Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Jerry O'Connell and bride Rebecca Romijn will soon be joining the ranks of

expectant parents — if their plans come to fruition.

"Rebecca and I are both looking forward to the next logical step," reveals the star of ABC's "Carpoolers" sitcom, who married the "Ugly Betty" actress last July. "We're married, and we both want children soon. That's our plan, and we can't wait."

The writers' strike that's crippling Hollywood could help them realize their plans, he says. Both have been idle from their series shooting for months now. And that,

says O'Connell, "is giving us some very cherished time together. When we're working, we see each other very little. But with the strike … Well, I'm spending a lot of time gardening, she's become a chronic antique e-Bayer and does work with cross-stitching. But mostly we spend time together."

O'Connell's series has started an eight-week airing of segments that were shot prior to the beginning of the strike, but, like the rest of the industry, he has no idea when he'll be able to return to the cameras.

Universal Studios, where "Carpoolers" usually shoots, "is like a ghost town," he says. "They've laid off so many people — commissary workers, security staff … I can tell how the industry is doing from the situation at Universal. If the parking lots are crowded, you know business is jumping. But as it is now, well, the last time I saw the lot so empty was in the '90s, when all those productions were going to Canada to shoot."

BEST FOOT FORWARD: "We had a bit of a teaser. Now it's live all the way through, and it's going to get much more intense, you'll see," promises Bruno Tonioli, speaking of his new "Dance War" reality show with fellow "Dancing with the Stars" judge Carrie Anne Inaba. In last week's show debut — which met with so-so reviews — the pair were seen out on the road watching tryouts for the show that will pit them against each other in molding the best all-around performing talent to perfection. Or as close as they can get. On tonight's (Jan. 14) installment, she reports, "we choose the groups, which we haven't done yet.

Tonioli co-created the show, which appeared as "Dance X" in the United Kingdom last year. For the U.S. version, "We streamlined it. 'Dance X' was like a prototype show. We did the test run; it went down very well. Having assessed everything, we got rid of things we didn't think we needed. We made it slimmer, more high-powered — like a supercharged Mustang." There's more singing in the American version, he says, and he notes that he and Carrie Anne will get "very involved in grooming these talents."

With it all, Bruno found himself flying between three shows on two continents each week for months on end last year. "I can't believe I did it, actually," he admits. "It takes discipline. You have to take it like a marathon, like an Olympic event, cut away all the things in your life that aren't necessary and focus. The important thing was getting the show done. Obviously, having co-created the show, there was a lot at stake. I had to do it. I feel really proud of what we did."

BRANCHING OUT: "Nip/Tuck" costar Roma Maffia reports she and Rosie O'Donnell could end up collaborating on "Girls of Tender Age: A Memoir," the book written by Mary-Anne Tirone Smith that Maffia recently optioned. "I had Rosie read it, and she's interested, so I'm going to talk to her and see if we can get this done somewhere." Maffia says neither she nor O'Donnell necessarily wants to be in the project based on Smith's recovery of repressed memories of her 11-year-old friend's 1953 murder by a serial killer in Hartford, Conn. "It's just such a wonderful book, I just want to get it to the screen. That's all it's about." Meanwhile, Maffia notes that the last six episodes that the "Nip/Tuck" troupe got in the can before the strike start airing tomorrow (Jan. 15). With the strike, she has time on her hands to focus on "Girls of Tender Age" and other outside work.

WHERE SHE BELONGS: Jennifer Flavin-Stallone tells us we'll never find her trying to emote. "I have no desire to pursue it," says the wife of Sylvester Stallone/mother of three daughters/cosmetics businesswoman. "The first day I took an acting class, I discovered I was a terrible — absolutely horrendous — actress. It's something you're either born with or not."

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 2008 MARILYN BECK AND STACY JENEL SMITH

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