The Sopranos, Marilyn Manson and Courtney Love

Tony Soprano and both his families rubbed out the competition. More people were watching the season premiere of The Sopranos on Sunday night than anything else. That includes basic cable and broadcast TV. About 13. 4 million people were tuned to HBO during that hour. That's believed to be the first time an HBO show has had a larger audience than any of the broadcast networks at the same time. Bada Bing!

Marilyn Manson describes his first gallery art exhibit as "grotesque images" painted with "pretty colors." The show opens Friday in Los Angeles. A gallery spokesman says the exhibit features about 50 pieces of work and is titled "The Golden Age of Grotesque." I wish I could act surprised. Everything is on sale, though Manson says it'll be tough to give up some favorite pieces. But he says it's necessary "to let go at some point." You know I'm going to be in L.A. Friday and I think I'll let it go too.

Finally, Courtney Love is taking over MTV for the weekend. She'll be live Saturday and Sunday. Attention censors, have the seven second delay and bleep buttons handy.