The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards will already feature the premiere of exclusive New Moon footage, presented by Twilight stars Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, and Taylor Lautner. Now another one of that franchise’s stars has scored a piece of the action: Ashley Greene, the actress who plays Alice Cullen, will serve as MTV’s fashion correspondent during the red carpet pre-show.
The VMAs will air on MTV on Sept. 13 at 9 p.m. ET, with the carpet broadcast starting at 8.
Humorist and radio personality Garrison Keillor is recovering at Minnesota’s Mayo Clinic after suffering a minor stroke and checking himself into the hospital on Monday, according to a story in the Hollywood Reporter. He is expected to be released on Friday, and intends to start the new season of A Prairie Home Companion as scheduled, on Sept. 26. His spokesman said Keillor “is doing well and the family appreciates the warm wishes.”
According to Variety, this year’s Kennedy Center Honors will laud producer/director Mel Brooks, actor Robert De Niro, and rock star Bruce Springsteen, as well as musician Dave Brubeck and opera singer Grace Bumbry. The 32nd annual gala will take place in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 6, and CBS will air the ceremony Dec. 26.
According to the AP, the 2010 Tony Awards have been set for Sunday, June 13, at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall, and once again shown in a live telecast on CBS, from 8 – 11 p.m. ET. No word yet on host, or when nominees will be announced.
Janet Jackson sat down with Harper’s Bazaar for her first interview since her brother Michael’s death, revealing that she hasn’t watched television since he died July 25. “It will drive you crazy,” she told the magazine. The reserved youngest sibling of the Jackson clan has also learned her own strength in the aftermath of Michael’s passing, saying. “I always wanted to have my mother’s [Katherine Jackson] strength, but I didn’t know if it was really there… Now at least I know that I can step up to the plate and not crumble when I’m needed. When it comes to something like this that is so, so serious, so painful, so traumatic, I can handle it.”
In the interview, conducted in a recording studio in Hollywood, Janet also shares some personal details about her brother, the King of Pop. “He loved to laugh,” she said. “The last time we were together, he’d laugh so hard, he would just start crying. Sometimes his humor would be corny, sometimes dry. He loved the Three Stooges, he loved slapstick, he loved Eddie Murphy in his silly comedies. He loved to have fun. He loved to play.”
Janet is currently working on a book (True You, about diet and self-esteem), recording a new album, and has recently been shooting Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married Too. She says she doesn’t remember much about her brother’s memorial service, and returned to Atlanta to continue shooting the Perry film that night. “I’ve been doing okay,” she told Harpers. “Work helps focus all of that energy on something that is of value to you.”
CBS has ordered a 12th season of its reality staple Big Brother, to air in the summer of 2010. The season finale of Big Brother 11 airs on Sept. 15.
A very thin but familiarly-dressed Steve Jobs took the stage this afternoon at Apple’s “It’s Only Rock and Roll” product launch event. Jobs, making his first major appearance in over a year, was met with an enthusiastic round of applause that lasted over a minute. “I’m very happy to be here today with you all,” he said, before explaining that he’d had a liver transplant and encouraging the audience to “elect to become organ donors.” Jobs announced in January that he was taking a medical leave of absence, saying then that his “health-related issues are more complex than [he] originally thought.” He had been diagnosed in 2004 with pancreatic cancer, but the exact details of his recent illness have not been disclosed. A transcript of his opening remarks is after the jump. READ FULL STORY »
Lindsay Lohan has become artistic adviser to the French fashion house Emanuel Ungaro, according to the Associated Press. She will work with new designer Estrella Archs on what the company describes as a new consumer-led business model. Ungaro CEO and president Mounir Moufarrige says Lohan adds “a super consumer who gives us a direct channel to consumers.” Lohan-Archs will debut their first collection during Paris Fashion Week on Oct. 4.
Nicole Richie announced on her website that she and Joel Madden have become parents to a baby boy. “In the middle of night, the very early hours of September 9, 2009, Sparrow James Midnight Madden was born to Nicole Richie and Joel Madden. He weighs 7lbs 14oz. Nicole, Joel, Harlow and Sparrow are all doing well. Thank you for all of your good wishes.”
Sparrow is Richie and Madden’s second child, following the January 2008 birth of daughter Harlow Winter Kate Madden.
Apple’s long-rumored Nanocam is a reality: starting today, iPod Nanos will have built-in video cameras. Steve Jobs unveiled the new iPod Nano at Apple’s “It’s only rock and roll” showcase this afternoon in his trademark “one more thing” slot at the end of his presentation. The updated devices, introduced as competitors to the popular Flip cams, also include a built-in FM radio and pedometer, and come in 8GB and 16 GB models, for $149 and $179, respectively.
