Nine days after debuting to acclaim at the Toronto International Film Festival, the documentary The Art of the Steal has been acquired for North American distribution by Rainbow Media (which owns IFC Films) for its new theatrical and video-on-demand label, Sundance Selects. The film, by Reading resident and director Don Argott and wife/producer Sheena Joyce, depicts the history of the Barnes art collection and the long, hard battle over moving it - despite founder Albert C. Barnes' express wishes in his will - to Center City. We're thinking, based on that title, that the filmmakers aren't happy about the whole move thing. Another clue: Jonathan Sehring of IFC Films said, "This is an exquisitely made, thrilling film that encompasses everything from backroom politics, claims of a major art heist, and a rags-to-riches American Dream tale crushed by the powers that be." Crushed again! Steal is scheduled for 2010 release.

What's up with the docs

Outrage, a documentary about closeted gay politicians, will debut Oct. 5 on HBO. The film, by director Kirby Dick, features former N.J. governor Jim McGreevey, who resigned three years into his first term after allegations of an extramarital affair with a male adviser. McGreevey, since uncloseted and divorced, now counsels honesty in politicians and politics. Dick got an Oscar nomination for his 2005 doc Twist of Faith, about clergy sexual abuse.

'Basterds' passes 'Pulp,' or does it?

Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, the gloriously mal-spelled hit released last month, has surpassed the iconic, perverse, genre-redefining Pulp Fiction (1994) as QT's highest-grossing film ever in North America. Pulp grossed $107.9 mil plus in release. Basterds, which debuted gloriously at No. 1 worldwide, is at $108 mil and grossing. But let's play Dummies' Advocate . . . the worth of Pulp's 1994 take is around $156.76 mil today, according to measuringworth.com, so keep going, you basterds! Harvey Weinstein, top dog at distributor the Weinstein Company, credits Twitter. Basterds was marketed via Twitter and other networking sites, and Twitter cofounder Biz Stone was involved. You'll be seeing such marketing a lot more, you betcha.

Collette's big upset at Emmy Awards

Yahoo! and again, yahoo! at the grand news that Australian actress Toni Collette, who can do anything, OK?, won the Emmy at Sunday's 61st rodeo. She won for actress in a comedy, United States of Tara, an edgy Showtime joint written by Juno scriptor Diablo Cody. Collette plays a woman with at least five other personalities. Shouldn't that count for six roles in one? Hmmm? And what a group she beat: favored Tina Fey of NBC's 30 Rock (she has enough Emmys already, and got another Sunday for guest-actressing on Saturday Night Live); beloved Christina Applegate of Samantha Who?, which, talk about stupid, was canceled by ABC in May; multi-wondrous Julia Louis-Dreyfus of CBS's The New Adventures of Old Christine; kooked-out Sarah Silverman of Comedy Central's The Sarah Silverman Program; and chameleonic Mary-Louise Parker of Showtime's Weeds. Wow. You go, TC.

Doogie Howser, M.D., rescues world

Speaking of the Emmys, Doogie helped them do gooder, TV-wise. Last year was their worst ever. This year, they placed second only to testosteronal Sunday Night Football among viewers 18 to 49, with about 13.3 million viewers overall. That's about 10 percent better than last year, according to Nielsen. Some credit the able hosting of Neil Patrick Harris, now of How I Met Your Mother but indelibly stamped on the collective unconscious as precocious genius doc Doogie Howser.

Dressing for excess at the Emmys

We don't do fashion usually, since (a) nobody wants us to, and (b) we at "SideShow" wear sackcloth and ashes with a Phillies cap. But you know Applegate got revenge on idiotic ABC by being Best of Show in a startling blue dress thingie. Hire her, someone! Kourtney Kardashian was all but exploding out of her body sack. Padma Lakshmi, most beautiful cookbook author in all history and host of Top Chef on Bravo, wore earrings from her own jewelry line, so pretty they made us forget the dress. For reckless courage, the award goes to Blake Lively of CW's Gossip Girl: Her dress had a neckline down to about her ankles, and a slit in front up to about her neck. Block that designer! Men wore clothes at the Emmys, too, and, no, men's clothes do not all look alike. They just all wear them alike. We liked Doogie, imperially slim in a white Dolce & Gabbana dinner jacket, and Alec Baldwin, who won for actor in a comedy, fills a suit way out. . . .

Dots and dips and di-di-dits

Life & Style confirms that Khloé Kardashian will marry L.A. Lakers star Lamar Odom Sunday at a private L.A. pad, after only one month of steadygoing. "It's chaos at the Kardashian household!" says a friend, anonymously and somewhat pointlessly. . . . Krazy Katherine Heigl and rocker hubster Josh Kelley are all mama and papa over Nancy Leigh, their newly (Sept. 12) adopted baby daughter. She is 10 months old, was born in Korea, and is a special-needs baby. Official nickname: Naleigh. . . . Speaking of beauteous film stars who wed rock-and-rollers, add Zooey Deschanel, 29, to the list. Us mag says that on Saturday, somewhere near Seattle, the actress of (500) Days of Summer and other flicks wed Ben Gibbard, 33, front guy for the splendid band Death Cab for Cutie. Mazel tov, you crazy kids. And while we're at it, l'shana tova.

Speaking of chess - OK, we weren't - the two biggest stars in the chess firmament will commemorate the 25th anniversary of their world-blasting showdown. You didn't guess it: Garry Kasparov and Anatoly Karpov, the Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier of chess, are breaking out their bishops, Orthodox Queen's Gambit Declineds, Semi-Slav Defenses, and . . . whatever for an exhibition rematch in Valencia, Spain. . . . Jon Gosselin, of the TLC subreality TV show Jon & Kate Plus 8, was pulled over on I-78 a mile west of the Trexlertown/Fogelsville exits on Sept. 8. His Mercedes ML 350 SUV was doing 78 in a 55 m.p.h. zone. He was undrunk and sans any of his kids, thank goodness. He has duly mailed a check for $165.50 to District Court in Upper Macungie to cover his fine and court costs, according to court records. . . . David Hasselhoff was hospitalized Sunday. Drunk or jus' dizzy? TMZ says daughter Hayley, 17, who has been getting after him for his alcoholic activities, called mom Pamela for help, and an ambulance came to David's Encino home. He was later released from hospital. Team Hasselhoff denies it was booze, says it was a bad drug combo.

Contact "SideShow" at sideshow@phillynews.com. This column contains information from Inquirer wire services.