Word: though
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1990-1990
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Where do column items come from? Though the particulars vary from city to city, the tricks of the trade are fairly constant. Sources must be cultivated, glamorous friends coddled, and, of course, press agents heeded as they relentlessly push tips. Certain restaurants are musts. In Los Angeles it's Le Dome or the Ivy for lunch, Morton's or Spago for dinner. In Chicago the image- conscious can be found at the Establishment-oriented Pump Room or the more hip Eccentric, partly owned by Oprah. In New York City the Russian Tea Room is best for the show-business throng...
That is open to debate. Some columnists point out that there is little one can say today that can ruin a person. Extramarital affairs, divorce, children out of wedlock are no longer utterly shocking (though they may bring harsher judgments on politicians than, say, screen stars, because indiscretions call character and judgment into question). "There is no one today who has the power of, say, Louella Parsons," observes novelist Nora Ephron. "Those people could really punish you." When Parsons revealed in 1949 that Ingrid Bergman had left her husband for director Roberto Rossellini, the scandal kept her from making movies...
...more fact oriented, less careless, less reliant on hearsay." In Winchell's day, he notes, columnists ran more blind items in which no names were used, and thus were more apt to take a chance on a tip. Today's scribes are more likely to seek confirmation, though they will still rely on a hunch. Last fall Washington Times gossip writer Charlotte Hays heard that actress Kelly McGillis, who had signed for the season at the Shakespeare Theater at the Folger, was pregnant and would leave months early. "The accuracy of the rumor was obvious from the way the Folger...
Gossip columnists admit they will haggle for a story. According to Mitchell Fink, a PEOPLE magazine columnist and Fox Entertainment News commentator, a smart flack will serve up several good items having nothing to do with his clients -- though maybe a juicy expose about someone else's -- before offering a tidbit designed to make a client look good. "How can I say no," Fink asks, "when they have sent me other blockbuster items?" Smart press agents know how to manipulate a client's image by choosing what charities and causes to support. However inconvenient the information that is circulating about...
...Neither Abe nor Mary has marrow that matches Anissa's. (Reason: her marrow has a mixture of genetic characteristics from both parents.) Nor does brother Airon, 19, have marrow that is compatible with his sister's. And a search for a suitable nonrelated donor has been fruitless to date, though the hunt continues...