Now, to say you don't adore Will Smith would be as un-American as disliking hot dogs, apple pie, or the 4th of July. The all-American superstar is the king of the Hollywood box office right now, with seven consecutive movies making US$100m or more. He's charming. He's good looking. And he's a devoted family man.

I think Will Smith is great, but the megastar has been making headlines lately for the stuff he's been doing away from the silver screen.

The New Village Academy is a Los Angeles private school founded by Will and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. No biggie there. Private schools in LA are ten a penny. But despite assurances from the Smiths and the school's administrators that it will be secular, rumours abound that it is a Scientology school, destined to send forth well-spoken Californian children dedicated to Xenu.

Will, of course, is greatest of mates with Hollywood's most powerful Scientologist, Tom Cruise. Will has denied that he and his wife have converted to the faith. They're Christians, he says, and I have no reason to disbelieve them. But since they became buddies Will has seemed to have adopted Cruise's overenthusiastic, thigh-slapping, open-mouthed enthusiasm for life.

Word is at the wrap party for his latest flick, Hancock, Will gave the cast and crew...a gift card for a personality test at the Scientology centre of their choice. The gift that keeps on giving. You know, those tests that tell you you're miserable and unhappy, even if you don't know it, and lo and behold, Scientology can fix it for you.

Anyway, the New Village Academy will have some teachers who are Scientologists, amongst other religions, and will use teaching methods developed by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard (or, as Tom Cruise lovingly calls him, ‘LRH.')

One of these is ‘study technology' which focuses on hands-on learning experienced by students and mastering each subject before progressing to the next level. The school says it's simply a learning technique. Critics say it's a way to push Hubbard as an authority figure.

This could all be a storm in a teacup. But why push the Scientology mandate if you're not one yourself? Does Will owe Tom a favour? Or has he secretly turned to Xenu? I won't dig further. They may find out where I live.

 

 

With only a few weeks to go, the Sydney Morning Herald reports that the Nicole Kidman-Keith Urban first born will most likely exit the womb in the US of A. Odds are on the happy couple's hometown of Nashville, Tennessee; or that hub of celebrity births, Ceders-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles. No true blue Ocker kid for these two? Sad!

In other news on the impending birth of the smallest celeb baby bump in years, Nic has reportedly put together a playlist of tunes she wants to listen to while she gives birth in a few weeks (rumoured to be in a gap on Keith's tour, July 12-19). Reckon it'll be 36 hours of labour worth of tunes, or a shorter, sweeter, Caesarian playlist? Included are hubby Keith's croonings, as well as the sounds of Irish flautist James Galway.

For those of you blissfully unaware, Galway is a mega-selling artist who toots a combination of classical tunes and cheesy covers like ‘My Heart Will Go On' and ‘Annie's Song' on the flute. A slightly more mature taste in music than I'd expect from a woman who dated Lenny Kravitz and got hitched to one of the world's most popular country artists.

And it seems that Keith has a bit more homework to do before baby's arrival. The star denied to a Nashville radio station that he'd been attending Lamaze classes with his movie star wife, which prompted Nicole to call back later and set the record straight, according to People.

"Acually, Keith has been doing Lamaze lessons, he is selling himself short! He doesn't know the name (of the classes) but he has been very good at it."

You've only got a couple of weeks, Keith. Better get swotting.

 

 

Tacky handbags and hair extensions at dawn! Malibu's blonde babe who has definitely seen better days, Pamela Anderson, has stuck her strictly vegetarian claws into nice-but-dim Jessica Simpson.

Our Jess wore a t-shirt out and about a couple of weeks ago which read ‘Real girls eat meat' - apparently a dig at her boyfriend Tony Romo's vegetarian ex, Carrie Underwood. PETA advocate Pam didn't take too kindly to this declaration of pro-carniverousness, and when asked about it on Aussie radio called Jessica a "bitch" and a "whore."

Pot. Kettle. Black.

Pam, when you realize that one out of the two of you has starred in a sex tape and appeared on twelve Playboy covers, and it isn't Jessica, you get back to us.

And it's her birthday to boot! Happy 41st, Pamela. You don't look a day over 47.

 

 

I love me the Olsen twins. Sure, they give the fab Michael K from dlisted a creepy, trolls under the bridge waiting to rob you of your gold coins vibe. They may say 'prune' when posing for cameras to get just the right form of rich girl pout, but they're both styley and I love Mary-Kate in Weeds, a great TV show.

I have even more respect for the littlest twin after she bagged out The World's Biggest Douchebag (and I can capitalize, because it's official!) The Hills' Spencer Pratt. Mary-Kate and Spencer went to high school together in LA, she revealed on the David Letterman show recently.

Dave asked if Mary-Kate was friends with Spencer, to which she emphatically replied no. She then revealed that he had a bad temper and agreed with Dave's suggestion that Pratt was ‘wormy.'

Typically, Spencer sucked up this encounter and kept a dignified silence.

"I know I've made it when a famous troll is talking about me on Letterman," he blabbed to Usmagazine.com. "I forgive her, though," he added. "She's had to go through life as the less cute twin, which must be tough."

Yes, Spencer, I'm sure Mary-Kate cries herself to sleep every night on a mattress made out of her billion-dollar fortune.

What's been your favourite gossip story of the day? Let me know below.