Mariah’s Meltdown

Mariah Carey’s publicist said Wednesday the pop singer is under psychiatric care for “an emotional and physical breakdown” but denied tabloid rumors of a suicide attempt. Carey, 32, has canceled all public appearances.

Last week, she checked into a suburban New York hospital after posting two rambling messages to fans on her Web site. She also didn’t seem quite herself during public appearances on MTV’s “Total Request Live” and at a Long Island record store, where publicist Cindi Berger reportedly had to snatch a microphone out of her hand as Carey began to ramble.

Initially, Berger said Carey was hospitalized for “extreme exhaustion.” But Berger has since acknowledged that Carey’s condition was more fragile. The publicist denied that Carey intentionally cut herself, but acknowledged Carey broke some dishes and glasses and “she may have cut her foot on some broken glass” before entering the hospital.

Carey’s breakdown comes at a crucial time in her career. She just signed a multimillion-dollar contract with Virgin Records, and the first movie in which she has a starring role, “Glitter,” is slated to open later this month. She also produced and performed on the soundtrack. It’s doubtful Carey will be able to promote the projects. Said Berger: “We’re taking one day at a time.”

An Addict’s Tale

Suddenly, everybody’s talking about Aaron Sorkin’s love affair with controlled substances--especially Aaron Sorkin.

The prolific writer-producer of “The West Wing” blabs about his taste for marijuana and cocaine and his April arrest at Burbank Airport in the upcoming Talk magazine and TV Guide. Among the disclosures:

Sorkin went on alternating drug and writing binges for years. He says he was freebasing cocaine while writing “The American President” in the early 1990s, but never smoked crack while writing “The West Wing.” He felt the party urge only when finishing up his final show of the season, and the pressure was off, Sorkin told Talk. “If you use drugs enough, you forget how to celebrate without them.”

The airport bust wasn’t his first relapse since spending time at Minnesota’s famous Hazelden Institute in 1995. Sorkin told Talk, “It wasn’t the first time, but it wasn’t the fifth time either.” The magic mushrooms found in his suitcase at the airport, however, were an aberration, Sorkin insisted. He said he fainted out of shock when he was stopped, although airport security assumed he was high.

Later, at an informal intervention at the Georgetown Four Seasons Hotel, Martin Sheen scolded Sorkin for not taking his sobriety seriously enough. “Martin felt I was trying to skate this somehow,” Sorkin said, adding that Sheen said he’d walk away from “The West Wing” if that’s what it took for Sorkin to get clean.

The End Game

Celebrity watchers are licking their chops over reports that Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman plan to attend Tuesday night’s Los Angeles premiere of “The Others.” (She stars; he co-produced.) This would be the first time the pair have been spotted anywhere near each other in public since their February split.

Things could get interesting if both stay late at Tina Brown’s after-party at West Hollywood’s Mondrian. Nobody will turn into a pumpkin at the stroke of midnight. But by 12:01 a.m., the Cruise-Kidman divorce will be final. What is the protocol for being caught in the same room when the estranged officially becomes the ex? We suggest a clink of the champagne glasses, a kiss on the cheek, and a tear.

Love Is the Drug

Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas wore his-and-her ponytails to the premiere Tuesday night of the thriller “Original Sin,” which features Banderas in a sizzling love scene with Angelina Jolie. Griffith’s irritation was evident as she repeatedly deflected the question of the night: Was she bothered by the sex scene?

“No!” she said, grabbing Banderas in a bear hug. “He’s my knight in shining armor!” Regarding the film, she added, “I think it’s some of his best work .... I’m not quite sure why everybody is so enticed by the love scene. I think it’s beautiful.” Jolie and husband Billy Bob Thornton also made kissy-face for the cameras. With each other, that is.

Legal Affairs

The last will and testament of Robert Blake’s slain wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, recently surfaced as her sister went to court in Los Angeles asking to be named administrator of the estate.

In court papers, Margerry Bakley claimed Bonnie Lee died without a will. But a former husband, Ron Gawron, produced a copy of a 1990 will, which he says he found among her papers at his Memphis home a couple of days after Bakley was shot to death in May. Gawron says in a court declaration that he told Margerry about the will, “and she told me ‘to hide it.”’ Margerry’s lawyer, Carey Goldstein, said, “I wouldn’t trust anything that Paul Gawron says. He’s motivated by financial gain.”

Quote, Unquote

“Maybe they think I’m the wildest AARP member there is.”--Clint Eastwood, 71, in a phone call to the San Francisco Chronicle debunking tabloid rumors that his fondness for jazz singer Diana Krall is stressing his marriage to wife Dina.

Times staff writers Gina Piccalo and Louise Roug contributed to this column. City of Angles runs Tuesday-Friday. E-mail: angles@latimes.com.