Q: Is it true Sharon Stone is dating Craig Ferguson? I thought he was married. K.D.

A: It seems to be true, although both are being very low-key about it. The movie vixen and the Scottish talk show host apparently had a brief romance two years ago that fizzled out because she was on location so much. They seem to be trying again . . . but, given the nature of Hollywood relationships, they might or might not still be together by the time you read this. Ferguson was married but divorced his then-wife, Sascha, two years ago, just before he took up with Stone the first time.

Q: What is actor David Schwimmer doing? You don't see him around much. S.W.

A: True; his post-Friends TV and movie careers aren't as lively as those of some fellow castmates. He has put in some time, though, onstage in London. Currently, Schwimmer is providing a voice for the sequel Madagascar: The Crate Escape, so you'll hear him, if not see him, when it's released next year.

Q: I heard that Ozzy Osbourne was rushed to hospital. What's wrong with him. N.R.

A: He wasn't exactly rushed Ozzy went to a hospital in Denver after finishing a concert on his Ozzfest tour during which he'd felt pains in his legs. He was treated for a blood clot and was released, and is back on the road.

Q: Can you tell me what that handsome actor Blair Underwood is doing? I.F.

A: He's been pretty busy lately. Apart from a recurring role on the series The New Adventures of Old Christine, he co-stars on HBO's upcoming drama series In Treatment, he recently directed the film The Bridge to Nowhere, and he is in final negotiations to appear on ABC's new fall series Dirty Sexy Money, opposite Donald Sutherland and Peter Krause.

Q: Why is The Simple Life being cancelled? I think it's funny. S.D.

A: Executives at the E! Network, which picked up the show after its first cancellation by Fox, said that the all-too-public and often jail-related lives of Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie overshadowed the show, so their overexposure did it in. It isn't impossible that another network will pick it up, but with Richie's pregnancy and Hilton's comments that five years were enough, that doesn't seem likely.

Q: I read that soccer player David Beckham refused to be on The Simpsons. Is that true? Why would he do that? G.R.

A: Los Angeles' new superstar resident apparently did turn down a chance to join other celebrities such as Elizabeth Taylor and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair as a voice on the long-running show. It seems he's still steamed about a reference in a 2004 show to his affair with his former assistant Rebecca Loos.

Q: Will Forte from Saturday Night Live is cute. Is he staying on the show? N.F.

A: Yes, it seems that Forte is still in the cast for the upcoming season. He's also branching out, though, with a few movies: The Brothers Solomon, which he wrote and in which he co-stars with Will Arnett, due out on September 7; Brief Interviews With Hideous Men, directed by and co-starring John Krasinski of The Office, also due for release; and Party Boys, which is currently in production.

Q: Is Boston Legal coming back? I remember reading about ABC's fall shows, and I didn't see it mentioned. K.R.

A: It's undoubtedly coming back, but the exact date of its return hasn't been set yet. Curiously, network executives asked the show's producers to do a 90-minute season premiere on September 24, following a 90-minute instalment of Dancing With the Stars, but they refused. So, the show's premiere date is still being decided.

Q: Is actress Emma Thompson joining the cast of House? H.G.

A: No; she has a sturdy career in films and onstage that she's not about to give up. Thompson may make an appearance on the show, though, because she's a fan of the series and a long-time friend of star Hugh Laurie; they dated in the 1980s and have remained pals.

Q: What is actor Michael Imperioli doing?I liked him on The Sopranos. K.W.

A: In a complete departure from his New Jersey location on that series, he stars in an Icelandic martial-arts film called The Higher Force; it's in English and probably due to be released in this country. More conventionally, he stars in the upcoming TV movie Oprah Winfrey Presents: Mitch Albom's For One More Day, scheduled for broadcast in December. He also recently joined the cast of The Lovely Bones, the film of Alice Sebold's best-selling novel, due to begin production in October, with Susan Sarandon, Rachel Weisz and Ryan Gosling.