SOFT SELL: Is that Josie Bissett hawking Soft & Dri deodorant? Yes, but you'd never know it from the 30-second TV spot, which fails to identify its glamorous Melrose Place pitchwoman. ''Quite frankly, what we're advertising is not Josie, it's Soft & Dri,'' says a spokeswoman for Gillette, which manufactures the product. Though Bissett is currently negotiating a Soft & Dri follow-up (''This is a young, fresh, '90s hip commercial,'' she says), there's one thing about the commercial that she doesn't endorse: ''I don't really wear green eye shadow,'' says Bissett, whose lids are plastered with the stuff in the ad. ''Maybe next time I'll be able to talk them into brown.'' -Jessica Shaw PERSONALITY TEST: StarGate, the October sci-fi epic about time travelers in ancient Egypt, features some intriguing casting choices, such as The Crying Game's androgynous Jaye Davidson as the sun god Ra. But the biggest stereotype-buster of all might be James Spader as a nice guy! Best known for playing smarmy, backstabbing yuppies in everything from Pretty in Pink to Wolf, Spader materializes in StarGate as a bumbling, sweet-natured Egyptologist-and audiences are shocked. ''People like him in the movie,'' marvels director Roland Emmerich. ''I see this at the test screenings. They love him. Everybody was sort of surprised about that.'' Except Spader, of course. When Emmerich saw Wolf, he says, ''I couldn't believe it was the same guy. I called him up and said, 'James! You're so different in my movie!' He said, 'Yeah. That's called acting.''' -Jeff Gordinier
NOT-SO-PRIVATE IDAHO: It's tough keeping a secret in a small town. Just ask Bruce Willis. Last spring he began buying up property near his home in Hailey, Idaho (pop. 4,000), to make way for a two-story bar/restaurant/billiards club he plans to open next year. Despite his efforts to keep things hush-hush, a local newspaper linked the actor to the estimated $1.25 million project. Willis declines to comment, but he'll be glad to hear that residents are relieved he isn't building another Planet Hollywood. ''We're really remote. We just got a McDonald's last year,'' says C.J. Karamargin, a reporter for the Wood River Journal. In fact, locals-even the competition-are enthusiastic about the project. Says Cam Johnson, owner of the Red Elephant Saloon, directly across the street from Willis' place, ''(Willis) will give people a reason to stop here. He put Hailey on the map.'' -Beth Arky
ETC.: To go or not to go? Go! Fans as far away as China and Australia have booked tickets to Canada's Manitoba Theatre Center production of Hamlet, starring Keanu Reeves (January '95). To ensure a seat, callers have subscribed to the entire six-play season (tickets for the series run from $40 to $120). But here's the rub: ''I hope the attraction is a well-made Hamlet,'' says a Reeves spokesman, ''and not just its star.'' Robin Williams doesn't want to reprise his Mrs. Doubtfire role (''(If) somebody else wants to put on the foam,'' he says, ''good luck''), but he's not opposed to appearing in drag movies. Williams makes a cameo in the upcoming To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar. According to the real Julie Newmar, who also appears in Wong Foo, it's not Robin in a dress, but ''Robin in sleaze. He plays a sleazy, slimy little car salesman-an I-can-get-you-anything-for-a- price kind of guy.'' Vanity, the former cohort of TAFKAP (The Artist Formerly Known As Prince) is ill and on a kidney dialysis machine in California. The singer, now a Christian Evangelist, plans to release a gospel album soon. Says Cat Glover, a former Princette, ''Her spirits are up despite what she is going through.''
