Arts and Entertainment Reports from The Times, News Services and the Nation’s Press

THE ARTS

Huntington Boosts Admission Fees

The Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens announced this week that it will increase admission fees, effective July 3, due to rising energy costs and increases in workers’ compensation and health insurance. In a press release, the museum noted the importance of climate control in preserving the rare books and manuscripts in the library, art in the galleries and plants in the greenhouses.

The new admission rates will be $10 for adults, $8.50 for seniors, $8 for groups, $7 for students and free for children under the age of 12. Free admission will continue to be offered on the first Thursday of every month.

Sister Wendy Tours Norton Simon

Sister Wendy Beckett, Britain’s famous “art nun,” wrapped up a two-week stint Thursday at the Norton Simon Museum of Art, where she filmed a video for the Pasadena museum. Slated for release in early 2002, “Sister Wendy at the Norton Simon Museum of Art” will screen regularly in the newly renovated Norton Simon Museum Theater. The museum’s collection--”the preeminent art collection in the West,” according to Times critic Christopher Knight--promises to provide Sister Wendy with a wealth of story opportunities with its mix of Old Master, Impressionist, modern and Asian art masterpieces.

Rare Salk Institute Tour Planned

The Society of Architectural Historians/Southern California Chapter will present a rare comprehensive guided tour of the Louis Kahn-designed Salk Institute, which is considered to be one of California’s best modernist buildings. The docent-led tour and round-table discussion with project architects who worked with the Philadelphia architect will take place June 29 at the Salk Institute in La Jolla. Advance tickets are required. Tickets and additional information can be obtained at either https://www.sahscc.org or (800) 972-4722.

PEOPLE

Marilu Henner, Husband Divorcing

Actress Marilu Henner and her husband, director Robert Lieberman, are divorcing after more than a decade of marriage. Each filed a divorce petition in Superior Court on Thursday, citing irreconcilable differences. Lieberman seeks joint custody of the couple’s two sons as well as spousal support. Henner is asking for full custody of the boys with visitation granted to Lieberman. She also seeks spousal support. In other Hollywood divorce news, the wife of David Carradine has filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. Marina Dawn Benjamin Carradine filed a Superior Court petition without an attorney on Wednesday. She’s seeking spousal support and asking to drop Carradine from her name. The couple wed on a studio back lot in February 1998. The petition says the two separated May 10. They have no children.

TELEVISION

Iron Chef, American Style

America knows a good import when it sees it. Capitalizing on the huge success of the Food Network’s “Iron Chef,” UPN will premiere “Iron Chef USA: Showdown in Las Vegas” on Aug. 31, the first of two all-new, American-style specials modeled after the Japanese culinary show. William Shatner will serve as “chairman,” presiding over the action as the world’s top chefs roast, toast and saute on camera. Veteran producer Larry Thompson is the executive producer. The specials will be taped in front of an audience in the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on June 27 and 28. Producers are currently in the process of booking both culinary masters and celebrity judges for the showdowns.

STAGE

Playhouse Revamps Lineup

David Mamet’s “A Life in the Theatre” will replace Richard Matheson’s “Now You See It” in the Sept. 16-Oct. 21 slot at Pasadena Playhouse, with “Now You See It” now planned for the 2002 season. The playhouse also has slated “Plaid Tidings,” a new holiday edition of “Forever Plaid” conceived and staged by the original “Plaid” creator and director Stuart Ross, for the Nov. 11-Dec. 16 slot. . . . In other theater news, the Kevin Murphy and Dan Studney musical “Reefer Madness,” which was a sellout at the 99-seat Hudson Theatre in 1999-2000, is scheduled to open off-Broadway at the Variety Arts Theater in early October, according to the New York Times.

QUICK TAKES

Garth Brooks will take a break from retirement to perform at an Independence Day celebration in Philadelphia. Brooks will sing a few songs and join other celebrities, including Mel Gibson and Morgan Freeman, in reading the Declaration of Independence. . . . Sir Paul McCartney will appear on “Larry King Live” on Tuesday. McCartney will be joined during the hour by Heather Mills to discuss their campaign against land mines. . . . Vince Gill will receive the Country Weekly career achievement award at the TNN & CMT Country Weekly Music Awards telecast, to be seen on both TNN and CMT from Nashville’s Gaylord Entertainment Center on June 13. . . . Since “Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years--Selections From the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum” opened at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 1, it has attracted more than 240,000 visitors, according to the New York Times. . . . The zoning board in Bristol, R.I., approved a request Friday by the widow of Anthony Quinn for permission to bury the actor, who died last Sunday, under a tree on his property. The site would be closed to the public. . . . “The Downer Channel,” a half-hour series about the lighter side of life’s everyday hassles, will premiere July 24 on NBC. The program boasts an all-star group of executive producers, including Steve Martin, Robert Morton, Steve O’Donnell and Joan Stein. “It’s the perfect show to get you out of an ‘up’ mood,” Martin said. . . . Michael York will read selections from Shakespeare and his book, “A Shakespearean Actor Prepares,” on Sunday at 10 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. at the Ivar Theater, 1605 Ivar Ave., in Hollywood. For tickets, contact the British American Business Council at (310) 394-4977.