife Katie Lee: daughter Alexa says, "If my dad's happy, I'm happy and I respect any decision that he makes." Chrsitie Brinkley says: "I'm very sad that this has happened, and I wish them both happiness." [Extra]
• Billy Joel's wife Katie Lee was seen dancing "erotically" with fashion designer Yigal Azrouel six months ago, and some say he introduced her to people as his girlfriend. [NY Post]
• Apocalypto: Paris Hilton — and her reality show — have landed in Dubai. [AP]
• 50 Cent spent $33,000 on Tom Ford suits. [Page Six]
• Like Lost? Like Sawyer, aka Josh Holloway? In this clip, he talks about all kinds of stuff — his character, Jack, Juliet, etc. [EW]
• Lost alum Maggie Grace: Returning to Hawaii, but she teases: "I don't know why." [E!]
• I dare you, DARE you to watch this video of Ellen Page, Alia Shawkat (who was Maeby from Arrested Development), and Har Mar Superstar singing "Don't Stop Believing" and not cringe, wince or guffaw. [NY Mag]
• A fourth Mission: Impossible starring Tom Cruise? Just looks desperate. Although having JJ Abrams involved again is interesting. [The Hollywood Reporter]
• Jennifer Aniston and Aaron Eckhart star in Love Happens, a movie about a self-help guru with a secret who dates a florist. Except it seems like the secret is given away in the trailer, which is posted at the link. [People]
• Reese Witherspoon with star in Pharm Girl, a comedy about one woman's experience working at a large pharmaceutical company — the longer she works there, the more she sees the "underbelly" of the industry. [The Hollywood Reporter]
• Rashida Jones will star in a rom com called Celeste And Jesse Forever, about a divorcing couple who attempt to maintain their friendship while pursuing new relationships. [UPI]
• Coming soon: A Bride Of Frankenstein remake, in which "the monster is a babe," someone like Scarlett Johansson or Anne Hathaway. [Page Six]
• Guy Ritchie's chauffeur: Caught driving without insurance. [The Sun]
• Kelis has filed her financials with the court and it all comes down to the fact that she doesn't have a lot of cash, and having a baby takes money. She'd like Nas to pay up. [TMZ]
• TR Knight is leaving Grey's Anatomy and word is, he wants to do Broadway. Or at least: Theater. [E!]
• Snippet from this Betty White interview: You stole the movie [The Proposal]. And added the sentimentality it needed. That scene in the airplane really got me. "Well aren't you dear. Thank you." There were some other topics I wanted to cover— "Can I get you any coffee or water?" [MovieLine]
• George Lucas is building an office complex that looks exactly like Hearst Castle. [mediabistro.com]
• Critical acclaim for the second season of Mad Men? Duh. [Variety]
• You can't sue the Bionic Woman over a car crash! She doesn't drive. She just runs, making a wannannana - wannanana - sound effect! [TMZ]
• Ozzy Osbourne will appear on Jack Osbourne's show, Celebrity Adrenaline Junkie, in which stars do stuff like bungee jump, white water raft and skydive. [The Sun]
• "Ryan Cabrera Sued over Death Trap Driveway." [TMZ]
• Katie "Jordan" Price got drunk in Ibiza and said to a journalist: "I'm gonna cut your fucking face. I swear to God I'll fucking cut you." Charming! [Daily Mail]
• Is Conan O'Brien losing viewers to David Letterman? [Page Six]
• Blind item! "Which ditsy blond didn't seem to care when a crowd of ladies caught her sniffing Colombia's finest - right out in the open - in Atlantic City?" [Gatecrasher]
• "Miss Congeniality was a romantic comedy, I call that a buddy flick. It's a new kind of film. If you really think about it; it wasn't about romance, it was about her saving her friend at the beauty pageant. Men do films like this, The Proposal or Miss Congeniality, all the time and they're considered comedies and there's always love in it. There's always love in it. There's always a relationship. I would like to help create a broader spectrum of categories where the writing gets better. There are great writers out there." — Sandra Bullock. [Reuters]
• "He's like a new man. He really went through something [with that racist tirade incident]. He used to be very angry and bitter. He's completely different now. You can see it, and he can feel it. I'm very happy for him." — Larry David on Michael Richards. [Reuters]
• "I wish I could afford to be here all the time, but it's a very expensive city to work in. It's gotten worse for me. It's gotten better in that they give you tax breaks. But everything (else) has gone up. I work on a very limited budget." — Woody Allen. [USA Today]
• "Chaz is embarking on a difficult journey, but one that I will support. I respect the courage it takes to go through this transition in the glare of public scrutiny, and although I may not understand, I will strive to be understanding ... The one thing that will never change is my abiding love for my child." — Cher, on her daughter's decision to undergo a sex change. [TMZ]
• "Positive is not funny. Nobody laughs at positive, 'What a beautiful day it is!' or how many friends I have, how many people love me. There's nothing funny about that at all. But there's funny in the negative. When you speak in negative terms, the more negative, the funnier it is. Hence, the funny crank." — Larry David. [LA Times]
• "In America, there's such a hunger for young people, so you get the young up-and-coming star. And then it becomes a time period when they really don't know what to do with you or how to use you. And then it changes, I think, after 50 - then you become - 'I'm the mother of the 20-year-old.' So I'm hoping there's going to be a shift again and I'll work more." — Andie MacDowell, who says her 40s were an awkward time because she had trouble finding roles. [Yahoo News via AP]
• "I don't like the word 'cougar' because it just makes me think of teeth and somebody who's biting. We have to come up with a new word." — Countess Luann de Lesseps. [Gatecrasher]
• "You know what, I prefer a flatter-chested look. That's just kind of me. I think it's more of a fashion look. If you look at a lot of high-fashion models and things like that, they're always you know, a little flatter. I like the way clothes fit better…" — Lauren Conrad is not into plastic surgery. [People]
• "We should all believe in something, and I believe it's time for another shot of tequila." — Justin Timberlake. [Page Six]
• "Seriously, this is one of my favorite songs ever. I love the whole album. I'm completely immersed in it. I can't wait for you to hear it." — Mariah Carey on her OWN new single. [NY Daily News]

Drew Barrymore's profile declares - in a tone of genuine surprise - that she can actually act! (In movies other than romantic comedies! Without her distinctive California Valley Girl accent!) It also made a point to mention twice that she is, in fact, thin. While the profile is mildly insulting, the pretty photos of Barrymore submerged under water do make up for it. But like most women's magazines, those pretty pictures are the issue's only redeeming quality. For example: what's up with the unflattering acid-wash jeans and intellect-patronizing articles on sustainability? Below, find out what else is in store for you.

In the April Elle, a genius is a hairstylist who typically charges $300 a haircut, suggests shampooing every other day and Bumble and Bumble Surf Spray. A genius could also be a celebrity with a new movie coming out who also attended Stanford...for one year. Or genius is simply clothing inspired by graphic representations of the work place—-like pie charts, the stock exchange and line graphs! In this installment of cover lies, discover other intellectually stimulating things you'll find in this lady mag.

At The Stylista Premiere, Anne Slowey Charms; Joe Zee: 'We Weren't Mean To Be Mean' [Observer]

Seems that Anne's new office desperately needed an eco-friendly touch-up, and so Lindsay was all to happy to do arrange all the the contractor-work, insurance papers, paint chips and other logistics. Other than getting an inside look at the way Elle editors do or do not share credit — Lindsay repeatedly makes clear that although Anne herself "decided to greenify" the new office, the renovation itself was more about "we" than "she" — what we love about this article is just how butt-ugly and ordinary Anne Slowey's office used to be. And it's not much better now!

Elle Magazine [Elle.com]
Related: The Fashion Week Food Diaries — The Fashion Editor [NY Magazine]