A few days ago, I was just sitting around idly, wondering who Charlize Theron was dating. I think my wondering began when I saw some recent bitchface photos of her, and I was thinking that Charlize might be trying to pull an Uma Thurman, and only date rich, powerful, successful businessmen at this point. Turns out, Charlize is no Uma. According to Life & Style’s sources, Charlize is now coupled up with a 45-year-old model/actor named Eric Thal. These are a few of the photos we have of him:

He’s kind of cute. After the Irish hotness that was Stuart Townsend, I was kind of hoping for another really gorgeous hookup, but apparently not. Life & Style’s source – who is identified as a friend of Eric’s – claims that Eric and Charlie “have a lot in common. He’s a farmer who grows all his own vegetables, and Charlize grew up on a farm in South Africa. The two like to escape Hollywood and go to his farm in upstate New York.” Well… he sounds nice and low-key. Maybe that’s what she likes.

I’m not really familiar with designers or labels if they don’t have obvious logos, but I said to Kaiser that I was pretty sure Charlize Theron was wearing John Galliano for Dior last night at the Oscars. That’s because I remember Charlize’s disastrous 2006 emerald Oscar gown with the giant bow on the shoulder and reams of fabric. She wore it with a bouffant ‘up do and too much sparkly jewelry and looked like a little girl’s idea of how to dress for the ball.

Charlize wasn’t as overdone last night, but she did look ridiculous in a lilac strapless gown with giant pink flowers where her boobs should be. Unsurprisingly, the dress was designed by the same man responsible for her 2006 monstrosity, John Galliano. Charlize is good friends with Galliano and accompanied the designer to the Costume Institute Gala ball in 2006. (Galliano was dressed as a sneering pirate for that event.) Now she’s gracing many “worst dressed” lists and will be forever known as Charlize “rose boobs” Theron, but she doesn’t seem to mind. Charlize says she just “loved” that dress.

Charlize Theron wasn’t so chic at Sunday’s Academy Awards … according to fashion critics.

Bloggers ripped on her amethyst and lilac bustier gown with rose and draped detail, created specially for her by John Galliano for Dior.

“Almost every year somebody wears something off-the-wall crazy to the Oscars, and this year the unfortunate honor goes to Charlize Theron,” sniped Eonline. “Yep, those are her lady lumps wrapped in lilac rosettes, courtesy of Dior Haute Couture. This one’s going down in the history books along with the swan dresses and pirate costumes.”

Added The Orange County Register: “We hated the weird rosebud pasties on her strapless, flowing lavender and mauve gown. All the attention in the wrong place.”

Critics at New Jersey’s Star Ledger said the outfit make them “gouge” their eyes out. The Oscar winner “should have taken her bulls-eyes, er, gown and gone home,” they wrote.

But Theron, 34, likely won’t be offended. Asked on the red carpet about her gown, she told UsMagazine.com: “I just loved this dress!”

[From US Weekly]

Charlize loved the attention that ridiculous dress got her. If she wore something elegant but forgettable we wouldn’t be talking as much about her. As it is, she wore something butt ugly but not hideous, and it drew our attention to her chest. That dress was a win-win for Charlize, even if her involvement with Dior has cost her other sponsors in the past.

In other news about Charlize, there’s still buzz over her maybe-romance with Jeremy Renner, but as far as we can tell there was only anticipation about their appearance at the Oscars and we haven’t heard about them canoodling at any after parties -yet. Renner previously admitted that he hangs out with Charlize but said she’s just a “friend.” “We’re crazy about each other. I can go hang out with her and play her piano and sip Scotch.” Sounds like more than just friends to me. I bet Renner got to experience those roses up close and personal after the Oscars.

Photo credit: WENN.com and Apega/WENN

This is Charlize Theron at the New York premiere of The Burning Plain at The Landmark Theatre. Now, I think a lot of Charlize’s beauty. I think she’s a glamazon, I think she takes fashion risks, and I think she can get away with almost anything. It pains me when she wears something as blah and boring as this utterly average navy dress. The dress (and the boring hair and makeup) make it seem like she wasn’t even trying. The little peeptoe faux-booties are another story. Is anyone else reminded of Sandra Bullock’s hot mess outfit at her recent premiere? These insane, zippered, faux-booties cut off the line of Charlize’s legs, which is totally dumb. Charlize has great legs – why does she want to look so stumpy?

Anyway, while out promoting The Burning Plain, Charlize stopped by The View, and she ended up talking about her total and complete support for gay marriage. Some of this stuff she’s said before, like she wouldn’t get married until gay couples were allowed. Once she even went further than that, saying American marriage laws were “a form of apartheid”. In context, Charlize said: “I don’t like living in an elitist world, it bothers me. I don’t want to be part of an elitist sexual preference. Maybe it’s because I come from a country where I lived under apartheid. This is a form of apartheid and I don’t want to be a part of that.” On The View, she basically reiterates her points, but says she wouldn’t be able to “sleep” with herself if she got married right now:

Another Hollywood star who refuses to marry until it’s something everyone can do: Charlize Theron, who has no plans to tie the knot with Stuart Townsend, her boyfriend of eight years. She talked about marriage equality, something she has previously supported, Thursday on ‘The View.’

“I don’t want to get married because right now the institution of marriage feels very one-sided, and I want to live in a country where we all have equal rights,” Theron said.

“I think it would be exactly the same if we were married, but for me to go through that kind of ceremony, because I have so many friends who are gays and lesbians who would so badly want to get married, that I wouldn’t be able to sleep with myself.”

[From the Huffington Post]

I guess she was trying to say that she couldn’t sleep knowing there were people out there not enjoying equal rights. She just said it a weird way. In one last piece of Charlize news, she gave an interview to Parade Magazine. Most of the interview is pretty boring, but Charlize did say one interesting thing about romantic comedies: “I like conflicted women because I feel like we get so little of that. I think every director that works with me always kind of comments on the fact that it is quite ironic that I haven’t done comedy because there is zero drama about me. But, I think taste really applies to comedy, maybe even more than drama. I think a sense of humor is a very personal thing and I don’t know if I am talented enough to do romantic comedies.” Oh, Charlize. Quick, find a rom-com script for a statuesque blonde bombshell! The “meet-cute” can be when Charlize falls in her insane faux-booties, and she’s caught by… Patrick Dempsey. Ugh. I grossed myself out.

Here’s Charlize last night. Images thanks to WENN.com .

Charlize Theron usually does a good job of staying out of the tabloids. She works consistently and seems to have the respect of her peers. Her nine-year relationship with Irish actor Stuart Townsend seems solid (though there is the odd whiff of trouble every six months or so). Her politics are pretty basic – she seems like a pretty solid Democrat, and her biggest cause seems to be gay rights and gay marriage, the struggle for which she has compared to apartheid. Her interviews are usually pretty innocuous – her most recent Vogue interview included revelations like “I just know I’m going to have five boys” and “Stuart and I been together for almost nine years, so by now we’ve kind of realized that we’re going to take this journey together.” So it’s pretty weird that a report would come out featuring some less-than-perfect story of Charlize. This story involves Charlize spanking a random stranger, and Stuart getting pissy:

Although we’re not sure what the custom is in Charlize Theron’s native South Africa, there is still a universal code for what’s acceptable when it comes to slap and tickle with other guys.

Just ask her beau Stuart Townsend, who stormed out of West Hollywood’s Crown Bar on Friday night with the blonde after she got a bit rowdy with a bystander.

The couple, attending an anniversary party, were hitting a bottle of bubbly all evening until one onlooker tells RadarOnline.com that Theron got a little hands-on with a nearby dude.

“She leaned over the table and smacked some other guys ass,” an eyewitness tells us. “Stuart looked pissed, and looked at her and said ‘Why did you do that?’”

Clearly she didn’t have a satisfactory answer, as our onlooker tells us the couple bickered all evening before heading out.

“They constantly fought the rest of the night together, and ended up leaving the party early in a big huff,” said the spy.

[From Radar]

Will this get blown up like a few previous reports, and become something like “Oh my God they’re breaking up because she spanked a stranger!” While that would be hilarious, I doubt it. But the hell is Charlize doing spanking random strangers? Was she drunk? Was she high? Charlize is a girl who enjoys having a good time, and I could see how some sort of drunken horseplay would get out of hand (so to speak). Why did Stuart get upset? Did she promise to only spank him… in private? Oh… I wish I knew.

Charlize Theron is shown out walking her dogs on the beach in Malibu on 8/16/09. She’s also shown with Stuart at an event on 11/20/08. Credit: Fame Pictures

Charlize Theron is more interesting than people give her credit for. I’ve even fallen into that trap of thinking she was pretty boring and bland, but when she sits down for an in-depth interview, she’s actually quite witty and funny. Such is the case for the cover interview for September’s Vogue Magazine. First, the cover shot – I like it. It’s not overdone, it’s not over-styled. Just a beautiful woman in what looks like an interesting, pretty dress that compliments her. Maybe it’s not high fashion, but it looks good. Inside, the photo spread is set at Georgia O’Keefe’s desert Ghost Ranch, and several of the photos contain familiar homages to O’Keefe, like cow skulls and desert flowers. Charlize looks regal and lovely.

As for the interview, most of it is about Charlize’s work, both past and present. Unfortunately, she doesn’t talk that much about Stuart Townsend, her lover of nine years. The whole piece is worth a read, but here are some of the best parts:

On “mystery”: “I feel like I always reveal too much…There’s something sexy about the mystery. I don’t know how to play that card, though.”

On nude scenes: “That isn’t about me. I don’t look at the movie and go, ‘Jesus, my ass is really saggy’.”

On children: “I just know I’m going to have five boys.”

On the old gay rumors: “I cut my hair really short in my 20s, and people were like, ‘Hmm, wait a second. Is she gay?’”

On long-time love Suart Townsend: When she gets a call from Stuart Townsend, the Irish actor to whom she is famously not married (“We’ve been together for almost nine years, so by now we’ve kind of realized that we’re going to take this journey together”), she teases him about never drinking at lunch. She listens, laughs, and interrupts their conversation. “He’s like, ‘I don’t drink much, but when I drink, I drink a lot.’” She returns to him and says, “Keep that Irish thing going.”

Charlize’s Africa Outreach project: The project focuses on equipping trailers with computers and mobile health clinics, which then travel continuously through remote parts of South Africa, where teenagers have a nearly 50 percent chance of contracting HIV during their lifetime.

Fall films: In October, Theron plays “Wife” in the long-awaited film version of The Road, based on Cormac McCarthy’s best seller about a father and son struggling to survive after an unexplained apocalypse. Her role took three days to shoot, she says, and the character dies soon after the off-screen Armageddon, but she appears throughout the film, in flashbacks, an involuntary vision of beauty and the impossibility of hope. And this month she stars in The Burning Plain as Sylvia, a sexual compulsive whose secrets lie at the heart of a multigenerational love story. The story takes place on both sides of the Mexican-U.S. border, and the production reflected that: The Mexican director, Guillermo Arriaga, who also wrote Babel, conceived of the movie with Theron in mind; she helped produce it.

On her mother killing Charlize’s abusive, alcoholic father: “My trauma… That became like my f-cking tattoo.”

Charlize’s fears: She’s afraid of flying… She’s afraid of growing old and being alone. She’s afraid of insulting people. She feels like she’s shadowed constantly by a sense of remorse for some inappropriate thing she’s just said. (“People tell me that cocaine makes you feel superhuman and you’ll say anything. Then when you come down like all of a sudden you have guilt,” she says. “But I have that feeling innately, even without the cocaine.”)

[From Vogue]

Last month, there were several reports that had Charlize being hospitalized for something severe. Many claimed she was suffering “severe abdominal pains” and had caught some sort of intense virus. Others claimed she had a case of food poisoning. The incident goes unmentioned in the Vogue interview, either because it never happened, or it did happen, but just after the interview took place. In any case, it seems like whatever she was going through is over and she’s fine. As far as her upcoming films go – well, I don’t really want to see either of them. They sound totally depressing. Would it kill her to do a rom-com?

Pictures thanks to ONTD.

Angelina Jolie and her oldest child, son Maddox (who turns eight years old in August) were photographed at LAX on Tuesday. The two were traveling without Brad and without any of the other little Jolie-Pitts. Multiple sources confirm that Angelina and Maddox were flying commercial (as opposed to going for a trip in one of Angelina’s little private planes). X17 claims Angelina and Maddox are headed to France. A little mother/son bonding trip, perhaps?

Lately Brad and Angelina have been splitting up their outings with the kids by gender – Angelina takes Shiloh and Zahara out, while Brad takes Maddox and Pax for doughnuts or whatever. It’s been a while since I’ve seen Angelina do a solo trip with one of her boys. I wonder what’s up? Will the tabloids spin it as “Angelina Takes Maddox From Brad: She Screams ‘You’ll Never See Us Again!’” Meh, whatever. Maddox looks cute in his little sunglasses and his track pants. As for Angelina’s outfit… well, I’m sure it’s comfortable. I think I have those sh-tkicker boots in brown, actually. And I’m filled with the urge to give Angelina a haircut. Her hair looks healthy and everything, but I think it would look fuller if she got a trim, perhaps. I just prefer her hair in a loose bun, I think it looks prettiest that way.

In other Angelina Jolie news, it looks like she’s no longer attached to the would be film or miniseries version of Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged. Something about how she didn’t want to do it anymore or the other crap came up for both her and the studio, something like that. In any case, it looks like the studio that owns Atlas Shrugged is now considering Charlize Theron for the role of the capitalist heroine Dagny Taggart. I could cite some Hollywood industry piece, but this announcement from the geeks over at The AV Club (at the Onion) had me barking with laughter. For the whole AV Club piece, go here. This is the basic gist:

Weep no more, bruised and battered libertarians: After 37 years of being shot down by rational people who see the book as a stilted and masturbatory work suitable only for college freshmen who haven’t figured out that, if everyone did exactly what they wanted all the time, civilization would collapse on itself—and by the way, dudes, most ladies don’t enjoy being raped into submission, even by rugged industrialists—your sticky dreams of turning Rand’s rambling screed about the values of selfishness and laissez-fare capitalism into a brutally dull, unwatchable movie are about to become a reality!

We know: You’ve heard all this before. In fact, not long ago, self-avowed Rand fanatic Angelina Jolie was attached to the film, but someone must have gently taken her aside and explained that it’s hard to be both an objectivist and staunch opponent of collectivism when you’re also asking people to give all their money to Third World countries or working closely with those evil cooperation-lovers at the UN—which basically amounts to criminal activity amongst the book’s more fervent fans.

Thankfully those acolytes have a brand new, Teutonically ideal actress to provide the integrity-filled bodice of economically principled sexpot Dagny Taggart in Charlize Theron, and all will soon be right with the world.

[From The Onion’s AV Club]

The AV Club guy goes on to say that Charlize is hellbent on making Atlas a miniseries, because if they tried to make it into a three-hour film, it would loose it’s nuances, “like the scene where the book’s mythical hero of both engineering and “keeping it real” John Galt stands in a ditch and barfs out a 70-page speech about the awesomeness of objectivism”. Chuckle. I love Ayn Rand humor. I was actually a big Ayn Rand person before I got into feminist theory and existentialism. And then that fell by the wayside, and now I’m all “whatever works, dude”. I’m just so happy that Angelina is no longer attached to this turd of a film project. It would have taken forever to film, and it wouldn’t have been worth that. It’s all yours, Charlize!

Angelina and Maddox are shown at LAX on 7/21/09. Charlize Theron is shown at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, yesterday, which featured Chelsea vs Inter Milan. Credit: WENN.com

Charlize Theron said in a recent interview with MTV that she just doesn’t get MTV faux reality show The Hills and that it’s “about nothing.” MTV has the footage on their site and, like her appearance on The Tonight Show, she came across as tipsy at the start of the interview but seemed to pull it together toward the end. She slurred her words a little and was joking around a lot. The interview was conducted with her co-star in the upcoming film about the 1999 World Trade Organization protests, Battle In Seattle, Martin Henderson. Battle in Seattle is directed by Theron’s longtime boyfriend, Stuart Townsend and is now out in limited release.

MTV: Charlize, you and I have discussed “The Hills” a couple times.

Theron: Yes, you belittled me on television. They were like, “Who’s the f—ing nana on the TV show who’s never seen ‘The Hills’?!?”

MTV: I never called you a nana.

Theron: Well, the kids now think I’m a nana, thanks to you.

MTV: You have said that you are now up on “The Hills,” so I have a question: Do you think Lo is treating Audrina fairly?

Theron: [Long pause, laughs.] So I watched a couple episodes. I was doing a world tour at the time, so I watched them in a couple languages. I realized that this f—ing show is huge. Now I’m going to ask you a question: Why?

MTV: Why what?

Theron: Why is it so big? It’s about nothing! This is a free country. Freedom of speech! You can tell me right now to my face that “Reindeer Games” was a piece of sh–. That’s totally fine. But “The Hills” is about nothing. I think the girls are beautiful and when they cry their mascara runs and that’s real, but I don’t get it! [Pause.] I am a nana. I’ll just take it. I am a nana. Maybe I need to watch the shows some more.

[From MTV.com via The Huffington Post]

I have to agree with Theron. I’ve only seen clips of this show online and a couple of episodes dubbed over in German. Maybe it’s because I could only follow about half of what they were saying, but I ended up focusing on their hair and makeup and resolving to try new looks. This often happens when I watch soap operas in English, though, so I assume it’s just like a soap opera but semi-real. It’s wildly popular and the stars have all become well know, so someone must be watching it. Most of the show’s fans are just not in Theron’s age bracket, which I will reluctantly admit that I share.

Theron also talked about her film about the WTO protests, and admitted that her boyfriend Townsend released the film before the US election for maximum impact. She said she’s never really protested anything, but that she would protest the World Trade Organization now that she’s done the film and is more informed about it. Then she made a little gaffe saying the WTO’s decisions would affect her children, which is odd because she doesn’t have any yet as far as people know:

MTV: First things first: Is there a cause that is worth spending a night in jail for?

Theron: I would definitely go to a WTO protest for sure. Anything that is going to affect my health, my children’s health …

Martin Henderson: You have children?

Theron: No. If I had children!

MTV: We have broken news. You have children!

Theron: Yes, and they live in Alaska and they can see Russia from their backyards.

[From MTV.com]

Hopefully Theron isn’t in the early stages of pregnancy because she definitely seemed tipsy in that MTV interview and on The Tonight Show earlier this week, where she sipped a margarita and sang a very off key karaoke version of Bohemian Rhapsody. She really pulled it together at the end of the interview with Leno at didn’t seem drunk at that point, so maybe it was all an act.

Charlize Theron is shown with Stuart Townsend at a screening for Battle in Seattle on 9/22/08. Credit: WENN

I love me some Will Smith. I also love me some Will Smith movies. (Well, except for Hitch. Okay, Hitch and The Legend of Bagger Vance. Okay, Hitch, The Legend of Bagger Vance and Wild Wild West. My point is, I still watch Fresh Prince, okay?!) Anyhoo I’m sort of gagging over his new film Hancock. I mean have you seen the trailers? Now THOSE are some special effects! But what isn’t having a special effect on me is the suit he wore to the Los Angeles premiere of the film. I mean did he keep that from the costume department of Bagger Vance? Where’s his caddy then? I don’t care what they say plaid is not rad. Especially full body plaid. Which leads me to Thomas Jane.

Really, Thomas Jane? Really? Were your overalls dirty so you decided to come to a Hollywood premiere dressed like a trucker? I get that it’s not your movie and I get that you don’t even have a cameo in it, but seriously is it too hard to tuck in a shirt and perhaps shave? I hope this lackadaisical attitude doesn’t rear it’s ugly head in his upcoming film Mutant Chronicles. (Which by the way BETTER be minimally enjoyable… unlike The Mist.) Speaking of mist, thank you Charlize Theron for finally laying off the spray tanning. You look lovely. I don’t get what black nail polish has to do with anything, but I’m gonna look beyond that because your make up looks fresh and appropriate and that necklace is perfect. I’m borderline on that gown, but I love the color and I get what you’re going for…unlike Valerie Bertinelli. This worries me. Valerie Bertinelli looks like Barbra Streisand’s Mini-Me. Why is she wearing a drape? I mean seriously! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: “Clothing should be draped, not drapes.” This tells me she does not believe in her Jenny Craig’d fabulous body which really breaks my heart, because she looks amazing. I’m just sayin’ I would think if she just lost 40 pounds and is a spokesperson for a weight loss program AND she’s back on red carpets that she would be showin’ it all off to get some new fabulous jobs… aw, well. Maybe she’s just taking it one day at a time…And that’s just what Lisa Raye should be doing. I love the new hair (I actually have that same hair in a box in my closet), but what is up with that hot tranny mess of an ensemble? (Minus the sandals of course: LOVING THEM!) It’s part bridesmaid, part summer teen and part tablecloth all in one!

As I look at it now it looks like this entire red carpet is a mess. Does Justine Bateman think she’s still on the set of Satisfaction? Has Kevin James gone Gangsta Rapper on us? Is Minnie Driver about to break into a routine from Flashdance? Did Queen Latifah just happen to be doing her cardio down Hollywood Boulevard and made a wrong turn and ended up on the red carpet? Does Amanda Peet not realize her makeup is that of a cracked out rocker on a 10 day binge? Has Virginia Madsen FINALLY proved to us once and for all what really IS black and white and red all over?

(Sigh, I am exhausted)`

Special thanks go out to Jason Bateman for being the real hero of the red carpet of a superhero movie. He looks like a true star at an actual premiere for one of the summer’s hottest films. Thank you Jason…and I miss Arrested Development more than you will ever know. (Is it true there’s rumored to be an A.D. movie in ’09? Please say yes, PLEASE!)

Boy Harvard sure is a popular place for actresses these last few days. Yesterday both Paris Hilton and Charlize Theron spent the day at Harvard University. Paris accepted her award as the Harvard Lampoon’s Woman of the Year, while Charlize was given the slightly more prestigious Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year award. Neither actress attended college – or even graduated from high school – but both seemed to get a kick out of their respective honors. Since it’s Harvard, I feel like I should spell it honours. We’ll go fancy today.

So what is she going to do with her prize, the coveted Pudding Pot?

“I’m going to make a stew [in it], and then I’m going to eat it,” [Theron] told reporters at the event, hosted by Hasty Pudding Theatricals (the nation’s oldest collegiate theater group, known for burlesque musicals featuring cross-dressing men). “I’m going to look at it and remember today and how much fun I had.”

Fun, indeed. Her Harvard hosts gave her apple cider – in honor of her role in The Cider House Rules – and, she joked, “I think it was laced with something, which made it much better.”

Still, the actress seemed torn when asked which was the biggest honor, the Pudding Pot or her Academy Award for Monster. “I know you want me to say that the Oscar sucks and this is better,” she said. “There are no men in drag at the Oscars like there are here. I’ve never been surrounded by so many fake breasts.” Then again, considering Hollywood’s penchant for plastic surgery, she added, “Actually, I think I was at the Oscars.”

[From People]

Interestingly, Hasty Pudding has been giving the Woman of the Year award since 1951, but didn’t start handing out awards to the men until 1967. Wikipedia notes that the awards are usually treated with great seriousness by the honoree, who always attends. Apparently a satellite feed is not encouraged. A parade is always given in the winner’s honor. When John Wayne was asked to be the parade marshall in 1969, he somehow obtained an M-113 armored personnel carrier and rode it into Harvard Square. And he wasn’t even Man of the Year. While Charlize Theron appears to have left all military vehicles at home, she did wedge herself in between two cross dressers for some lovely photo ops.

Here’s Charlize at Harvard yesterday.

No matter how intelligent we are, everyone has moments of stupidity, where we say shockingly dumb things. I have been accused by more than one friend of being the dumbest smart person they’ve ever known. Probably due to by tendency to walk into doors, walls, and oncoming traffic. Though I’d never thought about it, I’m now incredibly grateful that there were generally only a handful of people around to watch me do or say really dumb things. Charlize Theron is not so lucky. People tend to actually listen to what she says. Which sucks for her. The upside is that they listen because she’s rich, famous, and beautiful, so it seems like it’s probably worth the trade off. During promotion for the release of “The valley of Elah,” Charlize gave an interview to the Daily Mail in which she talked about the special time she spent in Budapest with boyfriend/husband (depending on who you ask) Stuart Townsend. Except she was actually talking about Istanbul. Oops.

“We went to Turkey. When we got over there, we rented a car and we drove all the way to Budapest,” the 32-year-old told London’s Daily Mail of her spring 2006 trip with actor beau Stuart Townsend. That would have been one impressive drive, considering the capital of Turkey is about 660 miles from Budapest. “By the time we got to Budapest it was like the Cannes Film Festival, I’d never seen anything like it,” she said. Charlize, that was the popular Istanbul International Film Festival you attended.

She also described visiting a Turkish bazaar where she purchased various local rugs. In one sighting, a tipster from A Socialite’s Life observed Charlize throwing down $380,000 on silk and traditional Turkish rugs at Istanbul’s historical Grand Bazaar. “When we travel, it’s like backpacking,” she said of her desire to keep a low profile. “We don’t stay in fancy hotels. We like to go and be part of the culture.”

[From Page Six]

I think a lot of people’s grasp of geography tends to fade as they get further and further away from the fifth grade. I would excuse a lot of geography errors if Charlize were just discussing them in theory, but she was giving a long anecdote about a place that was supposedly special to her, and in which she’d spent a good deal of time. On the other hand, she travels to so many different places, between work and pleasure, that I can’t help but excuse the minor relatively gaffe. Thought the comment that she and Townsend try to keep a low profile and act like they’re backing is pretty funny. I am by no means the expert traveler I wish I were, but I’m pretty sure that spending $380,000 on Turkish rugs isn’t exactly in line with the backpacking lifestyle. If Charlize thinks that’s keeping it low-key, it makes me wonder what she means when she says she doesn’t stay in fancy hotels. Probably the Hilton instead of the Four Seasons.