Reprinted from The Tattler Online, April 1, 2017

In an exclusive scoop, the investigative team here at Tattler Online exposes some of Hollywood's brightest stars as phony baloney. Shame. Shame.

Just one year ago top dogs in show biz grabbed headlines at a splashy bash at the ultra-trendy Joe's Tavern on the pedestrian mall in Santa Monica to announce their support for the Placemaking Principles drafted by the New York-based organization Project for Public Spaces. It was the starpower event of the year, far outshining the Oscars (even though they were a huge success, held for the first time at the Los Angeles Farmer's Market). The Placemaking ceremony won live primetime coverage on every radio, TV, cable, podcast and webcast outlet. This was huge, signaling that even in Tinseltown the sidewalk is more fashionable than a Lamborghini, and the neighborhood park more fun than a backyard pool.

What a difference a year makes!

The lion's share of Hollywood honchos who penned their John Hancocks on this historic document do walk their talk, but some longtime icons of the silver screen are bogus backsliders who can't kick the lazy, destructive habits of the old Hollywood. We're talking really big names. Giants like Orlando Bloom, Scarlett Johansson, Keira Knightley, and--unbelievably--Leonardo DiCaprio, one of the original Hollywood greenies.

Shocking but true! The Tattler L.A. undercover team turned up this steamy evidence:

* Leonardo DiCaprio, who won the hearts of Americans with his environmental stances while still a nouveau heartthrob back in the '90s, made a titanic slip-up when he bought a burrito last evening at a chain restaurant on Wilshire Boulevard. Imagine this when there were two locally-owned Mexican restaurants with much better burritos within walking distance. His lame excuse--that he usually goes to independent burrito joints but they were closed at the time--carries no water. He could have fed his burrito cravings earlier in the evening in order to support a thriving local economy. But no. DiCaprio's moolah will be carted away to a distant corporate headquarters and never circulate around town again. Finally admitting his mistake to the Tattler Undercover Team, he checked himself into a rehab program at the Betty Ford Center for fast food abusers this morning. It's reputed that famed film director Morgan Spurlock will be his sponsor.

* Scarlett Johansson and Keira Knightley were both caught last Friday in separate incidents of ordering limousines to take them home from the Pasadena Public Library after a VIP fundraiser to outfit underprivileged children in Orange County with sidewalks. This despite the fact that it was only a few blocks' walk to a stop on the Teal Line metro, which could have whisked them back home to Beverly Hills with an effortless change of trains onto the new Turquoise Line, which runs almost right past their residences. In separate interviews with Tattler Undercover, each claimed their feet hurt from wearing uncomfortable high heels. No excuse! They could easily have packed a pair of tennies in their purses. A contrite Johansson admitted it was a mistake. "It took at least twenty minutes longer in the car and I did not get to see the public art in the stations along the way, which is one of the best things about living in L.A." Knightley offered similar sentiments, "I knew I should have ridden my bike. The exercise would have done me good."

* Orlando Bloom, who won acclaim years ago for his archery in Lord of the Rings, missed the mark by a mile this afternoon when he took the word of an architecture critic about the best solution for improving underutilized city parks. He completely ignored the real experts on the subject--the people who actually live, work and play there. Bloom, who volunteers as president of Friends of Compton Parks, went ahead and approved the re-design of two neighborhood playgrounds without approaching nearby residents for their ideas. To his credit, Bloom did see his huge error before being nabbed by the Tattler Undercover Team. Upon seeing the playground proposal he decided to start afresh with public forums held at several community centers around this low-income suburb, known as the birthplace of gangsta rap.

Commenting on this outbreak of "out-of-place" behavior by Hollywood mega-stars, Katie Salay, director of the Los Angeles PPS office, put things in perspective. "These are not a big deal at all. We have always emphasized Placemaking in positive terms, not as a list of 'thou shalt nots.' We are extremely happy with the leadership that so many figures in the entertainment history have shown on this important matter. This is a different town than it was ten years ago, when driving a hybrid car was considered the ultimate mark of social responsibility. The change in attitudes here has been startling, especially among young people. Who ever dreamed that L.A. would be named to the top 10 Pedestrian Paradise list by the National Association of Walkers, Strollers and Joggers."