--The Internet has buzzed with rumors that Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes will soon become neighbors of Yoko Ono and Lauren Bacall at the famed Dakota co-op on Central Park West. Gawker has posted several items from "inside" tipsters that the Hollywood couple has a contract to buy a 10-room apartment, once owned by Leonard Bernstein, with a $25.5 million asking price. (That's right near you, Iceman. Find out the scoop for me!)

--English actor Ralph Fiennes incurred the wrath of a Belgium hotel boss after he reportedly frolicked naked in a swimming pool with four women. British newspaper The Sun reports star, 44, and his female companions disturbed guests at the Hotel Tuilerieen in Bruges. Hotel manageress Patricia Homble says, "I wasn't happy about it." Fiennes is currently in the stunning Belgium city filming comedy In Bruges, which also stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson. Last month, Qantas flight attendant Lisa Robertson was fired from the airline after she admitted she had sex with the actor in a lavatory during a long-haul flight in January. (He's a total hornball! Get ahold of yourself, buddy!)

--Jerry Springer is taking on another TV show. "The Jerry Springer Show" host and "Dancing with the Stars" alum will be the new frontman of "America's Got Talent," NBC's Craig Plestis announced Monday.

--Lindsay Lohan checked herself into rehab earlier this year after being told she would die young if she didn't stop her hard-partying lifestyle. The star recently checked out of the Wonderland Center in Los Angeles after completing a month-long stay. And party girl Lohan admits she needed the stark warning to turn her life around. She says, "I was really sick. I went to hospital and had people sit me down who said, 'You are going to die if you don't take care of yourself.' "I heeded what they were telling me." (And we're so glad, L. Lo)

--Rachael Ray was attacked by a dog in Union Square Park Saturday while bravely defending her pit-bull mix, Isaboo. According to the TV host's rep, "This dog came up - there was no owner in sight - and became aggressive. Rachael and some others shooed it away, but it came back and attacked Isaboo. Other dogs were involved, and Rachael jumped in and was bit by one of the dogs on the leg. A nurse was in the park and checked her out. She's fine."

--Kanye West, who's slated to perform in Al Gore's Live Earth extravaganza touting global warming, needs to learn about shrinking his own carbon footprint. The hip-hop artist has asked a restaurant in Cardiff, Wales, to fly a chef and a meal across the Atlantic to a Manhattan business meeting today for about $4,000, plus travel and accommodations for the chef. (He's an idiot).

--John Travolta donated $15,000 to central Florida tornado victims at the premiere of his new film, Wild Hogs. Travolta presented a personal check for $15,000 to Lady Lake Mayor Max Pullen before a screening of the biker buddy comedy Friday night that raised an additional $15,000 in donations. A string of tornadoes killed 21 people, many from Lady Lake, and destroyed hundreds of home as they skipped across central Florida on Feb. 2. "These things happen in Florida and when they happen we all have to do something to help," said Travolta, who has lived in Ocala for about four years. (While I've always thought he was a bit odd for the Scientology thing, he's always been quite generous with his good fortune, and seems quite humbled).

--The New York Daily News reports Courtney Love described Paris Hilton's birthday party on her website as having a "big pile of white powder" in the bathroom. The description of the bash, which took place on the eve of the Oscars, might cost Paris and Nicole their new season on their reality show. Now the head of the Foundation for Jewish Camping is skeptical about Paris and Nicole Richie's stint as camp counselors on the next season of "The Simple Life." "Counselors are trained, recruited, and tested," said Jerry Silverman. "We take [it] very seriously."

--Phillhan? (If true, a big downgrade for Ry!)

--Former "Laguna Beach" star Jason Wahler was arrested and booked this weekend after cops say he "resisted a public officer" during a raid on underage drinkers in North Carolina. According to police sources, the 20-year-old lied about his age when he was approached inside Rumors nightclub by members of the Alcohol Law Enforcement Division. Wahler claimed he wasn't carrying any ID that night, but insisted that police could "check TMZ.com" to verify his identity!

--And from the "So sweet, it'll give you a cavity" files...Celebrifams!

Random Thought of the Day:
--Ok, stop sending me links to stories about the DePauw University Delta Zeta sorority debaucle. I know it was in Newsweek. I know it was in People. And, I know it was on "Best Week Ever." No, it was not my sorority--I was a Kappa Alpha Theta. (Along with our first lady, Lynne Cheney, Sheryl Crow, Amy Grant, Melinda Gates, Ann-Margaret, Julie Moran, Melissa Stark, etc.--completely unrelated, but I thought I'd give you some fun-facts).

Feel free to disagree with me, but I'm having a hard time understanding why this made national headlines. 1) Do we really know how dedicated these girls were? I mean, don't get me wrong...if nationals blatantly swooped in and booted some ladies who were minorities, not attractive, etc., just for the sake of doing it, then yes, that is horribly wrong. But, DZ was in trouble, and needed something to drastically change, or they were going to close. I know, because I'm a chapter advisor to my house at DePauw.

Further, this is NOT all that uncommon. When sororities and fraternities choose to try to rebuild and not close, asking the members to leave who are dead weight, not dedicated, don't have good grades, etc., is what happens. These people are given alumni status, and the sorority/frat can start fresh.

I'm not saying it's all that PC, but it's no secret. Sometimes you've gotta cut a man (or woman) loose.

And, cut the "that's what happens when you buy your friends" crap. Give me a break. At DePauw (and at most schools) it was comporable, if not cheaper, than living in the dorms. And, we had plenty of people on scholarship or with mountains of school loans.

And, stop acting like sororities are a hotbed for materialism and eating disorders. Hi...welcome to America. Materialism is everywhere. And, yes, there were plenty of girls I knew with eating disorders, but they were no more fed (pun intended) by the sorority--they were fed by this society, and how vicious girls in general can be.

And, where the critics are really wrong is about grades. Sure, we went to parties, but grades and philanthropy were equally as important. We had study tables, and if you didn't make a certain GPA, you could be on academic probation--and usually, that standard was HIGHER than the university's. And again...none of this is was secret. You knew coming in the door you were going to be held to a higher standard, you were going to have rules. Deal with it, or don't join.

And, stop being as judgmental as you think all those in sororities are. There's always going to be someone richer. There's always going to be someone smarter. There's always going to be someone better looking. That's life.

Ok, so I rambled and this was long...but hey, it's MY blog!

Posted by: Lawrenkm at 07:05 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
Post contains 1260 words, total size 9 kb.

1 Wow Lawren, you really were on your soapbox today...but go girl for being bold!

Posted by: Tracy at March 06, 2007 08:21 AM (g8k+c)

2 That's what happens when you buy your .... oh wait ... I'm not allowed to say that.

Posted by: Iceman at March 06, 2007 09:45 AM (JHKKE)

3 I figured you would have commented on Melissa Stark, Iceman.

Posted by: Lawren at March 06, 2007 10:08 AM (bfkgE)

4 Eh, she's irrelevant ... once she got knocked up and left MNF, nobody cared.

Posted by: Iceman at March 06, 2007 11:05 AM (JHKKE)

5 That picture of Courtney Love makes her look even worse than normal. I didn't think that was possible!! Footnote: I have read that her upcoming album is stellar. She definitely has a face for radio.

Posted by: aeh at March 06, 2007 12:52 PM (V031o)

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