Robert Pattinson Got Hit by a Taxi!Don’t worry, his face is okay. His perfect, angular face. Some other things happened to celebrities too, in our morning gossip roundup.
ByKatie Goldsmith
gossipmonger
Jesus Is SufferingMadonna’s boyfriend is getting “straight-up dissed” by the other male models. And more, in your daily gossip roundup.
ByKatie Goldsmith
party lines
Video: Fallon at the NYers for Children GalaAt the New Yorkers For Children gala last night, Jada Yuan extracted deep childhood secrets from some attendees, including Lazaro ‘Runaway’ Hernandez and Tory ‘Tomboy’ Burch.
Which Celebrities Will Be Bidding Tonight at the Sotheby’s (Auction)RED?With pieces donated by Banksy, Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons, Richard Prince, and many more art heavyweights, the Sotheby’s (AUCTION)Red at the auction house tonight is gearing up to be a collector’s scrum. Christy Turlington, Dennis Hopper, and Mario Batali are all slated to attend, as is Michael Stipe, who already knows what he wants to buy. “I’ll tell you, the Ed Ruscha is so beautiful” he gushed to New York’s Fiona Byrne at Tuesday’s Edun party at the Desmond Tutu Center in Chelsea “I think it’s a 2007, but it’s brought what he does full circle, which is part of the reason I am drawn to it. I am tempted to bid; I may well.” Elsewhere at the party, Josh Hartnett told us he’s watching the pennies after a recent large purchase. “I have to find out if I have any money left,” he said, not ruling out the prospect of picking something up from the auction, which will go to help fight HIV/AIDS in Africa. “I just bought a new place and totally redid it and put in new furniture, but I have to get something for the walls!” Last night at a Gagosian Gallery preview, celebrities like Jon Bon Jovi, Anna Wintour, Donna Karan, Tory Burch, Russell Simmons, and Ivanka Trump were more hushed about what they wanted. But we think we can guess which painting caught Rupert Murdoch’s fancy. He spent the entire night standing in front of Damien Hirst’s Where There’s a Will, There’s a Way. It’s expected to fetch between $5 and $7 million tonight. Which, for Rupert, is probably a small price to pay for a piece of contemporary art that embodies your life philosophy.
company town
Jeff Bewkes Starts Cleaning House at Time WarnerMEDIA
• At least 75 Time Warner layoffs are expected to be announced today. The layoffs are among CEO Jeff Bewkes’s first public tasks since taking the helm of the company from Dick Parsons last month. Earlier today, Time Warner announced a 41 percent decline in fourth-quarter earnings. [MSNBC & AdAge]
• Maybe some of those Time Warner folks can hang their hats over at Condé Nast. The Observer evaluates Portfolio’s recent spending spree, during which it recruited top talent from The New Yorker, the Post, and the Times. [NYO]
• (Product)Red, the love child of Bono, iPod, and the Gap, has raised more than $22 million for fighting HIV and AIDS in Africa. But considering the big advertising bucks spent during the Super Bowl and elsewhere, some are arguing that it’s not enough. [NYT]
gossipmonger
Lindsay Lohan Gives ‘Page Six’ the Chance to Use a ‘Retail Therapy’ Pun
Lindsay Lohan spent her Thanksgiving shopping in therapy and shopping in New York with her mom and sister, while her boyfriend spent it partying. David Wright bought jewelry for his mom for Christmas. Tory Burch has been dating both Paramount head Brad Grey and Katie Couric’s ex, Tom Werner. Whoopi Goldberg, who supports Bill Richardson for president, slammed John Edwards and Michelle Obama for canceling appearances on The View. Hayne Suthon, the owner of Lucky Cheng’s, has finally made peace with ex-husband Robert Jason. Jerry Seinfeld is planning to stick to stand-up, not movies. Alec Baldwin bought the cast of 30 Rock mozzarella sticks after their show at the Upright Citizens Brigade.
it happened this week
Who Do You Like?As Indian summer continued its extended run last week, some of the most popular kids in town found themselves getting the cold shoulder. A federal lawsuit charged Bloomberg LP discriminates against pregnant women, and BMOC Mike Bloomberg promptly reminded us that he no longer runs his namesake company. (Later in the week, a little red in the face, he admitted he regularly talks to senior executives there.) Onetime Most Likely to Succeed Barack Obama fell 33 points behind Hillary Clinton in the latest presidential poll.
gossipmonger
Clinton’s Party Guru Also Likes LadiesBill Clinton buddy Amed Kahn threw a party at Tenjune for Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim’s son that consisted of 30 models and five guys. Greenhouse, New York’s first-ever “green” nightclub, gets an eco-preview tonight in Paris. Tory Burch and Lance Armstrong amicably broke up because they lived too far apart from one another. Sean Penn, John McEnroe, and Lance Armstrong hung out at the Soho House bar. Artist Geoffrey Raymond’s latest Wall Street–inspired work depicts Maria Bartiromo as the Virgin Mary. The New York City Partnership power breakfast caused so much commotion outside the American Express headquarters that many CEOs had to walk a few blocks just to get in. Alex Rodriguez and his wife are expecting another kid.
in other news
Socialites Shmocialites “I never got the whole socialite thing,” Dylan Lauren tells the Wall Street Journal’s Wealth Report today, which explores the plight of those exceptional New York rich ladies who work because they want to, not because they have to. “I mean, what do they do?” the daughter of Ralph, whose photograph appears 377 times on PatrickMcMullan.com, continued. “Sit around and have lunch? Wear dainty clothes and go to balls? I’d go nuts.” Dylan, after all, is a businesswoman. She runs a very important candy store, the success of which has nothing to do with where she came from or who she is. “Maybe it’s just my personality. But being a socialite has no appeal,” she said. I mean right? If only all the young heiresses in the city were like Dylan, and arose at sunrise to till the earth. Oh wait. They do!
gossipmonger
Anonygossip Terrifies Hamptons!The society column in The Southampton Press is now anonymously written, and some East Enders are worried. Danielle Steel plans to write a novel based on her ex-husband’s boating incident in France, which left a French doctor dead. Sharon Stone is scheduled to emcee an AIDS benefit at the Dubai International Film Festival, despite the fact that the city has a bad track record on dealing with homosexuals and AIDS victims. Vanessa Minnillo may star in a reality show, though the Lohan knife pictures may be an issue. Peter Beard likes to take Polaroids of topless models. The Olsen twins sold pictures from their 21st-birthday party for $300,000. Paul McCartney performed a surprise show at the HighLine Ballroom with his “almost boy band.” Eli Manning dumped beer on teammate Shaun O’Hara at his 30th-birthday party.
new york fugging city
Socialites and Starlets Face Off in a Coast-to-Coast Battle Royale!
New York socialites and Hollywood starlets have traditionally inhabited two separate celebrity worlds. Never mind the continent between them; they also do different things. Society girls bring attention to disfiguring diseases by wearing designer dresses to galas, while their Hollywood counterparts spend evenings talking their way into free drinks at the latest hot bars, usually not wearing any underwear. And, for years, each group has seemed content to remain within its own orbit. Until now.
The Great New York Socialite Invasion of 2007 hit Los Angeles when Tinsley Mortimer and Fabiola Beracasa descended for some Oscar post-parties. It was the first sign of cross-pollination between the two PR-grubbing groups, and we fear it will not go smoothly. Will the L.A. girls tolerate the New Yorkers moving in on their turf? Will the East Coasters give the locals the respect they demand? A battle royale could be in the works. Here’s who we see poised for face-offs — and who we predict will be left standing at the end, triumphantly clutching a bloodied hair extension.
