Issue Date: November 3, 2002
I'm continually impressed by the fine acting talents of William H. Macy, especially his recent work in TNT's "Door to Door". Tell me more about him.
Rebecca Dyble, Albuquerque
Macy, 52, who earned an Oscar nod for his role as a duplicitous car salesman in "Fargo", continues to tackle intriguing characters, like the hapless single father in the current "Welcome to Collinwood", produced by George Clooney. He trained with playwright David Mamet, who remains a friend, and also writes scripts with pal Steven Schachter (they wrote "Door"). Macy and his wife, actress Felicity Huffman, have two daughters, 2 and 8 months; they also collaborated onscreen in "Sports Night" and "Door" and the upcoming "Out of Order" for Showtime. Look for Macy next year in "The Cooler" and in Showtime's "Stealing Sinatra".
I was mesmerized by Eric Stoltz in "Once and Again". What became of him after that show's cancellation?
Doris M. Costas, Eustis, Fla.
He's been busy making movies, such as "The Butterfly Effect", due next year. A bit of a loner, Stoltz was looking forward last month to driving from New York to Texas for his current project, a family film. "I get in my car, drive cross-country and stay in cheap hotels with my dog," a 10-year-old German shepherd he's had since she was a pup. His ex-loves include Bridget Fonda and Ally Sheedy, but Stoltz, 41, is now dating a non-actress. "It's new not to be so understood," he says, "and not bad."
Is Hunter Reno, host of the Travel Channel's "Exotic Islands", any relation to former attorney general Janet Reno? Also, how tall is she?
Shirley Hayes, Salem, Ore.
She's 5-foot-11 1/2. "My father is 6-foot-5, but my mom's 5-foot-4, so I came out in the middle," Reno tells us. Aunt Janet, whom Hunter helped during her run for Florida governor, is 6-2. The model, 34, loved hosting Travel's island-hopping show, now in repeats, but she's happy to be home in Miami with her husband. They're expecting a baby in December. "I've had the opportunity to see the world," she says. "Now I get a new adventure, in becoming a mother."
Brooke Burns, host of NBC's "Dog Eat Dog", looks so familiar. Is she an actress or model?
Vi Osborne, Franklinville, N.J.
Both. You may remember her from "Baywatch", her guest spots on "Just Shoot Me" and "Ally McBeal", or last year's film "Shallow Hal". On "Dog", the contestants face dares like bungee jumping into noodles or walking a tight rope in heels. Burns is daring, too -- she was hired after show reps saw her standing atop a moving bus on a celebrity edition of "Fear Factor" -- but she's not allowed to do stunts because an injury could delay taping. "Dog", a summer hit, will return when a time slot opens. Burns, 25, lives in Los Angeles with daughter Madison, 3; she shares custody with her soon-to-be ex-husband, Charmed actor Julian McMahon.
Didn't the young star of NBC's new "American Dreams" play Harley's daughter, Susan, on "Guiding Light"?
Liliane Jorgensen, Freeville, N.Y.
Yes. Brittany Snow, 16, left that soap last year to play the "American Bandstand"-loving daughter on the '60s-themed show. She also left her Tampa school, her nine best friends and her boyfriend -- "there's only so much of a relationship you can have over the phone" -- while her mother left her father behind to move with her to L.A. "It's a little hard with the separation, but my dad will visit a lot, and we'll make it work," says Snow, who studies with a tutor. Her folks aren't as strict as those on "Dreams", she says, except when it comes to money: "They don't tell me how much I'm making. They put it all away for me."
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Steve Thomas, veteran host of PBS' "This Old House", has good advice for home renovators: Design is key; it's OK to raze; and you can make a new house old. Now Thomas doles out quick answers to simpler problems (a leaky hose, a broken screen) on "Ask This Old House", a new Q&A show following "TOH", which airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET. "It's a nice counterpoint to This Old House, which is the big dream of doing the full-on renovation in one fell swoop," Thomas says. "Most of us can't afford to do that." Now in its 24th year, "TOH", the daddy of all shelter shows, is capitalizing on the growing national love of home improvement, evidenced by the popularity of cable's "Trading Spaces", "Changing Rooms" and "While You Were Out". Now, if only "TOH" could get some neighbors involved.
I swear Jill Hennessy and Catherine Zeta-Jones are twins. I'm always confusing one with the other. Are they related?
Andrea Weston-Smart, Lacey, Wash.
No, but Hennessy has a twin, Jacqueline, a writer who starred with her in the creepy 1988 movie "Dead Ringers" and once stood in for her during an episode of "Law & Order". "They look so alike it's uncanny," says Jerry O'Connell, Jill's "Crossing Jordan" co-star. "It's like you're drunk and you're seeing double."
With: Frappa Stout
Contributing: Tameka Hicks, Evelyn Poitevent, Patty Rhule
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BIRTHDAYS
November 3: Dennis Miller, 49; Roseanne, 50
November 4: Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, 33; Laura Bush, 56; Walter Cronkite, 86
November 5: Sam Shepard, 59;
November 6: Ethan Hawke, 32; Sally Field, 56
November 7: Billy Graham, 84
November 8: Jack Osbourne 17; Alfre Woodard 49; Bonnie Raitt 53
November 9: Sisqo, 27
 Ask Lorrie Lynch a question about a celeb!
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