Celebrity Sightings – Page 10

June 8, 2008February 13, 2009

"Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli"

My title might be a bit in poor taste, but it seems Robert Blake followed just that advice on a fateful day back in May 2001 after dining at Vitello’s Restaurant in Studio City. Although a jury found him not guilty, it is pretty widely assumed that Blake murdered his wife Bonnie Lee Bakley after eating at Vitello’s, while the two were parked just around the corner from the restaurant. So this weekend, while in Studio City, I dragged my boyfriend and my parents to do a little Vitello’s stalking.

Vitello’s had long been a favorite of Blake’s – he dined there at least 3 times a week – and the restaurant even named a dish after him – Fusilli a la Robert Blake (I’m not kidding!). On May 4, 2001, after finishing dinner and leaving the restaurant, Blake returned to Vitello’s claiming he left his gun in the booth where he had just eaten. While he was searching for his gun, Blake claimed his wife was shot while sitting in their parked car on Woodbridge Road, just around the corner from Vitello’s. Although Blake was charged with Bakley’s murder, he was aquitted of all charges on March 16, 2005.

At first I was a little hesitant to eat at the restaurant, thinking it might be a morbid stalking trip, but as soon as I walked in the door and was greeted by the Maitre D and the hundreds of autographed celebrity headshots on the entryway wall, all my fears were put aside. Vitello’s is a very charming place with AMAZING food at completely reasonable prices and absolutely FABULOUS service! It’s not too hard to see why the restaurant is a favorite of celebrities – it is definitely a place I will dine at again.

Robert’s house, where he lived with Bakley during their marriage, is located just a few blocks away from Vitello’s. Apparently, while Blake lived in the main house, Bakley stayed in a guest house located on the property. After the murder, Blake sold this house to Alex Kingston of ER fame. Alex had the home completely remodeled and subsequently sold it to another buyer. She never lived there.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: Vitello’s Restaurant is located at 4349 Tujunga Avenue in Studio City. Try the cannoli’s – they are amazing!! You can visit their website here. After dinner, be sure to hit up Pomm, a super cute boutique and art gallery located right across the street at 4330 Tujunga Avenue – the Jenn + Jane jewelry they sell is adorable!! Robert Blake’s former home is located at 11604 Dilling Street in Studio City.

May 19, 2008February 13, 2009

Flying the Psychic Skies

This past weekend I traveled to New Mexico to attend a good friend’s college graduation. I flew out there very early Friday morning and when I got on the plane I was shocked to see Shirley MacLaine sitting there – in a coach seat no less! She didn’t even have a bulk head or emergency exit row seat! She did, however, have a seat for her dog. Anyway, I am absolutely petrified to fly, but once I saw Shirley I was immediately put at ease – Miss MacLaine fancies herself a psychic, so I am fairly certain she wouldn’t have gotten on board that plane if she sensed it was going down. LOL I snapped a couple pics of Shirley on my blackberry after the plane landed, but they didn’t come out very well. My mom actually went up to her in the terminal to tell her what an amazing actress she is, but Shirl totally spazzed out and walked away. It was pretty funny.

While in New Mexico I got to visit the New Mexico facility of the Delancey Street Foundation, an absolutely amazing drug rehabilitation organization which was founded by an even more amazing woman named Mimi Silbert. The New Mexico facility consists of a huge, authentic adobe structure located on a sprawling 17 acre former dude ranch, surrounded by lakes, sweeping lawns, beautiful courtyards and rose gardens. And it is also a filming location! Delancey Street New Mexico was used in the 1998 movie John Carpenter’s Vampires for one brief scene. While I have never seen the movie, our tour guide told us Delancey’s center coutryard and library were used in the movie.

In Vampires, two male characters (our tourguide wasn’t sure which characters) walk through Delancey’s center courtyard, over to the door pictured on the left, and into the library. The door is absolutely incredible and even before I knew it was used in Vampires, I wanted to snap a picture of it. It is set in a wall that is about three feet deep and looks like it came straight out of a horror movie set – but in a good way. 🙂

The library also looks straight out of a scary movie set with its dark paneled ceilings, huge fireplace, and arched windows. It was actually re-decorated in the movie to look like an office and a large desk was placed in front of the fireplace. But I honestly don’t think the filmmakers had to do much prior to filming as it looks perfect as is. I really wouldn’t be surprised if more movies were filmed on the property, but our tour guide was unaware of any others. You can view more pictures of the amazing property and grounds here.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: Delancey Street New Mexico is located on the San Juan Pueblo Indian Reservation. Unfortunately the facility is not open to the public. But you can learn more about the location on the Delancey Street website.

May 10, 2008February 13, 2009

Celeb’s Coffee of Choice

While we all know that Britney Spears can’t live without her daily Starbucks ration, it seems that most other celebs in the LA area much prefer a smaller coffeehouse chain called Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. Because I am absolutely obsessed with coffee and Starbucks (if I had my way – and the money – I’d easily drink three or four iced lattes a day!) I recently started reading a great book about the chain called Starbucked by Taylor Clark. Starbucked chronicles the history of Starbucks and also tells much of the history of Coffee Bean, as well. So last weekend, after I learned of the location, I dragged my boyfriend to Brentwood to stalk the very first Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf store.

The first Coffee Bean was founded in 1963 by Herbert Hyman and immediately had a celebrity following. Ronald Reagan, Lee Marvin, Jason Robards, Johnny Carson and Jacques Cousteau all became regulars at the Brentwood store shortly after its opening. Today, celebs like Ashton Kutcher, Lindsay Lohan, David Beckham, and Benji Madden are Coffee Bean regulars and paparazzi can often be seen loitering outside the various LA locations of the chain. Several CB stores were also featured regularly on the series Entourage as a meeting place for Vince and his crew.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The very first Coffee Bean can be found at 11698 San Vicente Boulevard in Brentwood. I recommend ordering an ice blended – they are the best you’ll ever taste!

April 29, 2008February 17, 2009

Celeb Dining in the Desert

Got a tip from a good friend who lives in Palm Springs that Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell often frequent the Mexican restaurant Armando’s Bar and Grill when they are in the Desert. So I just had to go stalk it this weekend. Armando’s is a really cute little Mexican restaurant located right in the heart of the El Paseo shopping district in Palm Desert. We didn’t get a chance to eat there this weekend, but we did a quick walk-through and neither Kurt nor Goldie was anywhere to be found. 🙁 Oh well, maybe next time! The same friend also tells me that Goldie and Kurt now own a home in Ironwood Country Club, located just a few miles away from Armando’s. Sadly, Ironwood is a guarded club and you can’t enter the property without an invite from a member.

While stalking Armando’s I happened to discover a store that I think is now my new favorite place in all of Palm Springs! It is called Heiress and I don’t think it sells anything that is not pink or sparkly. 🙂 My boyfriend said it looked like a Pepto Bismo bottle threw up inside. 🙂 According to the lady working there, Nikki Hilton and Britney Spears have both visited the store. They sell really cute clothes and jewelry – all of which are reasonably priced. I bought an adorable “Carrie” style necklace that says “Blonde” – I love it!

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: Armando’s Bar and Grill is located in Palm Desert at 73260 El Paseo. Supposedly Kurt and Goldie dine there every single weekend. El Paseo is similar to Beverly Hills’ Rodeo Drive and is a fabulous place to shop. I HIGHLY recommended visiting there if you are in the Desert. Heiress can be found directly next door to Armando’s, on the corner of El Paseo and Lupine Lane. Ironwood Country Club is located at 73735 Irontree Drive, but if you don’t know a member, you can’t get on the property. 🙁

March 30, 2008February 13, 2009

Studio City Stalking

This past Saturday must have been my lucky day! While my boyfriend and I were doing a little Studio City stalking, we happened to see Roselyn Sanchez, who plays Elena Delgado on Without A Trace, getting out of her car in front of a newsstand on Laurel Canyon Boulevard. I made my boyfriend swerve through traffic to pull over and park the car and I promptly ran to the newsstand, where I pretended to look at magazines. When Roselyn walked by me to head to the cash register, I told her I loved her show and asked if I could take a picture with her. She could not have been nicer!! She posed for a picture and then chatted a bit with the cashier. When she left, she even turned back to say goodbye to me! She is a lot taller than most Hollywood types – I’d say about 5’6″ – and she was absolutely stunning! She wasn’t wearing a stitch of makeup and she was still absolutely beautiful! Without a Trace is one of my favorite shows, so I could not have been more excited! I guess seeing her was my good karma after not getting to see any of the stars when I stalked the Without a Trace set last week. 🙂

After meeting Roselyn, we headed across the street to Pick Up Stix to grab some food. The Pick Up Stix location in Studio City is a celeb favorite due to its close proximity to CBS Studio Center just a few blocks away and headshots of famous customers adorn the walls. I visited this Pick Up Stix one day about five years ago and I jokingly asked if they would put one of my headshots on the wall and they said yes, even though I am not famous yet! 🙂 Until yesterday, I had not returned to the restaurant since that day back in 2003, and as we entered the front door my boyfriend jokingly said “I wonder if they ever put your picture on the wall.” Lo and behold there it was, big as life among the likes of Tom Arnold and Jeff Probst! I was in absolute shock!! While there used to be quite a few pictures on the wall, today there are only 6 – and mine is one of them! THANKS Pick Up Stix, you guys made my week!! 🙂

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: You can stalk my headshot at the Studio City Pick Up Stix, which is located at 3960 Laurel Canyon Blvd. The newsstand where I met Roselyn Sanchez is located just across the street, at the corner of Laurel Canyon and Ventura Boulevards.

March 24, 2008June 16, 2011

Il Sole – Jen’s Favorite Restaurant

Those of you who are even half as obsessed with Ms. Aniston as I am, have most likely heard of her favorite restaurant, Il Sole. Jen is a regular at the tiny boutique Italian restaurant and has even sat down for a few magazine interviews there. But Jen is not the only one obsessing on the place – it seems everyone who’s anyone has been spotted there. Paparazzi have caught Jessica Simpson, Nicole Richie, Brody Jenner, Lauren Conrad, Britney Spears, Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz and countless others at the little restaurant. TMZ even went so far as to call Il Sole the “new crack” in a recent article. I’ve never eaten at Il Sole myself – I am more of a chicken strips and ranch dressing kind of girl 🙂 – but I hear it is delicious!!

My boyfriend and I were on our way to ONE Sunset, another celeb hot spot, on Friday night when we spotted Valerie Bertinelli dining with a balding mystery man at Il Sole. 🙂 ONE Sunset is the sister restaurant to New York celeb hang out ONE Manhattan and is a major celeb draw. It’s not very hard to see why – the place is incredible! I had never been there before Friday night, but let me tell you – I am for sure going back! ONE is absolutely gorgeous, with flowing silk curtains, huge vases filled with submersed pink flowers, and tabletops covered in candles. And the staff could not have been friendlier!! ONE has a very laid back vibe, even though it is located on the Sunset Strip, which is part of its charm. I absolutely loved it! Jennifer Aniston even hosted a party there last June to honor her good friend Laura Day’s new book release – so you know it has to be a cool place! 🙂

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂 And enjoy the Hills mini-season premiere tonight! YAY!

Stalk It: Il Sole is located at the Sunset Plaza at 8730 Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood. ONE Sunset is located directly across the street from Il Sole, at 8751 Sunset Boulevard. You will often catch paparazzi hanging outside of Il Sole and ONE Sunset on Friday and Saturday nights waiting for the celebs to show up. Sunset Plaza is a definite celeb hot spot and you are virtually guaranteed a star sighting in its small two block radius.

February 24, 2008February 13, 2009

Rain, Rain, Go Away!!

I am sad to say that I had a lot more luck last year stalking the 79th Annual Academy Awards than I did this year at the 80th Annual Academy Awards. 🙁 We did have some fun, though! Yesterday morning, bright and early, my boyfriend and I headed to the Kodak Theatre at the Hollywood and Highland Center to check out the preparation for tonight’s big ceremony. The red carpet was as beautiful and awe-inspiring as ever, albeit covered in a huge see-through tarp to keep the rain at bay.

While stalking the red carpet, we saw Regis Philbin shooting some pre-Oscar footage. Reg was tiny in person – I am guessing about 5’4″ – and extremely tan! He seemed very friendly, though, chatting and goofing off with the Oscar crew members. After he finished filming a few Oscar segments, Regis walked right through the crowds on Hollywood Boulevard to check out his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 🙂 If you’re curious, Regis’ star is located almost directly in front of Disney’s Soda Fountain and Studio Store.

More red carpet pics:

The rain tarp!

Soaking up the rain from the red carpet!

Oscar’s humble beginnings!

After Hollywood and Highland, we headed to the Sunset Strip to scope out the many hotels favored by celebs during Oscar weekend. I don’t know if it was the rain, or just some bad luck, but it seemed like no celebs were out and about in Hollywood yesterday. 🙁 We did run into Spike Lee (again!) in the gift shop of the Mondrian Hotel buying some newspapers. Apparently the Mondrian is Spike’s home away from home while he is on the West Coast. As always, the Mondrian Hotel’s staff was extremely friendly and welcoming! I so love that place! We didn’t have any luck at any of the other Strip hotels, though.

The biggest bummer of all came when we arrived at the Beverly Hills Hotel and were informed that they were not allowing anyone without a reservation into the hotel! Due to the rain, the “Night Before” party had to be moved inside, at which point they shut down the hotel to non-guests and non-reservation holders! 🙁 New 2008 Oscar Tip: Make dinner reservations at the Polo Lounge before arriving!! Anyway, a good stalker cannot be deterred – so after being turned away at the BH Hotel, we instead headed to Santa Monica, site of the Independent Spirit Awards. We were way too late to witness the Spirit Awards “blue” carpet, but I had read that the after party was being held at Shutters on the Beach Hotel, so (in the pouring rain) we headed there for a drink. Let me just say, they are called “independent” films for a reason – I had no idea who anyone was! lol We did see Juno director Jason Reitman walking around, but that was about it. There were a few people holding Spirit awards mingling in the hotel, but I had no idea who they were. 🙁 Perhaps I need to brush up on my indy films!!

Even though I didn’t have the greatest of luck at the Academy Awards of 2008, there’s always next year! I am already looking forward to the 2009 awards season! 🙂

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: The Spirit Awards are held on the beach in Santa Monica each year. Shutters On The Beach Hotel is located at 1 Pico Blvd. in Santa Monica and is a great place to sit and have a drink and appetizers. Shutters is a beautiful beachfront hotel, and if you are planning a trip to LA, I would definitely recommend staying there. Their rooms run about $475 a night and up, though, so it’s definitely going to cost ya to stay there. Shutters’ Restaurant, One Pico, is supposed to be amazing and Jen Aniston just happens to be a regular. 🙂

February 24, 2008February 13, 2009

This Might Just Be What Finally Puts Britney Over the Edge!!

I am sad to report that on Tuesday, February 26th, every single Starbucks store is going to close between the hours of 5:30PM and 8:30PM for an emergency re-training session with CEO Howard Schultz. Whatever is BritBrit going to do if she wants her beverage of choice during those three hours?? For that matter, what am I going to do??? Thank God Sophie Kinsella’s (my very favorite author!!!) new book comes out that day to keep my mind off of my Starbucks withdrawals!!

You can read more on the story here.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: Britney’s Starbucks of choice is located at the Malibu Country Mart in Malibu, right on Pacific Coast Highway. You can read a more detailed post about Britter’s fave Starbucks here.

February 23, 2008February 13, 2009

The Night Before the Night Before Party

Last night I dragged my boyfriend to the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel to do a little stalking of the “Night Before the Night Before Party” that was being held at Wolfgang Puck’s restaurant Cut located inside the hotel. I must say that aside from seeing Jeffrey Katzenberg (who is teeny tiny!!), the night was pretty much a bust. Apparently the “Night Before the Night Before” party is more for industry types and not celebs, as I didn’t recognize anyone. Supposedly Faith Hill and Tim McGraw were in attendance, but we didn’t spot them. We did grab a couple of drinks and appetizers at TheBLVD bar inside the Regent, and saw a production crew taping a segment for The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Sadly, Ellen was not in attendance. 🙁

After the Regent, we hit up the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where nothing much was going on. All in all, it was a pretty disappointing night from a stalking standpoint. Here’s hoping we have better luck today! 🙂

Until next time, Happy Stalking. 🙂

Stalk It: Cut is located inside the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel, which can be found at 9500 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills. TheBLVD bar is also located inside the Regent, and, while pricey, it serves up some great appetizers and is the perfect spot to people watch. We saw a lot of interesting characters there last night.

February 20, 2008February 14, 2009

Oscar Weekend Stalking – Part II

On Oscar Weekend, after stalking the red carpet, I recommend hotel-hopping your way through Hollywood and Beverly Hills for optimal star viewing! The Chateau Marmont, the Mondrian, the Sunset Tower Hotel, the Regent Beverly Wilshire, and the Beverly Hills Hotel are all prime celebrity viewing locations – and most have extremely friendly staff – except for the Chateau Marmont. The Chateau is a notorious celebrity hangout and was home to Lindsay Lohan for a few years, but the staff there seems to go out of their way to make non-famous guests feel unwelcome. That’s probably why celebs like the place so much. 🙂

The Mondrian, on the other hand, is a great place to star gaze. Last year, while driving on Sunset Boulevard the day before the Oscars, we noticed a huge crowd of paparazzi standing outside the Philippe Starck designed hotel. It turns out Posh Spice was having lunch inside! We went in and, sure enough, there was Victoria Beckham, much taller than I expected and a whole lot better looking. She didn’t have that robotic look in person that she usually has in all her paparazzi photos. She seemed really friendly and was giggling with a friend and hotel security over the pandemonium she had caused outside. We also saw Spike Lee, who is a frequent guest of the Mondrian’s Asia de Cuba restaurant. The Mondrian staff could not have been nicer – the gift shop attendant told us a really long story about Britney Spears, who had just recently shaved her head and had shown up at the hotel in her infamous pink wig, sans credit card, cash or an ID, demanding a room and a free bathing suit! Ah, Britney!

The final stop on your Oscar tour must be the Beverly Hills Hotel, as every Saturday night before the Oscars, the famous “Night Before” party is held by the hotel’s pool. Without a room, the hotel staff will not allow you to hang out in the lobby when the stars start arriving for the big shindig, but don’t worry – most of them venture into the hotel’s Polo Lounge for a drink beforehand. So just park yourself on a bar-stool and you’re virtually guaranteed a star sighting! Last year, dining among us were Paris Hilton, Reese Witherspoon, Russell Simmons, Elle Macpherson and billionaire Kirk Kerkorian, owner of the MGM Grand Hotel.

A Few Oscar Weekend Stalking Tips:

1. Book your hotels early! Anyone who is anyone will be in town for Oscar Weekend, so hotels book up quickly. I would suggest staying at the Beverly Hills Hotel or the Mondrian. The staff at both are extremely friendly, the restaurants and bars are exceptional, and both hotels are beautiful. If you can’t stay at these hotels, or don’t want to spend the money, be sure to at least visit both on your stalking adventures!

2. Drive around Hollywood and Beverly Hills as much as you can and keep your eyes peeled for paparazzi. If you notice a large group of people standing outside the entrance to a hotel or restaurant, stop and go in! There is most definitely a celeb inside! Paparazzi, on the whole, are not very nice people, but if you smile, they will usually tell you who they are waiting around for.

3. Get your hair or nails done at a ritzy Beverly Hills salon – but be prepared to drop some coins! Everyone gets gussied up for Oscar Weekend, so if you are lucky, you just might be getting your French Manicure next to Jennifer Aniston.

4. Whatever you do, don’t forget your camera!! This is one occasion where you will NOT want to miss out on taking pictures! You just never know who you are going to run into! 🙂

5. Don’t be afraid to ask hotel staff and security about celebs. Most are extremely friendly and love to share their stories.

Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂

Stalk It: While hotel-hopping, be sure to hit up Chateau Marmont (8221 Sunset Blvd.), Sunset Tower Hotel (8358 Sunset Blvd.), The Mondrian Hotel (8440 Sunset Blvd.) and The Beverly Hills Hotel (9641 Sunset Blvd.) – the site of the annual “Night Before” party. This year the “Night Before The Night Before” party is scheduled to take place on Friday, February 22nd, at Wolfgang Puck’s eatery Cut, located inside the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel – the very same hotel where Richard Gere wooed Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. The Regent Beverly Wilshire is located at 9500 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills.