1. The O.C. star Mischa Barton, for defending her right to tell all. Barton, 19, has hit out at critics who claim she is too young to write an autobiography–because she says her stories are fascinating. “I was starring opposite Julia Roberts at the age of 12,” Barton barked at pundits. “That’s already a big enough story.” Hollywood needs more self-promoters.
2. Speaking of young autobiographers–The Simple Life star Nicole Richie, not because she disses Paris in her new novel The Truth About Diamonds, but because her consumer-friendly book was released this week with two different covers so fans can pick their favorite photograph.
3. The once waif and currently shamed model Kate Moss, for orchestrating the quickest comeback in showbiz. Moss, 31, has just completed her first modeling assignment since checking out of The Meadows drug rehabilitation center in Arizona last month. Moss modeled a range of sexy outfits on the Spanish island Ibiza for Italian designer Roberto Cavalli. We’re still waiting on Winona Ryder’s comeback. Winona, where are you?
4. Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson, for reportedly planning to release an awe-inducing 3D version of his King Kong remake shortly after the standard version hits theaters December 14th. Jackson has set Californian visual FX specialists In-Three to work on bringing the big ape movie into the third dimension.
5. Scribe Josh Friedman, for stepping up to the plate to adapt a TV show based on the hit Terminator films. The show will pick up the action at the end of Terminator 2: Judgment Day and will focus on heroine Sarah Connor and her son, John.
6. Hottie Jake Gyllenhaal, for coming clean about The Speedo Incident. Gyllenhaal said he was dared to try on some trunks and walk out of the Speedo store at the Beverly Center in Los Angeles by a pal, but security guards at the mall failed to see the funny side of the prank. “I walked out and I was arrested by the Beverly Center cops,” Gyllenhaal confesses. “It was really serious for them; they don’t see much action. It was a big moment for all of us.”
7. “In Da Club” rapper 50 Cent, for putting business before pleasure. The rap star, who has dated Vivica A. Fox and has been romantically linked with Get Rich or Die Tryin’ co-star Joy Bryant, admits he’s too busy chasing his professional goals to form lasting personal relationships: “Until I find someone who understands those boundaries, I belong by myself.” Oh, we understand 50, can you give us a call?
8. John Lennon’s widow Yoko Ono, for finally saying she’s sorry. Ono has publicly apologized to her late husband’s Beatles bandmate Paul McCartney for criticizing his songwriting skills. “I certainly did not mean to hurt Paul, and, if I did, I am very sorry,” Ono says in the latest issue of Rolling Stone magazine.
9. Pride and Prejudice director Joe Wright, for telling the saccharine sweet truth. Wright shot two different endings for Pride–one for the U.S. and one for Britain. While U.K. viewers see Donald Sutherland‘s character smile contentedly in the final scene, American moviegoers will enjoy a passionate embrace between stars Keira Knightley and Matthew MacFadyen. Wright explains: “Americans like a bit more sugar in their champagne.”
10. Pop icon Madonna, for equating hunting with dead animals. Madonna said she loved the idea of learning traditional rural pursuits at stately home Ashcombe Manor, but admits: “That all changed when a bird dropped in front of me that I’d shot. It wasn’t dead. Blood was gushing from its mouth and it was struggling up this hill and I thought, ‘Oh God, I did that!’ I am not a vegetarian and I understand animals die for my meals. I respect that, but I just couldn’t do it any more.”
