Madonna As Eva Peron Isn’t Exactly Type-Casting

Madonna finally has her wish: She’s all set to portray the late Eva Peron in a movie version of the musical “Evita.”

But her joy is Argentina’s shame. For in that South American country, Peron, the popular first lady to one-time dictator Juan Peron, is still considered a virtual saint.

Madonna’s reputation, in contrast, is somewhat less exalted.

Argentina’s president Carlos Menem blasts the casting of Madonna as “a total and utter disgrace.” Archbishop Antonio Quarraccino calls it “pornographic and blasphemous - an insult to Argentine women.”

The forthcoming movie version of the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice musical, which begins filming in January, co-stars Antonio Banderas and Jonathan Pryce.

Loose Talk

Boy George on happiness: “Nothing outside yourself can make you feel whole. Not fame, not sex, not drugs, not money. None of those things work. Nothing can fill you up. And believe me - ‘cause I’ve tried them all.”

The best therapy that a TV contract can buy

Joyce Brothers turns 67 today.

Yeah, she rips off the rich and dumps on the poor

As for Madonna, she’s merging completely with her “Evita” role, the pop diva told the Hollywood Reporter, “Evita basically robbed from the rich and gave to the poor. I identify with her on many levels.”

We’ll have a large fries and a chocolate malt on the side

Meatless is one thing. Fatless is another. A British television program analyzed a batch of Linda McCartney’s veggie burgers, which boast an advertised 11 percent low-fat content, discovered the burgers were from 20 to 23 percent fat. McCartney, the wife of ex-Beatle Paul McCartney and the author of a vegetarian cookbook, was reportedly “very upset.”

And instead of a limo, they traveled in a white Ford Bronco

Here’s more post-O.J. Simpson trial surrealism: O.J. prosecutors Marcia Clark and Christopher Darden vacationing together in San Francisco. The two claim to be merely friends who have family in the Bay Area. But they were seen shopping together and later spotted dancing “cheek-to-cheek” at the - believe it or not - DNA Lounge.

Oh, so that’s why he shot a lousy 82

Meanwhile, as O.J. Simpson was playing golf in Florida on Tuesday, daughter Sydney was celebrating her 10th birthday back in L.A. “He’s not really interested in his children,” said Faye Resnick, friend to the late Nicole Brown Simpson. “His words say that, but his actions don’t.”

His actions, meanwhile, are affecting others

One more O.J Simpson note: He’s playing golf, but the people of Panama City, Fla., are unhappy. Editor Steve Bornhoft of The News Herald fielded numerous complaints about Simpson’s visit. “They feel strongly that he is guilty and would just as soon he live elsewhere,” Bornhoft said. “One grandmother said her 11-year-old granddaughter was afraid to go outside because she had heard O.J. was in town.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 color photos

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Compiled by staff writer Dan Webster