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

TV & RADIO

Goodman, Carsey-Werner Reteam for Fox: Former “Roseanne” star John Goodman, who has appeared in pivotal episodes of the first-year CBS series “Now and Again,” is getting his own Fox series, set to premiere this fall. From “Roseanne” producers Carsey-Werner, the so-far-untitled comedy will center on two mismatched single fathers who share a home together with their teenage children.

Consecutive ‘Blue’: ABC will air back-to-back new episodes of “NYPD Blue” next week on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, furthering the new trend of continuous series programming that started with ABC’s “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” and also includes a scheduled eight-night run in April for CBS’ forthcoming drama “Falcone.” The “NYPD Blue” episodes will introduce series regular Henry Simmons, who plays a new detective in the squad.

‘Drudge’ Upgraded: Effective Sunday, “Drudge”--the syndicated weekly radio show on KABC-AM (790) hosted by Matt Drudge, whose online “Drudge Report” broke the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal two years ago--will be heard live from 7 to 9 p.m. Gloria Allred, meanwhile, who had aired from 7 to 10 p.m., will switch to 9 p.m. to midnight. The move is a reaction to the latest Arbitron ratings report in which “Drudge”--which was airing 10 p.m. to midnight--posted a 6.5% audience share, up from 4.2% in the previous report. In her slot, Allred dropped to a 1.9% share from 2.4% last quarter.

STAGE & MUSIC

The ‘Conversation’ Is Over: Gregory Peck is retiring from the stage. He says he’ll make his figsnalkc appearance Saturday with “A Conversation With Mr. Gregory Peck” at the Elsinore Theater in Salem, Ore., a city he passed through on his first theatrical tour. “I’m closing it out with Salxem,” Peck, 83, said. “I feel I’ve done it enough; I’ve exceeded Cary Grant’s record.” Grant--who performed in dozens of shows similar to Peck’s “Conversation With” programs, which combines film clips with readings, yarns and a Q&A; session--urged Peck to share his life and career on stage. In recent years, Peck has averaged 12 shows a year for a total of 65. Cable’s Turner Classic Movies carried a TV version of “Conversation With” in April.

‘Millie’ in La Jolla: A musical inspired by the movie “Thoroughly Modern Millie” will premiere at La Jolla Playhouse, Oct. 1-29, with a book by Richard Morris and Dick Scanlan based on Morris’ original screenplay. The score will include three songs from the movie and adapted songs from the ‘20s, as well as original material by Jeanine Tesori (“Violet,” “The First Picture Show”) and Scanlan. Michael Mayer (“Side Man”) will direct. La Jolla also announced the U.S. premiere of David Grieg’s “The Cosmonaut’s Last Message to the Woman He Once Loved in the Former Soviet Union,” Aug. 6-Sept. 3.

Mozart’s Death Revisited: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart died of rheumatic fever and not from the poisonous envy of his Italian rival, Antonio Salieri, modern medical investigators suggested during a weekend conference at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Theories ranging from typhoid fever to kidney failure and murder at the hands of his rival, Salieri, have long surrounded the famed composer’s 1791 death at age 35. But Dr. Faith Fitzgerald, professor of medicine at UC Davis, told the conference the high fever, headaches, rash and painful swelling that marked Mozart’s final days were all classic symptoms of severe rheumatic fever.

PEOPLE WATCH

Bells, Splits and Babies: Actor Christian Slater, 30, married girlfriend Ryan Haddon, 28, at Los Angeles’ Four Seasons Hotel Saturday. The couple have a 10-month-old son. . . . David Bowie and his supermodel wife, Iman, are expecting their first baby together in August. Each has one child from a previous marriage. . . . Singer Diana Ross and husband Arne Naess got a divorce Friday in the Dominican Republic. Ross was not present but authorized the divorce through a written document. The couple, married in 1986, separated last April. . . . Singer Patti LaBelle has separated from her husband of 30 years, L. Armstead Edwards.

QUICK TAKES

Cable’s Nickelodeon will pay tribute to “Peanuts” creator Charles M. Schulz--who died in his sleep Saturday night on the eve of publication of his final comic strip--by replaying a marathon of “Peanuts” TV specials tonight from 8 to midnight. The tribute originally was seen Saturday night in honor of Schulz’s retirement. . . . The American Film Institute will give director Terrence Malick (“Days of Heaven,” “The Thin Red Line”) its annual Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Medal for “extraordinary creative talents and artistic achievements” during the AFI’s tribute to Harrison Ford on Thursday at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. . . . CBS has donated $5,000 to the Big Rivers Chapter of the American Red Cross to help Owensboro, Ky., recover from a Jan. 3 tornado. The network said the donation was made to apologize for remarks by “Late, Late Show” host Craig Kilborn, who joked after the tornado that replacement trailers were on the way, and called the state “Kensucky.” . . . Film critic Rex Reed was arrested in New York Saturday after he was allegedly caught shoplifting three compact discs from a Tower Records store. Police said a store security officer saw Reed, a columnist for the New York Observer, put the CDs--by Mel Torme, Peggy Lee and Carmen McRae--in his jacket pocket before attempting to leave the store. . . . Sting, Marc Anthony, Poncho Sanchez, Chucho Valdes and Cheb Mami have been added to the list of performers for the Feb. 23 Grammy Awards. . . . NBC has renewed “3rd Rock From the Sun” for a sixth season. . . . Pacifica radio station KPFK-FM (90.7) concluded its 12-day winter fund drive Friday, raising more than $500,000, up 20% from the same period last year. Almost half of the 5,300 pledges were from first-time subscribers. . . . Steve Korn, vice chairman and chief operating officer of CNN News Group, said he’ll leave the company when his contract expires in June, ending a 17-year tenure with CNN parent Turner Broadcasting System.