TELEVISIONAnchor Away: Veteran KNBC anchor Carla Aragon...

TELEVISION

Anchor Away: Veteran KNBC anchor Carla Aragon has left the station, becoming the latest in a steady stream of reporters and anchors who have left Channel 4 recently. Aragon, the “Today in L.A.” morning anchor, had most recently been filling in on the 4 p.m. news. No official reason was given for her departure, and Aragon, who had been with KNBC since 1983, could not be reached for comment. Cathy Vara, a reporter with the station, will take over the morning news duties. Among others who have left KNBC News recently are reporter Rebecca Aguilar; anchor Linda Alvarez, now at KCBS; and reporter David Garcia and anchor John Beard, both now at Fox News.

Laughter Awards: Rosie O’Donnell led with three nods and George Carlin, Lily Tomlin, Jason Alexander and Robin Williams each garnered double nominations for “The 8th Annual American Comedy Awards,” which will be taped in Los Angeles March 6 for future broadcast on ABC. Among the TV nominees were Kirstie Alley, Roseanne Arnold, Candice Bergen, Brett Butler, Helen Hunt, Tim Allen, John Goodman, Kelsey Grammer, David Letterman and Jerry Seinfeld. In the film categories, nominees include O’Donnell, Tomlin, Anjelica Huston, Meg Ryan and Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Kevin Kline, Jack Lemmon, Bill Murray and Williams. Nominated in the lifetime achievement categories are Bea Arthur, Cloris Leachman, Elaine May, Joan Rivers, Jean Stapleton, Carlin, Milton Berle, Bob Hope, Bob Newhart and Dick Van Dyke.

Teen Datebook: NBC has announced its fall schedule for “TNBC”--its Saturday morning lineup of live-action teen programming. The two-hour slate features the ensemble comedy “Saved by the Bell: The New Class,” the returning series “California Dreams” and “Name Your Adventure,” followed by “NBA Inside Stuff.” The lineup, which premieres in September, is designed to meet the the 1990 Children’s Television Act, which mandates that kids’ programming be educational or informational.

LEGAL FILE

Schell Speaks Out: Academy Award-winning actor-director Maximilian Schell responded Monday to charges of sexual harassment filed against him recently by a Kushner-Locke post-production executive. Schell issued a statement saying he is “grateful” for the suit because it allows him to address “a series of issues which have become accepted in our society,” including “witch hunts,” “celebrity stalking” and “the hypocrisy and false morality of a television mentality which . . . suppresses the expression of love.” Schell, 63, is accused, among other things, of repeatedly commenting about the breasts of former Kushner-Locke executive Diana Botsford, 32. He also said: “. . . our society has come to the conclusion that it is an offense to find the female bosom beautiful. For all lovers of art, this is a very sad day (when) a simple compliment now can be turned into a lawsuit.” Schell also hinted at legal actions of his own, accusing Botsford of “murder of the soul” and saying: “In our profession, assassination of the name is assassination of the person, and it should be prosecuted accordingly.”

Burt and Loni Divide Assets: Burt Reynolds and Loni Anderson spent the weekend hammering out a divorce settlement, with Reynolds getting the couple’s $4-million Florida ranch and Anderson getting $2 million and their $500,000 vacation home in North Carolina. Anderson will also keep her interest in Reynolds’ CBS sitcom “Evening Shade.” Custody of the couple’s 5-year-old son, Quinton, must still be arranged in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

QUICK TAKES

A man carrying a love letter to Janet Jackson was arrested in New York after he allegedly stabbed and critically wounded a pedestrian, police said Monday. Darryl Wright, 28, was said to be carrying a “rambling love letter” addressed to Jackson, at the bottom of which were the phrases “kill everyone” and “attack on sight.” . . . Pop star Whitney Houston will receive the Sammy Davis Jr. Award for entertainer of the year, and singer Barry White will get the Heritage Award for career achievement at the eighth annual Soul Train Music Awards to be held March 15 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. . . . Miramax Films’ “The Crying Game” and “The Piano,” Universal Pictures/Amblin Entertainment’s “Jurassic Park” and “Schindler’s List,” and Warner Bros.’ “The Fugitive” are the nominees for the Film Information Council’s Charles M. Powell Award for the Best Marketed Motion Picture of 1993. The winning film will be announced Feb. 2.