Issue Date: May 26, 2002
My family loves SpongeBob SquarePants. Can you tell us about his creator?
Patty Emanuel, Bloomsburg, Pa.
When Stephen Hillenburg, 40, first told friends about his talking sponge, "they secretly thought I was crazy," he says. But it made perfect sense to the Anaheim, Calif., native, who grew up surfing and deep-sea diving and has always loved the ocean. With a bachelor's degree in natural science and marine biology and a master's in experimental animation, the married father of one "wanted to do a show about a goofy and innocent character ... a marine organism that was squeaky clean and nerdy." Hillenburg has nothing against edgier animation like Comedy Central's "South Park", but that type of work is not in his future for now: He hopes to make a SpongeBob movie.
Who plays the guy on "Girlfriends"?
Dee Bryant, Gainesville, Fla.
Reggie Hayes is William, the conservative lawyer pal to girlfriends (from left above) Jill Marie Jones, Tracee Ellis Ross, Persia White and Golden Brooks. As the only regular male on Mara Brock Akil's latest UPN hit (she created Moesha), Hayes gets plenty of special treatment. "They baby me," says the single Chicagoan, who had small roles in "Charlie's Angels" and "Being John Malkovich". "But I give them a hard time." The former improv comic traces his talent back to military school, where as a shy teen he survived "no doors on the rooms or bathrooms and everyone in your face all the time" by doing impersonations of Army sergeants.
What happened to the actor who played Vincent on "Judging Amy"? Why did he leave?
M. Dowd, Aledo, Ill.
Dan Futterman, 35 next month, quit the hit show last year to focus on his original goal: film and theater work. He wrapped up the dark off-Broadway play "Further Than the Furthest Thing" in March, and in this weekend's movie "Enough", he's Jennifer Lopez's old college boyfriend. Getting close to the gorgeous actress was "all I was working for," chuckles Futterman, a Columbia University grad from Maryland. No offense to wife Anya Epstein, a TV writer who met Futterman when he guest-starred in "Homicide: Life on the Street" in 1999. His job now? "Mostly, I sit in the sandbox with my [1-year-old] daughter." This weekend, Futterman co-stars with Jennifer Lopez.
I think Ananda Lewis is the prettiest lady on TV. Can you tell me about her? Is she married or dating anyone?
John Henry Jr., Indianapolis
You're right; Lewis is bright and beautiful (and single). But that wasn't enough to save her talk show: Poor ratings killed "The Ananda Lewis Show" last month. Don't expect the San Diego native, who graduated cum laude from Howard University in Washington, D.C., to fade away. At 29, she's established herself as a hot MTV personality and astute broadcaster, who earned one of ABC's coveted red-carpet spots for this year's Oscar pre-show. "I've been speaking my mind since I was 5," says Lewis, now a New Yorker, and if she weren't a TV star, she says, she'd teach history. Raised by a single mom, Lewis finds it "interesting that I use my mouth to make a living," considering she had a speech impediment until she was 8. Her 1999 MTV special on race and prejudice won her an NAACP Image Award in 2000; her latest cause is Type 2 diabetes in children.
Helio Castroneves hopes to jump the fence at this Sunday's Indy 500 (11 a.m. ET, ABC) -- and he means it literally. The charismatic racer, 27, adopted the stunt as a post-win ritual after his big Indy victory last year. A member of Roger Penske's team, Castroneves started racing go-carts as a kid in Brazil. Now that he's in the big leagues, his only behind-the-wheel thoughts are: "We're going over 225 mph. Any moment, someone could make a mistake in front of you. You want to avoid that mess." The track is a little safer this year, with the addition of shock-absorbing "soft walls" to its turns. And after the race, the cute bachelor, named People's Sexiest Race Car Driver of 2001, says he'll go back to driving his Mercedes "slow, like an old lady" on the streets. "I got a speeding ticket last year, 200 yards from the speedway. I tried saying who I was, but the officer said, 'Yeah buddy, but here is not your racetrack.' "
I'm a fan of the beautiful Diane Lane. Where has she been hiding?
Richard Brandt, Stockton, Calif.
She's gone from child star to teen queen to premature has-been. But now the single mom, 37, returns as Richard Gere's wife in Adrian Lyne's racy "Unfaithful". "It's an emotional wringer," says Lane, divorced from actor Christopher Lambert since '94. "It was so tough I swore I'd never see it. Now I'm over that." Her first big role since 2000's "The Perfect Storm", the thriller reunites Lane and Gere, co-stars in "The Cotton Club" 18 years ago. "Both of us have grown," she says. "We communicate better. Richard is more comfortable speaking his truth." What's her truth? "I'm grateful every time I'm hired. We don't design our careers. That's an illusion. All you can do is have a good work ethic and lucky timing."
Go to top
BIRTHDAYS
May 26: Helena Bonham Carter, 36; Lenny Kravitz, 38; Stevie Nicks, 54
May 27: Peri Gilpin, 41
May 28: Kylie Minogue, 34; Rudy Giuliani, 58; Gladys Knight, 58
May 29: Melissa Etheridge, 41; Annette Bening, 44; Bob Hope, 99
May 30: Wynonna Judd, 38
May 31: Colin Farrell, 26; Brooke Shields, 37; Sharon Gless, 59; Clint Eastwood, 72
June 1: Heidi Klum, 27; Alanis Morissette, 28; Morgan Freeman, 65
Contributing: Tameka Hicks, Bart Mills, Frappa Stout, Jeanne Wright
 Ask Lorrie Lynch a question about a celeb!
|
