Allison! Happy Birthday! Hope you had a great time last night at the Broken Spoke. AND the Landing Strip! Here’s Tami Taylor earlier this week…in exchange for you sharing with me her hidden talent. I have never been able to do this. It’s one of the great failures of my life.

The Mega Pet…      

Time Magazine’s current issue has a larger story about celebrities who have launched their own lifestyle brands. That’s the trend now, from Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop to Jessica Alba’s Honest Company to Reese Witherspoon’s Draper James and Blake Lively’s Preserve. We are living in the golden age of rich celebrity women telling us what to buy, how to dress, what to eat, where to vacation and how to diaper our children. I’m covering Blake’s interview separately, because it was just too eye-rolly to pass up. Gwyneth deserved her own post too, because Goop was the first of this current “celebrity lifestyle site” trend. You can read the full Time Mag piece here. Some highlights:

Gwyneth on the appeal of Goop: “It’s funny, because when I started the business I didn’t think of it as an extension of myself in that way. I started it to answer my own questions and to aggregate information. I didn’t think of it that way at the time. Now I can look back and say, If you look at the careers of successful people in the entertainment industry, [they] heavily leverage their lifestyle to their advantage. This has happened with more and more thought as I’ve gone along. Initially it was kind of an accident. The world is just changing so much, with social media and the expectation that privacy is a thing of the past. People do want to understand who they align with. If it’s somebody who is on Goop for the celebrity aspect of it, they’re going to find things, for better or worse, that align with me and my values and my tastes.

Whether it’s easier to communicate through Goop: “Yes, that’s true to a certain extent. I’m not interested in building a celebrity business. I want Goop to be its own brand that can thrive and scale without my involvement at some point… I think with the press, of course I can communicate certain things directly to the world, and I have on a couple occasions. The press is its own animal and is going to do what it’s going to do on the side. I’ve never absorbed that. In this day and age, a lot of press seems very all over the place. Yes, you could use your site as a way to communicate with fans, and yes, I have done that, but that’s not really the intention.

Whether she looks at other actresses’ lifestyle sites: “This is a very interesting question, because I wonder if George Clooney would be asked about Puff Daddy’s ancillary liquor line. I’m fascinated how the media in particular are so confounded by entrepreneurial women doing something outside of their box. Jessica [Alba], especially, who’s a friend of mine—our businesses could not be more different. There’s not a lifestyle piece to her business. The fundamentals of our sites are very different. Reese launched—our businesses have similarities, but hers has retail. People are grasping at straws to tie us together and I get it, because it makes a good story, but I’m slightly offended by this sort of generalization that happens with myself and Jessica and Reese and Blake. Yes, there are similarities. But there aren’t stories in TIME written saying, “Wow, look at Arnold Schwarzenegger, who did x, y, and z!”

But there is a trend of actresses-branching-out-to-lifestyle: “I wrestle with it. I feel there’s something slightly misogynistic about it. This is a common theme. I think Reese and Jessica and I—I don’t know Blake Lively, and I don’t know if Jessica and Reese know each other—I’m friends with both of them and I speak to both of them and I want to do everything I can to support their businesses. I’m not articulating it well, because I haven’t completely worked out what it is, but I feel very proud when Jessica was on the cover of Forbes. I think that’s amazing. You can quantitatively say, “Look what she’s done, she’s been able to conceive of a business and scale it to that size, in that amount of time.” But we have such different businesses.

Changing the narrative: “You just keep going in hopes the story becomes not people pitting women against each other, which is not founded in truth. There’s no competition. None of us think we’re in each other’s space. I don’t know how you do it! You just get to f—ing work! I think we’re in a funny time for women. We are more and more the breadwinners in families across America or contributing equally; there’s a shift happening sociologically and psychologically. People are wrestling with this new archetype of being a woman with a brain who’s also sexual and trying to do more than one thing at a time. I also feel proud. Why would I not want to do that, if it’s a passion?

[From Time]

I want to see Gwyneth’s face when she says “I don’t know Blake Lively.” Don’t you? Does that make me a horrible misogynist? Here’s the thing, and I can’t believe I’m defending Gwyneth Paltrow, but here goes: I think she’s trying to be a nice person by defending the individual visions of the women who took Gwyneth’s Goop model and tweaked it in different ways. Gwyneth’s right in that Jessica Alba’s company became something entirely different, but Reese Witherspoon’s Draper James and Blake’s Preserve are merely versions of Goop. And that’s not on Gwyneth. She grew Goop.com from a silly, out-of-touch newsletter about her life into a silly, out-of-touch lifestyle site, e-commerce site and growing multi-platform brand. It is misogynistic to ask Gwyneth to judge the women copying (with minor tweaks) her model. Now, all that being said… every one of these women owes a huge debt of gratitude to the OG, Martha Stewart.

Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet.

Congratulations are in order for newlyweds Glory Johnson and Brittney Griner.

The WNBA stars, both 24, are expecting their first child, they announced in an adorable Instagram image.

Posting a photo that depicts a bun in the oven, Johnson wrote, “#SUCCESS #BLESSED #WelcomeToTheJohnsonGrinerFamily.”

Johnson opened up about their impending baby joy.

“It has always been a dream of mine to start a family with someone I love,” Johnson said in a statement released by the team.

“Being a professional athlete that plays year-round, there is never a perfect time to get pregnant without putting my career on hold,” she said. “The entire process, from learning our fertility options, to making sacrifices necessary nine months before the child is born, is merely preparing me to become a great wife and an even better mother.”

She added: “Right now, I not only have my health to worry about, but also the health of this little one resting inside of me. Rest assured I will be back next season, stronger and more ready to play than ever!”

#SUCCESS #BLESSED #WelcomeToTheJohnsonGrinerFamily

A photo posted by missvol25 (@missvol25) on Jun 4, 2015 at 8:40am PDT

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Dear Gossips,

Melissa McCarthy’s Spy opens this weekend. So far, the reviews are excellent. At post time, Spy is rated 94% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes and is expected to take the box office. That’s amazing and it’s important. Because finally Melissa McCarthy is in a feature that’s deserving of h…      

I get sad when people don’t pay attention to Charlotte Casiraghi. She has a lot of potential to be a standard of royal and royal-adjacent gossip coverage, but I end up ignoring her most of the time because there doesn’t seem to be a ton of interest in her. Charlotte got knocked up by her boyfriend back in 2013. It was sort of scandalous because her lover was Gad Elmalah, a 16-years-older French-Moroccan and a non-Catholic (Gad is Jewish). Charlotte didn’t confirm her pregnancy until the very late stages, and when it was announced, she packaged it with an engagement announcement too. The baby, a little boy, was born in December 2013. Charlotte and Gad named him Raphael. Things were pretty quiet and in the year and a half that followed, Gad and Charlotte did not marry. And now they never will. Apparently Charlotte has dumped him!

Charlotte Casiraghi is nursing a broken heart – and a sore back after falling off her horse in a jumping competition today. The 28-year-old – who is eighth in line to Monaco’s throne –has abruptly split after three years with French comedian-actor Gad Elmaleh, 44, PEOPLE confirms. The couple are parents to a 17-month-old son, Raphaël.

“It’s sad,” a source close to the couple tells PEOPLE, confirming reports that broke in the French media on Thursday. “Mostly, this is a couple that drifted apart over their careers. He wasn’t around enough – and she wanted a father for her son.”

With a 16-year age gap, the princess – whose mom is Monaco’s Princess Caroline and grandma is the late American actress-turned-Princess Grace Kelly – and the comedian were an unconventional and extremely private couple. After meeting at a party in late 2011, the pair embarked on a discreet relationship that quickly went from whispered affair to tabloid favorite.

Their coming-out was a public appearance together in March 2013 alongside members of the Monaco royal family at the Bal de la Rose – but they continued to maintain a quiet profile, even as Casiraghi prepared to give birth to their son in December that year.

Never married, the couple split their time largely between France and Los Angeles. Their backgrounds and interests were wildly divergent: Casiraghi is a competitive horse jumper and Gucci model. Elmaleh is a Moroccan-born, French stand-up comedian and actor who appeared in 2011?s Midnight In Paris. He has a 15-year-old son, Noé, from a previous relationship with French actress Anne Brochet.

[From People]

It’s worth noting that once again, People Magazine gets the titles wrong. They want to make everyone into a princess. Charlotte is not a princess. Her mother, Princess Caroline, wanted her children to be without royal titles. Charlotte has always been known as Charlotte Casiraghi. It was said that the late Prince Rainier adored Charlotte in particular (out of all his grandchildren) and from what I understand, she’s already a significantly wealthy heiress, mostly from what her grandfather left her.

Considering Charlotte’s uncle Prince Albert finally got around to providing the Grimaldi throne with some legitimate heirs, it’s not like Charlotte’s place in Monaco’s line of succession is particularly urgent. She’s rich, she’s beautiful, she can do whatever she wants. But it’s still rather surprising to see a young, royal-adjacent almost-princess having a baby out of wedlock and breaking up with the dude before they even get married. Who should she get with next? Prince Harry is a pipe dream. I could see her with an American movie star though. Jake Gyllenhaal’s probably in the market for a new girlfriend. Oooh, Bradley Cooper would be excellent! He already speaks French.

View image | gettyimages.com

Photos courtesy of Getty, WENN.

Is that a baby bump? Or just a loose, sacky dress? OR BOTH? George Clooney and his wife Amal have been in Kentucky for most of this week. I’ve been seeing social media updates and reported sightings of them for days. George’s parents live in Augusta, KY and that’s where Amal and George were for the most part. Apparently, Clooney’s folks were hosting a big family reunion, which I guess gave the extended Clooney family a chance to spend some time with The Most Important, Brilliant and Fashionable Woman in the World, The Amal Unicorn.

It’s a Hollywood homecoming! George Clooney took his wife Amal back to his hometown of Augusta, Ky., for an annual family reunion earlier this week, E! News has learned. The newlyweds stopped by several of the actor’s favorite spots, including Magee’s Bakery, where he showed his leading lady the ins and outs of the town’s finest foods.

“George grew up around here,” Russell Dickson, the co-owner of the baker told us. “They both ordered transparents. It’s also called clear pie or cellophane pie. It’s made of eggs, butter, sugar and milk. It was her first time having one and she absolutely loved it.”

Dickson also chatted with the Brit beauty about how she’s finding Southern food thus far, and it turns out, she likes it!

“She mentioned she’s just become a fan of country breakfasts, biscuits and gravy,” he shared.

And Dickson admits that despite being one of the most famous stars around the globe, Clooney is still “the same guy, still a practical joker….We caught up on what’s new with everyone. They said they were having a good time in town.”

Meanwhile, word spread quickly around town that the Tomorrowland actor was in Augusta for his yearly family visit. According to a source, the 54-year-old was even spotted playing basketball in the Augusta High School gym with a bunch of students. And on Tuesday night, we’re told the family got together for a private party where Amal was introduced to several people who weren’t able to attend the wedding.

“He was really excited to introduce her to those who didn’t go to the wedding or didn’t know much about her. He’s proud. They are a loving couple and he seemed very proud,” our insider gushed.

[From E! News]

You Yankees and foreigners might balk at Southern breakfasts, but trust me, I’ve seen “the full English breakfast” and the “New York breakfast,” and I’d take a Southern breakfast over those any day. If I was much of a breakfast eater, which I’m not (I eat yogurt and a banana for breakfast). I wonder if Amal has tried grits? I wonder if she’s tried scrapple?

Meanwhile, OK! Magazine (rolls eyes) claims Amal is taking acting classes because George asked if she’d like to do a cameo in one of his films. The theory is that Amal might make an appearance in Hack Attack, the film George is making about the Rupert Murdoch-owned press hacks. Since Amal is a “perfectionist,” she’s taking acting classes to make sure that she’s the best actress ever, in the world, throughout history.

George Clooney was in his (& my parents’) hometown today ???????? I run down this street every time I visit my grandpa! pic.twitter.com/wCboO0pPGs

— Susan W. (@whatupitsusan) June 3, 2015

Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet, WENN, social media.

We haven’t covered The Emotive Eyebrow Known As Justin Theroux in a while. He’s been around, although not very visible since the Oscars. He was in Rome working on Zoolander 2, then he’s been in Texas (I think?) working on Season 2 of The Leftovers. And Justin got invited to The Hollywood Reporter’s annual pre-Emmy roundtable of lead actors, or interesting dramatic actors on TV or something. The other actors at the roundtable: Timothy Hutton, Jon Voight, David Oyelowo, Clive Owen and Bob Odenkirk. It doesn’t really seem like Justin fits in that group? Is The Leftovers considered a favorite for anything at the Emmys? Anyway, you can read the full piece here – the entire time, I was just waiting for Voight to say something about Angelina and then Justin would have to pretend to clean his nails or something. But that didn’t happen. Instead, it was a decent enough roundtable and it seemed like all of the actors respected each other and got along. Here are some highlights from Justin’s part:

Justin on the benefits of doing 10-episode seasons: “Thankfully, most of our shows here are 10 or 12 episodes, which is manageable. I did a network cop procedural once. The volume of work that we had to do for 24 episodes was crushing. You’re not loving the material, you’re showing up at 4 a.m. on a Monday, leaving at 4 a.m. on a Friday. You’re cycling through your bag of tricks so much that you fall into bad habits. The 10- to 12-episode season is [better]. The writers aren’t being forced to crank.”

Justin on seeing himself as a character actor: “It’s valuable for any actor to always think of himself as a character actor. The minute you start trying to assume a “leading man” or “leading woman” role, your sandbox starts to shrink and you start to get into the confines of a really strange space. We’ve all seen it happen — it creates this terrible gravity where the material starts to play to the actor’s comfort zone and eventually you’re painting inside the lines to maintain whatever perception or awards [pedigree] you’ve built up.

How he chooses projects: “It’s a gut thing for me. If it’s something comedic, I’ll check with my friends who also write. But I’ve definitely made mistakes when people say, “You should do this,” or “This is a great director. I know the part’s not what you want but you should do that.” I’ve rued many days on set where I’ve been like, “Why did I say yes to this?” I made a lot of mistakes as a younger actor, signing up for plays I’m stuck doing for six months. I’ve been in many sad situations. That cop procedural [made me want to] hang myself. My character said shit like, “Chief, you’re going to want to hear this!” You go, “Oh, I can’t.”

What he would do if he wasn’t an actor: “Probably keep writing. I’m not good at other things. I’m not a very bright man.”

[From THR]

I think full 22-26 episode network seasons are fine as long as the ensemble is strong enough and it’s not just one actor or actress doing the heavy lifting for every single episode. With The Leftovers, not only is it a 10-episode season, but Justin is surrounded by a very big ensemble, right? Anyway… there are some complaints about Justin’s inclusion in this roundtable, but he didn’t say anything too silly or embarrassing. I got the feeling that when he dropped his faux humility – “I’m not good at other things. I’m not a very bright man” – the other guys were like, “ugh, whatever.” And yes, Justin was always a character actor. It wasn’t until he got with Jennifer Aniston that suddenly we were supposed to buy him as a leading man.

Photos courtesy of THR.

This is where I hit the wall. This is my limit. Throughout the Duggar scandal, I’ve seen conservative Duggar apologists claiming that “no one” said anything about Lena Dunham when she wrote about her creepy, boundary-less, don’t-put-that-in-a-book relationship with her younger sister – go here to recap our coverage. The thing about it was that the backlash against Lena last year was HUGE and it still affects her public image. I for one go out of my way to avoid covering Lena, mostly because after that controversy, she went from “annoying famewhore” to “the kind of person who sensationalizes extremely intimate family-only stories as a way to shock and troll for attention.”

So, what happened? Why are we talking about Lena Dunham in the wake of the Duggar scandal? Sarah Palin is so glad you asked. Palin spat out another vile word salad about the Duggars, Dunham, the liberal media and so much more. I made some minor edits for space.

HEY LENA, WHY NOT LAUGH OFF EVERYONE’S SEXUAL “EXPERIMENTS” AS YOU HAUGHTILY ENJOY REWARDS FOR YOUR OWN PERVERSION? YOU PEDOPHILE, YOU

Radical liberals in media who have total control over public narratives are disgusting hypocrites, so says my daughter. Go get ‘em, Bristol! I’m glad someone’s got the guts to call out these perverts. The intolerant left’s destructive personal intrusions and narrow-mindedness applied to their chosen targets are bad enough, but their double standards are beyond the pale.

I’m not defending the Duggar boy’s obvious wrongdoing over a decade ago. The main victim in any story like this isn’t the perpetrator, it’s the innocent ones so harmfully affected. I’m not an apologist for any sexual predator, but I’m sickened that the media gives their chosen ones a pass for any behavior as long as they share their leftwing politics. Case in point, they suggest Lena Dunham’s sexual assault on her sibling is cute, and she’s rewarded for it with fame and fortune. Meanwhile, they crucify another, along with an entire family.

The Duggar debate needs to shift from solely the boy’s obvious wrongdoing when he was 14 years old to now include:

1) The shocking, unethical leak of a private, legally protected counseling document by a politically motivated law enforcement official. Media – time to go after her or him for illegalities and for destroying the public’s trust in law enforcement.

2) The media’s hell-bent mission to go after the entire Duggar family for one member’s wrongdoing, while giving a total pass to perverted actions of someone like Lena Dunham – or any other leftwinger celeb caught doing awful things. Remember reports of the pedophile billionaire our former democrat president has been friends with and hung out with on the pedophile’s “orgy island” full of underage girls?

Such obvious double standards applied to equally relevant stories underestimate the wisdom of the public, discredit the press, and spit on the graves of every American who fought and died for the press’s freedom. I hate for anyone to go through this game liberals are allowed to play, relentlessly attacking on an uneven playing field until a conservative’s career, relationships, and reputation are destroyed. To the media’s targets I encourage, “Rise above by never claiming ‘victim’, tell the truth, and keep the faith!”

And, for what it’s worth, “Welcome to my world; believe me – what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger!”

[From Palin’s Facebook]

Palin emphasizes and re-emphasizes that “the Duggar boy” committed his crimes more than 10 years ago. Lena’s “crimes” were also committed more than a decade ago, so where is her free pass? And if Palin’s argument is that The Duggar Boy’s actions are no better or worse than Lena Dunham, who she calls a pedophile, that means we’re free to call Josh Duggar a pedophile too, right? Right. Also: Palin’s argument about the “unethical leak” of the records. I seriously wish every single conservative wingnut would brush up on the Freedom of Information Act.

As for her argument about “the liberal media” – as I said, the Lena Dunham situation was analyzed to the hilt on every blog, liberal, conservative, gossip-oriented and otherwise. It was a difficult subject to cover and there were a wide range of interpretations. The main incident being referenced by conservatives – many of whom are gleefully obsessed with picking apart Dunham over literally everything and nothing – happened when Lena was seven years old and her sister was a baby. While that doesn’t make the story any less disturbing, a 7 year old (with stupid boundary issues and crappy hipster parents) acting that way is not the same as a 15 year old boy molesting one of his sisters for the seventh time while she sleeps.

Bristol Palin has some thoughts too – go here to read.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

In yesterday’s Topshop launch post, I neglected to include photos of Kylie Jenner with her dog, Norman. The poor pup was a drama-causing Christmas present. Kylie didn’t take care of him too often, and now she’s carting him around like a fashion accessory.

Now for even more depressing news. Kylie may soon star in her own KUWTK spinoff series. Kris Jenner is reportedly working on a show that focuses on her 17-year-old daughter and her 25-year-old rapper boyfriend. Tyga still believes he’s “doing nothing morally wrong“ by dating an underage girl. He’s also got plenty of money troubles, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Tyga would risk “discovery” to make some Kardashian coin. The source is a little sketchy but has had Kardashian scoops in the past:

Kylie Jenner, 17, is about to steal the Kardashian family thunder — and follow in Caitlyn Jenner‘s footsteps — with a solo spin-off show. “Kris has always loved the idea of Kylie having her own reality show. She has been toying with the idea for some time now.”

So, what would a show about Kylie consist of? Well, for starters … Tyga! “Tyga would most definitely be part of the show,” our source continued. “It would basically follow Kylie as she pursues her music career and other endeavors.” If Kylie’s show gets the green light, she would be the first of the KUWTK children to get their very own spin-off series. Even though her older sisters, Kim, Khloe, and Kourtney Kardashian, have all had different spin-offs with each other and their significant others, Kylie’s show would be a first without the rest of the family.

Whatever happens, the source has assured us that Kris sees a lot of potential in Kylie’s future as a major star.

“Kylie had a lot going for her, and Kris feels like she’s a fan favorite. She has tremendous potential and talent, enough to carry her own show, that’s for sure,” the source explained. Hmm, it sounds like Kris has a real favorite in Kylie. Hopefully this doesn’t cause any major drama between the sisters!

[From Hollywood Life]

If this story is true, it would dovetail nicely with the upcoming episode where where Kylie reveals her birth control method to Kris. It sounds completely believable that Kris would approve of Kylie and Tyga having a lovey-dovey show. Ugh, I still can’t believe Kylie’s family is completely cool with the Tyga relationship.

Photos courtesy of Fame/Flynet & WENN

In Touch Weekly broke the story about Josh Duggar, and in subsequent follow-up stories, they have been a model of restraint and journalistic ethics. I’m not saying that sarcastically. In Touch’s reporting throughout this ongoing horror show has been completely above-board. Kudos to them for following up on a tip, filing the appropriate FOIA requests and following through with their completely sourced reporting. In the wake of the Duggars’ profoundly disturbing Fox News interview, In Touch has done a rather epic companion piece defending their reporting and calling out all of the lies Jim-Bob and Michelle told throughout. You can read In Touch’s epic takedown here. Some highlights (I’m doing some major edits for space).

Jim Bob and Michelle lied about how much they cooperated with the Springfield PD during the 2006 investigation. The Duggars made it seem like they fully cooperated but the actual police report reveals “that Jim Bob refused to produce Josh for a police-requested interview and stopped cooperating with the probe.”

Mandatory reporters. That was Jim-Bob’s wording in the interview, that he and Michelle were “not mandatory reporters, the law allows parents to do what they think is best for their child,” thus they did nothing wrong when they did NOTHING while Josh molested girls and escalated over the course of a year. Except In Touch spoke to “multiple legal experts,” all of whom say that as parents, they were allowing a 14/15 year old to prey on minor children at least seven times over the course of a year, which constitutes felony child endangerment for, as Michelle termed it, “the other ones,” i.e. the victims of her predator son.

Jim Bob suggested that the Springdale police chief took a bribe. I’ll admit it, this part of the Duggars’ interview confused me because Megyn Kelly kept interrupting to push her nonsensical agenda. Jim-Bob basically said that Kathy O’Kelley, the Spingfield police chief, took a bribe from In Touch (or someone else?) to somehow get Josh’s records released. In Touch writes: “The records were obtained through Arkansas’ Freedom of Information Act, which is one of the most liberal open records laws in the country, according to the state’s attorney general. In Touch has a paper trail that proves city attorneys reviewed the FOI request and approved the records’ release. Further, Jim Bob’s ‘bribe or personal agenda’ explanation for the records’ release loses all credibility in light of the fact that a SECOND police report detailing Josh’s crimes was obtained by In Touch magazine through FOIA. That second report comes from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, and the Springdale police chief has no involvement in deciding if those records can be released.”

The FOIA-requested releases are not illegal. The Duggars continuously referred to the records as being “illegally released.” In Touch spoke to legal experts and worked with law enforcement and the AR Press Association to ensure that their FOIA requests were completely legal and above-board. A local lawyer in Little Rock tells In Touch that the agencies involved with the investigations into Josh Duggar’s crimes did not have a choice, “They had to release the reports. Those records are not closed under FOI. The alleged perpetrator had attained his majority at the time it was released, and once his name and all the victims’ names were blacked out, it was subject to FOI.”

Jim-Bob and Michelle did not address the other investigation. You know, the one conducted by the Department of Human Services. That investigation was kicked off when the police figured out that the statute of limitations had already (conveniently) passed. No one really knows what the Arkansas DHS discovered during the course of their investigation, only that Josh Duggar sued them afterwards.

[From In Touch Weekly]

I feel like… there’s still going to be more stuff to come out. I’m not talking about people commenting about this horror show after-the-fact, although that is definitely happening. I kind of think another shoe is going to drop. I wonder if that’s why the Duggars have kept Josh away from the media?

Here’s one more tragicomic thing: you know how Mike Huckabee stood up for a child molester and his enablers? Well, now Huckabee is quietly removing all signs of the Duggars from his campaign website. SO CHRISTIAN!!

Photos courtesy of Duggars’ social media, cover courtesy of In Touch.