Gossip Girl star is also Penshoppe endorser

Hollywood star and style icon Leighton Meester is arriving today to join the “All Stars” campaign of Penshoppe, an original concept created by the brand’s lead publicist Joyce A. Ramirez of PR Asia Worldwide. The campaign’s main goal is to gather some of the world’s most popular movie and TV stars to endorse Penshoppe.

“Some people said that we couldn’t do it but I said that there’s always a first time,” says Joyce.

Added Penshoppe brand director Alex Mendoza, “This kind of campaign has never been done anywhere in the world — you know, the ‘All Stars’ endorsers wearing a 100-percent Filipino brand, thus showing the world that Penshoppe has arrived in the international scene.”

Ian Somerhalder, the dashing star of the hit US TV show The Vampire Diaries, left yesterday after he shot for the campaign in Lagen Island, El Nido in Palawan.

Leighton is the second star from Gossip Girl to be enlisted as a Penshoppe endorser, following Ed Westwick who came here last year to shoot for Penshoppe. Before him came Thai popstar Mario Maurer, followed by Zac Efron who has his own pictorial in L.A. and who promised to visit the Philippines. Mario is currently shooting Suddenly It’s Magic with Erich Gonzales for Star Cinema. 

Aside from the shoot, while here Leighton is set to make an appearance at Impact, the Penshoppe show for the Philippine Fashion Week tomorrow night.

With her incredible crossover talent and her inescapable beauty, Leighton has quickly become an undeniable force turning heads in movies, television, music and fashion.

Though avid fans across the world know her as the deliciously devilish Blair Waldorf on The CW’s hugely popular drama Gossip Girl, it took little for the public to recognize her wide-reaching appeal as she lit up red carpets, snickered on the silver screen and serenaded her way into the fans’ hearts.

Leighton will star in the comedy That’s My Boy with Adam Sandler and Andy Samberg, and the dramedy The Oranges with Hugh Laurie, Oliver Platt, Allison Janney and Catherine Keener. Recently, Leighton starred in Country Strong, a country music drama with Gwyneth Paltrow, Garrett Hedlund and Tim McGraw, opening to critical acclaim while showing the true diversity she holds in music and film. Previous to that, she was seen in the thriller The Roommate and in Monte Carlo with Selena Gomez. In 2010, Leighton starred with Steve Carell and Tina Fey in the comedy Date Night.

Raised in Florida, Leighton started acting at age nine as a citizen of Emerald City in a local production of The Wizard of Oz. Two years later, she moved with her family to New York and soon began working as a model with the Wilhelmina Modeling Agency, booking a Ralph Lauren campaign shot by Bruce Weber and working with photographer/director Sofia Coppola.

Willie Revillame (back row, fourth from left) with (from left) Jojo Gabinete, Jun Lalin, Ronald Constantino, Ricky Lo and Gorgy Rula; and (front row, also from left) Lolit Solis and Shirley Pizarro.

Yes, Willie is running…

Before you jump to conclusion after reading that subhead, let me hasten to add that Wil Time Bigtime host Willie Revillame is indeed running not for any position in the 2013 elections, neither as mayor of Quezon City or for congressman, but away…from politics, that is.

Willie set the record straight Wednesday night when he hosted a birthday dinner for Lolit Solis at his new restaurant/events-place in Quezon City.

“I’m focused on my show and the businesses I’m putting up,” he said, including the Wil Tower right across from the ABS-CBN Studios, set to open this September; and the resort in Tagaytay City to be built on the sprawling lot he bought from the Madrigal Family.

At the same dinner, Lolit announced that she will undergo a stem-cell procedure in Germany. She said that she was touched when Dr. Vicki Belo, a stem-cell recipient, commented that she’s concerned with Lolit’s health.

“I’m convinced beyond doubt that Vicki loves me and cares for me,” said Lolit in near tears.

Willie left on PAL flight last night for the TV5 launch in L.A. on May 26 and in San Francisco on June 2.