Gossip Girl News August Gossip Girl: Carter Baizen Going from Shady Drifter to Series Regular? Source: Buddytv.com
August 26, 2009 Carter Baizen is one of those interesting characters in the Gossip Girl mythos who doesn't show up all the time, but when he does, we get a glimpse of an untold history with all our main players. After watching him trick Nate out of some major cash, seduce Blair behind Chuck's back, and constantly allude to Santorini with Serena, how can we not be curious about this shady fellow? Whether you love him, hate him, or are just plain suspicious... admit it, you're curious about Carter!
Well, it sounds like in Season 3, at least some of our curiosities about Carter (played by Meester's real-life boyfriend Sebastian Stan) may be answered, as he is slated to take on a more major role in the series, especially when it comes to Serena van der Woodsen.
Here's what E! Online's sources close to the show had to say about Carter's future on Gossip Girl:
Carter Baizen may or may not be the most reliable-seeming fellow, but even if you don't trust him, you'd better get used to him.
Sources tell us that Carter Baizen is a major figure in the first seven episodes of Gossip Girl season three, and while nothing's set it stone, it's likely that he will recur heavily throughout the season.
Judging from the set photos leaking from the Gossip Girl set all summer, and the newest promotional photos from the CW for Episode 1, "Reversals of Fortune," the sources are on the mark, and Carter only has eyes for Serena this season. Or could the mysterious Mr. Baizen have an entirely different, and dubious, endgame in mind?
How do you feel about seeing more Carter? Is he an upgrade from ho-hum Dan Humphrey, or is Serena getting herself into another high-risk heartbreak scenario?
ADD A COMMENT | Report: Ed Westwick Filming Gay Kiss for GossipGirl August 26, 2009
Source: People.com
 The big gossip about Gossip Girl this week? That Ed Westwick is filming an episode in which his character, Chuck Bass, kisses another man. Up-and-coming actor Neal Bledsoe plays the object of Bass’s affection, EW.com reports. Bledsoe reportedly plays an NYU administrator who is looking for a student to give the freshman speech. Leighton Meester’s character, Blair Waldorf, reportedly sets Bass up with him to boost her chances at getting the gig. The Chuck Bass character had flings with men and women in the Gossip Girl books by Cecily von Ziegesar, but this will be his first gay encounter on the show.
ADD A COMMENT | Chace CrawfordSource: Interview Magazine
August 25, 2009
 Nate Archibald, the prep-school poster boy of all things physically right about American youth today, has a terrible father but a family legacy that keeps him afloat in Gossip Girl limos and designer cardigans. Last we saw Nate, he was headed to Columbia University, but not before he and Blair broke up at the prom and he headed off to Europe on a backpacking trip with his former flame Vanessa. Nate Archibald’s real-life counterpart, on the other hand, has an extremely supportive father—and mother for that matter, who during this interview was helping her son move from the apartment he shared with Gossip Girl co-star Ed Westwick to his own two-bedroom in Manhattan’s Financial District—but the 24-year-old actor had no Hollywood legacy to help him coast into the loafers of one of teenage fandom’s dreamiest heartthrobs. In other words, for all his innate good looks, Chace Crawford has spent the past few years working very hard to get where he is today. And this year, the Texas native is refusing to stand still and smile pretty, taking on two projects that he hopes will prove he’s serious about his craft. In the spring he wrapped up director Joel Schumacher’s dark thriller Twelve, in which he plays an impoverished teenage drug dealer who tries to figure out what caused the death of his cousin during the epidemic of a new street drug called Twelve (a drug favored by Upper East Side Gossip Girl types). And after much hoopla over Crawford’s replacing Zac Efron in the upcoming remake of Footloose, he gets a chance to show a little more wild enthusiasm—and breakdancing—than Nate usually summons during those tender walk-and-talk Gossip Girl street scenes. The eternally rich Nate Archibald is slowly growing up, it seems, but Crawford already has. He’s single, still in his early 20s, and he finally has his very own bachelor pad.
CHRISTOPHER BOLLEN: I hear you just moved out on your old roommate Ed Westwick. CHACE CRAWFORD: Yeah. My mom’s here saving my ass, helping me out. She did a little pre-planning on the move, so it went smoothly. BOLLEN: What prompted the move? CRAWFORD: Well, I’m turning 24 in two days, so I think it was about time, you know? I mean, I was a little bit on my own in California but mostly living with fraternity brothers. So initially Ed and I became roommates here in New York because we didn’t know if the show was going to last or not. Ed had never lived away from home, let alone in a different country. We got along and figured it would be a smart move financially. And really, it was also just kind of out of laziness. BOLLEN: Did you and Ed have different living styles? Was one of you the better roommate? CRAWFORD: No. It was very much a give-and-take. Sometimes you fall into those kind of brother-brother arguments. But you know what? All this stuff about the place being messy is from people who haven’t even stepped foot inside the place . . . Personally I’m obsessive-compulsive about the placement and cleanliness of my things. But I’m not always the best, so I had a housekeeper come every two weeks. It was pretty immaculate, I have to say. It had its down points, but Ed and I ran a good ship there for a while. We have some good memories. BOLLEN: Is Ed staying put in the old apartment? CRAWFORD: I don’t know. I think it’s up in the air. He might knock down a wall, shake some things up. Hire a decorator. . . [laughs] BOLLEN: So it wasn’t a matter of you two being tossed together by the show in some actors’ dorm? CRAWFORD: No, it was much more casual than that. Much less thought out. I wanted to live in a really nice building, and he really didn’t care. I also didn’t want to be paying an arm and a leg for rent. They give you, like, a $7,000 relocation fee, which goes a long way if you’re like my buddy shooting Friday Night Lights in Austin, Texas, but in New York you have to deal with a $7,000 broker’s fee. It takes more than double that to move and set everything up. Ed’s girlfriend was in town most of the time for the pilot we shot in ’07. So we hung out a little bit and talked about getting a place. We talked to Penn, too, but he had shot a show in New York before and was living, I think, with Milo Ventimiglia. Penn said, “No, but good luck. I’m over the roommate situation.” So I called up Ed and was like, “Hey, man, I’m going to New York tomorrow. Do you want to room with me?” He’s like [faking British accent], “Yeah, why not?” So I looked around and sent him a few pics of the place I found and he said [faking British accent], “Is there any extra room for guest bedrooms?” I was like, “What are you talking about? This is New York. What do you want, a game room? Let’s just make space for a ping-pong room as well.” [laughs] Ed had no idea. But the apartment was in a nice building, and it had a great roof deck. We’d hang out up there all the time with our friends, and it was private.
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| Idea of 'Beautiful Life' and 'Gossip Girl' Crossover Made There is a chance that Chuck Bass and his friends will be on the same scene with the young models of New York City.  The producers of two TV shows on The CW have talked about an idea of crossover. Mike Kelley from "The Beautiful Life: TBL" admitted that he has pitched in an idea to Stephanie Savage of "Gossip Girl" to have the characters from their respective shows crossing paths someday.
Since "TBL" is taking place in New York City, it would be easier for the models to bump into the Upper East Siders who are now enrolling in Universities. "My idea-since these things happen-there are blackouts," Mike revealed. "The idea is that we have two shows that exist in the same city, and if our cast is on the subway, and their cast is on the subway, and then the subway shuts down."
With an increasing number of crossovers out there, Mike is altering its format slightly. "We don't even have to necessarily cross them. We can simply tell two stories with them in the background and maybe have one or two characters cross through," he continued.
Narrowing it down on what kind of story they would like to see, another "TBL" exec Karey Burke told E! Online that she won't mind Chuck Bass stealing some of the models.
"TBL" premieres September 16 while "Gossip Girl " arrives earlier on September 14.
ADD A COMMENT | Firefly Alum Gina Torres Joins Gossip Girl as Vanessa's Mom 8/19/09
Source: Buddytv.com
Actress Gina Torres is now slated to play Vanessa Abrams' (Jessica Szohr) mother on Gossip Girl sometime after the series returns for Season 3.
Viewers may recall that Vanessa has been on her own in Brooklyn for two years, after moving out from her parents' home in Vermont. Now it seems that mom Gabriela is returning to the big city, and will make a bigger impact on Vanessa's life than ever before.
Gabriela Abrams is described as being a warm and outgoing free spirit. Sounds like the Abrams apple didn't fall far from the tree. But Mrs. Abrams will also have "strong opinions," especially when it comes to Vanessa. (Ah, there's my drama! I was afraid I lost you for a second.)
You may recognize Torres from her roles on Alias (as Anna Espinosa), Firefly (as series regular Zoe Washburne), Angel (as Jasmine), and her supporting role in The Matrix sequels, where she met husband and fellow bad-ass Laurence Fishburne. If only they needed an actor for Vanessa's proud papa... fingers crossed!
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| Fashion designers guest on ‘Gossip Girl’ August 17
Source: remote.lohudblogs.com
Since “Gossip Girl” is one of the most stylin’ shows on the tube – and its stars routinely make red carpet best dressed lists – it makes sense that the fashion  world would be clamoring for cameos. So the Women’s Wear Daily report that fashion designers Tory Burch (top) and Marchesa’s Georgina Chapman will be making an appearance on the Oct. 5 episode of “GG” isn’t a huge surprise. The two designers are the latest in a list of guest stars for the upcoming season, which kicks off on Sept. 14. Dreamy polo star Nacho Figueras has reportedly shot his scenes already, and it was recently announced that rockers Sonic Youth will drop by the show, too. Getting excited about the new episodes, boys and girls? Until then, XOXO…
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| Sonic Youth to perform on 'Gossip Girl': a Music MixexclusiveSource: EW
8/14/09  One of New York’s greatest bands is about to appear on New York’s hottest show: EW has confirmed that Sonic Youth will perform an acoustic version of their 1986 single “Starpower” on the fifth episode of Gossip Girl this fall. “Sonic Youth is one of my favorite bands,” says GG showrunner Stephanie Savage, “and last year when I was doing my regular Gossip Girl google search, it came up in some blog about a Sonic Youth show that Thurston [Moore] was playing ‘Psychic Hearts’ and Gossip Girl was playing on a screen in the background. And I was like, ‘Whaaaat? Oh my God. I hope they’re not making fun of us! I hope it was a cool, edgy homage!’ And it turned out that it was — tongue in cheek for sure, but definitely with love, and that they were fans of the show.” (Perhaps worth mentioning: Moore and his bandmate and wife, Kim Gordon, have a 15-year-old daughter.) Last year, Moore and Be Your Own Pet’s Jemina Pearl cut a cover of the Ramones’ “Sheena is a Punk Rocker” for use during Jenny Humphrey’s guerrilla fashion show, and Savage says the conversation continued from there. “We have a very special event coming in Episode 5 that we’re filming right now,” she says, “and they seemed the ideal musical guest for it.” But in fine GG fashion, Savage is mum about the exact circumstances of the festivities involved. “It’s a big event that involves [engaged adults] Rufus and Lily. Just draw your own conclusions,” she laughs. What do you think, Mixers? Does the appearance of a seminal counter-culture band on a populist show like GG inspire OMG!s, WTF?s, or TSO!s? (The latter stands for “They Sold Out,” to be said in an exhausted tone of voice, forgetting that the chance for a whole new audience to hear the awesomeness of Sonic Youth is, well, totes awes.) Is this cooler than last season’s No Doubt appearance? And even though Savage says, “I can kind of die now. I don’t really have anywhere to go from here,” who would you like to see guest-perform next?
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| The Many Faces of Leighton Meester Source: Harper's Bazaar
Aug. 7, 2009
The Gossip Girl star on living her (many) dreams beyond the show. Click here to see the photo shoot, where Leighton ages from her 20s to her 50s.
When Leighton Meester auditioned for the part of Gossip Girl's spoiled rich girl Blair Waldorf in 2007, she bought herself a pair of red shoes: leather slingback heels from Marc by Marc Jacobs (not "big" Marc; the actress could barely afford the little one). Returning to New York following a childhood in Florida, Manhattan, and Los Angeles, she visualized herself tripping down the street in her Blair shoes, like Dorothy landing in Oz. "In my heart, I could picture myself wearing them living in New York," she says. "So I wore them to the audition and got the part. I can't give them away because every time I wear them, I'm living that dream."
Lest one think this young lady in a slouchy gray Chris & Jaime T-shirt and shorts sitting in a New York bistro is possessed by Tony Robbins, this fable is delivered in a very Leighton way: concise and pragmatic. Her feet, today in flip-flops, are firmly, almost defiantly planted on the ground — to withstand the celebrity she is still adjusting to, 18-hour workdays, and, of course, becoming a target of gossip herself.
Having recently been bitten hard by a peril of fame, an alleged sex tape, she arrives at the interview coated in metaphorical sheet metal. Let's get it out of the way, then: In June, some provocative pictures of a rumored "18 years old!!" Leighton were splashed around the Web. While a sex tape can now conceivably be used as a marketing tool (hello, Paris Hilton), in Leighton's case, the reaction was "Oh, no, she didn't."
And, according to Leighton, that would be correct. "[The tape] is not real," she says bluntly, "so it makes me sort of sad. It's unfortunate that it got carried as far as it did." She pauses. "I definitely understand the nature of people better now and that the mere allegation of something like that could be headline news. People think it's real because somebody says it is." She takes a sip of her Coke. "By the way, [as for] me being 18 in those pictures, I don't believe I was.
"I don't want most of what comes along with all of this," Leighton continues at a Blairlike clip. She is protective of her friends, family — much has been written about mother Connie's entering federal prison on drug-smuggling charges while pregnant with Leighton — and relationship (with actor Sebastian Stan). "I'm doing everything I can to keep things separate. I feel like my friends are in a cult because we're like, No outsiders! I've never been crazy. I'm a very good girl, to be honest. I don't do anything to hurt anybody. Honestly, all I ever do is work."
A charismatron in white tights and a headband, Leighton's Blair Waldorf chomps up the screen as if it were a bowl of breakfast berries from put-upon housekeeper Dorota. And what's not to love about the near-Shakespearean drama of Blair and her pastel-clad Romeo, Chuck Bass (Ed Westwick)? Westwick says, "The first thing I thought when I met Leighton was, ******* hell, this girl's gorgeous. And she was incredibly sweet." He chortles. "Now we tell each other to **** off whenever we want to." Both Blair and Chuck are fond of impractical accessories — especially removing them. "There's always something great to undo or pull on or tug on, so it's always like, what can I do to make this more fun?" Westwick says, laughing. "We've been fake shagging for a year and a half now."
On Gossip Girl, Leighton is a princely 18 years old. In the pictures here, however, she is rather older than that, making Leighton one of the very few actresses ballsy enough to agree to a concept that won't land her on the Maxim Hot 100. (Actually, she is already on, at Number 12.) "Any fear of aging, I think, is simply vanity," she says. "Because what comes with age is so many wonderful things: wisdom, understanding.... Every year, I'm always happy to be done with the previous age," she says. "Sixty, that doesn't seem old to me. I think it comes from my mom going, That's not old! She's in her 50s, but she looks like she's in her early 40s." Asking Leighton, whose skin looks as if it was born retouched, about Botox is faintly comedic. "If you get a wrinkle, I don't feel that's indicative of your losing ground," she says. "That's ridiculous. But I do support Botox. If people want that, do it."
Has she ever, like Blair, worn white tights out of the house? "Er, no." She did sport a puffy-sleeved red-print Louis Vuitton ensemble with matching leggings to the Costume Institute gala (her only competitor that night in the just-do-it stakes: Madonna in LV's bunny ears). "If I don't take risks with fashion, where the hell am I going to take risks?" she asks. "I love Stella McCartney, Chloé, the Row, Lanvin, and Calvin Klein." She has also been wearing Spanish designer Emilio de la Morena — to the MTV Movie Awards and out and about in New York City.
Indeed, the superficial benefits of success are many. "I have more shoes, more clothes, and less worries as far as finances go," she says. And Leighton will be hitting more red carpets soon. She has The Roommate ("I play a psycho") and Date Night opposite Steve Carell and Tina Fey out next year. She's even releasing a CD in November, which has necessitated some visits to the gay clubs (the boys love them some Blair) to test some tracks. Leighton was at one last night. "I wore Ungaro, a floral cutout, short, tight. It was fun," she says. "Rile them up!"It doesn't hurt that Leighton is blessed with the metabolism of an overworked 23-year-old. One memorable paparazzi picture involves her shooting on a freezing New York street, inhaling a large sandwich. "Ha!" she laughs. "It's normally the only thing I have to eat on set." Westwick says, "She can handle these big, gigantic sandwiches, and she's got the most tiny little gorgeous figure. I don't know, man, it certainly doesn't work for me."
But Leighton, our Upper East Side heroine, can handle rather more than a sandwich. Press her on guilty pleasures and she replies, "You know, I'm trying to think of what I'm ashamed of. But, ****, I don't really have any shame."
ADD A COMMENT | CW PRESS TOUR EXCERPT
Aug 5, 2009
www.newsday.com
The '80s-set "Gossip Girl" spinoff will never see the light of day, E! Online reports. Although "Lily" - which would have chronicled the adventures of the title character as a teen - won't happen, that doesn't mean the CW wouldn't give another "Gossip Girl" spinoff another go. CW entertainment chief Dawn Ostroff says, "If [executive producers] Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage would be open to it, of course we'd be open to it. There is a spinoff actually of the book series which is called 'The It Girl,' and we've explored that with them."
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ADD A COMMENT | Tyra Banks Eats Gossip Girl Source: E! Online
Aug. 1, 2009
Tyra Banks gets into everything. According to CW reps, Top Model boss Tyra Banks is set to guest star on the Oct. 5 episode of Gossip Girl's third season. But does she play herself, or is she taking on a little acting work? Here's what we're hearing...According to sources, Tyra will be "acting." She'll play Ursula Nyquist, a larger-than-life actress. In season three, Serena (Blake Lively) gets a job as a publicist is put in charge of handling Ursula at the premiere of the movie star's latest film. Of course, Ursula is known to be a troublemaking diva, so the two hotties tangle. Hmmm...who did you think wins that catfight? And who are you rooting for? Other guest stars appearing on Gossip Girl season three are Hilary Duff as movie star Olivia Burke, Joanna Garcia as preppie princess Bree Buckley and Michelle Trachtenberg as the notorious Georgina Sparks. Gossip Girl
returns to the CW on Mon., Sept. 14 at 9 p.m. Who else is excited? ADD A COMMENT
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