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

MOVIES

It’s All in the Effects: Director Steven Spielberg told a federal jury in St. Louis Friday that the movie “Twister” was successful because of its special effects, not the script written by Michael Crichton and Ann-Marie Martin. Spielberg testified in the copyright infringement lawsuit filed by St. Louis-area screenwriter Stephen Kessler. Kessler alleges that “Twister” was based on his screenplay, “Catch the Wind,” and is seeking all of the movie’s profits. Spielberg said he did not know how much his production company, Amblin Entertainment, made off the film but estimated profits totaled between $20 million and $80 million. However, “Twister’s” script, Spielberg testified, could be credited with only about 5% of those profits.

Another Scarlett Return?: Best-selling author Pat Conroy (“The Prince of Tides”) is reportedly negotiating with Margaret Mitchell’s estate to write his sequel to her 1936 epic, “Gone With the Wind.” A 1991 “GWTW” sequel, Alexandra Ripley’s “Scarlett,” sold millions and was made into a CBS miniseries. Conroy’s agent and a Mitchell estate spokesperson both declined comment.

THE ARTS

Important Ideas: Former National Endowment for the Arts Chairwoman Jane Alexander has a new job, as a member of the 1998 Council on Ideas, an intellectual think tank charged with determining and writing a statement on “the singular issue of overriding importance in our time.” Joining Alexander on the council--which will convene at a ranch outside Santa Fe, N.M., in July--will be two Harvard professors, a physicist from the University of Mexico and writer and two-time Pulitzer Prize nominee Robert D. Kaplan. The council, held every two years, was founded in 1992 by philanthropist-artist Michael Nesmith with a goal to “focus the cultural imperative and give it a voice.”

POP/ROCK

Tribute Concert: Carole King, Linda Ronstadt and Crosby, Stills & Nash are among those scheduled to perform at “It’s Gonna Take a Lotta Love . . ,” a two-night memorial concert honoring the late singer-songwriter Nicolette Larson, who died Dec. 16 at age 45 of complications from a cerebral edema. Additional performers scheduled for the Feb. 20 and 21 shows at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium include the Section, a band featuring L.A. musicians Craig Doerge, Russ Kunkel, Lee Sklar and Waddy Wachtel. Tickets for the event, which benefits UCLA Children’s Hospital, are $40 to $250.

TV & VIDEO

‘Party’ Crasher: “Significant Others,” a new Fox drama from the creators of “Party of Five,” will get a six-week tryout in “Party’s” 9 p.m. Wednesday time slot, beginning March 11. The series focuses on five twentysomething singles living in Los Angeles who must make important decisions about their relationships and careers. “Party of Five,” meanwhile, is scheduled to return to the time slot on April 22.

Triple Jumps: NBC will attempt to counter-program CBS’ Winter Olympics coverage next month by tripling up on a couple of its dramas. Three consecutive episodes of the Emmy-winning “Law & Order” will fill the network’s prime-time schedule on Feb. 18, and on Feb. 21, the same number of back-to-back episodes of the sophomore series “The Pretender” will air.

Space-Bound Barney: Barney the purple dinosaur will take young kids on a “tour of the universe” in “Barney in Outer Space,” a new video due in stores on March 17. Astronaut Ken Reightler, who piloted two Space Shuttle flights, co-stars.

QUICK TAKES

The “3rd Rock From the Sun” episode that follows Sunday’s Super Bowl game on NBC will begin with a 25-second live intro featuring star John Lithgow running out on to the San Diego football field and interrupting announcer Greg Gumbel to warn America about an alien invasion. . . . KTLA-TV Channel 5 will honor veteran newsman Stan Chambers for his 50 years with the station by naming its administration building for him during ceremonies Monday morning. The 8:30 a.m. dedication will be carried live on KTLA’s morning news. . . . The San Francisco Symphony will present the West Coast premiere of former Beatle Paul McCartney’s symphonic poem, “Standing Stone,” on July 2 in San Francisco’s Davies Symphony Hall. Lawrence Foster, who conducted the EMI Classics recording of the work, will conduct the one-night-only performance. . . . Hugh Downs, host of ABC News’ “20/20,” will receive UNICEF’s Distinguished Service Award during ceremonies Monday in New York. First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton is slated to present the award, honoring Downs for nearly 20 years as board chairman of the U.S. Committee for UNICEF. . . . East West Players has set March 12 as the opening date of “Pacific Overtures,” the first show in its long-awaited mid-sized theater at Little Tokyo’s Union Center. . . . Singer Patti Page was feted in Studio City Friday by the Pacific Pioneer Broadcasters for her long career as a recording artist. . . . Actor Charlton Heston will join Grammy-nominated pianists Mona and Renee Golabek at a memorial program honoring the duo’s late mother, pianist Lisa Golabek, tonight at 7 at Temple Emanuel in Beverly Hills. Tickets are $25.