Mandy Moore is wearing motorcycle boots. The detail certainly qualifies as strange. As she settles into a booth at a dimly lit Hollywood diner, the kind of greasy spoon where musicians nurse hangovers, it’s immediately apparent that Moore is not the preppy good girl you were expecting—nor the wholesome Neutrogena spokesperson, nor the milquetoast star of bland movie fare, nor the erstwhile nineties pop-tart who’s remained a professional cutie ever since. Her incongruous footwear is accompanied by a flowered vintage frock, a baggy cardigan, and black tights, and her short, layered hair is just-woke-up mussed. She orders a basket of fries and a chocolate shake, then says, “It’s okay to have a milk shake. . . . It is! Whatever! Who fucking cares?”—she’ll repeat that last phrase often. In Hollywood, where everyone is cleaning up his or her image, Mandy Moore seems to be set on giving hers a few rougher edges. To be sure, vestigial hints of her Girl Scout persona remain. Before eating her fries, Moore, who lives nearby in Los Feliz, daubs her hands with lavender-infused sanitizer. “I’m a germ-phobe when I meet a lot of people or shake a lot of hands. I always have hand sanitizer and alcohol swabs,” she says, “so I can sort of go back and forth between the two.” She explains that she added alcohol swabs to her handbag when her “best girlfriend,” a publicist for Coach (”you know, the handbag company”), informed her that “you can build up an immunity to the antibacterial stuff—and I was like, Oh, perfect.” In the process of disinfecting, Moore removes her conspicuous engagement ring, an enormous tear-shaped diamond—a gift, the world now knows, from Ryan Adams, whose indie cred can be measured in numerous reports of his substance abuse and onstage tantrums. It’s hard not to wonder, of course, what role Adams might have played in Moore’s alt-chick reinvention.

Awww … I love it. Mandy has started wearing her husband’s clothes. Except for the fact that she’s a wee bit taller than he is, I bet Mandy and Ryan are pretty much the same size. It’s a shame that the mag doesn’t offer any photos of Mandy wearing her new “alt-chick” clothing — but they do offer a few more photos of Mandy in her undies from the magazine’s photospread. After the jump, check them out …

My, my Amanda Leigh … what a lovely young woman you have grown into. It seems curious to me that this Details interview makes no mention of the fact that her new album will be released on May 26 which seems odd since magazines usually feature celebs that have new projects in the works (earlier we learned that altho Eric Bana is featured on the cover of Details, his coverstory interview does not feature any promo for his new film Star Trek). Again, don’t get me wrong … I love the pics even if the interview tells me nothing new. I am very anxious to hear Mandy’s new album … as much as I’m charmed by the fact that new hubby Ryan Adams is influencing her clothing choices, I’m much more intrigued to hear if he is also influencing her music style.

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Um, guys … we know, you’re married, the secret’s out. While I think they made a really cute couple, I think they’d look even cuter if they pretended that they were actually together. Nonetheless, I’m very happy that they’ve found love with one another :) These two have to be my fave new married couple of the year … even if they pretend they don’t know one another.

[Photo credit: X17]

I’m not entirely sure why she felt the need to try and hide her ring. Her spokesperson confirmed the news that she and Ryan got married so it’s not really a secret. She really shouldn’t be scared by the rock that she’s got … she should proudly show that thing off! I’m still having a bit of a difficult time accepting that Mandy Moore and Ryan Adams actually got married … especially considering the long list of women that Ryan has been attached to over the years (Parker Posey, Leona Naess, Winona Ryder and on and on). But finally it was sweet little Mandy (who has a substantial list of exes of her own — Andy Roddick, Wilmer Valderrama, Zach Braff, DJ AM) who ended up winning his heart, tamed the savage beast and got him to say I Do. They do make a cute couple (tho, I’ve always been pulling for Ryan and Leona Naess to end up together … they both seems so perfectly jaded together). I really hope they’ll be making beautiful music together for many, many years to come.

[Photo credit: Bauer-Griffin, Splash News]

Very pretty, great cover. While I’m still having a bit of a hard time seeing Mandy as a married woman (and to Ryan Adams, no less), I am seeing her as a mature woman on this album cover. I really enjoyed her last album, Wild Hope, and I’m guessing that Amanda Leigh (her full name) will be a continuation of that album. Her music has grown so much from the sugar-pop she gave us back in the day … she’s deffo grown into a Little Woman ;) The album is available for presale on iTunes already … I know I can’t wait to hear it for myself. What do y’all think … do you like this coverphoto?

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As you may recall, we heard last month that the couple were planning to be wed but … I’m not sure anyone expected it to happen so soon. Honestly, tho, I can’t say that I’m surprised that R-Andy M-Adams went ahead and did the deed on the sly. Now, this news of the the couple’s nuptials is still unconfirmed but something tells me that this might be the real deal. In anticipation of a confirmation of their marriage, I’d like to send out much love and congrats to the happy couple!

UPDATE: Reps for Mandy and Ryan confirm the wedding. Woot!!

[thanks CB]

From the press release: Talk show host Bonnie Hunt welcomes Mandy Moore to talk about her new album and asks about her recent engagement to rocker Ryan Adams, on “The Bonnie Hunt Show” airing Friday, February 13 (syndicated / log on to bonniehunt.com for stations and times). Bonnie congratulates Mandy on her recent engagement and tells her, “I am really excited for you.” Smiling Mandy says, “Thank you, I appreciate it. I am very happy.” “Well you’ve earned your happiness,” Hunt responds. “It’s nice to find someone who has his own thing going on and share your happiness together.” “Absolutely. That’s what it is all about. You have to be complete first and foremost yourself.”

Aww … again, I am so happy for Mandy and Ryan … while I thought they made a very odd pair when I first heard that they were together early last year, the notion of the two of them together is a very sweet one. Ryan is such an incredibly talented artist … I can see how someone like Mandy could inspire him to create amazing art. I really wish nothing but the best to the both of them for a long and happy life together. I’m a fan of them individually and now I’m a really big fan of them together :) Make sure you tune in to The Bonnie Hunt Show to watch Mandy beam about her new engagement to Ryan.

UPDATE: After the jump, check out video of Mandy’s appearance today on The Bonnie Hunt Show …

Mandy Moore and her singer-songwriter boyfriend, Ryan Adams, are engaged, a close friend of Mandy’s tells Life & Style. Mandy, 24, and Ryan, 34, who have been on and off since last March, were spotted grocery shopping in LA yesterday — and Mandy was sporting a ring on her engagement finger! “She is so excited about their engagement but admits it’s been a whirlwind. She’s really happy,” the friend tells Life & Style. Mandy was most recently linked to ex-boyfriend DJ AM after running to be with him following the plane crash he endured with Travis Barker in September. Mandy and AM called it quits in December. Shortly after, Mandy returned to her now-fiancé, Ryan. A rep for Mandy declined to comment.

While I don’t necessarily believe these sorts of reports right off the bat … the fact that Mandy’s rep declined to comment seems fishy. Generally when reports like this are not true, the reps say so. HMMM. Oh, and for the record, the above photo is from last summer when the pair started going out together in public. I would not be surprised at all if Mandy and Ryan decided to get hitched. Firstly, it was widely believed that Ryan nicknamed Mandy “bug” and used that name when he talked about her or to her on his now defunct blog … then, he dedicated his book of poetry Infinity Blues to “bug”. Mandy has started blogging on her official site and there are pictures of Ryan interspersed in her personal pics … Ryan, too, has started blogging again on the Cardinals official website and, lo and behold, Mandy shows up in various photos there as well. At the very least, we know they’re hanging out together again … is it really so hard to think they might be gettin’ hitched?

UPDATE: Woot! It’s official! Mandy’s rep is now confirming that YES she and Ryan Adams are engaged to be wed. Congrats!! I can’t wait to see those wedding photos.

[Photo credit: Splash News; Source]

Following her critically-acclaimed previous album, Wild Hope, Mandy Moore returns with the highly anticipated, Amanda Leigh – to be released May 26, 2009 on Storefront Recordings – a new partnership with RED Music. Co-written by Moore and primarily, Mike Viola, Amanda Leigh was recorded at engineer, Ducky Carlisle’s modest basement studio in his home outside of Boston and features an impressive and eclectic collection of vintage equipment utilized throughout the album. Sharing many of the same musical influences of artists such as Todd Rundgren, Joni Mitchell, CSNY and Nilsson, Moore and Viola set out to create a compelling body of work, in which the instrumentation mirrors so much of what inspired and guided the duo from the onset. The resulting collaboration, Amanda Leigh (Moore’s given name), is a collection of personal reflections and insights about life and love as evidenced in songs such as “Nothing Everything,” “Song About Home,” and “Love to Love Me Back” – the latter also written with Inara George of The Bird and the Bee. Experimentation was also prevalent and encouraged throughout the writing/recording process, as exemplified in the rather tongue-in-cheek, “I Could Break Your Heart Any Day of the Week” – originally a very alt-country sounding demo that quickly took on a new life with the addition of the clavinet, while “Everblue,” co-written with Lori McKenna, simarily transformed with the inclusion of the Farfisa and Wurlitzer. Moore, intent to tour in support of Amanda Leigh – the debut release from Storefront Recordings, a new endeavor between Moore’s long-time manager, Jon Leshay and RED Distribution – adds, “I’m connected to these songs and how they came to fruition in a way I’ve never been able to articulate before. The entire experience was one that I will undoubtedly replicate.”

OOOH, I love it! I am so happy that Mandy is moving forward with more serious music and remains resolute in her commitment to her art. I really liked her last album Wild Hope (her first single from that album Extraordinary is still in rotation in my main iPod playlist) and I’m really looking forward to hearing this pared down, more mature album. I’m encouraged by her use of vintage instruments. It sounds like someone, who shall remain nameless, has had a great influence on her music craft :) I can’t wait to hear what Amanda Leigh sounds like … the album, that is … honestly, her given name sounds like a 70’s porn star name — and mebbe now we know why she changed it ;)

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Sure, these pics aren’t all that exciting but it is nice to see her looking so well. This look is a very sophisticated one, I think, and it really suits her. I’d do away with the sensible shoes but overall, she looks great. I hope we get to see more of Mandy this year … and not because of who she’s dating. I’d rather have more interesting things to talk about than guys, haircuts and shopping.

[Photo credit: INFdaily]

Three TV networks, cancer research advocates and more than 60 celebrities from music, sports, TV and film made history Friday night with a live telethon that aired simultaneously on NBC, ABC and CBS. Jack Black, Jennifer Aniston, Halle Berry and Keanu Reeves — along with presidential nominees John McCain and Barack Obama — were among the stars participating in “Stand Up to Cancer,” an hourlong, commercial-free fundraising show spearheaded by entertainment-industry heavyweights whose lives have been touched by the disease. “This is an absolutely historic night, thanks to the unbelievable generosity of the three networks,” producer and cancer survivor Laura Ziskin told the audience at the Kodak Theatre before the show began. “We hope we’re going to make you laugh, and I know we’re going to make you cry, so I have some party favors,” she said as she tossed packets of Kleenex into the crowd. Cancer survivors Lance Armstrong and Elizabeth Edwards kicked off the program with statistics: Cancer kills 550,000 Americans and six million people worldwide each year. “That’s the equivalent of 9/11 every two days,” Armstrong said. Patrick Swayze, Billy Crystal, Salma Hayek and Christina Applegate urged viewers to call in and donate, while Neil Patrick Harris, America Ferrera, Christina Ricci and Kirsten Dunst answered phones. A visibly pregnant Jennifer Garner, along with Berry, Forest Whitaker and Casey Affleck, read personal accounts from those battling cancer.

And speaking of Patrick Swayze, it turns out that he was called by some the “best part” of last night’s telethon:

Patrick Swazye’s surprise appearance at the EIF “Stand Up To Cancer” fund-raising special impressed a nation of television viewers and a stage full of fellow celebrities. The actor, who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer earlier this year, was brought out on a darkened stage during the opening segment. When the lights came up, he received a standing ovation. Even Jennifer Aniston, who was in the middle of a phone call, stood up to pay tribute to Swayze. “He looks amazing,” former basketball player Charles Barkley told PEOPLE. “For me, seeing Patrick Swayze, someone who is actually fighting this disease, was the best part of the show. Seeing him in person was amazing.” Swayze smiled and danced in the wings through the show, holding his wife, Lisa Niemi. He even managed a moment of solo air guitar.

It is really wonderful to hear that Patrick is doing so well … and what a momentous event. The Fashion Rocks event in NYC synced up with the Stand Up To Cancer event here in LA last night as a whole slew of musicians — including Carrie Underwood, Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, Mary J. Blige, Rihanna, Fergie, Sheryl Crow, Melissa Etheridge, Natasha Bedingfield, Miley Cyrus, Leona Lewis, Keyshia Cole, LeAnn Rimes, Ashanti and Ciara — gave a special performance of the song Just Stand Up which was recorded specifically to help raise money and awareness for cancer research. After the jump, check out video of the Just Stand Up performance and find out how you can donate to this worthy cause …