TELEVISIONHere Comes the Judge: Superior Court Judge...

TELEVISION

Here Comes the Judge: Superior Court Judge Lance Ito, who has roundly criticized the media for its coverage of the O.J. Simpson murder case, is about to hop into the spotlight himself. Ito, who is presiding over the Simpson trial, will be interviewed by KCBS Channel 2 Action News anchor Tritia Toyota in a six-part series, “Lance Ito: Face to Face,” beginning Sunday at 11 p.m. and running all week on the same news hour. KCBS said Ito will talk about his life, jury selection and the public interest in the Simpson trial.

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Denying Discord: Contrary to a published report, CBS News President Eric Ober said that Connie Chung did not complain to CBS management about her secondary role to Dan Rather on the network’s election-night coverage. “That is not true,” Ober said. “We have planned all along that Dan would be essentially the lead person on our special-events coverage. Would Connie like to do more (on the CBS evening newscast)? I’m sure that she would, and we will look for opportunities for her such as (Chung’s recent trip to the Middle East).” Rather, however, is expected to do the bulk of future foreign assignments and to lead upcoming special-events live coverage.

MOVIES

Restraining Order: Beverly Hills optician Cheryl Shuman has obtained a temporary restraining order against actor Steven Seagal, after claiming in papers filed in Santa Monica Superior Court that one of Seagal’s bodyguards “attacked” her in the parking garage of her residence last week after Shuman told a television reporter that she had seen bruises on the face of Seagal’s estranged wife, Kelly Le Brock. (La Brock filed for divorce from the actor last week.) Shuman, who claims that she was the family’s optician and was also romantically involved with Seagal for four months, alleges in the court papers that Seagal has repeatedly harassed and threatened her, and that she ended their romantic involvement, in part, because she was afraid of him. A hearing on the temporary order is scheduled for Nov. 28.

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Hanks Honored: The Hollywood Women’s Press Club has named actor Tom Hanks as the recipient of its annual Louella O. Parsons Award for the person who “represents the best image of the entertainment industry to the world.” The club recognized the star of “Forrest Gump” and “Philadelphia” for “the social consciousness of his films,” noting that “his work is proof that responsible filmmaking can also win at the box office.” Previous winners include Bette Davis and Cary Grant.

POP/ROCK

No Jackson for Christmas: Michael Jackson’s greatest-hits album, titled “History,” has been delayed once again and won’t make it to stores before the Christmas shopping season as anticipated. The album, originally scheduled for release later this month, was first moved to mid-December but has now been pushed back until some time next year. Jackson is still working on new songs for the package, an Epic Records spokeswoman said.

ART

More Auction News: A Toulouse-Lautrec painting of a ballet dancer adjusting her tights sold for $4.8 million in New York Wednesday night, the top sale in Christie’s New York auction of Impressionist and modern art. As with last week’s contemporary art sales, Christie’s fared much better than its rival New York auctioneer, Sotheby’s, which had a disappointing showing Tuesday night. However, Christie’s total $37.5-million take Wednesday was still $5 million below the auction house’s low pre-sale estimate. And although 11 lots went for more than $1 million, 13 of the 57 works offered went begging. And while three of the evening’s sales--including the Toulouse-Lautrec dancer--garnered twice their high estimates, one of the night’s expected stars, Claude Monet’s 1907 circular painting “Waterlilies,” went for only $3.3 million, below its pre-sale estimate of $4 million to $6 million.

QUICK TAKES

The Hollywood Entertainment Museum will honor the Carradine family (John, David, Bruce, Keith and Robert) and the Dern/Ladd family (Laura and Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd) at the Palladium on Saturday with its annual Hollywood Legacy Awards. . . . Old and new Warner Music executives will be joined by Willie Nelson, Julian Lennon, Van Halen, Bernie Taupin, David Foster and others at the Neil Bogart Memorial Fund gala Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Santa Monica Air Center. The event, which honors the late Casablanca Records owner, has already raised more than $2.1 million for pediatric cancer, leukemia and AIDS research. . . . NBC will move its Gene Wilder comedy series, “Something Wilder,” to Tuesday nights beginning Dec. 6 and return the sophomore series “Mommies” (formerly called “The Mommies”) to Saturday nights starting Jan. 7.