Hasty Pudding picks made

Cambridge, Mass. — Hasty Pudding Theatricals will honor Tim Robbins and Catherine Zeta-Jones as their 2005 Man and Woman of the Year. Zeta-Jones will be honored Feb. 10, with a parade, after which the madcap theatrical club will present the actress with a traditional Pudding Pot.

The ritual will be repeated Feb. 17 for Robbins.

Beware of fake Potters

London — J.K. Rowling says Internet hucksters who claim to be selling electronic copies of her latest Harry Potter saga are actually running a “phishing” scam to steal credit card numbers and bank information.

“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” won’t be published until July 16 and is not available as an e-book, the writer warned.

Her legal team shut down one fraudulent Web site but fears others may surface.

Police suspect organized crime gangs from Eastern Europe are running the scam.

Linkin Park singer promotes post-tsunami tourism

Phuket, Thailand — The lead singer of rap-rock band Linkin Park visited schools and an aid project in southern Thailand, encouraging tourists to return to the area damaged by the Dec. 26 tsunami.

Chester Bennington stopped at two elementary schools and helped paint the side of a house with foreign travelers who are helping rebuild damaged homes and shops along Phuket island’s Bang Tao beach.

Soon after the tsunami lashed Asian and African coastlines, Linkin Park and the American Red Cross helped launch a charity called Music for Relief to provide assistance for people in affected countries. Bennington is planning to present an award at an MTV tsunami benefit concert with pop stars from around the world in the Thai capital tonight.

Going too far for Edge

Dublin, Ireland — The Edge, lead guitarist for U2, is attempting to stop a Dublin-based newspaper from reporting a relative’s illness, which delayed the Irish rock band’s upcoming world tour.

A High Court judge in Dublin agreed Monday to a two-week delay to the hearing of rival lawsuits between The Edge, whose real name is David Evans, and Dublin’s Sunday World newspaper.

The tabloid identified the relative and the illness in a front-page story on Jan. 8. It withdrew the story from later editions when The Edge’s lawyers obtained a temporary injunction.

The Sunday World wants the injunction overturned. Its lawyers are arguing that the details of the relative’s illness are newsworthy because they are cited as the reason for the delay of U2’s “Vertigo 2005” tour.

Originally slated to begin March 1 in Miami, the tour is now set to open March 28 in San Diego, with stops also to include Los Angeles, Phoenix, Chicago, New York and Boston.

Hilton to host ‘SNL’

New York — Paris Hilton can add host of “Saturday Night Live” to her resume, which includes reality TV star, actress, singer, author and jewelry designer.

Hilton will host Saturday’s show, with British band Keane as the musical guest, NBC said Tuesday.

She previously appeared on “SNL” in a tongue-in-cheek interview with Jimmy Fallon on the show’s “Weekend Update” segment.

Hilton is the star of “The Simple Life” with friend Nicole Richie. The Fox TV reality series, now in its third season, features the duo working in a series of menial jobs.

She has published a memoir, “Confessions of an Heiress: A Tongue-in-Chic Peek Behind the Pose.”

Speaking up for animals

New York — The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has recruited hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons to promote a new toll-free hot line for New Yorkers to report abuse of animals.

Launched on Tuesday, the campaign will use public service announcements and print ads featuring Simmons to encourage people to make anonymous tips to the hot line — (877) THE-ASPCA.

“There is nothing cool about being cruel to animals,” Simmons said in a statement. “They have no choice or voice.”

Rather’s first replacement

New York — Dan Rather will be replaced with veteran “Face the Nation” host Bob Schieffer on an interim basis when Rather steps down next month as “CBS Evening News” anchor, the network said Wednesday.

Schieffer will serve “for a short transition period” until the broadcast gets a new format, CBS News President Andrew Heyward said.

CBS chief Leslie Moonves said last month he was probably going to install a multi-anchor format for the “CBS Evening News,” which has been a distant third in ratings behind NBC and ABC.

The Schieffer announcement confirms that new format won’t be ready in time for Rather’s exit March 9 — the 24th anniversary of when he took over from Walter Cronkite.