Mr. Showbiz
July 13, 2000

Hot, hot star Russell Crowe isn't just in demand as a hunky leading man (or as a rebound fling, if you believe the reports linking him to nicey-nice Meg Ryan).

The awesome Aussie also plays in his band, 30 Odd Foot of Grunts, which quickly sold out three August shows in Austin, Texas.

Entertainment Weekly reports that tickets to see Russell sweat, er, sing in person are going for as much as $500 on eBay.

If you simply must know more, visit the band's official site, www.gruntland.com. As its high-profile lead singer is fond of saying, "Rock 'n' roll, mate!"

According to the site, the only other time the Grunts have played the United States was at Los Angeles' Viper Room, owned by another chain-smoking favorite with the ladies: Johnny Depp.

Lest you expect to see Crowe making the scene in L.A., the New Zealand-born, Australia-bred actor says there's no chance he'll be moving to the States.

The 36-year-old Gladiator star tells the August issue of Movieline, "I'd move to Los Angeles if Australia and New Zealand were swallowed up by a huge tidal wave, if there was a bubonic plague in England, and if the continent of Africa disappeared from some Martian attack."

Proof of his strong feelings: His only listed agent is one based in London.

He says he loves his homeland because people there tell it like it is. "In Australia, they treat you like a piece of furniture," he says. "Your mates are your mates, and the folks who hate your dark and bloody guts, they don't change their minds. That's why I love it, I suppose."