We already know that being a socialite is hard. And expensive. Former Lizzie Grubman sidekick and "New Jersey" socialite Dori Cooperman stands accused of larceny, forgery, and fraud after she allegedly altered and cashed a stolen $4,300 check. She turned herself in to police in Westport last week and was released on $5,000 bond.

Of course, what's $9,300 plus legal fees to a girl about town? And whatever will she wear to her hearing this Friday?

When she's not getting daily foot rubs at the Four Seasons in Shanghai, Cooperman enjoys the bright lights of St. Tropez, Sardinia, and Aspen. Which could explain the need for cash. SocialiteRank added gravitas to her troubles this morning, speculating that Miss Cooperman simply needed to maintain her perma-tan. After heated debate, the site's giddy commenters decided that the resulting shade should be minted "Oompa Loompa orange."

But Dori's bad move may not mean social suicide. High society has a history of bringing sticky fingered climbers back into the fold. In 1985, a winsome shop girl named Angie King pilfered more than $531,000 in designer clothes from Neiman Marcus, re-selling them to Dallas's wealthy matrons. When the socials sold her out, she was promptly jailed. But her time in the clink only added to her allure, and, upon her release, she married a multi-millionaire. Today she's one of Dallas's most prominent socialites and is a regular fixture on the city's trunk show circuit, bringing a certain ex-con je ne sais quoi to cocktail gatherings. Neiman's has even invited her back with open arms, because, of course, no publicity is bad publicity.

Photo: Billy Farrell/PatrickMcMullan.com