Jezebel: writers strike

The Only Race Tighter Than Cindy McCain's Bun...

Moe — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 18:30:59 EST

Staying in to catch the "Potomac Primary" because you continue to be transfixed by this campaign's endless cliffhangeration/and also, fucking cold? Prepare with this primer! [Wash Post]
The (ever-reliable) exit polls have Obama winning over Virginia's women AND old. [Wonkette]
But he's not feeling too cocky yet: "We haven't even gotten through this yet, come on, man," Obama to a Virginia voter wondering about his prospects in the March 4 Texas Primary. [WSJ]
Cindy McCain's hair, meanwhile... "Her platinum locks weren't merely wound into a neat French twist. They were elaborately coiled, looped, balanced and bolted down like a piece of Frank Gehry architecture...She appeared to be dressed for the coronation itself." [Wash Post]
Steven Spielberg on resigning from the Genocide Olympics: "My time and energy must be spent not on Olympic ceremonies, but on doing all I can to help bring an end to the unspeakable crimes against humanity that continue to be committed in Darfur." [WSJ]
SNL to return in ten days; Gossip Girl by April. [NY Mag]

Teenagers "risk addiction after trying a cigarette just once." [Bullshit! I have been smoking since fifteen on and haven't smoked one since Saturday. And come to think of it, let's break that spell right now...-Me] [NYT]
2 Live Crew's Luther "Uncle Luke" Campbell 2 B filmed 4 VH1 reality show. [Allhiphop]
Sundry Satan type pundit Glenn Beck on his favorite drink: "As a conservative, I guess it's what you'd expect: I drink the blood of small people who are different than me." [NY Mag]
Someone asked for a post on John Fitzgerald Page's CNN appearance but, like, seriously, it's on Gawker if you want it. Somewhere I have a freelance piece by a guy who worked odd Craigslist marketing jobs with him one summer that I keep meaning to run...should I? Are you still curious about this balding, baffling specimen of badly-socialized momhate? Okayyy [Gawker]

Britney Hospitalized Again

dodai — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 09:00:00 EST

Britney is in the hospital again; her new psychiatrist went to her home and decided she was a danger to herself and others. She went calmly, without resistance, and will be there for 72 hours, though she cannot be forced to take medication against her will. There's tension between her family and Sam Lutfi; the doctor seems to believe that Sam is in charge. [TMZ]
Reports that Britney tried to commit suicide are not true. [TMZ]
Apparently Britney was driving around her neighborhood "like a madwoman," which prompted a call to the shrink. [People]
More sources are coming out claiming that Heath Ledger was an addict. Isn't it wrong to speak ill of the dead? May he rest in peace. [Page Six]
Oh, Heath's rep denies all drug stories, including the one where Michelle drove him to rehab and he wouldn't go in. [Rush & Molloy]

Entertainment Tonight and The Insider will not air a "shocking drug video" starring Heath Ledger they paid several hundred thousand dollars for — out of respect for Heath's family. In other words, someone got yelled at. [Perez Hilton]
A "freelance reporter" was arrested outside of Brad Pitt's house, for trespassing. I swear I was nowhere around. [AP]
Has Farrah Fawcett gone to Germany to treat a huge tumor on her liver? What about the cancer down below? No matter: Be well, Farrah! [Page Six]
On a lighter note, Alan Cumming was swinging from a disco ball at a party recently — until it ripped from the ceiling and he fell on his face. [Page Six]
Paris Hilton was seen making out with Elisha Cuthbert. Yawn. [Page Six]
Oh, but Paris says she had a sleepover at Nicole Richie's house on Sunday and that baby Harlow Winter Kate Madden looks like Nicole and Joel. "I was crying when I saw [the baby]," the heiress claims. Actually, it's sweet. No snark here. [People]
As we mentioned last night, Ethan Hawke's girlfriend, aka The Nanny, is with child. Tacky much? [Page Six]
A stylist who once worked with Britney has slapped the singer with a $50,000 law suit, claiming she hasn't been paid since August. Guess Ms. Spears has had other things on her mind. [Gatecrasher]
Bonnie Fuller, former editor of Star magazine, writes, "Dear Lynne and Jamie Spears: Hooray For The Intervention." Dear Bonnie Fuller: Shaddup already. [Huffington Post]
Paul McCartney says reports he had an angioplasty are untrue and he's feeling great. Surely you were worried. [People]
Mary Lynn Rajskub, aka Chloe on 24, is pregnant: "With the strike going on, I had to keep busy!" [People]
After 17 years, Montel Williams will end his talk show. Williams, who has multiple sclerosis, is planning a full-year of "best of" episodes, so you'll still be seeing his bald head on TV for a while. [People]
David Beckham has a new tattoo: A six-inch Brigitte Bardot-inspired portrait of his wife, Victoria "Posh Spice" Beckham. [Mirror]
Holly, Bridget and Kendra, known as The Girls Next Door, will be on the cover of Playboy for the third time. Hugh Hefner says, "To be perfectly frank, I have unexpectedly fallen in love. It is the relationship with Holly that will probably last forever. The others will last for as long as they want it to last before going on with their careers and lives." Uh, romantic? [Yahoo News]
Christina Aguilera's baby won't be on the cover of OK! next week, because the magazine wouldn't guarantee a full-cover photo of Xtina and Max. In addition, Christina "hates Nicole Richie" a source says, and doesn't want their babies to be on the same cover. Meow! Surely Max will be dating Harlow soon? [MSNBC]
Jorge Garcia, aka Hurley from Lost, wanted to have a blog but the people behind the show feared he would spill plot secrets. Boo! Let Hurley write! [MSNBC]
Will the writers' strike nix the Oscars? The Academy is preparing two back-up shows just in case. Film history and film clips, snoozeville. [USA Today]
A former friend of Anna Nicole Smith claims that attorney-turned-boyfriend Howard K. Stern took pictures of unconscious Daniel Smith for profit and said "they might be worth some money one day." So disgusting. [Yahoo News]
Eva Longoria on what kind of mom Jessica Alba will be: "She's going to be amazing!" Very insightful, Eva. [People]
Um, this new Amazon/Pepsi commercial starring Justin Timberlake (with cameo by Andy Samberg!!!!) is pretty effing funny. [The.Life Files]

Anka Says The Writers Strike Is One Giant Orgy

Moe — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 17:40:00 EST

"SEX ON STRIKE: New York writers confess to passion on the picket lines," promises the cover of Page Six Magazine. Oh goody, I thought, a little vicarious action! Inside, the pull quote promised, "I'm outnumbered by guys on the picket line — most of them straight — at a ratio of 20 to 1. Where else in New York do you get that?" And who better to author such a piece thanAnka, the woman "often credited as the writer who defined the modern-day sex column" as Wikipedia puts it. (And such a refreshing angle to the old "dreariness of life on strike story" wherein writers inevitably say depressing things like, "For writers, the difference between being retired and unretired is so thin you'd never know the difference") (The only thing more depressing than this job is the thought of being left to read shit on the internet all day for sheer lack of will to do anything else.) Anyway, onto the juicy bits. Since we all feel like we're getting screwed, we might as well be getting laid, the story tantalizes. And luckily for us, Anka finds a cute screenwriter named Bob. "Bob was funny, Bob was sweet, and best of all Bob was heterosexual and he wanted to have sex with me." Gimme more!

Yeah, so Bob turned out to be a premature ejaculator. A wayyyyy premature ejaculator. He never calls again, he is so embarrassed. Or immature. Most likely both.

And that's the end of the story. It's sort of like I imagine my life would be, if I ever left my house.

Unscripted Lives Washington Post

"These rallies are like super-saturated...

Jessica — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 13:45:00 EST

"These rallies are like super-saturated high school reunions. Every writer you've ever worked with or slept with, admired or betrayed — they're all there. At the first one, I elbowed my way through the crowd and right into my nemesis, who beamed at me artificially. "Anna, how are you?" She looked over my baggy ensemble, probably wondering if I was just fat or actually pregnant, and how long into my maternity leave she could steal my job." — pregnant Dawson's Creek and Men In Trees writer Anna Fricke on her experience being preggers during the interminable writers' strike. [ New York Times]

Is The Writer's Strike Bad (Or Good!) For Fashion?

Jennifer — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 17:30:00 EST

We all know the writers strike is certainly affecting, well, the writers. And the studios. And us, since there's little to watch now, save The Sarah Connor Chronicles. But wouldn't you know? Those in the always narcissistic fashion industry is worried about how the strike impacts them. Says designer Phillip Lim on the absence of red-carpet creations: "It's about how it trickles down to retailers, how it trickles down to restaurants, how it trickles down to the community. They've got to work it out and get on with it. It's almost selfish to just keep on with the struggle." Uh, what does this have to do with restaurants? And seriously, who is Lim to call the writers "selfish"? Anyway, fashion writer Hadley Freeman is feeling pissy about the strike and fashion too, but for entirely different reasons.

Freeman, who writes for the Guardian, says that all the fuss about the awards shows getting canceled is supremely irritating, particularly because they have become such a huge part of the fashion industry. And she's even more irritated that fashion labels are up in arms about losing out on free advertising/potential revenue since they'll be denied the chance to dress, as Freeman puts it, some "Jessica RandomActress."

I have nothing but sympathy for all the makeup artists, fashion stylists and hairdressers (to say nothing of the nominees) who are missing their moments in the sun through the cancellation at the weekend of the Golden Globes - and possibly of next month's Oscars - due to the writers' strike... But this assumed importance of celebrity has been taken to such extremes in the fashion world......that the shows now seem to be more about the designer showing off which actresses and pop stars - and offspring thereof - they can get in the front row than the clothes on the runway...When designers start to value celebrities over actual customers, the clothes become more expensive, more impractical and seemingly more irrelevant than ever, as is increasingly the situation..... Now it often feels as if designers are tailoring their collections to pander to celebrity stylists and the paparazzi - which would at least explain the continuing popularity on the catwalks of crippling stilettos, minuscule dresses and other clothes designed for lifestyles based on maximum photo opportunities and minimal body fat....And surely it can only be to the good for the fashion world to be reminded, for at least one year, that celebrity endorsement is not the only happy ending.

Actually, we think that no celebrity endorsements is the happy ending. Less Kirsten Dunst for Miu Miu, more Miu Miu speaking for itself, please.

A Designer Explains the Effect of the Writer's Strike On Fashion [NYMag]

Dark Side of the Red Carpet [Guardian]

Golden Globes 2008: They Pick The Winners, We Pick The Fashions

Jennifer — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 10:30:00 EST

Last night's Golden Globe Awards garnered some minor surprises (Julie Christie for best actress, drama; Julian Schnabel for director); some major snoozes (the exceedingly-painful televised press conference made us want to do all sort of tortuous things to Billy Bush, especially when he called Cate Blanchett not such a great actress); and some boring fashion (see above). To amuse ourselves (and, as promised on Friday), we took the female Globes winners and outfitted them in the fashions we think they should have worn, had the show gone on as usual. The winners and their pretend awards-wear, after the jump.

Julie Christie - Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama (Away From Her)

English acting legend Julie Christie is a little bit quirky and a whole lotta classy. Which is why I thought the 66-year old actress would be perfectly suited in this Louis Vuitton dress — pinstripes paired with the coy purple sheath shows that there is sexy after 50, and Christie's face would be perfectly picture-framed in that portrait collar.

Marion Cotillard - Best Actress in a Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical (La Vie En Rose)

French actress Marion Cotillard won big last night for her star-making turn as legende Francaise, Edith Piaf, the chanteuse whose heart-breaking songs weren't half as heartbreaking as her own life story. And shouldn't a performer/role that scream Vive La France! be paired with one of the country's most iconographic fashion houses, Chanel? This Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel-designed dress looks as if it were custom-made for Cotillard's moon face and full lips, the marriage of sexuality and innocence. Also, how cool are the nautical-esque rope details?

Cate Blanchett - Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture (I'm Not There)

I'm a little tired of seeing Cate Blanchett in Armani. Also, I imagine that Cate is a little tired herself, but not of Armani — just 'cause she now has an achin' pregnant woman's body. So I thought comfort should come first, which is easy enough in this Lanvin number, which, like Cate, seems simple but boasts an alluring complexity. (Also, I'm mad for orange!) Cate's a great beauty: She deserves to wear a dress that can match her, but allow her to shine.

Glenn Close - Best Lead Actress in a Television, Drama (Damages)

So Glenn Close gets the honors with this sexy yet sophisticated frock by Armani. She's 60-years and and still got a slammin' bod and she's damn proud of it. So why not show off a still toned chest in a diaphanous choice like this one? The shawl keeps it modest enough. Sorta. Kind of. And the cute and fabric will soften Close's appearance, which can sometimes veer towards the severe. Also, I'm all about white for formal wear. (And all against white for bridal wear. Ah, irony.)

Tina Fey - Lead Actress in a Television Comedy (30 Rock)

The idol of geek girls everywhere, I want to see Tina Fey in a dress that represents her wit and sophistication, without denying the fact that geek girls are never gonna compromise comfort for style. Also, geeks can be beauties too! Smarts, comfort, beauty? That's exactly what this strapless black gown by Israeli designer Sari Gueron offers. The attention to detail and flawless execution is like the sartorial equivalent to the perfect timing played out week after week on 30 Rock. (Or, um, whatever.) It's a dress that just screams, "Live every week like shark week."

Queen Latifah - Best Actress in a Television Miniseries Or Special (Life Support)

A longtime fan of butch suits and matronly gowns, Queen Latifah could have cut a shapely silhouette in this Catherine Malandrino ensemble. Malandrino, a designer with a bold color palette who understands that real women have curves, would be perfectly suited to Queen Latifah's personality. These wide-legged white trousers require a woman unafraid to be assertive and the delicate top, emblazoned with a faux flower, require a woman who also enjoys her feminine side.

Samantha Morton - Best Supporting Actress in a Television Show or Miniseries (Longford)

Samantha Morton is kooky, quirky, and quite the chameleon. Yet her acting work is undoubtedly some of the smartest and most complicated being done today. Which is why her fashion soul mate should be John Galliano. High drama + flawless execution + a guaranteed pinch of the unexpected = Perfect Morton-wear. This ruffled frock is sexy, not girly; fierce, not fainting. Also, have I mentioned lately how much I love orange? Morton would rock this like the oddball sexpot that she is.

Atonement, Sweeney Todd win Golden Globes [Reuters]

Just Because Nikki Finke Hates Everyone In Hollywood Doesn't Mean She Doesn't "Care"

Moe — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 12:30:00 EST

The New York Observer names LA Weekly blogger Nikki Finke its "Media Mensch Of The Year." If you don't know Nikki from our previous adulation, she's a veteran Hollywood journalist with a bottomless reserve of outrage re media consolidation, hypocrisy, conflicts-of-interest, chauvinist arrogance disguised as entrepreneurial "vision"...um, basically everything I hate also? Anyway, Nikki's blog Deadline Hollywood Daily has "owned" coverage of the Writer's Strike because she is not "owned" by anyone and also because she has realized to her surprise that she actually cares about Hollywood. "The writers don't get that the studios don't care," she said. "They think that the shareholders would care or the bosses would care or Wall Street would care or the government or Congress or the viewers—they don't care." Then she adds: "I didn't know I cared." Turns out she cares. And it's not for the reason you might think. On a personal level, you see, she sort of hates everyone in town.

"I don't want to have dinner with these people," she said. "I don't want to be a part of their social life." She's the ultimate in uncompromised reporting; on her site, you never see the now journalistically ubiquitous, and always deflating, "full disclosure" clause, as in, "full disclosure: I play tennis with [so-and-so's] husband in the Hamptons every summer."

Well full disclosure, I used to live with Doree Shafrir, the writer of that New York Observer piece, who actually helped me get this here job at Jez when she was an editor at Gawker. I didn't link to this story because of that, but because I'm a big fan of people who hate hypocrisy, oligarchies and the mindless acceptance of unregulated market capitalism as a virtuous thing, as Doree and the Heathers and Anna and Slut Machine and anyone who is friends with me knows from drinking in my presence. Of course, I'm also trying to get page views. So is Nikki Finke. So is Doree, I assume. So, you know, it's complicated.

Where do you draw the line? Is it possible to be a decent person and a nice person? A loving misanthrope? Can you be a good friend and a puller of few punches? Ugh...I dunno. We may never answer these questions. But we have to think about them! Choose our battles, etc.!

That's all.

The Media Mensch Of The Year! [NY Observer]

Kim Cattrall Reverses Position On Killing Animals

Jennifer — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 11:30:00 EST

Despite toiling for so many years educating Americans on the merits of croc-skin bags on a certain premium cable TV show, Kim Cattrall says she has seen the PETA light: she's donating all the furs she wore in making the SATC movie to the animal rights organization so they can be donated to homeless people who no one will ever mistake for trendsetting style icons. There's just one flaw in that plan, and we think you might know what it is. [Page Six]
Spanx is getting into the business of making bras. Shudder. [FabSugar]
Gisele is the latest model to think she's a fashion designer. Ms. Bundchen's collection will be in stores in March 2008, but she didn't do it alone (surprise, surprise) — she's partnered with an obscure little duo known as Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. [Vogue UK]
Gucci will release a limited edition collection in honor of the Beijing Olympics. Wonder if anyone will follow up with a "Genocide Olympics" line? Yeah, probably not. [WWD, sub req'd]

Why was Colin Farrell wearing Juicy Couture at the screening of his new film (directed by Woody Allen) the other night? "I got it for free. My personal style is quick." [Fashion Week Daily]
French Vogue's Carine Roitfeld is being honored by amFAR this January for her philanthropic efforts to fight AIDS. We always knew she was a hooker with a heart of gold! [Fashion Week Daily]
Pastel-colored condom compacts: Oy. [Sassybella]
Leather jacket experts Belstaff: Costumed not only Steve McQueen way back when, but also Will Smith for I am Legend and Johnny Depp for Sweeney Todd. We will take an excuse to write about dreamy Johnny Depp. [Vogue UK]
The latest pursuit by Donna Karan's holistic health care organization the Urban Zen Initiative: a celebrity DJ-created mix tape, natch. [Fashion Week Daily]
Oh no! The writer's strike might mean celebs may not want to attend the big awards shows this winter like the Oscars and the Golden Globes? Which means that designers houses won't be able to tactfully loan out their garb to the pretty stars and get lots of free advertising? Well if that's not a reason to care now about the poor writers, we don't know what is. [WWD, sub req'd]
Jade Jagger, Katharine Hamnett, the Scissor Sisters, Rihanna and Timbaland are amongst the celebs to join forces in creating yet another celeb-clothing-line-with-a-cause: Fashion Against AIDS. The line will be sold at H&M and 25% of the proceeds actually go to charity. [Vogue UK]
Target: Sorta doesn't give a shit about Christmas this ear. No special decorations, no special merchandise. Bah Humbug. [WWD, sub req'd]

Loose Lips

Jessica — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 11:45:00 EST

Sweet, Sweet 30 Rock might be returning soon. Talks resumed today between the striking writers guild and the producers alliance. • On the heels of an arrest outside a Chicago Walgreens, Shia LeBeouf got into a scuffle at L.A. club Les Deux. Apparently he played the "Do you know who I am" card. Bad form! • From skank to sophisticate and back again, Kirsten Dunst's "style timeline." [E! Online, Mollygood, People]

How Does the Screen Writers Guild Strike Affect You? Depends How Trashy You Like Your TV!

Jessica — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 18:00:00 EDT

Many of you may be aware that a Writers Guild of America strike is basically a forgone conclusion at this point, but you might not realize how the lack of working screenwriters might affect the average couch potato like yourself. To recap: the Writers Guild of America (WGA), which includes writers in the motion picture, broadcast, cable, and new media industries, had a contract which expired yesterday, because they're still haggling ove digital rights, DVD profits, and something darling Nikki Finke calls "jurisdictional issues." Not every writer in Hollywood is union, of course; especially those writers who don't actually write because their shows are — wink, wink — "unscripted." But the bottom line is that if a strike lasts a long enough time, scripted series will go the way of the dodo for the 2007-2008 TV season and networks, says Finke, will "rely on programming more cheap reality-TV and game shows," which is probably what the world needs now anyway. So where does this leave you?

I know many of you are lovers of scripted gems like 30 Rock, the Daily Show, the Colbert Report, The Office and many more would be saddened to see them go on indefinite hiatus. But what are the Jezebels really watching? A quick poll to find out:

Do you really need more reality in your life? Would you explode because John Krasinski's face no longer visited you on Thursday nights? Do you agree with Nikki Finke, that this is just an ultimately meaningless fight between "the writers and producers who occupy the same pen known as Hollywood [and] act like monkeys flinging their feces against the walls. Both sides make menacing noises to indicate they're going to bite the hands that feed them"? We're curious, do tell.

Strike Happy [LA Weekly]