PEOPLE WATCHDole Redux: U.S. Sen. Bob Dole...

PEOPLE WATCH

Dole Redux: U.S. Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kan.), reacting to a story in the Boston Herald about an alleged murderer who referred to a controversial Oliver Stone film, again rapped Hollywood in remarks delivered Tuesday on the Senate floor. “Of course, no movie caused this brutal killing in Massachusetts,” Dole said. “We are all responsible for our own actions, period. But, at the same time, those in the entertainment industry who deny that cultural messages can bore deep into the hearts and minds of our young people are deceiving themselves. If the Boston Herald story is true, and if these are the kinds of role models that Hollywood is content to promote, then perhaps some serious soul-searching is in order in the corporate suites of the entertainment industry.” One of the suspects in the killing reportedly bragged to a girl after the slaying: “Haven’t you ever seen ‘Natural Born Killers’ before?”

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Costume Pulled: A “Superman” costume worn by actor Christopher Reeve has been withdrawn from an auction of film memorabilia because of the recent accident that left the actor paralyzed. Christie’s in New York said the five-piece costume with the trademark red-and-yellow “S” insignia was withdrawn from today’s sale by its owner because of the injuries that Reeve suffered after being thrown from his horse, leaving the actor paralyzed from the neck down. A spokesman for the auction house declined to name the owner. The costume, worn by Reeve in the original 1978 film, had been expected to sell for between $10,000 and $15,000. Reeve is expected to leave a Virginia hospital to begin long-term rehabilitation this week, a hospital spokeswoman said Tuesday.

POP/ROCK

All the Kingsmen’s: Thirty-two years later, the Kingsmen can truly call “Louie, Louie” their own. A federal judge in Los Angeles took ownership of the group’s more than 100 recordings away from Sceptor-Wand Records and awarded it to the band. The record company breached its contract by not giving the Kingsmen past royalties, the decision said. The judge also ruled that the band is entitled to all future royalties. The Kingsmen recorded “Louie, Louie,” their one big hit, in 1963.

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Pearl Jam Refunds: Those who purchased tickets for Pearl Jam’s canceled concerts Monday and Tuesday at the San Diego Sports Arena will receive full refunds, a spokesman for the promoter said. Those who paid by credit card will have their accounts credited, and those who paid by check or money order will receive a refund in the mail, said John Wojas of Bill Silva Presents. Pearl Jam announced Sunday that it was canceling the remaining seven dates of its 12-city tour. A source close to the band said that the concerts were canceled because the “pressures of a full-scale tour simply took the joy out of making music” for the Seattle-based group. Pearl Jam, minus singer Eddie Vedder, still plans to join Neil Young for a 10-date European tour starting Aug. 12 in Stockholm. The band played behind Young on “Mirror Ball,” his new album that was released Tuesday.

ARTS

Positions Cut: Five and a half positions in Los Angeles’ Cultural Affairs Department have been eliminated as part of an overall downsizing of staff that will result in the loss of 300 positions citywide, Cultural Affairs manager Al Nodal confirmed Tuesday. Nodal said there have been no layoffs and the department hopes to reassign the displaced employees. Among those being moved are three high-level staffers: Ann Giagni, an assistant manager who has already been reassigned to the department’s Youth Fair Chance program; director of performing arts Ernest Dillihay and assistant general manager Rodney Punt, who still await reassignment and will be kept on “until it is resolved where they are going to go,” Nodal said.

HONORS

Minority Writing Awards: Five writers will be honored for outstanding screenplays at the Writers Workshop’s sixth annual Ethnic Minority Awards ceremony Thursday at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood. The winners include: Francisco Fletes Jr. of Davis, Calif.; Debbie Lollie of Danville, Calif.; Lorenzo Matawaren and Ignacio Salazar of Los Angeles; and Tito Morales of Pacific Palisades. Award presenters include producer Moctesuma Esparza, actress Marla Gibbs and actor Carl Gordon.

QUICK TAKES

Larry Hagman, diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver two years ago, now has a small tumor on the organ. A spokesman for the actor refused to say if the tumor is cancerous. . . . Elizabeth Taylor is back home in Bel-Air and starting rehabilitation after hip replacement surgery. . . . “Today” show co-host Katie Couric is pregnant with her second child, USA Today reported. Couric, 38, told friends and colleagues that she and husband Jay Monahan are expecting the child in January. . . . Stemming from an April incident in which Bobby Brown and two companions allegedly beat a bar patron, aggravated battery and disorderly conduct charges were filed Friday against the singer in Orlando, Fla.