SamboraBlog

McCartney split turns nasty

By TONY BRENNA, SUN MEDIA
FORMER BEATLE Sir Paul McCartney is shattered by revelations proving his estranged wife Heather was once a porn star -- something he vehemently denied in the past as "untrue, ugly media speculation."

But the truth can't be hidden in the wake of British newspapers publishing pictures of her simulating sex acts with male porn stars for a German book published 20 years ago.

In other shots she appears to act out bondage scenes with whips, handcuffs and edible underwear.

As Paul and Heather square off for a battle over money and custody of their daughter Beatrice, 2, she is preparing to give potentially deeply embarrassing "tell-all" interviews about her four years as his wife.

Heather's also said to be going after a $100 million settlement from billionaire Paul -- who was praying she'd take the cash and vanish quietly from his life.

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Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are said to have arranged to adopt a Namibian baby and may well return from Africa with two new infants -- their newborn daughter, Shiloh Nouvel, and an African son.

Already the pair have sold pictures of Shiloh to People magazine for $5 million, which is going to Third World children's charities.

Meanwhile, Angelina's estranged dad, Jon Voight, who angered her by going on TV in 2002 saying she had "serious mental problems," isn't likely (despite pleas for forgiveness) to see his new granddaughter any time soon. Not only has Angelina not forgotten he dumped her when she was a child, the pacifist star doesn't like his outspoken support of the Iraq war.

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Jennifer Aniston is said to have been slipped copies of the Brangelina baby pictures from a magazine source and struggled to hold back tears at the sight of an infant who's said to have Angelina's lush mouth and Brad's bright blue eyes.

The former Mrs. Pitt is reportedly telling best friend Courteney Cox "This could have been my child, she's so beautiful."

The pictures have made Jennifer especially broody -- and the success of her film The Break-up has convinced her she and beau Vince Vaughn could become Hollywood's new power couple.

But friends continue to counsel her against jumping into a rebound marriage. She and Vince ducked the Brangelina baby publicity by taking off to Australia soon after Shiloh Jolie-Pitt arrived.

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Matthew McConaughey and Penelope Cruz parted after one year because she got fed up with the outdoor camping life he wanted to live off-camera.

The Spanish sophisticate told friends "touring the back roads of America in a trailer wasn't really my thing."

Meanwhile he got fed up with trips to Barcelona to stay with her family and was angered by her refusal to commit and start a family with him.

Their official excuse: "We were apart too much because of the pressure of our careers."

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Nicole Kidman plans to thwart paparazzi by having an after-dark Sydney, Australia, wedding that can't be buzzed by helicopters.

The location's top secret; guests will get their invites by last-minute e-mail, telling them to be at certain locations to be picked up by limo.

But the pesky press won't be entirely neglected. Nicole will release what she and the groom, country crooner Keith Urban, consider two of the best pictures and video footage after the June 25 ceremony.

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There's more romantic blues for Lindsay Lohan, who's apparently fallen for British drummer Harry Judd and even planned to buy a London pad to be near him.

Now he and his cheeky Mcfly bandmates have put out a song based on his steamy fling with La Lohan, mocking her for being more in love with herself than heartthrob Harry.

She's been previously linked with Wilmer Valderrama, Sean Lennon, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jared Leto and others.

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Kevin Federline has flabbergasted Britney Spears by saying their kids will be brought up the hard way, working in fast food joints if necessary, because he has a strong work ethic.

Britney, who's reportedly about to divorce work-shy Kevin for spending her millions and partying while she has his babies, has warned him: "You won't be bringing up the kids, I will. I want full custody."

In the meantime she's hired a 'manny' -- a strong young guy -- to help her look after son, Sean Preston, who fell out of his high chair while in the care of a now-fired nanny.

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Rocker Richie Sambora is so smitten by TV star Denise Richards that he proposed while they enjoyed a European vacation together.

The only problem: Neither one of them is yet fully divorced, he from Heather Locklear and her from Hollywood Lothario Charlie Sheen.

Meanwhile, Denise told him it's too early for either one of them to tie the knot again -- but she'd consider his proposal a year from now.

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Sopranos star Lorraine Bracco turned her off-screen depression into a super success playing Tony Soprano's on-screen therapist.

She says in a new book she was only too familiar with psychotherapy because of her own "pea soup depression years," which she beat with the help of medication. "This show put me back on the map again -- and I relish playing a shrink," she says.

John Katsilometes meets up with Dennis Hopper, whose history in Las Vegas dates to the '50s, as the annual film festival CineVegas opens

As Dennis Hopper strode across the deck at ghostbar on the 55th floor of the Palms and looked down on the Strip, he was reminded that he has deep roots in Las Vegas.

"There's been a lot of change since I first came here," Hopper said early Friday evening during a party hosted by Hollywood Reporter to kick off the 2006 CineVegas Film Festival. The 70-year-old Hopper is on the CineVegas board and made the party loop looking dapper in a navy-blue suit and lime-green tie.

"I first came here when I was a junior in high school in San Diego, to see Orson Welles," said Hopper, who told a version of the story when accepting the festival's Marquee Award in 2003. "It was in 1951 or 1952. He was doing a magic show and he was just a huge person. But I was a really big Orson Welles fan at that time and that was my introduction to Las Vegas."

A few years later, while filming "Rebel Without a Cause," Hopper returned to town with one of the film's co-stars, Corey Allen, whose father was famed Sands pit boss Carl Cohen.

"We started showing up in Vegas all the time after that," Hopper said. "We were 18 or 19, and we loved the Sands, and Carl took good care of us. It was a big thrill to be here. It still is for me."

(Cohen is part of Vegas lore for smashing Frank Sinatra in the mouth and dislodging two of Sinatra's front teeth during a 1967 altercation at the Sands.)

Later Friday the festival kicked off with the premiere of the predictably weird "Strangers With Candy"; dozens of fans had to be turned away from the full-house screening at the Palms' Brendan Theatres. During a post-screening Q&A, director and co-star Paul Dinello told the audience that the film's script was inspired "by a lot this" and pretended to smoke some sort of cigarette. It was a fitting way to spark what is billed as "The World's Most Dangerous Film Festival."

CineVegas continues today and runs through June 17; the schedule and additional info is available at www.cinevegas.com.

NoteMart

No contract needed: CineVegas Director of Programming Trevor Groth seems to have a secure place in the film festival universe. He spends six months of the year organizing and running Sundance in Park City, Utah, and the other six assembling the schedule for CineVegas. In his fifth year with CineVegas, Groth said he operates under a handshake agreement with festival organizers (the festival's founders are Danny and Robin Greenspun, whose family owns the Las Vegas Sun).

"It's informal, a good-faith agreement, and I'm fine with that," Groth said. "I'd like it to continue indefinitely, no question." ...

Hal of a show: Accepting a Lifetime Achievement Award in the theater during tonight's Tony Awards is legendary producer-director Hal Prince, who is busy working on the 90-minute "Phantom: Las Vegas Spectacular" at the Venetian. As he said last month, Prince is too busy with "Phantom" to fly to New York to take part in the show, which will be held at Radio City Music Hall and broadcast at 8 p.m. on CBS. Instead, he will provide a taped acceptance speech from the $40 million Phantom Theatre. The Vegas version of "Phantom" opens for previews on Monday night.

A side note on Mr. Prince: He recently (and spiritedly) defended "Phantom" to podcaster Steve Friess on Friess' "The Strip" interview program. When Friess suggested that, " ... when people walk out, it's kind of a downer," Prince said, "You couldn't be wronger - people go nuts, screaming. We don't like to blow our own horn, but people (have been) up on their feet screaming ｦ for 18 years in New York. It can't be a downer. It is a romantic melodrama. I'm not here to either protect or defend 'Phantom,' but it's not at a downer." Friess' show, which typically has great guests, is at www.thestrippodcast.com ...

Never a Doll moment: During the one-year anniversary of Pussycat Dolls Lounge at Pure at Caesars Palace, Denise Richards turned cathartic during an interview with a crew from "Entertainment Tonight."

Richards, you might know, is in one of those dicey separations from Charlie Sheen ("dicey" is to indicate a restraining order filed against Sheen) and has recently taken up with Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi. Problem there is, Richards is a friend of (or, today, a former friend of) Sambora's estranged wife, Heather Locklear.

With me?

Anyway, Richards responded to the hot lights by telling "ET" that "You can't help who you fall in love with. I just wish the friendship with Heather could have been saved." That marks the first substantive (if that term can be used here) comment from Richards about this sticky love quadrangle, but the real tragedy here is we seem to have forgotten Sambora's awesome guitar skills ...

Killer coverage: Rolling Stone magazine's Austin Scaggs, author of the Smoking Section column, has this to say in the mag's most recent issue about the Killers' upcoming album: " ｦ we got to hear nearly all of the sick (Editor's note: That's a positive reference) new tracks, like 'Bling' and 'Sam's Town.' If you thought the foursome couldn't top 'Hot Fuss,' you're way wrong." (Hey, if "Sam's Town" is an ode to the locals' casino on Boulder Highway, I'm buying the CD regardless of how it's reviewed.)

Also reported was that Brandon Flowers, the Vegas band's frontman, recently won $2,500 in the Palms' poker room with an ace-high straight ...

A good album, but this good? More Killers fodder: A survey conducted by the book British Hit Singles and Albums and the Web site www.NME.com listed "Hot Fuss" at No. 21 on its list of greatest albums of all time, finishing ahead of the Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds" at No. 22 and the behind the Strokes' "Is This It?" at No. 20 ...

Funny, no one called me to write a forward or anything ｦ: A new coffee table book with the great title "Fabulous Las Vegas" has been published by Beautiful America Publishing Company. The book is filled with photographs by Larry Hanna and text by Jackie Brett ...

Ceremonial announcement: If you're like me, you don't believe journalists are awarded nearly enough. The National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association is doing something to remedy that problem with its spring fundraiser and awards ceremony, set for today from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at a Sky Villa at the Palms. Announced will be the winners of NLGJA's Excellence in Journalism Contest. Cost is a $20 donation at the door.

DENISE HIGH ON BRANGELINA TOT

June 11, 2006 -- Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie aren't the only ones thrilled about baby Shiloh's birth.
Fellow tabloid favorite Denise Richards said she's happy that their little bundle of publicity was born two weeks ago - so the supermarket mags would have something to write about other than her teeming-with-nasty-details divorce and public make-out sessions with her former friend's ex-husband, Richie Sambora.

"I was so thankful that Angelina had that baby," the "Wild Things" star confessed in an interview on Entertainment Tonight that'll air tomorrow and Tuesday. "And how gorgeous is she? I'm like, please have that baby so it takes it away from us!"

And when she stops raving about Shiloh, the blond mother-of-two wants people to know they should quit whining for her old bud Heather Locklear.

"You know, the four of us were friends, so it's not just odd for her," she said. "I mean, [estranged hubby] Charlie [Sheen] knew Richie, but it's always the women who get the brunt of it all!"

A rather unexpected appeal for sympathy, considering she accused her former lover of threatening to kill her, in addition to being addicted to drugs, gambling and teen porn.

But maybe being in the throes of a red-hot love affair can do that to a celebrity.

"You can't help who you fall for," she gushed about her rapid romance with Sambora. "And that friendship [with Locklear], unfortunately, was done and wasn't salvageable and that's the thing. People have gone on, 'Oh, would you date your best friend?' You know, she wasn't my best friend. She was a close friend in the last couple of years. I hadn't known her my whole life."

And she is adamant that she didn't dip into Locklear's seconds until after both of their marriages had gone bust.

"We did not get together during a marriage," she said, after acknowledging that she sees why people "have been hurt in this situation."

"It's not good, but it is what it is," she said.