April 17, 2006

Brangelina and TomKat Face Off with Paparazzi


It's Brangelina vs. the paparazzi -- and both sides mean business.


Even in the idyllic setting of Namibia, Africa, where Brad and Angelina have rented a luxury lodge as they prepare for the birth of their baby, photographers are busy hunting down the perfect shot of the pregnant Jolie, the newly Mohawked Pitt and their adopted kids.

But Brangelina is fighting back by erecting a green barrier to block their property from a public beach. They've also stepped up their security force led by Mickey Brett, Jolie's longtime bodyguard, who has issued this threat peppered with expletives: "If I find anyone getting a picture of Jolie, I will (expletive) smash someone to pieces. I'm not joking, I'll (expletive) put someone in the hospital. Tell your friends."

Despite the threats, resourceful photographers have seemingly managed to sneak onto the heavily guarded property, and trouble has ensued.

Members of Jolie and Pitt's security team pepper-sprayed one photographer who was getting too close to Brad and Maddox. But even after being sprayed, the aggressive shutterbug took a photograph. Sources close to "Extra" say that Pitt reprimanded the security guard for the incident, considering it was right in front of young Maddox.

Sources also tell "Extra" that in order to get a shot of a glowing Angelina holding her daughter Zahara, the paparazzo rented a farmer's field adjacent to the airstrip where the shot was taken, dug a six foot hole and camped out all night. And with a price tag of $1 million for a photo of Brad and Angelina's newborn, things could only get worse.

Brad and Angelina certainly aren't the only super couple dealing with the paparazzi. Katie Holmes faced a flock of photographers at Maxfield, an ultra-exclusive Hollywood store.

So what will the first baby picture worth? And will a photo of Baby TomKat be worth more than a photo of Baby Brangelina?

Us Weekly's Katrina Szish is delivering all the pre-partum particulars. While Brangelina is set to give birth in Africa, Szish told us, "TomKat is much more of a nesting couple. They're most likely giving birth at home, and they really keep to themselves."

Tom's Beverly Hills mansion is now officially Camp Cruise. On the ground and in the air, paparazzi are coming complete with their own lunch truck, forcing Tom's security detail to guard the trash from snoops. So how much could the first baby snapshots fetch?

"I expect it could reach about a million dollars," Szish said. "Brangelina definitely outsells TomKat."

Gary Morgan runs celebrity photo agency Splash News, and he thinks the first pictures of both babies will command that figure. "Two million easy," he said. "There's going to be a lot of photographers doing everything they can to get this one picture."

1 comment:

G said...

if they were smart they'd hire a photog and sell the pix themselves, and give the $$ to charity...either that and make a huge press conf and invite everyone to water down the value of the images...

the more you hold on to something the more people want it