Sideshow: Wahlberg a new manly man

Mark Wahlberg has done a lot of growing up since his days as a wild 'n' wacky lad in Boston's working-class Dorchester neighborhood. "I don't go out at night anymore," the Fighter star tells Men's Journal of life with his family. (Wahlberg and wife Rhea Durham have four kids, ages 1 to 8.)

Wahlberg ain't kidding. "I don't hang around with the guys," he says. "I stopped smoking cigarettes. I stopped smoking pot a lot of years ago, too. I'm focused on my family, my faith, and my work."

The actor, whose life story inspired the HBO show Entourage, is a manly man. But he's not afraid to cry at movies. He cried during The Help, he says: "I cried about six or seven times. It was the wife's choice, but it was a great movie."

Speaking about the wife's movie choices, Wahlberg has one rule: He'll watch anything "as long as it isn't a Sarah Jessica Parker movie."

Mark Wahlberg's chat with Men's Journal has raised the ire of Deena Burnett-Bailey, whose husband Thomas Burnett was on United Flight 93 on Sept. 11. Wahlberg, who was booked on the same flight but missed it, claimed in the interview that had he been aboard, he'd have overpowered the terrorists and flown the plane to safety.

"Does . . . Wahlberg have a pilot's license," Burnett-Bailey tells TMZ. "I think hindsight is 20/20 and it's insignificant to say what you would have done if you weren't there."

Rumors persist - oh, such ugly rumors - that Johnny Depp's 14-year partnership with French beauty Vanessa Paradis is kaput.

People mag says Depp, 48, and Paradis, 39, who have two kids, Lily-Rose, 12, and Jack, 9, haven't been on a red carpet together for a year. Some unnamed insiders say the couple already have broken up; others say that they are living apart. The duo have yet to comment.

Who's the last person in the world you'd think Rihanna would date? She's dating him.

Us Weekly claims that Rihanna, 23, has been having secret hookups with Chris Brown, who three years ago pleaded guilty to assaulting the Barbadian beauty. Us says "multiple sources confirm" the clandestine affair. An unnamed "Brown confidante" says the couple "meet up very casually."

A "Rihanna insider" says she "loves to live dangerously." There are more sordid details from a music industry insider who says the couple "can't get enough of each other." Adds the source, "I don't see it ending well."

Brown's rep tells Us that "he and Rihanna are just friends." Rihanna's rep has issued a "no comment" comment.

Country star Merle Haggard, 74, is being treated for pneumonia in a Macon, Ga., hospital, his rep has announced.

Tresa Redburn said Haggard checked into the hospital Tuesday after canceling a concert at the last minute. He has canceled the rest of his January dates.

Haggard, whose latest album, Working in Tennessee, was released in October, was briefly hospitalized over the weekend in Texas for undisclosed tests. He's a tough hombre: In 2008, he had surgery for lung cancer.

Forget the U.S. fighter jets and Predator drones, the most potent weapon against Iran is a dainty li'l plastic thing - Barbie.

The Islamic nation's morality police are yanking the Mattel doll off store shelves as part of the "soft war" against the West's decadent cultural influences. The doll was officially banned as un-Islamic in 1996, but Barbie, who has had an off-and-on thing with Ken for decades, continues to be sold.

Now, Iranian girls have been offered an alternative: A pair of ultra-modest, ultra-conformist dolls named Sara (female) and Dara (male). It's not known if they are dating. Reuters reports that a growing cadre of moms and daughters are unhappy with the dolls, calling them "ugly and fat."

Adele poised to make chart history

British beauty Adele, 23 continues to rule the Billboard album charts this week with her numerical album, 21, which sold 104,000 units, according to numbers from Nielsen SoundScan. The CD has been on the charts for 47 weeks and at No. 1 for 16 nonconsecutive weeks, matching the mark set by the Titanic soundtrack in '98.

Billboard.com says only three other albums have been at No. 1 longer since SoundScan began tracking sales in 1991: Whitney Houston's soundtrack for The Bodyguard (20 weeks, 1992), Garth Brooks' Ropin' the Wind (18 weeks, 1991), and Billy Ray Cyrus' Some Gave All (17 weeks, 1992).

Christian outfit the David Crowder Band, who hail from Canada, debuted at No. 2 with their final album before their breakup, Give Us Rest (Six Step) which sold 51,000 copies. The Black Keys' El Camino is at No. 3 with 36,000, Drake's Take Care is at No. 4 with 32,000, and Snow Patrol's Fallen Empires debuted at No. 5, selling 31,000 units.

Almost Famous lovely Kate Hudson has been hired to shill for Ann Taylor, beginning with the always-preppy, inoffensive-if-uptight, middle-of-the-road label's spring 2012 collection. Kate, 32, replaces the 49-year-old Demi Moore. Kate says she's "thrilled" to have the job, describing the new collection as "stylish and hip and colorful."

Producers of the Grammy Awards have announced that the Feb. 12 award show will have a host for the first time in seven years - LL Cool J.

Blogger RealitySteve.com and Life & Style mag say ABC has picked Emily Maynard as the next season's Bachelorette star. Maynard's claim to fame? She became engaged to two-time Bachelor star Brad Womack, but broke it off. No word from the network.

Philly guy Dustin Tavella, 25, is among 20 young swains vying for the hand of Southern belle Paige Duke - part-time model, veterinary technician, and all-around outdoor gal - on CMT's Sweet Home Alabama. In this week's episode, which the country cabler will show at 9 p.m. Friday, Paige's suitors try to impress her with their paintball prowess. Dustin's bio describes him as a musician who "loves entertaining at children's hospitals and has traveled the world doing missionary work. He is still a virgin, saving himself for marriage."