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

MOVIES

Backing Gun Control: The National Rifle Assn. may have Charlton Heston as its president, but gun-control advocates have Michael Douglas. On Friday, Douglas addressed government officials from around the world at a United Nations seminar on controlling international trafficking in small arms. The actor is among a handful of celebrities designated as U.N. “messengers of peace” by Secretary-General Kofi Annan; he is focusing his efforts on disarmament. In his speech, he said he had been awakened to the issue of gun violence by the 1980 murder of his New York neighbor, ex-Beatle John Lennon, and that the problem now has mushroomed worldwide. “The sad fact is that while the major armies of the world are disarming, civilians are rearming,” Douglas said. “If these weapons are not properly controlled, peace will become obsolete and so will humanity.” He rejected arguments that the film industry is part of the problem, saying, “The violence Hollywood exports is fictional, while the tens of billions of dollars in small arms that various countries export is a reality.”

TV & RADIO

NBC Keeps Thursday Hold: “Frasier” performed more than respectably in its debut in the 9 p.m. anchor spot on NBC’s Thursday lineup, while not quite reaching “Seinfeld”-esque proportions. The Emmy-winning sitcom drew more than 28 million viewers, about 2 million less than “Seinfeld” averaged last season. “ER” picked up pretty much where it left off, with nearly 32 million people tuning in at 10 p.m. “Friends” and the new Christina Applegate sitcom “Jesse” also dominated from 8 to 9 p.m.

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‘Springer’ in the Classroom: A 16-year-old Connecticut student has sued his former high school for $15,000, claiming he suffered a broken jaw and other injuries in a fight that broke out during a classroom showing of “The Jerry Springer Show.” Joseph Calore said another student punched him after the two had a disagreement about the show, which included a fight between guests. The lawsuit claims that Stratford High School officials improperly permitted students to watch a TV show known to provoke violent confrontations during class time. Town attorney Richard Gilardi said school officials could not have foreseen the fight and called the lawsuit “a legal stretch.”

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Pepe Barreto Returning: Spanish-language radio station KLVE-FM (107.5) and morning drive-time personality Pepe Barreto reached agreement on a five-year contract Friday, clearing the way for Barreto’s return to the air Monday. Terms of the deal were not released but Barreto’s lawyer, Bill Skrzyniarz, said the resolution hinged on “certain creative issues” his client wanted addressed. Barreto, whose morning show has ranked either first or second in the quarterly Arbitron ratings since March 1985, had been working without a contract since June. But station management had refused to let him enter the new ratings period--which began Thursday--without a contract.

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MacNicol’s Direction: “Ally McBeal” co-star Peter MacNicol (“The Biscuit”) makes his directing debut on Monday night’s episode of the Fox series. Meanwhile, MacNicol’s Alan Birch will return to CBS’ “Chicago Hope” on Oct. 28 for that series’ 100th episode. MacNicol’s character was murdered a few seasons back, but will appear in a “hallucination” sequence; other past characters returning for the episode include Thomas Gibson’s Dr. Nyland, Mandy Patinkin’s Dr. Geiger and Roxanne Hart’s Nurse Shutt.

CLASSICAL MUSIC

‘Back to Titanic’ Sinks: The Oct. 9 and 10 “Back to Titanic” concerts at the Hollywood Bowl have been canceled due to what the producers called “insurmountable technical and production problems.” The evenings, featuring selections from James Horner’s “Titanic” score, called for elaborate staging and special effects transforming the amphitheater shell into a stylized version of the ship’s deck. Fifty-foot projection screens depicting key images and film clips, plus period costumes for the principals, were planned for the event, which was being filmed for pay-per-view. The concerts were to have coincided with the recently released “Titanic” video and the “Back to Titanic” CD--a follow-up to the best-selling “Titanic” soundtrack. An event producer said ticket sales had been building steadily, though only 5,000 to 6,000 seats had sold per night for the 17,000-seat venue.

QUICK TAKES

Sharon Stone will moderate the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ tribute to French actress Jeanne Moreau on Thursday at the Academy in Beverly Hills. The 8 p.m. event kicks off a four-week retrospective of Moreau’s films at the L.A. County Museum of Art. Tickets are $5. . . . Court TV will alter its weeknight schedule on Monday, moving “Cochran & Company” up two hours to 5 p.m., while “Trial Story” slides back to 7 p.m. . . . R&B; singer Maxwell has postponed his Fall 1998 tour--including a Nov. 11 date at Universal Amphitheatre--because of undisclosed personal reasons. He plans to reschedule in 1999. . . . After 13 years, the rock group White Zombie has “collectively decided to disband,” band members have announced. . . . Former KCAL-TV Channel 9 daytime weather reporter Dianne Barone has sued the station, charging she was wrongfully fired while on maternity leave. A KCAL spokesperson declined to comment. . . . Former Guns N’ Roses drummer Steven Adler, 33, has been sentenced to 150 days in an L.A. jail for beating two women and violating his probation from a 1997 domestic violence conviction.