Issue Date: November 4, 2007
Walk the red carpet Nov. 7 at the CMA ceremony with my Who's News Blog (blogs.usaweekend.com)
We'll be live with the stars in Nashville at 7 p.m. ET. The show begins at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
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Q: What has happened to actress Dana Delany?
Nancy Hamrick, Sparks, Nev.
She's the newest desperate housewife, and she plans a lengthy stay on Wisteria Lane; she signed a six-year contract. A year ago, as you know, we talked with Delany about her role in the drama "Kidnapped," which, unfortunately, didn't last. But that won't be a problem on ABC's "Desperate Housewives," which is going strong in its fourth season.
Just imagine what would happen if Jan walked into "The Office" looking like Melora Hardin, who plays her. Hardin, 40, has been one of Hollywood's hard workers for decades. She began performing at 6 and made about a dozen pilots before "The Office." In this season, her character, a former executive, "is trying to see her homemaker side." How did she handle living among the also-rans of showbiz for so long? "I was lucky," Hardin says. "I was a cute kid, an attractive teenager and an interesting adult. So I always worked and enjoyed myself even when things weren't really flying." A married mom of two, she is also a dancer and singer; her third album is slated for next year.
Celeb gossip on your cellphone
Text 44636 (4INFO) with subject BUZZ
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Q: Does heartthrob Joaquin Phoenix have a girlfriend? Also, where has he been since 2005's "Walk the Line?"
Peggy Cook, Long Beach, Calif.
Phoenix, who doesn't have a girlfriend, has been making movies, and he's all over big screens now, playing two more tortured men. In "We Own the Night," he manages a nightclub frequented by the Russian mafia. In "Reservation Road," he plays a father whose son is killed by a hit-and-run driver, and he hunts down the driver. "I can't enjoy things unless they're intense," says Phoenix, 33, explaining why he seeks emotionally difficult roles. "Otherwise, I'm bored to death. If you were a surfer, would you want to surf 2-foot waves or 10-foot waves?"
Tony Bennett, Emmy- and Grammy-winning crooner, has another talent: painting. "As long as I can remember, I have wanted to do two things: sing and paint," he tells us via e-mail. In a new book, "Tony Bennett in the Studio: A Life of Art and Music," his artwork is used to illustrate reflections on life. It has been quite a life, with friends like Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra and Duke Ellington. One of Bennett's favorites is a portrait of Ellington. "I painted pink roses behind Duke's image because every time he wrote a new song, he would send me roses to let me know he had composed something new."
As a talk-show host, Charles Grodin got stars to spill personal details. Now he has them sharing mistakes. His new book, "If I Only Knew Then," is a collection of essays by actors such as Goldie Hawn and Robert Redford, in which they reveal a lesson learned the hard way. Not everyone approached was eager to share. "One good friend, a very famous person, and I were having a nice, cordial dinner. I brought up the subject, and he said, 'Out of the question,' " says Grodin, 72. How did he get more than 80 to agree? "They knew that I wasn't making any money on this," he says. All proceeds go toward Help USA, a non-profit that aids the homeless and other people in need.
Q: What are the newest movies starring Gerard Butler, the handsome Scot from "300" and "The Phantom of the Opera?"
Irene Foster, Glendale, Calif.
We talked to his people, and Butler has four movies coming. On Dec. 21, he has "P.S. I Love You," co-starring Hilary Swank. Butler, 37, plays a deceased man who has left a series of love letters for his widow. Gerry (as he prefers to be called) also just wrapped his lead role in Guy Ritchie's "RocknRolla." He's in production on "Nim's Island," with Jodie Foster and Abigail Breslin, which is due in April. And he has just begun another starring role in a thriller called "Game."
When singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco gave birth to her first child, Petah Lucia (9 months), she decided she'd compile her first retrospective album, "Canon," which came out Sept. 11. "I never had time to stop and reflect and look back and put together something like a 'career retrospective,' because I was always plowing forward," says DiFranco, 37. "The baby interjected a little pause in my life." She tackled another project long on her back burner: a book of her poetry called "Verses." "These are poems I wrote with the intention of them being spoken word, because that's my job -- I travel around and put on shows -- so that's the context I write for. To print them was disconcerting."
Contributing: Bart Mills, Nancy Mills, Kathy Rowings, Jennifer Straus, Jon Tollestrup
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BIRTHDAYS
November 4: Sean Combs 38; Matthew McConaughey 38
November 5: Tatum O'Neal, 44
November 6: Ethan Hawke, 37; Sally Field, 61
November 7: Joni Mitchell, 64
November 8: Courtney Thorne-Smith, 40; Bonnie Raitt, 58
November 9: Vanessa Minnillo, 27; Nick Lachey, 34
November 10: Brittany Murphy, 30; Ellen Pompeo, 38
 Ask Lorrie Lynch a question about a celeb!
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