Fans Will Likely Excuse the Timing

Eight of Frank Sinatra’s most critically acclaimed albums from the ‘50s and ‘60s will be re-released Tuesday in an unprecedented collaborative effort between Capitol Records and Reprise Records--but it’s not what you think. The Tuesday launch of the unique promotion, titled “Frank Sinatra: Entertainer of the Century,” was planned months before the singer died of heart failure on May 14. Still, it figures to benefit greatly from the renewed interest in his music during the last two weeks. Advance orders of the albums, four each from Capitol and Reprise, have increased dramatically since Sinatra’s death, according to spokespersons for the labels. And no wonder: Six Sinatra albums vaulted onto the Top 50 of Billboard magazine’s catalog sales chart last week, led by “Sinatra Reprise--The Very Good Years,” a greatest-hits package. Tower Records on Sunset last week doubled its order of the albums being re-released. “We’re anticipating very strong sales once people hear about the new packaging and remastering [of the records],” says store manager Todd Meehan. “This is all of his best stuff.” The Capitol-Reprise promotion will continue in September with the release of eight more classic Sinatra collections.

A Comic’s Pratfalls, Posthumously

This is the week fans of the late comedian Chris Farley will get a chance to see the last film in his short, but popular, Hollywood career. On Friday, Warner Bros. will release “Almost Heroes,” a spoof of a western in which Farley and co-star Matthew Perry play bumbling sidekicks out to conquer the American frontier. Farley died Dec. 18 of an accidental overdose of cocaine and morphine at his Chicago apartment. He was 33. Farley is not the only actor whose death came before the release of their films this summer. The others are Lloyd Bridges, who stars in the parody “Jane Austen’s Mafia,” and Marcello Mastroianni, who stars in “Voyage to the Beginning of the World.” Hollywood history is replete with films that came out after the deaths of their stars. Massimo Troisi was nominated in 1996 for an Oscar as best actor in “Il Postino (The Postman).” He had died only 12 hours after production had wrapped on the film. Other actors included James Dean, who died in a car crash before the release of “Rebel Without a Cause” and “Giant”; Natalie Wood, who drowned in 1981 during production of the 1983 movie “Brainstorm”; Clark Gable, who died before the release of “The Misfits” in 1961; and Spencer Tracy, who received an Oscar nomination for best actor for his final role in the 1967 film “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.” Then there was Jean Harlow, who died during the production of the 1937 film “Saratoga.” The filmmakers decided to use Harlow’s stand-in, Mary Dees, to complete many of the scenes without dialogue. There is also the now-famous story of Bela Lugosi’s death shortly after filming started on “Plan 9 From Outer Space.” In Lugosi’s place, director Ed Wood had a man wear a cape over his face. The death of martial arts expert Bruce Lee prior to the 1973 release of “Enter the Dragon” provided an eerie prelude to the death two decades later of his son, Brandon Lee, who was accidentally shot to death while making “The Crow.” The list continues from Tyrone Power in “Solomon and Sheba” to John Candy in “Wagons East.” But their images live on.

Move Over, ‘Seinfeld,’ Here Comes MJ

Will Chicago Bulls star Michael Jordan really retire after this season? If so, NBC officials will be weeping right along with the National Basketball Assn. The NBA playoffs shift to prime time this week, providing NBC a ratings lift during the lull that follows the May sweeps. While the networks will schedule some original programs this summer, the next few weeks represent a sort of collective deep breath, filled with reruns and leftover episodes of such canceled shows as “C-16: FBI” and “Teen Angel.” In that environment, basketball reigns supreme: Last year, NBC averaged 13.9 million viewers during the three weeks containing prime-time playoff action, compared to 10.4 million for second-place CBS. The championship series drew more than 25 million people per game, a bigger audience than the average “Monday Night Football.” Jordan--whose Bulls defeated Utah to win the NBA title again in 1997--plays a big role in that success, underscored by the viewership bounce NBC enjoyed when Chicago played during the regular season. To quote the ad jingle, then, being “like Mike” is the best insurance NBC could have in keeping its ratings airborne.

--Compiled by Times Staff Writers and Contributors