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Tender is the Night~~ Howard Hughes for Leo?~~ A new home~~Who's that hunk?~~ Leofest~~Esquire~~ A Genuine Star~~BOO

Most Bankable Stars~~ Bliss Magazine Article~~Movieline Article!~~ Leo's Japanese Commercial~~

Birthday Bash~~US Magazine Article~~ Ioan Gruffud~~ Leo Chairman of Earth Day 2000~~ Lookout for a new movie...~~

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Sixth Sense Boy Sees a New Project A new project for Leo? Haley Joel Osment, the 11-year-old boy who showed such poise as Bruce Willis' haunted co-star in last summer's spooky sleeper The Sixth Sense, is set to star opposite Kevin Spacey in the drama Pay It Forward. And he's so hot now that Warner Bros., according to Variety, has agreed to juggle the film's shooting schedule to accommodate the young Oscar contender. Osment will play a student who takes up a challenge from his cynical and emotionally scarred social studies teacher (Spacey) to make the world a better place. The boy conceives the "pay it forward" system in which a person helps out a stranger, who doesn't pay him back but pays it forward, doing a good deed for another stranger. Shooting is set to begin in Arizona and Los Angeles in February with Mimi Leder (Deep Impact) helming. An offer's out to Helen Hunt to play the boy's alcoholic mother, but she may opt instead for the Mel Gibson film What Women Want. Meanwhile, Spacey's American Beauty director, Sam Mendes, may be looking for a follow-up film to his wildly successful debut. The most coveted new filmmaker in Hollywood had been slated to bring Stephen Sondheim's musical Wise Guys to Broadway this spring. With that project failing to gel, talk has turned from the boards to a feature called The Lookout, which has attracted interest from the likes of Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio.

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Leonardo DiCaprio pronounced Chairman of Earthday 2000 During a webcast on November 17, 1999, Earth Day Network announced that one of the nation's most popular celebrities, actor Leonardo DiCaprio, will serve as chairman for the Mall event. A solar-powered stage will feature additional international entertainment and top musical acts from the U.S. Along with the entertainment, Earth Day Network will host EarthFair 2000 on the Mall -- hundreds of exhibits displaying all the elements of a sustainable society. Sun, wind, earth, water, and people will be powering exhibits, modeling central components of a clean energy future. Each of the energy technology "pavilions" will feature hands-on activities, many involving children's activities, and opportunities for direct action. EarthFair 2000 will also recycle its trash, use clean, alternative energy, and demonstrate other ways to have a sustainable event as well as a sustainable world. We will provide visitors with examples of how to make a difference in their home, at work, everyday. Check back for exhibitor information and more details on EarthFair 2000 in Washington, D.C.! Earth Day 1990 on the Mall There will be thousands of other events, some involving hundreds of thousands of people, from coast to coast and around the world. Big Earth Day events are planned for cities including London, New York, Tokyo, Los Angeles, Seoul, Chicago, Beijing, Atlanta, Tel Aviv, Boston, Manila and San Diego. In all, half a billion people around the world will participate in Earth Day 2000.

Read the transcript of the Webcast and the followup interview from Earthday.net.

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Titanic actor on his famous Co-star Ioan Gruffud was the sailor who rescued Rose out of the cold waters in the end scene of Titanic. Where is he now? Read what he has to say about his life since Titanic and Leo. Bands like Manic Street Preachers and Catatonia may have sparked an interest in all things Welsh, but along with Catherine Zeta Jones, actor Ioan Gruffudd is spearheading a new offensive for "Cool Cymru". The 26-year-old Hornblower star thinks "it's about time" people throughout the UK paid more attention to Wales. "I'm just proud that through my acting I get a chance to educate people a bit about Wales. People are now more aware of the culture, the heritage and especially the language," says the Cardiff-born heart-throb. Hornblower: Ioan fears being pigeonholed in period dramas "I'm a bit sceptical of this 'Cool Cymru' because it feels like a fashionable thing. I hope it's a real thing that will grow and last," admits Gruffudd, who is certainly not complaining about the attention being lavished on his acting skills. What with another series of the maritime yarn Hornblower in the works and the lead in the upcoming Disney sequel 102 Dalmatians, he is booked solid until next summer. "It's a lovely feeling to know what I'm doing for the next year, but it's hard to fit anything else in." The star recently bought a house in north London, which he shares with fellow Welsh actor Matthew Rhys. Sleeping problems "I'm still sleeping on the floor... I haven't had time to go shopping for furniture. I can still see us in five years time sitting on these blow-up armchairs." He does admit to finding some spare time to spend money on "clothes, drink and rugby tickets". Warrior: Ioan found playing a soldier extremely harrowing An avid rugby fan, Gruffudd made the pilgrimage home to see all but one of Wales's Rugby World Cup matches. As a youngster he even risked his now famous good looks on the pitch. "With acting you can't afford to get injured, but I do miss it terribly." His decision to chose the stage over the scrum seems to have paid off. Gruffudd has starred in a string of acclaimed costume dramas, including the BBC adaptation of Great Expectations. The star's latest project is the BBC One drama Warriors - about British peacekeeping troops in the Balkans. "I was aware that I'd only done period stuff. I've always wanted to do something contemporary. "I turned down a film to do Warriors. I've had many offers but I wanted to do this as an actor and as a person." The harzards of peacekeeping Filmed while the conflict in Kosovo was raging, Gruffudd is keen to point out that Warriors does not pass judgement on the United Nations peacekeepers. "We're just showing the powerlessness of these boys and the frustration of being in that situation." As well as the emotional stresses of taking on such a topic, Gruffudd also found filming quite arduous. "They may look glamorous, but these Warriors (the armoured vehicles of the drama's title) are big chunks of metal. Knock against them and you've got a bruise." Gruffudd is not envious of friend Leonardo DiCaprio Filming in the cramped tanks, in temperatures of minus 15, the pretend soldiers were careful not to complain. "We all put on a brave face because we were surrounded by the real thing." Although the show's military advisors eventually warmed to the cast, Gruffudd was weary of being teased because he was a mere actor. "If you bit, that would be the death of you. They'd pick on you the whole time. You had to give it back or take it on the chin." Warriors is not the first step in Gruffudd's bid to shake off his "boyish, boy next door image". He was last seen in the UK in an episode of the racy Channel 4 series Love in the 21st Century entitled "Masturbation". "My mum couldn't watch it and turned it off after the first minute. My gran couldn't watch it either. My friends gave it a thumbs up, down the pub." Although he admits to missing Cardiff "terribly", Gruffudd says he would go to Hollywood. "I'd love to work there. I don't think I'd ever want to live there." He was recently initiated into the LA highlife by his Titanic co-star, Leonardo DiCaprio. The actor took Gruffudd to a top local nightspot. Many have Great Expectations for heart-throb Ioan "We got let in through the kitchen and straight to a table, a la Goodfellas. Brilliant!" However, the Welshman is not envious of DiCaprio's fame. "I'd like to be in a position to do films like that, but everything that goes with it must be a nightmare for him. "I'm sure he's struggling hard to keep a grasp on reality. I can't imagine having people camping outside my house." Gruffudd's current success has set the rumour mills buzzing - with some suggesting he has been picked to take over from Pierce Brosnan as 007. "There are bookies in Wales taking bets on me being the next James Bond. "The casting director of Bond has had umpteen calls and she's just saying: 'He's very talented, but about 20 years too young!'

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FROM US MAGAZINE The once and future king: His female fans have pushed him onto the throne once held by james Dean. But DiCaprio, 25, wants to be known less for his pretty face than for his meaty roles in such films as This Boy's Life and What's Eating Gilbert Grape? and his latest project, The Beach, directed by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) and due out early next year, in which he plays a backpacker who finds a eerie hippie community in Thailand. Sea of Love: Adapted from a book of the same name, The Beach's story was changed to add romantic interludes with Virginie Ledoyen, who plays a French traveler. "My friends all read it and said, 'He's got to shag the French girl,'" screenwriter John Hodge has said. So, is he available or not?: During the making of The Beach, DiCaprio reportedly setled down with a former girlfriend, model Kristen Zang, even renting an entire island off the coast of Thailand for the two of them. But now he appears to be on his own again. Maybe he's waiting for that love-at-first-sight moment. "I do believe it can happen," he has said, "but it's never happened to me -- yet."

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Happy B-day Leo! (November 11, 1999) Leo lore . . . Actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who was entertained by hip-hopper Slick Rick at his 25th birthday party Thursday in L.A., just got paid $2 million for cutting a commercial spot for a Japanese credit card company. Imagine. DiCaprio speaking Japanese. Michael Sneed(Chicago Sun Times)

FROM THE DAILY MAIL "LEONARDO DICAPRIO was born in Los Angeles on November 11, 1974, at 2.47am. That makes him a triple Scorpio, with Mars and Venus in his sign, alongside the Sun. No wonder that he smoulders with sex appeal, and takes his work so seriously. Youthful he may be, but a horoscope is for Iife, and Leo will still be radiating an intense, sensitive air when he is 90. Most of his other planets are in the charming sign of Libra. Interestingly, his horoscope lacks planets in earth signs. People who have an element imbalance often feel a strong urge to compensate. Does he, I wonder, secretly yearn to be a miner, a farmer or sculptor?"

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From Doug Camilli's Column in the Montreal Gazette- November 11, 1999 Side income of the stars: Leonardo DiCaprio is a sort of 007 figure in a new TV commercial in Japan. Leo, who speaks no Japanese, reportedly made close to $2 million U.S. for the spot, which we'll never see in North America. He's your basic secret agent, see, and gets into some kind of jam with menacing big guys all around him. So of course he reaches in to his tuxedo jacket and pulls out - a credit card! Big guys are all smiles and bows, happy ending, music up and out From the Seen and Heard section in the Seattle Times Seen heard said... Seattle Times Leonardo DiCaprio may be only No. 6 on The Hollywood Reporter's Star Power '99 survey of bankable stars, but he's definitely not having to search his couch for spare change. He's got a new commercial for a Japanese credit-card company; word is he got about $2 million for it. By the way, he turns 25 today. Yes, you may say it - oooooo, Leo.

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FROM MOVIELINE "Two things we'll be seeing a lot more of in the 21st century: old people and Leo. The average American now has more parents than children, and the culture continues to lurch through time so disconcertingly that even the young long for the vicarious experience of youth. And so, no matter how many indelible characters he manages to create in the future, Leonardo DiCaprio will always be Jack from steerage in an airy chamber of our collective memory. The ship might've gone down, but the triumvirate of youth, beauty, and heroism put DiCaprio in an exalted place. Titanic's erotic inventions--painting your girlfriend in the nude, sex in the backseat of a car--tap into a universal nostalgia like a dessert fork going into fudge cake. Yeah, he's 25 now and vexed with adult headaches. A billion fans and a whole industry want him stuck in amber. He's gonna make mistakes--he *has* to. And he's gonna grow old doing it. No matter. Twenty years from now, with thinning hair, dewlaps and a few Oscars on his nightstand, DiCaprio will still be forever young."

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FROM BLISS MAGAZINE, UK "I wish I could tell you some fantastic stories," says Leo. "It's been incredible shooting on an island like this, but it's about work and more work. My life was spent sleeping on a boat or at the hotel." Read More...

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MOST BANKABLE STARS Celebrity Spotlight & Birthdays: By The Associated Press: In the Spotlight: Leonardo DiCaprio is No. 6 on The Hollywood Reporter's fifth annual Star Power '99 survey of bankable stars. Tom Hanks is first on the list, followed by Mel Gibson, Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford and Jim Carrey. DiCaprio's new film ``The Beach,'' about backpackers in Thailand, is scheduled for release later this year. He was born on Nov. 11, 1974. From Yahoo! Daily News

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LEO ON HALLOWEEN "Leonardo Unmasked They seek him here, they seek him there, that damned elusive Leonardo DiCaprio...I have, however, news of the first confirmed sighting of the 24 year old Hollywood heartthrob, who has been leading his fans a meery dance after slipping virtually unnoticed into the capital last week. Picking up a few tips from 1 of his best known screen characters, The Man in the Iron Mask, he went in disgusie to a glittering Hallowe'en Ball at London's flamboyant Home House club with a group of friends & a bodyguard. Fellow revellers included All Saints' Natalie Appleton, but none of them was aware that the megastar was in their midst. "The theme was 18th century & almost everybody was powdered & periwigged to the nines, but Leonardo didn't quite get it right," my eagle eyed spy informed me. "He was wearing a Dennis The Menance mask." From the Daily Mail

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ONE OF THE MOST GENUINE STARS OF HOLLYWOOD Read this article from Scott's World which makes interesting comparisions between the Old Hollywood vs. the New. Here is an excerpt: At the moment there are some exceptions who harken back to the days of genuine movie stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Julia Roberts, Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Jack Nicholson and perhaps today's biggest box-office star, Harrison Ford.

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ESQUIRE MAGAZINE'S IMPORTANT PEOPLE OF THE 21ST CENTURY Yet terrific is just what he's usually been, uncommonly free of narcissistic mannerisms even in movies that hyperbolize his presence: His Romeo was more plausible than Brando's Marc Antony, his alienated teens in This Boys Life and Marvins Room were more detailed and perceptive than James Dean's histrionics, and his cunningly contrived variations on high spirits were almost as helpful to Titanic as Gables nonchalance was to Gone with the Wind. Read More...

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LEOFEST "This festival strives to offer a level playing field on which anyone who wishes may play." With his global internet film venture, Leonardo DiCaprio hopes to give short-format pictures their due time in the spotlight." Read More...

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TITANIC STAR KEEPS HIS CHIN UP! Being a sexy movie hunk is hard work, and Leonardo DiCaprio is all to ready to huff and puff to keep his female fans happy. Globe's photos show the star putting out a Titanic effort to keep his bod buff by excercising at a chin-up bar in Hollywood park. He showed up with some buddies and began flexing his muscles. Insiders say Leo had to lose weight for his new flick The Beach, due in January, and now he's trying to build back up. On the last chin-up, he needed help from a buffed pal.

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"Titanic Move for Film Idol By RUTH RYON The LA Times Real-estate Section Leonardo DiCaprio has purchased a home in the Hollywood Hills for $3 million. The home has three bedrooms and four baths in 5,000 square feet. Situated behind gates and at the end of a long drive, the contemporary-style home also has high ceilings, three fireplaces, a motor court, pool, spa and city views. The house was built in the 1960s. DiCaprio, 24, had been looking to buy a house for himself for some time. He bought a Malibu house, mainly for his mother, about a year ago. The "Titanic" (1997) co-star next stars in the movie adaptation of the novel "The Beach," to be released later this year. He got his first lead in a major film in "This Boy's Life" (1993). He was then nominated for an Oscar as best supporting actor in "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" (1993). DiCaprio also co-starred in "William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet" (1996) before appearing in "Titanic." In 1998, he was in "Celebrity" and "The Man in the Iron Mask."

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Leo to play Howard Hughes? From the New York Daily News Who's Hughes in H'wood Leonardo DiCaprio is due to play Howard Hughes, and it shouldn't be much of a stretch. Director Michael Mann whose flick "The Insider" opens next month tells us the Hughes film will focus on the eccentric billionaire's early years as a high-living heartthrob, when he was full of energy and ideas. Hughes started TWA, produced movies and broke all kinds of air speed records. "Leonardo has all those qualities of the young Hughes: he's high-flying, has lots of sexuality and is iconoclastic," says Mann. But don't expect DiCaprio to star in that long-aborning James Dean biopic. Mann, who helmed "Heat" and "The Last of the Mohicans," isn't interested in the project anymore, although he eagerly auditioned the actor a few years ago. "He came in and we shot some tests of him playing James Dean, but he was just too young 17 or 18 at the time," says Mann. "But he was spectacular, he embodied Dean. I kept thinking, 'We could never have any other actor do this role.'"

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Leo's Out to Break Hearts By CHRIS PETRIKIN, October 28, 1999Variety Nearly 40 years after the studio mounted its first adaptation of the work, 20th Century Fox is set to return to F. Scott Fitzgerald’s romantic epic “Tender Is the Night.” Fox, which released the 1962 bigscreen adaptation, owned half of the novel’s film rights but the other half had reverted to the Fitzgerald estate, with which the studio had to negotiate a deal for the outstanding rights. With the rights now under control, Fox is understood to be going straight to directors who can then develop it with a writer. While Fox’s 1962 version of the novel (which starred Jennifer Jones and Jason Robards under Henry King’s direction) was viewed as a watered-down version of Fitzgerald’s semi-autobiographical novel, Fox hopes to pull out all the stops with this remake. First published in 1934 (nine years after Fitzgerald began writing it), “Tender” is the story of the psychological disintegration of a young, wealthy American couple on the French Riviera in the 1920s. The studio is eyeing the pic as a sweeping romantic saga that will attract A-list stars for the roles of Dick (think Leonardo DiCaprio) and Nicole Diver, the American expatriates. Fox exec veepee Peter Rice is overseeing the project for Tom Rothman’s 20th division. In addition to the bigscreen version, the BBC produced a five-part miniseries chronicling the passionate but soul-destroying romance between the Divers, portrayed by Peter Strauss and Mary Steenburgen. Showtime aired that version in the U.S. Wendy Schmalz of Harold Ober & Associates brokered the deal on behalf of the Fitzgerald estate.

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