Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Now that "The George Lopez Show" has wrapped for the season, the comic-cum-actor-producer-director says he'll be concentrating on the big screen.

"I have a movie at Universal called 'The Richest Man in the World,'" says Lopez. "I'm trying to get Universal to finally buy it. The script is very good. I helped write it with a couple of guys. That one would be important to get done." He describes the film as a cross between the classic 1970 Godfrey Cambridge starrer, "Watermelon Man," and Warren Beatty's Oscar-winning 1978 comedy, "Heaven Can Wait." "It's about a Latino guy who's envious of what is considered fame and success, then he becomes that guy and realizes it isn't what it's all about. None of it is real, and he chooses. … It's not even the simplicity, but the comfort and love of a life that's simple as opposed to a life of high fortune with no redeeming value to it."

Lopez says he believes he escaped fame's increasingly more rapacious clutches because he didn't achieve his level of renown earlier in life. "I think I'm old enough to not really kind of buy it," he says. " It's funny, in the beginning, like say 20 years ago, I would say, 'Can you imagine walking into a restaurant and having everybody know you?' But now it's about keeping the show on the air and making that important to us, the people who watch it, and the kids. I care about my work." He adds, "I've been fortunate in success over the last six years, and I have a lot of opulence in my life, but I know that what's real is driving my daughter to school. That's the richness of the story."

Meanwhile, Lopez reports he'll be popping up on "Reno:911" as "the governor. I'm going to tape like four speeches, and I'll show up throughout the season." He adds, "I think I'm like a rogue governor ... I may do Arnold Schwarzenegger with such a heavy accent they might not be sure who I'm playing."

ON THE POSITIVE SIDE: "It's never felt scary. It felt scarier to stay in news." So says Daryn Kagan, who since November has been devoting her time, energy and talent to reporting stories that show the best of the human spirit via her DarynKagan.com website. "I had a great, great run at CNN. I'm sure I could have gone to Fox or somewhere else and knocked on the door, but in three years I would have been in the same position," says the former anchor.

Now, she reports, her site is building a larger and larger audience, bigger advertisers are coming aboard, and she is continuously finding new ways to extend her brand in both the new and old media worlds. More visitors are contributing stories themselves, or sending Kagan story tips. And the indefatigable Kagan is penning a book, "What's Possible," which will be a combination of "stories you get on the website and also my story — the back story of creating the site." She wants readers to know, "At some point, your reinvention time will come. Don't worry, it's going to be great. It's the beginning of a new world you get to create. Everyone faces changes — in their jobs, marriages, children growing up. You can be overwhelmed, or take charge and use the opportunity."

She also has a PBS documentary in the making, "Breaking the Curse," about an Atlanta housewife who has become a leading advocate for people afflicted with leprosy in India. "It's a classic DarynKagan.com kind of story," says Daryn.

PART WITH MUSCLE: The man behind the buff body of Sylvester Stallone, trainer Gunnar Peterson, snagged a role in Sly's movie "Rocky Balboa," hitting DVD today (3/20), but the personal trainer to the stars tells us he rarely likes to be in the spotlight. "It sounds funny to call it perks, but that's really all it is," claims Gunnar, who's trained Stallone for more than five years, of his role as Rocky's trainer. "I try not to go on set. I try not to go to premieres. I do what I do, and if things come my way, great, but to try to shine in somebody else's light is not very smart. The last thing I need is to look like I'm trying to rub shoulders to do stuff," says Gunnar, who also has trained the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Ben Affleck, Bruce Willis, and Avril Lavigne.

Now Gunnar's got everyone wanting to look like Stallone, who's in top form at age 60. "He keeps raising the bar for a lot of people," Peterson points out. "He comes in the gym with just as much energy as anybody. It goes to show that 60 is just a number."

TOUGH ROLE TO FILL: A casting notice has gone out for "Anna Nicole"— as in the late blond bombshell, for a movie about her life to start shooting early next month, by filmmaker brothers Jack and Joseph Nasser. They did last year's "The Amber Alert Story" for Lifetime.

(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 2007 MARILYN BECK AND STACY JENEL SMITH

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