Mad Mel-coming or going ?

News Ltd has scotched rumours that actor Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson is upping stakes and moving back to Australia where he still owns a substantial farm in the NSW countryside. The story can be read here where the largest news outlet in the country (world?) says :

"REPORTS Mel Gibson would flee the growing leaked tape-scandal in the US for his native Australia were today dismissed by his rep.
British newspaper The Mail on Sunday reported that Gibson had told friends that he will move back Down Under with his ex-wife Robyn, who still supports him and publicly defended him as a husband and father.
But Gibson's rep Alan Nierob said the Oscar winner is planning on staying put in the US.
He told NBC: "There's no truth to the Mail story."

It's hugely satisfying  putting the competition in it's place.

One should completely ignore the tale on the same webpage.

Mel Gibson wants to call Australia home

"MEL Gibson is poised to quit the US and return to Australia with his ex-wife Robyn after selling his mansion near New York."

Comings and goings..

A reminder this week of a once grander Australian social scene with the passing of 2 stalwarts.

Pat Tudor

In London the former beauty queen Pat Tudor has died after a tragic accident when she fell down a set of steep marbles stairs in her Knighstbridge home. Aged only 68, Pat was regarded as one of the great beauties of her day. 

Tall. elegant and with impeccable manners and poise she was crowned Miss Victoria in the early 1960s and forged a highly successful modeling career in Melbourne and Sydney before moving to London to act as a sort of roving ambassador for Qantas.

She was also appointed as Kerry Packer's personal UK representative and up until her death still liaised with Kerry's widow Ros and son James Packer, organising all travel arrangements whenever they visited the UK.

When the Packers wished to throw a shindig in the Old Dart, Pat was the girl to get the details right especially when high profile guests like Rupert Murdoch or Lord Rothschild and Sir James Goldsmith were expected.

Pat had only recently attended the Ascot races with visiting Sydney broadcaster Alan Jones.

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After a lifetime of refined wealth the last scion of the David Jones department store empire, Charles Lloyd Jones has died after a long illness at 77.

Lloyd Jones' funeral was held at All Saints Anglican Church in Woollahra yesterday and a who's who of the retail world turned out to send him off.

Sidney Baillieu Myers from the Myer empire (he married the daughter of Sam Horden from Hordens), John Walton of the Walton Stores chain and former newspaper publisher James Fairfax all attended.  Former premier Neville Wran read the eulogy along with nephew Edward Lloyd Jones. A wake was held at the nearby home of Lady Pagan, widow of the former High Commissioner in London Sir Jock Pagan.

Charles Lloyd Jones, a confirmed bachelor was born into extraordinary privilege and wealth. Brought up in the magnificent Rosemont mansion in Woollahra he attended Tudor House and Cranbrook, being ferried to and from school in a chauffeured Rolls Royce. Shy and easily embarrassed., he would ask to be dropped off around a corner.

With his father an avid art collector, Rosemont was packed with valuable artworks amongst them  a Chagall, Picasso, 2 Van Goghs and a Rembrandt

Weekends were spent at the David Jones corporate summer house at Palm Beach. Lloyd Jones became chairman at the family store  (begun by his Welsh grandfather David Jones in 1838) when his brother David died suddenly and later  he headed the advertising department. It was Charles who introduced the houndstooth pattern that has become so synonymous with the store. Today flags at all of David Jones flew at half mast.

In later years he fell on financial hard times. Charles invested  most of his money in a scheme proposed by 2 friends that fell apart within 3 years. He was broke and suffering cancer and the 2 friends agreed to re-pay him $3000 a month, expecting the payments to last less than a year. But Charles survived the cancer and outlived the 2 friends putting him in a precarious financial state.

A brief scandal ensured in the early 1990s when it was claimed that Lloyd Jones and , improbably the American actor Karl Malden (who had never visited Australia) had allegedly attended a notorious Kings Cross bar frequented by underage male prostitutes.
Friends who had been trying all their lives to get Charles to just once, walk into a pub or bar and never succeeded found the ridiculous claim a huge joke.Those who knew Charles well noted his preference for rather muscular male gentleman but he did score on one occasion with a lady who fell for him and wanted marriage-Zsa Zsa Gabor !

                                       
                             *********************

And off briefly to the launch of a new Samsung TV where the guest of honour was actor Simon Baker who was voted by US magazines as the World's Sexiest Man. Simon says he never watches The Mentalist , the series that has brought him stellar fame throughout the world as it's hard enough making the series to also have to watch it. 

With family in tow, he was soon off to north NSW to the once sleepy former whaling village that is pricing out locals, Byron Bay. Earlier this year Baker paid $1.5M for a nice but average sized cottage in the hinterland of the resort.

Who is Rhys Muldoon ?

Rhys Muldoon & Peter Garrett at the Hawke book launch

Who is Rhys Muldoon ?.

The quick answer is a very successful actor. A former host of a kid's TV show Muldoon has acted in numerous critically acclaimed roles including the Oscar nominated The Saviour in 2006 and Bitter and Twisted, the hit of the 2008 Tribecca Film Festival.

But perhaps one role could have revealed a political side to Muldoon. In the Melbourne and Sydney productions of the David Hare play Stuff Happens he played the lead role of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

On Tuesday night as our exclusive picture shows, Muldoon was at the Blanche d'Alpuget's book launch of her new title Hawke The Prime Minister. He stood and chatted with Environment Minister and former Midnight Oils front man Peter Garrett MP.

Now it appears he is also a close personal friend of former PM Kevin Rudd, recently ousted by Julia Gillard who launched d'Alpuget's book. And if we believe an article in tomorrow's Australian newspaper Muldoon is so close to Rudd he may have been advising him on certain matters during his tenure as PM. He and Rudd also penned a children's book together-Great Australia Day Kerfuffle.

What does all this mean ?. Well we have no idea but it does add to the amazing publicity campaign-planned or unplanned that is certain to push Hawke The Prime Minister into the number one book spot.

As media reports continue unabated with Labor tribes lining up on either side to support former PM Paul Keating or Bob Hawke the relationship between the 2 former political allies seems busted beyond repair. Or is it ?.

Keating say he hasn't previously considered writing his own book about his term as PM from '91 to'96 and as the World's Greatest Living Treasurer ( an honour accorded by a host of financial publication editors around the world) from 1983 to 1990.

If he puts pen to paper now his book is also bound to be a bestseller. Perhaps Hawke will return the favour.

The tables turn on the Silver Bodgie

happier days-Hawke, Keating & Gough Whitlam

Days after the launch of the Blanche d'Alpuget book  (see below), Hawke The Prime Minister, his successor Paul Keating has come out sledging Bob and Blanche Hawke with a letter published in the Australian in which Keating reveals for the first time that Hawke was suffering from depression during his tenure as PM.

At the launch on Tuesday night at the Wharf Restaurant Blanche mentioned Hawkie's bout of depression, as did Hawke himself but both said it lasted a few months.

Keating claims it was for 4 years while  he Keating as Deputy Prime Minster , carried  Hawke through the most difficult decisions including his advice to Hawke to immediately approach George Bush Sr before the first Gulf War and establish Australia as the USA's first ally-which he did giving Bush Sr much needed moral support for the pending war and in return obligating this country the need to only provide 2 warships as support.

Keating demanded Hawke's resignation in 1990 after he claimed a previous agreement between the two would see Hawke  handover power and when Bob refused, Keating retreated to the back bench only to usurp him 10 months later in 1991. Keating held power for 5 years until he lost to the man he hated more than any-John Howard in 1995.

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Miranda

In a more disingenuous article, the fragrant Miranda Devine has also gotten stuck into Bob and Blanche in a piece in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Miranda is meddling it again. She claims all of Hawke's children wore black when he and Blanche wed in 1995 . Not true. The Shuttle was there. And all the Hawke children and grandchildren were at the book launch on Monday and happy to support their step-mum Blanche.

Miranda's biggest faux pas though is her attempt to paint former wife Hazel Hawke, who remained loyal beside Bob while he was PM  and while he was conducting a secret affair with Blanche who he would eventually marry, as being 'discarded' when no longer needed. Hazel sadly is in the advanced stages of alzheimers.
She was diagnosed with the disease while Bob was still PM and both she and her husband carefully planned Hazel's gradual withdrawal from the public eye. 

Hazel Hawke

People we trust more than Devine have said Hazel was almost saint  like in her love for Hawke and said that she told most close friends that as she deteriorated mentally, she had no wish to put him through what is acknowledged as being one of the most debilitating  and soul destroying illnesses a couple can face together.

Oscar winner at the Bob-a-thon

Only ex-Prime Minister Bob Hawke could draw an Oscar winning actor to a book launch. Geoffrey Rush confirmed he had always been a Hawke fan. It was also an opportunity to meet for the first time the new Prime Minister Julia Gillard-a smaller, prettier woman in real life with amazing white porcelain like skin

PM Julia Gillard with Bob'n'Blanche

Hawke, The Prime Minister  is the next instalment on Hawke's life covering his 9 years as PM and is written by his wife, Blanche d'Alpuget. Her first biography of  Hawke remains the best selling political biography of all time in Australia.

Hawke fan

Hawke is a unique creature almost universally loved even by his political enemies. At 81 he still draws an admiring crowd anywhere he goes. When Bob gets out on the hustings for the Labor Party during an election campaign it can be pandemonium. With the image of the average Aussie, Hawke is anything but. 

After attending 3 universities including 2 years at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, Hawke went straight into the top spot at the ACTU without ever having to hustle for a job He became the unionist's hero when unions  were the most powerful force in the country. 

An example of his power was when Frank Sinatra visited Australia for concerts in 1972 and referred to female reporters as "$2 hookers". Unions closed ranks and refused to re-fuel Sinatra's plane. Frank found himself stuck in the penthouse suite of the Boulevard Hotel without even room service while his manager Jilly Rizzo fumed. Hawke was called into conciliate and told Cranky Frankie that of he didn't have wings he'd never leave the country without apologising first.

Peter Garret at the book launch

B1 & B2

Over a day long drinking session a deal was thrashed out with Sinatra agreeing to give 2 charity performances.
Later Sinatra was to tell friends "that Hawke could have given the guys in Chicago lessons".

The episode was later made into a film-The Night They Called It A Day with the late Dennis Hopper playing Frank.

Hawke's forte was conciliation. Preventing strikes before they happened whilst getting wages up. Big Business loved him and got behind him in his election campaign for PM. Along the way he saved huge swathes of Australia and Antarctica as national parks, was instrumental in ending war in Cambodia, formed APEC, sent troops to the first Gulf War, actively opposed the later invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan.

An example of Hawkie's amazing charisma was at an American Australian Association dinner about 8 years ago. Then PM John Howard was the guest of honour. When Hawke walked into the room it was electric. He was quickly surrounded by ambassadors from all over Asia. The US Ambassador, a George Bush Jr pal warmly embraced him. When Howard arrived he was like any other guest. A waiter with  a plate hors d'œuvre would have gained more attention. As the politician Gareth Evans once said scathingly-"when Howard walks into a room, it's like he just walked out of another one". No wonder the cricket world wants anyone but him to be the new boss.

Next Sunday in the Hawke-a-thon is the premiere of Hawke, the Movie. A gripping look at the tussle between he and Paul Keating who eventually deposed him in a party room coup, just like Julia Gillard who launched the book, did with Kevin Rudd.

And on facebook you can join the Bring Back Bob Hawke page.

Hawke The Prime Minister is published by Melbourne University Press


Hawke (the film) starring Richard Roxburgh premiers on Sunday night at 8.30pm on the Ten Network

One Lady, 3 Lords.

News comes that one of Britain's most famous society hostesses, the late Lady Edith Foxwell is to be the subject of a documentary that will tell the story of her amazing life.

Lady Edith, who died in 1998  was known as the 'Queen of London Society' during the 1970s and '80s . With New Zealander Stephen Hayter-who once boasted he kept his press clippings in a Swiss bank vault, Edith opened the Mayfair nightspot The Embassy Club.

 Once married to film producer Ivan Foxwell. she was granted her title with "the rank of a daughter of  an Earl" in a rare move by Royal Warrant because her uncle, the Earl of Cavan was a celebrated war hero.

The Social Shuttle spent many a night in our youth with Lady Edith as a 'walker' accompanying her to parties and she occasionally stayed in our London apartment for weeks on end. It was always meant to be overnight but somehow time stretched as did the horrendous telephone bills that followed her departure. In the day of timed calls, Edith's endless chats to her Hollywood pals like Zsa Zsa Gabor or Joan Collins could almost bankrupt one.

Lady Edith owned a splendid country manor called Sherston where she threw great weekend parties relying on an interesting mix of people from all walks of life. She would phone tSS and say "I think it's a bit top heavy with gay boys this week-could you bring a couple of women?". Inevitably her butler would then phone shortly after and request we also pick up half a dozen bottles of champagne and assorted spirits on the way down. That call usually went to just about every guest. Edith kept her cellar fully stocked without spending a penny.

Once over a Sunday lunch at Sherston with 40 guests the cook disclosed to tSS that none of Edith's staff had been paid for 6 months and her credit had finally been cut off in the village.

 Sherston backed onto Princess Anne's property who Edith sued once when Anne's gamekeeper shot one of her dogs. It also bordered a 'commune' where Princess Margaret dallied with her paramour Roddy Llewellyn . The commune was run by the Australian 'Christian The Lion' identity John Rendall who owned an antique shop in the Kings Road at the time. Asked if she ever mingled with neighbours she replied "good God no, frightful snobs the lot of them . It's much more fun in the local pub". She did however give Sherston over to Prince Andrew so he could conduct a then secret affair  with his girlfriend Koo Stark.

 Lady Foxwell had a London flat but she gave it to her daughter Atlanta as wedding present when she got married, hence she was perpetually homeless in London. Atlanta married a very handsome Italian, Prince Stefano Massimo , the son of a Riviera playboy and Dawn Addams, a 1950's British movie star. Stefano is also a descendant of Lucrezia Borgia and a Roman emperor.

'once black, never go back'

Hubbard

Once at one of Edith  parties  tSS noticed a face that seemed vaguely familiar. On asking our hostess who he was she said "oh that Scientology man, he's so much fun and brings crates of Moet". It was  L. Ron Hubbard who was living on an old tramp steamer on the Thames River. A few days before we had read in the Times that the FBI were looking for him to interview him over some matter.

 Edith had an affair when she was 62 with the African American singer Marvin Gaye and then she was hooked saying "once black never go back". She had a string of young black boyfriends who she loved to flaunt around town. Once tSS returned home and burst into our bedroom in the afternoon and with huge embarrassment found Edith in flagrante with her  22 year old beau Winston. Edith just smiled sweetly and winked while we backed out of the room.

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Meanwhile journalist Marcus Scriven has penned a book on 3 aristocrats who fell on hard times and squandered huge family fortunes. 

Edward FitzGerald, 7th Duke of Leinster, also known as "the bedsit duke" spent a $600M fortune before he committed suicide. Angus Montague, horrendously  overweight, was the 12th Duke of Manchester, who died in 2002 after being crane-lifted out of his tiny flat. He spent time in an American jail for fraud but avoided the slammer in the UK for similar charges when the judge decided he was 'so dim' he didn't know better.
Another who Scriven writes about is John Hervey the 7th Marquess of Bristol.

 tSS  got to know Hervey briefly during his short 44 years before he died of a drug overdose in 1999 having spent a $10M inheritance. There are tales that didn't make it into Scriven's book. Hervey adopted a sort of Oscar Wilde pose although he wasn't quite as amusing but certainly indulged in rent boys and dubious acquaintances.

The late John Hervey

We ran across John Hervey once in New York in the early 1980s. He was accompanied by a man who  he introduced as his personal lawyer although we had already met that man. The lawyer had been a friend of the writer Robin Maugham who was the nephew of Somerset Maugham.

Robin Maugham wrote a rather scandalous book called The Wrong People about a wealthy man who adopts a young boy and moulds him into his ideal image of a boyfriend. Our lawyer was the real life example and few knew that Maugham was writing from real life experience.


Hervey and the lawyer were busted for drugs in a New York hotel. The lawyer took the rap and Hervey said he would hire the best attorneys to get him off. He promptly returned to London and forget about the man languishing in jail. The lawyer got a 25 year sentence and died 8 years later in Rikers Jail.

Towards the end of his life John Hervey visited Australia but was arrested after a week on an immigration charge. He hadn't notified authorities upon his arrival that he had been arrested and served time in jail in the UK for drug offences.
In the magistrates court the prosecutor asked Hervey why, when filling in his immigration card, he didn't note as required, that he had a criminal record. 

Hervey replied " oh I thought you had to have a criminal record to get into the country". He was deported the next day.

 Splendour and Squalor : The Disgrace and Disintegration of Three Aristocratic Dynasties by Marcus Scriven

What a beauty !

 

Presenting the latest Australian model taking the overseas catwalks by storm-6' 2" Andrej Pejik. 

Having moved to Paris in February this year and doing the fashion circuit, Adrej hit the scene at the very top 

Designers John Paul Galtier, John Galiano and Paul Smith are confirmed fans and manager Martin Walsh who also looks after Elle McPherson has said-"get ready for the first male supermodel"!

Move over Imelda Marcos !

Lang Hancock

Our favorite local Filipino gal made good Rose Hancock Porteous is about to be immortalised in song and on stage with the gala premiere of  Prix D’Amour (The Price of Love) a musical based upon the life of the former nurse and maid who snared the heart of her billionaire patient.

Prix D’Amour was written by  Paul Dion of Merimbula.and is to be presented at the local Twyford Hall  with a show that promises laughter, tears, singing and dancing. No mention yet if the beloved Rose's drug conviction for forging a script for sleeping pills features. Surely the incident is an ideal moment for a dreamtime sequence or a dramatic interlude, perhaps just at the end of the first half. 

The musical is based upon the book "Rose" by Robert Wainwright.

It poses the question : was Rose a gold-digger or was she a woman misunderstood by the values of two vastly different cultures?. The mind boggles.

This is the story of a woman who began life as a small town girl but became one of Australia's wealthiest and most eccentric socialites.

the Prix D'Amour cast

Rose was born in Silay City in the Philippines and was the granddaughter of a Philippine Revolution war hero. Her father was a friend of Ferdinand Marcos.

It has been claimed that loved blossomed between Rose and the ailing Hancock when she was watching TV reports of the dramatic fall of the Marcos regime that was broadcast live. At one stage after  the Marcos clan had scrambled aboard a US helicopter to flee to Hawaii, with a dozen Louis Vuitton suitcases crammed with US dollars- Imelda turning to her tearful and loyal servants proclaiming  "I leave with nothing but your love" diamond bracelets cascading down her wrist-.a camera crossed to the then Australian Foreign Minister Gareth Evans who was one of the first visitors to the former presidential palace. 

Evans described for the cameras the chaos he found as he toured the palace and his puzzlement on coming across Imelda's bedroom where he opened a chest and discovered a variety of brightly coloured objects, holding one one up for the viewers to reveal a very large purple veined dildo. Evans feigned ignorance as to the dildo's use wondering  aloud what Imelda could possibly do with such a strange object.. (Rose also has a collection of shoes just like Imelda).

Ms Hancock nee Lacson  flew in to a rage, issuing Filipino curses and hurled a vase at the telly.

Startled from his oxygen tent , the West Australian mining magnate Land Hancock shot up to see the fiery dark haired downstairs maid with eyes flashing in anger- love was borne and the rest is history.

In his later years Lang languished in the same bedroom  whilst his loving bride /nurse entertained Perth's elite in the downstairs ballroom of their love nest, Prix L'Amour, occasionally ushering a few into his bedroom like a tour group. Will all these wonderful moments be put to song and dance in Prix D'Amour ?.

Sadly Rose will not be attending the world premier. She is still recovering from a stroke late last year. Prix D'Amour opens on July 30th.

We bring you again some clips of our Rose in action and , click here to hear one of the wonderful toons from Prix D'Amour !

Third time lucky for Russell Crowe ?

Our real estate spy disguised as a potted palm informs us that Russel Crowe, wife Danielle Spencer plus children and a number of relatives including dad-in-law, the children's TV host Don Spencer have paid a third visit to Altona, currently on the market and Sydney's most expensively priced house at $45 Million.

The pair have 2 children and are planning another says our source and are seriously looking at upgrading to a house and selling their Wolloomooloo Finger Wharf penthouse where Russ has lived for the past 10 years. Altona has a glamorous history. It was originally an up-marker guest house where the likes of Frank   Sinatra and Bing Crosby stayed on visits to the Emerald City before being purchased by the Man From Uncle-Matt Handbury, publishing mogul and nephew of Rupert Murdoch. 

When Handbury divorced his wife Fiona, the former Vogue  model, Altona passed to her as part of a divorce settlement. She sold out to the music mag publishers Deke & Eve Miskin  for $29M. The Miskins are now planning to move permanently to the dress circle area of Byron Bay, Wategoes Beach. Fiona has now re-invented herself as the Countess of Dartmouth, dividing her time between Belgravia in London and the Hampton's outside New York

Wolloomooloo Wharf

Altona was recently rented to Hugh Jackman & wife Deborra-Lee Furness for $36,000 a month while he filmed Wolverine in Sydney and both expressed an interest in purchasing the mansion that comes with it's own jetty, harbourside pool, boathouse and one of the most sensational views in Sydney. 

The Miskins weren't selling then and a phone to call to Jackman's agent received the response "Hugh has no plans to buy in Sydney at present".

Crowe already owns a farm outside Coffs Harbour that houses a compound for visiting family members. As for the penthouse on the wharf, retired radio announcer John Laws who lives in an adjoining apartment has always told Crowe that if he ever plans to sell, he wants first offer.

Watch a sales video for Altona above !

The Rumour Mill

Rumour has it that.......

a prominent barrister (not a QC or SC !) has joined a colleague in exploring his feminine side with weekly get-togethers where both wear full female attire and discuss all matters pertaining to "I'm a Lady". The pair were spotted by a clerk from chambers who is also an avid amateur astronomer who was scanning apartments with his telescope in ritzy Darling Point and came across them sitting on a balcony ala characters Denny Crane and Alan Shore in the TV series Boston Legal.

Rumour has it that......

a heterosexual chart topping popster has ordered her publicist to generate rumours that she is a lesbian. Having decided that Sappho is currently De rigueur she hopes to crack the lucrative gay market. The very pretty PR flack hit the roof when she realized that she was to be the anointed girlfriend !

Rumour has it that......

a well known local hotshot young business guru who had gone in to bat for the other team with his heterosexual love affair has now caused a pending calamity. After introducing a former boyfriend to his prospective fiancee with a suggestion a threesome was in order, the 2 have now hit it off in a big way. No-one wants to tell our young buck that those 'art' lessons she attends every Monday afternoon are a sexual assignation with his former male flame.

Rumour has it that:

Actress Cate Blanchett is pregnant again.(that's an exclusive !)

A dedication to our legal eagles:

"A toxic trail of doubts and death "

Journalist Andrew Hornery brings more on the puzzling case of the death of Warner's Music Australia retired boss Peter Ikin in Paris and the arrest of his husband Frenchman Alexandre Despalliers (see our story below)

"What looked like a rekindled affair may have been a murder plot, writes Andrew Hornery.
THE gloomy 19th century Paris prison cell that Alexandre Despallieres today calls home is a far cry from the glamorous life he once lived among Sydney's rich and famous."

C*cks, Censorship And Madame Arcati

Madame Arcati has finally made the move to Anorak.co.uk. In true Arcati form her opening line :

"HELLO, bitches. God knows what I’m doing here."

 Read it here and get ready for a bumpy ride.

Music Identity's husband arrested

Ikin & Despallier's civil ceremoney

John Reid

In March we reported that Elton John's former manager John Reid had asked a French lawyer to investigate the mysterious death of the retired head of Warner's Australia Peter  Ikin who died after a fall down some stairs.

Now Ikin's French husband Alexandre Despalliere's has been arrested in France along with 2 friends Vincent Bray and Jeremy Billien.

Olivier Metzner

When Ikin died Despalliere produced a will that purported to leave Ikin's $20Million fortune to him after he and Ikin  had married in a civil ceremony a few months before the  music boss died. The Frenchman was granted probate on the will and immediately purchased 3 Porsche cars-one each for he, Bray and Billien. That will was overturned in a London court and Despalliere reportedly settled for $500,000 and agreed to move out of Ikin's Chelsea townhouse. Ikin's estate went to a charity and his only relative, a Catholic priest in Melbourne

Ikin was a pal of many top music figures including Elton John and Rod Stewart and extremely popular in Australia. Friends had been asking questions since his death and claimed Ikin had been in good health when it was claimed, with Despaliere as the only witness, that he had toppled down some stairs after an apparent heart attack, His body was cremated soon after.

 Under French law a judge must now decide if there is case for charges to be laid against the three in connection with Ikin's death. There is a twist-Despalliers had been living until his arrest with one of France's most high profile criminal defence lawyers Olivier Metzner who has defended clients like the former dictator of Panama Manuel Noriega.

An adorable bear

A little thing sent in one of those viral emails that do the rounds. Often they are pretty corny but sometimes not.

It's called The Bear Film by French filmmaker  Jean-Jacques Annaud and it is too wonderful for words. He made The Name of The Rose and Seven Years in Tibet with Brad Pitt. And the superb Enemy At The Gates about the Battle of Stalingrad. But this little film is a beauty. But how did he do it-get those animals to act?. (watch it in full screen)

Tempting fate !

Vesna Tenodi

 More dramas after our story of Arab/French dancer Alizee Sari's strip at the sacred Aboriginal site Uluru in the Outback.( see below).

A Croatian born artist living in the Blue Mountains just outside Sydney,  Vesna Tenodi is getting flak for her Aboriginal style paintings and sculptures. Vesna was on the ABC's Radio National this week defending herself saying  "prehistoric imagery belongs to the world. Any group claiming ownership is a ludicrous proposition. We have to make this clear, otherwise we will all be held hostage by this Aboriginal nonsense.'' Ouch.

Tenodi owns the very Indigenous looking
ModroGorje Gallery and Wellness Centre in Katoomba and has just unveiled the Wanjina Watchers in the Whispering Stone, an 8.5-tonne sculpture in the heart of town with heavy overtones of Aboriginal symbolism.She says she has received death threats.

The Shuttle attended the last exhibition of  one of the great Indigenous artists Clifford Possum in ritzy Woollahra a few years ago. Possum's sold his first painting for $100 and just after he died in 2002 one of his  works brought over $400,000 at auction. 

Possum was late for the exhibition and the gallery was closed by the time he arrived. tSS was driving past and noticed the great man peering through the gallery windows with tears streaming down his cheeks. Asked what was the matter, Possum replied "they're all fakes!" .

Clifford Possum

When Possum passed away there was much wrangling about his remaining works. It was soon discovered that several family members also did paintings under his name.
But as an expert explained, the concept of 'self' is a difficult one in Aboriginal culture and a tribe perceives itself as a whole. Thus aunties and uncles, nephews and so on (who are not necessarily blood relations) join in to complete  artworks and they are regarded as being executed by the artist himself. Similarly when a tribe or members come into wealth the lot is shared around equally. The original Socialists !.

 As for the gallery where the Possum fakes (non-Aboriginal copies) were-it went bust within the year.

As we said before, say a little prayer for Ms Sari and another for Vesna !

                                         
                                     ****************************************

With the announcement that Michael Jackson Cd's have sold 35 million copies since he died, some of his personal items drew bug bucks at Juliens Summer auction. One of his fedoras fetched $56,250 while one of those famous sequined gloves brought $192,000.

Anna Nicole Smith's variety of Marilyn Monroe decorated handbags went from $90 to $200 but the big winner was the great legend herself. 

 3 of Marilyn Monroe's chest x-rays sold for a combined $45,000. Pill popping Elvis Presley's personal copy of the Physician's Desk Reference sold for $11,875 but there was a bargain-an Elvis potholder for $224 !. Elvis in the kitchen?.

A move

Bill Ranken and the Social Shuttle would like to announce we will be moving to a much larger website in the next few weeks with a whole load of new features.

Since I started this little experiment just under a year ago, it has excelled beyond all my expectations.

 That wouldn't have been possible without my  wonderful helpers (you know who you are) who beaver away behind the scenes.

The new site will be most exciting. There will be a host of interactive features-some of these I am told are quite wonderful !. I can't wait to see them myself !. Of course I am a complete luddite when it comes to the net but thank God there are people younger than me who can do these things. Of course, everyone is younger than me.

I'm told  this site will "go down" between the last week of July and the 1st in August. ( Don't ask me what that means)

None of this would have been possible without all the loyal readers who have sent so many messages of support. You have my undying thanks !


Bill Ranken

Pray for this stripper

We must congratulate Alizee Seri's courage for her strip show last week at the sacred Aboriginal rock Uluru. She garnered heaps of publicity around the world for the stunt, presented below.

But perhaps she should have had a quiet word with Lindy Chamberlain Creighton.

Lindy & Azaria at the Rock

  In August 1980 Lindy and her family were camping at Uluru when a "Dingo took my baby" - the immortal line delivered by Meryl Streep who later played Lindy in the film Evil Angels. The subsequent hunt for Lindy's baby Azaria and the errant dingo became a world sensation as the poor woman was crucified in one of the most biased media campaigns ever seen. It was inevitable that she would be charged with the murder of Azaria, found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment in the Northern Territory.

What had Lindy been doing earlier that fateful day ?. She and the family had visited the Rock. Former husband Michael Chamberlain has often told friends in private something that has never been revealed before. That part of his distress from that day was watching Lindy doing a little happy dance while cradling Azaria at the base of rock. It was the last time Michael saw his daughter as Lindy put the child to bed in their tent.

It's been long rumoured and never discussed-the ancient Aboriginal curses and mysterious tribal customs that are conducted at Uluru. In a culture that often expresses itself in dance, dancing is strictly forbidden at the Rock.

Sam Neil & Meryl Streep in Evil Angels

Lindy lost an appeal against her sentence in 1981 but in 1986 the unlikely discovery of baby Azaria's little jacket with what appeared to be jagged teeth marks,at the base of Uluru saw her  released within 5 days and eventually her conviction was overturned. Never mentioned are the consultations husband Michael had with the Pitjantjatjara tribe of central Australia, caretakers of Uluru the year before the jacket was found.

The real details of the miracle find is a mystery yet to be told.

Lindy and Michael never speak of it.
Although Lindy Chamberlain Cheighton now lives in the USA, whenever she returns to Australia for a visit, she travels to Uluru to meet with the Pitjantjatjara mob.

Secret Women's Business is considered by Aboriginals as one of the most powerful forces there are. 

Alizee Seri-you have been warned !

Madame Arcati refuses to be censored

The Madame Arcati blog site has been outraging readers for 4 years now-in particular the Fleet Street brigade of hacks and time-servers on Britain's variety of tabloids who are loathe to have a spotlight beamed onto their own peccadillo's and prejudices whilst retaining the right to rip into others.

Now she is packing up her wicked keyboard and switching to the tabloid style Anorak website under her own banner after Google shoved an adult content warning at the beginning of her site. A very sensible move on Anorak's part.

She has spoken of the Google debacle on the Beautiful Books site:

Madame Arcati censored by the hammies

"I had planned to unleash a considerable amount of articulate obscenity on this new site. Then my eye alighted on the stricture here that nothing should go up that might upset one’s mother – indeed, the offended are invited to draw the site owner’s attention to anything objectionable. So, given the readiness of people to be outraged - a characteristic I attribute to the ham actor in too many of us - I suppose I’d better behave myself and get to my point, temperately.

Censorship is very much a topic in mind at present. My own site, Madame Arcati, has just been gifted an 18 certificate by Google/Blogger: visitors are now greeted by a Content Warning page. Apparently, readers complained of “objectionable” material. Given that I put up my first PhotoShopped male celebrity nude about four years ago, I can’t imagine what took the uncast ham actors so long."

Hopefully her old site will still stay. One should delve back into the files. It's packed with highly amusing and witty prose with anecdotes and interviews with all manner of people that will never be found elsewhere.
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Coming soon : more on the brewing scandal over the estate of the late science fiction writer Arthur C.Clarke, a Shuttle exclusive!

Why Julia Gillard is Heaven sent

In times of such great upheaval we have asked our resident astrologer Charo to give us a quick rundown on how the Welsh Valley girl  and new Prime Minister Julia Gillard, a 29th September  Libran , will fare with the country of Australia which is governed by the sign of Sagittarius.:

Charo says-

Libras are fun-loving, diplomatic and charming people. They are loved by all for their decent mannerisms and kind-heartedness. Sagittarius people are equally fun-loving, brutally frank and honest individuals. This tries to understand the possibility of Libra compatibility with Sagittarius.

Relationship Profile of Libras in a nutshell:

• Librans need love and a constant source of care and affection in their life.
• They become vulnerable to when they naively expose their needs before others.
• Heart-breaks are common for this sun-sign, but they learn their lesson and move on quickly in life.
• They prefer a strong individual as their life partner and never mind being dominated too.

Relationship Profile of Sagittarius in a nutshell:

• people who are so honest that they are misunderstood a lot.
• Though their hard-core optimism make them a hit among people, many cannot forget the temper these individuals have.
• Sagittarians are have commitment phobia and get engaged lately in life.
• But once they find themselves in the company of a right partner, they get dedicated to their family completely.

Why Libra Compatibility with Sagittarius is the Best:

   Libra is an air sign. Sagittarius is a fire sign. In nature, both the elements fire and air are naturally compatible and can form a formidable combination together.

Libran compatibility with Sagittarius is a strong one. Vices in one sun-sign will be removed by the virtues other sun-sign possess. For instance, Libras suffer from low self-esteem at sometimes. Optimistic Sagittarians can change this nature of their partner. On the other hand, Sagittarius people bluntly put the truth and can be rude at times to the people. They can learn how to be diplomatic and still remain honest form their Libra partner.

It's a marriage made in heaven!

Unlike that of the sad Kevin Rudd, a Virgo who rescued Labor from an 11 year wilderness and was ruthlessly stabbed in the back by..the media !!

Virgo and Sagittarius

There is no surety of long-term compatibility of a relationship between a Virgo and a Sagittarian  . Virgos are  introverts who don't like interacting with new people much. Sagittarians are very enthusiastic towards life and want to live every moment to its fullest. Virgo somberness, serious nature and laid-back attitude may be too much for Sagitarrians to handle. A Sagitarrian's excessive enthusiasm, wild nature and unpredictable actions may not go down well with a Virgoan conservative nature. Not a very good match, to say the least! 

sound familiar ?