Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

"Dancing with the Stars" contender Joey Fatone is weighing offers that have been pouring in thanks to his fresh burst of popularity, but says he's not rushing into anything. "There have been talks about doing things, but I'll start addressing that after the show," says the former 'NSync band member. "I'm really focusing on doing this now."

One thing not on his slate any longer is the redo of "The Odd Couple" he and former 'NSync mate Lance Bass were set to do. "We had the script and everything, but the CW canned it, which was kind of odd because the script actually was very funny," he says. "I was totally surprised by how funny it really was. But they're not doing it anymore, and I'm like 'Whatever. I'm moving on. I'm going for something else altogether."

Fatone says the pressure to stay on top on "Dancing with the Stars" each week has, obviously, gotten "more intense. I think it gets harder because now you want to do a more tricks and really showcase talents we may have. And you're getting pulled different places to do interviews and TV shows. With all that you have to rehearse five-six hours a day and try to learn two dances in five days." To those player haters who say Fatone had an unfair advantage because of his background with 'NSync and Broadway shows, he says, "Yes, I have danced, but doing hip-hop dancing is completely different from trying to do technical stuff. That's the tough part."

Win or lose, the first thing Fatone plans to do is spend some time with his wife and daughter, Brianna. "I might be going on a cruise with my wife and daughter, then after that I might be going on the 'Dancing with the Stars' tour.'" He says his little girl has loved watching Daddy dance, "but the sad part is, she goes last week, 'I don't want to vote for you anymore because I want you to come home.'"

FROM THE INSIDE LOOKING OUT: Marla Maples, who has ABC's "The Ex-Wives Club" reality show premiering May 28, admits she has trepidations about returning to the glare of the spotlight after years away. "But there's not really anything I'm afraid of sharing," says the one-time Mrs. Donald Trump. "So much of my personal life is out there anyway. The things that were the most painful for me turned out to be what I grew the most from, so I find I have to share that. That's where my ability to make a difference comes from."

In "Ex-Wives," she, Angie Everhart and Shar Jackson join forces to help newly divorced women and men get through the pain and move on to new lives.

Maples tells us she also is finishing a book she's been writing over the last decade — "an empowerment book that is self-revealing." It deals with her own journey, including how she went from the despair of divorce and tabloid hell to the happy life she has now, and her spiritual growth, "taking steps with God daily." Of her personal life, she says, "I am so happily rarely dating.

I get out, especially when my mom is visiting, or when Tiffany is off doing something," she says of her and Trump's 13-year-old daughter.

Up 'til now, she's kept Tiffany out of the spotlight, but realizes that's changing. She was present for the season finale of "The Apprentice," for instance. "I have done my best to help her develop her unique talents, to find the path that is her own. Donald and I both tell her we want her to do what is her own heart's desire," Maples says. Still, "She does feel the pull of what her siblings do and her father's business."

A TOUCH OF EVIL: Luke Goss says he's been working with "Hellboy 2: The Golden Army" director Guillermo del Toro to make his character in the much-anticipated movie "a good bad guy." No, that's not too specific, but Goss says he can't give details regarding his warrior prince character. "We're under, like, a gag order not to give plot stuff away," he says. Still, he can divulge that del Toro "wrote this for me, which is a massive, massive compliment. It's a real blessing to work with him at this stage of his career. I would definitely say that the mystical, fantastical feel of 'Pan's Labyrinth' is found in this film as well."

The actor, who was a British pop star in his youth — with his Bros band — then went on to prove his acting chops in such fare as the Emmy-winning "Frankenstein" series (he played the monster), is in Budapest for filming of the new "Hellboy" flick. He'll be there for six months. His wife, a backup singer for George Michael, happens to be coming by on tour later this month, and he's happily anticipating a few days together. Ironically, the couple just moved permanently to L.A. in January. "I happened to be in Los Angeles on 9/11, and being here in America when that happened made me realize how much I love this country," says the former Londoner.

FLOATING LIKE A BUTTERFLY: "Dancing with the Stars'" perfect-score-grabbing boxer Laila Ali is proof positive the nut doesn't fall far from the tree. Ali femme's confidence is more than a match for her dad's — boxing icon Muhammad Ali — whether she's in the ring, hoofing it on the hit ABC dance show or just kickin' it on a weekend. We recall when she was at a San Fernando Valley car wash and approached by an admirer who noted, "Your face is so beautiful. How do you keep it from getting cut and bruised?" Ms. Ali's reply? "I don't get hit!"

(With reports by Stephanie DuBois and Emily Feimster)

To find out more about Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith and read their past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com.

COPYRIGHT 2005 MARILYN BECK AND STACY JENEL SMITH

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