ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT REPORTS FROM THE TIMES, NEWS SERVICES AND THE NATION’S PRESS.

MOVIES

Firing Back: Sylvester Stallone and wife Jennifer Flavin filed a slander suit against two former household staffers on Thursday, days after the ex-workers filed their own suit alleging they were fired for breaking petty rules. “Mr. and Mrs. Stallone have filed this lawsuit to clear their name,” said attorney Martin Singer, noting that the Santa Monica Superior Court suit seeks “no less than $1 million” from Maria Vivanco and Cristian Sandoval. Singer added that “any recovery will be given to charity.” Vivanco and Sandoval were among five temporary cooks and cleaners hired for 15 days in 1995. The five sued the Stallones on Monday in Miami for more than $1.5 million, contending they were fired after six days. At a news conference announcing their suit, Vivanco and Sandoval said staffers were told by Flavin of 10 alleged household rules for which they could be fired, such as looking directly into the actor’s eyes. On Thursday, Stallone’s lawyer called the alleged rules “purely fictional” and said the workers were fired “for absolute cause; they didn’t perform the work as requested.” Vivanco and Sandoval’s attorney said the workers would not respond until they were formally served with the suit.

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Sundance Premieres: Lions Gate’s “American Psycho” (directed by Mary Harron and starring Christian Bale), New Line’s “The Boiler Room” (directed by Ben Younger and starring Giovanni Ribisi), USA Films’ “Waking the Dead” (directed by Keith Gordon and starring Janet McTeer and Billy Crudup) and MGM’s “Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her” (directed by Rodrigo Garcia and starring Cameron Diaz, Glenn Close, Kathy Baker, Calista Flockhart and Holly Hunter) are among 17 films slated to premiere at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. Other premieres include Brad Anderson’s “Happy Accidents,” Stanley Tucci’s “Joe Gould’s Secret,” Emilio Estevez’s “Rated X” and Julien Temple’s documentary about the rise and fall of the Sex Pistols, “The Filth and the Fury.” The festival runs Jan. 20-30 in Park City, Utah.

STAGE

Playhouse Season: Pasadena Playhouse will present Velina Hasu Houston’s “Ikebana (Living Flowers)” (Sept. 8-Oct. 22) and a yet-to-be-selected musical (Nov. 3-Dec. 17, 2000), plus a revival of Neil Simon’s “The Good Doctor” (July 7-Aug. 20) in its summer-fall season next year. Houston’s play, not to be confused with another play called “Ikebana” that was presented by East West Players in 1996, is set in Japan in the 1950s. The Playhouse announced three possible titles for the musical slot: “Going Hollywood” (an adaptation of “Once in a Lifetime”), the Gypsy musical “Twist of Fate” (seen earlier at the Tiffany Theater) and a stage version of “Summer of ’42.”

POP/ROCK

Sales of the Century: The Recording Industry Assn. of America has designated the Eagles’ 1976 release, “Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975,” as the Best Selling Album of the Century, with certified U.S. sales surpassing 26 million units. Eagles band members Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Don Felder, Joe Walsh and Timothy B. Schmit will receive the commemorative award during ceremonies Tuesday in an L.A. recording studio.

TELEVISION

Real-Life ‘Law & Order’: KCOP-TV will air “Arrest and Trial,” a planned fall 2000 syndicated reality series from “Law & Order” creator Dick Wolf. The five-day-a-week series, to feature a still-to-be-announced host, will be a real-life “Law & Order” of sorts, following criminal cases from the initial police investigation through to the final court verdict. Plans call for the series to blend actual footage and interviews with dramatic re-creations.

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Showcasing Latino Shorts: Looking to foster Latino talent, Showtime Networks Inc. and Jeff Valdez’s soon-to-be-launched Si TV announced this week the creation of the “Latino Filmmaker Showcase.” Showtime will accept completed short films through Feb. 28, with three to five finalist films to be televised on Showtime next year in a Latino Short Film Festival. One of the filmmakers will receive a $30,000 award for production of a subsequent short film to be premiered on Showtime.

Tube Notes: Fox will premiere the live-action comedy “Malcolm in the Middle” on Jan. 9, displacing “Futurama” from the time period after “The Simpsons.” “Futurama” will then go off the air for four weeks, returning in its new slot, 7 p.m. Sundays, starting Feb. 6. . . . Actress Robin Givens will replace radio personality Mother Love as host of the syndicated series “Forgive or Forget” beginning in January. Twentieth Television, which syndicates the “relationship” show, said the company hoped a “new direction” for the program will boost its ratings. . . . NBC has tentatively scheduled its new “Homicide” movie to air during the February rating sweeps. Virtually every cast member from the former series is expected to appear in the film, which reunites the detectives to search for a gunman who has shot Lt. Al Giardello (Yaphet Kotto).

QUICK TAKES

The L.A. County Museum of Art has lowered its ticket prices for the special exhibition, “Pompeii: Life in a Roman Town,” through Dec. 17 as a “seasonal thank-you” to visitors. Tickets, regularly $15 for adults and $12 for students and seniors, are now $10 for all three groups. . . . Director Milos Forman, 67, wed fellow Czechoslovakian native Martina Zborilova, 33, in a private Connecticut ceremony last Saturday, it was announced Thursday. The couple, who live in Connecticut, have 18-month-old twin sons, named James and Andrew in honor of the star (Jim Carrey) and subject (Andy Kaufman) of Forman’s upcoming movie, “Man on the Moon.” . . . “Charmed” star Alyssa Milano has filed for divorce from Remy Zero musician Cinjin Tate after 11 months of marriage. . . . As expected, former Hole bassist Melissa Auf Der Maur will join the Smashing Pumpkins for their upcoming world tour, replacing D’Arcy, who left the group in September. The tour begins in January, with the Pumpkins’ next album, “MACHINA/the machines of God,” scheduled for release on Feb. 29.