Arts Appropriations Disputes: The Musical!

If you followed the culture wars circa 1990 -- the angry battles over federal funding for sexually charged works by artists like Robert Mapplethorpe and Karen Finley-- you probably thought at some point, "Hey, this would make a great musical comedy!"

Well, so did the man at the center of it all -- John Frohnmayer, the National Endowment for the Arts chairman forced to quit in 1992 in the crossfire between conservative pols like Sen. Jesse Helms and liberal-learning arts advocates.

And the retired lawyer actually wrote that musical, a fictionalized and heavily satirical take called "Spin," which debuts at Oregon State University next month. It features a Helmsian senator (played by David Ogden Stiers, Maj. Winchester from "M*A*S*H") and a wacky performance artist-provocateur whose flash-point artwork is "a vomit flag" on the Mall.

"I tried to figure out, what's the most outrageous thing an artist could do?" said Frohnmayer, who jabs at the other side with songs like "Senators' Reprise" ("Getting headlines, we know the score/. . . Being offended by rear ends would give us press galore.")

Oh, and did we mention? Frohnmayer just happens to be running an independent campaign for U.S. Senate in Oregon these days as well. "John knows artists and John knows politicians," said director Marion Rossi, an OSU prof. "And John knows how art and politics come together, sometimes not so prettily."

The Baby Talk Is Kicking, but Mum's the Word From Ashlee Simpson

Is Ashlee Simpson pregnant? Not since the great J-Lo tease of 2007 has a celebrity cover gal's obstetrical status been so closely watched or so deftly obscured. We'll let you sort out the welter of denials, non-denials and no-comments -- bearing in mind that it all may be designed to heighten your interest in the new album she's promoting.

· "There is nothing to say," a rep tells Us Weekly last week when asked about pregnancy rumors amid news of the singer's engagement to Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz.

· After Us and OK! magazine assert on Monday that she's preggers, Wentz denies it to MTV: "There is a witch hunt for people to be pregnant whenever they get engaged in Hollywood."

· People, the most cautious celeb mag, backs the pregnancy claim on Tuesday, citing a family source.