“Crash” course for Haggis
Paul Haggis may be taking the title of his Academy Award-nominated film too much to heart.
The director of “Crash,” one of the best picture nominees, walked through a glass door at the Beverly Hilton Hotel recently, the New York Post’s Liz Smith reports. Despite dripping blood from his forehead, Haggis refused to cancel his taping of AMC’s “Sunday Morning Shootout.” Haggis, also an Oscar nominee in the directing and writing categories for “Crash,” quickly got stitched up by a doctor, then taped the AMC discussion show with hosts Peter Guber and Peter Bart. The show will air at 9 a.m. Feb. 26.
A new Bond Girl for the new Bond
Eva Green is the new Bond Girl.
The French actress will appear with new 007 Daniel Craig in the upcoming “Casino Royale,” the New York Post reports. The role reportedly had been turned down by Angelina Jolie, Charlize Theron and Thandie Newton.
Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen, meanwhile, will portray the James Bond nemesis Le Chiffre (“The Number,” in French), the Guardian reported.
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Alec Baldwin has his own form of therapy to get through nasty child-custody proceedings with ex-wife Kim Basinger.
Baldwin is writing a book for St. Martin’s publishers about his custody fight with Basinger over their daughter Ireland, the New York Post reports. Baldwin said he “hopes the book will create opportunities for healing, and inspire both public debate and changes in antiquated divorce laws.”
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So how did Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes meet anyway?
The Fashion Monitor in Toronto reports it started with a phone call to Holmes’ publicist. Cruise’s agent said his client wanted to meet with Holmes, presumably about a film project. A source said, “They met in his office and talked for over three hours, and none of it had to do with work. By the end, he asked her out.”
A few days later, Cruise arrived at Holmes’ Hollywood home in a stretch limo filled with flowers, chocolate and a copy of the Scientology handbook. They drove to the Santa Monica airport and boarded one of Cruise’s private jets, enjoyed a lavish dinner though the plane never left the ground. A source said Cruise “kept having these friends drop by” praising the virtues of Scientology. The next morning, the couple flew to Italy for that famed $3,500-a-night stay in Rome at the luxury Hotel Hassler.
The pregnant Holmes and Cruise are expected to get married later this year.
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Jenna Jameson is keeping her clothes on these days. The former porn queen attended Fashion Week recently in New York and wants to launch her fashion line, the New York Daily News reported. “She’s taking the steps to redirect her life,” a friend said. “She always saw (porn) as a steppingstone to greater things.”
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Patrick Dempsey has a need for speed.
“Dr. McDreamy” from the ABC medical drama “Grey’s Anatomy” is the co-owner of Vision Racing, which has two cars competing in the Indy Racing League. “I feel like a kid in a candy store,” Dempsey said in a statement. Vision Racing begins its 14-event season March 26 with the Toyota Indy 300 in Miami.
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Lou Ferrigno earned his stripes as a Los Angeles County reserve deputy sheriff last week.
Better known as the 1970s TV hero “The Incredible Hulk,” Ferrigno completed the training course and is expected to focus on deputy recruitment and work with abused children, a spokesperson said. “It’s always been a dream of mine to be a sheriff one day,” said Ferrigno, whose father’s police career inspired him.
– Compiled by Greg Henry from wire and Internet reports
