September 19, 1998
Lining up like Pigeons
By NATASHA STOYNOFF
The Clay Pigeons party at Montana was ripe for the guy-picking. In one corner, we had Vincent D'Onofrio -- in town shooting an Abbie Hoffman bio -- stretched over the pool table, sinking balls and breaking hearts.

"Hoffman helped get rid of the idea that women are second citizens," said the politically-minded actor.

Hovering nearby were partners in Clay-crime, Vince Vaughn and Joaquin Phoenix with co-star Janeane Garofalo, the Shirley MacLaine of this Rat Pack.

Still too sober by party's end, the boys limoed it to Bistro 990 where they downed unknown shots of unknown quantities 'til 4 a.m.

"We got a press conference tomorrow morning, you know," moaned Phoenix to his 6-foot-5 co-star.

Tempted by a young, pretty thing to one more round, Vaughn waved her off, groaning: "We're all shot out."

The early presser the next day was the hair of the dog that bit 'em.

"I'm just too tired," Phoenix complained, when he couldn't find words to answer the seemingly simple question: "Why do you think you play white trash so well?"

DEFIANT ONE: "Wowww," purred Melanie Griffith, in that little-girl whisper, to one photog at Planet Hollywood Tuesday night.

"You're not so fast with that camera, are you?"

Speaking of ... Griffith says co-star James Woods convinced her to make the fest film, Another Day In Paradise --a sort of Bonnie And Clyde meets Something Wild.

"He said, 'You gotta do the movie with me'," said Griffith. "So I did it."

She also does a lot of things wild in the film.

"I shot up twice," she points out, proudly.

"In my neck and in my crotch."

Known for her own youthful wild days, Griffith pleads no contest in comparison to the stunts she actually pulled.

"This film is a lot tougher than my wildness ever was."

Also mingling was Lou Diamond Phillips, who plays "a very gay, Latino gangster" in the film.

Bejeweled for his role in '70s glam-rock, the actor went for a Ziggy Stardust/David Bowie look.

"I even had glitter in my belly button," he laughs.