Just FYI, I’m going to do an epic Worst Dressed post later on, and it’s probably going to be crazy long just because of the Parade of Fug coming down the Oscar red carpet. It’s a little unbelievable how horrible the dresses were for the most part… but I digress. This post is for the best dressed, few and far between. So, let’s start with the newest queen/princess of Hollywood, Sandra Bullock (above). I loved this dress, mostly because Sandy was the one to wear it. It complimented her figure, it was a good (not great) color on her, and the detailing was especially pretty. It photographed well, which Sandy doesn’t always think about with her fashion. I think this was a big fashion win.

Now, I gasped when I saw Meryl. This is the kind of dress you wear when you’re the Grand Dame of Hollywood. She looked like a queen, she really did. Beautiful cut on the dress (designed by Project Runway alum Chris March, who also did her Golden Globes dress), and absolutely gorgeous styling - great hair, stellar makeup, and it was just the prettiest I’ve seen Meryl look in a long time.

Penelope Cruz got it right again! I have to admit, I hated her dress last year, when she won, it was much too princess-y. Penelope is at her best when she does glamour and goddess, which is what a blood-red strapless gown says to me. Love the neckline, great hair, great makeup, and the dress moved really, really well. One of my favorites.

I really liked Rachel McAdams’ dress, even though it was on the verge of pissing me off. It was too pale, and it looked dated to me, but even so, I ended up liking it because of the way Rachel pulled it off. I wish she would go darker overall, though. Darker hair, darked colors. But she looked nice.

Kristen Stewart was a good example of a pale girl knowing well enough to go for a jewel tone that wouldn’t wash her out. I thought the dress itself was gorgeous, beautiful cut, the fit could have been a little better, but I suspect that had more to do with K-Stew’s bad posture. It could have made Kristen look too “old” but I liked how little she accessorized, and how simple her hair was. She’s becoming a little fashion maven, I’m so proud.

I loved Cameron Diaz’s dress too, but did you notice how differently it photographed from the red carpet to the Oscar stage? I thought she had changed at first. On the red carpet it looked like a rich gold color, on stage it looked so much paler. But the dress had gorgeous detailing, and Camy was tan enough to pull it off without it washing her out.

I thought Best Director winner Kathryn Bigelow was one of the most elegant women there. And man, does she have a great figure or what? Seriously, this is one beautiful, classy woman. Great color, great fit, great styling. She looked prettier than most of the actresses there.

I thought Queen Latifah looked gorgeous. But I adore whatever the Queen does. I especially liked the pale lilac color - it looked amazing with her skin tone.

I hate to say it, but Demi Moore kind of pulled this off. Yes, in certain light the color washed her out, and yes, it was derivative of Penelope Cruz’s great Versace a few years ago, and yes, she needs to eat a cookie. But it worked.

Yesterday was the annual Oscar nominees luncheon (which CB already put in the links, below, with LaineyGossip). Some of the notable nominees didn’t show up: no Helen Mirren, no Mo’Nique, no Matt Damon, no Penelope Cruz. But lots of my favorites showed up, so let’s look at the photos! There were lots of quotes and red carpet interviews done with the luncheon too, so the quotes come from The Daily Mail, E! online, just FYI.

Here’s Sandra Bullock in a very pretty, conservative grey look. I’m really digging Sandra’s style this awards season, and I think she’s given up trying to be “hip” and now she’s just going for “classy”. Sandy jokes that she would wear a trash bag to the Oscars, saying: “If I have to wear a trashbag, I’ll stud it with rhinestones and I’ll make it work. I’m not panicky for some reason. I think it’s because there are so many beautiful things out there [and] someone will not want to wear it and I’ll get it.”’ Sandra also said: “It scares me more than anything, because you think, “What do I do now? What do I do now that I don’t step backwards - I step forward.” I’ve been thinking a lot about that - what do I do next?’ I feel like because of this honour and what I’ve been given these last couple of months, I really have an obligation not to step back even the smallest bit.”

Next up, we have Carey Mulligan, lead actress nominee for An Education. Carey said that she had no idea what she would be wearing to the ceremony: “I’ve got my dream dresses in my head but I don’t know who will make them.” Regarding her newly blonded hair, Carey said: “This is something I’m working on. This is a work in progress.” She also claimed that she was imposing an alcohol ban on herself at the Oscars, admitting: “I was at the Independent Film Awards in London and I was hammered. I didn’t think I was going to win, so I was like “ah whatever”. Then I got up there and it was lucky I kept it very short and got off the stage, so since then I’ve been very well behaved.” On being starstruck, she said: “I’ve just accidentally bumped asses with Quentin Tarantino, so that’s a surreal thing to happen! I’ve been following Kathryn Bigelow around quite a lot but I don’t know if she’s noticed and it’s been lovely meeting Meryl Streep, Helen Mirren and Sandra Bullock.”

One of my favorites from the luncheon (just fashion-wise) was Maggie Gyllenhaal, who is up for Best Supporting Actress for Crazy Heart. She wore a vintage 1970s Yves Saint Laurent to the luncheon, and it is stunning. So is her sexy husband Peter Sarsgaard.

Here’s my guy Jeremy Renner with his Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow. My Lord, she’s tall! And Renner could be my pocket friend (in my pants):

Mmm… Colin Firth. He’s so pretty. I’m love with the grey in his hair. It’s so, so sexy. Colin said, regarding his first time ever at an Oscar luncheon: “This really is the first time, I’m completely unfamiliar with it - one is in a perpetual daze. On Oscar night - I will be in a daze, I think that’s quite a good place to be actually. I’m sure I’m ecstatic. I’ll probably have a flashback in six months time when I’ll be able to answer that question then.” So sweet.

Jeff Bridges brought his lovely wife to the luncheon. Look how he leans into her. He still loves the hell out of his wife of three decades, and that alone makes me swoon. Don’t even get me started on his beautifully groomed facial hair. I love him!

And last but not least, we have The Immortal, Meryl Streep. How much would you love it if Jeff (above) and Meryl did a romantic comedy? Or a drama. Or a thriller. They need to do something together, because they would be lovely. I hate this dress though. But her hair and styling is gorgeous!

Predictably, the Oscar race for Best Actress is likely going to come down to Meryl Streep and Sandra Bullock. They are the two women who have picked up all of the awards thus far - even tying at the Critics Choice Awards, where they first had a big public play-fight, then kissed and made up on the stage. I’ll admit that I don’t know the true feelings Sandra and Meryl have for or about each other, but I’ll admit that their play-fighting is cracking me up. I get the impression that they really do like each other, and neither would be hurt, offended or angry if the other won the Oscar. Thankfully, Sandra has a big mouth, and she told Us Weekly about the war of attrition she and Meryl are waging:

Expect the playful competition between Sandra Bullock and Meryl Streep to heat up now that the two both nabbed Best Actress Oscar nods.

They’ve been facing off at nearly every awards show and even smooched when they tied for best actress at the Critics’ Choice Awards last month.

“With Meryl, when this whole thing started, I left her a voice mail going, ‘You’ve got to watch your back. I’m gonna cut you. I’m gonna take you down,’” Bullock tells the Associated Press. “And then she sent me dead orchids and told me to die, so I sent her a case of liquor and told her to toast to white trash.”

Kidding aside, Bullock, 45, said she has no ill will against the other nominees. (She is up against Julie & Julia’s Streep; An Education’s Carey Mulligan; The Last Station’s Helen Mirren and Precious’ Gabourey Sidibe.)

“You have to enjoy being with these women that you admire or love or like or have had friendships with or are just getting to know because you’ve got to take care of each other,” Bullock told the AP.

“No one, at least the people that I’ve met, no one cares about the end result or the statue,” she added. “It’s being able to sit in close proximity with these ladies … and we have to go through this whole rigamarole and we just all look at each other and we get to know each other and you laugh at the absurdity of it all and how they pit women up against each other.”

How did she feel about also being nominated as worst actress of the year for All About Steve from the Golden Raspberry Foundation, host of the annual Razzies. She is honored.

“If I win, I am so showing up,” she told USA Today. “I have to enjoy that as much as getting an Oscar nomination. It is the great balance in our business.”

[From Us Weekly]

Okay, the part about “I sent her a case of liquor and told her to toast to white trash” is hilarious. I’ve never heard that before, and I’m totally going to steal it. I love, love, love that Meryl and Sandra are having fun with their “war” and I also love that Sandra doesn’t take herself so seriously that she’s offended by the Razzie nomination. To be fair to Sandra, I don’t think it’s her year at the Razzies. That bitch belongs to Megan Fox.

In other Bullock-related news, she told People Magazine that she found out she had been nominated for her first Oscar when her publicist called and woke her up. Do I believe this? Not really. I can’t imagine being nominated for an Oscar, but if I knew there was a possibility, you know my ass would be getting up and watching the program.

Meryl and Sandra at the Critics Choice on January 15, 2010. Credit: WENN.

For true Project Runway addicts - like me - any news of fan favorite Chris March is welcome. Chris was a contestant on the fourth season of Project Runway, and he made a huge impression on pretty much everyone. He got his start as a designer making costumes for plays and shows, and making outfits for drag queens. And his style never really evolved from there - everything had to have feathers and sequins (or human hair) and everything was drama and costume. But Chris won people over with his sweet, funny, generous nature, and he came across as a totally cool guy, even as he lost to little Christian Siriano.

Anyway, don’t cry for Chris! He got to design one of the most photographed gowns from the Golden Globes. That’s right - Meryl Streep got in touch with Chris to design her Globes gown! Isn’t that wonderful? I bet Meryl watches Project Runway (like me). I bet she loves it (like me). Seriously, I bet she and her daughters watch it together and obsess, like me and my mom do. Project Runway is an awesome mother-daughter bonding activity. Anyway, back to Meryl - Chris says that she was really cool and she loved his vision for her. As well she should - Chris’s dress was lovely, age-appropriate and still sexy.

Dressing a Golden Globes winner is nothing short of a dream come true for any budding designer. And, Sunday night, that dream became a reality for Project Runway’s season four alum and fan favorite Chris March as Meryl Streep took the stage in his design!

The designer, who met the actress through her hair and makeup team, was called about a month ago to work on a design for Meryl’s double-nomination at the Globes.

“I wanted to faint!” Chris tells PEOPLE about receiving the call. “I have always wanted to design something for someone like that, and it was a great and amazing opportunity.”

Soon thereafter, Chris met with Meryl to discuss his vision. “I liked the idea of putting a belt on an evening gown–I think it gives [a gown] a modern twist. I sketched it out quickly and she really liked it,” Chris says.

And while Meryl might be one of the biggest stars in Tinseltown, Chris says meeting her was anything but intimidating. “She is the sweetest person you can imagine. She’s very friendly and welcoming and I wasn’t nervous at all.”

After turning out Meryl’s dress in under a month, all the hard work paid off when Chris watched the Julie & Julia star take the stage to receive her Golden Globe for best leading actress. “I almost had a heart attack when Colin Farrell read her name. It was very exciting to see her come up on stage wearing a dress that I made with my own two hands,” says Chris. “I thought it made her look tall and thin and comfortable and confident. It looked great!”

[From People Magazine]

Aw, that’s so sweet. You know what I learned from watching Project Runway? Besides “everything!” That there were a few huge designers who got their start much like Chris - by making over-the-top costumes, and then transitioning into ready-to-wear and street fashion. I think the name that kept being repeated over and over to Chris was “Halston”. In any case, I’m so, so happy for Chris and I’m so glad he didn’t screw up his big Golden Globes debut. He kept Meryl’s gown low-key yet chic, and she looked very comfortable and sexy. I love them both so much!

I haven’t shown Meryl Streep enough love in the post-Globes spectacular. Meryl was in fine form last night, picking up the Best Actress in a Comedy/Musical for her role in Julie & Julia. Meryl happened to win soon after T-Bone Burnett picked up his shared Golden Globe for Best Song, and Meryl quipped that she now wants to change her name to T-Bone Streep, which I actually love. I think we should call her T-Bone Streep from now on, okay?

Anyway, Meryl’s speech was lovely, she talked about her mother and having her mother’s voice in her head, constantly telling her to be grateful for what she has and what she can do. She thanked all of her peeps and then went backstage to the press room, where she was apparently in rare form, dropping f-bombs right and left. Which she can do! Because she’s T-Bone Streep.

Meryl Streep is known as a class act in Hollywood, so reporters were shocked when the actress, 60, cussed three times back stage at Sunday’s Golden Globes in Hollywood.

Streep - who won best leading actress for playing Julia Child in Julie & Julia - was discussing the fact that Child was “not amused” by a blog centered on her culinary skills. The blog was written by fledgling writer Julie Powell, who vowed to whip up 524 of Child’s recipes in 365 days. The blog inspired a 2002 memoir by Powell and Streep’s hit movie.

“Julia Child was disgruntled because she felt this person was not being serious about cuisine,” Streep said. “I think she was offended by the language. She’s a lady of a certain age and certain time where you can’t say f***, f***, f***, all the time, and she was not used to it, and I think it upset her.”

Streep also addressed ageism in Hollywood, admitting that she was almost turned down for 1995’s Bridges of Madison County because she was 45 at the time.

“There was a big fight with the studio because they said I was too old and my co-star, Clint (Eastwood), was 65, which I thought was really old,” she said. “He seems like he was a kid to me now. But Sandra Bullock is 45 now, and it is a little bit better. The perception of her is different than it was for me 10 years ago. The business has changed. I think it really has changed a great deal for women.”

Streep said times have only gotten worse for young actresses, thanks to the Internet and constant scrutiny.

“I always say to my daughters, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do and don’t read things about yourself. Don’t read the blogs,” she said. “It is really hard not to Google yourself. But it is much, much better for your mental health and everything else. You try to lessen the self awareness and self-consciousness.”

[From Us Weekly]

I hope Meryl also tells her girls “And don’t read any Sharon Stone interviews, either.” Besides that, I get what Meryl is saying, and I think she’s right on. It still sucks for women in Hollywood, but not as much as it used to. And Meryl can say that sh-t without coming across like she’s whining and playing the victim, like someone else might. Meryl just sounds like she’s been around the block and she’s looking to dole out great advice to the younger girls, like Sandra Bullock. I really do think this year’s Oscars are going to come down to Meryl and Sandra, and it’s nice to hope that they might secretly love each other to pieces.

The Critics Choice Awards were held Friday night, and aired on VH1. It was a pretty good awards show, with a focus put on the big awards and the actors. The biggest highlight for me was the Best Actress category, which included nominees Meryl Streep, Sandra Bullock, Carey Mulligan, Gabourey Sibide, Emily Blunt and Saoirse Ronan. Bradley Cooper was presenting, and he let out a little gasp when he opened the envelope and announced there was a tie. Meryl’s name was announced first, and her speech was of course wonderful, as she thanked her husband first off: “I want to thank my husband… who is playing golf!” After her speech, she stayed on the stage for Bradley to announce the tying actress, who was Sandra Bullcok (for The Blind Side). When Sandra came up to the stage, she and Meryl did a play bitch act, where they gave each other the “I’ll cut you” look and Sandra shouted into the microphone, “This is bullsh-t!”

Then Sandra and Meryl laughed and made out. No joke! It was really cute.

Here’s the list of winners:

Best Picture - The Hurt Locker
Best Director - Kathryn Bigelow (for The Hurt Locker)
Best Actress - (above)
Best Actor - Jeff Bridges (for Crazy Heart)
Best Supporting Actor - Christoph Waltz (for Inglourious Basterds)
Best Supporting Actress - Monique (for Precious)
Best Ensemble - Inglourious Basterds
Best Action Film - Avatar
Best Animated Film - Up
Best Young Actor/Actress - Saoirse Ronan (for The Lovely Bones)
Best Comedy - The Hangover
Best Documentary - The Cove
Best Original Screenplay - Quentin Tarantino, for Inglourious Basterds
Best Adapted Screenplay - Jason Reitman & Sheldon Turner for Up In the Air

The show also included a really touching tribute to the late writer/director John Hughes, and a performance of “Don’t You Forget About Me” performed by Death Cab for Cutie, which was actually really lovely. Also, Kevin Bacon won the Joel Segel Award, which is sort of like the Critics Choice Lifetime Achievement. Meryl presented it to Kevin, not only for his film career, but for his charity work. I was pretty thrilled with some of the winners, especially Jeff Bridges - I really hope he’s a major contender for the Best Actor Oscar, just because I think he’s one of the few actors keeping Clooney in check, you know? Even though Clooney claims he’s “not campaigning.”

The other notable incident that pleased me to no end was Kathryn Bigelow’s win for Best Director. She’s the first woman to ever pick up that award at the Critics Choice, and if she ends up with an Oscar nomination for directing, she’s only be, like, the second or third woman to ever play with the big boys. And if she is nominated for an Oscar - which I think is very possible - it will be another first for the Oscars. It will be the first time two ex-spouses are competing against each other for the same award. You see, Bigelow and James Cameron were married from 1989 to 1991, and Cameron is pretty much a shoo-in for, at the very least, a nomination for Best Director for Avatar. I was under the impression that James Cameron was a bastard to be married to, but he was incredibly classy when Bigelow won last night. A look of real happiness came over his face when her name was announced, and he jumped up to be the first to give her a standing ovation, which was really sweet, in my opinion. I’m changing my opinion of James Cameron - not only with this act, but with his dorky/sweet appearance on Oprah on Friday too. He seems like a nice guy.

The fashion at the Critics Choice was pretty dull, though. My vote for Best Dressed was Saoirse Ronan, but I was barely paying attention.

Critics Choice Awards photos from red carpet & press room, all from January 15, 2010: Kathryn Bigelow, Diane Kruger with Christoph Waltz, hostess Kristen Chenoweth with winner Quentin Tarantino, John Krasinski and Emily Blunt, my boyfriend Jeremy Renner, Marion Cotillard, Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick, and Saoirse Ronan. Credit all: WENN.

Last week, parts of Sharon Stone’s cover interview with the Tatler came out, and people got pissed. I was one of them. In the course of the interview, Sharon Stone was talking about aging in Hollywood, and she sort of went off on a tangent about why Meryl Streep has such a flourishing career. Stone said: “I think that’s why Meryl Streep is working so much, because she looks like a woman we can all relate to. I look at her and I think, ‘I’m chasing my kids, I’ve moved my parents in with me, I’m coping with food spills - that looks like me in real life.’ Meryl looks like an unmade bed, and that’s what I look like. To me, that looks true.”

While many of you pointed out that perhaps this should be interpreted as Stone’s odd way of complimenting Meryl, I still think it’s a really f-cked-up, bitchy, snide insult. Stone is basically “complimenting” Meryl on looking totally average (in Stone’s mind), while the unspoken, nasty, passive-aggressive statement is really, in Stone’s mind, that she doesn’t get the same work as Meryl because she (Stone) is such a ravishing beauty, while Meryl isn’t. Meryl is “relatable” because she’s not beautiful, and women can’t “relate” to Sharon because she’s so gorgeous. That’s how I interpreted her comments initially, and I stand by it. I still think it was a horrible thing to say about Meryl Streep.

Anyway, Sharon gave an interview to PopEater where she’s trying to half-heartedly eat sh-t for how we “took” her comments. Here’s Stone’s statement to PopEater:

Sharon Stone is fighting back against a magazine quote in which the actress seemed to bash Meryl Streep, as Stone tells PopEater exclusively that the publication took her quote completely out of context. “It is not ok with me for someone to take a statement I made with good-natured intent and to try and make it in to something politically incorrect,” Stone tells PopEater.

The quote in UK’s Tattler Magazine (via Huffington Post), had Stone saying: “I think that’s why Meryl Streep is working so much, because she looks like a woman we can all relate to … Meryl looks like an unmade bed, and that’s what I look like. To me, that looks true.”

Stone refutes how that quote is being portrayed, telling PopEater: “My love and support for what she [Streep] represents for women right now is extraordinarily important.”

Her publicist agrees, adding that “the full context of what Sharon said about Meryl Streep in her interview with Tattler Magazine was meant as a compliment. Sharon greatly admires Meryl as a person, an actress, and as a friend.”

The ‘Basic Instinct’ and ‘Casino’ actress also allegedly says in the Tattler interview: “I look at her and I think, ‘I’m chasing my kids, I’ve moved my parents in with me, I’m coping with food spills - that looks like me in real life.’”

Also in the Tattler interview, Stone denies having any plastic surgery done, but then is quoted saying she did have work done once. “I have had zero, nothing done to myself: no lifting, no Botox, no injectables,” she said. “I did try something once and I saw myself in a movie and didn’t like the way I looked. I thought I looked like I had a giant balloon head, and I felt it wasn’t for me.

[From PopEater]

So, basically, it’s all our fault for thinking Sharon Stone is a bitch. And not only is it our fault, Sharon wants us to know that “it’s not okay” for us to read her comments and think she’s a bitch. We were supposed to intuitively know that Sharon, in fact, meant the exact opposite of what she was recorded saying. Here’s what Sharon could have said: “I was trying to give Meryl a compliment, but it came out wrong and for that, I apologize. I love and worship her. She is a million times the actress I could ever dream of being, and she‘s gorgeous.” But no! Sharon thinks we’re being too “politically correct” while hiding behind another bullsh-t statement about Streep’s career representing “women’s rights.” She never denied saying or thinking that Meryl “looks like an unmade bed” and that’s why this non-denial denial is full of sh-t. Just like Sharon.

Tatler Magazine cover courtesy of Celebrity Candid.

Damn, I am ready to smack Sharon Stone silly. Ordinarily, I enjoy Sharon in a “she’s so f-cking crazy, she makes writing fun” sort of way. But this new interview with Sharon has got me steamed. Okay, Sharon sat down with Tatler, a British monthly magazine much like People Magazine (this interview is via The Telegraph). Sharon talks a lot about how she’s “had zero” done to her face: “no lifting, no Botox, no injectables.” Which in and of itself is ridiculous enough. Granted, Sharon doesn’t look like a wax version of herself like some women (cough Nicole Kidman), and she doesn’t have an entirely new face like some women (cough Meg Ryan), but she’s had something tweaked over the past few years. Sure, it looks good. But don’t pull a Demi “I’m So Natural” Moore.

But what really got me steamed was this comment about Meryl Streep. Sharon says: “I think that’s why Meryl Streep is working so much, because she looks like a woman we can all relate to. Meryl looks like an unmade bed, and that’s what I look like. To me, that looks true.” Um… no, bitch. Meryl does not look like an unmade bed. She looks unbelievably gorgeous and breathtakingly sexy, for any age. I saw It’s Complicated two weekends ago, and trust me, Meryl is f-cking beautiful.

Sharon Stone has described fellow Hollywood actress Meryl Streep as looking “like an unmade bed”.

In what could be mistaken for a backhanded compliment, the Basic Instinct star said women can relate to Streep because she looks so ordinary.

“I think that’s why Meryl Streep is working so much, because she looks like a woman we can all relate to,” Stone told Tatler magazine. “I look at her and I think, ‘I’m chasing my kids, I’ve moved my parents in with me, I’m coping with food spills - that looks like me in real life.’ Meryl looks like an unmade bed, and that’s what I look like. To me, that looks true.”

Streep, 60, is currently on the big screen in the romantic comedy It’s Complicated, and is tipped to pick up her 14th Oscar nomination next month for Julie & Julia. Stone, 51, insisted that her own glamorous good looks are entirely natural, and that she looks fantastic at 51 thanks to exercise and good genes. She is currently the face of Dior’s anti-ageing skincare range.

“I have had zero, nothing done to myself: no lifting, no Botox, no injectables,” she said. “I did try something once and I saw myself in a movie and didn’t like the way I looked. I thought I looked like I had a giant balloon head, and I felt it wasn’t for me. I think everyone here [in LA] looks like everyone else. It’s goldfish number one, two and three, and I didn’t want to be goldfish number four. I’m not saying I might not do a little something later on but it’s just not me now.”

Instead, she prefers to maintain her looks “the old-fashioned way - to go to the gym and take care of your internal life. It might take more effort but you get something nicer to give back to the world.”

She went on: “I’m not one of those ladies who won’t say their age. I’m very grateful for it. We get different faces as we go through our lives. If you try to hang on to the face you had when you were younger, you end up desperate. I’m happy with the way I am now, with this 51-year-old person.”

Stone is a UK size 6-8 but said she never diets. “I have to watch not getting too skinny. I’m a mover. I’m not one of those people who can survive on salad. I love a big steak dinner and I’m obsessed with finding the perfect hamburger.”

The star of Casino and Catwoman has a track record of slightly tactless utterances.

In 2008, she suggested that the Chinese earthquake that claimed tens of thousands of lives was “karma” for China’s treatment of Tibet. “They are not being nice to the Dalai Lama, who is a good friend of mine,” she said.

[From The Telegraph]

It’s like Sharon Stone is pulling a Sienna Miller, like “I’m so fabulous I barely have to work out, but I should, I need too, but meanwhile I look amazing, right?” Ugh. And that’s all I want to say about Sharon. Bitch.

But, if you’d like to hear more about how Meryl is fabulous, The Telegraph also has a great article on how Meryl is one of the sexiest pieces working in Hollywood today. And I mean “sexiest pieces” in a respectful way. The author of the piece goes on and on about Meryl’s “grace, intelligence, wit and exuberance” and her “glow…[there is] a sensuality and a radiance about Streep these days. Put simply, she’s looking great.” Oh this guy really has a crush on her too, listen to this: “I’ve met her several times over the years, and have always been struck by her humour. She is someone who, if she finds something amusing, lets you know it: she’ll throw her head back, give a full-throated laugh, and often slap her thigh for good measure.” See? Everyone has a crush on Meryl. Except for Sharon. Who is a bitch.

Sharon Stone on December 30, 2009 in Hollywood. Credit: Fame. Sharon at the Beverly Hills ‘Crazy Heart’ premiere on December, credit: Juan Rico/Fame Pictures. Promotional images of Meryl Streep in ‘It‘s Complicated’ courtesy of WENN.

Sigh… I remember back in the day, when the awards season was spread out over four months. Back in those days, the announcements of these big nominations were spread out, giving each award the significance and weight deserving of a major Oscar race. Not so much anymore - every since the Oscars got pushed up to the end of February, everything gets jammed up and you barely get a chance to catch your breath after each award nomination list comes out one after the other. So it is this week - it was just Tuesday morning when the Golden Globe nominations came out, and today the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) noms were announced.

Let me say this about the SAGs - I consider them a much better indicator of the Oscar nominations than the Globes. There will probably be a few changes, of course, considering the Oscar noms won’t come out for another three or four weeks, but the SAGs are always good for seeing the biggest contenders.

Hot on the heels of this week’s Golden Globe nominations, Hollywood woke up Thursday to more honors – with the announcement of the Screen Actors Guild Award nominees – which brought some obvious choices as well as a few surprises among the names from big screen and small.

While the already honored (by critics’ groups) George Clooney is again off and running as a nominated actor of Up in the Air, and Meryl Streep received yet another nod for her leading role in Julie & Julia, the field of leading men also included Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart; Colin Firth, A Single Man; Morgan Freeman, Invictus; and relative newcomer Jeremy Renner, The Hurt Locker

Streep’s competition is made up of Sandra Bullock, The Blind Side; Helen Mirren The Last Station; Carey Mulligan An Education; and Gabourey Sidibe, Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire.

Female supporting actor nominees are Penélope Cruz, Nine; Vera Farmiga, and Anna Kendrick Up in the Air; Diane Kruger, Inglourious Basterds ; and Mo’Nique, Precious.

The male supporting honorees are Matt Damon, Invictus; Woody Harrelson, The Messenger; Christopher Plummer, The Last Station; Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones; and the Oscar favorite, Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds.

Ensemble cast from a motion picture nominees are An Education, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Nine and Precious.

TV Nominees
In the TV categories, the nominated ensemble casts of a comedy series are the stars of 30 Rock, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Glee, Modern Family and The Office. Dramatic series ensembles up for the award are the actors of The Closer, Dexter, The Good Wife, Mad Men and True Blood.

Nominees for outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series are Simon Baker, The Mentalist; Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad; Michael C. Hall, Dexter; Jon Hamm, Mad Men; and Hugh Laurie, House.

Because there was a tie in the category, the six female actor in a drama series nominees are Patricia Arquette, Medium; Glenn Close, Damages; Mariska Hargitay, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit; Holly Hunter, Saving Grace; Julianna Marguilies, The Good Wife; and Kyra Sedgwick, The Closer.

In the TV comedy honors, male nominees are Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock; Steve Carell, The Office; Larry David, Curb Your Enthusiasm; Tony Shalhoub, Monk; and Charlie Sheen, Two and a Half Men. Female nominees are Christina Applegate, Samantha Who?; Toni Collette, United States of Tara; Edie Falco, Nurse Jackie; Tina Fey, 30 Rock; and Julia Louis-Dreyfus, The New Adventures of Old Christine.

Exclusively devoted to honoring actors – the group’s individual trophies are called The Actor – the SAG awards are also a primary bellwether for the Academy Awards, whose nominations will be announced Feb. 2.

The two-hour 16th annual SAG Awards ceremony will be simulcast on TNT and TBS starting at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 23. At the ceremony, to take place at the Shrine Exposition Center in Los Angeles, TV’s Golden Girl favorite (and animal-rights advocate), Betty White, will receive the group’s 46th annual lifetime achievement award, “bestowed for outstanding achievement in fostering the finest ideals of the acting profession,” according to the Guild.

[From People]

So what does this say about the Oscar race? I think it looks like Clooney, Colin Firth and Jeff Bridges will be shoo-ins for Best Actor noms. Meryl Streep will definitely walk away with at least one Oscar nomination too, and Sandra Bullock will likely get her first nomination, which is cool. I also like that Jeremy Renner, previously known as a talented character actor by very few people, is pulling some big buzz. The supporting categories are a mess though - and I can totally see the Oscar noms going in a totally different direction. I think the only shoo-ins fro Oscar noms are probably Penelope Cruz, Christoph Waltz and maybe Matt Damon.

So, who got disrespected with these noms? Notice there’s a real lack of Nine cast members. No Daniel Day Lewis, no Judi Dench, no Marion Cottilard, no Kate Hudson, no Fergie. Nine did get the ensemble nom, but how could they not? Also, to my disappointment, Julianne Moore didn’t get nominated for A Single Man. Suck it, SAGs.

Sixty-year-old Meryl Streep is the “cover girl” for Vanity Fair’s January issue. My guess is that Meryl is promoting her two roles this year - It’s Complicated, with Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, and Julie & Julia, in which Meryl will likely get her bajillionth Oscar nomination for playing Julia Child. I don’t care for the cover image they used of Meryl - she’s such a beautiful woman who is aging so, so well. So why did they chose an image that makes her look washed out and… shall I say it… old? It’s like Vanity Fair is trying to say, “Look, we have someone other than a twenty-something twit on our cover! Meryl is so old!” Inside the magazine (and online), Vanity Fair does include some gorgeous portraits of Meryl throughout the years, all done by Brigitte Lacombe (slideshow here). For Meryl’s part, she tells Vanity Fair: “I can’t remember the last time I really worried about being appealing.” Here’s Vanity Fair’s cover story preview:

Hollywood is no place for older women—or is it? In the cover profile of Vanity Fair’s upcoming January 2010 issue, Leslie Bennetts investigates the mystery of how, at age 60, Meryl Streep has become the industry’s “new box-office queen.”

The evidence is indisputable:

• Her 2008 screen musical Mamma Mia!, Bennetts writes,“has grossed $601 million worldwide, despite some cringe-worthy reviews (for the movie, not its much-lauded heroine).”
• The Devil Wears Prada, also from 2008, in which Streep played a demanding fashion-magazine editrix, has raked in $324 million around the world.
• And Nora Ephron’s Julie & Julia, released earlier this year, has earned $121 million and counting.

Producers hope for comparable results from It’s Complicated, a Christmas release featuring a love triangle between Streep, Alec Baldwin, and Steve Martin. All this unexpected success has had the effect of exploding several long-standing myths:

• There is no life after 40 for women in Hollywood. Au contraire! “It’s incredible—I’m 60, and I’m playing the romantic lead in romantic comedies!” Streep says to Bennetts. “Bette Davis is rolling over in her grave.” And while Streep’s success is no guarantee that other actresses will fare any better than they traditionally have, it’s a step in the right direction. “She broke the glass ceiling of an older woman being a big star—it has never, never happened before,” says Mike Nichols.

• Talent of Meryl Streep’s caliber should be reserved for dramatic roles. Who says? Sure, she made her name jerking tears in prestige dramas and has accumulated more Oscar and Golden Globe nominations than any other actor, male or female, but she’s always had a lighter side too. (Bennetts unearths a Time-magazine quote from 1989 that reads, “Surprise! Inside the Greer Garson roles Streep usually plays, a vixenish Carole Lombard is screaming to be cut loose.”) And it turns out that the same meticulous approach that made her a great dramatic actress works in comedy as well. Ephron, who directed Streep in Julie & Julia, says, “I would love to take credit for that amazing performance, but the truth is that she had read everything about Julia Child, she played the cooking tapes over and over between setups … and she even suggested that I cast Stanley Tucci as her husband.”

• There’s no money in making movies for women, particularly older ones.
Regarding Mamma Mia! and its aforementioned box-office haul of more than a half-billion dollars, Streep says, “It’s so gratifying because it’s the audience that nobody really gives a sh-t about.”

[From Vanity Fair]

I guess what Vanity Fair and I are trying to say is something along the lines of “Meryl is a goddess who should be worshipped with grapes, chocolates and lithe young men.” No, I get it. Meryl is awesome, and her recent box office victories are really important for Hollywood and for women. Maybe I’m totally wrong about this, but I think Meryl is one of the few over-40 actresses who has a significant male fan base, too. My dad loves her. My mom loves her. I love her. She brings generations together. Plus, she’s just really cool and she’s the best actress to ever work in films. Bold statement, yes, but I stand by it. Meryl is better than Bette Davis. She’s better than Elizabeth Taylor, and Sophia Loren, and Ingrid Bergman and whoever else they want to throw at her.

Vanity Fair’s cover and Lacombe portraits courtesy of Vanity Fair online.