THE ARTSSeason Postponed: The San Diego Civic...

THE ARTS

Season Postponed: The San Diego Civic Light Opera, also known as Starlight Musical Theatre, will postpone its fall/winter season until June 1. An earnings shortfall from the theater group’s three summer shows and an ongoing deficit of $800,000 are among the reasons cited by General Manager Leon Drew. The paid staff has been reduced to three from 16 a year ago. The 1994 season will now conclude with the two postponed shows--”Sugar Babies” and “West Side Story.”

TV/RADIO

Meeting of Religions: “A Gathering of the Faithful: The 1993 Parliament of the World’s Religions,” an interfaith religious special focusing on what was billed as the first coming together of the religions of the world in 100 years, will be broadcast at 4:30 p.m. Oct. 3 on CBS. The half-hour special, taped at the parliament held in Chicago in late August and early September, shows representatives of religions worldwide explaining their beliefs and what these beliefs have in common with other faiths. Religions represented at the parliament are Bahai, Buddhist, Christians of several traditions, Confucian, Hindu, Indigenous, Jain, Jewish, Muslim, Native American, Shinto, Sikh, Taoist, Unitarian and Zoroastrian.

Gifford Suspect Held: A man who police say talked about kidnaping TV personality Kathie Lee Gifford and had made a scrapbook of her magazine pictures was arrested at a North Carolina bus station Sunday in connection with the alleged rape of another woman. Police say the suspect, Richard D. Jones, told the 59-year-old rape victim about his plans to kidnap Gifford. Gifford’s security staff had been notified about the threats on Friday.

For ‘Quantum Leap’ Fans: Fans of the canceled NBC series “Quantum Leap” will be able to reminisce about the show with the MCA/Universal Home Video release Wednesday of five of the program’s most popular episodes, including the 1986 series pilot. In addition, the show’s music is featured on “Quantum Leap: Music From the Television Series,” a 16-track album scheduled to hit the stores Oct. 20. Series star Scott Bakula sings on the album, as does co-star Dean Stockwell. Also included: “Suite From Lee Harvey Oswald,” featuring Emmy-nominated compositions by Velton Ray Bunch.

Voters Like Swimsuits: In a telephone vote preceding Saturday night’s NBC telecast of “The 1993 Miss America Pageant,” 62% said they want the pageant to continue its traditional swimsuit portion of the show, as it did again this year, while 38% said the pageant should consider eliminating it. A total of 53,464 viewers called in to voice opinions. The pageant had attempted to update its image this year, and the changes seemed to fare well with viewers, as ratings increased 7% over last year, with preliminary results showing 32% of the viewing audience tuned in.

Hat Trick for KIIS: Los Angeles radio station KIIS-FM (102.7) was a triple winner at the National Assn. of Broadcasters Convention and Billboards Awards in Dallas. The station took home the 1993 Marconi Award for Top 40 Station of the Year. KIIS morning personality Rick Dees was named best Top 40 on-air personality, and his syndicated show, “The Rick Dees Weekly Top 40,” was named best Top 40 nationally distributed program.

PEOPLE WATCH

Career Switch: While Don Galloway was playing a Sgt. Ed Brown on the 1967-1975 TV series “Ironside,” he wondered what it’d be like to be a cop for real. Now he can find out. Galloway, 56, graduated Saturday as a reserve deputy for the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department. “I wanted to be an actor when I was 12 years old,” said Galloway. “But all the time I’ve been an actor, I thought, ‘What would it be like to be a police officer?’ This is what I’ve been waiting for so long.”

QUICK TAKES

Tim Allen, Sandra Bernhard, Red Buttons, Sid Caesar, Andrew Dice Clay, Mark Curry, Rodney Dangerfield, John Goodman, Mary Lou Henner, Sally Kirkland, Martin Mull, Richard Pryor and George Wallace are among those scheduled to roast Emmy winner Roseanne Arnold during what the Friar’s Club describes as a “black tie, blue language gala” tonight at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. . . . Actress Michelle Phillips was robbed at gunpoint Sunday night while sitting with a friend in a parked car in West Hollywood, police said Monday. Phillips, 49, a member of the popular 1960s singing group the Mamas and the Papas, was unhurt but lost her cash and credit cards. . . . The Environmental Media Assn. has lined up Vice President Al Gore to be the keynote speaker at the group’s Third Annual Environmental Media Awards dinner Sept. 27 at Fox Studios. The awards honor TV, film and musical productions that “deal responsibly and effectively” with environmental themes.