Thanks to The Huffington Post for putting together these videos of last night’s star studded “Idol Gives Back.” A lot of the human interest segments made me cry so hard and I am bawling as I write this, having just watched Annie Lennox’s segment. You can donate at AmericanIdol.com.

Jimmy Kimmel’s opening monologue. He jokes about Simon’s nipples and bad haircut. They discuss mobile medical units for Americans without health insurance. Simon visits a single mom with lupus raising a daughter with rheumatoid arthritis and a son with pins in his legs.

Miley Cyrus performs “See You Again”

Mariah Carey performs “Fly Like a Bird”

Robin Williams is a stupid Russian character in a bit that goes on way too long.

Fergie and Heart perform “Barracuda”

Brad Pitt gets his microphone put on, and introduces Daughtry’s video featuring footage from their trip to Uganda set to “What About Now?”

Carrie Underwood with an incredible performance of George Michael’s “Praying for Time”

Teri Hatcher sings “Before He Cheats.” She’s a surprisingly good singer.

David and Victoria Beckham in a taped appeal.

Shiela E and Gloria Estefan perform “Get On Your Feet”

Alicia Keys talks about her trip to Africa. She said “It’s crazy when you think about it, how you can change the lives of people forever for the price of a pair of shoes. Because of the AIDS epidemic there are 13 million children orphaned.” She showed a grandmother who lost all four of her children to AIDS and is now raising 8 grandchildren. She said “If AIDS got 1/2 the attention the media gives to celebrity dramas, this issue would be well on it’s way to being solved.”

Bono and Annie Lennox in Africa. Bono talks to a young boy who lost both his parents to AIDS. Annie Lennox talks to a family of four brothers in South Africa who have lost all their relatives to AIDS. The oldest is 15. Annie took them to get tested for HIV and they’re all negative. She said “across Africa, children are living like this. Their parents could still be with them if only they’d been diagnosed and given the treatment they need.”

AI Contestants sing “Seasons of Love”

Natalie Portman was on Good Morning America this morning to talk about her upcoming film in limited release, “My Blueberry Nights,” and she told a moving story about the organization she works with, FINCA, which gives small loans to entrepreneurs in the developing nations to help change their lives. When Portman was in Uganda ten years ago she met an impoverished woman with ten daughters who was beaten frequently by her husband for not bearing him a son. The woman lived on .80 a day from her husband, but she was able to get rid of him and eventually start her own restaurant after a micro loan from FINCA:

When I was in Uganda I was lucky enough to meet this woman, Niema, she had ten daughters, and… her husband was beating her because she couldn’t make a son, and she was living on .80 a day and depending on her husband for it.

She got a small loan from Finca and started her own roadside food stand, and started growing the business… buying a refrigerator and when I met her ten years later she had a restaurant with indoor seating, she had hired 7 other women, and she left her husband…

All of her daughters were in school and one of them was in University. So you see how just given the opportunity, they do all the hard work.

[Transcribed from Portman's appearance on "Good Morning America," 4/7/08, video below]

FINCA is one of many microcredit organizations that is changing lives, one small loan at a time. Impoverished entrepreneurs are given amounts that are usually less than $1,000, from which they can start or expand a business, eventually paying back the loan in full.

My favorite charity for this is Kiva, because you can read the background information and details on people who need loans and specifically donate to them. It’s inspiring to read the stories and realize that your small donation can help make a difference.

Portman also talked about her vegan shoe line on GMA this morning. Portman says she helps design the shoes by bringing in photos and shoes she likes to the designers, and providing feedback for their prototypes. She said she’s been a vegetarian since the age of 9 and made the decision to go vegan after reading “The Omnivore’s Dilemma.” Portman reminded Diane Sawyer that her husband lent the book to her.

Here’s the video, thanks to clipper monkeyboy on Redlasso:

Portman is shown in the header leaving Good Morning America today, thanks to Splash News. I’m not really liking those pom pon shoes, but some others in her collection are cute.

Ricky Martin has done an extraordinary amount of charity work in his attempts to bring attention to child trafficking. While a lot of celebs sign on to champion a cause and never do much more than attend a few fancy dinners, a select few remain devotedly committed to their cause – and Martin is definitely one of them. On Saturday he went to Siem Reap, Cambodia, where he met with young victims of human trafficking that were used for sexual exploitation. The stories shared are truly heartbreaking, and highlight how incredibly important this cause really is.

Martin held infants and listened to a 14-year-old rape victim’s song during his visit to a shelter in the northwestern city of Siem Reap, home of the famed Angkor temples. “She sings like an angel,” Martin said after the girl finished a song she composed about the plight of trafficking victims. The girl was among 65 victims sheltered at the rescue center of Afesip, a French non-governmental group working to combat human trafficking in Cambodia.

The pop star also held the 3-month-old daughter of a 22-year-old woman who was sold by her father to a brothel and is now HIV-positive. The woman broke down in tears as she urged Martin to keep fighting against human trafficking. “I’m not going to stop,” Martin said, pounding his fist on his knee as he sat on a tiled floor. “All of you are my heroes. You are a gift of my life.”

Martin, who arrived in the country Wednesday, met with Interior Minister Sar Kheng and visited various projects run by non-governmental organizations fighting child trafficking and sexual exploitation.

[From Yahoo! News]

Ricky Martin first learned about the horrors of child human trafficking in February when he attended a U.N. conference about it. Since then he has actively campaigned to bring attention to the cause in Latin America. He said that Cambodia is a model for change, as they already have over 200 NGOs devoted to ridding the country of the crime. Martin said he plans to take the information he learned in Cambodia home and use it to “motivate people, organizations, governments in Latin America.” Cambodia and Thailand are still the worst havens for child human trafficking in the world, but Martin is right, they’ve made some important inroads. He’s had a ton of publicity in Latin America for his attention to this cause, and hopefully will stick with it and help bring on much-needed change.

Here’s Ricky Martin at the 8th Annual Latin Grammy Awards on November 8th. Images thanks to PR Photos.

OK! Magazine reports that little wisenheimer Maddox Jolie Pitt, 6, is doing charity work that he came up with on his own. Maddox is making care packages to send to US soldiers serving overseas, and is said to involve his brother and sister in helping him put them together.

Maddox is doing his bit for charity too – and doing his parents proud – by making packages that will be shipped to U.S. troops overseas. “He gets the older kids involved like an assembly line,” an Angelina insider tells OK! “Zahara loves to glitter and sticker the cards!” The friend says Maddox came up with the idea all on his own. “He’s growing up to dream big and thinks even the tiniest things can make a big differece.”

[From OK! Magazine, print edition, March 31, 2008]

That’s such a cute story! Maddox has been going to school at a Lycee Francais branch near Austin, Texas and I wonder if a teacher encouraged him or if it’s an idea that he came up with himself after his mom’s trip to Iraq.

You can send care packages to US soldiers through the website anysoldier.com. It will help tell you where to send a package to a specific member of the armed forces, along with a message from them with the necessities they need. I started reading their actual requests and got teary-eyed. American soldiers need basic items like nail files, shampoo, lotion and baby wipes along with snacks and entertainment such as DVDs.

Good for Maddox for helping out our armed forces and by bringing attention to this cause with his actions. I wonder if he writes his full name on the packages and if the soldier(s) who receive it realize who he is.

Maddox, Angelina and an unnamed service member are shown on 12/2/07 at a press conference in the Lower 9th Ward in New Orleans, thanks to Splash News.

Former President Bill Clinton and actor Brad Pitt broke ground for the Make it Right project in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans. The Make it Right Project is building 150 green homes for New Orleans residents affected by Hurricane Katrina, and Pitt states that it’s “not about a handout, but a hand up.”

Pitt has contributed $5 million dollars to the project along with real estate developer and film producer Steven Bing. Bill Clinton was there to represent the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund, which has contributed $1 million. Former President George H.W. Bush was not able to attend the ceremony.

600 students from around the world were also on hand to volunteer and help clean up. They were there are part of the first meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative University. The meeting was held at Tulane University and hopes to gather student and university staff to help address the world’s problems.

Brad Pitt looked dashing in his trademark newsboy cap and a white dress shirt with jeans while President Clinton wore a red sleeveless polo and brown pants. Pitt vowed to stop wearing that hat for New Year’s but doesn’t seem to have been able to get rid of it. He was said to be selling the hat to benefit the charity, but currently the only hat available on the MakeItRightNola website is a baseball cap. You can’t blame Pitt for trying to hide that crew cut he got for his most recent part.

Story details from PRNewswire. Thanks to Splash News for these pictures from Sunday.

Do you sit around worrying about how much each celebrity might be worth, if you were to translate their entertainment value into dollars? Me either, but now that the idea’s come into my head, I think I’ll start. I’m going to value Britney Spears at $1.92. Paris Hilton could probably fetch $3.49. Lindsay Lohan is somewhere in the $.99 bin. And Scarlett Johansson runs you $40,000. Sounds about right. I have yet to see Scarlett’s lady bits splayed across my computer screen. I’m pretty sure that drops anyone’s value by about 83%. Yes I’m pulling these figures out of thin air, and really, really enjoying it. I am worth a modest, yet accessible $5,679. Thank you for wondering. Scarlett auctioned off a “date” with herself on eBay, all to benefit Oxfam. She’s been working with the aid organization for three years, since the Asian Tsunami.

Scarlett Johansson went up on the auction block and was “sold” for $40,100. A meet-and-greet with the actress was up for grabs on eBay as part of a fundraiser for the Oxfam America charity and ended last night. The prize includes two tickets to the July premiere of her next movie, He’s Just Not That Into You, chauffeured car service to the premiere, hair and makeup for one by Privé and a meet-and-greet with Scarlett at the premiere. The deep-pocketed winner? “Bossnour” from England, who may have to shell out a few more bucks for airfare to get across the pond.

[From In Touch]

Not to be a jerk, but if I went on a date and it involved a meet-and-greet, I’d be a little pissed. I’m assuming the meet-and-greet will involve a little time to chat? One would hope? If she’s just walking down a line of people, shaking hands and signing autographs, I think this “Bossnour” gets to ask for $10,000 back or something. The funny part is that it involves hair and makeup for the winner… who one would assume (but we don’t know for sure) is a man, and probably not in need of such services. As much as guys love eyeliner and all… I’m guessing that wasn’t the big draw.

Here’s Scarlett Johansson at the Royal London Premiere of “The Other Boleyn Girl” on February 19th. Images thanks to PR Photos.

Drew Barrymore was on Oprah last night, and donated a cool $1 million to the United Nations World Food Program. Due to rising food and commodity prices, which we’ve all felt the impact of at the local supermarket, the organization needs an extra $500 million dollars to help feed the world’s poor.

The 33-year-old American actress will give the money to the World Food Program, a UN body that delivers millions of tonnes of food aid to more than 70 million people in about 80 countries, she said on The Oprah Winfrey Show.

“I’m able to make this incredible donation – this has changed my life,” said Barrymore, who serves as a WFP ambassador against hunger. “But I encourage everyone to give.”

Later, she said the $US1 million was “by far” the largest donation she has ever made.

“But nothing has ever felt so good,” she said.

Sydney Morning Herald

Despite the enormous novelty check, this isn’t a publicity stunt for Drew. In 2006 she traveled to Nairobi and wrote an article for Marie Claire magazine, as well as filmed a documentary, about the living conditions and how schooling is helping with the AIDS crisis. You can read her article here.

Drew’s co-star Scarlett Johansson is also doing her bit for charity, selling herself on eBay. You can bid for two tickets to her latest film, He’s Just Not That Into You, and to meet Scarlett. The bidding was at $11,700 last time I checked, and all the proceeds go to Oxfam. The film stars Drew Barrymore as well as Scarlett, and Scarlett has launched a YouTube appeal to raise more interest in the auction.

Note by Celebitchy: Here’s Scarlett’s appeal. She seems kind of antsy at first.

Angelina Jolie elicits strong feelings in a lot of people. The comments on any post that even mentions her name can get out of hand. Some of the worst sniping over Angelina came with the recent story that she was in Iraq in her role as goodwill ambassador for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. I try to stay impartial and neutral on these Angelina posts, but it doesn’t matter what I say because someone always goes crazy with hatred for the woman no matter what she does. If she wears a loose dress she’s fueling pregnancy rumors; if she wears a tight dress she’s showing off her bump and trying to upstage her husband’s ex.

I was personally bothered by some of the comments on the post about her trip to Iraq. Millions of people have lost their homes, have lost family members, and are living in terrible conditions as a result of the war. She’s trying to bring attention to that, and no, that doesn’t mean that I think she’s an f’ing saint, it just means that I care about that cause and think it deserves attention.

Angelina wrote an op ed piece to that was published in The Washington Post today. She spoke about her trip to Iraq and the need for greater resources and more attention to the plight of refugees, many of whom have fled to nearby Syria and Jordan. Some people were criticizing her trip to Iraq, saying that she can’t make any difference anyway and just wants the publicity. In her letter, she outlined what the UNHCR wants to achieve, and with her level of fame you can bet that the Presidential candidates and Congresspeople are going to read it.

The tone is understated and sticks to the facts. She could have added a moving story about the plight of people she met, but she just gave details and statistics. With the money that it costs to run the war for just one day, countless people can be helped:

We still don’t know exactly how many Iraqis have fled their homes, where they’ve all gone, or how they’re managing to survive. Here is what we do know: More than 2 million people are refugees inside their own country — without homes, jobs and, to a terrible degree, without medicine, food or clean water. Ethnic cleansing and other acts of unspeakable violence have driven them into a vast and very dangerous no-man’s land. Many of the survivors huddle in mosques, in abandoned buildings with no electricity, in tents or in one-room huts made of straw and mud. Fifty-eight percent of these internally displaced people are younger than 12 years old…

What we cannot afford, in my view, is to squander the progress that has been made. In fact, we should step up our financial and material assistance. UNHCR has appealed for $261 million this year to provide for refugees and internally displaced persons. That is not a small amount of money — but it is less than the U.S. spends each day to fight the war in Iraq. I would like to call on each of the presidential candidates and congressional leaders to announce a comprehensive refugee plan with a specific timeline and budget as part of their Iraq strategy.

[From The Washington Post]

Celebrities are not automatically experts on the world’s problems, but if they care enough to educate themselves and to use their fame to bring attention to important causes, more power to them. Now bring on the flame war.

There was a photo in this week’s OK! Magazine of Gwyneth Paltrow out with Apple, 3, and Moses, 22 months, on Feburary 9th in NY. It was captioned “Gwyneth Paltrow, 35, visits the Kabbalah Centre in NYC with her children.”

It was the second time that Paltrow had been seen at the Kabbalah Centre this month. She was photographed sneaking out a week earlier on February 1.

Is Paltrow about to get bilked by Hollywood’s second favorite cult? It’s possible. She might have just been visiting her good buddy Maddona there. The “Raising Malawai” star-studded fundraiser for Madonna’s charity was held on February 6, and Madonna would have been in town around that time. Paltrow didn’t wear a red string bracelet to the event, but since she went to the cult headquarters twice it makes it seem like something is up.

Back in 2004 there was a story that Paltrow had pissed off Madonna by rejecting Kabbalah, but maybe the bossy pop star gradually wore her down with promises of stress-free days and a newfound purpose in life. Paltrow seems susceptible to that type of spiritual hokum.

Paltrow has a new public service announcement out for UNICEF. She provides the voice over for a clip emphasizing the need for medication in the third world to prevent the mother to baby transmission of AIDS.

She is shown outside Madonna’s Raising Malawai fundraiser on February 6, thanks to PRPhotos.

Celine Dion is an interesting lady. Her professional life is all about glamour, grand gestures and lots of fanfare. She just finished a four-year, multi-million-dollar stint performing in Las Vegas, where she had a specially-built performance hall just for her show. Before that, she had one of the most lavish celebrity weddings to date, to longtime manager Rene Angelil, in which the couple transformed a Las Vegas casino into an Arabian mosque and dressed like Arab royalty.

But in the face of all that excess, Celine recently kicked off her world tour in South Africa, meeting with Nelson Mandela and bringing her seven-year-old son, Rene-Charles, on a tour of some of the poorest areas of the region.

Celine, her husband Rene and their seven-year-old son Rene-Charles share the special moments of their trip – including a meeting with former South African president Nelson Mandela.

“I take my son around the world so that he can understand the privileges he has,” she says.

[From Hello! Canada]

It must have been quite a culture shock for Rene-Charles, who has spent most of his life growing up in Las Vegas, surrounded by luxury. Even if you’re not a platinum-selling recording artist, I still think parents can teach their kids that there are other people in the world who have it a lot worse than they do. As much as I think Celine’s music is crap, and her visit with Mandela was mostly a photo opp, I have to give her credit for this. Of course, we’ll all have to wait another 10 years to see how Rene-Charles turns out.

Celine Dion is shown with her son (yes, that’s her son with the long hair) and husband at at her final performance at Ceasers Palace after five years there on 12/15/07, thanks to PRPhotos.