the way life used to be
2007-07-02 16:21:07 UTC
http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/r_m/index.html
Rush & Molloy
Reflections of the way Ross used to boss
Diana Ross may have been a Motown goddess, but she was a devil as a
boss, according to a new bio.
"Most of the time, Diana's emotional outbursts were about things that
really didn't matter much to anyone but her," writes J. Randy
Taraborrelli in his "Diana Ross," out in September from Citadel Press.
The one-time Supreme fired her entire staff, for instance, after
unflattering stories about her found their way into the papers. Not
satisfied to stop there, Taraborelli says, she bad-mouthed eight of
her former assistants in a letter.
"If I let an employee go, it's because either their work or their
personal habits are not acceptable to me," wrote Ross. "I do not
recommend these people. In fact, if you hear from these people and
they use my name as a reference, I wish to be contacted."
The missive got her sued for millions by at least two former
employees, including her ex-administrative assistant Gail Davis, who
was listed in the letter.
Davis settled her case three years later, says Taraborrelli.
Those around Ross were routinely asked to avoid eye contact with the
diva. "Avert the eyes" soon became a catch phrase to announce Diana's
arrival, Taraborelli claims.
Ross often demanded that her concert dressing rooms be redone for her
arrival. "She asked that it be made to look like a star's dressing
room," recalls one venue manager forced to repaint and recarpet.
Once, Ross reportedly clubbed an airline worker with a hat box,
presumably unaware that the box contained a small dog.
But it was personal assistant Michael Browne who hefted the heaviest
load of Ross' whims, Taraborelli says.
He put up with her then-9-year-old daughter, Tracee, who was known for
carrying a notebook and pencil everywhere she went. If she saw one of
Ross' functionaries doing something she thought was wrong, she would
quickly jot it down and later report it to her mother, says the
author.
Just before Christmas one year, Ross flipped out when Browne failed at
his task of hiding $100,000 worth of wrapped presents on a private jet
Ross and her daughters were taking to Vegas.
"I thought I told you I didn't want to see a single present," hissed
Ross when she spotted one under her then-8-year-old daughter Chudney's
seat. "Not one single present. ... Is it so much to ask?"
According to the author, Browne managed to dissuade Ross from her plan
to switch all the presents to a second private jet, pacifying her with
a glass of wine. The holiday must have made her feel guilty: His
exhausted appearance after the trip caused her to say he could visit
his family for Christmas, and bring his mother 500 purple orchids
she'd been sent.
Then there was the upstaging of Florence Ballard - who Ross allowed to
be kicked out of the Supremes, and the basis for Jennifer Hudson's
"Dreamgirls" character Effie - at Ballard's own funeral.
Taraborrelli writes how Ross marched from her front-row pew to the
altar, took the microphone and announced, "Mary and I would now like
to have a silent prayer."
Supremes member Mary Wilson, Taraborelli says, was sitting discreetly
in the back of the church.
From her surprised expression, it was obvious, the writer recounts,
that "the last thing she wanted to do was go up to the altar and be
the center of attention."
The porn-again Christian
Tatum Reed is a young porn star, a hooker - and a Republican Christian
mother, and a new film about her will be sure to stir controversy when
it premieres here this month.
James Hanlon's documentary "Popwhore," named after Reed's Web site,
will undoubtedly spur protests from both sides of the porn debate when
it debuts at the N.Y. International Independent Film and Video
Festival July 21 at City Cinemas Village East.
"I voted for George Bush, and my principles are along that party's
values," Reed purrs shortly after shooting a scene in an X-rated
movie, which Hanlon somehow manages to doubleshoot tastefully.
Shrinks, moral crusaders, current and ex-porn stars and civil
libertarians all get their say as he traces how American sexuality is
changing faster than ever on the Internet.
Hanlon, the New York City firefighter and actor who made the Emmy
Award-winning CBS documentary "9/11" with Robert De Niro and Graydon
Carter and who was forced into retirement with recovery-effort lung
ailments, followed Reed around for a year as she turns tricks, films
X-rated scenes and helps her children with homework.
"I didn't want to do it at first," Hanlon, who's nominated for best
director in the fest, told us. "But as I was leaving her house, I saw
these two little kids and I said, that's the story - the human choices
we make in life."
Side Dish
New York Yankees slugger Jason Giambi had a shot Thursday night, but
hypodermic needles weren't involved. Giambi, a figure in the baseball
steroids inquiry, turned up at Pacha nightclub for an NBA draft party
and hung with a bevy of beautiful brunettes. "Women and drunk guys
were just coming up to him every four seconds wanting pictures and
autographs," says our spy. "The waitress even brought him a shot and
they took it together. He looked like he didn't have a care in the
world about his impending investigation."
Eyebrows shot skyward when the children of Vogue editrix Anna Wintour
and her beau, Shelby Bryan, held hands at Marquee the other night.
Austin Bryan certainly looked tight with Anna's daughter, Bee Shaffer.
But one pal swears they aren't following the romantic path of their
parents. "I'm sure Austin was just helping guide her through the
crowd," says the source. Wintour seems to be guiding Austin's career
now that he's out of college. He just started a job at Vogue parent
Condé Nast.
Not all high-level Republicans are thrilled with former Sen. Al
D'Amato's offer to help senator-turned-actor Fred Thompson's expected
Republican presidential bid. "He's a net negative," snipes one.
"They'll let him raise money, but nobody's giving him a bear hug. It's
the sleaze factor." D'Amato was reprimanded by the Senate Ethics
Committee for letting his lobbyist brother use his stationery to
solicit Navy contracts, and had to apologize on the Senate floor for
imitating O.J. Simpson judge Lance Ito with a Japanese accent on the
Don Imus show.
"That '70s Show" cutie Laura Prepon was said to have split from
"Malcolm in the Middle" actor boyfriend Chris Masterson at the end of
May. But the pair were spotted holding hands and sharing a soda in the
front row of Stay Free's Girls in the Director's Chair premiere.
Prepon acted in one of two films created by teams of teenage girls
chosen from around the United States.
The possible role of steroids in wrestler Chris Benoit's decision to
kill his wife, son and himself is stirring memories among veteran
investigators of the O.J. Simpson double-murder case. Some of them
still believe Simpson took steroids to bulk up for his role in "The
Frogman," filmed shortly before the murders of Nicole Simpson and Ron
Goldman. Toxicology tests found no steroids in Simpson's blood. But a
source tells us, "The prevailing belief among some FBI agents is that
he was going through 'roid withdrawal." Simpson's lawyer, Yale
Galanter, said: "I've never heard that rumor before. O.J. was never a
muscle guy; he was a running back. I don't believe true investigators
of this case would give this theory 15 minutes of attention."
Wyclef Jean and Petra Nemcova joined happy birthday boy Unik for a
bash at his P.M. Lounge Wednesday night. The party kicked off with a
dinner at Unik's Gin Lane on W. 14th St. before rolling down Ninth
Ave. in torrential rain to the club. Also joining the fete, which
doubled as a kickoff for Unik's Edeyo foundation for Haitian education
aid, were Leonardo DiCaprio, Alessandra Ambrosio and N.Y. Giant
Michael Strahan.
Stop! In the Name of Love Jude Law did his best Supremes impression
at the Palace Theatre in Manchester, where he attended the opening
night of "Monkey: Journey to the West."
Let's hope his table manners were good. "Lost" star Michelle Rodriguez
brought her Pomeranian for a bite to eat at Café Med in West
Hollywood.
With Patrick Huguenin. Edited by Lance D. Debler.
Rush & Molloy
Reflections of the way Ross used to boss
Diana Ross may have been a Motown goddess, but she was a devil as a
boss, according to a new bio.
"Most of the time, Diana's emotional outbursts were about things that
really didn't matter much to anyone but her," writes J. Randy
Taraborrelli in his "Diana Ross," out in September from Citadel Press.
The one-time Supreme fired her entire staff, for instance, after
unflattering stories about her found their way into the papers. Not
satisfied to stop there, Taraborelli says, she bad-mouthed eight of
her former assistants in a letter.
"If I let an employee go, it's because either their work or their
personal habits are not acceptable to me," wrote Ross. "I do not
recommend these people. In fact, if you hear from these people and
they use my name as a reference, I wish to be contacted."
The missive got her sued for millions by at least two former
employees, including her ex-administrative assistant Gail Davis, who
was listed in the letter.
Davis settled her case three years later, says Taraborrelli.
Those around Ross were routinely asked to avoid eye contact with the
diva. "Avert the eyes" soon became a catch phrase to announce Diana's
arrival, Taraborelli claims.
Ross often demanded that her concert dressing rooms be redone for her
arrival. "She asked that it be made to look like a star's dressing
room," recalls one venue manager forced to repaint and recarpet.
Once, Ross reportedly clubbed an airline worker with a hat box,
presumably unaware that the box contained a small dog.
But it was personal assistant Michael Browne who hefted the heaviest
load of Ross' whims, Taraborelli says.
He put up with her then-9-year-old daughter, Tracee, who was known for
carrying a notebook and pencil everywhere she went. If she saw one of
Ross' functionaries doing something she thought was wrong, she would
quickly jot it down and later report it to her mother, says the
author.
Just before Christmas one year, Ross flipped out when Browne failed at
his task of hiding $100,000 worth of wrapped presents on a private jet
Ross and her daughters were taking to Vegas.
"I thought I told you I didn't want to see a single present," hissed
Ross when she spotted one under her then-8-year-old daughter Chudney's
seat. "Not one single present. ... Is it so much to ask?"
According to the author, Browne managed to dissuade Ross from her plan
to switch all the presents to a second private jet, pacifying her with
a glass of wine. The holiday must have made her feel guilty: His
exhausted appearance after the trip caused her to say he could visit
his family for Christmas, and bring his mother 500 purple orchids
she'd been sent.
Then there was the upstaging of Florence Ballard - who Ross allowed to
be kicked out of the Supremes, and the basis for Jennifer Hudson's
"Dreamgirls" character Effie - at Ballard's own funeral.
Taraborrelli writes how Ross marched from her front-row pew to the
altar, took the microphone and announced, "Mary and I would now like
to have a silent prayer."
Supremes member Mary Wilson, Taraborelli says, was sitting discreetly
in the back of the church.
From her surprised expression, it was obvious, the writer recounts,
that "the last thing she wanted to do was go up to the altar and be
the center of attention."
The porn-again Christian
Tatum Reed is a young porn star, a hooker - and a Republican Christian
mother, and a new film about her will be sure to stir controversy when
it premieres here this month.
James Hanlon's documentary "Popwhore," named after Reed's Web site,
will undoubtedly spur protests from both sides of the porn debate when
it debuts at the N.Y. International Independent Film and Video
Festival July 21 at City Cinemas Village East.
"I voted for George Bush, and my principles are along that party's
values," Reed purrs shortly after shooting a scene in an X-rated
movie, which Hanlon somehow manages to doubleshoot tastefully.
Shrinks, moral crusaders, current and ex-porn stars and civil
libertarians all get their say as he traces how American sexuality is
changing faster than ever on the Internet.
Hanlon, the New York City firefighter and actor who made the Emmy
Award-winning CBS documentary "9/11" with Robert De Niro and Graydon
Carter and who was forced into retirement with recovery-effort lung
ailments, followed Reed around for a year as she turns tricks, films
X-rated scenes and helps her children with homework.
"I didn't want to do it at first," Hanlon, who's nominated for best
director in the fest, told us. "But as I was leaving her house, I saw
these two little kids and I said, that's the story - the human choices
we make in life."
Side Dish
New York Yankees slugger Jason Giambi had a shot Thursday night, but
hypodermic needles weren't involved. Giambi, a figure in the baseball
steroids inquiry, turned up at Pacha nightclub for an NBA draft party
and hung with a bevy of beautiful brunettes. "Women and drunk guys
were just coming up to him every four seconds wanting pictures and
autographs," says our spy. "The waitress even brought him a shot and
they took it together. He looked like he didn't have a care in the
world about his impending investigation."
Eyebrows shot skyward when the children of Vogue editrix Anna Wintour
and her beau, Shelby Bryan, held hands at Marquee the other night.
Austin Bryan certainly looked tight with Anna's daughter, Bee Shaffer.
But one pal swears they aren't following the romantic path of their
parents. "I'm sure Austin was just helping guide her through the
crowd," says the source. Wintour seems to be guiding Austin's career
now that he's out of college. He just started a job at Vogue parent
Condé Nast.
Not all high-level Republicans are thrilled with former Sen. Al
D'Amato's offer to help senator-turned-actor Fred Thompson's expected
Republican presidential bid. "He's a net negative," snipes one.
"They'll let him raise money, but nobody's giving him a bear hug. It's
the sleaze factor." D'Amato was reprimanded by the Senate Ethics
Committee for letting his lobbyist brother use his stationery to
solicit Navy contracts, and had to apologize on the Senate floor for
imitating O.J. Simpson judge Lance Ito with a Japanese accent on the
Don Imus show.
"That '70s Show" cutie Laura Prepon was said to have split from
"Malcolm in the Middle" actor boyfriend Chris Masterson at the end of
May. But the pair were spotted holding hands and sharing a soda in the
front row of Stay Free's Girls in the Director's Chair premiere.
Prepon acted in one of two films created by teams of teenage girls
chosen from around the United States.
The possible role of steroids in wrestler Chris Benoit's decision to
kill his wife, son and himself is stirring memories among veteran
investigators of the O.J. Simpson double-murder case. Some of them
still believe Simpson took steroids to bulk up for his role in "The
Frogman," filmed shortly before the murders of Nicole Simpson and Ron
Goldman. Toxicology tests found no steroids in Simpson's blood. But a
source tells us, "The prevailing belief among some FBI agents is that
he was going through 'roid withdrawal." Simpson's lawyer, Yale
Galanter, said: "I've never heard that rumor before. O.J. was never a
muscle guy; he was a running back. I don't believe true investigators
of this case would give this theory 15 minutes of attention."
Wyclef Jean and Petra Nemcova joined happy birthday boy Unik for a
bash at his P.M. Lounge Wednesday night. The party kicked off with a
dinner at Unik's Gin Lane on W. 14th St. before rolling down Ninth
Ave. in torrential rain to the club. Also joining the fete, which
doubled as a kickoff for Unik's Edeyo foundation for Haitian education
aid, were Leonardo DiCaprio, Alessandra Ambrosio and N.Y. Giant
Michael Strahan.
Stop! In the Name of Love Jude Law did his best Supremes impression
at the Palace Theatre in Manchester, where he attended the opening
night of "Monkey: Journey to the West."
Let's hope his table manners were good. "Lost" star Michelle Rodriguez
brought her Pomeranian for a bite to eat at Café Med in West
Hollywood.
With Patrick Huguenin. Edited by Lance D. Debler.