By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
March 21, 2000
As of this week, Us magazine becomes Us Weekly and goes head-to-head against People four times a month.
Editor-in-chief Jann Wenner (who also oversees Rolling Stone) says via press release, “Us Weekly is primarily about entertainment and the lives and lifestyles of entertainers. The reason we are taking Us weekly is that we want to deliver our readers breaking news. The entertainment business moves really fast these days and a lot can happen every week.”
OK. That’s all good. But by virtue of being a weekly, Us really can’t cover news as it breaks.
The premiere weekly issue, though, is a lot more thorough and information-packed than the past few monthly editions of Us. And by slapping Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Tobey Maguire, Cameron Diaz and Jennifer Lopez’s cleavage on the cover, the magazine seems to have correctly targeted the interests of its coveted 18- to 34-year-old demographic.
Is there anything about the new mag that distinguishes it from People, Entertainment Weekly or In Style? Not really. But for folks who can’t get enough factoids about pretty stars, it’s a must browse.
If you only get around to reading one piece in this week’s issue, check out the article about real-life dramas and lawsuits behind this year’s Oscar hopefuls. In reporting Fox Searchlight Pictures’ court settlement with Lana Tisdel, the woman portrayed by best supporting actress nominee Chloe Sevigny in “Boys Don’t Cry,” Us notes, “Tisdel, who had a relationship with Teena Brandon, a woman who disguised herself as a man until she was found out and murdered in 1993, claims the movie portrays her as `lazy white trash’ and `a lesbian who did nothing to stop a murder.’ ”
The movie’s director says Tisdel signed releases allowing the filmmakers to portray her and had her “total consent.”
Stephen King tells Time that he’s considering publishing a serialized novel online. “This is a watershed moment,” he tells the weekly, referring to the success of his new short story, which 500,000 readers went online to download last week. “If I were to do something like that, whether they wanted it to or not, it would force a lot of people to read online. I would love to do something like that, because I think that we’re at a point where maybe there are five or six, maybe a dozen writers, who could literally change the way people regard reading.”
Somehow curling up with a cup of tea and a laptop doesn’t have that relaxing ring to it . . .
If you pick up the April issue of Glamour magazine, skip right over the story that asks, “Is your hair making you look fat?”
Wha? Huh?
Instead, pop open the article about a woman whose identity was stolen by a con artist who ripped off her name and ruined her life. Glamour targets four risky habits that could make you a victim: You never check your credit report (experts say check for inaccurate information and take action immediately); You throw out old bills (shred them or tear them up); You use your birthday as a password (choose a password with personal meaning); You give out your Social Security number without question (it’s the most important information to protect).
Another personal tip: When I renewed my driver’s license this year, I had my Social Security number taken off. It’s not required.
