THE BUZZ.

FILE UNDER 'OOPS': Boy! Britney Spears fans are finicky -- that or they're bipolar. After Brit hit us and quit us, the sentiments after her five-song performance at the House of Blues in West Hollywood on Thursday night ranged from "I wasted my time!" to "I wasted my money!" to, just, "I'm wasted!" One young man (who fell in the "I'm wasted" category, I'm almost sure) called Britney the "Cher of our generation, TOTALLY!" Another young woman began to explain her philosophy about Britney's comeback: "She's trying to be like Madonna, you know? with the sexual performances and appealing to an older audience. I mean, she's been around ..." (that was her walking away midsentence when the valet came with her car).

For more on Britney's night in West Hollywood, check out Semhar Debessai's blog at dailynews.com: Click on BLOGS and then Vinyl Word.

'IDOL' ON TOUR: As has become a summer tradition, the top 10 finalists from "American Idol" will hit the road together, July 6 through Sept. 22. The Fox show's final four contestants will be joined by the recently voted-off Sanjaya Malakar, Chris Richardson, Haley Scarnato, Gina Glocksen, Chris Sligh and Phil Stacey, if the Navy sailor isn't sent off to Iraq.

According to reports, Navy and Pentagon officials weren't saying what was next for Stacey, an active-duty petty officer 3rd class and a vocalist with the Navy Band Southeast in Jacksonville, Fla. There was speculation that he could be sent to the war zone to entertain the troops or could be allowed to participate in the tour as part of a recruiting assignment.

During the tour, the artists will perform their own sets and also collaborate on songs popularized during this season's run of "Idol."

The tour comes to the Honda Center in Anaheim on July 22 and L.A.'s Staples Center on July 23.

-- Staff and Wire Services

BETTE'S NO BRITNEY: Showing the comedic touch Bette Midler hopes to bring to her new show at Caesars Palace, the entertainer poked fun at the photos of a panty-less Britney Spears circulating on the Internet during a news conference Thursday.

Midler, wearing a skirt, was about to sit on a pile of Louis Vuitton luggage, signifying her move to the desert, when she nearly slipped backward in front of a horde of photographers and onlookers.

"Oh! I almost pulled a Britney," she said. "I'll sit over there, it's a little safer."

Promoters officially announced Thursday that Midler, 61, signed a two-year contract to perform 100 shows a year -- starting Feb. 20, 2008 -- at the Caesars Palace venue that now showcases Celine Dion.

Dion announced in January that she would end her run at the end of the year in the $95 million, 4,100-seat Colosseum.

Midler also said she looked forward to coming to Las Vegas -- for the food. "There are so many places to eat in Las Vegas. It's going to take me two years to get through half of them," she said.

WE SAW U

Keenen Ivory Wayans pumping iron at 24-Hour Fitness in Sherman Oaks.

Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen buying so many items at Hermes on Rodeo Drive that it took five store employees to help load everything into their black Mercedes G-wagon.

-- Zoe Alexander

CAPTION(S):

4 photos

Photo:

(1) SPEARS

Kevin Mazur/WireImage.com

(2) MARY-KATE AND ASHLEY OLSEN 

Getty Images

(3) Bette Midler reacts after she sliped while trying to sit on a prop during a news conference at the Caesars Palace in Las Vegas where she announced her new contract on Thursday.

Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

(4) Phil Stacey may - or may not - be part of summer's "American Idol" tour.