We're back into the romantic comedies now with this 1995 movie from director Christopher Ashley. Like some of the other great works we've seen so far, it started life as a play, based on the real life of Richard Jeffrey and written by Paul Rudnick. Rudnick was also involved in the movie, converting his work into a screenplay.
A young Ethan Phillips has a cameo in the film, as does Hollywood legend Sigourney Weaver, but it's Steven Weber in the lead role playing Jeffrey himself. Patrick Stewart also provides a memorable turn as an aging gay painter dealing with the recent loss of his partner to AIDS. The story is all about the AIDS crisis but is dealt with in a sensitive and humorous manner. In a climate of fear in the gay community as the threat of AIDS intensifies, Jeffrey must decide whether to hide from love, or accept it along with all the risks it entails.
To insure one’s house, one’s car or to underwrite a life insurance policy, that is common practice. But who would pay an insurance premium for his/her thumb, legs or smile? Stars, of course.
At the top of the ranking are the legs of Mariah Carey, worth 810 million USD: The diva became, in 2006, the Gillette brand muse for the advertising campaign «Legs of a Goddess». She then took out an insurance policy with London Lloyds to protect her legs, a decision that is far from being insignificant. Among its customers, the London insurer then included several icons of music, such as Bob Dylan or Rod Stewart.
David Beckham’s body insured for 195 million USD: European champion with Manchester United in 1999, David Beckham was in 2006 the most renowned footballer of the planet. In relation to his sporting activities, he took out an insurance cover for his legs. The huge amount paid for his insurance would reportedly exceed the 103 million USD disbursed by Real Madrid for the cover of Christiano Ronaldo in 2009. The fashion model would later extend his insurance cover to his entire body.
15 million USD in insurance for Kim Kardashian’s curves: The curves of Kim Kardashian are her number one beauty asset. The reality TV star, who is crazy about plastic surgery, has underwritten an insurance policy worth 15 million USD to protect her famous butt.
The culinary critic Egon Ronay assured his taste buds: The famous Hungarian culinary critic has insured his taste buds since 1957, for the amount of 400 000 USD. An original insurance policy which allows him to cover his sense of taste without which he will no longer be able to practice his job.