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

TV & MOVIES

Jesse Jackson vs. ‘Desmond Pfeiffer’: The Rev. Jesse Jackson has added his voice to the protest against “The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer,” the new UPN comedy about a black butler-advisor to President Abraham Lincoln. Jackson on Monday morning joined a picket line in front of Paramount Studios, where the comedy is taped. Jackson echoed the protesters’ charge that the comedy, which premiered Monday, is inappropriate because of what they perceive as a lighthearted approach to the era of slavery. The advocates added that they would target advertisers of the show and would boycott their products.

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Remembering Roddy: Several cable TV networks are planning tributes to actor Roddy McDowall, who died Saturday at the age of 70. American Movie Classics’ programming will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, beginning with an episode of the series “Remember WENN,” in which McDowall guest starred, followed by screenings of “My Friend Flicka” (1943), “Thunderhead, Son of Flicka” (1945), “Midnight Lace” (1960) and “Behind the Planet of the Apes” (1998). Meanwhile, A&E; will show a new “Biography” installment, “Roddy McDowall: Hollywood’s Best Friend,” on Thursday at 9 p.m., and Turner Classic Movies will show “Lassie Come Home” (1943), “The White Cliffs of Dover” (1944), “Lord Love a Duck” (1966) and “The Loved One” (1965) on Monday, beginning at 5 p.m. The “Biography” premiere date was scheduled last week, before McDowall’s death from cancer.

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KCET Cuts: KCET-TV Channel 28 has laid off seven staffers as part of a cost-cutting move designed to trim $1.8 million from operating expenses, a KCET spokeswoman confirmed Monday. “We did this [early in the fiscal year] so that we could realize the financial benefit at an earlier stage,” she said. Altogether, KCET has eliminated 15 positions, “most of which were empty”; the spokeswoman declined to say which departments were affected. Most of the $1.8 million saved comes from “other administrative costs such as advertising and travel.” KCET’s projected budget for the fiscal year that began July 1 is $47 million.

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Fergie Talks: The Duchess of York discussed life’s crises, including a few problems of her own, in her debut Monday as host of a British talk show. The former Sarah Ferguson’s first guest was a woman raped by a serial killer and hit-and-run driver who confessed 20 years later. Fergie dedicated her first “Sarah . . . Surviving Life” installment to her mother, Susan Barrantes, who was killed last month in a car accident. “Mum taught me so much about how to survive life,” she said. It was the first of 10 hourlong segments commissioned by Sky TV. She’s giving her $85,000 fee to charity but will keep any proceeds from foreign rights.

QUICK TAKES

Jimmy Smits’ character, Bobby Simone, will be stabbed by a murder suspect on the Oct. 20 season premiere of “NYPD Blue.” The episode is the first in a five-episode story arc culminating in Smits’ departure from the ABC series. . . . “Law & Order” creator Dick Wolf is developing a series for the fledgling WB network about Washington interns. Sources say the planned series--which isn’t even at the script stage yet--won’t necessarily involve an intern having an affair with the president. Instead, it will focus on interns fresh out of college who room together in quaint Georgetown and wield a frightening amount of power. . . . Bebe Neuwirth (“Cheers”), who starred on Broadway for two years in John Kander and Fred Ebb’s “Chicago,” will star in the premiere of the duo’s new musical, “Over and Over,” an adaptation of Thornton Wilder’s “The Skin of Our Teeth.” Performances are scheduled for Jan. 6-Feb. 14 at the Signature Theater in Arlington, Va. . . . The Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts has added a second performance of Hal Holbrook’s “Mark Twain Tonight!” on Nov. 4. The Nov. 5 performance of the Tony-winning production is sold out. . . . Johnny Cash, 66, was released Friday from Nashville’s Baptist Hospital, where he had been treated for 1 1/2 weeks for pneumonia. The singer, who also suffers from a nervous system disorder, nearly died during a separate bout with pneumonia a year ago. . . . Rosemary Clooney received the Society of Singers’ Ella Lifetime Achievement Award at the Beverly Hilton Monday night. The honor, named for the late Ella Fitzgerald, honors vocal artists for their professional commitment.