It should be no surprise that the lords of private equity like Stephen Schwarzman, Steven Cohen and Henry Kravis are among the biggest losers; they're dragged down by the credit crunch. Nor will Roger Ailes and Bill O'Reilly of Fox News be that surprised to have been marked down by Bush-hating Graydon Carter. But the Vanity Fair editor will have a harder time explaining why his irascible movie producer friend Harvey Weinstein, a regular at Carter's Waverly Inn, has been knocked back 46 places. Nor should he expect to get George Clooney (down 28 points) on the cover any time soon.

• Marc Jacobs is "returning?" Well, if the designer can leverage his sex life into a New Yorker profile, he's probably a decent fit here, in the pages of the New Yorker's more fashion-conscious corporate sibling.
• Movie moguls Harvey and Bob Weinstein plummet to 87 from 41. But they're so used to sinking feelings they probably barely notice them anymore.
• Venture capitalist (and godfather to Google and Yahoo) Michael Moritz fell to 88 from 56. Is the shine off Google that badly?
• What an odd time to add Walter Mossberg to the list. The grossly overpaid Wall Street Journal technology columnist was recently replaced on CNBC by the Times' David Pogue, whose theater background and hammy stage personality make him by far the more interesting gadget czar in the era of Web video. (Mossberg moved over to Fox Business, owned by his paper's new owner.) Pogue doesn't make the list, probably because he doesn't have a big power conference like Mossberg's D - All Things Digital.
• Conceptual artist Damien Hirst debuts all the way up at 31??
• Bill Keller of the Times is hip now! Wait, what?
• Ha ha, nice knowing you, hedge fund guys! Wait, no, not "nice," the other thing. Awful!

Your comments on further strangeness are welcome in the comments, although really it's best not to think too hard about these things, which publishers change at random basically just to screw with you.

THE VANITY FAIR 100:
2007 ranking in parentheses

1. Vladimir Putin, Russian Prime Minister (new entry)
2. Rupert Murdoch, News Corp. (1)
3. Sergey Brin (3), Larry Page (3), and Eric Schmidt (new entry), Google
4. Steve Jobs, Apple, Disney, and Pixar (2)
5. Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway (5)
6. Jeff Bezos, Amazon (23)
7. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, ruler of Dubai (new entry)
8. Roman Abramovich, Millhouse Capital (30)
9. Angelina Jolie & Brad Pitt, actors, activists (new entry)
10. Al Gore, eco-warrior (19)
11. Bill Clinton, Clinton Foundation (6)
12. Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York, Bloomberg L.P. (9)
13. Bernard Arnault, LVMH (8)
14. Steven Spielberg, DreamWorks SKG (7)
15. Ralph Lauren, Polo Ralph Lauren (13)
16. Steve Ballmer, Microsoft (returning)
17. François-Henri Pinault, PPR (new entry)
18. Barry Diller & Diane von Furstenberg (15), IAC; Diane von Furstenberg (15)
19. H. Lee Scott, Wal-Mart (12)
20. Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman Sachs (new entry)
21. Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase (new entry)
22. David Geffen, DreamWorks SKG (16)
23. George Lucas, Lucasfilm (40)
24. Jerry Bruckheimer, Jerry Bruckheimer Films (26)
25. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook (new entry)
26. Ronald Perelman, MacAndrews & Forbes (31)
27. Jeff Bewkes, Time Warner (22)
28. John Lasseter (66), Andrew Stanton (new entry), and Brad Bird (new entry), Pixar, Disney
29. Herb Allen, Allen & Co. (21)
30. Miuccia Prada, Prada S.p.A. (44)
31. Damien Hirst, conceptual artist (new entry)
32. Sumner Redstone, Viacom, CBS (70)
33. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Governor of California (50)
34. Tom Hanks, actor, director, producer (32)
35. Robert Iger, Disney (36)
36. Bono, singer, humanitarian (28)
37. Larry Ellison, Oracle (20)
38. Larry Gagosian, Gagosian Gallery (84)
39. Howard Stringer, Sony (17)
40. Peter Chernin, News Corp. (24)
41. Philippe Dauman, Viacom (68)
42. Vivi Nevo, NV Investments (59)
43. Oprah Winfrey, Harpo Productions (14)
44. Jon Stewart, The Daily Show (89)
45. Stephen Colbert, The Colbert Report (87)
46. Carlos Slim Helú, Teléfonos de México, América Móvil (11)
47. Karl Lagerfeld, Chanel (52)
48. Giorgio Armani, Armani Group (37)
49. Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, Kingdom Holding Company (new entry)
50. Mike Nichols & Diane Sawyer, director; ABC News anchor (42)
51. Jacob Rothschild, financier (33)
52. Mickey Drexler, J. Crew (55)
53. Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks Animation (38)
54. Leslie Moonves, CBS (25)
55. George Clooney, actor, producer, director, activist (27)
56. Jay-Z, hip-hop (47)
57. Oscar & Annette de la Renta, Oscar de la Renta (53)
58. Judd Apatow, producer, director, actor, writer (new entry)
59. Robert De Niro, Tribeca Enetrprises, Tribeca Productions (34)
60. Bill Keller, The New York Times (new entry)
61. Mick Jagger, the Rolling Stones (60)
62. Bruce Wasserstein, Lazard; Wasserstein & Co. (43)
63. Ted Forstmann, IMG Worldwide (new entry)
64. Anna Wintour, Vogue (new entry)
65. Brian Roberts, Comcast (57)
66. Brian Grazer & Ron Howard, Imagine Entertainment (65)
67. Mukesh & Anil Ambani, Reliance Industries, Reliance ADA Group (new entry)
68. Jeff Zucker, NBC Universal (returning)
69. Jeff Skoll, Participant Media (61)
70. Jonathan Ive, Apple (83)
71. William McDonough, William McDonough & Partners (new entry)
72. Bobby Kotick, Activision Blizzard (new entry)
73. Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo (new entry)
74. Matt Drudge, the Drudge Report (new entry)
75. Donatella Versace, Gianni Versace S.p.A. (77)
76. Diego Della Valle, Tod’s (63)
77. Henry Kravis, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (51)
78. Marc Jacobs, Marc Jacobs, Marc by Marc Jacobs, LVMH (returning)
79. Jean Pigozzi, investor, art collector (86)
80. Paul Allen, Vulcan Inc. (71)
81. Charlie Rose, Charlie Rose (80)
82. Frank Rich, The New York Times, HBO (82)
83. John Galliano, Christian Dior, Galliano (new entry)
84. Jann Wenner, Wenner Media (74)
85. Joel & Ethan Coen, movies (new entry)
86. John Malone, Liberty Media (69)
87. Harvey & Bob Weinstein, the Weinstein Company (41)
88. Michael Moritz, Sequoia Capital (56)
89. Steven Rattner, Quadrangle Group (97)
90. Arianna Huffington, the Huffington Post (98)
91. John Paulson, Paulson & Co. (new entry)
92. Vinod Khosla, Khosla Ventures (62)
93. Jerry Weintraub, Jerry Weintraub Productions (76)
94. Tobias Meyer, Sotheby’s (new entry)
95. Tom Brokaw, NBC News (returning)
96. Doug Morris, Universal Music Group (99)
97. Jimmy Buffett, Margaritaville (96)
98. Jeffrey Sachs, the Earth Institute at Columbia University, Millennium Promise (new entry)
99. Steven Cohen, S.A.C. Capital Advisors (45)
100. Walter Mossberg, The Wall Street Journal (new entry)

[Vanity Fair]

• Huge platform. Even without financial compensation, Gunn enjoyed the benefits (and potential hazards) of what, based on early critical acclaim and audience growth rates, looked to become a hugely-watched hit. Airtime like that does not come cheap.
• Winning personality. As we've said, Gunn is an articulate and charming mensch, always ready with a crisp take on fashion. If he wasn't, then having a big platform wouldn't have done him any good — and might have actually harmed him.
• Winning platform. Crucially, Runway wasn't some cheap reality television disaster, recruiting Gunn solely for his ability to stir up unnecessary drama with which to titillate viewers. Instead, it offered him a chance to showcase his strongest area of expertise in a relatively dignified setting.
• Residual benefits. When the show started, Gunn was chair of fashion design at Parsons. He must have had an inkling that Runway, even if it never became a big hit, might open up new doors careerwise. And it did!
• Kept his day job. Gunn wasn't desperate to pay his rent.
• Not content being a poor. Tim didn't work for free long! Though his season-two take of $2,500 was something of a pittance by TV (and Runway) standards, he kept leveraging his success into more money and outside gigs. Know your worth!

Be sure to keep this list handy for the next time a cable network comes knocking on your door. It could totally happen.

[Daily News]

• Marc Jacobs is maybe getting married! To the upmarket man, Lorenzo Matrone, in Paris. Will former rentboy and perpetual Jacobs ex Jason Preston attend Y/N??! [Gay Socialites]
• Harvey Weinstein allowed his name to be taken off the Emmy nomination for Project Runway, a major moneymaker his company produces. For this selfless gesture, he is considered a real mensch. [P6]
• Another embarrassing Eliot Spitzer item in the Post, this time claiming someone on the street heckled his "Attorney General" t-shirt. Yesterday he was being snickered at in his gym. He's either getting out more or pissing off the Post. [P6]
• Heather Mills' publicist, who apparently does not read much in the way of press, has discovered that Heather Mills is "impossible." God, even the Times covered that story, and they're not much for vicious celebrity news. [Us]
• Shanna Moakler threw a drink on Kim Kardashian and called her a whore for flirting with her ex-husband back before they broke up. Which sounds damatic, but they both have reality shows, so this is how they make smalltalk. [P6]
• Poor Alex Rodriguez was harrassed by beautiful women at a rooftop bar and had to leave. But he was there with "two male buddies," so he was kind of asking for it. [P6]
• After saying Britney Spears is not a "puppet," the singer's record collaborator Keri Hilson adds that Spears "never mouths off" and "takes direction very well." So not a puppet in strictly the literal sense, then. [Showbiz Spy]

When Weinstein first made his "significant" investment, A Small World was touted as the place where the rich and powerful would meet online, "friendster for people who self-identify as being dually-based in two large cities with modern Western economies, an abundance of 8-figure real estate and a luxury resort or two."

With the Weinstein Co. on such unstable ground, Harvey sure would have loved to have the insurance of a successful ASW. Just imagine, a site with Facebook's popularity but the demographic profile of the WSJ. It would be a gold mine! Alas,much like Denise Rich, megayachts, and parties in St. Tropez with Naomi Campbell, ASW was overhyped. An illustrative look at how the game-changing site (that's too exclusive for you) has been performing:

• Dark Knight star Christian Bale is accused of assaulting his own mother and sister. Police apparently waited to question Bale about the incident because "it would have been wrong to have wrecked the premiere." Yes, one wouldn't want to interrupt the celebration of a fictional vigilante crime fighter with an awkward attempt to, you know, fight crime. [Sun]
• Alec Baldwin's book A Promise To Ourselves is about how the screwed up divorce and family court system made him very angry, resulting in the famously abusive voice mail he left his daughter. You know what else makes Baldwin very angry? Being rescheduled four times for an interview with Diane Sawyer about the book, just because her husband went into heart surgery or whatever. [R&M]
• Sarah Jessica Parker has an art competition show, and it's headed for Bravo. The creators of Project Runway are involved. [P6]
• Harvey Weinstein's Weinstein Co. is expanding with a full 11,000-square-foot floor in a TriBeCa building. Their credit is still good! Or at least it is with their old landlord. [Post]
• Britney Spears looks good in a bikini again, thanks to the magic of cool, refreshing cigarettes. [Egotastic]
• Madonna is taking time off from her tour under doctor's orders. Supposedly, the pop star fired two dancers and her tour manager was on the verge of walking out. "One of her closest pals says she has never seen Madonna so low." [Sun]
• Alex Rodriguez is negotiating with his wife Cynthia in New York this week to "quickly settle their divorce" and "avoid a public 'slugfest.'" Oh, good. Because one can only imagine the salacious gossip that might emerge from such a situation. [Post]
• Al Reynolds was spotted at Miami Fashion Week with a woman "who was the spitting image" of Star Jones, complete with four-inch stilettos. [Post]
• Larry Mendte, the Philadelphia TV news co-anchor of cop-puncher Alycia Lane, was charged by the feds with reading Lane's email, including during breaks from the 11 o'clock news, and presumably for also forwarding her email to various tabloids, because if low-grade email snooping alone is a federal crime this guy is one unlucky bastard. [P6]
• Miley Cyrus is interested in taking the movie role of "a lovable, lost suburban girl who descends into a life of reckless partying and promiscuity." How does Vanity Fair continue to manipulate her this way?? [Scoop]
• Fashion line Guess wants its lead model to look like Amy Winehouse. On purpose. [P6]
• Paris Hilton is maybe tired of boyfriend Benji Madden, even though she recently wanted to marry him and have his babies, according to rumor and so forth. [E!]

The International Herald Tribune described Zanini's first outing as "a polite homage to the Halston heritage without much fire," lacking the "sexual charge" so inherent to the label's DNA and the original designer's own lifestyle. Sources at the time said Zanini was devastated by the reviews.

Anyone who works for Weinstein Co., remember to keep things sexually charged at all times. Harvey knows just what that term means; he's married to Georgina Chapman, a sexually charged designer herself. But don't cry for the mogul, because a new analysis of Project Runway, the company's most successful property (maybe it has better sexual charging?) indicates it could be worth more than $240 million if Weinstein decided to sell it. That's enough for plenty of dresses. Sexual dresses.

[WWD, Portfolio]

We've reported on The Weinstein Company's troubles. Whether the film producer's magic gut has left him, or he simply faces more competition for buzzy film projects, Harvey Weinstein's track record of releases has been disappointing since leaving Disney's Miramax, where he shepherded modern classics such as Shakespeare in Love. (The once-bullish film producer doesn't even have the confidence to finance Quentin Tarantino's next project.) The Weinstein Company's own backers, led by Goldman Sachs, are rumored to be reconsidering their support. And the independent mini-conglomerate's forays into media sectors other than movie-making have been mixed at best. (Fashion TV show Project Runway is a money-spinner but social network A Small World has tiny traffic.)

None of that matters, if one was to believe the spin: the Weinsteins' 70% stake in a home video distributor called Genius Products was worth more than $400m, "an asset that could be sold one day if they are strapped for cash," Fortune relayed a year ago. Even in November, Weinstein's CFO told the magazine that Genius had performed "beyond our wildest hopes."

Well, the Weinsteins are certainly behaving as if they're indeed strapped for cash, squeezing every last dollar from cable networks and marketers such as L'Oreal for rights to roles in Project Runway; but it's not clear whether there's any asset that can be sold for cash in an emergency.

The news hasn't really percolated out of the specialist home video press, but Genius Products' share price has declined by 93% in the last 12 months. Genius' DVD business has suffered as online distribution of movies and cable pay-per-view has taken off. A board member and the company's chief financial officer left recently, after the company admitted that it would not meet its aggressive earnings estimates. Last year, company executives forecast $1bn in revenues for 2008.

The public float of the company is worth just $12.85m, which would put the value of the Weinsteins' shareholding at $30m if my math is right. And that won't be enough to shore up the troubled film producers if The Weinstein Company's debt financing is as precarious as Hollywood's rumor mill suggests.

The souring of the Genius investment is uncomfortable in many ways. Not least, the deal was brought to Weinstein by his own backers. Steve Bannon, a buccaneering banker who took over the company in 2004, used to work at investment bank Goldman Sachs and it was his old firm that put him together with the movie maker that they were themselves supporting. Larger-than-life Weinstein, who had long wanted to wheel and deal like a media mogul rather than a penny-pinching movie hustler, thought he was up for a big payday. Everybody was happy. And now they're not.

Theories have been put forth that Bravo doesn't really want to spend money on a show that it's losing, but I don't buy it. Look at all the promoting they did for their silly A List Awards. That was only for one night, and you'd have thought the pope was coming to town there was so much fanfare. There are still advertising and branding dollars to be made here, and Bravo has to know that. Others have suggested that the new cast members are total weirdos, and Bravo hasn't figured out how to represent them. Which is also hooey, because if you can market Andre and Vincent, you can market anyone. No, I like to think that Bravo is cooling the promotional jets out of good old fashioned spite. They're mad at Lifetime for poaching and they're mad at the Weinstein Co. for pulling the rug out from under them. They want to bury the show so by the time it gets over to Lifetime, no one will even remember that something called the L'Oreal Paris Makeup Room ever existed. Hell, their good friends the Magical Elves aren't producing once it goes to Lifetime, so they wouldn't really be screwing over any associates (except, you know, Heidi and Tim et al). And I think it's working!

I can't believe I didn't know that the new season was coming up so soon. I could be considered a "gay person" and a "big fan" of the show, never miss an episode, etc. And yet my interest, and it would seem the interest of others, has dwindled. Maybe it's because people realize that it's just a tacky moneymaking opportunity for greedy old Harvey Weinstein. Maybe the whole Nina Garcia kerfluffle tired people out. Or maybe the impending move to the ruined canyons of Los Angeles has got people scratching their heads and saying "Auf." Bravo's relative radio silence—their website has some PR-related content including a half-hearted countdown, but nothing substantial about the new season—has managed to compound and reduce all this gossipy buzz about the Changes for Heidi, which has the potential to lure in viewers, to a bored, resounding "meh." Way to fuck 'em, Bravo! Nobody fucks 'em like the gays.

Wait.

Project Runway was a big hit on the Bravo network. But Weinstein decided to move the show to Lifetime, which agreed to up his cut to around $1 million per episode. He also screwed Bravo by lining up sponsors for the show on his own, which precluded the network from selling ads to other companies in the same categories. Weinstein even ended up favoring a Wal-Mart placement on the show over a Macy's one, proving he wasn't in it for taste.

Still, the show is a hit, and a cash cow. Project Runway has been successful enough to demand that fashion magazines like Elle and Marie Claire pay for the privilege of being featured on the show. Hardcore media hardball.

And a treasure trove of new evidence dug out of Weinstein's trash can by the Village Voice's Tony Ortega shows that the mogul himself is closely involved in the show's sponsorship choices. An email from a former Weinstein Co. employee shows the calculating negotiation process:

"I wish there was more time. Twc [The Weinstein Company] has already gone to great lengths with new partner at lifetime to not only secure both categories for you but also to be flexible toward loreal in coming up with an alternative for you on their packaging of [seasons] six + seven. Unfortunately, due to filming of season five and tresemme's feeling that they are being iced out of season 6, there just is not more time to give. As you know, season five commences in days...twc is now at risk that tresemme will pull out of season 5, which puts twc at risk for 1.1m [$1.1 million]. Carol is welcome to call hw [Harvey Weinstein] or me, but the deadline has to remain at close of business tuesday for loreal to decide on hair category for [Project Runway]/models for season 6 and structure of [seasons] 7/8. I would additionally say that the whole reason we are to this point is a result of the relationship! Without the relationship and the history, l'oreal would not have the opportunity to even engage in the opportunity to obtain the hair category."

Good thing they have such a good relationship! Or this sponsorship thing would really be nasty. And here's how much the company is expected to cough up to Weinstein in order to have its goop featured on the faaabulous production:

"Hw - if you get a call from carol hamilton it will be regarding [Project Runway] season 6 and beyond. I've imposed a tuesday, close of business deadline for them to commit to hair category in addition to make up. They have two choices: 1) Take both hair and make up for [$2 million] plus [$1 million] to twc (no split) for season 6 and [$2 million] for hair and makeup for season 7 plus [$1 million] to twc for a total of [$6 million]. 2) Commit to season 6 only for [$2 million] hair/make up plus [$1 million] to twc] and then by 3rd episode must pick up both season 7 + 8 for a total of [$8 million] (but must take additional [$1 million] to twc regardless) They have asked for additional time and I have declined that citing tresemme and season 5 which starts shooting shortly. Call me if you have questions. Best, lori"

A mogul's life: not so different from a used car salesman. Buy now! There's a guy on his way here right this minute to take it off my hands if you don't want it.....

[VV; pic via NY Mag]

The Weinsteins' finances aren't nearly as solid as you might think; investors have already told the irascible producer they backed him to make movies rather than pursue multi-media ambitions; and Harvey Weinstein needs to keep his backers happy if he's to maintain the debt finance upon which the mini-studio's slate depends. Hollywood rumor has Goldman Sachs and other investors pulling The Weinstein Co.'s loans if he can't reach the profitability he'd promised this year.

After he sold Miramax to Disney, Harvey Weinstein hated reporting to the entertainment group's CEO Michael Eisner, and chafed under the restrictions of a conglomerate. But the irony is that he's resented the media moguls not so much for their lack of focus as the fact that he wasn't one himself. Even while at Disney, Weinstein backed Tina Brown's Talk magazine and its associated book publishing venture; now nominally independent, he's ranging even more widely, even emulating Disney's Broadway efforts (the cartoons-to-theme-parks combine turned The Lion King into a hit musical).

But Harvey Weinstein offloaded Miramax too early to make much money from the transaction; in terms of personal net worth, the Weinstein brothers are also-rans in the media establishment. 55-year-old Harvey may aspire to the globe-spanning synergistic mix of businesses of Sumner Redstone's Viacom or Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. But he simply don't have independent financial resources. And, if Weinstein continues to play mogul with other people's money, expect that backing to evaporate too.

When he noticed who the passenger was that was exiting the car, [redacted] said that he became nervous and turned his head and eyes to the ground as Weinstein approached the entrance to the building. Suddenly he noticed that weinstein's steps had ceased. he looked up to find Weinstein standing there just staring at him.

"Who the fuck are you?"

"I work for you. I'm an intern."

"Oh yeah. Well what's your name?"

"My name is [redacted] sir."

"Really? Well guess what [redacted]? from now on I'm going to call you Fuckface."

And with that, weinstein turned and walked into the building. But throughout the course of [redacted]'s remaining time interning at Miramax, Weinstein was true to his word.

"For the rest of the time that I was there, Harvey called me Fuckface. I would pass him in the hall and he'd say 'what's going on Fuckface?' Once I was in the elevator and he stepped on with other people and he introduced me to everyone with him as Fuckface."

[Cajun Boy In The City]

Now the Weinstein Company—the mini-studio launched by the brothers after they fell out with Disney—hasn't been a complete failure. Quentin Tarantino's Grindhouse (widely believed to be their biggest flop) might actually eke out a profit over its entire life. There's some buzz for at least two coming productions: Nine, Weinstein's film version of the Tony-winning musical, and Stephen Daldry's The Reader, a holocaust-guilt tale. And Project Runway—which recently wrapped up its fourth season—is of course a big hit.

Let's also stipulate that the rumor of the impending crunch is vague. The mini-studio is privately held which means there's no easy way of knowing the terms on which the Weinsteins raised funds in 2005. Some of the tittle-tattle may be merely wishful thinking; most of the Hollywood establishment wishes the worst for Harvey Weinstein; the mini-studio frontman has been counted out before, and has rebounded. Says one insider: "He comes back like a cockroach."

But some kind of financial pressure is entirely plausible. The Weinsteins—despite their reputation as two of the most successful film producers of the last 20 years—have surprisingly meager personal resources; when running Miramax they made more money for Disney than they ever did for themselves, and they remain heavily dependent on outside investors.

Those backers aren't happy. Already last year there were rumblings that the Weinstein Company had lost the confidence of shareholders such as Tarak Ben Ammar, the Tunisian dealmaker. Fortune's Tim Arango reported then that the Weinstein Co. was missing its financial targets; he said shareholders were putting pressure on Weinstein to focus on movie making rather than pursuing his ambition to be an all-round media mogul with investments in internet companies such as A Small World, the briefly fashionable social network.

So what? The Weinsteins' $1bn should cover them for a few more years. But there's a problem. Investors likely have the ability as well as the inclination to demand some of their money back. One assumes that the $420m the Weinsteins raised by selling 49% of their company is committed: that the founders are under no obligation to buy back the shares, though that's not unheard of.

The remainder of the Weinsteins' fund was in the form of debt, however. A loan is often subject to covenants, such as the maintenance of a certain amount of cash flow, and a repayment schedule. For instance, the Weinstein Co. projected it would reach profitability this year; if that's not the case, the lenders might have reserved the right to demand repayment.

Even in the heyday of Weinstein's Miramax—when he produced Acadamy Award winners such as The English Patient, Shakespeare in Love and Good Will Hunting—Harvey Weinstein was known as one of the most unpleasant negotiators in the entertainment business. (See the clip from HBO's Entourage, left, for a lightly fictionalized rendering of his famously titanic rage.) If his funding is really as insecure as suggested, the irascible film producer at least have better reason to be quite so bad-tempered.

Disclosure: Harvey Weinstein used to live in the apartment above me, and once cornered me at the local deli to complain about a post on Defamer about his girlfriend, designer Georgina Chapman. Fine to criticize Brad Pitt, he said. "He gets $20m a picture." But Chapman? "She's a civilian." But he waited until I had bought my strawberry milk—and he never yelled.

Clinton Supporter Pressures Pelosi Over White House Battle [CNN via TPM]

The two said in an interview Monday that signing the deal was part of a plan to own more of their work.

"It is sad," [Jane] Lipsitz said of leaving Runway behind. "But in terms of the bigger picture of building our business, it was a decision that we had to make."

A Weinstein Co. spokesman said, "They've been fantastic producers, and we wish them well." Weinstein Co. and Lifetime have already signed deals for host Heidi Klum and fashion mentor Tim Gunn to stay with "Runway" — even though Mr. Gunn also stars in Bravo's "Tim Gunn's Guide to Style."

[WSJ]

According to sources, Weinstein would independently strike product-placement deals without consulting Bravo, a move that angered network executives since an agreement to include L'Oreal on the show, for instance, would preclude the network from selling ad time to other cosmetic makers.

The situation came to a head after Season 3 when Macy's, which Bravo had lined up, dropped its show sponsorship after Weinstein insisted that a representative from Wal-Mart, where he had a DVD deal, appear on the finale, sources said.

Partnering with Wal-Mart on your fashion show so your movie division can get a slightly better deal on retail DVD sales? That's Murdoch-level evil media genius. Congratulations, I guess.

[Post]

Weinstein's media buddies Graydon Carter, Rupert Murdoch, Anna Wintour, Mort Zuckerman, Michael Bloomberg, Les Moonves and Lorne Michaels would never have fit in the inner circle with Zucker, to say nothing of the other 300 media elite at Weinstein's December wedding. Presumably, those are friends of a sort other than "true." Good luck getting your wedding gifts back, pawns. [WSJ]

Graydon Carter, Vanity Fair: Carter's clashes with Weinstein were detailed in Ken Auletta's 2002 profile of the movie mogul in the New Yorker, for which Carter supplied some unflattering quotes. But the two made up: Weinstein and his Miramax Books advanced $1 million for a hardcover history of Carter's Spy Magazine, published in 2006 (the party photo at left, featuring Weinstein and Carter, was taken at a launch event for the book). When Weinstein wed fashion designer Georgina Chapman, Carter attended. The rehearsal dinner was held at Carter's restaurant, Waverly Inn.

Rupert Murdoch, News Corp.: Not only did he attend Weinstein's December wedding with wife Wendi Deng, but his four-year old daughter served as flower girl, according to Murdoch's Fox News.

Anna Wintour, Vogue: Met with Weinstein and his then-girlfriend Chapman about possible Vogue coverage of Chapman's fashion line. The gossip, as relayed by Page Six, was that Weinstein insinuated he could provide celebrities for cover shots in exchange for Vogue coverage of Chapman's fashion line. The line appeared several times in the magazine, and a Vogue rep confirmed to Page Six that a meeting occurred and that Wintour provided advice to Weinstein's aspiring fashionista, but said no deal was struck. Wintour also attended Weinstein's wedding.

Mort Zuckerman, Daily News, US News: Joined with Weinstein and others to bid on New York magazine in 2003. Also in the syndicate were financiers Jeffrey Epstein and Nelson Peltz, among others. Zuckerman also attended Weinstein's wedding.

For a fuller sense of Weinstein's connections, check out copious coverage of the guest list at his December wedding, which in addition to Murdoch, Wintour and Zuckerman drew network chiefs Les Moonves and Jeff Zucker and Saturday Night Live producer Lorne Michaels.

The mogul also makes his power felt further down the media food chain, where he can wow reporters with Hollywood glitz. David Carr said in the opening of a 2001 New York profile of Weinstein that the celebrities surrounding the mogul made Carr feel like "I'm in — kind of, temporarily, a member of the downtown tribe of Miramax."

At Fortune, Tim Arango opened a June 2007 Weinstein profile by recreating his trip with the mogul down the French Riviera in the back of "a midnight-blue Peugot." The pair drove past movie fans in Cannes, France, apparently on their way to a movie screening.

Arango went on to detail less glamorous — and less flattering — anecdotes, starting with how Weinstein's investors had just stepped up their oversight of his new company and were worried about management misfires. Weinstein's media influence, whatever he imagines it to be, has its limits.

It was all terribly tacky timing! Minghella had total control! Harvey would never recut one of his films, because that just wasn't done. After all, Weinstein and Minghella were close friends, how dare Edelstein imply that there was any bullying or railroading. (Our sister site Defamer even started feeling bad for the notoriously difficult exec.) But don't worry! Edelstein insists that his apology was not forced, that he has truly realized that Minghella worked on his own steam, bringing projects to Weinstein, not the other way around. He even spoke to Harvey and sort of apologized. Though... I don't know. It's hard to believe that crazy Harvey didn't have anything to do with this atonement. He's a pretty formidable character, and not one that, I'd imagine, New York wants to piss off. Plus, no one relishes the idea of broken legs, even a guy who sits and watches movies for a living.

• Singer Britney Spears, said to be worth around $50 million, has become steadily more sane since her father was placed in control of her finances and other affairs several weeks ago. She parted ways with hanger-on ex-paparazzo Adnan Ghalib and earned the right to see her children more often. Apparently her father is compensated at $2,500 per week for his oversight, and the many tabloids that make money off Spears insanity are incredulous. So is comedian Rosie O'Donnell, who wrote in her Web Q&A forum that Spears' dad's high pay has become "the problem." Apparently these people have never priced rehab, or done some simple math on the scale of Spears' image problem.
• Singer John Mayer wrote the sweetest song while at the airport. It starts, "Dear Ex Lover, Perhaps you didn't understand the last time I told you to stop contacting me, so I'll do my best to spell it out for you." It just gets even more tender from there, if you can imagine that. [Mayer blog via Perez]
• Jerry Seinfeld's pitch for his new network show: "Just like Curb Your Enthusiasm, but with Jerry, instead of Larry [David]." Curb Your Enthusiasm, of course, was like a slightly more improvised version of Seinfeld, but with Larry David instead of Jerry Seinfeld. Just admit you want your old show back, Jerry. [P6]
• American Idol Season One star Nikki McKibbin had a Feb. 21 breakdown in the wake of weak album sales, her mother's August death and abuse of migraine medicine. [Star]
• Posh Spice at last gets her Vogue cover, but notice only after the Spice Girls finally promised to finally just stop existing.
• Irish actor Colin Farrell told off by boyfriend of model Meghan Lowther at the Rose Bar in Gramercy Park Hotel. "You tried. Now get out of here." [P6]
• Sad: Harvey Weinstein wants a meeting with novelist Linda Fairstein, so she makes swanky reservations at a Midtown restaurant and alets the maitre d' about exactly who is coming. Turns out, it is Harvey Weinstein all right — the "octogenarian tuxedo manufacturer" who just loves her books. [P6]
• Another girl got between Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt of "the Hills." Shocker! [Us]
• Kelly Rowan of "The O.C." is being kept hidden away by a reclusive Canadian billionaire, who doesn't like media attention. If you read between the lines in this item, it's like she's sending coded messages just begging some brave paparazzo to come rescue her. [P6]
• Actor Will Smith is hosting world icon Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday party in London. [Sun]
• Actor Patrick Swayze maybe not really going back to work, because he dropped out of a gay role in this one comedy flick. [OK!]
• Actress Natalie Portman on Hillary Clinton: "A lot of the stuff people say about her, I hear it and my stomach falls because it's so sexist... You ask people why they don't like her and it's because her husband cheated on her! That was obviously not her choice." [Us]

The Emperors' New Clothes? [NYT]