Forget about those Santa Ana winds. Oscar's embers blew directly into Ann Blanchard's house Tuesday night as Hollywood honchos, TV execs, first and second wives, along with various and sundry well-wishers gathered for a reading of Mimi Schmir's fictional and hilarious "Hot Flashes" blog...

The confab, masterminded by the former William Morris überagent who's now with Mosaic Media, drew Hollywood's finest TV and film actresses who read selections from the blog which chronicles the rollercoaster antics of Schmir's heroine, Esme, a late 40s-ish divorced mother of two. While I wasn't in Ann's parlor experiencing the "Hot Flashes," faux and for-real, firstwivesworld.com's intrepid correspondent reports the evening was a scorcher. Yes, HOT or you know, HOT!

Actresses Amy Brenneman ("Private Practice" and "Judging Amy"); Dana Delany ("Desperate Housewives"); Kathyrn Morris ("Cold Case"); and Natasha Henstridge ("Commander-in-Chief") each morphed into Esme as they read portions of the edgy blog that began on firstwivesworld.com. And they say there aren't any good parts for women?? Huh?!

Schmir, a writer for TV hits "Grey's Anatomy" and "Shark," was feted for her fiesty and comedic portrayal of the daily exploits of a pre-menopausal late 40s mom who's trying to move on with her life after a divorce in which her husband leaves her for a younger model (surprise, surprise). "Hot Flashes" just may be the next "Starter Wife" but there's a difference: "Hot Flashes" started on firstwivesworld.com, yes, the Web baby, and is destined for episodic television.

Oscar's afterglow may be fading but man-oh-man is it gettin' hot in here or what? Nah... it's just those damn "Hot Flashes"! Yeah, baby...

What, you say, am I talking about? Well, it's a reading of Mimi Schmir's fictional blog "Hot Flashes" that's getting firstwivesworld.com all hot and bothered. Mimi (pictured here) and a whole bunch of first, and most likely second wives will gather Tuesday night in Los Angeles to hear actresses Dana Delaney (ABC's "Desperate Housewives"), Amy Brenneman (ABC's "Private Practice"), Natasha Henstridge ("Dirty, Sexy Money") and Kathryn Morris (CBS' "Cold Case") read selections from the blog.

The reading, presented by First Wives World Productions along with the fabulous, Ann Blanchard, will feature the renowned actresses channeling the adventures of "Esme," Mimi's alter-ego, as she goes through a variety of pitfalls, hilarious escapades and twisted sexcapades. "Hot Flashes" appears once a week on firstwivesworld.com. Mimi also wrote for ABC's hit series "Grey's Anatomy".

There are more fictional series and episodic Webisodes planned on firstwivesworld.com. Now how's that for hot...?

First Wives World readers have come to know that our Debbie Nigro is a multi-talented and versatile woman who loves to shake things up--on her show, on the blog, in her life...Now, she's shakin' things up in your underwear drawer!

Yes, that's right...Debbie's latest guest column on About.com's Divorce Support channel is about changin' it up and changing out your undies. Going through a divorce? Go through your underwear collection while you're at it and revitalize your stock of bras, panties, body slimmers and heck, don't forget the stockings and garters...!

One of the best ways to move on after a divorce or when you're in the thick of a split, is to scout out new undergarments for every occasion and every mood. You'll feel better, sexier and like a new person. Take it from Debbie! Check out her column, the first in a regular series on About.com...

Can you imagine being friendly enough with your ex to hang out with him on your birthday? Well, it looks like Whitney Houston and her ex Bobby Brown are friendly enough to meet for dinner at a crab joint in Alpharetta, Ga. where the singer celebrated her 44th birthday earlier this week.

Houston filed for divorce from her rap star husband last year; they've been divorced since April when Brown indicated he planned to sue Houston to change their custody arrangement. The couple have a teenage daughter, Bobbie Christina.

Are you friends with your ex? Friendly enough to share a few stories over crab cakes and beer?

First Wives World has a terrific column featured on About.com's Guide to Divorce Support. The Guide's coordinator, Cathy Meyer, graciously asked our own Debbie Nigro to write a guest column for a series she's running this week on "Moving On."

Well, guess what? No one has more experience with movin' on and movin' up than Debbie, who has successfully reinvented her personal and professional life, post-divorce, with incredible energy and verve. She's resilient, and so are you!

In fact, that's the message of her piece on About called "A Formula For Getting Back to Great." It's all about women being in control of their destiny and plodding ahead, putting one foot in front of the other to embrace the present and, of course, the future.

Cathy and her team of experts are providing valuable information and resources that can help get you through. In fact, About has everything from chat rooms where you can swap ideas and information, to advice columns on dating, legal and financial issues and tips on how to deal with your kids in a divorce. They've got everything!

So check it out...but stay tuned to FirstWivesWorld.com because we're on the cusp of some exciting plans that will help you navigate divorce no matter what stage you're in--in fact, we're going to get you through each phase not only with useful resources and support from other women, but you'll be there with a smile on your face because we've got some fun, new shows that will entertain and tickle you as you discover that your best self lies ahead...

Yes, stay tuned. We can't wait...! And, check out Debbie's column here.

This week’s episode portrayed Sam, the beach hunk, with some admirable qualities.

At their urgings, Molly takes her friends Joan and Cricket to meet Sam. This adventure, through the oceanfront forest, represents a lighter moment in the story. Joan and Cricket give him a thumbs up, but ask Molly to find out why he allegedly killed a guy.

Sam explains the details of the man’s slaughter as attempting to prevent a crime. This softens up Molly. Meanwhile, Lou, (her husband Kenny’s partner), resurfaces. He didn’t walk into the ocean and end it after all. But he’s tired of making movies for 14-year-old boys and wants to go to Argentina. He urges Molly to plant a suicide note to cover his tracks.

But detectives had already arrested Sam for being involved in Lou’s disappearance and he’s in jail. Molly becomes Sam’s alibi since she was on the beach with him at the time of the alleged crime. Last night’s episode ends with Sam being released from jail, embracing Molly and leading her into the house.

Viewers will await the next episode in this soap opera-like story with bated breath as Kenny plans to ask Shoshana, his new girlfriend, to marry him even though he’s not yet divorced from Molly. Cricket takes back her philandering husband while continuing to read books about why trust is lost. And Molly is lost in her dreams and doubts and hasn't yet met reality. Joan is a lush who’s almost killed while driving under the influence.

Joan provides great comic relief and plays well against Molly. Rodney, Molly’s loyal gay friend, brings laughs and diversion to all of the intrigue. It looks as though viewers have responded well to "Starter" and are engrossed in life in Hollywood’s fast lane.

First Wives World is pleased to invite you to check out Debbie Nigro's first Webcast.

Debbie did a live taping of her talkshow yesterday at the Heartland Brewery located on the ground floor of the Empire State Building in New York City. Loads of passersby pressed their faces to the glass to find out what all the excitement was about!

Debbie hosted a diverse group of guests: She mixed it up with a financial planner, a life coach, a self-made entrepreneur, the author of a health and beauty book and an astrologer. The lineup even included a special guest, Jackie "The Joke Man" Martling, formerly of "The Howard Stern Show," who appeared as Debbie's blind date!

Click here to watch the video and enjoy!

With two primetime TV shows representing various facets of divorce—the reality show "Ex-Wives Club" (ABC, 9 p.m. Monday) and the six-part miniseries "The Starter Wife" (USA, 9 p.m. Thursday)—you might be itching for some real-life tips for navigating your newly single, spouse-free life.

Here’s some food for thought:

1. Don't dive in too quickly: Susan Shapiro, author of Secrets of a Fix-Up Fanatic, (Delta Trade, 240 pp., 2007) says, “Fix yourself up before you get fixed up.”

2. Ask what you learned about yourself from the previous relationship. What are your issues? Trust? Money? Both? If you can’t think of anything, you need to give yourself more time.

3. Consider a physical makeover. Change can be good and it doesn’t have to be radical. Think hair, makeup, clothes and new glasses/contacts. Don’t be caught in age-inappropriate duds though.

4. Don't limit yourself to bars, online dating sites or speed-dating events. They're often dominated by people who emphasize looks over substance and experience.

5. Instead of traditional dating venues, volunteer, join a class, book or hiking group. Meeting new people through activities you enjoy is a good way to go and enables you to enrich your world.

6. Form new friendships and retool existing ones. Friends help support you and can serve as a reality check. But don't turn a friend into a confidant and a therapist.

7. Open yourself up to people who ordinarily aren’t your "type” which doesn’t mean you have to date a jock if you’re a bookworm. But it’s a numbers game and the more people you meet, the bigger your “pool” of potential dates and friends becomes.

Giving a whole new meaning to the phrase “foul ball,” H. Elizabeth King, a psychologist, accused her ex-husband of violating their 2002 divorce agreement over how to divvy up tickets to Atlanta Braves games.

Prior to her divorce, King says she had four tickets to 27 home games as part of a three-way, season-ticket partnership. Under her divorce agreement, her ex got the first home game, then each got 13 games. When one of the partners died last year, King’s ownership increased to a full third.

At a court hearing earlier this week King claimed that her ex, who distributed the tickets to the partners, offered her tickets to games that conflicted with her schedule—on purpose. She also suggested that he gave her tickets to day games because she had skin cancer.

King's ex testified that he distributed tickets sequentially, according to a mathematical formula which he adjusted when people made special requests or if there were conflicting schedules.

Superior Court Judge Melvin K. Westmoreland urged the baseball-loving exes to settle out of court.

For more on this story, click here: http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2007/06/07/exes_fight_over_atlan...