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

CLASSICAL MUSIC

Orchestra’s President Adamant: Facing escalating protests at home and abroad against his orchestra’s refusal to hire women, the president of the Vienna Philharmonic dug in his heels on Austrian radio Thursday, according to Reuters. “This is a private club and we won’t have our arm twisted. If people keep trying to pressure us [into admitting women], we’ll dissolve ourselves,” Werner Resel said. He spoke in response to Ioan Hollender, the director of the Vienna State Opera, from whose orchestra the private Vienna Philharmonic draws its members. Hollender has said he supports the admission of women to the state orchestra; however, he is just one of 25 voting members of the audition committee. The Vienna Philharmonic, considered one of the best orchestras in the world, leaves Austria on Thursday for an international tour that will bring it to the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa March 4 and 5 and to Carnegie Hall in New York City later in March. Women’s groups have vowed that the orchestra will be met with pickets at both venues.

MOVIES

‘Flynt’ Gets Cheers, Jeers: While stirring up controversy from Paris to Santa Monica, “The People vs. Larry Flynt” director Milos Forman got a pat on the back from the local ACLU. In an ad appearing in Thursday’s editions of Variety, the ACLU Foundation of Southern California announced that it is honoring the Oscar-winning director with its Torch of Liberty Award for his commitment to free speech. Meanwhile, a protest by students and Christian activists against “Larry Flynt” and its “perversion of 1st Amendment Rights” was planned in front of Santa Monica’s Cineplex Odeon Broadway Cinemas. Organizer Gary Jones-Locke of the Pure Love Alliance said the demonstration was not a direct response to the Variety ad. Also Thursday, two French judges refused to ban posters advertising “Larry Flynt” after hearing arguments from a public prosecutor that the posters offend Christians. The posters show actor Woody Harrelson, arms outstretched a la Christ on the cross, wearing only an American flag around his hips, against a backdrop of a woman’s bikini-clad pelvis. Lawyers for the producers, Columbia Pictures, argued freedom of expression.

RADIO

Stern Measures: Don’t expect Howard Stern’s rivals on L.A. radio to help promote the shock-jock’s movie “Private Parts,” even though one station already is playing songs from the soundtrack album, which will be released Tuesday. KROQ-FM (106.7) drew Stern’s ire recently by “leaking” a Porno for Pyros song from the album before Stern had played it on his own nationally syndicated morning show (carried here on KLSX-FM). KROQ general manager Trip Reeb says: “We’ll announce that songs are from ‘Private Parts,’ but I don’t think we’ll say it’s Howard Stern’s ‘Private Parts.’ ” Rita Wilde, music director of KLOS-FM (95.5), says now that the station has moved away from alternative rock, none of the new songs on the Stern album fits the current format--but even without the change she would have steered clear of any Stern association. “We have our own strong morning team of Mark & Brian . . . and I have no interest in Howard Stern or his movie or the soundtrack,” Wilde said.

THEATER

Changes: On the Pasadena Civic Auditorium schedule, an engagement of “Singin’ in the Rain” July 8-13 replaces the canceled “Funny Girl” initially slated for next week. . . . “Grease” at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood has been moved from March 18-30 to April 9-27. . . . Five performances of “Show Boat” have been added at the Ahmanson Theatre in downtown Los Angeles. The musical now will close April 6.

QUICK TAKES

Lucky Vanous, famous as the hunky construction worker in the Diet Coke commercials, will be among the stars of the new Aaron Spelling series “Pacific Palisades,” scheduled to premiere April 9 on Fox. . . . CBS has acquired the TV rights to “The Celestine Prophecy,” James Redfield’s best-selling spiritual mystery, which is to be developed into a four-hour miniseries. . . . Rosie O’Donnell will host Nickelodeon’s 10th annual Kid’s Choice Awards April 19, to be broadcast live from the Grand Olympic Auditorium in downtown Los Angeles. . . . “The Preacher’s Wife,” starring Denzel Washington and Whitney Houston, was named best film of the year at the 20th International Angel Awards, which honor productions for their moral and social impact. The awards, sponsored by Excellence in Media, were presented Thursday at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Two TV series, “Cosby” and “Touched by an Angel,” also were honored. . . . NBC is getting ready to launch MSNBC Weather by Intellicast in April. The new cable and satellite TV network will offer 24-hour information. . . . Grammy-nominated documentarian Geoff Wonfor, who directed “The Beatles Anthology,” has signed on to film a new documentary on Paul McCartney, expected to air in May, coinciding with the release of McCartney’s new album, on a network to be announced. . . . Museum of Contemporary Art curator Kerry Brougher has been named director of England’s Museum of Modern Art Oxford, effective in April. Brougher has been with MOCA since it opened in 1983. Exhibitions he has conceived and organized include “Art and Film Since 1945,” “Robert Irwin” and “Hiroshi Sugimoto.” . . . Despite the stellar ratings numbers for NBC’s “Asteroid” Sunday night, A&E; earned its biggest ratings ever for a sweeps-month broadcast: About 2.85 million viewers tuned in to its adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Emma” from 9-11:30 p.m. . . . Diane Sawyer’s interview with Mark Fuhrman on “PrimeTime Live” Wednesday night was the series’ highest-rated installment this season, drawing almost 20 million viewers.