Fashion designer Calvin Klein, 67, said that he and his 21-year-old boyfriend Nick Gruber are still together, according to the New York Post. At the premiere of Madonna's film, W.E., Klein was without Gruber. However, he said that his beau was out West skiing, adding, "We still have a wonderful relationship and I love him. "We're not NOT together. ... He's a very special person in my life."
The T-word ( as in "tranny" ) has taken center stage in Elle magazine and its interview with Gossip Girl star Blake Lively, according to the Huffington Post. At one point, Lively said, "I hope to have a few girls one day. If not girls, they better be trannies, because I have some amazing shoes and bags and stories that need to be appreciated." Back in 2009, she told Allure, "I feel like a tranny a lot of the time." Other celebrities, such as Neil Patrick Harris and Lance Bass, have gotten into hot water for using the word.
New York City's Joanne Trattoria—a new Upper West Side restaurant run by out celebrity chef Art Smith and Lady Gaga's father, Joe Germanotta—received a scathing review from New York Post critic Steve Cuozzo, according to Gothamist.com . Cuozzo wrote, "Forget the Edge of Glory. On opening night, 'Lady Gaga restaurant' Joanne on West 68th Street was close to the edge of collapse." Besides what he said was awful food, the critic complained of "acrid-smelling burnt vinegar wafting intermittently through the raucous dining room" and noted that Smith himself bussed tables.
Since splitting from fiancee Jennifer Elia, Chaz Bono's bad luck in the dating scene has him contemplating being the star of a Bachelor-like reality series, according to PerezHilton.com . Producers have reportedly approached him about doing a dating-type show and "he is all for it," but Cher is advising him against the idea. Supposedly, she's afraid Bono has become obsessed with being a "celebrity," and she is afraid that being on such a show will result in heartache and embarrassment.
In an interview with Metro Weekly, actor George Hamilton—currently touring in La Cage Aux Folles—talked about gay actors in the studio era, according to Queerty.com . "Well, it was said that if you were gay, you could not be a leading man. It was a dictum that was not verbally spoken, but generally thought by the studios," Hamilton said. "I knew actors that were gay. ... And they played heterosexual parts—look at Rock Hudson in Giant; what an incredible role he played. I think that dual life was very hard for all of them because they were playing something they really weren't."
Soul Train creator Don Cornelius died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound Feb. 1, according to USA Today. Soul Train—which began in Chicago as a local program in 1970 before moving to L.A. and going national 1971-2006—was one of the first U.S. shows to showcase African-Americans, and it introduced television audiences to such legendary artists as Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Marvin Gaye and Barry White.
MTV and Logo announced that Dan Savage—syndicated columnist, author, co-creator of the It Gets Better Project and star of MTV's upcoming series Savage U—will anchor a 60-minute "It Gets Better" special, according to a press release. The show will air on MTV and Logo Tuesday, Feb. 21, at 11 p.m. ET/PT. It Gets Better will focus on three young people at crossroads in their lives, and will include video messages from numerous celebrities, including Jake Shears, Maroon 5's Adam Levine, Zachary Quinto, Chaz Bono, Margaret Cho, and Savage and partner Terry Miller.
GLAAD announced that Yahoo! removed violent, anti-gay comments posted to the site's Y! Music "Reality Rocks" blog and will continue work to address anti-LGBT comments on its platforms, according to a press release. Readers alerted GLAAD to violent comments posted in response to an interview with gay musician Adam Lambert. Among the responses was: "It would make my day if someone was to do to [ Lambert ] what those men did to Matthew Shepard."
Actor Michael Fassbender ( Shame; X-Men: First Class ) was asked to leave the London after-party for his movie A Dangerous Method after lighting a cigarette inside, according to the Sun. The publication reported that co-stars Keira Knightley and Viggo Mortensen looked uncomfortable beside the 34-year-old actor. An attendee said that Fassbender "was grabbing his co-stars and waltzing around the room with them. He lit a cigarette indoors and that was the point it had gone too far."
Leslie Carter, the sister of Backstreet Boys singer Nick Carter, has died at age 25, according to Digital Spy. Leslie's stepmother, Ginger Carter, has said that the aspiring singer had "a long history of mental illness" and was taking prescription medication for depression for months before her death. A police report indicated that Leslie was under the influence of several drugs before her death, according to the New York Daily News.
French actor Jean Dujardin—the Oscar-nominated star of the current silent film The Artist—is under fire in his home country for a campaign involving his newest film, Les Infideles, according to Moviefone.com . Posters for the movie ( which is about male infidelity ) show Dujardin holding up a woman's legs, while another apparently shows co-star Gilles Lellouche receiving oral sex. France's ad-regulation board has advised JC Decaux, who manages the poster sites, to take them down.
Never one to bypass a TV opportunity, Kim Kardashian's public divorce trial will reportedly be televised, according to HollywoodLife.com . That means that Kardashian, soon-to-be ex Kris Humphries and probably many other Kardashians will have to testify about all aspects of the Kardashian/Humphries marriage for the world to hear—with the trial going on for weeks. Kim filed for divorce from Humphries Oct. 31, 2011, 72 days after getting married.
Talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres challenged First Lady Michelle Obama to a push-up contest on her show, People.com reported. Obama didn't disappoint, as he quickly did 25—much to the surprise of the host. "I just stopped," the First Lady said, hinting she could have done many more. DeGeneres said, ""I thought it wouldn't be good to show up the First Lady, so I stopped. I thought, 'This looks bad that I'm going to beat her. I'm 54, and you're 48.'"
NBC has picked up several pilots for next fall—including a new Roseanne Bar project, Entertainment Weekly reported. Barr will star in Downwardly Mobile, a project that will have the actress/comedian playing the "proprietor of a mobile-home park and surrogate mother to all of the unique people who live there in a challenging economy." Among other pilots are an untitled comedy from late-night host Jimmy Fallon about three thirtysomething guys, and Daddy's Girl, about a young woman who discovers her father is dating the mean girl from her high school.
Out fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld has described the debut collection for new label Karl as "very graphic," according to Sky News Australia. He said, "It's a graphic idea of what I like, what could be translated from me to girls. It's very graphic; black and white, silver and gray." He has also said that he'd like to make more affordable clothing: "The middle class does not have enough class that I think the middle class should have."
Speaking of Lagerfeld, he said some controversial things during his recent stint as guest editor of Metro, according to Newser.com . About British singer Adele, he said, "She is a little too fat, but she has a beautiful face and a divine voice." Regarding Russians, he said, "If I was a woman in Russia I would be a lesbian, as the men are very ugly. There are a few handsome ones, like Naomi Campbell's boyfriend, but there you see the most beautiful women and the most horrible men."
In the wake of the ousters of judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger, X Factor judge/executive producer has reportedly offered Beyonce $500 million to be a judge on the show, according to Sky News Australia. A source said that Cowell "wants Beyonce because that would immediately give him the bounce needed to beat American Idol." American Idol judge Randy Jackson, however, thinks Mariah Carey would be a good addition to X Factor. Jackson added that he saddened by the departures of Abdul, Scherzinger and host Steve Jones.
The Ellen DeGeneres-produced comedy starring wife Portia de Rossi is going to pilot—but on ABC, not at NBC, where the pitch was originally sold, according to Deadline.com . The show centers on dueling sisters; de Rossi plays one of them, a brilliant woman who has to work for her less successful sibling. The project is from Warner Bros TV and DeGeneres' studio-based production company, A Very Good Production.
Out rocker Adam Lambert, 30, is replacing the late Freddie Mercury as the lead singer of Queen when the group tours this summer, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. "The intention is to pay tribute to Freddie and the band by singing some ... great songs," said Lambert, referring to the group's hits such as "Somebody to Love" and "Under Pressure." Mercury died in 1991 of an AIDS-related illness. Lambert's second solo album, Trespassing, is slated to be released in March.
The Romance Writers Ink chapter of the Romance Writers of America ( RWA ) is holding its annual "More Than Magic" ( MTM ) contest—but stories with LGBT themes are not allowed. Among the rules of the contest—which has several categories, including erotic romance, paranormal and "sensual contemporary"—is, "MTM will no longer accept same-sex entries in any category." On her blog, The Amazon Iowan, Heidi Cullinan wrote, "As president of the Rainbow Romance Writers, RWA's chapter for LGBT chapter, it's my job to address the situation. ... Does that [ rule ] seem harsh? Probably only if you're not gay or passionate about the rights of LGBT persons."
During Joan and Melissa Rivers' joint appearance on Anderson Cooper's talk show, Melissa revealed that she staged an intervention to stop her mother from having plastic surgery, according to the Daily Mail. Melissa said, "At one point I start to think the risk outweighs the reward, and I wanted my mom to know how I felt about it. I think I made myself fairly clear, and I also found out that most of my friends are weak and she turned them very easily." Reportedly, Joan has had more than 700 procedures.
Actor Daniel Radcliffe, 22, said that he was under the influence of alcohol when he filmed at least one Harry Potter movie, the New York Daily News reported. He told Heat magazine he often drank so much whiskey he'd arrive on the set of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince still drunk, but added that he never drank on the set itself. He said things got so bad he turned to Potter co-star Gary Oldman, who has battled alcoholism, for advice.
The Oprah Winfrey Network's The Rosie Show, shot in Chicago, is retooling its show by cutting staff and moving to a more intimate space as it tries to boost ratings, according to ChicagoBusiness.com . The show, cut approximately 30 employees and contract workers in the past month. It has also moved to a smaller studio and has taken out certain segments of the program, including the game-show aspect.
Neil Patrick Harris and partner David Burtka do not engage in baby talk with their 15-month-old twins. Talking with People magazine, Harris said, "My parents always talked to my brother and myself like we were regular people and not babies. So I don't talk down to them in baby talk. I try to talk to them even though they can't speak the language yet." About the babies, Harris added, "They're thankfully in the new huggy, clingy, head-on-shoulders phase, which is fantastic."
Singer Lana Del Rey has hinted that she may not make another album, according to Digital Spy. The singer—recently criticized for a Saturday Night Live appearance generally seen as pretty shaky—has the current album Born to Die. "I don't think I'll write another record," she told Vogue. "What would I say? I feel like everything I wanted to say, I've said already."
Get ready for more Paris Hilton. According to Digital Spy, the socialite/reality-TV fixture said that she has collaborated with rapper Flo Rida ( "Right Round" ) on tracks for her new album. Hilton—who had her debut album, Paris, in 2006—also said on Twitter that she is "working hard" on the record, which she had described as being "perfect party music."
Broadway icon Betty Buckley slammed American Idol judge Randy Jackson for dismissing some of the show's singers as "too Broadway," the New York Post reported. "With respect, 'Dog,' your opinion is whack & uninformed!" Buckley tweeted, adding that he was being "beyong idiotic." Buckley told the Post, "I don't know how many Broadway shows Randy Jackson has been to, but clearly not many, because there's a wide variety of shows on Broadway." Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe responded to Buckley's tweets, saying, "I will certainly speak with Randy."
Madonna received generally good reviews for her Super Bowl halftime show Feb. 5. "It's Madonna Louise Ciccone's world; we're just living in it," Billboard.com wrote about her performance. The Chicago Tribune wrote, "This was Madonna's party, and besides breaking off bits of her greatest hits to remind people of a time when she was the biggest pop vixen on the planet, she had important career-advancing work to do," referring to her upcoming album, MDNA. During the show, Madonna ( who, like all halftime performers, sang for free ) was everything from an Egyptian queen to a choir member, and has special guests such as Nicki Minaj, M.I.A. ( who stuck out her middle finger in one spot ) , LMFAO and Cee Lo Green.
Speaking of Madonna, she has announced the dates for her six-month world tour, according to Digital spy. The tour will launch May 29 at the Ramat Gan Stadium in Tel Aviv, Israel, and will hit several cities in Europe, including Barcelona and Paris. The North American leg will start Aug. 28 in Philadelphia, with additional dates in such places as Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and Atlanta ( where it ends Nov. 17 ) .
Naomi Campbell—who ruled the runways with Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista and others in the '90s—says she's no supermodel, according to People.com . She told Harper's Bazaar, "I would never call myself that. I don't have any superhuman powers." Campbell, who once said in 1999 that she smoked and didn't diet, now admits she works hard to keep herself trim.
Ryan Murphy—the out gay creator of the TV series Glee and American Horror Story—revealed on Andy Cohen's show, Watch What Happens Live, that Jessica Lange will return for the second season of "Story," the L.A. Times reported. Cohen asked, "You are recasting American Horror Story for next season. Will Jessica Lange make an appearance?" Murphy simply answered, "Yes." However, 20th Century Fox, which produces the show, said no deal has been made yet. Lange has won a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild award for her role on the show.
Jersey Shore's Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Jennifer "J-Woww" Farley talked with the Huffington Post about sexuality while promoting their show. Among other things, Farley said she wants marriage equality in New Jersey—and Polizzi considers herself to be bisexual, adding, "I've done stuff with girls before. But I would never BE with a girl because I like ... penis." Polizzi also said that Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino wonders about his sexuality.
