Arts and entertainment reports from The Times, national and international news services and the nation’s press.

RADIO

The 7 p.m. Way, L.A.: Evening commuters will soon once again be able to get their daily dose of local public affairs. KCRW-FM (89.9) is bringing back the 7 p.m. weekday rebroadcast of Warren Olney’s popular afternoon show “Which Way, L.A.?” starting Monday. A station spokeswoman on Tuesday called it “just the right thing to do.” The music program “Metropolis,” which had expanded to three hours when it replaced Olney’s evening rebroadcast nearly a month ago, will go back to its original 8-10 p.m. time slot. In other KCRW changes, the station will replace “Monitor Radio” with Terry Gross’ interview show “Fresh Air” on June 2, in the weekday noon-1 p.m. time slot.

POP/ROCK

Hall of Fame TV Plans: Cable’s VH1 will broadcast the annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on May 9, three days after the gala takes place in Cleveland. Inductees include the Bee Gees, Buffalo Springfield, Crosby, Stills and Nash, the Jackson 5, Joni Mitchell, Parliament-Funkadelic and the (Young) Rascals. VH1 has picked up the broadcast rights for two years.

Washington Battle: Celebrity biographer Kitty Kelley, who wrote the scalding bestseller “His Way: The Unauthorized Biography of Frank Sinatra,” is trying to stop Washington lawmakers from honoring Ol’ Blue Eyes with a Medal of Honor. Sen. Alphonse M. D’Amato (R-N.Y.) already secured Senate approval of the measure in February, and Rep. Jose E. Serrano (D-N.Y.) has gathered about 280 of the 290 co-sponsors he needs to bring the legislation up for a House vote. But Kelley has written essays on the matter in Newsweek and the New York Daily News, citing research from her book to argue that Sinatra, 81, is too “tainted” by unsavory ties to organized crime to receive the “most prestigious honor Congress can bestow.” D’Amato, who called Kelley “mean-spirited,” said he found her characterization of Sinatra “offensive” and said that she is merely “‘interested in generating publicity.” In the end, the legislators’ opinions is all that matters in the selection of medal recipients, as there are no official criteria. Among the roughly 200 past recipients are Bob Hope, George and Ira Gershwin, Olympic athlete Jesse Owens, evangelist Billy Graham and former First Lady Lady Bird Johnson. Former President Ronald Reagan previously gave Sinatra a Medal of Freedom.

Not So Welcome: Backing down from their previous ban after the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia threatened legal action, city officials in Richmond, Va., have reluctantly allowed the shock rock group Marilyn Manson (“Antichrist Superstar”) to perform in the city-owned Richmond Coliseum on May 10. However, City Manager Robert C. Bobb said the band still isn’t welcome and its fans will be closely watched by police.

TELEVISION

Cochran vs. Rivera: Former O.J. Simpson criminal attorney Johnnie Cochran will begin his solo flight on cable’s Court TV on Monday. His show, now called “Cochran & Company,” will air weeknights at 6, opposite another legal talk show, Geraldo Rivera’s “Rivera Live” on CNBC. Cochran’s former on-air partner, Nancy Grace, will become a daytime anchor on the network.

12 Steps to More Channels: The cable universe gets more crowded today with the launch of the Santa Monica-based Recovery Network, described as “the world’s only broadcast network devoted entirely to substance abuse recovery and prevention.” Targeting the “130 million Americans who suffer from or are affected by alcoholism, substance abuse, gambling, eating disorders, depression and underlying causes such as child abuse and sexual abuse,” the network aims to offer “a safe, confidential place . . . [to] seek information and take the first steps toward recovery in the comfort of [viewers’] homes.” Involved with the channel’s programming is a 24-group partnership including the Child Welfare League, Physicians for Prevention and the National Drug Prevention League. Although the network is still negotiating with local cable operators and doesn’t expect to be on the air here until June, it will originally be seen in 50 markets throughout most of the United States.

STAGE

‘Big’ Plans: “Big,” Broadway’s musical version of the Tom Hanks movie, will arrive in the Southland for the first time next winter, with a Feb. 10-15 run at Orange County Performing Arts Center. It’s part of OCPAC’s recently announced Broadway series, which also will include Hayley Mills in “The King and I” (Dec. 2-7), “Annie” (April 28-May 3, 1998) and “Rent” (Aug. 4-9, 1998).

QUICK TAKES

Arnold Schwarzenegger was back home Tuesday, six days after undergoing surgery at USC University Hospital to repair a faulty heart valve. “I want to reassure his fans that he is stronger than ever and he’ll be back at work this summer,” said Dr. Vaughn Starnes, Schwarzenegger’s lead surgeon. . . . Oasis will open U2’s June 18 and 19 shows at the Oakland Coliseum, Epic Records said. Tickets are still available for both dates. No opening act has been announced for the band’s June 21 date at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. . . . Kenny Kramer, the real-life New Yorker who inspired Michael Richards’ Kramer character on NBC’s “Seinfeld,” said Tuesday that he hopes to run in the Democratic primary for mayor. He’s qualified, he said, because he votes in “every election.” Kramer, whose employment history includes making jewelry, managing a reggae band and doing stand-up comedy, needs 15,000 signatures by June 3 to get on the ballot.