FEUD A FACTOR? DISNEY'S EISNER A NO-SHOW AT TIME WARNER CHIEF'S BASH.

Byline: Steve Carney Staff Writer

BEVERLY HILLS - Despite their well-publicized corporate feud, Walt Disney Co. boss Michael Eisner honored Time Warner chief Gerald Levin at a black-tie dinner Monday night - but he canceled a personal appearance and sent a videotape.

The no-show by Eisner, co-chairman of the Larry King Cardiac Foundation benefit at the Regent Beverly Wilshire, and the feud between Disney and Time Warner over cable broadcast rights set an unusual backdrop to the gala.

``Actually, he's honoring Jeffrey Katzenberg,'' comedian Al Franken quipped, in reference to Eisner's public dispute with another media mogul, the K in DreamWorks SKG, who previously worked for Disney.

``He's giving him an organ donor card.''

King introduced the video, saying, ``We have Michael Eisner on tape, if Time Warner will let us show it.''

In the video Eisner congratulated Levin on the honor, saying, ``I'm sorry that my own stress-filled life, as you can relate to Gerry, has taken me to the East Coast when I'd rather be on the West Coast.''

In his remarks, Levin said, ``You know what I'm doing when this evening is over - I'm going to Disney World.''

Levin was diplomatic about the news that Eisner could not attend the dinner, saying he was sure last week's dispute, in which Time Warner Cable cut off the broadcast of Disney's ABC network for 39 hours, wasn't responsible for Eisner canceling his appearance.

``Michael actually is a good friend I've known for many years. I was looking forward to seeing him,'' Levin said. ``But no, there's no connection to current discussions.''

Eisner wasn't the only no-show. The event's other co-chairwoman - former first lady Nancy Reagan - also couldn't attend, according to King Foundation spokeswoman Linda Roth, because she stayed home with former President Reagan, who is suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

The meeting of the corporate rivals was to be the centerpiece to a testimonial dinner featuring other odd pairings - conservative columnist Arianna Huffington sharing the stage with Franken, the left-leaning comedian, and feminist attorney Gloria Allred sampling her dinner not far from Hustler publisher Larry Flynt.

The $1,000-a-plate dinner raised money for the King Foundation, which helps fund cardiac operations for patients who either can't afford them or have inadequate insurance to pay for the lifesaving treatments.

King, whose CNN network is a division of Time Warner, created the foundation in 1988 after he had quintuple bypass heart surgery.

Time Warner pulled the plug on ABC's signal for a day-and-a-half last week in a dispute over how much Time Warner would pay Disney for the right to carry its cable programming. By law, the cable company must carry the local affiliate, KABC channel 7, for free.

The spat between the corporate behemoths went embarrassingly public at 12:01 a.m. May 1, when ABC transmissions turned to static for 3.5 million Time Warner customers nationwide. Shortly, afterward a vivid blue and yellow slide appeared, in which Time Warner told its subscribers to blame its rival: ``Disney has taken ABC away from you.''

And the bitterest pill for ABC was that the shutoff came during a ratings sweeps period, when advertising rates are determined, and when ABC had a chance to be the highest-rated TV network for the first time in five years.

After a 39-hour staring contest, Time Warner blinked when its officials saw the fight was giving their company a black eye and public opinion turned against them. They reached an agreement on the morning of May 2 to extend negotiations between the two, and ABC was coursing through the cables once again. The next day, the Federal Communications Commission ruled that Time Warner had broken the law by taking ABC off the air during a ratings sweeps period.

Levin, speaking earlier Monday at the National Cable Television Association meeting in New Orleans, continued defending his company's position.

``The law should never have permitted this,'' he said of the showdown. The system is ``just bad public policy, and we aim to change it.''

Monday night after Eisner's video, Levin mentioned that he had been at the New Orleans conference and jokes, ``We auctioned off two of the Disney Channels while we were there.''

CAPTION(S):

photo

Photo: CNN TV host Larry King, left, chats with Time Warner CEO Gerald Levin at the Larry King Cardiac Foundation gala Sunday at the Regent Beverly Wilshire, where Levin was honored.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer