Hollywood

By KIM MASTERS

Hollywood relationships can be awkward--especially when love dies. Years ago at Sony Pictures, manager BRAD GREY set up GARRY SHANDLING'S upcoming movie What Planet Are You From? with himself as a producer. But by the time filming started, Shandling was suing Grey for $100 million, claiming that his former manager-producer had cut him out of all kinds of deals. With the trial set to start any minute, the studio faced an expensive hiatus--more than $1 million a week--while Shandling went to court. Sony, which recently bought part of Grey's production company, asked its new partner to delay the court date. But Grey declined to be quite that good a sport. As the trial loomed, Shandling settled late last week, with Sony dollars helping to grease the deal. So director MIKE NICHOLS can keep shooting and Grey remains an executive producer with a share in the profit, if there is any.

--By Kim Masters/Los Angeles