Advertisement

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

Share

DANCE

Cal State L.A. Unplugged: In order to repair and replace malfunctioning Department of Water and Power electrical feeder lines, all power to the Cal State L.A. campus was ordered shut off Sunday, requiring the cancellation of every scheduled event that day--most notably the final performance of “Black Choreographers Moving Toward the 21st Century” in the Luckman Theater. Clif Harper, executive director of the Luckman Fine Arts Complex, said that Cal State L.A. had suffered a complete power outage the previous Monday and that he was notified on Friday morning of what he called “the emergency need to repair the power lines that come into the university. . . . The only window of opportunity was Sunday.”

RADIO

Changed Plans: George Green, outgoing president and general manager of talk stations KABC-AM (790) and KMPC-AM (710), said that he will not become a vice president for sales training for ABC Radio, as parent company Capital Cities/ABC Inc. reported last week. “I’m walking out into the sunshine--I’m retiring,” he said. Sort of. Green, who has been with KABC-AM since 1960, said he will start his own business, doing sales, marketing and advertising training--and “ABC will be my first client.” And he will do some consulting for talk-radio stations. “I’m in no great hurry,” he added, “because I have a golden, platinum parachute. It’s been a great run around here.” Asked whether KABC’s 12th-place ranking in the latest Arbitron ratings had anything to do with his departure, Green said he had been talking about retiring for some time, but also noted: “New companies come in and evaluate and probably felt someone else was capable of doing a better job. And that’s their privilege.” He said ABC incorrectly stated his future plans under the rush of its own deadline to make the announcement that Maureen Lesourd was taking the reins of its L.A. radio stations.

TELEVISION

USA’s Coming Attractions: Cable’s USA Network will add two new original series to its prime-time lineup for the 1996-97 season. “Rudy,” a comedy from director David Steinberg (“Mad About You”), is about a network newscaster who is sent to a small market to produce a children’s puppet show; “La Femme Nikita” is based on Luc Besson’s French film about a young woman who becomes an undercover agent. The network has also ordered 22 new episodes of its animated comedy “Duckman,” featuring the voice of Jason Alexander, and 22 new episodes of its police drama, “Pacific Blue.” In other USA news, Stockard Channing will star in “The Hand Off,” a telefilm about a woman who finds her sister’s children abandoned on her doorstep, and Alfre Woodard will star in “The Member of the Wedding,” a movie based on Carson McCullers’ novel about a girl’s relationship with her family’s cook.

Advertisement

LEGAL FILE

On Legal Grounds: Fran Drescher, star of CBS’ “The Nanny,” will have to go to New York to file a lawsuit against TV Guide. Drescher filed a negligence suit against the magazine in Superior Court in Los Angeles claiming she was burned by a cup of coffee while posing for a TV Guide photo in New York. While Drescher is a California resident, Superior Court Judge Loren Miller Jr. said Friday that the case should be filed in New York City where the incident occurred. TV Guide lawyer Mary Wirth criticized the suit. “She had a cup of coffee in her hand, she stood there and she spilled it on herself,” Wirth said.

*

Actor Faces Jail: Television actor Sasha Mitchell of ABC’s “Step by Step,” on probation for beating his wife, is headed back to jail over alleged new incidents of domestic violence. A Ventura municipal judge ordered Mitchell to return to the Ventura County Jail for 60 days. Mitchell is to begin serving his jail term Thursday. In September, Mitchell was given three years’ probation and ordered to perform community service and attend counseling classes for spouse abusers. He spent 30 days in jail after failing to comply, but was allowed to leave during the day to work on his show. This time, Mitchell will not have that freedom because the series has finished production for the season.

QUICK TAKES

David Letterman fans will be able to vie for a piece of his “Late Show” set during the CBS program’s stop in San Francisco this week. One hundred 5-by-8-inch, hand-painted Plexiglas pieces from the program’s original set (used from August 1993 through March 1996) will be awarded in an Internet quiz taking place all week at https://www.cbs.com. . . . “Jam on the Groove,” the high-energy off-Broadway show featuring the art, theater, music and dance of hip-hop culture, will be at the Veterans Wadsworth Theater in Westwood for 14 performances from Sept. 24-Oct. 5. The show is choreographed by GhettOriginal Productions, which was formed by members of several New York hip-hop groups. Tickets will be available beginning Wednesday with the purchase of a UCLA Center for Performing Arts subscription series and on June 14 to the public.

Advertisement