CELEBRITY WATCH
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December 29, 1999
Web posted at: 4:09 p.m. EST (2109 GMT)

• Spielberg plans celluloid tribute to the century
• Lewinsky to become Jenny Craig poster child
• Overflow of Phish fans clogs Alligator Alley
• Diva Zappa gets backup from the White House
• Why Johnson is saying 'Goodnight, Gracie'

Spielberg

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Steven Spielberg says he's created the centerpiece for the America's Millennium Gala show in Washington, a new 20-minute film called "The Unfinished Journal."

The film is divided into five sections. The first deals with emigration at the start of the century; the second focuses on America's experiences at war; the third shows sports and show-business celebrities; the fourth examines themes including the civil rights and women's movements; and the last section highlights flight and technology.

The Academy Award-winning director says the film, to be shown on huge screens at the Lincoln Memorial and down the Mall, will be accompanied by an orchestral score by John Williams; poetry; and narrators including President Bill Clinton.

Spielberg says the piece will give Americans the chance "to look back over the last 100 years and say 'Thank you,' and then, to imagine the next 100 years."

Lewinsky

LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- Monica Lewinsky has a new job as a spokeswoman for the diet company Jenny Craig Inc., whose plan has helped her shed 31 pounds to date, company officials say.

"We were aware of Monica's past trouble with her weight and knew she'd been unsuccessful and was looking for a new program. She's an example of one our success stories and is extremely recognizable," says Brian Luscomb, the company's spokesman.

He would not disclose how much Lewinsky, 26, would be paid, and declined to comment on reports that Lewinsky would be paid $1 million if she lost 60 pounds. The company also refuses to say how much Lewinsky weighs or is trying to lose, citing client confidentiality policies.

The $7.2 million campaign is to begin on Sunday, featuring two commercials showing "before" and "after" images of Lewinsky. They're scheduled to run at least through March.

The former White House intern, whose affair with President Clinton led to his impeachment trial, talked about her weight troubles in a broadcast interview with ABC correspondent Barbara Walters.

BIG CYPRESS SEMINOLE INDIAN RESERVATION, Florida (CNN) -- Thousands of young people waited Wednesday in 12-mile-long lines of traffic to get to the site of a two-day concert by the rock group Phish.

Concert organizers had sold out all 75,000 tickets for Phish's New Year's concert and camping celebration, which ranged in cost from $150 to $175. On Wednesday they pleaded with fans not to show up at the concert site without a ticket.

The site of the show is an Indian reservation 9 miles north of Alligator Alley, an 80-mile span of I-75 that connects Fort Lauderdale with Naples, Florida.

Concert organizers predicted 10,000 to 15,000 people would arrive by Wednesday evening. The concert was not scheduled to begin until 4:30 p.m. Thursday. Concertgoers are urged to bring a hat, sunscreen, toilet paper and ear plugs.

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Diva Zappa, the late Frank Zappa's 20-year-old daughter, has released her debut album with a little help from some well-placed friends: Tipper Gore and her daughter Kristen.

The single, "When the Ball Drops," was provided to radio stations on Tuesday. "Basically this song is about my hunt for someone to make out with for the millennium," Zappa says. "The song went alright, but my hunt is failing."

Diva's 30-year-old brother, Dweezil, wrote the music and she wrote the lyrics. Vice President Al Gore's wife, who is a friend of Gail Zappa, Diva's mother, played drums and sang backup. Kristen Gore also sang backup, alongside Dweezil's girlfriend, singer Lisa Loeb.

Johnson

LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- "Nash Bridges" star Don Johnson, 50, has been graced with a new daughter.

Wife Kelley Johnson (formerly Phleger), 30, gave birth to Atherton Grace Johnson Tuesday morning at a San Francisco hospital, the actor's publicist Elliot Mintz says. The baby, who tipped the scales at 7 pounds, 15 ounces, was named for Kelley's late father, Atherton Macondray Phleger, a lawyer and board member at Wells Fargo Bank. The couple's child will be called Gracie.

The couple was married on April 29.

Johnson also has a son with actress Patti D'Arbanville-Quinn and a daughter with actress Melanie Griffith.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.