• Mischa Barton's well-defined ribcage proves hell hath no fury like a woman on a no-carb diet.
• Britney too sick to show up in court, not too sick to drive around in her giant Crashmobile.
• Breaking: Tony Parker (a.k.a. Mr. Eva Longoria) may or may not have sent some banal text messages to a person of the opposite sex.
• Woody Harrelson and Owen Wilson continue their "Fuck it, we're high" tour of 2007.
• Not even Marilyn Manson is crazy enough to sell his own foreskin. Or is he?
The bad news is, Maxim has a smarter, more sophisticated new look. (Because, as MediaWeek puts it, editorial director Jim Kaminsky is looking to "declutter the magazine’s look, cultivate service and humor, and fancy up its fashion pages, with a new how-to section." Or something.)
The good news? The finished product still has a hot chick wearing barely-there lingerie on the cover. Starting with the current issue featuring the (tastefully!) "La Perla-clad" actress Sarah Michelle Gellar on the cover, who epitomizes both class and sophistication by prancing around in her $400 brassiere.
Impressive as that was, however, we were actually far more intrigued by some of the other cover stories. Particularly the intelligent foray into the emergent genre of female masturbation, bearing the smart—yet impossibly refined—moniker of "Good Vibrations."
Farewell, Maxim. From now on, when we're looking for a trashy, lowbrow read, we'll simply borrow our roommate's copy of New York magazine instead.
[Image via JustJared]
• George Clooney's non-famous 23 year-old girlfriend broke her big toe while riding on the back of George Clooney's motorcyle and was forced to show up (as George Clooney's date, natch) to some fancy schmancy movie premiere on crutches. That poor, unbelievably lucky girl.
• Jack Bauer would never get arrested for a DUI. Unfortunately, Kiefer Sutherland would.
• This morning, Beyonce showed us one example of how it sometimes sucks to be famous. Now, Hilary Duff shows us another.
• For those of you who are interested in seeing the Maxim cover spread (but not so interested that you'd actually go out and, like, buy the magazine) today's your lucky day.
• This is why we hate fashion.
Despite being subjected to numerous unflattering Austin Powers comparisons, henchman Kent Brownridge (Jann Wenner's former "Number 2" man who's earned himself a well-deserved reputation of "Dr. Evil") is not without his fair share of supporters. Unfortunately for Brownridge, it seems as though not even his supporters really seem to like him.
The rap on Kent Brownridge, who's running Maxim for private equity player Quadrangle Group, is that he's unusually smart and unusually ferocious. And that the latter overshadow[s] the former…"If you get in his way, he will roll right over you," says a former Wenner executive, and this is one who claims to be a fan.
But we're not biting. Sure, this Brownridge guy has a bad rep (plus he even looks evil) but you have to consider that most of that's coming from oversensitive writer types who just want to be coddled. In fact, we think Brownridge sounds like exactly the sort of guy we'd want to grab a beer with after work! That is, assuming Pat Buchanan already has other plans.
Remember when an anonymous Wenner executive said “Kent Brownridge makes Karl Rove look like a Sunday school teacher?”
Well, these unidentified sources don’t lie.
Brownridge has scooped up Wenner Media’s Men’s Journal editor James Kaminsky to edit Maxim for a pay package reported to be worth around $600,000.
Jimmy Jellinke, Maxim’s EIC for the past year, is out, and out of print. "This will probably be my last job in publishing," he said, and is looking for jobs in TV and online now. What, no ham radio?
Kaminsky, who was number 2 at Maxim from 1999 to 2000, sees this as an opportunity to change perception about Maxim and said, "There are a lot of misconceptions about what Maxim is. I think it's a matter of getting sharper, funnier and doing some real journalism.”
Kaminsky’s first issue will feature in an depth piece on push-up bras in Iraq.
Not only did this morning's Page Six misidentify Observer party boy Spencer Morgan's girlfriend – she's Alexis Bryan (daughter of Anna Wintour beau Shelby), not Alexis Stewart (daughter of Martha) – but it also repeated a June item, which also happened to spot Maxim deputy editor Chris Wilson and Spencer belting out karaoke at Sing Sing.
As most expected, Stuff magazine is shutting down under the new regime of new owners Alpha Male Group. But it's not going away entirely: It'll be folded into a special section of Maxim, though someone is going to have to tell us how to distinguish between the sections. [MW]
Kent Brownridge and Quadrangle are going with "Alpha Male Group" as the name of the new Maxim and Blender parent. And the chance to school advertisers on their awesome alpha male demos is going to make for one kick ass media kit. [WWD]
Elle magazine isn't exactly thrilled with Lohan over the whole "I'm a cokehead who drives my giant white car into people" incident. Apparently, the high-level fashion and beauty editors (read: a never-smiling Nina Garcia) think multiple DUI's and pants with secret drug-pockets compromise Lohan's ability to speak intelligently on hard-hitting issues such as a peaceful resolution of the Israel-Palestinian conflict which haircuts are best for your face-shape and how to pick make-ups that are right for your skin tone.
Reports WWD:
In just a few short weeks, Lindsay Lohan will be on the September covers of Maxim and Elle — and while the timing couldn't be better for Maxim, some argue Elle might not share the same fate. Maxim readers probably won't care that Lohan could be headed behind bars; in fact, that probably will only increase her appeal to its babe-hungry readers. But Elle readers seeking pages of fashion and style advice might be turned off by another Lohan arrest and pending court date, which will take place just days after the magazine hits newsstands.
It's nice to see Mediaweek taking a stab at fueling gossip. Lucia Moses's profile on Kent Brownridge – Jann Wenner's former No. 2 and incoming chief of Maxim, Blender, and Stuff – is filled with anonymous sources, speculating, and mud slinging. It's pretty damn awesome. CONTINUED »
What's a guy to do with a trio of mags? First off, change the name of their corporate parent. Kent Brownridge, who led Quadrangle's $240 million buyout of Dennis Publishing, will be renaming the umbrella company, giving the Stuff, Maxim, and Blender laddies a new daddy. The former Wenner Media exec, meanwhile, is said to be in the business of adding jobs, not cutting them (which would be hard, given that staffers are already doing multiple jobs). Well, except for Dennis prez Steve Colvin, who's, like, leaving and stuff.
But where's Kent gonna find all this money for new hires? CONTINUED »
• Keira Knightley to show off her nips in her next flick, making it even easier for pervy pedophiles to pretend she's really a 10 year-old boy.
• Maxim is officially on the auction block. Related: Dennis publishing finally admits that its titties titles are for sale.
• Look, it's pics of the stewardess Ralph Fiennes allegedly banged in an airplane toilet. Also: Fiennes' girlfriend dumps him for being a "sex fiend." Well, obviously.
• New Milli Vanilli biopic promises to be as successful as the duo's later years.
• Wow, someone has created a site where you can add your name to the ever-growing list of Anna Nicole Smith's potential baby-daddies!
• JLo and her not-very-attractive husband continue to gross people out with inconsiderate PDA's.
• Anna Wintour might've rebuffed Project Runway, but she's all set for an A&E documentary about how many skinny people are required to produce September Vogue.
• Atoosa Rubenstein incorporates, sets up expense account.
• FHM may be gone, but Maxim is still causing trouble at the hands of Vanity Fair.
• Steven Spielberg offers filmmaking hopefuls the chance to be the next Project Greenlight disaster.
CONTINUED »
• Complex magazine finds somebody to lead them into the future. We can't really say how long that future will be, but, at least they have a leader. [NYO]
• George Clooney is making everyone in Hollywood sweat. And they aren't scared or turned on … they're just really, really, hot. [Defamer]
• Just like the rest of us, Paris Hilton drinks her margaritas one schwill at a time. And no matter how much head she offers, when she drives hammered, she get charged with DUI's. Mostly so they can make an example out of her. [TMZ]
• Not only is Arianna Huffington starting up a new, sharp-tongued, site, but it even has a launch date pegged to it. If you consider "November" a date. [FBNY]
• And Maxim also hires two. One from House & Garden. We hope she likes beer bongs more than rubber clogs. [Gawker]
Do you care who Maxim editors don't want to sleep with? No? Well, they think you do. Which is why they slapped this wonderful list of un-fuckable women on television. Sure, one's a cartoon, another is a teenager, and another is an Amy Sedaris caricature … but that doesn't save anyone from the titles.
Nancy Grace is at number 1, with the rest of the countdown starting at 10. (We don't really understand why they would rather do it with Christiane Amanpour over Tina Fey, but we'll guess it's the accent.)
10. Christiane Amanpour, CNN
9. Pam Grier, The L Word
8. Ugly Betty, Ugly Betty
7. Peggy Hill, King of the Hill
6. Fran Drescher, Living with Fran
5. Jerri Blank, Strangers With Candy
4. Tina Yothers, Celebrity Fit Club 4
3. Tina Fey, 30 Rock
2. Calamity Jane, Deadwood
In other news, most women admit to not wanting to sleep with Jimmy Jellinek or Chris Wilson.
TV's Least Appealing Ladies [Maxim]
Editorial Director
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