O Letting Go

Former TV talk show host Oprah Winfrey is leaving the board of WeightWatchers and will donate her stake in the company “to eliminate any perceived conflict of interest around her taking weight loss medications,” according to the company, also known as WW International.

Shares in WW International fell by 27% in extended trading following the news, according to the BBC.

WeightWatchers made the announcement in a press release shared with the Securities and Exchange Commission last week, which said the longtime Montecito resident would not be standing to reelection at the May shareholders meeting.

The move ends Oprah’s nine-year tenure on the Weightwatchers board.

Her current 1.4% stake in the New York-based weight loss program, reportedly worth $12 million, will be donated to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Oprah reveled to People she has been taking a prescription weight-loss drug as a tool to manage her diet and “not yo-yoing.” 

Pulling from the Inspirational Well of Children

Prince Harry paid tribute to Britain’s inspirational seriously ill children as he issued a new video asking for nominations for 2024’s WellChild Awards.

The charity works to make it possible for children and young people with exceptional health needs to be cared for at home instead of in hospitals.

In the video appearing on Twitter, the Riven Rock resident said: “The WellChild Awards are our chance to celebrate the extraordinary strength and spirit of young people affected by complex medical conditions across the United Kingdom.

“It allows us to shine a spotlight on the resilience and positivity that they demonstrate every single day and to recognize the incredible support from families and friends and professionals around them.

“It is such a privilege to honor the immense courage and compassion of this incredible community, but to do that we need to take a moment and nominate the remarkable individuals who inspire you.”

A Firework Show to Remember

Santa Barbara singer Katy Perry has opened up about her impoverished upbringing as the daughter of Pentecostal parents, Keith and Mary Hudson, who often had to rely on food stamps and food banks to survive.

The former Dos Pueblos High student, 39, now reportedly worth $530 million, tells People: “You want to talk about food stamps? I can talk about food stamps.

“You want to talk about food banks? I can talk about food banks. You want to talk about busking in the street as a teenager hoping to make $20 to cover yourself? I can talk about that too.”

Katy’s upbringing led to her to want to make a serious difference in the world beyond her singing career.

She and her sister, Angela Hudson Lerche, founded the Firework Foundation in 2018 as a means to help youngsters in underserved communities have access to the arts.

“If in a hundred years nobody knows Katy Perry or the song ‘Firework,’ but they know what the Firework Foundation is, then I’ll have fulfilled my purpose,” adds Katy proudly.

Family Influences

Actress Gwyneth Paltrow credits her interest in health and wellness to her late father Bruce Paltrow’s battle with cancer.

The Oscar winner, 51, who was headlining at the MAKERS conference in Beverly Hills took to social media shortly afterwards to conduct an “Ask Me A Question” session.

The Goop founder says it “stemmed from a family tragedy.”

“I got into wellness when my father was diagnosed with cancer when I was 25 years old,” she said. “That started to catalyze my understanding of food, environmental toxins, food as medicine, and alternative stuff like acupuncture. So it started a long time ago.”

The Montecito resident also worked with the esteemed director in the 2000 movie Duets before his death of throat cancer at the age of 59.

Lord Jacob Rothschild and Iris Apfel Remembered 

On a personal note, I mark the passing of Lord Jacob Rothschild, a billionaire financier who applied his energies to art and heritage, who has died in London at 87.

Given his passion for history, buildings, and collecting, he left a major mark on Britain’s national heritage.

I first met the charming peer at Spencer House, the impressive 18th century haunt of the late Princess Diana’s family, when his company bought a lease on the property overlooking Green Park in 1985 (just a tiara’s toss from the Ritz Hotel), which was a hideous jumble of offices, and restored it to its former glory.

Three years later Rothschild inherited the $130 million estate of Dollie de Rothschild, a descendant of the French branch of the banking dynasty.

Her home, Waddesdon Manor, was the last of the great 19th century Rothschild houses, a full-blown chateau in the lush Buckinghamshire countryside, designed as a showcase for the magnificent collection of art, tapestries, and furniture.

It was given to Britain’s National Trust in 1957 of which I am a life member with the Royal Oak Foundation, its U.S. arm, and Rothschild set to restoring it to its former glory at his own expense, supervising every detail himself.

An utterly charming and most philanthropic individual.

I also remember New York fixture Iris Apfel who has died at her Palm Beach, Florida, home at the age of 102.

A unique tastemaker, Apfel was known for her colorful eccentric style who found herself the focus of museum exhibitions, including one at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2005.

She also worked with nine presidential wives on design restoration at the White House using fabrics from her company, Old World Weavers.

A truly extraordinary woman and American original …

Sightings

Oscar winner Kevin Costner noshing with friends at the Boathouse at Hendry’s Beach… Meghan Markle skiing at Powder Mountain in Utah… Warbler Katy Perry sightseeing in Melbourne, Australia.

Pip! Pip!