Still out and about: Samuel L. Jackson, enjoying last Saturday's gorgeous weather. He was shopping at the Tesuque Flea Market and also walking around the Santa Fe Plaza.

• • •

Spotting the stars: Robert Englund, "Freddy," of the Elm Street horror movies, walking down East Palace Avenue a week a go last Friday. So used to being spotted, he just smiled when a passer-by yelled, "FREDDY!"

• • • 

Another local star, Oscar-winner Gene Hackman, is working on his fourth novel, according to Taylor Antrim of The Daily Beast. However, the interview, posted last week, contained a big surprise — Hackman said he was retiring from acting in favor of writing.

For his first three historical novels, Hackman wrote with fellow Santa Fe resident Daniel Lenihan (their most recent, Escape from Andersonville). He told the Daily Beast that his fourth effort will be solo. "I'm 300 pages into a novel that takes place in New Mexico and Colorado. I'm calling it, The Destiny at Morning Peak," Hackman said.

As for the difference between writing and acting, it comes down to one thing: Stress. "For me, at least, writing a novel is a great pleasure. There is stress but it's a different kind of stress: more mental than physical. In a film you're working nights and 16-hour days. Here I am saying poor me, when I've been paid pretty well for that work, but it's a fact. It doesn't matter how much you're being paid. At my age I just feel I don't want to do that any longer. So, the writing is really a godsend."

After all, two Oscars is enough for anyone, right?

• • •

The Jackson Browne/John Trudell show earlier this month at the Lensic brought out the crowds, selling out the theater.

The benefit — for Trudell's nonprofit Give Love Give Life — raised money for three New Mexico women's health organizations, including Women's Health Services, Tewa Women United and Young Women United. Interestingly, Trudell formed the nonprofit with Marcheline Bertrand, whose name astute readers might recognize. She's the mother of Angelina Jolie, and died of ovarian cancer in 2007.

Spotted in the crowd: Kevin Redstar, Tony Abeyta, Marcus Amerman, Rulan Tangen, Lisa Law, Tom and Caroline Favre-Gilly Law, Cliff Fragua, Michael Motley and Sen. Tom Udall and his wife, Jill Cooper. After the show, the party moved to Vanessie of Santa Fe. Browne was a fill-in for Kris Kristofferson, who had to drop out of the show because of emergency surgery. Filling in when Browne needed a band were members of Trudell's group, Bad Dog.

• • •

From the Georgia O'Keeffe: Photographer Annie Leibovitz is the 2010 Women of Distinction honoree. She will be honored next March. Of being recognized by the Women of Distinction Series, Leibovitz said, "Georgia O'Keeffe was one of the first artists I was aware of as a young person. Alfred Stieglitz's photographs of O'Keeffe are especially important to me. They are some of the greatest portraits ever made. But it is O'Keeffe's example as a working artist that makes her such an inspirational figure to so many of us. She set off on her own, did her own work."

• • •

Finally, Jason Dickman, former car columnist for The New Mexican and service technician at Santa Fe BMW, has moved to New York and is now working for Ralph Lauren. No, he's not strutting down the runway, or designing evening gowns. He is one of a group of expert technicians who keeps Lauren's private collection of cars running. Sweet.

Send your news to elmitote@sfnewmexican.com.