When many people think of actor Matthew McConaughey, it isn’t his work in such films as Boys on the Side, Dazed and Confused and Magic Mike that comes to mind, but rather his penchant for being half-naked all the time. After all, the actor was hauled away in 1999 for resisting arrest after officers came to his Austin, Texas home to deal with complaints of him loudly playing bongo drums while nude.

These days, though, it looks like McConaughey has found some motivation for keeping his shirt on. He has partnered with Canadian apparel manufacturer Grand National Apparel—manufacturer of Perry Ellis, Pacific Trail and Savane—to launch his own active sportswear collection, JKL. While the duds will be available on JKL’s site, consumers can also find them at Dillard’s stores and dillards.com.Continue reading...

Ashton Kutcher is happy to flog his own products. This is the Twitter-savvy guy, after all, who invested in tech startups and then gave them some promo space on his sitcom, Two and a Half Men. He did the same thing when he guest-edited the first "social issue" of Details a few years back.

Now he’s got his money invested in a T-shirt company, so consumers shouldn’t be surprised when Kutcher shows up everywhere they look wearing one of his own products—if you can identify the logo-less tees, that is. The online company, Pickwick and Weller, was founded with two other fellas and goes after the “luxury for less” market.Continue reading...

Converging with a major trend in branding, Diet Pepsi asked HGTV star designer Vern Yip to come up with a new limited-edition mini-can that will invite consumers to "Sip in Style" this spring. The soon-to-hit shelves can continues the brands' multi-platform "Love Every Sip" campaign that has starred Sofia Vergara in TV ads.

While arguably Yip comprises only a "light" instance of the phenomenon, Diet Pepsi's collaboration with him also adds to the growing number of partnerships between celebrities and brands to fill or originate "creative director" spots, including Alicia Keys and BlackBerry, Swizz Beatz and Reebok, Marc Jacobs and Diet Coke, Polaroid and Lady Gaga, Bud Light Platinum and Justin Timberlake and Intel and Will.i.am.Continue reading...

Donald Trump is not about to get out-bullied. The real estate mogul and celebrity designer is threatening to sue the organizer of a petition that urges Macy's to "Dump Trump" and its varied line of merchandise under the Trump name.

Through a letter from his lawyer, Trump has threatened a $25 million suit against Angelo Carusone, who started the drive on SignOn.org urging Macy's to sever ties with the lightning-rod personality. Trump's attorney alleges that Carusone is "tortiously interfer[ing] with Mr. Trump's business and contractual relationships" and accuses Carusone of "mob-like bullying and coercion" and "intentionally disseminating misinformation."

Carusone's response was to release a letter from his own lawyer defending his First Amendment rights, as well to call Trump a "bully" and describe Trump's brand as "consequence-free bullying and chicanery" in a press release. He told brandchannel that "threatening to sue someone for $25 million who lives in a studio apartment" and "to silence them—I'd say it's fair to call that 'bullying.'"Continue reading...

Mikhail Baryshnikov is considered one of the best ballet dancers in the history of the world. The man was a dominating cultural force of the 1970s and early ‘80s, but don’t think he’s washed up and ready to hang out in his rocking chair.

Nope. Baryshnikov is still dancing and getting his fingers into other forms of self-expression, too. He and famed modern-dance choreographer Mark Morris last week debuted a new work in Seattle entitled “A Wooden Tree,” the New York Times reports.

And don’t worry, dance fans — it wasn't your only chance to see the 64-year-old perform the piece. He’ll be traveling to Sarasota, Fla., later this month to perform it again and then heading to New York City next April for another performance. For the rest of us schmoes who won’t be able to attend any of these shows but would like a little piece of Baryshnikov in our everyday lives (and for whom a daily viewing of “White Nights” doesn’t suffice), there is another option.Continue reading...

Victoria Beckham doesn't just design form-fitting frocks — she also helped Land Rover as a guest creative designer on the Range Rover Evoque, which will officially launch at the Beijing international auto show on April 22nd. Click here to check out the 2010 unveiling of Beckham's special edition, at London's Kensington Palace.

When you’re a celeb athlete, being the best in the world at something isn’t good enough. You’ve got to build your brand. After all, those playing days are only going to last so long and the good life shouldn’t just end because you’re dealing with whatever stresses your body has taken on during your athletic career.

Venus Williams is getting back into the act. She had launched a clothing line for Steve & Barry’s years ago but that retailer went into liquidation in 2008. Now she’s back.

As Women’s Wear Daily notes, she has “partnered with brands including Ralph Lauren and Gilt Group” in the past, and is now relaunching her personally designed apparel collection EleVen, which is, no surprise, geared for on and off the court.Continue reading...

Paris Hilton may be one of America’s most-disliked people, according to E-Poll Market Research, but some people are banking on eyeglass wearers in Asia still getting drawn in by her.

The word from brand licensing firm Beanstalk is that its client, Hilton, who is known for her stints on reality TV and big event red carpets as well as for a brutal interview with Barbara Walters on The View back in May, will launch an eyewear line in Asia in February.

Hilton, identified by Beanstalk as a “global style leader and fashion icon,” has signed a deal with OEM & Design Company “to develop an exclusive line of optical frames, sunglasses and colored contact lenses” with her name attached to them.Continue reading...