THE LIVES OF H'WOOD WIVES.

Byline: David Kronke Television Critic

Gigi Levangie Grazer was strolling along the beach in Malibu when she happened upon a scene that inspired a novel.

``I came upon a woman in her 50s, who had been dumped by a big movie star,'' Grazer, the wife of Hollywood producer Brian Grazer, said Friday evening at the semiannual TV press tour in Pasadena. ``She was speaking to this man who I know very well and who I know is homeless. -- He's very good-looking, and she was flirting with him -- and I thought, `That's a novel.' ''

Grazer's book -- about a woman who finds herself dumped by her successful husband, traded in for a trophy wife -- is being turned into a summer miniseries for the USA network. Star Debra Messing appeared via satellite from Australia, where the film is being shot as a stand-in for Malibu. (Messing recalled a shot at a location made to resemble the Malibu community being interrupted when a kangaroo family hopped through the scene).

``I encounter (starter wives) every single day in Los Angeles. It's a community filled with people who are somehow attached to industry.

``There is a kind of look to the starter wife, with the polished hair, beautiful nails, white teeth and trim body. They're everywhere.''

Grazer said her roman a clef had offended none of the real-life players.

``If you make a woman thin enough or give the guy a big enough package, everyone's happy,'' Grazer joked. ``There were no unhappy customers. People would tell me stories at parties to be in the next book.''

Despite being married to one of Hollywood's most successful producers, Grazer emphasized her humble beginnings.

``My parents thought we would be arrested if our car broke down in Beverly Hills,'' she said. ``I break out in hives if I have to go into Neiman Marcus.''

Co-writer and executive producer. Josann McGibbon interrupted Grazer's I'm-one-of-you spiel. ``Gigi, did you say when you `have' to go to Neiman Marcus?'' she asked. ``One of those Neiman Marcus emergencies?''

McGibbon was with Messing in Australia, where she reported she had been attacked by a leech, something that wouldn't happen in L.A.

This time, it was McGibbon's turn to be corrected. Co-star Joe Mantegna asked, incredulously, ``Did you say there are no leeches in L.A.?''

David Kronke, [phone]

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