It’s December, which means increased spending, seasonal coffees (some Irish) and carols to tide us over until spring. To get us even more into the holiday spirit (or to encourage us to retreat to the woods), Justin Bieber and Mariah Carey have teamed up to sing Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You” for a holiday Macy’s ad music video. The tune is catchy as always (Carey’s carol is still one of the best), but we can’t help but feel a little weirded out. All Carey seems to want for Christmas is, er, the Biebz: the 41-year-old strokes her body and presents herself against a wall with her rump in the air, while the 17-year-old Bieber ogles Carey in her skimpy décolletage-revealing outfit. Not to be crass, but she looks visibly excited at the prospect of mistletoe, and the two end up in a sleigh together (we’re not so sure the addition of a puppy makes it seem less perverse). The only thing that tears Bieber away from his latest cougar conquest (and thank goodness) is a Nintendo 3DS, which gets almost as much screen time as Carey’s backside.
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Nelly Furtado received $1 million to perform for Gadhafi clan, will donate money to charity
(Image: Tabercil)
First 50 Cent, Mariah Carey, Usher and Beyoncé came under fire for performing for members of Moammar Gadhafi’s family. Now it has emerged that Nelly Furtado also accepted money in the past to perform for the Libyan leader’s clan. A lot of money. While many others artists are refusing to comment, the Portuguese-Canadian pop star came clean on Twitter.
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Roll over, Bieber: two new Canadian tweens with big voices take YouTube by storm
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Justin who? While the Biebs may have been a YouTube sensation from an early age, a new generation (yes, newer than Bieber) of Canadian tweens is stepping into the online spotlight—and this time, they’re sporting some girl power. Two new female mini-Biebers are gaining notoriety, at least in the dailies: Winnipeg’s Maria Aragon and Toronto’s Heather Russell. Aragon recently got a shout-out from Lady Gaga, and Russell signed a record deal with former American Idol judge and notorious curmudgeon Simon Cowell, all thanks to the power of the Internet. We’re not sure exactly what’s feeding our appetite for pint-sized belters in this country (and you can add Nikki Yanofsky to that list, too), but here’s what you need to know about the two new Girl Biebers:
Mariah Carey champagne, U.K. considers butter ban, Kraft and Cadbury to merge
Oenophile Mariah Carey at the Toronto premiere of Precious (Photo by Karon Liu)
• U.K. heart surgeon Shyam Kolvekar will be less popular at the nation’s morning fry-ups after his suggestion that butter should be banned to save the increasing number of young people suffering from heart problems. Adults in the country eat 20 per cent more than the recommended limit of saturated fats per month, with butter being a major contributor to the problem. Kolvekar says butter can be replaced with more heart-healthy fats, like margarine and low-fat spread. Poor Julia Child will be rolling over in her grave. [The Daily Mail]
• With the Kraft and Cadbury merger coming ever closer to reality (U.K.-owned Cadbury has accepted U.S.-owned Kraft’s offer of $19.5 billion, but shareholder approval is pending), the British are fretting about what it will mean for their chocolate. The Guardian claims American chocolate has more sugar, less cocoa solids and uses different beans than British varieties do. While British bars do tend to be creamier, we are most concerned about the fate of Creme Eggs. [The Independent]
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Lessons learned while photographing celebrities
One of our favourite shots from the festival (Photo by Karon Liu)
We consider ourselves to be experts in taking red carpet photos, having attended quite a few of the galas and special presentations since TIFF began. With every premiere, we learned something new in mastering the art of getting the perfect shot.
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The Oprah effect: The press conference-turned-talk show taping
Oprah ropes in her fans at the press conference for Precious
“It’s like the president is coming,” said one photographer looking back at the burly security guards at the entrance of the room.
“It’s bigger than that,” replied another. “It’s Oprah.”
With our cameras slung over our shoulders, painfully weighed down by the giant lenses and flashes attached to them, 15 or so photographers negotiated spots and angles with each other so we all would have a clear shot at the mighty O behind the table she’d be sitting at for the morning press conference of the movie she co-produced: Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire. (To see all photos from the Precious press conference, click here.)
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The day TIFF stood still: the Oprah, er, Precious premiere
Precious moments: Oprah Winfrey clasps her hand to heart at the world premiere of Precious (Photo by Karon Liu)
First the Beatles performed on The Ed Sullivan Show. Then Tim Hortons opened in New York. And now, Oprah Winfrey comes to Toronto.
We stood at the exact same spot for seven hours last night at Roy Thomson Hall to capture our red carpet photos of Oprah Winfrey, Mariah Carey, Tyler Perry, Sherri Shepherd, Gayle King, Mary J. Blige and others. Still, we were latecomers; the girl beside us arrived at 8 a.m., and others started rolling in at 10 a.m. By six we could see a current copy of O Magazine in every direction (what else would Oprah sign?), which probably produced a spike in magazine sales and a possible solution to save the print industry.
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PHOTO GALLERY: Oprah Winfrey, Mariah Carey, Tyler Perry, Sherri Shepherd, Gayle King and Mary J. Blige arrive for the world premiere of Precious
Likely the biggest event of TIFF 2009, the premiere of Precious: Based on the novel “Push” by Sapphire took place last night at Roy Thomson Hall. We were there to capture these 20 photos of Oprah Winfrey, Mariah Carey, Tyler Perry, Sherri Shepherd, Gayle King, Mary J. Blige and others.
Want more Oprah? Check out our full report of the event here>>
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- Sherri Shepherd poses exuberantly (Photo by Karon Liu)
PHOTO GALLERY: Precious press conference with Oprah Winfrey and Mariah Carey
We attended the press conference for Oprah Winfrey’s much anticipated film, Precious, and brought our camera along. Check out the photos below.
Canada’s queen of gossip, Lainey, tells us what she knows about the coming of Oprah, Mariah, Clooney, Cage and more
Goss boss: The queen of "fun" smut, Lainey (Photo courtesy of CTV)
TIFF starts tomorrow, so for our last-minute update on what to expect, who to look for and where to go, we sat down with none other than Elaine Lui, a.k.a. Lainey of eTalk and Lainey Gossip.
Where Oprah goes, the congregation will follow—even to Sotto Sotto.
TIFF.TO: What does it mean that Oprah Winfrey is coming to Toronto for the world premiere of Precious? Read the rest of this entry »
LAINEY: For a long time I’ve referred to Oprah as ‘The Mighty O’ and use capitalized pronouns when referring to her because people act like she’s God. Sometimes, I feel like she acts like she’s God. So it’s almost like God is coming to Toronto…like we should have a temple or something in her honour.
Oscar buzz, vodka and stalking advice doled out at the Hazelton Hotel
To be Blunt: early rumblings suggest Young Victoria could be Emily Blunt's big break (Photo by chloe004)
With two weeks left until the opening gala of the Toronto International Film Festival, reporters gathered at the Hazelton Hotel to get a rundown on the buzziest films (Precious), parties (One X One), possible Oscar contenders (Mo’Nique, the woman from Soul Plane) and TIFF-inspired cocktails (Skyy vodka for all).
CTV film critic Richard Crouse said the Oprah-backed film Precious could mean a possible Oscar nomination for Mo’Nique, while co-star Mariah Carey can finally shake off the tarnished glitter from, well, Glitter. Closing film Young Victoria also got a thumbs-up and was predicted to be Emily Blunt’s big break. But the most intriguing film tidbit (and a brilliant marketing move to boot) was that everyone who went to the pre-screening of Heath Ledger’s last film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, had to sign a waiver that forbid them from talking about it.
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Cause Célèbre: Let’s dress TIFF stars out of the Style Box
On Thursday, Gail McInnes and Amanda Brugel flung open the Style Box, a Canadian designer showroom and celeb-dressing service that aims to put the shine on A-list stars. And though the city’s socialites might not believe this, there is a higher firmament to be reached. So we decided to play dress-up and outfit some of TIFF’s most hotly anticipated arrivals—Emily Blunt, Jennifer Connelly and Penélope Cruz among them—in homestyle creations from the Box’s inaugural red-carpet parade.
View the slide show after the jump.
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Celeb spotting warm-up 5: The full list of celeb guests is out, and Oprah and Clooney are on it
He's a-coming (Photo by Attit Patel)
The much-anticipated official list of celebrities scheduled to attend TIFF arrived in our in-boxes this morning. We’re happy to report that two of the biggest names rumoured to be heading our way, George Clooney and Oprah, are definitely coming.
A lot of our other favourites have also confirmed: Big Love’s Amanda Seyfried, a reformed David Duchovny, Demi Moore, Drew Barrymore (perhaps we’ll spot her making eyes at locals at Sweaty Betty’s again), two of our three favourite Jennifers (Garner and Connelly; Aniston is a no-show), many Michaels (Caine, Cera, Douglas, Moore), the always lovely Natalie Portman, Nicolas Cage, Penélope Cruz, Ricky Gervais, Sarah Polley, Tilda Swinton, Tom Ford, Viggo Mortensen and so many more.
See the full list of guests after the jump.
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Celeb-spotting warm-up: let the speculation begin
TIFF bound? Tina Fey stars in The Invention of Lying (Photo by George Arriola)
No celebrity’s attendance at TIFF has been officially confirmed, but yesterday’s announcement of opening galas and special presentations gives us a good idea of who’s expected to venture to Toronto in September. Here’s a quick breakdown of which movies are being screened and which stars we expect to see milling about Yorkville 50 days hence.
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