Uh, About That RSVP. . .

Last week, guests received their invitations from Sony Corp. for a special movie screening this Thursday aboard a luxury cruise ship at a New York pier for “Sense and Sensibility,” a new film from Sony’s Columbia Pictures unit.

What was a bit unusual was that the invitation listed as co-host--along with Celebrity Cruises Chairman John D. Chandris--Sony Corp. of America Chief Executive Michael P. Schulhof.

That’s because at the same time the invitations were arriving in the mail, Sony was busy cutting Schulhof loose as its top official in the U.S. after he had a bitter falling-out with senior executives of the Japanese industrial giant.

Sony spokeswoman Ann Morfogen explains that Schulhof “was the host when the invitations were sent out,” adding that one can “never say never” as to whether the executive still plans to attend.

But a revised invitation printed later in the week strongly suggests he won’t.

The name of a new co-host, Sony New Technologies President Mitchell Cannold, is now listed in the space where Schulhof’s name once appeared.

Stocking Stuffers

Stumped on what to get someone for the holidays?

The Whole Life Times in its latest issue lists “Great Gifts Under $50” for that New Age lifestyle.

Some suggestions include pet foods with no artificial preservatives, a call to a 900 number to “learn the sacred name, signs and messages of your personal guardian angel” and a $49.95 “colonic gift certificate” to have your colon cleaned out.

Shocking New Evidence!

The recently completed O.J. Simpson murder trial has been blamed for everything from poor soap opera ratings to lackluster daytime retail sales because some shoppers opted to stay home to watch the proceedings.

Now it seems the trial also might indirectly explain why some of the biggest supermarket tabloids haven’t been performing so well, despite extensive coverage of the trial by nearly all of them.

In its latest Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, American Media--the parent company of both the National Enquirer and the Star--notes that circulation revenue for its publications fell 9.7% from a year earlier.

The explanation: “Management believes the declines in single copy sales of National Enquirer and the Star, as well as many other publications sold at the checkout counter, are due primarily to the increasingly competitive print and electronic media coverage of personality journalism, a recent example of which has been coverage of the O.J. Simpson trial proceedings.”

Briefly. . .

A Newport Beach plastic surgery institute advertises: “Give us 10 days, we’ll take away 10 years.” . . . An “armoring company” sells wealthy entertainment executives cars with armor and bulletproof glass to protect against stray gunfire. Its slogan: “Stop Shooting in Hollywood.”