Arts and entertainment reports from The Times, national and international news services and the nation’s press

POP/ROCK

Jackson Leaves Hospital: Michael Jackson smiled and waved to cheering fans Tuesday as he walked out of a New York hospital after a six-night stay. The 37-year-old pop star, who collapsed a week ago at the Beacon Theater while rehearsing for an HBO concert special that was to have aired last Sunday, stepped into a white van and was taken from Beth Israel Medical Center North Division to an undisclosed location. An HBO spokesperson said that “Michael Jackson: One Night Only” has been postponed indefinitely. A Jackson spokesperson in Los Angeles said he knew nothing about the singer’s immediate plans.

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And the Nominees Are . . . : Hootie & the Blowfish and Boyz II Men tied with five nods apiece to lead nominations for the 23rd annual American Music Awards, announced Tuesday. The two will vie against each other and the Eagles in the favorite pop group and pop album categories when the awards air on ABC Jan. 29. Among other nominees, Michael Jackson is up for three awards, including favorite male pop artist, where his rivals are Elton John and Seal; and Alanis Morissette will vie in two categories, including pop newcomer, where she contends against Blues Traveler and Hootie. Other multiple nominees include the Eagles, Garth Brooks, country newcomer Shania Twain, TLC and Green Day, each with three nominations, and Mariah Carey, Pearl Jam, Brooks & Dunn and Brandy with two each. Nominees for the biggest honor, favorite artist of the year, are Hootie, Brooks, Boyz II Men, Green Day and TLC. The awards, determined by a poll of about 20,000 members of the public, will be handed out at the Shrine Auditorium.

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New ‘VH1 Honors’ Format: Cable’s VH1 will change the format of its “VH1 Honors” in 1996, the show’s third year. Instead of honoring several recording artists for their charitable endeavors, the program will focus on a single organization and the performers who support it. The special, planned for April, will pay tribute to Witness, a global human rights program of the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights. Musical artists scheduled to take part include Peter Gabriel, the group’s co-founder, and Michael Stipe of REM. Previous VH1 honorees have included Stevie Wonder, Garth Brooks, Whitney Houston and Bette Midler.

TV & VIDEO

Undecided on Future: Stephanie Miller, whose late-night talk show has been canceled because of poor ratings, says she’s going to take some time before deciding what to do next. “My agent already called with several things coming in--sitcom, film and possibly even talk radio again,” Miller said. Before trying her hand at TV, Miller hosted a talk show at KFI-AM (640) for 18 months. Now she has visions of national radio syndication. As for TV, Miller said her only regret is that she wasn’t able to have more than 13 weeks to show her stuff. Meanwhile, “Partridge Family” child-star-turned-talk-show-host Danny Bonaduce took over Tuesday as the guest host for the final week of original “Stephanie Miller Show” episodes.

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It’s a Wrap: Cable’s Comedy Central has canceled the cult favorite “Mystery Science Theater 3000” because of declining ratings. The final episode of the Peabody Award-winning show, which has been on seven seasons and features a lost-in-space human and his robot sidekicks commenting as they watch bad movies, will be taped Dec. 22. Comedy Central will air reruns of the series in 1996 and plans to show five new episodes on Saturday afternoons, starting Feb. 3. Producer Jim Mallon said he will seek a different network to air the show in 1997.

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Cartoons on Video: Viewers of Turner Broadcasting’s Cartoon Network will soon be able to acquire the network’s fare on video. Turner Home Entertainment on Tuesday announced the creation of its new Cartoon Network Video Division, which will issue both new and classic cartoons. The company’s first release will be “Classic Jonny Quest,” a four-video series featuring episodes from TV’s original “Adventures of Jonny Quest,” and an accompanying new feature-length movie, “Jonny Quest vs. the Cyber Insects.” Both are expected to hit stores in March.

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Actor Faces Molestation Sentence: Actor James Stacy, who starred in the 1960s TV western “Lancer” and received a 1986 Emmy nomination for an episode of “Cagney & Lacy,” was arrested at a Honolulu psychiatric unit over the weekend and extradited to California to face sentencing in Ventura for molesting an 11-year-old girl. Stacy, 59, pleaded no contest last month to molesting a friend’s daughter in March. He faces up to 8 1/2 years in prison. Police say Stacy, whose real name is Maurice Elias, was taken to the psychiatric facility with minor injuries after falling 45 feet from the Pali Lookout in what officers called a suicide attempt.

QUICK TAKES

Producer Quincy Jones and his latest musical protegee, Tamia, will be at Sunset Boulevard’s Virgin Megastore from 5 to 7 tonight to sign copies of Jones’ latest album, “Q’s Jook Joint.” Tamia sings on the album’s first single, “You Put a Move on My Heart.”. . . William H. Kobin, who was to have retired at the end of the year after 13 years as president of KCET-TV Channel 28, says he will remain at the Los Angeles public television station through January. . . . Ice-T, the rapper who wrote “Cop Killer,” has a new message for teens: Stay away from drugs, violence and the fast buck. “I can tell you how to get rich in nine months,” he told Minneapolis high school audience last week. “But the nine-month plan ends in a funeral.”