New York, July 16, 2007 – The big surprise at the New York premiere of Hairspray, the movie that was turned into a Broadway musical and then turned back into a movie, was when Katie Holmes showed up unannounced and silently made her way down the red carpet.

John Travolta plays a female in the movie, and Queen Latifah said that he gave her tips on dancing in high heels! “He really played Edna with all of the sensitivity and all of the layers that a woman should have”, she added.

Steve Schirripa of The Sopranos arrived early at the premiere, staked out a spot on the red carpet, and then waited for an hour so his two young daughters could take a photo with tween heartthrob Zac Efron. The 19-year-old High School Musical star confessed to having a huge crush on Michelle Pfeiffer, who is 49.

John Waters, who created Hairspray, was on hand, as was Jerry Stiller, who appeared in that 1988 original, and Lance Bass, who will join the Broadway production next month.

Newcomer Nikki Blonsky told us that she got the lead role of Tracy Turnblad the old fashioned way. “They did a nationwide search, and I auditioned just like everybody else.” Other Hairspray stars at the premiere included Christopher Walken, Brittany Snow, James Marsden and Amanda Bynes, who did her own gender-bending role last year in the movie She’s the Man.