If you're among the twisted throng of people in search of a celebrity of your very own to stalk, we'd advise that you cross R&B superstar Toni Braxton off your list. It seems that the singer is already "taken" by an unidentified gent who's made her life a living hell for the past few months. |

Braxton has been receiving harassing letters, e-mails and phone messages from an obsessed male fan ever since she took over the lead role in the Broadway production of Beauty and the Beast earlier this fall. As a result, the singer has curtailed her performing slate somewhat, and has cut back drastically on her outside public appearances.

Oddly enough, Braxton's predecessor in the role of Belle, Deborah Gibson, was also hounded by a stalker during her run; Gibson's problems were alleviated, however, when her alleged psycho-suitor, Michael Folkner, was arrested in New York on charges of aggravated harassment.

A source at Disney, which produces Beauty and the Beast, confirms that security measures around the theater have been intensified, but declined to comment on specific details surrounding the stepped-up presence.

DAVID SPRAGUE(October 26, 1998)