The bitch is back.

From the moment Joan Collins walked into a courtroom in the opening moments of Dynasty's second season, she sent gay hearts fluttering with her over-the-top portrayal of Alexis Carrington, a 40-something bitch on wheels. Now Collins is touring the country in the stage production of Legends! in which she and Dynasty costar Linda Evans play--what else?--aging actresses who are also bitter rivals. Collins has also written a new book on health and happiness, The Art of Living Well: Looking Good, Feeling Great (Sourcebooks, $24.95).

Did you and Evans fall easily into your rival roles again?

This was a much slower process, but by opening night we'd gotten into the rhythm and now have that rat-a-tat rivalry--that chemistry, that yin-and-yang factor that people always liked about Linda and me being together.

Is there a catfight in Legends?

Yes, there is a catfight in the play--but I'm not telling you about it. If you want to see Linda and Joan have a catfight, you have to come and see the show.

You've been in the business for decades. How has glamour evolved?

When you read the magazines today, glamour seems to be 5 foot 10, weigh 99 pounds, and have your ribs sticking out and no tits. I don't think [actresses] are supposed to look like stick insects. Unfortunately, you see it now in all the celebrity magazines, these actresses--and many of them are old enough that they should know better--diet themselves down to a carrot stick. I think most of the clothes today are so ugly that you have to be thin to look good in them.

When did you first realize that gay men had such a strong association with you?

I went to a female impersonators' club called La Cage aux Folles in Hollywood. It was about a year after my Dynasty appearances had started, and this guy named Gypsy, who later became a friend, came out dressed as me. And I thought, I've become a gay icon!