What bad thing would happen if they didn't?

Brangelina. I totally respect their desire to keep quiet--but it's a tradeoff. I'd also find it hard to deal with the barrage of attention, the spike in paparazzi, and the boatload of lies that'd be all over the press.

Actually talking to them stops that some.

Good last-few-minutes-of-morning, peeps. I got home at midnight last night, and the upstairs' neighbors' party was still going strong.

On the downside, I had to swim through a cloud of (leftover) pot smoke to get to my front door. On the upside, at least they smoked it outside, even if they were dumb enough to do it in the front yard. (It's a very small front yard, and a very busy street.)

On the downside, they were still going strong (and loud bass inescapable) at 2am, when I decided it was Time. (For their first ever party, I didn't want to be too much of a crankypants, so I just stayed up reading fanfic.) On the upside, when I called upon the stroke of 2, they immediately promised to turn down the music and turn off the bass, which they did do, and then they thanked me for calling.

The weird part is they were up this morning and wearing shoes while I was still gronkly and in bed. WTF??

Maybe potsmoking has unexpectedly revivifying aspects?

I wondered how you made out with the party....

Oh, they didn't keep quiet. They played it "we're keeping quiet" while they had an obvious affair on set and then kept travelling together. And both of them have capitalized on their love lives for years.

And, benefit of the doubt, even if they were trying to be discrete, part of that mess was that he dogged his wife and she didn't feel obliged to keep quiet.

The paparazzi whine annoys me. It's SO cultivated. We barely have it in New York -- even Jackie O jogged in the park. If you want to be seen with X you have dinner at the chic place and get "caught." Certainly there are exceptions, but 99% of it is such a game.

they didn't keep quiet.

I'm talking about making statements to the press. They did not, for months.

As for your obvious affair thing--that's information I don't have, so I can't comment. I have no idea when they got together.

The paparazzi whine annoys me. It's SO cultivated

Have you read A Socialite's Life or Just Jared? Are you telling me that Evangeline Lilly and Dominic Monaghan went to the chic pharmacy in order to be photographed? That Jennifer Garner wanted to have her every cup of coffee recorded? That Matthew Perry is lingering provocatively outside his gym?

Maybe all the celebs should move to NY (and use a time machine) since it's so much more sophisticated and laid back there.

Dude, and those women who wear the tiny skirts and then complain about being catcalled or followed by men. I mean really.

Oh! The people my sister was cat-sitting for last week - turns out they were at the World Economic Forum. At one of the sessions, they were sitting right in front of Angelina. Said she was huge, so I guess that twins thing might be on the money.

Celebs who go to the Ivy or spots like that, where they KNOW photographers hang out, are hypocritical when they complain. But getting hounded while just trying to grocery shop or grab a cup of coffee at Starbucks or lead a normal life must be a huge pain.

People have discrete affairs all. the. time. Even actors. If everyone knows it, you're being obvious.

Why does anyone care if there is a snapshot of them with a cup of coffee? Or standing by a gym? Or at a pharmacy (unless you're buying condoms or something but then why would you go together if you were actually being discrete)? How is that some horrid invasion? (Driving someone off the road is another thing). I'm sure it gets annoying, but when you're cultivating publicity there isn't really an off switch.

I'll acknowledge that sometimes its out of control, but you've got to acknowledge that at least some of the time its some handy free publicity.

And it's not that New York is sophisticated and laid back, its that you go to LA for attention.

Dude, and those women who wear the tiny skirts and then complain about being catcalled or followed by men. I mean really.

If women in miniskirts hired publicists you'd have a point. Publicists don't just exist to deny reports you know.

its that you go to LA for attention.

Or work. Whichever.

Why does one go to Hawaii? There's no shortage of jogging or shopping pictures coming from there, and there's just the one cast.

Why does anyone care if there is a snapshot of them with a cup of coffee?

So you don't mind. Bully for you. Remember when I said I'd never be famous? I don't even want to be famous because I'd like to buy tampons without it being a photo op. And if an actual celeb doesn't like that part of the gig, I'm not going to tell them they're wrong to feel that way. It seems perfectly reasonable from where I'm standing.