Melissa McCarthy has always been a funny girl. But not because she was cute (though she was) or unexpectedly crude (though she could be). She was funny because she was quick; she always had reply, a reference or a self-deprecating, soft jab. Now, with three movies out this year — a starring role in the box-office busting “Identity Thief,” a stint in the debaucherous finale “The Hangover Part III” and this month’s “The Heat” — McCarthy, 42, is standing tall as Hollywood’s Queen of Comedy.

Members of the Kardashian clan have tried to deny divorce reports about Kris and Bruce Jenner — except for daughter Khloe. She has said that her mom and stepdad are living apart, and I’m hearing divorce is inevitable.

Like most young girls, Kathryn Minshew had larger-than-life aspirations. “When I was a 5-year-old, I decided I wanted to be Zorro, or an international woman of mystery,” says Minshew, now 27. And while she eventually landed as a consultant at prestigious firm McKinsey, Minshew was always drawn to the road less traveled. “I’ve always been fascinated by the process through which people are introduced to careers,” she says. “As a kid, you think you can be a doctor, a lawyer or an engineer, but there are millions of possibilities out there that people are never introduced to.”

“Jesse White is my dad. I call him Pops,” says Richard Blackmon, a former member of the Jesse White Tumblers who is now a college and career coach at Hyde Park Academy. He attributes his success to his experience with White. “I credit him with who I am and what I’ve accomplished,” he says. “If I’d been left to my own devices, who knows where I’d be.”

Katie Chang is currently traveling around the country alongside Emma Watson on a press tour for the release of her first film, Sofia Coppola’s much-anticipated “The Bling Ring.” But when we interviewed her in early June at the Actors Training Center at the Wilmette Theatre — where she cut her teeth as a young actress — Chang was most enthusiastic when discussing another event on the horizon: her high-school graduation.

I miss my dad. He was the best friend I ever had. He “got” me, as I did him. We had much in common. The music. The Cubs. The same twisted sense of humor. The inability to suffer fools gladly.

When Picasso was a kid, he didn’t grab a brush and paint Guernica. And Justin Beiber didn’t pick up a guitar, strike his first chord and watch it hit No. 1 on the charts. But when Anjelah Johnson, the Oakland Raiders cheerleader turned comedienne, wrote her first joke (an exaggerated imitation of her experience at a Korean nail salon) in 2005 as part of a church-sponsored standup-comedy class, it was an instant hit.

There are rumors that George Clooney and Stacy Keibler (above) broke up, and I’m hearing there’s some truth to the gossip!

Fresh off the tarmac from St. Louis, Doug Moss is just weeks into his role as vice president and general manager of Saks Fifth Avenue Chicago, the luxury retailer perched on a patch of the Mag Mile’s most prime real estate (700 N. Michigan). But he already has grand plans for a renovation that will bring new fashion opportunities to the entire city.

With Father’s Day on the way, these high-profile Chicago dads dish on how they’ll be spending the holiday.