The Beat

LAILA ALI will have a hard time squeezing in another title defense between TV gigs. She's set to mentor a dozen kids from rival Decatur, Ill., high schools as the host of Nickelodeon's teen makeover reality series Student Body, which debuts in 2008. And later this month Ali (right) steps into Larry Csonka's cohost shoes—next to Hulk Hogan—for tapings of NBC's American Gladiators revival.... This story is getting old: GQ-approved quarterback spends the bye week in L.A., cooing over the newest love of his life, whom he describes as "truly a joy." Who was Tom Brady with? Three-month-old John, his son with ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan. Brady spent his first posthospital meeting changing diapers and later told a Boston TV show that he looks "forward to spending as much time with [John] as [he] can when the season's over."... Rocky Balboa is Broadway bound. Tony Award--winning librettist Thomas Meehan (The Producers, Annie) is writing the story for a musical based on the original Rocky. While no time line is set, Sylvester Stallone has given his blessing and Meehan promises to incorporate the enduring theme song, Gonna Fly Now, originally composed by Oscar winner Bill Conti.

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PHOTO

EVAN AGOSTINI/AP (ALI)