Blog Posts by Wendy Geller

It's not a huge surprise that folks are divided in opinion over LeAnn Rimes's personal life. The singer's controversial affair with actor Eddie Cibrian has consistently made headlines for the past year; however, to her credit, she's gamely kept her head up and maintained a positive attitude to the press and fans.

That said, she herself appears to have hit her limit in terms of outsiders examining her business. After weathering a storm of criticism regarding recently circulated photos of her and Cibrian, the singer has announced she's going to take a break from Twitter.

"It's unhealthy for me and my family to have to read negative comments from people who's opinions have no bearing on my life," she tweeted in explanation.

The pictures in question, which can be seen here and here, and were caught over the 4th of July holiday at a California resort, have caused a flutter of gossip about Rimes's appropriateness. One shot is particularly jarring, showing a bikini-clad Rimes on top of

If you were out having a good time on Independence Day Eve, you may have missed Dolly Parton's tribute to the 25th anniversary of her Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, theme park, Dollywood--a blowout concert featuring appearances from numerous country luminaries, which aired on the Hallmark Channel Saturday night.

And, hey, that's okay if you missed the show. The holiday weekend is for partying, not staying home and watching TV, right? However, here's a highlight of the special that I'm sure you wouldn't want to miss: Parton taking the stage with her godchild, Miley Cyrus, to perform a duet of her classic "Jolene."

Now, this enduring little tune about girl vs. (much hotter) girl in competition for the same man is one that's had quite a set of legs, so to speak. It's been covered and re-interpreted by a range of artists, from Olivia Newton-John to the White Stripes to the Sisters Of Mercy. Just about every musical genre has taken a crack at it.

But somehow, this performance with Cyrus has a

If her Twitter account serves as any indication, LeAnn Rimes seems to be blissfully happy in her new relationship with Eddie Cibrian. Despite fielding considerable criticism--both Rimes and Cibrian were married at the time they got together last year, and are still waiting for their respective divorces to finalize--her updates are chirpy and cheerful, referring to Cibrian as "my love" and detailing fun-filled activities with the actor's two young sons.

However, she unveiled a darker side of her emotions this week. In an interview with People, Rimes does penance of sorts, admitting that her affair with Cibrian was "selfish" and "emotionally driven." 

"I never once thought what I was doing was okay," she said of her infidelity, which led to the demise of her 7-year marriage to Dean Sheremet. "I did one of the most selfish things that I possibly could do, in hurting someone else."

Sheremet was not the only party damaged. Cibrian's soon-to-be ex-wife Brandi Glanville, who is also the

Carrie Underwood, who's fresh off Wednesday night's successful run at the CMT Awards (she scored two wins, one of them top video of the year), has her mind back on practical matters. Read: Her upcoming wedding to Canadian hockey star Mike Fisher.

Or, perhaps she doesn't quite have her mind on it. "My [wedding] planner's on top of it," she told People this week. "He's doing stuff while I'm out on the road."

As far as I can tell, Underwood's planner has scored the best client on earth. The singer, who is currently busy on tour, is decidedly not your average Bridezilla.

In fact, she seems to have a remarkably laid-back attitude about the entire event, even while admitting to People that few details have been determined and "there's a lot to do."

Still, she doesn't seem a bit worried or pressed for time.

On the day of the wedding? "We'll just show up," she says. "It's mainly about family and friends and the two of us."

The couple has also decided not to open a wedding registry,

Well, well, well--here's a new one for the "unusual pairing" books. However, to many of us, I'm sure this won't come as a big surprise.

Guess which unlikely characters are now on the record as being close pals? Country icon Willie Nelson and hip-hop legend Snoop Dogg.

In fact, according to U.K.-based outlet Sky News, the two may even share the stage at Britain's famed Glastonbury musical festival this weekend (both were booked, and have already performed, separately).

"We're real good friends and have been for a lot of years," Nelson, 77, said of the 38-year-old rapper. "His kids would come down to my place and we'd do videos together and hang out."

As I noted above--this alliance is probably not a big shock to those who are aware of both entertainers' infamous penchants for a certain illegal substance.

Nelson and Snoop are major supporters of marijuana--both in terms of legalization (in fact, Nelson appeared on CNN's Larry King Live in April to discuss his support in this very

Rascal Flatts are going Hollywood--and, no, I'm not talking about their acting careers, although they have been popping up on TV with some regularity lately.

Nope, the group's Tinseltown legacy is going to go way beyond guest appearances on CSI and American Idol. In fact, it is going to be literally set in stone: The guys are slated to be honored with a star on the legendary Hollywood Walk Of Fame in 2011.

The announcement was made on Thursday by the Walk of Fame Committee of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, citing the Flatts along with a list of other 2011 honorees including Melissa Etheridge, BeBe & CeCe Winans, and (posthumously) Buddy Holly.

All three members of the band responded to the announcement with a tone of humility and deep gratitude. "This far exceeds any expectations I ever had," said Gary LeVox. 

Joe Don Rooney raved, "This is the kind of stuff you dream of growing up as a kid. Having our name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame has to be one of the coolest things

The number 13 has, of course, long been acknowledged as a symbol of bad luck--but not for Taylor Swift, who credits it with nothing but great things in her life. She was born on December 13th, can cite a long list of personally fortuitous incidents involving the number, and routinely goes about with a "13" inked on her hand.

"Basically, whenever a 13 comes up in my life, it's a good thing," she's explained in interviews.

And now, this month she's taking her reverse-triskaidekaphobia to a new level. This year's annual CMA Festival--in which country fans caravan to Nashville for several fun-filled days of live music and autograph opportunities with their favorite artists--happens to run from June 10 through June 13. Swift, like most of country music's A-listers, is scheduled to meet and greet her fans at the Fest. So, she decided to put a "lucky" twist on the event: On Sunday, June 13, she's pledged to meet with fans for 13 straight hours.

Phew! Now that is dedication, my friends.

Lots of bona fide pop and rock stars have decided to take a walk over to the country scene in the past few years--Jon Bon Jovi, Jack White, and Darius Rucker are a few notable examples. However, the latest rocker to join the country ranks certainly comes as a surprise.

Chris Shiflett may not be a name that everyone immediately recognizes, but I'm sure most have heard of the band he plays with--he's the guitarist for the Grammy-award-winning rock outfit Foo Fighters. Shiflett just announced that he's fronting a side project, the Dead Peasants, which will allow him an outlet for his love of vintage country, Americana, and rockabilly music.

"One of my favorite kinds of music is old country--and old rockabilly and modern Americana like Sun Volt, Wilco, and Ryan Adams," the guitarist explained in a recent interview with NME. "I started doing some Americana shows with some friends, and that kind of evolved into recording some demos."

He used the Foo Fighters' recording studio for a month