The Truth Is Out There

We now can tell you that Gillian Anderson of “The X-Files” was embroiled in her own contract dispute during co-star David Duchovny’s highly publicized $25-million legal tiff with Fox. But her camp kept it quiet at the time, for fear of stirring up bad publicity.

Now, while Duchovny is appearing in only half the episodes in the show’s eighth season, Anderson is locked into a ninth season, even though she’s been threatening since 1999 to stroll and focus on film roles.

When she inked her deal last summer, Anderson’s official line was that the scripts were too good to pass up. She told the London Evening Standard in October that series creator Chris Carter “got me excited about the possibility” of the ninth season. “I am having fun doing it. After everything, there is sunshine.” And she told another London newspaper, the Observer, that she had “a new enthusiasm” for the series.

Fast forward to Los Angeles, April 2001. Anderson was singing a different tune when we caught up with her backstage at UCLA’s Royce Hall, where she hosted the first U.S. performance of a group of young South African musicians. “Was it really the scripts that persuaded you to stay?” we asked.

“No. It was because they were not going to pay me fairly unless I added on a ninth season. It was purely political,” she said.

Anderson’s manager Connie Frieberg called the talks with Fox “a real passionate story” to be told in “two or three years.” Fox had no comment.

As for the script, Anderson’s character, agent Dana Scully, gives birth in the season clincher. Wonder whether the little bundle of joy will be human, alien or agent Mulder’s.

Stun Gun Justice

David Spade’s former personal assistant apologized and blamed cocaine abuse as he pleaded guilty Thursday in Beverly Hills to assaulting the “Joe Dirt” star with a stun gun. “I’m just sorry it occurred,” a somber David “Skippy” Malloy told us after Superior Court Judge Elden Fox sentenced him to five years’ probation, ordered him to keep at least 100 yards away from Spade and pay $200 restitution. Malloy also agreed to seek counseling for drug and psychological problems. If he doesn’t comply with the terms of his probation, Malloy could face six months in jail.

Malloy, a 30-year-old aspiring actor, wrote Spade a six-page apology, which was personally delivered by Beverly Hills Police Det. Craig Stevens.

Malloy’s lawyer, Howard Lowe, said that his client was angry and “in a psychotic state due to cocaine” when he attacked Spade at the actor’s Beverly Hills home early the morning of Nov. 29. Spade, 36, was roughed up and badly shaken. Included in the police report are photos of Spade, 36, with his face bloodied and his torso covered with angry-looking welts.

Lowe and prosecutor Wendy Seagal agreed that the sentence was fair.

Man or Beast?

Forget about those rumors linking Sean “Puffy” Combs to Janet Jackson. True, Jackson’s new album, “All for You,” contains the liner note “Puffy, I love you. I miss you. You will always be in my heart.” But her publicist insists that the message concerns Janet’s dearly departed pooch, not the rapper who now prefers to be known as P. Diddy.

“Oh, puh-leeze,” said Jackson’s flack, Paul Freundlich. “It’s for a dog she had for 19 years. He died last year.”

Enquiring Minds

Did a tabloid reporter cross the line in hot pursuit of a scoop? Can story subjects win damages if they don’t like a reporter’s line of questioning? These pithy issues are raised in a lawsuit director Brian Helgeland and his wife, Nancy, filed this month against the National Enquirer. According to court papers in Santa Monica, Enquirer reporter Alan Braham Smith confronted Nancy Helgeland on March 13 at the front gate of the couple’s beachfront home west of L.A. He allegedly told her that a picture had been taken of her husband hugging actress Lucy Liu outside a restaurant in West Hollywood and peppered her with questions such as “Why would they have been together?” and “Are they having an affair?” and “Is your marriage in trouble?”

“After Smith’s vicious verbal attack, Mrs. Helgeland retreated inside . . . and immediately became physically ill,” the suit states. No story was printed, but the suit seeks unspecified damages for slander and invasion of privacy.

Attorney Doug Mirell, who specializes in 1st Amendment issues, says the couple faces “a seriously uphill battle” in court. In earlier cases involving ambush interviews and tough questions, courts have strongly favored the news-gathering process. Enquirer lawyer Gerson Zweifach said Smith was on a public street and properly identified himself. “We do have this 1st Amendment,” he said, “ and it does say we all will put up with some personal inconveniences to allow a reporter to ask a question.”

The News Rack

Grammy winner Carlos Santana just bought a sleek BMW Z8 roadster from a Marin County dealer, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. Sticker price: a supernatural $150,000.

Times staff writers Louise Roug and Gina Piccalo contributed to this report.