Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - Sep 13, 2011

Election 2012: Sucking Up:

Does someone want to be vice president?
After dropping out of the presidential race last month, former Minnesota governor TIM PAWLENTY has endorsed MITT ROMNEY to be the Republican Party's candidate in 2012. He praised Romney's "leadership ability" and predicted that he'd be a "great and transformational president."
Pawlenty will join Romney's campaign as a national co-chairman. (Maiman)

Christmas comes early for retailers:

It's only September but it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas because retailers are starting their holiday sales pushes earlier and earlier every year.
Wal-Mart, which usually starts in mid-October, is rolling out its red and green in late September. Home Depot is ramping up this week, and Costco is already stocking its shelves with stocking stuffers.
More than a third of Americans plan to start their holiday shopping by Halloween. (Maiman)

Like you really care:

NICOLE "Snooki" POLIZZI enjoyed another wild weekend and wound up with a fairly large tattoo. The party-hearty guidette "tweeted" out photos her new body art, which features a crown sitting atop a pink bow. The "Jersey Shore" staple seems pretty proud of her choice and called it "badass." (Lee)

What's hot in Hollywood from Star magazine:
--Slimmies chocolate chews --chew one half an hour before your meal and you'll fill up faster: www.myslimmies.com
--Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf --opened it's first East coast store in Times Square: www.coffeebean.com
--TYRA BANKS new fashion, beauty and entertainment website: www.typef.com
--Bliss Fabulips Treatment Kit: www.sephora.com
--Missoni for Target: the largest designer collection to hit the chain launches September 13th (Myers)

Chic Sh*t:

Oh DUCHESS KATE, why does the fashion world love her so? It’s because she’s the “anti-KARDASHIAN.”
The New York Times says that the Royal Wedding ushered in a new age of polished refinement. The “anti-Kardashian” effect Kate had on fashion has been embraced by MICHELLE OBAMA’S favorite designer, JASON WU. Vogue editor ANNA WINTOUR says “There’s nothing trashy or vulgar about her... She dresses her age and never looks out of place.”
But what really makes Kate an American style icon is what celebrity stylist RACHEL ZOE calls “the fairy tale aspect of fashion.” Kate’s married to PRINCE WILLIAM and “Who doesn’t want to see the storybook come alive?” (Bartha)

Movies:

Eeeeew, pass the hand sanitizer! As we noted yesterday, the Warner Brothers film, "Contagion," was a #1 success at the weekend box office. Perhaps it was, in part, due to their advertising --last week in an abandoned Toronto storefront the company had signs that were painted with actual bacteria, that gradually grew into the image of the film name [In case you missed it, the movie is about a fast-moving and lethal airborne virus that kills within mere days and stars GWYNETH PALTROW and MATT DAMON].
The bacterial billboards were made up of harmless household strains that were painted into a medium of colored agar, and contained in glass, but the Montreal Gazette reports it did have to pass health codes before installation.
FYI: See what this whole new take on “viral marketing” looked like as it bloomed HERE. (Kaye)

Music:

ELTON JOHN and GEORGE MICHAEL will be at Britain's House Of Commons today. They'll help launch Kaleidoscope, which is a new cross-party gay rights group. It's goal is to get rid of the anti-homosexual laws started in the Commonwealth countries controlled by Great Britain back in the 19th Century and were never repealed when those territories became independent. Unfortunately, in places like Malaysia, Trinidad and Tobago and many African nations, it's still against the law to be gay or lesbian. British Prime Minister DAVID CAMERON supports this initiative and wants the UK to be (quote), "a global beacon for reform." (Marino)