Maria Carraciola

July 16, 2010

Almost all the celebrity news this week centered around Mel Gibson and his explosive taped phone conversations with ex-girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva. Five tapes have been released, trickling out every day through RadarOnline. Mel huffs and puffs and berates the mother of his child, with a lot of demands for him to be “blown.” In one he even admits to hitting her while she holds their child. With the public favoring the Russian beauty, Mel’s camp is striking back, claiming Oksana tried to extort $10 million to keep the tapes secret. They are also claiming the tapes were tampered with, which would make them inadmissible in court. Meanwhile, a photo has surfaced of Oksana with knocked-out teeth, allegedly taken after a fight with Mel. Can the Mad Max star ever recover from this story? It looks unlikely.

In happier news, it looks like Amy Winehouse may be making a comeback of her own. A new album of songs, four years in the making, could be released as soon as January. One source calls the songs “very raw and very personal” for the 26-year-old singer.

Across the pond, George Clooney just spiced up a Milan courtroom. He testified in a fraud trial against three defendants who were accused of illegally using his name and likeness to sell their clothing line. Plenty of fans and well-wishers were outside to catch a glimpse of the Sexiest Man Alive.

Susan Sarandon celebrated a lovely Bastille Day with her business partner/rumored boyfriend Jonathan Bricklin. A group from their pingpong club SPiN played the French lawn game petanque in SoHo earlier this week. They’re really not doing anything to stop the rumors they’re a couple.

The other big news of the week: Bristol Palin and Levi Johnston decided to get engaged without the blessings of their parents. They reunited three months ago while Levi was visiting their two-year-old son, Tripp, and the romance was quickly back on. But what’s this? The couple is rumored to be shopping multiple reality shows about their upcoming wedding. Levi, Bristol, a ploy for money? We’re shocked. One question: Will Sarah make an appearance?

With a little over a week to go before the Mad Men premiere, January Jones, who plays America’s favorite troubled housewife Betty Draper, has been spotted on a number of dates around Los Angeles. January was seen at lunch with Saturday Night Live funnyman Jason Sudeikis, and they were also seen “cozying up” backstage at the ESPY Awards this week. Jason was last linked to Jennifer Aniston (which she denied) and January was supposedly dating Adrien Brody as recently as last month.

Is Lady Gaga moving to the Hamptons? It sure looks that way. This decade’s Madonna is said to be eyeing a $26 million mansion in Sagaponack, complete with a wine room, sunken tennis court, and restored 18th-century barn. 

The biggest loser of the week (besides Mel, of course) is socialite Tinsley Mortimer. A report says her High Society reality series has been canceled after just one season. Apparently, Tinsley, her mother, and sister complained about how they were depicted on the—this must be emphasized again—reality show. An insider says Tinsley was upset about “being put in situations where people were manipulated to act in a certain way.” All this is bad news for Courtenay Semel, Brittny Gastineau, and Lady Victoria Hervey, who were reportedly game for Season Two. Oh well, surely Tinsley will turn up elsewhere.

Chelsea Clinton is set to wed her longtime boyfriend in Rhinebeck, New York, later this month, but what happened to the royal engagement of the summer? Prince William has yet to pop the question to Kate Middleton and a report says “Waity Katie” is horrified after one of the Queen’s advisors said she’s expected to “turn a blind eye” when (not if) William ever cheats on her.

And finally, remember Fergie? After the Duchess of York was caught in an embarrassing scandal selling access to her ex-husband Prince Andrew, it seems things couldn’t have gotten worse. But wait, there’s more! Her money troubles have forced her to fire most of her staff, including her personal assistants and driver. Luckily, she has a book coming out later this year, maybe that will be enough to pull her out of the red?