Tom And Katie Exchange Vows In Italy

Cruise, Holmes Exchange Vows in Italy

Published: 11/19/06, 1:05 AM EDT
By MARIA SANMINIATELLI




BRACCIANO, Italy (AP) - Officially, they got married in Los Angeles, but the spectacle of the wedding between Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes was here, in a 15th-century castle that evoked fairy tales and lit up with red, white and green fireworks for a cheering, celebrity-laden crowd.

There were fireworks inside, too, a "never-ending kiss" between the betrothed after they exchanged vows Saturday. The kiss lasted so long it caused guests to shout "stop, stop!" said Giorgio Armani, who attended the wedding and designed the outfits of the bride, the groom and their baby, Suri.

The ceremony was a lavish apex to perhaps the celebrity world's most closely watched relationship, proclaimed with Cruise's leap on Oprah Winfrey's couch, bestowed with the nickname "TomKat" and raised to a new level seven months ago when Holmes gave birth to their daughter.

The evening wedding was performed by a Scientology minister in front of more than 150 relatives and friends, the couple's publicists said.

Oil-fed torches and tiny candles flickered from the battlements and windows of the Odescalchi castle in this lakeside town as the couple and guests gathered for the ceremony in the town about 45 kilometers (27 miles) northwest of Rome. Suri, dressed in white, arrived in her mother's arms.

The wedding party included Cruise's two children, Isabella and Connor, from the superstar actor's previous marriage to Nicole Kidman, the publicists said in a statement. The best man was Cruise's best friend David Miscavige and the matron of honor was Holmes' sister Nancy Blaylock.

Holmes wore a black dress and boots before she changed into Armani's off-the-shoulder ivory silk gown. Her father, Martin Holmes, walked her down the aisle and she carried a bouquet of flowers made by Armani including calla lilies.

Cruise, who sported dark shades and waved to fans as he rode through the castle gates in a van, wore a single breasted navy blue Armani handmade suit for the wedding, with an ivory silk French collar shirt of the same fabric as the bride's gown.

Armani told The Associated Pre

Tom and Katie Wedding

Cruise Arrives in Rome Ahead of Wedding

Published: 11/13/06, 12:25 PM EDT



ROME (AP) - Tom Cruise flew into a Rome airport on a private jet Monday, airport officials said, setting off a frenzy among media and fans anticipating the star's high-profile wedding to Katie Holmes.

Cruise arrived at Rome's small Ciampino airport from Los Angeles with about 10 people, including his mother and his three children, airport officials said.

The 44-year-old actor and Holmes, 27, are set to marry in an undisclosed Italian location Saturday. Speculation on the location has focused on Odescalchi Castle on Lake Bracciano, near the capital. The romantic, 15th-century castle, with its halls and gardens, can host up to 1,400 guests.

Local officials and residents remain tightlipped, and Bracciano's mayor has only acknowledged that authorities received a request to clear the square in front of the castle.

Some 100 fans mingled with photographers and camera crews in front of the Hassler, the luxury Rome hotel on top of the Spanish Steps where Cruise was said by airport officials to be staying. An employee at the hotel's front desk, who refused to give her name, denied that Cruise was staying there.

Traffic police managed the crowd at the Hassler and bodyguards stood at the ready next to limousines parked in front of the hotel.

Holmes and Cruise became engaged in June 2005. Their daughter, Suri, was born April 18.

Cruise, has two children, 13-year-old Isabella, and 11-year-old Connor, from his marriage to Nicole Kidman. Kidman and Tom Cruise divorced in 2001 after 10 years of marriage.

Holmes, who starred in TV's "Dawson's Creek," had been engaged to Chris Klein. Cruise was also previously married to Mimi Rogers, and had a high-profile romance with Penelope Cruz.

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Well, I guess this proves Tom is 100% heterosexual. I wish them both luck. They make a very fine looking couple. I wonder if Suri will be at the wedding?