PEOPLE

By Belinda Luscombe

ALL YOU NEED IS RUFFLES

It's a good time to be a McCartney. First, STELLA MCCARTNEY's debut show for the French fashion house Chloe drew kind reviews, and not just from Mom and Dad, who led the standing ovation when Stella came out to take her bows. They must have had a parental sixth sense. "The part that terrified me most was just walking down that runway," said Stella afterward. Critics described McCartney's lacy, feminine clothes as a "happy hodgepodge" of pieces with "gentle flourishes"--not unlike what some generous souls say about PAUL MCCARTNEY's musical compositions. His latest, Standing Stone, took four years to write. It's a "symphonic poem" that also had its debut last week, at London's Royal Albert Hall. He too got standing ovations, although many critics branded the work dull. The album is currently No. 1 on the Billboard classical charts in the U.S. Happiest of all must be LINDA MCCARTNEY, for whom these were the first two public appearances since her recent bout with breast cancer.

DOING WELL BY LOOKING BAD

Some stars age gracefully. Others use every means in their power to prolong youth by focusing on its companions: beauty and desirability. Still others fade out of sight. But JON VOIGHT has chosen a fourth route. He has embraced his outer homeliness. Voight, 58, has come a long way since he played Rolf in Broadway's original Sound of Music, or even since his Oscar-winning turn as the archetypal '70s-sensitive guy in Coming Home. In Anaconda, Heat and U-Turn, Voight has proved he can be as scrofulous and evil as the next bad guy. But it takes some effort. "For Heat I was in the makeup chair for four hours," says Voight, who sought a "fungal quality" for his skin. "When I first arrived on the set, a guy went up to my makeup artist and said, 'I used to drive for Jon. What happened--drugs?'" Voight admits it was initially difficult to let go of his leading-man status. "But I just determined that I wasn't going through face-lifts," he says. "I decided to use my jowls and wrinkles." Maybe more actors should try it. After a slightly slow period in the early '90s, his movie career has heated up. An added bonus: his daughter ANGELINA JOLIE--who can be ogled in Playing God--may now safely assume the mantle of family sex symbol.

BODYGUARD JOINS FRAY

TREVOR REES-JONES, the only survivor of the most infamous car accident ever to take place in France, may not recall much about it, but does not want to be forgotten when it comes to recompense. He has joined the families of the other victims, including Diana's, in becoming what's known as a "civil party" to the investigation. This means that if charges are filed and damages awarded, he will share them. He will also have access to all court papers and can't be interrogated by investigators without his lawyer. Prevailing medical opinion suggests he won't remember any more anyway.

SEEN & HEARD

Fifty years after he did it first, he did it again. Chuck Yeager, the enduring symbol of flyboy coolheadedness under pressure, broke the sound barrier again, in an F-15. It was a farewell sonic boom for the 74-year-old, who has retired from military flying. "I just decided to go out on top, rather than wait for some doctor to ground me," he said. Not that grounding would be all bad. The following day, a British pilot broke the speed of sound in a land vehicle.

Tina Louise will always be remembered as Ginger, the Gilligan's Island castaway with a case of evening gowns, but these days she has more serious concerns. Louise has written a memoir, Sunday, published by Golden Books' adult division. It details the bad time she had when her very young mother put her in boarding school. "Writing it was a healing process for me," she says. "But I also want parents to buy it and share it with their teenagers."