May 21-22 - After a self-imposed two-year hiatus from la vida loca, Ricky Martin is back with a new Spanish-language album, Almas del Silencio (Souls of Silence). According to a New York Times article, he’s nixed the tight leather costumes, but for his performance on the Today Show (photo at left), he hadn’t exactly gone the sackcloth route. Jim Carrey, also appearing on the morning news program to promote his new film Bruce Almighty, mixed with the Rockefeller Center tourists during Martin’s concert. Later that day, Martin posed for photos and signed anything thrust at him by delirious fans at the Virgin Megastore on Times Square.

Available online: Britney Spears’ sweaty clothing! No, this isn’t e-mail spam.
The pop diva held a press conference to announce that she’s donated some of her favorite costumes for a charity auction. We can’t understand why everyone is dissing Britney’s new shorter, browner hairdo. Critics need to get their priorities in order: a Britney makeover should begin with singing lessons. Hopefully, a new wardrobe is on the way - the “Britney Bids for Kids” auction is online at gottahaveit.com until June 5.

We dipped our toes into higher cultural waters at Cooper Union, where Meryl Streep joined the literary set for “Real Poems for Unreal Times”, a poetry reading cosponsored by the Poetry Society of America and Miramax Books.

Finally, MTV’s Eric Nies and Queer as Folk’s Robert Gant helped the folks at Out magazine celebrate their first-ever Hot issue, at the nightclub Lotus.