KATE MIDDLETON, Princess Bride: Cheers & Honeymoon Reading

For the latest on KATE (and on PIPPA) see Princess Kate & Scandal-Sister Pippa; CONGRATS TO THE ROYAL COUPLE on their ANNIVERSAY! CELEBRITIES IN DISGRACE, our short film, played as an official selection at the Hoboken International Film Festival

HONEYMOON READING for KATE… by Elizabeth Searle

I love a good Royal Wedding.  Years ago I woke at 4AM and painted Kachina Dolls (my high school job) while raptly watching  Prince Charles and– the undeniable unforgettable star of that long-ago show– ‘Lady Di’ take their festive and ill-fated vows.

As noted in my previous post (Is Kate Middleton the anti-Di?), compared to ‘Chuck and Di’, Kate and Wills seem to have– with their longtime courtship, relatively lowkey personas and media savvy– both feet on the ground.

My Wedding Wish for the pretty, smart and sensible Kate Middleton is that her own wedding scores much lower TV ratings than that of her groom’s all-too-famous ‘mum.’  And if Kate is seeking Honeymoon Reading, try Tina Brown.  For a vivid analysis of how Diana’s love affair with the besotted public drained her and her marriage, Kate should brave Brown‘s brilliantly entertaining book, The Diana Chronicles.  I was up till 2AM last weekend reading it.

The witty British-born Brown, new editor at Newsweek, is ideally suited to tell this tale as a former Tatler reporter with insider access to Diana during her reign.  Brown gives Di her due as a true superstar whose unique and genuine connection to ‘her public’ thrilled and comforted countless fans– even as it stole Diana’s best energies and fatally addicted her to heady worldwide fame.

Diana’s personal pains and intriguing contradictions fueled our own addiction to her.  Despite ominous reports of pre-wedding weight loss, Kate Middleton seems to be made of less luminous more sturdy and long-wearing material.  Pre-wedding interest has been high but less than maniacal Di-level, which can only be good news for likable Kate’s marital prospects.

In Brown’s book, the most touching moment was her description of a shaken Charles at the Paris hospital after viewing Diana’s lifeless body, following her final media-frenzy crash.  With the hospital surrounded by grieving fans, officials asked Charles if he wanted Diana’s body to be helicoptored away to the airport.

No, Charles replied firmly in blated recognition and respect for his ex-wife’s deep bond with the public.  ”There are people waiting out there who love her.”

Hopefully, for Kate, the main people who ‘love her’ were inside the church, close beside her, while the fans among us take in the show– then let the nice new Princess Bride go.

(photos: thedesignerclothes.com, thumb.php, katemiddletonfan.com.uk)

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Kate Middleton: the Anti-Di? by Elizabeth Searle

FILM UPDATE: Screenings coming in Las Vegas & Maine of Celebs in Disgrace; check out SNL on Kate M & TIME on Bristol Palin…

KATE MIDDLETON: THE ANTI DI?

Kate Middletown seems as sensible and smart as her name: pretty and confident rather than lovely and vulnerable like Princess Diana.  Kate lacks the fierce-eyed shyness and enticing contradictions that made young Lady Di an unforgettable beauty and star.

But Kate and William often seem to laugh together and to, as the Brits say, ‘get on.’  Kate works in the family party-planning biz; she now has the party of a lifetime to plan.  She always moves at a brisk stride and appears game for the challenge.  The stolid ‘Middleton’ name itself emphasizes Kate’s upper middleclass but hardly aristocratic family.  Durable dimpled Kate looks as if she might have, in a different life, followed in her Mum’s footsteps and become an airline stewardess.

Kate’s mother, in fact, was rumored to have offended the Queen by chewing gum and using words like ‘toilet’ in her Highness’s presence.  Needless to say, this common touch may be just what the embattled Royal Family needs.

While the snide British press dubbed her ‘Waity Katie,’ Kate kept her cool. Employing a strategy not unlike the No-Drama Obama game that won our ‘cool jazz’ President the White House, Kate Middleton held the quiet middle-ground through a nearly decade long romance and won her man.

Let’s hope he and his batty family prove good enough for her.

PS: Thanks to MARY for this George & Kanye cartoon…(photos: sponkit.com; dianajewels.com)

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