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Chuck Bass One Year Older, No Wiser

June 29, 2009 at 2:53 PM | 0 Comments

In honor of Chuck Bass' birthday on Friday, we stayed up for 36 hours and then took two flight attendants home. Just kidding! But On Location Tours' Chuck Bass Birthday Bash took advantage of an unlikely patch of sunlight Friday to raise Magnolia Bakery cupcakes to their hero and hold an impromptu Michael Jackson dance party on the steps of the Met.

Blair didn't send over a bottle of bubbly, but a Serena lookalike won the costume contest, which must have been very disappointing to the sole scarf-wearing swain on the tour. (Call us, mystery man!)

The real Chuck Bass (er, Ed Westwick) might be hanging around Gramercy today if reports of filming in the posh neighborhood are true. But Westwick himself has been in town for a while—he just celebrated his 22nd birthday "privately" with onscreen costar/offscreen girlfriend Jessica Szohr at Lucky Strike Lanes in New York (624-660 W. 42nd). And that's how we know he's not his character; Chuck Bass would never stoop to bowling despite the potential awesomeness of the shoes.

Related Stories:
· Spotted: Chuck Bass Fans on the Upper East Side [OnLocationVacations.com]
· "Gossip Girl" Holds the Key to NYC's Private Gramercy Park [Jaunted]
· Ed Westwick and Jessica Szohr: Birthday Bowlers [GossipCenter.com]
· Gossip Girl coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: ashley unscripted]

'Gossip Girl' Holds The Key To NYC's Private Gramercy Park

June 29, 2009 at 10:00 AM | 1 Comment

Even though we still have more than two months before the gang on Gossip Girl starts "college," the show begins filming the new season today amidst rumors that a new cast member will show up. Apparently, Joanna Garcia, star of the now defunct Privileged, has booked a four-episode arc as Nate’s love interest. We can’t wait to see what Vanessa has to say about the new girl who is “a slightly evil Miss America-type from a conservative Southern family.”

We also hear filming permit signs are posted all around Gramercy Park, including a few in front of the Gramercy Park Hotel for today's shoot. GPH, being one of the hot luxe hotel of the city, has a price to match their poshness, but the Gramercy does offer a few special package deals to help out those of us who didn't grow up on the Upper East Side.

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Put On Your Brights For Chuck Bass' Birthday

June 10, 2009 at 1:57 PM | 0 Comments

We'd always assumed Chuck Bass was ageless, or at least had enough Dorian Grayness to him to never mention his birthday. On Location Tours then must have stolen his little black book in order to put on this very special edition of their Gossip Girl Bus Tour for everyone's favorite bad boy.

The Friday, June 26 bus tour will include special Chuck Bass trivia (not just the usual show questions) and a gift basket to the person with the best Gossip Girl costume. If you need inspiration, we suggest the headband section at Henri Bendel, one of the stops on the tour.

Since we love Chuck, we can imagine the raucous after-party he would plan for the tour's end at 3:30 on a Friday if he were, y'know, real&$151;Lost Weekend anyone?

We actually took the original-flavor Gossip Girl bus tour a few weeks ago and came away with a largely positive impression. The bus covers a surprising amount of ground from the Upper East Side to SoHo (with views of the Humphreys' borough of Brooklyn), and we learned a few things we didn't even know from the narration.

The bus comes pre-loaded with a ton of clips from the show so you know whose townhouse you're looking at (Nate's parents' in particular is sweet). Our guide mixed up a few characters' names, and there wasn't enough time to do Bendel properly, but the thing shows promise. And for what it's worth, almost everyone on that trip preferred Chuck over Nate or Dan Humphrey. Clearly having your reputation precede you isn't such a bad thing after all.

Related Stories:
· What Riding The Gossip Girl Bus Tour Could Do To Your Reputation [Jaunted]
· "Gossip Girl" coverage [Jaunted]
· Celeb Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: nitrolicious]

America's Youth Loses Valuable History Lesson as 'Gossip Girl' Spin-Off Gets Nixed

May 8, 2009 at 1:56 PM | 0 Comments

We had our preppy picks ready to go. We had our punk picks ready to go. We were anticipating the return of Andrew McCarthy to the 80s. But sadly, Gossip Girl spin-off--which was to follow Lily van Der Woodsen around Los Angeles during her rebellious youth--is not happening.

Deadline Hollywood reports:

As I reported at 2:45 PM today, put a fork in it. It's done. Next Monday's episode of Gossip Girl is a flashback that was supposed to be a tempting taste for next fall's spinoff following the wild teen years of now mom Lily van der Woodsen (played by Brittany Snow) in Los Angeles in the 1980s. But even though I heard Peter Roth loved its yesteryear vibe, the show went from hot, to lukewarm, to "fading but wouldn't count out", to now dead, according to my insiders. I'm really surprised.

We are too! How will America's youth ever know what it was like to live in the 80s in a time before cellphones and MacBooks? We guess they could just watch VH1's "I Love the 80s" Parts 1-10 online somewhere.

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Who's Your Poppy? Gossip Girl Goes Ponzi Scheme

May 5, 2009 at 10:31 AM | 0 Comments

Go to that one place where your friend knows the manager with our Gossip Girl Map.

Previously: Georgina is back! Apparently her new role on Gossip Girl is to fulfill a certain quota of Jesus mentions per episode, because the majority of her lines in both last week's and this week's episodes involve her naming Mr. Christ as her leader down the road of goodness. In the mean time, Serena is trying to recoup the investor's money lost to boyfriend Madoff Gabriel by pretending she's pregnant to get him to come around again. Also, Blair is on the fence about whether to throw herself at Chuck again or fall in with Nate for good by making the leap to live together.

Currently: In a cab on the Queensboro Bridge, heading back into the city with Georgina, Chuck both literally and figuratively re-enters the muck of Manhattan. In yet another symbolic twist, Serena is gifted her grandmother's bracelet by her mom, tying her closer into the van der Woodsen family and setting up neat plot twists to come.

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'What The Hell Is Butter?'

April 28, 2009 at 10:26 AM | 1 Comment

Go to that one place where your friend knows the manager with our Gossip Girl Map.

Previously: Serena met a nice boy who remembered her from her wild days and liked her anyway; Blair and Nate broke up but got back together again, since neither of them could really figure out what to do otherwise.

Finally, the geocentric episode of Gossip Girl we've all been waiting for! Our favorite Upper East Siders didn't go to NoHo restaurant and nightclub Butter this week but it became the proof that Serena's new golden boy Gabriel was more than a little bit tarnished.

Here's how it went down: Gabriel seemed like the perfect guy but he was always mysteriously disappearing! Blair and Chuck teamed up to do some recon and found out something funny: Gabriel claimed to have met Serena and Georgina at Butter last year, but Butter was closed that night because Blair hired the bartender to perform at a party to sabotage Nelly Yuki (see "He Broke Up With Me At A Flo Rida Concert!"). Serena didn't accept this proof until she tricked Gabriel during pillow talk by showing he didn't know Georgina at all.

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The Gossip Girl Tour Bus Should Just Stick to Season One Hangouts

April 21, 2009 at 12:31 PM | 0 Comments

We know that the upcoming Gossip Girl Tour is limited for several reasons (specifically: 5) but as Season 2 continues with its frantic storylines, we advise On Location Tours to just stick to the good-ole hangouts of Season 1.

Previously: 800 years ago, Chuck tried to hook up with Jenny; Blair found herself scant on college options; Serena ran off to Spain with Poppy and Blair reunited with Nate.

We'll just cut to the chase and point out that this episode ends with an orgy of apologies. Given what happened to Bart Bass, we can only assume everyone on the show is now going to die, to which we say: Don't you dare, Show. That is not a good way to write around the fact that many of your main characters are about to graduate from high school.

Onto the drama.

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Spotted: Five Locations The "Gossip Girl" Bus Tour Won't Hit

April 14, 2009 at 9:17 AM | 0 Comments

Don't be mistaken, we are genuinely excited about the "Gossip Girl" bus tour coming in May from On Location tours. After all, it is no longer okay to be seen boarding the "Sex and the City" bus, and the presence of a tour seems to say that our favorite Upper East Siders have made their mark on Manhattan (as if there was ever any doubt). But there are some places that even the best designed bus tour can't reach, and thanks to our Gossip Girl Map, we know exactly where they are:

Bethesda Terrace in Central Park -- Blair and Serena had a teary reunion in the first season in a place inaccessible by bus. They probably did that on purpose, but how did they get their drivers to go in?

The Humphreys' neighborhood -- Granted, the show we know and love tends to play fast and loose with locations in Brooklyn, placing the loft where Rufus, Jenny and Dan live on some corners that don't really exist. But that bus was never going to another borough anyway, so it's best to explore on foot.

Any club mentioned on the show -- Groucho Marx once said that he wouldn't belong to any club that would have him as a member. Well, any club cool enough to be mentioned on "Gossip Girl" won't take a busload of tourists. (The "Sex" bus gets around this by opening a bar at about 4PM especially for the tour.)

Communitea, Vanessa's sometimes-job -- Crazy V is often puttering around at the art gallery for plot-related reasons, but she also waits tables in Long Island City, where the van der Woodsen-Humphrey clan celebrated Thanksgiving in the first season. Break out your best neon colors and giant earrings!

Carter Baizen's secret poker game -- Even though the show gave out the location on GPS, we're told it has since moved after that whole Nate Archibald thing.

Related Stories:
· What Riding The "Gossip Girl" Tour Bus Could Do To Your Reputation [Jaunted]
· Latest Episode: Unhappy Birthday, Little J! [Jaunted]
· Gossip Girl coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: tengossip.com]

What Riding 'The Gossip Girl' Tour Bus Could Do To Your Reputation

April 10, 2009 at 2:49 PM | 1 Comment

It was to be expected but we are actually surprised it took On Location Tours to get halfway through the second season of (the best show on earth right now) Gossip Girl to announce their own Gossip Girl Tour which will begin this summer.

Live a day in the life of Serena, Blair, Chuck, Dan, Vanessa, and Nate on this three hour guided bus tour that goes to more than 30 locations that were used in filming the hit TV series. Find out behind the scenes information and little known facts about the cast and crew of Gossip Girl from local New York City actors and actresses who are the guides on this exciting tour.

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Unhappy Birthday, Little J!

March 31, 2009 at 10:21 AM | 1 Comment

Planning your next birthday party or parentally disapproved of getaway? Don't forget to check Jaunted's Gossip Girl Map.

We've been so busy on the road we can barely keep up with the awesomeness that is Class play of "The Age of Innocence" that turns into an FML-off, with guest star Charles Isherwood? Sweet. Old money coming out to play and ruining young lives? Awesome.

This week is Jenny's birthday, and Serena decides to give her the party to end all parties -- which may or may not be related to the fact that she just ran into socialite Poppy and her life is way more fabulous. But she's shown up when Jenny, giving her a taste of her own, posts the party on Gossip Girl, inviting all sorts of miscreants. After the world's briefest fling with wild living, a still-Yaleless Blair has fallen back into the arms of Nate, which causes his soon-to-be-ex-girlfriend Vanessa to get revenge by... sleeping with Chuck. That's just what he wants you to do!

And while Dan got into Yale, he didn't get the financial aid he needed, causing Rufus to quietly contemplate selling the loft (in this market? Yikes!) and moving in with the van der Woodsens uptown, the same apartment which has just been thoroughly trashed at the party. That doesn't go over very well with Jenny, as might be expected. At the end of the night, Serena jets off to the Costa Brava with Poppy and Gabriel, whom she may have met during her debaucherous days (oops!), Nate proves unable to resist the Waldorf gravitational force field and Dan's secret literary admirer turns out to be his long-lost stepbrother. Oh, and Dorota has a boyfriend. We need more on that.

Related Stories:
· Jenny's Last Birthday Party: Hey, Who Turned 12? [Jaunted]
· In Which Serena Was Back: Sound the Trumpets, Strumpets! [Jaunted]
· Gossip Girl Map [Jaunted]

Now That Everyone is On Twitter, Airports Create Facebook Pages

March 23, 2009 at 4:58 PM | 0 Comments

With so much travel news raining down on us, we don't always have time to give every story its own forecast. Here's more of the day's news, in brief.

· Airports on Facebook: The truth is the new redesign of Facebook has killed most Facebook addictions. We find ourselves updating our status maybe once every two or three days now instead of once an hour. Why? Because we have Twitter for that now. But apparently a believer in "Better late to the social media party than never" credo, airports like Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International have begun creating Facebook pages where you can check in for actual airport updates and possibly win a roundtrip ticket on Frontier airlines. [Today in the Sky]

· 'Gossip Girl' Stars Spend Time in Miami: While we eagerly await the next episode of Gossip Girl tonight, co-stars Ed Westwick and Jessica Szohr cozied up together during a mini-vacay to the Mondrian South Beach. Looks like even Chuck Bass needs a trip to the gym every once in a while. [HotelChatter]

· JP Morgan Gets New Corporate Jets: The Wall Street firm has set aside $119 million for new jets and a hangar upgrade. But don't worry, no bail-out money is going to be used to buy them. And like, they won't even arrive until 2012. Still, we bet there are better ways to use funds. [NY Post]

· Tragic Plane Crash in Montana: A private plane chartering 14 people, including seven children, to a ski trip in Montana crashed just 500 feet west of the airport, landing in a cemetary and killing all onboard.[NY Times]

Our Preppy Picks for 'Lily' in Los Angeles

March 17, 2009 at 8:56 AM | 0 Comments

Like magical puppetmasters with strings everywhere, the creators of "Gossip Girl"> have us right where they want us. Even as we celebrate the return of one of our favorite guilty pleasures, a photo has leaked of Brittany Snow, star of GG spinoff "Lily," in full '80s prep regalia shooting the backdoor pilot. And here we were thinking she was going to be cool! Check out that argyle sweater and blazer set. And the Gucci shoulder bag!

Perhaps we should adjust our expectations and gear up to celebrate preppy L.A. with spots like these:

Where to Eat: Dish Brunching in this shabby-chic restaurant is like dining in your childhood dollhouse. 734 Foothill Blvd, La Canada

Where to Go Out: PYT at Jimmy's Lounge If your style is more Vampire Weekend than MGMT, find your kind at this weekly dance party with stellar drink specials. Fridays at 10PM; 6202 Santa Monica Blvd.

Where to Shop: Original Penguin. Even if these photos are just a tease as Lily becomes an authentic punk and casts aside her preppy weeds, someone on this show will be wearing this alternative to too-loud-Lauren. Their whimsical polo shirts are perfect for stacking on -- Andrew McCarthy to wardrobe! 8215 Melrose Ave.

Related Stories:
· "Gossip Girl" Spinoff So Totally California [Jaunted]
· "Gossip Girl" Spinoff: We Love The '80s! [Jaunted]
· Gossip Girl Map [Jaunted]

[Photo: JustJared]