These are photos of Avril Lavigne and Chad Kroeger (of Nickelback) out in LA a couple of days ago. Avril is sporting some really ratty too-long extensions here. She shaved half her head in September so it’s not like it’s grown out to nearly her waist in the interim. I love how they’re color coordinated in all-black with bleached blonde hair. They look sympatico.

As you once knew and have forgotten by now, these two are engaged. Because when you get two washed up Canadian musicians with inflated senses of talent and self worth together – magic happens. These two consider their love story magical, too. Avril and Chad were in a joint interview with Ryan Seacrest when they discussed how they met (in the studio!) and how they just knew they were meant for each other, from the very start. They also divulge that they’re planning a small-ish wedding but that it will be “spectacular” and have some kind of theme, which Avril is trying to keep a secret from Chad. I’m guessing it will involve black skulls and pink hearts. Here’s more, thanks to US Magazine:

“When you’re sitting there across from someone singing into the microphone and you’re singing a love song, you start to develop feelings for them,” Kroeger, 38, told Ryan Seacrest in a joint interview with Lavigne on Tuesday, April 9. “And it just kind of blossomed into this kind of thing and the next thing you know … we started dating [last summer].”

Lavigne added that fellow Canadian Kroeger was quick to make his feelings be known — and she immediately reciprocated.

“We started dating and the next day he was like, ‘You know I’m gonna marry you,’” the “Complicated” singer recalled. “And I said, ‘I know.’ It was one of those things that we just knew.”
Kroeger and Lavigne, 28, announced their engagement last August after just one month of dating, surprising both family and fans.

“Things just clicked real quick,” Kroeger had told radio station K104.7 in April, prior to their engagement. “And then she wanted me to sing on one of [her songs] and then we just started flying on all these different songs.”

Lavigne’s interpretation of their whirlwind relationship is likewise simple. “Well that’s how we met — in the studio — and I was really excited to work with him because he’s also a musician,” she told Seacrest of how their relationship developed. “[We] wrote a bunch of songs together, became really good friends and now we have a wedding.”

Indeed! As Lavigne prepares to launch her first album since 2011′s Goodbye Lullaby (the pair collaborate on several songs, including the new single “Here’s To Never Growing Up”), the couple is also planning a “spectacular” wedding together, Lavigne told Seacrest.

“It’s kind of just a lot of close friends and family. It is smaller,” she said of their plans. “[But] it’s gonna be quite spectacular and there’s a theme to it. But Chad doesn’t even know everything.”

Agreed Kroeger: “Every man knows that we get very little participation in the planning — and these are good things.”

[From US Magazine]

I’m being sarcastic in that intro, as is my default setting, but this is kind of sweet! I don’t expect these two to last more than a couple of years post-wedding, but it’s still sweet. I remember covering Avril’s first wedding, to another Canadian singer, Sum 41′s Deryck Whibley, back in 2006. Those two were even conveniently papped on their honeymoon in Portofino, Italy. I know it’s been seven years and a lot can change in that time, and a lot did change for Avril. She divorced Deryck Whibley after about three years, dated Brandon Davis, got serious with Brody Jenner before eventually realizing that was a bad idea, and then quickly fell in love with Chad Kroeger. This is a woman who seems to get serious fast. She’s still just 28 and this will be her second marriage. I’m thinking she shouldn’t make it official, but I do want to see the photos! This is going to be one trashy Ed Hardy wedding. What do you think the theme will be though, Nightmare Before Christmas? That might be cute.

These two in September in Paris. Romantic.

Photo credit: WENN.com and FameFlynet

First of all, The NY Daily News has a copy of the handwritten note that Madonna sent to the new President of Malawi, Joyce Banda, and it’s hilarious! It’s full of exclamation points, run-on sentences and misspellings. Go over to the NY Daily News to check it out and come back here. That’s a note you send to a friend, not a head of state. Madonna should realize that she needs to send a type-written, proofread, respectful and formal note to a new President.

Madonna was requesting a personal meeting with the new President prior to her weeklong tour of the country. Madonna of course adopted two children, both now 8, from Malawi, skirting longstanding adoption laws to do so. She’s also had several charity projects in Malawi that have been mired in controversy, most notably a $15 million dollar school, plans for which were scrapped in 2011. The NY Times ran a piece a couple of months later detailing the millions of dollars that went missing in that charity, spent on “outlandish expenditures on salaries, cars, office space and a golf course membership, free housing and a car and driver for the school’s director.” And of course Madonna’s cult, Kabbalah, was involved and was going to influence the school’s curriculum. So there’s much more going on here than Madonna offending the President with a dumb, handwritten note. This is Madonna trying to do damage control and tout the charity work that her foundation eventually did in Malawi, by funding some community schools. Still, the note is funny. Here’s more, thanks to Radar:

The Material Girl sent a muddled letter to President Joyce Banda of Malawi last week to coincide with her latest goodwill trip to her country. But the impact of her words was diluted by a multitude of misspellings and led to her being refused a meeting, according to the New York Daily News.

Madonna, 54, addressed President Banda with the informal greeting “Dear Joyce” in the hand-written note, in which she congratulated the most powerful woman in Africa on the “new position” as the nation’s first female leader.

The pop star, who traveled to Malawi to check in on 10 school projects her charity built, proved she was in need of some serious schooling herself as she made a slew of errors in her note, including writing “responsability” instead of “responsibility.”

She even asked for a face-to-face with the president but her rambling and casual tone instead offended the president! The president told the pop star that she was too busy and instead delegated the meeting to officials from the education ministry, according to a report in the Nyasa Times.

And if the scribbled note wasn’t bad enough, the outreach itself may have been enough to upset the President. The President’s sister was previously fired from her role at Madonna’s Raising Malawi charity after accusations surfaced that she stole money.

Madonna is the country’s biggest global philanthropist, but as The Telegraph reported, her Raising Malawi program sparked criticism from the education minister over the schools that are financed by the charity.

Minister Eunice Kazembe denied that Madonna’s charity had built 10 new schools, saying that they had in fact “built 10 classroom blocks.” However, her philanthropy team claims that the schools are built to the national standard and house thousands of kids in classrooms instead of under trees.

“We have called President Banda, we have sent letters to President Banda but we have not heard back,” said Trevor Neilsen.”It’s pretty clear what’s going on here – the president’s sister now works in the education ministry and has an active grudge against Madonna.”

[From Radar Online]

In regard to the allegations that the President’s sister stole from Madonna’s charity – the head of Raising Malawi stole a bunch of money in 2009 (allegedly) before resigning and running off with Madonna’s then-trainer, Tracy Anderson. (Who is a known fraud. Madonna fired Tracy as her trainer, then Tracy and that guy broke up.) So all this business about the President of Malawi’s sister being fired for embezzling money from the charity may be a smokescreen – or she may have been one of many people lining their pockets with money from that charity, from the top-down.

Madonna is shown at the GLAAD Awards with Anderson Cooper on 3-16-13 and performing in November. There’s also a photo of her children, David and Mercy, in Miami in November. Credit: WENN.com

We heard yesterday that Teen Mom’s Farrah Abraham, who turns 22 next month, had a sex tape with an ex boyfriend. It sounded like the typical “faux-celebrity sex tape” scenario in that the celebrity is negotiating the tape’s release, but tries to play coy about their role in the process. (See: Kim Kardashian, Kendra Wilkinson, Paris Hilton, et al.) When asked to comment, Farrah hemmed and hawed, but eventually told Wetpaint that she would have her “lawyer” look into it. She said vaguely “I don’t … exist … anything about that … I work hard on my own professionally, and I don’t need any of that bulls—. If I had my own personal stuff, that’s my own personal thing. And if there’s anyone trying to be rude, or just get at me, then my lawyer will take care of that.” So she’s sort-of talking around it, and claims she’ll get her lawyer involved.

Only that’s not what happened and of course Farrah was trying to release the tape. When she found out her co-star wasn’t going to sign off on it, she went and shot a “professional” version with James Deen, a hardcore pr0n star known for co-starring with Lindsay Lohan in “The Canyons.” Then Farrah went and did a bikini photo op (those photos are here) showcasing her wonky bolt-ons. She very much looks the part. Deen confirmed to TMZ that he shot the tape with Farrah, the two were even photographed out together, and Radar has the details of how it all went down, so to speak:

Former Teen Mom star Farrah Abraham made a sex tape with an ex-boyfriend and RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned she was secretly behind shopping the tape but because proper releases weren’t obtained, the tape was a dud — which led the reality TV star to shoot a “legal” porn tape with Lindsay Lohan‘s The Canyons co-star and porn star James Deen over the weekend that she can profit from.

According to an industry insider, when selling Farrah’s sex tape became complicated because of releases, Vivid Entertainment founder Steve Hirsch stepped in and had the 21-year-old sign a 2257 model release ensuring both parties involved are over 18 years old.

“The original sex tape shows Farrah having intercourse and giving oral sex to ex boyfriend,” a source revealed.

“A third party was involved in the sale, but Farrah was also secretly involved. She wanted it out because she’s desperate to be relevant again. The problem is that there’s no release for the sex tape because both parties need to sign off on it.”

Kevin Blatt — the Los Angeles-based sex tape broker responsible for the release of Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian‘s sex tapes — says he was shopped the Teen Mom‘s original sex tape but passed for a few reasons.

“I saw the tape with Farrah and her ex and I passed. Not only is Farrah not a real celebrity, but there was no release showing that she was of legal age at the time, making a tape like that useless,” Blatt told Radar.

[From Radar Online]

Farrah wants to remain relevant and she’s doing just that. The last few times the media covered her she was getting plastic surgery, then a DUI, so score for her I guess. It’s not a bad career move for someone in her position. I mean Teen Mom ended last year, it’s not like she’s going to get a spin off.

Farrah’s horrible mom, Debra Danielsen, told TMZ that she didn’t think her daughter would shoot a sex tape. She said “My daughter has never expressed interest in things like that. She was not brought up that way. We have religious beliefs.” That whole family is so messed up, and I know some people say Farrah is disrespectful of her mom, and she is, but her mom is a nasty piece of work too. So it’s not hard to see how Farrah turned out like she has.

Photo credit: PRPhotos and Twitter

Last week, Vicki Gunvalson of the Real Housewives of Orange County (I almost wrote “Orange Surgery,” I swear) premiered her new, “settled” plastic surgery on Watch What Happens Live. I thought she looked better, and many of you noted in the comments that this was plastic surgery on top of plastic surgery, it’s not like it was the first time she’d had something done. In this round, Vicki admitted to an eyelift, fat transfer to her face, a new nose and a new chin. In still photos, she looked improved to me, although on camera her face was nearly immobile and somewhat plastic. Some of you said her chin implant looked wonky and off center.

Vicki admitted that she had (additional) work done because she was feeling self conscious after some cast members nicknamed her “Miss Piggy,” and that she found it hurtful. In a follow-up interview, Vicki defended herself against people who said she didn’t need to get anything done. She also seemed to equate plastic surgery with diet and exercise, which is kind of telling.

The Real Housewives of Orange County star, 51 – who recently debuted her new cosmetically altered face – opened up about her new look and discussed how Tamra Barney left her feeling hurt in a new interview with OK!.

“Most people say it looks good, some people say you shouldn’t have done anything, you were beautiful before,” Gunvalson, who recently became a grandmother, said about the transformation.

“It’s done, it’s over with, it’s finished.”

However, despite the surgery, Gunvalson said she feels like she looks almost the same.

“I don’t feel like I look much different. But I’ll do whatever I have to do to keep looking my best whether it’s working out, eating healthy, getting a tweak. It’s my body. I’ll do whatever I want.”

[From Radar]

Well I like how she responded to that, she was like “whatever, it’s my body.” I don’t really know much about this lady as I don’t watch RHOC, but I like how she came clean about her plastic surgery and how she addressed critics. She seems like a nice person, and like she’s vulnerable but doesn’t wallow or take too much crap. Maybe I’m wrong though, I mean she’s on reality television, how “nice” can she be?

Vicki also talked about her feud with Tamra Barney, saying that she didn’t talk to her for a long time and that she feels bad about it but is keeping it in perspective. “I have to separate the two. One is TV and one is reality. My real life is not that dysfunctional.” I thought that was pretty wise. Maybe I’m being hoodwinked, but she seems cool – for a Real Housewife. That’s a big qualifier.

photos are from March and April. Credit: WENN.com and FameFlynet

Ivanka Trump is on the cover of Redbook’s May issue, and Radar Online has some details of her interview. Ivanka talks about her two year-old daughter, Arabella, and how she tries to balance home and work life. It sounds like she totally prefers to be in the office most of the time instead of at home. Some people are criticizing her for acting like she’s a working mom when she comes from such immense privilege and wealth. If you read her statements carefully, that’s not really what she says. The interviewer brought that up, she admits how hard it is to stay at home with her kid. Ivanka prefers to be at work, and she does that, coming home for just an hour and fifteen minutes on weeknights to give her daughter a bath and put her to bed. Here’s more:

On whether, as a working mother, she suffers from mom guilt
“Oh, every morning I’m so sad to leave Arabella. But it’s important for me to continue what I’m doing. It’s fulfilling to me, and I think it makes me a better mom when I’m home. And incidentally, I hate the expression ‘working mom,’ because when I’m with Arabella on the weekends, I’m much more exhausted on Monday morning than I am on Friday night! [Laughs] I think the expression ‘working’ versus ‘non-working’ implies that a mother who stays home doesn’t work. It’s far more difficult than anything I do in the office.”

On why, unlike her father, she’s guarded with the press
“Many people who come from obscurity and shoot into the limelight, they don’t really know what they’re getting into, whereas I did. I went in with my eyes wide open. I don’t let people into things that are too private. People ask all the time, ‘Oh, can we take photographs of you and your closet?’ No. That feels voyeuristic in a way that I don’t feel comfortable with. I’m very active on social media, but you don’t see me tweet a photo of Jared and me lying in bed on Sunday morning. I don’t want to see other people lying in bed on a Sunday morning; why would someone want to see me?

She works 16 hour days and keeps “normalcy” by coming home for an hour and fifteen minutes at night
Trump keeps a sense of normalcy in her family by engaging in family traditions, such as making a “proper eggs breakfast” on Tuesday mornings for her husband, Jared Kushner, and Arabella, having Arabella join her for lunch ever Wednesday at noon, and running home for work every evening from 6 p.m. until 7:15 p.m. to give herdaughter a bath, read her books and put her to bed, before returning to the office and finishing her work day.

[From Redbook and Radar Online]

I can’t fault her for this. She’s not saying her way is the only way and she’s not saying she doesn’t have a ton of help at home. She’s saying she finds it really difficult to be a hands-on mom and more exhausting than her work schedule. (Although it would be nice for her to acknowledge that she does have nannies and housekeepers, but that’s kind of a given.) Some women prefer to be at the office instead of at home, it happens and she’s being honest. She’s going to miss a lot of important moments, but she’s not pulling a Giuliana Rancic and saying she’s basing her life on some overarching philosophy. It makes me wonder if part of the reason she’d rather work so much is that she’s having problems with her husband. It’s not like she has to do all the drudge work, you know?

Also, I like what she said about valuing some aspects of her privacy. That sounds smart. I got most of these photos from her Instagram though.

Photos credit: Instagram and Matt Jones/Redbook. Redbook cover via I’m Not Obsessed

Kendall Jenner, the second youngest Kardashian-Jenner, is profiled in the upcoming edition of Cosmo, the one with Rachel Bilson on the cover and her “how to be a great girlfriend” tips. Kendall is all of 17, and she sees the writing on the wall. She knows the future entails a life in the family business and packaging and selling her private life. Although she’s been working as a model she doesn’t want to live in a glass box for the rest of her life, and she’s said as much. While her younger sister, Kylie, is all about being a Kardashian/Jenner, Kendall has said in prior interviews that she just wants to be “normal” and doesn’t have any desire to be a “Kardashian.” She says more of the same here, and I can’t help but feel like it’s a message to her horrible mom, one that will be brushed off and ignored:

The worst part of being in the Jenner/Kardashian clan is: “The show [Keeping up With the Kardashians] brought us everything we have, and I realize that, but sometimes I just want to be left alone and be a normal kid for like five minutes. That’s tough when the paparazzi are chasing you.”

My next move is: “Not a reality-show spin-off. That’s not happening. Modeling is my number one priority – one hundred percent.”

When I need advice about guys, I go to: “Lamar [Khloe’s husband]. He is really good at giving guy advice. He always tells me to know my worth and never accept less than I deserve.”

[From Cosmopolitan]

This makes me wonder if Kris was pushing for a spin-off for Kendall and Kylie and Kendall was all “No”. Of course the show brought them “everything they have,” but I get the sense that Kendall thinks things would have been fine if they lived off the money they had. It’s not like they were broke before they got famous. Kim would have had some sort of career post being Paris Hilton’s sidekick and their dad is a famous ex-Olympian, he could have made a nice living off the lecture circuit. Kendall is probably wondering “What if” and imagining what it would be like to be outside the little bubble she lives in. “Normalcy” seems overrated to the rest of us, but while we’re looking in on some of those celebrities and wanting what they have, they’re wanting out.

These are photos of Kendall Jenner in Cosmo and on GMA on 2-8-13. Look at her expressions. Credit: WENN.com

Tom Hardy isn’t just cuddling with pit bull puppies on the set of Animal Rescue. Here he is posing with a young fan now known as “Baby Bane.” [A Socialite Life]
25 reasons that Benedict Cumberbatch is the perfect man. [Buzzfeed]
Amanda Bynes turns 27 years old today. Uh, happy delusional day? [Dlisted]
“Justified” S4 finale recap: I was very underwhelmed by the episode. [LaineyGossip]
Romeo Beckham is already popular with da ladies. Goldenballs who? [Pop Sugar]
Bradley Cooper‘s epic perm hair had me laughing for an hour last night. [Pajiba]
Chris Brown has some thoughts on Justin Bieber‘s recent misbehavior. [ICYDK]
Sarah Jessica Parker and her twins are wearing cute coats. [Celebrity Baby Scoop]
Ke$ha said that she and Johnny Depp eyef***ed each other. [Evil Beet]
Richie Sambora pulled out of the Bon Jovi tour for “personal issues.” [CDAN]
Tom Cruise is wearing the same sweater in Austria as in Russia. [I'm Not Obsessed]
Joanna Krupa kind of rocks a yellow & white sundress. [Moe Jackson]
Courtney Stodden poses nude on a corpse fetish mag cover. NSFW. Gross. [Gawker]
Heidi Klum rescued her son from a riptide on a Hawaiian beach. [IDLYITW]
Kris Jenner might be wearing Kim Kardashian‘s leather pants. [Amy Grindhouse]
Rihanna shows off Chanel swag while wearing her River Island line. [Bossip]
“Dancing with the Stars” prom night: who was sent home? [Reality Tea]

Photos courtesy of Empire magazine on Facebook and WENN

Kyle Richards of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills has been touting her 17 year marriage, with real estate salesman Mauricio Umansky, as ideal. She regularly brags about him on the show, and Kyle put out a book in December of 2011 in which she crowed about her relationship, calling Mauricio a “devoted husband and wonderful father,” among other things. There were rumors as far back as season one of the show that Mauricio was cheating on Kyle, although those were spawned by Kyle’s then-rival, Camille Grammer. (Whose husband was cheating on her at the time, which she found out about shortly afterwards.)

Many people were willing to believe that Mauricio is a cheater, because he just seems so slippery. He has the facade of a happy family man but he’s extremely smooth and friendly with everyone, and it gives the impression that he plays the “good husband” role and gets up to things behind the scenes. Well Star Magazine has some evidence for us. They have a named source who claims that Mauricio hit on a woman at a bar and admitted to her that he’s not faithful to his wife. This “alleged” incident happened four years ago, making me wonder why the source is coming out with the news now. Maybe she just remembered it and it took her a while to realize the guy was semi-famous:

In a show known for its many relationship roller coasters, Kyle Richards and Mauricio Umansky appear to enjoy a marriage made in reality heaven — but, according to a bombshell report in the new Star magazine — the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills hunky hubby is actually one of the biggest flirts in Hollywood!

Just weeks after Kyle and Mauricio appeared on Good Morning America dishing details on how they stay so happy together after seventeen years of marriage, an eyewitness tells Star that the real estate mogul hit on her friend in a hotel bar — and claims he admitted to cheating on Kyle!

In addition, a source tells Star that rumors of Mauricio’s flirtatious dalliances are ten a penny in Hollywood, but claims Kyle remains blissfully ignorant on the subject.

“There are tons of stories circulating about his extra-marital activities – it is common knowledge in their social circles,” the source tells Star.

“The only person who doesn’t know is Kyle, she is so proud of her sexy husband, but if she ever found out about his flings, it would destroy her.”

According to eyewitness Tess Broussard of Comedy Central’s Kroll Show, Umansky made no effort to conceal his flirtatious intentions with her friend, a busty escort named Cristina Schultz, when he set eyes on her at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel bar a few years back.

Still wearing his wedding ring, “Mauricio just beelined for us,” Broussard tells Star, claiming he even told green eyed brunette Schultz that she looked like his wife!

Broussard tells Star that after asking for her friend’s phone number and offering his in exchange, the 42-year-old left his black AmEx card on the table and told the women, “I’m married, but I stray once in a while.”

The alleged encounter occurred four years ago, but a source tells Star that Mauricio’s flirtatious behavior has only intensified with time and claims that mother-of-three Richards, 44, refuses to see the signs.

“Kyle won’t hear a word against him so people just talk about it behind her back,” the source says.

However, a rep for Umansky denies any wrongdoing on his client’s behalf, telling Star that Mauricio is “networking and being friendly and pleasant, and this is construed as flirting. He is a good looking guy.”

[From Radar]

That last quote, from Mauricio’s rep, kind of explains it all. That’s his go-to excuse, “he’s good looking,” “women throw themselves at him, but he’s just being friendly,” etc. This reminds me that after the first season of RHOBH, Mauricio claimed that women were texting him nude photos because of his sudden fame. This begs the question: how did they get his number in the first place?! It looks like Camille’s drunk “psychic” friend was right: Kyle’s husband was/is cheating on her. You don’t have to be psychic to predict that one.

Photos are from 2012 and 2013. Credit: WENN.com

Just a few days ago I was telling my eight year-old son about Roger Ebert, and how there’s this legendary film critic who lost his ability to speak but who is able to speak using his own voice thanks to technology. (You can hear Ebert’s new computer voice, made using his own voice from old recordings of his show with the late Gene Siskel, at around 7:20 into his TED talk video here. He says his computer voice is still being worked on and he prefers the Apple “Adam” voice which comes bundled with the OS.) Ebert’s story is an inspiration to so many of us, but he probably doesn’t want people to see him that way, he just keeps doing the job he loves and helping us make decisions about which movies to see. Sadly, Ebert recently announced that his cancer has returned. (He was cancer free as of 2010, after losing part of his jaw and voice to thyroid cancer.) He writes that he’ll continue to work but it will be remotely and that he’ll cut back his schedule. Ebert, 70, is taking a “leave of presence.”

Typically, I write over 200 reviews a year for the Sun-Times that are carried by Universal Press Syndicate in some 200 newspapers. Last year, I wrote the most of my career, including 306 movie reviews, a blog post or two a week, and assorted other articles. I must slow down now, which is why I’m taking what I like to call “a leave of presence.”

What in the world is a leave of presence? It means I am not going away. My intent is to continue to write selected reviews but to leave the rest to a talented team of writers handpicked and greatly admired by me. What’s more, I’ll be able at last to do what I’ve always fantasized about doing: reviewing only the movies I want to review.

At the same time, I am re-launching the new and improved Rogerebert.com and taking ownership of the site under a separate entity, Ebert Digital, run by me, my beloved wife, Chaz, and our brilliant friend, Josh Golden of Table XI. Stepping away from the day-to-day grind will enable me to continue as a film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times, and roll out other projects under the Ebert brand in the coming year.

The immediate reason for my “leave of presence” is my health. The “painful fracture” that made it difficult for me to walk has recently been revealed to be a cancer. It is being treated with radiation, which has made it impossible for me to attend as many movies as I used to. I have been watching more of them on screener copies that the studios have been kind enough to send to me. My friend and colleague Richard Roeper and other critics have stepped up and kept the newspaper and website current with reviews of all the major releases. So we have and will continue to go on.

At this point in my life, in addition to writing about movies, I may write about what it’s like to cope with health challenges and the limitations they can force upon you. It really stinks that the cancer has returned and that I have spent too many days in the hospital. So on bad days I may write about the vulnerability that accompanies illness. On good days, I may wax ecstatic about a movie so good it transports me beyond illness.

[From The Chicago Sun Times via Pajiba]

I’m glad he’ll still be writing, he has such talent, and I hope that he beats cancer again soon. He’s an incredible man with so much insight and wit. So many of us are hoping that he’ll continue to write for years to come. I’m thinking positive thoughts for him and his devoted wife, Chaz.

Roger Ebert and his wife Chaz are shown in 2010, 2011 and 2012. Credit: WENN.com and PCNPhotos

Jennifer Garner was interviewed in Britian’s Telegraph to promote the UK release of The Odd Life of Timothy Green, which is out there on Friday. (I lived in Europe for a while and it’s maddening how long it takes movies to premiere.) It’s a nice, long interview and profile, which is what the British press excels at. The interviewer must have had a good rapport with Garner, or maybe she was just ready to spill her guts, because she seemed to open up about a lot of things: the paparazzi, her husband’s controversial Oscar speech, and how it feels to be a celebrity.

Note that some of the interview is translated into “Brit speak,” they have her say “mum” instead of “mom” and some of it is phrased in a distinctly British way that makes it sound made up. It’s clear that she met with their reporter at least, and it’s possible that some of her quotes were switched around for their audience. Here’s more:

On the paparazzi
“Seven cars followed me when I left home at seven o’clock this morning. I wish I could say that it doesn’t bother me. But you wouldn’t like it if you had it, and neither would anyone else. They sit outside my house every day. They wait for me at school drop-off and pick-up.”

“This is almost worse [than having a stalker]. They stalk you on a much more regular basis.”

“[If she escapes the photographers] Somebody always calls them and tips them off. They give random people their numbers; nannies in the park.”

On her husband’s Oscar speech
“I had a friend call and say, ‘Are you OK?’ I know Ben, I knew he meant it as the hugest, warmest compliment in the world. I think he was saying, ‘Look, what we have is really real and I value it above all and I’m in it with you and I know you are in it with me.’ That’s the way I took it.”

On the fallout Ben faced after that speech
“Poor guy. It’s so horrible to put yourself out there – he didn’t have to worry about it from my point of view.”

On balancing career and motherhood
“I definitely work less because Ben is so busy but we have three kids, that’s just part of the deal. I want to be a mum. I’m happy for him that he’s as energised about work right now as he is. He should be out there doing it.

“That’s just what makes sense for our family.”

On becoming a mom
“I really thought when I was pregnant with my first that it wouldn’t affect my work at all, it would just be a baby that grows up on set.

“And I was absolutely wrong. For women, the high point of their career and needing to have babies just don’t really go together.”

On celebrity culture
“Why does everyone think they need to be a star? It’s ridiculous. The celebrity culture is so silly and the fact that people grow up thinking that it’s something to aspire to just seems wrong”

“I don’t mean to bash my life, I love my life, I just think it’s not the only way to go. Why don’t we celebrate teachers and doctors – people who actually do something?”

[From Telegraph.co.uk]

There was a lot more in the interview, particularly about Garner’s career. I know a lot of people accuse her, and her husband especially, of playing the paparazzi when they have something to promote. I do think that they do that, but I don’t think they can control how much they’re followed by photographers. I remember seeing video from years ago of them absolutely swarmed by paparazzi outside their oldest daughter’s school, and it was clear to me they were being harassed. I think Garner works hard to play along and smile because she considers it part of her job. In a way, she made the situation worse by being so congenial to photographers and by becoming such an in-demand celebrity mom. It’s only benefited her public image, and she surely knows that and struggles with it. She’s not bitching about the paparazzi constantly either, she’ll tell you about it once in a while but she doesn’t make it a point like Halle Berry does, and unlike her husband you never see her scowling or arguing with the paps.

As for her response to the Oscar speech, I do think that she was wounded a little by what Ben said. You could see the look of shock and surprise flash over her face momentarily before she got it together and smiled. She’s not going to say that, though, just like she’s not going to fight with the paparazzi or frown when she’s having a bad day. That’s the kind of person she is. She has a charmed life, she knows it, and she’s more than happy to play the game.

Thanks to invisiblename on Twitter for the tip! These photos are of Garner dropping Violet off at daycare yesterday and of her out with her three kids on Saturday. Credit: FameFlynet