Brad's brother thinks something's rotten in the state of Brangelina, but other rumors conflict. Jersey Shore drives a hard bargain and risks getting shut out. Gary Coleman gets arrested. ScarJo on stage gets a rave review. Monday gossip starts now.

  • The Brangelina break-up rumor continues to be the only gossip that matters, but we'll carry on anyway, or else the Aniston wins. Sure, Brangelina's rep denies that the pair has split. But The Sun has jumped on News of the World's initial break-up claim, with a source who says Brad's brother Doug convinced him to leave Angie over Christmas: "They barely spend time together and when they do it is very fraught. They want different things out of life." Brad's family remains resolutely Team Jen, and his desire to move permanently to New Orleans has also caused friction. Persuasive arguments for everlasting Brangelina do, however, abound. For instance: Ian Halperin, author of Brangelina: The Untold Story, says it's over and he's always getting stuff wrong. We'll keep a chorus of weeping Nepalese orphans on call, just in case. The more troubling question: Will we survive a Brangelina break-up? Haiti is crumbling, Sarandon-Robbins is over, a Republican won Teddy Kennedy's seat, and Obama isn't as awesome we hoped. So we're sort of sensitive right now. If you insist on abandoning us, Brangelina, let us down gently, OK? [Sun] [NYDN]
  • When you have no dignity, it's easier to bargain. Jersey Shore's cast is putting up a fight over next season's contracts, and TMZ says MTV is ready to let its talent walk. The first time around, the network offered each guido and guidette $5000 per episode plus a $10,000 signing bonus. They've since increased the offer to $10,000 per episode (12 episodes per season) and say anyone who still isn't happy can walk. Apparently The Situation and Pauly D are the most reticent, suggesting they missed the revolving-door lesson of Laguna Beach, The Hills, and The City: You are all replaceable. [TMZ]
  • In fact, the Jersey Shore backlash is already beginning: "Now they're too 'busy' for big movie roles," Page Six sneers in an item about the guido/ettes turning down a role opposite The Sopranos' stars—and Ice-T—in movie Goat. [P6]
  • After suffering a brutal fake death at the hands of Twitter and a rumored car crash in France, Johnny Depp is alive and well, says his publicist. Depp now joins Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Goldblum, and Miley Cyrus as a person so important, Twitter cares whether or not he is dead. It's a compliment, really. [E!]
  • Kristen Stewart and Joan Jett walked the red carpet for Sundance's The Runaways premiere last night, and awkward Kristen said playing Joan was hard: "She's incredibly outspoken and embodies freedom in every way. It wasn't easy for me to get there." Kristen went for the "trashy rebel punk" look at the premiere, in a t-shirt, hoodie, jeans, and unwashed hair. [fig.1] Dakota Fanning, who played Cherie Curie, wore a black dress and had the uncommon decency to comb her hair first. [LAT]
  • Gary Coleman was arrested in Utah for misdemeanor domestic assault. Last year, Coleman's wife was arrested for assaulting him. No further details have emerged, but his mugshot [fig.2] is creepy/sad. [TMZ] [Radar]
  • Some people still don't get that Conan was joking about blowing millions on his final Tonight Shows. They say he should've spent it on Haiti instead of buying a mink snuggie for Mine That Bird. [P6]
  • At first I didn't believe Radar's exclusives about Tiger's sex rehab in Mississippi, but as the evidence piles up in Radar's favor, I'm wondering: Is Tiger's "Gentle Path" their National Enquirer John Edwards infidelity moment? Bring me the Pulitzer committee! Anyway, Radar's new report is that Tiger's wife Elin "spent the past several days with Tiger, participating in his treatment program." She has been there five days; her sister is taking care of the kids. [Radar]
  • Scarlett Johansson and Liev Schreiber are in a Broadway revival of Arthur Miller's A View from the Bridge, and The New York Times' Ben Brantley is raving, which is no surprise for Liev (who we already knew could act), but ScarJo? Damn. Brantley even doubles his praise for Scarlett with insults for her peers:

  • In recent years Broadway's stages have been littered with dim performances from bright screen stars, including Julia Roberts and Katie Holmes. Film actresses as famous as Ms. Johansson tend to create their own discomfort zones onstage, defined by the mixed expectations of fans and skeptics. I was definitely aware of that zone when I saw Keira Knightley in The Misanthrope in London recently.

  • By comparison, Ms. Johansson melts into her character so thoroughly that her nimbus of celebrity disappears. [NYT]

  • For those worried that Justin Combs' charity benefit of a My Super Sweet Sixteen (yes, it will air on MTV) would be lame, Diddy's kid got a $360K Maybach "complete with driver" for his birthday. Page Six includes a picture of him wearing a crown, which sounds about right. [P6]

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Figure 2.