Rolling Stone Italy names Berlusconi 2009 rock star
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The "Rolling Stone Magazine" cover depicting Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
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The Italian edition of Rolling Stone has named Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi its "rock star of the year," paying tribute to his "lifestyle worthy of the greatest rock star." An illustration of a smiling Berlusconi, who weathered a summer of scandals over his relations with an 18-year-old underwear model and allegations he slept with a prostitute after a party, emblazons the cover of the Rolling Stone's December issue, against the backdrop of the Italian flag. Carlo Antonelli, editor of Rolling Stone Italy, said the 73-year-old media mogul had been chosen unanimously by the magazine's editorial staff. "This year the choice was unanimous, for his obvious merits due to a lifestyle for which the words 'rock and roll' fall short," Antonelli said in a statement. "Rod Stewart, Brian Jones, Keith Richards in their prime were schoolboys compared to him." It has been a turbulent year for billionaire Berlusconi, with his second wife Veronica Lario demanding a divorce in May after photographs emerged of Berlusconi attending the 18th birthday party of aspiring model Noemi Letizia. had told his wife he going to a conference, has denied any "steamy affair." Italy was subsequently convulsed, with the Italian church voicing its "mortification," when call girl Patrizia D'Addario in July alleged she had been paid to attend a party at Berlusconi's Rome mansion and had slept with the prime minister. She even produced recordings of conversations with a man she said was Berlusconi. The prime minister has not directly commented but has publicly acknowledged he is "no saint." In a book published on Tuesday, entitled "Take Your Pleasure, Prime Minister', D'Addario recounts an evening at Berlusconi's residence where he was surrounded by around 20 young women, many of whom seemed to know him well. The scandals made front page news around the globe, but had only a moderate impact on Berlusconi's robust popularity ratings in Italy. Antonelli denied that his magazine had any political agenda behind its choice. "We are far from favoring left or right ... Silvio Berlusconi's daily behavior, his furious vitality, his inimitable lifestyle have given him, especially this year, incredible international popularity," he said. | 日前,意大利总理西尔维奥•贝卢斯科尼被《滚石》杂志意大利版评为“年度摇滚之星”,因为其“生活作风堪比摇滚巨星”。 《滚石》杂志十二月刊以贝卢斯科尼为封面人物,封面上的贝卢斯科尼面带微笑,背景是意大利国旗。今年夏天,贝卢斯科尼陷入一系列丑闻。据说他与一名18岁的内衣模特有染,并在一次派对后与一名妓女上床。 《滚石》杂志意大利版编辑卡洛•安东内利称,这位73岁的媒体大亨是由杂志的编辑们一致评选出来的。 安东内利在一份声明中说:“今年大家的意见都很一致,因为贝卢斯科尼的‘优势’很明显,他的生活作风用‘摇滚’二字都不足以形容。” “与他相比,年轻的(摇滚歌星)洛•史都华、布赖恩•琼斯、基思•理查兹都只能算小学生。” 对于身价过亿的贝卢斯科尼总理来说,今年可谓“多事之秋”。今年五月,老贝参加超模诺埃米•莱蒂齐亚18岁生日派对的照片曝光后,其第二任妻子韦罗妮卡•拉里奥向他提出离婚。 之前,贝卢斯科尼向妻子谎称是去该地出席某个会议,他否认与莱蒂齐亚存在任何“不正当关系”。 一波未平,一波又起。七月,一个名叫帕特里齐亚•达达里奥的应召女郎称自己被招募参加贝卢斯科尼在罗马别墅的派对,并与总理上了床。贝氏性丑闻在意大利引起轰动,意大利教堂随后提倡“禁欲”。 达达里奥还提供了与一个男人的桃色对话录音,并称此人正是贝卢斯科尼。总理先生并未对此作出正面回应,但公开承认自己也非“圣人”。 在本周二出版的回忆录《享乐吧,总理》一书中,达达里奥回忆了在贝卢斯科尼居所度过的一夜。据称,当时,贝氏被约20个年轻女郎左右簇拥,其中很多人似乎对他已经很熟识。 尽管这些丑闻成为世界各地媒体的头条,但对贝卢斯科尼在意大利的高支持率却没造成多大影响。安东内利否认此次评选有任何政治意图。 他说:“我们很中立……尤其在今年,贝卢斯科尼的日常言行,旺盛的精力和独特的生活方式使他获得了难以置信的国际知名度。” |