princess

histar.com If the filming is any indication, PENELOPE CRUZ's new movie, "Sahara," should have quite a run. Co-star MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY got a bad case of diarrhea and has had to regularly rush off to the bathroom during filming. A number of the cast and crew have come down with it, but it’s causing the most problems for Matthew since he’s the leading man and everything shuts down when he has to run.

Ted C. of E!Charity PoliceI suggest we take a benevolent breather. Back to the bawdy types in a sec, but first, wanted to let you all know I just flew (with E!'s Melissa Rivers) to co-grand-marshal the Miami Aids Walk again. Slept for two seconds at Todd Oldham's Hotel, which the Queer Eye boys blessed moments before my arrival.Was glad to help: Care Resource was able to raise over $200,000 through the walk. You can click that second link if you want to add to the total. You know, maybe help heal in this country, not harm it. Just a thought.Tito Puente Jr. helped entertain, by the by, and there was a big-ass party Saturday night at Jimmy'z and the Forge, whose owners are such good pals with Michael Jackson. Michael wasn't there, however. Last time he was, I'm told his date was the dude who's suing him. Interesting.

EOnline.com GOOD CAUSE: Natalie Portman touring Uganda to raise funds for African women dealing with poverty and the AIDS epidemic.

Branagh Auctions His Acting Tips imdb.com British thespian Kenneth Branagh is giving aspiring actors the chance to learn from the best - by auctioning a master class with him for charity. The Much Ado About Nothing actor, 43, is an acclaimed performer on- stage and on the silver screen, and has offered a two-hour intense session on any William Shakespeare scene to the highest bidder. All proceeds will go to the Paul Bevan Cancer Foundation, which is building an information and support center for patients suffering from the disease and their families. A spokesperson for the foundation says, "The winner will get a two-hour one-to- one lesson with him. They will discuss and act a scene from a Shakespeare play of their choice - either a soliloquy or a two-hander with Kenneth. He'll then explain what makes the scene work and how one can get the most out of the writing."

BIRDS OF A FEATHER: Sting sprouts wings (far left), while Elton John's performance is a beak above the rest as the two British musicians come out for the 13th annual Rainforest Foundation fund-raiser in New York. The organization, founded by Sting and wife Trudie Styler in 1989, has also found friends in Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith, who played hosts for the evening. (Kevin Mazur/WireImage; SWF/ABACA)

Page Six We Hear.... THAT Beyoncé will perform Saturday aboard the Queen Mary 2, where Katie Couric will have a boatload of stars - including Nicole Kidman, Antonio Banderas, Whoopi Goldberg, Tina Fey, Nathan Lane and James Gandolfini - for a cancer benefit . .

MR. AND MRS. SMITH: Proving they're still going strong, Will and Jada Smith take a couples-only break from filming his new romantic comedy, The Last First Kiss, in New York. (RJ Capak/WireImage)

"It was very easy to convince me to do the movie because if somebody gives me the opportunity to laugh at myself, I'm right there."--Antonio Banderas, about taking the role of assassin Puss-in-Boots in Shrek 2, out in May (people.com)

PRINCE CHARMINGBy DAN AQUILANTENY PostPRINCE"Musicology"NPG RecordsPrince is back and he's bad - and that's good.With the precision of a debutante at her coming-out party, the fuchsia funkster has masterfully orchestrated his re-emergence into the mainstream with high-profile appearances at the Grammys and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Today's release of "Musicology" is the cherry on the top of a nutty Prince sundae.While his last two albums - the instrumental "N.E.W.S." and the lame jazz/funk "Rainbow Children" - came off as experimental searches for a new direction, on "Musicology" Prince rediscovers his groove.He's also learned that a single-disc album with a dozen good tunes is preferable to a double disc packed with fillers."Musicology" is more focused than any record Prince has done in more than a decade - and every song's a winner.Here are nods to funk, pillow-talk R&B and gut-busting soul - all the stuff that drenched "Purple Rain," minus the overt sexuality.Maybe that notion of salvation through sex doesn't mesh with the old-fashioned sounds he's toying with.More than likely, these new songs reflect the domestic bliss of the newlywed Prince."When You Call My Name" is an open valentine to his bride. Here Prince sounds seductive, devoted and believable as he sings, "I just can't stop writing songs about you 'cause I love you so much."The album's final track, a medium-tempo pop ballad called "Reflection," is more about the everyday business of being in love - not the fireworks of falling in love. This is the big difference between the now 45-year-old Prince and the kid who shook the pop world 25 years ago.But it's the title track that's the album's stand-out. With its balance of syncopated bass work and sax blasts, "Musicology" is a funked-up homage to the musicians Prince believes he owes a debt to - Sly Stone, James Brown and Public Enemy mastermind Chuck D.When you know the artists Prince bows to, the rest of the album's easy to understand.

histar.com Got any naked photos of ELIZABETH HURLEY? DURAN-DURAN does and they showed them on the jumbo screen at a recent sell-out concert in London. Before she became famous, Hurley posed for some film taken by keyboard player NICK RHODES, who shot Elizabeth parading around in her underwear and standing naked in the shower. Hurley apparently took part in the video as a favor to Rhodes.

Page Six . . TOBEY Maguire, Heather Graham, Sean Hayes, Owen Wilson and Ellen DeGeneres watching Leonardo DiCaprio get out-bluffed by Jack Black in the poker final at Amanda Scheer-Demme's tournament benefitting the Peace Games in Los Angeles . . .

Kristin of E! Q: From jennerb: You said on E! News Live that James Marsters would be shaving his head on On Air with Ryan Seacrest, but I haven't heard or seen anything more about that... A: He told me that himself last week--tune in April 27, and you'll see him shaving his head live on Ryan Seacrest. He's doing it to raise money for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

Chrysalis Third Annual Butterfly Ball Will Raise Money to Help Economically Disadvantaged and Homeless Find Jobs. Amanda Bynes Andre 3000 of Outkast Jackie Chan Chris Tucker

DREW BARRYMORE MADONNA LIV TYLER

Celebs with and without makeup: JENNIFER GARNER JENNIFER LOPEZ GWEN STEFANI PAM ANDERSON CAMERON DIAZ BEYONCE KNOWLES BRITNEY SPEARS

people.com UNDER WRAPSDolly Parton assures us that when she hosts the live CMT's Flame Worthy Awards (for country videos) on Wednesday night, there will not be any "wardrobe malfunctions." "I can't pull one of those Janet Jackson things or I'd wipe out the first three rows," she told us. "We can't turn these pups lose on anybody. I don't believe nobody wants to see them. They just want to imagine what they might be like. I always say, 'There are two things people want to know about me ? the left one and the right one.' I call them my weapons of mass distraction ? shock and awe." Well, all righty then.

Matt Damon Finds New Love imdb.com Hollywood hunk Matt Damon has turned away from Hollywood women in his pursuit of romance - he's now fallen for interior decorator Luciana Barroso. The Stuck On You star was spotted hugging and kissing his new girlfriend outside Chicago's Peninsula Hotel. An onlooker says, "They were both obviously upset she was leaving, they were hugging and kissing, and when she got into the car, he screamed out, 'Bye baby. Have a good trip.'" Damon, 33, has previously been linked to series of big screen stars including Penelope Cruz, Minnie Driver and Winona Ryder.

people.comSightingsNatalie Portman, on the dance floor at New York hotspot Crobar for a party celebrating OutKast's sale of 10 million copies of their double album Speakerboxx/The Love Below. Beyonce and Jay-Z were there as well, but sat quietly in the corner for much of the evening.

BROOKE SHIELDS above. I would go nuts with all those people hovering over me like this all the time...

Liz SmithNY PostIF YOU COULD SEE Hugh Jackman April 26 in a black and white suit designed by the great Tom Ford, performing three songs at the Costume Institute benefit dinner at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, wouldn't you just think that would be the nuts? Tom's design is inspired by the sleek style of the 1960s Sinatra Rat Pack. Hugh is also doing a number from his upcoming solo album.

TAXING PARTIES By JEFFREY SLONIM NY Post MONDAY, APRIL 12: While most poor schlubs were home calculating their taxes, celebs still had their charity work. "For God's sake, I hope [these awards] are important," Carson Kressley sniffed on his way into Absolut's GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) Media Awards at the Marriott Marquis hotel. "We bought new outfits and had our hair blown out." Julianne Moore, who once upon a time played Franny Hughes Crawford on "As the World Turns," received applause when she acknowledged her debt to the gay community. "I was recognized for the very first time in my entire career on Christopher Street," she said. "I was walking down the street and this guy yells, 'Hey, Franny.'" Now, says Moore, she can't take two steps in Chelsea without someone blurting, "Oh, my God!" A considerably straighter crowd convened at Butter: Carmen Kass, planning to run for European Parliament in Estonia's June election; Spike Lee; Jay-Z and Beyonce; Vincent Gallo, and loads of models. TUESDAY, APRIL 12: After lunching at the Four Seasons, Martha Stewart told an acquaintance who hadn't seen her in some time, "Well, I definitely haven't been hiding." Stewart endured the rain to join her photographer friend Terry O'Neill - and director Mike Nichols - for the launch of O'Neill's book, "Celebrity." "She's an old friend," said O'Neill. "Martha's a great girl." At Crobar, for an Outkast fete, Andre 3000 and his school chum Farnsworth Bentley, Lukas Haas and Natalie Portman danced into the club at 1:30 a.m. But top kudos for stamina go to author Plum Sykes. After launching her book, "Bergdorf Blondes," at Bergdorf's, dining at the Plaza Athenee on Tim and Helen Schifter's dime, and after-partying at Adrien Brody's birthday party at Chez Essada, Sykes and her brother-in-law Euan Rellie were up for still more partying at Bungalow 8. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14: "I've never bartended before in my life," claimed "American Pie" star Shannon Elizabeth, before her turn behind the bar at Marquee with her co-star Tara Reid, who was wearing an impossibly short mini. However, the duo managed to mix $50 vodka cocktails to benefit a great cause - research on A.L.S., a rare but fast-progressing disease that struck Lou Gehrig, as well as the father of The Post's own Page Six scribe, Chris Wilson. Meanwhile, Mayor Bloomberg and Derek Jeter (not together) toured the brick vaults of Level V, the lounge underneath Vento Trattoria, Steve Hanson's new restaurant in the Meatpacking District. Before Kimora Lee Simmons' tony dinner at the Plaza hotel, honoring Andre Leon Talley's performance with Martha Graham, interior designer Mario Buatta unleashed a scurrying faux cockroach that fooled leggy society lady CeCe Cord. THURSDAY, APRIL 15: "We just threw this together," said designer Rebecca Taylor of her own funky-chic getup. Taylor was opening her first American boutique on Mott Street in NoLIta. She said that before the party she kept asking her staff about her outfit, "Is this all right?" Undergrad Lauren Bush, back on the party circuit after being pelted with eggs and ice by a hostile neighbor during Brody's b-day blowout, missed her train in from Princeton and showed up at the store five minutes before closing. She said she was on her way to dine at Soho House - almost as rowdy as those Princeton dining clubs. 'APPRENTICE' BOOM HIP-HOP'S NEXT EXTRAVAGANZA

people.com PLANET ROCK: It's time to rock for the rainforest again. Sting and other environmentally conscious celebs will gather for the 12th Rainforest Foundation benefit concert at New York City's Carnegie Hall on Wednesday, April 21. Joining Sting -- who co-founded the environmental organization -- are James Taylor and Elton John, as well as Billy Joel, Bette Midler, Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith. The theme of the event? "Singing in the Rain 'Forest': Great Songs from the Movies." Sting's wife, Trudie Styler, who's producing the evening, said in a statement, "The combination of some of the greatest performers of today and classic songs from the silver screen is going to result in a truly unforgettable evening for a cause that must never be forgotten."

BAR BELLES Page Six BABEALICIOUS bold-faced bartenders were out in force at Marquee this week. Gina Gershon and Marisa Tomei dished out drinks at Level vodka's Cocktails for a Cause (benefitting Project ALS) Wednesday night to the likes of Chris Noth (who asked about getting his gorgeous girlfriend, Tara Wilson, a bartending job at the club), former flames Tara Reid and Carson Daly, Shannon Elizabeth, Mariska Hargitay, Chris Heinz, Tony Sirico and the legendary David Lee Roth, who later partied at Bungalow 8 and Scores West until past 4.

EOnline.com SOLID CITIZENS: Emilio and Gloria Estefan tapped to receive the Spirit of Life Award from the Latin Entertainment Industry Group for City of Hope. The award, honoring both their charity work and their showbiz success, will be presented Nov. 18 in Miami.