Kim Richards Opens Up About Rehab

Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kim Richards emerges from her stay in rehab with the self-realization that she does, in fact, have a problem with alcohol. Kim admits this much on the latest Real Housewives of Beverly Hills reunion show, stating to Bravo host, Andy Cohen, “I am an alcoholic.” I, personally, am proud of Kim Richards for her candor and for working on herself to improve her health and her life.

Good public relations is not always about concealing the truth or denying something that seems unflattering about you. Sometimes the most positive PR move one can make is to own up to a problem, a disease, or a mistake, explain what you have learned from it and how you are continuing on this journey called life. I hope that the public will embrace Kim and be supportive going forward.

Have a look at this promo clip from The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills reunion:

Allison Dawn PR Client, Flexfit, Announced as Official Headwear for Two Clubs

Long Island Ducks, Bridgeport Bluefish to wear Flexfit brand exclusively in 2012

Central Islip, NY, January 24, 2012 –(PR.com)– The Long Island Ducks and Bridgeport Bluefish, members of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, today announced a partnership with world renowned headwear manufacturer Flexfit/Yupoong, making the company the official on field headwear of the Ducks and Bluefish, as well as the first choice for all retail sales at the Waddle In Shop and Bluefish Gear Shop throughout the 2012 baseball season.

“We’re excited to be able to partner with Flexfit, a company whose values are in lockstep with ours on providing our players and fans with cutting edge, high caliber headwear,” said Ducks President/GM and Bluefish Senior VP Michael Pfaff. “Flexfit has established itself as a world leader in the category and we’re working on some exciting new looks and designs for all to enjoy this upcoming season.”

In addition to providing the teams with all on field headwear, including spring training/batting practice headwear, special event headwear and potential playoff/championship caps, Flexfit will enjoy exposure through team marketing platforms. Along with the new look and feel, players and fans will enjoy sleeker, more streamlined designs with moisture-wicking performance and cutting edge styles during the 2012 campaign.

To be a level above, Flexfit implements set routines of Research & Development. Through the years, Flexfit has introduced new products that have revolutionized the headwear industry. From the famous Flexfit sweatband to the company’s cool & dry technology, Flexfit is always staying ahead of the curve. Flexfit is constantly searching for new product innovations that can bring joy to hat bearers and improve the welfare of the communities they are involved with.

“Flexfit is excited to be the official 2012 headwear sponsor of the Long Island Ducks and Bridgeport Bluefish professional baseball teams,” states Flexfit LLC President, Thomas Cho. “We look forward to both teams enjoying the comfort and performance that only Flexfit hats can provide.”

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Contact Information
Allison Dawn PR
Allison Kugel
516-942-0264
Contact
www.AllisonDawnPR.com
www.Flexfit.com

Heidi Klum and Seal to Divorce

We didn’t want to believe it at first, but alas, supermodel Heidi Klum and her husband of eight years, Seal, have officially announced their separation. Of all of the celebrity couples to split over the past year, this one came as a sucker punch to us. Seal and Heidi Klum always appeared to have a beautiful love story, topped off by four adorable children, Leni, Henry, Johan and little Lou. It seemed Heidi and Seal were continuously renewing their wedding vows, throwing lavish costume parties each Halloween. The couple also couldn’t stop recounting the story of how they met at the Mercer Hotel in New York when Heidi was already (gasp!) four months pregnent with little Leni from a previous relationship. Seal took on the couple’s first born child as his own, adopting Leni after her birth. Heidi even recently, legally changed her last name to Samual, Seal’s legal sir name.

Sure Heidi travels the globe promoting and filming her Project Runway franchise and Seal is currently on the road promoting his latest album, Soul 2, but these two should be used to juggling romance, family and hectic work schedules. So what exactly went wrong in Heidi Klum and Seal’s marriage?

Well, according to TMZ who usually does enough dumpster diving to actually get the real story, Heidi Klum has decided to divorce Seal, “largely because she has had it with his volcanic temper.” This is an interesting scoop, reason being, a few years back TMZ actually caught evidence of said temper with their video cameras when Seal and Heidi were waiting for the valet to bring their car around to the curb outside a Los Angeles restaurant. I happened to be flipping channels when I stopped and watched Seal’s less than graceful display of anger towards the paparazzi. Seal was shouting insults at a photographer, calling him names and declaring that he and his kind “ruin people’s lives” with their constant and unrelenting tabloid coverage. Heidi Klum was standing silent and looked embarrased by her hubby’s over the top display of disapproval towards the paps. When the famous couples’ car finally pulled up (an Audi convertable) Heidi quickly jumped into the driver’s seat, looking a bit upset, and Seal got into the passengers seat as the two sped off. We’re guessing an argument ensued back at casa Klum-Samuel.

Everyone knows the paprazzi are invasive and obnoxious but Seal played right into their camera-clad hands by throwing a temper tantrum in front of their video cameras, and no doubt, Heidi was peeved!

The TMZ story also goes on to blame Heidi’s exploding career for the rift that caused the separation. “She has become a mega-entrepreneur and extremely rich, and that professional evolution has created a distance between them,” according to TMZ. Money and success causes famous couple’s to “grow apart.” Kinda sad.

According to TMZ Heidi and Seal are still currently residing under the same roof, though that will change “very soon.”

Vogue's 1st Country Covergirl

22 year old Country crooner, Taylor Swift, makes some candid and revealing statements in the interview that accompanies her Vogue Magazine cover. In the issue, Swift admits to superstitious fears about her fairytale life evaporating before her eyes, her need for a security teams due to stalkers, and how she deals with the pain of losing a boyfriend.

Holding little back, Taylor Swift tells Vogue Magazine, “There’s just been this earth-shattering, not recent, but absolute crash-and-burn heartbreak, and that will turn out to be what the next album is about,” describing her inspiration for her upcoming 4th studio album. Some could even speculate that she is referring to her intense yet brief relationship with Reese Witherspoon’s mutual ex, Jake Gyllenhaal. At one point things were looking pretty cozy for the pair, until Gyllenhaal abruptly ended their brief relationship.

Swift adds, “The only way that I can feel better about myself, pull myself out of that awful pain of losing someone, is writing songs about it to get some sort of clarity.”

Like most single women who have had their fair share of heartbreak, Taylor Swift claims that she is now armed with what she calls her dating “red flags.” One such red flag Swift fears are suiters who fall in love with her famous image rather than with her as a person. Another red flag for the Country singer, guys who are threatened or put off by her team of security that accompany her wherever she goes. Swift states, “I don’t have security to make myself look cool, or like I have an entourage. I have security because there’s a file of stalkers who want to take me home and chain me to a pipe in their basement.”

A third annoyance for swift is a male celeb’s rabid need for privacy to the point of absurdity. As Taylor Swift puts it, if two famous people are dating people will naturally be interested, but hey, get over it, it’s not that deep insists the singer. “If you care about privacy to the point where we need to dig a tunnel under this restaurant so that we can leave? I can’t do that.”

Admitting to her fair share of fear-based superstition about her amazing luck in the music business, Taylor Swift admits to Vogue that her biggest fear is that this will all go away one day, and as Swift puts it, “When is the other shoe going to drop?

“I am always living in fear. This can’t be real, right? This can’t really be my life.”

Happy Birthday Betty

Golden Girl and comeback “kid” Betty White celebrates her 90th birthday today and we want to wish her a very happy birthday with many more to come. I am personally proud of Betty White’s achievements, her admirable attitude about aging and her remarkable comedic talents. As many of my friends know, I have been a Betty White fan since childhood, and I was faithfully watching reruns of The Golden Girls nightly, for years, before Betty White was considered officially “back” by the entertainment industry.

The Golden Girls has always been one of my standbys in my arsenal of things I pull out to cheer myself up when I need a good laugh. I absolutely adore that show, but I also adore each of its remarkable cast members: the late Rue McClanahan, Bea Arthur and Estelle Getty as well as Betty White who we still get to have here on earth. I know that Betty White is now on to bigger and better projects, like TV Land’s smash hit, Hot In Cleveland, but what can I say? I am a Golden Girls superfan!

Here are one of my favorite Golden Girls clips below featuring great Rose moments:

Babies on Board for Kayte and Kelsey

In another publically crushing blow to Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, Camille Grammar, ex-husband Kelsey Grammar made a shocking public announcement backstage on Sunday night, after his Golden Globes win. Kelsey Grammar announced to the press room backstage at the Golden Globes ceremony that he and his new wife, Kayte Walsh, are expecting twins.

Grammar’s jilted ex-wife, Camille, had allegedly heard this startling news, along with her two children with Kelsey Grammar, at the same time as the rest of the world did, during Grammar’s backstage announcement at the Globes.

According to AOL HuffPost, Camille and her two children were not aware that Kelsey and his wife Kayte were expecting twins until they heard the news through the media, leaving his two children with Camille in total shock that they were not given a heads up by their famous father. A source tells HuffPost, “Camille and the children had no idea. They found out about it from the media. Once again, selfish Kelsey decided to do what’s best for him with no concern for his current children. He needs to stop talking about his private life in public. It’s very hurtful for the children he already has.”

On the flip side, a jubilent, Kelsey Grammar happily told backstage reporters this his new bride is “extraordinary.” Kelsey went on to say, “[Kayte is] one of the most loving, amazing, warm human beings I’ve ever met. She’s funny and serious all at the same time. She’s an amazing person and I think she’ll blow [the kids] away.”

As for Kelsey and ex-Camille, the two are still embroiled in a bitter custody dispute over the ex couples’ two young children. Kelsey took a digg at Camille recently when he told Pierce Morgan that pulling his Hollywood strings to get his ex-wife Camille a gig in the Real Housewives franchise was his “parting gift” to his allegedly attention-hungry ex-wife who he claims “always wanted to be famous.” During his appearance on Pierce Morgan Kelsey added that he felt Camille thought she was married to his iconic alter-ego, Frasier Crane, and not the real Kelsey, during their marriage. Ouch!

Is Kelsey making big announcements about his private life as a public relations ploy to promote his new show?

Hard Times

What exactly is going on with Heather Locklear? The past five years have not been kind to Heather Locklear. The former all-American golden girl has seen her fair share of grief and trouble since her separation and divorce from Bon Jovi guitarist, Richie Sambora, in 2007. Locklear watched in horror as her former friend, Denise Richards, and her ex-husband Richie Sambora fell for each other, creating a media feud of epic proportions, and straining her relationship with her rocker ex (also the father of Locklear’s daughter, Ava Sambora).

Rumors of drug and alcohol abuse followed, as well as a DUI after the actress was allegedly booked for driving under the influence of a controlled substance in Montecito, California. Things seemed to be looking up for Heather when she and her former Melrose Place co-star, Jack Wagner, began a longterm relationship, with Locklear’s daughter, Ava, giving her approval of the couple. Wagner and Locklear announced their engagement, but Locklear broke off her engagement to Jack Wagner a few months ago, ultimately ending that near-miss union.

Perhaps it was Denise Richards’ reunion with Richie Sambora that sent Heather Locklear over the edge once again, culminating in a panicked 911 call by Locklear’s sister. After paramedics arrived on the scene they determined that Locklear was indeed a threat to herself, and she was admitted into the hospital for observation, overnight.

According to Eonline.com, “The 50-year-old was taken from her home in Westlake Village to the facility after her sister placed a frantic 911 call saying she feared her famous sibling might harm herself. Paramedics responded and determined on sight that the actress did indeed require some medical evaluation.”

Now released and back home, Locklear’s family released a statement letting fans know “she is doing well,” and “is in no danger.”

Locklear is resting at her home with family. Her family also expressed that “they’re looking forward to her getting very, very well again and bringing her home.”

Celebrity Fragrance Pioneer with Passion

It seems just about every female celebrity is now licensing a fragrance (or a line of fragrances) in their famous names, but the late screen goddess, Elizabeth Taylor, was the pioneer of the celebrity branded fragrance industry when she unveiled her flagship fragrance, Passion, in partnership with Elizabeth Arden. I remember watching the television commericals for Elizabeth Taylor’s Passion as a little girl, taking the bottle off of my mother’s perfume tray and dabbing some of the delicious scent on my wrists. I loved the aroma and delicate notes of Elizabeth Taylor’s Passion back then, and I still love the fragrance now.

Passion by Elizabeth Taylor is a smoldering, feminine, and enrapturing combination of scents blended so beautifully, and the fragrance is affordable, to boot! With her violet eyes, dramatic makeup that highlighted her violet eyes, and her bedazzling jewels, Liz Taylor represented all that women want to be when it comes to developing their own signature style. I think that is why Liz Taylor’s first signature fragrance, Passion, was so successful, followed up by one of my mom’s favorite staples, White Diamonds.

Elizabeth’s style was flawless, her essence intoxicating, and her public relations and marketing campaign for her fragrance lines were impeccable and drew an onslaught of sales volume and repeat business.

Somehow, with all of the celebrity signature fragrances to flood the market in recent years from the likes of JLo, Kim Kardashian, Paris Hilton, Faith Hill, Jennifer Aniston… and even Snooki, none of them seem to even come close to capturing the essence of the first glamour girl inspired fragrance, PASSION!

Take a look at this retro Liz Taylor commerical spot for Passion:

Fragrance Billionaire?

While most of the United States assumed that Paris Hilton was down for the count, Hilton’s manufactured fame having been usurped by rival Kim Kardashian, Hilton has been getting the last laugh as she’s watched her brand grow into the global stratosphere with eight figure sales revenue!

True, Paris Hilton is no longer a television commodity in the states. Her latest attempt at reality TV glory (The World According to Paris) tanked. Paris Hilton remains a lifestyle and beauty icon overseas, with her largest fanbase seemingly in the Asian and Middle Eastern markets. Young women are shelling out major cash to buy a piece of whatever it is that Paris Hilton is selling these days. Aside from a long list of lifestyle and beauty products, Paris Hilton has become a fragrance mega-mogul with her combined catalog of more than 15 signature fragrances totaling $1.3 billion in gross sales revenue since 2005.

Coming directly from the horse’s mouth, Paris Hilton told men’s publication, FHM, “My fragrances are doing really well at the moment. They’ve produced more than $1.3 billion in revenue since 2005.”

A partial list of Paris Hilton’s profitable stable of fragrances include: Tease, Passport South Beach, Passport Tokyo, Passport Paris, Can Can, Siren, Just Me, Heiress & Fairy Dust (AOL/HuffPost).

As pointed out in the recently released book, Celebrity, Inc.: How Famous People Make Money by celebrity journalist Joe Piazza, After trying to fight against the media tide stateside as her rival and former friend, Kim Kardashian, began eclipsing her in the tabloid media space, Paris Hilton finally decided to relinquish her throne as America’s “it girl” to Kardashian, focusing on growing and cementing her “Paris Hilton” brand in Europe, Asia and in the Middle East with boutiques, fragrances and other lifestyle products to cash in on her celebutante status. Hilton’s business plan worked!

Now, it seems, Paris Hilton is putting her business acumen and financial status to work for her to rebuild her image in the United States and to create a new and improved public relations platform for herself, as a business mogul rather than a party girl. The timing seems ideal for Paris Hilton to re-emerge in the states with a brand new persona, just as the Kardashian image has become a bit tarnished over the past few months.