Style and Focus News Bites

** CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Awards Top Prize to Rogan Gregory. Thursday, Nov. 15, Gregory won a cash prize of $200,000, a Lexus vehicle with a full year of prepaid parking, and a year's worth of mentoring from a senior industry executive (Fashion Week Daily).

** Just in time for the Holidays, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" will be in stores December 11th (in the US).

** Oscar winner Jamie Foxx has signed a two year first look production deal with MTV and VH1. The deal will allow Foxx to develop, produce and consult on unscripted projects for both MTV and VH1.

** Fans of the CW Network show "Supernatural" (which is actually one of my favorite shows) are buzzing about the somewhat recent arrest of actress Katie Cassidy. She is currently playing the character Rudy on the third season of the hit show. She was arrested in Tucson, AZ for underage drinking and lying to the police. She is scheduled to be in court in December.

** Model Lily Cole has signed on as the exclusive face of Marks & Spencer. She will promote the 2008 spring/summer Limited Collection (Daily Mail).

** According to US Magazine, George Clooney donated $25,000 to striking writers. He gave the money to the New York-based Actors Fund, which provides emergency relief for workers in the entertainment industry.

** Italy is cracking down on gossip in the media. An Italian circuit court ruled that reporting on gossip in Italy will be illegal unless it is used to make a larger point about the figure being reported. The case is part of a wide spread effort to improve the standards on Italian television (The Hollywood Reporter).

** According to Fashion Wire Daily, Venus Williams' new fashion collection is a complete hit. Williams who graduates in fashion design from the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale in December, launched "EleVen," a new collection available at Steve & Barry's. Her collection will include clothing, accessories and shoes which will all be priced under $19.98.

** Amazon has introduced a new wireless reader called Kindle ($399) and it can be used to download books, newspapers and blog posts without having to be connected to a computer (New York Times).

** On Sunday, November 11, CW Network "Supernatural" stars Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles received an Honorary Special Forces Coin from Special Forces Soldier Master Sergeant Kevin Wise. The two actors were the special guests at Creation Entertainment's "Salute to Supernatural and Buffy/Angel," a convention held in Schaumberg, Illinois that was attended by numerous show fans, one of whom is Wise.

While on stage with Padalecki and Ackles, Wise told the crowd that the first two seasons of Supernatural are the most requested DVDs among armed forces personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan. Wise also said that Warner Brothers Entertainment, Inc. and Kripke Entertainment, Inc. are shipping 3,000 DVDs to the soldiers stationed in such areas (BuddyTV).