TINSELTOWN SPYWITNESS.

Byline: Elizabeth Snead and Joel Stratte-McClure

VERY BRAD TO BE HERE: Bet you thought all the Hollywood Foreign Press Association does is hand out Golden Globes.

Brad Pitt showed up at the organization's annual Summer Luncheon at the Beverly Hills Hotel to accept a $250,000 check from HFPA president Philip Berk to benefit Film Foundation Inc., which works to preserve film heritage.

Brad didn't sit for lunch. He was introduced, made a short, sweet speech, thanked the members and posed for photos with Berk and ``Phantom of the Opera'' cutie Emmy Rossum before pretending to stuff the check in his shirt pocket and slipping out the back way.

Brad looked none the worse for wear in destroyed jeans, a white gauze shirt and white cotton jacket that matched his punky platinum spiked hair.

``Let's go find out if he's still contagious,'' whispered one female fan conspiratorially, referring to Pitt's recent stay at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. He was reported to have flulike symptoms.

But he was out in public for a good cause. The HFPA, which has donated more than $5 million in the past 11 years, doled out $1 million to various schools, film charities and worthwhile organizations.

Kevin Bacon accepted $30,000 on behalf of Film Independent. Jesse Bradford grabbed $5,000 for Columbia University scholarships. Sally Field accepted the Sundance Institute check for $75,000. Jack Valenti accepted $25,000 on behalf of the Community Players for the Anne and Kirk Douglas Playground Awards, which helps build playgrounds in Los Angles schools. He explained that Anne Douglas couldn't make it because she was with Kirk, who was home recovering from a double knee replacement surgery. Wow. That's totally Spartacus.

And the lovely Ziyi Zhang, who stars in the upcoming ``Memoirs of a Geisha,'' practiced her English, thanking HFPA for $50,000 for FilmAid International's work bringing hope and understanding through the magic of cinema to thousands of Sudanese living in refugee camps in northwestern Kenya.

IT'S THE WATER: Jonathan Antin, the star hairstylist of the reality show ``Blow Out,'' comes clean.

Seems he recently had plumbing problems and had the water turned off in his apartment. His solution? Shower with Evian water. After the ``shower,'' he claims his skin and hair have never looked or felt better.

Antin's not alone. Other stars who use Evian for beauty's sake include Serena Williams (she bathes in Evian), Cameron Diaz (she washes her face with Evian) and Mischa Barton (she does Evian steam facials). Kinda gives a whole new meaning to the term ``bottle babies.''

PICTURE WORTH A THOUSAND HURLS: Sometimes it doesn't take a genius.

The dudes at the Genius Bar in the Apple store in the Grove have learned to ask if it's OK to open up their customer's iPhoto programs to analyze computer woes.

Sure, there are the occasional provocative nude shots in a laptop. But one genius had the misfortune of opening up the iPhoto on a Mac belonging to a top Beverly Hills plastic surgeon from a popular reality TV show.

``It was filled with close-ups of plastic surgeries,'' whispered the Boy Genius. ``Face lifts, nose jobs, breast surgery. It was really gross. I couldn't eat lunch that day.''

CAPTION(S):

3 photos

Photo:

(1) PITT: Check yourself.

Reed Saxon/Associated Press

(2) ZHANG and ROSSUM: Foreign press festivities.

Kevin Winter/Getty Images

(3) ANTIN: Hair-washing secret.