Mia Freedman Monday 14 July 2008 11:30am

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Nice mayor Christian Estrosi (centre) holds copies of Brangelina’s new
son Knox Leon Jolie-Pitt’s birth certificate as Angelina’s doctor
Michel Sussman (left) and hospital director Bernard Lecat look on.

So this morning I had the following conversation with my husband:

“Did you hear Angelina had the babies?”

“Angelina who?”

“Very funny, Angelina Ballerina.”

“No, seriously, what are you talking about?”

“You didn’t know Angelina Jolie was pregnant?”
“No, why would I?”

And then my ears fell off.

It is a miracle to me that any human on earth can have escaped from the knowledge that Angelina was pregnant with twins and just gave birth. Especially a human who LIVES WITH ME. How is this possible? HOW?????

The Mayor of Nice, the head of the hospital in which she gave birth and Angelina’s doctor gave a press conference today. Overkill a little? I think so.

However, for my fellow Brangaloonies who need to know ALL POSSIBLE DETAILS, I have compiled what I can find on the birth and the names after the jump. I will pretend I have done this for the altruistic benefit of you, the mamamia community but you know, that would be a lie because I was just obsessed.

No pix yet. I’m still trying to rustle up $12 million dollars.

Actors Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt,
44, are parents again, for the fifth and sixth time! Angelina, 33,
delivered fraternal twins, a boy and a girl, by c-section on Saturday,
July 12th in Nice, France. Son Knox Leon arrived first at 6:27 p.m., weighing in at 5.3 lbs, while daughter Vivienne Marcheline was born within a minute of that time, weighing in 5 lbs. Ob/gyn Dr. Michael Sussmann told People magazine:

The babies are doing well. The operation went just perfectly. Angelina is in very good spirits.
Brad Pitt was at her side. He was there and all was well.

Jokingly calling Brad “my assistant,” the ob/gyn revealed that the new dad cut Knox and Vivienne’s umbilical cords after their
deliveries,  saying, “He was … perfectly calm, totally determined,
very pleased to be at the birth of his children, very moved and very
emotional.”

Dr. Sussmann explained that the date for the scheduled cesarean was
moved forward “for medical reasons,” citing a need for the babies to be
born into “the best conditions.” Angelina will stay in hospital for the rest of the week and probably leave via helicopter from the roof – the same way she arrived.

“She will stay for a few days. You know, in Europe it isn’t like in the
United States, where the patients go home after three days. They will
stay a bit longer until everything is okay.”

He said, “It was an epidural, so [Angelina] was awake and speaking and laughing. They were happy.“ Dr. Michel went on to say that Brad even cut their umbilical cords.

Mayor Christian told reporters, “On
behalf of the inhabitants of Nice, I congratulate the happy parents,
the most famous couple of the world who have chosen our city for this
happy event. I also congratulate the four brothers and sisters of the
newborns who are [history won't forget it] real ‘Niçois’ (‘citizens of
Nice’). It’s a pride to Nice and all its citizens.“

MEANWHILE….

Celebrity Baby Blog has some info on the babies’ names:

“….we spoke to Linda Rosenkrantz, co-author of The Baby Name Bible: The Ultimate Guide By America’s Baby-Naming Experts, about using family monikers and establishing naming traditions.

Angelina Jolie has defied expectations once again. Instead of having two girls named Isla Marcheline  and Amelie Jane as per projected rumors, she had mixed pair Knox Leon and Vivienne Marcheline, and opted to look back at her and Brad Pitt’s family trees for inspiration.

With Knox — a rarely used Scottish/English/Irish surname  and the middle name of Brad’s grandfather, Hal Knox Hillhouse, the Jolie-Pitts established their own tradition — instead of their sons bearing the same first initial, they share a final letter “x,” and for their middle names, “n.”  And like Maddox, Knox is a strong name that has a good chance of being adopted by other parents.

Leon also has family connections, being the name of Angelina’s great-great grandfather.  It’s also possible (though a stretch) that the name reflects his mother’s charitable work, as one of the places she traveled to as Goodwill Ambassador to the UN was Sierra Leone.

Vivienne, the French form of Vivian, reflects her place of birth — something her parents like to do — and its meaning, “life, alive” resonates in the uplifting way that her brother Pax’s name projects an image of peace.  It wouldn’t be too surprising to learn that this name was chosen to honor a family member or friend as well.

Marcheline is the French-sounding name of Angelina Jolie’s late mother, with whom she was very close, and whose heritage was French-Canadian and Native American.  An actress, she was born Marcia Lynne, which she seems to have transformed into a distinctive version of the French ‘Marcelline.’”