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If we’re gonna be using Perez Hilton as a source every five minutes - on TV, in here, when I’m proving to our die-hard romantic friend that yes, Justin broke up with Cameron - it’s only fair that I get to interview him when he’s in town, right? RIGHT??! (shakes fist) Well conveniently, the gossip queen was in Toronto for the MMVAs, and when he made a MuchOnDemand appearance the following day, I got the chance to ak’s him a coupla questions!

Me: You’re a pioneer.

Perez: *snort*

Me: No, seriously. Not so much of celebrity blogging -

Perez: In a way I was the first to be doing - and in a way, I still am - the only one doing what I’m really doing. There’s a lot of “gossip blogs” out there, but I’m kind of the only one that really actively and aggressively breaks stories on a daily basis, that then get picked up by the mainstream media. Just last week I broke several big stories that were picked up by the mainstream press, like Zach Braff and Mandy Moore breaking up, which was then verified by US Weekly. I was all over Nick Lachey and Vanessa Manillo in Cabo and Atlantic City. And something as innocuous as, I heard from my fashion sources that Kevin Federline was the new face of this clothing company, Blue Marlin. Nobody else is doing that in the online medium, and that’s why people keep coming back to my site, cause I always have original content and people know that they’ll see it on my site first.

Me: But you’re a pioneer in the sense that you’re pretty much the first blogger who’s like a celebrity.

Perez: Well, I mean … sure. But I created that. I knew that I was getting a certain amount of readers every day, and I knew that by doing A, B, and C, I would have D, E and F. I knew by putting my picture on the site, by going to these events and by hanging out with these celebrites that other things would come with that. I want those other things that come with that! Meaning that I want as many people as possible to read my site. I don’t think being mainstream is bad. Cause try as hard as I may, I won’t ever really be mainstream. I’m a big gay with alternative tendencies. I like talking about my favourite Canadian Jewess, Peaches. And drag queens, and silliness that will never be mainstream. But I’m being read by mainstream audiences and there’s something subversive that I love about that.

Me: How do you make friends with celebrities when -

Perez: It happens very organically. You see them out and about and they may say something to you - it’s like dancing the tango. You don’t want to step on somebody’s toes, but it’s very important for both parties involved to continue dancing. Cause you want to entertain everyone.

Me: But you can make fun of them on the site, and then they want to be friends with you!?

Perez: Yeah! (Laughs) I don’t know, I think it’s kind of cool that a lot of them have a sense of humour, and the ones that don’t, don’t talk to me. Like Jesse Metcalfe downstairs totally avoided me. He’s on the - what list is he on? He’s … on the F plus list. Shannon Elizabeth is F List, Jesse Metcalfe is F plus.

Me: What’s the best threat you’ve gotten?

Perez: (Grinning mischievously) Whatever. One night, Lindsay Lohan’s mother was like, “don’t you write sh*t about me. I’m friends with Tommy Mottola!” I’m like, “whoooaaa! you’re friends with Tommy Mottola! Oh mah gawd!” So, I just loved that she said that. You know, like, “ooo, I’ve got mafia connections”. And that’s what she was saying. Like, Tommy Mottola is a loser. His label is a failure. Casablanca - like, Lindsay’s on there. Yeah, you notice how I never talk about her album. I talk about Paris’ album cause I’ve heard the whole thing and it’s actually really good. I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned Lindsay and her music. It’s kind of crappy.

Me: What’s the best compliment you’ve gotten?

Perez: I dunno! Just the random emails that I get from readers. It’s just nice to know that what some people might consider to be silly and trivial gossip, it can bring enjoyment to a lot of other people. Bored people at work, or this one housewife who emailed me, this single mom from New Jersey - my daughter’s going through leukemia but your website is like a great escape. You know? Everyone wants a little escape every once in awhile. I don’t consider myself a blogger, per se. I might sound full of myself but, f**k it, I don’t care. I’ll play up the diva card at times! I like to consider myself an entertainer. Which is what I am, and that’s my background. I used to be an actor and I went to school at NYU to study acting. I approach my website as a form of entertainment, like everything - how could I present these words and images in a way that will entertain my readers the most? I also treat my site like a soap opera. I think it’s important to have heroes and villains. I get so many emails like, “why are you so mean to Jennifer Aniston!” Well, A, I think she’s a bitch, and B, I think it’s important to have heroes and villains, and to have an ongoing story line on the site, because it keeps people coming back. And somebody that may have been a villain can change and become a hero. I’m kind of going through that shift with Nicole Richie right now. She’s starting to get her act together again. You look at pictures and it looks like she’s starting to gain a little weight, not quite as rail thin as before. In the US, they started to show the new season of the Simple Life, and I watched a few episodes and I remembered that she’s really funny, and I really like her. I like everyone. I think the main reason why celebrities humour me or enjoy me, or I’m friends with them is because ultimately they know, and I hope it comes across on my site, that I’m a fan. I celebrate while I satirize, it’s not ever really meant to be mean-spirited or destructive.

Posted on Friday, June 23rd, 2006 at 11:58 am by Wendy and is filed under Blog.

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