“We have water filters, we recycle,” said actress Angie Harmon, who finds herself “digging through the trash” when her three daughters, ages 6, 4 and 1, neglect to correctly dispose of their garbage. Fortunately, she added, “Their school is very eco-friendly so they learn.” As a mom, Harmon is particularly interested in children’s charities, which is why she was on hand to support The Alliance for Children’s Rights at its annual awards gala. “There are 500,000 orphans in this country. A lot of them are in foster care, and when they turn 18 they graduate out of the system. These lawyers work pro bono to protect these kids,” noted Harmon, who hosts an annual Thanksgiving dinner for teens graduating out of the foster system. “They’ll have families of their own some day, and I want them to have those traditions,” she told MNN.

 

Harmon (most well-known for her role on Law & Order) will return to TV in the TNT series Rizzoli & Isles, in which she plays a Boston detective who teams up with a medical examiner (Sasha Alexander) to solve crimes. The Sopranos’ Lorraine Bracco will recur as her mother in the 10-episode series, which premieres July 12. “She’s a super-tomboy, so I’m in tennis shoes, and jeans, I play basketball, have a Boston accent,” said the actress, who's married to former football-star-turned-sports-analyst Jason Sehorn. “He has his season, I have mine!”

 

As a new father — his adoption of son Nathan became official three weeks ago — Willie Garson (pictured right) was also eager to support the Alliance. “I do a lot of fundraising for them. They do amazing work,” praised the White Collar costar, who has been forever changed by fatherhood. “Being responsible for someone else’s life is a great thing,” he says. “The best thing about it is not worrying so much about yourself.”

 

He’s found that teaching his son to care about the environment can be challenging. “Eight-year-old boys like to throw garbage out the window,” Garson confesses, but at least the car in question is a hybrid. “I have a new Prius, and I didn’t have to touch the brakes once to get here!” he cracked. “I was one of the first people in Los Angeles to have a Prius,” he told us, noting that “everything in my house is green — detergents, paper products, soap. I have solar heating.”

 

Garson will reprise his role as Carrie’s pal Stanford Blatch in Sex and the City 2, a movie he’s contractually prohibited from discussing in detail, but describes as bigger and more fun than its predecessor. “The last one got a little dark. This is a comedy for a country that needs a comedic time.” It hits theaters May 28.