Brady made a quick pass at Bundchen

Quoting an unidentified "source," People magazine says Tom Brady's romance with Gisele Bundchen is more than a rumor. The pretty pair started dating "just before Christmas," according to the mag, which means the Pats QB was flying solo for only a few days after his break up with former girlfriend Bridget Moynahan . (The couple confirmed they were kaput Dec. 14 .) The Brazilian Bundchen is a beauty, sure, but super skinny and a heavy smoker. When Leonardo DiCaprio's ex threw out the first pitch at Fenway a few years ago, she practiced with a pack of Marlboros. So what do Brady and Bundchen have in common? Right-wing politics, maybe. The New York Post reported yesterday that Gisele refused to meet Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez when she and the Marxist leader were both in Rio last week. Brady, meanwhile, was first lady Laura Bush's guest at her husband's '04 State of the Union speech, and once told ESPN Magazine his "craziest ambition" was to be a US senator.

Message Board: Who do you think Tom should date?

Plenty to sink his teeth into

There was a time when Rocco DiSpirito thought he might live in Boston forever. "I loved it," the star of NBC's ill-fated reality show "The Restaurant" told us yesterday. "I consider it my second hometown." In town to speak at the Yankee Dental Congress, DiSpirito got a business degree from BU in 1990, and also worked as a chef at the Four Seasons. But better than that was cooking for Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Margaret Marshall and her husband , Anthony Lewis, who hired DiSpirito to be their personal chef. "They loved lamb. They always had me making lamb and also polenta ," he recalled . "They had an extraordinarily broad palate and were people with incredible joie de vivre." Of course, the high-achieving hash-slinger eventually moved to New York, where he opened two restaurants and became a pioneer of reality TV. What will he say to a bunch of dentists? "No matter how much money you have, you can have a lot of fun with family, friends, and food," he said. But what about brushing? "I'm not an expert on oral hygiene," he said, "but I do believe in brushing."

Pals stage strong showing for Woodruff

A few of Robert Woodruff's famous friends turned out for the opening of "Britannicus," which is Woodruff's final show as artistic director of the American Repertory Theatre. Among those spied at Wednesday's performance and after-party were veteran actor James Cromwell, whose wife , Joan MacIntosh , plays Agrippina in the play; actor Arliss Howard and wife Debra Winger; and Dresden Dolls Amanda Palmer and Brian Viglione, whose ART show "The Onion Cellar" wrapped. In addition, several of Woodruff's onetime workmates showed up, including actor Bill Camp , writer/composer Rinde Eckert , Hartford Stage artistic director Michael Wilson , artist Denise Marika , playwright Charles Mee , and professor Stephen Greenblatt. . . . Word is Cohasset's Kate Bosworth is coming home to star in "21," the film based on Ben Mezrich's best seller, "Bringing Down the House." Also starring Laurence Fishburne, Kevin Spacey, and Liza Lapira, the movie starts shooting here next month.

The Court of Appeals in Boston has granted "Survivor" winner Richard Hatch a hearing for his appeal of his tax evasion conviction, according to Hatch's attorney, Michael Minns. Oral arguments will be March 8 , Minns said. Hatch was convicted last January of tax evasion and filing a false tax return, related, in part, to taxes owed on his "Survivor" winnings. He is serving a 51-month prison sentence. Minns says Hatch should have been allowed to tell the jury why he didn't pay taxes on his million-dollar prize: He believed "Survivor" producers offered to pay his taxes after he uncovered cheating on the island.

JOANNA WEISS

Mechanical factors were ruled out as contributing to the fatal freeway crash in Los Angeles last month involving actress-singer Brandy (inset), who triggered the accident when her vehicle rammed into the car in front of hers, police said yesterday. But it remains to be seen whether the 27-year-old performer, whose full name is Brandy Norwood, will be found to be primarily at fault or criminally negligent in the Dec. 30 crash, police said. A motorist, Awatef Aboudihaj, 38, a married mother of one, was killed . The former star of the television comedy "Moesha" was not hurt. Alcohol and drugs have been ruled out as factors in the crash.

Nicole Kidman was taken to a Los Angeles hospital after the Jaguar she was in crashed yesterday during shooting of the science-fiction thriller "The Invasion," police said. Kidman, 39, was examined at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and released . The Jaguar was being towed by a camera rig that skidded while taking a corner and Kidman's car hit a pole, police said. The actress was wearing a seat belt.

James Brown's six adult children believe the soul singer's estate was mismanaged and want the trustees removed, according to court documents. An emergency petition filed in Aiken County, S.C., also claimed that some assets are in danger of being "lost or dissipated or stolen."

FROM WIRE REPORTS

Meredith Goldstein of the Globe staff contributed . Names can be reached at names@globe.com or 617-929-8253.