Hollywood Digest

PROGNOSIS GOOD FOR JASON PRIESTLEY

"Beverly Hills 90210" star Jason Priestley is apparently headed for a full recovery from severe injuries he sustained on Sunday when his race car crashed into a wall at 180 mph during a practice run for the Kentucky 100, an Infiniti Pro Series race, at Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, Ky.

Doctors said Priestley was becoming more alert Monday, one day after suffering a range of injuries including a concussion and a broken back.

The 32-year-old actor was flown to the University of Kentucky Medical Center after the crash with a spinal fracture and a head injury, as well as a broken nose and broken bones in both feet. He was listed in serious but stable condition early Monday.

NBC REVERSES FIELD ON 'PASSIONS' STAR SCENES

NBC has changed its mind and will go ahead and air scenes from the daytime drama "Passions" that feature Josh Ryan Evans -- who died during a medical procedure on Aug. 5, the same day that the show featured an episode in which his character died.

Originally, the network had planned to delete scenes from upcoming broadcasts that Evans had shot before his death.

Evans was the 3-foot-2 actor who played Timmy the Living Doll on the daytime drama. He also played the young Grinch in "Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas."

A new episode featuring Evans aired Friday, and plans call for another new episode including his character to air this week.

Evans was born with a disease that prevented his body from growing. He was 20 when he died.

LOPEZ JOINS 'CLUB'

Jennifer Lopez is reportedly joining with producer Laura Ziskin ("Spider-Man," "As Good as It Gets") to develop a movie version of newspaper writer Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez's novel "Dirty Girls Social Club."

The book -- about six Latina women who remain friends for years after graduating college -- won Valdes-Rodriguez a publishing deal worth almost $500,000, following a bidding war won by St. Martin's Press. St. Martin's plans to publish the book next spring.

Valdes-Rodriguez wrote the book after resigning as a features writer for the Los Angeles Times with a 3,400-word letter than was so hot it formed the basis for an article in an alternative L.A. paper.

According to New Times LA, Valdes-Rodriguez opened the "marvelously snotty" letter with a "semicoherent attack on the Times for trying to commit 'genocide' against Latinos by ... denying their true ethnic and cultural heritage as Native Americans."

The paper said the writer complained that she was "brilliant but underappreciated" compared to other feature writers at the Times. She singled out two writers as "simply not smart enough to write columns," and slammed the paper's longtime pop music critic Robert Hilburn, asking: "How can the Los Angeles Times have a man who can't tell a major scale from a minor scale as its head pop music critic?"

QUEEN LATIFAH'S NEXT

Queen Latifah's movie career is moving right along -- with plans under way to develop a movie called "The Cookout."

Not much is known about the story, but it continues quite a roll in Hollywood for the singer-turned-actress who also starred in the syndicated "Queen Latifah Show" on TV.

Latifah -- whose real name is Dana Owens -- has been seen in such features as "Sphere" (1998) and the current release "The Country Bears." She co-stars with Steve Martin in the upcoming movie "Bringing Down the Houze," as a woman who breaks out of prison to be with her Internet pen pal.

She also stars as Matron "Mama" Morton in the upcoming movie version of the Broadway musical "Chicago," with Renée Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Richard Gere.

NEW TALENT NIGHT

Yet another contemporary incarnation of "The Original Amateur Hour" is headed for TV -- this time in the form of "Nashville Star," a USA Network show that will not only present new talent, but also tell personal stories about the wannabes.

Contestants will be required to perform their own original country songs on the show, expected to show up on TV early in 2003.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEAR SPIDEY!

"Spider-Man" creator Stan Lee will help celebrate the 40th birthday of his most famous creation in a special appearance Tuesday at Universal Studios Hollywood.

Spidey himself is scheduled to appear, blowing out candles on a cake as hundreds of Los Angeles area school children sing happy birthday.

ONE MORE YEAR!

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Board of Governors has elected Oscar-winning writer-director Frank Pierson to a second term as president.

Pierson was re-elected last Thursday -- the same night that various newspapers were working up stories quoting him as saying that the academy had been entertaining requests to hold all or part of the 75th Academy Awards in New York next March. Pierson issued a statement the following day saying flatly that the Oscar will not be leaving Los Angeles.

The possibility remains that the telecast might feature a remote segment originating in New York.