Thanks to the 2004 movie "Sideways," pinot noir is the grape du jour. Tonight, Vino at Restaurant Row hosts a pinot special. "With summer coming on, it's a most appropriate wine to sip during the warm weather," says Vino master sommelier Chuck Furuya.

You can order a selection of pinots by the bottle at reasonable prices. Get a group of friends, shanghai a big table, order a bunch of small plates and lots of wine for your own private tasting.

You also can order by the glass; on offer: 2003 Brassfield High Valley, 2004 Costa de Oro Gold Coast Vineyard, 2004 Hitching Post Cork Dancer and 2003 Gachot-Monot Côtes de Nuits Villages.

THE ART OF ACTING

Hawai'i's favorite hyphenate star, CaryHiroyuki Tagawa, leads "The Art of Acting," 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 8 and 9 at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa.

The workshop is open to anyone who has ever considered auditioning for a role, and covers practicalities of the movie biz, from the role of directors to how to dissect a script.

Whom better to learn from than a guy who's been in everything from "Memoirs of a Geisha" (left) to "Planet of the Apes"? Cost: $300. To register, call 956-8400. Information: www.outreach.hawaii.edu/pnm.

FINAL WORD

"It's hard in the world I live in to have heroes."

Art Buchwald | the 80-year-old satirist when asked who his real-life heroes are, in Vanity Fair