Do Whitney and Audrina Even Have Last Names?
I've noticed that the world seems to be on a first-name basis with the girls from The Hills. I mean, do Whitney and Audrina even have last names?Becca, Madison, Wisc.
Now that's just silly. What about the New York Times, which never bows to trends and nearly always pairs an honorific with a last name, like Mr. and Ms. So and So? Take this here NYT review of The Hills written last month, which says thatOHGREATGOOGLY MOOGLYTHEWORLDISGOINGTOHELL:
"The Hills…has continued to track the emotional warfare between former best friends Lauren and Heidi."
So. The whole world is on a first-name basis with those kids. Huh. Well, here's what's clear: The trend starts with celebrity magazines. When Us Weekly decides that someone is famous enough for first-name treatment ("Betrayed by Brody and Audrina"? Eek!), the editors are assuming that readers already know who they are.
"The readers see the celebrities as their friends," says Mark Pasetsky, former Life & Style editor and the current head of CoverAwards.com. "You wouldn't call your friend by their last name when you go to see them. The people who buy these magazines know these stars, and you don't want to insult their intelligence by using a last name."
Sure, readers know who celebrities are because mags keep covering them, and the magazines keep covering celebrities because the readers want to knowbut let's not go tumbling down that Kool-Aid-colored spiral, shall we?
Instead, some examples:
- Jessica Simpson. Judging from an examination of old Us Weekly coverspardon me for a second while the gag reflex fadesshe was still unknown enough to have a last name in 2002. But by '04 she was just Jessica. And now she's simply Jess.
- Britney. The media largely dropped the "Spears" in 2000, about a year after she broke big, judging from old coverage I dug up from People magazine.
- Paris. Back in 2003, she apparently hadn't yet inserted herself into the lives of all 6.5 billion people on the planet, because Us largely included her last name in its coverage. But she was a one-name wonder by August of '04.
- Beyoncé. Back when she had to share the spotlight with Destiny's Child, she had a last name, Knowles. But just today, when the Associated Press reported that the singer had taken out a marriage license with Jay-Z, the outlet referred to her as just Beyoncé.
Oh, you had a question in there, didn't you, Becca? Yes, Audrina and Whitney do have last names. They are Patridge and Port, respectively. But really. Why would you need those when talking about your BFFs?
Steve Madden, Wife Welcome Twins
Shoe designer Steve Madden and his wife, Wendy, welcomed twins Wednesday, the designer’s rep confirms to PEOPLE.
“Jack Madden and his sister, Stevie Madden, were born yesterday in New York City,” the designer’s rep, Mitchell Fink, says in a statement released Thursday.
“Young Jack weighed in at 6 lbs., 6 oz., and Stevie made her debut at 5 lbs., 8 oz. Mother and children are doing fine,” the statement also says.
A first-time father, Madden, 50, married his former director of operations, Wendy Ballew, 36, in 2006.
As for having twins, the “Maddens like everything in pairs,” the designer tells PEOPLE.
The babies’ arrivals were first reported in the Page Six column of the New York Post and in New York’s Daily News.
Up next for the designer, whose shoe empire is worth an estimated $500 million? Says his rep, “He is already contemplating a line of shoes for toddlers.”
Who’s turning 40? Which celebs are high school dropouts? What’s hot and definitely not in fall fashion?
Check out PEOPLE’s new digital magazine now!
Big Brother: Eviction #4 and HOH #5
(S09E14) I just need to take a moment to say, “I called it!” I knew from the very beginning when Sheila, during the first HOH competition, sat on Adam’s lap and rubbed her boobs in his face. I knew that she didn’t hate him. And I knew that while he thought she was annoying, he kind of liked her too. Some of you even pointed this out in your comments. And now, my BB friends, we have the confirmation. Adam gave Sheila $10,000 during the PoV competition on Tuesday night.
The funny thing is…well, there’s two funny things. First, Adam has no job (except he doesn’t know that yet). So, 10K probably would have come in handy. Second, Ryan took away Sheila’s money when he won the Power of Veto. Okay, now I’m done and I can do the recap.
Post-Veto Drama!
“That’s gangsta!,” so said Matt after Ryan put James on the block after Chelsia took herself off. I think that makes James (and by extension Joshua) the “wanksta,” to borrow the term from rapper 50 Cent.
Well, such gangsta tactics do not go unnoticed by the other hamsters. Matt relished in the moment of triumph by repeating, “It’s on!” Josh looked the same way he looked when Allison got a brief second chance in the house: so angry he could just throw up.
Chelsia marched up to the HOH room and yelled at Ryan for going back on his word. She thinks it’s stupid he passed up two weeks safety. She said she knew he couldn’t be trusted. He said he couldn’t put up Matt because Matt’s his “boy.” She basically told him that the lines have been drawn in the sand and she’s coming for him. Matt and Joshua joined them but Ryan quickly sent everyone downstairs except Josh. I was expecting Josh to be livid with Ryan but they had a calm conversation. Josh even said that he would go along with Ryan’s new nomination. What a tool.
Flip-Flopping
The hamsters are flip-flopping like crazy this season. I think it’s because they started out as pairs (pairs that BB forced upon them) and so the natural alliances never solidified.
After James was nominated, everyone wanted to vote him out. He’s a strong player and his alliance with Chelsia (another strong player) is something to be feared. However, Sharon told Sheila during some girl talk that she was playing Matt. Sharon also revealed that she and Matt had made out. This was a stupid move on Sharon’s part. Go ahead and play with Matt. But don’t flaunt it in front of anyone else–especially when a girl who is completely obsessed with him is still in the house.
With the information from Sharon, Sheila ran to Natalie who, in a symbolic peeing on Matt’s leg, started campaigning against Sharon. Sheila, too, agreed that her gut told her to get rid of Sharon. But I thought Sheila wanted to get rid of James? If she a mastermind or just menopausal? I’m sure we’ll find out in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile in Sequester…
This season on Big Brother there were four different sequester houses and none of them were in the islands or Mexico as in previous seasons. Each couple had their own house and if the couple had been split up (as in the case of Jacob and Allison), those people had his/her own house.
Jen and Parker seem to be getting along well. Amanda and Alex still bicker like an old married couple. He totally wants her and is still upset about her flirting with Parker. I can tell. Allison does yoga (by the way, the editing of her confessional and her yoga moves was brilliant). And Jacob presses the BIble to his forehead and prays aloud for the remaining houseguests.
The Big Reveal
Julie started by asking Jen if she was surprised that Ryan wasn’t there with them or if she was surprised that Allison was there. Jen had a good answer to that one, I think. She said she was just suprised that Ryan wasn’t there WITH Allison. Julie also informed Allison that Ryan had won HOH right after she left. Allison started to say that she was very happy for him but the mics cut out and we heard Matt explaining something unimportant instead.
But the Chen wasn’t just going to announce America’s choice. She explained that after the houseguests voted someone out they would then vote again. They would choose if they wanted to vote back in who they just evicted or the person America chose. America’s choice would remain in a “mystery box,” which turned out to be a real box. Then Chenster pulled a Seacrest and told Parker he was second place in the vote. So, who went in the box? America voted for Alex, the DJ from New York.
The Eviction Ceremony
James was evicted by a vote of 5 to 1. Chelsia was the only one who voted to keep him and the only one who got up to see him to the door. He explained to Julie that he asked everyone to remain seated because he didn’t want to hug a bunch of people who can’t keep their word.
Julie played a video made by Chelsia in which she cried and said how she never thought she was going to met someone on reality TV. After the video, James had one of his two best lines ever on Big Brother. Julie asked him what he thought of Chelsia’s video and he said, “Intense.” I laughed out loud. But that wasn’t all for James and his quips. After Julie explained that he might have a new lease on life in the BB house, he exclaimed, “I might crap my pants.”
The Second Vote
Given the decision to either welcome back James or the mystery person, the hamsters decided James was the lesser of two evils.
Voted for James: Chelsia (obviously), Sharon (afraid the mystery box holds Jacob), Josh (afraid the mystery box holds Allison), Natalie (doesn’t know who she voted for), Adam (not sure why)
Voted for Mystery Guest: Sheila (hoping it was Allison), Ryan (hoping it was Jen), Mattie (just didn’t want James back / hoping it was Alex)
HOH Competition
It was Big Brother Disco tonight! The houseguests are suspended above the ground on disco balls (well, small disks set above disco balls) and they have to stay there…all night if need be. Nothing major happened. James seemed pretty pissed about his eviction still. But that doesn’t surprise me.
Tune in on Sunday night at 8 pm ET/PT to see who won the competition and who he/she is nominating.
Jennifer Lopez is Having Twins
Jennifer Lopez is Having Twins
If you were planning on buying baby gifts for Jennifer Lopez, you’d better make sure they come in pairs. According to her father, she’s having twins.
That’s right, Jennifer and her hubby Marc Anthony are expecting twins. And it turns out, it’s a hereditary thing for the “Waiting For Tonight” singer.
David Lopez, Jen’s father, told press, “Yes, twins. The thing is in my family, my sister also had twins, so it’s a hereditary thing. I’m very proud. Jennifer has yearned to be a mother for many years,”
And if you’re searching all over for what to get the Lopez-Anthony little ones, David has a suggestion. “In Puerto Rico it’s custom to buy an azabache [black stone] bracelet for babies to protect them from the evil eye, it’s part of our culture.”