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

POP/ROCK

The Real Slim Deal: A Michigan prosecutor has offered to drop one of the two felony assault and weapons charges against controversial rapper Eminem if he pleads guilty to the other charge at a Dec. 8 hearing. The rapper--who police say struck a man who kissed Eminem’s wife outside a nightclub in June--is charged with assault with a deadly weapon and carrying a concealed weapon, charges that allow up to five years in prison. Under the deal, the rapper could face up to 17 months in jail. “Whether we go to trial or whether he pleads, we are going to be asking for significant jail time,” the prosecutor told the Detroit Free Press. An attorney for Eminem, who filed for a divorce in August, said no decision on the plea offer has been reached.

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Raking in the Dough: Crooner Julio Iglesias is the highest paid entertainer in Europe and that continent’s highest salaried man, according to EuroBusiness magazine. Iglesias, who the magazine said earned $38 million last year, was ranked ahead of artists including Elton John and Luciano Pavarotti. The magazine also said that Iglesias’ total career earnings--about $480 million--come in second only to former Beatle Paul McCartney, and ahead of stars like the Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger.

TELEVISION

National Geographic Channel: National Geographic will launch its own cable channel in January with programming including “National Geographic Today,” a 7 p.m. weekday newscast covering natural history, science, exploration and adventure topics; and “National Geographic Presents,” a Sunday 8-10 p.m. block for world premiere documentaries and award-winning programs from National Geographic’s library. The channel’s inaugural broadcast day--Jan. 7--will include an hourlong prime-time special, “Ford Motor Company Presents ‘Heroes for the Planet’--A Tribute to National Geographic,” which will also air that night on CNBC and Fox News Channel. The new channel will originate from the National Geographic Society’s headquarters in Washington, D.C.

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Programming Notes: KCET will broadcast “Paul McCartney: Live at the Cavern,” taped last year at Liverpool’s historic Cavern Club, on Dec. 2. . . . ABC has scheduled a Christmas Eve prime-time special, “Walt Disney World ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas,” featuring yuletide festivities from the Florida resort. Stars slated to take part include “Malcolm in the Middle’s” Frankie Muniz and pop stars Jessica Simpson, 98 Degrees, Monica and ‘N Sync. . . . The 15th annual American Comedy Awards get a new broadcast home this year, with the telecast set for April 25 on Comedy Central. The awards, which actually take place April 22, also have a new venue this year, L.A.’s Universal Studios. . . . Singer Britney Spears will host the 28th annual American Music Awards, Jan. 8 on ABC. . . . The European Film Academy’s 13th annual European Film Awards, a possible early Oscar barometer to be co-hosted by actor Rupert Everett, will be televised Dec. 2 at 6 p.m. on cable’s Sundance Channel. . . . “The Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts,” featuring host Walter Cronkite and honorees Mikhail Baryshnikov, Chuck Berry, Placido Domingo, Clint Eastwood and Angela Lansbury, will be broadcast Dec. 27 on CBS. . . . NBC will air “Living for Love: The Natalie Cole Story”--starring Teresa Randle as a young Natalie, with Cole portraying herself in more recent years--on Dec. 10. . . . Meanwhile, Cole, along with Elton John, Moby, Bryan Adams, Bryn Terfel and Westlife, will perform in the two-hour “All-Star Winter Celebration: The Nobel Concert,” airing Dec. 11 on Fox Family Channel.

QUICK TAKES

An 83-minute videotape of L.A.’s 1999 World Festival of Sacred Music--including appearances by the Dalai Lama--is available for $22 at https://www.festivalofsacredmusic.com, or by phone at (310) 827-3797. A 140-minute double CD will also soon be available at the same price. . . . Showtime’s new Latino family drama, “Resurrection Blvd.,” will be made available to Spanish-speakers when Spanish-language network Telemundo airs four episodes on Dec. 2 and 3. The cable episodes, dubbed in Spanish, will air both nights from 9 to 11. “Resurrection Blvd.” premiered on Showtime in June and airs Mondays at 10 p.m. . . . King World, distributor of “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” will begin production next fall on a new talk show featuring MTV and BET personality Ananda Lewis. Stations owned by Tribune Co., parent company of the Los Angeles Times, in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles have already agreed to carry “Ananda.” . . . Actress Rebecca DeMornay, 38 (currently starring in Mark Taper Forum’s “The Closer”), is expecting her second child with boyfriend Patrick O’Neal in April. . . . Teen pop singer Hoku (“Another Dumb Blonde”) will join her father, Don Ho, on his upcoming concert tour, including a Dec. 10 stop at the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts.