Probe looks at ex-Celt's birthday bash

Chicago police are trying to determine whether a shooting that left one man dead and another in critical condition was related to a birthday bash for former Celtic Antoine Walker. The party marking 'Toine's 32d birthday was held Sunday at a club called Excalibur, and the shooting took place about a block away at the Rock 'n' Roll McDonald's. According to the Chicago Tribune, Walker's mother, Diane, was at the party, and has told police there were no problems. But authorities are investigating whether the shooting stemmed from a fight that originated at Excalibur. Walker, who plays for the Grizzlies now, was the victim of a home invasion last year.

Glen "Big Baby" Davis (far left) is not afraid to clown around, especially for a good cause. The Celtics forward donned a green elf hat to film public service announcements for The Home for Little Wanderers yesterday at the team's Waltham training facility. The ads, promoting the agency's annual holiday gift drive and the benefits of foster parenting and mentoring youths, also feature WCVB-TV sports reporter Mike Dowling, who ditched his vacation to join Davis. Davis was his usual funny self, said spokeswoman Heather MacFarlane. "He had on the hat, for a bit, but then he decided he'd had enough of that." The Home's gift drive kicks off Nov. 25 at the Knight Children's Center in Jamaica Plain.

Ray Allen and longtime girlfriend Shannon Walker Williams finally made it official, tying the knot in an intimate ceremony on Martha's Vineyard over the weekend. Guests at the wedding, which was held under sunny skies at a private home in Oak Bluffs, included the couple's three children Tierra, Ray III, and Walker, fellow UConn alums Scott Burrell and 76er Kevin Ollie, Celts CEO Wyc Grousbeck and wife Corinne, and, of course, the NBA Championship trophy. Allen's friend Brian McKnight sang "Never Felt This Way" as the basketball star and his bride made their entrance. Later, McKnight wowed the crowd with renditions of his hits "Crazy Love" and "Back at One." Williams, a onetime actress who appeared in "Girlfight" and "Century City," wore a gown by Melissa Sweet. The 60 or so guests were well fed by chef Ben deForest, whose restaurant Balance catered the affair.

Everyone knows Bostonians make the best reality-TV contestants, which might explain why "America's Toughest Jobs" is loaded with them. The new show, which debuts Monday, is the brainchild of Thom Beers the guy behind "Deadliest Catch" and "Ax Men." Four of the 13 competitors, who do stints as Alaska crabbers and Oregon loggers, hail from our city: Amy Brodsky, Ben Coleman, Michaela Clemence (inset above), and Rick Broider (inset right). Brodsky is a 40-year-old Wall Street exec, and Coleman is a 28-year-old carpenter. Broider, a 35-year-old father of six boys and software VP now living in Loudon, N.H., said his Army background, Ultimate Fighting Championship training, and tough teen years, spent homeless on the streets of Boston, prepared him for the contest. But he hated crabbing. "I'm a pretty tough guy," he said. "But the Bering Sea is no joke." (He got seasick.) Clemence, a 24-year-old scientific recruiter, said her big challenge was proving herself in the male-dominated worlds of oil rigging, bullfighting, and the like. "It's nice to be able to throw your dress on and your little heels, but I can go out and crab and fish," she said. The winner takes home the combined annual income of all the tough jobs.

Thirty years later, Bill Lee and Mickey Rivers have apparently made up. The Sox pitcher, who was sucker-punched by the Yanks center fielder during a famous on-the-field brawl in 1978, didn't look like dread enemies at last weekend's Legends Reunion in Moosic, Pa. Nine Yanks faced off against nine former Sox in a five-inning exhibition game. Among those taking part were Yanks Rivers, Chris Chambliss, Bucky Dent, Oscar Gamble, "Goose" Gossage, Graig Nettles, and Roy White; and Sox "Soup" Campbell, Lee, Denny Doyle, Dick Drago, Fred Lynn, Rico Petrocelli, Jim Rice, Luis Tiant, and Mike Torres. After the game, the gang gathered with fans at a VIP party.

Word is the indie film formerly called "Real Men Cry" will have its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival next month. Shot last winter in Boston by Brian Goodman, the gritty crime flick, now titled "What Doesn't Kill You," is about two friends who turn to crime as a way to get ahead. Based on Goodman's experience growing up on the mean streets of Southie, the film stars Ethan Hawke, Mark Ruffalo, Amanda Peet, and Donnie Wahlberg.

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