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

MOVIES

Giving Credit Where It’s Due: The Writers Guild of America plans to restore screenwriting credits to several writers who were blacklisted during the McCarthy era. The Guild’s board of directors voted unanimously to correct the credits of 24 films including “The Robe,” “Inherit the Wind” and “Born Free.” WGA Executive Director Brian Walton said Hollywood’s film studios have been receptive to the idea of restoring the credits and that the Guild will “immediately begin the research to identify the current rights holders of these films” so that proper credits can be issued.

TELEVISION

By George, It’s the Peabodys: NBC’s “Law & Order,” ABC’s “NYPD Blue” and Fox’s “The Simpsons” and “The X-Files” joined Lily Tomlin’s ABC special “Edith Anne’s Christmas” as the only network projects to earn 1996 George Foster Peabody Awards for excellence in broadcasting. Several cable programs were among the 31 Peabody honorees announced Thursday, including four HBO offerings: “The Celluloid Closet,” “Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills,” “Journey of the African-American Athlete” and “How Do You Spell God?” Other cable honorees included TBS’s “Survivors of the Holocaust” produced by Steven Spielberg’s Shoah Visual History Foundation, and A&E;’s presentation of the BBC’s “Pride and Prejudice.” Among the eight PBS honorees were two separate “Frontline” editions and KCET-TV Channel 28’s “The Great War and the Shaping of the 20th Century.” Two personal Peabodys will also be awarded during the annual ceremonies in New York May 12, to producer and Olympic chronicler Bud Greenspan and to CBC Radio’s Peter Gzowski.

‘Friends’-ship: “Comic Relief” partners Billy Crystal and Robin Williams will guest star on the May 8 episode of NBC’s “Friends.” Not coincidentally, the duo’s new movie, “Fathers’ Day,” opens the following day. In an example of corporate synergy, “Friends” is produced by Warner Bros. Television, while the movie, natch, comes from Warner Bros.’ film division. On the “Friends” episode, the two will be seen jabbering away at the coffee shop hangout, Central Perk. Meanwhile, Crystal and Williams will also appear May 6 on NBC’s “Tonight Show With Jay Leno.”

Remembering Ennis Cosby: Stevie Wonder will perform an original song dedicated to the late Ennis Cosby during tonight’s Madison Square Garden taping of the 10th annual Essence Awards honoring African American achievements. Bill and Camille Cosby are among the night’s honorees, as are Whitney Houston and Muhammad Ali. The awards will air May 22 on Fox.

MUSIC

Vienna Fallout: The administrator of the Vienna Philharmonic resigned Wednesday--about a month after the all-male orchestra relented to public pressure and admitted the first woman in its 155-year history. But Werner Resel, who headed the orchestra since 1987, cited “personal reasons” for his resignation, saying the decision had nothing to do with the controversy. Resel, 61, had predicted that admitting women could split the orchestra. He will remain with the organization as a cellist.

POP/ROCK

Happy Ending: Folk singer Joni Mitchell has been reunited with the daughter she put up for adoption 32 years ago. “We’re quite happy,” her father, Bill Anderson, told a Canadian newspaper. “Apparently her daughter was looking for her, too, so there’s sort of a fairy tale ending.” Mitchell’s only child was conceived while she was an art student living in Calgary, Alberta. A spokesman for Mitchell’s record label, Reprise, said Mitchell “is just gathering her thoughts to go public” about the reunion.

QUICK TAKES

KCET-TV Channel 28 was knocked off the air for just over two hours early Thursday afternoon when a construction crew accidentally cut the power lines to the station’s transmitter. KTBN-TV Channel 40 and KLCS-TV Channel 58 were also affected by the outage. . . . Legendary newsman Walter Cronkite was scheduled to be moved to a non-intensive care private room Thursday as he recuperated from Tuesday’s quadruple bypass surgery at New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center. His spokeswoman said Cronkite “is doing great” and is expected to be released from the hospital in a few days. . . . Beach Boys lead guitarist Carl Wilson is undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatment for brain and lung cancer. His publicist said, however, that doctors believe they identified the cancer early and that he should recover from treatment in time to join the group’s annual U.S. summer tour, which begins in May. . . . DJ Shadow, whose “Endtroducing . . . “ was one of last year’s most critically acclaimed albums, will add a special touch to his 5 p.m. appearance today at the Hollywood Virgin Megastore: He’ll spin records brought to him by audience members. The deejay-producer, whose debut album is made up entirely of samples from other music, will also perform tonight at the House of Blues on Sunset Boulevard.