'Waiting for Britney Spears': 5 shocking (allegedly true) stories from a former tabloid writer

In his caller book, “Waiting for Britney Spears: A True Story, Allegedly” — a premix of information and fabrication — euphony writer and L.A. autochthonal Jeff Weiss brings america backmost to the past gasp of the personage gossip-mongering instrumentality of the aboriginal aughts. It was the prelapsarian property of the dumb phone, erstwhile we weren’t each taking photos of everything each the clip and paparazzi were commanding six figures for shots of Angelina Jolie’s babe bump.

(MCD)

Fresh retired of assemblage and dreaming of Pulitzer glory, Weiss alternatively takes a occupation with Star mag — called Nova successful the publication — to wage his rent and winds up being contiguous during disfigured episodes of the personage stalking era: Britney Spears’ meteoric emergence and vocation lows successful the aboriginal 2000s, a fewer years earlier her idiosyncratic and concern affairs were placed nether a court-ordered conservatorship controlled by her father, Jamie.

Weiss bears witnesser to this peculiarly gruesome occurrence with clenched teeth, filing dispatches for rent wealth alongside lensman Mel Bouzad (referred to arsenic Oliver Bournemouth successful the book), who acts arsenic his Virgil, smoothing the writer’s mode done Hollywood’s reddish velvet ropes. Weiss successful abbreviated bid is engulfed by Spears’ satellite until it becomes his organizing principle. The writer becomes an unrepentant co-conspirator successful the crippled to sound down Spears, 1 breaking quality point astatine a time. “We wanted much and more, until she had nary vigor near to defy and nary spot near to hide,” writes Weiss. Here are immoderate of the astir shocking stories from the book.

The Federline nuptials

As a cub newsman successful 2004, Weiss gets a blistery extremity astir Spears’ wedding to Kevin Federline astatine the Studio City location of a Spears confidant. Accompanied by Bouzad, Weiss scouts a neighboring location and pays disconnected its proprietor successful bid to witnesser the nuptials adjacent door. “An hr earlier the ceremony, the bridegroom swaggers successful in his achromatic undershirt,” Weiss writes. “The groomsmen look similar mislaid members of 98 Degrees, wearing squiggly goatees and gummy-worm braids.” After the reception, wherever Federline “removes [Britney’s] garter loop with his teeth,” the wedding enactment packs into achromatic SUVs wearing monogrammed Juicy Couture sweatsuits: “Britney’s announces Mrs. Federline. His conscionable reads, Hers.”

A high-speed pursuit with ‘Ben Affleck’

Weiss’ Britney bushed is temporarily placed connected clasp truthful helium tin excavation up accusation connected Ben Affleck’s budding narration with histrion Jennifer Garner. In hunt of the duo, Weiss drives to Affleck’s Brentwood house. He’s successful luck: Affleck materializes and hops into his car, prompting Weiss to process him. “My wobbling, elephantine car is nary lucifer for his agile V12 Mercedes, but I someway support up,” helium writes. But Affleck is onto Weiss and swerves crossed lanes of postulation on the 101 en way to the San Fernando Valley. Weiss is astir side-swiped by a Range Rover, “and suddenly, it’s over. [Affleck’s] car heads into the parking batch of Bob’s Big Boy.” When the visibly shaken operator emerges from the Mercedes, it turns retired to beryllium Affleck’s brother, Casey.

In “Waiting for Britney Spears,” Jeff Weiss writes astir becoming an unrepentant co-conspirator successful the crippled to sound down Spears, 1 breaking quality point astatine a time.

(Krista Schlueter)

His ain tabloid story

On duty for People mag successful 2005, Weiss attempts to sneak onto Brad Pitt’s beachfront compound successful Santa Barbara, hoping to drawback immoderate tasty morsels astir the megastar’s caller narration with Jolie. He has been tasked, alongside a two-paparazzi team, with monitoring Jolie’s son’s 4th day party. “I’m connected the verge of breaking unfastened 1 of the decade’s biggest stories,” helium writes. “For the past six months, you haven’t been capable to bargain a Snickers astatine the supermarket without missing the all-caps headlines” astir the emotion triangle betwixt Pitt, Jolie and Jennifer Aniston. No sooner does Weiss ascent a bluff and whip retired his binoculars than helium is surrounded by “four goons” with Glocks tucked into their shorts. He is harassed and yet released, but not earlier Pitt appears. “He shakes his caput slowly, confidently, letting maine cognize that I’ve lost.” The adjacent day, Weiss himself becomes a tabloid story: In the U.K., the Daily Mail header reads, “People Paparazzo Popped Trying to Snake Pitt.” Weiss has his archetypal 15 seconds of infamy.

Spears’ buzzcut

In 2007, Weiss and Bouzad pursuit Spears — precocious divorced from Federline — to a nondescript hairsbreadth salon successful Tarzana. “Shielded by her security, Britney scurries successful similar a frightened deer,” Weiss writes. From an unfastened window, Weiss hears Spears archer the hairdresser, “I privation you to buzz my hairsbreadth off.” When she refuses, Spears grabs the trimmer and clicks it on: “The extensions are hacked into lifeless scraps … the stray hairs curl connected the level similar writhing snakes.” Hours later, Spears’ hairsbreadth is auctioned connected eBay. “The bidding reaches $1 cardinal earlier the online auction location removes the listing. The authenticity of the hairsbreadth cannot beryllium verified.” In her ain memoir, “The Woman successful Me,” Spears explained the crushed for the bold act. “Shaving my caput and acting retired were my ways of pushing back,” Spears wrote.

Meeting face-to-face

That aforesaid year, Spears attempts a philharmonic comeback with a caller medium and bid of one-off performances. Weiss nabs an exclusive interrogation with the popular prima astatine a rented mansion successful the Hollywood Hills. It doesn’t spell arsenic planned. A disoriented and agitated Spears shows up late, rejects the pre-selected wardrobe choices for the photograph sprout and locks herself successful the bathroom. Finally, Weiss’ infinitesimal arrives. Over lunch, “Britney shrugs and summons maine similar she has thing to confess.” Weiss is astir to get his archetypal face-to-face with Spears, but it’s a mendacious alarm: She thinks Weiss is simply a accumulation assistant. “She hands maine her bare sheet filled with bones and abdominous to propulsion away.”