"BIMBO BRIGADE" NEWS 02/22
PUSSS...@aol.com
--GWEN Stefani wants to offer some neighbourly love to baldheaded
Britney Spears. No Doubt singer Gwen, 37, says she fears for her
Beverly Hills next-door neighbour, who publicly shaved off all her
hair. "I used to live in the same area as Britney for a while," says
Gwen. "I just want to scoop her up and give her a kiss. "I hope she's
all right. She's just had a new baby and stuff. I hope she can just
enjoy it because it's an incredible thing." And Gwen, who has a nine-
month-old son, Kingston, says she's a big fan of Brit's new look. "She
looks good with her hair shaved off," she says.
--LINDSAY Lohan has wasted no time getting back to her partying ways.
The actress was spotted with Jackass star Steve-O - an interesting
companion for someone straight out of rehab - at LA hotspot Teddy's in
the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. The Tuesday night revellers, including
Penelope Cruz, were treated to Lindsay's trademark dancing on the
chairs. Afterwards prankster Steve was seen hiding in the back seat of
LiLo's Mercedes as she drove off. Looks like the wild child is back!
--RADIOHEAD'S Thom Yorke has hit back at Noel Gallagher's claims he
writes depressing music. The Oasis motormouth also ridiculed Thom's
background, saying: "I never went to f***ing university." Now Thom has
retaliated on his band's website, writing: "University taught me to
respect other artists." Cutting, Thom, cutting.
* * *
K-Fed Goes to Court to Get Custody
By JOHN ROGERS
Associated Press Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- As Britney Spears was reportedly checking out of
rehab for the second time in a week Wednesday, her estranged husband
was making plans to go to court amid a custody dispute over their two
children.
Kevin Federline and his lawyer were scheduled to appear at a downtown
courthouse Thursday for an emergency hearing in family law court,
Superior Court spokesman Allan Parachini told The Associated Press. It
was not known what issue Federline planned to raise.
"Our best information is he will be here; she won't," Parachini said.
"But anything is possible."
It was not known what Federline intended to ask the court. He sought
support and sole custody of Jayden James, 5 months, and Sean Preston,
17 months, after Spears moved to end their two-year marriage in
November, but a temporary order issued Feb. 1 granted joint custody
through this month.
Federline's attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, did not return a call
seeking comment.
Federline's lawyer will try to persuade a Superior Court commissioner
that the matter is urgent enough to be handled on an expedited basis,
Parachini said.
The move comes amid increasingly bizarre behavior by Spears, which
culminated with her reportedly checking into and out of two rehab
centers and shaving her head bald on Friday.
Spears, 25, left the Promises Malibu Treatment Center on Wednesday,
according to "The Insider" TV news magazine, less than a day after
arriving. The center specializes in treating drug and alcohol abuse.
Last week she reportedly sought treatment at a center in the Caribbean
but also checked out after a day.
Popping in and out of rehab centers is not a smart move for someone
involved in a child custody battle, said New York-based family law
attorney Joshua Forman, who is not involved in Spears' case.
"That's ridiculous. Wherever you are and whatever your problem is, you
go through the program the place offers and you do what they tell you
to do," Forman told the AP. "Checking in and out for one day doesn't
show the court anything."
Federline's agent, Allison Joyce, said the 28-year-old aspiring rapper
and former backup dancer would have no comment.
Spears' behavior of late has included showing up in public in skimpy
outfits, sometimes minus her underwear.
Then came what the tabloids have called a meltdown weekend when she
arrived at a Los Angeles hair salon on Friday, grabbed an electric
razor and shaved her head bald. Afterward, she visited a tattoo
parlor, where she had a pair of red-and-pink lips inked onto her
wrist. Then she went out clubbing with friends before apparently
entering rehab at Promises on Tuesday.
In public again Wednesday, Spears attempted to keep a low profile, but
the celebrity Web site TMZ.com posted video of her wearing a wig and
leaving what it said was a lawyer's office.
Her agent, Jason Trawick, referred inquiries to her manager, Larry
Rudolph, who referred them to Gina Orr, the publicist at Jive Records,
Spears' label. Orr did not respond to e-mail and phone messages, and
Spears' Web site, where the singer once posted messages directly to
fans, was all but blank on Wednesday. A message on its home page
simply stated: "Stay tuned! Britney's new Web site is in the works."
Whether her recent behavior will damage her recording career is hard
to say, said Vibe magazine music editor Jon Caramanica, although he
suggested a way to minimize damage would be to quickly and candidly
discuss the situation.
"The thing worth noting is that the reason this is such a big deal is
that many people really cared about Britney to begin with, and that
shouldn't be taken lightly," he said.
Spears, whose 1999 debut album "... Baby One More Time," sold more
than 13 million copies, hasn't released a new album since 2003. Before
her troubles began she had promised one this year, and Caramanica
suggested that might also be a good venue to address what she's going
through.
"I think the best thing she could do is make an album that engages
with this subject matter in some way," he said. "Not only to have a
good album but to have an album that's a declaration of emotional
health."
* * *
3 A.M. GIRLS....
WE celeb sleuths at 3am have tracked down Naomi Campbell's freeloading
doppleganger after the supermodel begged us to find the fake.
Naomi was furious to hear her phoney was fooling those on the
celebrity circuit and cashing in on A-list parties, free booze, celeb-
packed premieres and 90 per cent discounts on designer clothes.
And last week, the fake posed as Naomi to try and get into Oasis's
£120,000 post-Brits bash at London's posh Cuckoo Club, with Amy
Winehouse and Lily Allen among the VIPs.
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We discovered the big pretender is professional Naomi look-a-like
Susan Sangster, who has spent the past decade impersonating the
supermodel.
A thrilled Naomi yesterday called the Daily Mirror office to thank us
for our detective skills.
"Thanks so much to you at 3am for finding this impostor," she said. "I
was shocked to hear there was someone out there pretending to be me
and fooling so many people.
"I knew I could count on you girls to sort this out. This girl doesn't
even look like me - there is only one Naomi and it's a full-time job,
let me tell you."
Naomi-wannabe Sangster admits she's been living the high life on the
back of her impersonation.
She says: "Everyone thinks I'm Naomi - I get goodie bags, perfume and
£250 bottles of Dom Perignon champagne when I'm out".
But Sangster, who shares her idol's age of 36, is devastated to think
she has upset the Streatham-born beauty and has vowed never to cash in
on her name again.
The mum-of-one said: "I've idolised Naomi for as long as I can
remember. I wish I was her.
"I would love to meet her and am so sorry if there's been any
confusion. I'll certainly be setting the record straight from now on."
Sangster, who is signed to the Susan Scott lookalike agency, has been
enjoying generous discounts - 30 per cent off at Selfridges and Harvey
Nichols and up to 90 per cent off during the sales - because staff are
convinced she's the catwalk star.
She bypasses queues at London's celeb haunts Cuckoo, Chinawhite and
Embassy and dines at A-list canteen The Ivy, in London's Covent
Garden.
Not to mention, the copycat has also rubbed shoulders with genuine
stars such as Robert De Niro, Billy Zane, and Elle Macpherson.
"I wouldn't lie, but people think I'm Naomi so I'm not going to spoil
their fantasy," she told us.
Sangster admitted to us she'd tried to get into the Cuckoo Club last
week by making out she was Naomi, but clued-up bouncers turned her
away and Naomi was furious people thought it was actually her being
snubbed.
The supermodel voiced her concerns to us at Mariah Carey's Pinko party
last week.
"Girls, you gotta find this impostor for me," she begged us.
And true to our word we have come through.
But Ms Sangster had better lie low. If Naomi catches up with her.
* * *
By Fiona Cummins Showbiz Reporter....
SMOOCHING topless on a sun-drenched beach, sizzling Sienna Miller
snuggles up to the new man in her life. And as boyfriends go, Jamie
Burke certainly has lots of A-list "ex" appeal. The millionaire's son
has been romantically linked with Kate Moss, Courtney Love and Lindsay
Lohan. But actress Sienna, 25, obviously doesn't mind being the latest
in 21-year-old Jamie's list of conquests. The pair were all over each
other as they relaxed on holiday in Mexico. At one point Factory Girl
star Sienna cupped his chin before giving him a passionate kiss -
leaving no one in any doubt that she is definitely over former fiance
Jude Law. Ex-public schoolboy Jamie, who plays guitar and has worked
as a model, began dating Sienna last month - and they haven't wasted
any time getting to know each other. An onlooker said: "They were like
a couple of lovestruck teenagers."
* * *
WHAT IS SHE DOING? HEATHER GOES 'DANCING'
NY POST/By MICHAEL STARR
'DANCING with the Stars" producers asked Heather Mills to do the show
- but not because of her headline-grabbing nasty split from Paul
McCartney, they say.
"We approached her," "Dancing" executive producer Conrad Green said
yesterday after ABC officially confirmed Mills' participation, rumored
for weeks. "The general intention was to try and expand the boundaries
of the people taking part [in the show] . . . and Heather came up
almost immediately.
"She's a really interesting personality . . . and is a woman of great
vigor and determination."
She's also extremely media savvy, and knows that "Dancing," seen by
over 20 million viewers a week, might help soften her negative public
image in the wake of her divorce from billionaire ex-Beatle McCartney.
It's won her few fans on either side of the Atlantic, some who see her
as a golddigger.
"There really is no downside [for Mills doing the show]," says crisis
expert Steve Aiello of Hill & Knowlton. "She appears to be a good
sport and she can possibly win some folks over while this bitter
divorce continues to go on."
The ex-model, who lost a leg in a motorcyle accident, has worked
tirelessly on behalf of land-mine victims.
"I really don't know what her reasons are apart from what she stated
to me," Green says, "to get across that people with disabilities like
hers are still able-bodied."
"To be honest, I expected a 'no' more than a 'yes,' " he says about
asking Mills to do the show. "There was no reason [for her] to say yes
but, then again, when she said yes I wasn't that surprised.
"She's not afraid to put herself above the parapet."
And just how will Mills ballroom dance with her prosthetic leg?
"She's an enormously athletic woman who runs regularly and dances [in
clubs] regularly," Green says. "It's important to remember that her
prosthetic is below the knee, so she's still enormously flexible."
Mills will be joined by Laila Ali, Ian Ziering, Billy Ray Cyrus, ex-
NBAer Clyde Drexler, Joey Fatone, Leeza Gibbons, speedskater Apolo
Ohno, Vinny "Big Pussy" Pastore, Paulina Poriskova and Shandi
Finnessey.
* * *
London Woman Claims to Jackson Kids' Mom
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- A British woman who claims she is the mother of
Michael Jackson's three children cannot intervene in the pop star's
custody settlement with his ex-wife, a judge has ruled.
Nona Paris Lola Jackson, 36, of London, filed a motion in October
demanding a role in the custody settlement between the singer and
Deborah Rowe. Superior Court Judge Robert Schnider denied the motion
in November and again on Wednesday, saying she had failed to properly
notify Jackson and Rowe of her claims.
The woman hadn't provided "credible evidence" that she was the
children's birth mother, the judge said.
He left open the opportunity for her to bring the motion again if
Jackson and Rowe were served properly.
Nona Jackson's court papers contended that "Michael and I are a
sexually active couple and have been this way from the beginning." She
also claimed to have written more than 3,000 songs for him.
Nona Jackson, speaking by telephone, tried to question two lawyers for
the 48-year-old singer in court Wednesday.
"Is Mr. Jackson denying I'm the mother of the children?" she asked.
"What is he saying about my children?"
However, the judge told her the lawyers weren't obligated to answer.
No lawyers for Rowe were present.
Michael Jackson has said Rowe is the mother of his eldest son, Prince
Michael, and daughter, Paris. He has not identified the mother of his
other son, Prince Michael II.
Jackson and Rowe settled a custody fight in September. Details of that
agreement have not been released.
* * *
NY POST/PAGE SIX...
--UNFORTUNATELY for Ashlee Simpson, holding hands and making out on a
regular basis with Pete Wentz still won't make you his girlfriend.
Wentz insists the two are not an item and told Rolling Stone, "Maybe
in a different universe, we'd be some hot couple, but not in this
one." Wentz even goes as far as to take a veiled swipe at his close
"friend," saying, "I'm attracted to creative people and train wrecks,
and there's no shortage of that in Los Angeles."
--LINDSAY Lohan may have thought of her "A Prairie Home Companion"
director Robert Altman as a father figure, but she didn't show up for
his memorial service here Tuesday - and was out partying in L.A. with
"Jackass" badboy Steve O instead. After Altman's death in November,
Lohan released a statement that he "was the closest thing to my father
and grandfather that I really do believe I've had in several years." A
source sneers, "If he was so important to her, where was she?" Among
those who did show to honor the legend at the Majestic Theatre in
Manhattan were Lily Tomlin, E. L. Doctorow, Harry Belafonte, Julianne
Moore, Kevin Kline and Tim Robbins. As reported by thereeler.com,
Moore told the audience, "[Altman] said, 'The nudity in this part is
bottomless.' And I said, 'That's fine. I'll do it' . . . Now what Bob
claims - and I don't remember this - that I said in the next five
minutes, 'Guess what? I'm a real redhead!' "
* * *
BY JO PIAZZA/NY DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Britney Spears taking a cigarette break outside rehab on Tuesday
morning, Feb. 20. She checked in Monday night and has now checked out
again for the second time in less than a week.
As Britney Spears bolted rehab for the second time in less than a
week, her ex, Kevin Federline, is reportedly heading for an emergency
hearing today on custody of their two young children.
Federline and his attorney are scheduled to appear before a Los
Angeles County Superior Court judge today, a court spokesperson told
TMZ.com. "Anything is possible," the spokesperson said.
A friend of the family's tells the Daily News that Spears' two baby
boys remain in Los Angeles with family members and that her under-the-
radar rapper ex is continuing to visit them as scheduled. Federline's
lawyer Mark Kaplan has yet to say whether or not his client will now
seek full custody of their children.
Spears once again checked out of rehab after only a day, leaving
Malibu's Promises rehab facility early yesterday morning.
The detox-ditching diva left against the advice of the treatment
center, but because she entered voluntarily, no one could stop her
from walking out the door.
"If she comes back for treatment, Promises will have to assess the
situation. Sometimes people come back, but it doesn't look good," a
source dished to People magazine. Promises CEO Richard Rogg told The
News this week that only a handful of people ever leave his center
quickly.
After fleeing treatment, Spears was spotted driving around Beverly
Hills, again in the ill-fitting blond wig that she wore out on her
sad, lonely bar crawl over the weekend.
She drove up to a swanky complex called the Shoreham Towers in a
silver sedan and got out of the car clutching her minimutt Bit Bit, a
credit card, a composition notebook, a cell phone and a cigarette
lighter.
Wearing ratty workout shorts, tube socks, a cheap sweatshirt and a
string of pearls, Spears was reportedly looking at apartments.
Yesterday's escape from rehab comes only five days after Spears
checked out of Antigua treatment center Crossroads, also against the
center's advice.
Paparazzi swarmed the Promises center Tuesday afternoon after learning
of Spears' whereabouts. And they were also on Spears' tail yesterday
afternoon when she met with Los Angeles criminal defense attorney
Blair Berk, who represented actress Reese Witherspoon in her battle
with hard-driving paparazzi and also fought in actor Mel Gibson's
corner in his sensational DUI case.
Friends of Spears' are saying that she fled Promises because she felt
too exposed and worried that the hovering paparazzi could easily
document her treatment with telescopic lenses.
To add to her woes, TMZ.com reported that the hotline for child
protective services in Los Angeles has been burning up with calls
questioning her ability to care for her two young sons. The agency
told The News it could not comment on caller tips.
Meanwhile, Spears' former nannies are having their say to US Weekly
about how Spears has been handling her children. They say the punchy
pop princess is an incompetent mother who expects her hired help to
become her new best friends, chatting with her and watching her change
her outfits.
* * *
Facilities fear celebs are cheapening their efforts
NY DAILY NEWS/BY CHRIS ROVZAR
Most institutions would kill for an endorsement from a megastar like
Britney Spears or Lindsay Lohan. The attention! The glamour! The
photographs!
But when the pair checked into rehabilitation centers this month for
treatment of alcohol addiction, all that attention had a decidedly
darker effect. In addition to shattering the peace, trust and
tranquility necessary for patients to heal, some experts say, it
called into question the reputation of the entire rehab industry.
And that was before they checked out.
Britney did it twice, moving into Antigua's Crossroads Centre last
week, then Promises in Malibu this week. She didn't last more than a
day at either. Lohan made waves by staying at West Hollywood's
Wonderland Center, which allows clients to leave during the day to go
shopping and visit friends. Once she left, she was spotted every night
clubbing at her regular haunts.
"It trivializes something that is very, very important," says John
Schwarzlose, president and CEO of the Betty Ford Center. "I think of
all the people out there who are trying to make the decision to
finally seek help for their problems. They're watching what's going
on, seeing people bounce in and out, or the people trying to exonerate
themselves."
He says examples like Lohan and Spears, or Isaiah Washington and Mel
Gibson, who checked into rehab to polish their images after making
discriminatory remarks, can be damaging to the industry.
"I think the people that suffer are the men and women that today are
thinking, 'Am I finally ready to seek help?'" says Schwarz-lose. "I
worry that this will convince them not to."
While it may seem like Britney and Lindsay are alone in the world,
they both are surrounded by family and friends, which professionals
say is key to successful treatment. With the obsessive coverage of the
two starlets, experts fear that crucial elements of the healing
process will be ignored.
"The recent flurry of stories about a large number of celebrities
going in and out of rehab can be confusing. I think that it speaks to
a need for greater understanding by society at large about the nature
of the illness, and about finding the appropriate treatment," says
Christopher Policano, a spokesman for New York's Phoenix House.
"Family members and loved ones of individuals with serious problems
understand these problems don't get solved magically overnight."
"The coverage doesn't give an incredibly accurate view of what happens
in treatment," says David Rosenker, an executive at Pennsylvania's
Caron Foundation. "It also doesn't focus on how it's a life-long
process. It's like 'hurry up, go and get fixed!' And then you're back
into the normal habits after a couple of weeks."
But this alcohol haze may have a silver lining.
"I think it's pretty similar to what happened with the term
'intervention.' In the past couple of years it got used in TV shows,
plays and commercials - it got very apparent that the term
intervention got a lot of press," says Rosenker, adding that this
increased attention could be a good thing.
"There are a lot of people who today, if you say, 'I'm going to do an
intervention,' they know what you are talking about," he says. "The
same way, people are understanding more what rehab is, that it's okay
for people to get help. It reduced the stigma a little bit."
Messalina
-snip-
If you're curious about Sangster's appearance, a photo can be found
here:
Mez