March 28, 2006

Stone Looks Great; Still a BASIC Waste of Time


Basic Instinct 2
NY premiere, Lowes Lincoln Theaters
March 27, 2006; 7:30pm

Sharon Stone looked great, red dress, gold jacket, big smiles.

Now we all know Sharon loves us... and she always gives us a shot...
But it seemed a lot of people had a tough shoot. She was moving around and favored one side over the other.

As for the rest of the talent (and I use the term lightly), it was quite lacking. Joan Collins, Carol Alt, Maggie Rizer, an uncooperative Usher, Beth Ostrosky... jeesh!

Reports say at 9:15 am, their were already 7 people... hope it was worth it.

March 26, 2006

Pamela Anderson Won't Let Paparazzi Change The Way She Lives

Blonde bombshell Pamela Anderson is so sick of being followed by photographers - she deliberately bores them by going shopping looking haggard.

But the Canadian-born star insists the snappers won't force her to move from her home in Los Angeles, because she has fantasised about living there since childhood.

She says, "(I would never consider moving) because LA is my dream place. I've always wanted to live there, and I've been doing what I've dreamt of. I'm not going to let them change the way I live. I keep going to the grocery store with no make-up, wearing the same white tracksuit. They just keep following me around, and I think that some day, it's going to become old news."

(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)

March 24, 2006

This may or may not apply to us....

here it is anway....

Paul Newman, Others Urge Protection of Images

Kid Rock investigated for alleged assault

LOS ANGELES, CA, United States (UPI) -- Detroit`s Kid Rock is reportedly being investigated for an alleged attack on paparazzi and a fan outside a Los Angeles nightclub.

Video company owner Rachelle Kaplan told Thursday`s New York Post that Rock and his buddies pounded two of their employees who were staking out a bar in the Roosevelt Hotel just after 2 a.m. Wednesday.

'They stole their cameras, their bags, everything, ' she told the newspaper. 'They just threw it in the back of Kid Rock`s limo and drove off. '

A fan who was waiting to get an autograph was allegedly punched, kicked and left on the ground. The fan was further attacked by people leaving the club, Kaplan said, and taken away in an ambulance.

Kaplan said a complaint has been filed with police and an investigation is under way.

The Post said Kid Rock`s camp did not return calls seeking comment.

March 22, 2006

LUCK NUMBER SLEVEN? More like craps.




Lucky Number Sleven premiere.
Ziegfeld Theater
March 22, 2006, 7:30pm

I can tell you about this premiere... but I’d rather keep it a SURPRISE.

Is Lindsay coming to the premiere? NO! >>>>>>SURPRISE!

Is Gisele going to walk the red carpet? NO! >>>>>>SURPRISE!

Today, we get a tent but less space to work. SURPRISE!

And for those who are curious about what SURPRISE means... we asked the PR guy who else was going to arrive, to which he responded "It's a SURPRISE". WOW! HONEST AND FOR TRUE?

I LOVE SURPRISES! Like the surprise of having a premiere with almost no celebrities, with 40 people jammed into a press pen like cattle, four rows deep in some places, waiting for hours, with every idiot in the world walking on the carpet and having a whimsical PR person inform the press of a pending "Surprise".

And that "Surprise" guest... none other than Bruce Willis... and who gives a darn. (I personally was hoping for Bob Balaban).


I think I need a breath of fresh air....

Photo By Kingfreak

March 20, 2006

Wish We Were INSIDE, MAN


Inside Man Premiere
March 20, 2006, 7:30pm

It's nice to see that Spike Lee put out the extra money for a tent. Not.

I know its first day of spring... and it's a blamy 30 degrees. There are 50+ shooters outside in the Ziegfeld Wind Tunnel. Some of them waiting since 11am.

Now I’m sorry... but did I miss something on the tip sheet? Jodie Foster, Denzel Washington and Clive Owen (tough sales as is). Do those names warrant such an early turnout?

The tip sheet also promised Naomi Campbell, Eva Mendes, Jay Z (no shows on the rug)...but we did get Rev. Al Sharpton and Russell Simmons (please read as sarcasm).

As for the set-up, 2 sides shooting towards each other, 2-3 rows deep...and one section with posters as a backdrop. Unfortunately, they put a 12ft high light stand in the photo area, taking up 2-3 spaces. And in the frenzy and the wind, the light kept shifting onto some of the shooters in the corner. I could only assume it was a horrible backlight (see photo).

Photo by G.

Like a NEEDLE in the eye

3 Needles Premiere
MOMA
March 18, 2006, 8:30pm


If you're going to waste my Saturday night, could you make it worth while at least?

There were only two names on the list for this event, Chloe Sevigny and Lucy Lu.
We only get Lucy, in a solid black coat, at night, outside, with a solid black background.
We asked her to show us the fashion... and she acted as if she went deaf. Completely ignored our pleas.

She posed inside without the coat... but people arrive at the MOMA for this premiere around NOON!
For a crap photo of Lucy Lu?!@!*@!
Sad days my friends...
Sad days indeed...

March 16, 2006

Up The RIVER without a Photo

The press release read:

Book signing; Cindy Adams and Joan Rivers with dogs on their laps sit in the window and sign Cindy's new book LIVING A DOGS LIFE.

OK...Ok... no need to yell at me. I KNOW it's a crap photo, but it's something to shoot to start the day.

Then Joan Rivers doesn't even show?@!#

We don't even shoot Cindy when she comes to premieres, let alone and on purpose.

What a bunch of bitches (you know...female dogs...like the book title...oh, whatever.)

March 15, 2006

Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie Lose Patience with Europe's Paparazzi


Angelina Jolie and honey Brad Pitt seem pretty happy as they tour the entire European continent. They are a bit freer to move as fans are much less aggressive than in the states, but it appears the aggressive shutterbugs are starting to take a toll.


It's clear that Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie are beginning to lose patience with Europe's Paparazzi.

Earlier reports had the couple considering a lawsuit to try to tone down the snappers, but if it has been filed - it hasn't worked. The photogs are everywhere and are beginning to wear on what appears to be expectant dad Brad's last nerve.

***

As he was hounded earlier this week with adorable son in Berlin ET reported on its broadcast edition that he is being mobbed "everywhere he goes."

After one stop Pitt finally gave up and took son Maddox, 4, back to the car.

As he placed his adopted child in a car the video showed a clearly frustrated Pitt as he scolded the photogs - "You guys are out of control."

***

The love it in Europe - but Will the paparazzi drive the couple back to the states?

Come on back guys... we'll play nice. I Swear! LOL!

March 14, 2006

VENDETTA against Warner Brothers

V For Vendetta Premiere
Rose Theater
, Time Warner Center

So this was a debacle...

You had to be on WB's list to even get near the 4th floor theater (via the secured elevators).

And if you weren't on the list, you had the wonderful opportunity of shooting in the lobby by the elevators (which was my position).

This wasn't THAT bad... we got most of the talent (no Natalie), but everyone else was co-operative. Keanu ran by quick, but you could get a shot, Hugo, Petra, Robert Downey Jr; all gave us a photo. It was probably because there were only about 15 of us in the lobby... thus not too intimidating.

I also heard some of the talent passed by the press area upstairs. Let us know....

March 10, 2006

Paparazzi Dodging Do's and Don'


A security expert reveals the secrets in a Hollywood How To

As told by Robert Mann, Director of Global Operations Worldwide Intelligence Network, a security and intelligence agency that has worked protecting celebrities for over 40 years.
  1. Don't let anything become a habit. Never do the same routine everyday or you'll become a sitting duck for them.

  2. Rent a car. If you want to go out and you don't want to be seen, leave your house in a car unfamiliar to the paparazzi -- preferably one with tinted windows.

  3. Plan a backdoor exit. At a boutique or beauty salon or restaurant, or even at a shopping mall it is usually advisable to plan a back door exit just in case there is an informant there. Once you've escaped, a taxi, or a friend, or security personnel can pick you up and drive you to your car.

  4. Get somebody to scope out the scene before you arrive. If it's not a good day, or you haven't been to the beauty salon for a while, and you REALLY don't want to be photographed, hire a security professional to see if there are any paparazzi lolling around your destination before you get there. We can even lure them by driving the car they are accustomed to seeing, with a female wearing a wig. (Yes, we've done that).

  5. Try to be as impromptu as possible. Any plan you make in advance is going to leak.
Final Thought: What we want to do is to take back streets for stardom and return to the glory days of Hollywood when stars had a certain degree of privacy and their fans had a certain degree of integrity.

[Our final thought: Keep dreaming Mr. Mann.]

March 7, 2006

Photographer Gordon Parks Dies at 93


Gordon Parks, who captured the struggles and triumphs of black America as a photographer for Life magazine and then became Hollywood's first major black director with "The Learning Tree" and the hit "Shaft," died Tuesday, his family said. He was 93.

For more on his life, images and movies visit PDN ONLINE.

March 5, 2006

Paparazzi Stalk L.A. for Oscar Money Shot


Some Magazines Said to Prefer Red Carpet Glamor, but Paparazzi Seek Stars Letting Their Hair Down

Many paparazzi will be working all night, hoping to snap the equivalent of last year's photo of Oscar-winner Hillary Swank eating a veggie burger at In 'n' Out Burger in her navy Guy Laroche gown.

"We're not expecting a big scoop or a new couple," said Frank Rohmer, owner of X17, a celebrity photo agency, which sells its pictures to all the big entertainment and gossip magazines. "We're trying to get good shots that no one else gets."

X17, which is sending out all 40 of its photographers to work, won't assign any to the majestic red carpet outside Kodak Theatre, where the Academy Awards are held, because this agency focuses solely on candid paparazzi-type shots.

"The shots we're looking for are the real ones," Rohmer said, "where you can see the happiness or the sadness."

Photographers from X17 are stationed outside in various spots in Los Angeles, such as outside the "Vanity Fair" after-party and around The Four Seasons, The Bel-Air and Chateau Marmont.

"Our guys tend to work in groups or teams," said Kelly Davis, vice president of X17. "The more people you have, the more chance you have getting the shot. They can get different angles and cover different exits."

So what's the dream shot from Oscars Night 2006?

"Reese Witherspoon with the Oscar at the end of the night, coming home," Rohmer said.

Rohmer didn't want a picture of a perfect-looking Witherspoon at 8 p.m., because the goal is to capture "the real Reese Witherspoon."

"Our job is to get the people with no makeup or as little makeup as possible, at night, tired but happy," he said. "The greatest shots from the Oscars are people late at night or the next morning."

What the Magazines Want

Frank Griffin, who co-owns the photo agency Bauer-Griffin, says that magazines are more interested in photos from the red carpet than paparazzi shots when it comes to Oscar night. He even goes so far as to call it "not a big night."

"Everybody just wants the full-length frocks and jewelry, it sells magazines," said Griffin, who assigned two of his photographers to work the red carpet.

The city may be crawling with celebrities and photographers waiting to take pictures of them, but that doesn't matter if the magazines don't aren't going to run those types of photos.

"The paparazzi don't decide what's published," said Griffin, whose agency's photos can always be found in all the major entertainment and gossip magazines.

Taking the Night Off

Some of the most successful paparazzi take Oscar night off, Griffin said, because so many photographers come in from out of town to try to get celebrity shots. Griffin estimates that 200 to 300 photographers come to Los Angeles in hopes of taking that special shot or as he puts it, "get their wings."

"They all go park outside the Ivy," said Griffin, referring to a restaurant popular with A-listers.

Photographers from Pacific Coast News, a two-year-old British photo agency that has a center of operations in Los Angeles, also take Oscar night off because the agency was unable to get media accreditations for the red carpet or for any of the big parties.

"We are forced to ignore it because of the stupid restrictions," said Matt Carrington, senior photo editor at Pacific Coast News, an agency which sells its photos to a number of magazines, including OK! This will be first the first time in five years that Carrington, who used to work with Splash News, won't be working on Oscar night.

"One, they won't allow us to [photograph it], even though we are totally legitimate," he added. "Two, the parties have so much security, we can't be roving around. We made the conscious decision to let it go."

Carrington said he doesn't feel that it's worth it to stake out In 'n' Out Burger in case of any of the stars feel like a snack.

"That was pure luck," said Carrington, referring to the photographers getting that shot last year. "That was a one-off."

March 3, 2006

Hunting Lindsay Lohan


Every day on the streets of Los Angeles, paparazzi chase after today’s biggest stars for their pictures. Meet the man everybody loves to hate.

Peering over a privacy gate that rings the garden of Hollywood’s storied Chateau Marmont, Giles Harrison cracks a wicked smile. The six-foot-eight, 300-pound paparazzo has a lens trained on one of the hottest teen actresses on the planet as she enjoys some afternoon drinks with friends. “We’ve got Lindsay Lohan drinking a Corona,” he whispers as he clicks away. “That’s underage drinking. That’s a good one.” While the 19-year-old Lohan’s frequent visits to chic nightclubs litter the gossip columns, no one has snapped the money shot of her actually imbibing—until now.

It’s the catch of the day for the British-born Harrison, 37, a battle-hardened soldier in the SUV army of paparazzi who trawl Los Angeles for celebrities. In 1998, he spent 39 days in jail after he and another photographer were accused of running Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Mercedes, which carried his son and pregnant wife, off the road and then jumping out to take pictures. The incident, on the heels of the death of Princess Diana, prompted California to pass its first antipaparazzi law.

While he hated doing time, Harrison hasn’t managed to stay out of trouble. In 2002, he served 17 days for breaking the nose of a rival shooter from Fame Pictures who Harrison claims uttered the n-word while they were jockeying for a photo. And earlier this year, Harrison was hit with felony assault charges after a brawl with rival snapper Tomas Maidana. A videotape of the incident reportedly shows the men trading slurs: After Harrison yells, “Take the boat back to Cuba!” Maidana spews a racial epithet. Harrison responds by punching him in the head.

“I don’t regret doing it for one second,” Harrison says. “I believe in a live-and-let-live policy: You leave me alone, I leave you alone. They don’t call me names, I don’t get in fights with them.”

Read the rest of the article at STUFF MAGAZINE.