MORNING REPORT - News from Jan. 4, 2001

ENTERTAINMENT

New ‘X-Files’ Agent: Actress Annabeth Gish (“Mystic Pizza”) is joining Fox’s “The X-Files,” perhaps permanently, as an FBI agent specializing in the investigation of satanic ritualistic crimes. She will appear in at least three episodes, starting Feb. 25, and has an option to return next fall as a regular character on the show, which this season added a new agent played by Robert Patrick. Patrick and original series star Gillian Anderson are already contracted for next season, though original star David Duchovny, who is appearing in only some episodes this season, is not.

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Producers Fete Douglas: Actor Kirk Douglas will receive the Producers Guild of America’s top honor, the Milestone Award, during the guild’s annual Golden Laurel awards ceremonies March 3. The honor is given “to an industry leader who has made a historical contribution to the entertainment industry.” Past recipients include studio heads Jack Warner, Sherry Lansing, Bob Daly and Terry Semel, as well as comedian Bob Hope and songwriter Irving Berlin.

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‘Traffic’ Controversy: An exclusive private school is angered that its name appears in Steven Soderbergh’s Golden Globe-nominated new film, “Traffic” and says filmmakers never sought or received permission to use the name of the 75-year-old school in the film. In the movie, which deals with the Mexico-U.S. drug trade, the drug-addicted daughter of star Michael Douglas’ character is identified as a student at Cincinnati Country Day School. Headmaster Charles Clark said the school has faxed the New York offices of distributor USA Films, asking for an explanation. He wants the school’s name deleted from the film, and an apology from the filmmakers. “There’s a great deal of reference to drug use in the film,” said Clark, who has not seen the film, but learned of the reference to his school in newspaper reviews. “Associating that with Country Day School is disconcerting.” A USA Films spokesman declined comment on the issue Wednesday.

QUICK TAKES

Cable’s A&E; will run a Ray Walston “Biography” on Saturday at 8 p.m. and midnight. The Tony- and Emmy-winning actor died Monday at age 86. . . . Ray Park, the martial arts expert who played Darth Maul in “Star Wars: Episode 1--The Phantom Menace,” has been cast as the title character in Artisan Entertainment’s coming adaptation of the Marvel comic book “Iron Fist.” . . . Harold Gould will star in “Shooting Craps,” opening Feb. 2 at North Hollywood’s El Portal Center for the Arts. . . . KCOP-TV has named Kent Ninomiya as weekend anchor for UPN News 13, replacing Robert Kovacik, who has left the station. Ninomiya was previously morning anchor at San Francisco’s KGO-TV. . . . CBS’ “Late, Late Show With Craig Kilborn” scored its best-ever ratings for the week ending Dec. 22, attracting an average of 2 million viewers. --SHAUNA SNOW