The Beat

Sixers guard Allen Iverson's 30th birthday bash wasn't a surprise party, but the guest of honor still got a bit of a shock. Iverson was denied entrance to the Garden of Eden Club in Hollywood by a bouncer who told him that he couldn't enter because one of the President's daughters and the Secret Service were inside the club. (To make matters worse, the bouncer did admit former child star Todd Bridges.) Turns out it was all a prank for a forthcoming episode of Punk'd. According to the show's director, Billy Rainey, Iverson (left) reacted "true to his expletive-filled on-court persona," at one point shouting, "I didn't vote for her!" When the hoax was revealed, Iverson laughed it off, then successfully ran the prank on another guest, keeping Indiana Pacers forward Jermaine O'Neal from entering the party. The show will air on July 3 on MTV.

■ As if the Queer Eye show featuring a makeover of the Red Sox hasn't provided Yankees fans with enough ammo. On July 5 Bravo is releasing a DVD of the episode that includes outtakes of the Fab Five pinning down Tim Wakefield for a unibrow wax (the knuckleballer pleaded, "Please do not turn me into a girlie man!") and taking turns massaging a swollen lymph node on Johnny Damon's inner thigh--which Queer Eye style guru Carson Kressley says is "the greatest moment of my life. After meeting Cher, of course."

■ Vikings running back Michael Bennett will join boxer Roy Jones Jr., rapper Biz Markie and a certain former teammate for the Randy Moss Celebrity Charity Invitational Bass Tournament on Lake Minnetonka in Spring Park, Minn. Bennett--who also turned Minnesota quarterback Daunte Culpepper on to the sport ("Daunte was so green, he once wanted to put a bobber on a spinning reel!" says Bennett)--is gunning to take down Moss for the event's $50,000 prize. (The outing will benefit the Smile Network International, which provides health care for disadvantaged children and young adults.) "Randy and I have gone fishing a bunch," says Bennett, "and we talk more trash than you could imagine. It's the most competitive thing I do."

■ Bryan Williams, the promotions man for the Northern League's Kansas City T-Bones, came up with his latest gimmick while watching his nine-year-old niece play video games. On July 16 the T-Bones and the visiting Schaumburg Flyers will stand aside while a pair of fans play the beginning of their game on an Xbox. (The virtual game will be shown on the stadium scoreboard.) After two video innings the real players will take the field and pick up the contest where the gamers left off. Williams says he guaranteed the Flyers that the game would be fair. "They think we'll tinker with the game or something," Williams says. "I even offered to bring in Hans Blix to examine the Xbox before the game."

■ Having successfully conquered the bracelet market, Lance Armstrong is moving on to clothing. The cyclist is teaming up with Nike for the 10/2 Collection, a casual and performance line named for the day in 1996 he was diagnosed with cancer. Every item will incorporate a yellow Live Strong band in its design, and $1 from every piece sold will go to the Lance Armstrong Foundation.... Like Larry King and Elizabeth Taylor, Jerry Reinsdorf is turning marriage into a hobby. The White Sox' chairman has become an ordained minister through the nondenominational online Universal Life Church. (You can, too; just submit your name, address and e-mail.) On June 18 he performed his first ceremony at U.S. Cellular Field, marrying two Sox fans. The new clergyman's advice to the groom: "Never throw her a curve."

THIS WEEK'S SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE

Brazilian soccer star Roberto Carlos was mugged while doing a live radio interview.

They Said It

SESIL KARATANCHEVA

Fifteen-year-old Bulgarian tennis pro, after losing 6-0, 6-1 to Maria Sharapova in the second round at Wimbledon: "Today something didn't feel right. I guess it's the puberty's fault."

COLOR PHOTO

HAYDN WEST/AP (PICTURE THIS)

PICTURE THIS

 He created buzz for charity, but beekeeper Philip McCabe suffered a stinging defeat in his chase for a world record bee beard in Tipperary, Ireland. McCabe took on 60 pounds, or about 200,000 bees. Alas, the record, set in 1998, is 87 1/2 pounds.

COLOR PHOTO

JEAN-PAUL AUSSENARD/WIREIMAGE.COM (IVERSON)

COLOR PHOTO

ANJA NEDRINGHAUS/AP (KARATANCHEVA)