"THERE ARE all kinds of famous people today that you've never heard of," said someone recently. This is either an oxymoron or something Yogi Berra should have said.
AT A BIG Connecticut party last weekend, where the host prefers to be nameless, there was a contrast of guests. Arriving right on time - Katharine Hepburn, age 94, dressed in red with a beautiful light makeup. Across a crowded room, one glimpsed the British phenomenon, David Simone, the music man who put Elton John on the map and recently had a hit with the Baha Men's "Who Let the Dogs Out" How's that for a combo? When asked what she wants Santa to bring her for Christmas, Miss Hepburn said, "Clothes ... I need clothes!" This was a party where the tireless Stamford attorney Mickey Sherman appeared, once more defending his client, the Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel, as being "innocent, totally innocent!" And an invite who didn't show was writer Dominick Dunne, the very person who revived the murder charges against Skakel and contends the Greenwich man is "guilty, totally guilty!" Dominick had the flu. But when he left the party, Sherman drove off to sleep under the roof of his weekend host, Dunne. Talk about friendly disagreement!
THE EVER-OPTIMISTIC Joan Collins will settle into her fifth attempt at marriage this February in London to Percy Gibson, whom she met in New York. Rumor has it they are deliriously happy!
WITH THE death of George Harrison and the recent 21st anniversary of John Lennon's death, a film paying tribute to the world's most influential music group seems more than appropriate.
In the Dec. 28 movie, "I Am Sam," Sean Penn delivers an Oscar-caliber performance as a mentally disabled man fighting for the right to raise his daughter. Penn's character is a walking collection of Beatles trivia and the film is scored entirely to their music.
Director Jessie Nelson and Penn were thrilled to hold an exclusive screening for Sir Paul McCartney and his bride-to-be, Heather Mills.
McCartney's reaction: "You gave my fiancee a sinus infection from crying so much. Warn the audiences to bring tissues." "I Am Sam" co-stars the beautiful Michelle Pfeiffer.
DIRECTOR CAMERON Crowe's current effort "Vanilla Sky" has nothing to do with rock and roll, unlike his hit "Almost Famous." But the ex-Rolling Stone scribe can't resist paying homage to his first career.
Two paintings seen in the apartment of Tom Cruise's "Vanilla Sky" character were painted by singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell. The "borrowed" paintings are called "Ice Offering" and "Edmonton," after the Canadian city where Joni's relatives live. The great folk singer trained classically as a painter.
DOWN UNDER has somehow scrambled to the top! Australian exports keep making their mark. The most famous Aussie of all right now is, of course, Nicole Kidman, whose hits this year include "Moulin Rouge" and the extremely successful Oscar-bait movie "The Others." Kidman propelled the latter into the $100-million class just here in the U.S.! And then there was "Legally Blonde," directed by Aussie newcomer Robert Luketic, which surprised by also grossing more than $100 million. And there is the bold Russell Crowe, poised to receive tons of praise for the much-anticipated "A Beautiful Mind." We have raved here about the handsome Hugh Jackman galloping across screens in "Kate & Leopold." Remember Cate Blanchett calls Australia her homeland, but feels comfy in the U.S. She'll bring her brand new baby boy with her here to make four films in the coming year. (First, she will shoot the story of an intrepid newswoman who is murdered by the Irish mafia - in Ireland, naturally.)
HAVE YOU made your New Year's wish list yet? Well SFS Productions (Julian Schlossberg/Roy Furman/ Ben Sprecher) is mounting the first Broadway production of "Fortune's Fool," staged by the legendary Arthur Penn at the Music Box this April.
Casting the coveted role of the young heiress to co-star with Alan Bates and Frank Langella in this classic comedy wasn't easy. A wish list went something like this: Gwyneth Paltrow, Hilary Swank, Julia Stiles, Kirsten Dunst, Leelee Sobieski, Reese Witherspoon, Kate Hudson and the Parker ladies - Sarah Jessica and Mary-Louise! The gal who got the part is Enid Graham, last seen in Manhattan Theatre Club's "Crimes of the Heart." For further good fortune, at the end of the run, the entire production starts shooting the film version starring the same cast. Is this a "first?" Sounds like it to me.
THE MANHATTAN Theatre Club is on a roll. They just broke ground on its future home, the Biltmore Theatre and the stars of their two Broadway smash hits have re-upped. Jennifer Jason Leigh has extended her contract at "Proof," and the stars of the ongoing comedy smash, "The Tale of the Allergist's Wife" - Valerie Harper, Michele Lee and Tony Roberts - have signed on into spring.
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