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Matthew McConaughey is still talking about his mom’s behavior towards his wife Camila Alves when they first started dating. This whole press cycle began when Camila did a podcast interview and shared how Kay McCabe aka Ma Mac, “tested” her when she first started dating Matthew. For example, McCabe would call Camila by Matthew’s ex-girlfriends names and speak to her in broken Spanish, even though her native language is Portuguese. A lot of people did not find this treatment funny and rightfully called it out as abusive. MM tried to do damage control by laughing Ma Mac’s behavior off as a rite of passage in the McConaughey family. Yeah, no one was buying that one either. Now, Matthew is once again defending Kay, framing it as “looking out” for him.

“My family — and part of Camila and I as well — we cherish the value of a sense of humor and comedy,” the Oscar winner said on the “Whine Down with Jana Kramer” podcast Monday while admitting that his mother Mary McCabe’s treatment of Alves when they met had ruffled some feathers.

“Some people were like, ‘Oh, my gosh,’ but … Camila wasn’t wounded about it,” he insisted. “What tickles us may bruise others.”

McConaughey, 53, went on to praise his mom for “looking out for” him when he began his relationship with the now-41-year-old model.

“She was looking out for me,” he said. “She tested my feelings and tested the woman I had the feelings for. Big picture, that’s pretty cool actually.”

The “Interstellar” star also gave Alves a shout-out for going “right through” the hazing and earning McCabe’s respect.

[From Page Six]

Meh. I have never heard the phrase, “What tickles us may bruise others.” Is that a Texas thing? Maybe Matthew’s next book should be a compilation of random sayings, lol. But in all seriousness, MM had a messed up childhood. He also had a rocky relationship with Kay when he first became famous and stopped talking to her for eight years to set some boundaries. He likely still craves affection from his mother and probably has a very skewed way of looking for it. I believe him when he says that he thinks it was “cool” that his mom was looking out for him. Bless his heart. I just wish he’d understand that good intentions do not justify bad actions. Ma Mac’s actions towards his wife were still abusive.

When this story first broke, a lot of you shared some really great personal stories about getting along with your in-laws. At the end of the day, it’s up to Camila to decide what she wants to put up with, but Matthew needs to stop normalizing and justifying his mother’s behavior. Every time he does another interview explaining it away, it just brings more attention to it. Matthew, we’re in Hollywood Divorce Szn. Stop talking about your mom and everyone will forget about it soon enough.

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photos credit: Avalon.red and Getty

This week, the Ephraim Hardcastle column “reported” something very obvious, which is that King Charles’s slimmed down monarchy is very slim, and that Charles views his family quite differently than his mother. QEII saw everyone as part of “the Family Firm” while Charles categorizes the fam as “Senior Royals, Working Royals, Non-Working Royals and Others. The Others are, apparently, Andrew, Harry and Meghan – with Andrew getting preferential treatment over the Sussexes.” As I said, it was obvious, but the Mail does love to rake over old news and repackage it as something new. Anyone watching the Windsor sh-tshow in recent years has gotten the message loud and clear: a rapist pervert is preferable to a prince married to a Black woman. Tom Sykes, another master of the obvious, devoted his column to this too, that “sources close to Andrew” are quite pleased that Andrew is treated better than the Sussexes, and that Charles will continue to give Andrew what he wants because Andrew has never given an interview to Oprah.

Andrew gets better treatment than Harry: The differing treatment meted out to Andrew and Harry in respect of their security arrangements seems, with the benefit of hindsight, a foreshadowing of what has since become a routine habit of the new king; namely giving Andrew notably better treatment than Harry, despite his brother’s out-of-court settlement for a reputed $14 million with Virginia Giuffre over underage sex abuse allegations. Of course, there are complicating factors; principally that Harry lives in California not Windsor, and that Harry seems in no rush to bend the knee to his father. But the inconvenient fact remains that it rather looks like the king would prefer you pay off a sex accuser than give an interview to Oprah Winfrey.

Why Andrew is in the king’s good books: A friend of Andrew’s confirmed to The Daily Beast that Andrew believes he is in the king’s good books compared to Harry: “If you were Charles, would you rather have a problem that looks like Harry and Meghan or a problem that looks like Andrew? Andrew has taken his punishment, withdrawn from public life and done whatever has been asked of him. He knows he has damaged the monarchy. So have Harry and Meghan. The difference is [Andrew] deeply regrets it and it was not intentional, whereas Harry and Meghan deliberately set out to cause as much damage to Charles and Camilla as they could to sell books and TV shows. That’s an entirely different matter. Disloyalty is far and away the No. 1 crime in that family.”

A template for a Sussex reconciliation: “The extent to which the king has publicly made it clear Andrew is still part of the family has caught some people by surprise. But ultimately, he has the interests of the monarchy at heart, and that means a united family, whatever its problems. Hopefully that message is getting through to Harry and Meghan.”

Outside the tent, pissing in: A former Buckingham Palace staffer put the king’s strategic case for including Andrew in family set pieces more bluntly, saying: “It’s the oldest question in politics: would you rather have the troublemakers inside the tent pissing out or outside the tent pissing in? Harry is very much outside the tent pissing in and it’s a problem. Andrew is inside the tent pissing out, and that suits Charles better.”

Historian Andrew Lownie’s thoughts: The royal historian Andrew Lownie, who is publishing a biography of Prince Andrew next year, told The Daily Beast: “Harry is a loose cannon and Meghan even more so. They both have more books coming. The strategy, I believe, is to keep in with him and to marginalize her, which is exactly what they did with Wallis and the Duke of Windsor. Andrew has been loyal to a certain extent. He’s made some implicit threats, and things have been floated about books and TV interviews, but ultimately he is a loyalist. Andrew is less of a problem than Harry. He may become more of a problem, especially when my book comes out, because I think there will be things in there that will rock the boat. But he’s not been rude about Camilla. He’s not set out to destabilize the monarchy. He hasn’t spilled secrets.”

How the family views Andrew: Lownie said: “I think some of them feel sorry for him. He says the accusations against him are false, and there are suggestions that some of the family believe him.” Lownie also hints that Camilla may have had a significant role in urging Charles to reconcile with his brother—who he didn’t get on with particularly well before he was accused of sex crimes.

[From The Daily Beast]

“But ultimately, he has the interests of the monarchy at heart, and that means a united family, whatever its problems. Hopefully that message is getting through to Harry and Meghan.” No – Charles is a weak man who can’t stand to deal with things directly, so instead of speaking to his son and apologizing and figuring out a way forward, Charles is making a point of allowing his staff to brief against Harry and Meghan, leak sh-t about them and shun them. The message being sent to the Sussexes is actually as Lownie describes: “The strategy, I believe, is to keep in with him and to marginalize her.” Charles wants to keep some sort of line open to Harry – indirectly, of course – but treat Meghan like she doesn’t exist and is not worth his respect or regard. The galaxy-brains at Buckingham Palace think this is a good look for the king, they think it plays well that he can’t wait to include a rapist in family events but he won’t allow his son to stay in a guest room for one night.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

The biggest “tell” that King Charles and Queen Camilla’s big French tour flopped was the utter lack of post-tour buzz. It was that way after the coronation too – these are supposedly the monarchy’s biggest setpieces and they have zero shelf life. The coronation was a boring slog and people couldn’t wait to change the subject the second it was over. It was the same after the French tour – instead of a weekend full of glowing coverage, Buckingham Palace spent the days following the tour running around, briefing the Times, the Telegraph and the Sun about Prince Harry. The Mail didn’t get that memo and they’re still trying to put lipstick on this pig. The Mail’s Palace Confidential round-table had a big discussion about how Brigitte Macron is apparently a huge royalist and she loves reading gossip about the Windsors:

Brigitte Macron loves reading about the British Royal Family who are ‘huge sellers’ of celebrity magazines in France, experts have revealed. Madame Macron and her husband President Emmanuel Macron cosied up to the King and Queen on their recent state visit to France – with the two couples becoming fast friends. Camilla and Brigitte seemed particularly close, giggling together and helping each other out during the trip – which has been deemed a huge success for the monarchy.

Speaking to Palace Confidential, the Daily Mail’s Royal Editor Rebecca English explained that both the Macrons and the French public were charmed by Charles and Camilla.

‘It has definitely been viewed as a success by the Palace,’ she explained. ‘I’ve covered a lot of state visits over the years and I think it was definitely up there in terms of setting up things to happen and actually achieving it. There was a real warmth and welcome from President Macron and his wife, and from the crowds as well. You never know what you’re gonna get and the opportunities to mingle with the crowds were limited, as there have been big security issues in France. There were big cries of “Vive Le Roi” which is probably the first time in 100 years they’ve heard that in France. I would have thought [the French would] be too cool for it but far from it.’

‘One of the things I’ve learned from meeting some new friends on some of the French celeb mags is the Royal Family are big sellers for them. And apparently one of the big consumers is Madame Macron – she loves reading about the British Royal Family, particularly the Princess of Wales’.

[From The Daily Mail]

From what I’ve seen as a gossip blogger, the French tabloids are not as nasty and sadistic as the British tabloids, and the French/European tabloids tend to treat royals the same way they treat celebrities. Meaning, I doubt Brigitte Macron wants people to know that she’s reading the tabloids for celebrity gossip, nor do I believe that reading royal gossip means that she’s some big fan of the royals. Anyway, the British royalists just keep trying to convince themselves that their royalty is so big, important and newsworthy. While I do think a lot of people are paying attention to the Windsors, it’s the gossip equivalent of a hate-watch. Like, we’re watching a slow-motion train wreck. We’re watching the Titanic go down very slowly.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.

Oprah Winfrey is still talking about weight, diets and Ozempic. Previously, we discussed Oprah’s comments – made during a panel discussion – about her mixed or negative feelings about weight loss drugs. I think there was some nuance to what she said, but the headline (which I used) was her quote about feeling like Ozempic is “the easy way out” for someone who wants to or needs to lose weight. You also have to remember that Oprah was trying to spur real conversation about the science and mentality of weight gain and weight loss. During the same panel discussion, Oprah spoke about what life was like for her when she was at her heaviest:

Oprah Winfrey is speaking candidly about dealing with weight stigma. The media mogul, 68, recently hosted a panel, Oprah Daily’s “The Life You Want Class: The State of Weight,” where she discussed the obesity and weight crisis, which affects 2 billion adults globally. She held the conversation alongside obesity specialists Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford and Dr. Melanie Jay, psychologist Dr. Rachel Goldman and Sima Sistani, the CEO of WeightWatchers.

During the panel, Winfrey told those in attendance, “You all know I’ve been on this journey for most of my life. My highest weight was 237 lbs. I don’t know if there is another public person whose weight struggle has been exploited as much as mine over the years.”

“You all have watched me diet and diet and diet,” she continued, before noting that it’s “a recurring thing because my body always seems to want to go back to a certain weight.”

Detailing that she would notice how people would treat her differently when she weighed over 200 lbs., Winfrey said, “This is a world that has shamed people for being overweight forever. And all of us who’ve lived it know that people treat you differently, they just do,” she continued.

The former talk show host then explained that she found she dealt with that stigma the most while shopping.

“It’s that thing where people are like, ‘Let me show you the gloves. Would you like to look at the handbags? Because we know that there’s nothing in here for you,’ ” she said. “There is a condescension. There is stigma.”

[From People]

Yeah, she’s right. Even when I was at my slimmest, years ago, I was probably a size 10/12 (in American sizing) and I got the same looks whenever I went shopping in one of those boutiques full of clothes for size-4 people exclusively. The thing about being heavier or overweight is that you immediately limit your expectations too – it’s not just about people stigmatizing you, you stigmatize yourself, you say “oh, I can’t shop there, they won’t have anything for me, I can’t do that, I won’t be welcome there.” It wears you down.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

I come into this story with a heavy bias: I skip conditioner a lot. I have coarse, thick, slightly wavy, oily hair. Conditioner makes my hair feel weighed down and takes the wave out of it. Yes, I am a hairstylist’s worst nightmare, I know. But it’s nice to have one thing in life that’s truly low maintenance. Unfortunately for me, the experts are saying that conditioner is necessary. Allure talked to a hairstylist, two cosmetic chemists, and a dermatologist about all things conditioner. They said that conditioner is important to use after every shampoo to prevent breakage and add shine–but that you don’t need to buy one for your specific hair type. And the “right way” to apply it involves long fluid motions and leaving it on for at least two minutes.

Why you should use conditioner every time you shampoo: Conditioners smooth and detangle the hair, which, therefore, helps reduce breakage and split ends — and that’s precisely why New York City-based hairstylist Chuck Bass recommends conditioning every time you shampoo in order to add moisture back, as well as to soften and detangle. He’s not the only one who recommends this hair-care approach. “Any time you shampoo your hair you should condition it,” urges [Perry] Romanowski. “It really makes the hair easier to comb and style.” There you have it.

The “right” way to apply conditioner: Believe it or not, there is a right and wrong way to condition your hair. The right way, according to Los Angeles-based hairstylist Nathaniel Hawkins, is to apply the product in long, fluid motions, and to ensure you squeeze some of the water out of your strands after shampooing so that it doesn’t diminish the effects of the conditioner.

“Excess water dilutes your conditioner and prevents hair from soaking up moisturizing the ingredients,” he explains.

As far as how long you should leave it in for, Hawkins says two minutes should suffice, as this is approximately how much time it takes for the conditioner to adhere to the hair.

There isn’t that much of a difference between conditioners: According to Romanowski, there actually isn’t a huge incentive to use conditioners based on your hair type. “In truth, there is not much measurable difference between products marketed for normal, damaged, color-treated, or curly hair,” he says. “Most modifications to the formula are done for theoretical reasons, but you probably wouldn’t be able to tell as a consumer that they are different.”

[From Allure]

I’m not sure I believe that all conditioners are that similar, but I’m as susceptible to marketing as the next person. For the most part I’ve used drugstore shampoos and conditioners, but whenever I try out a fancy brand, it’s always the shampoo that seems to work better than the conditioner. Hair is so individual that I always chafe against the idea that “everyone” should use a certain product in a certain way. For people with very fine or textured hair, skipping conditioner would probably be a disaster. For me, it’s the only way to fully activate my natural wave (besides swimming in the ocean).  Then again, I am kind to my hair in other ways: I basically never heat style it because the wiring in my apartment is so old that the hairdryer shorts out the entire floor of my building. I learned that the hard way. Bottom line, I’m overruling the experts with absolutely zero authority here and saying: skip conditioner every now and then if you have coarse, thick hair like mine. You may be surprised to discover that your ‘pin straight’ hair actually has a natural S-shaped wave to it.

Photos credit Cottonbro Studios, Caique Nascimento, Armin Rimoldi and Ron Lach via Pexels

Anne Hathaway wore… this. As Tim Gunn would say, that’s a whole lotta look. At least her hair looks amazing! [GFY]
Republicans give their reasons for ousting Kevin McCarthy. [Jezebel]
Brian Austin Green talks about raising a gay son. [Socialite Life]
The backstory of The Golden Bachelor. [Starcasm]
Loki is back! Tried to read a summary of the first season, couldn’t follow it. [LaineyGossip]
Kevin Spacey possibly had a heart attack. [Pajiba]
A lot of actors have tried to get their costars fired. [Buzzfeed]
Sam Asghari slams Donald Trump Jr. over his bullying of Britney Spears.[JustJared]
Salma Hayek & Camila Cabello ate tacos together. [Egotastic]
David Letterman used to appear on game shows. [Seriously OMG]

Here are some additional photos of the Princess of Wales at her event on Wednesday. She traveled ten miles from Adelaide Cottage to visit Vsi Razom Community Hub in the Lexicon shopping center in Bracknell. Yesterday, I called it a “refugee center” and a “community center.” It’s not really either – it’s more like a staging area for Ukrainian refugee volunteers who are putting together care packages for the people still in Ukraine. So, in some sense, yes, it’s a place where Ukrainian refugees gather and find their community in the UK, and where they go to try to do what they can to send help and support to the Ukrainian people who have been fighting a Russian invasion, widespread Russian bombing and widespread Russian war crimes for about nineteen months. And Kate still showed up empty f–king handed.

But wait, she did something special for the Ukrainian people: she wrote six words on some of the boxes. “We are all thinking of you.” You can see her handwriting below – it genuinely looks like she wrote “we ore all thinKing g yn.” The random capitalized K is on-brand in a million different ways – y’all know she’s been practicing writing “the King and I” and “my husband, the King!” According to People, Kate rarely signs anything “to avoid risk of forgery.” She should come up with her own special seal in a button shape.

Anyway, I remember when another duchess wrote short affirmations on bananas as part of the care packages being handed out to homeless women and sex workers. Meghan was pregnant at the time and she spent several minutes just writing simple affirmations like “you are strong” and “you are brave.” It was a small, uplifting gesture. She was ripped to shreds for it and the papers paid one of the sex workers to call Meghan’s gesture “stupid” and insult her for not doing more. I’m waiting for something similar to happen here. Right? I mean, Kate wrote the most basic-bitch “we’re thinKING about y’all, smell ya later” message on packages going to people living in a warzone. Surely we’ll hear Kate criticized in the same way? What’s that? Oh.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Commander Biden, much like Major Biden, has a “biting problem.” Major Biden was sent to live in Delaware, and then President Biden’s brother gifted him with a German Shepherd puppy, Commander. Last week, we heard that the Secret Service is suddenly known for their meticulous record-keeping when it comes to dog bites (not so much their enabling of domestic terrorism on January 6th) and they have records of “eleven” biting incidents involving Commander. Politico did follow-up reporting, basically saying that White House staff actually love Commander and he’s a really friendly dog, but yeah, he possibly bites a couple of Secret Service guys from time to time. Well, Commander didn’t even make it to Thanksgiving at the White House – Commander has been sent away, and “Secret Service” sources are crying to CNN about how Commander was biting everyone. What is actually happening here?

President Joe Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden’s 2-year-old German shepherd, Commander, has been involved in more biting incidents than previously reported at the White House, multiple sources familiar with the matter told CNN. While the US Secret Service has acknowledged 11 reported biting incidents involving its personnel, sources who spoke to CNN said the real number is higher and includes executive residence staff and other White House workers. Those bites have ranged in severity, from one known bite requiring hospital treatment to some requiring attention from the White House Medical Unit to some going unreported and untreated.

While the first family works for solutions to the ongoing issue, CNN has learned, Commander is not on the White House campus.

“The President and First Lady care deeply about the safety of those who work at the White House and those who protect them every day. They remain grateful for the patience and support of the U.S. Secret Service and all involved, as they continue to work through solutions,” Elizabeth Alexander, communications director for the first lady, said in a statement released first to CNN. Alexander continued, “Commander is not presently on the White House campus while next steps are evaluated.”

One source familiar with the incidents pointed to efforts from their colleagues to adjust Secret Service workplace habits amid broader concerns about workplace safety as they work to support the first family at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. The situation has also revealed broader tensions between the Bidens and the US Secret Service. Sources suggest the relationship between the first family and the US Secret Service was first strained when the family’s elder dog, Major, caused an injury to an unnamed Secret Service agent before ultimately being sent away more permanently to Delaware. That incident caused a breach in trust, a source familiar with the dynamic said.

While the Bidens enjoyed a good relationship with Secret Service during the vice presidency, the Major situation caused “stress” for the first couple in their early days at the White House. That laid the foundation for a “combustible” relationship with Secret Service, which has since been exacerbated by numerous “last minute changes” to schedules – including spending most weekends away from the White House at Camp David or one of their Delaware residences – and “unrealistic requests” that strain the agency’s resources, the source familiar with the relationship dynamic said. There had also been questions of USSS agents’ political loyalty to former President Donald Trump, as detailed by Biden allies to The Washington Post during the presidential transition in late 2020.

[From CNN]

People are talking around it, but I absolutely get the sense that President Biden still believes that certain Secret Service agents are lying about his dogs and/or provoking his dogs. One biographer said it outright last year, that the SS story of one of the “biting incidents” with Major didn’t make any sense. I also believe there’s a significant loss of trust between the Bidens and the Secret Service which has nothing to do with the dogs and everything to do with certain SS agents being MAGA-compromised. These people deleted all of their records from January 5 & 6, 2021. These people threatened Cassidy Hutchinson and called her a liar because she spoke about how Trump assaulted his SS detail. Basically: this Commander story might be a symptom of something a lot bigger and more nefarious. Just wait, Willow Biden is next.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, the White House.

It really does feel like Prince William and Kate’s marriage never recovered after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s exit in 2020. Was the Sussexit the “only” reason for the Wales’ marriage drama? No, but it definitely feels like it set off a domino effect. More attention on William and Kate separately, more attention on the state of their marriage, they didn’t know how much Harry knew or what he would reveal, plus they always hated the side-by-side comparison with the Sussexes, and it grew even more stark after the Sussexit. Anyway, nearly four years later and we’re in the midst of a separation rollout and a “Bachelor Will” rollout, and they’re still finding a way to make it all about Harry.

Even Prince William and Princess Kate aren’t perfect. A royal insider exclusively tells Us Weekly that the pair have been having typical marital struggles.

“Kate and William have been having ups and downs in their marriage like everyone else,” the source tells Us. “But they’re focused on their royal duties and doing that as a unit.”

One sore spot for the Prince and Princess of Wales, both 41, is Prince Harry. It’s been 10 months since the Duke of Sussex, 39, dropped his bombshell memoir, Spare, and his relationships with the royal family remain fractured after his book covered various fights with his brother and father. While Harry has made it clear he believes the royal family should apologize to both himself and wife Meghan Markle, Kate doesn’t want to make amends with her brother-in-law.

“Kate has no desire to communicate with Harry nor Meghan,” the source tells Us. “There has been too much that has happened and she’s not ready yet.”

William, however, would like to eventually make amends — but is in no rush to do so. “William wants his relationship with his brother to improve, but they’re not speaking right now,” the insider adds. “So when that will happen is still uncertain.”

[From Us Weekly]

Is this the start of something new, where Kate is being blamed for the years-long estrangement between the Waleses and the Sussexes? Usually, it’s “Kate is the peacemaker, William is incandescent with rage.” Remember when someone leaked that doing that walk in Windsor with the Sussexes after QEII died was the “hardest thing” Kate ever had to do? Now Kate isn’t “ready yet” to make peace with the sister-in-law she style-stalks and copykeens at every turn. Now Kate isn’t ready to reconcile with the brother-in-law who outed her as a liar and mean girl.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.

The Princess of Wales has now had events for three days in a row. The poor overworked sausage, you know she’s tired. Today, Kate went to Hull to visit the Allam Sports Centre and try her hand at wheelchair rugby. Team England won the World Cup in wheelchair rugby, and if you watched Heart of Invictus, you can see how seriously British people take wheelchair rugby. I found it charming in HoI – the veterans worked so hard and their coach was this elderly man in very poor health, but they were all salt of the earth people who worked hard and looked out for each other. Anyway, Prince Harry used to be the patron of English Rugby, but that was taken away from him and given to Kate. So here she is.

The big headline here is that her mysterious finger injury is back. On September 12, Kate showed up to visit a prison and she had her index and middle finger bandaged together. The excuse at the time was that she had some kind of trampoline accident while playing with her kids. Given how many times she’s worn bandages or band-aids on her hands, it feels like there’s more to the story. In any case, after that prison event, Kate’s hand was no longer bandaged. Now, weeks later, the injury is back and Kate once again has the same fingers taped. What the hell is going on?

The Daily Mail reported: “The bandages appear to be a precaution from her injury earlier this month – when she damaged her fingers trampolining with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis at their home in Windsor.” A precaution which she had not been taking for weeks? Granted, she knew she would be using her hands today and it’s possible that it’s just precautionary specific to sports, but her fingers seemed totally back to normal in the past three weeks.

Also: the thing that annoys me the most is when she turns up for sporty events without pulling back that janky wig. She didn’t even bring a clip or a scrunchie to pull her hair back for when she was playing!

Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Avalon Red.