Barack Obama and Bill Clinton had a meeting to smooth out hard feelings remaining from a bitter campaign.
I was, however, more distracted by Bill’s hideous outfit. Who dressed him, Stevie Wonder?
Sure, it’s summer. A bright green shirt is a bold choice, although one that would have worked better with a darker suit. But, egads, that tie! Technically, they go together — the shirt has a lime green stripe that matches the shirt — but it’s godawful.
Just say No, Bill!
If you actually care about the meeting, they made nice:
In Obama’s first comments about his widely-covered phone conversation with the former president Monday morning, the Illinois senator said the two did not dwell on the prolonged and at times divisive primary race.
“We did not belabor the primary season,” Obama told reporters Tuesday. “I think what we both acknowledged is, is that when you’re in a tough primary battle you say things that afterward you may end up thinking, that may have been a little intemperate. But that’s the nature of political campaigns.”
Obama also said he wants Clinton to become a staple on the campaign trail next fall, even though the former president’s periodic outbursts and at-times aggressive promotion of his wife’s candidacy drew widespread criticisms. “I absolutely want Bill Clinton campaigning for me,” Obama said, adding, “He is one of the most gifted public officials of our generation and has been one of the most successful presidents that we’ve had in my lifetime.”
How sweet! I bet Obama wore a nicer shirt, though.
Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday dinner was last night and the event was filled with celebrities who were lucky enough to be invited.
Mandela became the oldest elected President of South Africa when he took office at the age of 77 in 1994. He decided not to stand for a second term as President, and instead retired in 1999, to be succeeded by Thabo Mbeki.
Other guests at Mandela’s birthday dinner included Pierce Bronson, Neil Diamond, Forrest Whitaker, Will Smith, Bill Clinton and Annie Lennox. What an interesting, yet diverse group of people.
What others said:
Dlisted says, “Naomi showed up with her new boyfriend, Marcus Elias. New boyfriend did a good job of hiding the bruises on his face because you know Naomi beats his ass.”
Golfing legend Greg Norman and former tennis star Chris Evert will marry this weekend in the Bahamas, the Australian Associated Press reported Thursday.
The couple, both 53, are to wed Saturday at sunset on a beach in Paradise Island, the AAP said, citing various media reports. The pair announced their engagement last December.
Guests are believed to include former US presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush senior, American actor Chevy Chase, tennis great Martina Navratilova and singers Gwen Stefani and Kenny Loggins.
Norman, who has won two British Open titles among scores of other tournaments, and Evert, who won 18 Grand Slam titles, arrived in Paradise Island on Thursday.
Both are well past their heyday but they were indeed legendary figures in their games. Evert was America’s sweetheart for years, although overlapping careers with Billy Jean King and Martina Navratilova, who were arguably more dominant players. She was much more telegenic, however. Norman was one of the great golfers of the 1980s and early 1990s, although he’s probably best remembered for an epic collapse at the Masters.
Over the last few years, aides have winced at repeated tabloid reports about Clinton’s episodic friendship and occasional dinners out with Belinda Stronach, a twice-divorced billionaire auto-parts heiress and member of the Canadian Parliament 20 years his junior, or at more recent high-end Hollywood dinner-party gossip that Clinton has been seen visiting with the actress Gina Gershon in California.
Instead of standing beside Hilary as she battles the campaign trail — Bill is off cavorting around the country, bedding young females. Surprising? I think not.
Bumpshack says, “Last time I checked Gina is a lot more attractive than Monica Lewinsky or Gennifer Flowers. So I guess Bill’s taste has at least improved since leaving office.”
More on Gina Gerson:
Sultry, dark-eyed, brunette leading actress Gina Gershon mixes a muscular toughness with her seductive femininity. Born the youngest of five children, raised in Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley, Gershon gets her exotic looks from her French, Russian, and Dutch heritage. After high school, she decided she wanted a more sophisticated image than those usually attributed to Valley Girls like herself and so moved to the Big Apple, to earn a bachelor of arts degree at New York University. While in New York, she studied acting with such well-known teachers as Sandra Seacat, David Mamet, and Harold Guskin. She started out in theater and worked on both coasts.
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Since the mid-’80s, Gershon has carved out a living as a reliable character actress on both the big and the small screens. Her most notable role on the tube was that of Nancy Sinatra, the famous wife of Old Blue Eyes himself, in the CBS miniseries Sinatra (1994). Gershon made her feature film debut playing a small role opposite Molly Ringwald in 1986’s Pretty in Pink, and graduated to the jucier role of of Coral opposite Tom Cruise in Cocktail (1988). Through the 1990s, Gershon vascillated between high-brow and low-brow fare, the former exemplified by her memorable turns in John Sayles’s City of Hope (1991), Robert Altman’s The Player (1992), and Michael Mann’s The Insider (1999); the latter, by her gleeful, scenery-chewing work in Best of the Best 3 and the infamous Showgirls (both 1995). Gershon’s signature role, however, was a synthesis of B-movie pulp and indie smarts, courtesy of the Wachowski brothers’ twisty 1996 neo-noir Bound. Cast as a woman falling in love with an abusive gangster’s moll, Gershon was able to radiate an intelligence, sexuality, and power not afforded her by previous scripts, and the lead part would go a long way in establishing her screen persona into the new millenium
New York Governor Elliot Spitzer is “involved” in a prostitution ring. Details are still sketchy.
Gov. Eliot Spitzer has informed his most senior administration officials that he had been involved in a prostitution ring, an administration official said this morning. Mr. Spitzer, who was huddled with his top aides inside his Fifth Avenue apartment early this afternoon, had hours earlier abruptly canceled his scheduled public events for the day. He had scheduled an announcement for 2:15 this afternoon after inquiries from the Times. But his appearance was delayed by at least 45 minutes.
Mr. Spitzer, a first-term Democrat who pledged to bring ethics reform and end the often seamy ways of Albany, is married with three children.
Just last week, federal prosecutors arrested four people in connection with an expensive prostitution operation. Administration officials would not say that this was the ring with which the governor had become involved. But a person with knowledge of the governor’s role said that the person believes the governor is one of the men identified as clients in court papers.
The governor’s travel records show that he was in Washington in mid-February. One of the clients described in court papers arranged to meet with a prostitute who was part of the ring, the Emperors Club VIP on the night of Feb. 13. Mr. Spitzer appeared on a CNBC television show at 7 a.m. the next morning. Later in the morning, he testified before a Congressional committee.
Aside from a general sense that chief executive officers ought to obey the laws they’re charged with enforcing and that married men ought to be faithful to their wives, I really don’t care much about this story. The interesting angle, really, is the hypocrisy bit:
Spitzer has built his political legacy on rooting out corruption, including several headline-making battles with Wall Street while serving as attorney general. He stormed into the governor’s office in 2006 with a historic share of the vote, vowing to continue his no-nonsense approach to fixing one of the nation’s worst governments.
Time magazine had named him “Crusader of the Year” when he was attorney general and the tabloids proclaimed him “Eliot Ness.”
But his stint as governor has been marred by several problems, including an unpopular plan to grant driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants and a plot by his aides to smear Spitzer’s main Republican nemesis.
Spitzer had been expected to testify to the state Public Integrity Commission he had created to answer for his role in the scandal, in which his aides are accused of misusing state police to compile travel records to embarrass Senate Republican leader Joseph Bruno.
Having only cursory knowledge of the two scandals, the misuse of the powers of office to harass a political opponent strikes me as more problematic than patronizing prostitutes.
More commentary will follow if the story develops into something more interesting.
Other reax:
Marc Ambinder notes “Spitzer is a Clinton superdelegate.”
Flip Bidot entitles his post “From Troopergate To Shtupergate”
Steve Benen: “[I]t’s hard to believe brilliant people in positions of responsibility could be this stupid and this self-destructive. And yet, here we are.”
Jon Henke wonders if it isn’t time to change the laws.
Sean Hackbarth: “The man who demagogued his way to the governor’s mansion on the backs of Wall Street firms ends up in deep doo-doo.”
Will Bunch: “WNBC-TV says prosecutors have text messages from Spitzer(no link yet). On MSNBC, there’s also talk that this prostitution ring is linked to a probe of the Gambino crime family — still, just wow.”
Bob Owens: “It remains to be seen what political impact this breaking development will have, but all snark aside, my thoughts and prayers go out to his daughters—I think they are teenagers—and his wife.”
UPDATE: Various reports have Spitzer resigning. Headline changed accordingly. Developing.
CNBC reports that, “If Eliot Spitzer resigns, he would be succeeded by Lt. Governor David A. Paterson, who would become New York’s first African American governor and the first who is legally blind.”
UPDATE:Fox’s report on Spitzer’s resignation, “Sources: Spitzer to Resign Following Reports of ‘Involvement’ With Prostitution Ring, Faces Indictment,” is the most cited. Thus far, however, no confirmation. His presser was oblique:
Gov. Eliot Spitzer, accused in news reports of being involved in a prostitution ring, apologized to his family and the public on Monday at a hastily called news conference. He did not elaborate on the story.
With his wife at his side, Spitzer told reporters that he “acted in a way that violates my obligations to my family.” “I have disappointed and failed to live up to the standard I expected of myself,” he said. “I must now dedicate some time to regain the trust of my family.”
The “private matter” bit is straight out of Bill Clinton’s playbook.
Last night VH1 held it’s Save the Music 10th Anniversary Gala at New York’s Lincoln Center, and Sir Paul McCartney auctioned off a stage-played, autographed guitar to raise money to fund music grants for underprivileged schools in the US. Bidding started at $30,000.
Other stars at the event included Bill Clinton, Mariah Carey, Quincy Jones, James Blunt, John Mayer, Jon Bon Jovi and Mya.
Conan O’Brien helped with the live entertainment, saying,
“If any of you watched the MTV Video Music Awards, you saw that more than ever we need music education.”
Ain’t that the truth.
Source: “Paul McCartney’s guitar auction” [Female First]
Image courtesy of Picture Perfect, for use on Gone Hollywood
One thing of note, most of the comedians were on the show during the same time period. This is when Saturday Night Live was the funniest, IMHO.
10. Bill Murray
With his trademark smirk, Murray simultaneously celebrated and lambasted the sketch-comedy genre. Thrust into an impossible situationessentially replacing the too-big-for-his-britches Chevy ChaseMurray added both knowing smarm (nerd kid Todd DiLamuca) and blank-faced understatement (“cheeseburger, cheeseburger, cheeseburger”) to a cast lacking both. He established such an indelible cool-guy persona that 20-plus years later, we’re still incapable of holding missteps like Garfield against him.
Best bit: Nick the Lounge Singer
9. Dana Carvey
He makes the list owing to the sheer number of breakout characters he created and embodied: the Church Lady, Garth, Hans, Carsenio et al. No player in the show’s history counts more to his or her name. Throw in his gift for mimicry—George Bush, Jimmy Stewart, Ross Perot, even cast mate Dennis Miller—and it’s no wonder that Carvey was featured in roughly 92.5 percent of all scenes during his seven-year tenure on the show.
Best bit: “Chopping Broccoli”
8. Molly Shannon
The most underrated performer in SNL history, and one of the few woman cast members who was too dark, manic, and, well, weird to shepherd into a window-dressing role. Oh yeah—and her Mary Katherine Gallagher orchestrated a much better pratfall than Chevy Chase’s Gerald Ford ever did. You almost felt sorry for the chairs into which she careened.
Best bit: Delicious Dish on NPR (a.k.a. Schweaty Balls)
7. John Belushi
He got more laughs with a single arched eyebrow than Horatio Sanz did with 25 minutes of nonstop madcap antics. Whether touting the nutritional bona fides of donuts or wistfully reminiscing while visiting the graves of former cast mates, Belushi boasted more range than most classically trained stage actorsand could still pull off fart jokes with aplomb. Had he not been derailed by substance-abuse issues, he’d have morphed into a hell of a character actor by now.
Best bit: Samurai Delicatessen
6. Gilda Radner
The show’s most joyous performer, Radner’s sunny smile masked a serious anarchic bent. Unlike most of the show’s early-era legends, Radner was as comfortable fronting a band (as Patti Smith sound- and sleaze-alike Candy Slice) as she was at the “Weekend Update” desk (where she weighed in as confused pundit Emily Litella and hygiene-obsessed Roseanne Roseannadanna).
Best bit: Lisa Loopner
5. Chris Farley
Forget that he weighed half a ton and, toward the end of his run, couldn’t scratch his ear without breaking into a massive sweat. Farley trumps his idol John Belushi and every other comer as SNL’s most physically agile comedian, whether destroying thousands of dollars worth of sets as hopped-up motivational guru Matt Foley or retreating into himself as the sheepish host of “The Chris Farley Show” (to Paul McCartney: “You remember when you were with the Beatles?”).
Best bit: Chippendales audition
4. Eddie Murphy [my personal favorite]
Of all the 300-odd SNL cast members, none has been asked to carry the show by him or herself like Murphy was—and none could have pulled it off with such seeming ease. Without Eddie Murphy, in fact, SNL wouldn’t have survived the lean years between the original troupe and the Carvey/Hartman/Nealon era. For that reason, it’s easier to forgive him for his sharply reduced effort once 48 Hours punted him into the comic stratosphere.
Best bit: James Brown’s Celebrity Hot Tub Party
3. Dan Aykroyd
By far the most versatile player in the original troupe, and one of the few who excelled equally as a performer and as a writer. Aykroyd also ranks among the few players who could bounce easily between political sketches (especially as President Nixon in “The Final Days”) and stoner silliness (“Fred Garvin: Male Prostitute”). Is there a way to legally stop him from beating The Blues Brothers even further into the ground?
Best bit: Super Bass-O-Matic ’76
2. Will Ferrell
He cheered and danced and sang. He took off his shirt. He reveled in character-specific details (grizzly beards, cowbells, etc.). And oh!, the impressions: He played Unabomber Ted Kaczynski as a glib everyman, Neil Diamond as a porn-addicted hothead, and James Lipton as…well, James Lipton. Then as now, Ferrell is constitutionally incapable of not wringing every bit of funny out of a gag.
Best bit: Anything involving Harry Carey, Robert Goulet, Janet Reno, or Bill Brasky
1. Phil Hartman
His on-set nickname, “Glue,” tells you everything you need to know about the role he played during SNL’s late-’80s/early-’90s resurgence. He elevated everything and everyone with which he came in contact—his beatific grin during “Chopping Broccoli,” for instance, merits almost as big a laugh as the skit’s premise. Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer, the Anal Retentive Chef, Bill Clinton visiting McDonald’s…In honor of his ego-free comic eminence, say it once more, with feeling: Sassy!
Best bit: The Sinatra Group
Gerald R. Ford, who at 93 was America’s oldest living President, has died. This was one of our best and this truly saddens me.
In a statement released by his wife Betty, no cause, place or time of death was named. Ford had been in and out of the hospital the past several months, and was most recently treated for pneumonia.
“My family joins me in sharing the difficult news that Gerald Ford, our beloved husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather has passed away at 93 years of age,” Betty Ford said in the statement, issued from her husband’s office in Rancho Mirage, Calif. “His life was filled with love of God, his family and his country.”
President Bush called the former leader a “great American” in a statement issued by the White House, and offered sympathy, along with First Lady Laura Bush, to Ford’s wife and surviving family.
Former First Lady Nancy Reagan also issued a statement of sympathy, saying she felt that Ford’s early support of stem cell research “has been important in getting the U.S. Congress to debate the potential lifesaving cures and treatments that may result.”
Page Six have just obtained this crazy email from Lindsay Lohan, which she sent out to her lawyers and a bunch of friends. She is preparing to clean up her image and go to war with the media with the help of a high-powered friend - former Vice President Al Gore.
She truly has lost it. I’m sure she’s sent a few emails to “E.T.” in an attempt to “phone home” too. A line from the movie “As Good as it Gets” comes to mind. One of my favorite movies. “Sell crazy somewhere else… we’re all stocked up here”. [heh]
“Al Gore will help me. He came up to me last night and said he would be very happy to have a conversation with me,” Lohan wrote last week in a rambling, semi-literate e-mail to her friends and lawyers.
In the bizarre message read by Page Six, Lohan burbled, “If he is willing to help me, let’s find out. Hilary [sic] Clinton, Bill Clinton, and Evan Metroplis [sic], and John Daur who works with them would be willing, if we just ask. If we just ASK.”
Lohan was apparently inspired to send out the e-mail by a Page Six item on her “mean girls diva fit” at a GQ magazine party in L.A. Referring to a supermarket tabloid report claiming she had overdosed on drugs, she wrote, “Let’s sue the tabloids for saying the things they say. Defamation of character.”
Invoking what she puzzlingly calls the “way of the future-Howard Hughes,” her desire is to “release a politically/morally correct, fully adequite [sic] letter to the press.”
Lohan says she wants to state her opinions on “how our society should be educated for the better of our country. Our people . . . because I have such an impact on our younger generations, as well as generations older than me. Which we all know and can obviously see.”
Lohan then mentions taking a mystery person she refers to as “LR” to court for “what she’s done to me.
“It’s my life. I want to live it. People cannot lie and think that it is okay to continue on having done so. I have had many ups and downs, as do we all. But to make false accusations to one girl is unjust in my opinion. I am willing to do anything I need to get my life the way it should be.”
Lohan said she wanted to “hold a press conference” and “will do anything necessary to do so.” She said she is at “such a young and tender age in a woman’s life. It’s enough already, I’ve had enough and I am going to be the one to make a change.”
Lohan’s representative, Leslie Sloane Zelnik, had no comment.
The “LR” she is probably referring to is Lindsay Ratowsky, Lohan’s former assistant. Their split was not amicable.
Barack Obama and Bill Clinton had a meeting to smooth out hard feelings remaining from a bitter campaign.In Obama’s first comments about his widely-covered phone conversation with the former president Monday morning, the Illinois senator said the two did not dwell on the prolonged and at times divisive primary race.
Over the last few years, aides have winced at repeated tabloid reports about Clinton’s episodic friendship and occasional dinners out with Belinda Stronach, a twice-divorced billionaire auto-parts heiress and member of the Canadian Parliament 20 years his junior, or at more recent high-end Hollywood dinner-party gossip that Clinton has been seen visiting with the actress Gina Gershon in California.
