‘Miss Calif. pre- and post-implants’ slide show

Photo: Carrie Prejean in May, before her ouster as Miss California USA. (Getty Images photo)

FALLEN ROYALTY

The organizers of the Miss California USA pageant and their former beauty queen, Carrie Prejean, agreed this week to drop their lawsuits against each other, but that didn’t clear the air of a stench that their controversy created.

On Tuesday, pageant director Keith Lewis and pageant producer K2 productions issued a statement that “Carrie Prejean, Keith Lewis and K2 productions have dropped their claim against each other and wish each other the best in their future endeavors.”

On Thursday, TMZ reported that a videotape on Prejean masturbating was what led to the legal settlement. TMZ described a meeting of Prejean and lawyers for the two sides:

When the video started playing, Carrie’s first reaction was “that’s disgusting” … and Carrie denied it was her.

Then, the camera angle changed … and panned up to her face. She was caught red-handed … so to speak.

Carrie was rendered speechless and immediately began talking with her lawyer. We’re told it took about 15 seconds for Carrie to drop her $1 million dollar demand.

The Web site also said it received a copy of the video some months ago, but did not post it because it was “so racy.”

The pageant “is paying around $100,000 to her lawyers and publicist — a fraction of her bills. She pockets nothing in the settlement,” TMZ said.

This morning, the Web site Big Hollywood reported that Prejean’s attorney, Charles LiMandri, had criticized “inaccurate and misleading” rumors about the settlement, which was supposed to be covered by a confidentiality agreement. He did not issue a denial of any specific reports, but instead stated:

In my 26 years of practice, I have never dealt with a situation quite like this. We came to a confidential agreement and yet within hours, rumors about what happened in the mediation were flying around the web and being accepted by news organizations as absolute fact.

Carrie and I plan to continue to honor our confidentiality agreement with the other parties. But I can tell you this; many of the rumors circulating are inaccurate and misleading.

Prejean was ousted as Miss California USA in June for alleged contract violations.

In August, Prejean sued over the ouster, saying that pageant officials targeted her because of her opposition to gay marriage.

In a countersuit, K2 accused Prejean of missing scheduled appearances as Miss California USA, lying about the existence of semi-nude photos, signing an unauthorized book contract, and using her position to campaign against gay marriage. The pageant organizers demanded repayment of $5,200 they had given her to pay for breast implants in preparation for the Miss USA pageant, where she placed second.

E Online reported about the sex tape:

The tape actually began making the rounds several months ago and was offered as an exclusive to various websites for the bargain-basement price of $10,000.

But even blogger Nik Richie of the porn-purveying TheDirty.com didn’t want anything to do with it.

“It was very graphic,” Richie tells E! News, “and our lawyers wouldn’t let us put it on the site.”

Since news of the sex tape emerged, celebrity bloggers such as Perez Hilton have reported that Prejean has been dropped as a speaker for tonight’s fund raiser for the New Jersey Family Policy Council, which opposes same-sex marriage.

But at midday today, an ad (pictured) on the group’s Web site was still promoting Prejean’s role in the event.

Recent posts about Carrie Prejean:

‘Miss Calif. and runner-up beauty’ slide show

‘The new Miss California’ slide show

Recent slide shows:

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Photos: Above, Natalie Portman today in New York City. (Getty Images photo) Below, Natalie Portman in photo from latest issue of V magazine. (Photo courtesy of V)

THINKING AHEAD

Actress Natalie Portman, 28, thinks she may need plastic surgery at 40.

The reason: Otherwise she might be sidelined by Hollywood producers when wrinkles appear on her face.

In the new issue of V magazine, Portman said, “You see people who were stars five years ago and already they’re waning. As actresses approach 40, it starts becoming really, really difficult.”

She hopes she won’t need plastic surgery, but she’s not ruling it out, she said.

Latest celebrity posts:

Latest slide shows:

Post from: In Your Face

Photo: Above, skin tightening from facelift left this patient with shallow troughs from mouth to ears. At the bottom of this post, the same patient is pictured after she was injected with filler to smooth out the troughs. This patient’s problem was similar to that of TV personality Barbara Walters. (Pictured below). For larger photos of Barbara Walters, see the file “Closeups: Barbara Walters.”

ONLINE CHAT

Plastic surgeon Dr. Val Lambros of Newport Beach will discuss Barbara Walters’ facelift and answer readers’ questions about cosmetic medicine in today’s online “In Your Face CHAT.”

Lambros says skin tightening in Walters’ facelift left her with shallow troughs between her mouth and ears, such as the patient pictured above. That problem can be remedied with injections of filler, Lambros says, which produces the appearance of the patient in the photo at the bottom of this post.

Today’s online chat is scheduled for noon to 1 p.m. CLICK HERE to drop in on the chat during those hours or to arrange for a reminder ahead of time.

Lambros will also discuss ways that injections can give a more youthful look to aging eyes, such as those pictured in yesterday’s announcement of today’s chat.

Advance questions will be accepted by email and Twitter through mid-morning today:

• Email cstewart@ocregister.com with “CHAT question” in the subject line; or
• Send a Twitter message referencing @InYourFace.

Or simply join us online and ask your questions live, starting at noon Pacific time Wednesday.

Because each “In Your Face CHAT” will be on the Internet, visitors can participate from anywhere - at 3 p.m. Eastern time or 8 p.m. London time, for example.

Above, patient who was injected with filler to smooth out the trough that was caused by her facelift. (Patient photos courtesy of Dr. Val Lambros).

Post from: In Your Face

‘COURTENEY COX FROM 23 to 45′ slide show

Courteney Cox, 45, shouldn’t depend too much on her youthful looks either as an aging divorced mother in the TV show “Cougar Town” or as a user of Kinerase anti-aging creams,  local dermatologists say.

Cox is the star of this fall’s new comedy “Cougar Town” as well as the celebrity endorser (pictured) of the Kinerase line of skin-care products. Kinerase skin lotions are made by Orange County-based Valeant Pharmaceuticals.

Despite Valeant’s location in nearby Aliso Viejo, Kinerase received mixed reviews from southern California cosmetic doctors contacted by this blog.  Two would give Kinerase no credit for Cox’s youthful appearance at age 45.

“My experience with Kinerase was that it was not very effective as an agent to rejuvenate the skin,” said dermatologist Dr. David Sire of Fullerton.

“I no longer recommend Kinerase,” said dermatologist Dr. Lorrie Klein of Laguna Niguel. “It is just an over-priced expensive moisturizer and has very little rejuvenation effects compared to other newer-generation products, such as potent glycolic acids, PrevageMD, potent vitamin C products, growth factors, retinoids, etc.”

“It’s been out for years and I was never impressed by it. Neither were my patients,” she said.

But Kinerase does have its fans. Perhaps coincidentally, the two Kinerase enthusiasts who responded to my request for comments were both plastic surgeons.

“Kinerase is a very good skin care product with very high patient satisfaction rates in my practice,” said plastic surgeon Dr. Michael Persky of Encino.

“I find it a good skin conditioner,” said plastic surgeon Dr. John Di Saia of San Clemente and the Cosmetic Surgery Truth blog. “It is less irritating than Retin A. It also costs much more than Retin A, which has gone generic.”

The DermStore.com Web site claims great things for Kinerase:

Kinerase is considered non-aggressive, yet is still scientifically shown to improve the appearance of aged or aging skin, conditions like sun damage, blotchiness and rough skin texture.

Kinerase utilizes a highly beneficial and very well known ingredient called kinetin, … an excellent anti-aging agent … part of a group of plant hormones; its primary role is to extend plant life by promoting cell division and cell enlargement.

Kinetin delays and offsets aging factors like cell growth rate and size, improves the skin’s texture, [and] reduces the appearance of lines and wrinkles.

Di Saia says those claims “may have Kinerase’s benefits a bit hyped, but it is good stuff.”

Previous posts about skin care:

Recent slide shows:

Post from: In Your Face

‘COURTENEY COX FROM 23 to 45′ slide show

Post from: In Your Face

See ‘LINDSAY LOHAN LOOKING OLD’ slide show

Photos: Above, Lindsay Lohan, age 23, at Oct. 19 party in New York.  Below, Lindsay Lohan at Oct. 16 court hearing in Los Angeles where her probation in a 2007 drunken-driving case was extended for another year. (AP photos)

UPSETTING

Lindsay Lohan’s prematurely aging face retains its shock value two months after “In Your Face” pointed out what was happening.

This blog was among the first, and perhaps was the very first, to point out the distressing change in the 23-year-old actress.

The “In Your Face” post on Aug. 27 stated, “The formerly fresh-faced teen star has had a hard life, which she makes harder with partying and substance abuse. You can see it in her face.”

“In addition to genetic makeup, lifestyle is a huge component of one’s appearance,” noted Dr. Christopher Zachary, chairman of the UCI Department of Dermatology. He added:

Years of smoking, booze and heavens knows what else will surely declare themselves as premature aging in the form of dull skin tone, leathery wrinkled skin, blotchy pigmentation, baggy eyes and marginal teeth.

In short, these people don’t wear their lives on their sleeves, they wear it on their faces.

Since then,many celebrity watchers have chimed in with their reactions. Most recently AOL.com’s PopEater site interviewed plastic surgeon Dr. Tony Youn about Lohan.  He told them that her facial changes “are dramatic and severe for someone her age,” and that her lifestyle could be a cause. He said:

Drug and alcohol abuse are second only to sun abuse in causing premature aging. These items can dehydrate the skin, cause fine and coarse wrinkles, and even cause the face to look more gaunt. Smoking is the worst of all.

Britain’s Daily Mail reported that when Lohan attended an Oct. 19 party  “the troubled actress stunned guests with her puffy face and crow’s feet.”

For Women Online described her as looking “twice her age” and added:

How did this happen and why is Lindsay looking SO OLD? She’s only 23 years old! There’s no reason she should look like this already! Well, actually, I guess there are SOME reasons… like drugs, alcohol, too much bronzer, and nonstop partying… That’ll do it!

Related links:

• For Lindsay Lohan, 23 is the new 40
• Lindsay Lohan section of post “Many ‘best breasts’ in new Top 10 list are fake, but not all”
• Seven ways to fix up your skin - - tips for dermatological comparison shopping
• Top 3 techniques to keep skin young, from grand master of skin research
• Anti-aging tips from Halle, Nigella and Teri
• How the sun damages skin
• Wear sunblock always, or just often?
• Why Sienna Miller should stop smoking

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• Jennifer Aniston, so little changed from 20s to 40
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Post from: In Your Face

‘REAL HOUSEWIVES OF OC TOUR’ slide show

Photos: Above, The cast of Season 5 of “Real Housewives of Orange County,”minus departing Jeana Keough. Left to right: Lynne Curtin, Alexis Bellino, Vicki Gunvalson, Gretchen Rossi and Tamra Barney. (Photo courtesy of Bravo). Below, photo of Lynne Curtin from Bravo. Next, Vicki Gunvalson on left with Tamra Barney. (Getty Images photo) Bottom, Alexis Bellino at center between Lynne Curtin, left, and Gretchen Rossi. (Photo courtesy of RadarOnline.com)

SEE THE SIGHTS, WITH COMMENTARY

Come with me now to a place called “Orange County.”

It’s a region that looks much like Southern California, but it’s not Southern California

Instead we’re going to the land inhabited by the “Real Housewives of Orange County.”

They don’t live in the real world. They live in the world of “reality TV,” where the Bravo TV network portrays a life focused on “shopping, dining, drinking, dancing, plastic surgery and working out.”

Our tour guide will be plastic surgeon Dr. John Di Saia. He’s an outsider looking in, like us. With an office in San Clemente, he’s not part of that world, unlike Dr. Milind Ambe of Newport Beach, whose skills as a plastic surgeon have been showcased on the show.

Because of our guide’s specialty, we’ll take a Plastic Surgery Tour of the Land of the Real Housewives. Tours of the housewives’ exploits with shopping, dining, drinking, dancing, exercising and arguing would need other sorts of experts.

This tour is based on Di Saia’s appearance on this past week’s online “In Your Face CHAT,” where he joined me and hundreds of readers in considering how cosmetic procedures have affected or could affect each of this season’s Real Housewives. I invited cast members of “Real Housewives” to join the chat, but they were busy with interviews stirring up interest in the show’s Season 5, which will launch Thursday.

LYNNE CURTIN

First on the tour is Lynne Curtin, who is in her early 50s and the proud owner of a new face.

Since last season, she has had a facelift, a forehead lift, some lip filler and perhaps “some redo breast work,” Di Saia says.

Her facelift has been greeted with accolades and amazement from online fans, partly because Bravo released a publicity photo of Curtin (at right) that seems to owe more to the talents of a Photoshop artist than to the skills of her plastic surgeon.  See related slide show to compare before and after photos.

Of her new look, online commenters said, for example:

“Wow, Lynne. She looks Shakira-ish to me. LOL. I love Shakira.”

“Lynne looks gorgeous! I wonder how much her facelift cost? It is rare to see such a good facelift these days.”

But the cost of the facelift has some celebrity watchers worried, or simply judgmental. For example:

“Well, no wonder Lynne went broke. A facelift that good must have cost a fortune. She looks amazing though.”

As that last comment suggests, real life threatens to intrude on the world of reality TV for Curtin, as well as for others of the Real Housewives. She not only had the facelift, but also lost her home. Our tour won’t reach a place where we can understand how those two events make sense financially.

“Americans are not always so responsible,” Di Saia says.

A facelift like hers would have cost anywhere from the “high teens” to “mid 20s,” he estimates, or upward of $35,000 if she went to Beverly Hills.

His advice is to focus on simpler measures.

“She needs to get out of the sun,” Di Saia says. Because of her years of sun worship, “she will likely still need skin care — laser or chemical peels — intermittently over the years.”

As for her facelift, he reserves judgment on whether it’s a success. “It is probably too early to tell. In six months we’ll see. … Facelifts are good for 10 years or more. I like to let them sit so they look more natural as opposed to frequent major redos.”

TAMRA BARNEY

Next on our tour is Tamra Barney (pictured right with Vicki Gunvalson), an early-40s Botox fan who has a love-hate relationship with breast implants. A couple of years ago, she had her implants taken out by Dr. Ambe and replaced with smaller ones because the old ones were giving her pains in the back.

It’s a common problem with large implants, Di Saia says.

Even after the downsizing, she still gets comments from people about how large her breasts are. That’s not surprising, especially since she tends to turn sideways when she poses for photos.

This week, Barney sent me an email saying that she’s considering getting rid of them entirely. “Truth be told,” she said, “I’m thinking of going in to have my implants removed, like I wanted to do in the first place.”

Di Saia commented, “If she has pain and has tried to downsize [already], maybe removal would be best. That is the best for pain.”

VICKI GUNVALSON

For Vicki Gunvalson (pictured), who is in her late 40s, Di Saia recommends more skin care and less lip filler.

“She has sun damage on her chest, so she’s got it facially as well, under the makeup,” he says. Laser re-surfacing could help, he adds.

Di Saia notes that Gunvalson has a “large frame” with breast implants to match and “a bit of a long face.”
If that bothers her, she could get facial implants to give make it look wider, he says.

GRETCHEN ROSSI

When Gretchen Rossi came on the show last year, Bravo made a big deal of her not having breast implants, stating wrongly that women without breast implants are unusual in Orange County.

That might be a true statement about “Orange County,” but not about the real Orange County.

Rossi, who is in her early 30s, may have had lots of other types of cosmetic work — “rhinoplasty, lip augmentation, possible cheek implants or soft tissue filler, and Botox injections” are what the Web site MakeMeHeal.com suspects.

Di Saia noted that online photos, allegedly of Rossi, suggest that she “has had a ton of facial work.”

His recommendation for her: “She looks good. Just a little skin care I would think. A filler or two once in a while.”

JEANA KEOUGH

Bravo TV implies that breast implants are something that every Real Housewife has, except for Rossi.
It’s true in the case of Jeana Keough, Di Saia says.

He has suggestions for more cosmetic work for her, if she wants it: “A little upper-lip filler, skin care, maybe a forehead lift … upper eyelids maybe as well.”

In her mid 50s, Keough is the heaviest looking of the Real Housewives, which attracts some mean-spirited criticism from image-conscious celebrity watchers. One visitor to the online chat suggests that she would benefit from “all-over body lipo.”

Di Saia responds, “Whole body lipo is not always so great. It is better for the patient to get her weight into control and then use lipo to touch up the problem areas.”

ALEXIS BELLINO

This season’s newcomer among the Real Housewives is Alexis Bellino, in her early 30s. (She’s pictured at right with Lynne Curtin, left, and Gretchen Rossi, right.)

“She has had some fillers and maybe Botox,” Di Saia says. Breast implants, too. “She went a bit large on the implants but, as we have said before, that is common and subjective.”

One reader on the online chat comments, “I’ve had the privilege of meeting Alexis. She is a beautiful person inside and out. She’s had 3 children, two twin girls and a boy. She visited Dr. [Michael] Niccole to have her breasts done after pregnancies.”

Di Saia advises, “She might want to take it easy on the lip filler.”

But he adds, “She is pretty. I would leave her be. Her nose might be good to do — something small — but I am a body surgeon.”

Another reader on the online chat asks Di Saia, “Do you think, as a whole, the Housewives take plastic surgery and other procedures too far?”

His answer brings our tour back to the intersection of reality and show business.

“Some are getting close” to going too far, he says. “That is likely why the show picked them.”

Click here to view the embedded video.

‘REAL HOUSEWIVES OF OC TOUR’ slide show

Post from: In Your Face

‘REAL HOUSEWIVES OF OC TOUR’ slide show

Post from: In Your Face

See ‘Miss Calif. pre- and post-implants’ slide show

Photos: Above, Carrie Prejean as Miss La Jolla, competing in last year’s Miss California USA pageant. Below, Carrie Prejean with new breast implants, competing as Miss California USA in the national pageant last spring. (AP photo)

CARRIE PREJEAN IS STILL QUEEN

Carrie Prejean has been removed from the role of California beauty queen, but plastic surgeon Dr. John Di Saia still considers her “the queen of natural-looking breast implants.”

He praises her selection of relatively small breast implants, which she got last winter in preparation for the Miss USA pageant.

Organizers of the California pageant, who deposed Prejean over a contract dispute, recently demanded that she pay back $5,200 that they gave her for the implants.

In this week’s online “In Your Face CHAT,” Di Saia expressed no opinion about that legal tussle, but he praised Prejean for her choice of small implants and for having them placed under the chest muscle, which makes them less prominent.

“Beauty queens frequently go too large to look natural,” he said. “Models tend to ’super size’ their breasts. They tend to look more fake.”

“Carrie’s result is subtle. Too subtle for some women. Just right for others,” said Di Saia, who has an office in San Clemente and is preparing to open a second one in Huntington Beach.

In the chat, I pointed out that not all plastic surgeons agree with him either on the placement of the implants or on the end result. For example, plastic surgeon Dr. Michael Niccole of Newport Beach told the “In Your Face CHAT” in May that Prejean’s breast implants are in an unnatural position.

“The implants appear to be placed on top of the muscle, which allows you to see the outline of the implant more … making them look less natural,” he said. And they’re relatively far apart, which creates a “a less natural-looking cleavage,” he said.

In response to Niccole’s position, Di Saia said this week, “Smaller implants tend to look more apart.”

He added, “It is really academic as neither Dr Niccole or I did the case.”

But he didn’t back away from his praise of the work that Prejean had done.

“If you can’t tell, it is subtle. Carrie’s result is subtle,” he said.

See ‘Miss Calif. and runner-up beauty’ slide show

See ‘The new Miss California’ slide show

• Miss Calif. suit: Keep quiet on breast implant payments (Sept. 1, 2009)
• Former Miss California sues over firing (AP story, Aug. 31, 2009)
• Beauty pageant ousts Miss California USA (June 2009)
• Topless photos could jeopardize Miss California’s title (May 2009)
• Miss California keeps her crown (May 2009)
• Plastic surgeon sees problem with Miss Calif. implants
• Why Calif. beauty queen got breast implants

Recent posts about breast implants:

Post from: In Your Face

Photos: Above left, Lynne Curtin last year at age 51.  Above right, Lynne Curtin this fall at age 52, after her reported facelift and perhaps after her image was extensively Photoshopped? (Photos courtesy of Bravo)

UNTANGLING THE MYSTERIES OF ‘REAL HOUSEWIVES’

Plastic surgeon Dr. John Di Saia of San Clemente — and soon of Huntington Beach too — will analyze what he sees in the faces of reality TV’s “Real Housewives of Orange County” in this week’s online “In Your Face CHAT.”

Part of the challenge facing him will be the changing looks of Lynne Curtin, who reportedly had a facelift over the summer. (See two sets of before and after photos — one pair above and the other pair below.)

He’ll also chat about new housewife Alexis Bellino (pictured right and at the bottom of this post), as well as the returning characters in the reality TV drama (pictured below).

Fans and non-fans of the show are invited to contribute their comments and questions during the chat.

The event is scheduled for noon to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 28. CLICK HERE to drop in on the chat during those hours or to arrange for a reminder ahead of time.

Di Saia will also answer readers’ questions about cosmetic medicine and will discuss former Miss California USA Carrie Prejean, whom he says may be “the queen of natural-looking breast  implants.”

Advance questions will be accepted by email and Twitter through mid-morning on Wednesday:

• Email cstewart@ocregister.com with “CHAT question” in the subject line; or
• Send a Twitter message referencing @InYourFace.

Or simply join us online and ask your questions live, starting at noon Pacific time Wednesday.

Because each “In Your Face CHAT” will be on the Internet, visitors can participate from anywhere - at 3 p.m. Eastern time or 8 p.m. London time, for example.

Photo: Above left, Lynne Curtin last winter at age 51.  Above right, Lynne Curtin in promotional Bravo video this fall at age 52, after her reported facelift. (Photos courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and Bravo)

Photo: Tamra Barney, about age 41, getting a Botox shot last January while wearing makeup, earrings and fancy dress. (Photo courtesy of MomLogic.com)

Photo: Vicki Gunvalson, who is age 47. (Photo courtesy of Facebook/Vicki Gunvalson)

Photo: Jeana Keough, age 54. (Photo courtesy of RealityTea.com)

Photo: Gretchen Rossi this month, age 30. (Getty Images photo)

Photo: Alexis Bellino, age 32. (Photo courtesy of Bravo)

Related links:

Schedule of past and future “In Your Face CHATs,” including:

• Wednesday, April 22, noon Dr. John Di Saia on the Kardashian family and Rodial Tummy Tuck
• Wednesday, May 6, noon Dr. Michael Niccole, plastic surgeon, Newport Beach, on Miss California USA and breast implants

Recent slide shows:

Post from: In Your Face