NEWS LITE\Juilliard pals stick together.

Byline: New Lite is compiled by Karen Duffy from Daily News staff and wire reports.

Robin Williams has assured Christopher Reeve that he'll pay the disabled actor's medical bills when his insurance runs out, the London Daily Star reports. The paper said the two are close friends who vowed as classmates at Manhattan's Juilliard School - 22 years ago - that whoever made it big first would help the other.

Reeve, paralyzed Memorial Day weekend in a horse-riding accident, will see his insurance run out later this year. Four months of intensive care at a North Jersey rehab facility cost $250,000. His continuing, outpatient treatment is expected to run $400,000 a year. Williams is believed to be worth about $100 million.

Said a source: "Neither would have imagined this would be the help that was needed, but they love each other like brothers and there is nothing they wouldn't do for each other."

Costner saves day at home

Kevin Costner grabbed a garden hose and shovel to battle a fire whipped up near his beachfront home by a severe New Year's Eve windstorm.

"If he hadn't been there, it could have gotten pretty bad," said Andy Rosenberger, spokesman for the Santa Barbara County Office of Emergency Services.

Firefighters couldn't immediately get to the fire because a street was blocked by downed eucalyptus trees that shroud the exclusive Carpinteria neighborhood. So Costner sprang into action.

"He's a local hero in the neighborhood because he used a garden hose and a shovel to put out a fire," Rosenberger said Tuesday.

"Mr. Costner declined to have his picture taken," Rosenberger said. "He took a very, 'Aw, shucks,' attitude. He sounds like a real regular guy."

Letterman joke taken seriously

David Letterman stirred up a swell of civic pride by threatening to move his show to the Texas city of Denton, population 72,000. Now someone needs to tell Denton he was joking.

Ever since Letterman mentioned Denton in November, city promoters have been pestering him to bring his CBS show to town, at least to visit.

They sent piles of letters and an envoy with gifts to New York. They even wrote a Top 10 list of incentives, including long stretches of rural roads so the lead-footed Letterman could put the pedal to the metal.

Denton, about 35 miles northwest of Dallas, came up during a routine on obscure recordings. Letterman pulled out a 1960s album that was part of a Denton promotional campaign and played a song that boasted of Denton's "master's degrees, Ph.Ds . . . hills and trees." The enthusiastic kicker was, "We're building a band shell!"

Letterman looked into the camera and threatened New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani: "You build us a band shell or I'm moving the whole damn show to Denton, Texas."

Film 'Las Vegas' gets good odds

"Leaving Las Vegas," the story of two self-destructive characters who fall in love, is the best bet to walk away with some of the top Oscar nominations, a Las Vegas bookie has predicted.

Lenny Del Genio is betting even money the film likely will be nominated for best picture, best actor for Nicolas Cage's portrayal of a man who tries to drink himself to death and best director for Mike Figgis.

Del Genio said Elisabeth Shue is a 2-1 bet for best actress for her depiction of a prostitute, although the odds are better on Meryl Streep's performance in "The Bridges of Madison County."

Rapper Coolio scared straight

Nothing like brotherly love to turn your life around. Rapper Coolio, whose hit "Gangsta's Paradise" is burning up the charts, says he decided to ditch his crack habit the day his brother Spoon pointed a gun to Coolio's head and threatened to kill him if he didn't shape up.

Women told to exhale already

Scribe Terry McMillan, whose book "Waiting To Exhale" has been made into a movie starring Angela Bassett, says women need to, like, lighten up. "We women need to stop taking ourselves so seriously 24 hours a day," she told USA Weekend. "We need to put our foot in our mouths more. Stick our necks out all the way. Enjoy the moment. Smile more. Listen to what others have to say, and listen with our hearts. So what if they get broken? We're resilient. We've always been able to pick ourselves up and keep right on stepping."

Henley gets big star for video

Kirk Douglas, who's playing Beelzebub in Don Henley's newest video, "The Garden of Allah," says he took the role only after conferring with his rabbi. Time magazine notes that he does a bang-up job of lip-synching - even though he's nearly deaf.

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Photo (1-2) Kevin Costner Fights real fire Robin Williams will take over Christopher Reeve's medical bills, a paper disclosed. (3) Kevin Costner Fights real fire