CBC host Gilhooly swears it wasn't he who whacked her knee

Name recognition hasn't been a problem for Jeff Gilhooly. Just the opposite.

Gilhooly, the new host of "The Morning Show" on CBC-TV, says he caught a lot of razzing when Tonya Harding's husband — then known as Jeff Gillooly — was implicated in the knee-capping of Harding's figure-skating rival, Nancy Kerrigan, in 1994.

"I went through a lot of razzing then.

I still face it," Gilhooly told the St. John's (Newfoundland) Telegram.

"I remember picking up the Telegram that morning, and the Globe and Mail ... all of the newspapers and media had it ... and you know how when you see your name in print it jumps out at you?

"Well, it's already a rather unusual last name. I remember having to go on the radio across the province, and saying, 'I'm Jeff Gilhooly, and that's with an H.'

"I'd go into hotels or something, or using a credit card I'd have to give the big explanation. I mean, I don't know any figure skaters.

"And I've never whacked anyone."

So, good luck in your new gig, Jeff.

Break a leg.

Show me the monkey

The Anaheim Angels announced plans for three stuffed rally monkey giveaways, honoring Manager Mike Scioscia and infielders Troy Glaus and Adam Kennedy.

In a related story, plans for a Tommy Lasorda rally monkey reportedly fell apart when the Los Angeles Dodgers refused to guarantee any cost overruns on the extra gut-stuffing.

A league of his own

Of the 10 Major League Soccer teams, Phillip Anschutz owns six of them. That makes him one of the few who can honestly say, "We beat ourselves today."

Talking the talk

• Jim Hodges of the Hampton Roads (Va.) Daily Press, on Pete Rose hiring a writer-director from Los Angeles, Rick Hill, to pen his next autobiography: "Who better? Among Hill's credits is the movie, 'The Longshot.' "

• New Jersey Nets forward Kenyon Martin, to Sports Illustrated, saying all his fines last season have helped him curb his temper: "I lost almost $300,000. That's two cars."

• Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, after CBC hockey commentator Don Cherry called Canadian media "socialist, left-wing, pinko commies" for lambasting him over his pro-war stance: "Don Cherry answers the question, 'What if Archie Bunker had been a former NHL coach that landed in broadcasting?' "

• Atlanta first baseman Robert Fick, to the Atlanta Journal & Constitution, wondering if he was still playing for Detroit after the Braves got pounded 10-2 on Opening Day: "We looked like the Bad News Bears today. A lot of funny (stuff) happened out there today. I kept looking down at my jersey."

Easy on the ice

Critics say the International Skating Union is riddled with scandal and corruption, leading Randy Turner of the Winnipeg Free Press to wonder: "Does that make the ISU part of the world's 'Axel of Evil'?"

Reading the big print

Headline in the Anchorage Daily News, after Tennessee beat Villanova to reach the women's Final Four: "Vols still dancing because Summitt is the boss o' 'Nova."

Potential UCLA headline in today's Los Angeles Times that Gonzaga fans are thankful they won't be seeing: "Many are called. Few is chosen."