Singer Amy Winehouse leads a remarkably open life for someone so famous. Most celebrities keep a passel of security guards and assistants around them at all times. They buy fancy homes in gated communities. They only sign autographs at premieres. Amy is pretty much the opposite of all those things. You rarely see her with any security other than a friend or her dad. From the description in Rolling Stone, she lives in anything but a fancy, gated home. Winehouse’s fans are often photographed going right up to her door, which she answers herself. She’ll chat and sign autographs. I can’t think of any other celebrity that encourages that kind of access.

In a way it’s really cool – and if she had her act more together in terms of her personal affairs, it’d be easy to say Amy was really down to earth and awesome. Unfortunately all of her openness – or maybe it’s just a refusal to hide – has made Winehouse’s every move pretty easy to document. That’s why it came as a surprise to many that she’s been at a hospital clinic for the last ten days, since her release from another hospital after being diagnosed with emphysema-like symptoms.

Though her rep wasn’t clear, it appears Winehouse is being treated for her lung condition and not specifically for her addictions. She was allowed to leave the clinic twice for concert performances this past weekend – and was also photographed buying cigarettes and booze. After ten days she’s being released.

Amy Winehouse has left the hospital, it was confirmed Tuesday. The performer, who had a busy weekend of concerts, was discharged from the clinic where she has been staying for more than 10 days on Monday.

Her representative, Chris Goodman, said, “She has left [the] hospital. She is continuing as an outpatient.” The singer, 24, returned to the facility during rehearsals and between her performances for Nelson Mandela and at the Glastonbury Festival. But she left for good on Monday.

“She will return for regular appointments for check[-up]s,” said Goodman. He adds, “There comes a time when you are ready to leave the hospital, and so she left. No one was trying to keep her there. It was completely up to her – everyone knew she would not stay there forever”… Goodman says Winehouse is “looking great and feeling great.”

[From People]

I really don’t understand how Amy Winehouse is constantly able to convince doctors that she’s fine. She’s always leaving hospitals and rehabs after what seems like relatively short stays – especially considering her myriad of conditions and the ferocity with which her addictions always seem to return. I realize they can’t lock her down… but it’d sure be great if they could.

Amy wasn’t in the hospital secretly, and a few media outlets mentioned it. Maybe it just didn’t get as much press because it doesn’t exactly raise eyebrows anymore.

Despite the “everything is great!” line her PR guy gave, the Daily Mail reported that Amy immediately went out partying.

The troubled star marked her release from hospital by partying until 4.30am amid fears she’ll resume her bad habits. The Rehab singer visited live music venue The Monarch and stopped in at a kebab shop before returning home to carrying on the party with friends.

A source is quoted in The Sun as saying: ‘We feared a taste of the outside would remind her what she’s missing and it would be hard to get her back into life at the clinic. That’s exactly what’s happened. Sunday was like she was on a terrible comedown from the whole thing. She kicked off and threw all her toys out the pram.

‘She told Mitch [her father]: “I’m climbing the walls in here. I need to get out”. She said if he didn’t help her get out, she’d walk out. ‘He realised he had to let her leave, otherwise he’d have no control over where she goes and what she gets up to.’

[From the Daily Mail]

What’ll it take to get her to straighten out? What hasn’t gone wrong for Amy Winehouse? If she hasn’t hit rock bottom yet, I’m truly afraid to see what her version of the bottom looks like.

Here’s Amy Winehouse leaving her Camden home to go for a walk with an inhaler in her hand after she was released from the hospital last night. She produces an ace of hearts playing card which she asks the photographers to get published for her incarcerated husband. Totally normal. Images thanks to WENN.

If someone told you that you would die unless you stopped doing a certain behavior, how long would it take you to give that behavior up? Well, if you’re Amy Winehouse, you don’t give it up. Because nobody tells Amy what to do: not her record company, not her parents, not her doctor, not even Blake Incarcerated. Amy was released from the hospital, where she was diagnosed with emphysema - pretty shocking for a 24-year-old - on Monday. She was immediately photographed smoking a cigarette.

Amy Winehouse was photographed smoking in London on Monday after her father Mitch revealed she is suffering from emphysema.

“The doctors have told her if she goes back to smoking drugs it won’t just ruin her voice, it will kill her,” Mitch told UK newspaper the Daily Mail.

Winehouse, 24, was taken to the hospital last week for tests after she fainted at home in London.

“With smoking the crack cocaine and the cigarettes her lungs are all gunked up,” Mitch said. “There are nodules around the chest and dark marks. She’s got 70 percent lung capacity.”

If she doesn’t get treatment, she could need an oxygen mask to breathe, Mitch told the Daily Mail.

“She’s only 24 yet she has the lungs of an 80-year-old,” David H. Nielson, a thoracic surgeon in San Antonio, tells Usmagazine.com. “She’s going to get fatigued [on stage] and have to rest with supplemental oxygen. It will dramatically effect her career.”

“To have this type of emphysema already will likely shorten her life to about 50 years of age,” says Nielson.

[From Us Weekly]

Meanwhile, Amy’s publicist (who the hell would want that job) denies the reports that the singer has emphysema, saying that she only has the beginning traces of the disease and that Amy’s father “misspoke.”

A discrepancy regarding the health of Amy Winehouse arose Monday after the Grammy-winning singer’s father said she had early stage emphysema brought on by smoking crack cocaine and cigarettes.

A publicist for Winehouse later said he had misspoken “out of his concern for her.”

“She is not diagnosed with full-blown emphysema, but instead has early signs of what could lead to emphysema,” Tracey Miller, her U.S.-based representative, told The Associated Press on Monday.

[From Fox News]

This makes a little more sense than her having full blown emphysema- but either way, wouldn’t it be a good idea for Amy to quit smoking and go to rehab? The girl is either stone cold stupid or she’s got a death wish. At this point, she is becoming less of a tragic figure and more of a cartoon character mess.

Amy Winehouse is shown smoking on 5/12/08, thanks to WENN. The photos of Amy Smoking after her release can be found on Gossip Girls.

In some sad news, Amy Winehouse has emphysema, her father Mitch has told the Sunday Mirror. He says that her doctors claim that Amy will die if she doesn’t quit smoking drugs.

“The doctors have told her if she goes back to smoking drugs it won’t just ruin her voice, it will kill her,” he was quoted as saying in the Sunday Mirror.

“The doctors have said that if she had continued the way she was going she could have ended up an invalid - she wouldn’t have been able to breathe.”

He added: “She’s got emphysema. It’s in its early stages, but had it gone on for another month they painted a very vivid picture of her sitting there like an old person with a mask on her face struggling to breathe.

“With smoking the crack cocaine and the cigarettes, her lungs are all gunked up. There are nodules around the chest and dark marks. She’s got 70 per cent lung capacity.” He added that a spell in hospital last week and renewed treatment for her well-publicised drug addiction had offered a ray of hope for his 24-year-old daughter.

“If she doesn’t go back to drugs, then she can lead this magnificent life,” he said. “We are praying that that’s what Amy really wants. She seems resolute.”

Sydney Morning Herald

I hope this disease is enough to get Amy off drugs, because I think for the first time her livelihood is truly threatened. Obviously Amy needs to have good lungs to sing, and she definitely needs to breathe to live.

Amy Winehouse has an estimated fortune of $20 million, but if she can’t work her money may eventually dry up and instead of being a drug-using rock star she’ll just be a junkie. Which would be a shame because she is so talented.

Her father says in the interview that she abstains from drugs when she’s working - although her recent string of canceled concerts suggests otherwise - and that she should focus on her music.

Amy Winehouse is shown taking out the trash with a cigarette in her mouth on 5/27/08, thanks to WENN.

The Daily News is reporting that Amy Winehouse has been in the hospital since fainting Monday because she has tuberculosis. They’re also saying Amy’s massive weight loss has hindered her recovery – and that she won’t let doctors treat her.

As Amy Winehouse remains in the hospital, it’s being reported that the 24-year-old has a case of tuberculosis.

With a chest infection and the songstress coughing up blood, sources inside the London hospital report her doctors are trying to control her irregular heartbeat.

“She’d been suffering horrible coughing fits and hurling up blood for a while but refused to be examined. Doctors now believe it is tuberculosis and are doing more tests to be certain,” the source told London’s The Sun newspaper.

Winehouse’s massive weight loss since she sky-rocketed to fame in 2004 is also a concern of doctors.

[From the Daily News]

However Amy’s rep officially denied the TB report, stating that Amy has some sort of chest infection, and doing his best to make it sounds like it’s relatively mild.

Amy Winehouse has been tested for tuberculosis during her prolonged hospital stay, her rep tells PEOPLE. “She has a chest infection and she had a routine test for TB, which came back negative,” Chris Goodman tells PEOPLE.

Goodman also denies a report – in U.K. tabloid The Sun – that she has been coughing up blood at the London clinic where she was taken after fainting earlier this week.

The troubled singer, 24, is still undergoing tests and doctors will soon decide whether she is able to keep her upcoming performing commitments. One insider says her chances of performing for Nelson Mandela’s 90th birthday celebration in London on June 27 are “50/50.”

“She would really love to do the show – she always wants to do these things,” said Goodman. “But she will listen to her doctors.”

[From People]

Amy Winehouse not showing up to a big performance isn’t exactly newsworthy anymore. Having a legitimate excuse NOT TO be there is definitely newsworthy, at least for her. I think it’d be great if doctors keep her in the hospital as long as possible. It certainly couldn’t make things worse. Though one has to wonder if she’s also going through withdrawals, since presumably she’s not shooting up in the ICU. Though if anybody could figure out a way to get it done, it’s Winehouse.

Here’s Amy and her dad Mitch on the way to the hospital; header of Amy right before she fainted on Monday. Images thanks to WENN.

Amy Winehouse fainted on Monday after signing some autographs at her London home. Her father took her to the hospital, where she’s luckily been ever since. Everyone’s acting like Amy has some mysterious condition – running lots of tests and talking in (internet) whispered voices. You know what illness Winehouse is suffering from? Drugs. I know the next logical smart ass question is “Where’d you get your medical degree JayBird?” From the University of Duh. It was a really rigorous program.

Amy Winehouse’s fainting spell has her doctors stumped. The “Rehab” chanteuse has been hospitalized since blacking out Monday, and doctors at the London facility where she’s being treated are conducting further tests, her rep said today, to get to the bottom of what ails her before she resumes performing later this month.

Winehouse’s father, Mitch, who drove his daughter to the clinic, told London’s Telegraph that his daughter will remain hospitalized “as long as possible” until her physicians determine a proper diagnosis.

“Amy is doing fine,” he added.

Winehouse’s camp denied a report by the Sun tabloid she was suffering from an irregular heartbeat and that she was ordered by doctors to clean up her act and quit drugs or risk dying.

[From E! News]

Something tells me living as hard as Amy Winehouse does can really shorten your life expectancy. At first I assumed she’d overdosed, but perhaps she’s caused herself some serious damage, and that’s what’s caused her to faint. You simply can’t expect that you can snort and shoot everything that doesn’t walk and your body will thank you for it.

Here’s Amy with her dad Mitch leaving her home to go to ‘The Clinic’ in London on Monday. Images thanks to Splash.

When I say that faux punk rocker/great humanitarian Avril Lavigne can’t sing, I’m talking literally and figuratively. The Canadian import, whose music makes anyone over the age of 12 want to shove sharp objects into their eardrums, has been forced to cancel six West coast dates on her tour due to a case of severe laryngitis.

Suffering from acute laryngitis, rocker Avril Lavigne has postponed six dates on her U.S. “Best Damn Tour.”

She had already canceled shows in Phoenix and San Diego this week.

“My sincerest apologies to all of my fans,” she said in a statement to Usmagazine.com. “My intention was to complete the rest of the tour, but tonight at sound check in Anaheim, [Ca.], I realized this wasn’t possible.

“Even though I have been resting my voice for days,” she continued, “when I tried to sing nothing came out.”

Refunds will be available at point of purchase on Monday.

[From Us Weekly]

Oh, come on, Avril, we all know you are lipsyncing on stage- who are you trying to kid? I would probably buy tickets to that sound check before I’d accept free tickets to see her perform. Now THAT would be the “Best Damn Thing.” Maybe I’m evil, but something about the thought of Avril, with her fake little punk rock sneer and pink hair, trying to squeak out one of her annoying songs in vain, brings me great pleasure. Pardon me while I commence cackling maniacally.

Avril Lavigne is shown In Chicago on stage for “The Best Damn Tour 2008″ on 3/21/08, thanks to PRPhotos.

While reports are that Patrick Swayze is responding well to his cancer treatments, it seems he is still preparing for the worst case scenario. He’s put all of his assets into a living trust, so that if he does die they will be disposed of in the way he wants.

Fans of ailing movie hunk PATRICK SWAYZE have been left fearing for the worst after learning the GHOST star has put all of his real estate into a living trust.

The actor, who is fighting deadly pancreatic cancer, has filed papers suggesting he’s getting his affairs in order.

The documents are traditionally filled out by people on the verge of death, who want to make sure all of their final wishes are taken care off after they die.

The paperwork, obtained by U.S. TV news show Entertainment Tonight, was filed on 28 March (08).

Contact Music

This isn’t your cue to worry that his condition is much worse than what reports indicate. While these papers are usually only filed when someone is close to death, it makes sense to me that anyone with a potentially terminal illness should make sure their affairs are in order.

Patrick has been getting a little bit of special treatment from NASA.

Patrick Swayze has been granted special permission to use a NASA airstrip in California, so he can fly himself to hospital for cancer treatment.

Moffett Federal Airfield near San Francisco is designated for government use only and is totally closed to civilians - but the actor and flying fanatic has reportedly been using the runway to jet between his home in southern California and Stanford University Medical Center.

A source tells Florida’s Palm Beach Post newspaper Swayze is using the ex-navy base to avoid the paparazzi when he makes bi-monthly trips for chemotherapy.

Ireland Online

I don’t know if this is true, the report only comes from a ‘source’, but if it is then it indicates that Patrick is in good enough health to fly himself to hospital.

His wife Lisa Neimi has thanked people for their support, saying “We can’t help but feel that all the prayers, meditations and good thoughts sent his way by everyone has made a difference.” Hopefully Patrick keeps sending us positive reports, and his living trust never gets used.

Patrick Swayze is shown at a One Last Dance Movie and Benefit Performance on 08/23/05, thanks to PRPhotos.

Star Magazine probably paid someone off to give them confidential details of Jessica Simpson’s medical condition. The singer checked into the hospital on March 28 for a four day stay for what was widely reported to be a kidney infection. She did have a kidney infection, according to Star, but they claim that it was caused by too much alcohol. What’s more is that she asked for a pregnancy test, which I guess we can assume was negative unless it was for her sister:

[Jessica Simpson] was rushed to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in L.A. on March 28 and remained there for four days. Reps for the singer said she was being treated for a “kidney infection,” but an insider tells Star it was more than that. Jessica’s health problems were “brought on by drinking an obscene amount of alcohol,” says the source. “She was treated for a kidney infection, a bladder infection and a urinary tract infection.”

Adding to her distress, anxious Jessica asked doctors to give her a pregnancy test! “She was a nervous wreck,” says the insider. “She was three weeks late and convinced she was pregnant. She was feeling really weak and really scared. She was unraveling.”

Since her divorce from Nick Lachey in 2006, Jessica has dated a string of men, including musician John Mayer. But after hooking up with Dallas Cowboys hunk Tony in November, insiders say her partying and drinking are out of control.

[From Star Magazine’s Website]

Star Magazine is pretty low on the gossip totem pole and has been known to whip up a story with wishful thinking, but they could have a snooping source who got access to Simpson’s supposedly confidential medical records. Either way, that’s pretty low and you kind of feel sorry for the girl. She did have medical condition, and it sounds like the alcohol just exacerbated it, but didn’t cause it. From what I’ve read, alcohol, caffeine and spicy foods are a bladder irritant, and bladder infections are caused by bacteria, not by drinking too much. Maybe it wasn’t until she drank too much and felt the terrible effects that she realized she had an infection and needed to get treatment. Either way, it’s not our business and I feel bad even talking about it. Hell, I’ve been there on both counts and it sucks! Usually I can’t relate to Jessica Simpson, but in this case she has my sympathy. At least she’s not pregnant, though. I can’t imagine that woman trying to raise a child, but I guess that isn’t my business either and there are worse parents. Not that her sister and her emo boyfriend come to mind or anything.

Jessica Simpson is shown at LAX Airport on 4/13/08, thanks to Splash.

Patrick Swayze, who has pancreatic cancer, is having an ‘excellent’ response to his experimental treatment.

“We’re thrilled and grateful for the positive response Patrick has shown towards his treatment,” the Dirty Dancing star and wife Lisa Niemi tell People.

“Also, we can’t help but feel that all the prayers, meditations and good thoughts sent his way by everyone has made a difference. Thank you!” said the couple.

His physician, Dr. George Fisher, added: “Patrick Swayze continues to respond well to his treatment for pancreatic cancer. Because of his excellent response, he will continue the same therapy at Stanford.”

People

The drug Patrick is reportedly taking is called Vatalanib which blocks the growth and spread of cancer by affecting the molecules that turn normal cells into cancer cells. He has also undergone chemotherapy. Experimental treatment is generally only performed on terminally ill patients, although Patrick’s reps say that suggestions he has only weeks to live aren’t true.

While Patrick may not be close to death, pancreatic cancer has a poor prognosis. The five year survival rate ranges between 5% and 25%, depending on how advanced the cancer is when diagnosed.

I’m glad to hear he is doing well, and hopefully we’ll get more reports like this over the coming years.

Verne Troyer, best known as “Mini-Me” in the Austin Powers movies, has been hospitalized. The diminutive actor, who is currently cast in Terry Gilliam’s new movie “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,” which co-starred the late Heath Ledge and now features both Johnny Depp and Colin Ferrell, was battling flu symptoms on the set and was hospitalized for dehydration.

Actor Verne Troyer, best known for his role as “Mini Me” in Austin Powers, was rushed to the hospital today, Usmagazine.com has learned.

A source close to Troyer, 39, says the actor was experiencing “flu-like symptoms” while shooting The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (Heath Ledger’s last movie) in Burnaby, British Columbia.

Adds the source, “He’s been working really hard on the film. They just wanted to hydrate him.”

A rep for Troyer denied that he was treated for a drug-related problem.

“Verne is fine and doing well and is back to work,” the rep tells Us.

Troyer checked into rehab for alcoholism in 2006.

[From Us Weekly]

My question: what the hell kind of weird-ass movie is this, that stars Johnny Depp, Tom Waits, Christoper Plummer…. and Mini-Me? I do hope Verne is feeling better soon, and whatever he’s dealing with goes away. Every time I see him, I can’t help but think of when he appeared on the reality show “The Surreal Life,” and would get blackout drunk to the point that Peter Brady would have to carry him around like a baby and put him to bed.

Note by Celebitchy: Heath Ledger fell ill while shooting that same movie, and the star Terry Gilliam said of Heath’s illness before his death that “We all caught colds because we were shooting outside on horrible, damp nights. But Heath’s went on and I don’t think he dealt with it immediately, even when he was taking antibiotics. I think what he had was the walking pneumonia.”

Now that two actors have fallen ill, do you think they might improve working conditions?

Verne Troyer is shown with “actresses” Tina Holloway and Tiffany Jordan at the Fuse TV Party for the Grammy Awards on 2/7/08, thanks to PRPhotos.