POP/ROCKPearl Jam Concert Sells Out: Ticket sales...

POP/ROCK

Pearl Jam Concert Sells Out: Ticket sales to the first concert on Pearl Jam’s summer tour took place over the weekend when fans placed orders through ETM Entertainment Network’s computerized telephone system. The show, scheduled for June 16 at the 7,500-seat Casper Event Center in Wyoming, sold out with patrons ordering tickets by dialing an 800-number that was announced Thursday in local radio and print ads. Pearl Jam was initially set to kick off its 14-stop trek at Boise State University Pavilion in Idaho, but the band and the college were unable to complete contracts regarding usage of the ETM system. Representatives of Pearl Jam said the band hopes to perform in Boise on the second leg of the tour.

TELEVISION

‘Home Improvement’ for Sure: Former President Jimmy Carter was scheduled to visit the set of “Home Improvement” on the Disney lot in Burbank late Monday to record public service announcements for Habitat for Humanity, and series star Tim Allen was set to present Carter with a check for $100,000 for the organization, a series spokesman said shortly before press time. Allen and co-star Richard Karn also were planning to join Carter in making the public service announcements for the nonprofit ecumenical Christian housing ministry long associated with the former President that has built 40,000 low-cost homes worldwide in almost two decades. The cast and producers raised the donation by asking the show’s suppliers and service organizations to make contributions to Habitat instead of taking out traditional trade ads to mark its 100th episode May 2 on ABC.

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Trying to Save ‘Roof’: The Beverly Hills/Hollywood branch of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People is launching a nationwide grass-roots campaign to persuade CBS to save the struggling African American drama “Under One Roof.” Billie J. Green, president of the branch, said 1,000 flyers were distributed at neighborhood churches Sunday asking members to express their support of the show to the network. Efforts also are being coordinated with other organizations such as the Brotherhood Crusade, and support is being solicited from branches nationwide. The low-rated series, which stars James Earl Jones and Joe Morton, ended its limited run last Tuesday. Green called the show a “much-needed and very positive show about an African American family.”

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What About the Red Line?: If you’ve ever ridden a New York City subway, you might have some stories to tell about it. At least that’s what HBO is hoping. The cable network has launched a contest to find material for a 90-minute HBO Showcase/Clinica Estetico film with the working title “Subway Stories.” Co-executive producers are actress Rosie Perez, an Academy Award nominee for 1993’s “Fearless,” director Jonathan Demme and producer Edward Saxon, the latter two Academy Award winners for 1991’s “The Silence of the Lambs.” Entries may be sent to P.O. Box 4984, Blair, NE 68009, and must be postmarked by May 31. Authors of the winning entries will receive a year of HBO and a year’s supply of NYC subway tokens.

MOVIES

Time for Some Memories: Bob Hope, who turns 92 next month, will join in a celebration of the 50th anniversary of V-E Day May 8 at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. “Films for the Fight: Hollywood in World War II” will pay tribute to the American film industry’s World War II efforts in a program featuring film clips and appearances by Hollywood personalities. Others on the program include Gloria DeHaven, Robert Stack, Edward Dmytryk (director of “Hitler’s Children”) and representatives of the International Combat Cameraman’s Assn. The event, a reprise of a program first offered at the Deauville Film Festival last year, will begin at 8 p.m. Tickets are $6 for the public and $4 for academy members.

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Cinecon Sets Screenings: Rudolph Valentino will ride again when the Society for Cinephiles holds its 31st annual convention, Cinecon, Aug. 31-Sept. 4 at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Valentino’s 100th birthday will be marked with a showing of his star-making vehicle “The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” (1921) in a restored 35mm tinted print “at correct projection speed” with a stereo score by Carl Davis. The Great Lover won’t be alone, as the film buffs offer a parade of rare films starring such revered old-timers as Mary Pickford, Fay Wray, William Powell and Spencer Tracy.

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As Barriers Fall. . . . : Gu Rong, one of China’s new generation of directors, is the first to make the rounds of major Hollywood studios since the new U.S.-China Trade Agreement Treaty lifted quota and licensing barriers. The 38-year-old Gu is showing two of his films, “Peking Duck Restaurant,” featuring noted actor Ge You, and “Unwelcome Lady,” China’s current box-office favorite, to distributors and critics, a spokesman said.