When you’re Lady Gaga, “boring” is the kiss of death
Last night on So You Think You Can Dance, Lady Gaga premiered her newest video, Edge of Glory. Even though the popstar was decked out in Versace and her requisite overdone beauty look, she somehow managed to omit the high-concept theatrics that have been the appeal of her previous videos. Alternating between shots on a fire escape, a stoop, and an uncharacteristically empty Lower East Side street, Lady Gaga spends five whole minutes spaz dancing, batting her eyes into the camera, and reclining against a 69-year-old saxophone player (Clarence Clemons from Bruce Springsteen‘s E Street Band) that’s set up shop on her stoop. The craziest thing about the video was that I watched the whole thing, and that you probably will too. Scroll down to see for yourself. [HaveUHeard, DippedInCream]
Jessica Simpson is the new Tim Gunn
I don’t think I’ve seen words come out of Jessica Simpson‘s mouth, except in a stray pop video here or there (to be fair, I’ve never seen an episode of Newlyweds, so I’m not exactly a Jessica Simpson expert), but it looks like someone’s decided that she’s good enough at forming ideas and expressing them to dole out fashion advice to emerging designers. The pop star and fashion brand empress is joining a new reality show, Fashion Star, as a mentor to up-and-coming designers competing for a multi-million dollar contract to launch their lines. Yes, Jessica Simpson is the next Tim Gunn. To be fair, Fashion Star seems less design-oriented and more market-driven than Project Runway (Elle “The Body” Macpherson is playing host), but I’m not convinced that this a good idea: Simpson built her brand out of her preexisting fame and access, not because she had a really good business idea and acute understanding of the market’s needs. What advice can she really give a group of unknown reality television contestants hoping that they can convince all of America to buy their baubles? [RightCelebrity]
Crystal Harris is America’s princess and I’m a chump
Even though I’ve mostly been neglecting the Hugh Hefner/Crystal Harris breakup in favor of Gloria Steinem‘s 1970s investigative article, “I Was a Playboy Bunny,” about Steinem’s undercover stint at New York’s Playboy Club (back when Bunnies were suffering from a shortage of breast implants, and had to stuff their costumes with dry cleaners bags), the latest detail to emerge about the scandal is too much fun to ignore. Not only was Harris haggling with Lifetime (the network that had been planning to air the wedding) for a $500,000 bonus to dump Hefner at the aisle (which she didn’t get), she’d also appeared on the cover of this month’s Playboy (the “Wedding Issue”) as Mrs. Crystal Hefner, “America’s Princess.” Sure, it’s pretty depressing that the man who played a major part in defining American male sexuality for the past fifty years thinks that Crystal Harris is basically just a more free-spirited version of Kate Middleton, but what’s most troubling about this whole situation is that Lifetime was actually planning to air this averted disaster. Whoever runs Lifetime was apparently pretty confident that “Television for Women” caters to ladies who want to see a woman with no discernable personality outside her breasts marry an over-sexed old man more than three times her age (let me break down the numbers for you: he’s 84, she’s 25). Yea, okay, I guess the Lifetime crew was right: I totally would have watched that. [Earsucker, Anything Hollywood]
Harry Potter might be coming back
Even though J.K. Rowling has promised time and time again that she’d never write another Harry Potter book as long she lived, it appears that she’s finally caved to the world’s Pottermaniacs (or to her own creative block), and we may live to see the further adventures of Potter and Friends. Nothing’s been confirmed, but the author has launched a new website filled with cryptic messages like, “The owls are gathering” and “Find out why soon” which are (her rep swears!) definitely unrelated to the final HP movie. Whatever, I’d love to criticize this development but I’ll just sit on my fingers because when all’s said and done, I’m a true junkie. Give me a Harry Potter book, and I’ll fork over twenty-five bucks and give up an entire night of sleep to read it. [CelebDirtyLaundry]
Lady Gaga Edge of Glory video
