Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Hugh Jackman, Tony Bennett and Paul McCartney are among the friends and admirers of Shirley Jones who've given a tentative yes to joining in a proposed concert special celebrating the 75th birthday of the musical star cum Oscar-winning actress cum Partridge Family matriarch.

PBS, she says, "is considering it. A lot of people have already said yes" — to appearing on the show if it gets a green light. Whether it does or not, well, "a lot is going on right now," she notes.

First on the list — Shirley has just wrapped a guest star role as a raging alcoholic lounge singer on Benjamin Bratt's "The Cleaner" A&E series that she found her most demanding part in years.

"It was a real rough shoot for me — but a wonderful shoot," says Shirley. Referring to her husband, Marty Ingels, she adds, "The whole time I was working on it, I was telling Marty, 'Leave me alone. Don't speak to me. Don't look at me. I don't want to hear from you.' I had to keep my concentration so focused, which isn't as easy at my age," she adds.

"The very first day of work, we shot a scene where my character's in bed with the DTs. I was screaming, yelling and pulling at my clothes," she tells us.

In another sequence, she and her spouse and fellow lush, played by Steve Landesberg, are arguing over the prospect of going through detox. He tells her he's too old to change, and she snaps back "Are you too old for these, too?" and opens her robe, exposing her bare breasts in front of a bunch of people. "That's what it will look like," says Shirley, who actually wore a very low-cut brassiere to shoot the moment.

The character doesn't appear much like the Shirley fans know, either: "I have a black wig and I'm wearing ostrich plumes and jewelry up the wazoo."

She relates that Bratt came to her and "hugged me and said it was an honor to work with me when we finished shooting. He was so nice. It's really wonderful at this age to have done work you feel proud of."

FROM THE INSIDE LOOKING OUT: Joan Lunden's first set of twins turn 6 in June, and her second pair of twins are now 4. And her grown children — "my big kids," as she says, "are now 21, 26 and 28, and they're around all the time. One of them works for me in my office now."

Even with all that mothering going on, the remarkably young-looking, 58-year-old former "Good Morning, America" host is managing to work on expanding her Web presence, to stay active on the lecture circuit (one favorite topic, for women's groups: "Now That We Have It All, How Do We Do It All?"), and to do charity work.

And, oh yes, she also has two television shows — her "Health Corner" on Lifetime, and her "Hometown Heroes." The second 10-part series of the latter show is currently airing on DirecTV's 101 Network.

Getting everything done is a matter of scheduling, says Joan. "Every couple of months I go in and do another 10 programs, then I'll go out and shoot pieces in between." It's also a matter of maintaining a positive attitude and loving what you do.

"For two decades I had to go greet Americans with a positive attitude, and it's been a huge component of my success and my longevity," she says. "And to be involved with a program like 'Hometown Heroes' — I defy anyone to sit and watch it and not be inspired." The show's audience has grown, with profiles of such caring folks as Eva Payne of Fremont, Neb., who founded a camp for children infected or affected by HIV or AIDS and Karen Shirk of Xenia, Ohio, who organized a group that trains dogs to help people with disabilities. "A thread that runs through a lot of the stories is that many times these efforts were started by a person who had a suffered a tragedy, and wanted to do something positive in its aftermath. The woman who created Voices of 9/11 lost her son that day, and tried to figure out what she could do for all the survivors, what would help them go through the grieving process and serve them. And so she started this online living memorial." The "Voices of September 11th" episode, featuring Mary Fetchet, airs Sunday (4/26).

ANOTHER GENERATION HEARD FROM: Max Winkler, aka Henry's son, is making serious strides in his drive to join the leagues of filmmakers. "He's just funded his movie that he wrote and will direct, and he and his friends wrote and sold a script to Universal," reports Winkler Senior. "He is on fire. I'm unbelievably proud." One of Max's pals with whom he wrote that recently purchased script is Jonah Hill of "Knocked Up" and "Superbad" fame. "Jonah Hill and my son have been friends since the fifth grade," reports Henry. Small town.

JUVENELIA: Not only does MTV have a pilot in the making for a series centered on a high school basketball player who inadvertently shows off his remarkable endowments during a game, commanding new respect — that one's called "Hard Times," — there's also the Anne Heche–Thomas Jane HBO pilot that centers on a well-endowed but struggling basketball coach — that one's called "Hung." We'll leave it to you to muse about what the next one might be called, but obviously some creative types around here don't have their head in the game when they go to watch b-ball.

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 2009 MARILYN BECK AND STACY JENEL SMITH

DISTRIBUTED BY CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.