In the days just before and after her 40th birthday on Feb. 11, Sheryl Crow learned to surf, threw herself a birthday bash for 400 and performed at the Olympics. First, on Feb. 7 the rocker flew to Hawaii, where she mastered a longboard and rode the waves in a video for her upcoming album C'mon, C'mon. Then, on Feb. 10 she caught a red-eye to L.A. for her private party-concert that drew pals Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Henley, Bonnie Raitt, Anjelica Huston, Meg Ryan and David Spade. I'm told Spade spent most of the night hoping to get to know Ryan a little better. "He followed her around like a puppy dog," says the source.

Ryan has no shortage of admirers. On a recent trip to Rome for her film Kate & Leopold, she stayed at the Hotel de Russie, where an entire wing was closed off to accommodate Ryan and her costar Hugh Jackman in separate quarters. One night Ryan and a few others were dining at Il Bolognese, a restaurant near her hotel. A waiter delivering an expensive bottle of champagne explained that a businessman across the room was struck by how much more beautiful the actress was in real life than in her movies. Charmed, Ryan invited the stranger over for a toast.

Crossroads isn't just Britney Spears's first film; it's also the debut of her 10-year-old sister Jamie Lynn, who plays the young Spears. When it came to acting like a star, Jamie Lynn caught on quickly. "When she got there, she was, like, Miss Diva," reports an amused Britney. Apparently Jamie Lynn wasn't happy with part of her wardrobe. "I'm not wearing these pink shoes!" she told her sister. It was all good fun. "She had a ball," says Britney. "She's the little star at school right now. She's just 'Miss Everything' and lovin' every minute of it."

Dog lovers may have been surprised to see Glenn Close sing "God Bless America" in tribute to 20 rescue dogs and their handlers at the start of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York City on Feb.11. After all, she's Cruella de Vil. Turns out Close has ties to the second-oldest continuously run sporting event in the country (the Kentucky Derby is first). The actress is not only a cousin of Ellen Charles, a former Westminster judge, but also owns three dogs, including Petey, a papillon and a scion of the 1999 Best in Show dog, Kirby.

Noah Wyle and wife Tracy Warbin have two new additions to their family. The couple recently adopted a pair of potbellied pigs they named Henry and Harriet. That brings to seven their posse of pigs, which they keep at their ranch north of Santa Barbara. They get them from a rescue outfit for abandoned pigs called Li'l Orphan Hammies. (Is this some strange ER bonding ritual? Wyle's pal and former costar George Clooney has had a potbellied pig, Max, for years.)

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