The Beat
Paris Hilton has taken up tennis players. Last week in Los Angeles she showed reporters a digital picture of a shirtless Mark Philippoussis she had saved on her cellphone. "I've got a new man, and I'm head over heels in love," Hilton (below) said. "I adore him, he's so hot. His name is Mark Philippoussis." But the 28year-old Aussie, who recently split with singer Delta Goodrem, might not be ready to settle down yet. "Mark was Number 9 in the world 10 months ago, and now he's 106," said Philippoussis' mother, Rosanna. "He wants to put his life back into tennis, and with a relationship he can't do that." Don't worry about Hilton. The next day she was spotted by the New York Post kissing Andy Roddick in Las Vegas.
■ If they had written a movie that ended with the Red Sox winning the World Series, nobody would have believed it. That's why screenwriters Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel (City Slickers and A League of Their Own) were scrambling last week to revise the ending of their forthcoming film, Fever Pitch, when Boston won its first World Series in 86 years. "Since Game 4 of the Yankees series, when the Red Sox started turning the tide, they were writing on an hour-by-hour basis," says Peter Farrelly who, with his brother Bobby, is directing the movie--an Americanization of Nick Hornby's memoir of his love affair with the English soccer team Arsenal. One of the new scenes had stars Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore kiss on the field during Boston's World Series celebration, and with Major League Baseball's permission, it was filmed during the real post--Game 4 moment at Busch Stadium. The movie will also feature footage shot at Fenway Park. Back in September, Fallon got to sit in the dugout. "I was watching a game, and Kevin Millar stood up and started taking a whiz next to me," says Fallon. "There's a urinal in the tunnel, but he just went right there [in the dugout]. That's when I realized that these guys weren't going to treat me any different than one of them." Bobby Farrelly says Fenway is "an awesome venue to film in. Players like Johnny Damon would stick around after games so we could make the scenes as authentic as possible."
■ A couple of Dolphins--past and present--recently took subtle digs at retired running back Ricky Williams. During an Inside the NFL taping, Dan Marino performed in a skit in which Williams shows up on Marino's doorstep carrying a giant bong, which he drops when he tries to catch a Marino pass. And for a Halloween party hosted by Miami cornerback Sam Madison, defensive end Jason Taylor dressed as Williams, wearing his old number 34 jersey and a dreadlock wig. The annual party, which raises money for the Madison's charity for kids and local Boys and Girls Clubs, was hosted by Williams last year.... Alonzo Mourning, David Robinson and Andre Agassi will appear in a 2005 calendar called 12 Reasons to Give, which features a dozen celebrities who have donated at least a million dollars to charity. The list includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Angelina Jolie and Edward Norton.
THIS WEEK'S SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE
A deep-sea diver ended an attempt at a world-record descent when he discovered the skeleton of a competitor.
They Said It
JASON RICHARDSON
Warriors guard, on why the team should extend his contract: "I've represented this franchise in dunk contests, the Rookie Challenge, the stuff at All-Star weekend. I think it's time for them to be loyal back to me."
COLOR PHOTO
RADU SIGHETI/REUTERS (PICTURE THIS)
PICTURE THIS
That's what's great about ostrich racing: Even if the contest isn't close, the finish is always neck and neck. Jockeys in Kenya celebrated 100 years of thoroughbred racing in their country with a running of the world's largest birds--call it the Beakness Stakes--at a track in Nairobi. Ostriches can run up to 40 mph; apparently the bird bringing up the rear here had his head in the sand when the gun went off.
COLOR PHOTO
ICON SMI (RICHARDSON)
COLOR PHOTO
JAMIE MCCARTHY/WIREIMAGE.COM