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

TELEVISION

Farley Family Speaks Out: The family of comedian Chris Farley appealed Monday for the public to respect its privacy as members prepared to bury the 33-year-old performer. Farley, best known for his appearances on “Saturday Night Live,” died in Chicago last week. One of his brothers, John Farley, said that family and friends will attend today’s funeral mass at Our Lady Queen of Peace Roman Catholic church in Madison, Wis., but asked that the public wait until later to pay its respects. He said a tribute would be held in about a week at Englewood High School in Madison, a Catholic secondary school from which Farley graduated. Memorials were also being planned later on in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles. The comedian, who weighed nearly 300 pounds, was found dead in his Chicago apartment last Thursday. The cause of his death remained undetermined pending toxicology tests. Several newspapers have published reports of Farley drinking heavily on the nights before his death, and Time magazine is reporting that DreamWorks will have to radically revamp “Shrek,” an animated film in which Farley was to provide the voice for the title character.

ART

Going Getty: The new Getty Center’s first week of public operation, Dec. 16-21, brought in 47,514 visitors. Of that number, 23,614 arrived in cars and used reserved parking places. A whopping 10,882 took public buses or walked in, 7,665 came by taxi or shuttle or were dropped off, and 5,353 arrived in chartered bus groups. The museum’s bookstore toted up $280,000 in sales--about what was sold on average in 3 1/2 months at the Getty’s Malibu villa. Despite the enthusiastic response to the new facility, estimates of how many people can be accommodated have proved too conservative, so additional reservations are now available for December and January: (310) 440-7300.

THEATER

“Side Show” Sidelined: “Side Show,” a Broadway musical about real-life Siamese twins who became performers in the ‘20s and ‘30s, reportedly is closing after a three-month run. The New York Post, quoting anonymous sources, reported the play will close in two weeks with a $7-million loss for investors, making it the third-biggest flop in Broadway history. The play, which tells the story of Siamese twins Daily and Violet Hilton, garnered favorable notices but played to half-empty houses at the Richard Rodgers Theater. In 1996, “Big” closed after a six-month run and a $10-million loss and was the biggest recorded flop. The second was 1993’s “The Red Shoes,” which lost $8 million when it closed after just five performances.

POP/ROCK

MTV Bows to NOW?: The National Organization for Women, which protested last week in front of Time Warner’s Rockefeller Center headquarters against the company’s release of British rock group Prodigy’s single “Smack My Bitch Up,” is claiming victory because MTV has ceased to air the video for the single. An MTV spokesman confirmed that the network has stopped showing the video, but added it had never planned to carry it beyond the one week it ran in the 1-5 a.m. time slot, with a warning about the song’s lyrics. The video can still be seen on the JAMtv Web site: https://www.jamtv.com

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Gift Rapping: Stars of rap and other entertainers will gather tonight for gift-wrapping and live music at Sunset Boulevard’s Billboard Live to benefit needy families and children. Scheduled to participate and/or donate gifts to Operation Wrap It Up, hosted by Nick V of Power 106’s Baka Boys, are Ice-T, Alanis Morissette, Aerosmith, Eddie Murphy, Hootie and the Blowfish, Yo-Yo, Bon Jovi, Coolio, Mac 10, W.C., Alice Cooper and Alice in Chains. Network TV shows including “Chicago Hope” and “Beverly Hills 90210” will also make donations.

THE ARTS

NEA Gives to Los Angeles: The National Endowment for the Arts, struggling to survive on a 1998 budget of $98 million, has still managed to direct some money to L.A.-area artists and arts organizations for fiscal ’98. On the list are Glendale’s A Noise Within ($13,000); the American Film Institute ($40,000); East-West Players ($14,000); Foundation for Arts Resources Inc. ($12,500); Fountain Theatre ($14,000); Santa Monica’s Great Leap, Incorporated ($10,000); Japanese American Cultural and Community Center ($16,000); Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra Society ($40,000); the Los Angeles Music Center ($45,000); Los Angeles Music Center Opera ($100,000); Plaza de la Raza ($25,000); Southwest Chamber Music Society ($10,000); Southwest Museum ($22,000); UCLA ($75,000); We Tell Stories ($7,500); the Center for Building Educational Programs ($22,000); and L.A. Theatre Works ($50,000).