Quick Takes: KIIS-FM back at No. 1

After a six-month absence, Top 40 station KIIS-FM (102.7) is back atop the local radio ratings.

KIIS had had a lock on the No. 1 position for most of 2011, then was displaced last winter. But on Monday, when Arbitron released its survey of listening habits in the Los Angeles-Orange County market for April, KIIS was in first place, averaging a 5.1% share of the audience and with 3.6 million people tuning in for at least five minutes each week.

Talk station KFI-AM (640), which had been in the No. 1 spot for the last three months, dropped to No. 2 in April. Soft rock KOST-FM (103.5) and adult contemporary station KBIG (104.3) — which, like KIIS and KFI, are owned by Clear Channel Communications — were tied for third, and hip-hop outlet KPWR-FM (105.9) was No. 5.

—Lee Margulies

The female factor in films

Females were “dramatically under-represented” in the United States’ top 100 grossing films last year, accounting for 33% of all characters at a time when they made up nearly 51% of the U.S. population, according to a study being released Tuesday.

The 33% figure represented an increase over the findings of a similar study in 2002, when females constituted 28% of the movie characters, said the report from the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University.

But though there were more female characters overall, fewer of them were “clearly identifiable protagonists,” the study found — 11% in 2011 versus 16% in 2002.

“Thus, while there are more female characters on screen today, fewer stories are told from a female character’s perspective,” according to Martha Lauzen, executive director of the center.

—Lee Margulies

2013 Coachella prices increase

The 2012 summer festival season has barely begun, but on Thursday, Goldenvoice will begin selling tickets to the 2013 edition of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, once again slated to be held over two consecutive April weekends.

The Thursday morning on-sale will allow participants to partake in the seven-month payment plan.

The just-completed 2012 editions of Coachella brought about 80,000 ticket-buyers per weekend to Indio.

While the lineup has yet to be announced, new for 2013 is an increase in ticket prices. A three-day general admission wristband will sell for the all-inclusive price of $349. That total includes any added service fees.

A weekend pass during the 2012 presale came to about $315, once fees were factored in, meaning this is a general admission price hike of $34.

—Todd Martens

TV star reveals her transplant

“Modern Family” star Sarah Hyland has had a kidney transplant after a lifetime of pain and fatigue. Her father was the donor.

The 21-year-old actress, who plays big-eyed teenager Haley Dunphy on the hit ABC comedy, told ABC’s “Good Morning America” for a report aired Monday that she had the surgery in April.

At age 9, she was diagnosed with abnormal kidney development. The condition often left her exhausted or in pain. As her health grew worse, she began seeking an organ donor. Her father, actor Edward James Hyland, was a match.

Hyland plans to spend the show’s summer hiatus recovering.

—Associated Press

‘Housewives’ finale draws eyes

The two-hour series finale of ABC’s suburban soap “Desperate Housewives” drew 11.1 million viewers Sunday night, according to Nielsen.

Although the goodbye telecast drew more viewers than this season’s overall average (10.4 million, when DVR numbers are included), the tally was lower than that of any of the show’s previous seven seasons.

In its first, most-watched season, “Desperate Housewives” averaged more than 23 million viewers. The first-season finale drew more than 30 million viewers.

—Scott Collins

Finally

Broadway bound: Dan Stevens, who plays Matthew Crawley in the transatlantic hit television drama “Downton Abbey,” will make his Broadway debut later this year in a revival of “The Heiress,” playing a potential suitor to the title character portrayed by Jessica Chastain.

Saying goodbye: CBS has canceled “CSI: Miami” after 10 seasons.

Suit settled: Bret Michaels and organizers of the Tony Awards have settled a lawsuit filed by the rock singer after a 2009 incident in which he was hit in the head with a set piece after performing on the national telecast and suffered injuries that contributed to a brain hemorrhage that nearly killed him. Terms of the settlement, which also covers Michaels’ claims against CBS, were not disclosed.