BEVERLY HILLS —This week Hollywoodland was a busy week that many people looked forward to because of the Thanksgiving holiday. The week also had a few scandals and “New Moon” continued it’s ascension to the top of the box office. Canyon News also caught up with “Y&R” star Thom Bierdz who is about to fly cross-country to benefit an organization near and dear to his heart.

Thom’s the author of “Forgiving Troy,” one of the best non-fiction works of the decade and his own autobiography. Thom’s brother Troy murdered their mother after years of being misdiagnosed for mental illness. What could destroy or cripple the average man made Thom stronger, he forgave his brother and continued on with his life. Thom plays Phillip Chancellor, III on CBS’s number-one daytime drama “The Young and the Restless.” Bierdz tells Canyon News about his return to the show after decades. “Unreal. Just the idea to go back and do something over, 20 years later, is a gift! I had given up acting and was making a living as a fine artist, so it was cool to watch myself slowly get more comfortable as an actor again. I love the actors I work with, and they are still there,” said Thom. Who continued to remind us that he’s still on the canvas, just not on the show right now. Thom speaks warmly of the opportunity Maria Arena Bell offered him in returning to the show. Then continued, “Keep in mind, twenty years ago, I felt I had to hide my homosexuality both on and off the set. I was told coming out would ruin my career. Now, to be back on CBS playing a character that I loved is profound. I am honored to be able to represent a gay man on TV that is multidimensional, a man who is dealing with family issues as a father, an ex-husband, a son, a grandson and a brother. I am so grateful to the network, my co-workers, the cast and crew, for standing with me both professionally and personally.”

Bierdz feels an obligation to speak out for gays and lesbians in his life and career. He is grateful for Maria Bell’s decision to make a beloved Genoa City character gay and now Thom is trying to repay that debt. “That's why I support Out & Equal. Their mission is to promote workplace equality for gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans-gendered people. I’m going to Atlanta to attend Out & Equal’s Holiday Party on December 10, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Palomar Hotel in Midtown. The theme is ‘All I want for the holidays is workplace equality,’ which CBS and Y&R has given me. I'm also doing a book-signing of ‘Forgiving Troy’ on December 11 at 7:30 p.m. at Outwrite Bookstore in Midtown [also sponsored by O&E]. At Out & Equal's Holiday Party, I'll be painting an original piece during the party and it will be auctioned off to raise money for Out & Equal's new scholarship program,” said Bierdz. For tickets to the Holiday Party, go to oeatlanta.info.

Thom’s artwork is being sold in Beverly Hills to some very famous people and all over the U.S. and Canada. You can purchase his art work by going to ThomBierdz.com.

I’ve been getting many e-mails from “Y&R” viewers who hate it that Phillip has left Genoa City to return to Australia. Though Thom remains very positive about a possible return. “If anyone can come up with a great storyline for Phillip’s return, it’s the regime we have right now. Maria Arena Bell is such a masterful storyteller and I’m honored that she has given me so much rich material these past months,” concluded Thom Bierdz.

So it’s official “Jon and Kate Plus 8” is really going off the air. Jon and Kate are in the final stages of their divorce and the parents say the show and the kids are going away and they are just going to return to a simple life as a private family. Having lived the past several years of their lives on-air, it is surely not going to be Jon and Kate’s wish to disappear. So although they gave viewers a good-bye greeting on the recent episode, chances are the attention-starved duo will find ways to get back into our lives and on our television screens. While Adam Lambert, the former “American Idol” caused a lot of debate over his sexually charged performance at last week’s AMAs. It’s such a shame Adam spent so much energy trying to shock viewers and his fans and didn’t spend more time rehearsing and getting his voice and act perfect for such a widely-seen performance. Then again, the point of performing on the AMAs is to cause a stir, which Britney Spears, Madonna and Janet Jackson all have over the years.

Just as the word was sent out in an official statement from ABC that Courteney Cox would be shutting down production of her hit show “Cougar Town,” just three days later production had resumed. Tabloids are going nuts trying to speculate about the reasons for the initial hiatus, but now everyone is in over-drive to figure out what is going on with Ms. Cox and what was the personal “family matter” she was speaking of? Then again, maybe it was like Adam Lambert, to get our attention? If so, it worked.

Thanksgiving is a time when families and friends get together to celebrate the wonderful gift of love with each other. Unless you are in Hollywood. MacKenzie Phillips reports that she was uninvited to Thanksgiving dinner. I suppose her recent expose autobiography in which she admits to having an incestuous affair for decades with her pop star father, the late John Phillips may have caused some family rift? David Beckham and his soccer team, The L.A. Galaxy flew to a military base in Germany to play soccer and offer thanks to our troops who are stationed in Germany. Actor Matt Damon flew his wife and kids from Hollywood to their home in Florida to enjoy their holiday, Mariah Carey is cooking a turkey, her husband Nick Cannon says, so is Heidi Klum who is married to singer Seal, stating she’s baking an 18-pound turkey, while business mogul Russell Simmons is flying from his home in NYC to Hollywood to enjoy Thanksgiving with his ex-wife Kimora Lee-Simmons, their kids and her boyfriend actor Djimon Hounsou.

“Saturday Night Live,” which airs on NBC, has just announced some of their first-time guests coming up in December. On the heels of a masterful and perfect appearance by singer Taylor Swift, who recently took home five awards for her music, “SNL” will be having some heavy-hitters in the coming weeks. Singer Rihanna, “New Moon” star Taylor Lautner, who is the boyfriend of the beautiful Taylor Swift and my pal Bart Johnson’s sister-in-law Blake Lively, the star of “Gossip Girl” will also be making their debut appearances on the long-running hit show.

Miley Cyrus calls the followers of the “Twilight” film series a cult, but has kind words about “High School Musical” star Zac Efron. She says he’s the hottest person in the world. Wonder what she thinks of Levi Johnston, who spent the week promoting his Playgirl spread? Photos have been leaking all week on the Playgirl Web site, and some not so nice comments about his pictures are making the rounds around the Net as well. I suppose he is a believer in the old adage, “It doesn’t matter what they say about him, as long as they are spelling his name correctly.” Here’s hoping this will be the final time we’ll have to mention Mr. Johnston and that he puts his son and his own life before fame. He’s ill prepared for stardom and so far the extent of his talents we’ve seen has been very lackluster. No pun intended.

With the “Twilight“ saga “New Moon” headed to an astonishing $300 million in only a week’s time, it’s so funny to hear so many critics lambasting the film. It’s a good thing director Chris Weitz made a film for his tween fans and not the critics, who have said worst things about this film than they have recently about director Roman Polanski, who is out on a $4 million bond in a posh Swiss Ski resort. There are many great things about Hollywood, but then there are times you are left scratching your head and trying to defend a town often referred to as Hollyweird.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday weekend and remember our troops who are fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq for our freedoms and those of the civilized world, who are not with their families enjoying turkey and stuffing. They are truly American heroes.
See you next week!

XOXO