TV & RADIOWill Regis Follow Dave?: All...

TV & RADIO

Will Regis Follow Dave?: All the involved parties are keeping mum, but reports are circulating that CBS--along with talk show host David Letterman--is trying to lure Regis Philbin to fill the long-empty post-”Late Show With David Letterman” slot. Like “Late Show,” Philbin’s program would presumably be a talk show with additional “entertainment” elements. Letterman, who effectively “owns” the hour following his show as part of his deal with CBS, is a big admirer of Philbin, who still has 1 1/2 years remaining on his “Live with Regis and Kathie Lee” contract and would likely keep his day job as well. And Philbin, a frequent Letterman guest, has been seen around the “Late Show” offices a good deal lately. CBS had no comment, Philbin and his agent Jim Griffin were unreachable, and Letterman and his staff are away on vacation.

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FCC Boss Issues a Warning: The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is keeping the heat on broadcasters to reduce violent programming. Speaking to a Florida meeting of the National Assn. of Television Program Executives, Reed Hundt said he hoped the industry would reduce TV violence on its own, but that he was ready to pursue the issue in Congress and the courts if necessary. “I am interested in challenging not your willingness to pay for lawyers, but your capability for creative and caring action,” the FCC chairman said, adding: “If Congress passes legislation concerning TV violence and if the FCC has a role in implementing that legislation, we will do whatever we can to win . . . for the government. And we would have strong arguments. . . . If a TV sitcom can sell soap, salsa and cereal, then who could argue that TV violence cannot affect to some degree some viewers, particularly impressionable children?”

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Goofed Radio Promo: Talk radio station KABC-AM (790) found itself in a time warp Monday night when it mistakenly aired a promo for an Oprah Winfrey television movie that aired in November. The promo for “There Are No Children Here” aired twice during the evening show of feminist attorney Gloria Allred. The film, which aired Nov. 28, was described Monday as “one of the highlights of the holiday season.” KABC officials couldn’t immediately explain how the 2-month-old spot got on the air.

LEGAL FILE

Marky Mark Sued: A woman who was trampled by fans when pop rapper Marky Mark dropped his trousers during a performance in Portland, Me., is suing the performer and Calvin Klein underwear model, whose real name is Mark Wahlberg. In the suit, Sandra Gessner says she was pushed over her friend’s wheelchair and knocked to the floor when Wahlberg danced in his underwear and invited the crowd to rush the stage at the Portland Expo a year ago. Gessner, a 26-year-old with arthritis, can no longer care for herself because of the injuries, her attorney said. She is seeking unspecified damages from Wahlberg, concert promoters and the city of Portland. In response, Wahlberg’s lawyer, Oliver Mitchell, said, “It’s hard to imagine that the performer would be in any way responsible for the reaction of a crowd under those circumstances.”

STAGE

Quake Delays ‘Robeson’: “Paul Robeson,” starring Avery Brooks in the title role, has been postponed a week at the Westwood Playhouse. Producer Eric Krebs cited the loss of a week in promotional opportunities “combined with everyone else’s mind being elsewhere” because of the earthquake, but he emphasized that there was no damage to the Westwood Playhouse. Ticket holders may obtain a refund or exchange at the point of purchase. Performances are now slated to begin on Feb. 4.

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Kushner to Do Brecht: La Jolla Playhouse will present Tony Kushner’s new adaptation of Bertolt Brecht’s “The Good Person of Setzuan,” July 31-Aug. 28. It will be staged by the playhouse’s associate director, Lisa Peterson, and will explore the affinity between Brecht’s half-Westernized China and the Mexican-American cultural traditions of the San Diego area, according to a Playhouse statement. An original play by the award-winning Kushner, “The Heavenly Theatre,” had been slated for the same time slot at the Mark Taper Forum but was recently postponed.

QUICK TAKES

Former opera singer Beverly Sills has been elected as the first female to head New York’s most prestigious performing arts institution, the Lincoln Center. The 64-year-old Sills, who was general director of the New York City Opera from 1980 to 1990, is the 32-year-old center’s fifth chairperson. . . . Conductor Christof Perick has signed a three-year contract to remain as music director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra through the 1997-1998 season. He is currently in his second season at LACO.