Laura Dern is well aware that partisans are already lining up on each side of the political debate to greet with enthusiasm — or annoyance — "Recount," HBO's May 25 movie about the hotly disputed 2000 election, in which she plays Katherine Harris, Florida's secretary of state.

Dern points out that former U.S. Secretary of State James Baker, chief legal adviser for the George W. Bush campaign, "not only likes the film, he's hosting a screening along with Jimmy Carter. That says it all to me; they're very clearly declaring this is a non-partisan project. That ought to hush people up, hopefully. See it. Just watch it," she says. "This is what happens when you get disillusioned, sit [at] home and not vote. Your vote counts."

Kevin Spacey leads a cast including Tom Wilkinson, John Hurt, Denis Leary, Bob Balaban and Ed Begley Jr. in the telefilm — which might be the last work the Oscar-nominated actress does for a while.

Dern is planning to star in a feature with her father, Bruce Dern — which will be a first. "Although I've worked with my mother (Diane Ladd) several times, my dad and I have never worked together," she says. "I've never had the honor, so I'm really looking forward to it. He's also directing this one," which is going under the temporary title of "Hart's Location." But …

"Everything is on hold because of the potential Screen Actors Guild strike. It seems very possible. Certainly the Actors Guild is not going to back down. It's an issue of livelihoods," she says. "There aren't TV movies as there used to be. Reality shows have overtaken scripted shows. Fewer features are being made, and those that are, are being made for less money. A lot of actors are being wiped out, getting jobs outside the industry, losing their homes. But at the same time, the producers hold great opportunities to make money in the new media, so new agreements have to be made — as the writers ultimately, finally were able to do."

STAMP OF APPROVAL: Frank Sinatra Jr. will be on hand in New York May 13 for the first distribution of the Frank Sinatra U.S. Postage Stamp, after which "I'm going someplace in Manhattan, where they're having an album signing.

I don't know why they want me to sign anyone else's album, but if they want me to do it, I will," says the 64-year-old singer/conductor. "There's also an event coming up in Las Vegas," he notes. He won't be present for that one, but you'd better believe other members of the Sinatra clan will. The issuance of the stamp, notes Sinatra, "is a wonderful thing for my family." The government, he adds, "has a policy that a person so honored has to be deceased 10 years. The stamp debuts on the 13, and his actual death was May 14, 10 years ago, so they're cutting this one pretty fine."

Sinatra points out that with his legendary performer father, "People have been aware of his success, his career, his elaborate behavior patterns — the legend becomes bigger than the person. But looking at the picture on this stamp, considering this honor, you have to look at the man underneath, the child of immigrant parents who came to this country 100 years ago, plus or minus, and they were looking for the promise of America."

Sinatra continues to take the great American songbook out on the road, performing private corporate gigs, clubs and, in late summer, a tour of South America. "What can I tell you? The job is the job," says the performer. "When August comes this year, I will have 46 years of doing this."

ON A DIFFERENT PAGE: While Scott Baio is enjoying his success as a reality TV star, the former "Happy Days" actor says he has no plans to revive his acting career to the level he once enjoyed. "I've been playing a lot of golf and hanging out with my baby and wife, and that's about as fun as it gets," Baio tells us of his day-to-day life. "I know that everything that I do now takes time away from my baby, so I'm less likely to go to Timbuktu to shoot a movie. Plus, I've been doing it for so long that your priorities change as you get older."

'UGLY' DE DEUX: Look for Ana Ortiz's relationship with Eddie Cibrian on "Ugly Betty" to heat up in coming weeks. "It's going to get there. We're sort of working up to that," she tells us, acknowledging that Eddie is one "beautiful, gorgeous" hunk of a man. And what does her husband of nine months, musician Noah Lebenzon, think of her on-camera romance? "I try not to talk about it too much," she answers with a laugh.

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 2008 MARILYN BECK AND STACY JENEL SMITH

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