For his new installation, Australian artist Bennett Miller has assembled a meeting of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights in the Melbourne Museum plaza. The part that is "art" is that all of the delegates are dogs. All together: Awwwwww.
Meredith Vieira and Matt Lauer share more than a studio at Rockefeller Center—they're both celebrating their birthdays today, too. (She's turning 56; he's 52.) Embattled nightlife entrepreneur Amy Sacco is 42. Fox News' Sean Hannity is turning 48. LeBron James is 25. Allen Grubman, the mega entertainment lawyer and father of Lizzie, turns 67 today. Patti Smith is 63. Comedian Tracey Ullman is 50. WCBS reporter Marcia Kramer is turning 61. Movie director Bennett Miller is 43. Norman Goodman, the city's county clerk and the man responsible for sending you those jury summonses on a regular basis, is 86. Actress Eliza Dushku is turning 29. R&B singer Tyrese is 31. Former madam Heidi Fleiss is turning 44. And a golfer by the name of Tiger Woods is celebrating his 34th birthday today.
Nightlife vet Amy Sacco turns 41 today. Strangely, Today show co-anchors Meredith Vieira and Matt Lauer happen to share the same birthday, too: Meredith is turning 55, while Matt is 51. Fox News' Sean Hannity is 47. Entertainment lawyer Allen Grubman (and the husband of Deborah and father of Lizzie) is 66. Tiger Woods is turning 33. Film director Bennett Miller is 42. Patti Smith is turning 62. WCBS political reporter Marcia Kramer is 60. Actress Eliza Dushku is 28. R&B singer Tyrese is 30. Comedian Tracey Ullman is 49. LeBron James is 24. Laila Ali is 31. Heidi Fleiss is turning 43. And New York County Clerk Norman Goodman—the man responsible for all those jury duty summonses—is 85.
♦ Mary-Kate Olsen was "acting very oddly" during her stay in Miami for Art Basel. After getting into a fight with Kirsten Dunst at a party at the Delano on Wednesday night, MK—who "looked like she had not brushed her hair in a week"—spent the weekend drinking, chain-smoking, and hanging out with boyfriend Nate Lowman, which means she's probably not pregnant. [P6, P6]
♦ Lindsay Lohan went to a party for Milk without Samantha Ronson last week, where she was spotted nuzzling with Sean Penn. [Fox 411]
♦ Amy Winehouse's husband Blake Fielder-Civil is reportedly threatening to write a tell-all book about Winehouse unless she gives him $1.7 million in the divorce settlement. [NYP]
♦ Scarlett Johansson is a married woman: She tied the knot with actor Ryan Reynolds in a small ceremony outside of Vancouver on Saturday. [Us]
♦ Heather Locklear was arrested for driving under the influence of prescription drugs in Montecito, CA, on Saturday. [NYP]
♦ Heath Ledger's daughter Matilda will inherit his entire estate, which is estimated to be worth $20 million. [NYP]
(1) The 9th annual Art For Life Benefit took place on Saturday at Russell Simmons' East Hampton house. Despite tickets not selling out as fast as usual, the event played host to Aretha Franklin, Christy Turlington, Lorraine Bracco, Soledad O'Brien, David Paterson, Diddy, Padma Lakshmi, Brett Ratner, LA Reid, the cast of Real Housewives of New York, Al Roker, Kelly Bensimon, Alina Cho, Simon de Pury, and Porschla Coleman—whose break up with Simmons, judging by their behavior, is either incredibly amicable or no longer in effect. [PMc]
Bennett Miller won a best-director Oscar nomination for Capote, a film about the corruption of a literary icon, and two years later has himself cashed in an artistic reputation by directing an American Express commercial aired for the first time during last night's Academy Awards. The star of the ad is fashion designer Diane Von Furstenberg, who supposedly became "independent" and confident as a result of fashion — a great message when you are trying to pimp financial services to small businesses. Left unsaid: Von Furstenberg was married to a Swiss prince from a wealthy family when she first broke in to fashion, and would hardly have wanted for startup capital. During and after that time, she was in a long-term relationship with entertainment mogul Barry Diller, to whom she is now married and who can easily pay whatever Amex charges the fashion designer might incur. Of course the ad is beautiful and feels honest, a testament to Miller's skill at spooling out a plausible dramatic narrative on film, and of course to his lack of a rich spouse who can save him from having to make commercials:
Miller is the Oscar-nominated director who is best known for the 2005 film Capote and 2011's Moneyball.
