A fresh dose of reality for Britney?

Courtney Hazlett The Scoop

Britney Spears is back with her longtime on-again, off-again manager Larry Rudolph, so it probably shouldn’t come as a surprise that Spears is also going back to promoting herself in familiar ways.

As it turns out, Spears, who was recently in New York City, wasn’t there only to work on her new album. She was also shooting footage for a reality show.

Though Rudolph didn’t respond to a request for comment about the show, sources tell Life & Style that Spears and Rudolph have “been in talks to do some kind of reality show or documentary. She knows that to make it back to where she was, she really needs to connect with fans. She’s trying to get it right this time.”

Her last venture into reality TV was 2005's “Britney & Kevin: Chaotic,” which was disastrous. The current project won’t be, insists the source.

“This would be edited to show Britney in the best possible light — to show how healthy and supposedly normal she is these days, the source says. "Britney’s father, Jamie, and Brit’s team would have control over every single piece of footage that made it on the air.”

Blonsky speaks out about airport brawl
Nikki Blonsky told People magazine that she and her father, Carl, are “completely destroyed” by what happened between them and the family of “America's Next Top Model” contestant Bianca Golden.

Blonsky says the July 30 confrontation was prompted by a disagreement in the departure area of the Providenciales International Airport in the Turks and Caicos, and things turned nasty when Blonsky asked Golden not to point her finger in her face.

At this point, Golden claims Blonsky kicked Golden’s mother and Blonsky’s father punched her; although Golden calls that claim “absolute lies.”

Blonsky, her father, and Golden are all facing assault charges related to the fight.

Michael Phelps still milking his star status
Who better to host the 70th anniversary party of New York's Bowlmor Lanes than … a swimmer?

Yeah, not sure about that either, but Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps was game to do the honors, and by all accounts, he was quite the charmer.

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“Let’s just say he loves the ladies,” said one person who attended the event. “He was super charming and smooth.”

Is he taken? “A girl came later on,” and the two of them bowled together, said the source.

Aubrey O’Day of Danity Kane was also there, along with her dog, which was getting lots of attention for its attire, an “I Bark for Obama” T-shirt.

Weekend box office
This weekend isn’t a simple one to predict. There are three substantial releases hitting theaters: “The Express” in 2,700-plus theaters, “City of Ember” in 2,000 theaters, and “Body of Lies,” in 2,500-plus theaters.

Best bet? I’m going with “Body of Lies,” sort of.

Here’s the deal: It’s got Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe and is directed by Ridley Scott, which will attract a wide audience. It opens in nearly as many theaters as “The Express” but has better buzz.

Now for the “sort of.” Much as it pains me to say this, I think “Beverly Hills Chihuahua” will ultimately eke past “Body” for the No. 1 spot, but it will be close.

Courtney Hazlett delivers the Scoop Monday through Friday on msnbc.com.

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