The Other Half of Famous Twins

Both Charlie Sheen's wife and Jenna Jameson had twin boys recently; they join the growing ranks of celebrity parents with multiples, including Julia Roberts and Brangelina.

When these little twin bundles of joy grow up, will they be the next Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen? Or will one seek fame while the other chooses a quieter life? That's the path taken by a number of celebrities and their not-so-famous twins. In fact, we were surprised to find out how many stars have a twin sibling leading a very different life.

Kiefer Sutherland and his sister RachelMaybe it's because we think of him as the ultimate loner on the TV series "24," but we were shocked to find out that Kiefer Sutherland has a twin sister. Rachel is a post-production supervisor working in film and television in Toronto. But when her big brother, Kiefer, (he's seven minutes older) made his feature film directorial debut in 1997, Rachel was there for him. She acted as second assistant property master, grip, and costumer when Kiefer went behind the lens to shoot "Truth or Consequences, N.M."

Scarlett Johansson and her brother HunterScarlett Johansson might have been e-mail buddies with then-Senator Barack Obama, but her twin brother Hunter helped get him into the Oval Office. In June 2008 ScarJo's twin left his job as a community organizer at Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer's office and became a campaign organizer for Obama in Denver. As everyone knows, Obama became President, while Hunter received an honor of his own: People magazine named him a "Hot Bachelor" in their "Single and Sexy Men of 2008" feature.

Ashton Kutcher and his brother MichaelAshton Kutcher is a dashing (albeit goofy) leading man and the most famous cougar cub in history, but few people know that he has a fraternal twin. Michael Kutcher was born with cerebral palsy and had a life-saving heart transplant when he was 13-years-old. Always his twin's protector when the two were growing up, Ashton decided to move to Hollywood to pursue his acting career, while Michael stayed in Iowa and sells retirement plans.

Gisele Bündchen and her sister PatriciaIf Patricia Bündchen were the fraternal twin of anyone else on the planet, she would be the pretty sister. Unfortunately for Patricia, her twin is Gisele Bündchen: Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover model, ex-girlfriend of Leonardo DiCaprio, the new Mrs. Tom Brady. So rather than live in her sister's perfectly curvaceous shadow, Patricia prefers to stay behind the camera, acting as Gisele's manager. She's good at it too: Gisele is the world's highest-paid supermodel, earning $35 million in 2008.

Giovanni Ribisi and his sister MarissaWhen future actors Giovanni and Marissa Ribisi were born, they were delivered by Bibbe Hansen. Giovanni grew up to play Phoebe's brother, Frank, Jr., on "Friends" and Scarlett Johansson's photographer-husband in "Lost in Translation." Marissa appeared in "Dazed and Confused," "The Brady Bunch Movie," and "Felicity" before launching her own clothing line, Whitley Kros. And Bibbe Hansen? She ended up becoming Marissa's mother-in-law, when Ribisi married Bibbe's son, Beck Hansen, who is better known as indie rock darling Beck.

Jon Heder and his brother DanielWhen identical twins Jon and Daniel Heder were kids, they would shoot home movies about books like "White Fang" rather than turn in traditional written book reports. Not surprisingly, they both decided to go into the film business when they grew up. After Jon became famous for his role in the 2004 film "Napoleon Dynamite," he and Daniel became partners in their own production company, "Greasy Entertainment." And while Jon was off shooting "Just Like Heaven" and "The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang," Dan worked as an animator on the movie "Monster House."

Isabella Rossellini and her sister Isotta IngridThe daughters of silver screen icon Ingrid Bergman and legendary Italian director Robert Rossellini, fraternal twins Isabella and Isotta Ingrid Rossellini took very different paths. Isabella used her flawless beauty to launch a modeling career, act in such films as "Blue Velvet" and "Fearless," and land famous lovers, like Martin Scorsese (her husband from 1979 to 1982), David Lynch, and Gary Oldman. Ingrid, on the other hand, chose to stay out of the spotlight. After earning a PhD in Italian Literature at Columbia University, Ingrid became a professor and has taught at Harvard and Princeton. And, proving that twins don't always think alike, the sisters had a very public rift in 2006 when Isabella screened her short film "My Dad Is 100 Years Old" prior to a retrospective of his work at the Tribeca Film Festival. Ingrid felt the short made a joke of her father's illustrious career and was hurt that Isabella would link it directly to his film during the festival.

Jill Hennessy and her sister JacquelineIn the States, Jill Hennessy is famous for her role on the crime drama "Law and Order." But head North and you'll find that her identical twin sister, Jacqueline, is a Canadian TV star who hosts the current affairs show "Medical Intelligence." While Jacqueline is a journalist by trade, she has dabbled in acting. Back in 1988 Jacq and Jill played twin call girls in the movie "Dead Ringers," and when Jill was double-booked during a "Law and Order"/"Homicide: Life on the Streets" crossover extravaganza, Jacqueline played her sister's role in a few courtroom scenes.

Alanis Morissette and her brother WadeIsn't it ironic that Alanis Morissette has a twin? No, not really, but neither were any of the things that Morissette talked about in her 1996 hit song "Ironic." But we digress. Wade played piano and guitar growing up, but it wasn't until he combined his passion for yoga with his love of music that he found his true calling. As a spokesman for lululemon athletica apparel, Wade joined the Yoga Pilgrimage in 2005 and toured to promote his debut album, "Sargam Scales of Music." He's been rocking the yoga circuit ever since. Maybe if Wade had taught Alanis how to align her chakras, "Jagged Little Pill" might have been a kinder, gentler album.

Biden tries to shush wife after state-VP slip

This image provided by Harpo Productions shows, from left: Dr. Jill Biden, Vice President-elect Joe Biden, and Oprah Winfrey on the set of the 'Oprah Winfrey Show' at Washington's Kennedy Center Opera House Monday, Jan. 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Harpo Productions, Inc. George Burns)Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Joe Biden's wife said Monday that he had his pick of being Barack Obama's running mate or the secretary of state nomination that eventually went to Hillary Rodham Clinton, a slip that the vice president-elect immediately tried to shush.

Jill Biden's comment came during an appearance with her husband on "The Oprah Winfrey Show," taped at Washington's Kennedy Center on the eve of the inauguration.

"Joe had the choice to be secretary of state or vice president," she said. Her husband turned to his wife with his finger to his lips and a "Shhhh!" that sent the audience into laughter. "OK, he did," Jill Biden said in her defense.

The vice president-elect blushed, grimaced and gave his wife a hug while the audience continued to erupt in laughter. "That's right," he finally said to his wife. "Go ahead."

Mrs. Biden said she told him vice president would be better for the family.

"If you're secretary of state, you'll be away, we'll never see you, you know," she said. "I'll see you at a state dinner once in a while."

After the exchange aired on television three hours later, Biden spokeswoman Elizabeth Alexander denied Jill Biden's account in a statement e-mailed to reporters.

"To be clear, President-elect Obama offered Vice President-elect Biden one job only — to be his running mate," the statement said. "And the vice president-elect was thrilled to accept the offer."

While the statement denies that Obama ever offered Biden the secretary of state job, it doesn't rule out that the two discussed the possibility. Obama's transition office did not respond to questions about their private discussions.

Clinton's spokesman declined to comment about the suggestion that she was the second choice.

Obama made no reference to to the comments Monday night, when he praised the Bidens at a dinner honoring his running mate at Washington's Union Station. Obama invited the two on stage, where he kissed Jill Biden's cheek and hugged her husband.

On Winfrey's program, Joe Biden said he didn't immediately take the vice presidential offer since he wasn't sure it was the best place for him to serve. But Biden, who ran against Obama in the Democratic primary race, said he agreed after getting some assurances from Obama about his role.

"This is a partnership," Biden said. "He's president of the United States, but as I said to him when he asked me, I said, 'Barack, don't ask me unless the reason you're asking me is you're asking me for my judgment. I get to be the last guy in the room when you make every important decision. You're president. Any decision you make, I will back.'

"He said he wanted to have a confidant and somebody who wouldn't be a yes man. He's pretty sure about that last part," Biden said with a laugh.

Alexander's statement said, "Like anyone who followed the presidential campaign this summer, Dr. Jill Biden knew there was a chance that President-elect Obama might ask her husband to serve in some capacity and that, given his background, the positions of vice president and secretary of state were possibilities. Dr. Biden's point to Oprah today was that being vice president would be a better fit for their family because they would get to see him more and get to participate in serving more."

The Bidens made a surprise appearance on Winfrey's show. The celebrity-filled show also included the premiere of "America's Song," performed by Faith Hill , Seal , Bono , Mary J. Blige , Will.i.am and David Foster in honor of the occasion and available for free download on Winfrey's Web site for 24 hours.

Winfrey also interviewed movie star couple Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher about how Obama has inspired them to pledge to help end slave labor around the world and encourage other people to make a pledge to improve their communities. Other celebrities, including Scarlett Johansson , Justin Timberlake and Forest Whitaker appeared by videotape to talk about what Obama's election means to them.

Winfrey, who made her first ever presidential endorsement for Obama, heralded the significance of the moment particularly coming the day after Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

"I feel like I am better because of his being elected," Winfrey said. "And I think that the country is going to be better. I feel like it is a beautiful thing, and we all start to see ourselves differently, the possibility."

Madonna, Oprah, other celebs react to Obama's win

NEW YORK – Madonna doesn't do anything small.

The Material Girl celebrated Barack Obama's victory Tuesday night with a glittering rally of her own, leading thousands of fans at her concert in San Diego with a rousing introduction to her song "Express Yourself."

In a video posted on YouTube, Madonna claps her hands and declares, "This is a historical evening! ... We are lucky to be sharing it with each other!"

Other celebrity supporters of Obama echo Madonna's good cheer.

Oprah Winfrey, who cried during the celebration in Chicago's Grant Park, told the TV show "The Insider": "I was so, so, so excited and then just sort of a calm came over me. It feels like it actually is kind of real, so it feels great."

Asked what this means for the country, she said, "It means democracy at its finest. It's just the best. We did this. America did this."

George Clooney said in a statement: "I congratulate President-elect Obama on his historic victory, and now it's time to begin unifying the country so we can take on the extraordinary challenges that this generation faces."

Actress Scarlett Johansson, who stumped for Obama throughout his campaign, said the "overwhelming hope that Obama inspires is infectious."

"I've always maintained a strong faith in the power of Obama's positive campaign and am so proud of every citizen who took a stand, participated in the political process and insisted their voices be heard," Johansson said in a statement.

Singer John Mellencamp reflected on the election on his Web site, saying he never thought he'd see the day when "a man of color could be president of the United States. But today I am so proud of America."

Singer Colbie Caillat, who cried when Obama won, said she thinks "our country is in safe hands."

Stars including Lindsay Lohan, Michael Moore and Kanye West posted messages online.

Reacting on her Myspace page, Lohan gushed, "OBAMA IS OUR PRESIDENT!" and said that everyone who voted, "no matter their choice ... should be proud for voting in the first place."

West, whose mother Donda died last November, posted a portrait of the president elect on his blog with the message: "HI MOM, OBAMA WON!"

Meanwhile, director-provocateur Moore responded on his Web site, saying, "Who among us is not at a loss for words? Tears pour out. Tears of joy. Tears of relief. A stunning, whopping landslide of hope in a time of deep despair."

Even more stunning: a concession from John McCain supporter Elisabeth Hasselbeck, who said Wednesday on TV's "The View" that she'll follow Obama's lead.

"I will jump in that line and support our president because that is what as an American I believe we should do," said Hasselbeck, who received a fist bump from co-host Whoopi Goldberg.



See: Barack Obama Pic

Scarlett Johansson and Ryan Reynolds Wed!

Us Magazine Scarlett Johansson and Ryan Reynolds are now husband and wife her rep has confirmed to Us.The wedding took place Saturday evening at a remote wilderness resort outside Vancouver. Guests included Scarlett's mother, Melanie Sloan, and her brother, Adrian Johansson.
Johansson, 23, and Reynolds, 31, who had been dating since Spring 2007, announced their engagement on May 5, the day the actress flashed a three-carat diamond ring estimated to be worth about $30,000 at the Met Costume Ball Gala.
Johansson has said falling in love has a lot to do with timing."You don't always meet the right person at the right time," she told Cosmopolitan.The actress also clarified her 2006 comments in which she said that people aren't monogamous by nature. "I believe in finding a soul mate. I've always been in monogamous relationships. I would never want to be in an open one. It'd be too awful."