Owen Wilson is improving and getting better everyday, according to his friend, director Wes Anderson. Anderson was at the Venice Film Festival this week promoting his latest film with Wilson, “The Darjeeling Limited.” The two go way back – Wilson’s been in a number of Anderson’s films, and they were roommates in college. Wilson wasn’t able to attend the festival, as he’s been at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center the last week after his suicide attempt. He’s back home now and being watched under 24/7 care. Anderson says that Wilson’s spirits have lifted enough to crack some jokes and make people laugh – and any progress is good.

“Just one week after being admitted to the hospital following an apparent suicide attempt, Owen Wilson is back home and “doing very well,” according to friends.

“While the actor has canceled all immediate public appearances, including what was expected to be a high-profile screening of The Darjeeling Limited at the Venice Film Festival this week, his director on the project, Wes Anderson, did show up to the festival and spoke publicly about his collaborator and longtime friend—the two were college roommates—for the first time since Wilson’s hospitalization.

“‘We all miss having him here very much. Obviously, he has been through a lot this week,’ Anderson told reporters on the Lido Monday. ‘I can tell you he has been doing very well—he has been making us laugh.

“‘When he’s ready, he’s going to speak for himself much better than any of us could. He has a very good way with words.’”

[From E! News]

Owen Wilson seems to have a pretty tight-knit family, and as long as he has good people around him that will love him and not judge him, then he’s got a good support system and that can make all the difference in his recovery. I hope he conquers whatever sadness is in his heart.

In related news, “The Darjeeling Limited” isn’t getting the greatest reviews. A lot of viewers are saying that it comes across as trite or hackneyed – though to be fair, appreciating Wes Anderson’s movies requires a very specific kind of humor, so it’s hard to say if the reviewers just don’t get that, or if the movie really is bad. After previewing the movie at the Venice Film Festival, Reuters called it a “tortuous train ride” and noted “The film is overly pleased with itself, and the characters are way too self-absorbed. There’s never a man-eating tiger around when you need one.” I think it’ll probably be like most of Wes Anderson’s movies – you either get it or you don’t, and you love it or you hate it, and there’s no in between. Hopefully Owen’s not reading the reviews and just focusing on getting better.

Picture note by JayBird: Here’s Owen Wilson at the 2006 MTV Movie Awards. Images thanks to PR Photos.

Owen Wilson was hospitalized this weekend in what The National Enquirer and Star Magazine are calling a suicide attempt. His brother Andrew is said to have found him at home with an empty bottle of pills and wrists that “were slashed superficially.”

Actor Owen Wilson was hospitalized after attempting suicide, sources tell the NATIONAL ENQUIRER and Star magazine exclusively.

Wilson was transported to St. John’s hospital in Santa Monica , Calif. on Sunday, August 26, by ambulance. Sources tell the ENQUIRER and Star that he sliced his left wrists and took an indeterminate amount of pills.

He was discovered by a family member who summoned help.

Police and an ambulance responded to a 911 call from Owen’s house around noon on Sunday.

His wrist was sutured and bandaged at the hospital.

The ENQUIRER and Star broke the story of Owen’s hospitalization earlier Sunday and revealed that he was being transferred from St. John’s after being stabilized. The publications learned that he was going to be detoxed.

Owen was brought in to St. John’s in very serious condition. Police were on the scene immediately as was a criminal defense attorney, believed to be working for Wilson. Some of Owen’s family was with him.

[From The National Enquirer]

Police confirmed that they responded to an emergency call at Wilson’s house at noon on Sunday and that the person they picked up is in stable condition at a hospital in LA. They would not state whether it was Wilson due to medical privacy laws.

Along with his brother Andrew, his other brother, Luke, is said to be with him at this difficult time.

The first thing I thought of when I heard this story was Kate Hudson. I know that she and Owen broke up months ago amid rumors that he couldn’t commit, and he might regret it.

His apparent suicide attempt might have nothing to do with his old relationship with Kate Hudson, but there’s article in this in week’s Star Magazine with pictures of Kate and her new boyfriend, Dax Shepherd. It’s titled “Kate & Daddy Dax” and shows Dax holding Kate’s three year-old son, Ryder, on a trip they recently took to Boston. They mention Owen unceremoniously and say Kate dumped him. Here’s the relevant part of the article:

Could these be the first of many family snapshots? Comedian Dax Shepherd, 32, flew to Boston and spent soem quality time with new love Kate Hudson, 28, and her son Ryder, 3, on Aug. 16! The cozy threesome was spotted touring the birthplace of the American Revolution while Kate was on break from filming Bachelor No. 2…

If these pictures are any indication, Ryder looks to be in good hands. But then, Kurt Russel, who’s been like a father to Kate, did set the two up soon after she dumped Owen Wilson in May.

[From Star Magazine, print edition, September 3, 2007]

If Wilson still cares for Kate at all, it’s got to sting if he saw this article. It’s hard to know what happened between them, although they seemed to have an on-again off-again relationship and only went public toward the end, when Kate attended an after party for the film Owen made with his family, The Wendell Baker Story in mid May. His brother Andrew was quoted praising Kate at around that time. By early June, they had broken up.

Again, if Owen did attempt suicide there is no way to know why he was that distraught. The times in my life I’ve been the most depressed it’s either been about the death of a loved one or a lost relationship. His career seems to be going well as he’s got four films coming out next year, according to IMDB.

Thank goodness he’s ok and I hope that he’ll get effective treatment for his depression. He seems like a happy go lucky guy, but it just shows that he’s probably nothing like the characters he plays and that severe depression can happen to anyone.

If you or someone you love is considering suicide, please get help immediately. Here is a link to resources for help.

Owen Wilson is shown in the header photo on 6/18 after having dinner with Bruce Willis in Berlin. Thanks to WENN for the photo.

The details of Amy Winehouse’s downward spiral have been published by the Sun, and it’s really sad to read. Before she overdosed and had to get her stomach pumped in a London hospital, Amy went on a two or three day bender (the Sun says 3 days, but their timeline seems to add up to about 2 days), downing drugs and booze. As soon as she returned from Lollapalooza, she started drinking and snorting cocaine.

“Amy, whose hits include Rehab and Back To Black, began the bender at 1pm on Monday within hours of arriving in Heathrow from a music festival in Chicago. The skeletal star swigged vodka and lemonades while Blake [Fielder-Civil, Amy’s husband of two months], 25, sank pints of Stella Artois.

“Local Lesley McCormack, 26, said: ‘Both Amy and Blake made repeated visits to the toilets during the two hours they were here. She went into both the ladies’ and men’s loos. I suspect they were taking cocaine. They were with another woman. Amy ordered a club sandwich, asking for tuna instead of chicken — but she never ate it.’”

[From the Sun]

The three left around 3 o’clock in the afternoon. Around 10 o’clock that evening Amy and Blake visited their local pub in Camden, The Hawley Arms.

“They were spotted by a fan. He said: ‘She spent the evening knocking back Jack Daniel’s. They were acting quite strangely. Amy was backwards and forwards to the toilets all night.’

“The binge continued into Tuesday. A cafe owner near the couple’s home said: ‘She came in during the afternoon and was very jittery. She wanted everything done now. She said she didn’t know what she wanted but she said she wanted it hot. She was really out of it. I’ve only noticed her here in the last two months and she’s normally very nice and comes straight in and goes straight out — but on Tuesday it was different.’

“Hours later, Amy — who had just been nominated for three MTV awards — started convulsing.”

[From the Sun]

A friend of Amy’s husband said, “’It was like she had pressed the self-destruct button. She was downing coke, pills and ketamine, vodka and Jack Daniel’s. Even Amy says she will be dead within one year.’” After that she was taken to London’s University College Hospital, where she was given a shot of adrenaline and had her stomach pumped. It was originally reported that she had checked into London’s famous Priory rehab clinic, but it turns out that’s not the case. Instead she’s holed up in a London hotel instead, according to pretty reliable NME magazine. If this didn’t get through to Amy, I’m not sure what will. Getting your stomach pumped is a really traumatic process, and would scare a lot of people into at least taking their addiction more seriously and checking into rehab. I’m not saying it’d scare a person out of their bad behavior right then and there, but most people would check into rehab. Normally I’d make a lot of jokes, since “Rehab” is the title of her most famous song, but this just makes me way too sad for her. Truly, canceling your concerts and being so unprofessional is terrible, but she’s moved from terrible to tragic now.

Picture note by JayBird: Here’s Amy looking a LOT better, just a few months ago at the 2007 Brit Awards in Febryary. Header image of Amy with Kelly Osbourne at the 2007 ELLE Style Awards in London in February. Images thanks to PR Photos.

In sad but not shocking news, Amy Winehouse’s hospitalization for “exhaustion” turned out to be the celebrity synonym for exhaustion, “drug overdose.”

The tiny hard-partying singer, who has disappointed countless fans by repeatedly missing gigs and now canceling the rest of her tour, was dragged into London’s University College Hospital yesterday by a female friend and her husband. She was rushed in for treatment after receptionists saw the state she was in.

Her stomach was pumped and she was given a shot of adrenaline.

Tattooed Amy, whose stick-thin frame and sallow complexion has worried friends and fans alike, was given an adrenaline shot in the early hours drama. And she had her stomach pumped…

“She was with a female friend and a bloke who I think was her husband. He was wearing a trilby.

“They came in and went straight up to the reception desk. Her friends looked really worried about her.

“The bloke was holding her up because she couldn’t really stand on her own. Her girlfriend was doing all the talking and the receptionist seemed to be listening very carefully.

“That’s when I realised Amy must have been really ill because although there was a big crowd of people in the waiting area, she was rushed straight through.

“A nurse came over and helped Amy into the main part of the hospital.”

[From The Sun]

The Sun notes that Amy’s new husband, Blake Fielder-Civil, jokes about crack use on his myspace and lists his occupation as “rent boy.”

There was a blind item yesterday that suggested that Winehouse was doing crack in the bathroom at Lollapalooza. Before the news came out that she suffered from “exhaustion” I was speculating that she might die young. It’s not something that you want to think about, but this woman seems hell bent on self destruction. Commentor h said on that post:

it’s amazing what behavior will be excused because someone has talent. will anyone be surprised when she overdoses?

I wonder if they’ll mention Winehouse’s overdose in the October issue of Vogue? She’s due to be featured on the cover.

Header image is of Winehouse’s husband at their house with flowers yesterday. Thanks to WENN. Image below is of a performance on 4/14/07. Thanks to PRPhotos.