Jessica Simpson shops Downtown -- we have proof!

Jane Key with earrings we may see on Jessica Simpson

Singer, actress, TV personality, tabloid staple Jessica Simpson almost went unrecognized while shopping in Racine last Saturday. Almost.

Jane Key, owner of Inside Out, tells the story this way: "I was running around town Saturday afternoon when I called the store about 2 p.m. and asked, 'How are things going?'

"Kathryn Austin, who was running the store at the time, said, 'The weirdest thing just happened...' "

It turns out that Simpson had been in the store, bought some earrings, but went unrecognized -- until some shop girls from another store called and asked whether she had been there. They described Simpson to Austin -- "...little tiny thing, long blonde hair, wearing a sweatshirt, baseball cap and 4" heels..."

AIEEEIAIEEE!

Then everything fell into place and Austin pulled out Simpson's charge slip, with her name and signature on it. She remembered that Simpson had used a Titanium American Express Card, "almost too thick to go through the machine."

(For those of you unfamiliar with the black Titanium American Express card -- and I would suspect that's all of you -- it carries a $2,500 annual fee and the requirement that you charge $250,000 per year. Oh, yes, and it's also by invitation only; estimates are that no more than 5,000 have been issued.)

Jane Key, who has run her store of eclectic gifts from all over the world for 13 years -- ten years at the other end of Main Street near State, and three years at its present location at 406 Main -- said Simpson bought two pairs of earrings: one pair, from India, has large gold discs; the other was made of tribal horn from Africa. Total cost: $19.71.

What was Jessica Simpson doing in Racine last weekend? Sorry, we don't know for sure -- but we can guess it had something to do with Dallas Quarterback Tony Romo, who hails from Burlington. Who knows: Maybe they were here for Chocolate Fest.

Surely, someone managed to take at least a cellphone picture of them...

Postscript, 10:15 p.m.: WTMJ4 just did a story about this, interviewing Jane at Inside Out. Their story sure sounded like it came from RacinePost (but you heard it here first!)