All aces

By Mark Shanahan & Meredith Goldstein, Globe Staff  |  June 9, 2009

Tim Wakefield, Jason Varitek, and several of their Sox teammates used their off day to raise serious dough for the Pitching in for Kids Foundation, which benefits hospitalized children and their families in New England. The gang gathered last night for a hand or two of high-stakes poker at Faneuil Hall Marketplace, where a slew of other celebs were expected, including high-seas hero Captain Richard Phillips, Pats coach Bill Belichick, "Mad Fisherman" Charlie Moore, Celtic Brian Scalabrine, chef Todd English, and Miss Massachusetts International Ashley Herron.

Harvard Film Archive members who attended the first night of the Pedro Almodóvar retrospective this past weekend got an unexpected treat: Almodóvar in the flesh. Archive director Haden Guest said Almodóvar's appearance had to be kept secret because the school wanted to keep the director's honorary degree under wraps. Guest said surprised patrons were thrilled to hear Almodóvar chat about his career - and about the one film he hoped to make but never did. Apparently, Almodóvar had plans to adapt Provincetown writer Michael Cunningham's "The Hours," but it never happened. The movie, of course, wound up being made by director Stephen Daldry in 2002. A copy of the book "The Hours" can be seen on a table in the Almodóvar film "Talk to Her," which came out that year. Guest said after the event, he dined with the director and the director's brother Agustin at the Eliot Hotel restaurant Clio.

Aerosmith is ailing again. The band, which is about to kick off a summer tour with ZZ Top, announced yesterday that guitarist Brad Whitford will miss at least a few shows while he recuperates from surgery. The band's publicist didn't specify what type of surgery or when Whitford went under the knife. He'll be replaced by Bobby Schneck, who's played with Green Day and Weezer, among other bands. The publicist said Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton, and Joey Kramer "regret any inconvenience" to their fans. In recent years, Tyler's had throat surgery and suffered from pneumonia. Hamilton is a cancer survivor, and Perry had a knee replaced.

Roberto Benigni, in town to perform his one-man show "Tutto Dante" at the Berklee Performance Center, dined at Sensing on Battery Wharf the other night. . . . Bikram Choudhury, who is responsible for Bikram yoga (that's the hot and sweaty kind), was spotted at North 26 Restaurant and Bar in the Millennium Bostonian Hotel over the weekend. If you've ever wondered what a master yogi eats, the answer is: seared Maine lobster with littleneck clams.

A recent Black Eyed Peas listening party was more functional than Fergalicious. Even though guests at Felt nightclub couldn't help but cross their fingers for a surprise visit by Fergie, will.i.am, and the rest of the Peas, it was record company representatives who showed up to debut the pop act's new disc "The E.N.D." Reviews of the songs were positive. It probably helped that Felt served up a special cocktail called the "Boom Boom Pow," named for the pop act's latest single.

Tom Brady will never be mistaken on the golf course for Tiger Woods, but No. 12's got game. Knocking the ball around at the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation Golf Tournament yesterday, the Pats QB demonstrated he can go deep on the links, too. Brady finished second behind Tedy Bruschi in the longest drive competition at the team's annual fund-raiser at the International in Bolton. Logan Mankins, one of Brady's beefy linemen, was asked about the QB's off-the-field activities, including those posters for SmartWater. "Yeah, I see them every now and then at Stop & Shop," said Mankins. "I've always wanted to steal one and put it in the locker room, but I don't know if they want me stealing their posters."

Writers Nicholson Baker, Samuel Shem (a.k.a. Dr. Stephen Bergman), and Anne Bernays joined editor Charles McGrath, critic William Pritchard, and radio host Christopher Lydon to pay tribute to the late John Updike at the JFK Library. Also on hand was Updike's daughter Elizabeth Updike Cobblah (inset), who shared happy stories about the celebrated novelist and short-story writer.

The boys in the band V Factory, who had a minor hit with their tune "Love Struck," paid a visit yesterday to Children's Hospital to support the hospital's Generation Cures movement. Singer Asher Book, who stars in the soon-to-be-released remake of "Fame," joined his bandmates Nathaniel Flatt, Wesley Quinn, Nick Teti, and Jared Murillo in singing "Love Struck" for their young fans.

Globe correspondent Rachel Zarrell contributed to this column. Read the Names blog at www.boston.com/namesblog. Names can be reached at names@globe.com or at 617-929-8253.