By Neia Balao
9:31am PDT, Jun 26, 2020
From renting a $325K Hamptons home amid a divorce to buying five wedding dresses out of guilt for trying them on, Wonderwall.com is taking a look at the latest news that proves stars are nothing like us. Kicking off our June 2020 edition is this beloved actor… As a means of raising money for Camp Rainbow Gold, an Idaho children's cancer charity, Keanu Reeves in June auctioned off a 15-minute virtual date with him that will take place in July via the Zoom video conferencing app. The special one on one with the "John Wick" star was valued at $10,000 but was quickly exceeded with an anonymous winning bid of a whopping $75,200! Keep reading for more…
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Only a star would drop thousands of dollars at a luxury department store just to use the restroom! On May 19, Chrissy Teigen retweeted a user who'd shared their recreation of her "Taters, Shrooms & Peas with Parmesan Cream" dish from the model's "Cravings" cookbook. "This was inspired by a trip to Barney's (Rest In Peace) where i ordered this and had my purse stolen and couldn't pay for it and a stranger helped me," Chrissy wrote. Fan Claire Ashbey then replied to Chrissy's tweet: "One time I saw you at Barneys and you bought a Celine bag so you wouldn't feel guilty about asking to use the bathroom. I knew I loved you before but that solidified it." Chrissy retweeted the user and added, "wowowowow anyone that knows me knows this is very true all too often." A friend then direct messaged Chrissy on Instagram with a similar story. "Sort of like that time you bought like 5 wedding dresses you knew you would never actually wear because you felt guilty about 'just trying on dresses' which is precisely the point of TRYING ON wedding dresses I love you." The "Cravings: Hungry for More" author replied, "THOSE WENT TO GREAT HOMES."
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Imagine making money by not doing anything! That was Victoria Beckham's reality last year. According to The Sun, the former Posh Spice still made some serious bank — more than $1 million — from the Spice Girls 2019 reunion tour even though she didn't join her old bandmates on the road. According to the British tabloid, the fashion designer is still entitled to a fifth of earnings made from endorsements, merchandising and licensing deals. The real kicker, though? Victoria's tour payday tour was more than what she made from her fashion label last year (The Sun reported that she paid herself about $863,000). "The irony of the payout is that Victoria has become distanced from the Spice Girls as she's tried to carve out a niche as a fashion designer," a source told The Sun. "But they have become a major source of her income once again as the clothes line falters. The other girls have handed a lot over." Victoria Beckham Limited has suffered major financial losses within the last four years, The Sun reported, noting that in 2019, the company lost about $15 million — the most since she created the brand.
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"Normal People" star Paul Mescal — whose character, Connell, endures a mental health crisis on the critically acclaimed 2020 show based on Sally Rooney's book of the same name — was shocked by how much money was raised when he did something off-screen to help support those in crisis. Pieta, a suicide and self-harm prevention charity in Ireland, was forced to postpone its Darkness into Light fundraising walk, which provides 80% of its income, due to the coronavirus pandemic. So Paul donated one of his personal silver chains — his character on the Hulu series is known for wearing them, and they've inspired fans to create social media pages dedicated to the jewelry — to Pieta to be raffled off in June. The initiative raised an astonishing $79,000!
It's completely normal to auction off part of your soul… right? For an art exhibit titled "Selling Out," which consists of prints, drawings, photos and conceptual artwork, musician Grimes is selling pieces she's created over the last 10 years. "I made art 10, 12 years before I ever touched a keyboard," she told Bloomberg in May. "I see myself as a visual artist first and foremost, and I've always felt strange that people know me for music." There's one particular piece, however, that's been garnering quite a bit of buzz: The artist is offering "a legal document whereby the purchaser acquires a percentage of Grimes's soul." Yes, you read that correctly. "I didn't want anyone to buy it, so I said we should just make it $10 million and then it probably won't sell," she said. After reaching out to her lawyer to draft a contract for the piece, "the deeper we got with it, the more philosophically interesting it became," she said. "Also, I really wanted to collaborate with my lawyer on art. The idea of fantastical art in the form of legal documents just seems very intriguing to me." However, with the coronavirus pandemic wreaking havoc on the economy, Grimes decided to forgo the $10 million price point during her art show, which runs through the end of August. "With the current state of the world, do you want to put something up for $10 million?" she posited. Instead, she will be taking the "best offer."
Kelly Ripa definitely had the ultimate work-from-home set-up this year! According to a late-May report from Page Six, the "Live With Kelly and Ryan" host spent months quarantining in a tropical paradise — in the Caribbean, to be exact! She, husband Mark Consuelos and their three children had left their Manhattan home for an island getaway this spring then decided to stay put when shelter-in-place orders were handed down in March amid the coronavirus pandemic. Mark and Kelly, who broadcast her daytime talk show from her temporary island home, appreciate how lucky they are and in March donated $1 million to fund coronavirus relief efforts, which they followed up with a $500K donation in May to help New York City's homeless families amid the global health crisis.
After declaring Kylie Jenner to be the world's youngest self-made billionaire for the second year in a row, on May 29, Forbes magazine rescinded the honor in a piece headlined "Kylie Jenner's Web of Lies — and Why She's No Longer a Billionaire." But Kylie — who denied the magazine's claims that she and her family forged tax returns and other financial documents shown to its reporters — was still left with bragging rights: Forbes reported that she's still worth just under $900 million.
Kylie Jenner criticized Forbes for in May claiming she and her family lied about financial figures, resulting in the magazine revoking her title as the world's youngest self-made billionaire. But the Kylie Cosmetics founder isn't exactly hurting for money. A June 1 report from Page Six revealed that the reality TV star has been blowing cash on some recent extravagant purchases. A source said Kylie spent between $50 and $70 million on a private jet decorated "in the theme of daughter Stormi's birthday" back in February. The makeup mogul also this year bought a $36.5 million estate in Holmby Hills, California, and shelled out $15 million for a vacant lot in Hidden Hills as well as a $3.25 million plot in the Madison Club development near Palm Springs — and has hired architects to build new properties on both. "Kylie's sisters are concerned about her spending. Yes, she's got a lot of money, but she doesn't seem to realize how easy it is to blow through all of it," added a source. "She's likely spent over $130 million in the past year." We can't even imagine!
According to documents seen by the U.K.'s Express newspaper, Victoria Beckham and David Beckham are planning to install an underground passage linking their family's nine-bedroom Cotswold home to their luxury car garage. The Beckhams' decision to ramp up their security with this escape tunnel comes in response to the recent robbing of soccer player Dele Alli at knifepoint at his London mansion. "The proposed development includes a new basement cellar constructed beneath the extension to the existing garage outbuilding with a linked walkway," Page Six reported. "The basement cellar beneath is for storage of wine and the proposed use of the outbuilding is solely in association with the main dwelling house. It will improve security for the occupants of the property."
In May, it emerged that famed singer Julio Iglesias is selling a 1.8-acre lot on a private island in Miami known as "Billionaire Bunker" for a whopping $31.8 million. The island community of Indian Creek Village got its nickname because it's home to a slew of wealthy homeowners (former Victoria's Secret Angel Adriana Lima and late Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula have both lived there). The community consists of 34 homes, 42 residents and a 13-person police force. There's an 18-hole golf course in the middle of the island and each home has a waterfront view. It's only accessible by a single bridge capped by a guarded gatehouse.
On May 28 during an appearance on "The Graham Norton Show," Lady Gaga recalled how she was on her way to Taco Bell following the 2019 Oscars — still sporting the $30 million Tiffany Yellow Diamond she'd worn to the awards show — when security guards for the jewelry brand stopped her. "My sister and I were barreling through champagne backstage and when we left, I didn't tell anyone, and I still had the diamond on," she said. She went to an afterparty at Madonna's house where "security guards were side-eyeing me," she said, "and eventually, when we were heading to Taco Bell, my car was pulled over and Tiffany's security politely removed [the 128.54 carat diamond] from my neck."
Tom Brady has decided to say goodbye to his 2017 stretched Cadillac Escalade ESV, and for $300,000, the luxury vehicle — which was customized by Becker Automotive Design — could be yours! "Parting ways with my Becker ESV won't be easy," the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback said. "From day one it became my sanctuary from the outside noise. I took pride in picking out all the customizations of the ESV; from the trim of the seats to the color of the rug. With such limited time in my busy schedule the ESV gave me those extra minutes to study my play book, make phone calls and be with my family. Immediately my productivity went up and my stress came down. I hope the next owner will take great care of her; she will always be a part of the Brady family."
Following the tragic drowning death of former WWE wrestler Shad Gaspard in Venice, California, in May, fans and friends donated to a GoFundMe page set up to help the family he left behind. When an anonymous donation of $40,000 showed up on the page, fans quickly speculated that it came from wrestling great John Cena. Chris Jericho, Tony Khan and Cody Rhodes were among the named wrestlers who contributed to the campaign, but when the anonymous donated appeared with the message "CTC RIP," fans linked it to John, who was once in Cryme Tyme Cenation, also known as CTC, with Shad during their WWE days.
Talk about a surreal experience! On the May 21 episode of IMDb's "Movies That Changed my Life" podcast, Elle Fanning shared an interesting anecdote about the first time she watched the 1984 fantasy flick "The NeverEnding Story." "I was filming [2004's 'The] Door in the Floor.' I was 4 years old, because I turned 5 on that set, so I was around 4-5, and Bijou Phillips was in that movie and she played my [character's] nanny," Elle began. "She loved me — we would hang out on the set, do things together — [she'd] nanny me kind of [in real life]." She continued: "So I went over to her apartment — she was dating John Lennon's son [Sean Lennon] at the time, I think it was his apartment, and John Lennon's piano was there." Given Elle's young age, she didn't know who John or The Beatles were, let alone that he was among the most influential musicians in the world. "I was so young, [I] wouldn't have cared but my grandmother dropped me off and my grandmother knew," Elle said. "When I'd gotten older, she was like, 'Do you realize where you were, what it was?' I [didn't] know."
Queue "Single Ladies" by Beyonce! On May 21, Page Six reported that Mary-Kate Olsen rented a $325,000-a-month home in the Hamptons for the summer on the heels of her May divorce filing. The former "Full House" star split from her husband of four years, banker Olivier Sarkozy, this spring. In divorce documents, she said she wanted access to their home in the Hamptons and two apartments in Manhattan. In the meantime, it looks like she just rented another Hamptons home in the meantime. Must be nice!
Bachelor Nation star Amanda Stanton received backlash from fans after she drove to another state amidst the coronavirus pandemic to get her hair done. The reality TV star took to social media to share a series of Instagram Story posts documenting her journey from California to Arizona, where salons had reopened. On May 18, she defended her decision and assured fans she'd taken the necessary safety precautions. "I hadn't had my hair done since January and my hairstylist who I've been going to for years JUST opened her salon. I thought I'd rather when she JUST opened than later when more people had been there," Amanda said. "Some might think this is going to great lengths to get my hair done but honestly, I have nothing else to do and isolating for a couple of weeks when I get home was something I was willing to do. To each their own," she added. "I'm confident that I've been making responsible choices during this time and am proud of myself!"
Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, as California issued stay-at-home orders and shut down Hollywood movie and TV productions, Kris Jenner found a way to keep "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" cameras rolling — but it wasn't cheap. "[The momager suggested], 'What if we just shoot everything ourselves?'" "KUWTK" executive producer Farnaz Farjam told Elle magazine on May 18. In addition to hazmat-suited production assistants setting up tripods in Kim Kardashian West and Khloe Kardashian's homes for the purpose of filming confessionals, a brand new iPhone is delivered every Monday to each family member, who then gives back the previous week's device full of footage, which is given to the show's editors to work their magic.
Leave it to a devoted fandom to clap back at a fast food chain for making a snide remark about their favorite celeb! The A-lister and the chain in question? Taylor Swift and Burger King. When a fan tweeted BK in May to ask what its favorite Taylor song was, the account replied, "The one about her ex." While it was likely a joke, the snide remark did not sit well with some Swifties. Some called the tweet "sexist" while others proclaimed their appreciation for other food chains. "After all this Burger King controversy… now I want McDonald's," tweeted one user. The controversy was accompanied by the trending hashtag #BurgerKingIsOverParty.
Remember Pamela Anderson's iconic red one-piece swimsuit from her "Baywatch" days? Well, apparently the star still wears it around her home! During an interview with Fox News on May 30, the actress-model admitted that she likes to put it on once in a while. "Oh, I have one right here in my top drawer! It still fits," she told the outlet. "I have worn it on occasion just to be funny with my friends." Pam went on to reveal that she typically wears it "just around the living room." Totally casual!
