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

TELEVISION

Rush Away From TV: Rush Limbaugh says he’s fed up with the time slots he’s been getting and he’ll give up television in the upcoming season. “I’m disappointed with traditional television syndication,” the conservative commentator said in a statement. “We’re seeing an increase in the number of networks, but they’re demanding more and more blocks of time in late night. I’ve been pushed later and later and, in the process, lost a lot of potential audience.” While Limbaugh’s nightly nationally syndicated show has favorable ratings for the hours in which it appears--in Los Angeles it’s on KCAL Channel 9 at 1 a.m.--Limbaugh indicated he would rather concentrate on his radio talk show along with his speaking and writing deals. But Limbaugh didn’t close the door on the tube, saying: “I will now concentrate on finding the best way to integrate television work into the rest of my expansive media empire.” One possibility would be getting a TV network time slot. Limbaugh already has a contact there: His executive producer, Roger Ailes, is chairman and CEO of the burgeoning Fox News network.

Corralling the Clinton Bashers: C-SPAN, the Cable Satellite Public Affairs Network that covers Congress, announced it has decided to stop Clinton-bashers from dominating call-in shows. Because the anti-Clinton callers were jamming the phone lines by a margin of 5-to-1, C-SPAN chairman and on-air personality Brian Lamb ordered a realignment of three existing telephone lines so that on-air calls will be alternated among pro-Clinton, anti-Clinton and others. “Some people begin to take it that this is their little play toy and this show belongs to them, that if they got up earlier and worked harder to get on, they deserved to dominate it,” Lamb said. “It got to be so dominant on one side that it wasn’t even interesting.”

Robin Hood Plans Comeback: In its first exclusive original series deal, Turner Network Television signed an agreement with the Warner Bros. Domestic Pay-TV, Cable & Network Features for the rights to 26 one-hour episodes of “The New Adventures of Robin Hood.” Being filmed on location in Europe, the series stars Matthew Porretta (“Beverly Hills, 90210”) in the title role, with Anna Galvin as Marian, Richard Ashton as Little John and Martyn Ellis as Friar Tuck. Set for airing in 1997, the oft-told cinematic legend will be presented with “a contemporary, action-packed feel,” according to Bradley J. Siegel, TNT president. Presumably, Robin Hood will still steal from the rich to give to the poor.

More Movies for Disney: The Disney Channel is moving to an all-movie lineup during prime time this fall. Executives for the cable station said family-oriented films will air seven nights a week beginning at 7, starting Sept. 8 when “The Lion King” will have its world television premiere. The programming strategy is part of the channel’s move in offering cable systems the opportunity to air Disney as part of their basic service. Disney is still aired on many cable systems as a premium channel.

MOVIES

Carrey’s an Honest Guy: Enough about “The Cable Guy” and whether Jim Carrey should have taken that role. Carrey is at work on his next film, in which he plays a fast-talking attorney with a compulsion for prevarication. The catch is that he suddenly finds himself unable to lie, setting off legal and emotional havoc. Universal Pictures, which is producing the film, “Liar, Liar,” with Imagine Entertainment, said principal photography has begun. The film is being shot in and around Los Angeles, with a wrap due in October. Co-stars are Maura Tierney and newcomer Justin Cooper. Directing is Tom Shadyac, who helmed Carrey’s “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” and Eddie Murphy’s “The Nutty Professor.”

More ‘Lies’: The next film from Hollywood’s highest-paid screenwriter, Joe Eszterhas, is called “Telling Lies in America.” Starring Kevin Bacon and Brad Renfro, it is about an immigrant boy’s experiences in the world of rock ‘n’ roll radio. The film starts shooting Aug. 5 in Cleveland, where Eszterhas grew up. The screenwriter of such films as “Basic Instinct” and “Showgirls” said he’s never had a film shot in his hometown before, “and since this story is partially based on my experiences growing up in Cleveland, I am happy indeed.”

QUICK TAKES

“Dinah Was,” the well-received new musical play by Oliver Goldstick at the Coast Playhouse, has been extended four weeks to Aug. 25. Yvette Freeman stars in the show about legendary singer Dinah Washington. . . . William Shatner, Shirley MacLaine, Monty Hall, Dick Clark and Linda Blair were among celebrities who helped K-EARTH 101 “Care for Kids” radiothon raise $150,101 in pledges over the weekend to benefit local children’s charities through Variety Club. . . . Harrison Ford and his wife, Melissa Mathison Ford, and Richard Gere will be among those honoring the Dalai Lama at a dinner of the American Himalayan Foundation and the Tibet Fund at the Regent Beverly Wilshire on Aug. 1. . . . ABC will repeat the six-hour “The Beatles Anthology” over three nights--Aug. 31, Sept. 5 and Sept. 7. The documentary premiered last November. . . . Conan O’Brien, host of NBC’s late-night show for nearly three years, had his contract extended into the fall of 1997. . . . Eric Douglas, 37, the youngest son of actor Kirk Douglas, was ordered held in custody Monday in Newark, N.J., for dropping out of a court-ordered drug program he had agreed to when he pleaded guilty to disrupting an airplane flight. He will be sentenced today and faces up to 30 days in jail and a $5,000 fine on the misdemeanor charge. Douglas let his dog out of its cage during the March 17 flight, and was “loud and verbally abusive toward the crew,” throwing balled-up blankets at flight attendants, an FBI complaint said.