ROLL CALL: J. Lo’s Working Marriage & Beckham’s Luxurious Life

Your Daily Dispatch of Celebrity Shenanigans by Tommy Vergason

July 9, 2007

A WORKING RELATIONSHIP: Who says you can’t mix your personal life with your career? Certainly not Jennifer Lopez. The multi-faceted superstar is starring with her husband, Marc Anthony, in the new film “El Cantante,” and then the couple will reportedly embark on a joint tour this fall. Lopez talks about working with her husband in the new issue of GLAMOUR MAGAZINE. “It’s totally different than working with an actor you don’t know, where sometimes you have great chemistry and sometimes you don’t,” she reportedly says. “When Marc and I work together, there’s no barrier or boundary. I think that’s how it is in all good relationships—you feel the most safe there.” As for those pesky questions about when Jennifer and Marc will have a baby? “Every other week [tabloids] say I’m pregnant, and I keep telling them, ‘I’m not yet,’” she is quoted as saying. “Maybe it’s more about seeing two people together and wanting to know if it’s real. A lot of the time, having a baby solidifies that [image]—“Oh, this is real, they’re having a child together”—you know what I mean? But I do have four stepchildren—Marc has three children and a stepchild—so my life is very rich with family and children.”

LIFESTYLES OF THE RICH AND BRITISH: Another power couple, David and Victoria Beckham, recently made the big decision to uproot their family from England and move to the U.S. for David’s upcoming stint with LA’s pro soccer team, the Galaxy. THE LA TIMES gears up for David’s debut with the Galaxy on July 21st with a series of articles, chronicling his and Victoria’s rise to international superstardom. Although Beckham will receive a reported salary of $250 million (over five years) with the Galaxy, he and Victoria are no strangers to the jet-set life, having already enjoyed superstar status for years in Europe. THE LA TIMES puts the Beckhams’ wealth under the microscope with some examples of some of their extravagant purchases, including their brand-new $22 million, 13,000-square-foot villa in Beverly Hills (which Victoria is said to be decorating in Moroccan style, similar to another of their homes in Madrid), and David’s ample collection of luxury vehicles — which has reportedly included a $220,000 Lamborghini Gallardo, plus an assortment of high-end Ferraris, Porsches, Jaguars and Mercedes-Benzes.

LANCE TO DANCE AGAIN: Former ‘N Sync star Lance Bass is making a big move of his own, as he leaves Los Angeles for the Great White Way in New York City. E! ONLINE’s MARC MALKIN reports that Bass will take on the role of of the “Dick Clark-like” television dance show host, Corny Collins, in the Broadway musical “Hairspray.” According to the report, Lance is slated to begin a five-month stint with the show sometime next month. In related news, THE NY DAILY NEWS’ RUSH & MOLLOY claim that Bass is happy to move to NYC not just because of the show, but because it’s the home of his rumored new boyfriend — Brazilian model Pedro Andrade. Lance reportedly spent July 4 with Andrade at a party at The Estate in Sag Harbor, NY.

CASTING CALL FOR CARREY & COSTNER: In other casting news, VARIETY reports that Jim Carrey has signed on to play Ebenezer Scrooge (plus the three ghosts that haunt him ) in a new Disney film adaptation of “A Christmas Carol.” Robert Zemeckis has written the screenplay and will direct the film, which will reportedly be a mix of live-action and “performance capture/Disney digital 3-D” animation, a continuing evolution of techniques he introduced in “Polar Express” and continues with “Beo-wulf,” the upcoming film that stars Angelina Jolie. According to the report, Zemeckis wrote the script specifically with Carrey in mind, and the actor said yes straight away. The film’s shooting schedule and release date are still TBD, as Carrey is already attached to other projects, including Tim Burton’s upcoming “Ripley’s Believe It Or Not.”

VARIETY also reports that Kevin Costner will be joined by an all-star cast in the upcoming film, “Swing Vote,” which fictionalizes a race for U.S. President. New additions to the cast include Dennis Hopper, Nathan Lane, Kelsey Grammer, Stanley Tucci, and George Lopez. Hopper and Grammer will reportedly play the Democratic candidate and Republican incumbent, while Lane and Tucci will play their respective campaign managers. Costner plays an apathetic working-class single dad whose vote will ultimately determine the election results, and Lopez will play the local TV station manager whose town is descended upon by the political machinery of both parties. Shooting is scheduled to begin in Albuquerque, N.M., on July 23.