LOS ANGELES – She made it into the number two spot in the fifth season of "American Idol" and went on to embrace a career in the music industry, thus one would assume Katharine McPhee would be right at home performing on stage. But as it turns out the 24-year-old puts herself through hell before opening her mouth to sing.
"I think I still get terrible stage fright, no I don’t think — I know. But I just try to breathe and I try to remember why I’m singing and not who I’m singing for," McPhee told Tarts prior to her performance at the star-studded Carousel of Hope Ball on Saturday.
A McPhee pal recently told Tarts that the brunette beauty has come along way with fighting off her stage fright since her 2006 "Idol" days.
"She used to get so worked up I almost thought she was going to be sick," said the source. "Being criticized (by the judges) was the scary part."
But after having been dumped by her label BMG earlier this year, McPhee is picking up the pieces and taking her time with her next project. Although the songstress seems to have forgiven the company’s Chief Executive Officer Clive Davis as the two amicably crossed paths at the benefit ball.
"I’m working on a record right now, it is probably not going to come out until next spring or summer we’re not really putting a date on it but I’m busy doing that," McPhee added.
Trick & Tease: Cindy Crawford Dresses as Drunken Amy Winehouse, Cops Called to Kate Hudson's Halloween Party
Every year Kate Hudson goes all-out for a Halloween party in her Pacific Palisades mansion, and to score an invite to the spooky soiree you pretty much have to be a superstar.
The "Almost Famous" actress was the perfect host at the party last Friday, dressed as a super-sexy 60’s flight attendant as she strutted around welcoming in the likes of Ethan Hawke, Leonardo DiCaprio, Lucas Haas, Tobey Maguire and wife Jennifer Meyer, "Red Hot Chili Peppers" front-man Anthony Kiedis, Bridget Moynahan, Drew Barrymore and Liv Tyler. (Noticeably absent was Owen Wilson who frequents the party every year).
But when it comes to costumes, these Hollywood Halloween hotties spared no expense. We're told Sacha Baron Cohen ditched his "Borat" alter-ego to instead be a cow, supermodel Heidi Klum looked particularly unpretty as a dead baseball player, David Arquette and wife Courtney Cox-Arquette went as a wizard and witch respectively but it was Cindy Crawford that got the most stares.
The former supermodel dressed as off-the-rails Amy Winehouse in a leopard skin dress, crazy black wig, fake tattoos and smudged black eyeliner.
According to an insider, DiCaprio was most definitely making the most of his newly single status by hitting on lots of hot chicks on the dance-floor (Hudson had her pool covered over with a clear mat so that it was transformed into the dance space) and didn't take off his scary green mask all night.
Meanwhile it seems as though Bridget Moynahan might still be a little down regarding her Tom Brady-free love life. Apparently the "Coyote Ugly" actress didn't dress up and came across as kinda quiet and unsociable throughout the affair.
Moynahan aside, our insider said that the stars and starlets really let their hair down and there was lots of smoking and drinking going on (no wonder, there were three fully-stocked bars for just 100 guests) which prompted a visit from the local police department just after midnight after noise complaints from the neighbors.
"Kate went outside and talked to the cops and dealt with a situation," said our source. "After that the party kind of fizzled out but she was fine with it, she'd had her fun."
Baby Britney: Judge Grants Request for Permanent Conservatorship While Former Manager Cranks Up Heat in Courthouse
Just when we thought Britney Spears was getting back to good, her temporary co-conservatorship was made permanent in the Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday afternoon. That means that daddy Jamie will have full control over all of the music mogul's money, business affairs, assets and estate until she can prove herself totally sane. (Is that even possible in Tinseltown?)
But that wasn't the only drama involving Brit in court on Tuesday.
In November 2007 Spears's former music manager Johnnie Wright (who works with the likes of the Jonas Brothers, Justin Timberlake and the Backstreet Boys) added to the songstress's legal woes by filing a suit against her for breach of contract.
According to the suit, a management contract was signed in 1999 entitling the Orlando-based Wright Entertainment Group (WEG) to royalties and commissions through February 20 2008 but apparently Spears stopped the payments in December 2006. But with all the craziness that has since taken over the pop princess's life she hasn't responded to the suit, and being under the protection of a conservatorship has meant that she hasn't had to make her way to a Florida court room.
Well, Wright had enough waiting for his oh-so-hard-earned cash so he sent two of his lawyers to the Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday morning in the hope that the commissioner would approve their request for Brit to be forced to make a cameo in Orlando court.
After learning of this, Brit's lawyers filed an emergency motion Tuesday morning for a protective order to stop Miss Spears from deposed as they believe she isn't mentally ready to act on her own behalf.
Wright's legal reps argued that they have been "left in the dark" on Brit's medical condition and that the recovering starlet "seems to be doing so great" and "appears to have capacity" to speak for herself. Their fear is that the pop princess will bring out a new album and go on tour and thus continuously be "too busy" to face the pending suit.
But the commissioner was less-than-impressed with Wright's attorneys implication that the conservatorship was continuing unnecessarily and pretty much sent them packing. She said she'll review the situation in February or when the conservatorship ends — whichever comes first. But now that it has gone from temporary to permanent who knows when (and if) Wright will ever score a cent from Spears. Stay tuned.
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