Beck/Smith Hollywood

What’s the best way to age gracefully?  “One of the most important things is not to try to hold onto your twenties,” says Brooke Burke, a drop-dead gorgeous 38.   “You see these people trying to turn back time and it doesn’t work.  The best approach is to look your best at any age.”

With her latest job – taking over as host of TV Land’s “She’s Got the Look” competition reality show for wannabe models of 35 years and older – Brooke has given the topic of lovely women of a certain age quite a bit of consideration.

“We have a 55-year-old woman this season who is stunningly beautiful, confident, and certainly capable of giving the women in their thirties a run for their money.  Feeling beautiful is a big part of it – the mental attitude,” she says.  “You can see that as you watch these women finding their own confidence.”

For Brooke, “She’s Got the Look” fits nicely into the world of women she’s been communicating with and pitching to on her ModernMom.com website – women with children, women who buy her Tauts belly shapers, women past the twentysomething and single season of life.  The industrious Brooke, who rose to fame hosting the E! channel’s “Wild On!” and appearing in Playboy pictorials is, these days, into the juggling season – with four kids and her man, hunky David Charvet, in addition to her career.

And what a busy career.  She’ll be seen on E! getting ready for this Sunday’s (8/29) Emmy awards.  On Monday (8/30), she’ll be joining Tom Bergeron to announce the celebrities participating in their next season of “Dancing With the Stars.”  (Insists the Season 7 winner-turned-cohost of the show, “No, I don’t know anything yet.  I’m completely in the dark.”)

Soon after that, she’ll be turning in the manuscript for the autobiographical book she reports that Penguin plans to publish in February.  “I’m excited, although I have to say it does make me feel very vulnerable.  It’s really an emotional thing to go back and dissect your life and think about the things you did right and wrong.  It’s very revealing.  I’m sharing most of my experiences very honestly,” she says.  “It’s in three parts – mother, lover, woman.”

Carrie Ann Inaba tells us her life can become quite hectic when filming ‘Dancing With the Stars,’ which has its 10th season finale this week, but she’s been able to find a healthy balance outside of the studio.

‘Since starting the show, I’ve decided I want to do a lot more with giving back.  I just love it.  I love working, and you go and do a good job and something comes of it.  It’s the same when I go and spend my day where I’m canning food or going out to help homeless people. It’s brought a lot of balance back in my life so I’m very grateful for that.  It’s given me something that makes me feel good about myself,’ claims Inaba, who gets enough drama in her life as a judge on the show.

‘When you are a judge and you have very strong opinions, people will come up and argue with you or blog about you saying very negative things.  I’ve learned that you can look at all of the different opinions, but you really have to find who you are and not let all of that sway you.  That’s been a really challenging, but wonderful thing for me,’ says Inaba, who isn’t known for sugar coating her comments to the professional dancers.

‘I think we have a mutual respect.  Of course in the heat of the moment, I’m sure the professionals get upset with some of our comments,’ she admits.  ‘There are three of us and we all have slightly different opinions so I think that keeps it fair.’ — Emily-Fortune Feimster

When Joey Fatone appears on tonight’s “Dancing with the Stars,” the first thing he plans to do is apologize for his appearance.

“My beard is scruffy and nasty. I haven’t lost any weight because I’m doing this film,” explains the one-time *NSYNC member cum actor, who rushed from Rhode Island shooting on the big-screen horror flick, “Inkubus” [sic] to L.A. for a quick weekend’s worth of training.

He’ll dance with fellow former “DWTS” contestant Melissa Rycroft in the special segment.

“I always loved doing ‘Dancing with the Stars.’ Now people are going to see me dancing around with Melissa. It’s great I’m not getting judged on it. Whatever happens, happens,” says Fatone, who is releasing a new single called “Radio” today as well.

“It’s an uptempo summer jam. It’s power pop,” he says.

Joey will also be seen on the May 22 edition of Playhouse Disney’s “Imagination Movers” as a baseball player torn between his need to play in a big game and desire to be present for his son’s birthday. “His team is counting on him, and his boy is counting on him. They try different solutions, like Speedy Shoes, that don’t work out that well, but in the end, things do get resolved,” he says.

He really must be self-conscious about his weight these days, because he candidly volunteers, “I’m in no shape to be a baseball player. I look maybe like Babe Ruth back in the day.”

With nine-year-old and four-month-old daughters at home, he’s happy about doing the kiddie show. It couldn’t be much further away on the spectrum from his movie work of the moment. The currently-shooting “Inkubus” – with Robert Englund, William Forsythe and Jonathan Silverman in the cast – marks his first chiller.

“It’s a different vibe from comedy, obviously, a different kind of thing for me. It’s been awesome. I’m a huge fan of Robert Englund’s, ‘Halloween’ and all that stuff,” adds Fatone. “You know that variety is the spice of life. You’ve got to keep it fresh, keep evolving and challenging yourself.”

He plays a cop on his last night at a precinct house that’s about to be shut down. A chubby cop, apparently. And once it’s done, well, sounds like it might be time for a diet.

With Niecy Nash and Louis Van Amstel having been eliminated from ‘Dancing With the Stars’ competition last week, we can’t help thinking about Van Amstel going to lengths to stick up for contestants with dance backgrounds when we talked to him about the controversy over mixing trained and untrained competitors at the start of the season.

‘I have always defended the dance-trained celebrities. In the end, they may have the advantage with the judges, but they also have more pressure…Those who don’t have the dance training, people root for them because they’re the underdogs…You need the good ones to give the audience something to watch while the others are learning,’ he said.

Sure, but three of the four remaining celebrities happen to be those three that had dance experience prior to ‘DWTS’ — Olympic Gold Medal-winning figure skater Evan Lysacek, one-time cheerleader Erin Andrews of ESPN, and Pussycat Dolls leader Nicole Scherzinger (who Van Amstel singled out as a super strong prospect when the season got underway, and who’ll likely win). Only Chad Ochocinco remains of the previously untrained. did the others ever really have a chance?

HELLO AGAIN: Glad to hear that director and one-time ‘thirtysomething’ star Melanie Mayron is taking the reins of ‘Mean Girls 2′ –a direct-to-DVD follow-up to the big-screen Tina Fey hit. This one has a storyline about a high school loner befriending a misfit whose father happens to be rich enough to pay her to do so — and the two outsiders facing off against the nasty but popular girl who leads the crew that makes their lives miserable. Casting is underway.

Tom Bergeron’s working his acting chops on the set of ‘Castle’ this week in an episode that, as he puts it, ‘takes a page out of the whole Conan O’Brien-Jay Leno imbroglio’ — with Tom playing the host of an 11:30 comedy and talk show ‘who believes that the guy with the 12:30 show is gunning for him.’

The back story on how the ‘Dancing With the Stars’ and ‘America’s Funniest Videos’ host wound up on ‘Castle’ is as much fun as the episode sounds like it will be. Tom reminds that ‘DWTS’ is the lead-in show for ‘Castle,’ and that stars Nathan Filion and Stana Katic have been in the audience of the live dance competition to promote their series. Tom’s become friendly with them. ‘I told Nathan I was a fan of ‘Firefly’ and introduced him to my wife.,’ he tells us.

‘Independent of that, I ran into Jonathan Frakes and Genie Francis at the Starbucks near my house just about two weeks ago, after not having seen them for a couple of years. I told them I’d recommended them to our ‘Dancing With the Stars’ casting people, because with Jonathan’s sci-fi background and Genie’s in soaps, they bring in two different fan bases.

‘Then Jonathan said, ‘I can do you one better. I’ve been directing ‘Castle,’ and I’ve recommended you to the producers for an acting role.”

One call led to another — ABC head honcho Steve McPherson was quick to get on board — and Bergeron wound up center stage in the episode, airing April 12, called ‘The Late Shaft,’ with Fred Willard as his sidekick, and Bill Bellamy as his rival. Not only that, but all this camaraderie and mutual admiration has led to Bergeron serving as host of ‘An Evening With Castle’ with the producers and cast tonight (3/16) at the Paley Center for Media in L.A.. He’ll finish shooting his scenes as late night comic Bobby Mann on Thursday (3/18), then go right into preps for the new ‘DWTS’ season launch Monday (3/22).

MEANWHILE: Bergeron is excited not only by this season’s lineup of dance competitors — including Pamela Anderson, Niecy Nash, 80-year-old former astronaut Buzz Aldrin, pilot Jake Pavelka of ‘The Bachelor,’ Olympic Gold Medal-winning figure skater Evan Lysacek, Erin Andrews of ESPN, Kate Gosselin and Pussycat Dolls leader Nicole Scherzinger. He’s also looking forward to getting in step with his new cohost.

Tom was in on the casting of Brooke Burke to replace departing Samantha Harris. ‘Brooke, based on everything — her experience doing live TV, not only as a host, but her unique experience on the show as someone who has won — was a slam dunk. It will undoubtedly feel different since Samantha and I did eight of the past nine seasons together, but I have no doubt it will be good.’

CAN YOU SAY ‘WORKAHOLIC’?: Five episodes into shooting the third season of ‘In Plain Sight,’ star Mary McCormack says, ‘I could use some sleep. I’m not going to lie.’ The ‘In Plain Sight’ team keeps up an even more hectic pace than stars of broadcast network hour dramas, since the hit USA Network cable series is shot on a more compressed schedule. Add to that she has her five-year-old and two-year-old daughters with her in Albuquerque, where the show headquarters — while her husband, producer-director Michael Morris, toils away in L.A. on his show, ‘Brothers and Sisters’ — and it’s no wonder she’s sleep deprived.

‘I don’t know how we’re doing it,’ she says. ‘We haven’t had a vacation together, ever. Not one. One of us always working. And we’ve been together almost 10 years. Last year for my birthday, we planned a whole thing on the Mexican Riviera. We had our plane tickets. Then the swine flu hit and we couldn’t go. Who knows? Maybe when our girls go to college we’ll sit on a beach and do crosswords.’

Except for the swine flu, McCormack isn’t complaining, however. She’s actually all revved up about the new season, debuting March 31 — with guest stars including Donnie Wahlberg, Tess Harper, Allison Janney, Rita Moreno and Steven Weber. ‘It’s hard to walk that tightrope of doing a half-funny, half-dramatic hybrid. Sometimes we’ve gone too dark. I think it took us a while to figure out. But now we’ve got it. We’re doing it successfully. Our show has really grown up and gotten better and better,’ she says. They also have a new director of photography, ‘and he’s making it look like a feature, He’s lighting it different. The tones and the color are different, more real. It’s the edgiest show on USA. Now the look matches the content.’

ON ANOTHER FRONT: ‘Psych’ costar Corbin Bernsen is busy, busy, busy. He’s wedged a couple of promotional events in-between preps for his ’25 Hill’ labor of love — a movie he wrote and is producing. It’s based on the true story of a friendship between a boy who lost his military man father in Afghanistan, and an old veteran who lost his firefighter son in 9/11, and how the two team up to compete in a soap box derby. He’s wrapping up casting with shooting to get underway before month’s end.

With reports by Emily-Fortune Feimster

E! Channel sensation Kendra Wilkinson looks incredible in her February OK! Magazine spread — a song of physical perfection, in fact, for a woman who just gave birth Dec. 11. But not to hear her tell it.

“I can’t say I’m back yet. I’m dieting. I’m going to get better,” says the knockout blond, who went from being one of Hugh Hefner’s girlfriends on “Girls Next Door” to love and marriage with Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Hank Baskett on her own “Kendra” show – to motherhood with the arrival of Hank Baskett IV.

She credits helpful lighting and photography for her dazzling look in the British mag. Meanwhile, “I’m under a lot of pressure to get back in shape for photo shoots and stuff like that. They don’t understand that it’s not that easy to get back in shape,” she complains.

“Actually, I had this doctor come over yesterday, to my new house in Tarzana. . The doctor rubbed on my belly and said ‘There’s always going to be that small little pooch because your uterus is shrinking,’” Kendra recounts.

“Once a week I do hardcore training and stuff,” continues the 24-year-old San Diego native. “I breast feed. I have to have some fat in me. Breast feeding, you burn off so many calories.”

“Kendra’s” new season launches March 14, and she considers it “ten times better than last season” – which is saying a lot, considering what a ratings winner has show has been for E! already.

Despite the challenges, Kendra says motherhood is “the best thing that’s ever happened to me. It’s so great to be a young mom. I can guarantee, if I’d waited 10 yeas to have a baby, I’d be in so much more pain and stuff. I feel like Supermom. If I need to lift a stroller down the steps, I lift it myself. I’m young and strong.”

The best part of all: “The bond between us, the love. He knows I’m his mom now. Every time I walk away he cries, which is painful and a negative thing, but also, every time I’m there, he laughs and smiles. Besides Hank, I’m the only one my baby can recognize and have that immediate comfort with. Wherever we go, if I’m there, he’s happy.”

NEW STEPS: “Dancing With the Stars” judge Carrie Ann Inaba tells us she’s ready to interview some celebrities this weekend at the Oscars as part of her co-hosting gig for the TV Guide Network’s “Live on the Red Carpet.” However, for a “shy” girl from Hawaii, it’s not as easy as it may look.

“I’m not familiar with celebrities. I don’t go out with the Hollywood crowd. I live kind of a quiet life so I thought this job would be exciting,” says Inaba of taking the hosting gig. “It’s really exciting, but it’s a challenge. It’s a whole new world for me because I’m naturally a shy person. I dance. I never liked speaking as much, but then I found myself being a judge and speaking a lot more than I wanted to. Now I’m on the red carpet speaking to celebrities. I get a little nervous because I’m just a girl from Hawaii. It’s bizarre,” she notes. “I have to face my fears of being shy and initiate conversations with people I’ve admired and respected my whole life. It’s an honor to get to interact with them and I just want to do it justice so I study a lot for this job.”

In fact, Inaba tells us she’s been brushing up on all of the Oscar-nominated movies in hopes of being more than prepared for the big day. “I took a couple of weeks off for the Emmys so I could study every single person I could on TV. I spent about two months studying for that. I have to say, I love school and part of being this red carpet host has to do with studying,” explains the acclaimed dancer, who seems to be getting better and better as she goes. “I know I’ve got to speak a little slower. I saw how excited I was so I’ve got to keep that more on the inside and be a little cooler on the outside,”
she adds with a laugh. Hey, it’s the Oscars. Everyone’s excited.

BAD MAN RISING: Dean Norris, familiar to “Breaking Bad” fans as Hank, the amiable blowhard DEA agent brother-in-law of Bryan Cranston’s character, works a whole different set of chops on tomorrow night’s (3/5) episode of “Medium.” His guest role is “the creepiest I’ve ever played. He’s a recidivist child molesting rapist kind of a guy. He’s the brother of the main detective, Scanlon (David Cubitt),” the actor reports.

Norris has been enjoying a busman’s holiday since “Breaking Bad” wrapped production for its March 21-debuting third season in January. He’s also just finished work on a “Lie to Me” episode, and hopes to do more guest roles before the regular TV season is over. “It’s just so much fun. The characters are generally different, and you get to go in there and do a fun, interesting story. You notice, you’re seeing movie stars guest-starring on shows these days,” he points out. Norris shows his funny side in “Cop Talk” videos you can find on YouTube and the AMC website. Those cops he’s seen with in the goofy bits are really cops who are really his buddies, he lets us know. But Norris’ Hank will be anything but funny this coming season, the actor tips. Look out.

NOT THE SAME OLD SAME OLD: Another pilot on the way is ABC’s “Off the Map,” about three doctors who are running a medical clinic in the middle of a tropical rain forest, using limited resources and lots of improvising. The characters are pretty Nina, sexy and tough Indian-American Michael, and brilliant, easily entertained Otis, all of whom left their pasts behind when heading out to the jungle. Sounds interesting.

With reports by Emily-Fortune Feimster

Skateboarding superstar Rob Dyrdek may have amassed a huge fan following with his “Rob & Big” and “Fantasy Factory” MTV reality shows, but he foresees the day when he might be too busy to remain a television star.

“I’ll do TV for a little bit more,” assures the holder of multipleF Guinness book records for skateboard stunts.  “I have so many other things I’m doing like developing a cartoon.  I’m developing a professional skateboard tour.  I’ve got my shoe and clothing line.  And I actually sold MTV another show that I’m developing…At some point I’ll have to focus more on that stuff, but for now, I’m having a lot of fun shooting TV,” he says, referring to his current “Fantasy Factory” show – on which he’s up to even more outrageous adventures than ever before. 

“I think part of last season was sort of understanding the dynamics of everybody in the building and sort of each person’s role,” notes Dyrdek, whose office contains an indoor skate plaza.  “Now we’re just having fun.  We’re making some really ridiculous and over-the-top television, from buying a racehorse and jockeying it in its first race to building a mini drifting car and doing tandem drifting with the world’s most famous drifter, Ken Block — to bringing back Bobby Light and opening up for Blink 182 in Vegas, to swimming with tigers.”  Wow.

 For those who didn’t get a chance to see Dyrdek’s antics in Season 1 (such as riding the purported World’s Largest Skateboard with L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa), it is now available on DVD.  “There’s so much funny, ridiculous stuff that could not find a place in a 22-minute episode,” he notes, “so it’s all on the DVD.”

 MEANWHILE:  Dyrdek tells us his thoughts have been with his buddy and business partner Travis Barker, who has been mourning the loss of DJ AM.  Barker and DJ AM survived a plane crash together last year.  “It’s just so tragic.  I think for Travis, especially, because of the significance of what he lost in the first crash and being bound by that, and to see DJ AM come to an untimely passing was really hard on him.”   

A GIVING SPIRIT:  “Dancing With the Stars” participant Kathy Ireland sent flowers arrangements to every one of her 31 fellow performers (stars and their dance partners), for Monday night’s kickoff of the show, designing the displays herself since they were from Fabulous Florals.com, one of the companies of her $l.4 Billion-a-year lifestyle design empire. 

 The supermodel turned super mogul is giving any money she earns on “DWTS” to non-profit charities, much of it to her dear friend Elizabeth Taylor’s HIV/AIDS foundation.  Dame Elizabeth did some giving of her own, selecting and purchasing the Valentino gown Kathy wore on the show’s premiere.  And those fabulous jewels in which she was bedecked were from Elizabeth’s personal collection.  Kathy is one of the top jewelry designers herself, but Dame Elizabeth is her lucky charm.

LEFT HANGING:  Ever since “CSI’s” Robert David Hall told us that we’ll be seeing the cast suspended from wires this season, as “a moment in time is frozen,” we’ve been kinda wondering what exactly that means.  Hall declined to elaborate, beyond saying that tonight’s (9/24) season premiere is some of the most ingenious TV he’s ever seen.  “Not just in terms of the storyline, but in terms of camera angels.  It’s just movie magic,” according to him.  

That’s not all they’re keeping suspended.  Now we hear from casting sources that “CSI” is looking for real pole dancers “who can hang upside-down unsupported” for an upcoming episode.  “Must be athletic… No nudity.” 

SOMETHING TO SING ABOUT:  With “Little Miss Sunshine” being turned into a musical via the Sundance Theatre Lab at White Oak, casting is underway for all the characters remembered from the quirky 2006 flick about a family trip to a children’s beauty pageant — that was made for $8 million and grossed more than $100 million worldwide, and scored Oscars for Best Supporting Actor (Alan Arkin) and screenplay (Michael Arndt).  The plan is for the new show to be unveiled Oct. 25 in Yulee, Fla.

And they’re looking for a girl to play Mary Jane Greenberg, daughter of 60’s record producer (“It’s My Party,” etc.) Florence Greenberg, for the Pasadena Playhouse production of “Baby, It’s You.”  That musical has been moving up the Equity chain – with intentions aimed at Broadway next year.  It arrives in Pasadena in December.

With reports by Emily-Fortune Feimster

“Spiritual” and “inspiration” are words many people would not attach to Kelly Osbourne.  But that’s bound to change once Season 9 of “Dancing With the Stars” gets underway Monday (9/21) — according to her partner on the show, Louis Van Amstel.

 “I’ve seen that girl change in front of my eyes in every single way,” reports the three-time world champion ballroom dancer, who’s been working with the 24-year-old member of the Osbourne clan for just two and a half weeks. 

 “Physically, apparently she’s already lost 14 pounds.  Emotionally, well, she came in afraid of doing it and wanting to overcome her fears.  The girl came out of rehab only a year and a half ago,” he reminds, referring to Osbourne’s addiction to prescription pain medication.

 He believes that audiences will see “the real Kelly Osbourne” once they view her in action.  He describes “a spiritual side, and also a little bit of therapy” coming to the fore as rehearsals continue.  “It’s inspiring, being part of that every single day, seeing her change.  I don’t want to see that change stop – it’s going to be not only therapy for her, but also a tool to inspire a lot of people.” 

 Does she believe that?  “She’s starting to believe, slowly but surely.

 “Dancing is so close to the soul, whatever baggage there is, dancing will bring it out,” adds the Amsterdam native, “and I’m the one – I don’t call myself a teacher.  Sometimes you’re a therapist, sometimes you’re the bad guy, sometimes you’re like brother and sister, and sometimes, depending on the dance, you pretend to be in love.  It’s so much more than dancing.  It’s mind, body and soul.”

 Make no mistake: the well-known Kelly Osbourne personality is also in evidence.  He reports there’s been a lot of cursing going on during rehearsals, too. 

 “I’m European.  I love that feistiness.  She says whatever is on her mind.  We do a lot of fun bickering.  She calls me ‘Mein Fuehrer’ and I say, ‘Bring it, b—-.’  Our package is PG-13 because of the language.”

PEACE AT LAST: Lisa Niemi must be feeling some consolation from the love pouring out in memory of her husband, Patrick Swayze.  This office alone has had calls and emails from industryites and fans as well as other members of the press; people seem to want to share their stories of the man.  

Along with his performances and his gutsy fight against cancer, Swayze should also be remembered as of a thoughtful star who seemed to try his best to be good and do good.  Before he became ill with pancreatic cancer, we recall his behind-the-scenes push to put together an eco summit in Africa to, well, quite literally save the world.   He wanted, he said, “to see if it’s possible to put together a think tank of the greatest brains in the world and get a 1-2-3 sequence of things we need to do — now.”  He once said that whenever someone raised the issue of racism, he made it a point not to get defensive, but to use it as an opportunity to search within himself for any shred of prejudice and then to root it out.   What a legacy.

It’s a sad week in Hollywood, as we also say goodbye to Variety’s columnist of so many years, Army Archerd, and to Larry Gelbart.  The great wordsmith, whose credits included “M*A*S*H” and “Tootsie,” was one of the most brilliant and witty talents ever in these parts, and was nevertheless gracious and down-to-earth.

REVVED UP:  Professional motocross rider Travis Pastrana is back for a second season of his MTV stunt show “Nitro Circus,” and his pal and fellow rider Jolene Van Vugt says get ready for some of their most outrageous antics to-date.  “We tried to do our best to be at least as good as season one but obviously we want to be better so we’ve tried to top it.  We’ve got dirt bikes, cars, anything with motors and wheels coming back.  We’ve also added some airplane and helicopter stunts.  I think everybody’s going to be pretty happy with season two,” claims Van Vugt, who tells us she’s gotten a ton of feedback from women since doing the show.  “I get a lot of really nice, inspirational emails from young girls who say that I’ve inspired them to start riding or mothers that say their children have been inspired by me in some way.  If you can just be yourself and be an example that someone can look up to, that’s the ultimate compliment.” 

 BE AFRAID:  “Bachelor” creator Mike Fleiss has certainly made a name for himself in the world of reality television, but he tells us he’s been putting a lot of his attention into making horror films as well.  “I’ve always loved horror films.  As a kid, there wasn’t any reality TV.  I didn’t grow up on reality TV, but I certainly grew up on horror movies,” says Fleiss, who is working on a new horror movie franchise and has already produced such flicks as “Hostel” and the remake of “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”  “I always dreamed of making horror movies and to be able to do it now and have it be successful is a wonderful thing.”

 With reports by Emily-Fortune Feimster

Angie Dickinson has been following with interest developments on Martin Scorsese’s planned big screen biography of Frank Sinatra.  She was, after all, an honorary member of the fabled Rat Pack as well as Sinatra’s leading lady in “Ocean’s Eleven” and beyond.

“Wouldn’t that be great if he could really pull that off?” she asks.  She’s hoping for a biopic the quality of the Joaquin Phoenix “Walk the Line.”

“I thought that was one of the great movies made in recent years and a great depiction of the character.  They even improved Johnny Cash’s image,” notes the septuagenarian Hollywood icon.

With Leonardo DiCaprio being talked for Ol’ Blue Eyes, who should play Angie Dickinson?  “Robin Wright Penn or Jessica Biel could play me, and a couple of others.

I’m not that hard to figure out,” she answers with a laugh.  “There have been times when I’ve seen Drew Barrymore in something and thought, ‘If I were young, I could be in that part.’”

Angie has no problem with latter day emulators of the Rat Pack – originally comprised, you’ll recall, of Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford.  “I absolutely love it.  Listen, I’ve been dining out on that for 59 years.  I get a great kick out of it.”

MEANWHILE: The one-time “Police Woman” returns to the tube July 18 in the Hallmark Channel movie, “Mending Fences,” a title that tells of her relationship with onscreen daughter Laura Leighton – as well as the movie’s tale of small town citizens banding together to save their water supply from developers.

Of the former “Melrose Place” star, Dickinson says, “She’s terrific.  The script was too long and she was working on it every day, making it more succinct and understandable to the audience.”  She adds, “She’s absolutely beautiful — skinny as a rail.  I’d look at her every day and say, ‘Oh, my God!’ … I’ve gained 20 pounds since my prime.”

As far as future acting desires, “I’d like to play Meryl Streep’s mother when they do ‘Prada’ 2,” Angie tells us.  However, she’s aware good parts for older people are few.  “It is a young people’s medium.  It always will be and should be,” Angie says.  “We don’t go to movies about old people, except once in a while.  Basically, and rightly so, we want to watch young people.  They’re fun to watch.”

A NEW KIND OF PARTNER:  Robert Gossett has been knee deep in police work on the popular TNT series “The Closer,” but the veteran actor reveals he may be temporarily turning in his police badge for some dance shoes.  According to Gossett, he has been approached by “Dancing With the Stars” to possibly compete when the show returns in September, but no decisions have been made.

“They’re in the process of talking to my agent about it.  Yeah, I would very much like to do it,” Gossett tells us.  “I went to a performing arts high school in New York.  I was a music major there, but I was involved with dancing a little bit.  Later on I did musicals so it involved a lot more dance,” he recalls.  “I think it would be fun.  My kids would get a kick out of it.  They don’t think I can dance anyway.  I always embarrass them, especially the 13-year-old.”

For now, Gossett is busy at work on “The Closer,” which is currently in its fifth season.  “We’ve got an endless supply of great ideas and the writing hasn’t diminished.  It’s been my experience that after a few years the writers run out of gas, but that hasn’t happened here,” he claims.  “A lot of us are veterans.  That’s a nice way of saying older, but what’s great is that we all bring it. The caliber of acting is definitely very high on this show.”  Luckily they’re a tight knit group too with Kyra Sedgwick, who was just awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, as their ringleader.  “We were all so happy for her.  She certainly deserves it.  We all came and supported her, which is very indicative of how we are as a cast.”

THE HIGH SEAS:  John Cleese already knows where he’ll be enjoying special time next year.  The cut up of Monty Python fame will be aboard The Silver Spirit, the  newest ship of Silver Sea‘s ultra-luxury cruise line.   He’ll combine leisure with work, sharing insights and anecdotes from his long career with guests as the Spirit glides from Buenos Aires to Santiago as part of a 91-day Grand Inaugural Voyage.

GETTING ON BOARD: “Southland” star Michael Cudlitz gives NBC props for striving to stay on top of the new media tsunami, by “pushing things in a large way on the internet — on Hulu and iTunes.  They’ve done a really good job as far as pushing people in that direction.  They’re trying out a whole new business model as opposed to fighting it.  Thirty million people are not watching on Thursday night any more – they have so many more choices — but they’re still out there,” he points out.  Cudlitz is, of course, particularly interested in seeing how the network’s restructured programming works out this Fall, when “Jay Leno takes over the 10 o’clock hour and they go down from the typical 15 hours of prime time programming to 10 plus Leno.  It’s more like the European markets and England, a shorter season, and rotating stuff around.”  And edgy, action-filled fare like “Southland” will be tried on the 9 o’clock, rather than 10 o’clock audience.

With reports by Emily-Fortune Feimster