Naomi tries on a new line
From Page six (lifted from yesterday's FWD really)
VETERAN supermodel Naomi Campbell is catwalking into the public relations biz. The headline-grabbing diva, 32, has launched NC.Connect, a lifestyle-branding and event-planning firm, PAGE SIX has learned. According to its Web site, the Manhattan-based outfit will specialize in "putting important people, exotic places and magnificent things together. From the boardroom to the first-class cabin to the showroom, NC.Connect takes business development and personal hospitality into uncharted territory." Campbell will be joined by partners Claudine Dematos of Whisper P.R. and longtime friend Desiree Ejoh. "Naomi's been wanting to do this for a few years," a pal told us. The company has so far snared the Amir Slama-designed Brazilian swimwear company Rosa Cha as a client, and will throw its Fashion Week after-party Sept. 19 at Man Ray. Campbell's fans needn't worry that the sybaritic supermodel is going to abandon her infamous attitude. Her firm's motto is "Work hard, play hard."

Italians Yawn at Too Wholesome Contest
ROME (Reuters) - Italians have much to complain about these days. Prices are rising, jobs are scarce and the "country of the sun" has been swamped by rain this summer.
But along with the highs and lows of the mercury and the economy, another moan this past week has been that the Miss Italy pageant, one of the country's most hallowed institutions, is producing girls that are, well, just too wholesome.
Italians are just plain tired of the girl-next-door, which they like to call "acqua e sapone" (soap and water look) and apparently want more sex, spice and suspense in their misses.
So great was the disappointment over the four-day pageant, which ended Monday night, that one mainstream national newspaper branded it "Miss Yawn 2002."
The television audience share plummeted by two million viewers over last year and commentators and newspapers put the blame on goodness.
"Too many girls seemed to be reciting from a script -- God, country and family," said Fabrizio Del Noce, head of RAI state television's Channel One, which broadcast the pageant.
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