Star Jones and Barbara Walters didn’t part company on The View on amicable terms and they’re still not willing to bury the hatchet and move on. Barbara talks about Star candidly in her new upcoming memoir, and includes details about how she used The View to promote wedding sponsors and lied about her gastric bypass surgery.

Barbara Walters said Star was dishonest, greedy on “The View”
Walters gave details of her book in an interview on Oprah yesterday, saying “We had to lie on the set every day because [Star] said it was portion control and Pilates. Well, we knew it wasn’t portion control and Pilates. And the whole point of the program is honesty.” Barbara also said that the viewers didn’t relate to Star anymore after that big obvious lie and that they turned on her.

She dished candidly on Star’s freebie wedding and the way she took advantage of sponsors, saying “The audience, instead of seeing her as this lovely, romantic bride, began to see her as a greedy bride.” Barbara also made it clear that Star manipulated her by giving an interview to People announcing she was leaving The View before it was covered on the show. [via Oprah.com]

Star already admitted to gastric bypass and to first telling View co-hosts
That’s rude of Barbara and all, but it’s not like she’s telling us anything we didn’t know. Star herself eventually admitted she had gastric bypass surgery, as if it wasn’t painfully obvious to everyone following her super rapid weight loss. She told Glamour, in an article published last August, that she kept it quiet because “I didn’t know if the surgery would work. I had never stuck to a diet or committed to exercise for more than a month.”

Star also admitted to Glamour that she told her View co-hosts firsts, so it’s not like Walters is giving us new or private information about Ms. “Wedding for Sale” Jones, she’s just saying she didn’t like the way she handled herself.

Star issues scathing response to Barbara
The newly-separated unemployed Star is showing us all why she’s persona non grata on television now - she really is nasty and can’t wait to attack back. She issued a statement laying into Barbara and personally insulting her, saying Barbara’s other revelations in her memoir about having an affair with a senator 20 years ago humiliated an innocent family “for the sake of selling a book”:

“It is a sad day when an icon like Barbara Walters, in the sunset of her life, is reduced to publicly branding herself as an adulterer, humiliating an innocent family with accounts of her illicit affair and speaking negatively against me all for the sake of selling a book,” Jones told Us. “It speaks to her true character.”

[From US Magazine]

Star should have stewed in her juices for a while before she barked back at Barbara. Now she has even less chance at getting some kind of entertainment career. She’s a lawyer, so maybe she can go work insane hours at a law firm or something. She seems like she’d be really good at scaring people on her clients’ behalf.

Update: Here’s the video. The part where Barbara dishes about Star starts at about 3 minutes in:

The divorce between Al Reynolds and Star Jones apparently came as a shock to Al. Though the nature of Al’s sexual orientation has long been disputed (it’s really hard not to make a Big Gay Al reference here – so I want credit for holding back) apparently he was head-over-heels for Star, and wanted nothing to do with the divorce. In fact he’s still so into her that Al’s mother is worried he won’t be able to pick himself up and carry on without the former prosecutor/former View co-host/former Court TV host. Star’s a lot of former things – I’m not even sure what she currently is.

Despite reports that he engaged in a post-split champagne party with an entourage of sexy singles, Al Reynolds’ mother claims her son was crushed after his marriage to Star Jones fell apart. In an interview with In Touch magazine, Ada tried to set the record straight.

“(Al) is so hurt and so sad,” his mother insisted. “He did not want this divorce at all. He wanted to stay married. I think Star wanted the divorce, not Al.” Ada admitted the relationship between Al and Star initially came as a surprise to her. “I truly believed that he would never get married. He never seemed interested.”

Now she fears how he’ll make it as a single man. “Honestly, I don’t think that Al will move on from this. I am very concerned for him.”

[From MSNBC’s Tabloid Tidbits]

A lot of people are saying that Star seems to think that she can get someone better, now that she’s thinner. There’s a lot of gossip that she’s dating married NBA player Dwyane Wade, though he has of course issued a “We’re just very good friends,” response.

“Star is an unbelievable woman. We have a great, great relationship. As friends,” Wade said Thursday of the state-of-play between him and the former View co-host. “We’re friends, just like a lot of celebrities.”, he insisted during his guest spot alongside Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith on the light-hearted TNT show Inside the NBA.

“Are y’all close friends? … Are you the kind of friends that drink out of one cup with two straws?” Smith asked, referring to a much-discussed photo of Wade, 28, and Jones, 46, at a tennis match. “Those kind of friends?”

“We are friends. That’s all,” repeated Wade, who is married to his high school sweetheart. The couple have two sons.

[From People]

Married or not, I wouldn’t want to be linked to Star Jones either. That woman will eat you alive. And I don’t mean that in the fat joke way. In Touch noted that Al Reynolds gave up his well-respected banking job to manage Star’s career after she was booted from Court TV. But when he started working on a book at teaching at Florida Memorial University, Star saw that as abandonment. Be wary Dwyane Wade: if you’re not all about Star, she will take one of those straws you two were sharing and somehow manage to strangle you with it. And she’s a former prosecutor, so she’ll probably know how to get away with it too.

Header of Star and Al at Diddy’s “The Real White Party” on February 9th. Images thanks to WENN. Here’s Star and Dwyane watch the women’s final tennis match at the 2008 Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida on April 5th. Images thanks to PR Photos.

Star Jones has finally filed for divorce from her husband of nearly three and a half years, investment banker Al Reynolds. She filed the paperwork on March 26, and according to OK! Magazine it was considered an “Uncontested Matrimonial” case and was sealed. Star must have been pissed that no one picked up the news yet, because she’s issued a statement to ET making sure we all know about it and asking for privacy:

The TV host filed in NYC on March 26 and it was marked as a “Uncontested Matrimonial” case by the court and the records were sealed.

Star tells ET in a statement, “Several years ago I made an error in judgment by inviting the media into the most intimate area of my life. A month ago I filed for divorce. The dissolution of a marriage is a difficult time in anyone’s life that requires privacy with one’s thoughts. I have committed myself to handling this situation with dignity and grace and look forward to emerging from this period as a stronger and wiser woman.”

[From OK! Magazine]

The National Enquirer reported in their March 17 issue that Star had kicked Al out of their NY home and was planning to divorce him. They were said to be fighting over their finances after Star lost her job as a talk show host at Court TV. Al was said to be “either at the gym or playing golf” while she was off earning money. After she lost her job and he was still loafing around it was the last straw for her. It is also said that the “rumors” of his sexual preferences were too much for her to take.

It’s not surprising that these two are getting divorced, but that it took so long. Given how much of a freebie hound Star is, she’ll probably figure out a way to get stuff in exchange for whatever promotion she can provide. I’m surprised her statement didn’t say something like, “I’m getting over my divorce with the help of ‘Lee Press On Nails,’ which come in many colors to match your outfits and moods and are available at CVS Outlets nationwide.” You know they would only have to send her a year’s supply and she’d be all over that.

Thanks to PRPhotos for the header, taken at the Daytime Emmy Awards on 04/28/06.

Sources are buzzing that Star Jones and her “is-he-or-isn’t-he-gay” husband Al Reynolds are heading for divorce court. So far, the couple’s press rep is denying the reports, but The National Enquirer says otherwise. It’s hard to tell with The Enquirer. Sometimes they make up ridiculous stories, and sometimes they’re dead on. It’s also hard to tell with Star Jones and her husband- breakup rumors have dogged them since the very beginning, even before their over-the-top nuptials.

Nearly three and half years after they swapped “I dos” at their corporate-sponsored wedding, Star Jones and Al Reynolds are calling it quits. The National Enquirer reports the legal diva sent Al his walking papers a month ago.

A rep for Jones says the report is false, but the Enquirer goes on to say, “They hadn’t been seeing eye to eye for months and had already spent a great deal of time apart,” a friend of the couple told the Enquirer. “Finally, Star decided it was over. She told Al at the end of January that he had 30 days to get his act together or ‘get out.’”

The pair made one last public appearance at the Feb. 1 Baby Phat fashion show in New York City, but everything fell apart days later. That prompted Star to show Al the door ahead of schedule, the source said. “Al moved some of his things out of their Upper East Side apartment and returned to Miami, where he’d already been spending a lot of time recently.”

The Enquirer spoke to another insider who confirmed the breakup and revealed Star’s intention to make it permanent. “Star is planning to divorce Al.” As for reason behind the split, the source added, “I think Star felt Al had spent their marriage riding her success while she did all the heavy lifting. She resented it. Deep down, Star is a very old-fashioned woman who believes a man should support her emotionally, physically and financially. She now believes Al failed her.”

[From MSNBC]

Translation: Star felt Al had spent their marriage riding other men while she had gastric bypass and plastic surgery in a desperate attempt to make him love her. Poor Star- if she had just invested in that sex change operation, the couple would be happier than ever!

Star has been having a rough time of it lately. Her new show on Court TV got canned, The View is more controversial than ever without her, and now it looks like her marriage is over. She is annoying, but she doesn’t deserve all that. Does she?

Header image is an older one of Al and Star in 2006.

Star Jones just can’t seem to hold a job anymore. TMZ is reporting that truTV, formerly known as Court TV, has ceased production on Star Jones’ new talk show. The show, simply titled “Star Jones,” has the tagline, “If it’s on your mind, it gets the Star treatment.” The tabloid site posted a copy of a press release announcing a “mutual” parting of ways, signed by truTV’s General Manager, Marc Juris:

Due to the rebranding and programming refocus of the network, truTV and Star Jones Reynolds have mutually agreed to cease production of the Star Jones show. The final episode of the program is scheduled to appear on Friday, Feb. 1. The Star Jones program, which has aired at 3 p.m. (ET) weekdays, will be replaced by Arrest & Trial.

Star will continue as a contributing legal expert on our weekday IN SESSION trial coverage. We appreciate the work she has contributed over the last few months and look forward to the next phase of our relationship.

[From TMZ]

I didn’t bother to watch the show, and I guess I’m not alone. The most attention the show received was after the death of Heath Ledger, when Jones spoke out about the excessive media coverage. Even that wasn’t’ enough to get people to actually watch the show. Her last original episode aired on Thursday, and dealt with the issue of registered sex offenders.

Court TV became truTV on January 1. The network became a phenomenon during the O.J. Simpson murder trial in 1995, and made a name for itself by covering the court trials of celebrities and other high profile cases, such as the Menendez brothers. However, the network is changing its image, moving away from airing court proceedings, and offering more reality show-type programming.

Star was part of the original lineup of co-hosts on ABC’s estrogen-fueled talk show, “The View.” She left the show after a feud with Barbara Walters, who was reportedly upset with Star’s incessant talk about her impending nuptials to Al Reynolds. Walters also allegedly had a problem with the way Jones pimped out her wedding in order to get free merchandise, including tuxes, dresses, shoes, and even airline tickets. Star announced that she was leaving the show on the air, without discussing it with her co-hosts. Later, both Walters and Jones said the decision was mutual, but the shocked look on Walters’ face on air suggested otherwise.

So far, Star has had nothing to say about the latest job loss. But if there’s one thing we know about her, it’s that she can’t keep her mouth shut for long.

Picture note by Celebitchy: Star Jones is shown at the 10th Annual Angel Ball on 10/29/07, thanks to PRPhotos.

Star Jones’s article for Glamour magazine is out, and she finally admits that she had gastric bypass surgery to lose weight. Star said that she decided to have the procedure after she gained 75 pounds in 17 months. After her fourtieth birthday, things slid downhill, and a lifetime of using food to comfort herself caught up with her. Here are some of the highlights from Star’s article.

On the physical effects of her weight:

“My weight gain began to take a physical toll: I couldn’t breathe without sounding winded; walk without getting tired; sleep without snoring; or take a flight without using a seat belt extender.”

On how she saw herself:

“I used to look in the mirror and take pride in my figure, but that was when I was legitimately a full-figured woman. I’d gradually gone from full-figured to morbidly obese.”

On why she didn’t talk about her surgery:

“Although I’d shared my decision with friends, family and my colleagues at The View, I wasn’t ready to invite the world into my process for a number of reasons: First, I didn’t know if the surgery would work. I had never stuck to a diet or committed to exercise for more than a month, and I had spent my entire adult life telling everyone that I was fine with the way I looked. I also never thought I’d have to explain it. I actually thought that I could say, “None of your business,” and people would say, “OK, she wants to remain private.” If that isn’t evidence of someone not living in truth, I don’t know what is.”

On therapy:

“We started with my need to control everything in my life yet not being able to control my weight… My therapist helped me discover I needed the adoration of others to feel good about myself. I learned that I couldn’t control what others thought; that I had to establish my own truth; that no matter what my truth was, some people were still going to see things differently; and that if I knew the truth, that was all that mattered. So I decided it was time to share my complete weight loss story because I now know that transparency is not humiliating—it is humbling.”

On hypocrisy:

“After I left The View, many women told me they felt empowered by my honesty over having been fired—but wished I was willing to be as honest about my weight loss. They were right: Gastric bypass surgery saved my life, and though I still believe wholeheartedly that health decisions are private and should remain between a doctor and his patient, keeping this decision private started to feel hypocritical and cumbersome. I couldn’t justify it any longer.” [From Glamour Magazine]

I’ve admitted that, though I don’t know why, I like Star Jones. Or at least I like to hear about Star Jones, but I was in college during most of her tenure on “The View” so it’s not like I saw her everyday like a lot of the people who find her irritating. I’m glad she came clean about her surgery. She was right that a person has a right to privacy about medical issues, but she had made so much of her life overly-public, that it was hypocritical to keep this to herself. To me, it came off as kind of vain, at least at the time. Especially because she talked about having a boob job after she’d lost weight, and even called into the show the day after her procedure to discuss it. So that came off as tacky. I’m guessing one of the real reasons she’s come clean about all this is that she has a new show on CourtTV this fall, and her producers knew audiences wouldn’t take her seriously if they thought she was still so vain and materialistic. Who knows if she’s really changed or if this is a PR move.

I can’t explain it, and I should be embarrassed to admit it, but I love Star Jones gossip. Probably because she’s just so dense. Not literally dense, but in the sense that she just seemed to have no clue how tacky and disliked she was. It did seem to sink in after a while, and she admitted that in hindsight her wedding was overdone, as was her obsession with talking about it. So if nothing else, it’s nice to see some growth in terms of self-awareness. In anticipation of her upcoming show on CourtTV, Jones is writing a confession of sorts for Glamour magazine, out August 7th. Titled “Getting Over Myself,” the piece discusses her dramatic weight loss of an estimated 150 pounds. In the past, all Jones would say was that she had “medical intervention.” Of course that could mean ten different things. Most believe that she had gastric bypass surgery, considering how quickly she lost a dramatic amount of weight.

“The Star power hour will be a chatty daily compendium of the top stories from the worlds of law, news, pop culture and entertainment. In other words, it’ll be everything from Scooter Libby to Paris Hilton to “Harry Potter.” At least that’s the plan.

“’Provocative television that’s entertaining and relevant — not for insult or embarrassment purposes, but for inspirational purposes and entertainment purposes,’ is how Jones described her hopes for the tone of her show to TV critics during a Court TV news conference Sunday morning.”

[From the Detroit Free Press]

It sounds like Star is trying pretty hard to make nice, and that’s a good thing. She’s acknowledged that she was self-absorbed and given to ridiculous extravagances in the past. I think her “talent” for self promotion, and the way it annoyed people, really clouded the fact that she’s pretty sharp. She was a New York City criminal prosecutor before joining “The View.” If she could wipe out all her boasting for good, she could still have a really great career ahead of her.

Picture note by Celebitchy: Star Jones is shown in her side career as a lobbyist in a picture from 4/23/07 in which she was visiting Congress on behalf of First Star, which strives to bring awareness to child abuse. It was also sponsored by Build a Bear workshop, so surely she got paid. Thanks to WENN for this picture.

It turns out that gig with HGTV may not work out for Star Jones, because they deny having any plans to hire her, and so do Fox News and CNN, two other networks she claimed to be in talks with. Now that Star is talk show poison, her husband, Al Reynolds, seems to have decided there’s no reason to continue his sham marriage. He was spotted at the NY office of a high profile divorce attorney:

Once big gay Al divorces her, Star could channel her anger and become a homophobic conservative. That might help her land a gig on FOX. She could spread her unique brand of vile across the airways. Hatred is a smidgeon more believable coming from a minority. That’s how Michelle Malkin got famous.

When doing my three minutes worth of research for this post, I came across the website for Star Jones and Al Reynold’s wedding, dated Fall, 2004. They commit a couple cardinal sins of web design with a stupid Flash entry page and making people enter their e-mail address to access content (I entered “biggayal@hotmail.com” This worked fine).

Regardless it’s clear they protest too much. I couldn’t read through all the glurge about their relationship because it kind of made me sick to my stomach. Here are some choice quotes made hysterical by this latest news:

God may be powerful and all, but He can’t make a gay person straight, no matter how much they hype their wedding with a formerly obese talk show host.

Star Jones just can’t stop opening her big mouth. She screwed herself out of a chance to exit The View gracefully by blabbing that she’s leaving on air, and then telling People that she was fired. She should have taken producers’ advice to “make up a story” about why she’s no longer going to annoy the old ladies who watch The View with her shrinking presence. Instead she behaved as arrogantly as she always does and managed to royally piss off Barbara Walters.

Word is that she has almost no chance of getting another job in television now that she’s poured gasoline over all her rickety bridges.

Here’s Star on The Today Show. She tries to compare herself to people screwed by big corporations like Enron or Tyco, but she’s totally full of shit. She also says she made the announcement she was leaving on Tuesday instead of Thursday because of the “nastiness” in the media.

That’s part 1 of 2. The second part is here.

She better get television coverage when she can, because she’s talk show poison now.

In news that’s not surprising to anyone, Star Jones Reynolds tells People magazine that her contract was not renewed for her tenth season on the annoying women’s talkshow, “The View,” and that she she “feels” like she was fired. If they didn’t renew your contract, you were fired, Star.

She announced this morning on the show that she will be leaving at the end of the season. Oh boo hoo:

People promises to have more on the story, including Star dishing on Rosie O’Donnel’s “hurtful” comments about her. O’Donnel said it was strange that Star would admit to breast lift surgery, but not own up to gastric bypass surgery that is largely rumored to have been the cause of her massive weight loss. She has also brought attention to the elephant in the room - Jones’ husband Al, who always played for the other team before he hooked up with the then-huge talk show host.

Rosie O’Donnel was handpicked by Barbara Walters for a cohost gig in what was interpreted as a bid to force Jones out. Unfortunately, Jones is said to have “signed a lucrative deal with another television outlet.” Who would be dumb enough to hire her?

Does anyone watch this piece of crap “The View” anymore? I have seen clips online that are so annoying I can barely sit through a couple of minutes, not to mention a whole hour. I asked my mother if anyone she knew watches it, and she knows of two people. Her 67 year-old friend who holidays in Boca watches it, but she has a high tolerance for talk shows. The other woman is over 80, also lives in Florida, and only has basic cable.

Here’s a clip of Sandra Bernhardt and her nastiness vs. Star Jones and her nastiness. That little stupid conservative chick from Survivor tries to get in an ill-informed political argument with Bernhardt, and Star tries to cut to commercial. People said it was a “catfight,” but it was more like an annoying argument.

Here’s Star Jones and her husband, Al, at The Apollo Theatre 2006 Spring Gala on 6/19.