Josh Hartnett acted as something of a restaurant tour guide for members of the French buzz band Phoenix.

"Phoenix went to have dinner at Palomino, didn't like it, came and had dinner with us," said Jeff Lillemoe, GM of Depot Tavern, the new restaurant that's part of First Avenue, the downtown danceteria that promoted Phoenix's performance at the State Theater.

"They all hung out after the concert," Lillemoe said. "Josh Hartnett was with them until closing. We just opened up about two months ago. Fabulous food!"

Ah, Rick Nelson will be the judge of that.

The assumption is that when Hartnett was filming "The Virgin Suicides," he became acquainted with Phoenix singer Thomas Mars, who provided vocals for the score of the movie, which was directed by the mother of Mars' children, Sofia Coppola.

Palomino insiders confirmed Hartnett was there on the night in question, but they did not know if he dined or left. Perhaps members of Phoenix weren't in the mood for Palomino, but Hartnett was taking the band to one of the actor's favorite spots, as Josh is a regular there, much like A-Rod.

Freaky guest host

Nobody screams freaky circus quite like Dennis Rodman.

The world's ugliest pierced and tattooed cross-dressing bride, momentary spouse of Carmen Electra and former Chicago Bull, is scheduled to be the host and an ancillary deejay Friday at Envy starting at 10 p.m. The public is also invited to this bash for nightclub owner Deepak Nath, who calls it a celebration "of the anniversary of my 29th birthday."

"I've done Cirque du Soleil-type entertainment before and called it Le Cirque. I wanted to do something similar but push the envelope. We have actual entertainers -- go-go dancers, contortionists, jugglers, people on stilts -- but then I started thinking, 'What's going to be the hook?'

"I started joking how the biggest freak out there is Dennis Rodman," said Nath, who first hashed this over a month ago with his pal, Ambhar Tequila owner Billy O'Rourke.

O'Rourke reminded Nath that Rodman's "nickname is 'the Freak.'" Toss in Rodman's older nickname, "the Worm," and this booking was practically preordained.

" 'Come eat the worm with the Worm,' which is funny," said Nath. That was the party slogan suggested by his friend Greg Moss. (Nath educated us that worms were never put in tequila but in another beverage, mescal.)

O'Rourke, who formerly worked for U.S. Tennis when he lived here but has been in Las Vegas about 10 years now, said Rodman and crew are flying in from Japan for Nath's birthday party.

While consulting Rodman's friends on possible preparty activities, O'Rourke said he was told, "Don't go to dinner too early. If he starts drinking, it's never going to happen" -- as in, he could be a no-show.

Is Dr. Drew on the guest list, as I seem to remember Rodman spending time in "Celebrity Rehab" earlier this year?

"I didn't say he was going to drink," said Nath. "That was his people saying don't let him drink."

'Brett's doing this for the guys'

Even Perez Hilton took note of the Temptations escorting Brett Favre back to Winter Park while singing, "Ain't too proud to beg, you know ..."

OK, so it was a delegation of three Vikings flying private and not the Temptations.

Anyhoo, Perez irreverently scrawled "Miss me, bitches??" across a photo of Favre looking sexy in stubble and sunglasses.

There's no shame in our game, Perez, although Sunday on ESPN's "Sports Reporters," Mike Lupica suggested having Favre as QB this season may not turn out as well as last. Not a risky prediction at all given last season's Favre-led soap opera.

Lupica said some NFL fans "are tired of Brett Favre the way most people are tired of Lindsay Lohan. Ratings still spike when Favre is playing a big national game. You know Vikings fans don't care if he's a diva or a money grubber or a phony, all of which he may well be. They just know they came within one more dumb-as-rocks Favre throw from the Super Bowl last season."

As for Favre's return, which Lupica predicted was coming: "I also believe he's making a mistake. I don't think he can move anymore, and I think he's more likely to get carried out of his last season than carry his team to a Super Bowl."

That's my fear, too, but ESPN's Rachel Nichols calmed my nerves. When she swapped text messages with Vikings kicker Ryan Longwell, one of Favre's escorts, "Ryan said that the guys' message wasn't so much about wins or losses or 'gee we have to win a Super Bowl,' but just how much fun they could all have together in the locker room this year. [Longwell said] Brett's doing this for guys in the locker room."

Whew! Thanks. That'll relieve that Super Bowl pressure!

C.J. is at 612.332.TIPS or cj@startribune.com. E-mailers, please state a subject -- "Hello" doesn't count. More of her attitude can be seen on Fox 9 Thursday mornings.