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Mild quakes and tremors from the power table in the celebrity weekly cafeteria: Lori Majewski has stepped down as executive editor of Us Weekly to assume the role of managing editor at her alma mater, Teen People. (Bye-bye, former ME Amy Barnett.)

From what we hear, Teen People is very intent on resuscitating sales through the time-honored tradition of cherry-picking its competitors' staff, and Majewski — who tends to consider herself the reason for much of Us' success — was the perfect catch. Says an Us staffer: "She took credit for everything and responsibility for nothing." So you know how that Teen People meeting went.

Seeing as Majewski was never the most popular editor at the mag, everyone wins. Especially Michael Steele, who had more or less replaced Majewski as executive editor and later grabbed the official title two weeks ago (at which point, Majewski naturally stopped going to morning meetings).

After the jump, Majewski's farewell letter, which outlines her successes and awkwardly paraphrases Bruce Springsteen.

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August 17, 2005

To everyone at Us Weekly,

I have resigned from my position as executive editor and have accepted the position of managing editor at Teen People.

Those of you who know me —and since we have worked countless hours together, you more than qualify— know that Teen People holds a very special place in my heart, as I was the first person hired in 1997 to develop and launch Time Inc.'s first-ever and then-untitled teen book. Four years later, TP captured the highest accolade in magazines: the ASME award for general excellence. This was the number-one highlight of my career (until Us Weekly claimed a tie when it snagged Magazine of the Year). So when I was offered the chance to return to Teen People as its top dog, how could I refuse?

That's not to say the decision to leave was an easy one. At Us Weekly, I have had the privilege of working on the most talented, competitive and passionate team in the business. I am proud to say I had a hand in putting it together.

And though the hours were long, the food not always vegetarian-friendly and the Dial-Car situation not always pleasant, the fun I had putting together the most original, laugh-out-loud and celebrity news-breaking magazine in the world sure made it all worth it. I know I'll be telling stories about my Us Weekly tenure for years to come. To paraphrase Bruce Springsteen: I hope when I get old I won't sit around Connelly's or Level V talking about it, but I probably will.

Thanks so much to every single person on staff (which, at one point included a Nick Rhodes and a Michelle Lee, and still boasts a Dave "But Not The Edge" Evans), Janice, Jann, Kent and, of course, Bonnie, for making the last three years a most memorable experience.

Since my Treo will no doubt self-destruct in the next 30 seconds, please keep in touch via my personal email account: XXXXXXX@XXX.com. And good luck to everyone!

Love,
Lori