By , ,
Published May 20, 2015
Hugh Grant | Ralph Lauren and Puff Daddy | VH-1/Vogue Fashion Special | Sam Moore
Hugh Grant Wants to Have Grace's Baby
I knew that headline would get your attention -- and it's sort of true, too. At the chaotic post-party for the VH-1/Vogue Fashion show, Hugh Grant told the show's host, Debra Messing he was available to father a child for her.
The Will & Grace star was a little startled, then realized Grant was talking about her TV character.
"I explained to him that Harry Connick is on right now and he may do that, too," the lovely Messing told me.
Grant replied, "I'm not in this country that often, so I don't keep up with the show."
Messing accepted his offer, though, in the nicest way, and Grant paid her many compliments for hosting the otherwise dreary and commercial-laden show. "You were very funny," he said, "and you kept it up."
Messing was happy to take Grant's comments. She told me that the show went by in a blur. "I have no memory of it," she said. "It's the first time I ever hosted anything. I'm glad I TiVo'd it."
For the occasion she brought along her husband and her brother-in-law. "For a New York girl to be in Radio City Music Hall on stage..." Her eyes glistened. "That's the big time."
Messing is a real treasure among celebrities. She must have been raised right -- so many of them were not. And the big news is she's not giving up her movie career, even with Will & Grace going full throttle. In November she starts shooting a new film, following up her star turn in Woody Allen's Hollywood Ending .
Did Ralph Lauren Use Puff Daddy?
Anyone who saw the Ralph Lauren tribute on last night's show and knows what goes on in the fashion world must have been clucking quite loudly.
Not only did Sean "Puffy Daddy/P. Diddy" Combs get the honor of toasting Lauren, but clips were shown of Oprah Winfrey and other high-profile African Americans saluting the fashion mogul.
I'm sure this had nothing to do with the August 19 story in the Wall Street Journal that said: "For years, Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. has grappled with racial issues in the workplace. Minority employees claim that there have been occasions when white managers have instructed African-American and Hispanic sales associates to leave the sales floor and work in the stockroom, as well as times when Polo passed over minority employees for promotion despite the fact that they were more qualified than their white counterparts."
The article, which can be read for free at http://www.ethnicmajority.com , also states that an EEOC report concluded that "testimony from several witnesses suggests that (Polo) managers sought to maintain a 'blond-hair-and-blue-eyes' image of employees, who often advanced the image over more qualified and experienced minority employees."
Indeed, reading between the lines last night was more fun than actually watching the show. Combs is now the conduit between black and white in the fashion industry, having wrested away the black customers from Tommy Hilfiger. Everyone wants to be like Sean John right now, and Lauren is no exception. The article on race discrimination has spread on the Internet, so the signals sent out last night had to be orchestrated properly. Bravo to the mastermind behind this idea!
Was Sony the Secret VH-1/Vogue Fashion Sponsor?
It doesn't take Columbo to figure out that the VH-1/Vogue Fashion special was a Sony Entertainment spectacle.
The grueling two hour show featured David Bowie singing two songs from his Sony album Heathen, Steven Tyler of Sony's Aerosmith singing a duet with Pink and then picking up some ridiculous award; John Travolta plugging his upcoming Sony movie Basic and Sony artist Jennifer Lopez flapping around for photographers.
Maybe it was just a coincidence.
There were probably subliminal ads too, but I couldn't catch all of them. The awards themselves weren't awards at all -- there were no nominees to speak of, just people jumping up on the stage to accept thunderous applause from the paid extras also on stage. Ralph Lauren? One of Vogue's biggest advertisers. Tom Ford of Gucci? Same. Congratulations to both on their advertorial status.
Later, the after-party at the Hudson Hotel was one of those nightmare situations of clipboard Nazi's and way too many people trying to get past the velvet ropes. One model who'd been in the show was nastily turned away by a hotel publicist, dismissed without blinking an eye.
Nevertheless, the city's most famous party crashers got in -- including a guy who looks like Big Bird whom everyone refers to as "Shaggy," a little bald man who claims to be a dentist, a matronly but cheerful blond woman who misses no event and a tall guy with headlamp eyes. No one knows their names, but we all know what they look like. So much for security and exclusivity.
I did run into a lot of mostly pleasant celebs who were so jam packed into the room they couldn't breathe. They included Natalie Portman, Caroline Rhea, Claire Danes with boyfriend Ben Lee and lots of pretty young things in search of companionship. One such person, a society girl I am told, managed to spend a lot of quality time with Hugh Grant. We'll have to see what the tabloids say if that relationship progresses, but it was called to my attention by several jealous young ladies in the smoky, overcrowded room.
Don't miss the legendary Sam Moore, of Sam & Dave fame, performing in a rare appearance on tonight's David Letterman show. Sam's new album, Pretty Good Lovin', just got rave reviews from USA Today and the Miami Herald . Because it was recorded in 1972 it's not eligible for a Grammy award, but if anyone is deserving of a lifetime achievement nod, it's Moore. Check him out tonight, and see if you don't agree.
https://www.foxnews.com/story/hugh-grant-wants-to-have-graces-baby