| Priyanka Chopra And Celebs Endorse Heroes AIDS Force December 01 2008 Heroes Project, India's premier media advocacy initiative, launched by socialite and businesswoman, Parmeshwar Godrej and Hollywood actor, Richard Gere to harness India's communication power launched the Heroes AIDS Force in Mumbai on World AIDS Day, December 1. It's an initiative to promote awareness about HIV/AIDS. Filmmaker Karan Johar, actors Priyanka Chopra, John Abraham and fashion designer Manish Malhotra took part in the event. Karan Johar said, 'We as society's influencers need to bring a change in the way we regard people suffering from HIV/ AIDS and working with Mrs. Godrej at Heroes helps me achieve that in a relevant and emphatic way.' John Abraham felt that the Heroes Project in collaboration with the media has been successful in advocating the issues related to HIV/ AIDS. 'It is our duty to ensure that every man, woman and child with HIV/AIDS should get employment opportunities and essential medical aid,' he said. Priyanka Chopra reflected this sentiment and said, 'The more vulnerable sections of society need our voices to draw attention to their issues. Initiatives like the Heroes AIDS Force are a great way of democratizing the battle against HIV/AIDS by involving the masses.' Stars to Shine at Sundance December 4, 2008 Celebrities head to Utah to promote films. Sundance Institute announced today the lineup of films screening at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival in the out-of- competition sections of Premieres, Spectrum, New Frontier, and Park City at Midnight. Celebrating its 25th year, the 2009 Sundance Film Festival runs January 15-25 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden, and Sundance, Utah. Films screening in Premieres are: Brooklyn's Finest / USA (Director: Antoine Fuqua; Screenwriter: Michael C. Martin)-After enduring vastly different career paths, three unconnected Brooklyn cops wind up at the same deadly location. Cast: Richard Gere, Ethan Hawke, Wesley Snipes, Don Cheadle, Ellen Barkin. World Premiere How celebrity couples cope with everyday chores By Luaine Lee December 8, 2008 Richard Gere and his wife, actress Carey Lowell, share the tasks. "We both do social plans but I’m not there as much," he says. "I’m working, so the house stuff gets done by her, most of it. Carey takes care of the house. She’s such a pioneer spirit herself that she kind of does it. Whatever’s there to do, she does it. That’s one of the things I thought was so great about her when I met her. If there was something to be done, she just did it. There’s a piece of paper lying around, she just picks it up, it wasn’t a thought to her. I remembered my mother being that way," he says. "I started off really bad about time. It was a problem for me. But I’ve gotten better. I just lose track of time, I’m a bit of a dreamer. There’s nothing malevolent in it, but I just kind of get lost. But I’ve gotten much better about that and am continually praised by my wife about that, how I’ve gotten better." Richard Gere appears in Hachiko remake December 18, 2008 A new statue of the Hachiko dog will be installed in front of Fuji TV in Odaiba next year, to celebrate their 50th anniversary of broadcasting and coinciding with the Japan release of “Hachiko: A Dog’s Story” – a Hollywood remake of the 1987 film “Hachiko Monogatari.” The story of the Akita dog, who in the 1920s and 1930s waited for his master at Shibuya station for nearly a decade after his death, was made into a movie in 1987. “Hachiko Monogatari,” starring Tatsuya Nakadai, made more than 4 billion yen at theaters across Japan. Richard Gere, 59, a reported dog-lover himself and star of the remake filmed on Rhode Island this year, was confident of the film’s success, and said: “It’s something I want my kids to see.” One critic wrote in an article on the web edition of the Los Angeles Times that the movie could shape up as a candidate for next year’s Oscars. Chihiro Kameyama, head of movie production at Fuji TV, said they will distribute the film together with Shochiku, and said: “We felt the dignified image of Hachiko was an appropriate choice to help celebrate our 50th anniversary. We decided against a temporary statue made of paper-mache or something, which would only be there while the movie was showing, and instead opted for something more real and permanent that can be loved and appreciated over a long time.” The new statue will be 88.8 centimeters tall, weigh 88.8 kilograms and installed on May 12, 88 days before the movie’s release in Japan on Aug 8. The statue is expected to become a famous meeting spot, similar to the one in Shibuya. Buying and Selling Real Estate in the Communities of Long Island December 18, 2008 North Haven property next to Richard Gere's sells Public records show that a 1.27-acre parcel in North Haven has been purchased by a trust for $2.725 million from the estate of Manhattan plastic surgeon Robert G. Schwager, who died in 2007. Property records show the land is assessed at $1.374 million. The Actors Colony Road property includes a 1974 three-bedroom, three-bath home with a Gunite pool. The parcel is nestled in between two other properties owned by actor Richard Gere’s Tushita Trust. It is also adjacent to three properties owned by singer Jimmy Buffett. No word on who is behind Kensho Trust, the new owner of the property, but since "Kensho” and “Tushita” are both terms related to Buddhism, it’s a fair guess that the term is very familiar to Gere, a practictioner of Buddhism. |
| Richard Gere speeds up as he reaches 60 November 02, 2008 HE'S been one of Hollywood's darlings for three decades, but Richard Gere says only now as he nears 60 is he hitting his stride both in life and on film. Gere, whose career-defining roles from Pretty Woman to An Officer and a Gentlemen have seen him pegged as one of the world's top romantic leads, is excited his latest project presents a love story for his generation, a rarity in a sea of film fodder centred around youth-oriented romance. In Nights in Rodanthe, Gere plays a surgeon trying to reconstruct his life after his marriage and relationship with his son (James Franco) have collapsed. On a trip to a seaside inn, he meets a mother-of-two - played by Diane Lane - separated from her husband, but weighing up whether to rebuild the relationship. "What was important to me in taking on this role - and Diane, too, I believe - was that it wasn't a story about kids who are goo-goo-eyed about each other from the moment they meet," Gere says. "This is clearly about people who have had some experience. They are not first-timers and that's not usually dealt with. "A lot of romantic stories tend to be about young people who are just trying to figure out life - decisions that are moving them on the right path in life and the promise of the future is all there for them. "This was a very different story. I think the trick was to make it feel honest and not the kind of cheesy thing." The film, adapted from the book by Nicholas Sparks, marks the third time Gere and Lane have worked together. Almost 25 years have passed since they first co-starred as lovers. In 1984's The Cotton Club, she was a sultry jazz singer and he was a troubled cornet player. They paired up again 2002's Unfaithful, earning Lane an Oscar nomination and causing a stir with its steamy scenes - though not with Gere, who played the cuckolded husband. "We work together really well, so, I hope it's not the last time (to co-star)," he says. "There's an ease, a sense that we know each other's rhythms very well and there's a great sense of trust." The snowy-haired actor, whose youthful exuberance and glowing skin belie his age, leans forward when asked a question and laughs easily and often during the interview. Dressed casually in jeans and a blue shirt, with sleeves rolled up to reveal a string of wooden beads around his wrist, Gere seems genuinely excited to chat about subjects as varied as his eight-year-old son, Homer, his devotion to Buddhism, the US election and his heart-throb status. He smiles when asked about his long-time billing as a sex symbol. "I always thought it was silly, I always did and I always will," he says, his blue eyes sparkling. "I mean, they are just characters to me. "I have a very rich and committed and interesting life, believe me, outside of this stuff. This is a job." Gere says his feelings towards work have changed dramatically since he found fame in his mid-20s in acclaimed romantic drama Days of Heaven, which was directed by Terrence Malick. He reveals his early days as an often self-critical, brooding and intense young actor have given way to someone who has mellowed and is no longer concerned solely with work. "Back then, when I did Days of Heaven, it was all new. ``I had no particular direction to my life," he says. "I had found a dual career in theatre and music at that point and I remember when Terry (Malick) asked me to do this film, I had this sense that my life was going to take this very strong direction now. "I'm much more relaxed about the whole thing now - on all levels. "I don't know if that comes with just having done it or being older, or whatever it is, but it's certainly much easier all the way round." "Even my approach to building characters is much less taxing now than it used to be." Gere was married to American supermodel Cindy Crawford for four years in the early '90s, with the pair's split blamed on long separations due to their hectic work schedules. He says his marriage to actor Carey Lowell and the birth of their son when he was 50 changed the way he approached his career, with family a major factor in his choice of roles. "Your priorities radically change at that point," he says. "I pick my projects differently. I want to know where it's going to shoot. I don't want to be that far away from my family. I have said no to projects I felt were going to keep me away." Nights in Rodanthe - a town on North Carolina's Hatteras Island - proved a perfect fit for Gere, with the shoot only an hour from his home in New York state. But it didn't come without its problems, with the scenic spot hit by a devastating hurricane - as happens in the film - as shooting was due to start. "It hit our sets just before we started, and it almost destroyed the house, and we had to go back into construction," he says. Gere recently completed filming on biopic Amelia, about American pilot Amelia Earhart, who disappeared while flying over the Pacific Ocean in 1937 in an attempt to make a flight around the world. The film co-stars Hilary Swank, Ewan McGregor, Virginia Madsen and Canberra-raised teenager Mia Wasikowska. Gere says he was blown away by the talent of the 17-year-old, who recently began filming as the lead character in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, opposite Johnny Depp. The veteran actor said he believed she would be Australia's next big acting superstar. "She is so terrific," Gere says enthusiastically. "When Mira Nair, the director, told me she was casting her, I had just been watching her in In Treatment. "I had no idea she was Australian, she was so chameleon-like." On top of Amelia, Gere has three other films set for release in the next year - a family drama, Hachiko: A Dog's Story, police crime thriller Brooklyn's Finest and father-son drama The Prodigy. But the biggest event in 2009 for the Gere household will undoubtedly be the actor's 60th birthday. "I don't think much about it other than I know I'm supposed to have a big party," he says with a laugh. Nights in Rodanthe opens on Thursday. |
| Richard Gere paves a path to freedom www.mindfood.com Despite receiving criticism for his outspoken political and spiritual views, Richard Gere continues to fight for what he believes in. Richard Gere admits he finds it hard to say no. As the co-founder – with Uma Thurman’s father Robert – of the Tibet House in New York, he is devoted to helping the Himalayan people gain independence from China. There's his Gere Foundation, a human rights group that gives grants to victims of war and natural disasters around the globe; his tireless campaigning for AIDS research in India; his work with refugees in Central America; and his mission to raise awareness for the world’s vanishing tribes. “I do what I can,” Gere tells MiNDFOOD. “My commitment is to go wherever I am needed, to do whatever is needed.” The last few months have been frantically busy for the 59-year-old Gere, who has the energy of a man half his age. He’s just completed filming three movies back to back but confesses they weren’t actually his priority. With the Beijing Olympics in August, the eyes of the world have been on China. And Gere took that as a wonderful opportunity to promote freedom for Tibetans. The devout Buddhist is banned for life from entering China because of his outspoken views and he was one of the first people to call for a boycott of the Olympics. When MiNDFOOD caught up with him in New York he was looking on the bright side, hoping the Chinese government would amend it’s human rights record. “It’s (been) an amazing opportunity for the Chinese to re-evaluate how they are and how they will function in the changing world,” he says. “I think it’s been a great opportunity to make incredible leaps. All of us who care about that part of the world hope they can fulfill our hopes.” He’s actually supposed to be talking about his new movie Nights in Rodanthe, a romance with his old Cotton Club and Faithless co-star Diane Lane, but the conversation quickly turns to his work promoting freedom in Tibet. Three films – Amelia about flying pioneer Amelia Earhart, Hachiko: A Dog’s Story and Brooklyn’s Finest a police drama – all came together at the same time three months ago. “I had lots of other plans. But they were all nice scripts,” he says. “At first I said I don’t have time, there’s no way I can do them all. It would be one day here, three days there. I don’t know how I could make it work. “A lot of time I just think things over and go easy. But basically they all found a way to work around my real schedule. “I had to take a deep breath and ask myself physically can I do this? Can I handle it? I talked to my wife she said go ahead, do it.” Gere doesn’t laugh when I suggest it was his actress wife Carey Lowell’s way of keeping him out of trouble during August’s Olympics. He takes a deep breath and reels off what he calls his real schedule, as opposed to his movie schedule. “I’ve been giving testimony in the Senate and House of Representative hearings in Washington,” he explains. “We’re doing demonstrations around the world. It’s my commitment. I go wherever I can.” Back in June he scored a major public relations coup when Italian motor company Fiat employed him to appear in a 45-second TV commercial driving a car from the glitz of Hollywood to the snow capped Himalayas. The Chinese government was furious, protesting that Gere’s involvement gave the advert political overtones. Fiat backed off and apologised, saying the company would distance itself from “Mr Gere’s social and political views.” But the row gave Gere exactly the sort of publicity he needed to highlight the Tibetan people’s plight. Gere was just beginning his acting career when he first travelled to Nepal in 1978 with his then partner, the Brazilian artist Sylvia Martins. He quickly became enamoured by the displaced Tibetan monks and the gentle way they handled their suffering. “When I talk to Tibetans who were in solitary confinement for 20 or 25 years, they say to me, totally from their heart, that the issue is larger than what they’ve suffered at the hands of their torturer, and they feel pity and compassion for this person who was acting out animal nature,” he says. Five years later, in 1983, Gere – by then a major star after his leading roles in American Gigolo and An Officer and A Gentleman – travelled to India to meet Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. “It completely changed my life the first time I was in the presence of his Holiness, no question about it,” he says. “It wasn’t like I felt, ‘Oh, I’m going to give away all my possessions and go to the monastery now.’ But I felt that this was what I was supposed to do – work with these teachers.” Philadelphia-born Gere, who was bought up as a Methodist by his insurance salesman father Homer and mother Doris, has been a devout Buddhist ever since. He also started working in the slums of India, helping women and children infected by the HIV/AIDS virus. “When I go there I’m just a simple student like everyone else,” he says. “But I’m also the guy who can help. When I’m in India there are a lot of people who require help and it’s very difficult to say no.” In 1986 Gere disappeared from view to go on a fact-finding mission to Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador. He spent three years working with the Central American refugees and tribal groups before re-emerging in 1990 to star opposite Julia Roberts in the smash hit Pretty Woman. He set up the Gere Foundation the following year to raise awareness and much needed cash for the causes close to his heart. “I’m in a kind of unique position in that I do have some cash in my foundation, so I’m able to offer some front money to various groups to help them get projects started,” he says. But Gere’s good works haven’t always made him popular. He was banned from presenting at the Oscars after using the 1993 ceremony to criticise the Chinese government. And in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks he was booed at a New York victims’ benefit for saying: “We have to learn how to forgive.” Not that he cares what people think. He say he never reads press about himself and as someone who has been consistently at the top of the acting tree for almost 30 years, he now commands up to $15 million a movie. He’s generous with his earnings. When invited to open the annual summer sale at London’s famous Harrod’s department store he donated his entire $100,000 fee to Survival International, a group dedicated to supporting tribal people and protecting their land. It’s a far cry from his struggling student days in the 1970s when he was waiting tables in between acting classes in New York. Legend has it that he served Robert de Niro and told him that he’d be equally successful one day. Nowadays Gere probably doesn’t need to work quite so hard. But like the charity work, he finds it hard to turn down good scripts. He’s really excited about Hachiko as it’s the first children’s film he has ever done. It means his eight-year-old son Homer will be able to watch his daddy at work. “It’s a famous story in Japan about a dog,” he says. “The story is about loyalty. If it doesn’t make you cry nothing will. I’ve cried every time I’ve read that story.” In Nights in Rodanthe Gere plays a troubled doctor who stops off at a seaside inn and falls for the unhappily married hostess, played by Lane. Based on the Nicholas Sparks novel, it’s a real tear jerker about two lost souls colliding. Last time Gere worked with Lane, she was the adulterer whose affair with a good looking young man, played by Olivier Martinez, drives Gere to murder. As we sit chatting in a restaurant not far from Gere’s home in Manhattan’s leafy Greenwich Village, he teases 43-year-old Lane about her yearning to quit acting and become a stay-at-home mother. “This is my last film for a while because I want to be home with my kids,” Lane explains. “They’re teenagers and they would prefer me to be away working.” “My daughter identifies with me working. I’ve been doing this 30 years and the idea of me doing anything else is like no, no. “She’s 15 and I have a step daughter the same age. I’ve talked about not working but they don’t want me around. But this is it, my last film for a while.” Gere plunks his arm on her elbow as if to pin her down and says: “If she thinks about retiring I will bring her round. We’re like Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy. We have to keep on going.” Not that Gere wants to work quite a hard as he has done recently. He loves playing baseball with Homer and spending quality time with wife Carey and 18-year-old stepdaughter Hannah. His four-year marriage to supermodel Cindy Crawford broke up in 1995 over his reluctance to settle down and have children. But that changed after he met Law and Order actress Carey, now 47. Homer James Jigme Gere was named after both of his grandfathers. Jigme is a Tibetan word meaning fearless – something Gere is when he takes on governments over human rights. Last year he was accused of “public obscenity” when he grabbed hold of Bollywood actress Shipla Shetty at an AIDS awareness rally in Jaipur, India and kissed her several times on the cheeks. He quickly left the country saying the controversy had been “manufactured by a small hard line political party.” Two judges sided with Gere and told him he was free to return to the land he loves. Apart from setting up a care home there for women and children with AIDS, he spends time on retreats studying with the Dalai Lama and Buddhist teachers. “Some of them are hermits up in the hills but they come down when His Holiness gives teaching,” says Gere, who says he still gets nervous around the spiritual leader. “The Tibetans radiate. They literally send out light. His Holiness generates love and compassion. He has committed himself to that. “I haven’t made that leap yet. I haven’t given up self-aspiration. I still love making movies.” |
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| At the NYC premiere of "Nights in Rodanthe" September 23, 2008 |
| Hollywood star Richard Gere is canning reports that he’s planning a return to Broadway for a reunion with his An Officer And A Gentleman co-star Debra Winger. The star was in negotiations to replace Bill Pullman onstage in a revival of Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner? but he won’t be playing the role Spencer Tracy made famous on the big screen. A spokesman for Gere says, "He’s not doing it." Winger and Amanda Bynes are reportedly confirmed for the production. But stay tuned kiddies. Just because a publicist denies it means nothing ! |
| German premiere of the movie "Nights in Rodanthe" Berlin Germany September 30, 2008 |
| Richard Gere and his wife Carey Lowell leaving Berlin directly after the red carpet of "Nights in Rodanthe" |
| Celebrity Dogs Unleashed art project Brewster, New York October 1, 2008 Rachel Ray's Painted Dog Thirty life-size, fiberglass dogs painted for Green Chimneys' 'Celebrity Dogs Unleashed' art project have been revealed at the Jumeirah Essex House. The auction of dogs, painted by Richard Gere, Katie Lee Joel, Martha Stewart, Rachael Ray, Robert Kennedy, Jr., Robin Quivers, Clive Davis and Vanessa Williams will be benefiting a special education school, a residential treatment center for children and a farm and wildlife rehabilitation center in Brewster, NY Celebrity Dogs Unleashed art project Brewster, New York October 1, 2008 |
| Richard Gere and his wife leaving the Regent Hotel in Berlin to attend the premiere of his new film "Nights in Rodanthe" at the Potsdamer Platz. |
| Pretty kiss for Richard Hollywood star Richard Gere celebrated the premiere of his love movie "The smile of the stars" at Potsdamer Platz His Pretty Woman he held for two days in Berlin, hidden, but the evening brought Richard Gere (59) wife Carey Lowell (47) with his film premiere. Hand in hand they entered yesterday the Red Carpet at the Cinemaxx on Potsdamer Platz, where his love drama "The smile of the stars" Germany celebrated premiere. "Richard, Richard" cried his predominantly female fans. The man with the mad-sex appeal fell on them, was here and there a photograph with them and make them, gave interviews to journalists. Gere flew to Rome next Meanwhile, waited his beautiful wife (played in the Bond movie "License to Kill the Bond Girl) patiently in the background. "My wife was the whole time with me here, but she is happy if they bear the entire hubbub has nothing to do," said Gere. Smile and added: "They had fun on room service." Geres delightful film colleague Diane Lane (43) said: "Richard is great. We're almost like a family and watch on each other mutually. "For the third time they stood together in front of the camera. Over the years they have become good friends. And it. Albert you around on the red carpet and posed quite familiar. Sweet gesture: When Gere (on the left Armgelenk wore a Buddhist prayer chain) with his wife wanted to go to the movies, he discovered raindrops on Careys blazers and she lovingly wiped away, then snapped her hand and vanished. Still wanted on the evening of the Hollywood star leave - onward flight to Rome. |
| 60 Seconds: Richard Gere Wednesday, October 8, 2008 Richard Gere will be 60 next summer but is still a sex symbol for women all over the world. In his new film, Nights In Rodanthe, Gere – most famous for risible hooker makeover flick Pretty Woman with Julia Roberts – conjures up some romantic chemistry with co-star Diane Lane, 43. It's the third time the pair have worked together. The film is out on Friday. Are you and Diane Lane close? You have some great on-screen chemistry. The funny thing is we don’t talk much at all. We have almost no relationship outside making movies. We exchange Christmas cards and, maybe once or twice a year, we’ll call each other. Then, every ten years or so, we make a film, and it’s very intense and we’re right in each other’s hearts and minds. It’s a peculiar relationship. Thank God, we both have wonderful marriages. Do the sex scenes come naturally? I found it pretty easy. I’m crazy about her. Plus we also know our boundaries. If we get too close we talk about it and say, 'We can go there but let’s not go there.' Are you romantic? It’s in all of us. In some of it's closer to the surface than others, and at different times of our lives, but we all have incredibly yearning hearts. I’ve never in my life seen anyone who gave up. Even my suicidal friends are still looking for love. As long as the heart is still beating, they’re yearning. Do you have a favourite romantic film? Two For The Road starring Albert Finney and Audrey Hepburn, the kind of movie we’ll probably never see again. It’s about people over 30 with problems in their lives and it seems most of the movie-going public is under the age of 22. You also had some great chemistry with Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. You can’t force that kind of thing. If it hadn’t been that script, these two actors and that director, it wouldn’t have worked. You can’t isolate elements that way and think just because it’s them or him it’s going to work. It doesn’t happen like that. Robert Redford says people only saw him for his looks when he was starting out. Was it the same for you? Not really, because I was playing much crazier characters. Robert always played the guy next door. I got the parts of drug addicts and bad boys. In Days Of Heaven, my first film, and Looking For Mr Goodbar, I was a bad guy. They were marginal but real characters who didn’t have much to do with me. I was a very simple, small-town kid. Have you read any crazy stories about yourself? I stopped reading the press a long time ago. Lots of crazy things came up about me at first, especially from the tabloids. There is an infamous ‘Gere stuck a hamster up his bum’ urban myth. I expect that sort of thing but when reputable magazines started making up stories claiming I was in a country I had never been to with someone I didn’t even know, I just decided not to pay attention to any of it. It’s a waste of energy. What do you wish for the world? An end to poverty. Is that possible? We’re so rich in the US and Europe that if we took just ten per cent of our GNP and used that money for food, hospitals and schools, we could solve the problem of poverty. In India, it’s incredible how families get into debt just because someone gets sick. So I’ve started a programme for micro-insurance that covers people for most medical problems for 120 rupees a year [about £1.50]. Insurance in the Third World is still a pioneering idea but it helps to take lots of people out of the circle of debt as most of the debts in these countries are due to medical bills. What are your thoughts on the end of the George Bush era? We’ve had some pretty incompetent administrations but none as incompetent as this one. Everyone would admit we have a president who’s incompetent and we elected him twice. We’re responsible for that because we didn’t go out into the streets. We all could have done more. Are you looking forward to turning 60? I thought I’d be dead by the time I was 30, so the fact I’ve lasted this long amazes me. When I was shooting The Hunting Party in Sarajevo, the film crew did a press conference to introduce ourselves to the community. There was a very shy young girl sat at the back who raised her hand. She said: ‘On behalf of three generations of my family – myself, my mother and my grandmother – I’d like to thank you for continuing to make movies.’ I thought: ‘How sweet.’ Then I thought: ‘I’m really old.’ |
| Richard Gere interview: Star talks of love, on-screen and off October 10, 2008 By ELLIE GENOWER AFTER watching him sweep countless movie heroines off their feet in films like Pretty Woman and An Officer And A Gentleman, it's a relief to find out that actor Richard Gere is a romantic in real life. "I think all of us are romantic," he says. "Some people more so than others – at different times of their lives. We all have incredibly yearning hearts. I've never seen anyone who gave up on looking for love in my life – even my suicidal friends. ADVERTISEMENTWe are all learning towards love in our own ways. And I don't think that ever stops." Gere, who describes the most romantic place in the world as anywhere his wife (actress Carey Lowell] is, stars in the new romantic drama Nights In Rodanthe, based on yet another bestselling book by the tearjerker author of The Notebook, Nicholas Sparks. The film is Gere's third appearance opposite actress Diane Lane. The pair worked together in 2002's critically acclaimed film Unfaithful and Frances Ford Coppola's 1984 drama The Cotton Club. "What's funny is we don't actually talk to each other at all," he admits. "We have almost no relationship outside of making movies. We talk to each other on the phone, maybe once or twice a year. And every 10 years or so, we'll make a movie. It's very intense and we're right in each other's space, hearts and minds. Then we move on, and 10 years later, we do it again. It's a peculiar relationship we have. Thank God we have wonderful marriages." In the film, Gere plays surgeon Dr Paul Flanner, the only guest at a beachside inn in remote Rodanthe, North Carolina. He ends up falling for Adrienne, who is managing the inn to help out a friend for the weekend. A recently separated mother of two, Adrienne is still dealing with her husband's betrayal and the recent news that he wants to return home. One thing leads to another, and the weekend in Rodanthe ends up being the couple's second chance at love. Gere and Lane have an innate chemistry on screen, but he says it's not easy to explain. "I don't think art comes out of rational work," he says. "It allows some kind of mysterious communication to happen and hopefully some of it ends up on film. I won't tell you which ones, but I've made films that were extremely successful with women that I didn't get along with at all – we could barely talk to each other. "It's funny, there's a film I made – I think it's the most successful film I made – Pretty Woman. That movie works on some quirky level, and it's really simple. There have been 150 movies which have tried to do that since, but they can't do it. There are certain unknown mysterious qualities which happen in adult romances. You can't necessarily write it. It has to be the chemistry of the people. I don't know if the other films Diane and I have done – if they were with other people – they would have worked. Much of it is the fact that sometimes, there's this thing between us." Gere acknowledges that it's unusual to see movies with over-40s in the lead roles these days, but he has a relaxed attitude to youth-obssessed Hollywood. "Most of the movie-going public is under 22 probably, so that's the obvious answer," he says. "But I think in the larger sense, if the scripts were there, these kinds of films would find a way of getting made. If you can't make them for $50 million, you make them for $15 million. So the necessity of having a mass market isn't there." At 59, the actor is fortunate to have tackled many different genres, from his famous romantic dramas, to Oscar-winning musical Chicago, and last year's ensemble indie hit I'm Not There. "When someone makes me do it, and I look back through my career, I see I've done lots of different types of movies I like," he says. "But there's still quite a few I haven't done, and maybe I'll get a shot at before I die. It's the violent ones that I probably have no interest in whatsoever. Even a film like The Jackal, which I was happy with my work in, had gone over the violent edge for me. I probably wouldn't do another movie like that again." Like his character, Gere also found love a second time round with his model-turned-actress wife Carey Lowell. They have an eight-year-old son, Homer, named after Gere's father. Despite the long hours and demands of the job, he says his family are his "priority". "My priorities are my wife and kids for sure. I hope they are for everybody else," he says. "I have a very balanced life. It's not all about movies and it's not all about acting. This is a great job we have, an incredible job. I'm incredibly thankful for it and I acknowledge that every day – the kind of life that I've been able to live because of it. I don't over estimate in terms of what it means in the universe. "We're living the dream, but we have to know that we are," he adds. "We can never take this for granted, in any way whatsoever, and that's for all of us to realise. That in our own ways, we can give back a lot, depending on what we do. |We're in this as working people who care about the universe." Giving back to society has been a passion for Gere since he developed an interest in Tibet in his 20s. He has since set up The Gere Foundation which contributes to Tibetan charities, although his outspoken views have got him into trouble in the past – he was banned from being an Oscars presenter after criticising China's occupation of the country. "China is this really interesting situation," he says earnestly. "They want to be part of the vision for the new world and they have one foot in that world, and they have one very stubborn leg stuck in the old world which is repression and human rights abuses and a mindset which is prone towards violence and not listening to the needs and concerns of others. "We, as citizens of the world, need to encourage them constantly to take that foot out of the old world and jump wholeheartedly into the new vision which is listening and concern, and the sense that we're all in this together." • Nights In Rodanthe is released in cinemas across the city today. |
| Portage Central grad to appear in Gere film and 'All My Children' by Stephenie Esters October 12, 2008 Shannon Kane had just finished filming a soon-to-be released movie as Richard Gere's love interest when she got picked to play a character on the television soap "All My Children." Former Portage resident Shannon Kane poses with "Brooklyn's Finest" co-star Richard Gere. All this, and she's only been out of Portage Central High School for five years. "It's been really exciting," Kane said of her career during a telephone interview Monday from her adopted hometown of New York City. Television viewers can catch the 23-year-old Kane this week on ABC as Natalia, who was first introduced a little over a week ago while lurking outside the home of popular character Jesse Hubbard, the town's police chief. |
| "I have some unresolved business with Jesse, so I go to his house to talk to him about something personal," Kane said. The former Kalamazoo and Portage resident expects viewers to learn her character's connection by the end of this week. She is not sure how long her character will last, as she has not yet been offered a contract guaranteeing her a longer association with the show, Kane said. In a few months, she will turn her attention to promotions and tours abroad for "Brooklyn's Finest," in which she stars as Chantel, a street-smart, Brooklyn-raised Puerto Rican young woman who works as a prostitute. Her character gets involved romantically on-screen with Gere. The Antoine Fuqua-directed movie also stars Don Cheadle ("Hotel Rwanda" and "Ocean's Eleven"), Ethan Hawke ("Training Day," "Before Sunset"), Wesley Snipes ("Blade: Trinity" and "Murder at 1600") and Emmy winner Ellen Barkin ("Ocean's Thirteen"). Filmed in July, the movie is set for a December or early 2009 release, she said. "It's like a really dark love letter to the police," Kane said of the movie in which she stars opposite Gere. "It's a cop film, and I play a hooker." Kane said the movie and her personal preparation for it were "enlightening." She said she interviewed a real-life prostitute and talked to several strippers and young Puerto Rican women throughout New York City. Kane said she realized Chantel was still in her system when a former boyfriend said something negative to her and she responded the way Chantel would have. "She's very feminine and very beautiful. But if you cross her, she will bite your head off," Kane said. While in high school, Kane participated in Kalamazoo County's Education for the Arts program. After graduating, she spent a year in the dance program at Western Michigan University, then moved to Los Angeles and ultimately to Brooklyn, N.Y. Though her face might be familiar from print ads, Kane said the modeling gigs for those ads supplement income from her true desire, acting. Over the years, Kane has been a dancer on the short-lived "Show Me the Money" game show with William Shatner and has had small roles on "CSI: Miami," "Entourage" and in the soap opera "The Young and the Restless." Asked if she feels "established" given how much she has accomplished in a short period of time, Kane laughed. But she noted that she does feel like she impressed Gere, Cheadle and the others with her acting skills in "Brooklyn's Finest." "I think any actress in this business who feels 'established' has another thing coming," Kane said. "This isn't my passion for security. But it is my passion, whether I have security or not |
| Photos Courtesy of Margo from a Polish magazine |
| Hope Heart(R) Announces Charitable Support for Jewelers for Children and Healing the Divide October 18, 2008 Released By: Paradise Production Company Hope Heart®, an inspirational and unique jewelry line offered by Paradise Production Company, announced today that it will donate a portion of its sales proceeds to the Jewelers for Children and Healing the Divide non-profit organizations. The Hope Heart® jewelry line can be viewed and purchased through their website at http://hopeheart.us Hope Heart® jewelry is a symbol that encompasses the legend of the heart and the spiritual principles of yin and yang. It was created by a remarkable young woman, Lauren Rose Weinkrantz, as a gift for her mother to convey a message of love and peace. "Both the Jewelers for Children and Healing the Divide organizations represent what the Hope Heart® message is all about," said Barbara P. Roth, president of Paradise Production Company. The Jewelers for Children, http://www.jewelersforchildren.org, was founded by the U.S. jewelry industry with the mission of helping children in need. Since its inception, it has donated more than $30 million to programs benefiting children whose lives have been affected by illness, abuse or neglect. Healing the Divide was created with a commitment to work for a world filled with peace and justice, http://www.healingthedivide.org. Reader Contact Information: Paradise Production Company, 210.710.7117, http://hopeheart.us/ |
| RICHARD GERE - GERE: 'THE JACKAL WAS TOO VIOLENT' 31 October, 2008 RICHARD GERE regrets his role alongside BRUCE WILLIS in THE JACKAL - because the movie was too violent. The devoted Buddhist admits he likes his movies to be more peaceful affairs. He says, "I don't really like too much violence. Looking back, I would say The Jackal was too violent. I wouldn't do that movie again." And the ageing movie hunk admits he hasn't always liked his co-stars: "I won't mention names, but I have made very successful movies with colleagues where we barely spoke to each other off set." |
| Richard Gere expresses himself on the political situation of its country and on the society they puts into effect in general terms. Listen here |
| CHUPI IN CRISIS: Richard Gere Joins the Chopping Block October 21, 2008, The Palazzo PriceChops continue. Though this time, it's not Chupi's forlorn triplex penthouse that is taking the hit. Nope, it's actually one of two units (not including Julian Schnabel's) that found a buyer. Richard Gere, to be exact. He's been trying to flip his full-floor spread in the Chupster since the spring, at an asking price of $17.995 million. He bought the 4BR, 4BA piece of pink for $12 million a year ago. Now, as of yesterday, Gere's asking price is down to $15 million |
| Interviews with Richard Gere Click Here |
| AN OFF-THE-BALL LOOK AT YOUR FAVORITE SPORTS CELEBRITIES November23, 2008 The Yankees always have been Hollywood's baseball team. That was evident this week. In Tampa at Steinbrenner Field the Yankees Fantasy Camp took place. Richard Gere and his 9-year-old son Homer got pointers from Mickey Rivers and Bucky Dent. "Richard was great for the morale of all the other campers, everybody had a great time, "Dent said. Noted Mick the Quick: "I've been a fan of his ever since 'American Gigolo. 'We had a lot of fun." Also on the film front, actor Josh Lucas said he is thrilled to get the chance to play Thurman Munson in the upcoming film "Keeper of the Pinstripes" that will feature Bernie Williams. Lucas wants to put on about 20 pounds for the role and plans to do some in-depth research. When Lucas brilliantly portrayed basketball coach Don Haskins in "Glory Road" it was Haskins, Pat Riley and Tim Floyd who taught the actor how to act like a coach. "It's an honor to get this role," Lucas told The Post's Kevin Kernan. "There's a couple of them you get every once in a while, I felt that way with 'Glory Road,' too. Haskins was not as known as Munson by any means, but he had a similar sort of powerful way about him, a really salt-of-the-earth kind of man. I learned so much playing Haskins, and I have a feeling it will be similar with this, too." "I learned more about life in 'Glory Road' than in any movie I've ever done," Lucas added. "Between those three, Haskins, Riley and Floyd, I learned about what the essence of coaching demands and how they go about pulling greatness from their players." Riley, Lucas noted, "had more movie-star-quality personality than any movie star I've ever seen. It was pretty amazing." "Keeper of the Pinstripes" is based on a series of children's books by Ray Negron. The film is being directed by Robby Benson of "One on One" fame. Gere will play Lou Gehrig in an animated film based on Negron's series. In "Keeper of the Pinstripes" the production company is reaching out to James Gandolfini to play the part of Babe Ruth. If he accepts, Tony Soprano would be going from his Gambino-like role to the Bambino. |
| Actor Richard Gere autographed MLB baseball |
| On the 20th World AIDS Day, activist and actor Richard Gere shares his personal account of the evolution of AIDS in America. When the World Health Organization first declared World AIDS Day, December 1, 1988, the virus had already caused more deaths in the United States than there were total fatalities in the entire Vietnam War. Two decades later, AIDS has taken the lives of more than 25 million people, with an estimated 33.2 million people living with the virus today. Richard Gere is one of America's most committed AIDS and human rights activists. Gere and his foundation work tirelessly to increase AIDS awareness, funding, and care. Gere cites the need for educated leadership to help curb the epidemic: "This is what we're seeing all over the world -- where we have leadership ... the numbers stay relatively low. Whether it's Africa, whether it's Thailand ... although I don't have much in common with President Bush, he is someone [who] ... did spend a lot of money dealing with AIDS, not only domestically but internationally." Gere is hopeful about President-elect Barack Obama: "The major difference is we're dealing with a man here ... who sees his job and the world as inclusive -- we're all in this together -- and you see him making decisions based on that, and a fundamental belief in his gut and his heart that we're all in this together, and no one is expendable ... so if you start from that point of view, you can make enormous progress in these areas, especially health." "The Tavis Smiley Show" is a weekly show offering a unique blend of news and newsmakers in expanded conversations, along with feature reports and regular commentators. "The Tavis Smiley Show" is produced by Tavis Smiley productions, and distributed nationwide by PRI. This piece is a part of the "Tavis Smiley Show’s" series "My America 2008" which profiles the challenges and triumphs of everyday Americans and how their lives will be affected by the plans and policies of the Presidential candidates. |
| December 25, 2008 Celebs that live in the northern Westchester area, including Richard Gere, Tom Brokaw and Martha Stewart. As you know, Richard Gere owns the Bedford Post Inn. So what’s he buying for his restaurant? “Richard and his wife came through recently buying a copper boiler,” Silbersher said. (Silbersher’s store) “He said he was going to use it as an ice container for his restaurant.” Using a copper boiler as an ice-container? Talk about a fashion no-no, that’s soooo 2005! |
| Richard Gere batting against the New York Yankees |