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

ART

Getty’s Housewarming Gift: Less than two months before the Dec. 16 opening of its new facility at the Getty Center in Brentwood, the J. Paul Getty Museum has received an export license from the British government for a major landscape by 17th century French artist Nicholas Poussin. The museum agreed to purchase “Landscape With Calm” for about $26 million from the trustees of Sudeley Castle, a 15th century estate in Gloucestershire, and applied for an export license on April 1. The decision was deferred for up to a year last July in a move that could have snarled the sale. But permission was granted this week. The painting is expected to arrive at the Getty in early November.

MOVIES

Talking Politics: While official Washington prepared for next week’s state visit by Chinese President Jiang Zemin, longtime Dalai Lama supporter Richard Gere used his latest film premiere to ask President Clinton to stand firm against communism. “We’re not going to pretend this is a new, cuddly Communist Chinese government we have here. They haven’t proven themselves yet,” Gere said at Wednesday’s Washington premiere of “Red Corner,” in which he plays an American framed on murder charges by corrupt Beijing officials. An outspoken critic of China’s human rights record and its control over Tibet, Gere said he has planned a protest rally outside the White House next week plus his own “State-less” dinner, to coincide with Clinton’s official state dinner for Jiang.

STAGE

‘Fever’ Revival?: After two years of planning, “Saturday Night Fever,” the disco dancing movie that earned John Travolta his first Oscar nomination, will open as a London stage production May 5. The musical will include two new songs by the Bee Gees, who wrote most of the original film’s best-selling soundtrack. Producer Robert Stigwood, who also produced the 1977 film, predicted the stage version will prove the “enduring” appeal of “a terrific story.” Australian actor Adam Garcia will inherit Travolta’s role in the $6.5-million production, which will open just days before the May 12 British premiere of America’s hit musical “Rent.”

TV and VIDEO

Fast Ball: If you’ve been missing the games, or just can’t believe that the Florida Marlins really are in the World Series, Orion Home Video is recording the event for posterity, with the 1997 World Series video due to hit stores Nov. 13 (suggested retail price: $19.98). The 60-minute documentary will be culled from more than 250 hours of game footage, interviews and commentary.

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Catholic Support: Full-page ads offering Catholic support for ABC’s Thursday night drama “Nothing Sacred” appeared in several major newspapers Thursday, including The Times and USA Today. Among the four priests quoted in the ad was the Rev. Andrew Greeley, who said the show “illuminates the compassion of priests and the humanity of the church with rare clarity.” The program, whose lead character is ambivalent about hot-button issues including abortion, has been boycotted by the Catholic League, and several advertisers have pulled their commercials.

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PBS Finances: PBS increased its revenue by 20% in fiscal 1997, up to $239 million, versus $199 million for fiscal 1996, PBS President Ervin S. Duggan reported to member stations Thursday. While Corp. for Public Broadcasting grants remained steady at about $28 million, PBS’ take from educational products and services such as PBS Home Video grew from $29 million to $48 million, and support from PBS member stations went from $120 million to $127 million. Income from various other sources, including a partnership with Reader’s Digest Assn., brought $36 million, topping last year’s $22 million.

PEOPLE WATCH

Pulp Fight: Director Quentin Tarantino, apparently upset over his portrayal in the book “Killer Instinct,” reportedly punched one of the authors and threw him against a wall Wednesday at the Melrose Avenue restaurant Ago. Tarantino was not arrested, and his producing partner, Lawrence Bender, called the incident a “misunderstanding which resulted in a handshake” between Tarantino and author Don Murphy. Meanwhile, Murphy’s co-author, Jane Hamsher, said: “Quentin is, and always will be, an egotistical brat, exactly as he is portrayed in ‘Killer Instinct.’ ”

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Internet Dance: The first celebrity fund-raiser on the Internet will take place tonight when Baldwin brothers Alec, Daniel, Billy and Stephen headline a dinner-dance in New York to raise money for the Carol Baldwin Breast Cancer Research Fund Inc., named after their mother, who is a breast cancer survivor. Others scheduled to take part in the 8 p.m. event--and live Webcast at https://www.aentv.com--include Kim Basinger, Elizabeth Taylor, Jerry Seinfeld and Barry Bostwick.

QUICK TAKES

Violinist Gil Shaham will give a free live performance Saturday at 3 p.m. at Borders Books and Music in Santa Monica (1415 Third St.), with the performance broadcast live on radio station KKGO-FM (105.1). Shaham’s Sunday show at UCLA’s Wadsworth Theatre is sold out. . . . HBO has acquired the film rights to Ernest J. Gaines’ best-selling novel, “A Lesson Before Dying,” about a young black man on death row for a murder he did not commit. . . . The Maxwell H. Gluck Foundation has donated $1 million over three years to UCLA’s music department in one of the largest grants to date specifically targeted to the arts. . . . Robert Mandan has replaced Kenneth Mars in the cast of “After-Play,” opening Nov. 16 at the Pasadena Playhouse. . . . Universal Studios now has its own credit card, co-issued Thursday by NOVUS Services. Every dollar spent on purchases with the card will earn points toward free theme park admission, movies and concert tickets.