Actress Hilary Swank recently told Marie Claire magazine that she gave up her 18-year vegetarian diet just two years ago because she didn’t believe it was healthy. The actress insists that vegetarianism was making her too thin and that she needed to gain weight.  However, Hillary still struggles with eating animals. She says:

“I just started withering away. I wasn’t getting enough vitamins or protein. (It was) very emotional.

“I sat over my plate and cried. I really had to work through it. It still makes me emotional. I don’t know if you have ever looked into a cow’s eye, but it is so soulful. So I don’t like it – but it’s something I have to do.”

Oh, goodness. Obviously one’s diet is a personal choice, but saying you can’t get enough vitamins and protein? That’s just silly. A plant-based diet is loaded with nutrients and plenty of protein-filled options. Eating an omnivorous diet is certainly not something one “has to do.” But wait a second – this story seems a little strange to me.

After winning an Oscar in 2005 (4 years ago), Hilary claimed to have celebrated with a burger and fries. Wait, what? The whole timeline just doesn’t add up. What do you think about all of this? Play detective and help us crack the case!

After arriving at the Jane Goodall Institue Awards ceremony in November in a fuel-slurping Lincoln Town Car (to accept an environmental award no less), Pierce Brosnan is apparently sticking to his clean hydrogen car for all future events. The actor will hit the red carpet in his BMW Hydrogen 7 this Sunday for the 2009 Golden Globe Awards. This is probably one of the only green spots for an awards show that only a few years ago was swamped with “eco-friendly parties”.

Who else can we expect to arrive in eco-friendly style? Well, Leonardo DiCaprio is generally keen to take his Prius to such events — and Hilary Swank, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Will Ferrell, Jay Leno, Ed Norton, Cameron Diaz and Melissa Etheridge all participate in BMW’s H7 lease program. So, hopefully, Brosnan won’t be flying solo with the green cred on Sunday.

Photo: Pierce Brosnan with his wife Keely Shaye Smith arriving at the July premiere of Mamma Mia! in New York City in a BMW H7

Last November, Hilary Swank appears on Oprah to promote Pantene Beautiful Lengths; an initiative dedicated to supporting and encouraging women who have lost their hair during cancer treatment. With scissors in hand, Oprah Winfrey then proceeded to cut nine inches of Swank’s locks.”I’ve been growing it for the last six months to donate my hair,” Swank said at the time. “I’ve been taking a lot of vitamins and taking really good care of it, knowing that it would go to a woman in need.”

It wasn’t just all for charity, however. The 34-year-old actress also was also getting ready to play the role of aviator Amelia Earheart, who had short hair, in a new film. Almost one year later, Swank is now back promoting the Beautiful Lengths campaign and encouraging people to donate hair to the cause. “One in three women are diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes. A lot of my family members have had their lives devastated by cancer,” Contactmusic quoted her as saying. “You just need to have eight inches (of hair) to donate,” she added.

For more information, check out the Pantene Beautiful Lengths website.

Photo: Hilary Swank spotted filming scenes for her new film ‘Amelia’. Credit: Sean O’Neill/INFphoto.com

Hilary Swank is one of the latest celebrities to receieve the keys to a BMW Hydrogen 7 –- the world’s first hydrogen car for everyday use. Over the weekend, Swank officially broke the two million mile mark for this groundbreaking vehicle – since its introduction, more than two million miles have now been driven with the BMW H7. From the release,

Swank joins a litany of fellow green-minded boldfaced names, such as Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Pierce Brosnan, Gavin Rossdale, J.J. Abrams and Kristen Davis, as the newest member of the BMW Pioneer Program. The program gives industry leaders and prominent figures in entertainment, politics and business a BMW Hydrogen 7 for their daily use as proof that hydrogen-powered vehicles could be viable for everyday driving in the future.

Dear BMW: We’re still waiting for our keys. More info on the H7 available here.

Al Gore will be working to get out the vote by hosting a live webcast to college campuses next Wednesday. He’ll be talking to young leaders across the nation about the “Repower America” challenge he issued last summer and how energy and climate are at the core of the economic and security issues we face. Oh yea, and why elections matter. [Read more...]

Sharon Stone recently gave away a closet full of clothes and unused furniture to a charity for abused women. “I got a letter from (actresses) Mariska Hargitay and Hilary Swank about a charity for abused women, and here was a gigantic, refrigerator-size bag, and could I fill it with clothing,” Contactmusic quoted her as telling More magazine. She added: “So I called them and said, ”Can you send me 20 of these?” No mention on if Stone’s fur collection went out the door as well. [Read more...]

Hayden Panettiere, Kim Kardashian, and the band Blind Melon have joined other celebrities in personalizing their own ‘Chumby Players’ for charity. The chumby is a little media device that hooks into the web to give you weather, news, and other cool features. The celeb players will be sold on eBay with all profits benefiting such organizations as the Whaleman Foundation and Dream Foundation. [Read more...]

On Wednesday, actress Hilary Swank was honored with the 2008 Courage Award for her work with cancer charities. The Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) hosted the event — titled “Unforgettable Evening” — to benefit EIF’s Women’s Cancer Research Fund.

Celebrities honoring Swank that evening included Tom Hanks, Stephen Spielberg, and Christian Slater. You may remember last year when Swank cut off nine inches of her hair on Oprah to donate to Pantene Beautiful Lengths; an initiative dedicated to supporting and encouraging women who have lost their hair during cancer treatment.

Congrats to her on this latest honor!

Image credit: Gossip Girls