Right off the bat, Finke admits she's not into lists, writing:

"Last year I was on Elle's Women in Hollywood power list; this year I was asked to write it. That's ironic, because I hate power lists more than one-size-fits-all spa robes. These influential jobs are not necessarily comparable. Are the casting directors I included more important than the cinematographers and film editors I didn't? So what I have is a very subjective roster of women I deem essential to a town run by alpha males who don't play well with others. Women in general do."

The List is split up into sections; there's The Movie Executives; The TV Executives; the awfully titled "The Wives & Daughters." But first and foremost there's The Talent — which includes Tyra Banks, Beyoncé, director Kathyrn Bigelow, Miley Cyrus, Ellen DeGeneres and Tina Fey. Also on that list? Michael Patrick King, whom Finke calls "2009's honorary female." Finke explains:

He gave us the best years of Sex and the City on TV and can be credited for reviving the chick flick in Hollywood when the movie version grossed $415 million.

The commenters on Women In Hollywood are split. One writes:

I just dislike that she left out a woman in order to include Michael Patrick King as an "honorary female". It is not good to be told that a man knows and produces women's films better than women.

But another replies:

That bugged me as well… but then I thought, well… It's the biggest film starring a cast of women of all time. He may not be a woman, but his film surely did something great for women in Hollywood, especially with a cast of women 40+.

Here's the question: If a man sympathetic to women is in power, is it as good as a woman in power? I'm going to go with: No. Because the more women pulling strings and making executive decisions the better. But since Finke makes a point about the SATC franchise being a powerhouse — and generates some buzz by including a man — she gets a pass from me. Disagree?

The Most Powerful Women in Hollywood According to Nikki Finke [Women In Hollywood]
Nikki Finke's Power List [Elle.com]
Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood

Earlier: Hollywood Heavy Nikki Finke: Victim Of Misogyny, And Misogynist Extraordinaire

• 
  
• Dave Went Out With Another Intern, In the 90s, and TMZ Got Pictures Of Her: Yes! In the "early 1990s," Dave had a (sexxxy?) "relationship" with his then-intern, Holly Hester, who seems to have nothing but warm feelings towards him, still. TMZ got these decidedly non-scandalous photos of the female half of this long-ago routine interoffice romance. There she is: Holly Hester.
• Dave Was the First Man Ever to Dislike His Ex-Girlfriend's New Boyfriend, According to Anonymous Sources: The Post's daily Dave scoop: Some people who probably work in the office say Dave didn't like Joe Halderman, the new boyfriend of Dave's ex, Stephanie Birkitt. By contrast, most men greatly enjoy hanging out with their ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend and building close relationships. Although this guy did try to extort Dave for millions, so maybe there are two sides to the story. The Post sums this all up as "Hate show." It's like "Late Show," but with hate.
• Tonight's Show May Be Awkward: Last week Dave came out on air with all this scandal stuff. Now it's the week following that. Is there a potential for tonight's show to be kinda awkward? Yes, say the show's staffers. It could very well be awkward. Now you know.
• Women Are More Mad About This Stuff Than Men, Maybe, Or Not: Some people feel that Dave will have to make a strong effort to win back female fans, because females tend to view his behavior more negatively than men. Some women, though, are not so concerned about it. And some people (us) suspect that the angry women Dave will have to contend with will mostly be Sarah Palin supporters with long memories and a lust for schadenfreude.

Celebrity: David Hasselhoff and Gary Coleman
Car: K.I.T.T.
Why So Embarrassing: It's the creepy thumbs up that makes this picture awesome to everyone not in it.
Suggested By: F1Morgan, Scandanavian Flick

Celebrity: 50 Cent
Car: Pontiac G8 GXP
Why So Embarrassing: Though we love the car, it doesn't particularly do it any good to get tarted up by 50 Cent on what seems to be the down-slope of his career. We bet Kanye could have sold more G8s.
Suggested By: BuickBoy92

Celebrity: Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, John Travolta, William H. Macy
Car: Harley Davidson Bikes
Why So Embarrassing: The four of them look like a gay biker gang, but not in the good way. We do give them props for their realistic portrayal of the typical lame Harley owner in this shot from the film Wild Hogs.
Suggested By: Golferal

Celebrity: Michael Johnson
Car: C4 Corvette
Why So Embarrassing: Oh so 1990s. You may be fast, but you'll never outrun this Glamour Shot.
Photo Credit: Mike Powell /Allsport

Celebrity: Mila Kunis
Car: Lexus SC430
Why So Embarrassing: We're not big fans of the Lexus SC430, but it's not particularly embarrassing. Parking it in a handicapped spot to grab a coffee is.

Celebrity: Michael Phelps
Car: Mazda6/Atenza
Why So Embarrassing: Immediately following his pot bust/gold medal marathon Phelps was tasked with pushing the Mazda brand in China. We'd probably start using drugs as well.

Celebrity: Andre Agassi
Car: Vector W8
Why So Embarrassing: Posing near a Vector W8 is only cool in a semi-ironic sort of way. In this case, Agassi is trying to show off all he has: big hair, awkward car, soon-to-be-ex girlfriend.

Photo Credit: John Russell/Getty Images

Celebrity: Danica Patrick
Car: Chevrolet Bel Air
Why So Embarrassing: Danica Patrick is talented, but she also understands the connection between her sex appeal and her ability to get sponsors. Unfortunately, this photo is just awkward. It's supposed to be enticing and seductive but the strange outfit and uncomfortable look makes us wish we'd never seen this photo.
Suggested By: PowerMatic

Photo Credit: FHM/George Holz/JEGPhoto

Celebrity: Adam West
Car: Chrysler 300C
Why So Embarrassing: Adam West, Batman, drives an old man car. Whatever, he's hilarious. He gets away with it. What he doesn't get away with is the "NBR1BAT" license plate. Holy Vanity Plate Batman!
Suggested By: 57sweptside

Celebrity: Conan O'Brien
Car: Ford Taurus SHO
Why So Embarrassing: Yes, Conan O'Brien is trying to look ridiculous. Yes, we love the Ford Taurus SHO. This is embarrassing for Conan because his attempts at appearing silly fail. You look awesome Conan.
Suggested By: Nerdwa

Celebrity: Sting
Car: Toyota Prius
Why So Embarrassing: Really, the guy who wrote Outlandos d'Amour is suddenly out cruising town in a Prius. We thought tantric sex was about extending the pleasure. Hybrids cut it way short, Gordy.
Suggested By: JamesMarino

Celebrity: Michael Schumacher
Car: Fiat Work Van
Why So Embarrassing: Schumacher looks the part too well. Also, "the quick gardner" sounds like a bad German translation of a man who fires quickly in bed.
Suggested By: Mr_Sives_Remotoc.

Of course, this is all just a publicity stunt. Griffin's a savvy, recently dumped publicity-whore and Levi's a painfully simple, recently-dumped publicity whore, so all of this makes perfect sense. Reports E! Online:

Asked what it's like being Griffin's date for the show, he smiled, "I just, you know, look at her, shut up and do what I'm told."

While Griffin has yet to visit Johnston in his hometown, she actually has been to Alaska.

"I have played Alaska, but so nowhere near where he grew up," she said. "I played a Rosie [O'Donnell] lesbian cruise there and I'm pretty sure Levi wasn't on that cruise. I mean, I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure Levi is not kicking it with the lesbian cruises."

Now behold, love, as captured by an AP red carpet photographer. First, like a good Alaskan gentleman, Levi seals it with a kiss:



And here's perhaps the most least passionate hand-hold even captured by still photography:





So the burning question on everyone's mind has to be — did Levi nail her?

The "mid-career" adult program is for both ambitious politicians and private sector titans looking to become ambitious politicians.

Past recipients of master's degrees in Public Administration at the Kennedy School include Mexican President Felipe Calderon, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Mongolian President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

Judd, who has a Bachelors in French from the University of Kentucky, is an actress known primarily for always being in a mess of trouble, in movies. Once she receives her degree, she'll join this august list of people who are currently running and destroying the world, and also Katherine Harris and Bill O'Reilly.

The New York Post says Cameron was playing middleman to half a pound of crystal meth—close to $20K worth—that was being moved from California to NYC to sell. The cops caught the drugs before they got here. Then they went to pick up 30 year-old Douglas:

He had been staying at the hotel for some time in a room rented by his father, and when authorities barged in, they found the place a mess and Cameron Douglas "very strung out," according to the sources.

Cameron's had drug problems in the past and Michael Douglas went through rehab himself in the 90s, because addiction really does run in the family.

This statement just went out from Star:

Star Reporter Resigns Over Jon Gosselin

Star Senior Reporter Kate Major resigned this morning, Thursday, July 23, citing a conflict of interest between her reporting duties for the magazine and her relationship with Jon Gosselin.

Since Star was so happy about this in the first place, it seems impossible that they asked her to resign for (heh) ethical reasons. And since Major made sure to get herself photographed with Octo-dad in the first place, it seems impossible she didn't plan this advance. The only remaining possibilities:

1. Kate Major and Star decided that she can more effectively pump Jon Gosselin for scoops if he thinks she's really his girlfriend.

2. Jon Gosselin told Kate he wouldn't go out with her as long as she was a scumbag celeb reporter. She talked to Star and agreed that it would be worth "resigning" in order to stay with him, and pump him for scoops. See theory #1.

3. Kate's quote from press release: "I didn't mean it to happen, it just did. I went to do a story on Jon and ended up falling for him." Could this be...love? We refuse to believe it.

[Pic: INF]

A 20 year-old Hugo Boss model named Joshua Walter was arrested for robbing a slew of bodegas, etc. across Queens and Brooklyn with a crew of non-models. He even pistol-whipped somebody, cops say. He's also living with his former high school teacher. "When Department of Education investigators questioned Walter about Salamino, he said, 'I'm tapping that ass and there's nothing you can do about it.'"

Not going to touch that one. Let's just say the recession is so bad that models are now doing stickups. Moving on: What sort of monster would rob American hero Orlando Bloom? Somebody did. That's for sure. They took $500K in cash and jewels from his home in Hollywood while Orlando was innocently in New York, looking good.

Perhaps it was the fact that he keeps half a million dollars worth of cash and jewels in his empty home? No matter. We have reached the third part of our robbery journey: the part where Manhattan city councilman Miguel Martinez admits that he stole more than $100,000 of taxpayer money. He is a fairly good-looking person, as well.

If you see any good-looking men, call the police at once.
[Pic via]

Reports The Envelope:

After a call to police last night from her home, she's been placed under an involuntary psychiatric hold (also known as a 5150) by the Los Angeles Police Department and is currently at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, reports Access Hollywood.

Barton was put under Section 5150 of the California Welfare and Institutions Code by police and transported to Cedars-Sinai. This code gives authorities the power to hold a person if he or she is gravely disabled or suffers from a mental disorder.

The Homecoming, the trailer to which she posted to her blog recently, was supposed to be her big comeback. So much for that.

Mischa Barton Pulls a Britney, Is Placed in Involuntary Psychiatric Hold [The Envelope]

The straight news: Gatti, who had taken more blows to the head than any human ever should, was vacationing in Brazil with his wife, Amanda Carine Barbosa Rodrigues. Their relationship was known to be violent. It did not end well. Cops say she strangled Gatti to death with her purse strap, which was found covered in his blood. Her alibi was not so great:

Rodrigues could not explain how she had spent nearly 10hours in the room without noticing that Gatti was dead, authorities said.

Uh huh. The final indignity: not only did Perez Hilton (a boxer himself!) run the wrong guy's picture as Gatti to memorialize him—he ran a picture of Alfonso Gomez, a guy who beat Gatti. Ouch. Perez's heartfelt words upon learning of Gatti's passing: "Major bummer!"

We know that Arturo's family appreciates that, Perez. For future reference, though, here's another photo from the very same set of Getty pictures from the Gatti-Gomez fight that you pulled your wrong photo from. The secret to identifying which one is Gatti: He's the one in the "GATTI" trunks. Don't say we never gave you any worthwhile tips! [NYDN, True/Slant. Fight pic: Getty]

Life, and the news, can't be all car chases, legislative gridlock, affairs by prominent Republicans, unrest overseas, war, and Sarah Palin. It seems eminently understandable that the circus surrounding the early death of a terribly famous man would continue to be considered newsworthy. But no! It is all the liberals' fault, or something.

First, Albany Republicans refused the man his moment of silence last week. Then, New York congressman Pete King called him a pervert. Now, T-Paw, the outgoing Minnesota governor who figures a national career awaits him if he just hangs in there and doesn't attack Letterman or go to Argentina, weighs in:

"[It's] time to move on." He opened his portion of the show talking, unprompted, about the Jackson coverage. "You can't get away from it. ... I've had enough of it.

"It's time to pay our respects and move on."

Are we alone in not being bothered, really at all, by the Jackson coverage, which has already tapered off, and which will be much more muted after the funeral, at least until the toxicology report comes back? We are liberal media elites, though, and so our sympathies, as always, lie with perverts.

(This is not even counting the various hundreds of dumb conservative bloggers who took Jackson's death to be some sort of MSM/Obama plot against them, or something. And here we thought it helped Mark Sanford!)

The doc, originally identified as Dr. Tohme Tohme, is being "hunted by cops" who want to talk to him about a supposed Demerol injection that led to MJ's death, according to The Sun:

LAPD are said to be examining a BMW which was towed yesterday from the singer's home where they also seized bags of prescription drugs.

It is believed the missing doctor gave the star a dose of Demerol - a painkiller similar to morphine - before he suffered a cardiac arrest.

The paper says that MJ may have become addicted to painkillers while preparing for his upcoming world tour. Brian Oxman, the Jackson family lawyer, is telling anyone who'll listen that MJ never should have been prescribed powerful drugs.

But! The New York Post managed to track down Dr. Tohme (before the cops, apparently), and he says he wasn't there at all!

"It's not me. I wasn't there at the house when this took place," said Dr. Tohme Tohme, who described himself as Jackson's manager and was present at a press conference where Jermaine Jackson formally announced his brother's death yesterday...

He said reports that Jackson was using prescription drugs were inaccurate and blasted claims by a Jackson family lawyer, Brian Oxman, that Jackson had been surrounded by disreputable people before his death, as untrue.

And now! TMZ ID's a different doctor as the one who was there with Michael:

KHOU in Houston reports the man is Dr. Conrad Robert Murray, who had been living with Jackson in his rented mansion. We're told Murray attempted to revive Michael until paramedics showed up at the scene.

They say that a car registered to Murray's sister was towed from MJ's house last night, and that cops are looking for Murray to question—which would presumably mean that Dr. Tohme is telling the truth. We'll keep you updated.
[Pic: Getty]

So how did you first hear that your picture was making the rounds on the internet?
I was walking to school and some friends came up to me and said "Harvey, you're in the newspaper." And then it was on one of the morning chat shows and I thought to myself, "Wow, this could be really big." I can't believe there's a picture of me and Megan Fox.

Why do you like Megan Fox? Are you a fan of her work, or is it a crush kind of thing?
I just really love celebrities. And I'm basically a big fan of Megan Fox. I like her work.

Tell us about what happened that night.
We'd heard she was in London for the premiere, so we decided to head down there. I picked up the rose on the way.

And when she came by and didn't take your flower, did you feel rejected?
I felt rejected. But I couldn't really tell if she'd done it on purpose. There were so many cameras around. She was moving really fast. Afterwards we ran through the hotel, but she didn't stop. I dropped the rose on the ground and went home.

Have you accepted her apology?
I actually haven't heard anything that she's said.

I see that you've met Kevin Jonas and Lady Gaga?
I've met a lot of celebrities. Only a few take pictures. Some celebrities are complete [bad word that we won't reprint because he's 11-years-old and was nervous, folks].

Who do you want to meet next?
I went after Katy Perry once, really wanted to meet her. We ran after her car. I wanted to give her a flower. Lady Gaga is going to be in London when I get back, so I'm going to try again with her.

So do you want to go into the entertainment industry when you're done with school?
I really love to sing and dance and act. I'm trying to get into a stage school in London, but it's really hard to get an audition.

I bet you'll get an audition now, now that everyone knows who you are.
I hope so.

Anything else you want to tell us?
I think I've told you pretty much everything!

Harvey is in town until Monday with his mother and godmother. They're going to see the musical Shrek tomorrow night.

For their part, Kodak, who orchestrated this whole whirlwind adventure, is giving $5,000 to both Kim the French Canadian and Collider.com who got Megan to make her apology.

So, a happy ending mostly! If nothing else, a nice trip to New York for a kid with stars in his eyes.

Earlier this week, the Nightlife Preservationists—dedicated to keeping clubs cool and shit, and making sure they don't suck because of sucky people who should just go back to Kansas or wherever if you can't take the noise, bro, welcome to the Big fucking Apple—had a launch party for their cause, hosted by Chloe Sevigny.

Chloe wore a "Save the Beatrice" T-shirt, a reference to the West 12th Street place that was recently shut down by the city. Her brother, Beatrice owner Paul, who deejayed at the party, also had his hipster hangout on the brain. He refused to give an interview, blaming the media for the closure by publicizing the nightly clouds of cigarette smoke inside. The NPC plans to support candidates who support nightlife, and City Council members Peter Vallone Jr., David Yassky, Jessica Lappin and Gale Brewer all made appearances amid the thumping music and gyrating go-go dancers.

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.1. Peter Vallone, Jr. is a total asshole who would love to throw all graffiti writers in jail for decades and vowed to jail parents if their kids are found drinking, neither of which should go over well with the "nightlife community." Solidarity, party people.

2. This party was invitation-only. That's not "nightlife." That's your personal schmoozefest. Kind of like the Beatrice!

3. As civic causes go, "Save the Beatrice" is roughly on par with the right of NYU building occupationists to have vegan lunches delivered.

4. Let's tackle this issue after we finish up the "education" and "health care" things.

Other than that you have our full support.
[Party pics!]

We got a tip from an insider that Unvogue spent weeks trying to persuade AC to be the host of tonight's party at the Sapphire Go-Go Lounge—which coincides with the start of Gay Pride week. GET IT?

A staffer on Anderson Cooper's CNN show took a message and promised to get back to us, but hasn't. Unvogue editor K. Tyson Perez demurred, saying "we are slightly annoyed that our big secret is getting out before we have had a chance to 'officially' announce it ourselves." But Unvogue's PR person confirms to us that they have "confirmed Mr. Cooper's attendance."

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.But this isn't just any crappy party! According to our tipster:

Anderson was absolutely amused by the name of the online magazine and said his mother [Gloria Vanderbilt, eroticist] would love the boldness of it. Undeterred by not having Mr. Cooper as an official host, it didn't take long before the entire Unvogue staff began rebranding the event as, "Anderson Cooper's Big Fat Coming Out Party!' LOL!!! They are now hard at work concocting some fancy new sponsored Macari wine spritzers (how deliciously gay) and instructing their go-go boys to rehearse a special lap dance appropriately dubbed the A.C. 360. LOL! We couldn't help but wonder if the A.C. 360 concludes with an explosive happy ending as we all know Anderson loves the sounds of bombs…

We also hear a certain American Idol contestant may make an appearance along with AC. It all sounds quite juvenile and we have a hard time believing Anderson Cooper would be interested in such things, but in any case, don't let us stop the fun, guys. Proceeds "go to benefit HIV Arts Network, Inc," for the record. Send pics!
[Although: AC was reporting live from Paris last night. Is this party awesome enough for him to fly back for? Pics or it didn't happen.]

UPDATE: I just spoke with Shimrit Sheetrit, Anderson Cooper's personal rep, who said "I can guarantee you Anderson is not attending" this party tonight. Sheetrit said Cooper is back in New York and doing his show as usual tonight.

Brown will plead guilty to a felony and receive six months in jail or community labor — such as graffiti removal or trash pickup — and five years' formal probation. He will also undergo domestic violence counseling. Judge Patricia Schnegg said he will be allowed to complete counseling, community labor and probation in his native Virginia, but is to be treated there like any other offender.

The maximum he would have faced if convicted in court was five years in prison. Let's hope the domestic violence counseling works out.
[LAT. Pic via]

"Serious thinkers" talking about pop culture is sort of my favorite thing ever, almost as good as when opera singers cover Stevie Wonder or chefs "reimagine" Twinkies. In recent weeks, we've seen Wolf, Rhodes scholar, prominent third-waver and beauty myth-maker, ask "who won feminism?" - the humorless old hairy-leggers or those of us living the dangerous vida loca?! The answer, according to her Bazaar piece, is Angelina Jolie. See, that's why women love her - "she becomes what psychoanalysts call an "ego ideal" for women — a kind of dream figure that allows women to access, through fantasies of their own, possibilities for their own heightened empowerment and liberation." Hey, you said it, we didn't.

Wolf breaks down Angie's mystical appeal thusly:

She's Hot.

Bosomy and wasp-waisted, with that curtain of hair and those crazy pillowy lips, she is an obvious male sex fantasy...Polls also show that if women — not just lesbian and bisexual women but straight women — had to choose a female lover, they would want to sleep with Angelina Jolie. In other words, women both identify with her and desire her.

She Has it All.

She makes the claim, with her life and actions, that, indeed, you can get away with it. All of it. Against every Western convention, she has managed to draw together all of these kinds of female liberation and empowerment. And her gestures determinedly transgress social boundaries — boundaries of convention, race, class, and gender — giving many of us a vicarious thrill.

She's Done the Impossible Switcheroo from Whore to Madonna. Wolf points to Jolie's long, strange trip - from tiresomely brother-macking, blood-sportin' self-styled shit-show married to grizzled oldster with fear of antique furniture, to the (sexy!) paragon we all know and allegedly love.

She Flies a Plane.

Women are so used to being dependent on others (certainly on men) for where they go, metaphorically, and how they get there. Flying a private plane is the classic metaphor for choosing your own direction; usually, that is a guy thing to do, yet there was Jolie, with her aviator glasses on, taking flying lessons so she could blow the mind of her four-year-old son. That is the ultimate in single-mom chic: Even before she had reconstructed a nuclear (or postnuclear) family with a dad at the head of it, she was reframing single motherhood from a state of lack or insufficiency to a glamorous, unfettered lifestyle choice.

She's Takes Lovahs.

Equally ostentatiously in her role as lover, she took for her own pleasure the male seen as the most desired of the tribe, Brad Pitt, who is always ranked at the top of indexes of male beauty and virility. As for the constraints of social convention — ahem, he was still married? You can have a variety of feelings about this, but Jolie's evident disdain of that social constraint certainly, for better or worse, put her in the same self-entitled category as those men who have traditionally taken what they wanted and let the emotional chips fall where they may.

To those of us who find Brangelina impossibly dull (or, you know, fine in Girl, Interrupted and attagirl for UNICEF) her appeal is more like this: people like crappy movies, too. Movies full of abrupt transitions and overblown characters. (What this says about our feminist acumen I'm not sure, but then, Wolf doesn't think much of that.) I'm not sure if Wolf is paying Angie's fans the ultimate compliment or just being really patronizing. She's not wrong: clearly women are drawn to the dramatic highs and lows of the Angelina storyline, the family's beauty and diversity, the novelty of a movie star using her powers for good, the idea of a goddess who has it all. But is that a good thing? (If this is "having it all," "having it all" was a lot more literal than I ever knew.)

Brangelina are totally enigmatic; we don't know anything about them except the Harlequin-worthy synopsis. People like them because they can project whatever they want onto them. Maybe moms fantasize about Angie reading to her kids at night, then having hot sex with Brad. Those who want to turn their lives around probably are inspired by this scion of movie star and model who's fearlessly pursued a course of growing up. Doubtless somebody somewhere has taken up flying as a result. Hopefully a few have turned to good works. (Ideally no one, anywhere, will allow Angelina Jolie to have any impact on her decision to adopt or not.) Some woman involved with a married dude may stay with him that much longer because of her tabloid happy-ending. Some people will see The Last Kiss and think it's profound. And Naomi Wolf will look at Angelina Jolie and project her own fantasies: a feminist icon whom women love because they think the right way. And that right there pretty much justifies the Forbes pick.

The Power of Angelina [Harper's Bazaar]

Related: What's Angelina Jolie's Allure? [People]
The World's Most Powerful Celebrities [Forbes]
Who Won Feminism? [Washington Post]