Telepics rush to keep up with ever-changing Russia

GOOD MORNING: How to find out what's going on in Russia? Michael Caine reports from the St. Petersburg location of his back-to-back Harry Palmer Showtime projects: "We watch CNN, CNBC and Euronews -- and rewrite our scripts! Things are changing here so fast. You could almost call these movies docudramas." Caine has completed the feature "Bullet to Beijing," a theatrical release (for Showtime), and over the weekend started "Midnight in St. Petersburg," which will premiere on Showtime in the U.S. ... Despite the rapid political and social changes, Caine tells me, "Things are better here than the papers paint overseas. Our hotel is as good as any first-class hotel in New York, Paris or London. And a woman feels safer on the streets of St. Petersburg than in L.A., the Bronx, London, etc. I love the Russians!" He says their multinational film company has received cooperation -- although it has not been allowed to film in the Hermitage museum or Summer Palace. "But we shot in some other beautiful palaces, " he affirmed. "And the city is beautiful enough on its own." (I can agree, having made a brief visit there a few years back.) He is not recognized there -- only one of his films has been shown on TV so far, "The Man Who Would Be King." He remained an extra four weeks to shoot the further exploits of Harry Palmer for the TV'er. "I said OK, since the entire company, same people, same places were utilized. But my main interest is in the feature," he reminds. While there's talk of a series to follow, Caine says, "Not with me." The movies were very physical -- including one scene in which he's tossed off a train "into a large pile of mattresses," he laughed. And they work six days a week -- minimum of 12 hours a day. He had high praise for co-star Jason Connery (Sean's son) and the rest of the cast including Michael Sarrazin, Mia Sara, Tatiana Jackson and directors George Mihalka ("Beijing") and Douglas Jackson ("Midnight."). Caine returns to his home in Oxfordshire when the movie(s) wind -- and will be at his Trousdale home in January.

NOT IN THE SCRIPT: Daniel Baldwin says he "fell apart" after completing a "Homicide" scene in which he returns to his empty house, his wife and three children gone and a lipsticked "goodbye" written on the bathroom mirror. Sobbing , he collapsed. Baldwin told me, "I could only do the scene once." He was too emotionally overwrought since, in real life, he and wife Elizabeth are in the midst of a divorce. They have a daughter, Alexandra, born in January. He says working on the NBC series in Baltimore while his wife and baby live in L.A. was not conducive to a good marriage. "But," he says, "we hope it's true that from bad situations, some good will come"... And from Kevin Costner on the long location of "Waterworld" in Hawaii came the announcement that he and wife Cindy are ending their marriage, after 16 years ... On the happy side of the marital ledger, Frances Langford is marrying Tulsa, Okla., attorney Harold Stuart Nov. 18 at her home in Jensen Beach, Fla. (Langford's husband, Ralph Evinrude, died in 1986.) Patty Thomas, who toured overseas with Langford in WWII, is matron of honor and Dolores and Bob Hope wing in to join the 250 guests. Langford sounded wonderfully happy -- and young -- as she laughed, "Can you imagine -- at my age!"... Dolores Hope was honored last Thursday by the American Ireland Fund with their Distinguished Leadership Award at the BevWilshire. She, of course, brought Bob on stage and they duetted "It's Delightful -- It's De-lovely" to the delighted crowd.

SUSIE LANCASTER TELLS ME there will be no services for Burt, but friends can make contributions to charities of their choice in lieu of flowers. "Burt died peacefully 9:30 Thursday night," she said. "I am grateful for the 11 years we had together (married four)." He would have been 81 Nov. 2. Susie recalled a line from "The Rose Tattoo" when Anna Magnani gives Lancaster a shirt, saying, "Nothing is too good for the man if the man is good." And Lancaster was a good man. He was one of a kind. Lancaster made those in the industry proud to be associated with him ... Jason Alexander was very funny (even with lousy acoustics) at the Museum of Flying as he m.c.'d the Anti-Defamation League's Dore Schary Awards at which Arthur Hiller and Eric Weissman were honored with Lifetime Achievement and Entertainment Industry Leadership Awards, respectively. A filmed retro of Hiller's works capped the evening. Gene Siskel gave the keynote address, advising young filmmakers to "do the right thing" and not to be greedy. Stanley Kramer, an honorary chairman, was on hand, as well as Father Ellwood Kieser, Paul Mazursky, Mace Neufeld, Michael Pressman, Gary David Goldberg, Jill Schary Robinson, Jeremy Zimmer, Phil Gersh, Jerry Zeitman, Lynn Loring, etc.