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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Guess You Could Say She’s Seen His True Spots

Compiled By Staff Writer Rick Bo

The soon-to-be mother of Michael Jackson’s child says she’s having the baby out of friendship after his former wife, Lisa Marie Presley, refused to do it.

Debbie Rowe wants nothing in return and will let Jackson raise the child, her neighbors told the New York Daily News.

“(Debbie) wanted to do this for Michael,” Kevin Forrest said. “He’s ecstatic. She’s proud and happy to be able to do this for him.”

Added his wife, Tonya: “This is a natural conception. Debbie finds it amazing that people won’t believe that.”

Rowe, who is divorced, has known Jackson since 1985, when he was treated for vitiglio, a disorder that lightens the skin, at a dermatology clinic where she worked as a nurse.

Loose talk

Garry Shandling, on his wish list of guests for “The Larry Sanders Show” (in People magazine): “I’m hoping that when the pope feels better, he’ll come on. But his people are being pretty difficult.”

Yes, only love can break your kneecaps

Neil Young turns 51 and Tonya Harding 26 today.

Or maybe ‘Inia’ is his pet name for himself

And now, the latest reports from the Michael Jackson world tour: Before leaving Bombay last Monday, the singer left behind a misspelled but heartfelt message, scrawled with a felt-tipped marker on a full-length mirror: “Inia (sic), I love you. In your children I have seen the face of God. You are my special love. I truly adore you.” The hotel plans to auction off the mirror and give the money to charity.

Averting a catastrophic bridge collapse

And upon landing in New Zealand, Jackson realized he would receive the traditional Maori greeting, a nose rub - no small feat, given that his schnozz has been surgically reshaped several times. Sir Howard Morrison leaned over and rubbed his nose against Jackon’s, once, twice, three times. The King of Pop’s proboscis held firm.

So, Kelsey’s not quite ready to cash it in

“Frasier” star Kelsey Grammer, fresh out of substance-abuse treatment at the Betty Ford Center, told Jay Leno it’s “been a wonderful journey” since God told him, “Kelsey, you know what? I’m going to take over” after he flipped his Dodge Viper. And on “Entertainment Tonight,” Grammer said he carries a symbolic $100 bill: “I’ll never spend it; it has blood on it from the night I had my accident. Just a little visual reminder that I don’t want to go there again.”

Oh, it’s just more of his damned nonsense

Finally, in the irony department, these words from David Brinkley in an interview two TV Guides ago: “I have been annoyed a few times. But I never lost my temper. Can’t do that. The audience will think you are crazy. They will not know why you have lost it. They will only know that you have behaved like a damn fool on the air and they will not buy it.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Color Photos

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Compiled by staff writer Rick Bonino