I don’t know if E.L. James got a stylist for the Fifty Shades of Grey promotional tour, or if that stylist was paid by the studio, but someone was totally helping her. E.L. was really well turned out for the tour, even wearing flattering Jenny Packham gowns for two major events. James is a pill, for sure, and she’s delusional about the quality of her franchise and yes, she’s totally drunk with power. But I don’t have a problem with James being seen as fashionista-writer and a celebrity in her own right. So I have no problem with the idea that James wants an invite to this year’s Met Gala. Why not?
“Fifty Shades of Grey” author E.L. James is angling to attend Anna Wintour’s ultra-exclusive Met Gala in May. Multiple sources tell Page Six that the writer of the S&M opus has not scored an invitation from Vogue and is asking designers and fashionable friends to help her get a ticket.
“With the success of the ‘Fifty Shades’ movie, she feels this is her moment,” said a source, adding, “She wasn’t invited by Vogue, so her representatives are asking around … to find someone who has a table to invite her to the gala.”
Meanwhile, “Fifty Shades” star Dakota Johnson, who is featured in Vogue’s February issue, is assumed to be a guest. Our source added: “It’s likely that Dakota will be going, and James wants to be at the gala, too. ‘Fifty Shades’ is her creation.”
Tickets to the coveted springtime fête thrown by the Metropolitan Museum’s Costume Institute cost $25,000 last year for those not on the official invite list. Designers, moguls and brands can pay up to $250,000 for a table at the Vogue-orchestrated affair, as of 2014, but the prices can go up. This year’s gala is themed “China: Through the Looking Glass,” and will be co-chaired by Hong Kong retail king Silas Chou, along with Yahoo boss Marissa Mayer, Jennifer Lawrence and Chinese actress Gong Li.
Hells to the yes on Gong Li!!!! I love Gong Li. And Bedhead will be happy about J-Law co-hosting too. The Met Gala is still months away, although it is the biggest fashion red carpet that we have to look forward to post-Oscars. I’m actually thinking that the Met Gala will be a much bigger event than this year’s Oscar red carpet. And yes, E.L. James should attend if she wants to go. Why not? They let Kim Kardashian come. They let Kate Bosworth come. They let every C-list Fashion Girl come. And if worse comes to worse, couldn’t E.L. simply buy a table?
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Thirst.
She’s pretty dreadful, but even Kim Kartrashian made it to the Met Gala, so why not EL James. At least she got famous for writing porno rather than actually taking part in one!
Right! I am soooo embarrassed I read that mess. I deleted it off my kindle in shame.
James should be banned from the Met Gala because her writing is atrocious! She always looks like an unmade bed – nuff said!
Ugh. It saddens me they made this piece of drivel a movie when we could just watch Seceretary with James Spader and Maggie Gyllenhall over again. Much better piece.
Yes. Remember when our Lady of Gwyneth threw some shade at the event a couple of years ago about how they were letting all the peasants in now and it’s too crowded?
I want EL James to wear a version of Kim Kardashian’s “sofa cover dress”
I’m pretty sure she is a version of KK’s sofa cover dress.
LOL
SRsLy I’m getting 50 shades of social climbing KarDesperation from this lady.
Newwester- yea, my first thought was that a true test of her desire to attend would be if she was willing to wear Kim’s couch cover dress (suitably revised to fit her properly).
On a nicer note, she does look very good in the dress she’s wearing in the first photo.
Ugh with this woman. “Fifty Shades” was her creation is not a compliment IMO.
It is obviously not exclusive if they invited sofa lady, so why not?
Invitation should read Shameless Wannabes Who Have No Class Or Style also welcomed
This. Trying to pass that event as anything close to “classy” and “exclusive” is laughable. Looking at the list of recent guests – she fits right in.
What next? An EL James cover on Vogue for the age issue?
From your keyboard to the Lord’s wifi, Punky.
Having a Kartrashian on the cover of Vogue is as low as Anna Wintour can go, so any other celeb, regardless of how tacky is an improvement
How tacky is Anna Wintour. She sports the worst hair style in the world. Wears the same ugly beige sling back open toed heels year round. Her dowdy dresses with the faux large colored rhinestones are a bore and she is getting too old to not cover those sinewy arms.
Of course she does.
Her creation? What does Stephenie Meyer have to say about that? I can’t believe I’m now defending Stephenie Meyer. That’s how much EL James irritates me.
I wonder what Satan has to say about her? I’d almost defend Satan, that’s how much she irritates me.
LAK – my thoughts exactly! considering James’ “creation” started as Twilight fan-fic, I’m surprised that Stephanie Meyer hasn’t said anything about this.
Apparently Summit/Lionsgate considered legal action when Universal bought the rights, but because the publishers of Twilight let it go when the 50 Shades books were published, they decided not pursue it.
Stephanie Meyer was asked about it once, and her response was supportive disinterest: “I haven’t read it. I mean, that’s really not my genre, not my thing,” she said with a laugh. “I’ve heard about it; I haven’t really gotten into it that much. Good on her — she’s doing well. That’s great!”
Given how low the standards have been lately at the Met Gala, E. L. James is more than deserving to attend.
E.L. James is desperate.
There I fixed that headline for you. 🙂
You don’t beg for an invite to the Met. You get invited. Begging is what Lindsay Lohan did. It may be high school crap but this is how the game is played. She knows she has a teeny tiny window and then this crowd won’t give her the time of day. That’s a recipe for major insecurity.
She is exactly as deserving of an invite as Kim Kardashian
I can name 3 solid reasons to answer “why not”.
I don’t know how to take grown women who deliberately obscure their vision with over-long fringes or whimsical face-lurking strands. It knocks at least 25% off their intellect-vibe, and many famous cases, that really cannot be spared…….. 😉
Buy a ticket. Problem solved.
Absolutely!! With all the money she made from those pathetically written books, she should just stop whining for an invite and buy a table.
Twilight fanfic . That is all.
I hate it when they refer to her as ‘Gong Li’ in the western media. It is Li Gong. Like Angelina Jolie. Or Cate Blanchett. Not Jolie Angelina or Blanchett Cate.
‘Gong’ is the family name. Li Gong, simple as that.
And yes, desperation is strong with this one. Trying to seep into a life a few cuts above her station, like every other social climber who used sex to get ahead. As if she’ll have a long-lasting career as a power player in Hollywood just because she wrote a sex book! lol
Invite Jackie Collins before inviting this one. Collins is the real deal and has been fashionable for the past 7 decades.
But in China it’s said the other way around. My best friend is Chinese, Her family name is Wang, and she explained that in China that’s how you are supposed to say it (first).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_name
Lol on Jackie collins – totally agree!
I was always under the impression that it was good manners to use the family name first, and then their given name once you get to know a person or are established as friends.
I think I’ve only ever seen her credited in films as Gong Li.
Someone feel free to correct me and give me my lesson for the day!
Yes, but when writing for an English-speaking audience, it causes endless confusion to put the family name first especially since most people without Chinese connections won’t be able to tell which is which. I have to put the family name in proper English order for Chinese authors in my translation work and I have to really search to figure it out myself (since often the European authors reversed them by mistake). I work on one project where I’m given a somewhat puzzling English original provided by Chinese authors (the foreign journal translated/revised it for publication in one of my source languages, and I have to translate their translation into English), and most of the authors are kindly enough to use the first name-family name order for us or else they capitalize the family names. In references for other jobs, another fun task is trying to figure out the real names of Chinese authors cited when the non-Chinese authors used only the initials for what they thought were first names. The Russians will sometimes do this with non-Chinese names, too, writing “S. John” instead of “J. Smith”.
Yeah, sorry kitten, but in Chinese culture it is the other way round. Family name, then given name. Gong Li is correct, it’s as simple as that.
I was talking about how they refer to her in the WESTERN media. WESTERN.
They call Tony Leung ‘Tony Leung’ in the West. Not Leung Tony. The custom in English and other western languages is first name first. Chinese people are not this weird secluded breed. They are a part of the world! Why treat them as if they are not a part of the planet? It is almost offensive.
In the West, she should be properly referred to as ‘Li Gong’ imo, unless she makes a public statement preferring otherwise. That is not a disrespectful move against the customs and norms of the highly unique and established Chinese culture. Not to mention she is one of the most popular and talented actors and beauty icons in the entire world. She is well-known in Hollywood and Cannes. It is weird.
On imdb.com, she is entered as ‘Li Gong’, as it should be.
“Tony Leung” is a stage name. His legal name is Leung Chiu-wai. If Gong Li ever came out and said, “You know, professionally I’d like to referred to as Melanie Gong,” I would called her Melanie Gong. But she has not done that, her name is Gong Li. I think it’s respectful, when you know a culture has a different naming convention, to honor that.
Also, anyone can edit IMDB. That’s not a good measure for standardized information.
Well it can be confusing for a lot of people who don’t know other country’s conventions regarding naming and even for people who know them because they never know who knows it or not. For example, I live in a country where name goes first, close to us is Hungary where, as I have learned, family name goes first, and now I never know when I read in the media about a Hungarian which way they wrote it cause I’ve seen it both ways (when I was able to recognize if it’s a name or family name).
I don’t know what the rules are for writing foreign names in a country, but I think it should be written and/or said the way it is in that country, I mean, you cannot expect from everyone in some country to know every country’s naming convention.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
I get what you’re saying, fruitloops, and it *is* confusing when it’s first encountered, but I also think that attitude discourages understanding. It’s a two minute conversation, tops. “In China, they put they last name first.” “Oh, okay.” And then you know something new about a foreign culture. Otherwise I feel like we’re saying, “You don’t have to learn anything about anyone ever, everything will always be exactly as it is right before you in this very instant.” It’s a small thing, but it also becomes a big thing, over time.
Oh no, I agree, people SHOULD learn about other cultures and show some gestures of good will by respecting other peoples customs in their country. If a Chinese wanted me to address him by his family name first (while in my country) I wouldn’t mind it, but I just don’t think that it is in most people’s nature to want to learn new things, to adapt to other people, to admit their ignorance, etc…, especially as they get older. Maybe I’m wrong.
But I don’t think it’s even only about a single person’s tastes and affinities, for example what when you have a Chinese in a movie or a TV show or anything, do you just write his/her name the other way around or do you write it the same way all the other people are named? What do you do if you issue cards where there isn’t specifically noted which is the first name and which is the last (in my country it’s bank cards, buss passes, and really most other cards since it’s how it’s written here)?
It’s all fine if you have a tourist or a visiting friend who introduces himself automatically last name-first name, then you can have the conversation about different customs, but when you have an integrated member of community however you decide to write or say his/her name people won’t contemplate about their origins, they’ll just assume that the first one is name, last one is family name, and then three generations after you have a family anecdote about how your family name isn’t really Li, but some clerk 50 years ago wrote it that way because he didn’t know and there’s how Li made it’s way to Chen family tree. And you won’t even be able to blame the clerk cause it gives all kinds of people and you just can’t expect the same level of education, knowledge and will and capacity to learn, from everyone.
Oh, and to add a detail, maybe if you’re from USA people there are more willing to adapt to some foreign customs, but I live in a more homogeneous country and people here just aren’t wired to think about these things, so I suppose it all depends on a country’s population profile (if people there will even remember to think about differences between countries in such common and simple things ).
Sorry for the long post, I hope it’s readable. 😉
Amen- spend the money! It’s a fundraiser for the Met, correct? She has the bucks, so buy a table and invite a crowd. I do like the silvery gown- clean lines and not fussy. Hadn’t heard of this year’s theme- hope this inspires some gorgeous dresses, like Nicole Kidman’s amazing Dior(?) gown from the Oscars all those years ago.
You need to be invited to buy a table. If anyone could buy a table the entire Kardashian family would be there.
Good to know-will be looking for my invite!😏
Oh I’m terrified of this years theme. So many people don’t get it and it will veer into the realm of charactures of Chinese culture. I expect many mandarin collars, silk knot closures, and at least one idiot with chopsticks in their hair. Look at how awful these people did with the punk theme. Last year’s theme was 50’s glamor and they all managed to screw that up to.
It’s going to be a disaster.
Last year’s theme clearly stated ‘white tie and 50s Glamour’ in homage to the 50s Couturier Charles James and I think only Benedict Cumberbatch showed up in white tie.
And everyone else got it the white tie bit wrong, and the Charles James bit wrong, even SJP who usually does a sterling job of these things. Talk about a lost opportunity to bust out heirloom jewels especially tiaras.
I dread this year’s interpretation of the theme. I expect more ‘world of Suzy Wong’ and less proper celebration of Chinese Culture.
She seems to think that she is a star — kooksville.
Also: BANGS. Terrible bangs. Not talking about a Kardashian this time.
I haven’t read her book or seen the movie adaptation. I believe what I’ve heard which is that 50 Shades is a badly written book. But you know what? She wrote it without any expectation that it would make her a millionaire and for some reason her book has entertained millions of people. Writing a book is a much bigger accomplishment than anything done by C-list celebrities like the Kardashians. It isn’t E.L.’s fault that so many people have bad taste to like her writing.
EL James knew her book was going to make a ton of money. She was counting on the Twilight fandom, especially the Pattinson fans, to buy her books in masse. And they did. I’ll give her credit for knowing that she had struck gold with her fanfic and riding that Twilight train all the way to the bank. I do wish Stephenie Meyer would sue her, but she won’t.
Very good point. I don’t like this women either but it’s no small feat to write a book and get it published. But omg the books were sooooo poorly written. She managed to make the sex in the book boring by the end of the first novel…..as if someone has an orgasm by being looked at. Bahahahah.
You don’t know much about Twilight fandom, do you?
I was in Twilight fandom when EL was writing Master of the Universe — fanfic name of 50 Shades. (Yeah, go ahead and make jokes, I know.) She had a huge following for that fic. Now, her husband is a screenwriter (Horatio Hornblower) and when they knew EL had a following in Twilight, they got her husband’s big-time agent to get EL her book deal. Without hubby’s connections this book would have tanked, like other fanfic that has been recycled into original fic and sold, and more than likely Meyers would have sued her. Without the Twihards original support, EL wouldn’t have a dime.
The only thing I remember about EL from the Twilight lists was that she once bitched she was having trouble finding “good help” to care for her children, right around the time the economy was in the toilet. (This was *before* she made the millions on the books.) THAT didn’t win her a lot of fans, as it was insensitive to so many fans who had lost jobs and houses at that time. EL has always been an elitist snob, long before her success, so this move to secure Met tickets is not a surprise.
Yep.
OMG, so that’s how she got that POS published!! I genuinely wondered since I read that first book (haven’t read the others, the first one was horrible enough) how and why any publisher read that c*ap and decided it was worth publishing. It’s literally worse book than any vapid ‘tell all’ book that starlets write, with storytelling and sentence structures of a seven-year-old.
LOL, I knew there must have been a catch, thank you! 😀
Okay, to be fair, Kate Bosworth is kind of a fixture at the Met Gala and she belongs there more than she belongs at movie-related events. She’s had some tough years in the acting department but the fashion world loves her and she’s always worked that to her advantage. And cleverly so. She’s at the very least B-list in fashion circles. And now you’ve made me defend Bozzy. Shame on you!
Having said that, let her come. If Kim K. gets to go …
I started reading 50 shades of grey last night.
My god it’s dreadful.
She took Kirsten stewart and Robert pattinson and put them into the nasty and morbid fantasy she has in her head.
Because she’s a terrible author who wrote a novel about a dreadful relationship. I don’t know why people keep glamorizing those books. If it wasn’t a billionaire, it would be considered ABUSE. EL James needs to go away stat.
Exactly! There’s a meme on Facebook that says “50 Shades of Grey is romantic because Christian Grey is a billionaire. If he lived in a trailer park it would be an episode of Criminal Minds.”
I have a writer friend who never misses an opportunity to gush over what a wonderful love story 50 Shades is and what engaging characters EL James created; she often chats up total strangers about the books. I’ve told her that I think the books are poorly written and the characters totally unlikeable, but it makes no difference. Go figure! My theory is that it’s her pathetic attempt to be edgy and cool.
Honestly, we were talking at work about the books, and gave a short synopsis to the guys who of course haven’t read them, and that was the first thing they noticed (and started making fun of the book because of that) – that when the guy is rich it’s sexy, and when he’s poor it’s CSI.
How did she get published in the first place? I respect the market of adult erotica novels, and there can be really well crafted books out there. But what she produced lacks everything, it has dreadful syntactic constructions, so if I omit the plot and narrative storyline (like there is any, tbh) , it’s still on the coherence level of a linguistically impotent person…so let me reiterate – HOW did she get published? Did she sell her soul??
Her husband is a well known screenwriter in England, HIS agent got her a book deal with a small, independent publisher (Australian I think) and when book blew up she moved to a bigger publisher. EL did nothing on her own merits. She used the Twilight fan base to secure initial book deal and her husband’s connections to “acquire” an agent. She’s not a real writer in anyone in the industry’s opinion — I work in publishing. I predict this will be her only successful books. One hit wonder. Hopefully she’s using her money wisely.
Of course James will write another book. She just has to wait for Stephenie Meyer to write it first.
Okay, now it makes sense. I never understood this whole thing. She had posted all of it on the internet before, right? Why would anyone buy it?
Wow thank you for response…now I finally understand. I just couln’t picture those query letters of hers and the reactions of editors and agents upon reading the first 15 sample pages – I mean, that should have been tossed in the bin. So many talented unpublished writers out there..my heart breaks for them.
What is she going to wear? Whip, handcuffs, balls and butt toys etc?????
Forget about this Crazy Lady and her thirst and her terrible book
GONG LI!??!??!!? *swooning to the MAAAXX**
QQ – I’m with you, Gong Li – megaswoon!
I remember her from 2046 and thought she was maybe in her 30s by now – but she’s 49!!! How is this possible? What’s her secret? Is she bathing in virgin blood? Bring me some virgins and big knife, asap!
She does look great in those dresses. So seldom do designers really manage to flatter a larger figure, but these dresses make her look fantastic.
She’s just desperate. Blech