Issue Date: December 3, 2006
Robert Downey Jr.'s foolproof way of staying out of trouble: non-stop work. He has made one film after another since getting out of jail and drug rehab and relaunching his career with "The Singing Detective" in 2003. "Fur," with Nicole Kidman, is his latest. He has "Zodiac," about a San Francisco serial killer, coming out in March. While making that film, Downey, 41, even kept busy during lunch breaks working with a kung fu trainer. Downey says his wife of one year, producer Susan Levin, helps keep his life together. "There's something about the promise of union," he says, "that you don't have to do it all alone anymore."
I have been intrigued by Maria Bello since I saw her in "The Cooler." I've read that she has separated from her longtime beau. What's new with her?
Mike Blumb, Lake Worth, Fla.
Bello is single and tells us her son, Jackson Blue, 5, lives with his father, writer-producer Dan McDermott, half of the time and with her the other half. Jackson went along with Bello, 39, on location for Flicka last year, and both of them learned to ride. "I got over my fear of horses," she says. "I'm still riding ... and Jackson still loves horses." Next year, Bello will be seen in the thriller "Butterfly on a Wheel." Right now, she's filming an untitled emotional family drama by director Alan Ball, in which she plays "not a very good mother." After that, she's "finally getting my chance to do a romantic comedy," playing Jocelyn in "The Jane Austen Book Club."
Go to top
Maggie Q, who landed a part in the new "Die Hard" with Bruce Willis, comes to Hollywood by way of Asia, where the Hawaiian-born beauty has been a big star for years. Q, 27, whose mom is Vietnamese, says she went to Hong Kong because of her Asian roots but struggled at first: "I ate bread for breakfast, lunch and dinner." Now she can eat what she wants, but it won't be meat. She's a strict vegetarian and animal rights activist.
Gap is airing TV ads for its skinny black pants using a clip of Audrey Hepburn. What movie is it from?
Vincent Bacaring, Yonkers, N.Y.
"Funny Face."
Go to top
Glenda Hatchett didn't set out to be a TV judge. But now that she is one, she understands her power. "Not only am I getting my hands on the people who are in my courtroom," she says of the show called "Judge Hatchett," "but I'm reaching people everywhere." The mother of two sons and a longtime child advocate, Hatchett, 55, next hopes to write a series of self-esteem-bolstering children's books and to run parent conferences around the country fostering "dialogue" -- because "TV is a great experience, but it's [only] one way."
Where does Meredith Vieira go during the 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. hour of Today? Please don't tell me the ladies' room.
Robert Allen, Bradenton, Fla.
It's no bathroom break. Vieira and co-anchor Matt Lauer don't appear because they're not the hosts of that last hour. Who knew? We're told that "official" hosts of the third hour are Natalie Morales, Al Roker and Ann Curry. Vieira and Lauer go on air only if there is breaking news or a follow-up to a story done earlier that morning.
Barbra Streisand inspired me to become a songwriter. Will she put out a new CD anytime soon?
Angel Marie Moll, Bellingham, Mass.
Keep your fingers crossed, Angel. Streisand, 64, may put out a CD of her recent concert tour. Discussions are underway, with the possibility of an early 2007 release for the disc.
In the 1984 movie "Amadeus," Tom Hulce played Mozart and was an Oscar nominee. Is Hulce still in the film business?
Sonny Sciarrone, Miller Place, N.Y.
Not really, says Hulce, 52. He has a small part in the new movie "Stranger Than Fiction," but it has been essentially 10 years since he has had a substantial acting job. He became "less interested in getting inside a character and more interested in the way all of the pieces got put together," he tells us. Which is why Hulce became a producer, whose latest musical, "Spring Awakening," is on Broadway now.
Go to top
BIRTHDAYS
December 3: Holly Marie Combs, 33; Julianne Moore, 46
December 4: Tyra Banks, 33; Jay-Z, 36; Jeff Bridges, 57
December 5: Frankie Muniz, 21; Johnny Rzeznik, 41
December 6: Lindsay Price, 30; Janine Turner, 44
December 7: Aaron Carter, 19; Ellen Burstyn, 74
December 8: Ian Somerhalder, 28; Teri Hatcher, 42; Kim Basinger, 53
December 9: Jesse Metcalfe, 28; Felicity Huffman, 44; Beau Bridges, 65
Contributing: Bridget Byrne, Gayle Jo Carter, Nancy Mills, Jon Tollestrup
 Ask Lorrie Lynch a question about a celeb!
|
