If you run into Dustin Hoffman on...

If you run into Dustin Hoffman on the street, you might not recognize him now that Beverly Hills hair stylist Allen Edwards has given him a haircut. It’s a ‘40s look complete with a pomade slick and shades of white sidewall, Edwards says. Hoffman stopped in the hair salon for his regular trim, and Edwards took the opportunity to inform him: “Men are going back to barbering looks, with very short sides and a just slightly longer crown.” It was an easy sell. Edwards tells Listen: “Dustin is very impulsive. He said: ‘OK, let’s do it.’ ”

Kim Novak’s been gathering up some va-va-voom evening gowns for her new job as a regular on the “Falcon Crest” nighttime soap. Listen hears from L.A. designers Jerry Skeels and Randy McLaughlin--whose label and shop window read Jeran--that Novak added half a dozen of their custom-made outfits to her costume wardrobe in the last couple of months. One of “Falcon Crest’s” wardrobers brought the star and the stylists together, Skeels says. Except for several daytime suits, he says, everything Novak has ordered from the designers’ West Hollywood boutique is beaded and has a plunging neckline or swooping sleeves and slits. The most recent dress, which Skeel said Novak was picking up the next day, is coated in crystal and white beads, and has a bat-wing jacket. “We call it White Goddess,” he adds.

Vidal Sassoon has never minded dwelling on appearances. This international hair stylist, who made his name in the ‘60s playing geometry with hairdos, is now hosting a TV documentary that focuses on man’s obsession with looks, entitled “Quest for Beauty.” Calling Listen a few days ago from Chicago (where he was publicizing the show), Sassoon said he’s never considered beauty a superficial concern. “It’s a very positive force in a very negative time. It should not be passed over flippantly--because what it really does is create positive energies.” The documentary was shot in several countries, tracing man’s idea of beauty through the centuries. The work left Sassoon feeling a little philosophical. “I’m not one of those people who says: ‘I’d like to have been alive in Georgian times.’ Today is a very fortunate era--beauty-wise--to live in.” The show, co-sponsored by the Vidal Sassoon firm, airs Sunday at 6 and 10 p.m. on the Arts & Entertainment Cable Television Network.

Halston,the New York fashion designer, recently donated 50 works of art by Andy Warhol to the Des Moines Art Center in his hometown. The silk screens, oils, lithographs and sculptures, from Halston’s personal collection, include portraits of some of his famous pals--there are two Martha Grahams, one Elizabeth Taylor, two Mick Jaggers, a couple of Liza Minnellis, one Princess Grace, not to mention three Mona Lisas (no, she didn’t hang out at Studio 54) and four unidentified portraits entitled “Drag Queen.” Joan Simon, the museum’s interim director, says Halston (nee Roy Halston Frowick) made the gift in honor of his parents, Hallie and Edward Frowick. The donation also includes two lithographs and one pastel by Marisol Escobar. There were no conditions attached to the “very generous gift,” Simon says. Some of the Warhols went on display in August in the museum’s new Richard Meier Wing and will continue to be on view on a rotating basis.

Olivia Newton-John--and her Koala Blue stores--can expect some new competition from Down Under. A retailer called the Australian Collection arrives in Beverly Hills next month, bringing to Los Angeles still another taste of Australian-made clothing. Goodies will range from activewear (including “Save the Koala” T-shirts) to evening wear, rugged khakis to hand-painted shirts. The store also will offer jewelry pieces made from Australian sapphires and opals. But Listen has a warning for those who browse the store, which opens Nov. 20 at 260 N. Beverly Drive. Spokesperson Brad Bessey mentioned the Collection will feature “lots of jumpers.” Translated for most of us, that means sweaters.

More names in the fashion news. The nominees for the California Mart’s annual “Marty” awards just came our way. The seven contenders for this menswear design award are John Leitch and Martin Weening for Axis, Mel and Kerry Matsui for Code Bleu, Michael Tomson for Gotcha, Sandra Serebreni for Hoopla by Michael Antara, Jeff Hamilton for the line by that name, Carl Jones for Surf Fetish, and George Machado for Zylos. The winners will be chosen by 1,000 retailers nationwide and announced in January.