On September 13, Lifetime Channel is channeling legendary French fashion guru Coco Chanel through the sensibilities of Shirley MacLaine, who, at 74, has long been a legend in her own right. The made-for-TV biopic portrays the quirky couturiere who, as far back as the 1910s, revolutionized the standards for modern female dress by discarding the stiff and starchy apparel of earlier periods in which women were less active and more subservient—and replacing them, over the years, with the “little black dress,” bell bottoms, and her signature cardigan-style suit. What better actress to portray the ultimate maverick than one who is a maverick, herself?    

The sister of deceased Beatle George Harrison has long been in the planning stages of opening a Beatles Museum in the small but music-oriented town of Branson, Mississippi. With an impressive memorabilia collection of her own that she is willing to put on loan to the museum, Branson may be in for a stunning facelift on its hometown image.

You know you are getting older when Meryl Streep is playing the aging mom of a young woman about to get married and start a family. The good news is that she pulls it off in Mama Mia! well enough, in fact, that she has helped make it the biggest grossing musical film of all time, according to industry tabulations. What is particularly inspiring for Baby Boomers and Beyond is that her character in the story enjoys as delightful a romance as her engaged daughter, complete with a happy ending. Meryl Mia!

Seventy-one year old Oscar winner Morgan Freeman flipped his car off a Mississippi highway on August 3, underwent 4-1/2 hours of surgery to repair nerve damage to his left arm and hand, and has been recuperating nicely ever since. Some are calling this accident the latest evidence of a curse on this summer’s box-office bonanza, Dark Knight. No need to be concerned at this point that the accident would jeopardize Freeman’s ability to play Nelson Mandela in Clint Eastwood’s upcoming biopic.

Bernie Brillstein died on August 2, 2008 of pulmonary disease at the age of 76. As Hollywood agent, Brillstein was the force behind the talents of such stars as John Belushi, Lorne Michaels, and Gilda Radner of Saturday Night Live. Later, having formed The Brillstein Company, he helped to launch The Muppet Show and SNL. Still later, in partnership with Brad Grey, he formed Brillstein-Grey Entertainment, producing a host of successful shows, including the groundbreaking, The Sopranos. Applying his own brand of humor to his tombstone, he suggested it read: “Bernie Brillstein: From Hee-Haw to Dangerous Liaisons.” And then some.  

Barbra Streisand recently endowed the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles with $5 million for a women’s heart education and research program, according to representatives of the hospital. The gift is intended to permanently fund the Barbra Streisand Women’s Cardiovascular Research and Education at Cedars-Sinai. Sixty-five year old Streisand was quoted as saying in a written statement, “Women need to be educated about female cardiovascular disease and the medical community must be propelled toward change.” 

Blessed with a long, lean body screen star Marsha Hunt of the 1940’s was a costume designer’s dream. Now, she’s written a book on the subject, which she appropriately titles, The Way We Wore. Hunt made a recent personal appearance to tout her new book at the annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on the UCLA campus.

Seventy-three year old sex kitten of the Sixties and animal activist extraordinaire, Brigitte Bardot is in trouble with the courts for alleged “hate remarks” she made against the immigrant Muslim population of her native France. The French government is protective of the needs of this soaring (six million strong and growing) segment of their population and her accusatory language was considered inflammatory. This is not the first time Bardot has appeared before a French judge.

Perennially beautiful Sophia Loren, still sexy at 73, joined a group of VIPs, including Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli and British royals Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, aboard the MSC Peosia on April 5^th for its maiden voyage from Dover, England to Venice, Italy.

Known for its racy ads featuring scantily clad models, American Apparel used Woody Allen’s image on May 2007 billboards in New York and Hollywood and on the Internet. His lawsuit filed with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan asks for $10 million in damages. Allen was quoted as saying the billboards and website displays were “especially egregious and damaging” since he makes it a practice never to endorse commercial products or services in the United States.