Is George Clooney
a not-so-good neighbor?

George Clooney is becoming a big landowner in Italy — too big for some of his neighbors’ tastes.

The actor had been widely adored by the residents of Laglio, a village on the shore of Lake Como, where he bought a villa several years ago. But now Clooney is looking to buy the town’s only sunbathing beach, and some locals have turned on him.

“We’re not going to give him the beach,” one shopkeeper who used to praise Clooney fumed to the Calgary Herald. “Just because he’s rich and famous, doesn’t mean he has to get everything that he wants.” Some have expressed fears that Clooney will buy up the entire town.

“This beach business is becoming a bit of a problem,” Clooney’s Portuguese caretaker, Antonio, told the paper. “Many locals like George Clooney, it’s true, but others are bitter about what they consider to be too favorable treatment. It’s becoming a thorn in his side.”

Clooney has smoothed over his neighbors’ ruffled feathers before. Not long ago, when some townsfolk objected when Clooney had pals like Julia Roberts and Matt Damon in town filming, he penned a hand-written note to townsfolk: “My greatest desire is just to live in this wonderful village.” All was forgiven.

Nightmares for Stewart?

Mario Tama / Getty Images

Is Martha Stewart undergoing hypnosis?

That’s the claim being made by In Touch Weekly, which is reporting that the domestic diva is undergoing the treatment because she’s been having nightmares since returning from prison in West Virginia.

“Martha was waking up in a cold sweat every night with the same dream,” an insider supposedly told the mag.

Stewart’s spokeswoman didn’t return the Scoop’s calls.

Notes from all over

Eric Jamison / AP

Britney Spears threw Kevin Federline a lavish, romantic 27^th birthday party, but her grumpy hubby was in no mood to celebrate, according to the Star.  . . . Don’t believe any rumors you may hear that Madonna wants to do a cameo on “Desperate Housewives.” “I can guarantee you that she’s not even familiar with the show,” Madonna’s spokeswoman told The Scoop. . . . . Moby says he doesn’t want to be drawn into the Terri Schiavo case, but writes on his Web site: “My note to the far-right would be: you can’t have it both ways. If you genuinely believe in the sanctity of life then you cannot support the death penalty and you cannot allow people to buy automatic assault weapons and you cannot support wars that result in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent people. And if you genuinely believe in states rights then you can’t pass intrusive federal legislation when the states do things that you arbitrarily disagree with.”

Jeannette Walls Delivers the Scoop Mondays through Thursdays on MSNBC.com

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