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

ENTERTAINMENT

Final Resting Place: Per his request, Robert Mitchum’s ashes were scattered at sea from the deck of a schooner, a family spokesman said Wednesday. The ashes were spread Sunday off the coast near his Montecito home using a schooner donated for the occasion by longtime friend and “Davy Crockett’ actor Fess Parker. Those on board for the service included Mitchum’s wife, Dorothy, son Christopher and daughter Petrine. Mitchum died July 1 from complications of emphysema and lung cancer.

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‘Late Show’ Music: “Late Show With David Letterman” is putting together a series of albums featuring live performances from the CBS show. The first release, scheduled for October on Warner Bros. Records, will focus on rock acts, with producers aiming to include unique duets such as Al Green and Lyle Lovett, Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach, Jewel and Flea, and, backed by the Chieftains, Van Morrison and Sinead O’Connor. Country and R&B; performances are planned for subsequent albums.

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Oprah’s New Medium: Oprah Winfrey is getting into the home video business with “Oprah Winfrey--Make the Connection,” due in stores Sept. 30. The Buena Vista Home Video release follows a day in Winfrey’s life, including her exercise routines and preparation for her talk show. Winfrey also discusses her battle with the bulge and other personal struggles. Proceeds will go to an educational charity.

QUICK TAKES

Michael Jackson is once again the King of Pop. The Recording Industry Assn. of America, which tracks album shipments to stores, said his 1982 “Thriller” album has reclaimed its status as the best-selling album ever, by reaching the 25 million mark. “Thriller” had recently been tied with the Eagles’ “Their Greatest Hits--1971-75.” . . . CBS will honor the late newsman Charles Kuralt by repeating all 10 episodes of his most recent series, “I Remember,” on CBS Eye on People on Tuesday nights at 5 starting next week. Kuralt, who died last Friday of complications from lupus, was scheduled to resume production on the cable series this week. . . . Billionaire Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen has given $2 million to Steven Spielberg’s Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation, which records the testimonies of Holocaust survivors for a multimedia archive. . . . Madonna’s baby daughter is safely behind bars--specifically window safety bars that have been fitted on the pop star’s fifth-floor New York apartment. A city councilman and the state health department had written Madonna about the bars last month after seeing her home in a newspaper photo; New York City requires window bars on all homes with small children.