But would Elvis take them to court?: KBIG-FM, you may have heard, was sued by representatives of Barry Manilow for bragging that it didn't play his recordings. The suit has since been settled but KBIG could have avoided legal problems in the first place if the station had instead unearthed an old KQLZ-FM theme:

"Less Music by Dead Guys."

*

Caltrans -- speeding things up!Yes it's true, at least in the case of a Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., trucking firm struggling to deliver 54,000 pounds of relief supplies to quake victims through a sea of red tape.

Amerijet International had donated a truck for the nonprofit group, Neighbors Helping Neighbors, to deliver the cargo. First, the truck was halted by a state weight station in Pensacola because it exceeded the legal highway weight limit.

Florida relented after Amerijet manager James Bassett persuaded Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana to allow the truck to cross its borders. "I was talking to state officials for three days," Bassett said.

Then Texas resisted. "We had to sneak through Texas," Bassett said.

California also refused to waive the weight limitation. But Caltrans persuaded a local company to take part of the load when the truck reached Blythe. The cargo arrived in L.A. over the weekend.

"We just heard from Texas today (Monday)," Bassett said, laughing. "They said OK."

Banking's a beach: We recall more affluent times when male bank tellers wore a dress shirt and tie to work every day. Alas, like everyone else, bankers seem to be suffering the effects of the recession. The other day, in a Bank of America branch in Long Beach, we spotted a teller decked out in a green T-shirt (and no tie).

"He was called in at the last second," another clerk said gallantly.

*

Don't know much about geography: Joel Robbins gives the Daily News a failing grade in geography for this educational tip about the Winter Olympics' "host city." So, who's the host country -- Scandinavia?

Our greatest fan letter: We thought the note from Atco, N.J., was the first request of us for an autographed photo -- until we noticed that it was addressed to a movie star.

So how did it land on our desk? Apparently because we work in the Metro section and the letter was addressed to:

Lana Turner

c/o Metro Meyer Studios miscelLAny:

In 1785, four years after settling L.A., the inhabitants grew worried about being isolated from Mexico. So, in order to ensure their safety, they decided to really arm themselves. They sent for 35 pounds of gunpowder and 800 bullets.

More than 700 scientists and researchers will share their latest findings in many scientific fields at the 1994 annual meeting of the American Assn. for the Advancement of Science Friday through Wednesday in San Francisco.

The group is the world's largest federation of scientists, embracing more than 137,000 members worldwide. It group also publishes the weekly journal Science.

Speakers at the meeting will discuss research in such fields as health and medicine, the environmental sciences, evolution, psychology, astronomy, technology and education.

The meeting will be at the San Francisco Hilton and Towers. Call (202) 326-6450.

ASTRONOMY

* Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History telescopes will be trained on Orion on Friday at 8 p.m. One of the best-known group of stars in the sky, Orion's belt points to the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters, and to Sirius the Dog Star, one of the brightest and nearest stars. Telescopes will reveal brightly illuminated gas, black dusty areas and recently formed stars. Call (805) 682-3224.

* "E.T. -- The Real Search" will explore the question of what alien life may be like and where it might exist in the universe, in the planetarium show presented by the Los Angeles Valley College Astronomy Club at 8 p.m. Friday. Call (818) 781-1200, Ext. 335.

METEOROLOGY

* Warren Blier of UCLA's Department of Atmospheric Sciences will discuss California tornadoes at the American Meteorological Society at 8 p.m. Wednesday in Room 7124 of the Math-Science Building. Call (213) 343-2222.

SCIENCE FOR KIDS

* Children ages 5 and older can join archeologist Claudia B. Ocello in uncovering the past by digging for cultural artifacts and displaying them in a mini-museum in workshops offered at Kidspace Museum in Pasadena at 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. Saturday. Call (818) 449-9144.

* Preschoolers ages 3 and 4 can learn how animals stay warm when the weather turns cold, in programs offered by the Los Angeles Zoo today and Sunday at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Call (213) 666-4090.

SCIENCE POLICY

* Author Ray Bradbury will discuss his career and offer glimpses into the future at a lecture and book signing marking the 40th anniversary of "Fahrenheit 451" at the Los Angeles County Natural History Museum Jean Delacour Auditorium at 2 p.m. Sunday. Call (213) 744-3534.

ORNITHOLOGY

* The wading birds of Florida will be the topic of a program by Charles and Helen Righter at the monthly meeting of the Whittier Audubon Society at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in the Whittier Community Center. Call (310) 699-2021.

* Audubon regional representative Dan Taylor will discuss the "Ecosystems and Habitats of the Ancient Forests," and how indicator species such as the spotted owl can reveal the health of the ecosystem at the meeting of the Pasadena Audubon Society at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Los Angeles County Arboretum in Arcadia. Call (818) 798-5522.

COMPUTING

* Ruzena Bacjsy, professor of computer science at the University of Pennsylvania, will discuss "Cooperative Agents: Machines and Humans" in a lecture sponsored by the USC computer science department at 10:30 a.m. Friday in the auditorium of the USC Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center. Call (213) 740-4498. NONA YATES

Let's clear this up instantly. There are two Jerry Rubins. One is a Venice peace activist who makes $6 an hour potting orchids. The other is a Famous Ex-Radical who paid $85,000 in personal income taxes last year.

The Venice Rubin is relatively soft-spoken and says please and thank you and had to resort to potting orchids because peace is ruining his paid anti-war activism.

The Other Rubin jumps in your face waving health powders like "Wow!" and displays the kind of relentless energy that drove the Establishment crazy 25 years ago, first when he was a screaming yippie and then a member of the Chicago 7.

When the two Rubins are together, there is no confusing them. The Venice Rubin is tall and curly-haired, wears shorts, a tank top and sneakers and doesn't speak unless spoken to.

The Other Rubin is shorter and neatly trimmed and wears a gray pin-striped suit and red patterned tie and darts around his $5,000-a-month high-rise apartment like a chipmunk in a forest, demanding redress.

The redress he is demanding is clarification. He wants the world to know he is not the orchid-potting Jerry Rubin but the Rubin who, like Ollie North, leaped from the ashes of a former career to achieve success in a new one.

The new endeavor is network marketing in association with a company called Life Extension International, which is about as far removed from political activism as Howard Stern from the Bishop of Canterbury.

Rubin and LEI hustle health potions like the aforementioned "Wow!," an orange-flavored confection which the Famous Ex-Radical urged me to drink, promising it would make me feel stronger and smarter within minutes.

Then he turned to the Venice Jerry Rubin, fixed him with a stare hard enough to pierce armor and said, "I can make you rich."

*

This all began with a nice little column I wrote a fortnight ago about the Venice Jerry Rubin, whom I shall call Rubin 1. He is director of the L.A. Alliance for Survival and made his living taking half of the alliance's profits from its anti-war activities.

But then the Berlin Wall came down, Russia fell apart and the peace movement began going to hell, all of which impacted on the $6,000 a year Rubin was making to live on.

The irony of a peace activist suffering from the agony of peace appealed to me, so I wrote about Rubin, a 50-year-old guy who, by his own assessment, had no skills, couldn't drive and had only $2 in the bank.

Two things happened. Rubin got a job potting orchids for $6 an hour and probably would have been happy potting orchids the rest of his life. But then along comes the Famous Ex-Radical, the 1960s yippie turned yuppie, a description, as columnist Dan Akst says, that runs through his life like a Homeric epithet.

This Rubin, Rubin 2, who is either 47 or 53, depending on whom you believe, moved to L.A. recently from New York and was busily making his bid as Health Powder King of America when suddenly he begins getting telephone calls from people asking if he wants to borrow money.

They have read my column on the Venice Jerry Rubin and assume, upon an inability to perceive details, that it is he.

He pays little attention at first, but then women begin calling to say they are not going out with a guy who has only $2 in the bank. Where could he possibly take them? Then his landlord, whose confidence in Rubin's ability to pay is badly shaken, begins demanding several months' rent in advance.

At least this is what I hear in a series of telephone calls from Rubin, his women, his lawyer, his ex-wife and I don't know who else.

Rubin himself calls maybe half a dozen times, begging, cajoling, pleading and demanding. The confusion of Two Rubins is ruining his life, he says. He even gets Rubin 1 to take time away from potting orchids to call and say maybe we ought to clear the whole thing up.

The assault is endless. I am beginning to feel like Lyndon Johnson during the Vietnam War. Hey, hey, LBJ, how many babies have you killed today?

*

Both Rubins love publicity. They sense media potential the way a tiger shark detects a bleeding seal. By smell? Vibrations? Color alterations in the atmosphere? Who knows. Science is working on it.

Rubin 2 was the one orchestrating a thrust for clarification, since he has the most to gain. Whenever his name appears in print, another 500 cases of "Wow!" are sold throughout the known world.

But the prospect of more ink also appeals to Rubin 1, so he takes a bus to 2's high-rise in Westwood. The security guard says who would you like to see and he says, "Jerry Rubin."

The guard says, "Name please?" and he says "Jerry Rubin" again.

The guard says, " Your name," and he sighs and says, "We're the same."

I am told this story by Rubin 1 in Rubin 2's 11th-floor luxury apartment where we have gathered for the Clarification Session. "See!" says Rubin 2 triumphantly. "There's confusion everywhere!"

In order to end the confusion, 2 launches into a narrative of his own success, in contrast to 1's pathetic orchid-potting existence. He shows me copies of his personal and corporate income tax forms to prove his worth and says he has made more money in one year than Rubin 1 will make his entire life.

It is a strange monologue coming from a guy who once placed money in the same category as the John Birch Society, but he delivers it with a verve not to be denied. Suddenly, by his narrative, "Wow!" is transformed into something on a level with mother's milk and holy water.

1, meanwhile, seems content to leave the show to his more famous counterpart, mumbling occasionally that he still loves peace and doesn't mind potting orchids, but that's not good enough for 2, whose kinetic personality is not unlike that of a mongoose in a tank of cobras. He is everywhere at once. Even when he is sitting he is standing.

*

It is at this point that 2 offers to make 1 rich. "I want you to work for me," he says. "I want every Jerry Rubin in America to work for me."

He offers to train 1 to sell his health potions, even as he has trained thousands of others. Rubin calls his networking "people's capitalism," a phrase that manages an egalitarian cant even as it holds out the prospect of ease and opulence through entrepreneurial magic.

Rubin 1 mumbles something in response, to which 2 says, "What? Speak up, what'd you say?" in words that whistle by 1's ear like .50-caliber bullets.

"I'd like to think it over," 1 says uneasily in a tone only slightly louder than before. Clearly, he would like to leave.

Rubin 2 is not happy with the offer left dangling but lets it go at that. I suspect 1 will go right on potting orchids for $6 an hour and 2 will go right on hustling "Wow!" until he is Wow King of the World. He is already planning a news conference based on our Clarification Session, and who knows what else. Oprah? Donahue? Geraldo?

For my part, I am no happier or smarter for having drunk "Wow!" and hope never to hear from another Jerry Rubin for the rest of my life. It would almost be worth another world war just to keep them all busy working for peace. How could it hurt?

It was impressive. The Clinton Administration and Congress moved with speed and efficiency in response to the nation's costliest natural disaster. Less than four weeks after the Northridge earthquake devastated vast parts of Los Angeles, Congress authorized $8.6 billion in aid. It was indeed, as President Clinton said Saturday when he signed the bill, "the most comprehensive national response ever to a region experiencing a natural disaster."

OK, so you cynics out there say what this shows mainly is that Clinton already has his eye on reelection and on California's 54 electoral votes. Fair enough, but the bottom line is that California's delegation, with Clinton's support, has shepherded the most federal aid ever for a single U.S. disaster. And that's something.

THE FEDERAL CHECK: It's too bad that the federal aid -- $8.6 billion plus $900 million already spent -- doesn't cover the whole bill. Losses stemming from the 6.8 earthquake on Jan. 17 have been estimated by Gov. Pete Wilson's office at between $13 billion and $20 billion. Wilson has put the state's share of the repair costs at $1.9 billion and local governments' at $135 million. Private insurers are expected to cover $2.5 billion.

A good chunk of the federal aid -- $4.6 billion -- will go to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which under the very able guidance of James Lee Witt has been the central coordinating agency for federal relief. The $8.6 billion will be used for housing aid and the reconstruction of highways, schools and other public facilities as well as for loans to offset damage suffered by renters, homeowners and businesses.

Congress also included a controversial denial of long-term assistance to illegal immigrants -- aid extending more than 90 days. That was a politically necessary compromise. However, it is not too much to ask that the "reasonable steps" required by the bill to determine the legal residency of long-term beneficiaries be fully monitored. There must be no discrimination based on race or ethnicity.

THE STATE'S TURN: Now Sacramento must turn its attention, quickly, to raising more funds for relief, repairs and rebuilding. The most fiscally responsible approach is pay-as-you-go, adding, on a temporary basis, a few cents to the price of a gallon of gasoline and a quarter-cent to the sales tax. Revenues from the temporary gas tax hike would be for vitally needed seismic safety retrofitting of bridges and overpasses. The sales tax increase would go for other earthquake repairs.

The challenge to state legislators is to act as swiftly as Congress and the Administration, which have set an example of decisive response to a natural disaster. The spotlight's on Sacramento now.

In some child care centers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Nevada and Wisconsin, raw sewage recently was found in play areas, fire exits were locked or blocked, broken glass and roaches were evident and children had access to toxic chemicals including bug spray and antifreeze. In Los Angeles, the Northridge earthquake uncovered problems of a less disturbingly obvious but still serious sort. More than 200,000 children are cared for daily in licensed facilities subject to no requirements for safety glass, bolted bookcases, emergency food and water supplies or even flashlights.

With a majority of parents of young children in the work force now, the demand for high-quality institutional child care continues to grow, far outpacing the supply. With that growth has come problems that public agencies alone, with chronically strained budgets, simply cannot solve.

Indeed, according to the federal General Accounting Office, states, which are almost exclusively responsible for regulating the quality of child care, have cut their budgets and enforcement personnel in agencies that license and inspect day care centers. Federal auditors, making unannounced inspections at sites in the four states mentioned above, found widespread hazards. Because states receive federal child care grants, some in Congress are calling for a stronger federal presence -- and federal regulations -- in the operation of child care facilities.

Federal standards make some sense, as do state regulations that would require preschool and day care facilities to meet the same earthquake safety standards that govern elementary schools. However, even with tougher government standards and a cadre of vigilant inspectors to monitor compliance, consumers -- parents -- have to be responsible too.

Inspectors can't be there every day, but parents usually are. Look carefully, ask questions and listen to what teachers and your child tell you. Learn what the law requires in terms of health and safety and make sure for yourself that the facility is clean and safe.

In yet another challenge to democracy in South Africa, the Zulu-based Inkatha Freedom Party plans to boycott the nation's first free multiracial elections. This protest isn't expected to derail the election of Nelson Mandela as the country's next president; he clearly is the favorite of most black South Africans, including some Zulus, and he can also count on limited white support in the April balloting. But Mandela and President Frederik W. de Klerk must figure out some way to resolve the concerns of Zulus or, as Monday's demonstrations indicated, face more threats to the hope for peaceful democracy.

Thousands of Zulus protested outside a meeting between De Klerk and Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini. Shots were fired and at least one person was killed. The killing provides another reminder of the rivalries in the new South Africa. What's needed now is hands-on negotiation, perhaps led by a more aggressive Organization of African Unity.

De Klerk's session with the Zulu king did not go well. The king insisted that Zulus would reject the new constitution and defy the new government. They want nothing less than their own independent state. This political impasse is yet another consequence of apartheid. That philosophy, advocated for decades by De Klerk's National Party, resulted in the creation of so-called "independent" black homelands. Zulus rejected total independence but accepted self-government and all the perks, patronage and public dollars that rewarded that obeisance.

Their elected leader -- another Zulu chief, Mangosuthu Gatsha Buthelezi -- stands to lose power when Mandela takes over. In April, Buthelezi will also have to give up his dream of becoming the first black president of South Africa. That dream had been nurtured for years by white leaders who appreciated Buthe- lezi's anti-communist stance and his opposition to economic sanctions and the political struggle advocated by Mandela's African National Congress. Buthelezi was quickly eclipsed by Mandela after the latter's release from prison four years ago, but the Zulu leader refused to acquiesce without a fight.

The Zulu nation's current course is a not very well disguised demand for respect. Parties that have influence with Inkatha must understand this but in the end prevail on all Zulus to participate in the new democracy.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors will have the chance today to modify -- although not, unfortunately, eliminate -- one of the more flagrant taxpayer rip-offs in recent memory.

Three years ago then-Chief Administrative Officer Richard B. Dixon initiated, and the supervisors oh-so-quietly approved, a plan to permit the cost of benefits to be treated as compensation when calculating county pensions.Thus benefits such as medical and dental insurance and -- for supervisors and others lucky enough to have them -- car allowances now count as salary when determining pensions. That sweetener will boost taxpayer costs by as much as $400 million over the next 30 years.

Supervisor Gloria Molina, who was not a member of the board when the pension-spiking scheme was adopted, says that it's costing about $300,000 a week to fund this particular goody. She's supporting recommendations made by the Economy and Efficiency Commission to control the plan's abuses. Among other things, benefit costs would be excluded when figuring pensions for future employees and the dollar amount allowed for current employees would be cut or frozen.

All this is of course worth doing. Regrettably it won't roll back the windfalls that pension spiking already has made possible. One non-elected official will retire next month, for example, with an annual pension about $35,000 higher than his current salary. This program is a scandal. It will be a far greater one if the supervisors don't act today to curb it. Taxpaying voters are waiting and watching.

* Thank you for your editorial on the Clinton health reform plan (Feb. 3) which is generally right on the mark. Doctors, individually, and collectively through the American Medical Assn., agree with The Times that this enormously complex piece of legislation (unfortunately and inexplicably developed in secrecy) while admirable in stated goals, does require major modifications if these goals are to be achieved.

The bill as it stands, Clinton's rhetoric notwithstanding, would require extensive cost controls imposed by government. As Alain Enthoven and virtually all economists have pointed out, cost controls in any sector of economics simply don't work.

Further technological advancement would be subject to a government review board and not to market forces. Advances in medical care could be impeded.

This bill threatens the malpractice reforms enacted in this state and could drive up medical costs. Since we have costs contained in this state by managed care, the result could be ruinous with severely impeded access.

Finally you laud Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi's plan and with this we respectfully disagree. You have previously credited Garamendi with being a prime mover behind the Clinton plan. Garamendi favors a single-payer system. A single-payer system, if government, is socialism and, if private, is monopoly. History teaches us that no matter how good they sound, neither works. Nor for that matter will the Clinton approach.

BENJAMIN SHWACHMAN MD

President, L.A. County Medical Assn.

* Re your editorial: CalPERS does not control costs. It shifts them. At our local hospitals, CalPERS Blue Shield pays a per diem rate of between $830 and $950. A three-day hysterectomy stay would be approximately $2,500-$2,900. An indemnity-insured or cash-paying patient would pay between $7,000 and $9,000 for the exact same services.

Given such disparity in prices, not only does CalPERS not pay its own way, it does not contribute to the financing of welfare or charity cases.

It is agreements such as CalPERS that drive indemnity plans out of the marketplace, and shift the costs to those who often can least afford it -- the cash-paying patient.

NANETTE WUCHENICH MD

Redlands

* Your editorial discussed Clinton's health plan. In this as well as all other media presentations, a concern is always raised about another governmental bureaucracy to be created. No one in the media mentions the massive bureaucracy that is encountered in dealing with insurance companies.

Insurance companies, as are all big businesses, are interested in one primary individual -- the stockholder. Clinton's plan is also interested in one individual, but that one is the person who needs health care now and can't get it.

HARRY SHRAGG MD

Los Angeles

* Let me talk about real gouging that takes place in the medical insurance field by large insurance companies.

I was paying $307 per month for medical insurance as an individual. I was advised that due to inflation, rising health costs, and that many insurance companies no longer will cover this type of insurance, my policy unchanged in any way will now cost $466 per month. I believe if my math is correct, that is a 52% increase per month. I know from The Times, many hospitals and doctors are struggling to survive financially, but I have not heard of any insurance companies going out of business.

PETER WRIGHT

Studio City

* The Times correctly notes that Clinton's health plan will shut down private medical practice (Commentary, Feb. 2). The Clintons would outlaw the purchase of medical care directly from a doctor. The Clinton plan would close doctor's offices by the thousands.

This deprives Americans of their freedom to choose their own private doctor. When the few remaining doctors are herded into corporate or government-run HMOs, their new allegiance is to their paymaster, not their patient.

To preserve private practice, and the quality it embodies, the citizen's constitutional right to buy care must remain the bedrock of any plan. This Congress should develop job-portable, tax-free medical savings accounts. These permit the consumer to buy care directly without the intervention of government bureaucrats, or insurance company rationing.

CHRISTOPHER LYON MD

Steering Committee, Americans for

Free Choice in Medicine, Newport Beach

* At last, an article by an American columnist who really understands the situation in Northern Ireland, the nature of the IRA, and the true character of its spokesman, Gerry Adams! I couldn't agree more with every statement made by Edwin M. Yoder Jr. (Commentary, Feb. 6).

What is so disturbing beyond the fact that Adams "gulled" talk show hosts who do not understand the situation in Northern Ireland, is the hero's welcome accorded Adams upon his arrival in the U.S. Now it is clear just where the IRA gets its seemingly endless funds with which to purchase its weapons of death and destruction.

IRA interference in the affairs of Northern Ireland so enrages the Protestant majority that it actually hampers the peace process.

JOAN MORRISON

Costa Mesa

* The anti-Irish column by Yoder attacks Adams of Sinn Fein (the political arm of the IRA), President Clinton for allowing him 48 hours to present his case in discussion of the Northern Ireland situation, and the "talk show airheads" who let him speak his mind. When it comes to Ireland, there is plenty of blame by all sides to pass around -- not just to the IRA. There is little to be gained from suppressing different points of view.

The British press could have written the column. Gerry Adams may not have been ready to present breakthrough proposals for peace but he did stir up others, such as the British government, to improve their offers, which might lead to possible developments.

The problems in Northern Ireland involve primarily economic oppression cloaked in bigotry and religious persecution. Yoder clearly has no knowledge of this situation but he is the one that is paid to mouth off.

W. J. McLAUGHLIN

Claremont

* We just heard Southern California is getting yet another area code -- 911.

KATHLEEN ROBIN LOWRY

Malibu

* The Feb. 3 article "No Evidence of 'Sugar High' In Children Found" was at best misleading. Misleading because the experiment was done comparing sugar with aspartame (or Nutrasweet) and saccharin, two additives that have been implicated in children's hyperactivity.Had the sugar been compared with a diet free of artificial additives, a much different picture would have been painted -- with vast improvement in the behavior of children on the additive-free diet.

The number of children used in this study was pitifully low (25 children ages 3-5, and 23 children ages 6-10) to make such a statement of finality.

One can't help but wonder who funded the grants for this study. Was it the drug manufacturers or aspartame and saccharin? Was it the sugar industry?

PAMELA HEALEY

Certified Nutritionist

Los Angeles

I thought it was remarkable the way teachers responded to the earthquake. They have really risen to the occasion. Teachers are holding classes in their homes. Teachers are calling parents to see how the kids are, giving them assignments over the phone. People have really gone above and beyond what was necessary.

This has been very heartwarming, considering the fact that most of the people we're talking about are incredibly demoralized. They just took a 10% pay cut, and they don't really feel a commitment toward this district, don't have very much faith in its leadership and where it's going. They're confused. They just came out of this big battle of having to defend public schools (over the voucher proposal), and they see themselves entering into another battle over the next budget and feel very underappreciated.

I was eating lunch in the cafeteria at a school in the San Fernando Valley last week during an aftershock. Instead of dropping under the tables, the teachers just ran out to the kids, and I said, "Where are you guys going?" They said, "We've got to be with the kids!" And they get out there and their kids are all eating lunch and aren't the least bit frightened. Actually, the teachers were much more shaken up about the earthquake than the children were.

So I want to reassure people who are afraid to let their kids go back to school, to let them know that the people they are leaving their children with are really caring people and their kids will be safe.

I think schools are always safer than the streets, but in this case I'm talking about emotional stability for kids, about people who are really loving and caring and understanding. And I'm not sure that the average parent who never talks to their child's teacher, who really doesn't have much connection, understands this -- because we have so much transiency in Los Angeles, and so many kids who are bused.

It's not a matter of just having kids come back to school and drawing a picture saying what's wrong -- in fact it gets kids more frightened to do that. What you have to do with kids, and what I've seen teachers doing as I'm going around from school to school, is say to them: "What would make you feel better, what do you need to feel less afraid?" It's helping the kids put together a picture in their heads that they actually have some control over this -- not a lot; you can't stop the earth from shaking -- but there are things you can do. They talk about safety and about where you should be and how you should take care of yourself and what you should have packed up at home, and they've been really responsible about all this.

I think it's funny -- it's not as if teachers all went to a workshop on Tuesday after the earthquake and were told: "When you get back to class here's what you need to do." They all instinctively -- at least the vast majority of them -- knew what they needed to do, and there was no curriculum guide. And maybe that's the way we have to have schools, where you allow the classroom teacher to just do their own thing, instead of (being directed by) this terrible bureaucracy.

What inspired me the most is that teachers were doing this despite their own problems -- 20% of our teachers in the Harbor area live in the Valley -- that's a huge percentage traveling across town -- and we have thousands of teachers who live in the Santa Clarita area. On the Monday that school opened after the earthquake, we had the highest attendance among teachers of any Monday in the school year! At my school, Marshall, we had 100% teacher attendance -- I can't remember when we ever had 100% teacher attendance.

There was a compelling feeling that we had to come back and be there for the kids and get things back in order. When they were under a great deal of stress, when it would have been easy to say, "Listen, I've got to take care of myself," they were at school helping kids.

I think that people who can react this way, and who are trusted with the safety and well-being of the young people of this city, ought to be treated with more respect and certainly be reimbursed in a way that they can stay in the profession and not be driven out.

I was at a Federal Emergency Management Agency meeting and they said that a family of four is considered in the poverty range at a starting teacher's salary -- $25,000. There's something all screwy about that.

I have a master's degree and I've been with the system for 25 years and I make a big 47-something. I get a teacher's salary as union president. That's the top teacher's salary. I don't consider that, for a lifetime of work and a master's degree, all that fabulous.

If I lived in Des Moines, that would be one thing, but it's not very much in Los Angeles. I, for instance, could not afford to buy my own house back. I wouldn't even qualify for a loan. But the principal at my school makes $90,000. The custodian at my school makes as much as a teacher. Bus drivers make $52,000 with overtime.

Our children spend a third of their day in school under the influence of a teacher. Why someone with that much influence is relegated to the bottom of the ladder is beyond me -- but that's the case.

It was just a mere year ago that all the counselors that everybody wants in the schools now (after the earthquake) -- the counselors, psychiatric social workers, psychologists -- were being laid off. The irony is that now everybody's so concerned about the conditions of the schools and getting the kids back into school. We're talking about 650,000 kids influenced by these very same people that everybody a year ago was saying, "Aw, what the hell, cut their pay 10%."

People are really concerned about the school buildings and how they held up in the earthquake, yet they haven't passed a bond issue for the schools in 20 years. Do people think the schools can somehow be retrofitted for free?

The educational tax rate in this state is 47th out of the 50 states. New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania pay twice as much per student as we do. And they're getting it from somewhere. There are districts in New York state that spend $12,000 on a student -- we spend $4,000.

We opened the school year in September and there were 1,000 vacant teaching positions. It's going to be worse next year. Every district in the L.A. Basin pays higher salaries than the L.A. Unified School District. I think we're 41st out of 43 districts in terms of teacher salaries. Three years ago we were first. Our principals, our school secretaries and other staff positions rank first, second or third in their categories in terms of salary of the 43 county districts. Los Angeles has one of the highest-paid superintendents. Teachers are at the bottom. And the working conditions are worse here -- class sizes are bigger, for example. The last class I taught had 39 kids.

In a crisis like this, schools are the one place that bring a community together. Where is it they put all these Red Cross centers and tent cities? They're in the schools, in the gymnasiums. They're the center of the community. The public school building means a lot emotionally to people in the United States, and it's getting lost. Yet when we have a crisis, it's the first place people turn to.

The Los Angeles City Council will soon be tackling the politically charged issue of determining whether the face of the "new" LAPD should mirror that of the public generally. The proposal on the table -- the brainchild of a feminist legal-rights organization and introduced by Council members Jackie Goldberg and Zev Yaroslavsky -- would require that all incoming LAPD classes be at least 43.4% female, the precise proportion of women in the work force.

Only in a politically correct world could such a proposal, which was made without any supporting data or study, rise to the level of political salability. Under closer scrutiny, however, it is clear that the so-called gender-equity plan would not only be disastrous for the morale and effectiveness of the department; it also would present a very real danger for the safety of the public.

Proponents of the plan acknowledge that the 43% quota cannot be reached under the LAPD's current hiring practices; there are simply insufficient numbers of qualified women candidates able to pass the department's physical abilities test. Even now, only 55% of female applicants -- as compared with 93% of male applicants -- are able to pass the test.

Proponents nonetheless suggest that the quota can be reached because certain elements of the physical testing, such as scaling "the wall" and several other tests of upper body strength, do not relate to job performance and should be abandoned. This is simply feminist fantasy.

Police officers, whether male or female, must have the strength and the endurance to use force effectively when it becomes necessary to do so, including the upper body strength to apprehend suspects and to climb obstacles during a foot chase. The safety of the public in some instances depends on these abilities. The criteria for upper-body strength must therefore be maintained, unimpeded by the political agenda of those who have the ear of certain members of the City Council.

Advocates of the Goldberg-Yaroslavsky motion attempt to draw attention away from the physical requirements of the job by focusing on the "feminist approach to policing," the perception that women officers possess a unique ability to defuse tense situations. Yaroslavsky supports this argument by pointing to the Christopher Commission's finding that female officers are involved in incidents of excessive use of force at rates substantially below those of male officers. This finding, however, is by itself an insufficient basis from which to draw any conclusions.

The Christopher Commission, restricted in its inquiry by the narrow directive of the Police Commission, never studied the many other factors relevant to gender-based assessments of performance, such as the relative rates of force used against, and the relative effectiveness of the use of force by, female and male officers.

More fundamentally, the gender equity plan ignores the substantial progress the department has already made in adding women to the force. Over the past 12 years, the department's hiring goal, which was raised to 30% in 1992, has resulted in a fivefold increase in the proportion of women in the corps of sworn officers.

The proposal to again raise the hiring goal is founded on the unexplained principle that somehow it is satisfactory for certain professions to be skewed in relation to women in the work force, but others, such as policing, must display perfect symmetry to that same benchmark. No reasoned argument has ever been advanced for why this must be the case.

In their urgency to reach this result, and in disregard for their responsibilities to the city, Goldberg and Yaroslavsky also ignore the legal exposure that the gender equity plan would create. In recent years, only 22% of LAPD applicants have been women (a figure that is substantially higher than the 13%-17% average of other California law enforcement agencies). The plan requires that women be hired at a rate that is double their proportion in the LAPD's applicant pool. Doing so would cost the city enormous sums to defend reverse-discrimination claims brought by male applicants passed over in favor of lower-testing female applicants.

Hiring more female officers is an admirable and worthwhile goal. However, the Los Angeles Women Police Assn., an organization committed to this end but nonetheless opposed to the gender-equity plan, recognizes the appropriate ordering of priorities: The proper issue for the Police Department and the City Council is not how many women should be hired, but rather how more women can be hired without sacrificing the effectiveness of the force.

At the start of February, President Bill traveled to the poor neighborhood of Anacostia in Washington, D.C., where the kids, ready with questions about NAFTA and the Clean Water Act, were treated to his headline-seeking homilies about "personal responsibility" and sex.

The searing cynicism of this documented philanderer grandstanding about sexual mores to impoverished eighth-graders in a crumbling inner-city classroom almost beggars description.

But using the most defenseless members of our society as stage props for a "family values" campaign snitched from Dan and Marilyn Quayle doesn't bother our brave commander in chief. The 1980s Reagan-Bush paranoia against adolescents has evolved into 1990s Clinton hostility. When all else fails, even the most hack politicians can get a headline by picking on teen-agers as the source of all social ills, from dissolute welfare-leeching to murder.

The present public delirium about a (black) teen-age sex epidemic, born of irresponsibility and lack of family and religious values, is a cruel fraud.

The supposed epidemic of "children having children" simply doesn't exist. In only a negligible number of births -- about 20,000 annually -- are both partners under the age of 18. Sociologist Mike Males of Occidental College, who has done fine research on this issue, points out to me that this represents only 4% of births among teen-age girls and less than 1% of the total births each year in the United States.

If Clinton remains fired with the urge to lecture people about their moral values, he should preach to men 20 and older. These are the fellows who mostly leave teen-age girls pregnant and with sexually transmitted diseases, including AIDS.

But don't expect consistency from the President. A week after his repulsive performance in Anacostia he visited a GM plant in Shreveport, La., where he raised some good-ol'-boy laughs with a rib-nudging reminiscence about the Astroturf in the back of his El Camino pickup in the 1970s, and "You don't want to know why."

No lectures about values to this crew, who were more likely than eighth-graders to ask Clinton what qualified him to be a preacher.

Truth: An increasingly nonegalitarian society pushes poor teen-agers further and further to the margin and then blames them for lack of "responsibility." Poverty, not age, is the problem among all ages and racial groups. Higher rates of poverty provoke higher birth rates.

As Males points out, the term "teen-age pregnancy," in most cases where it is labeled a social problem or assigned "public costs," is simply a euphemism for the much larger category of "low-income pregnancy."

And contrary to elite lore, a wide majority of teen-age parents appears to adapt well to parenthood: Most unmarried teen mothers are married within five years, most have jobs and few receive welfare. Teen-age child-bearing creates more public costs than adult child-bearing because teen-agers are poorer. A mythic teen-age rutting boom fueled by a supposed absence of "family values" has produced an imaginary baby boom in which "irresponsible" teen mothers inseminated by feckless black youths are lodged on lifetime welfare instead of having Norplant under their skin as they train for those mythical good jobs at good wages.

This can scarcely be a secret to Clinton's advisers on these issues, such as Marian Wright Edelman of the Children's Defense Fund, Hillary Rodham Clinton and Donna Shalala. Scholarly work by Edelman's group exposes the myth, even as Edelman chimes in with the opportunistic Clinton line, thus betraying the poor kids her organization professes to speak for.

"At least two-thirds of pregnant teenagers," Males tells me, "have childhood histories of violence and sexual abuse in their homes. This makes Clinton's threat in the State of the Union to cut off teen-age mothers from welfare and force them to live with a parent or grandparent doubly cruel."

When writer Jonathan Kozol visited a public school in Anacostia, he asked the principal what he found most frustrating about working with young people. "On Fridays in the cafeteria," the man answered, "I see small children putting chicken nuggets in their pockets. They're afraid of being hungry on the weekends." And this President, fresh from cutting public spending, lectures them about responsibility. It should be the other way around.

In the aftermath of a disaster, relief agencies can't make everyone "whole." That's where the local citizenry can step in, not just to help with immediate needs, but with the gaps that surface later.

The Laguna Fire Relief Coalition, for example, offered short-term financial assistance to survivors in need. Now, many of them are finding that insurance, loans and government programs won't cover their costs of recovery.

Together with the Community Clinic, we continue to administer FEMA-subsidized mental health programs, such as crisis counseling. We are replacing fire-destroyed tools, enabling some folks to resume the business of making a living, and we are still distributing food, clothing and other supplies.

But it takes a lot more than just handing out canned goods and cash to heal a community. So our extensive network of volunteers maintains close contact with people who were once their neighbors, but who suddenly found themselves with no neighborhoods. This personal link to the community, while intangible, is perhaps the most important recovery effort of all. Because it's not buildings that define a neighborhood, it's people.

The Kings must dread the NHL's five minute overtime period this season.

They lost to the Calgary Flames, 5-4, with 38 seconds remaining in overtime on Feb. 5 at the Forum and they lost to the New York Rangers, 5-4, with 1 1/2 seconds remaining in overtime on Jan. 27 at home.

After scoring two third-period goals to overcome a 2-0 deficit and force the Boston Bruins into overtime Monday night at the Forum, the Kings lost, 3-2, when right wing Glen Murray scored his eighth goal of the season on a 15-footer with 56 seconds remaining in the extra period before a sellout crowd of 16,005.

Defenseman Alex Zhitnik gave away the puck at the right boards to center Ted Donato, who fed right wing Steve Heinze in the circle. Heinze set up Murray, who was uncovered in the slot and he put it past the legs of goalie Kelly Hrudey.

Defenseman Rob Blake, who sent the game into overtime when he scored his 16th goal of the season with 5:39 remaining in the third period, took the blame for the loss because he was too late in getting to Murray.

"You feel the weight of 24 guys when you make a mistake like that," Blake said. "It was just coverage and we go over that day in and day out in practice and when you let it go . . . It's just a mental mistake, not being in the right position.

"I should have been closer to him. I should have been on him very much sooner."

Less than a year after making the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in franchise history, the Kings are in jeopardy of failing to make the playoffs for the first time since 1986. If the season ended today, the Kings (21-29-6) wouldn't be in the playoffs.

"It's do or die, and if we don't get it going we're going to be out of it," King center Pat Conacher said.

In the third period, the Kings did get going, scoring twice in a 2:34 span to tie it at 2-2.

Wayne Gretzky, the NHL leader with 98 points before the game, assisted on both goals to record the 14th 100-point season of his 15-year NHL career. He leads the NHL with 72 assists and 50 points on the power play.

Jari Kurri scored his fourth goal in the last three games with 8:13 remaining on a pass from defenseman Doug Honda.

The Kings got a chance to tie the score only four seconds later when they went on a power play after left wing Dave Reid was penalized for hooking. Blake tied it when Gretzky set him up from behind the net. Blake beat Bruin goalie Vincent Riendeau for his fifth power-play goal of the season.

The Kings, who were outshot 141-69 in their last three games, were outshot 18-2 by the Bruins in the first period.

In an effort to motivate his team, King Coach Barry Melrose inserted center Brian McReynolds and left wings Dave Tomlinson and Keith Redmond in the lineup. All three had been recalled earlier in the day from the minor league affiliate in Phoenix.

"We haven't been playing well and I had to get some guys who play hard in there," Melrose said. Melrose benched right wing Tomas Sandstrom, who hasn't scored a goal in his last six games. It was the second time this season that he has been scratched.

"I'm (mad) about not playing, but he's the coach and he makes the calls," Sandstrom said.

King Notes

Tony Tavares, the Mighty Duck club president whose comments about Wayne Gretzky influencing officials inspired Gretzky to a five-point performance in the Kings' 5-3 victory over the Ducks on Friday, said he has learned a lesson. "The bottom line is what I was trying to accomplish was to push Wayne away from the referee and vice versa," Tavares said. "Instead, what happened is I pushed him toward the net." Tavares stands by his claim that Gretzky influences officials. "Anyone who has achieved what he has is going to have influence with officials," Tavares said, although he said he realized Gretzky was upset that he said he "cries all the time" to officials. "We all learn lessons in life, and I prefer to learn mine from the best," Tavares said. "He's a good teacher, and I'm a fast learner."

Tony Granato, suspended for high-sticking Chicago Blackhawk defenseman Neil Wilkinson, will appear at an hearing today in New York.

Times staff writer Robyn Norwood contributed to this story.

Those interested in entry-level jobs in baseball should apply for commissioner. . . . The owners got their wish when they emasculated the position. . . .

Robin Yount, who played 20 years with the Milwaukee Brewers, belongs in the Hall of Fame someday alongside Carl Yastrzemski, who played 23 years with the Boston Red Sox and was inducted in 1989, and George Brett, who played 21 years with the Kansas City Royals. . . .

Yount and Yaz each had a career batting average of .285. . . .

Where the ex-Dodgers are now: Dave Anderson will manage the Detroit Tigers' farm team at Jamestown, N.Y., of the New York-Penn League, and R.J. Reynolds will try to make the Cincinnati Reds' roster after spending two years in Japan. . . .

Tom Lasorda on National League realignment: "We're very happy to get the Atlanta Braves out of our division." . . .

Left-handed pitching being so important at Yankee Stadium, the New York Yankees made a good deal when they sent the overrated Bobby Munoz and two minor leaguers to Philadelphia for Terry Mulholland. The Yankees now have three southpaw starters -- Jim Abbott, Jimmy Key and Mulholland. . . .

New Orleans would be the best place for Jim Everett to attempt to resurrect his career. . . .

The Rams believe they can get a second-round draft choice in exchange for Everett. . . .

Of course, they also thought they would make the playoffs last season. . . .

A one-game suspension was the least Temple Coach John Chaney should have gotten after barging into Massachusetts Coach John Calipari's news conference, accusing him of intimidating officials, shouting obscenities and having to be restrained after charging the podium. . . .

Oh, yes, Chaney also threatened to kill Calipari. . . .

I don't care about the pressures of the job.There was no excuse, either, for the shouting match between Arizona's Lute Olson and California's Todd Bozeman on the sidelines. . . .

Kentucky never will make the fashion Final Four with its new uniforms. . . .

Look-alikes: Jason Kidd and Andrew Young. . . .

*

Shaquille O'Neal's limitations were exposed at the All-Star game. . . .

The Orlando Magic should hire Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to give O'Neal a crash course on the sky hook. . . .

Then he might average 40 points a game instead of a mere 28.5. . . .

Gentleman Prefers Blond: Dennis Rodman of the San Antonio Spurs is 17-1 as a blond. . . . Wayne Gretzky, who soon will break Gordie Howe's record with goal No. 802, scored NHL goal No. 1 on Oct. 14, 1979, against Vancouver goaltender Glen Hanlon. . . .

The New York Rangers are interested in trading for Canuck property Petr Nedved, who is playing for Canada in the Olympics. . . .

There is something weird about a hockey game, the Quebec Nordiques vs. the Rangers at Madison Square Garden Friday, being postponed because of snow. . . .

Biggest star at the Sunkist track meet Saturday at the Sports Arena might be one of the smallest performers --

5-foot-3, 114-pound Gail Devers, who will compete in the 50-meter hurdles. . . .

Craig Stadler's galleries at the L.A. Open were packed with admiring, heavyweight spectators.. . .

One of the problems facing CBS is that there aren't enough appealing events in the Winter Olympics to fill two weeks of coverage. . . .

My favorite venue is the Viking Ship. . . .

The fourth annual welcome-home celebration for Mark Carrier, the Chicago Bears' All-Pro safety, Saturday at the Long Beach Hilton will benefit earthquake relief. . . .

I'm picking Region to win the Santa Anita Handicap on March 5. He ran well in the San Antonio despite a troubled trip that resulted in his being placed ahead of disqualified second-place finisher Hill Pass. And basically, it was a prep race for trainer Richard Mandella's 5-year-old gelding. . . .

Steve McCain, the NCAA high-bar champion last year as a freshman, and Kareema Marrow, who scored a perfect 10 on the vault recently, will lead the UCLA men's and women's teams in the UCLA/Gilda Marx Invitational Saturday night at Pauley Pavilion. . . .

Todd Steussie, the offensive tackle from California and Agoura High, made a big impression at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis. . . .

Pro football mecca Las Vegas has two teams -- the Posse of the Canadian Football League and the Sting of Arena Football. . . .

Last add Bud Wilkinson from Oklahoma graduate Stan Rosenfield: "I was in the student section in 1957 when Notre Dame ended our 47-game winning streak. There was stunned silence. Finally, someone yelled: 'Fire the coach!' "

Arkansas regained the No. 1 spot in the Associated Press poll Monday, the seventh consecutive week with a different team at the top.

UCLA was ranked No. 8.

Arkansas was No. 1 for five consecutive weeks until losing to Alabama on Jan. 8. MONDAY'S GAMES

Arturas Karnishovas scored 22 points and Seton Hall used strong defense and rebounding to snap a three-game losing streak, beating St. John's, 67-57, at East Rutherford, N.J. The Pirates, 12-10 overall and 5-9 in the Big East, limited St. John's (11-11, 5-8) to 33.3% shooting and outrebounded the Redmen, 42-26. . . . Calvin Curry's three-point shooting led Oklahoma (14-7, 5-4) back from a seven-point deficit in overtime and the Sooners beat Nebraska, 115-111, in a Big Eight game at Norman, Okla. Nebraska is 14-7, 4-5.

Former Angel Lance Parrish, a 37-year-old catcher who played for Detroit's 1984 championship team, and Juan Samuel agreed to minor-league contracts with the Tigers and were invited to spring training. Names in the News

An estimated 350 turned out in St. Louis for services for former Oklahoma football coach Bud Wilkinson, who died Wednesday of congestive heart failure at 77.

Michael Stich, the world's second-ranked player, said he will help Germany defend its Davis Cup title this year.

Monday was Norge Day at the Birkebeineren ski stadium, just as many had hoped it would be, in the 30-kilometer men's freestyle cross-country ski race.

It also was well below zero. But the sun was out. So naturally, the place went nuts. Bands played. Flags waved. People cheered. One side of the jammed stadium sang, "Heia, Norge! Heia, Norge! Ole! Ole! Ole!" Then the other side sang it. And that was before anyone had started skiing.

Then, a couple of hours later, when Bjorn Daehlie, one of the stars in the Norwegian constellation, strained across the finish line, bumping Finland's Mika Myllylae out of the lead before collapsing face-first in the snow, the place went nuts again.

And when Thomas Alsgaard, another Viking, steamed across moments later, to chants of "Oy! Oy! Oy!" surprisingly knocking Daehlie out of the lead, well, it was Mt. St. Helens East.

That gave Norway the gold and the silver -- Myllylae took the bronze -- and the only thing better would have been a sweep. Small matter to the hardy Norwegians, who weren't about to let either a missing bronze medal or a little chill spoil their day.

The stand-up stadium was filled with 31,000, and officials estimated that at least that many more, watching free, lined the course. There were tents and camp stoves out there, indicating that some of them had spent the night, and skier after skier remarked about how the exuberant fans had urged him on.

Alsgaard, 22, a power skier who had never won an international race, made the most of the moment, moving into the lead after the first seven meters, holding it the rest of the way and finishing in 1 hour 12 minutes 26.4 seconds.

He was at a loss to explain his victory, though. "I don't know," he said, when asked how he had won. "To be sure, I don't know. I never expected it. I had a little hope for maybe a bronze but I never thought of gold."

He finally realized that he might win, he said, with about seven kilometers left.

"The crowd began to sing and I started to think of the gold medal," he said. "Then I tried to ski faster."

Asked about beating his more celebrated teammate, Daehlie, winner of three golds and a silver two years ago at Albertville, France, Alsgaard said: "I'm afraid of what he's going to do to me tonight. Maybe beat me up."

Instead, Daehlie, 26, paid tribute to his young teammate.

"I thought my race was a super race," he said. "On the uphills, I was skiing as fast as I've ever gone, and he still beat me.

"Before the race, I didn't think of Thomas as the favorite. I thought more of (Vladimir) Smirnov (of Kazakhstan, winner of five of six World Cup races this season). I know Thomas is quite good, but I was a bit surprised he was so fast in the middle of the race."

Smirnov finished 10th, and Vegard Ulvang, another of the Norwegian stars, skipped this race because he does not ski the skating freestyle technique as well as he does the classical style, where each ski is in a track.

Alsgaard said he hadn't felt the cold during the race. "But afterward, my chest hurt," he said. "I don't think racing in such cold conditions is good for the body."

In fact, there was talk beforehand of postponing it until a balmier day. By then, though, fans had begun to arrive at the stadium and the course walkers were already lining the track. Norwegians tend to be somewhat reserved everywhere but at ski races, and depriving them of this day in the sun might not have been a wise decision. "There is nothing to prepare you for crowds like this," American skier Carl Swenson said. "I was really tired out there, but they made me feel better. I was psyched by the crowd."

As usual, U.S. skiers did not fare particularly well by international standards. Luke Bodensteiner of West Bend, Wis., was the first American, finishing 36th in 1:20:13.0.

John Aalberg of Salt Lake City, a native Norwegian who became an American citizen before the Albertville Games, was 44th. Swenson, of North Conway, N.H., was 46th, and Marcus Nash of Fryeburg, Me., was 66th among 72 finishers.

If two entrepreneurs have their way, the king of beers may soon be making way for the president of beers.

Billary Beer, named for Bill and Hillary Clinton, is elbowing in here on a crowded market dominated by self-proclaimed "king of beers" Budweiser.

Presidential Bottlers' co-founders say their beer is made from "Bill barley and Hillary hops mixed with slightly tainted Whitewater water . . . "

President Carter's brother Billy also had the distinction of having a beer named after him -- "Billy Beer."

You gotta have a cookie.

Now!

One with chips big enough to satisfy this urge for chocolate that is making you crazy. Should you or shouldn't you?

When a craving is this intense, enjoy, say some researchers. Indulging occasionally might satisfy you enough to stay on the nutritional straight-and-narrow the rest of the time.

Whoa, say others who counter that a little willpower is what's needed: Eating a nutritious, low-fat diet can reduce and even eliminate cravings.

Then there's the all-in-your-head approach: Rescript your mental image of craved foods to make them seem less appetizing.

*

The Chemical Connection: When certain brain chemicals increase, so do cravings, according to Sarah Leibowitz, a neurobiologist at Rockefeller University in New York, who has studied the effects of some brain chemicals on animals' appetites. High levels of a chemical called neuropeptide Y increase urges for carbohydrates, she says, while high levels of galanin make the animals choose fat-filled foods.

A taste for carbohydrates is highest in the morning, she says, while urges for fatty foods increase throughout the day, often peaking around dinner time. She says that is probably true for animals as well as people -- although abundant human data is lacking.

Another researcher, Adam Drewnowski, professor and director of the Human Nutrition Program at the University of Michigan, agrees that a variety of brain chemicals can trigger cravings. But for humans, he says, there are other factors that also influence what foods you crave.

Physiological factors such as pain, along with psychological factors such as depression, can bring on cravings, he says. Cultural and socioeconomic factors can come into play too. Consider the change in dietary habits in Japan, which has undergone drastic Westernization. "Fat intake there has tripled in the last 25 years," he says. "But I am assuming their galanin levels have not tripled."

Food cravings often occur in response to a painful or stressful situation, Drewnowski says. "Sugar and fat may act as natural analgesics."

Some cravings are strongly tied to habit: You always eat popcorn dripping in butter at the movies.

*

The Gender Differences: Women tend to crave more often than men, Drewnowski has also found, although he does not know why. Women are likely to crave foods filled with fat and sugar, such as candy and cookies. Men are apt to want foods high in protein, fat and salt -- like a juicy steak.

*

Wishing Away Those Cravings: Never mind those brain chemicals or life's stresses. The trick to controlling your cravings, says Linda Tatum, a Beverly Hills hypnotherapist, is to teach yourself to regard foods you crave as neutral or, better yet, unappetizing.

She asks clients with cravings to visualize the object of their desire -- say, a chocolate chip cookie -- on a large screen. Then she interrogates them about their mental image. Is the cookie in color? In a frame or free-floating? How does it smell? Is it on a plate? In clear focus?

Once that mental picture is firmly implanted, she asks the same questions about a food the client loathes -- say, cottage cheese. "In every case, something is different," she says. A cookie is likely to be pictured in mouth-watering color; cottage cheese in unappetizing black-and-white.

Next, clients learn to transpose mental pictures of the unappetizing food to the irresistible food: to see the cookie in black and white, for starters.

*

The Nutritious Approach: Eating right can reduce or eliminate cravings, others say. "If you are providing your body with optimal nutrients, you should not be experiencing cravings," says Diane Grabowski, a dietitian and nutrition educator at the Pritikin Longevity Center, Santa Monica, where the menu emphasizes very low-fat diets.

Concentrate on eating a diet with about 75% carbohydrates, 15% protein and 10% fats, Grabowski says, and your body won't want sugary, fried or fatty foods. She emphasizes eating carbohydrates that are unrefined -- apples instead of apple juice, for instance. Those who switch to a low-fat, balanced diet and eat frequently -- six mini-meals a day -- can expect cravings to disappear within a week, she says.

*

The Long View: Drewnowski acknowledges that some people -- but very few -- seem to adapt to low-fat diets without cheating, but if you're not one of them, an occasional indulgence might actually keep you healthier in the long run.

"Women who go on severe diets (with little fat or sugar) appear to be at greater risk of alcohol and drug use," he says, citing preliminary results of a current study.

Someday, drug treatments might target overwhelming cravings by normalizing levels of brain chemicals associated with them. Meanwhile, depriving yourself too much might have adverse long-term consequences, Drewnowski says.

Francis Crick wants to know where "you" live. He isn't interested in the name of your street, nor in the color of your skin, nor even in the nature of your genes, which he, along with James Watson, helped discover in the 1950s.

His "Astonishing Hypothesis" is that "you -- your joys and your sorrows, your memories and your ambitions, your sense of personal identity and free will -- are in fact no more than the behavior of a vast assembly of nerve cells and their associated molecules."

And he wants to know the precise location in your pudding-textured brain of the cells that assemble "you."

Truth be told, while most of us are not likely to warm to the hypothesis that we are little more than pudding, few scientists today would call it astonishing.

Descartes' dualist theory of a separate mind and body began unraveling in the Renaissance, when physicians realized that such earthly afflictions as strokes could radically alter the spirit. It has all but collapsed in recent years, as scanning technologies with such spunky acronyms as PET and SQUIDs have localized the brain metabolisms that lead to feelings like sorrow and joy.

Nevertheless, it's one thing to localize and another to understand, and the hard truth is that even persevering and punctilious researchers like Crick have so far been unable to find a central core of being.

Neuroscientific thinkers seemed able to contain their frustration until 1991, when an audacious philosopher named Daniel Dennett published a book called "Consciousness Explained" (Little, Brown), in which he argued that there was no such core, no "homunculus" or "little man in the brain" who dutifully assembles our sense of self.

The book managed to directly insult Crick, who goes on in these pages to attack Dennett and other leading consciousness theorists, from Roger Penrose ("The Emperor's New Mind," Penguin, 1989) to Gerald Edelman. In turn, Edelman, in his 1992 book "Bright Air, Brilliant Fire" (Basic) has criticized Crick, scoffed at Dennett ("His is not a theory of consciousness") and dismissed Penrose: "He's in over his head."

The battles seem less evocative of the elegant Salk Institute in La Jolla, where Crick works by the sea in an office designed by Louis I. Kahn, than of a place several miles south: the Primate Wing of the San Diego Zoo. And no wonder, for it can be argued that since cerebralism makes humans Top Primates, the person who comes to understand that cerebralism gets to be the Top Primate.

As in most battles, though, the warriors turn out to hold views that are more similar than they care to admit.

Crick begins this book by staking out a position antithetical to Dennett's: "There must be structures or operations in the brain that in some mysterious way behave as if they correspond somewhat to the mental picture of the homunculus."

But he ends by endorsing a notion similar to Dennett's "Multiple Drafts Model of Consciousness," wherein there is no single homunculus.

*

Similarly, probably out of annoyance at the legions of glib popularizers who analogize the brain to a computer, Crick snaps that "a brain does not look even a little bit like a general-purpose computer." But he ends up contending that computer-simulated "neural networks," while "far removed from the complexities of the brain," may indeed provide the key to understanding the brain's behavior.

(As Isaac Asimov pointed out in a 1967 article, computers are "far removed" from the brain largely because they are less complex: A modern, neural-networked computer may have fewer than 20,000 on-off connections, for instance, whereas the brain has about 100 billion cells with 100,000 billion highly complex connections.)

So if the ideological differences between Crick, Dennett and others are not dramatic, then why are their battles so heated? Because there is little agreement on where neuroscience should go from here.

At one end of the spectrum stand wildly speculative theorists such as Penrose, who says the answers may lie in physics. Crick's criticism of Penrose is unsparing but accurate: "At bottom, his argument is that quantum gravity is mysterious and consciousness is mysterious and wouldn't it be wonderful if one explained the other."

At the other end of the spectrum are researcher's researchers, such as Crick. Crick's description in these pages of a more scientific approach to studying consciousness -- one that attempts to connect today's billowing, abstract theorizing to hard chemical evidence -- may prove daunting to some lay readers. But Crick himself is never intimidating.

On the contrary. Arguing that science cannot progress without laypeople like you and me asking basic, even stupid questions, he begins one chapter with this quote from economist Vilfredo Pareto:

"Give me a fruitful error any time, full of seeds, bursting with its own corrections. You can keep your sterile truths for yourself."

Is it possible for an exhibition to fully coax forth the sources of a painter's compelling imagery? Can the mysterious soup of thought, feeling and accident that meld in making a work of art really be laid out? Can a show truly burrow inside an artist's head?

The answer of course is no. Some things are finally impenetrable.

Yet, a marvelously engaging exhibition that opened Sunday at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art comes as close as is likely possible to accomplishing that formidable feat. Beginning with a single painting and building outward to encompass both the personal and political history of the artist's life at the moment the picture was made, "Picasso and the Weeping Women: The Years of Marie-Therese Walter and Dora Maar" makes a convincing and unusual contribution to Picasso studies.

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The painting in question is the Spanish artist's "Weeping Woman With a Handkerchief," which he executed on June 26, 1937. It was a gift to LACMA just 18 years later, from Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Mitchell. (He was the erudite character actor who famously played Scarlett O'Hara's father in "Gone With the Wind," won an Academy Award for "Stagecoach" and collected books and art -- Rembrandt, Whistler and Van Gogh among them.) Not the least of the show's achievements is the way it brings the small Picasso to vivid life.

"Weeping Woman With a Handkerchief" has always seemed to be a little gem, but the exhibition frames it in such a way as to reveal it as far superior than otherwise recognized. By the time the show is over, you look at the painting in a new way -- which is to say that now you really look at it.

The canvas is not large -- 21 5/8 by 18 1/8 inches -- but it packs a considerable punch. It shows the bust of a Spanish woman (she wears a mantilla) sobbing into a handkerchief. In just six colors, plus black and white, Picasso created an indelible image of mortal grief.

The bean-shaped head, balancing precariously on the point of a triangular neck, is surrounded by heavy blackness. The resulting sense of compression is enhanced by the flattened forms of the mantilla, whose open weave of lace is paradoxically represented by thick, crisscrossing lines.

The woman's skin is bright white. Her nose and cheek are flushed with hot magenta, her acidic green lips shaded with pale, icy blue. The vivid yellow blouse framing her knotted fingers shrieks against the blackness of the background, while her red-orange hair hums against the complementary greens of the mantilla framing her head.

The sobbing eyes and the handkerchief are marvelous inventions. Thick, black lines stream weightily from the eyes, which are themselves shaped like teardrops. The handkerchief adjacent is a crumpled cloud, which Picasso has muddled with an agitated storm of scribbled pencil lines.

The 1955 gift of the picture was important for LACMA, because the Picasso was a special prize. It was painted within a week or two of the completion of his famous monumental picture of the brutal fascist bombing of the Spanish town of Guernica, a picture to which the small canvas bears an obvious relationship.

As the exhibition further demonstrates, for the first time, it also represents the resolution of an important theme that had absorbed Picasso in the months leading up to "Guernica" and that preoccupied him for several months after.

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Almost never did Picasso paint faces that portrayed intensely descriptive emotion. The series of weeping women, which appear in about 60 drawings, prints and paintings throughout 1937, are an anomaly. Where did they come from?

The show's organizer, Judi Freeman, convincingly shows how the intersection of political events, represented by the Spanish civil war, and of personal relationships, in the artist's notoriously tangled romantic life, conspired to give us these remarkable pictorial essays on human sorrow.

And with a gentle swipe at the admittedly insightful "boy's club" of scholars who dominate Picasso studies, the show's fine catalogue suggests that their admiring identification with the artist has kept them from seeing the unusual significance of the pictures of weeping women.

The show is divided into galleries with portraits of each of the principal women then in Picasso's romantic life. (There were also a few passing affairs.) He was estranged from his wife, Russian ballet dancer Olga Koklova. He was growing tired of his mistress, Marie-Therese Walter. And he was embarking on a new liaison with Surrealist photographer Dora Maar, who helped him to create "Guernica."

The political trauma of the Spanish civil war, in which the devastation of the Basque town was not unlike that in Sarajevo today, is necessarily represented by reproductions because "Guernica" cannot travel. A photograph (to scale) of Picasso's monumental painting, and of a dozen studies for figures in the mural, is accompanied by an eight-minute, unfinished documentary film, commissioned in 1949 from the legendary director of "Nanook of the North," Robert Flaherty.

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The photo-mural and the film flank a gallery with four drawings, seven prints and six paintings of weeping women. Although no weeping women are in the final version of "Guernica," the relationship between the mural and the smaller pictures is plain to see.

So is their connection to the forms employed in his portraits: the sharp, angular, skull-like heads of the bitterly estranged Koklova; the sumptuously erotic, organic images of Walter; the keen-eyed intelligence of Maar. Personal passions merge with political ones in the weeping women, in a manner unique in all of Picasso's oeuvre . And LACMA's picture is where those conflicted passions are initially resolved.

The show is of further significance because museums regularly pay empty lip service to the idea of exhibitions that illuminate their own collections. Like 1989's "The Dada and Surrealist Word-Image," also organized by Freeman at LACMA, and which examined the historical context for the museum's famous Magritte masterpiece, "This Is Not a Pipe," this one actually does it -- and brilliantly.

Freeman, who until last summer was a LACMA curator and is now in that post at the Portland (Maine) Museum of Art, has assembled 36 works to tell her story. Among them is the "Weeping Woman" from London's Tate Gallery, the greatest of the series, to which LACMA's runs a close second. The presentation may not be huge, but it's more absorbing than any number of museum exhibitions twice its size.

* LACMA, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., (213) 857-6000, through May 1. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

POP/ROCK

Jackson Testifies in 'Dangerous' Case: Michael Jackson took the witness stand at the Denver Federal Courthouse on Monday, singing parts of his song "Dangerous" and testifying that he wrote its melody and lyrics. Jackson's 50 minutes of testimony in the latest of his legal battles came as part of a trial resulting from Denver songwriter Crystal Cartier's $25-million lawsuit claiming that Jackson stole "Dangerous" from her and infringed on her copyright. Jackson testified that he wrote the lyrics for "Dangerous" while sitting in the dark and listening to the bass track of another of his songs, "Street Walker." Cartier, 38, claims she had sent Jackson a tape recording of her song of the same name before he first recorded "Dangerous" in September 1990. The song later became the title track for Jackson's 1992 album, which sold 14 million copies. Jackson testified that he doesn't listen to unsolicited tapes "because of the danger involved, like this situation."

* Streisand Tour Confirmed, but No Dates: Barbra Streisand has confirmed plans for her first international concert tour covering 12 cities in the United States and Europe. The much-anticipated tour, which will begin in mid-April, is expected to include Los Angeles, although sites and dates are still to be revealed. Streisand's New Year's concerts in Las Vegas marked her first paid shows in 27 years. The singer's spokesman said the "partial" tour confirmation was necessitated by "a swirl of misinformation," including "fallacious" overseas dates. TELEVISION

CBS Gets Best Olympics Ratings Ever: CBS Sports' Sunday-night broadcast of the Olympic Winter Games from Lillehammer, Norway, had the largest audience ever for a single night of Olympics coverage -- winter or summer. The network drew an estimated 41% of available viewing homes from 8 to 11 p.m., with an estimated 82 million people watching all or part of the Olympic coverage in 27.5 million U.S. homes. CBS' rating was 24% higher than the first Sunday night of the 1992 Winter Games.

* 'Gaby' Premiere Date Set: Child star Gaby Hoffmann of the films "Sleepless in Seattle" and "This Is My Life" will have her own comedy series. "Gaby" premieres on NBC at 8:30 p.m. March 14. The placement of the show, about a bright, opinionated 11-year-old who confronts a series of contemporary problems, will cause the network's teen hit "Blossom," starring Mayim Bialik, to move to Saturdays at 8 p.m., where it will be followed by "The Mommies" in a new 8:30 p.m. time period.

* People's Choice Nods: "Home Improvement," "Roseanne" and "Seinfeld" will vie for the "Favorite TV Comedy Series" and "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman," "NYPD Blue" and "Picket Fences" will compete for the same honor in the TV drama category when the 20th Annual People's Choice Awards airs on CBS March 8 with Paul Reiser as host. The awards include 18 TV, film and music categories, voted on by a sampling of the American public. Among other nominees, "Jurassic Park," "Mrs. Doubtfire" and "The Firm" will vie for favorite film.

* 'Flintstones' Pilot Premiere, 30 Years Later: The never-before-seen pilot for TV's first prime-time animated series, "The Flintstones," will premiere May 7 on cable's Cartoon Network. Called "Flagstones, Meet the Flagstones?!" the 1-minute, 45-second piece provides the animated debut of Fred and Wilma, with some different visual characterizations and voices. The clip, which had been rumored to exist for more than 30 years, surfaced last summer when Hanna-Barbera Cartoons commissioned film detectives to search storage facilities on three continents to locate the original 35mm opening and closing sequence of "The Flintstones." THE ARTS

Emergency Fund Broadened: California cultural institutions that were damaged in the Jan. 17 earthquake will be included under an emergency fund established last summer by the National Endowment for the Humanities to aid flood-damaged Midwestern libraries, archives and museums. Institutions from both areas will compete for a total of $1 million and may apply through July 31 for grants of up to $30,000 to help preserve cultural collections. SHAUNA SNOW

A good portion of Bobby Vinton's repertoire at the Long Beach Terrace Theatre on Sunday afternoon made it strikingly clear why we needed Lennon & McCartney in the '60s.

Making a rare Los Angeles appearance, the king of early rock love songs worked through such Top 40 chestnuts as "Roses Are Red," "Blue on Blue," "Tell Me Why" and "Blue Velvet."The overflow audience clearly must have adored Vinton in the '60s, and they adored every minute of this performance as well.

But what was most appealing about Vinton was not his re-creation of puppy-love hit tunes -- which he seemed willing to dispense with fairly quickly -- but his poise as a complete entertainer. Filled with energy and high spirits, constantly in movement, interacting amiably with his audience, Vinton almost produced a convincing presentation with his engaging personality, even for the few skeptics in the crowd.

The opening act was Reunion -- actually a Lettermen revival group featuring Jim Pike and Bob Engemann from the best-known version of the trio, joined by Ric de Azevedo of the King Family vocal ensemble. As with Vinton, the Valentine's Day love-song theme dominated in their affable readings of familiar Lettermen hits. DON HECKMAN

British guitarist Ronny Jordan, whose mix of straight-ahead jazz, pop, R&B and hip-hop is earning him a solid following, knows how to heat up an audience. His septet's sold-out show on Friday at the Troubadour was built around numbers that sizzled.

Jordan, 31, delivers a dandy, luminous tone a la Wes Montgomery and ushers in his lines with plenty of rhythmic whammy. He scored with a no-nonsense version of "My Favorite Things," and a dashing romp through "Blues-grinder," where he cranked out one steaming idea after another.

"Get to Grips" and "Season for Change," featuring rapper Radical MC, were effective, as was the coupling of the rousing "Come to Me" with a hip-hop take on "So What." On these numbers, his band gave him exuberant, if overly loud, support.

But Jordan's show faltered when he dropped in such mushy, mired-in-pop/jazz ditties as "Show Me" and "Tinsel Town," which paled in comparison to his other material. Jordan also plays Tuesday at Ole Madrid in San Diego.

Guitarist Charlie Hunter, who does a swell job of playing bass lines while he simultaneously knocks out a solo, opened for Jordan. Hunter, vigorous tenor saxophonist David Ellis and spiffy drummer Jay Lane were first rate, offering a five-tune set of smart and lively jazz-meets-alternative-rock originals. ZAN STEWART

Some great performers take their listeners on spiritual odysseys, all the while enlightening them, challenging them, invigorating them.

Sunday, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, violinist Itzhak Perlman took his listeners for a stroll around the block. Everything was familiar, comfortable, friendly. Neither arduous music nor arduous music-making blotched the atmosphere of peace and tranquillity in Mr. Perlman's neighborhood. He should have worn a cardigan, not a tux.

Beethoven's congenial Sonata No. 8 in G, Schumann's urgent Sonata No. 1 in A minor (congenial in Perlman's hands) and, a rarity, Stravinsky's Divertimento, based on music from "The Fairy's Kiss" (Stravinsky at his easiest), made up the printed agenda.

But it was when Perlman brought out a stack of music at encore time that the audience went into rapture, and when Perlman played some of it he seemed at his best. Here, in two Kreisler transcriptions, a Heifetz transcription, in Elgar's "Salut d'amour" and Saint-Saens' Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, musician and music were in perfect harmony.

Earlier, things proved less convincing. The 48-year-old violinist gave the Beethoven sonata the easy once-through, slighting its contrasts, smoothing out its playfulness. The giddy finale refused to take off, thanks to some less-than-stellar ensemble work between Perlman and his accompanist, Janet Goodman Guggenheim.

Schumann's lofty music sounded pleasant and earthbound, with Perlman offering all-purpose richness and lyricism yet little sense of the longer line, and a sometimes resourceful Guggenheim, the piano lid almost closed, too often settling for a supporting role.

Stravinsky's Divertimento found Perlman apparently more involved, lending its Tchaikovsky tunes a gentle warmth and curve, its Stravinskian rhythms a bounciness and light drive. Here, the ease of his technique added to the charm of the music.

He revealed the full sugar content of his encores, sparkled gracefully in the virtuoso bits, offered some mild quips in between and earned an instant standing ovation for the fluffiest of the fluff, the Saint-Saens standby. Almost everyone seemed satisfied. TIMOTHY MANGAN

The third annual International Jazz Party, held Saturday and Sunday at the Biltmore's Grand Avenue Bar, followed the pattern of its predecessors. Japanese musicians alternated with Americans and occasionally played alongside them.

Eiji Kitamura, the clarinet virtuoso, was again the principal visitor, playing mostly traditional swing-era songs. His technique seemingly improved with age, he conjured up a head of steamy excitement with a solo of Benny Goodman-like virtuosity on "The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise."

Top honors Saturday went to Bruce Foreman, a guitarist from San Francisco graced with phenomenal fluency, who teamed with the more conventional but empathetic Yoshiaki Miyanou. Their guitar duets brought out the best in both players.

Foreman appeared again Sunday in a pleasant collaboration with tenor sax-player Scott Hamilton. They were followed by an all-Japanese group with agreeable but derivative piano by Kotaro Tsukuhara, drummer Sabao Watanabe and bassist Sammy Asami.

The Sunday evening session came to a roaring climax with Bill Berry's band. With Berry conducting, playing an occasional cornet solo and contributing a colorfully textured original, the band succeeded in areas tackled less successfully last week by the Lincoln Center Orchestra.

Both bands leaned heavily on Ellington material, but Berry's musicians have a more natural feeling for it. Only in the closing "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue" did they fall momentarily short, when Scott Hamilton's tenor sax failed to generate the kind of passion created last week by Joshua Redman with the New York ensemble.

Almost everyone in the Berry band had significant spotlight time, most notably such regulars as Marshal Royal, Ross Tompkins, Snooky Young and Frank Capp. Other members included Supersax singers Ernie Andrews and Polly Podewell, pianist Gerry Wiggins, bassist John Clayton and drummer Gregg Field. LEONARD FEATHER

So, you have an 8-year-old who loves center stage? A yen to tread the boards yourself? Children, moms and dads are invited to pick up some acting basics from professional actors in two free "Master Classes" offered by the Great American Children's Theatre of Wisconsin at the central Los Angeles Public Library's KLOS Story Theatre this Saturday and next from 10 to 11 a.m.

In town for its L.A. tour of the L.M. Montgomery classic "Anne of Green Gables" at the Wilshire Theatre in Beverly Hills, Wednesday through Feb. 27, the theater company's cast members will present the free classes as part of a pilot program to promote learning through reading and the performing arts. Since space is limited, the classes are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Information: (800) 852-9772.

Classics for Kids: If Beethoven and Brahms are the ticket, check out "A World of Music," a child-sized classical concert/workshop for ages 4 and up at Kidspace Museum in Pasadena twice on Sunday. Pianist Polli Chambers Sazar will play excerpts from Chopin, Scarlatti, Rachmaninoff, Beethoven and other composers as part of two interactive music workshops at 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. Children participate through discussion and movement. Free with museum admission. Information: (818) 449-9144.

They're Not Kidding Around: Talk about an early career boost. At ages 9 to 13, the newest deejays at Radio AAHS' 24-hour children's radio station KPLS-AM (830), fit right into the station's target audience of 2- to 12-year-olds. Ashley McCormick, David Harris, Kyle Ellison, Mara Stringfield and Jennifer Gonzalez are the new stars of the all-kids show, "AirForce Kids," airing from 2 to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. Playing music, reporting on sports, entertainment, education and the environment, the five were chosen from 150 applicants in December for their writing ability and presentation skills. Besides "age-appropriate music," listeners will hear critiques of books, computer software, music and movies, plus celebrity gossip, interviews and nature news. And, yes, although the budding broadcasters won't be socking away a fortune, they do get paid.

Currently on its sixth North American tour, the Peking Acrobats performed in Pasadena Civic Auditorium on Sunday. As usual, the company members were listed but not specifically identified in the house program, and the souvenir booklet on sale in the lobby featured a different generation of performers doing different tricks.

The latest tour showcases very young Peking Acrobats (seven women, 15 men as listed) who wear lots of glamour makeup, make lots of mistakes in their routines and seem to be evolving toward a freer, more mobile virtuosity.

For instance, there's been a major change in the traditional pagoda-of-chairs. Normally, as you'll recall, furniture is stacked on the floor or a platform until the pile reaches the top of the proscenium. Then somebody does handstands off the highest point.

Not anymore. These days, all those chairs -- plus a bench and the youth handstanding on top of it -- balance on a tiny platform on a pole that a hunkier youth manages to support on his head. No hands. Not even when he climbs a ladder to walk on a giant moving ball.

You like Chinese dancing lions with two performers inside each costume? The latest pride can do backflips off high platforms and roll up-and-over teeter-totters with gymnasts balanced on their backs.

Early in Act II, male gymnasts dive through a four-level wall of wooden hoops -- brilliant at mid-air contortions, sudden changes of direction and unpredictable linkups with their colleagues. Toward the end of the program, however, they become the hoops, forming a high, human Great Wall of China that provides both apertures for others to dive through and balconies off which the women hang in the air and spin.

So it goes: an ancient ribbon-dance performed atop a high pole with the dancer hanging by her teeth. A contortionist balanced on the outstretched arms of a gymnast. New variants on familiar displays of dexterity with whips, flying ceramic bowls, spinning ropes, hanging straps, tiers of glasses, uni- and bicycles. Plus a 9-year-old boy impersonating the Peking Opera Monkey King.

Better keep an eye on that kid: No telling what new feats his generation has in store. LEWIS SEGAL

"Quit India!"

More than half a century ago, with the Japanese army advancing toward the Indian frontier and seemingly unstoppable, Mohandas K. Gandhi, the "Great Soul," launched the call for the British to leave his country, immediately and unconditionally. His target was the injustice and humiliation of colonialism.

Now a coalition of alarmed Indian socialists has dusted off his slogan and his tactics of nonviolent protest to battle a more recent foreign foe: "cola-onalism," the fizzy, ubiquitous drinks made by Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

"These are the two most aggressive agencies of pushing in what I consider American culture. That includes a lot of things, from junk food to Madonna to Michael Jackson," said George Fernandes, a former minister, labor organizer and leader of the Janata Dal party.

Unless the soft-drink giants leave India voluntarily by the month's end, starting March 1 their bottling plants and retail outlets will be picketed and trucks carrying their products will be blocked, Fernandes announced on behalf of Samajwadi Abhiyan, an umbrella alliance of socialists.

Fernandes, responsible for driving Coke out of the Indian market in 1977 (Coke returned last fall), claimed that movement organizers can count on the support of 200,000 nationalist students in universities in the New Delhi area, as well as "millions" worried that jobs in Indian enterprises are in jeopardy.

Those forecasts seem preposterous.

But regardless of how many people lie down in front of delivery vans or agree to boycott Coke and Pepsi, the "quit India" campaign, freighted with the symbols and strategy of the fight against imperialism, is a reminder of how touchy some Indian leaders and intellectuals still are about foreign penetration of their once nearly hermetically sealed economy.

"The world has changed in 50 years,"' objected P. M. Sinha, managing director of Pepsi Foods Ltd., who claims that Fernandes and his backers just haven't kept up. "The country today exists in a new environment of global integration."

Pepsi, he said, will stand pat.

"Quit India" redux may be one of the last gasps of the ideal of a self-sufficient, import-free India minted in the heyday of Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister.

For the last year, a new, more open India attracted more foreign investment than during the whole of the 1980s. American, as well as European and Japanese, companies are arriving en masse. Many will watch the anti-cola campaign to see whether the old slogans have any life left.

The experiences of Cargill, the U.S. grain-trading dynasty, indicate that, at least in some economic sectors or regions, foreigners may be in for a bumpy ride.

The Minneapolis-based company, one of America's largest privately held corporations, sells hybrid sunflower and corn seed in India; in December, 1992, hundreds of militants attacked its office in Bangalore, looted the seedlings and computer records and tossed them in a bonfire outside, said Cargill's India general manager, Raza Hasnain. Last July, a mob was back, laying waste to sections of a seed-processing plant under construction.

Cargill was targeted because of a provision in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, then being debated, that allowed the patenting of new strains of seeds. Fernandes warned at the time that multinationals like Cargill "will hook farmers to their products, then raise prices. In the process, our agricultural base will collapse."

Despite the destruction, Cargill says that it still intends to do business in India. "Neither attack has deterred us from our initial intentions: We're here to serve the Indian farmer," said Hasnain, whose office is now guarded by a security agent armed with a double-barreled shotgun.

Fernandes, who also tangled with Cargill over its proposal to create a giant coastal salt farm, says his concerns are economic. In an interview in the white-washed Delhi bungalow that serves as his command post, the bespectacled lawmaker claimed that over the next three years, Coke and Pepsi combined would siphon almost half a billion dollars in royalties and profits out of India. That sum, he said, would be enough to pay for the construction of 600 miles of broad-gauge railroad and to employ 30,000 people to run it.

"This is a country where four-fifths of the villages are without potable drinking water," Fernandes said. "The law of the market cannot be allowed to operate."

Although his party's clout has waned, Fernandes knows that soft-drink companies pay attention when he speaks. As minister of industry in the Janata Dal government in 1977, he demanded that Coca-Cola turn over a majority share of its holdings and reveal its secret formula if it wanted to continue doing business in India. Instead, Coke left.

The world's most popular soft drink returned to the Indian market last October, opening a bottling plant in a dusty little industrial town near Agra, site of the fabled Taj Mahal. That, and the Coke garden umbrellas that have sprouted in eateries near the Taj, is an unmistakable sign that the country that had battled imports to the point of developing domestic alternatives to Coke -- Campa Cola and Thums Up -- has changed.

To secure a launch pad in the Indian market, Coke entered into a $70-million "strategic alliance" with the maker of Thums Up, an Indian drinks manufacturer named Parle that boasted a 60% market share. Business insiders say the deal is a barely disguised takeover by Coke. Pepsi, meanwhile, has seized 24% of India's cola trade.

Pepsi naturally rejects the socialists' line of reasoning and arithmetic. It entered the Indian market three years ago, subject to a raft of government restrictions (including the addition of the Hindi word for wave, lehar, to its brand name). Its executives say that far from sucking money out of India, they are enriching it.

"In three years, we have grown to be one of the largest exporters; in the next five years, we should be one of the top five," said Sinha, the Pepsi manager. "As of today, we have almost brought in $50 million in foreign exchange. I don't think that in the next 10 years a single cent will go out of this country. We are now in an investment phase."

In Madras, Pepsi is building a $27-million plant to manufacture plastic bottles. The company just received a $20-million order to ship returnable glass bottles to the Persian Gulf. Pepsi also plans to open Kentucky Fried Chicken and Pizza Hut restaurants, thereby creating more Indian jobs, Sinha said.

The cola merchants look upon India with unconcealed ambition because of its growth potential. Soft-drink consumption averages a paltry three bottles per capita each year, compared to a reported 750 in the United States and more than 1,100 in Mexico.

Fernandes says that India already has its own colas and that foreign concoctions are really no different, so India isn't getting any advanced foreign technology in return for permitting market access.

In a larger sense, he is concerned about India as it exists today -- a country where vast private wealth and 60% illiteracy and widespread poverty coexist. "Unless there is a return to Gandhi, we are lost," he said.

Last year, Fernandes and his followers dusted off another Gandhian action -- the famed "salt march" staged by the Indian nationalist in 1930 to protest the British government monopoly on salt -- and used it against another Cargill project.

Depending on whom one listens to, the campaign worked, or it didn't. Cargill wanted to build a salt works in the Gujarati port of Kandla and promised the Indian government to export its entire 1-million ton annual output of industrial salt. The government gave its approval.

"Their plant would have meant massive unemployment in the salt sector, where 150,000 Indians are employed," Fernandes claimed, disputing Cargill's contention that it would not produce for the domestic market. He launched a civil disobedience movement he says mobilized 20,000 people in Uttar Pradesh state alone.

Hasnain acknowledges that Fernandes did slow the project. But there were other factors, he said, including suspicions by some Indians of CIA involvement. The clincher proved to be the economic downturn experienced by Japan, the plant's target market. When it became clear that Japan wouldn't be able to absorb an additional million tons of industrial salt, Hasnain said, Cargill shelved the idea, at least for now.

Pondering the arguments of socialists like Fernandes, India-born Hasnain rejects them as having failed miserably. "Our umbilical cord always was to the Soviet Union. We regarded foreign investment as an enemy. And look where we are today," the Cargill executive said. "In 1960, South Korea and India had the same gross domestic product per capita. Today, South Korea's is 10 times higher."

Presidents Carlos Saul Menem of Argentina and Patricio Aylwin of Chile officially open a new pipeline today that will carry Argentine petroleum over the Andes to the Chilean port of San Vicente, near Concepcion.

The 260-mile-long, $230-million line, built in 15 months, provides an important outlet for the oil fields of Argentina's southern Neuquen province and low-cost transportation for Chilean oil imports. Argentina produced more than 200 million barrels of oil in 1993, exporting about 20% of it. Chile imports most of its petroleum; its national production has fallen by about 40% in the past 15 years.

After opening the spigots, Menem and Aylwin will fly to Concepcion for further ceremonies and meetings.

The General Synod of the Church of England convenes next Tuesday to give expected final approval to and write into canon law the controversial ordination of female priests.

Of the 31 Anglican provinces worldwide, 12 already ordain women -- including those in the United States. But the issue has prompted an outcry in England, making it perhaps the most divisive since the establishment of the church more than four centuries ago.

Leading prelates have argued that the move clashes with English church tradition, and some have taken drastic measures. Preliminary approval has resulted in several prominent Anglican prelates seeking acceptance within the Roman Catholic Church, which still bans female priests.

British Prime Minister John Major meets today in Moscow with Russian President Boris Yeltsin for talks centered on the West's involvement in the Bosnia-Herzegovina crisis.

Accompanied by Foreign Minister Douglas Hurd, Major is expected to assure the Russians that the Western powers do not intend to become deeply embroiled in the military situation around Sarajevo. Aides in London say the British leader will try to persuade Yeltsin that the NATO decision to threaten air strikes against Bosnian Serb forces around the embattled city was justified and to seek Russian support as a step toward resolving the crisis. The Russians have supported the Serbs, who are fellow Slavs, in the conflict.

Life is good for Myriam Gerard, Alain Dubois and their little family.

With two incomes, they net $3,500 every month, own their own home in the city that calls itself the capital of Europe and enjoy the benefits of Belgium's liberal welfare democracy -- the 13th-month salary (an extra month's pay each year), the 14th-month salary (a second extra month's salary each year minus 15%), automatic inflation-indexed pay increases, a company car, free gasoline, a gift from the state of $850 for the birth of each child, subsequent child benefits, food stamps and, of course, six weeks annual vacation, heavily subsidized medical care and the security of a generous state pension.

Fifty miles west of the Gerard-Dubois home, in the small Flemish town of Lembeke, Karel Boone finds the going tougher. He struggles to keep his family-owned cookie business from sinking under wage costs that he says have gone out of control. "If this doesn't change, there's going to be a catastrophe in our country," he said.

Back in Brussels, Jan Smets, who heads the Belgian government's Cabinet office, sits in a room a few doors down from Prime Minister Jean-Luc Dehaene and mulls the problem of how to rein in a national debt that in relative terms is already more than twice that of the United States and growing fast.

The Gerard-Dubois benefits, Boone's struggle and Smets' dilemma are all part of a painful reality that has spread far beyond the borders of this tidy little nation to afflict virtually all the democracies of Western Europe: The tax-supported welfare states that have anchored the region since World War II can no longer be sustained. That realization is making political waves that have washed into the streets.

While the deepest recession in decades has played its part, the crisis that grips Western Europe's social democracies goes far deeper than any economic downturn.

Instead, the difficulties lie in the worrisome structure of the welfare state and intractable problems such as rapidly aging populations, a large and growing army of long-term, hard-core unemployed and spiraling health care costs. All have increasingly sucked up resources, driving the welfare bill to untenable levels. Traditional sources of funding such as payroll taxes can no longer bear the load. Wage costs in the region have gone so high that they are beginning to price Western Europeans out of competitive world markets.

The fall of the Iron Curtain just over four years ago was the final straw, unleashing a new flow of immigration that has swamped already strained Western welfare systems and placing an array of cheap industrial goods at Western Europe's doorstep.

"We've reached the top of the flagpole," former Economics Minister Otto Graf Lambsdorff of Germany warned his country's Parliament in a speech last year. He called Germany's network of social benefits "too expensive, too inflexible, too static, insufficiently entrepreneurial and dynamic."

Although his comment was directed at Germany, it was valid for the entire region.

"We've hit the peak; we're looking at the downhill side," Tony Vandeputte, chief executive officer of the Federation of Belgian Enterprises, said in an interview. "Even within the trade unions and elsewhere on the political left, people are aware that dramatic changes are needed."

For Western Europe, the idea of questioning the welfare state is an emotional process that represents far more than a discussion on how to resolve an economic crisis. The debate touches the very foundation on which the Western Europeans have built their post-World War II social order.

The region's generous welfare systems have not only erased poverty as a social blight, they have provided the glue of social cohesion and stability. And during the postwar decades, these social safety nets have become a part of a collective identity, one that Western Europeans believe sets them apart from industrial societies in America and Asia. (Belgian official Smets, for example, in trying to explain his country's basic commitment to the welfare state, spoke of "the very European idea of solidarity.")

Western Europeans have carved out a level of affluence that matches that of most Americans, and they have provided for everyone along the way. That ideal is now cracking under the weight of economic imperatives. The budget cutting has already begun, and the only certainty about the future is that deeper cuts will follow.

Some of the most radical rollbacks so far have come in Sweden -- the nation whose mixture of affluence, welfare and social justice dates from far earlier in the century. Since taking office in late 1991, conservative Prime Minister Carl Bildt has pushed $20 billion in government spending cuts through the Swedish Parliament, reducing maternity and sick leave benefits, introducing small fees for medical services and making citizens contribute to their own pensions.

More fundamentally, the very value of complete, comprehensive welfare as a social good -- once an unquestioned given -- is undergoing a rethink. A report published last year by the Swedish Ministry of Finance drew a troubling conclusion:

"What was considered as a central achievement of the Swedish welfare state only a couple of decades ago is now being evaluated differently. Costs have skyrocketed, while effects on economic growth . . . have been increasingly detrimental."

*

A reduced work ethic characterized by alarmingly high absenteeism, an unemployment rate that has increased sixfold in five years and the industrialized world's highest per capita budget deficit all helped contribute to this conclusion, as did the country's sharply reduced growth over the last two decades.

The re-evaluation in Sweden has been an important signal for Europe psychologically, because it served as a model to many of the war-torn nations of Western Europe in the late 1940s and early 1950s as they searched for new vision in a post-fascist era. It was from Sweden, for example, that influential leaders such as Germany's Willy Brandt and Austria's Bruno Kreisky carried home new political ideas gathered during their wartime exile there.

Today, governments throughout the region are following Sweden again -- this time in the politically unpleasant task of taking away what they once gave so generously.

Predictably, the reaction has been intense. Late last year in Germany, steelworkers demonstrated against the abolition of guaranteed lifetime liberal unemployment benefits. (A four-year limit was placed on them instead.) Later, more than 100,000 angry construction workers descended on Bonn to protest a government decision to abolish "bad weather money" -- a government subsidy established during the late 1950s that effectively pays workers even when weather conditions shut down a building site.

Faced with growing budgetary strains, Chancellor Helmut Kohl's government has cut education support, begun to shift health care costs onto the consumer and reduced unemployment insurance. It has yet to confront the implications of an aging population on the country's welfare system. One in every four Germans will be over 65 by the third decade of the next century, decreasing the economically productive percentage of society.

Meanwhile, employers, straining under the costs of benefits they help finance, are telling trade unions the era of big wage hikes has passed. "The idyllic life is over; turbulent years are ahead," the leading German news weekly, Der Spiegel, predicted in its 1993 year-end issue.

The picture is similar elsewhere:

* In France, since his election last May, Prime Minister Eduard Balladur has frozen public service wages, extended the number of working years required to draw a full state pension from 37.5 to 40 years and said he hopes to trim more than $500 million from health care spending this year.

* In Italy, over the next decade, the minimum legal retirement age will be increased by five years to 65 for men and 60 for women as a way of cutting pension costs. But fraud remains rampant, and the government has yet to crack down on a system that is estimated to dole out some form of pension to more than one-third of the population.

* In Spain, which embraced the welfare state wholeheartedly only with the Socialist election victory in the early 1980s, reductions in health care and jobless benefits triggered a national general strike last month.

Many experts believe that the cuts so far represent the beginning, not the end, of a painful, socially sensitive process.

*

The struggle in Belgium is an example with parallels throughout the region. Despite the fact that 47% of the country's national income flows into government coffers, it is no longer enough to finance what over the years has become one of Europe's most comprehensive welfare systems.

For Belgium, the price for this luxury has become the highest national debt (in relative terms) in the industrialized world and a system of financing benefits that many argue has become counterproductive. For example, private-sector employers such as Boone, the man with the cookie business, claim that the costs of welfare benefits are now so high they have become a disincentive to employ new people.

"If I had a new product with a guaranteed market but that product was labor-intensive to make, I would be a fool to launch it here," Boone said.

Even Prime Minister Dehaene's coalition government, which includes a number of Socialist ministers, agrees that wage costs must come down. Last year, Dehaene launched an austerity program that included a wage freeze in real terms, a cut in child benefits, a cap on health care spending and a retroactive tax surcharge.

In an attempt to shift some of the burden of benefits financing away from industry, the government has also agreed to cut business contributions to welfare in half for low-wage employees. It hopes to make up the difference by increasing indirect taxes.

What industrial leader Vandeputte called "a very cautious beginning" -- and the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development dismissed as wholly inadequate -- was nonetheless viewed as a disaster by trade unions. They called Belgium's first general strike in 58 years last November to protest and have vowed to continue the fight.

Little wonder that other politically sensitive areas, such as the extremely high civil service pensions (90% of working salary for the lower-paid employees and 80% for others), remained untouched. "We are going to live through more and more social unrest," predicted Robert Voorham, national secretary of the large FGTB trade union. "The (economic) pressures from Central and Eastern Europe have only just begun."

Voorham agreed that wage costs must drop but insisted that the existing welfare net can -- and must -- be preserved by a combination of new indirect taxes and serious government attempts to cut down on tax fraud. He argued that trimming the welfare state at a time of record unemployment would risk new tensions that could rupture the fragile social peace that exists between Belgium's 5.5 million Dutch-speaking Flemings and its 4.5 million French-speaking Walloons.

"You just can't do that here," he said. "There's too much cultural, nationalistic conflict."

*

Xavier Mabille, director of the Center for Socio-Political Research and Information here, went further, claiming that repeated government calls for more sacrifice run the danger of discrediting the entire political mainstream and driving voters to the extremist right.

"Europe is becoming a powder keg," he said. "The fires have already started in some places."

But not all are so pessimistic.

Indeed, in Denmark, the government has found a new source for financing its expensive welfare system: exporting its expertise. So far, revenues are admittedly modest, but the Danish Social Affairs Ministry has formed a company called Exsos (Export of Social Systems) and landed contracts in eastern Germany for setting up retirement homes for the elderly and in Estonia to assist in building that country's first social security program.

"We're not exporting the level of our welfare--we're selling our know-how," stressed Leif Lytken, the ministry's chief consultant on the venture. "There's a lot of good opportunities out there." Tallying Up the Welfare State The Employer

Gross salary is just part of an employer's cost in Western Europe. Karel Boone, DEO of Corona-Lotus, a medium-sized producer of cakes and cookies in Belgium, provided this braeakdown for an average employee, using the salary as an index equal to q100:

Gross salary: 100

Annual bonus: 11

Social security: 50

Vacation pay: 12

Sick pay: 9

Insurance: 3

Misc.:6

Total cost to employer: 191

*

The Employees

Educator Myriam Gerard a research manager Alain Dubois, a two-income Belgian family, pay a hefty portion of their income to the government, but they get quite a few benefits, too, from both the government and their employers. Here's a monthly rundown:

INCOME

Combined joint net monthly income: $3,508.82.

TAXES

Combined monthly income tax and social security contributions: $2,438.00

BENEFITS

* Additional, year-end, so-called 13th month salary, valued per month: $241.67

* Additional vacation bonus, so-called 14th month salary, valued per month: $233.92

* Subsidized car and gasoline: $588.00

* Child benefits paid by employer: $88.23

* State child benefits: $147.05

* Employer-paid pension contributions: $164.71

TOTAL BENEFITS: $1,463.58 Europe's Economic Malaise Burdensome Debt

Most of Western Europe's social democracies are rolling up huge public debts, in large part caused by costly welfare programs. The United States and Japan also have substantial public debt. * Accumulated public debt as a percentage of gross national product. Belgium: 1995 (forecast): 145% 1980: 69% * Italy: 1995 (forecast): 118% 1980: 62% * Sweden: 1995 (forecast): 91% 1980: 35% * Netherlands: 1995 (forecast): 83% 1980: 40% * Denmark: 1995 (forecast): 72% 1980: 22% * Spain: 1995 (forecast): 66% 1980: 18% * France: 1995 (forecast): 66% 1980: 37% * Germany: 1995 (forecast): 60% 1980: 33% * Britain: 1995 (forecast): 56% 1980: 54% * UNITED STATES: 1995 (forecast): 64% 1980: 38% * Japan: 1995 (forecast): 72% 1980: 52% *

Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development *

*

Generous Benefits Workers' benefits are more extensive in Western Europe than in America or, in most cases, Japan. * Benefits as percentage of total compensation (1992). Belgium: 47% Italy: 52 Sweden: 44 Netherlands: 46 Denmark: 21 Spain: 39 France: 49 Germany: 46 Britain: 32 UNITED STATES: 25 Japan: 25 *

Note: To account for exchange rates, the figures have been rounded off. Source: Assn. of German Industry, Cologne. *

*

Long-Term Unemployment The region's unemployment is structural in nature, and jobless benefits constitute a permanent drag on its economy compared to that in the United States and Japan. *

* Long-term jobless (one year or more) as percentage of total unemployed (1991). Belgium: 62% Italy: 67 Sweden: Not Available Netherlands: 43 Denmark: 31 Spain: 51 France: 37 Germany: 46 Britain: 28 UNITED STATES: 6 Japan: 18 Source: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

President Boris N. Yeltsin is scheduled to give his first Russian version of a State of the Union address on Friday, as required by the country's newly adopted constitution.

Looking for widespread acceptance, he has invited lawmakers from both houses of Parliament, members of his Cabinet, leaders of all the republics in the Russian Federation, foreign ambassadors and the press to hear the speech in the Kremlin's Marble Hall.

The president is expected to lay out his legislative and political agenda for the first time since he crushed a revolt by hard-line lawmakers last October. His administration is taking special pains to cultivate the new Parliament, but early indications suggest that the Duma, or lower house, may prove as hostile to Yeltsin as the Supreme Soviet he dissolved.

Last week's decision by NATO countries to deliver an ultimatum to Bosnian Serb forces heightened the crisis surrounding besieged Sarajevo. Immediately the focus fell on the degree of Serbian compliance under the NATO threat of air strikes and upon the solidarity of the Western forces.

Cartoonists made their judgments, some questioning NATO's determination even as President Clinton declared that the warplanes will attack if the guns are not pulled back from Sarajevo by Monday.

Few people go to Sarajevo to get away from it all, but Turkish Prime Minister Tansu Ciller's recent solidarity visit to the embattled Muslims of Bosnia-Herzegovina must have seemed almost a relief after a disastrous January that has almost derailed her 7-month-old premiership.

Not even applause from her countrymen and the outside world for her brave defiance of Bosnian Serb gunners in the Sarajevo hills could quite put Turks back under the spell of 47-year-old Ciller and her ever-present television smile, foreign diplomats and Turkish commentators said.

"It's the end of the Ciller dream," said one foreign envoy in Ankara, the Turkish capital, where knives are being sharpened by her embittered rivals for leadership of the center-right True Path Party, which leads Turkey's coalition government.

January dealt blow upon blow to this Muslim country of 60 million people, which has tried to present itself as an island of stability and secular government astride a devil's triangle of the Balkans, the Caucasus and the Middle East.

The Turkish lira dived almost 20%, the stock market crashed to half its dollar value, interest rates shot up and an inflation rate of 70% seems set to rise sharply. Police beat demonstrating civil servants, and the U.S. State Department again criticized its NATO ally's human rights record, citing torture and excessive use of force by officials.

Most of the human rights violations allegedly occurred in Turkey's ethnically Kurdish southeast, where another 273 people were killed in January in the nation's ever-bloodier 10-year-old conflict with separatist Kurdish rebels.

Turkey also saw its hopes set back of creating a Turkic commonwealth with five former Soviet states that share dialects of the Turkish language. The six -- Turkey, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan -- failed to hold a planned summit in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Disorganization and the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict played a part in the postponement, but pressure from a resurgent Russia also played a role.

*

Meantime, in yet another blow to Turkey's ambitions, its first satellite had to be destroyed shortly after takeoff, victim of a rare fault in the European Ariane rocket program.

"There is no need to panic. These problems are nothing to what we have faced before," President Suleyman Demirel kept repeating in public speeches. With grass-roots dynamism feeding an estimated 7% growth in its gross national product in 1993, it is true that Turkey is in a much better position than its last major financial-political crisis the late 1970s.

That period was capped in 1980 when Turkey's armed forces staged their third coup in 20 years, arresting Demirel and an entire generation of squabbling politicians.

The army may be worried again now. But it appears to receive everything it wants from Ciller and has huge statutory influence in government. Diplomats do not expect it to intervene directly in the latest crises.

Indeed, the latest financial problems have proved the resilience of Turkey's free foreign-exchange regulations and a stock exchange that many experts deemed the world's No. 2 emerging market last year. Foreign investors are sensing a buying opportunity as Turks feed on gloomy sentiment.

"The future of the market may not be clear, but foreign investors are coming back in. Shares are now very cheap," said Hakan Ulutas, a broker at Istanbul's Ottoman Bank.

But such considerations take little pressure off Ciller as she plunges toward the test that will decide her political future: nationwide municipal elections, scheduled for March 27. The former economics professor's headstrong nature and inexperience made her seem fresh and strong but have proved a disastrous mix.

In one example, the Central Bank last month wasted $180 million supporting the Turkish lira just hours before the currency was devalued by 12%.

*

Bulent Gultekin, Ciller's hand-picked governor of the Central Bank, resigned his post in protest over what he termed the poor communications and bad decision-making associated with the lira defense.

"The government decision-making system is completely locked up," Gultekin said.

Altan Oymen, chief commentator of the nationalist daily Milliyet, observed: "It's not a question of there being no coordination in government. There is not even dialogue."

In the wake of recent events, Gungor Mengi, an editorialist with Turkey's biggest-selling newspaper, Sabah, searched his soul for an explanation as to why he and others had been so enthusiastic when Ciller was chosen to be Turkey's first woman prime minister in June. "As our old proverb says, 'Those who fall in the sea will embrace a snake.' The fact that we embraced Ciller was just another mistake of our adventurous character," Mengi said.

Turkey fell into the sea when the main architect of the country's reforms since 1980, President Turgut Ozal, died last April. Ozal left Turkey deregulated and dynamic, but with mounting financial and political problems that needed careful management if they were not to burst out of control.

A consensus is growing that if the March municipal elections show a collapse in public support for Ciller's center-right True Path Party, then general elections should be conducted sooner than the planned 1996.

Ozal's Motherland Party, now led by Mesut Yilmaz, leads Ciller in polls. But ideological differences between the two parties are so small they are each running candidates poached from each other in the mayoral race for Turkey's biggest city, Istanbul.

"Either by the ballot box or by party executives, the two big center-right parties must be made one for political stability," said Hasan Cemal, a left-wing editorialist.

*

In the absence of such a strong lead, even Ciller has said her supporters are drifting off to the pro-Islamic Welfare Party. Some polls say the Islamists are now the second party, backed by the most energetic house-to-house activists in Turkish politics and financial support from Saudi Arabia.

As the discredited political classes snipe at each other in their struggle for lucrative patronage, the bureaucracy is gridlocked, and the state's financial problems continue to mount.

The 1993 budget deficit was triple its target. Up to a fifth of the budget is being spent on the war against Kurdish rebels, tax revenue is inadequate, a flood of imports have sent the trade deficit off the chart and privatization has failed to solve the problem of overstaffed and inefficient state industries.

"With these policies, neither inflation nor interest rates will fall," said Sakip Sabanci, a leading Turkish industrialist. "I'm afraid that the mistakes will make both of them rise. Politicians now think of nothing except running after votes. (Democracy) no longer tastes so good." Turkey's Troubled Month January dealt several setbacks to new Prime Minister Tansu Ciller, left, and her nation's image as an island of stability amid the turbulent Middle East, Balkans and Caucasus: *

* Turkish lira dived almost 20%. * Stock market crashed to half its dollar value. * Interest rates shot up. * U.S. State Department criticized Turkey's human rights record -- especially in ethnically Kurdish southeast. * A summit between Turkey and five former Soviet states fell through, hurting Turkey's hopes for creating a Turkic commonwealth. * Turkey's first satellite had to be destroyed shortly after takeoff.TURKEY

His golden face, serene in its youthful majesty, has enchanted millions who sought in it a glimpse of Egypt's Pharaonic past. But ever since Egypt's King Tutankhamen treasures went on traveling exhibit at museums around the world, there has been a nagging question about the famous burial mask: Is it real? Or was it switched?

The longstanding suspicion that a fake mask was substituted in an exhibit in Japan -- a rumor ridiculed by most Egyptologists but that persists nonetheless -- has fed a growing tide of discontent here over the country's traveling antiquities exhibits. It now threatens the future of Pharaonic exhibitions worldwide.

In a case brought by archeologists and academicians who fear Egypt is risking its cultural heritage by sending it out on the road, a Cairo court ruled earlier this month that a major new exhibition of Egyptian antiquities in Japan is illegal and ordered its immediate return.

The decision raises doubts about Egypt's ability to send its prized antiquities to international museums, a program through which millions have discovered the treasures of the country's 5,000-year-old civilization.

The legal battle underscores growing political rifts within the Egyptian Antiquities Organization, which oversees archeologists and adventurers from around the world and some of the most priceless antiquities in the Middle East. It is an authority already rife with intrigue and ferocious back-biting.

The controversy has raised serious questions in Egypt, a poor, populous nation seeking to capitalize on its heritage to boost its revenues. Critics ask: How much is the country risking its ancient treasures in an effort to make them more accessible to the international public and more lucrative for the government?

Egyptian officials say the items are pointless if no one sees them. They say the international exhibitions of Pharaonic treasures have not only raised millions of dollars in revenues but boosted tourism and opened a window on the world to Egypt.

"We have built up in the last 20 years with these exhibits a wonderful image of Egypt in the outside world. It helped us very much in letting the world understand our point of view, to understand Egypt's role in the Middle East, especially after its peace treaty with Israel," said Mohammed Saleh, director of Cairo's Egyptian Museum.

Opponents include Aly Radwan, dean of archeology at prestigious Cairo University, and others who believe that the money and prestige Egypt earns by sending its antiquities abroad are not worth the risk to a heritage that is priceless.

Neemat Ahmed Fouad, professor of Egyptology at Helwan University and a well-known writer on archeological issues, argues: "There is now a diarrhea of these exhibits, and for what? We are sending away to every country in the world the most precious gifts we have. Do we knock on everybody's door and say, 'Here are our antiquities, take them'? Or do we wait for people to come here to see them?"

The underlying feelings in the debate go back to the last century, when Egyptians watched helplessly as European and American archeologists uncovered the secrets of Egypt's past and carried them away to museums and galleries abroad.

The 1952 revolution that eliminated Britain's influence in Egypt also brought a new sense of nationalism to Egyptology, and foreign archeologists work in Egypt now only under strict controls. The antiquities organization is controlled by a cadre of experienced Egyptian professionals.

Farouk Hosni, the culture minister and an artist with strong ties to the West who has been behind the move to open up Egypt's culture to Western sensibilities, has run afoul of the nationalist tide in the current debate; the controversy has focused not only on foreign exhibitions but also on expanding public use of Egyptian temples and monuments for theater performances and concerts.

A storm erupted over the ministry's plans to build a 17,000-seat amphitheater at the base of the Sphinx -- a plan later withdrawn. Another blew up when the ministry tentatively talked about concerts at the temple of Hatshepsut in Luxor.

"The department has turned a deaf ear to the cries of all concerned lovers of Egypt and of Egyptian art and history," said newspaper columnist Mohammed Shebl in a "Stop the Concerts!" plea two years ago.

"Can people sleep safely at night with nightmares of 'megaspeakers' thundering the 'Ode to Joy' and the aroma of freshly grilled steaks, competing for livelihood with age-old colored drawings of Horus and Anubis, while the admiring claps of thousands of spectators slap the pharaohs and queens of Egypt across their faces?" he demanded.

Fouad, sitting in her Cairo apartment cluttered with old vases and paintings, was more succinct in her discussion of the culture minister's plans for Egypt's antiquities. "If the devil was in his place," she said, "he would not destroy Egypt like this."

Egypt's exhibitions abroad began in the modern era at the Exposition Universale in Paris in 1867, when the nation dispatched figurines of the Pharaoh Khafra and Sheik al Balad and the jewels of Queen Iah-Hotep to the international fair.

But the showings really took off beginning in 1976, when the treasures of young King Tut attracted enthusiastic American and British audiences, amassing $9 million for Egypt. The Tut exhibit appeared at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 1978. It was followed by a growing number of international exhibits, including "Egypt Today"; "The Golden Pharaoh," a popular collection of items from the period of Ramses II, and "Pharaohs' Gold."

The current 72-piece exhibit of items depicting the lives of Egyptian women from the Old, Middle and New Kingdoms, "The Ancient Queens of Egypt," debuted last week at the Edo-Tokyo Museum; it contains some of the museum's most valuable items, including sculpted heads of Hatshepsut and Cleopatra.

An administrative court in Cairo ruled the antiquities are the "property of the Egyptian people and state, and transferring their ownership to an authority or organization, which would deal in them, is inconceivable." It said it was the responsibility of the president of Egypt to approve all programs for outside exhibitions.

In arguing their case, archeologists have pointed to a history of damage -- most of it minor -- to antiquities exhibited. The harm includes breakage of the headpiece of the goddess Selkit in the King Tut exhibit (the work later was restored); after the Ramses II exhibit in America, experts found that 22 items in the 25-piece collection had damage, mostly scratches; a 1988 Australian display left some pieces discolored (that too was later repaired).

"Of course, damage can happen anywhere. Even in the museum here, when you are cleaning a showcase, it can happen," said Abdel-Halim Nureddin, director of the antiquities organization. "We have had a few cases where there was a kind of slight damage. A scratch. Because of that, we have insurance."

The Tokyo exhibit is insured for $24.5 million and will earn Egypt about $1.7 million. Egyptian authorities emphasize it does not include, as critics allege, masterpieces from the museum in Egypt. Rather, they said, it features statues similar to some of the best-known pieces but of lesser quality.

Officials of the antiquities organization said they would immediately appeal the court ruling; in the interim, they plan to leave the Tokyo exhibition in place.

Israeli Tourism Minister Uzi Bara looked up from the lunch table with eyes as wide as his future vision of the profits that peace will reap.

First, he said, will come the Christian pilgrims -- millions of them from the world over, flocking to the holy sites where Jesus was born, where he lived and died -- the fruits of the recent peace between Israel and the Vatican after two millennia of estrangement.

Then, the Muslims will come, flocking to the rock where the Prophet Mohammed rose to heaven, filling Jerusalem's gold-domed Al-Aqsa Mosque in a pilgrimage that, for decades, has been just a distant dream for most.

The minister can see it all, joint-venture resorts, sprawling spas, towering hotels and beach clubs -- built, owned and run by Arabs and Jews together.

"Already there is one project in the works on the Dead Sea," said Baram, who describes himself with pride as "one of the leaders of the dovish wing" of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin's Cabinet.

"But my idea is different. I am talking about an entire international tourism area run by Jordanians, Israelis and Palestinians, with major hotel chains and five-star facilities. I was even thinking about a package tour -- Mecca, Medina and Jerusalem -- the holiest shrines of Islam."

Such, it seems, are but a handful of the infinite prospects peace would bring to an ancient yet disputed land so long in conflict.

True, Baram conceded, his vision remains in the talking stage, as Palestinian and Israeli negotiators still appear at least several weeks away from a final agreement to begin Israel's promised troop withdrawal and Palestinian self-rule in the Gaza Strip and Jericho. And, Baram is the first to admit, "So far, it is just thinking. We didn't do much to make it concrete yet."

But the minister is convinced that the march the Arabs and Jews have begun toward peace now is irreversible. And Baram is not alone in his vision. In fact, as their leaders continue to haggle out the toughest, last details of peace between Israelis and the Palestinians after decades of occupation, rebellion and death, Baram's proposed Arab-Israeli resort on the Dead Sea is just one of many examples of concrete cooperation between Arabs and Jewsquietly taking shape at the grass-roots level in Jerusalem and throughout the occupied territories.

They are the positive images of a quietly emerging peace that have been lost amid the simmering scenes of hostility and violence as delays in the autonomy plan have fueled frustration and despair. They are the images of hope.

Last Sunday, for example, rehearsals began in the Al Kasabi Theater in East Jerusalem for a joint, Arab-Israeli production of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." Arab producer George Ibrahim said Romeo's family of Montagues will be played by Jews from an Israeli theater company in West Jerusalem; Juliet's Capulets will be portrayed by Arabs from Ibrahim's East Jerusalem troupe.

"It was very deliberate," Ibrahim said of his drama. "The play, after all, is about stopping hatred. We are saying with this play, 'Stop the killing and bloodshed, and we will have peace.'

"For decades, we knew the Israelis only through the soldiers, the police and the guns. They knew us only through the intifada (Palestinian uprising), the stones and the anger. I think now it's time to start with different aspects."

Ibrahim, who worked on Israeli productions before the intifada began eight years ago, conceded that, in the disputed city of Jerusalem, politics is never far away. The undecided final venue for the play, which is scheduled to open in May, is a case in point. Ibrahim said he hopes he can stage it "somewhere in the open air" where Arabs and Jews can gather together.

"We have to let Arab and Jew work together," the producer said. "Of course, we will have some problems, because each group will bring their culture with them. But we have to start somewhere, and I believe that through culture it is the best way to start."

Per Erik Johansen could not agree more. He is the manager of a Norwegian rock band who spent last week auditioning Palestinian and Israeli rockers in East and West Jerusalem. His vision: a joint Palestinian-Israeli concert sponsored by the Norwegian government. The original plan of his government, which helped broker last September's historic declaration of the principles for peace, was to stage the Woodstock-style festival in a newly autonomous Jericho. "We hoped to have the concert in the spring, but this may be difficult now," Johansen said, adding that the prolonged political negotiations to establish that autonomy may force the organizers to hold the concert on neutral ground -- in Norway.

It is in the higher-stakes realm of corporate joint ventures -- projects such as Baram's proposed Dead Sea resort -- that cooperative efforts will prove most difficult. The Dead Sea resort is a prime illustration. Baram's idea for the model project surfaced briefly late last month when Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, the government's chief negotiator, brought it up in Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat in Davos, Switzerland.

"Mr. Peres called me and said, 'A Palestinian will call you up' to discuss the project," Baram recalled over lunch. "So far, he didn't call."

At that point, though, Baram's director general, Eli Gonen, interrupted to say how highly both Israelis and Palestinians view the potential for joint-venture tourism -- financially, as well as symbolically -- not merely in Jericho and Gaza but in the disputed city of Jerusalem and elsewhere.

"There have been several informal discussions and informal meetings between top officials of our ministry and representatives of Palestinians dealing with tourism," Goren said. "We spoke about joint planning . . . and we decided to plan together the entire region -- where to have five-star hotels, where to have three-star hotels, and so on.

"Formally, the next meeting of the joint Israeli-Palestinian economic committee in Paris, in fact, is going to be focused entirely on tourism. You see, we are sure this region will be flooded with tourists, when this problem between us will all be settled."

Already, he explained, the Israeli government spends about $100 million a year to promote tourism and develop tourist sites in Israel and the occupied territories. Last year, it paid off. A record 2 million tourists -- for the first time, half of them Christians -- visited the holy lands and generated revenues of nearly $3 billion, according to tourism ministry figures.

Baram then described just how far his vision extends -- far beyond the Palestinian autonomous zones to an era of peace between Israel and all of its Arab neighbors.

"I have a lot of ideas for joint tourism -- opening the gate between Eilat and Aqaba (to link the beach resorts of Israel and Jordan), sending a lot of Israeli pilgrims to Petra (Jordan's most famous ancient site)," he said.

Then Baram seemed to catch himself in midflight. He paused and reflected for a moment. "To be on the safe side, of course," he said, "We have to wait for all that until we have a peace treaty with Syria." Future Tour? Israel's tourism minister, Uzi Baram, envisions a package tour of Islam's holy sites that would bridge the Israeli and Arab worlds. Baram also hopes to see the gate opened between Eilat and Aqaba, and Israelis visiting Jordan's Petra.

Gregg Henderson has found a surfer's paradise, a house five minutes from some of the best waves in South America, well-shaped beauties, rarely crowded. He has a little surfboard factory and shop that earn enough for him and his Chilean wife to live on. He helps organize an occasional surfing contest, and he rides the waves whenever he wants.

What more could a boy from Laguna desire?

On an overcast Saturday morning in the South American summer, Henderson is wearing shorts and a T-shirt, looking out from a rocky point at endless sets rolling toward a distant beach. Only a half-dozen surfers can be seen.

"Last summer was the first time I saw anything here that resembled a crowd," he says. "I counted and there were 25. In California it would be 150."

But he worries about that. Maybe he shouldn't be doing so much to promote surfing in Pichilemu. Maybe he should try to keep it more to himself.

"I don't know if I'm helping to create too much of a Chilean crowd here," he says. "The sport is just booming now. It's happening."

Since he opened his Seawolf Surf factory last March, he has sold about 100 of his custom-made boards for more than $300 each. When he helps local merchants organize a contest, 5,000 people show up to watch.

The surf at Punta de Lobos (Wolves' Point), about three miles south of town, can be spectacular on good days: waves of 15 feet and higher. It isn't always that big, but there is usually something to catch, Henderson says. "This is like California, but with consistent surf."

Henderson, 34, grew up in Laguna. He began surfing young and loved the sport but hated the struggle on a crowded wave, he says. "I quit surfing in California when I was 20 because I was sick of getting in fights in the water."

He attended universities in Colorado, California and Hawaii. He worked as a carpenter, surfboard maker, bartender, cook and ski instructor.

One day, he left California, headed for Latin America in his pickup. He took his time -- a year -- surfing Central and South American beaches along the way. On the snowy Andean slopes east of Santiago, the Chilean capital, he found work as a ski instructor and met his wife-to-be.

In Santiago, he went looking for Chilean surfers, then a rare breed.

"I found about 10," he says. "One of them brought me here. We showed up here and it was breaking. It was so good I freaked out. And here I am."

In those days, about eight years ago, the waves of Punta de Lobos were empty. But now, middle-class Chilean youths are suddenly discovering surfing. They often start surfing on beaches west and northwest of Santiago, but they soon find Pichilemu.

"Any Chilean who surfs, surfs here," Henderson says.

Surfer magazine, published in California and distributed internationally, has printed information on Pichilemu, including a full article about two years ago. "Now," he says, "people come from all over the country and all over the world."

The word is out. Pichilemu is in.

In recent months, he says, about 40 foreigners have come to surf, and if the water here were warmer there would be more. The Chilean coast is washed by the cold Humboldt Current, which comes from Antarctica, and wet suits are customary.

Still, the water here is no colder than Northern California's, Henderson says. "Guys from Santa Cruz say the water is identical."

Pichilemu fell from fashion decades ago as a beach resort. It is 150 miles southwest of Santiago by road, some of it rough and unpaved. Most of the visitors were provincials, and they did not bring much money. But the surfers still come.

An organization of local merchants called Friends of Surfing has sponsored annual contests since 1990. Washington Saldias, vice president of the Pichilemu Chamber of Tourism and a founder of the club, says more than 30 foreign surfers have participated in each contest, and many more Chileans.

"It's a public attraction because of the publicity it gets on television and in the press," Saldias said. The media coverage has given millions of Chileans a glimpse of the town's quaint charms, including horse-drawn taxis called cabritas , and its many miles of gray-sand beaches, interrupted by picturesque outcroppings of brown rock.

Now, with the publicity, more tourists are coming. New motels and restaurants are opening. A four-story apartment building, Pichilemu's first "high-rise" building, is near completion. And a Chilean businessman is looking for financing to build a four-star hotel, Saldias says.

"They want to make Pichilemu into a mini-California," said an article in the Sunday magazine of El Mercurio, Santiago's leading newspaper. "And they are succeeding."

The road into the town is being fully paved, and land prices are skyrocketing. Henderson says his lot is worth 10 times what he paid for it 3 1/2 years ago. It lies on three acres of piney slopes near Punta de Lobos. The house is a trilevel, California-style home with wood siding and decks. A geologist from Santa Barbara has bought a nearby lot and a cardiovascular surgeon from Santa Cruz is eyeing another one. Both are surfers, of course.

"Surfing has revitalized this town," Henderson says. "I knew it was going to boom with surfing, but I never had any idea it would be this fast. The merchants are stoked."

One businesswoman especially stoked is Adriana Padilla, owner of the small Hotel Chile-Espana, where many foreign surfers stay. When she began operating the hotel four years ago, Padilla says, it received 10 or 15 surfers a year. "Now there are 50 a year."

She looks through the day's page in her registry and finds six Australians, three Argentines and two Brazilians. Two Frenchmen have just arrived.

"Surfing has made Pichilemu known around the world," Padilla says. "When they make comparisons of the surf, many say it is like a second California."

Craig Eady, an electrician from Australia, is staying at the Chile-Espana. After a day in the water, his face is sunburned and his eyes are red.

"Came here about three weeks ago," Eady says. "Just doing a little surfing trip." He says he plans to stay for two months. Two friends from Australia, also electricians, have recently flown over to join him.

"The surf is great," he says. "The waves are very good quality. Probably the best thing is that the ride is very long, so there can be a lot of surfers on the water."

Just after lunch, Henderson is staring out at Punta de Lobos from a table in a restaurant. "The waves are pretty big now. Surf's up, definitely," he says. "I should be out there."

Silvia, his wife, gives him a look, as if to say, "You have surfboards to make. How can you go surfing?"

"It's part of my job, I try to explain to her," he says. "If I don't surf well, then people don't respect my product. So I've got to get out there and surf."

Henderson reasons that if the surf at Pichilemu becomes too crowded for him, it isn't the last surfer's paradise in Chile.

"This is pretty good, hard to beat, but I've found places that are just as good," he says. "I get in my truck and I go exploring. I get on the water and surf waves I know no human being has ever surfed before. And that's a trip."

In the mountain watershed of the Upper Bio-Bio River dwell wide-ranging communities of Pehuenches, the Araucaria Pine People. When autumn unfurls the cones of the araucaria pine, families move through the woods gathering its nuts, an important part of their diet. They cherish and protect the stately tree almost as kin.

"To cut down an araucaria pine is like putting a mother to death, because that is what feeds our people," explained Jose Antolin Curriao, a Pehuenche chieftain. Such ancient traditions may soon be tested in a time of change on the Bio-Bio.

Curriao and other Pehuenches are alarmed by dam construction on the river, fearing that their homeland of wooded mountains and roaring rivers, the essence of their culture, will be spoiled forever.

After futile protests and failed legal suits by opponents of development, workers and machines already are building the Bio-Bio's first hydroelectric dam near this village, 300 miles south of Santiago. A much bigger second dam, still in the planning stages, would displace some 1,800 Pehuenches from their ancestral lands, their supporters say.

"Our community would disappear," said Curriao, 60. "We want to follow the example of our ancestors. We don't want to disappear."

The Pehuenches are not the only ones worried about dam projects on the Bio-Bio. Sports enthusiasts, for instance, have flocked to the river in recent years because it provides a spectacular white water rafting experience. But its most thrilling rapids will be inundated if the second dam is built.

Ecologists, meanwhile, warn that important habitats for some species of fish and other wildlife are endangered by the dam projects, which also will put pressure on the fragile alpine environment flanking the river. University engineers who have studied the area say dams could disrupt the ecological balance of the whole Bio-Bio basin, one of Chile's most important river systems.

An environmental organization called Action Group for the Bio-Bio is leading the campaign against the hydroelectric projects, and the Bio-Bio has become a prime symbol of the contest between economic development and environmental preservation in South America.

A couple of decades ago, few people in South America worried about protecting wilderness areas from the onslaught of development. That was a problem for North America, where vast natural tracts had been tamed in the name of progress. The process was still young in the southern reaches of the hemisphere; the desire for development overshadowed environmental cautions here. In recent years, however, South Americans have awakened to the dangers of degrading their natural environment as environmental and conservation movements have gained increasing strength and influence.

The shrinking Amazon rain forest has received much of the attention, but Amazonia is not the only part of South America where nature is in trouble. From the majestic Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in Colombia to the chill forests of Tierra del Fuego, ecological damage is advancing at often alarming rates.

There is so much wilderness in South America that it sometimes seems hard to focus on piecemeal destruction and localized threats. In southern Chile, hydroelectric dams on several formerly pristine rivers are a widely accepted part of this country's impressive development thrust.

The Chilean economy has grown at an average of more than 6% a year for the past decade. More energy is needed to keep the economic dynamo turning, and the southern rivers are an abundant source of power.

Meanwhile, however, development also is beginning to pollute the clear waters of many southern Chilean lakes. And chain saws are ripping through native forests, already shrunken by earlier settlement and exploitation.

The struggle over the Bio-Bio has become an emblematic showdown partly because it is a historic frontier as well as a strikingly beautiful river that tumbles down jagged Andean canyons in a torrent of blue crystal and snow-white froth. It also stands out because the fate of a unique native culture may be at stake.

The Pehuenches are among Chile's poorest people, but their culture is rich in traditions rooted in the Andean lands where they gather nuts, herd flocks of sheep and goats, and grow wheat and other grains. They belong to the Mapuche nation, which kept Spaniards and Chileans at bay along the Bio-Bio frontier until the 1880s, when an military offensive against the Mapuches opened the way to settlement south of the river.

For most of this century, southern Chile developed slowly. But a national push for export growth in recent years has brought rapid growth in the south's agricultural, fishing, fish-farming, wood and cellulose industries.

Endesa, a formerly government-owned power company that was privatized in 1988, has been keeping pace with development by increasing the generation of electricity. And the Upper Bio-Bio River, with its huge hydroelectric power potential, is a resource that Endesa wants to exploit.

Construction on the Bio-Bio's first dam, called the Pangue, began in 1993 and is scheduled to be finished in 1997. It is budgeted at $470 million and will produce 450 megawatts of electricity. Its reservoir will cover 1,200 acres, flooding nearly nine miles of the river's course, including several miles of scenic and raftable rapids.

But hydraulic engineers at Chile's University of Concepcion say the environmental impact of the Pangue dam may be greatest on the Lower Bio-Bio. Andrea Nardini and Hernan Blanco, engineers with a university environmental research center, say the dam may reduce the river's flow to a trickle in some places on summer days. "To dry up a river means killing its ecosystem," Nardini said.

In the upper Bio-Bio, the impact is clear. Pangue S.A., a subsidiary of Endesa that is building the dam, acknowledges that it will be "unfavorable" for some river fish, including two endangered species of native catfish. In a recently published brochure, the company also admits a "possible increase of erosion and deforestation in the basin" of the river because of increased water in upland areas around the dam.

Only a few Pehuenches will be displaced by the Pangue, but its influence on nearby native communities has been the subject of heated debate. The company brochure says the dam may lead to accelerated loss of Pehuenche cultural identity, if countermeasures are not taken, but argues that it will help relieve the extreme poverty of the communities.

Pangue S.A. says the project will provide up to 2,500 jobs at the peak of construction and the reservoir will be a valuable future center for income-producing recreation and tourism. In response to criticism, the Endesa subsidiary has created foundations for promoting community development and for ecological preservation.

"It is in the interest of Endesa that the environmental impact be the least possible," said Esteban Skoknic, a company planning engineer.

The chieftains of two Pehuenche communities on the Upper Bio-Bio have taken jobs with Endesa and support the dam project, but five others oppose it. "We don't want to work for Endesa," said one, 82-year-old Manuel Neicuman. "We want them to leave our lands alone so that we can pass them on to our sons."

Neicuman, Curriao and three other Pehuenche chieftains gathered on a recent Sunday at a cabin downstream from the Pangue construction site. With them was Rodrigo Valenzuela, an anthropologist with the Action Group for the Bio-Bio. As the chiefs drank red wine and ate spoonfuls of spiced and coagulated goat blood in preparation for a late outdoor lunch of roasted goat, Valenzuela told a visitor that converting Pehuenche men into low-paid construction workers would unravel their cultural link to the land.

"To the extent that the Mapuche loses his ties to the earth, he is losing part of his identity," the anthropologist said.

Pangue is more than one-third finished and impossible to stop, its opponents concede. Preliminary plans for the second Bio-Bio dam, called Ralco, have recently been submitted by Endesa for consideration by the National Energy Commission.

Ralco's reservoir would cover more than 8,000 acres, dwarfing the Pangue lake. Valenzuela said Ralco would displace 300 Pehuenche families; Skoknic said Endesa estimates that 90 families would have to be moved.

But Valenzuela emphasized the impact would not be limited to displaced families. With Ralco, much more of the Bio-Bio's beautiful and ecologically unusual canyons and valleys would be inundated, as would those of some tributary rivers. With new roads, land companies would buy up acreage and lumbering would spread into previously inaccessible areas, he said. More roads, more construction jobs and more outside influence would undermine Pehuenche culture.

"In economic, social and cultural terms it is the end of a people, its extermination," said Valenzuela.

Point guard Kevin Johnson of the Phoenix Suns once invented an evil alter ego for himself, he told Arizona Republic columnist David Casstevens, a fast-talking bad guy named Mevin Johnson.

"I put these dark glasses on and start talking slang, like a hip-hop guy," Johnson said.

Casstevens wonders if the alter-ego bit is carrying over to Johnson's play on the court.

"KJ doesn't have a split personality," Casstevens writes. "However, his involvement in two ugly incidents on the court have led some to wonder about him. . . . Dear Sweet Kevin almost removed Steve Kerr's face in the closing seconds of last week's nationally televised Suns-Chicago Bulls game.

" . . . Maybe this wasn't Kevin. Could it be his other half taking over? 'Yeah,' KJ said. Like a B horror movie, the suggestion amused him. He thought of Mevin. Evil triumphs over good. 'Good guy turns bad.' "

*

Trivia time: Shaquille O'Neal leads the NBA with a 28.5-point scoring average, David Robinson is second at 28.1 and Hakeem Olajuwon is third at 26.7. All are centers.

Who was the last center to lead the league in scoring?

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Parcells' Buddy: The Phoenix Cardinals' new coach and general manager, Buddy Ryan, didn't make his return to the fraternity of NFL coaches last weekend at the scouting combine workouts in Indianapolis without some teasing from his compatriots.

Bill Parcells, coach of the New England Patriots, who specifically lacks the title of general manager, couldn't help but zing his longtime friend when he saw Ryan in a hotel lobby.

"I'm not going to call you coach ," Parcells said, "You're a . . . general manager."

*

'Toons beat hoops: UCLA's 76-66 victory over Washington State was clobbered in the ratings Saturday by a cartoon movie. The game drew a 3.5 rating on Channel 5, according to figures released Monday by the A.C. Nielsen Co.

The 1987 animated movie, "The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones," broadcast opposite it on Channel 9 had a 4.5. That means about 175,000 were tuned in to see the Bruins, 225,200 to see George meet Fred.

*

A Rose by another name: Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy can't understand the recent rush to take Tonya Harding's side amid the controversy, and to criticize Nancy Kerrigan.

"Why are some people trying so hard," he writes, "to make Harding the victim and blame Kerrigan for: (1) being pretty, (2) keeping her mouth shut and (3) making money after 15 years of work to reach the top of her field?

"At this hour, Harding is the Pete Rose of figure skating. Legally, her sport may not have anything on her. But there's enough evidence and admission to banish her."

*

Trivia answer: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who averaged 34.8 points a game in 1972 while playing with the Milwaukee Bucks.

*

Quotebook: Massachusetts Coach John Calipari, on the frequent comparisons between himself and Kentucky Coach Rick Pitino: "It's like Rick says: The only similarity he sees is that we have big noses." TIM KAWAKAMI

Greg Foster is still in the record books. Two days after Britain's Colin Jackson thought he broke Foster's 60-meter hurdles record of 7.36 seconds, embarrassed track officials acknowledged that Jackson had only tied the mark.

A review of the photo-finish print from Jackson's run Saturday at a Britain-U.S. meet at Glasgow revealed that his time was fractionally slower than originally judged. The difference was enough to round the Briton's time up to 7.36, instead of 7.35. Baseball

Sen. Howard Metzenbaum (D-Ohio), chairman of a Senate subcommittee on antitrust, monopolies and business rights, criticized baseball for weakening the authority of the commissioner.

He called the owners' actions "totally absurd."

The owners announced Friday that they had eliminated the commissioner's power to act "in the best interests of baseball" from most business areas, leaving them intact only in issues dealing with integrity of the game.

"It makes the commissioner's position a nullity," Metzenbaum said. "It flies in the face of the promises the owners made to Congress to preserve the office of the commissioner."

The Angels announced they have hired former infielder Rick Burleson, 42, as roving minor league baserunning coach. Tom Lawless, who served in that capacity the past two seasons, will manage the Angels' Cedar Rapids minor league club. Angel conditioning coach Jimmie Reese, 92, who was too ill to be in uniform the second half of the 1993 season, is scheduled to leave today to rejoin the team for the opening of their spring training camp in Tempe, Ariz.

Montreal relief pitcher John Wetteland agreed to a one-year contract for $2,225,000. Houston outfielder Luis Gonzalez agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.63 million. TV-Radio

All-sports radio station XTRA today will announce a lineup change that involves a new morning show. Beginning next Monday, nighttime host Rick Schwartz will be joined by Mike Berger and Jeff Prescott and the three will do a daily 5-9 a.m. sports-entertainment show. Berger and Prescott will move over from XTRA's FM sister station.

The "Loose Cannons," Steve Hartman and Chet Forte, will move to a 9-noon slot, followed by Jim Rome and then Lee Hamilton.

Details for a new nighttime show have not been finalized. KMPC's Joe McDonnell and Tony Femino, formerly of KMPC, are possibilities, or Pete Rose's Florida-based syndicated show might be moved. Rose's show is now on XTRA after midnight.

ABC-TV and the Atlantic Coast Conference have reached a multiyear agreement to extend the network's live coverage of ACC football games, beginning in 1996. Football

The Dallas Cowboys decided Monday to forgo the NFL's "franchise player" designation for the second consecutive year, but they declared Erik Williams a "transition player," which will allow teams to match any offer made to the Pro Bowl tackle.

Linebacker Michael Cofer, who spent the 1993 season on injured reserve because of a knee injury, was waived by the Detroit Lions.

The effort to bring a Canadian Football League team to Baltimore this year will be all but completed today when Mayor Kurt Schmoke announces that he will lease Memorial Stadium to Jim Speros, a Virginia businessman who has been vying for months to bring professional football to Baltimore. Names in the News

Derek Anderson, Ohio State's leading scorer with a 15-point average, will miss the rest of the season because of a knee injury. . . . Tracy Austin defeated Monique Javer, 1-6, 6-0, 6-3, to advance to the second round of the IGA Tennis Classic at Oklahoma City.

Some observers, remembering the transportation problems that plagued the Lake Placid Winter Olympics in 1980, figured the same thing might happen here, where the arrangements are much the same. And it did.

But, officials are saying, the problem has been rectified.

About 300 spectators arrived late for the men's downhill skiing event Sunday at Kvitfjell because of long bus lines -- gold-medal winner Tommy Moe's father and stepmother nearly missed his big moment because of that -- and about 100 figure skating fans in Hamar were stranded until early Monday morning because they were unable to get onto overcrowded buses.

Private transportation has been cut off in the Olympic region and Games spectators must rely primarily on buses supplied by Olympic organizers. That kind of arrangement fell apart at Lake Placid because there were not enough buses, and for much of the first week of competition, fans were left fuming in parking lots.

Monday was a better day here, according to Einar Spurkeland, duty officer at the Lillehammer Olympic Organizing Committee's transport section.

"We redeployed 20 buses at our disposal, which enabled us to transport 38,000 spectators to the various venues," Spurkeland said, adding that buses to the cross-country ski stadium, the luge and bobsled track at Hunderfossen and the Alpine skiing area at Kvitfjell all were on schedule.

Those who arrived too late to see Sunday's skiing will receive ticket refunds. Another 50 to 100 who turned back when they realized they could not get to Kvitfjell on time, will also get refunds.

*

Juan Antonio Samaranch, president of the International Olympic Committee, left Lillehammer for Sarajevo to pay tribute to the besieged host city of the 1984 Winter Games.

During his one-day visit, Samaranch hopes to see the sports facilities that have been damaged or destroyed in the Bosnian war. He also plans to meet with Bosnian Olympic Committee officials and confer with government, U.N. and relief agency representatives.

*

They have concessions stands here at the Bierkebeineren ski stadium, selling beer, soda, candy bars, hot dogs, other sandwiches, all the usual amenities.

They also have stands selling T-shirts, Olympic pins and other souvenirs.

But the stands doing the biggest business Monday, in subzero temperatures, were the ones renting rubber and plastic standing mats, which keep the spectators' feet off the snow.

Stands selling souvenir cow bells ran a strong second. MIKE KUPPER

Because he won the Olympic downhill, everyone wants a piece of Tommy Moe. Make that an exclusive, please.

Tom Kelly, director of media relations for the U.S. ski team, is trying to be diplomatic. Monday night, Kelly had to deny interview requests from Norwegian and German national broadcast networks. "They didn't take it well," Kelly said.

Problem is, there's only one Moe to go around.

Sunday was a whirlwind. Moe didn't wrap up his day until 10 p.m. He did two separate interviews with print reporters, three segments for CBS and a live spot with CBS' "This Morning."

Monday morning, after five hours' sleep, he finished third in the downhill portion of the Alpine combined. Later, he had to cancel a scheduled television spot with TNT because of a training schedule change for the men's Super-G.

Nothing like a ski race to mess up a television career.

*

For winning the gold, Moe will receive $15,000 from the U.S. Olympic Committee. "All right!" said Moe, who wasn't aware of the USOC's cash prize schedule. "Thanks for that news. That's pretty surprising. It made my whole day."

*

Moe, an Olympic champion for less than 48 hours, already pines for the days when he can rest on his laurels.

"I was down in New Zealand this summer and I saw Franz Klammer and Bill Johnson and a lot of the top skiers from the past," he said. "And they were smoking cigars and having a good time, and I said, 'That's the way to do it. Retire from ski racing and go play golf and smoke a cigar.' "

*

AJ Kitt, who finished 17th in Sunday's downhill, did not race in Monday's combined downhill. He will ski in Thursday's Super-G, then return home to rest before the World Cup races in North America next month.

"He didn't have a good downhill here, but I'm not going to give up on the guy," said Ueli Luthi, the U.S men's coach.

Kitt has long been the most consistent U.S. downhill racer, and remains the only American to have won a World Cup downhill since Bill Johnson in 1984. Kitt also won the bronze medal in last year's World Championships.

But even Kitt knows that in America, they only remember Olympic champions.

*

Luthi said Moe's downhill success will be a tremendous boost for the U.S. team, which has been under fire of late. "It was a great victory," Luthi said. "It came at the right time. It was one of the first Olympic events, Mrs. Clinton was here. The political side kind of zoomed in on our sport. There were not 200 other sports going on. The benefits will be great." CHRIS DUFRESNE

Garth Snow will make his Olympic hockey debut tonight, one game earlier than expected.

Snow will replace Game 1 starter Mike Dunham when the United States faces 12th-seeded Slovakia at Gjovik Cavern Hall.Coach Tim Taylor's tentative plan was for Dunham to start the first two games and switch to Snow for the third game against Canada because of the latter's strong record against Canada, but the plan was changed after Monday's practice.

Dunham, who alternated in goal with Snow at the University of Maine, played capably in Sunday's 4-4 tie against France. Although rarely tested severely, he made several crucial saves during a French power play in the waning minutes.

Dunham has faced Slovakia once, in a 5-5 tie on Nov. 21 during the Telehockey Cup tournament at Lillehammer last November. Snow has never faced Slovakia. Snow is 4-1-0 against Canada with a 3.01 goals-against average and .903 save percentage.

"We've said all along that we have a strong goaltending tandem in Mike Dunham and Garth Snow, and we've said all along that both players would contribute," Taylor said. "We saw how well Mike is capable of playing for us in the final minutes of our game against France. It's now Garth's turn."

Snow, 24, has already made his NHL debut. He was 3-2 during a brief stint with the Quebec Nordiques. "Slovakia is a really solid team," Snow said. "Offensively, they're probably up there with us. Maybe they don't have quite the speed we possess but they're good, especially Peter Stastny. He's really smart with the puck." HELENE ELLIOTT

Bobsled driver Gerhard Rainer was kicked off the Austrian team after testing positive for anabolic steroids. . . . GeorgHackl of Germany, in repeating as Olympic champion, became the first to win two gold medals in luge since its permanent inclusion in the Olympics in 1964. All 75 medals awarded during that time have been won by Germans, Austrians, Italians and citizens of the former Soviet Union.

*

Cammy Myler, who won the final World Cup race in late January and has been consistently among the leaders in time trials here, will begin women's luge competition today. . . . Does U.S. Coach Wolfgang Schadler suspect that the Europeans have been holding back in practice? "No, I think everyone has been laying their cards on the table," he said. "I think Cammy is on a real upward swing right now." . . . Bobsled drivers Brian Shimer, Randy Will and Jim Herberich will have a two-heat race-off Wednesday to determine the two U.S. teams for the two-man competition. ROSS NEWHAN

A new world order is dawning in hockey, signaling the end of the Big Red Machine and the rise of the glacial blue and arctic white of Finland.

The Finns, who long lacked the assurance to match their world-class skills, scored the most significant victory in their hockey history Monday with a 5-0 rout of top-seeded Russia. It was the first Olympic shutout, and worst defeat absorbed by a Soviet team or its descendants.

In other Group B games Monday, Germany improved to 2-0 with a 2-1 victory over Norway, and the Czech Republic defeated Austria, 7-3.

The Soviet Union won seven of nine gold medals from their Olympic debut in 1956 through 1988; the Unified Team, born after the Soviet dissolution, continued the tradition in 1992. Together, the Soviet teams and the Unified Team were 60-6-2 and had lost only once by more than a goal, an 8-5 defeat by Canada in 1960.

Russia won its tournament opener Saturday against Norway but was overwhelmed Monday. The seventh-seeded Finns have never won an Olympic or world championship, but they have impressively defeated two higher-seeded opponents here. Finland opened Olympic play Saturday with a 3-1 victory over the Czech Republic, the tournament's third-seeded team.

"We're really happy about it (because) I don't think you have so many chances to shut the Russians out," said Finnish right wing Mikko Makela, a former King. Makela set up the fourth goal with a perfect pass from behind the net to Janne Ojanen, who slipped a backhander between the legs of goaltender Andrei Zuev.

"We did a good thing tonight and we have a chance to do well, but we only have played two games and we still have seven more," Makela said. "We never had confidence before, but now we have some NHL experience (on) our team and that has helped us. We try to tell the young players they are something, because they are. Now, we play a mental game more than we ever did before."

Every facet of their game was superb Monday. They neutralized seven Russian power plays, built a 28-11 edge in shots on goal and produced several goals that would make the highlight film of any hockey league.

"The Finnish team was stronger and faster today," said Igor Dmitriev, Russia's assistant coach. "We were not ready for this level of play. . . . The game of our goalie (who was replaced by Sergei Abramov after two periods) was not so bad. The game of the old (experienced) guys was not so good and not good for this level of play."

It was a lofty level, three fast and exciting periods in which the Finns used the broad ice surface -- 100 feet wide, 15 feet wider than most NHL rinks -- to outskate the Russians.

If the 8,751 in Hakon Hall were entertained by Finland's first goal, a backhander by Jere Lehtinen while in a crowd in front of the net, they were dazzled by the second goal. It was a brilliant sequence that started when Janne Laukkanen intercepted a pass by defenseman Sergei Sorokine along the right-wing boards in Russia's defensive zone. Laukkanen found Ville Peltonen in the left faceoff circle, and Peltonen made a quick pass to Saku Koivu, the Montreal Canadiens' top draft pick last June, for a dead-on shot from the slot.

The Finns' 1-7 Olympic record against Soviet teams was forgotten Monday. Mika Alatalo gave Finland a 3-0 lead with his 12-foot rebound at 11:32 of the second period. Ojanen, a former New Jersey Devil, added a flourish with his second tournament goal, at 19:03, and defenseman Marko Kiprusov turned the game into a rout 10 seconds later.

"We are very, very satisfied with the team now," Finnish assistant coach Hannu Aravarta said. "It's almost touching how the players are fighting for pucks. They are giving 110%."

Finland owes much of its success to first-year Coach Curt Lindstrom, a Swede who formerly coached the Swedish national team. Lindstrom has instilled confidence in Finn players through constant positive reinforcement.

"I'm working very much since training camp in August with individual discussions to make them stronger mentally," Lindstrom said. "My main key word is not only self-confidence but confidence (in general). I try to give them confidence and an understanding they must take responsibility.

"They work with heart now. Skills, we have. I try to tell them they are good enough to beat any team."

Without question, they were good enough Monday.

Add a couple of world-class swimmers and one of the world's most highly respected coaches to your college program and look what happens: You start breaking traditions.

That is what Mark Schubert has done in his first year as coach of the USC women's swimming team.

And that is why USC defeated UCLA, 163-135, Saturday at UCLA for the first time in nine years.

The Trojans' improvement starts with Schubert, coach of the 1992 U.S. Olympic women's team. He took over the USC men's program in '92 after leading the Texas women's team to two NCAA titles and two second-place finishes in four years. Schubert took over the USC women's program as well after former USC women's coach Darrell Fick resigned after last season.

In 23 years as a club and collegiate coach, Schubert has placed 22 swimmers on Olympic teams.

And the next Schubert-trained woman to reach an Olympic team figures to be USC's KristineQuance.

Quance, the nation's top recruit last spring, decided to attend USC when she heard that Schubert would be the coach. Quance set an American record in the 200-meter breaststroke in December at the U.S. Open, and has a good chance to become the Trojans' first NCAA women's champion since 1985.

Swimming in consecutive events Saturday, Quance won the 200 butterfly in 2:00.27 and the 200 breaststroke in 2:15.65.

Another talented swimmer for USC is sophomore Ayako Nakano, a 1992 Japanese Olympian from Yokohama, Japan. Nakano finished fifth in the 200-yard freestyle and ninth in the 100 freestyle at last season's NCAA championships.

But perhaps the biggest name at USC these days is Janet Evans.

The four-time Olympic gold medalist is in her second season as a student assistant coach, and is training with the Trojan Swim Club while completing her undergraduate work in communication.

Having the likes of Schubert, Quance, Nakano and Evans hanging around the pool has charged the atmosphere at USC.

"The thing that has pleased me the most is the way the upperclassman have responded to the new people who have come in," Schubert said. "The whole team has really raised itself to a new level, which has really been a lot of fun."

USC next competes in the Pacific 10 Conference women's swimming championships at Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach, beginning Thursday.

*

This is how much tension there was at Saturday's USC-UCLA dual meet:

Both schools' top teams in the 400 medley relay were disqualified for false starts.

Perhaps adding to the tension was the fact that UCLA Coach Cindy McCullam Gallagher swam under Schubert's guidance at the club level.

*

The transition from high school to college is not always smooth for athletes, but it has been for Quance, who finally has time to relax. As a student at Granada Hills High, she had two hours of commuting time every day to swim practice at CLASS Aquatics in Calabasas.

Compared to that, college life is a breeze.

"Here, I just get up and walk over to the pool," Quance said. "For me, it's a lot easier, and I schedule my classes around my swimming and around my nap time. I just think it has worked out really well."

But Quance does not exactly live a life of leisure.

"I think because of the improved conditions, she can put more time into some of the other areas that she wasn't able (to do before)," Schubert said, "which I think is going to make a big difference in her speed."

Notes

The Pepperdine women's swimming and diving team will compete in the Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference championships Wednesday through Friday. The Waves' top individual performers are sophomore Jennifer Antimarino in the freestyle middle distances, sophomore Becky Early in the 200 individual medley, junior Ericka Keithly in the 100 and 200 backstroke and 200 individual medley, and junior Evy Wild in the sprints.

Rick McLaughlin, Loyola Marymount men's volleyball coach, was named coach of the U.S. national boys' volleyball team, the U.S. Volleyball Assn. announced last month. McLaughlin is in his second season as Loyola coach and is the younger brother of USC coach Jim McLaughlin.

Local golf teams are beginning their spring seasons. The Pepperdine men finished tied for sixth place with New Mexico in the Arizona Invitational last week, and sophomore Kevin Marsh tied for second place with Patrick Lee of Oklahoma and Marcus Jones of Texas at eight-under-par 205 on the 54-hole Randolph Park golf course. . . . Pepperdine will play in the 24-team Big Island Intercollegiate tournament at Waikoloa Kings golf course at Waikoloa, Hawaii, Saturday through Monday, along with UCLA and USC. . . . The USC and UCLA women's golf teams will open the spring season in the Arizona Invitational at Tucson Monday and Tuesday.

Former UCLA gymnasts Scott Keswick and Chainey Umphrey placed second and fourth, respectively, and UCLA sophomore Steve McCain was 10th in the Winter Cup Feb. 4-5 at Colorado Springs to earn a spot on the U.S. national team. Keswick and Umphrey also qualified for the World Championships in April and the Goodwill Games in July.

Melissa Hearlihy feels good about her team's chances in the Southern Section girls' basketball playoffs, which begin this week. She figures the toughest part is past.

Hearlihy is the coach at Mission Hills Alemany (23-0), the top-seeded team in Division II-A. The Indians will play host to Anaheim Katella in a first-round game Saturday night.

It has been a difficult road to the playoffs for Alemany. Hearlihy skipped four games in December because of the birth of her first child. Then the school was condemned after last month's earthquake. Classes are being held at a nearby seminary, while the team practices in Burbank and plays all of its games on the road.

School officials must now try to come up with a site for Saturday's game.

Pairings were released Monday in 10 divisions. This year's field has 231 teams.

All wild-card games and first-round games in three divisions will be played Wednesday. Everything else will start Saturday. The tournament concludes with finals on March 4-5.

This year's pairings look similar to last season's. Defending State Division I champion Lynwood is seeded No. 1 in Division I-AA. Brea-Olinda, which has won three consecutive state titles, is No. 1 in III-AA. Ventura Buena, which won the I-A championship last season, is that division's top-seeded team.

Pairings were set mainly along geographical lines this year because officials wanted to lessen anticipated travel hassles and increased costs caused by the Jan. 17 earthquake.

Let's hope that the high school basketball playoffs, which begin today, are without any of the ugly incidents that have occurred this season. There have been too many cases of unnecessary shoving, punches thrown and benches cleared.

Coaches have become too abusive to officials, and in some cases, to each other.

High school basketball in the Southland is looking more like the game on the collegiate and professional levels, and we are not talking about the caliber of play.

There are numerous examples:

--Last month, assistant boys' coaches at Santa Ana Mater Dei and Dana Hills got into a fight before a game and had to be separated by campus police at UC Irvine.

--A week later, Dean Bradshaw, boys' coach at Simi Valley, was suspended for grabbing one of his players and shoving him to the floor during a game against Westlake. Bradshaw is suspended for the season.

--Three weeks ago, players, coaches and fans came onto the court of a boys' game between Gardena Serra and Santa Monica St. Monica. One parent was arrested for carrying a concealed weapon.

--A similar incident took place last Tuesday in a boys' game between Riverside Poly and Riverside Rubidoux. A fight involving players, coaches and fans broke out in the third quarter, and officials called the game.

--The Long Beach St. Anthony boys' team had violent incidents at two of its games last week, and Southern Section officials are investigating.

Punishments have been left to the individual schools and leagues and have ranged from suspensions to reprimands. In most cases, however, they have not been tough enough. Sitting out one game for fighting is too easy. How about five games?

Fans who get involved in tussles should be barred from the gymnasium for the rest of the season. Coaches who fight or are thrown out of the games should sit out at least a week.

"You hope high school sports can be different than the rest of our society," said Mike Vanta, boys' basketball coach at Riverside Poly. "But I think that may be a little wishful thinking."

*

Three days after his son set a national prep record for most three-point shots in a game, Stan Bickley was not offering any apologies.

"The team wanted Chad to get the state record for three-pointers," said Bickley, boys' basketball coach at Santa Maria Valley Christian. "We didn't really think or imagine anything beyond that."

Chad Bickley, a 6-foot junior point guard, made 20 of 35 three-point attempts and finished with 89 points in a 130-48 victory over Cuyama Valley at Valley Christian. The 20 three-pointers is a national record, the 89 points a state record. Chad's previous high was 39 points.

"We only have eight players and they all played," Stan Bickley said. "We didn't press on defense and we didn't try to run up the score. We would have scored that many points whether Chad played the whole game or not. It was never our intention to rub their nose in it."

*

The Brea-Olinda girls' basketball team, which has won three consecutive state titles, enters the Southern Section playoffs this week on a roll. The Ladycats (25-0) have won their last five games by an average margin of 75 points. It started with a 112-23 victory over Anaheim on Feb. 1 and ended with a 110-16 victory over Anaheim Savanna last Thursday.

Coach John Hattrup, who replaced Mark Trakh last summer, said he is not embarrassed by the big margins.

"The sad thing is that most people look at those scores and assume we're just running up the score," Hattrup said. "And that's not at all true."

Hattrup said all 12 of his players get into most games and the reserves often score more points than the starters. In lopsided games, starters are normally pulled in the second quarter.

Hattrup said his reserves are better than most starters on other teams, a sentiment echoed by opposing coaches.

"I think Brea's junior varsity team would be a strong contender in our league," said Lori Giroux, Anaheim's coach. "Their program is just that good."

*

College recruiters are finally knocking on the door of Sarah Hagman, a senior basketball player at Crescenta Valley.

They are coming to watch the 5-foot-9 guard, who has been setting various three-point shooting records this season. The latest occurred Wednesday, when Hagman made four three-point baskets in a victory over Pasadena. That gave her 115 for the season, breaking the Southern Section record of 112 set by Amee Pina of Chino last year. The state record is 169, set by Danielle Vigilone of Fair Oaks Del Campo in 1992.

Hagman also holds the Southern Section record for most three-point shots in a game with 13 against Arcadia last month.

Prep Notes

The Lakewood boys' basketball team finished second in the powerful Moore League, but won't be in the playoffs because it used an ineligible player all season. The Lancers had to forfeit all of their victories. . . . More than 1,000 high school athletes will compete in the Sunkist Invitational track meet Saturday at the Sports Arena, starting at noon. . . .Eleanor Dykstra, girls' basketball coach at Cerritos Valley Christian, improved to 400-86 last Thursday with a victory over Orange Lutheran. In 23 seasons with the Crusaders, Dykstra has won five Southern Section titles. . . .Kelly Adamson, a forward on the Simi Valley Royal girls' soccer team, has been selected as an All-American by Parade magazine. . . . A National High School Football Hall of Fame is in the planning stages and is expected to open before the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. The hall will be built in Valdosta, Ga., near the Florida border. Times' Top 20 Basketball Polls

The Times' top 20 high school basketball polls, with teams from the City and Southern Sections.

BOYS 05,19,07,07,06,04 School Sect. Div. Rec. LW 1. Mater Dei SS I-A 26-0 1 2. Crenshaw City 4-A 19-2 2 3. Westchester City 4-A 21-3 3 4. Dominguez SS II-A 23-2 4 5. Fontana SS I-AA 24-1 5 6. Inglewood SS II-AA 23-3 6 7. JW North SS II-AA 24-0 7 8. St. John Bosco SS II-A 23-2 9 9. Santa Barbara SS II-AA 25-2 10 10. LB Poly SS I-AA 20-6 13 11. Hart SS I-A 21-1 11 12. Manual Arts City 4-A 18-4 12 13. Los Alamitos SS I-AA 21-4 8 14. Loyola SS I-A 19-5 16 15. Verbum Dei SS IV-A 20-2 14 16. Fairfax City 4-A 18-5 15 17. Glendora SS II-AA 24-2 17 18. S. Ana Valley SS I-AA 23-3 18 19. Lynwood SS I-AA 17-8 20 20. Carson City 4-A 16-5 NR GIRLS 05,20,07,08,08,04 School Sect. Div. Rec. LW 1. Brea-Olinda SS III-AA 25-0 1 2. Lynwood SS I-AA 25-1 2 3. Alemany SS II-A 23-0 3 4. Buena SS I-A 20-2 4 5. Woodbridge SS II-AA 25-0 5 6. Peninsula SS I-AA 21-3 6 7. Gahr SS II-AA 10-15* 7 8. St. Bernard SS IV-AA 20-5 10 9. Mater Dei SS I-A 20-3 11 10. Ch. Islands SS I-A 22-3 8 11. Bishop Amat SS II-A 22-1 12 12. Cypress SS II-A 23-3 13 13. Carson City 4-A 19-3 9 14. LB Poly SS I-A 20-4 14 15. Valley Chr. SS IV-A 22-2 15 16. B. Montgomery SS III-AA 19-7 16 17. San Bernardino SS II-A 21-4 17 18. Morningside SS III-AA 17-5 18 19. Fontana SS I-AA 20-4 19 20. Newbury Park SS III-AA 21-4 NR * Indicates 10 losses by forfeit.

Treasury Bill Rates Rise: The Treasury Department sold $12.2 billion of new three-month bills at an average discount rate of 3.28%, up from 3.24% last week.Another $12.3 billion of new six-month bills was sold at an average discount rate of 3.43%, up from 3.40% last week. The three-month bill rate was the highest since they sold for 3.29% on Dec. 7, 1992. The six-month bill rate was the highest since they averaged 3.46% on Nov. 30, 1992. The new discount rates understate the actual return to investors -- 3.35% for three-month bills with a $10,000 bill selling for $9,917.10, and 3.54% for a six-month bill selling for $9,826.60. T-Bill Auction

6-month: 3.43%

3-month: 3.28%

Ford Motor Co. said it plans to take majority control of Hertz by acquiring Commerzbank's 5% stake in the company.Terms of the deal with the German bank were not disclosed . . . Motorola Inc. said its Microprocessor and Memory Technologies Group cut prices for all versions of its 68302 communications computer processors by as much as 28%. The 302 chips are now priced as low as $14.95 in quantities of 10,000 . . . RIO Sportswear Inc. has agreed to buy Calvin Klein Inc.'s jeans business for an initial cash payment of $35 million and royalties based on future sales. Calvin Klein will continue to control design and promotion for the jeans business.

Theaters: Iwerks Entertainment has agreed to design and build four "Turbo Tour Theaters" featuring ride simulation equipment for family entertainment complexes being developed by Blockbuster Entertainment Corp. The locations of the centers have not yet been disclosed. Iwerks added that it plans to produce films to screen exclusively at the Blockbuster theaters.The theaters will allow viewers to watch a film while the seats move in a way that makes the audience feel as if it's moving along with the action on the screen. For Blockbuster, which recently announced a merger agreement with Viacom Inc., the deal is part of the company's strategy to expand beyond its main video rental business and into such areas as the development of large family entertainment centers.

With Viacom Inc. poised to take control of Paramount Communications, rumors surfaced on Monday that company President Stanley Jaffe and studio chief Sherry Lansing are already scouring Wall Street for funding to revive their film production company.

Others flatly denied such a move, which would violate their contracts. But sometimes even bad speculation speaks to the mood of an industry -- which in this case gives many of Paramount's top executives little or no chance of keeping their jobs.

People who do business with Paramount widely expect Viacom Chairman Sumner Redstone to reshape the company in his own image after the dust has cleared around the $10-billion deal. There are two reasons for that: One is that new owners almost always assign their own lieutenants to carry out new management plans -- often as part of a cost-cutting strategy. The other is that entertainment executives traditionally have no job security, even under the best circumstances.

Paramount Chairman Martin Davis has already largely taken on a caretaker's role, following a court decision that voided his friendly merger agreement with Viacom.

Jaffe has also conceded that he's on slippery ground, since Redstone has a strong No. 2 man in Viacom President Frank Biondi. While no one's confirming anything publicly, sources say the temperamental executive is examining several job possibilities. One report had Jaffe, an avid sports fan, trying to arrange financing to buy Paramount's two professional teams -- basketball's New York Knicks and hockey's New York Rangers.

Jaffe declined comment on Monday. A Paramount spokesman responded by saying: "None of the assets are for sale, and we don't comment on speculation."

At the very least, Jaffe and Davis won't go hungry. One report valued Jaffe's exit package of stock and stock options at about $60 million, and Davis's at $155 million.

If Jaffe goes as expected, many people take for granted that he and Lansing will resume their production partnership, while resulted in successes such as "Fatal Attraction" in the 1980s. But the studio chief's fate may not be so clearcut.

People close to Lansing say it's wrong to assume that she would necessarily reunite with Jaffe. Some see her going her own way. Others say that Redstone might even decide to leave Lansing in place if the studio continues to make headway during the next three to six months.

Redstone could also keep Lansing around for continuity, since the studio has had three chairmen in four years.

Lansing is personally popular with other Hollywood executives, and analysts are high on upcoming films such as the third "Naked Gun" installment, "Beverly Hills Cop 3" and "Clear and Present Danger."

With more than a dozen movies set to go into production this year, Lansing also has fostered relationships with such A-list producers such as Gale Anne Hurd ("Terminator 2"), Walter Hill ("48 Hours"), Barry Levinson ("Rain Main") and the team of Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy, who previously worked with Steven Spielberg.

*

The studio chief, who was in Indiana on Monday for a premiere of "Blue Chips," Paramount's next release, had no comment on speculation about her future. Sources close to Lansing, however, said it's only natural to conclude that she presently "has no job security," as one put it.

"It's almost certain Sherry will go," another source maintained. "There may be a polite period where she hangs in there. But with Stanley out either way -- which has been made clear -- there's no motive for Sherry to stay and work for Redstone."

Lansing's modus operandi so far has been to operate the studio as usual. "It's more than business as usual there," said one executive close to the studio.

Even if Lansing survives, however, many people close to the company fear that there will be mass upheaval in Paramount's legal and business affairs departments -- since Viacom has its own fully staffed divisions.

That leaves Paramount Television Group Chairman Kerry McCluggage, who might also be toppled under some doomsday scenarios. One school of thought has Viacom putting all of Paramount's television operations, under Biondi or MTV head Tom Freston -- who's seen as being on a fast track at Viacom.

"Viacom already knows the TV market and syndication business," one source said.

But there's also a reasonable argument to be made that Viacom will leave the television operation in place, since it's operating so successfully. Paramount's network programs include "Frasier" and "Wings." In the lucrative first-run syndication market its programs include "Entertainment Tonight," "The Arsenio Hall Show" and two Star Trek spinoffs.

*

Meet the new boss: Ted Turner, Hollywood's newest mogul, addressed his troops for the first time at a meeting at the Cinerama Dome Theatre on Sunset Boulevard last week. The meeting brought together employees from his New Line Cinema, Castle Rock Entertainment and Turner Pictures. Turner reportedly had many words of encouragement, but no word on who will head Turner Pictures, which has been up in the air for months. "We're still working on that," said one executive.

Former New Line Cinema production executive Phillip B. Goldfine is expected to be named vice president of Trimark Pictures, where he will help the independent distributor boost its film production.

Goldfine most recently was vice president of production at New Line, which is now part of Turner Broadcasting Systems. In addition to his production duties at Trimark, he is expected to serve as a liaison with Trimark Interactive and Trimark Television.

Santa Monica-based Trimark plans to produce from 10 to 12 films this year. Upcoming films include "Separate Lives" with James Belushi and Linda Hamilton, and "Curse of the Starving Class" with Kathy Bates, James Woods and Louis Gossett Jr.

* Sony Pictures confirmed that John Feltheimer will be president of its new Columbia TriStar Television unit. Andrew J. Kaplan was named senior executive vice president.

* Rochel Blachman, as expected, was named senior vice president of business affairs for Paramount Pictures Motion Picture Group.

* Jay Marciano has been named president of MCA Concerts Inc. He succeeds Marc Bension, who resigned.

* William S. Weiner was hired as vice president of legal affairs for New Regency Productions.

* Jill Glass has been named vice president of marketing for A&M Records. She will continue to oversee artist development, artist relations, production management and advertising merchandising departments.

* Former Capitol Records executive David Simone was named president of PolyGram Music Publishing Group.

* JVC Entertainment named Barr B. Potter as chairman and chief executive of Largo Entertainment. He succeeds Lawrence Gordon, who left recently for a production deal at Universal Pictures.

* Kathleen Bracken is the new creative services director at KCOP-TV.

* John Alexander was promoted to executive vice president of North American creative for MCA Music Publishing.

* Justin Yaros is the new director of music entertainment group information services for MCA's corporate information services.

* Former International Creative Management agent David Goldman joined Bud Yorkin Productions as president of production.

* Genesis Entertainment named Gary S. Berberet as director of advertising and promotion.

* Paramount Network Television named Eileen Ige as vice president of network finance.

* Amy Brownstein joined Levine/Schneider Public Relations as senior account executive in the company's "breakout department."

Rockwell International Corp. Monday announced the appointment of M. L. (Mike) Skolnick as executive vice president of its Canoga Park-based Rocketdyne Division.

Skolnick will be responsible for leading the division's business growth initiatives, building on the division's strength in propulsion, power and directed energy.

Skolnick joined Rockwell in 1976, and for the past seven years has been vice president of advanced programs at Rockwell's System Development Center in Seal Beach.

* First Interstate Bancorp announced the appointment of June Jones as senior vice president in its Human Resources Department.

Jones also will continue as the head of corporate-wide Employee Relations and Employment for the Los Angeles-based holding company, which has 16 banks and other subsidiaries in 13 western states.

* Foothill Group Inc. has named Henry K. Jordan senior vice president, chief financial officer and corporate secretary. Jordan held the post of vice president and controller from November, 1984, through February, 1990. Since then he has served as vice president, chief financial officer and corporate secretary.

The Los Angeles-based company is a financial services company engaged in the asset-based lending and asset management businesses.

* Nike Inc. named Thomas E. Clarke as its new president, succeeding Richard K. Donahue, who will become vice chairman.

Clarke joined Nike in 1980 as a researcher. He was named a vice president and director of marketing in 1988, and general manager of the Nike brand in 1991. Donahue had been president of the sneaker, footwear and sports apparel company for four years.

Nike, based in Beaverton, Ore., also announced the creation of a fourth international division covering Eastern Europe, India and Africa.

* Hill & Knowlton Inc. announced the appointment of its Asia Pacific executive vice president, Thomas G. Mattia, to head the firm's third-largest U.S. operation with headquarters in Los Angeles.

Mattia becomes general manager of Hill & Knowlton's Los Angeles operations and will be directly responsible for the firm's offices in Los Angeles, Irvine and Detroit. He also was named executive vice president of Hill & Knowlton USA with responsibility for its advanced technology practice and joins the firm's North American Operations Committee.

Prior to this appointment, Mattia served as managing director of Hill & Knowlton Asia Ltd..

* Jan Fisher and Paul Nichols have been named senior vice presidents of The Lippon Group, a Los Angeles-based international public relations and consulting organization.

Fisher, who will have responsibility for television, home video and corporate accounts, was vice president of the company.

Nichols, previously an account supervisor, will continue to work with corporate and entertainment accounts.

* William R. Lewis has joined Jenny Craig Inc. as chief financial officer and treasurer, succeeding W. James Mallen, who will retire.

Lewis was most recently executive vice president and chief financial officer of Nutri/System. Before joining Nutri/System in 1991, Lewis was executive vice president and chief financial officer for Simplicity Holdings Inc.

The Del Mar, Calif.-based firm is a leading weight management company.

To look at City Hall, you'd think that Los Angeles is in a state of official mourning. The flag is not at half-mast but, nearly one month after the quake that claimed 61 lives, the upper floors of the white landmark tower remain wrapped in a kind of black band.

This is actually nylon netting hung to catch crumbling chunks of facade -- an expression not of grief but prudence.

We practice prudence so we don't have to practice grief. And though much has been said about how lucky Los Angeles was that the Northridge earthquake struck while the city was sleeping, how the death toll would have been far greater, it's also true that some prudent quake codes adopted in the last decade probably saved many lives Jan. 17.

*

In normal times, seismic safety isn't sexy politics. But then Councilman Hal Bernson isn't a sexy politician. If you are familiar with the Jeff MacNelly comic strip "Pluggers," suffice to say that Hal Bernson is a plugger. But if any politician deserves credit for making L. A. semi-ready when the earth moves, it's Bernson.

It was ironic, then, that Bernson's district would be hit harder than any of his colleagues'. As one veteran council aide put it: "He's Mr. Earthquake."

Inside the vaulted chamber of the City Council one recent day, downing a quick sandwich while waiting to chair a meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee on Earthquake Recovery, Bernson remembered on the happenstance that helped make him City Hall's champion of quake preparedness.

The year was 1979. Freshman council members, as Bernson was at the time, are not given plum committee assignments. "You're assigned to committees where we'd get in the least amount of trouble." Bernson was made chairman of the Building and Safety Committee, considered something of a yawner.

Then Bernson stumbled upon some measures that were proposed after the Sylmar earthquake in '71, but never enacted. One would require the seismic strengthening of all buildings constructed of unreinforced masonry. Engineers agreed that these old brick structures were potential death traps in a major quake. With seismologists warning that the San Andreas could rupture any time, Bernson decided to push for this ordinance.

At City Hall, where some council members do little more than fix potholes or posture, and some just seem to posture, this is no small matter. More than 8,000 buildings in the city of Los Angeles would be affected, very few of which were within Bernson's northwest Valley district. Property owners lobbied hard, saying the cost of retrofitting their buildings was prohibitive. Some apartment owners bused in elderly tenants to testify that their rents would go up and they'd be out on the street if such a law was passed.

Bernson, a conservative who is considered friendly to business and property owners, didn't blink. He pushed through the ordinance -- a tribute to perseverance. "His seismic safety law is . . . a very serious accomplishment," Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky said of Bernson in a 1991 interview. "If he did nothing else, he could be proud of this."

Bernson, who has served on the state Seismic Safety Commission, has championed other quake laws and pushed for the creation of annual quake drills. Budget cutbacks in recent years have eliminated some of these programs. "But," Bernson adds, "the fact is the city was very well-prepared for this. That's why we responded so well."

With quake safety back on the front burner, Bernson now hopes to see these quake programs restored. He also hopes for new ordinances that would require the reinforcement of wood-frame structures and thus minimize the possibility of another deadly disaster like Northridge Meadows.

Already, landlords have warned Bernson's quake committee that new ordinances would make it too expensive to do business. Greig Smith, Bernson's chief deputy, remembers a once-angry Sherman Oaks landlord.

"He said, 'If you force me to do some of these things, I'm not going to rebuild. It costs too much!' To which Hal said, 'What is the cost of a life?'

"It was a poignant comment and it just kind of shut him up."

*

Did the retrofitting of unreinforced masonry buildings save lives?

"What if?" is always a tricky question. Larry Brugger, chief of the earthquake safety division in the city's Building and Safety Department, thinks it may have. Back in the early '80s, 8,093 buildings were placed in the program. Owners decided to demolish rather than retrofit 1,617 of those buildings. Another 5,708 were strengthened; of the rest, more than 200 have the work under way and another 500 have yet to comply. According to a Bernson aide, the retrofitted structures included 1,300 apartment buildings that contained 37,000 units and may house more than 200,000 people, given the crowded tenements of Hollywood and Pico-Union.

Several masonry buildings, reinforced and not, were damaged in the quake. No lives were lost in these structures.

The story might have been very different if not for the prudent measure that a freshman councilman discovered, dusted off and pushed into law.

Were it not for that, Brugger suggests, then maybe, just maybe, some of those old brick buildings would have collapsed like so many chimneys.

Scott Harris' column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. Readers may write to Harris at the Times Valley Edition, 20000 Prairie St., Chatsworth, Ca. 91311.

The Los Alamitos Community Camera Club will hold a slide presentation of historical photographs -- from the Civil War to space exploration -- on Wednesday at the Farmers & Merchants Bank at the Rossmoor Center.Admission is free for the 7:30 to 9 p.m. show.

The club, formed two years ago, is made up of amateur photographers from Huntington Beach, Cypress, Seal Beach and Stanton.

For more information, call (310) 596-2537.

Dr. C.C. Violette Elementary School will host a parent education night on Thursday to discuss ways adults can help raise successful children.

The free event, which will include commentary by family counselors, will be held at 7 p.m. in a multipurpose room at the school, 12091 Lampson Ave. Counselors will discuss how to communicate effectively with children, parenting strategies and how to promote self-esteem in youngsters, said district spokesman Alan Trudell.

Translators will be available and group discussions will be held in English, Spanish and Vietnamese. Free child care and refreshments will be provided.

The county is considering some controversial proposals for the Tustin Marine Corps Air Station after it closes in 1997. And these ideas, which include detention facilities and a police training center, are not what the Tustin Base Closure Task Force, the local group planning for the base, has in mind.

The process is remarkable nonetheless. The discussion between county and local planners is being conducted in a cooperative atmosphere, unlike the contentiousness over nearby El Toro Marine Corps Air Station. While there is local opposition to what the county hopes for, community leaders have renounced the "not-in-my-back-yard" approach.

In so doing, they are providing a "how-to" model for El Toro, where there are many agendas and little consensus so far.

At the heart of the approach in the Tustin planning is a recognition that a cooperative front is needed when presenting plans to Washington for screening.

Today, the Board of Supervisors is scheduled to consider asking the U.S. Department of Defense to allow detention facilities and a jail for prisoners on daytime work furloughs, a second juvenile hall, an alcoholism rehabilitation center and a law enforcement training facility.

Tustin Mayor Jim Potts says, "We're all working on this together." A member of the task force says, "Within reason, everything is viable." Already, there appears to be room for negotiation.

Are the folks quarreling over El Toro paying attention?

If you're a golfer, every year at this time, the heart pounds a little faster, you hyperventilate a trifle and you get this surge of euphoria.

The world's best players are coming through this part of the country, and you get this little thrill thinking contact with them will finally get you the clue that will lock your game into place and enable you to win all the presses the guys at Bel-Air can throw at you.

I mean, these players are always going around shooting 63s and winning all these millions of dollars -- so they must have some secret to the game the rest of us don't possess.

You know how Americans are. They're always convinced someone is holding out on them. They believe implicitly there's some single secret to success and it's transferable or transmittable. If only someone will level with them.

Everybody from Thomas Edison to Arnold Palmer has told them the secret is long, hard work, that the one element of genius is sweat. But, the Yank figures, what do they know?

So, you talk to the pros and it's disappointing. They don't tell you the vees are pointing in the wrong direction or that the whole essence to the game is an upright swing.

To a man, they tell you the game is mental. You have to believe in yourself. The equipment, the position at address, the swing plane is secondary. First, you have to get in the right frame of mind.

That's not what Americans want to hear. They want simple solutions.

The pros won't give it to them. For instance, a lot of people couldn't wait to hear what Craig Stadler would have to say about the fact he went nearly eight years without winning and then won twice in two years.

Stadler brushed right by any technical explanations for the turnaround. "I got my confidence back," he explained simply.

Confidence!? You were hoping he would steer you to a new grip or stance -- something you could copy. Instead, he steered you to the uncharted territory of the mind.

But golfer after golfer echoed Stadler. Success is not a weight shift, it's a mind set.

The most important club in the bag is confidence. And it's not a brand name. You can't turn to the caddie with your hand out for him to give you that stick. You don't go into the locker room and say: "Anybody here seen my confidence? I had it here a minute ago, but I mislaid it and I'm on the tee in five minutes."

The whole answer to golf, they tell you, is believing in yourself.

That's easy for them to say. You know how they are. They step up to the tee, and you say, "Watch out for that water on the right!" And they say, "What water?" I had a pal once who told me that what Jack Nicklaus does is, "He wills the ball into the hole." A few minutes later, he asked me what I had done on the hole, and I told him, "I willed it into the water."

Golf, you have to know, is one of the great confidence-destroyers this side of your mother-in-law.

It's a heartless old strumpet. Sooner or later, it will make a fool out of you, whether you're Bobby Jones at the Royal & Ancient or a weekend hacker at Camarillo. No harlot in high heels and net stockings ever made a bigger chump out of a guy who wooed her. Golf is the ultimate in unrequited love. A great part for Bette Davis. Golf the heartbreaker.

They tell you to picture the shot coming off textbook perfect. Try as you might, though, negative thoughts creep in. Doubts multiply.

I had a caddie once come up to me on a long par-four at Riviera and try to get me to change clubs. "You've got too much club there," he told me. "You'll go over the green." "My boy," I told him, "I've never been over a green in my life. But I've been short of a green about a hundred thousand times."

He was upset. "You'll never play the game that way," he grumbled. I suspect he's right.

But we see the water. We know the sand's there. We know we can top it into the barranca. Probably will. Golf is an unplayable lie. Trust me. If the pros are worried about their confidence, we should be lighting candles. I have seen Nicklaus shoot an 83, to give you an idea. And then go out the next day and shoot a 65. Ben Hogan made a 12 on a hole in Jacksonville once. And made a birdie two on the next hole.

But we don't do that. We shoot 102 one day -- and 108 the next. Golf is just toying with you. She's a world-class trollop. She'll take your money, your health, your well-being and leave you standing on a corner with flowers in your hand wondering who's kissing her now. Robbing you of confidence is what she does best. Ever stop to think, you almost never see a cocky golfer? Nobody does sack dances on a green here. Because they know the old gal is just waiting to cut you down to size.

That's why these guys never come into the press tent to tell you that going to a new driver or a long-shafted putter or a cross-handed stroke made the difference. They know what wins. No fear of failure.

But they're as scared of this two-timing floozy as you are. They know she'll turn on them without a qualm. The minute she sees a self-doubt cross your mind, she's gone.

So, if you come down to the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic this week in the hopes of finding the swing change that will make all the difference in your game, forget it. Don't expect the pros to give it to you. If you want to be a better player, don't go to a pro, go to a church. Never mind Greg Norman. Try that other Norman -- Norman Vincent Peale.

"Fly or die!" was his motto for the Winter Olympics.

In a sense, Duncan Kennedy did a little of both Monday.

While generating a record pace at an estimated 75 m.p.h., the U.S. luger crashed in the third heat of the four-heat event won by defending Olympic champion Georg Hackl of Germany.

"I'm . . . as hell," Kennedy said. "I just crashed in the Olympics. What can I say?"

Kennedy lost it coming out of Turn 13 and was disqualified for not finishing. Hackl beat Markus Prock of Austria by 13/100ths of a second as they repeated their 1-2 finish of the 1992 Olympics.

Armin Zoggler of Italy was third.

Wendel Suckow went from ninth to fifth, the best Olympic finish ever for a U.S. man.

Kennedy, fourth after Sunday's two heats, seemed on his way to passing Zoggler in the third heat, meaning he would have been third with the final heat to go.

"He was in the medals, no doubt about it," U.S. luge official Bob Hughes said.

Said Ron Rossi, executive director of the U.S. Luge Assn.: "I'm disappointed for him but proud that he went out there trying to win. His attitude was he wasn't going to leave anything on the track. Isn't that what you try to instill in every athlete?"

A cautious Kennedy finished 10th and 14th in his two previous Olympics.

He came to Norway determined to be aggressive, so amid Monday's frustration there was a sense of satisfaction.

"That wasn't me," he said of the 1988 and '92 Games. "That wasn't sliding the way I can.

"This is a huge disappointment, but I can accept it because I did my best. My attitude was to really attack. I knew there was some risk there, but I wouldn't have been happy hanging back and finishing in the teens.

"I mean, I was going for it. That was my goal, but I apparently crossed the line. I brought a little too much pressure out of 13. I carried a little too much edge. When the ice is as hard and fast as this, you pay a price."

How fast was it?

Hackl, first out, heated up the sub-zero morning by breaking the track record he had set Sunday. Prock, sliding next, promptly broke Hackl's record.

Kennedy then was only 4/100ths off Prock's pace as he picked up speed on the lower part of the course.

"I knew it would be tough beating Hackl and Prock, but I was confident I could finish third, and I wanted that record," he said. "I felt the record would be satisfaction in itself."

Kennedy's mistake, Rossi said, was a subtle one on uncompromising ice.

"He was in the sweet spot of the curve, but he carried the line a little too long," Rossi said.

Instead of coming out in the middle of the straightaway, Kennedy was cutting across the straightaway and tried to compensate by raising his head and dropping his left foot.

He promptly cut back the other way, bouncing first off the right wall, then off the left before he began to lose the sled in Turn 14.

"By that time I was trying to relax and not fight it," he said.

Kennedy's suit was torn, but he was not injured.

"Hard to believe at 75 m.p.h.," he said.

His mother, Betsy, was near tears.

Ironically, Kennedy had advised her to watch from Turn 13 "because that's where the action is."

"It's part of a mother's prerogative to be heartbroken," she said. "It kills me. I can't tell you how much it hurts."

Kennedy said he generally crashes once or twice a season, but he couldn't remember when it last happened in a race and not practice.

What was his initial thought?

"I couldn't believe it," he said. "I thought, 'Oh, no. Not now. This can't be happening.' "

When the disconsolate Kennedy returned to the starter's house at the top of the hill, teammate Suckow wasn't sure how to react.

"I didn't know what to say or what's right to say," he said. "I just patted him on the shoulder.

"That's what he did to me when I crashed in Oberhof (Germany, during a World Cup race). It's part of racing, but it's hard to accept."

Suckow said he was generally satisfied with his finish.

"It's also a disappointment to think about what I might have had," he said. "My starts are consistently terrible, and yet I can still slide with these guys. It's something I have to continue to work on. I think it's natural to wonder what I'd be doing if my starts were better."

Suckow, 26, said he would take it a year at a time now, unsure if he will still be sliding in '98, when the Winter Games are held in Nagano, Japan.

Kennedy, also 26, voiced similar thoughts.

"The disappointment is going to be there for a while, but life goes on," he said. "Hopefully, there'll be other chances. If not, I've had a lot of good races and a lot of good years. I can't complain -- only a little bit."

For the second time in four days, a Winston Cup stock car driver was killed in a single-car accident at Daytona International Speedway.

Rodney Orr, 31, of Panama City, Fla., who had never before attempted to qualify for a Winston Cup race, was killed Monday when his family-owned Ford Thunderbird hit the wall on the driver's side as it came out of the second turn during a morning practice session.

The crash occurred as many drivers were preparing to leave the track and fly to Hueytown, Ala., to attend funeral services later in the day for veteran driver Neil Bonnett, who was killed last Friday in a shockingly similar accident.

Orr appeared to lose control as the car came through Turn 2. The back end came around in a typical spin situation, but when the car dropped down on the apron, Orr apparently attempted to correct the problem. Instead, the car flipped on its side and shot up the embankment into the wall.

The initial impact came at the top of the windshield area. Observers said Orr probably was killed instantly, although he was taken to Halifax Medical Center, where he was declared dead at 10:06 a.m. EST.

The circumstances closely paralleled Bonnett's fourth-turn crash Friday and another accident Thursday that left ARCA driver Andy Farr hospitalized with a broken sternum and a bruised heart. All three accidents involved drivers who had either little or no recent experience on the high-banked superspeedway at Daytona.

Orr had never driven a Winston Cup car until last month; Farr had never driven at Daytona in any kind of car, and Bonnett, although he had been in 362 Winston Cup races, had not raced at Daytona since 1990, when tire compounds and aerodynamic equipment were different.

After winning the NASCAR Goody's Dash Series for four-cylinder stock cars last year, Orr was attempting to make a big jump into the eight-cylinder Cup cars, by passing the intermediate Busch Grand National class. Goody's Dash cars run at about 155 m.p.h., about 35 to 40 miles slower than the Daytona 500 cars.

Orr and his father bought a new Thunderbird in the off-season and had veteran engine builder Ernie Elliott prepare a motor for the car.

"I'd like to go out there and try to look good and run it professional and attract a major sponsor," Orr told the Palm Coast News-Tribune on Friday. "I would just like to get some experience. I just want to make the (starting) field."

Although he was one of only seven drivers to better 190 m.p.h. during preseason testing at Daytona, Orr did not attempt to qualify Saturday when another rookie, Loy Allen Jr., won the pole with a speed of 190.158 m.p.h.

Orr was preparing to take his qualifying run later Monday when he crashed.

Orr's Goody's car was sponsored by Bobby Brooks' Exxon station in Robbinsville, N.C., where Orr was raised.

Orr's family moved to Panama City, north of Daytona Beach, two years ago, where Orr did most of his racing at Volusia Speedway in nearby Barberville.

The deaths of Bonnett and Orr were the first in Winston Cup racing since August of 1991, when J.D. McDuffie died from injuries in a crash at Watkins Glen, N.Y. The last previous stock car racing fatality on the Daytona track was that of Joe Booher, in last year's Daytona Dash.

He's the Buffalo Bills.

A winner. A champion. A hell of a human being. Everybody who knows him admires him. Adversaries respect him. Year in, year out, he defeats them. He's as good as anybody out there. He belongs out there on his sport's biggest day. But does he win? At Winter Olympics XIV -- no. Winter Olympics XV -- no. Winter Olympics XVI -- no. And now, Winter Olympics XVII -- no.

People get sentimental about him. Just once, they want him to win. Behind his back, some call him a choker. He's the best in the business. The U.S. coach calls him the "Carl Lewis of skating." But he hasn't won a gold, hasn't won a silver, hasn't won a bronze. The track's either too soft or too hard. He's either too distracted or too focused. He slips, he falls, he fails. He's the Gerald Ford of skating.

Man, oh, man. Maybe Dan Jansen is a choker.

"It's not a choke. It's not, it's not," Pat Kelly is saying.

He is shaking his red-haired head. Pat skates for Canada. His dad was Red Kelly, the hockey great, the former Detroit Red Wing and Toronto Maple Leaf who later served in Parliament. Pat Kelly competed in Monday's 500-meter men's speedskating final here. His time was 37.07 seconds. Jansen's was 36.68. Pretty close, which is crazy, because Pat is in Dan's race, but he is not in Dan's league.

Kelly says: "Your nerves just get going. Everybody has problems now and then. Dan Jansen's the best skater in the world, and we all know it."

Yeah. If only he could show it.

"Well, yeah," Kelly says. "But I'm sure Dan isn't going to kill himself over this."

Of course not. Dan's smart. Dan's stable. As his coach, Peter Mueller, the man who compared him to Carl Lewis, pointed out, Dan Jansen is still the greatest sprinter in skating, still a perfect gentleman. As his best friend, skater Andrew Gabel, pointed out, Dan Jansen is still married to a lovely woman, still father to a lovely daughter.

He just isn't an Olympic medalist. Again.

Jack Walters, who coaches Kelly and the Canadian team, can't believe it.

"Dan Jansen has been in, what, 300 races? He's been the most consistent skater in the world. But he's stayed a nice guy with the same size head. It's almost like everyone wants him to win -- even the people racing against him.

"Why can't this poor guy win this one darn race?"

Sean Ireland, the Canadian who skated alongside Jansen this time, couldn't believe it, either.

"I didn't see him slip," he said. "I just saw some chunks flying. I heard some major scratching going on, like ice breaking. It sounded like a major slip to me.

"What happened? Did he say?"

Yes, he said.

Jansen said he wasn't sure what happened. He said the ice was a little hard. He said he was skating fine. He said he felt great. He said he slipped around Turn 3, which had never given him any trouble before. He said, "That's why I can't believe it." He said, "Without the slip, I win."

Maybe it just isn't meant to be, he said. Funny, that's what the Buffalo Bills said.

Jansen follows pro football. He even wore a Carolina Panthers' cap -- it's an NFL expansion club -- after Monday's race. And he handled the situation as graciously as the Bills did, handled the disappointment.

Having had so much practice.

"Who I feel sorry for is my family," Jansen said.

Not for yourself?

"No. Maybe later."

On Valentine's Day, his heart was broken. Make that re-broken. The winning time was 36.33 seconds. He doesn't slip, Dan Jansen beats 36.33, easy. One slip. One teensy slip. Not a stumble. Not a fall. A slip.

Dan Jansen said, "Four Olympics. I don't get it. What is this?"

For anyone who has suffered with speedskater Dan Jansen through his sad Winter Olympic history, the events of Monday in the Olympic Hall no doubt inspired numerous feelings. Disbelief should not have been among them for the only truly incredible result would have been a Jansen triumph.

Yet, his wife, Robin, sat among the crowd with their infant daughter long after Jansen's fourth and probably last chance to win a medal in the 500 meters had literally slipped away and searched for an answer.

"As soon as I saw him slip, I said, 'Why, God? Why again?' " she said after his eighth-place finish. "God can't be that cruel.

"I'm sure some day we'll find out. Someday, we'll understand."

But for Monday, in an arena designed to look like an overturned Viking ship, it was their lives that once more had been turned upside down.

Were it not for the knowledge that he has been the most star-crossed Olympian in recent memory, Jansen, 28, would have been the overwhelming favorite. No one else has skated the distance in under 36 seconds, and he has done it four times, most recently in lowering the world record to 35.76.

Seemingly relaxed as he stepped onto the track purported to be the world's fastest, a track on which he set a world record in December, he said later that he was confident of victory even as he entered the final turn.

Then, 150 meters from the finish, his left skate slipped. Panicking because he knew that he had lost time, he tried to compensate by pushing himself harder. He slipped again, this time touching his left hand to the ice to prevent a fall.

His time at the finish was 36.88, slower than nine of his last 10 races, and .35 of a second behind Russia's Aleksandr Golubev, who won in an Olympic record 36.33. Golubev's teammate, Sergei Klevchenya, was second in 36.39, and Japan's Manabu Horii was third in 36.53.

After his race, Jansen put his hands on top of his head in frustration, then donned sunglasses and left the arena.

"No questions, please," he said as he brushed by reporters.

Thirty minutes later, he returned to face the questions, many of which he could not answer without having seen a videotape.

"I don't know," he said when asked what happened on the final turn. "I was fine up to that point. That's not a place where you would normally slip. That's why I can't believe it. I just can't explain.

"I had a great morning. I slept great. I was less nervous than I was for the World Championships two weeks ago. I thought I was going to break a record.

"For as much time as it cost me, I still was only three-tenths of a second off a medal. I think I would have won by quite a bit if I hadn't slipped."

Asked if he felt sorry for himself, Jansen said, "No, I might later. Right now, I don't know what to say.

"Maybe it wasn't meant to be. Everybody knows I'm the best in that race. It just didn't happen."

Jansen said the ice was harder than it had been during his practices. But some skaters said the ice was soft, and others said it was perfect. They all agreed that he should have been the winner.

"I believe that Jansen is the fastest sprinter on earth, so the eighth place he took today just does not fit," Russia's Klevchenya said.

Added Jansen's coach, Peter Mueller, "It just doesn't happen at the Games for him. That doesn't take away from what he is, the greatest sprinter of all time and a great gentleman. It's just not meant to happen, I guess."

Jansen, from the Milwaukee suburb of Greenfield, skated in his first Winter Olympics at 18, finishing a surprising fourth in the 500 in Sarajevo in 1984 and establishing himself as a rising young star.

Although he was still precocious, he was considered among the medal contenders four years later in Calgary, Canada. But in the early morning hours on the day he was to compete in the 500, he received word that his sister, Jane, had died after a lengthy battle with leukemia. He was distraught, but he skated anyway, and fell. Four days later, hours before returning home for his sister's funeral, he skated in the 1,000 and fell again.

During the next four years, he was constantly reminded of the tragedy in interviews, and, by the time he arrived in Albertville, France, for the 1992 Winter Olympics, he was filled with anxiety, he admitted later, about whether he could put Calgary out of his mind and focus on the task at hand.

He could not. In the 500 meters, a race in which he figured to finish no worse than second, he hesitated entering the final turn, the same turn where he slipped here Monday, and finished fourth. In despair, he later finished 26th in the 1,000.

But he and his coach, Peter Mueller devised a new strategy in the two years before these Games. They would not talk about past Olympic disappointments, focusing all their energy on succeeding here.

It is still possible that they will. Jansen is scheduled to compete Friday in the 1,000, not a dominating event for him like the 500 but one in which he is among the world's fastest.

"I'm not a quitter," Jansen said. "I won't give up. I'll just go out and skate. If it happens, it does. If not, I'll go on. Same old thing."

That is not entirely true. Since the last Winter Olympics, Jansen's wife has given birth to a daughter. They named her Jane, after Jansen's late sister. He said earlier this year that going home after races to play on the floor with her has taught him that life is not just a 500-meter race.

"Life goes on," Robin said upon reflection Monday. "Our life doesn't revolve around skating. We'll be fine."

Jack Benny would be appalled.

Here's a guy who can't wait to turn 40.

But Steve Scott still has a long wait -- he turns 38 in May.

Why the rush? He wants to be the first 40-year-old to run a 4-minute mile.

"Every so often, I compute how many months are left," he said between workouts for his record 15th appearance in Saturday's Sunkist Invitational at the Sports Arena.

"It'll be a great challenge for me -- as important to me as anything I've ever done."

Four-minute (or faster) miles are feats with which Scott has some familiarity. He has run 136 of them, believed to be a record.

Of course, sub-fours become a bit more difficult the closer one gets to 40. And Scott must first sweat out assaults on the first sub-four for a 40-year-old by athletes slightly older.

"My main competition right now is Eamonn Coghlan of Ireland," Scott said. "Eamonn is 41, and had a pretty good run at it last year. He got down to 4:01.

"It sort of looks to me like Eamonn might not make it, particularly if he doesn't get it in this indoor season.

"And if he doesn't, then the top prospect would be Dave Moorcroft of England, who recently turned 40. He ran a 4:02 last summer."

Once, a four-minute mile was a bad race for Scott.

His 3:47.69 at Oslo in 1982 is still the fastest mile run by an American. He still calls that race, only three-tenths of a second off the world record at the time, the high point of his career.

In the Sunkist, he'll be returning to the scene of his first four-minute mile, when he ran 3:59.7 as a 20-year-old in 1977.

He says the transition from running the mile in his peak years to "senior citizen" competition is more mental than physical.

"I didn't notice any problem with training until I was 34 and 35," he said.

"That was a tough transition for me. I first noticed then that I needed extended recovery periods from workouts. Before, I went hard every day. All of a sudden, I needed three and four days to recover from a tough workout.

"Mentally, it was tough to accept that. I mean, I wanted to do what I did in my 20s. I finally had to understand that while I was as good a miler at 35 as I was at 25, I needed different training methods to get the same results.

"I've been at this so many years, I have a great strength base. I've created a miler's body, essentially. But I've reached an age where I just have to apply more intelligence to my training."

Scott said he dropped off the list of America's top 10-rated milers last year for the first time since the 1970s, but added that he isn't all that far removed from his prime.

"If I have a long time to peak for one race, I'm pretty close to my best," he said. "But I can't run great races close together."

When old milers break down, he said, they do so very quickly. He cited the cases of two old rivals, New Zealand's John Walker and Ireland's Coghlan. Both are now close friends of Scott's.

"John came down with an Achilles' (tendon) problem when he was 34, that he should have taken care of surgically at the time," Scott said.

"But he didn't and he kept trying to run on it. It just got worse. Now, he can't even jog.

"Eamonn tells me he's had a lot of problems with slow-healing injures since he turned 38. Now, he says if he gets the slightest calf or hamstring pull, he stops and takes care of it immediately."

If anyone else out there is considering a sub-four mile at 40, or any other high-level running performance, Scott has another tip: Get a coach.

He's presently coached by Irv Ray, cross-country coach at Azusa Pacific.

Why would a guy who has run 136 four-minute miles need a coach? Is there anyone out there who knows more about running the mile than Scott himself?

"You need someone to bounce ideas off of, more than anything," he said.

"And I need someone to pull in my reins. Ray puts my program together. No matter how much you know, you need someone to monitor what you're doing, and to tell you when to back off.

"From 1985 through '87, and from '90 through '92, I didn't have a coach. But I should have, in all those years."

Scott, who lives in Leucadia, says he does one quality interval workout a week, at UC San Diego or a Del Mar golf course.

"A typical workout now might be three miles of 200 (yards), each between 30 and 40 seconds, followed by a two- or three-mile run on grass," he said.

"Then I do six repeat 300s, at 43, 45 and 47 seconds. I used to do something like that three times a week, then do six- to 10-mile runs in between.

"I hurt all over the next day now. At 25, it was no problem."

Finding the exact blend of world-class workouts and rest isn't as easy as it sounds.

"My last three years have been very frustrating," he said. "I just couldn't get it right, training versus rest.

"I've had a problem with overtraining most of my career, not just now. When you're overtrained, you come to a point in a race where your legs suddenly feel like tree trunks.

"You can overtrain for a month and not notice anything. But it comes on very quickly and then you need rest. Now, I kind of have it figured out. I'm more aware than ever of the importance of rest. I went from my (UC Irvine) days through 1988 with no time off at all." Scott grew up in Upland, the son and brother of doctors. He and his wife, Kim, have three children -- son Corey, 12; daughter Megan, 10, and son Shawn, 1 1/2. Corey, he reports, is a comer.

"He has potential," Scott said. "He's got a very nice stride, but he's had no training."

Nearly 20 years ago, Scott arrived at UC Irvine as a track prospect of modest credentials: He ran a 4:16 mile in high school, and finished second in the half mile at the State meet.

He talks a lot these days of concessions to age in gearing his workouts, of being wary of even minor injuries.

One thing he has had plenty of, however, is the desire to run.

"Enthusiasm has never been a problem," Scott said. "I still love to run. I look forward to my meets now as much as I ever did."

John Chaney, Temple coach, was suspended for one game Monday, a day after he publicly threatened to kill Massachusetts Coach John Calipari.

Chaney apologized for his outburst after the Owls' 56-55 loss to 13th-ranked Massachusetts. But Temple President Peter Liacouras suspended Chaney from Wednesday night's game at St. Bonaventure.

"Coach Chaney overstepped the line this time," Liacouras said in a statement. "I believe the university must pursue the highest standards in competition, and even his sincere apology, he agrees, is insufficient in these circumstances."

The Atlantic 10 Conference said it is investigating the incident.

It was the first time Chaney has been disciplined in 12 years during which he led the Owls to nine NCAA tournament appearances.

In a statement released by Temple's athletic department, Chaney extended his apology "to everyone for yesterday's unfortunate incident following the basketball game . . . to the Atlantic 10 Conference, the University of Massachusetts, the teams, those persons who were present and those who witnessed the incident, everyone."

Chaney planned no further comment, spokesman Gerry Emig said.

Temple spokeswoman Harriet Goodheart said Liacouras would not comment beyond the statement.

Before Chaney's outburst, Calipari was seen berating the referees in the hallway after the game and was still complaining vociferously about the officiating as he waited his turn at the microphone at a postgame news conference.

Chaney then charged the podium where Calipari stood. Three Massachusetts players moved quickly to intervene, and Chaney was restrained before reaching Calipari.

"I'll kill you," Chaney was heard to say. "You remember that." He also said he would have his players confront Massachusetts players when the teams play again in Philadelphia on Feb. 24.

When order was restored, Calipari said: "Some things never cease to amaze me. And I am going to leave it at that. I am not going to comment any further either here or on radio or television."

Moments before the outburst, a milder Chaney had said: "We made some bad decisions at the end. We didn't make the stops we usually make. And some of it was due to my own poor judgment."

It wasn't the first time the successful coaches had tangled. They had to be separated in Amherst, Mass., in 1990 after getting into a shoving match at midcourt during a triple-overtime game.

Despite pleas by the U.S. Olympic Committee and the U.S. Figure Skating Assn., the International Skating Union informed those organizations Monday that the decision to place figure skaters Nancy Kerrigan and Tonya Harding in the same practice group during the Winter Olympics is irrevocable.

"Remarks have been made that we aren't concerned about Nancy Kerrigan," ISU Vice President Lawrence Demmy of Great Britain said. "I think we are doing that by keeping things normal.

"We always practice as countries. If we change now, we create a massive problem. We might have one couple say, 'I'm not skating with this other couple because her husband is sleeping with my wife.' We might have one man say he doesn't want to be with another because he is gay."

Expected to arrive here from Portland, Ore., Wednesday afternoon for the women's figure skating competition that begins Feb. 23, Harding is scheduled to practice twice the next afternoon with a group of five other women, including two Czechs, a Bulgarian, a South Korean and Kerrigan.

Kerrigan's coaches, Evy and Mary Scotvold, have complained that she might be distracted by having to share a rink with Harding, who has been implicated by a U.S. Figure Skating Assn. hearing panel in the Jan. 6 assault on Kerrigan.

The concern of the USOC and the USFSA is that the pairing will attract so many media that the practices will be disrupted. Already, numerous television crews, photographers and reporters who usually cover the women's competition are gathering each day at the Olympic Amphitheatre to see Kerrigan. She arrived here last Thursday.

"If we take (Harding) out of one group and put her in another group, it could be considered distracting to the other skaters," Demmy said. "Why should we disturb those who have had nothing to do with this?"

He said the ISU received the latest request from the USOC and the USFSA on Sunday.

The USFSA's team leader, Gayle Tanger, said the USOC and the USFSA accepted the decision, adding that the ISU guaranteed that one of its two technical delegates, Demmy or Chuck DeMore of the United States, will attend each of the practices involving Harding and Kerrigan.

"If they see anything disruptive, they will intervene," Tanger said.

Demmy said he does not expect a problem between the two. "When you think about it, Kerrigan will be protected," he said. "Harding will stay as far away as she possibly can in practice."

Little League baseball. Age-group swimming. Pop Warner football. Toddler gymnastics. Tiny-tot tennis. These are the sports Americans grow up with.

Here in Norway, it's skiing. Cross-country skiing. It's the national pastime here. The country's most celebrated sports heroes are cross-country skiers Vegard Ulvang and Bjorn Daehlie, triple gold-medalists in the 1992 Winter Olympics at Albertville, France.

In the States, a dedicated but definite minority skis cross-country, and mostly recreationally. So, it's small wonder that America's best cross-country skier in recent years is a Norwegian.

John Aalberg, who left here in 1983 to attend the University of Utah, and became an American citizen in time for the Albertville Games, is enjoying every minute of his return home.

"It's great to ski through the Norwegian pines again and to eat the food I used to," he said. "I'm very excited to ski for the U.S. and try to beat some Norwegians."

That doesn't figure to happen for the U.S. though, because at 33, Aalberg is a bit beyond his prime, and because the other Americans have not had the benefit of his Norwegian training.

"Norway is the heart of the sport," Aalberg said. "I started skiing in competition when I was 10 or 11. Before that, I was with my friends out on skis. Because of all the attention it gets, the best (athletic) talent goes to cross-country skiing.

"When I started racing, we had individual age groups and in some of those races we'd have almost 200 kids in each class. In the States, if you have 200 people in all age groups, that's a big race."

The reason for all of this?

"It's the culture and tradition, something Norwegians have done for many years and maybe it has something to do with the Birkebeiner story."

The story of the Birkebeiners -- it means birch leggers, for the birch-bark leggings worn by the skiers involved -- dates to 1205, when there was a power struggle for the Norwegian throne. The Birkebeiners were entrusted with getting the crown prince, 18-month-old Haakon, from Oslo to Trondheim, a long and perilous journey on skis. They did, and Haakon grew up, was crowned king in 1217, united the country and reigned until 1263.

"Other than that, it's a good way of staying healthy," Aalberg said. "It's great exercise. And it's something that's easy to do even when you get older."

Sounds like something Californians could get into. MIKE KUPPER

Todd Marchant is the playmaker, a center who prefers passing to shooting. Left wing Craig Johnson is the digger, the dervish who spins into the corner to fight for the puck.Right wing Peter Ferraro is so natural a scorer that, according to Marchant, "he just shoots and the puck finds ways to go into the net for him."

Together, the three pose the most formidable scoring threat for the U.S. Olympic team. But they had only one goal, combined, in Sunday's tournament-opening 4-4 tie with France, and will have to be more effective tonight against Slovakia for the U.S. team to stay in medal contention.

Unlike the defense-oriented French team, Slovakia plays an up-tempo style. That means the Johnson-Marchant-Ferraro line should be in its element; they are the three fastest U.S. skaters and were 1-2-4 in scoring in pre-Olympic play.

"Craig adds the power to our line because he can score goals and he can hit," said Ferraro, who scored 30 goals for the U.S. team in 60 pre-Olympic games. "Todd adds good speed and I try to be somewhat creative and add scoring punch. I think we have very good line chemistry."

Led by former NHL star Peter Stastny, Slovakia is seeded 12th in its Olympic debut, but has players with significant international experience. The same teams played a 5-5 tie at the Telehockey Cup tournament in Lillehammer in November.

"I think you're going to see a different offensive game from our team (today)," Marchant said after practice here Monday. "We're really going to try to bury our chances, especially on the power play. . . . We can't float it in and hope it trickles through. That's what we were doing against France instead of taking the puck with initiative." HELENE ELLIOTT

The Winter Olympic coverage Sunday night on CBS was viewed by 82 million, the largest audience for a single night of the Games -- Summer or Winter.

The national Nielsen rating was a 29.2 and the audience share a 41. The rating is the third-highest ever, behind a 33.3 and a 30.0 for successive nights during the 1972 Summer Olympics at Munich. LARRY STEWART

From the last row near the rafters in Anaheim Arena down to the seats on the glass at ice level, thousands of voices join together to shout at the Mighty Ducks' goaltender in a roaring chorus.

"G-e-e-e-e-e-k!"

At least that's the way his name used to sound to Guy Hebert's Little League baseball teammates growing up in Troy, N.Y. The boys who knew Hebert from hockey put the Lafleur touch on the name of a kid whose mom had named him Guy, as in Lombardo. But the boys who played only baseball were baffled. He didn't seem like a geek to them.

Goalies are sometimes seen as the left-handed pitchers of hockey -- high-strung, quirky, flaky. But Hebert is from a different mold, an easygoing young man who loves to fish, is polite to reporters who think he's French-Canadian, and will answer to whatever name you want to call him. Even if it's occasionally Bobby, the nickname some college buddies came up with when they decided it was easier to borrow the NFL quarterback's name than pick a pronunciation of Guy.

His ability to go with the flow has been valuable during the Ducks' first season. He and Ron Tugnutt have shared the starter's job most of the season in a rotation even they could never quite predict -- until just recently, when Coach Ron Wilson dropped his "Nos. 1 and 1-A" designation and called Hebert his "big-game" starter, at least for now.

For the first time in his NHL career, Hebert is a regular starter. The closest he's ever been to that role before was during a two-week stretch last season with the St. Louis Blues. He was sitting on the bench as Curtis Joseph's understudy when Joseph suffered a minor knee injury. Hebert responded with his first career shutout and a four-game winning streak that earned him notice as co-NHL player of the week.

"It was like 15 days of glory for me -- I played seven or eight (games) in a row," said Hebert, who turned 27 last month.

This season, he and Tugnutt are playing more than either one ever has. They simply haven't known when they would play.

"Tugger and I could never figure out what we had to do to play the next game," Hebert said. "We don't even really speak in terms of a No. 1 and No. 2. We're both here trying to play the best every night for the team. I feel fortunate that I've gotten to play several games now. But nothing's ever taken for granted around here. . . . You just take each game as it comes and try to play the best you can so they'll be forced to put you back in there."

Together, they have been the Ducks' answer to Florida's John Vanbiesbrouck. It's now clear that the remarkable success of the NHL's two newest teams is largely the result of expansion guidelines that allowed existing teams to protect only one goaltender, instead of two, from selection in the expansion draft.

Florida took a proven veteran, while the Ducks drafted two talented young backups. At times this season, Hebert and Tugnutt have both had goals-against averages under 3.00 and save percentages above .900.

Tugnutt got the team's first victory, over the Edmonton Oilers on Oct. 13, and Hebert was in goal for the first road victory, beating the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 19.

Hebert posted the first shutout when he beat Toronto, 1-0, on Dec. 15 at Maple Leaf Gardens; Tugnutt answered with a shutout of the New York Islanders at Nassau Coliseum on Dec. 28, and Hebert added another for good measure when he shut out Vancouver on Feb. 4 at Anaheim Arena.

Through it all, they have maintained an easy camaraderie, rooming together on the road and dressing next to each other before home games.

"I'm sure Tugger is champing at the bit," Hebert said during a recent stretch when he started six consecutive games and 10 of 12. "Things can change overnight."

Tugnutt, who is most remembered for making 70 saves for the Quebec Nordiques in a 1991 game against the Boston Bruins only to end up with a 3-3 tie, fell out of the Ducks' rotation about the time he stayed home from a two-game trip because of the approaching birth of his first child, Jacob Ronald Alfred, on Jan. 23.

"Before the baby came, I really had my mind on other things," Tugnutt said. "I had a few worries in my life. I stayed home from that trip, Guy came in and played very well in those games. . . . My confidence is fine, I'm fine. I'm staying ready, so when I get the chance to play, I'll play well."

At least for now, Hebert is the closest thing the Ducks have had to a No. 1 goalie all season.

"I just think I have more and more confidence going into every game," said Hebert, who has a 2.80 goals-against average and a 12-17-3 record. "If things are going well, each game kind of carries over into the next. You don't have time to think. Once you start thinking, you think, 'Oh, I had a bad game, I'll have to sit out this one and wait for the next game to come.' It's good that the coaches have confidence in me, and if you have maybe an off period, they leave you in and let you work through it. It's a great position to be in right now."

It's a position Hebert didn't realize he was in until Wilson told reporters that Hebert would start the big games.

It was no problem for Hebert, who said:

"The coaches go about their business. I guess his way of saying he has confidence in me is by starting me right now. For me, that's good enough. He doesn't have to come and pat me on the back or anything. When he comes in and says, 'You're going tonight,' that's a good enough vote of confidence right there.

"I just feel very fortunate to be playing pro hockey for a living. I couldn't have a better job in the world right now. For me, to get a chance to play 40-50 games this (season) is just a great thrill. I'm sure Tugger's happy playing more often than he did last year."

As for any fatigue from the extra workload, Hebert said: "I'm sure there's some fatigue, but I've been waiting for the chance to do this for quite a few years. And you've got to take the bull by the horns when you get a chance because you might never get a chance again."

When Hebert told his older brother, Paul, about the crowd at Anaheim Arena, they could only laugh and say in agreement: "Wait until Mom and Dad hear that ."

Lonnie Loach, who was taken from the Kings by the Mighty Ducks in the expansion draft last June but has spent the entire season in the minor leagues, was called up by the Ducks Monday.

Loach, 25, scored 10 goals in 50 games with the Kings last season but didn't make the Ducks' squad at the end of training camp.He was assigned to San Diego of the International League.

Until now, even his prolific minor league scoring pace -- 32 goals and 36 assists in 55 games -- had been unable to earn him a spot with the Ducks, but General Manager Jack Ferreira saw him score four goals against a visiting Central Red Army team Saturday.

"He played very, very well," Ferreira said. "I was just thinking about it and debating it and I just decided he deserves a shot. . . . He scored four goals and they were really good goals. They weren't just tap-ins, they were sniper-type goals." ROBYN NORWOOD

Coach Bob Becker's run-and-stun Pacifica Mariners attained their first goal -- the playoffs -- nearly a month ago. Their second goal -- a Garden Grove League title -- has been clinched for a couple of weeks.

But their third goal, a Southern Section Division III-A championship, might not come quiet so easily.

Although the Mariners finished the season 23-1 and 14-0 in league, they were seeded behind North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake (22-2) and La Canada (19-2) in the III-A tournament draw.

But Becker didn't seem concerned about his seeding.

"I'm not going to (complain) about any playoff brackets; you have to play everybody anyway," he said. "There are seven teams that can win the III-A."

And Becker said his team is ready for anybody, including Estancia (15-10), the No. 3 team from the Pacific Coast League, whom they play in Friday night's opening round.

"Our whole season is based on getting prepared for playoffs," he said. "We aren't going to be affected by fouls. Before the first quarter is over, we've already played 12 people.

"We've seen a lot of different looks and we've been able to adjust to every situation."

But La Quinta Coach Jim Perry, whose team was beaten twice by Pacifica, said there is simply no way to prepare for some of the more hostile environments encountered on the road.

"If you have to travel to Yucca Valley or Temescal Canyon, you can get cooked in a hurry," Perry said. "You put yourself in a bus for four hours, you better be strapped up and ready to go. I don't know if they're ready to go to Lompoc, where the whole town shuts down and they just dare you to win."

Then again, Perry said there won't be many teams that are able to deal with Pacifica's depth.

"They have 10 guys that could start for us," he said. "I mean, how much more does the deck have to get stacked?"

Perry said he sees a team like top-seeded Harvard-Westlake, which has 6-foot-8 twins Jason Collins and Jarron Collins giving Pacifica the most problems.

"If anything hurts Pacifica, it's their inside game," he said. "We felt we could compete with Pacifica as long as (Jon) Surface and (Chris) Vlasic play outside. We were tied with them until Surface decided he wanted to go down low the last three minutes. Against the kind of people they're going to play, they're going to have to be more imaginative offensively."

Becker agreed that solid post play will be a key for his team.

"In the playoffs, the best defensive teams run off the floor," Becker said. "We're going to have to do a good job of defending the post. There's more good players in the post than out of the post in the playoffs."

La Quinta (15-10, 9-5 in the Garden Grove League) isn't blessed with the size or depth of Pacifica, but Perry said he's not ready to concede anything to any team in the III-AA playoffs. The Aztecs play Friday at Santa Margarita (20-6), the Sea View League's No. 1 team.

"We sat down with these kids before the season and set some goals," he said. "The kids have hit them right on the head. They've come from just getting hammered night in and night out to be a very respectable team. Anybody that takes us for granted is taking a chance. We're not the most talented team, but we have kids with great heart. Collectively, they believe they have a lot to prove to themselves."

Becker also gives Bolsa Grande (14-10, 10-4), which finished second in the Garden Grove, a shot at pulling an upset or two in the III-AA playoffs. The Matadors open Friday by playing host to Servite (17-8), the No. 3 team from the Sunset League.

"I really believe that Tom Cardoza and (Ron) Inman should be coach of the year," Becker said. "If I were a league champion, I sure wouldn't want to play Bolsa." Division III-AA at a Glance

Defending champion: Inglewood Morningside.

Top-seeded teams: Sonora (22-5), Lake Arrowhead Rim of the World (21-3), Santa Margarita (20-6), Magnolia (18-7).

Dark horse: Bolsa Grande (14-10). A team with no one over 6 feet 2 that nobody wants to play.

Top players: Travis Bates (Moreno Valley Rancho Verde), Brian Baughman (Bolsa Grande), Ken Cauley (La Habra), Craig Clark (Sonora), Chris Dee (Foothill), David Downs (Servite), Davon Dural (Compton Centennial), Brad Finneran (Santa Margarita), Chad Fister (Sonora), Frank Henderson (Magnolia), Sergio Hernandez (Sonora), Greg Greenfield (La Quinta), Brandon Hearvey (Magnolia), Andrija Kristich (La Habra), Sean Morris (Foothill), Dante Marks (Pomona), Kareem Mutrie (Torrance Bishop Montgomery), Tuan Pham (Bolsa Grande), Jayson Sanders (Bishop Montgomery), Keith Sanders (Murrieta Valley), Mark Seaton (Servite), Todd Snyder (La Quinta), Paul Tayyar (Newport Harbor), Todd Wilson (Savanna), Kevin Ward (Murrieta Valley).

Best draw: Rim of the World (21-3). The second-place team in the Sunkist Leagueis second-seeded and has a fairly easy route to semifinals.

Worst draw: After beating Fullerton to reach the playoffs, La Habra (17-10) must travel to Pomona (17-10). If it wins, it could get third-seeded Santa Margarita in the second round.

Notes: The key to Santa Margarita's hopes might depend on whether forward Brian Finneran can come back from his broken foot. Without Brian Finneran, opponents can key on his twin, Brad Finneran. Division III-A at a Glance

Defending champion: Sherman Oaks Notre Dame.

Top-seeded teams: North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake (22-2), La Canada (19-2), Pacifica (23-1), San Dimas (21-4).

Dark horse: La Canada Flintridge St. Francis (19-6). Led by 6-11 center Chris Ott and 6-8 forward Braden Weber, the Golden Knights finished second in the Del Rey League to Bellflower St. John Bosco, the fifth-ranked team in Division II.

Top players: Ramon Alliman (Pacifica), Chris Beerman (Cathedral City), Jamar Bailey (San Dimas), Jamal Childs (Covina), Jason Collins (Harvard-Westlake), Jarron Collins (Harvard-Westlake), Manuel Escamilla (Santa Paula), Billy Fields (Bellflower), Clay Franz (Estancia), Scott Garson (Harvard-Westlake), Mark Gozun (Covina), Michah Hanson (Moorpark), Chris Moreland (Duarte), Chris Ott (La Canada St. Francis), Pete Paciorek (San Marino), Cliff Parker (Lompoc), Charlie Petit (La Canada), Jecarl Riggins (Pasadena Blair), Eric Sanchez (La Canada), Jon Surface (Pacifica), Jeremy Veal (San Dimas), Chris Vlasic (Pacifica), Brandon Weber (St. Francis), Yaphet Wiltz (Bellflower).

Best draw: La Canada (19-2). The Spartans lost one more game than Pacifica, but they were seeded higher and a much easier first-round matchup than the Mariners, who must play Estancia (15-10).

Worst draw: San Dimas (21-4). The Saints lost only four games, one to second-seeded La Canada and another to Glendora, the fourth-seeded team in II-AA, but could meet talented St. Francis in the second round.

Notes: Veal, a 6-3 senior guard, has already signed a letter of intent with Arizona State. He is averaging 30 points, eight rebounds, four assists and is shooting 55% from three-point range. "He's legitimate," Pacifica Coach Bob Becker said. "I saw him on film and he made this flying dunk on the baseline over a couple people. Our guys can dunk but they can't dunk with people in their face."

When the Southern Section Division II boys' basketball playoffs begin Friday, there will be some stark contrasts in the opening round for Orange County teams.

First-year Coach Dean Yoshimura and Orange League champion Valencia will play host to a Division II-A first-round game Friday against Katella. Yoshimura's counterpart is Coach Tom Danley, who has won 513 games during his 27-year career and seen many playoffs.

"The whole thing has been real exciting for us," Yoshimura said. "This school has only won three league championships in 60 years. It's a big deal."

Unseeded Valencia (14-10) tied Magnolia (18-7) for the league championship with a victory Friday over the Sentinels. Magnolia is the fourth-seeded team in Division III-AA.

The Valencia-Katella winner will play the Tustin-Los Amigos winner in the second round, Feb. 22, so at least one county team will make the quarterfinals.

Tustin (19-7), the fourth-seeded team that tied Santa Margarita for the Sea View League championship, plays host to Los Amigos (11-14) Friday.

The Tillers are led by Coach Andy Ground, who was an assistant coach when the Tillers won a Southern Section and State championship in 1991, and junior Doug Gottlieb, one of the best point guards in the county.

In 1982, Don Grable helped Los Amigos reach the Southern Section semifinals; now he is in his first year as the Lobos' coach. This year, the Lobos finished fourth in the Garden Grove League after a 7-16 record last season.

Troy won the Freeway League championship for the first time since 1986, but the Warriors have a tough draw.

In the first round, the Warriors will play host La Mirada, a team that defeated Troy this season, 79-54. If Troy advances, second-seeded Bellflower St. John Bosco and 6-foot-6 point guard Jelani Gardner, one of the top players in the state, loom in the second round.

*

In Division II-AA, four of the five Orange County teams are grouped in a bracket with second-seeded Inglewood.

Friday, Trabuco Hills plays host to Woodbridge and Huntington Beach plays host to Loara in the lower half of the draw. The two winners meet in the second round, Feb. 22, and the second-round winner qualifies for the quarterfinals.

Ocean View is in the top half of the draw and travels to El Monte Mountain View for the first round.

"We're glad we don't have to play Mater Dei," Huntington Beach Coach Roy Miller said. "We played them enough last season."

The Oilers, who finished second in the Sunset League, dropped from Division I-A where they lost to the Monarchs last season in the Southern Section regional playoffs.

PLAYOFF PAIRINGS, C13 Division II-AA at a Glance

Defending champion: Riverside J.W. North.

Top-seeded teams: J.W. North (24-0), Inglewood (22-3), Santa Barbara (24-2), Glendora (24-2).

Dark horse: Riverside Arlington (18-8). The second-place Ivy League team could sneak into the semifinals for another rematch with J.W. North.

Top players: Chilavo Anderson (J.W. North), Luke Buffum (Beverly Hills), Brent Burnett (San Bernardino Cajon), Oscar Castillo (El Monte Mountain View), Scott Davis (Loara), Tony Gonzalez (Huntington Beach), Demond Jackson (J.W. North), Kevin Johnson (Ocean View), Ryan Karnoff (Trabuco Hills), Victor Lesley (La Verne Damien), Cameron Murray (Glendora), Leif Nelson (Arlington), Paul Pierce (Inglewood), Ken Rogers (Claremont), Tony Saldana (Riverside La Sierra), Sam Turks (Inglewood), Rob Warnick (Trabuco Hills).

Best draw: Inglewood. Must hurdle the Orange County bracket before reaching the semifinals.

Worst draw: Loara (11-13). The Saxons face Huntington Beach (17-9) in the opening round, and if they survive, runnin'-gunnin' Trabuco Hills probably awaits in the second.

Notes: Murray, a 6-foot guard at Glendora, is the younger brother of Portland Trail Blazer forward Tracy Murray. He averaged 26.2 points and 5.6 assists and made 71 three-pointers. . . . Saldana averaged 24 points and made 88 of 252 three-pointers in La Sierra's first 22 games. . . . Pierce, a 6-4 swingman who averages 23 points and nine rebounds, should help Inglewood advance to a showdown with J.W. North in the final. Division II-A at a Glance

Defending champion: Pasadena Muir.

Top-seeded teams: Compton Dominguez (23-2), Bellflower St. John Bosco (23-2), San Bernardino Pacific (22-3), Tustin (19-7).

Dark horse: Muir (17-11). The defending champions won the Pacific League and should meet fourth-seeded Tustin in the quarterfinals.

Top players: Greg Abbott (Troy), Kenny Brunner (Dominguez), Mike Carson (Chino Don Lugo), Kevin Chaney (Artesia), Anthony DeLoach (Pomona Garey), Jelani Gardner (St. John Bosco), Jamie Gillin (Dominguez), Joey Gorini (La Mirada), Doug Gottlieb (Tustin), Chris Johnson (Pacific), Adam Libby (Woodbridge), Floyd McGill (Brawley), Derek Mitchell (Cypress), Thomas Prince (Dominguez), Jeron Roberts (Covina Charter Oak), Nick Roditis (Katella), Jamaal Turner (Whittier La Serna), Shane Willis (Manhattan Beach Mira Costa), Chris Yu (Los Amigos), Max Zamora (Valencia).

Best draw: Dominguez. The top-seeded Dons should cruise into the semifinals.

Worst draw: Cypress (12-11). What is the Centurions' reward as an at-large entry? A first-round game against Dominguez.

Notes: Gardner, a 6-foot-6 point guard at St. John Bosco who averages 24 points and seven assists, is being recruited by California and UCLA, among others.

If ever there was a recipe for disaster, this was it. Nothing, and that means nothing, seemed to go in Fountain Valley's favor.

The Barons lost player after player. Heck, they didn't even have a gymnasium to call their own until January. So how did this team, with so much going against it, end up as Sunset League champions?

"Hey, it surprised me, too," Coach Gordon Billingsley said.

But, through hell and high water, Fountain Valley won.

The Barons (20-5) finished above .500 for the first time since 1989. They were 12-2 in the Sunset League, winning their first league title since 1985. Fountain Valley even finished in style, winning its last 10 games and will play host to Long Beach Millikan tonight in the first round of the Southern Section I-AA playoffs.

Quite a list of accomplishments for a team that has only seven of its original 11 players left.

"We've had a little luck," Billingsley said. "But we've made our own luck once in a while. I just have a bunch of overachievers. They battle."

They've had to.

Even before the season began, the Barons were faced with adversity. Vandals trashed the Fountain Valley gymnasium, causing nearly $200,000 in damage. Repairs were not completed until early January.

The Barons were forced to practice at a church, which had only two baskets. They didn't play a home game until Jan. 5, against Westminster in the league opener.

And still they won.

Fountain Valley won the Arroyo Grande tournament and were consolation champions of the Orange tournament. The Barons also reached the consolation final of the Cerritos-Gahr tournament where they lost in overtime to Esperanza.

The Barons have won all eight of their home games since the gym reopened. A fact not lost on them.

"Yeah, the kids keep telling me it has to be the new floor," Billingsley said.

But the Barons had other problems.

As the season went on, their absentee list grew. They lost Mike Arvesen and Matt Byrd before the first game. Arvesen, who was coming off knee surgery, was discovered to have a heart arrhythmia. Byrd was lost because of grades.

They have been joined on the sideline by Javiar Scalini and David Arvesen. Scalini broke an ankle and Arvesen was told not to play by his dentist after having a tooth pushed in by an elbow against Huntington Beach.

"I thought we had a pretty solid team coming into the season," Billingsley said. "But at one point, I just thought it wasn't meant to be."

And still they won.

Fountain Valley was 2-2 in league play, having lost to Huntington Beach (53-33) and Servite (62-38). Then the Barons got rolling.

Five of their victories have been by six points or less, including one-point victories over Huntington Beach and Servite.

Billingsley said the key moment in league play came during the second Huntington Beach game when the teams were tied for first. The Oilers jumped out to a 20-6 lead and appeared to be well on their way to their second title. Then Fountain Valley went on 17-0 run in the second quarter.

Arvesen, who had been knocked out of the game with an elbow to the tooth, came back and hit a three-pointer to give Fountain Valley a 57-56 victory.

"We don't have any superstars and I think that's why we always end up winning close games," Billingsley said. "Our kids don't care about flash. They just care about the ball going in the hoop."

Brandon Leimbach and Phil Domingo -- the only two Barons taller than 6 feet 2 -- are the team's leading scorers. Leimbach, a 6-3 forward, averages 18 points and Domingo, a 6-5 center, averages 15.

But Billingsley credits point guard Danny Hoppie with much of the team's success.

"He dictates what we do," Billingsley said.

And what they do is win.

Said Billingsley: "The mental makeup of this team is that they think they can play with anybody." Division I-A at a Glance

Defending champion: Mater Dei.

Top-seeded teams: Mater Dei (26-0), Newhall Hart (21-1), Orange (20-3), Loyola (19-5).

Dark horse: Warren (20-6).

Top players: William Antonio (Arroyo Grande), Ryan Bailey (Los Angeles Loyola), Toby Bailey (Los Angeles Loyola), Dinari Bates (Capistrano Valley), Jeff Bone (El Toro), O'Real Cotton (Walnut), Schea Cotton (Mater Dei), Gil Gonzales (Orange), Thomas Harmon (Century), Jason Hartman (Thousand Oaks).

Best draw: Mater Dei. Hey, is there anyone out there who can give the Monarchs a game?

Worst draw: Orange. The Panthers are seeded third, but could face Corona (20-4), a solid league champion, in the second round.

Notes: This would be a wide-open division without Mater Dei, which seems destined to win its third-consecutive I-A title. The Monarchs are ranked second in the nation by USA Today. Division I-AA at a Glance

Defending champion: Long Beach Jordan.

Top-seeded teams: Fontana (25-1), Los Alamitos (21-4), Long Beach Poly (20-6), Santa Ana Valley (23-3).

Dark horse: Lynwood (17-8).

Top players: Darnell Adamson (Santa Ana Valley), Joe Austin (Lynwood), Michael Batiste (Long Beach Wilson), Corey Benjamin (Fontana), James Brown (Long Beach Poly), Zerrick Campbell (Long Beach Poly), Travon Carmichael (Fontana), Alvin Counts (Ontario), Pharoah Davis (Palmdale Highland), Don Escobar (Bell Gardens), Chris Funderburk (Lynwood), Danny Hoppie (Fountain Valley), Brock Jacobsen (La Crescenta Crescenta Valley).

Best draw: Long Beach Poly. Fountain Valley (20-5), which is beat up, is the only league champion in its path to the semifinals.

Worst draw: Los Alamitos. Several good teams -- Bell Gardens, Simi Valley, Canyon Country Canyon, Long Beach Wilson -- are between the Griffins and the semifinals.

Notes: Lynwood finished third in the San Gabriel Valley League, but the Knights (17-8) are no ordinary No. 3. They finished behind Compton Dominguez, which is seeded No. 1 in II-A, and Warren, one of the top teams in I-A. Lynwood might have finished higher had it not lost Funderburk, who missed several games with a wrist injury. He returned last week.

Before this season, Whittier Christian hadn't won an Olympic League title since 1988. But before this season, the Heralds never had Trevor and Tyler Ream in the starting lineup.

The brothers, who play different styles of basketball, helped the Heralds knock off two-time defending league champion Brethren Christian.

Tyler is a small forward with exceptional ability; Trevor is more at home with his back to the basket.

Tyler is a senior forward and leads Whittier Christian in scoring (14.5 points per game), rebounding (6.9) and free-throw percentage (78.1). According to Coach Bob Brown, he is "a gifted athlete with great leaping ability who can run the floor and play 32 minutes a game."

Trevor, a junior center, averages 6.1 points and 4.7 rebounds.

"He is not the natural athlete that Tyler is," Brown said. "But he works exceptionally hard on the finer points of the game. He spends a lot of time working on post moves."

Their styles differ, but they share the same goals:

-- Win two of three nonleague tournaments.

-- Finish the season with at least a 20-4 record.

-- Win the Olympic League championship.

-- Become the second team in school history to win a Southern Section championship.

The Heralds won the championship games of the Cerritos Valley Christian and Atascadero tournaments, then went on to post a 21-3 record in winning the league title.

That last goal, however, may be a little much to hope for.

Whittier Christian opens the playoffs Friday playing host to the winner of tonight's wild-card game between Pasadena La Salle (10-13) and Downey Pius X (10-12). If the Heralds win, they will likely face second-seeded Santa Clara (15-7) on Feb. 25.

Santa Clara, the Frontier League champion and winner of 12 Southern Section championships -- including four in the past five years -- knocked Whittier Christian out of the playoffs in the quarterfinals in 1991.

If the Heralds get past Santa Clara, they would still have to battle a field of teams loaded with strong players.

Some of the standouts include, 6-foot-6 Rick Price from Gardena Serra, who has signed with Duke; Andre Miller, a Los Angeles Verbum Dei guard who averages 22.8 points and is being recruited by Arizona, and Troy Collins, a 6-7 junior from Pius X who is being recruited by UCLA and others.

"I know we have a tough division." Tyler Ream said. "I have played with guys from Serra and Verbum Dei. . . . A lot of people still do not believe we (Whittier Christian) are for real, and that is an advantage to us."

*

Brethren Christian, last year's section Division V-AA champion, has moved up a division. After finishing third in the Olympic League, the Warriors (16-8) will travel to Santa Monica St. Monica (11-12), the runner-up in the Camino Real League, in a Division IV-A wild-card game tonight. The winner will play at North Hills L.A. Baptist (15-6), the second-place team from the Alpha League, Friday.

Calvary Chapel (13-13), the fourth-place team from the Olympic League, will also play a Division IV-A wild-card game tonight when it travels to Sierra Madre Maranatha (17-5). The winner will meet second-seeded Santa Clara Friday.

*

Corona del Mar, the defending section Division IV-AA champion, received an at-large berth. The Sea Kings (13-13) finished fifth in the Sea View League but still play at home tonight against El Segundo (10-15). The winner will travel to third-seeded Twentynine Palms (14-7) Friday. Division IV-AA at a Glance

Defending champion: Corona del Mar.

Top-seeded teams: Hemet West Valley (19-6), Banning (17-6), Twentynine Palms (14-7), Los Angeles Murphy (8-13).

Dark horse: Corona del Mar (13-13).

Top players: Ramin Bastani (Corona del Mar), Robert Carrillo (Los Angeles Murphy), Jack Hartman (Twentynine Palms), Jason Mora (Santa Ynez), Steve Newton (Banning), Matt Sabosky (El Segundo), Roferrel Simpson (Hemet West Valley).

Best draw: Banning. The second-seeded team gets a bye into the quarterfinals and does not have another first-place team in its side of the bracket.

Worst draw: Los Angeles Murphy. Murphy (8-13) was seeded fourth but must face Playa del Rey St. Bernard (12-11), runner-up in last year's championship game.

Notes: Corona del Mar finished the season with a 13-13 record, almost identical to the 13-12 record it brought into the playoffs last year when the Sea Kings won the title. Nine of the 13 teams in the playoffs are the same as last year's. Last season's runner-up, St. Bernard, is in the bracket opposite Corona del Mar, so a rematch is possible. Division IV-A at a Glance

Defending champion: Gardena Serra.

Top-seeded teams: Los Angeles Verbum Dei (20-2), Oxnard Santa Clara (15-7), Gardena Serra (15-9), Agoura Oak Park (21-2).

Dark horse: Whittier Christian (21-3).

Top players: Leonard Butler (Serra), Jamal Cobbs (Verbum Dei), Troy Collins (Downey Pius X), Reggie Davis (Brethren Christian), Allen Fletcher (Pius X), Chris Kuzminski (Mojave), Isaac Leasau (Calvary Chapel), Andre Miller (Verbum Dei), Rick Price (Serra), Trevor Ream (Whittier Christian), Tyler Ream (Whittier Christian).

Best draw: Verbum Dei. The top-seeded team meets Kern Valley (9-10), a third-place finisher from the High Desert League in the first round. The only teams capable of playing with Verbum Dei are Serra, Whittier Christian and Santa Clara, and they are on the opposite side of the bracket.

Worst draw: Calvary Chapel. The Eagles must travel to Sierra Madre Maranatha (17-5) for a wild-card game. If they win, the Eagles will be boarding a bus and heading to Oxnard to face second-seeded Santa Clara.

Notes: Santa Clara has won four of the past five championships. Verbum Dei has appeared in the championship game three of the last four years, losing all three. Serra has played in the championship the past two years, losing one and winning one. Whittier Christian won its only section title in 1989.

A day late, maybe, but here's a Valentine's Day story:

Merja Connolly has her volleyball jersey retired at UCLA, plays some pro volleyball in Italy for a few years and then gets the job as women's coach at Cornell. The Big Red made the National Invitational Volleyball Championship Tournament -- volleyball's version of the NIT -- in 1992, her rookie year, and the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history last season.

A woman on the move, sure, but whatever happened to upwardly mobile? Connolly is leaving Cornell . . . to become an assistant at UC Irvine.

So what's love got to do with it?

Connolly grew up in Southern California and she's excited about returning home. But she's really looking forward to returning to the arms of her fiance, Corona del Mar attorney Scott Hanssler.

"I couldn't imagine I'd love coaching this much and I couldn't imagine I'd come to love a university this much, but life is too short to feel emptiness," Connolly said.

"Scott and I have fallen madly in love and I'm not the type of person who needs security so much that they're afraid to let go of a good thing. It just came down to what's more important?"

Cornell's loss figures to be Irvine's gain. Connolly's ability as a player and coach and her famous lineage ought to open a few recruiting doors. Her father, Harold (Hal) Connolly, was a gold medalist in the hammer throw during the 1956 Olympics and her mother, Olga Fikotova, won a gold medal for Czechoslovakia in the discus the same year.

Olga Connolly went on to compete in four more Olympics for the United States and was the U.S. flag bearer in Munich in 1972.

Merje (the name is Finnish; she was born in Finland) was captain of the Bruins' 1984 national championship team and captain of the 1985 U.S. World University Games team. Her chance at making the 1988 Olympic team ended with a heel injury, but she returned to Italy and played two more years.

She says those "bloodlines" have helped her as both a player and a coach.

"Both of my parents, and my father's new wife, are coaches and I think I learned some very important aspects of coaching from them," she said. "I think it's a coach's job to clear the path so an athlete has to worry only about performing. That goes beyond preparing them physically and mentally to making sure every detail is taken care of.

"I also think I've learned by growing up around athletes that you have to deal with them as individuals. We all stress the team aspect, of course, but different people have different needs and respond to different motivations."

The Big Red responded to Connolly with a 36-21 overall record and two consecutive Ivy League championships. But she isn't looking back, now.

"I'm compromising freedom, yes, and salary," she said, laughing, "but I'm also going to work in a conference with the best athletes and the best coaches in the nation. Mike (Puritz, Irvine head coach) and I have known each other since he recruited me out of Culver City High. I'll have no problem being his assistant and I'm looking forward to a new challenge and a new learning experience."

*

Viva la difference: Asked the difference between the Anteaters who lost seven in a row and the Anteaters who routed Nevada Reno, 99-70, Saturday, Coach Rod Baker said, "guys were just challenged."

"We didn't do one thing differently from a technical standpoint," he said. "We didn't put in one new thing."

If it was strictly a matter of effort, why didn't he challenge the guys earlier?

"I guess I didn't ask for it in the right way," he said, "Better yet, I didn't demand it in the right way."

Baker held a team meeting Friday, during which he evaluated each player individually. He also reviewed his own performance and was more intense, more animated and more emotional Saturday than he has been all season. The Anteaters seemed to follow Baker's lead, diving for loose balls and rebounding with reckless abandon.

"Everybody needed to take it up a notch, including me," Baker said. "I needed to take it up a notch, too. We all had to go like it really meant something."

Anteater Notes

Is there any such thing as a bad time for momentum? Saturday, Irvine turned in its finest all-around performance since a Dec. 29 upset of Iowa, but now the Anteaters depart on a two-game trip to Las Cruces, N.M., and Las Vegas. New Mexico State and Nevada Las Vegas are a combined 21-2 at home this season . . . Former Irvine All-American water polo player Chris Duplanty, after posing with Sports Illustrated models for the annual swimsuit issue: "It's the real thing. This isn't done by funny-shaped lenses. These women are absolutely stunning. I couldn't sleep for a week."

Anyone who has been to a Saddleback men's basketball game the last two seasons knows who Tom McCluskey is.

Spectators might not know McCluskey by name but his appearance and methods make a lasting impression.

McCluskey, in his second year as an assistant to Coach Bill Brummel, is a 6-foot-7 blade with a determined and raspy voice, constantly dashing about, offering encouragement and criticisms.

"He brings a tremendous amount of enthusiasm and vitality to our program," Brummel said. "His enthusiasm is contagious to the players."

Brummel and McCluskey met when McCluskey came to Saddleback as a player from Redlands High School in 1979. Brummel was an assistant during McCluskey's first year and took over as coach for Bill Mulligan the second season.

McCluskey earned a scholarship to Penn State but suffered a career-ending knee injury seven games into his senior season.

"I was as down as a human can be because basketball was too much a part of my life," McCluskey said about the knee injury. "Now, I've learned you have to have a balance."

After the injury, McCluskey said he was so depressed he stayed away from basketball for most of the next two years.

But a coaching friend persuaded him to sit on the bench at a Fontana High School junior varsity game. Suddenly, McCluskey knew what he wanted to do with his life.

His first coaching job was as the varsity coach at Fontana in 1984. He remained there for three seasons.

He moved to Tustin for the next five seasons. His teams had a 109-40 record and won a Southern Section and a State title.

But McCluskey, 32, wanted to move on.

"Every coach internally has that drive to see if they can produce on the next level," he said.

After the 1991-1992 season, Brummel was looking for a walk-on assistant and McCluskey was ready to move up.

The two had kept in contact since McCluskey's playing days. Brummel had seen McCluskey coach in games and practices and was impressed. McCluskey, not coincidentally, has been at Saddleback for its most successful times in the last 10 seasons.

The Gauchos won the Orange Empire Conference title last season and are tied for first with two games left this season.

Although McCluskey makes himself known during games, Brummel said his biggest contributions come at practice.

"He makes a tremendous contribution every day that people don't see," Brummel said.

McCluskey also said that coaching in practice is what he enjoys most about working on the community college level.

"It's a really positive teaching level," he said. "If you love the game, it's a great level because you get to recruit then really work with your own team."

McCluskey would love to be a community college head coach, but he knows such jobs are hard to get. People tend to keep them for a long time. For instance, Cypress' Don Johnson is retiring this spring after 27 years.

"He could have an unlimited career," Brummel said of McCluskey. "He could coach on this level, Division I or in the pros."

*

Pizza boy: Jeff Greenfield, the 12-year old son of Golden West men's basketball Coach Jim Greenfield, came up the big winner in a halftime free-throw shooting contest Friday.

At halftime of Saddleback's game with visiting Golden West, four tickets were drawn and the winners shot for a large pizza.

Jeff, despite a cast on his ankle, limped to the line and, after a miss, made two in a row to take home a large pizza.

*

Record pace: LeAnn Kazmer needs 14 rebounds to set the Orange Coast single-season mark. Kazmer, a forward from Wisconsin, has 283 rebounds in 27 games this season.

Erika Manning had 296 rebounds for the OCC in the 1990-91 season.

Kazmer leads the Orange Empire Conference in scoring (20.2 points a game) and rebounding (10.5).

Cypress' Yolanda Hearvey, a sophomore forward, is closing in on the Chargers' career-rebounding mark. She has 544 and needs 14 to pass Joyce Rice (1979-81), who had 557.

Derek Roche, a guard on the Orange Coast men's team, set the college's single-season record for three-pointers with 75. Roche passed Chuck McGavran who had 74 in the 1986-87 season.

Marina Coach David McLeish wasn't quite sure how to react to his team's being seeded fourth in the Division I boys' soccer pairings that were released Monday.

"That's not bad for a second-place team (from the Sunset League)," McLeish said.

Then again, Marina must play Fontana (15-5-2), which finished second in the Citrus Belt League.

"It's going to be tough," he said.

McLeish sounded envious of second-seeded Santa Ana's draw. The Saints play Manhattan Beach Mira Costa (10-9), which finished second in the Ocean League.

"I'd have rather drawn someone from that area," he said. "But we've never gotten very lucky in the draw. Two years ago, we had a good team and drew Damien. We wound up losing in overtime."

Edison (17-5-1), the third-place team from the Sunset, must play Redondo Union Wednesday in a wild-card game and then would travel to top-seeded Simi Valley Royal (21-3-3) in the first round.

Other Orange County teams that were seeded: Mater Dei (19-2-4), third in Division II; Brea-Olinda (15-4-3), fourth in Division III; and Corona del Mar (19-2-4), fourth in Division IV. DAVE McKIBBEN

Marina, top ranked in the Southern Section and Orange County for the entire season, is the top-seeded team in the Division I girls' soccer pairings, which were released Monday by the section.

Sunset League champion Marina (24-0-1), which shared the Division I title with Claremont last season, will open the playoffs Saturday, playing host to the winner Thursday's wild-card game between Dana Hills (13-6-3) and Newport Harbor (12-9-3).

Second-seeded Claremont (24-0-2) will play host to Irvine (14-6-3). South Coast League champion Mater Dei (18-5-1), seeded fourth, plays host to Chino Don Lugo. Palos Verdes Peninsula (20-1-3) is seeded third.

Century League champion El Modena (18-5) is seeded second in Division II. Saturday, the Vanguards will play host to the winner of Thursday's wild-card game between Aliso Niguel (8-6-3) and Estancia (10-6-6). Freeway League champion Sunny Hills (15-3), seeded fourth, will play at home against the winner of Long Beach Poly (11-4-4) and Cypress (9-8-2).

No Orange County teams are seeded in Divisions III or IV. MARTIN BECK

Doug Gottlieb

Tustin, Jr.

Basketball / Guard

Gottlieb, one of the best point guards in Orange County, led the Tillers to two victories last week, helping them to a share of the Sea View League title.Gottlieb had 11 points and 12 assists in a 53-36 victory over co-champion Santa Margarita Friday and 32 points and 10 assists in an 86-75 victory over Woodbridge Wednesday. Gottlieb is averaging 18 points and 7.2 assists for the Tillers (19-7). "He can do a lot of things that can hurt you," Tustin Coach Andy Ground said. "But you can't key on him because he's such a fantastic passer." Other notables:

* Tony Gonzalez, Huntington Beach, scored 37 points in a 95-53 victory over Marina and 43 points in a 88-56 victory over Westminster.

* Micah Kroeger, Edison, averaged 17.8 points as the Chargers won three of four games to qualify for the final Sunset League playoff spot.

* Olujimi Mann, Santa Ana Valley, averaged 29.5 points in Century League victories over Orange and Villa Park.

* Miles Simon, Mater Dei, averaged 30.5 points in victories against Capistrano Valley, 82-51, and Mission Viejo, 104-52.

Jennie Gadd

Troy, Jr.

Basketball / Center

Troy once had one of the weakest girls' basketball programs in Orange County, but that was before Gadd, point guard Dinah Shah and Coach Brad Sand checked in three seasons ago.Last week, the Warriors won their second consecutive Freeway League title. Tuesday, Gadd had 22 points and 15 rebounds in a 56-54 victory over Fullerton that clinched the title. Gadd scored all her points in the first three quarters and fouled out midway through the fourth quarter. Thursday, Gadd had 22 points and nine rebounds in a 67-32 victory over Sunny Hills. Other notables:

* Akilah Rodgers, Rancho Alamitos, averaged 22 points and 17 rebounds as the Vaqueros beat La Quinta and Santiago to earn a share of league title.

* Isabel Rosas, Western, scored 22 points in a 45-40 victory over Savanna and had 15 points and 20 rebounds in a 47-45 victory over Magnolia.

* Maureen Skehan, Villa Park, averaged 22 points and nine rebounds in victories over Canyon and Santa Ana Valley.

* Trisha Steiner, Mater Dei, scored a goal in victories over Mission Viejo and then-No. 3 Capistrano Valley to give the Monarchs the league title.

Orange County teams made it through the playoff selection process unscathed Monday. In other words, there were no surprises.

Brea-Olinda and Woodbridge, both 25-0, were the No. 1-seeded teams in their divisions.

Cypress was a No. 2.

Mater Dei, Rancho Alamitos and Costa Mesa, No. 3s.

There were unseeded teams that were happy and seeded teams that were content.

There were no problems, except for the really picky.

Despite modified playoff bracketing to reduce travel because of earthquake damage, discontent was minimal.

Brea-Olinda, gunning for its fourth-consecutive State title, opens with Fullerton (16-7) in Division III-AA, where you have to read between the lines to find the true seeded teams. Brea will probably face Torrance Bishop Montgomery, second-place in the Mission League, in the semifinals; Bishop Montgomery is a wild-card team that should play South Torrance (17-6) -- technically, the fourth-seeded team -- in the opening round. South Torrance won the Pioneer League.

On the other side of the bracket, Newport Harbor Coach Shannon Jakosky was ecstatic about opening against third-seeded South Pasadena (19-2) after three years of having to go through No. 1 to reach the finals. Newport Harbor (19-6), a second-place team from a tough league (Sea View), is unseeded, but is clearly the favorite advance to the semifinals against Inglewood Morningside.

Sea View champion Woodbridge will play the winner of Wednesday's wild-card game between Trabuco Hills and Garden Grove, and would face the Rio Mesa-Villa Park winner in the II-A quarterfinals. Ocean View Coach Ollie Martin was pleased his team, seeded fourth, will play progressively better opponents leading up to Woodbridge in the semifinals.

Second-seeded Cypress (23-3) won't face unbeaten Mission Hills Alemany (23-0) until the II-A finals, though Katella (12-8) faces Alemany in the first round.

Third-seeded Mater Dei (20-3) hosts at-large Westminster (10-15) Wednesday; the Monarchs are expected to face Oxnard Channel Islands (22-3) in the semifinals. Ventura Buena (20-2) is No. 1 in Division I-A.

Costa Mesa (16-6) is seeded third in IV-AA; Rancho Alamitos (20-6) is third in III-A.

Century (12-11) will visit Division I-A's fourth-seeded team, San Clemente (18-5) on Wednesday.

Sixteen years after Communist China opened to the West, the Pepsi Generation is coming to this city of 4 million deep in the nation's interior.

Although Pepsi has been bottled and sold along the eastern seaboard since 1982, the U.S.-based beverage giant is choosing inland locations for a big new push into the China market. It recently signed a $28-million deal to bottle its soft drinks in Chongqing, a commercial hub of southwest China.

"Inland cities became very attractive to us," said Miguel Ko, president of Pepsi-Cola International for China, before the Jan. 18 signing ceremony. Local dignitaries packed a hotel ballroom and sipped samples of Pepsi and its sister soft drink, 7-Up, rarely seen in Chongqing before.

"Most multinationals are now looking beyond the traditional cities. They see the growth stretching beyond those areas," Ko said.

That's gratifying news to officials in China's vast interior, who have glumly watched coastal regions attract the majority of the foreign investment that is fueling a national economic boom.

It's also welcomed by Chinese leaders, who have been concerned that the widening gap between the rich eastern seaboard and the less-developed inland areas could arouse civil unrest. Already, an army of peasants from the interior are flooding coastal cities for work, overwhelming the railways and threatening social order.

Most foreign ventures have been set up along the coast, particularly in the south near Hong Kong, where they enjoyed tax breaks and close proximity to export markets.

But with the east coast wheezing under the sheer weight of that investment, which has triggered land speculation, clogged transportation links and sent wages soaring, the inland is looking increasingly attractive.

"Land costs are low, labor is cheap and the market is good," said Xiao Zuxiu, executive vice mayor of Chongqing. He says local laborers will work for as little as $23 a month, several times below the going rate along the coast.

There are rich veins of natural resources. Officials in Chongqing and elsewhere in Sichuan province also claim a large pool of skilled workers from military factories and other heavy industry that were relocated inland decades earlier, when Chinese leaders feared a possible U.S. attack.

They are forever reminding foreigners of the potentially vast market here -- Sichuan alone has about 110 million people, more than all of Mexico -- where more and more entrepreneurs have money to burn.

Although Sichuan's cities lack the five-star hotels and gleaming office towers of the coast and there are large pockets of rural poverty, Xiao notes that living standards are improving for many.

"Look at the watches and the clothing that our women are wearing," Xiao said. "They're not necessarily worse than what you see on the coast."

In just a few years time, Sichuan's capital of Chengdu has been transformed from a sleepy backwater to a city of night clubs, trendy boutiques and hundreds of beauty salons, including the Sichuan Haiyun Beauty Center that offers everything from facials to workouts at a state-of-the-art health club.

Foreign investment is behind much of that business. Sichuan Haiyun, for example, was established by a Chinese American.

But what the inland really hungers for are large injections of foreign capital and technology in basic industry and infrastructure that have typically gone to coastal regions granted the greatest leeway in experimenting with capitalism.

Several major U.S. companies -- including AT&T, McDonnell Douglas Corp. and Procter & Gamble Co. -- already are in Sichuan or are coming.

Last year, the central government finally approved a Chongqing special economic zone along the Yangtze River to attract foreign investors that offers the same privileges available on the coast. Officials here say they already have signed up 166 projects with foreign investment.

Gan Jiangang, a spokesman for the zone, proudly points to one site where huge concrete girders are beginning to form the shell of a factory that will house a $60-million joint venture to produce Honda motorcycle engines by year's end.

"The price of our land was very cheap, actually we didn't make any money," said Gan, noting that Honda was only charged the cost of relocating peasants who formerly lived on the site.

All this added up to a remarkable surge in foreign investment last year. Sichuan attracted 1,910 foreign-investment projects in 1993, nearly matching the total for all the years since China opened up to Western investors. Total contracted foreign investment for 1993 was $2.4 billion.

This helped Sichuan record an impressive 12.8% economic growth rate last year. Some of its chronically impoverished neighbors did well, too. Yunnan province grew 10%, and Guizhou and Qinghai provinces each grew 9%.

Still, those results didn't quite match the estimated 13% growth for the entire nation, indicating the interior -- far from export markets and weak in infrastructure -- is still losing ground to the east.

Economic growth was 25% in coastal Zhejiang province, where average urban per capita income was half again that of Sichuan. Rural incomes were more than twice as high.

Shanghai, a fraction the size of Sichuan, approved nearly twice as many foreign-funded projects last year with $7 billion in pledged foreign investment.

So Sichuan is scrambling harder than ever for foreign investment. Last year, officials went to South Korea, Hong Kong, Thailand and Macao to drum up business. In April, they plan to head for Los Angeles and New York.

Even the provincial governor, Xiao Yang, is preparing a rare trip abroad to convince Siemens of Germany to invest in a thermal power plant.

"I have to go for the important ones, the large-scale projects with big investment," he said.

In the art of personal money management, diversification is considered one of the great virtues. But, like any other virtue, it can be carried to a fault.

Some analysts say that is precisely what has been happening lately as people seek new investment alternatives in an era of low interest rates and high stock prices.

Up to a point, they say, it makes sense to mix something like a high-yield "junk" bond mutual fund or an international bond fund into a portfolio of investments designed to produce current income.

Such vehicles usually offer higher yields than better-quality corporate bonds or U.S. Treasury securities -- and at the same time may be less vulnerable to asset-value declines should interest rates rise in this country.

Similarly, a solid case can be made for extending stock-market horizons beyond American markets, to allow for the possibility that great growth opportunities may lie outside the United States.

But when the idea of diversifying is carried too far, it can turn into a self-deception, allowing the investor to take bigger gambles without acknowledging the hazards.

"In many cases, investors have tried to maintain their income levels by moving further out on the risk spectrum into offshore income investments and the like," says Greg Smith, investment strategist at Prudential Securities.

"This necessity to take on ever greater risk in order to satisfy perceived or actual needs for income is ultimately a disturbing sign."

In stock investing, meanwhile, many analysts worry that investors are buying funds operating in "emerging markets" nations, going on the false premise that these faraway markets are as well-regulated and liquid as the ones they are familiar with at home.

"I have no real quarrel with the long-term hypothesis that the economies of many emerging countries will offer the opportunity for better-than-average gains," Smith says. "But keep in mind that phrase 'long-term.'

"I believe many investors have been willing to take on more risk, sometimes rationalizing that it really represents diversification and therefore is not that risky.

"I'd argue that many of these emerging markets are every bit as risky today as they've been historically. On the way to a long-term positive result, some breathtaking dips could shake out many investors who thought they were in for the long haul."

Michael Lipper, head of the mutual-fund tracking firm Lipper Analytical Services, questions the assumption that spreading money among stocks of various countries automatically provides a cushion.

International and global stock funds often are promoted with the idea that other markets might hold steady or rise as U.S. stocks suffer a setback.

But Lipper suggests that is far from certain. In seven of the past 10 years, he notes, U.S. general equity funds, world equity funds, and U.S. taxable fixed-income funds all have posted gains together.

So it would be no surprise for all of them to decline simultaneously at some point.

Much has also been made of the fact that international markets lagged behind the performance of U.S. stocks for the three years before 1993, when they at last rallied.

This does not certify all foreign investments as "cheap," however. Standard value measures such as price-earnings ratios are high in most overseas markets -- even in Japan, although stock indexes there stand at less than half their highs of four years ago.

To most experts, the first rule of investment safety is to diversify. But diversifying doesn't eliminate the need to understand and manage risks.

If you buy lottery tickets in several different states, instead of just the one you live in, you can tell yourself you have a diversified portfolio. But you still are playing the lottery.

FAT PARTY: Everybody knows Monday was Valentine's Day. But did you know that today is another holiday? Mardi Gras enthusiasts do. Today is Fat Tuesday, traditionally the last night of Mardi Gras and the day before Lenten fasting begins. Among the Creole places celebrating: There's a Fat Tuesday party tonight, with saxophonist Paul Carmen, at Randell's Jazz Club at the Hutton Centre in Santa Ana. . . . Says spokesman Gary Baume: "Fat Tuesday is the post-party party. But my guess is some customers won't know what it is."

SUDS HEAVEN: Oceans of beer -- poured a sample at a time -- will be washing around the Fullerton Hofbrau this weekend. The micro-brewery and restaurant is hosting its second annual Karnival of Beers and general manager Russell Brent says nearly 50 micro-breweries in the western United States will offer their suds for sipping. Designated drivers get $8 off the regular $20 admission price and "all the food and soda they can hold."

SPECIAL APPLE: A great influence on Jan Kraushaar was Dr. Jo Stanchfield, one of her professors at Occidental College. So Kraushaar, an experienced elementary teacher from Irvine, jumped in when Stanchfield asked her help in organizing the American Literacy Corp. First, it must raise money, but eventually, it hopes to reward teachers doing special work in literacy. . . . "Bonuses and rewards are common in the corporate world," says Kraushaar. "But it's not often you see a bonus for teachers."

FENDER'S WORLD: The Fullerton Museum Center will offer a bonus to its current exhibit on the late Leo Fender, a Fullerton resident legendary for making electric guitars. On Thursday, the museum will offer three afternoon tours of Fender's last factory. . . . It's not the place where he perfected his electric guitar, but he worked there the last decade of his life, and his workshop remains unchanged. The center warns that reservations for the tour, at $15, are a must.

Donald Judd, prominent American postwar artist who spearheaded the minimalist art movement, has died at age 65.

Judd, who had homes in Manhattan, Marfa, Tex., and in Switzerland, died Saturday in New York City of lymphoma.

The artist preferred to work with solid geometric forms and was best known for his repetitive outsize boxes of stainless steel or plexiglass. He refused to call his art-form sculpture, claiming that word implied carving when his objects were factory built. He also disliked the word minimalist, preferring to call himself an empiricist.

"He is one of the crucial figures of the '60s generation. It is impossible to think of American art of that period without him," said Elizabeth C. Baker, editor of Art in America.

After studying philosophy at Columbia University, Judd was an abstract Expressionist painter in the 1950s, then moved to sculpture in 1963.

"The people I learned from were Jackson Pollock, Barnett Newman and Mark Rothko," Judd told The Times in 1984. "I learned in a very remote way. My work doesn't really resemble theirs, but I learned from them and there's no excess there. That's certainly clear."

Judd was known not only as an artist but as an outspoken art critic and defender of his work.

"Everybody who defends their work is going to get in trouble," he once told The Times. "I'm difficult because my pieces cost a lot to make, they are large, I insist that they be installed well and that they be handled well."

Judd exhibited frequently in Southern California, as well as across the country and in Europe. In 1971, Times art critic William Wilson described a metal and plexiglass Judd display at the old Pasadena Art Museum as "a science fiction ghost town."

Judd could evoke unusual reactions simply by making his boxes in unexpected sizes and scale, Wilson noted, calling the exhibit "the Minimal Magician's Magical Media Mystery Show."

When the Margo Leavin Gallery exhibited 20 years of Judd's works in 1987, Times art writer Suzanne Muchnic evaluated: "The gleaming surfaces of Judd's stainless steel boxes, the structural variations of a 10-unit floor piece and the unexpected juxtapositions of color in recent painted wall pieces all project the idea of Judd as an innovator who pushes the limits of a rigid genre.

"A new, untouchably gorgeous work of anodized aluminum and copper confronts us with the sensual aspects of an artist who has long chafed against his minimalist label," she wrote.

Judd also designed furniture, beginning with items for his children. That, too, was an outlet for his unique style of art.

"All natural wood and sharp right angles, Judd's tables and chairs are designed for the eye rather than the body," commented Times writer Kristine McKenna when Judd exhibited his furniture at Angles Gallery in Santa Monica in 1985. "His pristine, cerebral objects are more concerned with exploring the idea of a chair than they are in providing a place to rest one's weary bones."

Born in Excelsior Springs, Mo., Judd served in the Army during the Korean War, working on a design and construction team. He later studied painting at the Art Students League.

Judd's work also was exhibited by major museums including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, New York's Museum of Modern Art and Whitney Museum of Art, and the Kunstmuseum of Basel, Switzerland.

Judd is survived by his daughter, Rainer, of Los Angeles; his son, Flavin, of New York; his mother, Effie, of Excelsior Springs, Mo., and his companion, Marianne Stockebrand.

The U.S. Navy has rescued an Indian vessel carrying 700 sheep that had been adrift for days on the Arabian Sea. The crew of 17 Indians and six Somalis were given food and water, which had begun to run scarce after 15 days adrift, the Navy said.

A weeping, severely burned Branch Davidian member described in videotaped testimony how her clothes and gas mask melted onto her skin as she fled the cult's burning compound.

Marjorie Thomas, whose testimony was played Monday at the federal murder-conspiracy trial of 11 followers of David Koresh, was granted immunity from prosecution.Four agents of the federal bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms were killed as agents stormed the compound near Waco on Feb. 28, 1993, and six Davidians are believed to have died.

The botched raid led to a 51-day standoff, which ended in a raging fire April 19. Koresh and 78 followers died in the blaze. Eighteen cult members had been shot.

As her clothes and gas mask melted onto her, Thomas said, she fell to the floor.

"I could feel my legs moving furiously," Thomas said. " . . . I don't know where I got the strength from, but I managed to get up . . . . I made my way towards the light." Despite her fear of heights, she said, she jumped from an upper story.

Prosecutors say the fire was part of a mass suicide pact.

Thomas, a former Seventh-Day Adventist from Britain, was burned over 51% of her body and testified by videotape because of her injuries.

Thomas also testified that she saw defendants Ruth Riddle, Jaime Castillo and Brad Branch with guns the day of the shootout.

Thomas said that during the standoff, she saw defendants Kevin Whitecliff, Clive Doyle, Graeme Craddock and Renos Avraam with guns. Thomas said she also had a gun.

Under cross-examination, Thomas said she never heard the defendants plan to harm federal agents.

Defense attorneys contend the Davidians were acting in self-defense. They face up to life in prison if convicted.

Backing down from the prospect of a messy public defeat, a Ventura developer who had hoped to build a large housing project on agricultural land on the city's east end withdrew his proposal hours before Monday's City Council meeting.

Brad Jones, in partnership with the property owner, Limco Del Mar Ltd., had sought to build 815 houses on 222 acres of lemon orchards just east of North Hill Road, between Foothill and Telegraph roads.

In a letter to the city Monday, Jones said the developers "had received comments and critique regarding our application from several city representatives and other members of the community, which we would like to evaluate before proceeding further."

In brief remarks to the council Monday, Jones said he wants to meet with residents to discuss the project. He declined in an interview later to say whether he hopes to pursue a revised version of the development or scrap it altogether.

Councilman Gregory L. Carson said he encouraged Jones in a meeting last week to drop the proposal because a majority of the council would be unlikely to support the project.

Carson said that voting in favor of the proposal would mean changing the city's Comprehensive Plan, which dictates that the agricultural greenbelt be off-limits to development until 2010.

"I told him that to get a 'no' vote from the council would be detrimental," Carson said Monday. "I think he needs to sell it to the community first before selling it to the council."

Since last week, residents near the greenbelt have been circulating petitions and calling council members urging them to vote against Jones' project. Residents say new houses are not needed in the area and would create huge traffic problems.

"We'll make this into a slum city," said Sy Einstoss, who lives near the proposed development. "We can't accommodate any more people."

Dozens of residents who did not know about Jones' last-minute withdrawal showed up at Monday's meeting to oppose the project, some carrying protest signs.

"This may just be a delaying tactic," Einstoss said at the meeting. "He may come back in six months" to resubmit the proposal.

*

Also at Monday's meeting, the council discussed another project that would affect the agricultural buffer on the east end.

Ventura-based developer Ron Hertel asked the council for permission to proceed with his plan, which involves swapping his 92 acres in the greenbelt for 87 acres of city-owned land at Telegraph Road and Petit Avenue.

Hertel would build single-family houses on the city-owned land, and give the city $2 million to build a park on the land he owns at Telephone and Kimball roads.

The council debated late into the evening whether to allow the land swap. Council members were faced with deciding whether to permit the plan to go forward or rejecting it outright. Even if council members grant preliminary permission for the plan to move ahead, they could withhold final approval until later.

The 900-acre greenbelt, which stretches from Foothill Road to the Santa Clara River, was established by the City Council in 1989. The land is in an unincorporated area of the county, but is surrounded by the city and could be annexed at any time with the approval of county officials.

Although the city's Comprehensive Plan dictates that development of the greenbelt not be considered before 2010, a majority vote of the council could change that policy at any time.

Nearly a month after an earthquake crumpled their dwellings, about 65 Fillmore residents still make their homes on cots at a Red Cross shelter -- rejected by landlords who shun large families or victims of their own determination to stay near their jobs and in a community they love.

Many of the low-income families that cluster in groups at a school gymnasium say there are no affordable rentals left in Fillmore.

They search for housing when not working in the lemon groves that ring Fillmore, and listen for word that government-funded trailers have arrived.

But many families -- some with five, six or seven children -- still see no immediate way out of the clean, new Fillmore Middle School gymnasium. They appreciate the accommodations but are eager to escape.

"We have no privacy," Deana Gonzales, 29, said as her three small children played nearby. Her 10-month old, Nykidemuz, learned to walk at the shelter.

"But we want to stay here in Fillmore," she said. "I grew up here. It's such a nice little community."

The Gonzales family had expected to be out of Ventura County's only remaining earthquake shelter by mid-afternoon. But their hopes were dashed when they discovered that a Fillmore landlord agreed to rent them a condo that city officials say is still unsafe.

A shelter dweller for 28 days, Jess Gonzales, 29, cried out in frustration: "It's a big deal. I have everything ready to go, and I find out the owner had us go through all this under a yellow tag."

Housing authorities said Monday that families still in the Fillmore shelter face a number of handicaps not easily overcome.

Some workers who live at the shelter lost their jobs because of damage to packinghouses in Fillmore and Piru, said David Roddick, housing director of the Area Housing Authority of Ventura County.

*

That stops some landlords because, even with federal housing subsidies, the families must pay 30% of their income as rent.

"Owners still want to run background checks," he said.

Other workers walk to their jobs or ride in car pools from their old neighborhoods, Roddick said. So a move to Santa Paula, where low-cost housing is available, is nearly impossible for a worker without a car.

Often, the biggest obstacle is the sheer size of the displaced family, said Roddick and workers at the Fillmore shelter.

"A lot of these are large families, and the owners are reluctant. They fear the place won't be kept nice," said Lupe Denette, a county mental health worker who counsels at the shelter.

"One lady came in," Denette added. "She had a four-bedroom house she wanted to rent. But when she found out that the families had six or seven children, she said she would be back at 3. We never heard from her again."

Some families are handicapped too because they have never rented a dwelling themselves, living instead with members of their extended family, Roddick said. Several shelter dwellers who lived at the now-demolished Fillmore Hotel were in that situation, workers said.

Two federal housing counselors have begun helping some of the families by "taking them by the hand and helping them hunt for apartments," Roddick said.

Usually, federal workers cannot recommend a specific landlord to prospective tenants, but that rule has been waived temporarily for the federal counselors.

Then there is the lure of Fillmore itself. A number of the families at the shelter Monday said they wanted or needed to stay in town.

"I was born and raised here, and I want to bring my kids up here," said Linda Acosta, a 40-year-old mother of four. She knew other families at the shelter even before the quake. "So we're all a big extended family."

But staying in town seems increasingly problematic, she said. "What is left is substandard housing," she said. "It won't pass inspection."

For the displaced, one potential problem never developed.

The exclusion of illegal immigrants from $8.6-billion in federal quake benefits has not been an issue here, Roddick said, because that exclusion is handled the same way as the prohibition of gays in the military.

"Our direction from HUD is essentially the same as the order about gays in the military -- don't ask," he said. "Housing authority people do not have the training to make sure a green card is good. But if it is known to us, we will not issue them a certificate."

*

In any case, many of the shelter residents said they had lived in the United States for many years or decades, and many knew each other long before the earthquake threw them together Jan. 17.

Now they live as a mini-community, their goods stacked in cardboard boxes and plastic bags along the gym walls, and their conduct so disciplined that they could hardly seem more compatible, said shelter manager Elmer Fulesday, a Red Cross worker from Pennsylvania.

"They're all from the same neighborhood and all know one another," he said. "That's the nice thing about this shelter."

The shelter is as neat as the homes the dwellers left behind, some said. Each of the "shelter moms" keeps her family's area tidy, and all pitch in to clean common areas and watch out for the children's safety, Acosta said.

"Everybody volunteers," she said. "We have our juniors who love wearing their Junior Volunteer Red Cross stickers. They even clean up the bathrooms. It just works out."

Times photographer Carlos Chavez contributed to this report.

Shannon Murphy has a long brown ponytail, sleek white ice-skates and dreams the size of an Olympic stadium.

"I want to be a national, an Olympics, a world champion," said Shannon, 13, curled up next to a heater at the Conejo Valley Ice Skating Center last week. "I want to be every champion there is."

The scandal surrounding U. S. figure skater Tonya Harding may have tarnished the sport in some eyes, but for young fans like Shannon and a hundred other dedicated figure skaters who practice at the Newbury Park rink, the appeal endures.

Their days start with a practice session at the crack of dawn. Afternoons are spent doing jumps and figures. Other kids run for student council or strive to make the school basketball team, but for serious young figure skaters, hopes begin and end at the rink.

The Conejo Valley Ice Skating Center -- which will soon move to larger quarters in Simi Valley -- is the only commercial ice-skating rink in Ventura County and a home-away-from-home for would-be Kristi Yamaguchis and Wayne Gretzkys.

*

And with the start of the Winter Olympics, it is also a crowded hot spot for those trying to emulate the moves that look so beautiful and graceful on television.

"In an Olympic year . . . people get all fired up about ice-skating," said Bette Robinson, Shannon's grandmother and the rink's office manager. "They all want to skate."

Every Saturday and Sunday in recent weeks, the rink has been jammed with novice skaters, many attempting merely to stay upright on the slippery, unforgiving surface.

Twins Sara and Brian Dean, 17, and friends Erin Coepcke, 15, and Scott Feitl, 18, tried the ice at the Conejo Valley rink Sunday for the first time since childhood.

"We've been watching all the ice-skating on TV, and so we came because we had nothing else to do," said Sara, a Camarillo resident who was adjusting her boot laces by the side of the rink. "But it looks a lot easier on television!"

With the Olympic skating competitions already under way, some pleasure skaters -- especially young girls -- considered their own gold medal potential Sunday.

"I don't really like it, but I guess I could learn," said Nicole Guilis, 11, of Oak Park. "The skates hurt my feet. I like roller-skating because you don't fall and, like, get your butt all wet."

Britt Boisclair, 10, sipping hot chocolate during a skating break, said the life of a skating champion would not mesh with her hectic schedule.

"I'm not that kind of person who can find the time for all that skating because I'm too busy," said Britt of Agoura Hills, who plays street hockey with her friends, attends dance and tennis lessons, and plays on a soccer team.

Indeed, serious figure skating requires a degree of dedication and single-mindedness that would deter many children, not to mention their parents.

For Shannon Murphy, who first wiggled into ice-skates at age 3, the routine begins each weekday morning at 5:30, when she hauls herself out of bed and dresses for the rink.

By 6:45 at the latest, Shannon, who lives with her grandmother in Ventura, is at the Conejo Valley rink. After stretching exercises with her coach, she practices her figures and double axels, along with two dozen other serious young skaters.

*

Practice continues until 9 a.m., when Shannon -- whose ice-skating fulfills her school's physical education requirement -- gets ready to attend Colina Intermediate School in Thousand Oaks at 10.

Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, she returns at 2:45 p.m. for another couple of hours on the ice. Saturdays are easier: only two hours of lessons and practice.

"Sometimes it's really stressful," said Shannon, who in April placed fourth in the intermediate ladies division of the Junior Nationals competition in Great Falls, Mont. "I've got so many classes and so much work. I think about skating when I'm in class, and I'd rather do skating than be at school."

Lately, Shannon and her grandmother have been considering pulling her out of school and enrolling her in a home study program -- popular with many of the most serious junior high and high school skaters.

When Shannon skated in a recent competition, Robinson said, she had to divide her time between competing and getting her schoolwork done by the teachers' deadlines.

"She's got pressure on both sides, and I don't want them both to cave in," Robinson said. "And she's not going to give up skating at this point. She's put in too many years and been too successful."

But adolescents aren't the only ones for whom figure skating is a big commitment. Many parents spend a small fortune -- up to $30,000 per year, some say -- outfitting future Katarina Witts with two and three pairs of custom-fitted skates, heavily beaded costumes and lessons not only in ice-skating, but in related fields like dance.

"It's expensive," said Cathy O'Donnell of Woodland Hills, whose daughter Elizabeth, 12, trains in Newbury Park and at a rink in Burbank. "We spent about $1,000 on one of her costumes. It is solid beads and a beautiful chiffon skirt and weighs more, almost, than she does."

Some parents spend up to $1,000 per month on lessons, and rink time can cost an additional $50 to $200 per month, depending on the number of practice sessions.

In contrast to the money spent on some skaters, the nearly two-decades-old Conejo Valley arena looks battered and timeworn. Clothes-changing facilities are minimal, lighting is dim in places, and some skaters complain that the ice is not as hard as in the best skating rinks.

*

In August or September, Icetime Unlimited Inc. will close the Newbury Park rink and open a new facility on West Easy Street in Simi Valley, complete with training rooms, a pro shop, and Olympic- and regulation-size ice rinks, said Sean McGillivray, president of Icetime.

"I think it's going to really serve the public," McGillivray said.

Figure skating interest at the rink, he said, has been up 30% in the last couple of years.

"The Olympics always gives great exposure and drives up participation and, as you know, this is our second in two years," he said. "Also, we've had really good exposure nationally the last couple years, with national figure skaters who paved the way."

But McGillivray said youth hockey, not figure skating, is where demand continues to grow. Five years ago, he said, 85 children belonged to the Conejo Valley rink's youth hockey league. Today, more than 400 young hockey players practice and compete at the rink.

"Wayne Gretzky had a tremendous impact," he said, referring to the Los Angeles Kings star. "Another reason for it is roller-blading. . . . You see these kids skating around with hockey sticks and roller-blades on and it's a natural transition. If kids like roller-blading, ice-skating is tremendous."

Many of the young skaters, however, eschew any surface but ice and any sport but figure skating. For Shannon, who memorizes videos of past Olympics and world championship competitions in her spare time, it is the activity around which life revolves.

Seven of Ventura County's top public officials, including four appointed administrators, kicked off their political campaigns Monday by formally declaring their candidacies for office.

Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury, County Clerk Richard Dean and Treasurer-Tax Collector Harold S. Pittman, all unopposed so far in the June 7 primary election, were among those who gathered in the county's elections office to take out their nomination papers.

Sheriff Larry Carpenter, Auditor-Controller Thomas O. Mahon, county Supt. of Schools Charles Weis and Assessor Glenn E. Gray also declared their candidacies. All four were appointed to serve out the terms of their predecessors.

So far, only Mahon and Gray are opposed. Mahon will square off against Simi Valley Mayor Greg Stratton and Ventura accountant Scott Weiss, while Gray will compete against Ventura Councilman Jack Tingstrom.

The final date to file papers to run for office is March 11.

In other county elections, veteran defense attorney James M. Farley said Monday that he will challenge Assistant Dist. Atty. Colleen Toy White in the contest to replace retiring Superior Court Judge Edwin M. Osborne.

Farley, a Ventura attorney with 27 years of experience, said he is more suited than White to the job because of that experience. He said White has served most of her 17 years in the district attorney's office as an administrator, not as a prosecutor.

"The Superior Court is a trial court," Farley said. "You should have experience and know what's going on."

White, whose decision to run for Osborne's post prompted several of her colleagues to bow out of the race, could not be reached for comment Monday. She announced her candidacy Friday.

Some of White's peers said she is unbeatable. Bradbury said last week that there was no one better qualified for the job, while Deputy Dist. Atty. Matthew J. Hardy went one step further, saying, "You'd have a better shot at running against Mother Teresa in this county."

But Farley said he is not deterred.

"First of all, Toy White is not Mother Teresa," he said. "And, second, I checked with Mother Teresa, and she said I could run."

*

Meanwhile, Bradbury, who is seeking his fifth term as district attorney, said he does not expect anyone to challenge him in the June primary. Bradbury has run unopposed since he was first elected in 1978.

If returned to office, Bradbury said his top priorities will be to restore cuts made to his prosecutorial staff last year and to replace his office's antiquated computer system.

"The system we have now is from the Dark Ages," said Bradbury, who oversees nearly 500 employees. "It's important if we want to be able to operate efficiently through the year 2000 that we have an updated system."

Carpenter, who is running in his first election for sheriff, said his main focus if elected would be to continue to protect funding for his department.

"The financing of law enforcement has to rank as the No. 1 issue in our lifetime," Carpenter said. "What I'm going to be working toward is maintaining services on the street."

Weis, who was appointed last summer, said improving the quality of education in Ventura County schools to better prepare students for the 21st Century and developing new strategies to combat increasing incidents of school violence are among his top priorities.

"We have seen a significant increase in violence," Weis said. "It's a problem we have to tackle in the community, not just the schools."

Resolving the problem, he added, "is going to take a community effort between law enforcement, parents, kids and school officials."

Times staff writer Dwayne Bray contributed to this story.

Shivering in the pre-dawn chill Monday, commuters and transit officials huddled in Camarillo's freshly paved Metrolink parking lot, eager to celebrate the opening of the emergency train station.

Riders helped themselves to free coffee, doughnuts and newspapers as workers sporting purple Metrolink caps and T-shirts worked the crowd, selling tickets and handing out train schedules.

Purple and white helium-filled balloons tethered to a freshly installed railing spruced up the otherwise stark station.

Approved by the Ventura County Transportation Commission just 11 days ago and constructed in less than a week, the Camarillo station at Lewis Road and Ventura Boulevard contains only the bare essentials: a concrete platform, a pay phone, wheelchair ramp and train tracks.

Although the station was designed to operate for one year to offer relief from post-quake freeway congestion, officials said they are optimistic that ridership will prompt construction of a permanent stop.

At the early morning celebration, however, politicians, media and transit officials outnumbered riders.

Speaking from a portable podium, County Supervisor Maggie Kildee asked, "How many of you are real commuters?" About a dozen onlookers raised their hands.

"Good," Kildee said. "You are what this is all about."

By the time the second of two morning trains pulled away from the Camarillo station, about 90 commuters had boarded the Los Angeles-bound trains, said Mary Travis, manager of transit programs for the county Transportation Commission.

"This is a good start," Travis said. "As the word gets around, we expect the numbers to grow."

Since the Jan. 17 earthquake, ridership on the 47-mile Ventura Line has jumped 40%, holding steady at about 1,500 passengers each way, Travis said.

*

That increase prompted transit officials to seek the $1.9 million needed to extend service to Camarillo. If the aid application is approved, the Federal Emergency Management Agency will pay 75%, the state Office of Emergency Services 18.75% and the county 6.25%.

Success of the station hinges on whether Metrolink's first west county stop will attract new riders or simply offer added convenience for commuters who had been boarding the train in Moorpark.

Oxnard resident Jack Burger said he first stepped aboard a Metrolink train last week when he started a new job as a logistics analyst in Los Angeles.

"I started off on the Moorpark train, but this one is even better because it's closer," Burger said. "It's about time we had the chance to take the train to work."

Longtime Moorpark Metrolink rider Douglas Ernst said he enjoys the hourlong ride, which allows him to stretch out in a padded, high-backed chair and work on his laptop computer.

Ernst, a real estate banker who works in downtown Los Angeles, said he decided to try boarding in Camarillo because the station is closer to his Oxnard home.

But Ernst said the flexibility of the Moorpark Metrolink schedule may entice him to return to that station.

The Camarillo schedule calls for only two round-trip trains a day, while Moorpark and Simi Valley offer five round-trip trains a day and two round-trip Amtrak trains.

"Camarillo is closer, but if I leave my car there, work late and miss my train, I'm dead," Ernst said.

For Newbury Park residents Loris and James Mitchell, the Camarillo stop means that the couple will be able to spend more time together.

Mitchell, a computer analyst who works in Los Angeles, had been spending several nights a week in the city to avoid the hassle of riding the daily commuter bus.

"It just took so long for him to get to work and get home, it was wearing him out," Loris Mitchell said. "We tried taking him to the Moorpark station, but that was a bit too far to go twice a day to drop him off and pick him up."

*

With the first day of Camarillo Metrolink service barely under way, frazzled transit officials had already shifted their attention to their next task, extending Metrolink service to Oxnard.

FEMA on Friday agreed to include Oxnard in the earthquake disaster zone, clearing the way for the city to apply for federal funding for commuter rail service to the city.

Travis said the county has begun negotiating with Metrolink officials to come up with a cost estimate to extend service to Oxnard's 4th Street transit center.

If the federal funding is approved, the commission must find enough money to cover that cost until FEMA comes through with reimbursement.

"The problem with federal dollars is that you have to front the money and get reimbursed," Travis said.

Travis said the commission should have more details on Metrolink service to Oxnard by midweek, including the cost of operating the station and a proposed launch date for service. Camarillo Metrolink Service Metrolink trains began operating out of the Camarillo station Monday.

Where: 30 Lewis Road at Ventura Boulevard, just south of the Ventura Freeway. Exit freeway at either Carmen Drive or Dawson Drive.

When: Monday through Friday.

Times: Trains depart at 5:44 a.m. and 6:34 a.m. and return at 6:30 p.m. and 7:03 p.m.

Parking: 240-space paved parking lot at the Metrolink station.

Access: Trains are wheelchair accessible.

Cost: A round-trip ticket to Los Angeles costs $12. A monthly pass is $176.

Information: (800) 438-1112 or (800) 371-LINK.

A 26-year-old man charged with defrauding seven Ventura County banks out of more than $17,000 in a credit-card scam pleaded not guilty Monday in Ventura County Superior Court.

Judge Charles R. McGrath set a March 21 trial for David Jeffrey Wilkinson of West Hollywood.

Deputy Dist. Atty. William R. Redmond said Wilkinson remains in Ventura County Jail in lieu of $25,000 bail.

Prosecutors say Wilkinson used fraudulently acquired credit cards to withdraw money from banks from Thousand Oaks to Ventura, including six Bank of A. Levy branches.

If convicted, Wilkinson faces up to six years in state prison on charges of commercial burglary, grand theft and credit-card fraud. DWAYNE BRAY

Organizers of a "Wild, Wild West" dinner-dance for Thousand Oaks teen-agers with disabilities are looking for donations of prizes for participants.

Dozens of disabled teen-agers are expected to attend the fourth annual event Feb. 26, said Cecilia McMullen, therapeutic recreation coordinator with the Conejo Recreation and Park District.

"I think it is one of the only opportunities for them to be at such a large-scale event with all of their friends," McMullen said.

The evening begins at 5 p.m. with a barbecue dinner at the Thousand Oaks Teen Center. The dance follows from 7 to 10 p.m. The teen center will be decked out in Western style, and party-goers are invited to do the same, McMullen said.

Every participant receives a bag of small prizes to take home as souvenirs, McMullen said. To donate items or make a reservation to join the fun, call McMullen at 496-2464.

The admission charge is $3, but the sponsoring Thousand Oaks Youth Commission will waive the fee for teen-agers who are unable to pay, McMullen said. BRENDA DAY

Ventura County supervisors today will consider spending almost $70,000 to study how to make their employees more secure in their workplaces.

The report was requested by supervisors after the deadly rampage that began at the Oxnard unemployment office last December and left five people dead, including gunman Alan Winterbourne and Oxnard Police Detective James O'Brien.

But at least one supervisor said the $69,900 might be better spent elsewhere.

"I don't think I would vote for this," said Supervisor John K. Flynn, who represents the district where the Dec. 2 shooting began. "I'm very concerned about employee safety, but I'd rather spend $70,000 putting in some protective windows or hiring a security guard" than on a study. A committee of top department heads and other officials was formed following the rampage to study ways to tighten security at the county's numerous office buildings.

After each department submitted security alternatives to committee members, the panel solicited bids from consultants for a comprehensive security plan.

The contract proposal up for consideration today asks supervisors to approve spending $69,900 to hire Tomasi-Dubois & Associates of Los Gatos to perform the three-month study.

"I really have reservations about putting that much money into a consultant's contract," Flynn said. JEFF McDONALD

Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley) will meet with local and state officials today to discuss emergency responses to the recent earthquake as well as the December oil spill at McGrath Lake.

The meeting at Gallegly's Oxnard office will replace a discussion planned Jan. 18 that was canceled because of the Northridge earthquake.Rescheduling will give Gallegly a chance to include the emergency response to the temblor in the discussion, said John Frith, an aide to the congressman.

"We planned to have this meeting, ironically enough, the day after the earthquake, so of course it was postponed," Frith said.

Among the invited guests are state Office of Emergency Services Director Richard Andrews and local elected and public safety officials, Frith said. The meeting is not open to the public.

At least six local agencies were alerted to the McGrath Lake spill the day before it was officially announced, allowing thousands more gallons of heavy crude to pollute the ecologically sensitive habitat. JEFF McDONALD

Simi Valley residents seeking quake-related legal assistance are invited to attend a public forum at 6:30 tonight at Simi Valley City Hall.

A panel of attorneys, judges and government officials will discuss rent payment on damaged residences, insurance coverage and reconstruction costs.

The free forum is hosted by the East County Bar Assn. along with the Ventura County Bar Assn., Channel Counties Legal Services, Simi Valley Free Clinic and the city of Simi Valley.

For residents unable to attend, the forum will be broadcast on Channel 9, Comcast cable television.

Simi Valley City Hall is at 2929 Tapo Canyon Road. SARA CATANIA

A former Simi Valley woman whose husband was convicted last June of molesting a young girl pleaded guilty on Monday to lying for the man during his trial.

Elba Centobene, 33, entered the plea of one count of perjury and is expected to receive probation, authorities said.She is eligible to receive a prison term of up to four years under state law.

Her husband, 29-year-old James Centobene, was convicted of 25 criminal counts in connection with sexual assaults on the girl from January, 1991, to January, 1992, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Dee Corona. The attacks occurred while the girl was 9 and 10 years old.

A jury found James Centobene guilty of 23 counts of child molestation, including 15 that included special allegations of substantial sexual conduct, indicating either sexual penetration or oral copulation.

The jury also convicted him of two counts of child annoyance, which stem from baths he took with the girl, the prosecutor said.

During her husband's trial last year, Elba Centobene testified that the man never admitted to her that he had molested the child. Police, however, had taped a phone call between the two in which the admissions were made.

Since his conviction, James Centobene has fired his attorney and is representing himself. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Friday but has asked Superior Court Judge James McNally for a new trial. DWAYNE BRAY

The church embezzlement trial of Father David-Dean Piroli was suspended for the day Monday when Deputy Dist. Atty.Mary Peace had to attend to a family emergency, said her supervisor, Deputy Dist. Atty. Patricia Kelliher.

Kelliher said the trial is expected to resume this morning in Ventura County Superior Court with Peace's continued cross-examination of Piroli.

Piroli, 37, is on trial on two counts of grand theft. He is accused of stealing $60,000 in collection money from St. Peter Claver Church in Simi Valley and Sacred Heart Church in Saticoy. MACK REED

Simi Valley's cramped, aging, earthquake-damaged police headquarters could be replaced with a new building within four years at a cost of up to $11.3 million if money can be found to pay for it, according to a report released Monday by the city manager's office.

The damage to the Cochran Street headquarters in the Jan. 17 earthquake can be repaired economically, City Manager M. Lin Koester wrote in the report.But the damage also "emphasizes the need to examine alternatives for a new police facility."

The two buildings now used by Simi Valley police -- built in 1968 and 1971, with additions made in 1973 -- were intended only as temporary buildings and were not built to present-day standards, Koester said Monday in an interview.

They would not last the 30 to 50 years that a modern structure would last, and some components are aging even faster, he reported. The heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system, for instance, is not expected to be economical to run for more than another four to five years, he said.

Koester's report recommends that the city review the Police Department's space needs, identify potential sites for a new headquarters and review methods of paying for construction.

If begun in March, paid for, approved and built every step of the way without a hitch, a new headquarters could be ready to occupy by January, 1998, the report said.

In the meantime, the city is making extensive repairs to the existing headquarters, including jacking it up about six inches to the elevation it was before the earthquake.

Repairs are expected to last about 70 days and cost about $200,000. MACK REED

The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency today will release a plan to clean Ventura County skies by imposing mandates on farmers and others who contribute to the 10th-worst air quality in the country.

The draft will allow for a public comment period of at least six months before a final air quality plan is approved next year, EPA officials said Monday.

The plan is the result of a series of lawsuits brought against the EPA for failing to require local air pollution control districts in the Los Angeles, Ventura County and Sacramento areas to comply with the federal Clean Air Act.

The plan would allow the three areas, which account for 15 million people and half the state's population, 10 years to reach federal health standards for clean air.

Citizens to Preserve the Ojai sued the EPA in 1988, claiming that the government failed to adhere to its own air quality standards. But group officials earlier this month agreed in a split vote not to contest the 10-year attainment schedule proposed by EPA.

"We asked for a clear, comprehensive plan that the citizens could readily understand before 2005, preferably by 2002," said Pat Baggerly, one of the opponents of the agreement. "But they just kept saying no."

The plan to be released today will very likely include mandates that farmers restrict the use of certain pesticides that contain air pollutants as well as other measures to improve the air quality, EPA officials said.

"Because of the magnitude of reductions necessary to attain the health standard in these three areas, the (plans) will call for emission reductions from most every stationary and mobile source of air emissions," EPA spokesman Bill Glenn said. JEFF McDONALD

Ventura County employees should continue to be paid to share rides to work while alternative plans are drawn up to offer time off instead as an incentive to induce them to use car pools next year, a county official said.

Alan Bandoli, Ventura County employee transportation coordinator, said the Board of Supervisors should approve a program today that continues to encourage employees to share rides to work.

But supervisors should also direct department heads to begin studying the possibility of establishing a parking fee program to motivate workers to find alternatives to driving their cars to work.

Supervisors had earlier asked Bandoli to devise alternatives to the cash-incentive plan as a means of saving money. The county spent about $330,000 on the incentive program last year.

Under Rule 210, the county's strict trip-reduction ordinance adopted to help curb air pollution, businesses and agencies employing 100 or more people must provide incentives to reduce the number of people driving alone to work. The initial target is an average of 1.35 people per car.

By 1997, however, average ridership must rise to 1.5 people per car, or three people for every two vehicles.

According to a survey conducted last year, the county is in compliance with the current mandate at 1.38 people per car. But the county might have trouble reaching the 1.5-people-per-car goal by 1997, as Rule 210 requires, Bandoli told supervisors in his report.

He recommends that the board approve a series of programs aimed at reaching the ride-sharing goal, including continuing the four-day workweek for most county employees.

To otherwise reach the requirements of Rule 210, the board could require employees to car-pool as a condition of employment, or direct department heads to implement individual ride-sharing programs, Bandoli said. JEFF McDONALD

The Camarillo Planning Commission tonight will consider approving a controversial 22-acre factory outlet mall to be located south of the Ventura Freeway between Las Posas Road and Carmen Drive.

The meeting will mark the second time that the commission has considered the 250,000-square-foot mall.Last year, both the commission and the City Council approved the proposal only to have those decisions overturned by a lawsuit filed by an Oxnard developer and a retired Camarillo businessman.

As a result of the lawsuit, a Ventura Superior Court judge blocked the project and declared the city's attempt to provide tax rebates to the developer as a gift of public funds.

The judge also required that the site be scrutinized by a full environmental impact report. Before the project can be approved, the commissioners tonight will have to certify that report and accept its recommendations dealing with traffic, noise and air pollution generated by the proposed facility.

If approved, the mall will be the second factory outlet complex in Ventura County. A similar-size facility recently broke ground in Oxnard, about five miles north of the proposed Camarillo mall.

The commission's meeting tonight begins at 7:30 p.m. at City Hall, 601 Carmen Drive. J.E. MITCHELL

Tree swallows whose Ventura County nesting sites have been lost to agriculture or development have found help from a pair of Ventura Audubon Society members who are building and mounting wooden houses for the birds.

Jan Wasserman of Camarillo adopted the bird house project seven years ago and enlisted retired Navy engineer Virgil Ketner to help with the woodworking. Together, the two have mounted 50 swallow boxes atop predator-proof plastic poles at the Saticoy Settling Ponds, owned by United Water Conservation District. They have another 150 houses for a variety of birds at the Taft Ranch in the Ojai Valley.

"It brought swallows back to the county," said Wasserman, a former insurance claims adjuster who now works full-time on protecting and monitoring the birds. "They're such beautiful birds."

The migratory swallows, which winter in Central America, nest in hallowed knots in dead or rotting trees from California to Canada. But with the destruction of much of the older stands of trees in the county, tree swallows have been forced to find homes elsewhere in recent years, said Cat Brown, biologist with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Wasserman's love for birds began eight years ago when her husband, Harold, called her into the back yard to watch as a wild blue jay plucked a peanut from her husband's hand.

"He regrets that to this day because it changed my life," she said.

Soon afterward, she quit her job and became a birder full-time. Her husband and his income-tax business, along with assistance from the Audubon Society, support her program. They pay for colored bands to mark the birds so that Wasserman can tell if the same animals return each year.

And they do, she said.

"They return not only to the same area, but to the same house," she said.

Ketner said he got involved with the project when he and Wasserman were birding together at the settling ponds three years ago and noticed swallows flying around with no place to nest.

Wasserman, who had already taken over a project under way at John Taft's ranch, enlisted Ketner to help her expand the project to the new site, and increase the number of houses at the ranch.

The boxes measure about 5 inches by 5 inches by 10 inches high, ample room for the tiny birds, which are slightly larger than finches. In past years, all of the boxes have had nesters and fledglings in the spring, Wasserman said. More than 300 young swallows have been fledged at the Saticoy site and more than 2,500 of various species have been hatched at Taft Ranch.

"We're excited to see what's going to happen this year," she said. JOANNA M. MILLER

Saying the school district may have to spend money to make money, a booster club has asked Oxnard school officials to foot the bill for an all-weather track and snack bar at the new Oxnard High School.

The Oxnard High School Athletics Booster Club has asked the Oxnard Union High School District to pay $175,000 for the track and an additional $200,000 for a snack bar on condition that the parent group raise funds to repay all of the construction costs.

The booster club previously agreed to raise $500,000 to build the track, snack bar and field house at the new campus, scheduled to open in January.

But club leaders told the school board last week that the track and snack bar would help them reach their fund-raising goals.

The club could earn money through the track by charging fees for statewide and regional track and field competitions, Booster Club President Larry Bumpus told the school board last week. And the snack bar would generate revenues from refreshment sales.

School officials agreed to consider borrowing money to finance the track and possibly the snack bar, but they said the district must be cautious about taking on additional loans for the new school.

The school district is already borrowing $6.2 million to help pay for construction of the school, including $1.2 million for a football stadium and swimming pool. MAIA DAVIS

The top-of-the-line treatment she got failed to save Bimbo.

Bimbo was the Simi Valley German shepherd severely burned when her master's truck was enveloped in a fireball from a ruptured natural gas line in Granada Hills shortly after the Jan. 17 quake.

Despite being airlifted to UC Davis for dialysis -- which she needed because burns over 50% of her body caused kidney failure -- and an offer of skin grafts at the prestigious Sherman Oaks Hospital burn center, Bimbo died Sunday.

Veterinarians at UC Davis, which has the state's only facility for dog dialysis, said the 2-year-old dog's condition began to deteriorate late Friday, prompting them to begin treatment Saturday afternoon. She improved briefly the next morning, but her heart failed at 12:30 p.m., they said.

A university news release said she probably died of a blood clotting disorder common to burn patients.

"We gave it the college try," said Dr. A. Robert Grossman, head of the Sherman Oaks Hospital's burn ward, who helped coordinate the dog's care and had offered to perform free skin grafts on Bimbo. "I don't know if we would have had any better chances with a human."

Bimbo and another dog, Shep, were riding in the bed of a pickup truck driven by their master, Jim Menzi, a Simi Valley mechanic, a few hours after the quake. The truck stalled in a cloud of gas from the broken main under Rinaldi Street and Balboa Boulevard, and when he tried to restart the engine, flames engulfed him and the two dogs.

Shep was killed, but the badly burned Menzi and Bimbo leaped into a pool of water escaping from a broken fire hydrant. Menzi, who was trying to get to Santa Clarita to check on his mother, continued on foot. Bimbo turned up at a shelter for earthquake victims, where Menzi's name and phone number were found on her collar.

Menzi was hospitalized for several days after the accident with burns over 30% of his body but was released a few weeks ago.

In a gesture of goodwill that brought tears to the eyes of disaster workers, Indiana firefighters Monday delivered 35 tons of earthquake relief supplies to the hard-hit town of Fillmore.

"The people of Indianapolis poured out their hearts," Fillmore Fire Chief Pat Askren said. "It renews your faith in people."

Askren said Capt. Randy Frye and Chief Warren White of the Marion County Fire Chief's Assn. in Indiana called him after the Jan. 17 earthquake and asked how their department might help the residents of Fillmore.

Donations poured in to 30 Indianapolis-area fire stations when the word went out. Indianapolis-based Mayflower Transit Inc. donated two 18-wheelers to haul the goods, which included a load of food donated by Marsh Supermarkets, also of Indianapolis.

The cargo of food, diapers, baby formula and other supplies arrived Monday morning at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Fillmore, just as relief workers had run short of such staples, Askren said.

"Volunteers had tears in their eyes and people were waiting in line as the goods were unloaded," Askren said. "One woman who had a baby in her arms said she had no diapers left. It made her day."

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In Indiana, Assistant Fire Chief Rick Batza of the Washington Township Fire Department said Indianapolis residents responded positively to the plea for help.

"Your community needed the help this time, but next time it could very well be us," Batza said.

In related news, federal emergency workers announced that disaster application centers in Simi Valley and Glendale will close at 7 p.m. Wednesday because of decreasing activity. A third disaster center at Calabasas High School will close at 7 p.m. Saturday.

The Simi Valley center at the Ronald Reagan Library, 40 Presidential Drive, will close, but the other Simi Valley center, at the Sycamore Drive Community Center at 1692 Sycamore Drive, will remain open until further notice.

For information about federal or state assistance, call the 24-hour, toll-free registration number, (800) 462-9029, or for the hearing-impaired, (800) 462-7585. PATRICK McCARTNEY

Ventura County prosecutors Monday charged an Orange County teen-ager with shooting two Westlake High School students in a brawl near the campus two weeks ago, authorities said. They also charged a Los Angeles County teen-ager as an accomplice in the shooting.

The two youths are the third and fourth 16-year-olds charged in the case, which shocked Thousand Oaks. Last week, two Westlake High School students were charged in the case.

The charges against all four boys stem from a brawl that erupted earlier this month when one of the defendants and a school football player met for a fistfight at North Ranch Park.

The defendants and others jumped out of a car and announced, "We're the Asian Mafia," police and witnesses say.

The defendants -- all Asian Americans -- then attacked students with bats and lumber before shooting into the crowd, investigators said. Three students were shot, and others were beaten. All of the injured students have been released from local hospitals, including one who suffered a minor skull fracture caused by a bullet that lodged in his neck.

Deputy Dist. Atty. John A. Cardoza said his office will file a petition asking that the two teen-agers charged Monday be tried as adults. He has already filed a similar motion for the two Ventura County youths.

The defendants from Orange and Los Angeles counties are being held in Juvenile Hall and are scheduled to be arraigned in Juvenile Court this morning.

Cardoza said no other arrests are imminent, but that the police investigation into the incident is continuing.

He credited Ventura County sheriff's authorities for tracking down leads in the case in three counties and swiftly arresting the four suspects.

"The sheriff's office did a heck of a job putting a lot of information together in a short period of time," Cardoza said.

Authorities have said the Asian Mafia is believed to be the name of the Los Angeles County gang.

Law enforcement sources said Monday, however, that none of the four boys charged in the melee is believed to be an active gang member.

Cardoza said the Orange County youth, who is from Brea, shot two of the students. He is charged with two counts of assault with a firearm, including special allegations that he caused great bodily injury.

The Los Angeles County youth, from Rowland Heights, is charged with two counts of assault with a firearm and one count of assault with a deadly weapon.

After 10 years at his post, Ventura County Public Defender Kenneth I. Clayman disclosed Monday that he is one of five top candidates for the job of Los Angeles County public defender.

The job, with an annual salary range of $99,873 to $149,809, became vacant in September with the retirement of Los Angeles County Public Defender Wilbur Littlefield. Littlefield had spent 36 years at the largest and oldest public defender's office in the United States, the last 17 as its head.

Clayman, 52, of Camarillo said he loves his work overseeing Ventura County's 37 public defense attorneys. But he could not pass up a chance to direct the nearly 600 attorneys in the Los Angeles County public defender's office who represent "the innocent, the downtrodden and even the despicable."

"I have a wonderful job now," said Clayman, who earns a base salary of $99,000.

"But the Los Angeles office happens to be the largest in the country. There are enormous challenges in running it, and when a person makes a career as I have out of public defendering . . . of course I want to look at it."

Clayman is no stranger to the Los Angeles County public defender's office. He worked there for 17 years before the Ventura County Board of Supervisors appointed him to his current job in 1984.

He was a trial deputy in Los Angeles for the first 10 years, then won promotions to become chief of the juvenile division in 1977 and head of the municipal court division in 1981, he said.

Now he is competing against four other candidates, three of whom have ties to the Los Angeles County public defender's office.

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The other candidates are Michael P. Judge, 49, a veteran public defender in the office; David Meyer, 50, the acting public defender in that office; Mark E. Overland, 53, a former deputy public defender in that office and now partner in the Santa Monica law firm of Overland & Gits; and Fresno County Public Defender Jose R. Villarreal, 49.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors will interview each of the five before appointing the new public defender, said Shigeki Kikkawa, executive recruiter for the county's chief administrative officer. The interview schedule has not been set, Kikkawa said Monday.

The Los Angeles County Public Defender's Office employs a total of 854 attorneys and other staff and has an annual budget that this year reached $71.4 million.

The job is "the plum job of public defender jobs," said Ventura County Assistant Public Defender Duane Dammeyer, who oversees felony cases for Clayman.

Dammeyer said Clayman is an open-minded administrator who "is not looking to surround himself with yes men" and has modernized the Ventura County public defender's office in his 10 years there.

Clayman's strengths as a bureaucrat would also suit him well in dealing with the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Dammeyer said.

"I don't know much about what goes on down there," he said. "But here he takes great pains in making sure the members of the board (of supervisors) are informed as to exactly what our needs are, what our strengths are and that the law mandates that we have service at a certain level."

Ventura County Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury said his office and Clayman's have worked well together.

"The thing that I like most, of course, is he works so well with the other justice agencies," Bradbury said. "If there's any concern, he picks up the phone and calls me, and I'm comfortable doing the same with him. We've been able to work together for the betterment of the justice system here."

Opponents of the $1-billion Ahmanson Ranch project -- which would create a mini-city in the rolling hills south of Simi Valley -- will get their day in court today.

Ventura County Superior Court Judge Barbara Lane will hear oral arguments on nine lawsuits filed by Los Angeles County and the cities of Los Angeles, Calabasas, Malibu, and several environmental and homeowner groups.

The plaintiffs are seeking to overturn Ventura County's 1992 approval of the project, arguing that the development would cause enormous environmental damage, snarl traffic and strain public services in the neighboring communities.

One of the central issues in the case is whether 10,000 acres of dedicated parkland included in the Ahmanson deal outweigh the project's environmental impacts.

"If you don't know how much it's going to cost the city of Los Angeles to mitigate all of the traffic impacts, then how can you say the parkland is an overriding consideration?" said attorney Rosemary Woodblock, who is representing the environmental group Save Open Space. "You have to know specifically what you're overriding."

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Joseph T. Edmiston, executive director of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, said that whatever the outcome, the case will probably be appealed. The conservancy hopes to acquire thousands of acres of parkland in the deal.

"Unless there is some kind of side agreement in the appellate process, it could end up in the California Supreme Court," Edmiston said.

The Ventura County Board of Supervisors approved the 3,050-dwelling golf course community near the Los Angeles County line on the condition that Ahmanson Land Co. and its partners turn over to state and federal park agencies 10,000 acres of mountain land, much of it owned by entertainer Bob Hope. So far, only about 3,000 acres -- including