TV news giant Friendly dies

Mutual sets 'Plan' for Minnesota

Exec Shuffle

P.M. 'Springer' at No.1 in L.A. sweeps

NBC gets a head start

Cinema Expo's Broccoli nod to Grazer

Lopez directs career to KCBS

Frosh strips slip

October inks output deal with Canada's Cineplex

'Crew' lands at D'Works

Savage gets 'Message'

Grammys boost discs

Hoffman to host TNT's 'WB Story'

'Seamless' Seagal bow

Pack of stars for 'Cigarettes'

ABC's 'Right' places 3rd

Prime Time memories

Dead air

Stars don 'Iron Mask' in Gotham

Ill Velasco takes leave

A&E catches 'Titanic' wave

'Titanic' embraced by Producers Guild

House Judiciary OKs copyright extension

WNYC taps Heskel

Net Ten offers stalled

Spielberg Stalker Convicted

Protest over Downey detail

Mex film fires up

Former Pathe Studios Burn

Springer tops Winfrey for the first time

China Ent. TV gets reprieve

Heat's off in Miami

Fox Kids taps exec for Italian launch

Japan confronts TV violence

Cablevision finishes deal for N.Y., N.J. TCI systems

Par plans park/studio complex in Oz

World Briefs

AB buys into Gallic RTL9

Pitt joins 'Madness'; faux Oldman exposed

Hungry Sinclair eyes SF group

Smith, Malkovich pact with Granada

'Drew' regular on indie pic

Olympics sweep Eye to easy win

DGA kudos for Coolidge

CBS pulls 'Four,' sitcoms

Biz bill of health

Disney stock gets socked

Cattaneo, Col link on good 'Prospects'

Schlieff, Burstein expand USA duties

Grey counters Shandling suit

Paragon posts $9 mil loss

Business Briefs

Mouse evicting SBS

On a Clear day you now can see More

Fox to bow hour 'Police' series

Hytner to helm legit 'Night' in Gotham

Springer tops in L.A.

Weiswasser out, Miller in at Americast

Ferguson set at Horizon

Happy Bow in Italy

Mediakabel gearing up to go digital

Friel boards Fox's 'Dream'

Packer op's profits soar in first half

Arnold to host eddies

Pirates on the Web

Czech targets cable pirates

Mediaset chief denies Murdoch sale rumors

Boris to write, direct 'Creature' feature

Twentieth Century Fox ups Panitch

BVHE jumps to Viva for Filipino distrib'n

World Briefs

CFO Leger ankles Mutual

U finally says yes to Dolby format

White House moons over HBO mini

ABC breaks Fox's kids win streak

Affleck bound for 'Glory'

'SNL's' Brooks show scores

Aspen comedy fest draws comics, exex

'Seinfeld' beats N.Y. news

Turner to sell 'ER' time on both TNT and syndie

Nagano sweeps CBS to gold

Out of the Cellar

Fox goes to the Matt

Oprah still at top nationally in Feb. sweeps

'Pathfinder' now on track

The 'Capeman' goeth

DeVito outfit sets MCA Records pact

L.A. Phil sets 1998-99 slate

WB gains another UPN defector

KW exex to be honored

AFI goes arthouse

'Western' goes to New Yorker

E! 'News Daily' regains original length

Weissman, Delson are one

Trib granted extension on waiver

Bar fete set for Schulman

Mexican Sat Dance

Shochiku to report 1st loss in 25 years

MCA Music taps Petersen

Paxson gets N.Y. TV foothold

TCI Satellite shareholders greenlight going public

ASC hands out awards

Touchstone taps 'Tripod' rights

The Ship Sails On

Laughing matters

Czech TV station to be probed

U inks O'Haver to pen, helm 'Archie'

Jinks/Cohen hatches 'Carrier'

Mediaset Ireland to handle TV rights

Sound mixer award given to 'Titanic'

The full Monty

Fox arm nabs 'Giant'

Verdict vs. Stevens thrown out

Col Tristar TV ups House

Murdoch and Mediaset makes sense to prince

Edwards to launch major building plan

UATC's Hall promoted to CEO

Stone sets Turner docu

'Summer' battle heats up

ShoWest must go on

'Love' unites Hewitt, New Line

Touchstone TV inks Lowell to $8 mil deal

Miramax ups Goldstein

ABC affil threatens to preempt series

Hollywood gives city Hope

'Spin Cycle' goes into overdrive

Bono: 'Ellen' too gay

Hollywood labor pains

Perkins set for ABC pilot

ABC inks deal with Beals

Lee keynotes indie nods

Staples Center taps Roth

SFX move rocks music biz

Fuqua escapes 'Entrapment'

McAndrews new exec VP at ABC Sports

Mandalay in talks with Par

Exec Shuffle

'Titanic' hangs on to B.O. lead

Granada in talks with Lion

Ship's captain crowned

SAG honors 'Monty' cast

Nielsen flap in Albany

Tognazzi making English debut for HBO

'Love and Death on L.I.' tops exclusives

Media freedom issues hit Hong Kong

'Mononoke' wins Japan's best pic

Visa Flap In Canada

Bonton takes stake in Czech film studio

Beyond grabs Nine programs

World Briefs

Rush to Judgment

'Confidential' leads BAFTA noms

'Titanic' towers o'seas

TCI's TyC pockets Pramer

Gellar, Brandy, Leto ink starring pic pacts

Disney Telefilms ups exex

CBS affil chief plans to stay on

MGM, Showtime re-up

TNT locks up deal for Houdini biopic

Harden set for Fox's CBS pilot

Planet H'wood sets Times Square plans

Brokaw to host WWII spec for NBC

TenPercenteries

Clark, Wind-up wrap pact

Mouse House ups Mehta

Peacock falters on Friday

Atlantis bows talent unit

Disney must submit 'Home' documents

Guber's deal duo

Buyers eye TNT 'ER' plan

CGE grabs Havas, Dauzier out

Panel probes pic press

Castle Rock ups Goodman

Emmis, Sinclair duke it out for USA's SF group

Roadshow takes 'Furies' pitch for Punch project

Pretlow new 'Vibe' showrunner

Marozas joins ICM in VP post

Kinski to make 'Plan' and join 'Sunshine'

Concentrated look

LL Cool J dresses up for 'Halloween'

Inside Move

Jane added to cast of MGM's 'Molly'

Leonie Rysanek, dead at 71

Todd Duncan dies at 95

Col Tristar TV ups Lebowitz to senior veepee

Richard C. Glouner dies at 66

Allen takes lead in 'Sky'

World Briefs

March in like lamb at Broadway B.O.

Three's a crowd

BskyB finance chief Carrington dies

HIT finds a HOT spot for kids animation

Exec Shuffle

Spanish-lingo leap

Premium channels hit Chile

Sprockets kids fest sets public line up

USA adds originals to Saturday

Pub date moves up on McDougal book

Bertolucci starts telepic

Sony puts Lopez to Work on multi-album contract

NBC back in V-chip war

Schapiro ascends to exec VP of Live

Tide goes all out at Universal music

De Souza rings in with 'Casino'

Ticket takers pact

Producers Ent. Group in deal to buy MediaWorks

NBC well ahead of pack

Garland tops U's o'seas TV

Friedkin set to tell 'Truth'

SBS revs up, profit predicted for 1998

'Casper' helps Harvey turn quarter profit

Anemic Seven profits prompt stock sell-off

Murch takes director chair

Flashpoint, Regent split 6-pack of pix

TenPercentaries

Col's $12-mil 'Party'

Trio of Spirit finalists named

'Dharma,' 'Spin' make ABC's cut

Peacock strips 'Naked' of slot

Phoenician pins 'Needles'

Oz signals change in cable rules

Van Sant gets chores on Perry's helming bow

BVTV cancels 'Keenen'

De Vito ready to 'Stretch'

'Lateline' on target

Kennedy adds prexy title to George duties

Lloyd Bridges, acting patriarch, dead at 85

Dog day afternoon

HBO nabs John-Joel tour dates

Pittard lands Fox biz

Roberts, Smith nab twin b'busters

B.O., bills through roof

Reuther's Bel Air sets slate

Pick a Card

Elles

A Paralyzing Fear: The Story of Polio in America

Hush

Elles

Pick a Card

Hush

The Sound of One Hand Clapping

The Brandon Teena Story

Hazelwood Jr. High

Finley Quaye

The Sound of One Hand Clapping

A Place Called Chiapas

Hazelwood Jr. High

Silencing Mary

The Brandon Teena Story

Finley Quaye

Comedian Harmonists

Goldrush: A Real Life Alaskan Adventure

That's Life

House Rules

Michael Crawford in Concert

Frank Lloyd Wright

Backstreet

Welcome Back, Mr. McDonald

Didn't Do It for Love

Wait Until Dark

Global Divas

Link Wray

Space Monkeys

Milt Jackson Quartet

Dawn Upshaw; L.A. Philharmonic

Everest

Wide Awake

Global Divas

Link Wray

Milt Jackson Quartet

Space Monkeys

Everest

Wide Awake

I Know You Are But What Am I

Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place

Leaving

The Man in the Iron Mask

I Know You Are, but What Am I

Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place

Leaving

Cure