What's next, Richard? Full-body liposuction, angry chick-rock music and a raging addiction to heroin?
[P6]
Heh. Even Dan Abrams got namechecked.
Friday's 3-page Page Six column is just the beginning. Next: TV, the Internet, your soul. [MP]
Watch out, Daily Newsers. Rumor has it Page Six is ripping a page out of Rupert Murdoch's playbook (probably because he owns them!) and hatching a plan to "turn itself into an unstoppable, unavoidable, hegemonic global powerhouse…as part of an effort to birth a multimedia gossip juggernaut."
You've got to give it to Murdoch. He's nothing if not consistent.
[NYMag]
"What," you might be wondering, "ever happened to Page Six editor Richard Johnson and his drunk driving incident?" Richard, as you'll recall, was arrested just over a year ago as he attempted to drive off from Soho House in his 2005 Ford Escape.
At the time, he refused a request to take a blood alcohol test (he only had one glass of wine, he told the officer) and was summarily charged with two misdemeanors.
Now, more than 12 months later, where do things stand?
Did Nello Balan really slip Richard Johnson $1,000 in an envelope in order to boost his holiday cheer? If he did, he's not exactly racked with guilt. In an Oscar caliber "damage control" performance, the restaurant impresario nobly defends his right to give unsolicited monetary donations to make-or-break gossip columns—and accuses those of us who fail to grasp his selfless generosity of being Scrooges, Grinches and penny-pinchers who've lost the Christmas spirit.
“If I did, so what?” he wondered in his Romanian accent between bites. “What is wrong with a Christmas gift? What, Americans have to be such Grinches about Christmas?” Americans, not so much. Journalists, maybe. Along with other allegations, the New York Post’s admission that Johnson accepted the cash has sparked a media frenzy. But it’s been too long to remember the details, Nello said. “It was 1997. I was in Aspen.” He wondered if he hadn’t asked his assistant to send over truffles, or possibly scarves, gloves, and ties (Hermès is across the street), and just maybe the assistant got flustered and sent cash instead.
Meanwhile, the NY Times tries to figure out just how beneficial Malan's selfless act really was, asking "was there a quid pro quo?"
[Spoiler: Yes.]
Earlier, we told you Page Six had taken a preemptive strike at former freelancer Jared Paul Stern in a lengthy item entitled "Lies & Smears Aimed At The Post." Despite the fact that, as recently as four months ago, the very same column attempted to cast Stern as a martyr, today they opted to actively discredit him, addressing his defamatory allegations—and the incendiary Ian Spiegelman email—head on, and contesting the litany of charges in advance of the upcoming court battle.
And though the Posties predictably brushed aside most of the charges and as complete and utter falsehoods, they did, however, acknowledge that, on one regrettable occasion, Page Six's Richard Johnson made a "grave mistake" in accepting a $1,000 gift from restaurateur Nello Balan back in 1997, and they offer a prompt (albeit rather vague) apology for this transgression.
Following this morning's testimonial in the NYP, The Smoking Gun re-examined the circumstances surrounding the Payola Six scandal, and questioned whether or not their apology addressed all of the relevant facts.
CONTINUED »
This morning, we told you about rude, crude Rosie and her potty-mouthed emceeing of yesterday's Matrix awards luncheon.
At least, that's how it was according to Page Six.
But, as Gawker observes, Cindy Adams had a whole different take on things. Which could be interpreted to mean that she rather enjoyed Rosie's lambasting of Rupert Murdoch, which could then, in turn, be interpreted to mean that Cindy actually hates Rupert—or that she loves Rosie. Or that she's a batty old woman who loves her Yorkie and sometimes gets confused.
Regardless of Cindy's machinations, however, we think we've figured out Page Six's motivation for the anti-Rosie manifesto. And, unsurprisingly, like pretty much everything else that happens, it can all be traced back to Richard Johnson.
Because, according to a well-placed tipster, this was a case of pure, unadulterated revenge.
CONTINUED »
While the tabloids fight over pictures of Angelina's new arrival, we're pleased to bring you Richard Johnson and Sessa von Richthofen's. Ladies and gents, welcome Alessandra. Click it for the biggie size.
• Ricky Gervais puts the kabosh on Extras, dooms us to an unfunny, "television programming written for Americans, by Americans" existence.
• Publisher of the Baltimore Sun chooses a 77 woman* over her job.
• Richard Johnson's "little Johnson" is twelve inches long. (We're talking about his new baby, pervs!)
• Editors hate covering the war in Iraq almost as much as the U.S. soldiers hate fighting in it.
CONTINUED »
• The King of Page Six, Richard Johnson, attributes his gossip super-stardom to marrying a hottie and punching Village Voice columnists in the face.
• The obligatory Anna Nicole Smith update includes the number of meds in her system at the time of death (ten) and reports that her mom abhors Howard K. Stern.
• Vince shows up for Jen's bday bash. Must mean they're doing it again. Or else he wanted to see her new nose.
• Lindsay Lohan proves she's serious about turning her life around by buying the former pad of suicidal pin-up girl Marilyn Monroe.
• Sarah Jessica Parker may not still have her original nose but she definitely hasn't surgically altered those catcher's mitts hands of hers.
CONTINUED »
With today being Richard Johnson's birthday and all, we thought we'd take a leisurely stroll down memory lane and celebrate all of Richie's highlights from this past year in eager anticipation of the scandals that are still to come!
April 7, 2006
Jared Paul Stern is suspended as the FBI investigates charges that he was extorting money from billionaire Ron Burkle in exchange for "favorable press." Stern claims he was set up, Burkle claims his rights were violated, and Richard Johnson couldn't give a shit cause he's marrying third-wife (and mega-hottie) Sessa Von Richthofen on a yacht in the midst of it all.
April 10, 2006
Article in U.S.A. Today blasts Jared Paul Stern for having shitty journalism ethics, and off-handedly mentions that Richard Johnson (wait, he's the editor of Page Six!) frequently accepts gifts in exchange for coverage, a "clear violation" of journalistic ethics:
And Page Six editor Richard Johnson accepted use of a Mercedes and a room at the Four Seasons Hotel to cover this year's Academy Awards, a Post spokesman confirmed. Stern said that he accepted a hotel junket to the Bahamas two years ago and that he often gets use of cars from carmakers in exchange for ink.
April 21, 2006
Page Six officially fires Stern, then Richard Johnson closes his eyes, makes passionate love to his much-more-attractive wife, and waits for the whole ugly mess to "just go away."
June 2, 2006
Two months have passed since the JPS scandal and Richard Johnson (and Page Six) are finally starting to sit pretty again. That is, until Johnson racks up a DUI for drunk-driving in the meatpacking district after a members-only party at Soho House. Best of all, those friendly folks over at the NYO helpfully remind us that this is, in fact, Johnson's second DUI, (his first citation was back in 1997).
June 26, 2006
Richard Johnson is questioned by the FBI about Jared Paul Stern. In an amusing "coincidence," Murray Richman will be representing Johnson in this matter while Richman's daughter, attorney Stacey Richman, reps him on that nasty DUI charge.
CONTINUED »
Page Six editor Richard Johnson, on who should be named I Want Media's Person of the Year:
How about Richard Johnson? His latest challenger for gossip supremacy, Lloyd Grove, was vanquished with a whimper after three years of getting beat by Page Six. The Post finally surpassed the Daily News in circulation nearly 30 years after Rupert Murdoch came to town. And Page Six weathered the Jared Paul Stern scandal, despite the best efforts of the Daily News to destroy the column.
Nice to see old grudges – and egos – don't die hard. Quaint.
One of our favorite games to play is Anatomy of a Page Six Retraction, and today's "For The Record" item in Richard Johnson's column gives us some great footing. It takes quite a bit to get RJ & Co. to back off from their "heavily" vetted items, so what brought this?:
JENNIFER Aniston went on "Oprah" to tell the world she and Vince Vaughn are still together. We apologize to Vaughn for reporting on Oct. 11 that the "The Wedding Crashers" star had been photographed "making out" with a "mystery blonde" at a party in London. The item, first reported in the London Sun, was incorrect. We're advised Vaughn was merely greeting a friend at the event and not kissing her "passionately." Any suggestion that the actor was being unfaithful to Aniston is totally false.
From what we understand, the New York Post received a well-versed letter from the offices of Hollywood power firm Lavely & Singer, which reps Vaughinston's interests. After several conversations between News Corp.'s legal team and editor Col Allan, a decision was handed down to Johnson: Apologize for the original item, or the Vaughn will very likely make good on his threats to sue. (Britain's Daily Mail and The Sun remain on the list of remaining targets.) And just when you thought all the angles for items on Page Six were exhausted this month.
FOR THE RECORD [Page Six]
We hope the below isn't true foreshadowing — of the Lloyd Grove type. But when sending an email to Page Six's chief, you might be on the receiving end of this:
This is an automatically generated Delivery Status Notification.
Delivery to the following recipients failed.
RJohnson@nypost.com
Final-Recipient: rfc822;RJohnson@nypost.com
Action: failed
Status: 5.2.2
X-Display-Name: Johnson, Richard
Editorial Director
