Statue of Doug play at BC

By Mark Shanahan & Paysha Rhone  |  October 28, 2008

Heisman hero Doug Flutie is about to be immortalized by Boston College. A life-size likeness of the pigskin paladin will be dedicated Nov. 7, the day before Doug's old team tackles Notre Dame at the Heights. Flutie, who was awarded college football's highest honor in 1984, will join some pretty impressive company on the BC campus: There are also statues of the Virgin Mary and St. Ignatius on the grounds of the Jesuit college. The sculpture was designed by Harry Weber, who's famous for his statues of Hall of Fame baseball player Stan Musial and explorers Lewis and Clark. Word is the piece depicts the 5-foot-10 Flutie hoisting the famous Hail Mary pass that beat Miami in the fall of '84. Why a statue? Well, New York's Downtown Athletic Club, which awards the Heisman, requires universities to give "proper recognition" to trophy winners, and BC settled on a statue. Said school spokesman Jack Dunn: "The Flutie statue will serve as a fitting tribute to our only Heisman winner and our most distinguished student-athlete."

Dreamgirl Jennifer Holliday wowed the crowd at New England Baptist Hospital's Campaign for Care gala held this weekend at the InterContinental Boston Hotel. . . . Word is Mariska Hargitay is headed this way. The "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" star will be in Providence Nov. 13 to promote the Day One sexual assault resource center. (For $500, fans can meet Jayne Mansfield's daughter and have a photo taken with her at a VIP reception at the Westin Hotel.) . . . The Brazilian mag VIP has put Tom Brady's glam girl Gisele Bundchen at the top of its annual list of the world's sexiest women. Weirdly, it's the first time that Bundchen, who's Brazilian, has been No. 1.

"Survivor: Africa" winner Ethan Zohn (right) has pulled a Tom Brady, tearing his anterior cruciate ligament after being taken out from behind during a charity soccer game a few weeks ago. The Lexington native had planned to dribble from Boston to Washington, D.C., as a fund-raiser for Grassroot Soccer UNITED, which he helped found to fight AIDS and HIV in Africa. Now, friends and fans are going to complete the 550-mile trek for him, as he rides alongside in a car. The dribble, about half-complete, is scheduled to end on Dec. 1, World AIDS Day. "As you can imagine, I'm incredibly upset," Zohn wrote on his blog. But, he added, "Through substitute dribblers, friends, family, youth teams, we will get that ball to Washington DC as planned."

Adam Richman, host of the Travel Channel's "Man vs. Food," is expected to film tomorrow at Faneuil Hall Marketplace. His 10-person camera crew will descend upon Tom Kershaw's Cheers, Durgin Park, Slugger's Dugout, the food colonnade, and Kilvert & Forbes gourmet sweets boutique, originally owned by John Kerry, and still boasting some of the senator's mom's specialties.

With the election fast approaching, South Florida is seeing a flood of celebs stumping for their preferred presidential candidate. Talk show host Elisabeth Hasselbeck, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and "Tom the Landscaper" Thomas Kohlwaies rallied support for John McCain in West Palm Beach while Barack Obama was boosted by Matt Damon, Alicia Silverstone, and Jason Alexander.

Paul Pierce paid a surprise visit to three Dunkin' Donuts locations yesterday, and the C's captain gave one lucky person at each store free coffee for a year and two tickets to tonight's home opener against LeBron James and the Cavs. Pierce, whose tour took him to Waltham, Foxborough, and Franklin, posed for photos with fans and even worked the register. . . . "Return to the Rafters," a new DVD chronicling the Celts's 17th championship, screened at AMC Loews Boston Common last night, and afterward former C's Jo Jo White and Dana Barros partied with fans at Felt.

Several old-school Sox showed up the other night at a fund-raiser for South End Youth Baseball. Among those playing cards at Red Fez were former pitchers Bill Lee and Luis Tiant, catcher Rich Gedman, and skipper Joe Morgan. Also in the house were city councilor Bill Linehan, State Senate candidate Sonia Chang Diaz, and the Boston Foundation's Robert Lewis Jr. . . . Meanwhile, Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield and wife Stacy attended South Shore Hospital's Moonlight & Miracles fund-raiser for cancer care.

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