July 2008 News Archive (Page 4)

Gorgeous Gossip Girl starlet Blake Lively turns out to support boyfriend and co-star Penn Badgley’s mother, Lynne Badgley, and Penn's godmother, Jan Sneed, at Sandbox Studios in New York City on Wednesday night.

Last night, new fashion PR agency Jack + Bill hosted open casting call to select one model, women’s apparel designer, jewelry designer and fashion stylist to receive complimentary PR representation.

Mrs. Badgley and Ms. Sneed promoted their upcoming jewelry line, Badgley/Sneed Designs! Who knew Penn's mom was in that profession?

OMG.

Chuck has a set of obliging twins, Serena's got a hot lifeguard, Blair is feeling catty, and Nate ... well, he's running naked in the street.

These recently leaked clips from the Gossip Girl Season 2 premiere (set for September 1) are not to be missed! Check out the video below ...

Follow the jump for another video of Gossip Girl spoilers. There are no video clips, just excerpts of the script (supposedly) placed atop still photos.

No idea if they are authentic, but it's fun either way ...Continue Reading...

Okay, this is just strange.

When Penn Badgley and Blake Lively began dating, that was one thing.

But Leighton Meester dating Sebastian Stan - a.k.a. Carter Baizen?

It's the truth. Here's a photo of the two of them, hand in hand, leaving a bowling alley at Chelsea Piers in New York City Tuesday...

And yes, that's actually Ms. Meester, even if you can't see her face. Click here for another shot of just Leighton from the same night.

Besides Gossip Girl, Sebastian Stan, 24, is best known as Chase Collins in the film The Covenant (which also featured Chace Crawford).

Thoughts on the real life Blair-Carter pairing?

Last week, we talked about a Gossip Girl spoiler involving Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester) and a new guy spending time together this summer.

Well, this very same guy was also spotted getting sweaty over an intense game of squash with Blair's friend/love, Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick).

So who is this guy and what’s his story?

His name is Marcus, and he is played by Patrick Heusinger.

An inside source on the Gossip Girl set says: “He’s Blair’s new love interest and Chuck’s rival. Blair met him in Europe, introduced by Ben, whom she flew to Italy with after Chuck stood her up.”

So what’s he doing playing squash with Chuck?
Continue Reading...

OMG Dan and Serena... oh wait, no. That's just our favorite dating Gossip Girl stars, Blake Lively and Penn Badgley. Our bad!

Below, Penn and Blake take their romance off-screen with a little make-out session on Manhattan's Upper East Side Tuesday...

The constant love-fest between Penn Badgley and Blake Lively might be annoying after awhile if we weren't so nuts about the young Gossip Girl cuties!

Gossip Girl stars Leighton Meester, Jessica Szohr and Nicole Fiscella posed for a photo at the Longchamp 60th Anniversary Celebration at the La Maison Unique Longchamp in New York City on Monday evening ...

Always nice to see the cast of Gossip Girl represent!

A number of Gossip Girl cast members took in the new movie The Dark Knight last night in New York City. Here's the gorgeous Blake Lively ...

Gossip Girl actress Blake Lively always looks stunning to us!

Click to enlarge the Gossip Girl pics below - and follow the link for news, quotes, cast info, trailers and photos from The Dark Knight ...

Who, me? Gossip Girl star Chace Crawford smiles at the Vitaminwater Best of New York Party this week in the Big Apple ...

Gossip Girl's Chace Crawford seems perplexed by his own hotness!

Click to enlarge more fun photos of Chace Crawford - as well as Gossip Girl co-star Blake Lively - at the New York event!

Since its debut last fall, Gossip Girl has always been more than a TV series about its overt subject - Manhattan private-school students.

The real star is Gossip Girl fashion.

The show's primary viewership of teenagers and young women tune in not only for the plots, but also to render judgment on the clothes.

The extravagant wardrobes — a clash of piped blazers, tiny kilts, dueling plaids and festoons of jewelry — have inspired countless posts on Gossip Girl fan sites, and magazine features about the style choices of Gossip Girl characters.

Now the show’s sense of style is having a broader impact, in the retail marketplace. Merchants, designers and trend consultants say that Gossip Girl, which returns September 1, has boosted interest in their products considerably.

In other words, just in time for back-to-school shopping!

Fans stride into boutiques bearing magazine tear sheets that feature members of the Gossip Girl cast and ask for their exact outfits.

Or they order scoop-neck tops and hobo bags by following e-commerce links from the official site's Gossip Girl fashion section.

“The show has had a profound influence on retail,” said Stephanie Solomon, the fashion director for Bloomingdale’s, adding that it appeals not just to teenagers but also to women in their 20s.

Continue reading in the New York Times ...

The CW had shows (and has shows) that fit the Gossip Girl prototype, and it's no secret that it's trying to clone Gossip Girl's success.

Why is the network clinging this hard to the Gossip Girl model?

In a word, heart. This has always been evident in show like Gilmore Girls, as well as in past classics like Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the emotional connection drove the series), Felicity and Everwood.

While Gossip Girl is high-gloss, guilty-pleasure trash on one level, it often upends its own superficial, designer fashion-label obsessions with irony, wit and even despair. That and terrific characters. In short, it's all heart, baby.

There will be no Gossip Girl spin-off starring Taylor Momsen (Jenny Humphrey), as was rumored earlier this summer - at least not yet.

But there's no question that this season The CW is churning out Gossip Girl clones on an assembly line and leaning on nostalgic affection for the old 90210 brand to carry the network into an uncertain future.

Can 90210 make it? And can Gossip Girl live up to its enormous buzz in its second season? Only time will tell - but we certainly hope so.