Skip to content
Entertainment
Link copied to clipboard

Tattle: 'Dragon' aces the 'true' test

JUST HOW ACCURATE is the American film adaptation of "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"? Everything is spot-on, right down to the carpets.

JUST HOW ACCURATE is the American film adaptation of "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"? Everything is spot-on, right down to the carpets.

In an interview with New York's Metro, "Dragon Tat" star Rooney Mara, who plays tough chick Lisbeth Salander, was asked if there are any details in the film that a lesser movie would overlook. Mara's answer: Her merkin. For those unfamiliar with follicle fads from the Middle Ages, a merkin is a pubic wig.

Take note "Dragon" enthusiasts: "Well, you know, in the book she's meant to have strawberry-blond hair originally and she dyes it," Mara said, "so we had a special merkin made that was, you know, strawberry-blond so that it would fit."

Close shave

West Chester-born rapper Matisyahu, best known as the only Orthodox Jew in the game, tweeted a picture of himself yesterday cleanshaven. Previously, Matisyahu, born Matthew Paul Miller, had sported the full beard dictated by the customs of Orthodox Judaism.

An hour later, he posted a note on his website that opened with, "No more Chassidic reggae superstar." The rest of the message describes how he delved deep into religion as a young man and might be ready to cast off the tallit to forge his own path.

He ended the missive by writing, "Get ready for an amazing year filled with music of rebirth. And for those concerned with my naked face, don't worry . . . you haven't seen the last of my facial hair." We implore Matisyahu, in the name of all that is holy, please avoid the soul patch.

* That's not the only sorta-Philadelphian in the gossip pages. Archbishop Ryan-alum and Bensalem-raised pop star Christina Perri reportedly fought off a car intruder last week, says TMZ. She was pulling into a building at 2 a.m. on Friday, when a man reportedly jumped into her car and tried to shove her over. Perri fought him off, honking the horn and receiving blows to head and body before the unknown man fled, TMZ reported.

Gary Dourdan, the West Philly/Willingboro denizen who starred in "CSI" from 2000 to 2008, caps off a bad-news year that includes arrests for domestic violence and drug possession with a notice that he might face foreclosure. He defaulted on his mortgage after missing a payment in July and owes $61,558.90, according to court papers.

* Ex-Inky writer David Bianculli's book Dangerously Funny: The Uncensored Story of 'The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour' has been optioned by George Clooney's production shingle, Smokehouse. Bianculli, a Cherry Hill resident, teaches TV and film history at Rowan University and contributes to NPR's "Fresh Air." It's unclear whether Clooney will star or direct. For the youngsters: Tom and Dicky Smothers were a '60s boundary-pushing comedy duo.

TATTBITS * "Two and a Half Men" creator Chuck Lorre reveals all in a TV Guide interview this week. The interview makes TV's current It Boy seem like an empathetic guy, but he has some choice words for former star Charlie Sheen. But Lorre blames himself for not taking action sooner. "When [Sheen] started attacking people [then-wife Brooke Mueller] with knives, that's it," Lorre says. "That should have been it. I should have walked. That's unthinkable. No more. I'm done. But for some reason I thought that because she was willing to forgive him . . . we could emerge from this fiasco and be stronger and healthier." Turns out, that wasn't the case. * Katie Couric, 54, and her boyfriend, Brooks Perlin, 37, have ended their five-year relationship. The high-powered duo (he's listed as an entrepreneur, which is a vague way of saying he's mad-rich) met at fundraiser for cancer research. A source tells People that "the split was inevitable."