Stars such as Pink and Britney Spears have been named in the race to take the role of blues singer Janice Joplin in a new biopic.

Director Penelope Spheeris has already met with Pink, Lindsay Lohan and Zooey Deschanel in connection with The Gospel According to Janis, and is hoping to further meet with Scarlett Johansson.

Spheeris is quoted as saying: ""[Pink] would be my first choice, but she may have scheduling conflicts."

A spokesperson for Pink confirmed that "she would do just about anything to be part of that project!"

Regarding another interested party, Britney Spears, Spheeris said: "Her agent asked if I could meet with her. Music ability is important, but most of all, the actress must have the spirit of Janis.

"Each of the actresses who has expressed interest in the role [would] bring her own special talents to the part."

Charisma Carpenter says she wants to play Wonderwoman in a new film adaptation.

The Buffy The Vampire Slayer actress, who has a son of almost three, says she would put off having more children in order to play the role. Lindsay Lohan is currently thought to be the front-runner in the race to play the character.

She explained: "I'd like to (have another baby) eventually, but I want Wonder Woman right now. I'm not holding my breath, but I'm crossing my fingers and toes and praying."

The film is to be directed and written by Joel Silver and Buffy creator Joss Whedon.

Naomi Campbell has been arrested at her home on New York City's Park Avenue.

Reuters reports that charges are pending after the supermodel allegedly struck her assistant with a mobile phone.

"We believe this is a case of retaliation, because Naomi had fired her housekeeper earlier this morning," said Campbell's agent, Amanda Silverman.

Tom Jones has been invested with a knighthood at Buckingham Palace.

Jones, whose real name is Thomas Woodward, became famous for second single It's Not Unusual, and has continued to have chart success up until today.

After receiving the decoration, Jones explained: "Accepting a knighthood is a great and humbling honour. I know my family - and I hope my friends and fans - will share my gratitude and excitement. I can only thank the fans who have supported me for years for making it possible."

The 65-year-old added: "It is fantastic. It was lovely to see the Queen again. I love seeing the Queen and I have always been a royalist. She is lovely and she still is lovely. She has got a great smile and her whole face lights up when she smiles.

Angelina and Maddox finally resurfaced to do a bit of shopping this afternoon after a week in hiding. The mother-son team strolled around Paris hand in hand before heading home. After stopping off at the Anjaliom Yoga & Dance Center (144, bd. de la Villette - 75019), Angelina Jolie, 30 and son Maddox Jolie, 4, shopped at specialty craft store Rougier & Ple (13-15, bd des Filles du Calvaire - 75003). Firing up the hair buzz again was Maddox showing off his fresh haircut, bringing back his full-blown mohawk.

The Oscar-winning actress was visibly annoyed at the stares and pointing when she had dinner with hubby Chris Martin on Tuesday at hip lower East Side sushi bar Cube 63.

But the stares turned to gapes when the pregnant actress downed a beer.

"People were looking and waving, and she just tried to melt further into the corner," according to one witness, who said she ordered salad and what appeared to be sushi.

Diners in the 30-seat restaurant observed Martin exit the BYOB joint to pick up several bottles of the Irish stout Guinness at a nearby deli. And they were surprised when Paltrow, who is five months pregnant with the couple's second child, drank one herself.

Paltrow is famous for her rigorous macrobiotic diet, although she altered it the last time she was pregnant, with her daughter, Apple. Some experts recommend a little Guinness for expecting mothers, because of the brew's high iron content.

Her rep confirmed she drank the alcoholic beverage, but said she ate only cooked food, not sushi.

Justin Timberlake reportedly disapproves of Britney's husband Kevin Federline, according to Star magazine. “He thinks Kevin is gross, and there’s not much that would change his mind about that,” a source said. “He says that they [Spears and Timberlake] had a lot of great years together, and he’s pretty sad at how things turned out for her.”

Hip-hop star BUSTA RHYMES reportedly exploded with rage when a young gay fan touched him on the shoulder at a diner in Miami, Florida, on Sunday morning. The TOUCH IT hitmaker is still recovering from the shooting of his bodyguard and friend ISRAEL RAMIREZ outside a New York City warehouse last month. Eyewitness THOMAS BARKER tells Page Six, "The restaurant was packed with transvestites, gay men and drag queens, which obviously made Busta a little edgy. "This became evident when a young gay guy came up behind Busta and tapped him on the shoulder to congratulate the rapper on his recent comeback. "Before the guy could even mutter a word, Busta turned around and repeatedly screamed, 'Why the fuck you touchin' me, man? Get the fuck away from me.' "His two huge bodyguards then caused an even larger scene by pushing the kid away... Busta quietly whispered to his bodyguards, 'I hate fucking faggots, man.'

Oscar-winning rappers Three 6 Mafia say they are producing and recording tracks with Paris Hilton.

“We ran into her at a William Morris Agency party and she said she liked our song ‘Stay Fly’ and asked could we work with her,” said Jordan “Juicy J” Houston, a member of the Memphis hip-hop group.

Houston said the group was in a Los Angeles recording studio Tuesday with the hotel heiress and reality TV star. “We let her listen to a dance track and she really liked it and plans to record it tonight,” Houston told The Commercial Appeal newspaper by phone Tuesday.

He said that since the group won the Oscar for best original song for “It’s Hard out Here for a Pimp” from the film “Hustle & Flow,” they have been swamped with all sort of requests.

The trio will be back in Memphis to receive a key to the city Saturday, deemed Three 6 Mafia Day.

Rihanna might be a formidable force on the music charts, but the Barbados-born beauty is learning that making the leap into acting is harder than it looks — even when you're playing yourself.

"It's weird, but it's also fun. I'm really enjoying it," Rihanna told MTV News of her cameo role in the third and latest installment of "Bring It On," tentatively titled "Bring It On Yet Again." In the sassy cheerleading/dance flick, which is currently filming in downtown Los Angeles, a pair of rival squads compete for a chance to appear in Rihanna's upcoming television special. It stars Beyoncé's sister Solange Knowles ("Johnson Family Vacation," "The Proud Family") and Hayden Panettiere ("Ice Princess," "Raising Helen").

In addition to her brief acting role, the 17-year-old singer will also do a special musical performance for the film, though there's no word yet on which song she'll sing. And although she did flub a line or two during rehearsals, she soon eased into the swing of things and nailed her lines during filming.

"You get better each time you do it," Rihanna said after her sequence.

Rihanna has already been offered several scripts to look over, including a horror film and a couple of dramatic roles. "Singing was always the bigger picture, but I definitely want to get into acting as well," she said. Rihanna says she wants to take acting classes next year, if time permits.

Right now, the singer is wrapping up a small cross-country tour to promote her debut album, Music of the Sun, which spawned the hits "Pon de Replay" and "If It's Lovin' That You Want" . While a third single has yet to be selected by her label, the singer already has her sights on the sultry "Let Me" for that honor.

"It's a very flirty, very naughty song," she said. "I'm basically telling this guy, 'Let me do those things for you... ' It's very sexy."

It's not always easy living up to the hype when you're one of Jay-Z's hand-picked protégés, but Rihanna has been wearing that title well, even giving Mariah Carey's "We Belong Together" a run for #1 (Mariah took the title, nabbing the #1 spot for 13 weeks, but "Pon de Replay" stayed hot on its heels at #2). Going up against her idol, she says, has been one of the coolest things that has happened since her arrival on the scene.

"I looked up to [Mariah] a lot and I still do. I admire her as an artist, and to [compete with her] was a moment I will never forget for the rest of my life," she said.

The short-lived CBS series "Love Monkey" has found new life on VH1. At least temporarily.

The cable channel will air all eight hourlong episodes of the show beginning next month, a network spokeswoman said Wednesday.

No new episodes have been ordered.

The dramatic comedy, which looks at life and love through the eyes of a cynical, single, 30-something music scout, premiered on CBS in January. The network ordered eight episodes, but the series was scrapped after three.

VH1 will air the three previously seen shows back-to-back on April 11, starting at 7 p.m. EDT. The remaining five installments will air weekly on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. beginning April 18.

"Love Monkey," based on Kyle Smith's 2004 book of the same name, stars Tom Cavanagh as protagonist Tom Farrell. Jason Priestly, Larenz Tate and Christopher Wiehl also star.

There have been rumblings of a Kimora Lee-Russell Simmons split for months, but the next issue of USA Today says the announcement will come in a matter of days. The mag names his alleged new girlfriend as model Denise Vasi, 23. "They enjoy doing yoga together," says a source. (Is that what the kids are calling it these days?) Reps aren't commenting, but an insider tells me the end is indeed near.