When Chace Crawford and Ed Westwick are confronted with the fact that everyone wants them to be totally gay for each other (or indeed for anyone), they're forced to tap dance along a thin line between enthuasiastically avowing their absolute heterosexuality and not in any way alienating their fanbase. (Says Ed: "It's not true, but hilarious... People project their fantasies...") For women, though, the issue is just not so stressful: Queen B. Leighton Meester, for example, is delighted to be a Sapphic object of desire.

[Blake Lively, a human being who exists, outside the David Letterman variety hour old person show last night; image via Splash]

Janice Dickinson getting out of an SUV (left) in front of the Today Show studios ... Tom Cruise boarding a helicopter with Suri on his hip ... Adrian Grenier and the rest of the Entourage cast filming scenes in Queens ... Ethan Hawke taking his newborn baby and dog out for a walk ... Blake Lively walking through Brooklyn with her dog Penny ... Carmen Electra going into the MTV studios in Times Square ... Whitney Port kissing an (unknown) dude on a downtown sidewalk ... Solange Knowles posing for the cameras outside the David Letterman show ... an attention-seeking Kim Kardashian walking through Midtown with a bandaged toe ... Daniel Radcliffe listening to his iPod on a walk through Midtown ... and Vanessa Minnillo on her way to dinner.

It was the eye-roll heard around the world (yes, you can hear an eye-roll — it sounds like a faint, wet "oh snap"): while doing a Good Day LA interview to promote Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2, America Ferrera looked alternately bored and incredulous as costar Blake Lively nattered on about upcoming plotlines on Gossip Girl. The open mocking of the CW drama (without a single, hasty addendum of, "But it's a guilty pleasure!") sent New York's media world reeling, desperate to protect the scrappy little show that it had clutched to its bosom for so long. To that end, EW dispatched Michael Ausiello to corner Lively in an attempt to determine whether the actress now harbored anti-America sentiment:

Oh yay, the trailer for New York, I Love You, the new movie about "Love in New York" (hah hah, actual monster sightings are more likely).* New York, I Love You features not only an ensemble cast — Ethan Hawke, Blake Lively, Orlando Bloom, Rachel Bilson, Olivia Thirlby of Juno/The Wackness fame, Christina Ricci and so many more indie movie people you felt manipulated into having liked in their first one or two movies before you realized they were narcissistic assholes (duh) and dumb (duh) — but also an ensemble bunch of directors, among them Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman! Here is the movie's most profound thought thus far leaked:

Rachael Ray celebrates the big 4-0 today, just a week after she earned the top spot on Forbes' list of the richest celebrity chefs. Others blowing out candles today: Regis Philbin is 77, Gossip Girl's Blake Lively is 21, Rachel Bilson is 27, and Kiss' Gene Simmons is 59. Actor Blair Underwood is turning 44. Country singer Billy Ray Cyrus is 47. Disgraced media mogul Conrad Black is 64. Theater producer Marc Routh is 46 today. Director Tim Burton is celebrating his 50th. Sean Connery is turning 78. And supermodel Claudia Schiffer is 38.

• A visiting Kim Kardashian was rushed to New York-Presbyterian late last night after she cut her foot on a glass coffee table at her hotel. [TMZ]

Baloney McCheesestick seized a golden opportunity on Thursday afternoon to get busy with Gossip Girl star Blake Lively. Baloney's parents knew that one of their child's greatest desires was to hump the leg of one of the actresses from the popular CW series. Baloney's mother said, "Whenever we watch the show, Baloney just goes to town on his little sleep pillow." Baloney's father felt that his son's habit had become disturbing, but is optimistic that Baloney's session with Blake Lively's right boot will cure his problem. Baloney's father said, "He's been there, he's done it and, hopefully, it's over. We can only hope that he doesn't get into the new 90210."

After making an unsettling detour to Closeted-Heartthrob Rapesville, the Blind Item Express is once more on the move, this time heading for sunnier, more sapphic waters. How else to explain this provocative post from Crazy Days and Nights:

PrivacyWatch celebrity sightings are submitted by our millions of Defamer operatives. We'd like to remind you that this feature is powered by you, so if you want to see more installments of PrivacyWatch, then all you've got to do is to send us your sightings. Submit yours to tips[AT]defamer.com (please put "sighting" or "PrivacyWatch" in the subject line so we don't lose them) and tell everyone about the time you saw NPH getting all sweaty during a workout. In today's installment: Neil Patrick Harris, Woody Allen, Matthew McConaughey, Brian Grazer, Blake Lively, Pierce Brosnan, Christian Slater, Chris Noth, Jason Lee, Jenny Lewis, John Rzeznik, Dave Navarro, Mark McGrath, Dyan Cannon, Camryn Manheim, Bruce Vilanch and more!WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 6 · I was at the Arsenal in Los Angeles last night and saw (HOT)MIKE BORTONE (Survivor), PAMELA ALDON ( I remember her from Grease 2, but now on Californication and King of the Hill) and LIZA SNYDER (Yes, Please). They looked like they were having a great time, drinking & laughing & hanging out with a bunch of fun people. At one point I thought Liza & Pamela were going to get up & dance with the DJ's, but no luck. Good Times. THURSDAY, AUGUST 7 · Saw BLAKE LIVELY at Urth Cafe in Beverly Hills. Amazingly, she mistook ME for one of her friends and stopped me as I walked by and said, "Hello." She realized her error and was very sweet in apologizing. She's as pretty in person as she is on TV. · DYAN CANNON — all 90lbs of her — managed to waft/ tremble/ stumble into my abs class today at Equinox. I thought to myself, "Oh my god, that woman looks like the gorgeous Dyan Cannon, star of my all-time favorite and underrated Al Pacino movie Author! Author! But it can't be her because her surgically enhanced lips are bigger than my ass." While the instructor yelled at us during the "reverse crunch" series ("this targets LBF, people! Lower Back Fat! Nothing attractive about that!"), I determined that it was indeed her. Her body is 15, most of her face is 35, but her lips are just...wow. A very bad decision. Sort of criminal, really, that some surgeon would go through with that. Someone should hire her for something—but first demand she gets rid of the trout pout. · I saw WOODY ALLEN & SOON YI today at MOCA. He does not at all try to hide the fact that he's looking at you. Definitely a people watcher. SATURDAY, AUGUST 8 · While at the Eddie Izzard show at the Kodak, I spotted a very cheery CAMRYN MANHEIM. I always expect her to be in a foul mood but she seemed open and, dare I say, bubbly. As I was waiting for the show to start I felt the cold wave of hack comedy wash over the crowd. As I turn around, I see a T-shirt with a hacky comment and the unmistakable bleached bowl-cut of BRUCE VILANCH entering the room. Watching Izzard perform, Vilanch must have felt like a midget trying to guard Shaq. Hopefully it made him realize he should quit the business and leave the hackiness to butchers, golfers, and Dane Cook. SUNDAY, AUGUST 10 · I saw JOHN RZEZNIK of the Goo Goo Dolls getting his Polish on at Warszawa in Santa Monica. He was with some appropriately punk looking pals, pretty cool, having his pierogi. MONDAY, AUGUST 11 · It was the day of hot rocker boys of the 90’s at Equinox on Sunset. Saw DAVE NAVARRO and MARK MCGRATH. Dave’s always there, so that might not be much of a sighting. Mark got approached by some overeager fangirls and looked a bit confused, then scurried away. TUESDAY, AUGUST 12 · It was a celebrity smorgasbord at Nobu (Malibu) around 8:30pm: BRIAN GRAZER, PIERCE BROSNAN (looking fantastic!), CHRISTIAN SLATER (not so much) and MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY (the usual). They were not all together as that would be just plain weird. WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 13 · Driving home from work last night (13 Aug) I passed MIA MICHAELS (So You Think You Can Dance) heading in the opposite direction (west - natch!) on the Santa Monica Blvd. at the Van Ness intersection. She drives something big and Jeep-like and black. Naughty lady was at the wheel and using her cellphone. Brazenly! But then, as we all know, celebs are above the law. · While waiting outside of my chiropractors office...I see CHRIS NOTH (aka, BIG) come out of "Miss Barry's Bootcamp". He was shirtless and glistening all over (having just finished being tortured by "Miss"). Anyway, he was very nice and did not seem to mind people checking him out (nice bod for an over 50 man). Needless to say my tiny little life got a lot bigger for a second. · It was a celebrity paradox at Poquito Mas on Cahuenga. First, we see a scruffy yet sexy JASON LEE eating with his son PILOT. He seemed like a typical father with him, very sweet, taking him to the bathroom, making sure he had enough nachos, etc. He had a FULL beard (Jason Lee, not the kid), but it kind of worked on him. Then, just minutes later, an absolutely adorable JENNY LEWIS walked in with a pal. They looked like two sweet high school girls. She and Jason Lee made the awkward "I'm famous and you're famous and we are kind of Silver Lakey-Eastsider cool" nod to each other and I couldn't help but think that they would be an adorable couple. A little too cool for school though, perhaps... THURSDAY, AUGUST 14 · NEIL PATRICK HARRIS and DAVID WALTON (from Quarterlife) are working up a sweat (separately) at Equinox on Sunset.

It was business as usual on the Brooklyn set of the popular CW series Gossip Girl as stars Leighton Meester and Blake Lively engaged in yet another catfight to boost cast and crew morale after a long and tiresome day of production. Meester and Lively feel like the occasional bout of hair-pulling and pillow fighting sets a good example for the other cast members and are reportedly encouraging their co-stars Taylor Momsen and Michelle Trachtenberg to follow suit. Lively said, "The grips and gaffers seem to get a real kick out of it which helps. The makeup people, not so much, but it really helps you get into the scene. Like a shot of adrenaline into the heart."

[Um, completely-out-of-context spoiler alert? "Gossip Girl" actresses Blake Lively and Leighton Meester fighting on set in Brooklyn last night. And then they stopped and giggled a bit, and played with each other's hair, and smiled coyly, and then they leaned in closer to each other, closer and closer, their breath hot, their eyes wild with possibility, they leaned closer and closer... and then farted; image via INF] Aaron Altman's new line beats the original, Actresses Get Into Terrible Fight About Which Of Their Costars Is Gayer.

Katie Holmes and Suri Cruise boarding a helicopter ... Ed Westwick and Blake Lively shooting a Gossip Girl scene in Brooklyn Heights ... Lipstick Jungle star Paul Blackthorne riding a bike in the Village ... Kristen Johnson walking through the meatpacking district ... Al Pacino eating lunch in the Village ... Tim Robbins playing roller hockey in Greenwich Village ... Cynthia Nixon chatting on her cell phone in the Hamptons ... Sam Waterston posing with his son James outside a Broadway theater ... Liv Tyler leaving her apartment in the West Village ... and Keri Russell taking a jog in the rain.

• Supposedly, Mary-Kate Olsen could get drawn back in to the Heath Ledger investigation "should new information become available... 'She's somebody they still have their eyes on.'" [The Awful Truth]

• John Edwards probably won't be invited to speak at the Democratic national convention unless he addresses those nagging rumors that he had a love child with Rielle Hunter. [Page Six]

Parker Posey walking her dog through the Village ... Katie Holmes leaving another day of rehearsals and walking to a playground with Suri a few hours later ... Mariska Hargitay, Christopher Meloni, and Luke Perry shooting a scene for Law & Order in the meatpacking district ... Kelly Ripa outside the David Letterman show ... Blake Lively and Taylor Momsen showing up to the Gossip Girl set in Chinatown ... and Lydia Hearst and Aubrey O'Day posing for a Tara Subkoff "photo shoot" downtown.

["My mother groaned, my father wept, / Into the dangerous world I leapt; / Helpless, naked, piping loud, / Like a fiend hid in a cloud..." "Gossip Girl" and "Traveling Magic Pants" actor Blake Lively filming a Good Morning America segment today; image via INF]

Only three years ago, Blake Lively was just That Blonde Girl from The Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants, and America Ferrera was just the Token Dorky Sidekick. Alexis Bledel and Amber Tamblyn, on the other hand, were bonafide TV stars. My, how things have changed. With the film's sequel debuting next month, we take a look at how each of the leading ladies has done career-wise since the original racked up nearly $40MM at the box office in 2005. While there’s a bit of bad news for the original's biggest stars, there’s an alternate way of looking at this role reversal: any actress’ status as the perennial “buddy” can obviously change with one little show that could.Blake Lively/Bridget: With only one credit behind her before the first Pants, 1998’s Sandman, Lively got her big break as Bridget the jock. Even though no one knew who she was at the time, she built her buzz by appearing in a few cheesy movies like the Justin Long vehicle Accepted. But now, thanks to Gossip Girl and its sultry appeal (ratings be damned!), Lively is arguably the boldest name on the sequel’s marquee. America Ferrera/Carmen: Cast as the not-so-pretty one who most magically fit into the same jans all four girls kept handing off, America is obviously the biggest success story when it comes to acting cred (an Emmy), ratings (Ugly Betty), and general public appeal (we don’t even want to think about counting how many magazine covers with the hed “America The Beautiful!” she’s appeared on in the last two years). Amber Tamblyn/Tibby: Having blown away TV critics as the lead in Joan of Arcadia the same year Pants came out (and racking up Golden Globe and Emmy noms along the way), Tamblyn was a shiny bright new fixture on the circuit. But the only notable film Tamblyn has appeared in since? The Grudge 2. Oops. The only reason we can think of for Amber’s dimming star? Michelle Trachtenberg. Sort of the more telegenic, tabloid-friendly version of Tamblyn, with all sorts of Pete Wentz/Ashlee Simpson sloppiness to keep the kids entertained. Alexis Bledel/Lena: Pants came out at the height of Gilmore Girls’ gooey success, just before new writers took over and turned the show into an even faster-paced linguistic mess of confusion. And Bledel was the biggest draw among all four, cast as the “pretty” one with the heftiest romantic plotline and most cinematic backdrop (finding love in Greece). But the only upcoming flick on Bledel’s radar at the moment — aside from Pants 2 — is a comedy with Michael Keaton (which would've been a great gig in the late 80s, but today? Not so much). And the last time we saw her out and about was at the 2006 fashion shows alongside then-boyfriend Milo Ventimiglia — while Milo’s struck gold in Heroes, Alexis has yet to find a similarly cozy rebound gig. [Photo credits: Getty]

Adriana Lima leaving the set of CW11's Morning Show ... Lindsay Lohan and Sam Ronson shopping at the Chanel store in SoHo and then having lunch at Bar Pitti a few hours later ... Naomi Watts and a friend shopping with Watts' son, Alexander, in tow ... Kirsten Dunst shopping with a friend in SoHo ... British actor Simon Pegg leaving his hotel ... America's Next Top Model winner Whitney Thompson on the set of a photo shoot in the West Village ... Sheryl Crow, son Wyatt, and the nanny walking home from a shopping excursion in SoHo ... America Ferrera posing with Blake Lively at the premiere of their new movie, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 ... Mary Louise Parker and Richard Simmons leaving The Late Show set.

On the Manhattan set of Gossip Girl, Leighton Meester tried to use her script to shield herself from the sun, photographers, and any Blake Lively/Penn Badgley full throttle make out sessions. Meester doesn't mind that her co stars are enjoying their relationship, it's just that she minds the fact that it happens all the time: in between takes, while setting up the lights, while at lunch, in line at Starbucks, Waverly Inn and on the L train. Meester said, "I love people in love, but sometimes, you need to be considerate of those around and take it into a dark alley or your trailer."