
From holidays to yoga pants: freebies galore for Oscar stars
The US tax man has helped put a stop to the 100,000-dollar goodie bags, but celebrities will still be showered with an eye-popping array of lavish gifts at this year's Oscars.
Luxurious holidays, state-of-the-art electronic gadgets and a lifetime supply of yoga pants are just some of the freebies that will be on offer to stars this week, despite a clamp down by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced last August that it would no longer offer its famously elaborate gift baskets crammed with high-end luxury products valued at around $100,000.
"It seemed a little inappropriate to offer a gesture of thanks that then carried with it a tax obligation," Academy spokeswoman Leslie Unger said when explaining the decision.
But even though the Oscars has put an end to free swag, companies big and small are still queuing up to try to get their products into the hands of a celebrity, which can translate into big bucks.
Lash Fary, the founder and president of Distinctive Assets, a Los Angeles-based entertainment marketing and gifting company, said tighter tax rules had little or no effect for super-rich movie stars.
For the past five years, Fary's company has put together an unofficial "consolation gift basket" which is sent to Oscars nominees the day after the awards show.
This year's edition is valued at 71,000 dollars and is stuffed with dozens of items ranging from a 26,000-dollar all-inclusive trip to Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas to a humble box of sweets.
"Nothing has really changed, except for a little piece of paper that I have to put in the gift basket, stating the fair market value of what is included," Fary told AFP when asked about the tax clampdown.
"We haven't noticed any disruption at all in our business. And there's more interest than ever in getting quote-unquote 'free stuff.' Celebrities accept it as a perk -- a taxable perk, nonetheless.
"For a celebrity, it just becomes another piece of paper for them to give to their tax attorneys. Most of them are fortunate enough to live their lives without having to make decisions based on what the tax consequences are."
Fary's company normally works in partnership with awards show organizers, running gift suites and lounges backstage for events such as the Grammys, where stars can peruse luxury goods at their leisure.
He hit upon the idea of providing unofficial gift baskets to Oscars nominees after deciding that no one deserved to finish Oscars night without something to show for it.
"I'd heard Bette Midler once complaining after the Emmys that she'd gotten dressed up and came away with nothing, so I thought it would be cool to make sure that none of these amazing actors walk away empty-handed," Fary said.
"I believe that it doesn't matter how rich and famous you are, you're still bummed out when you don't win something like an Oscar.
"So we wanted to soften that blow, and we've found that most people are grateful to receive a little distraction the day afterwards.
"Hopefully, with 71,000 dollars' worth of distractions, you're going to be a little bit less bummed out."
What goes into the gift baskets is carefully thought through.
Ten-year-old "Little Miss Sunshine" star Abigail Breslin, for example, will not be given the bottle of Snow Queen Kazakhstan vodka that will be distributed in the adult nominee gift baskets. "We're getting her a selection of amazing teas instead," said Fary.
"We try to find products that are one of two things: either they're super useful, like toothpaste, or they're really amazing, like the Caesar's Palace package," Fary said.
Lorena Bendinskas, co-founder of Silver Spoon Entertainment Marketing, said her company steers clear of large-scale luxury items, preferring to offer services such as beauty and spa treatments instead.
"We are unofficial -- we're more into treatments, services and creating a party atmosphere at our events," said Bendinskas.
Silver Spoon is currently hosting a two-day Oscars Penthouse at the famous Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel, where stars can drop by to pick out casual wear or indulge in a spot of pampering.
Bendinskas is unimpressed by the IRS's moves to clamp down on the gift-giving.
"I've never had to declare a birthday present, so I find it a little silly," she told AFP. "If it's something of great value, you expect to pay tax on it. But if it's a present...
"It's kind of no-win situation for celebrities. If you see everything they have to deal with on an everyday basis, as we do, with the paparazzi and stuff, they are constantly getting hated on.
"This is just a thanks for making great movies. These are the people who help put a smile on our faces -- so why not give them something to smile about? Give them a break," she said.

Govt postpones 10th round of talks with farmers' leaders to Jan 20: Reports

Glitches in Co-WIN portal leads to drop in Covid vaccination percentage in Bihar
- Vaccination officers complained that the Co-WIN portal was slow in responding that made uploading information on it time consuming and tedious.

Stalin accuses AIADMK govt of putting on hold projects brought during DMK rule

14 people develop AEFI on second day of Covid-19 vaccination drive in Bengal
- The turnout rate dropped on Monday as Co-WIN glitches continued.

High level EC team on 3-day Assam visit to take stock of assembly polls
- The Election Commission team will hold meetings with the senior bureaucrats and police officers including state chief secretary and police chief to know about security arrangements.

Two Manipur journalists held for article, released after admitting to oversight
- The police claimed that the article openly endorsed revolutionary ideologies and activities.

Retired Odisha professor seeks to donate house for construction of police statio
- In a letter to CM's private secretary, he offered to donate his three-room newly constructed house in Balitutha village of coastal Jagatsinghpur district to Odisha police.

News updates from Hindustan Times: SC panel to begin work on farm laws on Jan 19

India, Japan sign pact to give skilled workers access to Japanese jobs
- Foreign secretary Harsh Shringla and Japan’s ambassador Satoshi Suzuki signed the memorandum of cooperation (MoC) on Monday.

Tandav makers say sorry after a torrent of criticism over web series
- The controversy around 'Tandav' has triggered demands that the government quickly enact a law to regulate content on OTT platforms such as Amazon Prime and Netflix.

SC panel on farm laws to begin work on January 19
- On January 12, after two days of deliberation, the Supreme Court had suspended the pro-reforms farm laws approved by Parliament in September.

3,81,305 beneficiaries received Covid-19 vaccine, says health ministry

Indian, French Rafale jets set to take part in war games in Rajasthan
- The exercise has been codenamed 'Desert Knight 21'.

Nitish Kumar says cabinet to be expanded soon
- Nitish Kumar had said earlier that the BJP was still to hand over the list of probable candidates to be included in the cabinet.
