NEWS LIFE\Ultimate veto power.

Byline: Compiled by Terry Murphy from staff and wire reports.

Hillary Rodham Clinton revealed that her husband battles her for control of the TV clicker. "There is something about the male human being and the remote control that is just bred in the genes," the first lady told Maplewood, Minn., talk show host Joe Soucheray on Thursday on KSTP-AM. "It's a man's device." The first lady also said she misses supermarkets. "I miss pushing a cart up and down the aisles," Clinton said. "I miss seeing what's on the shelves."

"I Dream of Jeannie" star Barbara Eden is making no apologies for a soon-to-be-released doll that says "Yes, master."

Eden admits feminists probably won't be thrilled with the talking doll by Trendmasters. But she can't picture how else the ditsy, magical character should be portrayed.

"How can anyone knock her for not being a feminist? She's a genie," Eden said in the March 16 issue of TV Guide.

In the series, which ran from 1965 to 1970, Eden co-starred with Larry Hagman, who played a long-suffering astronaut.

"The biggest mistake they made on the show was to marry them," said Eden. "She should never have married; she wasn't human!"

Happy day for writer of blue tunes

Sad songs about love gone wrong brought Chris Isaak a handful of Bay Area Music Awards.

Isaak cleaned up with his album "Forever Blue" and the song "Somebody's Crying," which also brought two 1996 Grammy nominations.

It's been an up year for the man known for downbeat tunes. He also made an appearance on "Friends," where he played a librarian and sang a song called "Smelly Cat."

Saturday night, it was San Francisco's chance to recognize the native of nearby Stockton at the 19th annual "Bammies," where he was named Bay Area musician of the year and outstanding male vocalist.

Isaak and his band, Silvertone, also were honored for best album and best song, and, were named best group.

"I'm diggin' this," Isaak said. Clutching his five golden microphone trophies, Isaak said later, "Boy, my mom's going to be tickled pink."

TV doctor gets to try role reversal

Peter Berg, a star of the hospital drama "Chicago Hope," needed a doctor himself recently, according to TV's "Extra" entertainment-magazine show.

Berg suffered a 2-inch gash to his forehead Friday when he was accidentally struck by actor Noah Wyle during a dress rehearsal for the two-character play "The 24th Day."

It took six stitches to close the gash.

"Noah got a little carried away . . .," Berg said in an interview with "Extra" that will be broadcast tonight.

Despite the injury, the show opened on schedule Saturday at the Coronet Theater in Los Angeles.

Comic deserting a sinking show?

"Saturday Night Live" has lost another member of its ensemble: This time David Spade, known for his impersonations of an unfriendly airline attendant and an entertainment critic, is quitting the beleaguered program.

The actor, who had been on a leave of absence that he plans to make permanent, said the frequent critical attacks on the show last season had taken their toll.

"Every critic in every magazine and on TV had to take their shot at why SNL was horrible," Spade says in the March 16 issue of TV Guide. "It was hard to keep getting bashed and then try to keep your head up at work."

The actor said the show gets hundreds of letters from dissatisfied fans about virtually every sketch.

"Those things can just switch you to say, 'You know what? It's time for me to go, people,' " he said. " 'I've done all I wanted to do here.' "

"Saturday Night Live" has suffered from the departure of several popular comics in recent years who went on to pursue movie or prime-time endeavors. Spade is one of them: His latest film was "Black Sheep," with a fellow cast member, Chris Farley.

Well, it's on to Delaware from here

Several states have toll-free tourist information lines that begin "1-800-VISIT." But not New Jersey - and some prospective visitors who tried the number got a decidedly different kind of hospitality.

Tourism officials were alarmed to learn that dialing 1-800-VISIT-NJ connected callers with a $3.99-per-minute live phone sex line for gay men, not tourist tips.

"We contacted the phone company and they told us there wasn't much we could do about it," said Dave Marziale, spokesman for the Department of Commerce, which operates the state's tourism hot line, 1-800-JERSEY7.

State officials said it was a distressing coincidence.

"There's at least three letters to each number on the dial and who knows what you can spell out," Marziale said.

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(1) Peter Berg, left, and Noah Wyle star in the play "The 24th Day." Terri Thuente/Daily News (2) Eden's genie no apologies