Eye | Lifetime's Whitney Houston Biopic | Hollywood & Gaza | Cindy Crawford On Why Supermodels Happened

Angela Bassett Directs Whitney Houston Biopic

Lifetime TV premiered on Saturday January 17 ‘Whitney’ with ‘The Butler’ alum Yaya DeCosta as Houston, directed by Houston’s ‘Waiting to Exhale’ costar Angela Bassett in her directorial debut.

Elle.com interviews Angela Bassett about her relationship with Whitney Houston and the pressures on her to deliver a film true to Whitney’s life and spirit, while maintaining the truth about the superstar’s demise and death.

Cindy Crawford On Why The Supermodels Happened

‘I feel like I lived through the heyday of modelling,’ true supermodel Cindy Crawford told London’s Evening Standard in ‘It’s not so super for models now … magazines want stars on their covers’.

Crawford explains: The reason supermodels could come into being was because Hollywood actresses wanted to be taken seriously. They didn’t want the red carpet to be a catwalk, which it has now become.

Crawford and husband Randy Gerber are good friends with George and Amal Clooney, being in the tightest circle around the couple at their Venice wedding last September. The supermom of two explained:

“I think George decided — and Amal, too — which I thought was smart of them, typically, that either you spend all this time and energy trying to make it secret or you go, ‘You know what? We’re getting married in Venice and we’re going to have this great party and we’re going to do exactly what we want.’

“So that’s what they did and I really respect them for it.”

NY Post Andrea Peyser Jabs At Amal Clooney

It wasn’t only the row over Amal Clooney’s Golden Globes white gloves that made headlines this week. Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post columnist Andrea Peyser moved against the influential human rights lawyer over her proposed role on a three-person commission investigating rules of war violations in the Gaza Strip.

It wasn’t enough that — for whatever reason — Amal Clooney cited a too busy schedule to allow her participation — a point not clarified at the Golden Globes podium.

Could the reason be the possibility of her future husband running for political office? Whatever the reason, declining was not enough for Peyser, who criticized Amal for the following statement:

“I am horrified by the situation in the occupied Gaza Strip, particularly the civilian casualties that have been caused, and strongly believe that there should be an independent investigation and accountability for crimes that have been committed.”

AOC hates to tell Peyser that many Americans are concerned about what happened in Gaza in the summer of 2014. Israeli actions in Gaza produced a significant split in Hollywood, with actors and industry notables expressing the same concerns as highlighted by Amal Clooney.

Hollywood’s Concerns for Gaza

Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz have been heavily criticised by some Hollywood industry figures after speaking out against the summer 2014 Israeli offensive in Gaza.

Other celebrities and Hollwyood heavyweights underscored that their concerns are born out of a concern about humanity. They included Selena Gomez, Jon Stewart. Rob Schneider, Rosie O’Donnell, Mia Farrow, Mark Ruffalo, John Cusack and Anthony Bourdain, the celebrity chef who visited Gaza in his CNN show ‘Parts Unknown’.

Note that Israelis appeared in that show — people also concerned about peace with Palestine and the destruction heaped on the heads of ordinary people living in Gaza.

Israeli newspaper Harretz cited Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Minnie Driver, Kerry Washington and Kelsey Grammer have expressed critical concern against Israel’s actions in Gaza. Unlike Rihanna, who got caught in the Tweet and delete phenomenon after Tweeting the hashtag #FreePalestine, Madonna stayed the course of her criticism and concerns about the summer’s actions in Gaza.

Expressing concerns for the destruction in Gaza does not make one anti-Israel. Surely the recent events in Paris have taught us the life is not so simplistic. And I haven’t heard ONE expert on either side of the Israeli debate who doesn’t agree that conditions in Gaza don’t breed future terrorists. ~ Anne

Chanel Beauty Spring 2015

Models Anne-Sophie Monrad, Lieke Van Houten and Xiao Wen Ju sparkle in photographer Jean Paul Goude’s campaign for Chanel Beauty Spring/Summer 2015.

V93 Preview

V Magazine #93 hits newsstands on Friday, January 15th. Models Charlotte Lindvig, Emmy Rappe, Manuela Frey, and Steffy Argelich make a preview appearance, lensed by Dario Catellani in ‘Dress You Up’. via