Note to would-be bodybuilders: Give dietary supplements the kiss-off. Or at least read the fine print on the bottle.
Fat lips and swollen ankles aren't sexy.
Ask ex-Disney star Shia LaBeouf ("Even Stevens"), making the transition from kid actor to leading man in the "Rear Window" remake "Disturbia." The 20-year-old lifted weights to bulk up for the teen-skewed thriller, about a youth under house arrest who suspects his neighbor (David Morse) is a killer. The film opens nationwide April 13.
His trainer suggested he take 12 amino acid pills a day "because amino acids are the foundation of protein," the lanky LaBeouf said in a chat in downtown Chicago. " ... 'Take 12 a day? That's a big number! Twelve a day? When do you have time to take 12 a day? .... I've never done 12 of anything in a day.' He said, 'Yeah, take one every 30 minutes, sporadically.'"
LaBeouf couldn't be bothered. He gulped down the first 12 pills during a lunch break. "It wasn't a wise choice," he admitted.
Indeed. His eyes swelled. His ankles ballooned. His hands puffed up so badly that his fingers looked webbed "because the skin had enlarged to the point where it was at my knuckles," LaBeouf said. Oh, yes, his lips "grew to this humongous mass. I looked like some kind of strange bird."
As bad luck would have it, he and onscreen love interest Sarah Roemer ("The Grudge") were scheduled to shoot their big kissing scene that day. Embarrassed, LaBeouf hid his hands behind his back and -- in a bid to be suave -- kept his chin in silhouette when director D.J. Caruso called "Action!" His pretty co-star thought he was shy. Until the clinch.
"We started kissing and you could see her face," he lamented. It didn't feel right. She's like, 'This is a big lip you got here!' ... I was like the Elephant Man!"
It wasn't his first onscreen kiss, but "it was hers. Which sucks," he said.
Jimmy Stewart, of course, created the role of the wheelchair-bound photographer voyeur in "Rear Window" in 1954.
Local star alert
Look for ex-Park Forest resident Tom Berenger ("Platoon") to star in the new ABC series "October Road." The Rich East alum, known then as Tom Moore, reportedly became involved in high school dramatics after friends told him he looked like Robert Redford.
Second Police show added
As expected, tickets to the Police concert July 5 at Wrigley Field sold out in less than an hour. So Live Nation promoters are adding a second show July 6. Tickets are $54, $94 and go on sale at 10 am. Monday. Visit www.tickets.com or call (800) The-CUBS. There is a six-ticket limit per customer. Joe Sumner, Sting's son, is frontman and lead guitarist for opening act Fiction Plane.
GRAPEVINE
The West Side Theatre Guild presents "An Evening with Cicely Tyson" on Saturday ... There is one month left to see "Body Worlds 2" at the Museum of Science and Industry. The exhibit is now open from 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week to accommodate curious crowds ... Norah Jones has sold out her May 8 show at the Chicago Theatre ... Gwen Stefani is booked for a June 8 show at First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre in Tinley Park.
The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer. She can be reached at mwoulfe@nwitimes.com or 219.852.4329.
