· [Vogue] editor Anna Wintour reportedly nixed a cover of J-Lo because she thought J-Lo "wasn't Vogue material." [Page Six]
· Wide Right lead singer Leah Archibald's explanation for their song about Vincent Gallo: too much Gallo in Buffalo 66 (and too much of Gallo's "manhood") [Page Six]
· Quentin Tarantino on the fake blood he plans to use in his upcoming flick, "Kill Bill": "I don't want horror movie blood, all right? I want Samurai blood. You can't pour this raspberry pancake syrup on a sword and have it look good. You have to have this special kind of blood that you only see in Samurai movies." [Page Six]
· Johnson and Johnson heiress Casey Johnson on why she left New York: "I left New York because all they care about [is] if you mess up...I mean, I turned up on Page Six once because my thong was showing." [Page Six]
· The Daily News reports that "Bruce Colley, the polo-playing club owner who is said to have come between Andrew Cuomo and his wife, Kerry Kennedy Cuomo, is an investor in the new Off-Broadway show, 'Pieces of Ass.' (a kind of "Vagina Monologues" for Scores girls.) [NY Daily News]

Todd Headlee writes in to say that he's not the ex-manager of Milli Vanilli, nor is he representating American Idol loser Clay Aiken. He is an honest-to-god Clay Aiken fan. (Careful, Todd. No taking that back ten years from now. It's in print now. Or Google cache, as it were.) I suggest you read the whole thing. ("More" at the bottom of the post.)

Photographic evidence:

Apparently the verse on the Easthampton Church is correct. It is "the rich ruleth the poor." A reader comments, "Wouldn't you know it? Now all the Hamptonites think they're ordained by God to be assholes."

A visitor reports that all is normal in the Hamptons: "I thought I'd share my experience in the Hampton's when I was visiting NYC last week. The first thing i saw when we got out of the car in Easthampton was some 3 or 4 year old tyke drop his drawers and start pissing wildly all over the sidewalk. We were busy trying to put on some airs, so it made good conversation about how much the Hampton's have gone downhill when one has to watch people urinate in the streets. The only other good thing to come out of that trip, other than the vineyard tasting tour home, was the Easthampton Church on the road into town. I would like to assume it was the work of vandals, but since no one in the area seems to think they exist there, I am left to surmise it was indeed legitimate. The church readerboard in front had the following golden quote from God: 'The rich shall ruleth over the poor' on both sides. Then I found out it's an actual proverb. Damn." [Ed.I'm pretty sure it's "the poor shall ruleth over the rich."]

Looks like CNN's Tucker Carlson will be having filet of sole (of shoe) for dinner tonight. The CNN commentator promised to eat his footwear (and possibly his tie), if Hillary Clinton's book sold a million copies. Predictably, the book sold a million copies.
Clinton's book sales top 1 million [Yahoo]

· Last night at Soho House: David Duchovny, Peter Berg, David Cross and a Stroke...none canoodling.
· Sex and the City being filmed on 21st & 5th: I caught a lookie at Sarah Jessica Parker and Kristin Davis out of the cubicle window this morning. Both are dressed in [mostly] all white and Sarah has a new hair-do. Shorter, darker, hair makes her look shorter and darker.
· I saw Britney Spears today eating at Time Cafe (Lafayette and Great Jones) around 8PM with another cute blonde girl. No S&M uniform, unfortunately. A baseball cap, pink t-shirt, jeans, & lots of make up.

A reader reports that Brooklyn band Wide Right has written a song about indie film star/nutjob Vincent Gallo. The lyrics (or a close approximation) read: "Vincent Gallo was his name/ stuck his face in every single frame/ the impact of your film was tarnished/ too many images of you/ you captured the depression/ of a loser town on a winter morn/ the ensemble cast still couldn't save us/ from endless close-ups of your pores.." Given Gallo's proximity to indie queen of Williamsburg, Chloe Sevigny, one has to wonder if Brooklyn hipsterdom is now eating its own. (We can only hope.)

The Observer (UK) steals a bit from the Observer (NY), pronouncing British academics the new "It Brits" and using Toby Young's book party at Soho House as Exhibit Number One. Says one academic [Niall Ferguson]: "'One couldn't imagine all of this happening in Oxford, where there's a kind of gentleman's agreement that we're all equally brilliant. It's extremely bad form to suggest that one person is as vulgar as to be a star." (Bad form to suggest, but not to think.) [UPDATE: Spot the recycled quotes: Aside from the recycled Observer quotes, the one above is, according to a reader, from a "NYTM profile of John Sexton/report on the recruitment of economist-types."]
Why Brits with brains are the Big Apple's new blondes [Observer UK]

· A crew member on Barry Diller's yacht ran the tender into the marina breakwater at high speed during on of Diller's stepson Alexandre von Furstenberg's parties, resulting in another crew member being airlifted to the hospital, where he is in a coma. [Page Six]
· Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter last year: "I'm not part of the Hamptons social scene, I'm not part of the black-tie scene." This year: rents a house in East Hampton. [Page Six]
· Liz Smith says that "even serial killers would refuse to wear fashions" by John Richmond, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Yohji Yamamoto, [and] Vivienne Westwood. [Liz Smith]
· Recently fired right-wing talk show host Michael Savage threatened to sue Radar magazine over an article featuring a letter he wrote to Allen Ginsberg in 1970 with vaguely homoerotic subtext. So far: all talk; no action. [NY Daily News]

Useful service journalism: iHamptons.com provides a list of 10 "Rules of Behavior" for Hamptons-goers. Rule 2: "Let the person behind the counter know who's important and who's trash help. Alpha-Hamptonites toiled all winter in the city at their six-figure jobs to be treated with respect by underlings in local stores, whether it be some college kid trying to earn spare cash during summer break or a Bonacker housewife from Springs who needs to help feed her three kids. You are important—you are important in your business and in your child's school and even in your apartment building, where your spouse is on the board. Let the counter-help know who you are!"
10 rules for behavior in the Hamptons [iHamptons]

From top of the Surface Hotel:

Speaking of NY mobs and guidos, Henry Hill (the original "goodfella") has published a memoir/mobster's guide to New York. Henry Hill on celeb hangout, Man Ray: "It would be a great place to rob." On Madison Square Garden: "We've run more bets at games that happened here than any other facility in the country."
Wiseguy Henry Hill writes NYC tour booko [CNN]

Per this morning's Star magazine mock-up, Norman Mailer on Britney Spears: "Dear Britney, Our New Jersey Meadowlands thrummed with anticipation over your appearance. The tension, I am sure, felled men lesser than myself, for I am used to staring into the crucible of the American experience and emerging perhaps singed, but unbowed. But I must confess that in your presence I grow a touch crazy and perhaps find myself 'in too deep,' as you so aptly put it." Alright, not really. But it's still funny. See also, J.D. Salinger on Britney: "Dear Miss Spears, This morning, I saw your cover spread in what I thought was the goddam Times Magazine. Later, my major domo informed me that I was actually reading Rolling Stone, which explains why it seemed like William Safire devoted so goddam much of this week s column to some phony named 'Lil' Kim.'"
The Britney Papers [Modern Humorist]

The Mob projecta sort of live art installation composed of spontaneously appearing and disappearing "mobs" of peopleis spreading beyond its NYC [Harpers/McSweeney's/Tinkle] roots and infiltrating other lesser cities like Minneapolis, San Francisco, Dallas, London and Raleigh-Durham. *Sigh.* Evvvvveryone wants to be like New York. It's such a burden, being the cultural trend-setter for the rest of the country. What with transducing the American zeitgeist into tangible art, fashion, and entertainment trends twenty-four hours a day, there's barely time to stop and smell the [freshly manicured by the illegal help] roses. I mean, really! Can't you other cities make up your own bizarre art projects? Must we do everything for you?
Manhattan inspires Minneapolis arts mob [Minneapolis Star Tribune]

The Illuminated Donkey's Ken Goldstein interviews the Guido behind NJGuido.com:
Describe your perfect NJGuido moment.
"The perfect NJGUIDO moment is being in Surf Club surrounded by hot women in Bikini s with the DJ playing a club classic from summer of 1999 like Sal Dano's "Hands Up" while sipping on Ketel on the rocks in my Dolce and Gabana Jeans and Tank Top while dancing with the beautiful ladies one at a time on a Sunday afternoon in July. And this is exactly what happens..."
Special summer report from the Guido state! [Illuminated Donkey]

· Soho house upstairs bar last night, saw Betsey Johnson wearing a (for her) archetypal midriff-baring outfit that would have made Christina Aguilera blush. I know BJ is "of a certain age", but her gut would have made Xtina blush as well. PS - couldn't go to pool bar last night because Sex and the City was filming there
· Friday July 4. The Mercury. Winona Ryder and a new flavor of the month musician. Winona is apparantly done with Conor Oberst and has moved on to my friend, the taller, more depressing dark-haired songwriter, Jeff Klein of Austin, Texas. Jeff is in Manhattan for a month of residency shows at the Living Room. He was at the Mercury for the Tommy Stinson show and Ms. Ryder approached him backstage to make a coy advance. Poor Conor! At least the next Bright Eyes record is secure; the heartbreak should give him material for months...

· Ashton on Demi: "[She] was the hottest actress in Hollywood when I was growing up. I was in love with her when I was 10. Now it's great, I'm [bleeping] her [NY Daily News]
· An NYT staffer's alleging that A&L editor Jodi Kantor is a Raines henchman. (News to me; I thought Frank Rich brought her in.) [Page Six]
· Sharon Stone and Adrien Brody? [Page Six]
· Opening July 13th at Theater 80 on St. Marks Place: "Pieces (of Asses)", a play staring Baywatch babe Krista Allen about "the burden of being a babe in today's society" [Page Six]
· Tatler magazine's "most invited" list: #1: Liz Hurley/Arun Nayar, #2: Lily Safra, #4: Damien Hirst/Maia Norman [Page Six]

Former Milli Vanilli manager Todd Headlee, now representing American Idol runner-up Clay Aiken, begs fans to please, please buy Clay's single (which can be purchased for "the price of a hamburger."):

· I heard a good story about Noth and John Corbett trying to talk their way into Lotus (accompanied by two young ladies) — Chris Noth was yelling at the bouncer "but I'm on Sex and the City." That was last year. I personally saw Noth at the Crunch on Lafayette last Tuesday, apparently trying to work off the innertube he keeps under his shirt. He was lying on his back on one of those massage tables, in full workout gear, while a personal trainer pulled Noth's legs up and down. He should know that you can't pay someone to exercise for you.
· Back a thousand years ago, when i first moved to NYC, a hipster girl wasn't worth her salt unless she'd been hit on and then hooked up with a Beastie Boy. Then it became Matt Dillion, then i dunno who. I kinda got outta the scene, maybe it was David Spade?? Or Carson Daly ? ? but fer the last few years its been chris noth. Same m.o.: hits on chicks who he figures aren't sure he's famous, then pulls out some article written about him. I'm 40 now, and believe me, not a blonde Hilton sister lookalike, but he (MR "Big" ) tried to pick meup a few years ago at that place at 10th & Bway. Its like a construction worker—you know you're slippin' if Chris Noth/Beastie du jour / Matt Dillon doesn't hit on you.