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06/21/2006: "Why Can't We Be Friends?"
Paparazzi. Where would the gossip pages be without them? Lord knows they've gotten a horrible image over the years, and for the most part it's deserved. But the celebrities they stalk share in the blame as well, with their attempts to evade and silly statements about "I just want to be left alone." Right - like we pay you $20 million for a movie and now you expect privacy? I have to laugh.
It's refreshing, though, to see that sometimes the hunted and the hunter can get along, even if for a short while. Case in point: Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban. The Aussie couple are back home in Sydney preparing for this weekends wedding vows. As you might expect, the photogs are camped outside the front door. But unlike the confrontational scenes you see here in SoCal, these folks are actually getting along.
Earlier this week, when Kidman celebrated her birthday, the waiting press horde celebrated by singing "happy birthday" into the intercom outside the house. How did Nic and Keith react? Did they fire teh water cannon? Release the hounds? Nope - they sent beer.
After staking out Kidman's harbor-side Sydney house for most of the day, some 20 photographers heard her garage door start to rise and quickly armed themselves with motor-drive cameras.
But instead of a shot of the bride and groom before the wedding day, two women carrying a case of beer and water bottles met the paparazzi.
Written on the case of 24 bottles of Victoria Bitter beer was a note: "Enjoy!, Nicole and Keith."
Proving once again that our Aussie friends are just not the same tight-asses we are
On a related topic, wasn't it just a couple of years ago that Nicole Kidman was one of the hottest women on the planet? When did she turn so scary?
I suppose you could blame the pressures of impending marriage or the long-term effects of exposure to Tom Cruise, but I'm betting it's another case of surgery and botox gone bad. Kinda sad, really ... 
