NEWS LITE\Fans, officials raise ruckus as Jackson lands in Brazil.

Byline: News Lite is compiled by James Hames from Daily News staff and wire reports.

Michael Jackson flew to Brazil on Friday to begin filming a controversial video. He was welcomed with near-hysterical enthusiasm by fans in Salvador.

Hand-in-hand with two children - and with only his eyes visible above a black surgical mask - the singer sprinted across a shimmering runway to wave to hundreds of fans gathered on an airport balcony.

"He started running toward us and I almost fainted," said breathless schoolgirl Sheila de Oliveira, still in tears after her not-so-close encounter with the star.

Plans by Jackson and director Spike Lee to film in Brazil as part of a video for the song "They Don't Care About Us" have caused an uproar. Authorities have said the use of a Rio de Janeiro shantytown as a backdrop would damage the city's attempts to revive its tourism industry and host the 2004 Olympics.

Rio's governor accused Jackson of seeking to exploit the poor.

Then it was soccer idol Pele's turn to criticize Jackson, saying he should film on Rio's famous beaches instead of in the sewage-strewn, mountainside alleys of the Dona Marta slum. Pele is now Brazil's sports minister.

"It is unfortunate Pele said these comments," Lee told reporters.

Lee said the video would depict downtrodden people everywhere, not just in Brazil, and hit back at the accusation that Jackson was exploiting the poor.

"Who says that someone who is very rich has no concern for the poor? Michael is a great humanitarian and has contributed many, many millions of dollars to help poor children around the world," the director said.

Furrier not buying Hefner's story

The big box was from Playboy and the folks at the Rockville, Md., headquarters of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals didn't know what to think. Inside was a full-length auburn sable coat worth $15,000, donated by Kimberly Conrad Hefner, wife of Hugh Hefner. And a letter:

"When Hef gave me the coat, many years ago, neither of us were aware of the animal agony behind fur. I have never worn this coat, it just never felt right; my two children never liked it, either."

Yeah, right, says Doug Fine of Somper Furs in Beverly Hills. "She's bought at least six furs from us over the years, mostly mink and lynx," he declared.

Internet impersonator tweaks cyber-detective

Hacker tracker Tsutomu Shimomura has found himself the victim of an on-line trick.

Shimomura, the Internet security expert credited with catching fugitive hacker Kevin Mitnick last year, had set up an Internet site chronicling the chase as a supplement to his book "Takedown."

The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that hackers claiming to be Shimomura persuaded Network Solutions Inc., the company that sets up Internet addresses, to delete his page and replace it with a bogus page last weekend. It was returned to normal by Wednesday.

"It's pretty juvenile," Shimomura told the Journal, saying the same things could easily happen to major corporations or even an access provider such as America Online Inc. "I expect that businesses like AOL would be much less amused if they were renamed 'aohell.com,' and that would cost them real money."

A Network Solutions official told the Journal he hadn't been able to investigate the matter because the company had been deluged with e-mail in an unrelated prank.

Himalayas-bound grandma shows esprit de Peace Corps

Spurred by her Catholic faith and caring attitude, a grandmother from Missoula, Mont., leaves for Nepal Sunday for a two-year tour with the Peace Corps.

"I wanted something different and I love a challenge. It's a way to grow and stretch yourself, and I thought it would be great," said Patty Zapp.

She said she decided to contact the Peace Corps after reading a story in The Smithsonian magazine upon returning from an overseas trip with the Missoula Symphony Chorale.

Zapp said she's always admired the work done by the Peace Corps and decided to dedicate her talents now because for the first time in her life, she felt unencumbered and free of responsibility.

While she doesn't know specifically what she'll be doing, she's confident that she'll handle the challenge.

"I don't even know what field, what area of urban development I'll be working with but that's part of the challenge, That's part of the mystery," she said.

Zapp put her own formal education on the back burner while she was raising five children (her husband died about 10 years ago), then received a bachelor's degree in theater arts from UCLA in 1970 at the age of 45.

A talented singer who has performed in musical comedies and operas, Zapp hasn't tried yet to learn the Nepalese native tongue because of her experience as a singer.

"It's just like with music," she said. "If you learn it wrong, it's real hard to unlearn."

Is she worried, concerned, scared about heading to a foreign country where she doesn't know anyone? Not a chance.

"I look on this as an adventure," she said. "Isn't that terrible: cockeyed optimist. I suppose that's what I am. Pollyanna. No, I just have a zest for living and if problems or situations come up that might be a little difficult, that's a challenge . . . an exciting challenge to find out what's inside of you to make you grow."

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PHOTO

Photo Sheepish in Frankfurt Artist Jean Luc Cornec created this flock of sheep from telephone cables, handsets and miscellaneous parts for the Frankfurt Postal Telephone and Telegraph museum. Visitors to the permanent exhibit in Germany won't hear any bleats, but the creatures do ring. Associated Press