Guns fired up Jolie, Pitt

New York — For Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, happiness is a warm gun.

In an interview published in the upcoming issue of Vanity Fair, Jolie says she and Pitt came to trust each other while taking gun training for the upcoming “Mr. and Mrs. Smith.” They play married assassins in the movie.

“You had to trust each other to cross under or over and only move when the other person moves, so the trust, when somebody’s got a loaded gun at your back. … It made us trust each other quickly,” Jolie said in the magazine, on newsstands May 10.

Neither Pitt nor Jolie has confirmed reports that they are dating. Last week, photos were published showing them on a beach in Africa with Jolie’s 3-year-old son Maddox.

Hollywood couple furthers fairytale relationship

New York — The relationship between Justin Timberlake and Cameron Diaz is the stuff of fairy tales.

Timberlake will provide the voice for a new character in “Shrek 3,” the latest sequel to the animated ogre franchise voiced by Diaz and Mike Myers, DreamWorks announced Sunday.

The former ‘N Sync singer will play a young King Arthur, or “Artie,” King Harold’s rebellious nephew.

Diaz, Timberlake’s girlfriend, voices Princess Fiona, Shrek’s wife. It will be the job of Shrek (Myers) to teach Timberlake’s character to act like royalty.

“Shrek 3” is slated for May 2007.

Husband and wife to host 2005 BET Awards show

New York — Will Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, will host the 2005 BET Awards telecast on June 28.

Denzel Washington and his wife, Pauletta, will receive the humanitarian award, and Gladys Knight will be honored with a lifetime achievement award during the ceremony at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Calif.

Nominations for the BET Awards, which honor achievement in music, entertainment and sports, will be announced May 16.

Beckhams take birthday trip

London — Victoria Beckham whisked her soccer star husband, David, to the Italian city of Venice to celebrate his 30th birthday.

The couple flew to Venice on a private jet Sunday to celebrate David’s birthday Monday, according to a report in Britain’s The Sun newspaper.

The Sun said the Beckhams, who recently celebrated Victoria’s 31st birthday in Paris, were believed to be staying in the Venice apartment of Elton John.

‘Harry Potter’ to take on two screens for upcoming premier

New York — “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” the fourth installment of the film series based on the J.K. Rowling novels, will be released simultaneously to both conventional theaters and in the big-screen IMAX format on Nov. 18.

“We previously committed to releasing two of Warner Bros. Pictures’ biggest … films of 2005 in IMAX’s format — ‘Batman Begins’ and ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ — and ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’ is a great addition to that list,” Dan Fellman, president of Domestic Distribution at Warner Bros. Pictures, said in a statement Monday.

The latest “Harry Potter” film was directed by Mike Newell. Daniel Radcliffe returns as Harry, with Rupert Grint starring as Ron Weasley and Emma Watson as Hermione Granger.

Country singer to end show

Pigeon Forge, Tenn. — Louise Mandrell has decided to end her long-running show.

The country singer and younger sister of Barbara Mandrell has performed for eight years at her theater in Pigeon Forge. She is selling the facility to David Fee and Jim Hedrick, who operate The Comedy Barn and Black Bear Jamboree theaters nearby.

Mandrell, 50, plans to move back to Nashville to spend more time with her husband, who has been diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder.

“I want to spend time together while he’s pain free,” she said.

The buyers have not determined what type of entertainment they will offer at Mandrell’s theater.

Jackson jury hears about cashed checks

Santa Maria, Calif. — A Michael Jackson associate cashed two big checks in early 2003 on an account controlled by him and Jackson, a bank official testified Monday as prosecutors neared the end of their presentation.

Beverly Wagner, a bank branch manager, testified that Marc Schaffel cashed checks totaling $1.5 million from an account belonging to Neverland Valley Entertainment, for which Jackson and Schaffel were the only signatories.

She said Schaffel first came in to cash a check for $1 million dated April 2, 2003, and a week later came in to cash a check for $500,000.

Schaffel is named by prosecutors as an unindicted co-conspirator, and his name has surfaced repeatedly in the trial in connection with efforts to contain damage from the documentary “Living With Michael Jackson,” in which Jackson appeared with the boy who now is accusing him of molestation. Jackson said in the documentary that he let children sleep in his bed but it was non-sexual.