ZAITSEV TURNS 63 AND BLONDE

Fashion designer Vyacheslav Zaitsev turned 63 on Mar. 2. At a birthday party held in Zaitsev's Dom Mody (Fashion House) the guru presented his new, blonde image, Komsomolskaya Pravda wrote. Without doubt, this represents the very latest hair-coloring trend for the middle-aged man.

Incidentally, Na-Na band producer Barry Alibasov – who came to say "Happy Birthday" to his favorite fashion designer together with his band – was also conspicuously wearing his hair blonde.

But most of the best wishes and flowers received by Zaitsev on that day came from women. The highlight of the party was actress Natalia Seleznyova, who gracefully marched down the catwalk arm-in-arm with Zaitsev. She said her old dream had come true.

CARELESS DRIVING COST IVANUSHKI SOLOIST $1,000

Ivanushki International band soloist Oleg Yakovlev is experiencing financial problems, Zhizhn reports.

Running late and driving fast with his girlfriend, Alyona, he collided with a Mercedes-600. Nobody was injured in the crash, but Yakovlev confessed he got frightened when he saw the heavyweight Mercedes owner approaching him. "Frankly speaking, I thought he was going to smash me and spread my flesh in a thin layer," Yakovlev told a Zhizhn correspondent. "The impression on his face was very unfriendly. But I was lucky. He recognized me and without redundant recriminations suggested that I should pay for his car's repair.

"But his bill really shocked me. It turned out to be over $1,000! And my own car also needs repairs.

"What is worse," Yakovlev added, "is that my girlfriend goes on grumbling at me, saying she will never get into a car if I'm at the wheel."

IOSIF KOBZON: "I WAS NOT THE LEAST BIT SHOCKED WHEN I SAW HIM WEARING A WOMAN'S OUTFIT"

The most surprising moment in Boris Moiseyev's new show "Po sekretu" ("I'll Tell You a Secret") is the appearance of legendary crooner Iosif Kobzon.

At a press conference arranged by the RIA Novosti agency, Kobzon commented on his joint project with Moiseyev. Megapolis-Express reported that Kobzon called Moiseyev "an outstanding personality and talented artist."

"If he feels comfortable wearing women's clothes," Megapolis quoted Kobzon as saying, "let him do it." "My duet with Moiseyev," he went on to say, "is an experiment. Earlier I sang along with Detsl."

"My decision to perform together with him is a gesture of personal recognition. When I hear people saying that gays or somebody else ruined pop music, I think it's all nonsense. Only mediocre, voiceless and dull performers can really ruin the art," Kobzon concluded.

MASHA TSIGAL'S NEW MANIA

Fashion designer Masha Tsigal didn't hesitate a moment before she solved Russian men's biggest problem: What to give to their women on Women's Day, March 8?
Tsigal made her point by presenting her new project, "Mania of Reflection," to Moscow's beau monde in the Museum club/restaurant on Mar. 7.

During the presentation, the restaurant was turned into a kingdom of mirrors of very unusual forms and sporting odd frames. Declared to be one of the supreme values in a feminine life, they were put on pedestals and decorated with velvet, fake diamonds, pearls and beads.

But it was not mirrors that Tsigal was presenting. The highlight of the show was the "peeping floor" reflecting items normally hidden. As you have probably guessed, Tsigal was presenting lingerie and underwear from her collection "Mania by Tsigal."
To make the show's spectacular effect even stronger, guests showed off their inventiveness in wearing clothes.

DJ Natasha Beshenaya made herself conspicuous by wearing a corset and a pair of open-work stockings, Playmate No. 1 Masha Tarasyevich dressed as a puritan secondary-school teacher and actress Yana Nikolayeva looked like a Steven King character in her chamois dress with red strips imitating bleeding cuts.

ALLEGROVA COLLECTS HUGS AND KISSES

Pop singer Irina Allegrova successfully presented her new album "Vsyo snachala" (Back to the Beginning) in the Metelitsa entertainment complex, according to Zhizn. Conspicuous among the party's guests was famous composer Oskar Feltsman, 80, who looked younger and took his time talking with Allegrova's mother.

The event's heroine was in an excellent mood and did not deprive anyone of her attention. Taking advantage of the situation, pop-singer Sergei Penkin tightly embraced Allegrova, lifted her up, and buried his nose in her low-cut top.

Singer Grigory Leps, while whispering compliments, tenderly and repeatedly kissed Allegrova on the cheeks . Former member of Blestyashchie band Olga Orlova, who recently married nightclub Gryozy owner Alexander Karmanov, came without her husband. Gossip had spread among the guests of the party that she is expecting twins. Alexander Buinov spent the whole evening in the VIP room with his gorgeous female companion. The last of the CD-ROMs that were given out during the party went to Allegrova's most devoted fan — a young woman who arrived from Volgograd especially for the occasion.

NOT JUST OLYMPIC CHAMPIONS BUT WORLD-RECORD BEATERS

The Muratov family gets a listing in the Guinness Book of Records for having the biggest family stock of Olympic medals, according to Komsomolskaya Pravda.
Valentin Muratov, 72, has been Olympic champion four times in athletics, and his wife Sofya Muratova, 71, similarly in athletics, has won the gold medal twice.
"And they forgot to count our world-championship victories, Valentin joked, reproaching the Guiness experts.
This June the couple will celebrate their 50th anniversary of marriage, effectively refuting the common belief that two strong, self-motivated and successful people cannot be happy under one roof.

AGATHA CHRISTIE BAND FOUNDER DIES

Alexander Kozlov, the founder and keyboardist of the Agatha Christie band, died of a sudden heart attack in one of Moscow's clubs on Mar. 1 right before a planned performance, Komsomolskaya Pravda reported. When the ambulance arrived, it was too late. According to medics, Kozlov suffered from heart arteriosclerosis. He was only 40.
In 1988 he founded the band, chose a name for it, Agatha Christie, led it to success and wrote lyrics for many songs.
The church memorial service was attended by Alisa bandleader Konstantin Kinchev, singer Vlad Stashevsky and the B-2 band.