Kiefer Sutherland drinking 'day and night'
Kiefer's 'virtually non-stop' drinking worries friends
The good news: Kiefer Sutherland virtually never goes anywhere he needs to drive unless someone is chauffering him.
The bad news: Close friends, ''24'' castmates and crew members and other longtime associates are deeply concerned by the Emmy-winning actor's continual, heavy drinking.
(AP)
While it hasn't affected his work on his hit Fox TV series, a longtime Sutherland intimate tells me ''Kiefer is drinking day and night ... virtually non-stop.''
Reportedly, there has been a recent attempt at an intervention -- an attempt to get Sutherland back into rehab -- but it came to naught, as the actor refused help.
''If he doesn't do something soon, I'm afraid he's going to drink himself to death,'' Sutherland's friend said Tuesday. ''I see all the signs.''
PLAYING BALL: No surprise here -- Alex Rodriguez is the very good reason Kate Hudson has learned anything and everything she can about Major League baseball -- a sport she didn't follow until she got involved with the Yankee superstar. Hudson's inner circle is convinced the actress will soon get A-Rod to propose and her crash course in baseball (courtesy of stepdad Kurt Russell) is just one part of her strategy.
''Kate is very smart. She knows that all good relationships are built on more than sex. Eventually, you have to talk,'' quipped a close Hudson friend. ''And Kate realizes that a key to keeping Alex is to be well-informed about his career and baseball in general -- his first main love.''
ON THEIR TOES: Dance aficionados are excited about the 20th anniversary gala for Chicago Human Rhythm Project Nov. 19 at Millennium Park, featuring a special performance by Step Afrika -- the first company to transform African-American ''stepping'' into a theatrical spectacle. ''Jubalee 20'' co-chairs include Donna LaPietra, Bill Kurtis, Irene Michaels, Arny Granat, Marilyn Miglin and her son, Duke Miglin.
RUMOR CONTROL: Don't believe the stories claiming Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston met in a New York hotel room recently -- with Brad telling Jen all about his ''troubled'' marriage to Angelina Jolie. One (of many) reasons that's not true -- the former couple were divided by something called the Atlantic Ocean at the time of the so-called meeting.
TURNING SERIOUS: Chicago's Jim Belushi has done dramatic roles but obviously is best known as a comic. Now Belushi is teaming up with Diane English (herself best known for the comedy ''Murphy Brown'') to star in a courtroom drama series based on well-known attorney and TV legal commentator Mickey Sherman.
A BIG IRONY: Mel Gibson's jillion-dollar divorce settlement with soon-to-be-ex-wife Robyn has forced him to sell off a bunch of assets -- including the British division of his beloved Icon film distribution company. The fact that Gibson is selling to Len Blavatnik, a Russian Jew and naturalized American citizen, has many in Hollywood bitterly laughing -- given it was Gibson's drunken anti-Semitic rant a couple of years ago that made him persona non grata with much of Hollywood.
STAGE SET: The first performances of the amazing Ricky Jay's ''A Rogue's Gallery'' are almost sold-out, so it's not surprising three more nights are being added at the Royal George Theater Dec. 4-6. Also, just learned Jay has been tapped for a five-episode arc in the hot new ''Flash Forward'' TV series. ... Previews for the previously announced Broadway run of ''Million Dollar Quartet'' will begin March 13 at New York's Nederlander Theatre, with an official April opening to follow. Meanwhile, Chicago audiences can continue to enjoy this phenomenal tribute to the music of Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley -- recently extended through Jan. 3 at the Apollo Theatre on North Lincoln.
TUNE IN: Grammy-winning classical guitarist Sharon Isbin and violinist Mark O'Connor, who will perform together at the Harris Theater here next spring, will be part of Michelle Obama's White House music series tonight, also featuring acclaimed violinist Joshua Bell. The concert will be streamed live on www.whitehouse.gov.