Ben Affleck

Scoop

UPDATED 10/27/2003 at 01:00 AM EST • Originally published 10/27/2003 at 01:00 AM EST

AUTUMN ROMANCE
It's fall. It's getting cool. Could that explain the surge in celeb PDA? A look at who's doing what where—and who's with someone new

Ben and Jen are back. Cameron and Justin are still going strong. And Nicole and Lenny are, well, let's just say it has been a banner week for celebrity PDA.

On Oct. 11 in Boston, Affleck, 31, and fiancée Lopez, 34, caught the third game of the American League championship series pitting his beloved Red Sox against Bronx-born J.Lo's New York Yankees. But don't expect Affleck to always be such a good sport. "You can't ask somebody who's born in The Bronx not to root for the Yankees," he told Nightline on Oct. 10, "but you can ask them to do it downstairs." Three days later the couple were in L.A. shopping for furniture before Affleck picked up a good-citizenship award from the People for the American Way Foundation at the Beverly Hilton.

After he finished hosting Saturday Night Live on Oct. 11, Justin Timberlake, 22, met up with Cameron Diaz, 31, at the SNL after party at Compass restaurant in Manhattan. The couple sat among 14 friends, including Drew Barrymore, and proceeded to become "demonstrative"—as one witness puts it—in their affection for one another. After some heated hugs and kisses, the pair dropped a generous tip before leaving around 3:45 a.m.

FLEDGLING PAIRS
Meanwhile Nicole Kidman, 36, and rocker Lenny Kravitz, 39, caught a production of the opera La Traviata at New York City's Lincoln Center. Kidman sported a large rock on her left ring finger, fueling speculation of a very serious event. But a rep for the actress said, "She's not engaged. I think it's a ring she [already] had." In other Kidman news: On Oct. 14 she prevailed in another libel suit—her second—against a British tabloid that had suggested she'd had an affair with actor Jude Law, 31, while making the film Cold Mountain in Romania last year.

There's Room for Romance in the World of Angelina Jolie

Gentlemen, start your engines. Angelina Jolie says that at the moment the only man in her life is her 2-year-old son Maddox. And she wouldn't mind a new romance. "I think I would take a lover before a husband," Jolie, 28, told Scoop while in London promoting her upcoming film Beyond Borders. "But I am so happy being a mom and working. And I am really cautious about who I bring into my son's life." Jolie says she has no regrets about splitting from her last husband, Billy Bob Thornton, 48, even though they had just adopted their son. "I think it was absolutely right for us to divorce," she says. "We knew when it was ending. We knew when it was over. It was the best thing that could have happened to everybody involved."

So who would be the perfect new man? "What qualities?" Jolie asks. "A sense of purpose. Love should be that person that inspires you to be a better person. In every way. And what they do with your life is just wonderful to you. They teach you how to do better things. And I haven't had that kind of love."

The New Joe Goes Euro
Aw, shucks: The latest Joe Millionaire, Texan David Smith, is just a country boy at heart, out to bamboozle 14 European women

The second season of Joe Millionaire begins Oct. 20 on FOX. This time David Smith, 24, an $11,000-a-year rodeo cowboy from Texas, hoodwinks 14 romance-minded European women into thinking he is worth S80 million. Smith offered Scoop a few insights.

On American women vs. European women: "I like to kid around some, and some of the [European] women didn't get my jokes. They're very straightforward and take things seriously."

On whether the show is xenophobic: "We don't take advantage of the foreign ladies. We don't make fun of them. There was never any intention to make anyone look bad."

On love prevailing: "There were definitely some connections made. There were feelings. I felt like every one of them was connecting, and it was really weird. But whether they liked me for the money, and if they liked me after they found out I lied, that's what the show is about. And I can't talk about that."

On lying: "It was tough. I started to connect with these girls and feel for them, and after a date, back to reality, I'm like, 'I can't do this anymore! I just want to go home.' "

On his fashion sense: "I'd never heard of Gucci or Versace before I went there. I like Lucky brand jeans, and that to them was nothing! To them that was Kmart special."

On his horse sense: "My dad's like, 'Are you ever going to finish college?' I'm working on it. I plan on enrolling at Sam Houston State University and finishing with a kinesiology degree."

On whether he'll miss the millionaire lifestyle: "Not really, to tell you the truth. It doesn't bother me, sleeping in my truck. I'm very happy in my life."

Roy's Fight for Life: 'He's Mentally Tough'

It sounds as amazing as the Siegfried & Roy revue: A piece of Roy Horn's skull, about the size of a playing card, has been removed and tucked away in his belly, a source tells PEOPLE. It's part of a life-saving surgical procedure the entertainer underwent to relieve swelling in his brain after being mauled by one of his tigers on Oct. 3. (The skull section, kept vital in abdominal fat, will be returned to the brain after swelling subsides—hopefully in a few weeks. Some doctors prefer to store such body pieces in liquid nitrogen, but both ways work, says Denver neurosurgeon Michael Handler.)

Doctors are now more optimistic that Horn will survive the attack. But the long-term condition of the Las Vegas performer, who suffered a massive stroke and was clinically dead on the operating table for about a minute, is uncertain. He remains on life support. A hospital insider says there's a chance he "could exist in a prolonged vegetative state" and that Horn, 59, is paralyzed on his left side. While his neurosurgeon, Dr. Derek Duke, says "it will be some time before the extent of his recovery is known," many remain optimistic. "Siegfried has vowed to stay with him," says Robin Leach, the entertainment reporter. Says another friend of Horn's: "He's mentally tough."

TIGER UPDATE
And what of Montecore? The 600-lb. white tiger—who mauled Horn after growling at the performer and refusing to obey commands—remained quarantined from other animals in the Siegfried & Roy menagerie until Oct. 14. He was then released to the habitat he shares with his sister and brother at the Mirage hotel's Secret Garden attraction. There, says Horn's spokesman David Kirvin, the hope is that Montecore will "live a wonderful and happy life." At some point in the future, Montecore will occasionally be put on public display with the other tigers.

What's in a Baby's Name?
The most popular baby names last year? Emily and Jacob. But in celebrity circles having an unusual name for your child sometimes seems essential as a good agent. So what did actor Jason lee, 33, and his fiancée name their son born on Sept. 28? Pilot Inspektor. "They just liked the name Pilot," said Lee's rep. "And I believe Inspektor came from a friend." On Sept. 20 singer Nelly Furtado, 24, and her boyfriend introduced daughter Nevis, reportedly named after the Caribbean island where she was conceived. Actor Colin Farrell, 27, welcomed his son with model Kim Bordenave, 33, into the world on Sept. 12 and called him James. Nice, but no showbiz pizzazz. May we suggest Guinness Farrell?

POP QUIZ

Barbra Streisand

Arnold Schwarzenegger is California's new governor, but Barbra Streisand, 61, may well be the strongest political voice in Hollywood. Scoop asked about the state of her state and her new CD, The Movie Album.

You opposed California's recall movement. Why?

Because our traditional electoral process in this country has served us very well for over 200 years. This was a case of political opportunism. In my humble opinion, Bush isn't doing such a great job, so
should we recall him?

Why do you use your Web site to post your views on the government?

Our country is heading in the wrong direction, and as a citizen of this great country, this is the most important role I can play.

What makes you a lightning rod for conservatives?

I tell the truth. If they don't have a credible argument to dispute what you say, then they try to attack the person.

Forgetting about politics for a moment, your stepson Josh Brolin is set to marry Diane Lane. Excited?

They have found each other at a great time in their lives. So romantic. Like the music from The Movie Album.

Okay, we'll bite. Tell us about your new CD. What drew you to songs from the movies?

They recall the pleasure the film gave you. I feel that connection very much with "Wild Is the Wind" [from the 1957 film]. I loved Anna Magnani, and I had a big crush on Tony Franciosa. It's fun to revisit that first innocent rush.

Any other connections?

Charlie Chaplin's "Smile," which I will always think of as "Sammy's Song," because I recorded it two nights after we had to put our beloved little dog Sammy to sleep.

Will you do another movie musical?

I have projects in the works that do excite me. One of them is an adaptation of All About Eve.

You wait 10 years before listening to your own stuff. Will this CD go into the dresser drawer until 2013?

Just about.

ON THE BLOCK

DHARMA'S DOMAIN

PRICE: $4.9 million
PLACE: Los Feliz, Calif.
SPECS: Good vibes abound in this Mediterranean-style villa being sold by Jenna Elfman, 32, best known for Dharma & Greg. She bought it from Madonna in 2000 for $4 million. Built in the 1920s, the 5,000-sq.-ft. house features stenciled beam ceilings and a formal dining room that opens to a veranda.