Issue Date: June 2, 2002
Q: Is Rashida Jones of Fox's "Boston Public" the daughter of Quincy Jones and actress Peggy Lipton?
Lynn Buck, Meriden, Conn.
Yes, she's the youngest child of musician/producer Jones and the "Mod Squad" star. Like her father, the 26-year-old Harvard grad calls music her "true love"; she even sings on the show, which is set in a high school. She's well-positioned to launch a singing career, but for now, "I'm trying to learn who I am as a musician," she says. "I'm taking my time." The native Californian, whose boyfriend is New York DJ Mark Ronson, says private school was a far cry from the series' Winslow High, with its drugs and violence. "There weren't that many kids, so there wasn't as much social pressure." Still, Jones can relate to the show: "Even if it is a bit exaggerated, the way it's written shows how much teachers sacrifice for students."
Q: E!'s Todd Newton is one of the sexiest men on TV. Why isn't he already in movies?
Tanya Bigham, Lansing, Mich.
Because he has no desire to be. "I've never wanted to act," says Newton, 32. "I've always wanted to be a host." The former DJ from St. Louis got his chance six years ago when E! signed him to head up its weekly half-hour show "Coming Attractions," previewing movie trailers. He hosted the first season of the film review show "Hot Ticket." But after fronting the Game Show Network's short-lived "Hollywood Showdown" in 2000, the married father of one found a new passion. In April, his new game show, "Whammy! The All New Press Your Luck" (weeknights, 10 p.m. ET), had the highest-rated debut in the Game Show Network's history. "If somebody would throw down a 100-year contract, I'd sign it now."
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Mountain climber Jeff Mathy hopes to reach the top of Mount Everest any day now -- but that's only part of his goal. The 23-year-old from Fullerton, Calif., is vying to become the youngest person to climb the highest mountain on each of the seven continents (plus a disputed eighth continent, "Oceania"). He's stealing the title from American Joby Ogwyn, who was 26 when he earned it in 2000. Mathy also will be the youngest American to conquer Everest, No. 6 on his list. Feeling aimless after college, Mathy climbed three of the peaks but didn't cement his record-breaking plan until his birthday -- Sept. 11. News of that day's terrorist attacks "made me want to do something big," says Mathy, who now plants Old Glory on each peak. A British climber died a day ahead of him on Everest, but Mathy isn't stopping. With his crew, he'll start his seventh summit, Mount Elbrus in Russia, next month.
Q: HBO's "Six Feet Under" is such a great show, but we don't hear much about the actor who plays David, the gay son. What's his story?
Kristen Smith, Los Angeles
Born and bred in Raleigh, N.C., Michael C. Hall, 31, got his start in on- and off-Broadway roles, including a 14-month stint as the emcee in Sam Mendes' "Cabaret." (Small world: Mendes directed "American Beauty," which was written by "Six Feet Under" creator Alan Ball.) Hall, whose wife is a Broadway actress, made his TV debut with the Emmy-winning drama about a family of funeral directors (the season finale is this Sunday at 9 p.m. ET). We hear there's stiff competition among actors for the role of corpse. Just the same, "we have more dummies this year than last year." Maybe they're easier to work with.
Q: Has "Weekend Today" co-anchor Soledad O'Brien left NBC?
Jack Fremson, Boston
No -- she was out having a second baby. O'Brien, 35, and husband Brad, a New York investment banker, had Cecilia in March; Sofia is almost 2. And it was a fast, 26-minute delivery: "We were in the cab to the hospital, and I felt the baby's head drop," she says. After seven weeks, O'Brien returned to her Friday-through-Sunday work schedule in May. The Harvard alum says Laura Berman Fortgang's new book, "Living Your Best Life," made going back easier. "It's all about matching your priorities to your life," O'Brien says. "I've become so efficient at work because I want to go home and play with my kids."
Q: Is Edward Burns single? I saw him in "Life or Something Like It."
Carla Dominguez, Jersey City
You're one of the few! The movie tanked at the box office. But yes, Burns is single -- he and supermodel Christy Turlington called off their engagement in April. Reports say he's been seen out with supermodel Esther Canadas; his publicist wouldn't confirm it. The actor-director keeps busy with his and younger brother Brian's production company, Irish Twins. "I really like acting in other people's films," Burns says, "but it cannot compare with what it's like to come up with a crazy idea and see it come to life on the screen." Burns has created four films -- the first was "The Brothers McMullen" -- and just finished his fifth, "Ash Wednesday." Few have been hits, so we wonder how he can afford John F. Kennedy Jr.'s Tribeca loft, which he bought for a reported $2 million in 2000.
Contributing: Tameka Hicks, Evelyn Poitevent, Patty Rhule, Frappa Stout
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BIRTHDAYS
June 2: Wayne Brady, 30;
Dana Carvey, 47.
June 3: Tony Curtis, 77.
June 4: Angelina Jolie, 27;
Noah Wyle, 31.
June 5: Mark Wahlberg, 31;
Kenny G, 46.
June 6: Sandra Bernhard, 47.
June 7: Anna Kournikova, 21;
Allen Iverson, 27;
Prince, 44;
Liam Neeson, 50.
June 8: Julianna Margulies, 36;
Joan Rivers, 69;
Barbara Bush, 77.
Also:
 Last week's Who's News
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