Actress Reese Witherspoon says her “Legally Blonde” character Elle Woods has been ousted as the most stylish woman to come to the nation’s capital by first lady Michelle Obama.

Speaking Wednesday at a ceremony where Mrs. Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton presented the annual International Women of Courage awards, Witherspoon jokingly complained that Woods, the bubbly blonde from Los Angeles who discovers her inner strength at Harvard Law School and then takes on Washington politics, no longer held that title.

“As an actress, I have always sought out roles that portrayed women as strong and powerful, such as Elle Woods, who was in the ‘Legally Blonde’ movies,” she said to laughter from the audience in an ornate State Department reception room.

Woods, she said, “happened to be the biggest fashionista who ever came to Washington until Michelle Obama. Thanks a lot.”

Clinton then introduced Mrs. Obama as “stylish,” and the first lady returned the compliment to the entire crowd, saying: “You all look fabulous.”

Witherspoon was at the ceremony as a global ambassador for the Avon Foundation, which supports breast cancer research, anti-domestic violence programs and women’s empowerment projects. On Wednesday the group announced a $500,000 contribution to the State Department’s Fund for Global Women’s Leadership.

Gallery Links:
- Public Appearances > Events in 2010 > Vital Voices & Avon Host Breakfast Meeting To End Violence Against Women

In response to the destruction and devastation caused by the earthquake in Haiti, The Advertising Council and the American Red Cross today (Jan 22nd) launched a national television public service advertisement (PSA) featuring Morgan Freeman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Tim McGraw, Julia Roberts, Meryl Streep and Reese Witherspoon.

In the television PSA, the celebrities encourage all Americans to support relief efforts for the Haitian citizens impacted by the earthquake by donating to the American Red Cross. Viewers are directed to visit www.redcross.org, call 1-800-HELP-NOW or text “HAITI” to 9-0-9-9-9 and $10 will be given automatically to the American Red Cross.

Created pro bono by GSD&M Idea City, with the Creative Artists Agency Foundation helping to coordinate the talent, the PSA is available in :30 format. A Spanish-language TV spot, featuring actress Eva Longoria, will also be available to the media next week. Per the Ad Council’s model, the PSAs will air in advertising time that will be donated by the media.

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It was just a couple days ago that Reese took part in the Hope For Haiti telethon and we’re already hearing reports that the event raised $58 million – and still counting. This is such wonderful and heartwarming news!

“Thank you so much for your donation,” actress Reese Witherspoon told one caller. “You can’t imagine how much love and great, wonderful energy is here today. People are doing everything they can to make a difference in these people’s lives.”

As reported, Miss Reese took part in the Hope For Haiti Now telethon in Los Angeles last night, and I’ve added 7 HQs from the event. I love the photos of her and Jack Nicholson, and chatting with Julia Roberts!

I will add those Golden Globe screencaps this weekend, plus I’ve found some more pics from those awards … stay tuned!

GALLERY LINKS:
- Public Appearances > Events in 2010 > Hope For Haiti Now: A Global Benefit For Earthquake Relief telethon

Very last minute as the telethon is airing now (and I’ve seen Reese twice already) but Reese is answering phones at tonight’s Hope for Haiti charity telethon. You can watch the special right now on CNN, Mtv, and many other networks so check your local listings. We will post any photos and/or screencaptures as soon as they become available.

“This is an issue that has been in the dark for too long. There remains what can seem like an impenetrable wall of silence, around violence. And we must all play a role in breaking that silence.”

The funny thing,” Reese Witherspoon says, “is it happens all the time.” A day after Gordon Brown thanked “Renée Witherspoon” in Parliament for her work for victims of domestic violence, Witherspoon is wondering why she and her friend, fellow actress Renée Zellweger are often confused with each other. “Maybe it’s an R-W, R-Z thing,” she says. “I phoned Renée, and she already knew. She said three people yesterday had said to her, ‘Hi Reese, how are you?’”

There should be stranger elements to this tale than the mystery of the Z-W congruence. Such as, why is a 33-year-old actress from the US, most famous for a film in which she plays a ditzy blonde lawyer, being thanked at Prime Minister’s Questions? Why was she later given access to meet Sarah Brown? And why, purely by virtue of signing a contract in 2007 to advertise cosmetics, is she fronting a British campaign for the end of a postcode lottery in domestic violence services?

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