PATTI LuPONE

Set your VCRs! La LuPone is scheduled for a host of TV appearances in the next few weeks:
For those of you in the NY-NJ-CT area, LuPone will appear on Channel 2 (CBS) news Thursday, Aug. 8 at noon. Then, the interview taped with Patti a few weeks ago for the "Today Show" will air on Monday, Aug. 12. The "Today Show" airs on NBC 7-9 AM (ET) on the East Coast. Check local listings elsewhere. The interview is tentatively scheduled to run in the last half hour.
LuPone's appearance on "Rosie O'Donnell" has been pushed off again until sometime in September. When a new date is set, I will let you know.

Also, some big news for those of you planning holiday vacations to New York. Patti LuPone's critically lauded run in Terrence McNally's Master Class has been extended two months. LuPone was originally scheduled to portray the legendary opera diva through Oct. 30, but she will now be in the show until at least Dec. 30. Also, two special performances have been added, on August 26 and September 9.

BETTY BUCKLEY

Betty and the cast of Sunset Boulevard have just added a special matinee performance to benefit The Actors' Fund of America. The special performance will take place on Sunday, Aug. 11 at 3 PM at the Minskoff Theatre. The Actors' Fund of America is "the only national human services organization providing financial assistance and social services to members of the entertainment industry."
For tickets call the Actors' Fund at (212) 221-7300 ext. 133 or Ticketmaster at (212) 307-4100. Betty is filming "The Clinic" this week, a movie for the Showtime cable network. In this past Sunday's New York Post--in Larry Worth's column My Favorite Movies--Ms. B picked five of her all-time favorites:

• The Children of Paradise: ""It's a magnificent movie, which I first saw at the insistence of Brian DePalma. It was a life-transforming experience. . .enthralling in the power of its performers, particularly Jean Louis Barrault. I've seen it four times, and each time I see something new."
• Don't Look Now: "I've never watched anything like it. I sat through it twice in a row. And I've gone back since. I was horrified and moved. Plus, it was the first time I'd seen such a powerfully erotic love scene. [Director] Nicolas Roeg is a phenomenon, simply amazing."
• The Black Stallion: "I've read every horse book ever written, and Walter Farley's were my favorites. Even with that kind of buildup, this fulfilled my every expectation. Carroll Ballard is a beautiful, visionary filmmaker and Caleb Deschanel's cinematography still thrills me."
• Breakfast at Tiffany's and East of Eden: ""Holly Golightly--a single woman living in New York City desiring jewels from Tiffany's--was my instant role model and Audrey Hepburn became a big-time influence on my consciousness. . .James Dean was an equally powerful force for me in East of Eden I knew I was seeing something extraordinary, the real thing, not just posturing and attitude. He's one of the purest male energy forces on screen."
• Murmur of the Heart: "As a movie about incest, it's disturbing. But Lea Massari's ability to be motherly and womanly helped you understand it in a way almost impossible to comprehend intellectually. She's an incredibly graceful actress. And Louis Malle's direction is startling. I'm a huge, huge fan of his."
• Favorite movie snack: popcorn and nachos, coated with gooey "plastic" cheese.