Focus Pictures, PacificCoastNews.com

Well the ugliness that was Mr. and Mrs. Madonna has come to an end, and with a very high, or a very small, price tag. This is one of those situations where perspective is relative. For me? 75 mil is quite a big pocket of dabloons. For someone whose net worth is almost ten times that much, it’s lunch money. But yes, the divorce settlement between Madonna and Guy Ritchie has come to fruition, and Guy will be laughing his way to the bank over it. Madonna has been ordered to pay Guy an alimony and divorce settlement in the range of the 50 million pound mark, which translates roughly to about $75 million US. In this settlement Guy will get to keep the couple’s country home, the Ashcombe House, as well as the pub they (now onece) shared called the Punchbowl. So Guy Ritchie has been reduced to nothing more than a bar owner with a fancy home and a sweet bag of Christmas cash, and Madonna, well, she’ll make up that settlement and then some in her Sticky and Sweet tour. In fact, she already has, as this tour is another of Madonna’s record setting news makers, and has already grossed over $230 million dollars. Part of the cash settlement does include the value of the homes, so he won’t walk away with $75 million straight cash, but, does it matter? The issue that makes this sum so grotesque however is that this is the highest divorce settlement in the entertainment industry of all time. Oh yes, even higher than the one that Sir Paul McCartney had to pay out to his psycho ex-wife Heather Mills. In fact, it may even be the highest divorce settlement EVER, with the previously largest payout going to insurance tycoon’s John Charman’s ex wife who got just a little less, with $48 million pounds, which isn’t a whole lot less than $75 million USD, give or take a few million. The funny thing is that the Madonna divorce cost more than the McCartney divorce, and yet, they had the same divorce lawyer. What does this say about the entertainment industry? Does this mean that Madonna is a bigger star than Paul McCartney…..ouch, as we hear a collective protest rising up from any Beatles fan former or otherwise. Sir Paul McCartney is definitely an icon, and a name that will make money for many generations to come, but no, I don’t think this is what the settlement infers. I think the Heather/Paul thing was actually much uglier, and Paul just wasn’t budging for her, and with Madonna, I think she just wanted the whole thing to be over with plain and simple. Two tickets to a Sticky and Sweet concert, $100 bucks. One divorce settlement, $75 million. The cost of freedom? Priceless.

Dave Lucas, PacicficCoastNews.com

We’ve heard some rumors and mumbling for quite some time now about Gwyneth Paltrow and her marriage to Chris Martin. They’ve been having trouble, not having trouble, over and over again. Well, it sounds like they are back to having trouble, and in an even weirder twist, Madonna may be the one to blame. This will make the third marriage this year that Madonna is being blamed for bringing to an end, if you count her own and A-Rods, so her track record doesn’t seem to be doing that well. But Gwyneth and her hubby, Coldplay star Chris Martin have been having a work induced separation of sorts as Chris has been out touring and Gwyneth has been working, but the two are back home in London and trying to save their marriage. They are trying so hard that Gwyneth even passed up the chance to host New York’s preeminent lunch box auction, an event that she has hosted for three years straight, but Gwyneth gave it all up for the love of her marriage. Where Madonna comes in is that Madonna and Gwyneth have become BFF’s since Gwyneth’s move to London, and reports are that Madonna has a star effect on Gwyneth causing her to act a little loopy since the new found friendship. Sources are saying that Madonna has had an odd effect on Gwyneth, and Gwyneth has become a totally different person since Madonna came into her life. Gwyneth supposedly acts normal until Madonna shows around, and this character change has caused a rift in her marriage. And if they are trying to work on their marriage, they don’t have much time. Gwyneth’s hubby Chris is heading out to tour again with Coldplay come February. What is to become of this marriage? Hmmm….hard to say. But couples that are happy, rarely have splitsville rumors hitting them this hard, this often. I think this is one marriage we can put on deathwatch.

Darla Khazei, PacificCoastNews.com

Well we have all heard so much about the Madonna and A-Rod thing that we don’t even know what to really believe anymore. But there is enough being said that we can not dispute the fact that SOMETHING is going on with the two. And even though none of us are really sure about what is going on there, or how long it has been going on, they are still very clearly in the honeymoon phase of whatever it is. So much so that the word ‘intoxicated’ is being used by those close to the pair. Madonna hasn’t publicly admitted her affair, now why would she, that would just make her look like a cheating tramp, but hasn’t denied much either. Not that she would be able to considering she and A Rod are seen just about everywhere together whenever they can. But friends of Madonna describe the happy couple as ‘very very, cozy’. They confirm that the two are intimate and that A-Rod is even moonstruck to be dating such a mega star. The same source says:

This isn’t a deep and serious love affair. It will last as long as Madonna wants it to. She could get five or six years out of it - but only if it’s in her best interest to keep him around.

Not too telling, huh? Well, shouldn’t be all that surprising though, we know that Madonna only does what she thinks is best for her. But in the meantime, while she has him, she is certainly enjoying him. They both spent the weekend in Mexico City last weekend, and though they are not planning on moving in together, they are planning on moving ‘near’ each other in New York City. Right. Because THAT’S subtle. Before A-Rod’s divorce he was planning on moving to the Upper East Side and Madonna, naturally, offered to help him. And guess where Madonna’s home is? You got it. How long are we giving these two?

Madonna is seen here in New York as she attends a Kabbalah center with her son David Banda and though she is doing her best to keep a low profile amidst her ugly divorce with Guy Ritchie, she is not being very successful with it. No, that Madonna is one sticky girl, no matter how sweet she is. And it seems that now that the proceedings have finalized, she feels it is safe to poke her head out into public with one name that has been in almost every discussion since her divorce went public – Alex Rodriguez.

Yes, Madonna has worked very hard to try to get the point across that she did not have an affair with A-Rod, but she hasn’t been very successful at it. She has made these subtle and not so quiet moves with A-Rod, thinking that with the divorce final, it should be okay, right? Well, maybe showing up at his house for Thanksgiving when the ink on the divorce paper isn’t even dry may not have been the best move. But hey, Madonna will do what she wants, when she wants, right? Right.

(more…)

Anthony, PacificCoastNews.com

Britney Spears is seen here having just another normal day for herself as she does some shopping in Studio City, California. Seen with a cigarette in hand, she strolls down Ventura Boulevard in Los Angeles with the company of her security team. Britney stopped into Old Navy and Banana Republic before she headed home. And Britney was heading home to rumors that she would be repeating history by performing with old friends Justin Timberlake and Madonna at Dodger Stadium on Thursday night. The performance is said to be the grand finale of Madonna’s Sticky and Sweet tour and with Britney and Justin both performing together, in the same room, being civil, some say that perhaps hell has finally frozen over. The rumor was first reported by Ryan Seacrest on his radio show, who could barely contain himself with excitement over the issue:

If Justin and Britney end up on that stage with her…I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anything quite like that before…..

This is not the first collaboration for Britney with Madonna on this tour, as Britney was featured in a video on Madonna’s tour. The video features a claustrophobic panic attack in an elevator and was shown during Madonna’s performance of ‘Human Nature’. Naturally, Justin Timberlake plays the falsetto hook in ‘Four Minutes’. Some close to Britney are a little concerned about her mental state over the whole thing, saying that in many ways, she is still child like. Mind you, the LAST time she performed with Justin Timberlake, she WAS a child, so it may work out to her advantage.

pacificcoastnews.com

Well, we may be reaching that emotionally exhausted point in the ongoing melodrama that is Madonna and Guy Ritchie. It sounds like Madonna has moved from her KGB ways and angry accusations that she has softened up and reached out to estranged husband Guy Ritchie. She has made verbal contact with him and spoken with him for the first time since they came public about their pending divorce. Madonna wants settle their divorce out of court, and has worked to make contact with Guy to see if the situation can be discussed amicably. On Tuesday night, out of the blue Madonna made a phone call to Guy in a rather emotional state. She wants for them to get the emotional stuff on the table so that they can sort out the legal problems in a friendly and amicable manner. Oh and she pulled out all the emotional buttons on this one. She reminded him of all of the good times they had, and tried to show him that neither one of them wanted a messy and public affair. She broke down about how hard she tried to work for him and for their family, and that she had been saddened and insulted by many of the criticisms about her that have come to light from his side of the camp. And it was not Madonna’s legal team that thought that mending emotional matters would ‘look good for her’. But it was Madonna’s spiritual Kabbalah leader to contact Guy for her own emotional growth and well-being. There is no official word on what the outcome of the phone call was, but Madonna staffers said that immediately following the phone call she broke down in front of her entire staff in tears for the first time. Those close to her are saying the divorce and ugly public nature are taking their toll, and they hope the phone call was the beginning of the end. Me too, it’s exhausting watching this. I can’t imagine how exhausting it must be living it.

Double Click Images, Pacificcoastnews.com

Yep, we’ve all seen this one coming. It’s the kind of ugly battle we sort of wince while we cross our fingers and hope for the amicable best but yet, it never happens in these high profile cases, does it? The custody battle between Guy Ritchie and Madonna and their three children has officially started. And since Madonna is touring on her Sweet N Sticky Tour, while Guy Ritchie is directing ‘Sherlock Holmes’ in London, and the kids are actually in NEW YORK, I am not sure how either of them plans to be very successful here in proving what stellar parents they are. Yes, the mini Madonna-lets are Lourdes who is 12, Rocco who is 8, and their adopted son together David who is 3. Lourdes is Maddona’s child by another father, so she may escape the heat here. Though, given that Madonna and her hectic schedule have already been granted custody of Lourdes, Guy’s fight to gain sole custody of Rocco and David may not go well. Guy wants them raised in London, and Madonna has taken up full-time residence in New York when she is not touring. So what to do with the kids? Well, since they see more of their nannies than anyone else, this is where the ugliness is starting. And my bet is that some sweet nannies are going to be paid handsomely to talk very sweet and not so sticky about their employer Madonna. But the first stage will be to grill them sufficiently, and find some dirt. Guy then is hoping to pair said dirt with the fact that Madonna’s time is more devoted to her career than her kids, and given that he’s had the luxury of sitting on his behind for a few years, that may bode well in is favour. But since the family courts rarely if ever separate siblings, and Madonna already has Lourdes, well….I think this will be another point for Madonna, and zilcho for Mr. Ritchie. But that’s not to say it can’t get ugly in the meantime. Because we all know it will.

Focus Pictures, PacificCoastNews.com

Madonna is seen here in what was probably one of her last public events with her now estranged husband, Guy Ritchie. The two appeared together at the Punchbowl Pub in Mayfair to celebrate Guy’s 40th birthday. And unbeknownst to us, this appearance together was just that, an appearance, as by this time, they had already decided they were done for good and were just ‘making face’ for the public. Now, as we know, the couple have filed for divorce and are fighting their way through what might be one of Hollywood’s ugliest divorce battles. It’s gotten so ugly that the two are throwing out public and heinous accusations about the other. Madonna is saying that he cheated on her, Guy is saying that she’s spying on him, and he’s also accused her of acting out in rage. Yet despite the one ugly accusation after another, the two have at least remembered that there are children involved, and it sounds like Madonna is being proactive, as far as one of Guy’s accusations is concerned. Should it ever get to an ugly custody suit, which it well may, Madonna is working to ensure that she is not seen as the raging spy bull that Guy is painting her out to be. Instead, she is seeking anger management help through her Kabbalah religion in order to soothe her emotions and give herself some peace throughout the entire processes. She is seeking counselling through the Kabbalah center in New York City to help her cope with her anger towards Guy and his cold treatment towards her during their marriage. This may be the sanest thing we have heard come out of this ugly divorce situation, which proves yet again that of the two, Madonna is clearly the one with a solid head on her shoulders and is taking proactive steps in the right direction.