Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Julie Andrews has been keeping very busy of late with her involvement in planning a March 29 memorial tribute to her husband of 41 years, esteemed filmmaker Blake Edwards. That's the word from her daughter and co-author, Emma Walton Hamilton, who acknowledges, "Even though he'd been unwell for some time and was 88 years old, it's been a difficult transition for the family that has had an impact these last few months."

Edwards, whose honor is being put on jointly by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Directors Guild and Writers Guild, died of pneumonia Dec. 15.

It certainly appears that Andrews is continuing to live life to the fullest, even as she deals with her grief.

"She's in terrific shape, and she's always been a person of huge enthusiasm," Hamilton points out.

Andrews and Hamilton have several book deadlines they're working toward. Andrews also plans to direct a play this fall, according to her daughter. And they are to be honored themselves April 4, at New York's Chelsea Piers at the Stars of Stony Brook 2011 Gala, a benefit for Stony Brook Children's Hospital.

Hamilton is glad for the opportunity to help spotlight the good work of the hospital, where her own daughter was born, as well as to talk about her passion, reading for young people.

"Mostly, it's just a lovely honor," says Hamilton, who has co-authored 20 children's books with her mother, as well as the noted "Raising Bookworms: Getting Kids Reading for Pleasure and Empowerment." She is also a faculty member of Stony Brook University and director of its annual Children's Literature Conference, its MFA in Writing and Literature Conference, the Southampton Playwriting Conference and YAWP (the Young American Writers Project), an interdisciplinary writing program for middle and high school students.

Of the latter, she explains, "It's a program about voice, about finding their authentic voice and expressing that creatively, and using creative writing to solve problems. They're actually excited by this. They feel empowered by it. It's the sort of thing where you get to watch kids have these extraordinary breakthroughs."

WHAT GOES AROUND: Hope David Cassidy is enjoying a nice dose of Schadenfreude, now that reality "star" — really, shouldn't there be a new term for this kind of personality? — Richard Hatch has been ordered back to prison for nine months.

He's already served more than three years for tax evasion.

Hatch's return to the tube on "Celebrity Apprentice" raises the question anew: How heinous must a person be for the entertainment industry to quit offering him or her work? To see an obnoxious, lying criminal like the "Survivor" winner being allowed to humiliate and physically push and prod the likes of Cassidy — and then lie about it — is a pretty sick form of "entertainment."

ON THE PARENTAL SIDE: Gilles Marini of "Brothers & Sisters" is glad his son, Georges, can remember "moving from a one-bedroom apartment to a house with his own room. He was 8, 9 years old when Daddy really started to work and make a bit of money, and he completely understands fact of growing up without any money."

On the other hand, "My daughter only remembers having good things around her. I got my first interesting role the day she was born, and two years later got 'Sex and the City,'" he says of little Juliana. "For her, the education is going to be a bit different. We'll have to show her that life is not always easy."

Parenting, he says, "is my No. 1 job, to raise good human beings in the world. There are enough bad ones."

The actor, who grew up in modest surroundings in the South of France, says, "I look back and realize how fortunate I am, how very, very lucky. I came to America, and I'm doing something I always dreamed of. Even if my acting career stopped, I can always say that I've done something that makes me proud."

INCOGNITO: Troian Bellisario of ABC Family's hot teen mystery, "Pretty Little Liars," has nothing but good things to say about her encounters with fans so far. But then, "I'm not really recognized very often. I hear people say, 'Is that her?' but they're not sure," says the beautiful 25-year-old daughter of mega-producer Don Bellisario and actress Deborah Pratt. Troian does know how not to draw attention to herself. She says she doesn't dress or do her makeup like her character, rich girl Spencer, during her off hours. "I'm not very Spencer-like." Also, she admits to being a homebody when she's not working.

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 2011 MARILYN BECK AND STACY JENEL SMITH

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