In this article: Birthdays Last week's Who's News Bonus article: Isiah Thomas Samantha Stonebraker

Tabloid talk is that both Willis and Moore are involved with new loves; the stars themselves say nothing publicly. But Willis, 44, is at the top of his game starring with Michelle Pfeiffer in Us and turning out an eerie performance in The Sixth Sense, an unexpected late-summer hit. Some actors are very choosy about roles. "Sometimes I deliberate," he says. "Sometimes I just want to work with the people who are involved." Example, Pfeiffer. "Sometimes I make mistakes," Willis says. "Everybody makes mistakes -- except Tom Cruise. This guy has hit after hit."

In the Julia Roberts movie Runaway Bride, Christopher Meloni gave a masterful performance as the high school coach who's her fiancˇ. Now I see he's on the new Law & Order spinoff.
Elizabeth Campbell, Chicago

And though Roberts' real-life beau, Benjamin Bratt, quit Law & Order earlier this year, there is no connection, Meloni tells us. He does, however, credit the actress with getting him Bride. He went to read with her before the film's honchos, "and after one take, she said, 'You are so adorable.' In my mind, I'm going, 'Your timing is impeccable!' " Working with her was easy. "She's focused, kind, professional -- all qualities I admire." He's detective Elliot Stabler on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, but Meloni, 38, also will reprise his inmate part on cable's acclaimed Oz.

John Kennedy Jr.'s untimely death left his sister, Caroline, the only living child of the former president. How many presidents' children are living?
Jackie Stoker Beverly Hills, Fla.

Twenty-four are alive, says Carl Sferraza Anthony, whose book on first families is due next fall. They range in age from John Coolidge, who at near-90 recently recorded recollections of White House life during the Jazz Age, to Chelsea Clinton, 19, in her junior year at Stanford. JFK's daughter turns 42 this week. Also:

Margaret Truman, 78, lives in New York and writes murder mysteries.

John Eisenhower, 77, is a Mexican War historian.

Lynda Johnson Robb, 55, is the wife of U.S. Sen. Chuck Robb of Virginia; sister Luci Baines Johnson, 52, heads the family businesses, including three radio stations.

Susan Ford, 42, lives in Tulsa with her second husband and has taken up many of her mother's causes, notably breast-cancer awareness; Steve Ford, 43, ex-soap star, raises horses.

Amy Carter, 32, got a master's in art history from Tulane and had a baby boy in July.

Michael Reagan, 53, hosts a conservative radio talk show; Patti Davis, 47, long estranged from the Reagans, returned to the fold with her 1998 book Angels Don't Die: My Father's Gift of Faith. She's still writing about her dad's battle with Alzheimer's.

George W. Bush, 53, is Texas governor and front-runner for the GOP presidential nomination; brother Jeb Bush, 46, is governor of Florida.

I hear there's a tell-all book coming from a disgruntled girlfriend of one of the super-popular Backstreet Boys. What's the scoop?
Hannah Farwell, Corning, N.Y.

Filled with juicy tidbits about life as a Backstreet girl, Samantha Stonebraker's What You Wanna Know: Backstreet Boys Secrets Only a Girlfriend Can Tell hits stores next week. Stonebraker, 23, tells us she and her boyfriend of four years, Brian Littrell, were on the road to wedded bliss till she got tired of hiding from the band's fans. "There is nothing wrong with them having girlfriends, and there is no reason to hide that," says an indignant Stonebraker. She says there's no bitterness. She and Littrell are friends but won't "overdo it." Especially after this book comes out.

Isiah Thomas is a wonderful dresser. He uses color and is far from conservative, yet always looks impeccable on NBA Showtime. Who does his wardrobe?
Marva Marshall, Fairfield, Calif.

"My wife, my childhood friend Willie Scott and Debbie Graziani," says the 6-foot-1 former Detroit Pistons guard. Scott and Graziani are designers whose suits keep him fashionable on-air, but off-camera Thomas, 38, wears what he likes. "I just grab it, put it on, and fortunately sometimes it fits," he tells us. When he's not analyzing basketball for NBC, Thomas watches football. "I wish Barry Sanders would come back; he's exciting." He doesn't think players should choose a pro career over education. "To be uneducated with a lot of money is stupid."

Go to the top

NOV 21: Ken Griffey Jr., 31; Troy Aikman, 33; Bjork, 34; Goldie Hawn, 54; Marlo Thomas, 61.
NOV 22: Boris Becker, 32; Mariel Hemingway, 38; Jamie Lee Curtis, 41.
NOV 23: Corey Haim, 28; Bruce Hornsby, 45.
NOV 24: Svetlana, 26; William F. Buckley, 74.
NOV 25: Christina Applegate, 28; Amy Grant, 39.
NOV 26: Shawn Kemp, 30; Tina Turner, 60; Charles Schulz, 77.
NOV 27: Jaleel White, 23.

Go to the top