Hollywood Exclusive by Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Mario Lopez tells us that although many celebrities are currently vying for a spot on "Dancing With the Stars," his famous friends aren't interested.

"They saw how much work I was going through so they said, 'Forget that,'" says Lopez with a laugh. However, Lopez claims he has no regrets about doing the show, which helped revitalize his career and brought a new woman into his life, his dance partner, Karina Smirnoff. Rumors are still swirling around the "friends," who've been spotted vacationing and even spending Thanksgiving together. "She's been busy because she's been doing the tour," Lopez tells us of their current time together. "She's a good friend. She's a great person. I have nothing but respect for her and I think the world of her."

If there is indeed more than a friendship, Smirnoff might not be too happy about the fact that Lopez will be surrounded by many beautiful women as he's set to host the Miss America Pageant, which will air Jan. 29 on CMT.

"I want to try to make it a lot of fun and keep the girls at ease," he says of his duties. Sounds like a sweet gig for a bachelor. "There could be worse jobs," he observes.

Lopez says he's just ready to entertain. "I love the fact that it's live. I really don't get nervous, to tell you the truth. I'm a little concerned, though, because I'm not going to have much rehearsal time. I will literally get there the day before and we'll go over stuff and then it's show time." At this point, he's not even sure if they'll be using his dancing skills. "They haven't asked me. So if they expect it, I hope they ask me soon!"

FROM THE INSIDE: "The Wire's" Michael Kenneth Williams tells us he became envious of Ben Affleck's connection with younger brother Casey during the recent filming of "Gone, Baby, Gone." "I am so jealous of his and his brother's relationship. I wish me and my brother could work together like that," admits Williams, who plays a detective in the older Affleck's directorial debut.

However, he says Affleck provides a supportive working environment for all, family or not. "I think he has a very long career as a director in front of him. He's very passionate, very nurturing. He cared about the actors," claims Williams. "He would come in and start re-writing the script on the side, and then we'd have an impromptu workshop. While the actors are there working on the scene, he's right there with his sleeves up, helping. It was good having that energy because you don't get that a lot with certain directors." The film, an adaptation of Dennis Lehane's novel about Boston detectives investigating a little girl's kidnapping, is due in October.

In the meantime, Williams, who was recently nominated for an NAACP Image Award, is looking forward to his widely acclaimed HBO show, "The Wire," going into syndication on BET.

"I think definitely it's going to bring a larger viewing audience … Now they can get a chance to still get the story, but maybe without some of the language or straight-up rawness that may have deterred someone from watching it" on HBO. He tells us the cast will begin filming the fifth and final season in March.

GOOD TO BE BAD: Nice guy Tom Cavanagh says he's looking forward to getting back to his dark roots and, no, we're talking about his hair. The Canadian native's next movie is the psychological thriller "Sublime," which hits theatres in March. "It's different for me. It's very dark," he says of playing a guy who goes to the hospital for a routine procedure, but gets mixed up with another patient. "In Canada, I had a few years' run of playing the bad guy, so I got used to that. But now in the States most people know me as Ed. He was one of my favorite all-time guys to play," adds Cavanagh about his critically acclaimed, yet short-lived TV series. "You get associated with the thing that is the highest profile, and 'Ed' was the furthest-reaching thing I've done. Getting the chance to get back into the darker things was a blast," he boasts. "Some of it was green screen. You're in a harness, it's 4 a.m., you're flying around, there's blood all over the place, you've been working a 21-hour day, and nothing could possibly make me happier. It's always so much fun to play the villain."

THE BIG SCREEN SCENE: Production is now targeted for an early April start for John Davis' "The Express," centering on the life story of Ernie Davis, the first African-American to win the Heisman trophy, whose career was cut short by leukemia. But a tall casting order has to be filled first for the Universal feature. In addition to the role of Davis, they'll be filling the part of brilliant-but-volatile football star Jim Brown, who helped recruit Davis for Syracuse. And they'll need an actor who can play John F. Kennedy, in a scene in which the president congratulates Davis on his achievement. Already cast is Dennis Quaid as revered, reviled Syracuse coach Ben Schwartzwalder, whose resistance to putting Brown on the field and such actions as wanting Brown to sign an agreement that he wouldn't date white girls have been documented. Schwartzwalder was eventually the central figure in a 1970 boycott by nine African-American players, a situation that led to protests and a riot — and finally, the honoring of those students at the university this past fall.

(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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