RADIOMagic Mountain Pulls Ads: Magic Mountain, at...

RADIO

Magic Mountain Pulls Ads: Magic Mountain, at the urging of the National Hispanic Media Coalition, has pulled its advertising from the Howard Stern show on KLSX-FM (97.1). The coalition, which has called for a national boycott of Stern’s show and its advertisers, is one of several Latino organizations that have expressed outrage over comments made by the controversial radio talk-show host in the wake of last month’s shooting death of Selena, the tejano music superstar. “We pulled our advertising because we felt that the comments by Howard Stern were completely inappropriate,” said Bonnie Rabjohn, a spokeswoman for Magic Mountain. Last week, Pizza Hut, which had never advertised on the nationally syndicated Stern show, removed its ads from KLSX. Another corporation, Acapulco Restaurants, canceled its advertising on the syndicated show and is considering pulling its ads from the L.A. station.

PEOPLE WATCH

Kidland: In his first publicly announced event involving children since a child molestation case against him was closed in September, pop star Michael Jackson and his wife, Lisa Marie Presley-Jackson, will welcome 46 kids between ages 9 and 18 to their Neverland ranch outside Santa Barbara on Tuesday. The children, from 17 countries, will join the Jacksons for a three-day World Children’s Congress, a series of seminars and workshops on issues facing kids around the globe, a Jackson spokesman announced. The event is part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the United Nations. Two children who attend the Neverland ranch event will serve as ambassadors to the World Summit of Children in San Francisco on June 17-28. Jackson, who had been known for inviting children to his ranch, maintained his innocence throughout the criminal investigation that stemmed from allegations that he sexually molested a 13-year-old boy over a period of several months in 1993. No charges were brought in the case.

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Jay and the Jury: Jay Leno brought the band but left the “Dancing Itos”--black-robed look-alikes of Superior Court Judge Lance Ito--at the studio when he entertained O.J. Simpson jurors. In fact, Leno said he avoided courtroom humor altogether during the Friday visit, not wanting to cause a potential mistrial. Said Leno, “That’s all I need: ‘Leno Costs State $3.8 Billion!’ ” Leno said he did some “pretty middle-of-the-road stuff” and added that the jurors seemed to be having fun.

MOVIES

Casting Coup: George Clooney, one of the hottest actors in television, is teaming up with some of the hottest names in movies. The heartthrob in NBC’s ratings powerhouse “ER” will take off his scrub suit to star in “From Dusk Till Dawn,” an action film from Miramax written by Academy Award-winner Quentin Tarantino (“Pulp Fiction”) and directed by Robert Rodriguez (“El Mariachi”). It will be Clooney’s first leading role in a feature film. Tarantino will co-star with Clooney in the movie about a pair of renegade brothers who enlist the help of a preacher and his family to flee across the Texas border to Mexico. The group ends up having an all-night encounter with a pack of vampires in a Mexican saloon. Tarantino and Rodriguez will executive produce the movie, which begins filming this fall.

LEGAL FILE

Queen Latifah Accused: Queen Latifah was charged with video piracy after some illegally copied tapes turned up in a video rental store she once owned in Jersey City, N.J. The rapper, who was not arrested, denied the charge through her attorney after it was filed Thursday. The store’s current owner had notified police after he found 240 illegally copied tapes including such movies as “Alien 3,” “The Bodyguard” and “Single White Female.” Latifah’s attorney said his client did not know the store stocked pirated tapes. Latifah, who stars on Fox’s “Living Single,” was listed on the Municipal Court complaint under her given name, Dana Owens. The case has been transferred to Superior Court and will be referred to a grand jury for possible indictment. Video piracy carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and $250,000 in fines.

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Appeal Rejected: Background singer Yvette Marine, who alleged that her voice was combined with Paula Abdul’s in the pop star’s debut “Forever Your Girl” album, has lost the appeal of her multimillion-dollar lawsuit against Virgin Records in U.S. District Court. The original suit claimed that Marine was an uncredited co-lead vocalist on at least two songs of the 1988 album.

DANCE

A Night of Honors: This year’s Dance Magazine Awards honoring those who have made a significant contribution to the dance world will be handed out tonight at the Asia Society in New York City. The winners are: Susan Marshall, a choreographer of American modern dance; Fayard and Harold Nicholas, classical tap dancers known for their film work; and Carla Maxwell, a performer and master teacher.