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

MOVIES

To Sequeldom and Beyond!: Walt Disney Pictures announced plans Thursday for “Toy Story 2,” a sequel to the 1995 computer-animated hit “Toy Story.” Planned for a holiday 1999 release, the sequel will be executive produced by Pixar Animation’s John Lasseter, who won an Oscar for the original “Toy Story.” All of the voice talents from the first film--including Tom Hanks and Tim Allen--will be reprising their roles for the sequel, Disney said. . . . In other Disney/Pixar news, Kevin Spacey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Dave Foley, David Hyde Pierce, Denis Leary, John Ratzenberger, Roddy McDowall and Phyllis Diller are among those providing the voices for the animated “A Bug’s Life,” scheduled to open in November.

Protecting Artists’ Rights: Tom Cruise was announced Thursday as the recipient of the 1998 John Huston Award for Artists Rights, which will be presented April 17 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Cruise was selected for his “artistic integrity and unwavering support for the cause of artists’ rights”; past recipients include Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and Milos Forman. The award is handed out by the Artists Rights Foundation, a Los Angeles-based group of which Cruise is a trustee.

STAGE

Singing Sondheim: Stephen Sondheim will rewrite his “Putting It Together” for a staging starring Carol Burnett, slated for Oct. 4 (first preview)-Nov. 29 at the Mark Taper Forum. When the loosely plotted revue first appeared off-Broadway with Burnett’s pal Julie Andrews in 1993, the score consisted of songs from Sondheim’s stage musicals and the “Dick Tracy” movie score, but the new version will include some material never previously heard. Eric D. Schaeffer, who has directed many of Sondheim’s musicals at the Signature Theatre in Virginia, will direct, with musical staging by the off-Broadway production’s choreographer, Bob Avian.

The Politician’s the Thing: L.A. County Supervisor Mike Antonovich will appear in the Music Theatre of Southern California production of “The Will Rogers Follies” at today’s 8 p.m. opening night performance at San Gabriel Civic Auditorium. In a role often used as a cameo for celebrities, Antonovich will play Wiley Post, who urges Rogers from a side stage to accompany him on a flight to Alaska. A different benefactor of the company will appear in the role each night; Antonovich recently gave $10,000 to the group.

Not Much of a Stretch: Mayor Richard Riordan, a millionaire, will appear as American millionaire J. Washburn Stoker in “Thank You, Jeeves,” part of the upcoming spring-summer season of L.A. Theatre Works’ “The Play’s the Thing” radio theater series. Riordan’s June 17-20 readings will be at the series’ usual home, a ballroom at Doubletree Guest Suites in Santa Monica. However, the Skirball Cultural Center has joined Doubletree as a sponsor of the series and will host three of the seven plays in the upcoming series in its 350-seat theater in the Sepulveda Pass. The Skirball events begin with David Ives’ “Time Flies,” featuring Ed Begley Jr. and Christopher McDonald, March 18-19, 21 and 22. All performances in the series are taped for later broadcast on KCRW-FM (89.9).

TELEVISION

Baldwin Discharged: Actor Daniel Baldwin, 37, was discharged Thursday from a New York hospital where he had been recovering since an alleged drug-crazed rampage Monday at the Plaza Hotel. Police say the former “Homicide: Life on the Street” star was treated for a cocaine overdose after they found him ranting, naked and bleeding in a room at the exclusive hotel. The second-oldest of four actor brothers, Baldwin is scheduled to appear in court May 18 on charges of criminal possession of a controlled substance and criminal use of drug paraphernalia. He could face up to two years in prison.

Magic Out of the Hat: It’s still four months before the June 8 debut of Magic Johnson’s syndicated talk show, “The Magic Hour,” but fans attending Laker home games are already getting a brief taste of the show. A 30-second commercial for the program is showing on the scoreboard’s jumbo screens during breaks in the game; the ad shows the former basketball player interacting with Mel Gibson, Cher and other celebrities. The punch line for the commercial shows former talk-show host Arsenio Hall giving a pre-show pep talk to Johnson, with the former Laker running out after taking off his suit pants to reveal his game trunks.

MUSIC

Pop Go the Arias: Pop star Michael Bolton’s latest musical offering has topped the charts--at least the classical chart. “My Secret Passion--The Arias”--a recording of popular arias by opera greats including Puccini, Verdi and Donizetti--sold nearly 7,000 copies last week, according to SoundScan. On the overall music chart, the 2-week-old album came in at No. 166.

QUICK TAKES

NBC has hired former O.J. Simpson prosecutor Marcia Clark as a legal analyst. She will provide commentary on legal cases for NBC and its cable sister MSNBC, and be an occasional guest host on CNBC prime-time programs, the network said Thursday. . . . President Clinton’s admitted former paramour, Gennifer Flowers, guests on tonight’s “Politically Incorrect With Bill Maher,” airing at midnight on ABC. . . . “The Jerry Springer Show,” which tapes its syndicated talk/slugfest in Chicago, may be taking the program on the road to Los Angeles. Executives at KCAL-TV Channel 9, which airs Springer’s show locally at 11 p.m. weekdays, suggested that Springer may do a series of shows here during the May ratings sweeps period.