A warm welcome

Last night's NBC one-hour special "Victoria Beckham: Coming to America" might be viewed by some as just part of the hype connected with the Spice Girls announced reunion tour.

However, Monday's "at home with the Beckhams" originally was envisioned to be a six-episode series that was boiled down to a one-hour special, which promised to share an insider's look at how Victoria Beckham aka Posh Spice and British soccer star hubby David Beckham have settled into life in Los Angeles now that he's signed on to U.S. Major League team the L.A. Galaxy.

Meanwhile, while David practices, trains and prepares to hit the field, Victoria has been making the rounds on television, from E! interviews (Ryan Seacrest professed his long-time crush on Victoria and asked to spend a three-day weekend with her, to which, in a very awkward TV moment, she mistakenly thought he was asking for a three-WAY weekend with her and David) to sitting on Jay Leno's couch Friday night.

As for David's affect on giving soccer a higher profile among U.S. sporting events, Major League Soccer stats show advance ticket sales for Beckham's appearances in any games featuring the L.A. Galaxy have exceeded "most" Major League Soccer teams' average home attendance. For example, the game scheduled Oct. 21 in nearby Bridgeview, Ill., for the Chicago Fire's match against Beckham and the L.A. Galaxy already has more than 19,000 advance tickets sold compared to the usual season average of 13,300.

Birthday wishes

A loud and much-deserved happy birthday to funnygal Phyllis Diller, who turns 90 today! Check out the kid-focused birthday story tribute to the comedienne on the cover of this section.

Countdown

So where will LaPorte's claim-to-fame Emerson Spartz, 20, be when the seventh and final "Harry Potter" book is released Friday?

Spartz, who just finished his sophomore year at Notre Dame University and is the founder of www.mugglenet.com, one of the leading "Harry Potter" fan Web sites in the world, will be in Oak Park, Ill., at The Magic Tree Bookstore for the midnight release of author J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" (2007 Arthur A. Levine Books $34.95).

He'll also discuss his popular new paperback "MuggleNet.com's What Will Happen in Harry Potter 7" (2006 Ulysses Press $13.95).

Released in December 2006, Spartz's book made the New York Times' Bestseller List. The midnight event also is sponsored by the Oak Park Convention and Visitors Bureau. FYI: www.visitoakpark.com or (708) 848-0770.

Closer to home, Erin Eickleberry, the community relations manager at the Barnes & Noble in Valparaiso tells me Spartz also will appear at their store on July 27. FYI: (219) 531-4723.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the writer. He can be reached at ppotempa@nwitimes.com or 219.852.4327.

celebBirthdays

TV personality Art Linkletter is 95. Comedienne Phyllis Diller is 90. Actor Donald Sutherland and actress-singer Diahann Carroll are 72. Guitarist Spencer Davis of the Spencer Davis Group is 65. Actress Phyllis Davis ("Vegas") is 60. England's Duchess of Cornwall Camilla Parker Bowles is 59. Bassist Geezer Butler of Black Sabbath is 58. Actress P.J. Soles ("Halloween") is 57. Actress Lucie Arnaz is 56. Actor David Hasselhoff and singer Phoebe Snow are 55. TV producer Mark Burnett ("Survivor") is 47. Singer Regina Belle is 44. Bassist Lou Barlow (Dinosaur Jr., Sebadoh, Folk Implosion) and singer Guru of Gang Starr are 41. Christian singer Susan Ashton and R&B singer Stokley of Mint Condition are 40. Actor Andre Royo ("The Wire") and actress Bitty Schram ("Monk") are 39. Rapper Sole' is 34.