Lunch Date

If there is any day of the week to grab lunch out in downtown Lowell, today would be the day. Billy Costa of TV Diner and his chipper blonde assistant, Jenny Johnson, will be chowing down at five Mill City eateries this afternoon.

Grab your 15 minutes of fame as the TV and radio personality ventures what they dub “Delicious Destinations.” Those include Cobblestones, Centro, the Blue Taleh, Caffé Paradiso, and Athenian Corner.

You could get your mug on the New England Cable news program. Just make sure there isn’t any spinach in your teeth. See if you made the final cut when the Lowell segment airs Saturday, March 22, at 10 a.m. and then again at 7 p.m. on NECN.

Funky Fashion

Gwen Stefani, Jennifer Lopez and Jessica Simpson all have made their way through Chelmsford— their clothing line that is. Now add Avril Lavigne to the roster.

The punk princess joins a never-ending list of celeb-turned-designers with a clothing line exclusively for Kohl’s department stores. “Abbey Dawn” will hit the juniors department this spring. The label’s moniker comes from Lavigne’s childhood nickname.

“I actually am the designer,” she told Newsweek for editions on newsstands yesterday. “I try everything on and approve it all.”

That means plenty of hot pink, skulls and studs.

Best Comedic Performance

Jon Stewart will reprise his role as host, this time for the “Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Benefit for Autism Education” on April 13. It maybe no Oscars, but comedic heavy weights Will Ferrell, Adam Sandler, Steve Carell, Tina Fey, Conan O’Brien, Stephen Colbert, Sarah Silverman and Amy Poehler will share the stage with Stewart.

The second biannual event at the Beacon Theater in New York, will air live on Comedy Central 8 p.m. The night will feature standup routines, sketches and short films from a gluttony of comic talent that also includes Matthew Broderick, Jonah Hill, Kevin James, Rosie O’Donnell and Susie Essman.

It’s the second such benefit and was organized in part due to Robert Smigel, whose son, Daniel, is autistic. Smigel’s most famous character, Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, will also be attendance.

The night will raise money for schools and education programs for autistic children and adults. A portion of the proceeds will also go to the advocacy group Autism Speaks. The first “Night of Too Many Stars,” held in October 2006, raised more than $2.6 million.
It was also the first event to air live on Comedy Central. This year’s broadcast will also be streamed online the day after. A $1.99 download of the show will be available on iTunes and xBox Live Marketplace, with all proceeds going to charity.

A little stripper told me...

Hold the poles! Are the Sopranos returning to the big screen soon?

The real-life manager of the strip club that fronted for the Bada Bing on HBO’s “The Sopranos” thinks there might be. Satin Dolls manager Nick D’Urso says he’s holding off on renovations to the strip club in Lodi, N.J., after getting a tip that a movie would be made. Like anyone involved with the Sopranos — he wouldn’t name names.

An HBO spokeswoman says there’s no truth to the rumor that plans are in the works for a film about Tony, Paulie, Carmella, Meadow and A.J.

D’Urso says he’ll wait until after the summer to renovate in case the tip pans out.
Satin Dolls has already auctioned off its bronze-colored stripper poles and replaced them.