Frankie Valli

The night of Sunday, Nov. 6, 2005, was a big one on Broadway, the opening night for Jersey Boys, the musical biography of the '60s pop group the Four Seasons. About an hour and a half before the curtain was to go up, everyone gathered on stage at the August Wilson Theater in Manhattan to participate in one of Broadway's many superstitions. Called the gypsy robe, it dates to 1950, when Bill Bradley, a dancer for the Broadway production of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, borrowed a robe from one of the "gypsies" - the ensemble cast members, not the leads - on opening night and danced through the backstage area, blessing everyone before the curtains went up. The show was a hit, and a superstitious tradition was born, one with very stringent rules and regulations.

MICHAEL J. FOX has decided to quit loafing around the house and go back to full-time work. The 51-year-old actor - can you believe that? - is pitching a sitcom based on his life, and given his track record ("Family Ties," "Spin City," "Back to the Future," a best-selling autobiography) he probably has a good chance to get it on the air. Vulture.com reports that Fox has teamed with writer Sam Laybourne ("Arrested Development," "Cougar Town") and director Will Gluck ("Easy A")

SEN. ARLEN SPECTER and wife Joan dined with Phillies slugger Chase Utley and wife Jen at La Collina (37 Ashland) in Belmont Hills after Sunday's game. The senator attends most Sunday home games. We're told Specter and Utley were gracious to fellow diners and said hello to those who approached them. Also dining there Sunday was 1340 WHAT-AM's JD , who was with his family. Out and about Frankie Valli celebrated his 75th birthday by performing at Atlantic City's Borgata.

If Jimmy Scott's heartrending readings of classic pop songs on the brilliant new album "All the Way" don't tear you apart, his life story will. One of the last great jazz-inflected balladeers, Scott's delicately emotive, high-pitched delivery has influenced (and paved the way for) the likes of Frankie Lymon, Smokey Robinson, Frankie Valli and Stevie Wonder. Yet Scott has languished in near-obscurity for decades - in large measure because some pockets of society could not deal with this pioneer's fragile, feminine- sounding, Billie Holidayish voice and slight appearance (the result, he says, of a hormonal disorder)

We hope you've been following that American League, too, folks, because you're only half through with this quiz. 1.) Who is that young fireballer the Indians brought back to be the star of their bullpen so far: A) Steve Carlton, B) Bob Feller, C) Ted Stepien or D) World B. Free? 2.) Which of these men stole a base this season before Juan Samuel, Tim Raines or Willie Wilson: A) Reginald Jackson, B) Reginald Von Gleason, C) Reginald Von Joshua or D) Reginald Von Hayes? 3.)

You might want to consider bringing a sweatshirt or light jacket if you're headed to Citizens Bank Park for tonight's Game 2 of the Phillies-Reds NLDS playoffs. But unlike Wednesday's historic series opener, you can leave the rain gear at home. The National Weather Service forecast for tonight calls for clear skies with lows in the mid-50s. Also winds will be from the west - or out of left field - at 10-15 m.p.h., the same direction from which they were blowing Wednesday evening when Roy Halladay pitched his no-hitter.

Here's a summary of the activities at Citizens Bank Park, leading into tonight's Game 2 of the National League Division Series game between the Phillies and Cincinnati Reds: 10 a.m. Majestic Clubhouse Store opens with new postseason merchandise. 3 p.m. Phillies Postseason Party begins on Citizens Bank Way with music by Mr. Greengenes and games. Food, drinks and merchandise are for sale. 3:35 p.m. Ashburn Alley opens. 4:05 p.m. All gates open. Rally towels for all fans.

Forgotten in the afterglow of the World Series victory in October is the strange fact that the Phillies' only other championship left Harry Kalas in a funk. In 1980, networks owned the exclusive radio and TV broadcast rights to the World Series, and the Phillies' broadcast crew was not on the air. "It's depressing, frustrating and disappointing that after working the Phillies through the entire season and playoffs, we can't work the Series," Kalas told the Daily News the day of the climactic Game 6. "It's like being in reach of the plum and not being able to grab it. But that's the nature of the beast, I guess.

If The Sopranos were to hire a house band, they could do a lot worse than the extreme lounge keyboard-and-drums duo of Mickey and Joey Pal. The two have been playing music together for 30 years this month, and appear every Wednesday through Saturday night at Kathleen's Cafe (on Ninth and Christian Streets). Equal parts Las Vegas and South Philly, their act draws from a large repertoire of songs, from Broadway show tunes to Bacharach to "Wildwood Days. " Between songs, the off-color jokes fly fast and thick.

Bally's Atlantic City, Boardwalk at Park Place, 609-340-2000, ballysac.com. "The Price Is Right Live!" starring Joey Fatone, 7:30 p.m. tomorrow, Monday through Wednesday, 2 p.m. Sunday (Palace Theater), $25 and $20. Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, 1 Borgata Way, 609-317-1000, theborgata.com. Janet Jackson, 8 p.m. today and tomorrow (Event Center), sold out. Frankie Valli, 9 p.m. today and tomorrow (Music Box), sold out. Caesars Atlantic City, Boardwalk at Arkansas Avenue, 609-348-4411, caesarsac.com.