POP/ROCKBan Madonna, German Official Says: Madonna’s sole...

POP/ROCK

Ban Madonna, German Official Says: Madonna’s sole German concert in her just-launched world tour should be banned as obscene and a threat to public order, a Bonn politician said Monday, alleging that the tour’s first show in London over the weekend went far beyond the bounds of good taste. “Either Madonna drops these obscenities . . . or she will not be allowed to appear,” said Norbert Geis, legal affairs spokesman for Chancellor Helmut Kohl’s Christian Democrats in parliament. But the demand was angrily dismissed by concert organizers, who said in a statement that “Madonna’s ‘Girlie-Show’ on Oct. 2 in the Frankfurt Festival Hall will take place without restrictions and censorship.” Said the statement: “Everyone who attends a Madonna concert . . . knows precisely that they are coming to see an unusual, internationally recognized artist and not a concert by a church choir.” Officials at the Frankfurt City Council and at the Frankfurt Prosecutor’s Office, which would have to issue any banning order, could not be reached for comment.

U2 on Pay-Per-View: U2 fans who can’t attend the Irish rockers’ overseas tour can watch the band live in concert on pay-per-view TV Nov. 27 at 8 and 11 p.m. “U2--In Concert--Zooropa Live From Australia” features U2 performing material from their “Zooropa” album on their new “Zoomerang” tour direct from Australia. The pay-per-view broadcast is being billed as North America’s “only chance” to see the show, as well as “the first time a U2 concert has been telecast uncut and unedited.” The event’s “suggested retail price”: $19.95.

TELEVISION

Back to ‘Blue’: Ten ABC stations across the country that did not air last week’s premiere of producer Steven Bochco’s new cop drama, “NYPD Blue,” because it was deemed too racy are coming on board tonight to air the series. Although 70 stations representing 11% of the country refused to carry the one-hour pilot last week, “NYPD Blue” beat the other networks in its time period. But ABC emphasized that there has been no surge of stations jumping on the bandwagon because of good ratings. Eight of the 10 stations adding the series already had plans to do so. They chose not to air the pilot to avoid controversy over language and sexual content. “NYPD Blue” can now be seen in 90% of the country.

Collins Tests Negative: Host Gary Collins confirmed during ABC’s “Home” show Monday morning that he did not have the human immunodeficiency virus that causes AIDS. Last Friday, a doctor demonstrating flu shots during a live broadcast accidentally injected co-host Sarah Purcell with the same needle he had used on Collins. “There was no question in our minds what needed to be done Friday,” Collins told the studio audience on Monday. “So I went and I was tested and I’m here to report that everything is fine--HIV-negative.” An ABC spokesman added that results from Collins’ hepatitis screening would not be available until today.

Music for Poundstone: Alums of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band are popping up all over the tube. With longtime drummer Max Weinberg already in place as music director of NBC’s new “Late Night With Conan O’Brien,” guitarist Nils Lofgren has been named musical director for the ABC prime-time comedy program “The Paula Poundstone Show.” Lofgren joined Springsteen’s E Street Band as lead guitarist in 1984. He is also known for his solo recording career and his work with Neil Young and Ringo Starr.

MOVIES

More ‘Blown Away’ Than Planned: A series of weekend explosions set off in Boston for the movie “Blown Away” blew away more than planned. The explosions on a rusty freighter rocked Boston Harbor, shattering scores of windows, cracking plaster and igniting roof fires in surrounding neighborhoods, authorities said. No injuries were reported. The producers of “Blown Away,” a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Trilogy Entertainment production filming in Boston through this week, have promised to pay for the damage, which has not yet been estimated. The movie stars Jeff Bridges as a bomb squad member and Tommy Lee Jones as a psychotic bomber.

ART

New Museum Head: Sara Campbell, longtime chief curator at Pasadena’s Norton Simon Museum, has been promoted to the newly created position of director of art for the museum and collections. Campbell, considered a leading authority on the history of Degas bronzes, has worked with the museum since 1969, serving as curator and overseeing the exhibition program since 1974.

QUICK TAKES

Former “Saturday Night Live” cast member Nora Dunn will guest-star on NBC’s “Sisters” in a recurring role starting Oct. 16. She will play Norma Lear, producer of a local TV talk show. . . . Singer John Denver will perform at an Aspen, Colo., fund-raiser for the Tipsy Taxi program, which provides free taxi rides to bar patrons, as part of his penalty for driving while impaired by alcohol. Denver, 49, was sentenced to 24 hours of public service last week after pleading guilty to the charge.