ALWAYS-CHARITABLE IRELAND IN HIGH GEAR FOR HOLIDAYS.

Byline: Marilyn Beck & Stacy Jenel Smith

Not in the holiday mood yet? Well, this should inspire you. We just learned from one of the many charities with whom actress-model Kathy Ireland works year-round that she is buying up 175,000 pounds - that's 87.5 tons, folks - of clothes, toys and food, and she'll have five trucks visiting urban and rural areas in need across the country to distribute the goods to disadvantaged children. Though Kathy has been busy making her stage debut in ``Three Tall Women'' with the San Diego Repertory Theatre, she has been personally supervising the massive purchases and distribution plans. Incidentally, if you want to help out, you can reach Kathy on the Internet via www.kathyireland.com.

Music muse

With ``The Devil's Advocate'' out and ``Mighty Joe Young'' on the way, Charlize Theron is definitely a happening film actress. But this week, she's gone before the cameras to star in a rock video for the band Naked. How come? Charlize has been friends with members of the group since they were all unknowns. The video for ``Raining on the Sky'' will have Theron playing the dream love of lead singer Jonathan Sheldon and emerging from a ceiling made of water. Expect it to show up in January.

Busy again

Kelly McGillis is spending the Thanksgiving holidays in L.A. with her husband and their two daughters - and then it will be separation time for a while for the actress and her clan.

Kelly's scheduled to start ``Ground Control'' here shortly after the holiday. Her husband, Fred Tillman, Kelsey, age 7, and Sonora, 4, will return to their Key West, Fla., home so the youngsters can return to school there.

Says the actress, ``It would be very selfish of me to have the girls away from their friends and on a sound stage with me, completely imbedded in a fantasy world with people catering to every whim.''

Kelly will be home for Christmas and then will head to New York to start the film ``Sight Unseen'' with Val Kilmer and Mira Sorvino.

This is the actress who made a splash as Tom Cruise's love in ``Top Gun'' and also won raves for her work in ``Witness'' and ``The Accused.'' She took a step back from the limelight after that to devote her time to family. She's done some impressive stage work, starred in some cable projects and last year made the feature with Brenda Fricker that opens next month under the title ``Painted Angels.''

But her two new film assignments mark a definite, firm step back toward a full-time career. ``We'll see how it goes,'' she says. ``Like every working mother, it's a struggle for balance.''

As the tube turns

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the Mafia, here comes news that CBS is casting for a four-hour miniseries called ``Mario Puzo's The Last Don II.'' (Does that mean the original miniseries SHOULD have been called ``Mario Puzo's Next to the Last Don''?) Shooting gets under way after Christmas in Toronto.

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2 Photos

Photo: (1) Kathy Ireland

Donates 87.5 tons of goods

(2) Kelly McGillis

``A struggle for balance''