Issue Date: November 21, 2004
I heard that Samuel L. Jackson started acting at age 40. True?
Ingrid Cividanes, New London, Conn.
No. Jackson, 55, began acting at Morehouse College. His first movie, at 33, was "Ragtime," but he didn't get attention until 10 years later, in "Jungle Fever." He can't stand being unemployed and has four movies coming up, including the next "Star Wars." "I got my wish," he says, "for a pretty spectacular and dramatic death."
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Mel Gibson is one of Hollywood's most powerful people, but on the set of his ABC show, "Complete Savages," "you won't even know he's there," says Shaun Sipos. Sipos, 23, plays the eldest of five brothers on the show, loosely based on Gibson's life, and tells us the exec producer is subtle: "You'll just feel a hand on your back. He's not trying to direct or steal. He's got a stake in the show." So, what advice has the Oscar-winning Gibson given Sipos, a British Columbia native? "He offers more advice on a career level, in terms of character choices. He doesn't try to give you any line-reading advice."
I see what looks like a wedding ring on Ellen DeGeneres' hand. Did she marry her girlfriend?
Mary Hart, West Winfield, N.Y.
No, but the platinum band on DeGeneres' left hand was a gift from photographer Alexandra Hedison, whom she started dating in early 2001. They live together in the Hollywood Hills.
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William H. Macy is back on TNT this weekend with an original movie by the team that produced his Emmy-winning masterpiece, Door to Door. In The Wool Cap, he plays a mute who has a friendship with a 9-year-old girl. Macy, 54, is used to having girls around: He and wife Felicity Huffman, of Desperate Housewives, have two daughters, 4 and 2. Huffman isn't in Wool Cap, but the couple has worked together often, which Macy very much enjoys: "She's so much fun, so free, so unpredictable."
Why is Kmart continuing its relationship with Martha Stewart, a convicted felon?
Cynthia Campbell, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii
"At a certain point, a brand transcends the person behind it," says marketing expert Samantha Ettus; that happened with Stewart before her legal woes. Ettus predicts Stewart's company will rebound when she returns to it after her March release from prison. One reason: Reality TV guru Mark Burnett will revive her canceled show.
Lauryn Hill's 1998 CD, "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill," was amazing. Will she ever record a new album?
Danielle Fillerup, Everett, Wash.
No time soon, it appears. None of her spokespeople would return calls about her work, which has been insignificant since "Miseducation." After that, Hill, 29, released one disappointing album, from an "MTV Unplugged" session in which she broke down crying.
My little boy and I enjoy "The Wiggles." Are they all married?
Shannan Sanchez, Provo, Utah
No. The married ones are Murray Cook, 44, Greg Page, 32, and Anthony Field, 41. Jeff Fatt, 51, is single. They finish a U.S. tour in New York this weekend, and new CD "Santa's Rockin'!" is in stores. So how did this Beatles-influenced Australian foursome get to be preschool idols? "We always keep the child in mind," Page tells us.
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Hank Azaria, 40, has no trouble relating to the overburdened psychotherapist he plays in Huff, his new Showtime dramedy: He's been seeing a therapist for 15 years. "Anything that enables people to function better has to be a good thing," says Azaria, who double-majored in drama and psychology at Tufts. "I might keep what I say to my shrink a secret, but I'm open about the fact that I see a therapist."
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BIRTHDAYS
November 21: Ken Griffey Jr., 35; Bjork, 39; Goldie Hawn, 59
November 22: Jamie Lee Curtis, 46
November 23: Steve Harvey, 48
November 24: William F. Buckley, 79
November 25: Barbara Bush, 23; Jenna Bush, 23; Christina Applegate, 33; Jill Hennessy, 35
November 26: Tina Turner, 65
November 27: Caroline Kennedy, 47
Contributing: Gayle Jo Carter, Kevin Maynard, Bart Mills, Nancy Mills, Evelyn Poitevent
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