BIT AND PIECES 04/20
PUSSS...@aol.com
--HERE'S your first look at the cast of "Will & Grace" taping their
emotionally charged farewell episode last week in Hollywood. The NBC
sitcom ended its eight-season run amid tears, laughter and frequent
standing ovations from the studio audience lucky enough to witness a
bit of TV history. "It was very emotional. There was a lot of hugging
and kissing," said an insider who attended the final taping. "This set
is very much like a family." "Will & Grace" leaves a lasting legacy as
one of NBC's most memorable sitcoms, and turned stars Debra Messing,
Eric McCormack and Sean Hayes into household names. The two-hour "Will
& Grace" finale airs May 18.
--NBC's Natalie Morales, a candidate to replace Katie Couric on "Today"
before Meredith Vieira got the job, will remain with the show, but with
a new title: national correspondent. The move won't radically change
what Morales has been doing on "Today." She'll continue reporting and
will have a "regular presence" on the third hour of the show, according
to NBC. "Today's" rival, "Good Morning America," has snared a good
"get": Bruce Springsteen, who'll perform live on Tuesday. It's his only
TV appearance to support his new album, "We Shall Overcome: The Seeger
Sessions."
--Back to NBC: How much worse can it get for the network's prime-time
schedule? Tuesday's edition of "Celebrity Cooking Showdown," which
aired from 8 to 9 p.m., pulled in a paltry 3.4 million viewers - and
was outrated by "Gilmore Girls" on The WB (4.1 million viewers in the
same timeslot). The news wasn't much better for ABC, which saw "Less
Than Perfect" return after a year off the air to only 4.7 million
viewers at 9:30. Out of sight, out of mind, I guess.
--Dan Rather and his wife dining at Destino in midtown. Seth Green
("Family Guy") was there, too.
--WOODY Allen doesn't love Paris in the springtime - or any other time.
The Woodman has given the land of frog-eaters the kiss-off after
deciding it was too expensive to shoot his next movie there. Instead,
he'll produce the as-yet unnamed flick, to star "Brokeback Mountain"
hottie Michelle Williams, in London. Before the French government could
scream "Sacre bleu!," the head of tourism for London sent out a
self-congratulatory press release boasting of big tax breaks. It'll be
Allen's third London-shot movie, following "Match Point" and the
upcoming "Scoop."
--A Brooklyn house-painter, Anatoliy Sigal, is suing Tom Brokaw for $20
million, claiming he was permanently injured while painting a wall in
the retired anchor's Park Avenue apartment. The suit also names
Brokaw's decorator, Kitty Hawks.
--ALEC Baldwin poring over a manuscript during a late lunch at
Michael's with literary agent Linda Chester.
--MARY J. Blige eyeing a group of handsome L.A. Lakers at Philippe.
--MATT Lauer, on the day Katie Couric made her jump to CBS official,
finding solace in Chinese comfort food - bo bo chicken and dumplings to
take out - at Mainland.
--JANE Fonda debating whether to eat the black side or the white side
of a black-and-white cookie from Zaro's at Grand Central after her
book-signing at Posman Books.
--HUGH Dancy - the handsome young Earl of Essex who steals the Virgin
Queen's heart in the second half of HBO's brilliant "Elizabeth I" - was
urging the A-listers at the intermission of Tuesday night's screening
to stay for the film's conclusion. "I feel like an usher," laughed
Dancy, whose part went to Errol Flynn in 1939's "The Private Lives of
Elizabeth and Essex" starring Bette Davis. Helen Mirren, who plays the
queen in this one, ate a quick stand-up supper at the Museum of Modern
Art as she received flattering comparisons with the legendary Davis
from the likes of William F. and Pat Buckley, John and Susan Gutfreund,
Alfred and Judy Taubman, Anne Bass, Yue-Sai Kan, John Huey and Lauren
Bush.
--GANGSTA rappers are going to great lengths to burnish their
reputations as good citizens. Tony Yayo - the G-Unit member under
investigation in Brooklyn for the February murder of Busta Rymes'
bodyguard, Israel Ramirez - is helping get kids to go to college. The
hip-hopper and his G-Unity Foundation made a donation to pay for the
four buses the Ronald Edmonds Learning Center, a public middle school
in Brooklyn, used for its annual college tour. Yayo also greeted the 64
students the other day as the tour ended. He heard their stories, gave
them books and posed for pictures with the kids. Meanwhile, True King
Records - which recently released a tune by Oktober Zero glorifying
cop-killing - has put up a $1,500 reward for information leading to the
arrest and indictment of Ronneil (Burger) Gilliam, who police say was
an accomplice of Nicholas Morris, the alleged shooter of two-year-old
David Pacheco Jr. on Easter Sunday. "We feel a personal loss and sense
of grief since our label-mate Matthew Hall was killed the same way in
September of 2003," said a rep for the rap music firm.
--CANDICE Bergen underwent a battery of blood tests earlier this week.
Nobody but the "Murphy Brown" star and her physician should know about
it, but the results of the tests conducted by Dr. Harvey Klein of Weill
Medical College of Cornell University in Manhattan were faxed by
accident to The Post. Reps for Bergen, whose acclaimed director-hubby
Louis Malle died of lymphoma in 1995 at 62, were horrified. "Obviously,
it's a gross error and that's confidential information," her
spokeswoman, Heidi Schaffer, said. Not to worry, the 59-year-old star's
stats look fine.
--SHE'S only 36, but Lara Flynn Boyle is said to have arthritis. The
angular actress (and ex-girlfriend of Jack Nicholson) allegedly told
pals in L.A. of her affliction and is using homeopathic remedies to
help ease the pain. Boyle, whose character was killed off on "Las
Vegas," has just been hired to portray Barbara Amiel in "Shades of
Black: The Conrad Black Story." Boyle's rep said of the arthritis
rumors, "Not true."
--GIGI Levangie Grazer, whose novel "The Starter Wife" was
well-received last year, knew her subject. Her Oscar-winning producer
husband, Brian Grazer, filed for separation yesterday. Grazer, 54, who
has "The Da Vinci Code" opening May 19, is seeking joint custody of
their two kids, Patrick, 2, and Thomas, 6. And spiky-haired Grazer
apparently wants Gigi to toe the line when it comes to carving up his
fortune. In legal papers filed yesterday obtained by tmz.com, he
reiterates that the couple has a prenuptial agreement and there is no
community property. The move will protect him in the event Gigi
challenges the prenup. Grazer's rep didn't return a call.
--PERSISTENCE will not pay off for one doorman. Judd family matriarch
Naomi Judd, in town to appear on Martha Stewart's show last week,
managed to squeeze in some shopping at Barneys on Madison Avenue.
"Every time I go into Barneys, the doorman hits on me," the country
crooner told Post photographer Larry Schwartzwald. "Even though I've
told him I'm a very happily married woman. It makes me extremely
uncomfortable." Larry Strickland, Judd's manager (and husband), said
she was "more flattered by it than upset."
--LUDACRIS is dissing Oprah Winfrey. The rapper-turned-actor was miffed
when he went on her show to promote "Crash" and got severely edited
because Winfrey has a rule of not promoting rap or rappers. "She edited
out a lot of my comments while keeping her own in," Ludacris told GQ.
"Of course, it's her show, but we were doing a show on racial
discrimination, and she gave me a hard time as a rapper when I came on
there as an actor. I don't see why people like Chris Rock and Dave
Chappelle, who I am huge fans of, it's OK for them to go on 'Oprah.'
They speak the same language as I do, but they do it through comedy, so
I guess that's acceptable."
--SOME people collect stamps; one- time Michael Jackson aide Vincent
Amen collects jottings about kiddie sex allegations. Amen, who was
nearly a co-defendant in Wacko Jacko's molestation trial last year,
shelled out $2,550 for courtroom notes taken by alternate juror Jeffrey
Welbaum, who sold them on eBay. Why? "It was purely a memorabilia
purchase. He felt the price was really low and he just thought it'd be
a cool thing to have," Amen's lawyer, Michael Bachner, told The Post's
David K. Li. "I would have bid [more than $2,550] on it had I known it
was available. I think it'd be an interesting thing to have." Can you
spell c-r-e-e-p-y?
NY POST/CINDY ADAMS...
--MR. and so far non-Mrs. Tom Cruise's infant: The only known Moses
around today, Gwyneth Paltrow's kid, isn't yet fluent in ancient
languages so forget checking this with him. However, anyone who has
connections to that other Moses - the old guy who wrote those 10 short
stories in the Book of Exodus - has a different sense of Miss Cruise's
name. We are fancifully told its origins are in Hebrew and mean
"princess." Not to the Hebrews it don't. In their dictionary the word
"princess" is "nesicha." Also, whoever has spoken Hebrew in the last
150 years knows "Suri" has but two meanings. One is a person from
Syria, a Syrian. The other is the imperative "Go away," and that is the
imperative as specifically directed toward a female. To tell a person
of the male persuasion, "Bug off," the word is just "sur." So when
Katie and Tommy begin calling Baby Dearest to come for dinner, they
will actually, in fact, be telling their daughter to get lost. And
while I'm on this subject, what is it with these cutesy celebrity
couple-up appellatives? Tomkat? Brangelina? Why is the guy's name
always first? Can't be because he's the more famous, otherwise that
once-upon-a-headlined Bennifer would've been Jenniben.
--We speak now of Angelina's underwear. The woman has done some major
shopping at London's exotic emporium Coco de Mer. A regular at said
establishment, she's shelled out a thousand pounds - give or take a
farthing - on X-rated sexy lacy goodies. She browses the newly arrived
styles like panties, G-strings, black leather half-cup bras. And when
not encumbered with Zahara, Maddox or Brad, she's into the shop's sex
books, which she buys. She also plays with their feather ticklers and
blindfolds. Angel Jolie is not at all embarrassed. Even though the
dressing rooms have peepholes, she loves it all and buys big-time. The
place has a really nice selection of sweet items, so if you're hunting
something for Mother's Day and mummy's already full up with orlon
sweaters, be it known they also feature spanking paddles. Leather
handcuffs, nontoxic sex toys made from "naturally felled wood," and
what that's about I don't even want to know. And lest you buy for a
friend and it's something she already has two of, there's one item a
bit more novel. A tally-ho chair with stirrups and hand-stitched
saddle. Hand-stitched. Naturally. Just imagine being trussed naked
except for a black lace garter belt and leather half-bra in a
machine-stitched saddle? Honestly . . . I mean . . . really . . . As
any merchandise manager at Kmart will tell you, things like that are
just not done.
--JOHNNY Depp trying to lure Rolling Stoned Keith Richards into playing
his father in a "Pirates of the Caribbean" sequel. Baird Jones of
Webster Hall, who eavesdrops on everyone, says Keith wants it, but has
to work it into the Stones' tour schedule.
--Should anyone care, J. Seinfeld lunched at Café Grey with a lady and
a baseball cap. The lady sat in her chair. The baseball cap sat on his
head.
--Race car star Mario Andretti is now deep into Napa Valley wine
growing.
--SPEAKING of vintners, Fergie's looking to produce her own variety at
Santa Lorica in Tuscany, a $2 million estate. The idea is to stomp on
enough grapes to grind out 40,000 bottles a year. Good Tuscanys,
special blends from the region, grab good money. Her partner, former
lover Count Gaddo della Gherardesca, allows as how "She's no
connoisseur, but she knows quality." Me, I say, for sure she knows
wines because she once told me her toughest thing was giving up red
wine for Lent. When I asked how she did it, she laughed and said, "I
drank white."
NY POST/LIZ SMITH...
--Does a 4-carat cushion-cut diamond spell engagement? According to In
Touch magazine, it does. They say that's what Liev Schreiber and his
lady Naomi Watts were "fondly" looking at in L.A.'s Antiquarius
Jewelry. The woman who stole King Kong's heart (reported "giddy" over
all the bling) is said to have her own ticker set on a marriage in
Australia, where she grew up.
--WHAT DO actors really need? Clean towels. Well, that's the conclusion
Alec Baldwin and Amy Irving came to the other night. The pair had
dinner in N.Y.C. after their respective shows and discussed the
possibility of doing a play together! (He is in "Entertaining Mr.
Sloane," and she is in "A Safe Harbor for Elizabeth Bishop.") But of
more urgency was the fact that Alec's housekeeper broke her ankle and
laundry was piling up. (Dinner was quick; Alec had to go home and -
gasp! - wash his own clothes.) Miss Irving commiserated, wryly.
Recently having had her own housekeeper troubles, she suggested opening
an Actors in Crisis Employment Center. On Easter, Alec flew to L.A. to
see his daughter, Ireland. Though he and Ireland's mom, Kim Basinger,
continue to wrangle, Alec is always quick to say his daughter is "as
beautiful as her mother."
--SANDRA DAY O'Connor, Jay-Z, Melissa Etheridge, Mel Gibson, Oprah
Winfrey, the Dalai Lama and Anne Coulter - what do they have in common?
All are among those chosen by Time magazine for its annual "Time 100"
dinner of movers and shakers on May 8 at Lincoln Center. Jay-Z is
listed under "Builders and Titans." Miss Winfrey, Miss Etheridge, the
Dalai Lama and Mr. Gibson are among the "Heroes and Icons." Former
Supreme Court Justice O'Connor is in the "Thinkers and Scientists"
list. Anne Coulter, the flame-breathing conservative writer/talker?
She's in - get this - "Artists and Entertainers." So is Sean Penn. One
only hopes they are seated at the same table.
NY DAILY NEWS/RUSH AND MOLLOY...
--Nicole Kidman's foot hurts. A podiatrist paid a house call on the
Oscar winner, who is staying in the East End. Kidman is there shooting
a Noah Baumbach comedy with Jennifer Jason Leigh. Nic's foot must not
to be too bad, though. Tuesday, Baumbach had her climbing a tree.
--Troubled celeb update: Natasha Lyonne finally checked herself into a
rehab clinic, in Malibu, perezhilton.com reported.
--Paris Hilton is planning a second birthday for boyfriend Stavros
Niarchos on Saturday at TAO Las Vegas. Meanwhile, Hayden Christensen
will celebrate his 25th at the same swank club the night before.
--Jake Gyllenhaal strolled incognito through the Meatpacking District
Tuesday night with a male friend.
--Does Rachel Weisz have baby news, too? The "Constant Gardener" star
might have beat TomKat and Brooke Shields to the punch - we spotted her
bump-free in the Village earlier this week. A rep gave no comment.
NY DAILY NEWS/BEN WIDDICOMBE...
--Jessica Simpson pulled out of a cover story for the September issue
of Vanity Fair magazine because she refused to discuss her painful
breakup with Nick Lachey. Editor Graydon Carter had made the topic a
requirement for the story, to be illustrated with a glamorous
cover-shoot by top photographer Mario Testino, according to one
insider. A rep for the magazine declined to comment. But while Jessica
is taking the high road on talking about her relationship, her ex came
out this week with a painfully honest interview given to Rolling Stone
magazine and reprinted in Us Weekly. "It breaks my heart that I
couldn't make Jessica happy. ... I wanted to be everything to my wife,"
he said. "I'd marry her all over again. Because I still love her. It
would be a lot easier to walk away if I didn't." Their MTV show,
"Newlyweds," didn't always help. "Jessica and I began playing these
parts [of ditsy wife and good-guy husband] even when we were by
ourselves. ... I don't know if we would have worked if we'd been
soybean farmers in Iowa," he said. "I don't know if there were other
men ... But if she did cheat, it was the result of something bigger,
not the reason we didn't work."
--And so to the premiere of "Elizabeth I", a kind of period English "40
Year Old Virgin" prequel. We asked Helen Mirren, who plays the woman
known to history as the Virgin Queen: What do you think of adult
virginity? "I assume you mean penetrative?" she queried, while making a
most un-royal gesture with her fist. Your majesty, we're blushing. Yes,
penetrative. "It's never been confirmed that Elizabeth was a virgin,"
Mirren said solemnly. "It's like the Virgin Mary - it's about branding,
a logo. To use a modern term, Elizabeth was actually a bit of a slut."
Ho-kay, moving on! Cute little Hugh Dancy came down the red carpet and
seemed to want to talk about how much he doesn't like Matthew
McConaughey. This being a muckraking column, we went with it. "I love
heroes like Humphrey Bogart. Suave, classical men. I hate romantic
comedies," he said. "If I'm flipping through TV stations and a Matthew
McConaughey film comes on, I'll change it after three minutes." What,
you've you got something against naked bongo players? "He is
representative of all modern-day romances. He's too glib, it's too
easy. There's not enough passion." Well, his girlfriend did used to
date Tom Cruise. I'm just saying.
--The family that acts together tats together. Brooklynite Heath Ledger
got a little work done on Sunday. He was spotted getting his forearm
inked at the Saved Tattoo parlor in Williamsburg. With baby Matilda in
tow, Ledger, fiancée Michelle Williams and his sister "watched and
pondered some designs for themselves," says a snitch."Heath's sister
was looking through the art book for tattoo ideas." The tattoo appeared
to be a kind of tribal design, adds the source. I hope all Australians
don't have to get one of those!
--Admit it: Deep down, you already knew that Lindsay Lohan would be a
Liza fan. "I was in Berlin, and there was a Liza Minnelli show that was
going on," she told The News' Jeffrey Slonim at Conde Nast Traveler
mag's Hot List party. "I am a big fan of hers, I didn't make it, [but]
I got to see her going into the show." Lindz with a Z (as the young
starlet is known to be called) also said that at the recent Kids'
Choice awards, a young fan proudly showed her that she had artwork from
her album "Speak" tattooed on her arm. Ewww!
--Kid Rock at Carnegie Hall? The Detroit rocker will make his debut on
those hallowed boards May 8, when the New York Pops honor his mentor,
Ahmet Ertegun. Remember Kid: Practice, practice, practice.
--Iman, Star Jones and Harry Belafonte were among those at Diahann
Carroll's opening night at Feinstein's at the Regency on Tuesday.
Carroll told the story that Andrew Lloyd Webber had initially opposed
her Canadian run in his hit "Sunset Boulevard." "He said to the
producers, 'I don't think there were any black stars in the '30s.' I
said, 'You don't understand. There was no Norma Desmond, either.'"
USA TODAY/JIM CHENG...
--A judge issued an arrest warrant for a member of D12 after he missed
a court hearing while attending the funeral of his friend Proof, a
fellow member of the Eminem-led rap group. Swift, whose real name is
Ondre Moore, was scheduled to appear in 52-1 District Court on
Wednesday, the same day he served as an honorary pallbearer at the
funeral of Proof, who was shot to death April 11 at an after-hours club
in Detroit.
--Madonna, perhaps one of the most famous faces on the planet, will
perform at this year's Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in
Indio, Calif., a three-day musical extravaganza best known for its
lineup of indie-rock bands and dance-oriented DJs.
--An invasion of privacy lawsuit filed by a woman who claims
sheparticipated in a sex video with rock stars Scott Stapp and Kid
Rockwas dismissed by a judge Wednesday who said the woman cannot sue if
sheremains anonymous.
--NBC on Wednesday appointed Natalie Morales as national correspondent
for the Today show, committing her to the program as it moves into the
Meredith Vieira era.
--The sentencing of original Survivor winner Richard Hatch has been
delayed until May 16. Hatch, 45, won $1 million in the debut season of
the CBS reality series. He was found guilty in January of failing to
pay taxes on his winnings and other income.
--Toby Keith's White Trash with Money album sold 330,000 copies its
first week to land at No. 2 in Billboard, 15,000 copies shy of Rascal
Flatts, which remains in first place for the second week, according to
Nielsen SoundScan. Now 21 is third, followed by High School Musical,
T.I. and the debut of LL Cool J's Todd Smith, at No. 6 with 116,000.
Tim McGraw and Pink precede the arrival of Daniel Powter's self-titled
debut at No. 9 with 89,000, boosted by single Bad Day, the top digital
track with 808,000 downloads sold to date. James Blunt completes the
top 10. Queen's Stone Cold Classics, the song pool for American Idol
performances last week, enters at No. 45 with 27,000.
--The folks at Cirque du Soleil have tapped into the catalog of the Fab
Four for their latest production, The Beatles LOVE. The Beatles'
longtime producer, George Martin, and his son Giles are combing the
group's archive to choose the music for the show, which begins previews
June 2 in Las Vegas and premieres at The Mirage June 30. The show's
producers promise a "timeless, three-dimensional evocation of The
Beatles' music" that also includes Cirque du Soleil's trademark aerial
performance and freestyle dance from an international cast of 60.
--Kelly Clarkson will sing with Rascal Flatts on the 41st annual
Academy of Country Music Awards, which will air live from the MGM Grand
in Las Vegas May 23 (CBS, 8 p.m. ET/tape PT).
--Columbia Pictures has bought the rights to the story of Jason
McElwain, an autistic teen who went from benchwarmer to basketball star
after he hit six three-pointers in the final four minutes of a high
school game. McElwain, a senior in Rochester, N.Y., was rewarded for
his work as the team's student manager by being inserted into the
waning minutes of the last game of the season. Earvin "Magic" Johnson
will serve as an executive producer.
--HBO is releasing the first season of Rome Aug. 15 in a six-disc DVD
collection that includes on-screen interactive Roman history guides,
four behind-the-scenes featurettes and eight commentaries. Meanwhile,
production has begun at Rome's Cinecitta Studios on the show's second
season, which will premiere next year.
--Photographs of Gwyneth Paltrow's son, Moses, appear in People
magazine's May 1 issue, on newsstands Friday. Paltrow, 33, husband
Chris Martin, 29, and big sister, Apple, who turns 2 next month,
welcomed baby Moses into their family April 8.
3 A.M. GIRLS/Kiki King, Eva Simpson & Caroline Hedley
--HOLLYWOOD star Jessica Alba turns 25 next week, so will someone buy
her a cake! The Sin City babe looked painfully thin as she went
shopping for jewelery with her fella, director's assistant Cash Warren,
in Beverly Hills on Tuesday. And on the other side of the Atlantic,
26-year-old TV presenter Donna Air went shopping in London - but
clearly didn't stop for lunch. An onlooker said: "Her huge shades just
emphasized how skinny her face is." Oh dear.
--TROUBLED singer Pete Doherty was spared a jail term today after
pleading guilty to multiple drugs charges. The 27-year-old Babyshambles
star was previously told he may face a prison stretch. However, he
admitted being in possession of heroin, crack cocaine and cannabis at
Thames Magistrates' Court, London and was sentenced to a two-year
community order and 18 months drugs rehabilitation program. Judge Jane
McIvor said she recognized his effort to overcome his problems but his
recovery would be a long process and he may face jail if he re-offends.
Doherty - the ex-boyfriend of supermodel Kate Moss - was also
banned from driving six months.
--MICHAEL Douglas is to receive a Doctor of Laws degree from St Andrews
University for his contribution to British film.
--TROUBLED pop star George Michael had a £50,000 BMW delivered
yesterday to run around in while his battered Range Rover is repaired.
The singer was quizzed by police after the Mirror revealed that he
damaged three cars in a bizarre accident near his home on Sunday. He
was interviewed under caution for 90 minutes after phoning police to
admit responsibility. George, paying £1,028 a week to hire the BMW X5,
has worried music pal Toby Bourke who told the Mirror the star's
addiction to cannabis could end up wrecking his life. But yesterday the
singer's assistant said: "George is fine."
--JK Rowling is helping to set up a multiple sclerosis research centre
with a "major" cash donation. The 40-year-old Harry Potter author,
whose mother died of the crippling disease, said she hopes the
£2.5million project will be the platform to finding a cure. She added:
"It means a great deal to me to be able to provide support for this
much-needed centre. It is an exciting step forward." Rowling is patron
of the Multiple Sclerosis Society Scotland which gave £2.1million
towards the project in Edinburgh. An undisclosed but "substantial"
amount of that is said to have come from the writer.
--Hit Abba theatre musical Mamma Mia! is to be turned into a major big
screen production out next year starring TOM HANKS and including 22
Abba hits.
LAS VEGAS JOURNAL/NORM CLARKE...
--Not all the fireworks at the opening of Red Rock Resort were in the
sky. For a gaggle of female VIP guests who joined Sting onstage during
his encore Tuesday, this was better than a chocolate orgy. Predictably,
it turned into a sexy sideshow when 20-some frisky revelers responded
to Sting's invitation to join him early in his three-song encore that
included "Desert Rose" and "Every Breath You Take." Some danced, others
pretended to affectionately paw at him, and one appeared to be goosing
the rock legend. Then came the real fireworks. The Fertitta brothers
promised the biggest fireworks show ever seen in Las Vegas, and
thousands would agree. Hundreds of VIPs watched from the pool area,
under a canopy that included star bursts and sparklers shaped like
dollar signs, diamonds, spades and other suits in a deck of cards. The
fireworks erupted from every direction, along with balls of flames from
a casino rooftop. Counting the fireworks shows, a reported $330,000 in
Dom Perignon champagne, comped VIP fare that included King Crab legs,
jumbo prawns, and full menu dinners at all the restaurants, plus
Sting's rumored $1 million-plus fee, the opening night tab reportedly
topped $3 million.
--The Pamela Anderson-Paris Hilton parties will be under the same roof
Friday.
--Light Group announced that they have moved the events from Jet at The
Mirage to Light at Bellagio. Hilton also has birthday parties for her
boyfriend, Stavros Niarchos, planned on Saturday at Tao (The Venetian)
and the Hard Rock Hotel on Saturday.It was mistakenly reported here
Wednesday that the Hilton party would be at Tao on Friday.
--Hayden Christiansen of "Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith" is
celebrating his 26th birthday Friday at Tao.
--The NBA today unveils its logo for the February 2007 All-Star Game,
which will be in Las Vegas. NBA Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins and
former NBA standout Kenny Smith join Harrah's headliner Clint Holmes
and Mayor Oscar Goodman and others in ceremonies at 11 a.m. on the main
stage at the Fashion Show Mall.
--Sting and his wife, Trudie Styler, dining with friends at Terra
Rossa, Red Rock's Italian restaurant, after his concert. Also attending
the opening: Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, Rande Gerber and Cindy
Crawford, skateboard star Tony Hawk, Elaine Wynn and daughters Gillian
and Kevyn (who had twins last Thursday), Aladdin/Planet Hollywood chief
exec Robert Earl, Mike and Sandy Mecca, the Palms' George Maloof with
Playboy boss Christie Hefner, Lt. Gov. Lorraine Hunt and Dennis Bono,
Bob Beers, Bob Arum, Larry and Camille Ruvo, Bernie Yuman, Gordie
Brown, UFC stars Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture, Nate Morris from Boys
II Men, extreme biker TJ Lavin, and Mark Schorr and Andrew Pascal of
Wynn.
--Cedric "The Entertainer," visiting backstage after taking in Holmes'
show at Harrah's on Tuesday.
--Actress/poker star Jennifer Tilly, at Commander's Palace (Aladdin).
L.A. DAILY NEWS/By Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith
--Paul Reiser's been far less visible in recent years than in his '80s
and '90s heyday, but he says he's not sorry to be doing most of his
work behind the scenes nowadays. "After seven years on Mad About You,'
I wanted to step back a bit. After a while of just hanging low, I had
all these things that I wanted to write," he explains. And now, he
says, his production company has five TV projects in the works, one of
which is a pilot for CBS currently titled "Mr. Invincible." "I wrote
and produced it, but I'm not in it. It's starring Bobby Cannavale,"
notes Reiser. "He plays a guy who owns a Cadillac dealership in Queens,
New York, and he's stepping into his father's shoes after he passed
away. He's trying to forge his own identity, but he's struggling at
every part of it. It's a very likable character so hopefully the show
will get picked up for the fall." In the meantime, Reiser's available
for viewing on Nick at Nite now that it's airing "Mad About You."
Reiser admits he's nostalgic about the show. He also notes, "Everybody
is still dear friends. We laugh and remember very fondly all the great
years. However, we had done what we wanted to do and it was time for
everybody to move on. I don't wish we had done more. In fact, we jumped
ahead 20 or 30 years in our finale to deliberately not leave a
possibility of us coming back."
--Grammy-winning songstress India.Arie is going to be pushing the
envelope with her upcoming new album, reports super-producer George
Duke. He describes the songs she's recording now as "very spiritual in
nature." "I like the gall of someone to say, My vision is this,' and
they go for it until they get it," says the multi-Grammy winner. "It
looks like she's doing that on this album from what I've heard so far.
I have to support artists in that vein. So many artists give in and do
whatever radio or their fans want to hear without any thought to what
they feel spiritually led to do. This album is definitely different and
it will be interesting to see how people look at it." Meanwhile, Duke
is set to release his latest CD, "In a Mellow Tone" on June 27. "It's
the first real jazz record I've done in a long time," says the
illustrious keyboardist. "It's a trio with me and drummer Terri Lyne
Carrington and guitarist Brian Bromberg doing reworked standards like
Spring Is Here,' I Loves You Porgy' and For All We Know.' " He's also
set to go out on a major tour with legendary Grammy-winning bassist
Stanley Clarke next month. The Stanley Clarke/George Duke Project tour
will take them out on the road from May to October with a special date
at the 28th annual Playboy Jazz Festival June 17-18 at the Hollywood
Bowl featuring such artists as Branford Marsalis, Chuck Mangione, the
McCoy Tyner Trio and Jeff Lorber.
NY POST/DON KAPLAN
--ROBERT Smigel, the brains behind cigar-chomping Triumph the Insult
Comic Dog and "TV Fun House," says his job makes watching the news a
nightmare. "Everything's potential fodder," says Smigel. "You're on the
lookout all the time for something that might be the next cartoon or
sketch. "It's like having homework all the time." "TV Fun House," the
animated dirty-joke sketch series, has become a staple on "Saturday
Night Live," which will showcase about 90 minutes of Smigel's 'toons
next week (April 29), devoting the entire show to his biting work. The
show will be hosted by Ace and Gary, two of Smigel's first animated
creations, who make up a superhero team called "The Ambiguously Gay
Duo." As hosts, they will interact in some sketches with various "SNL"
cast members. (Triumph, meanwhile, appears frequently on "Late Night
with Conan O'Brien.") Part of "TV Fun House" is a bit called "Fun with
Real Audio," in which Smigel frequently skewers politicians and
celebrities, using audio tape of their voices dubbed over cartoons of
them in increasingly insane situations. Smigel says one of his favorite
editions of "Fun with Real Audio" parodied President Bush's "Mission
Accomplished" speech, in which he addressed Naval personnel while
dressed in a flight suit. In Smigel's "Real Audio" version, the
President also spoke to national park wildlife while dressed as Yogi
Bear - and spoke to senior citizens while seated in a wheelchair.Smigel
says he likes using cartoons for satire. "It's more subversive and not
as much of a direct hit when it's couched in silliness," he says.
Smigel's been a writer for "SNL" since 1985 and has been doing the
animated "TV Funhouse" bits since 1989.
