NEWS LITE : INCENSED BIKERS WANT LENO'S HIDE.

Jay Leno's on-screen crack about overweight Harley-Davidson riders in Milwaukee earned him some hate mail from beefy bikers who didn't think it was funny.

``I didn't mean anything by it,'' the ``Tonight'' show host and motorcycle buff told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. ``It was a joke.''

On his show June 15, after appearing at Harley-Davidson's 95th anniversary reunion and leading a parade of 50,000 bikers, Leno said he feels fat in Los Angeles but in Milwaukee with all those bikers, he felt thin.

Leno told the same joke on stage in Milwaukee that weekend as master of ceremonies at the reunion and ``people laughed at the joke,'' he said.

He was surprised so many people got upset when he repeated the gag on television.

``People are writing me a lot of hate mail,'' Leno said.

`Judge Joe Brown' brings gavel to TV

Move over Judge Judy. There's a new TV judge in town.

Tennessee Criminal Court Judge Joe Brown, who kept alive James Earl Ray's attempts to get a new trial for several years is already taping episodes of yet another show in which civil disputes will be settled on television.

Patterned after ``People's Court'' and ``Judge Judy,'' the syndicated ``Judge Joe Brown'' show will decide family disputes, fights between neighbors and other conflicts. It will debut in September.

Brown said his show will be somewhat grittier than his established competitors.

``We have had a few that are profound involving the abuse of spouses,'' Brown told The Commercial Appeal of Memphis.

Brown drew national attention in recent years because of rulings on Ray's attempts to take back his guilty plea to killing civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

Ray died of liver disease in April while serving a 99-year sentence for King's 1968 assassination.

The Smashing Pumpkins confront generation gap

Smashing Pumpkins band members may not be as in touch with the young American audience as they thought.

Meeting Friday with about 30 young children from The Family Place, a shelter for victims of domestic violence, three band members were asked to name their favorite musicians.

``Puff Daddy. Do you know who that is?'' asked guitarist James Iha.

No reply.

``How about the Beatles?'' Iha suggested.

Nothing.

Then band leader Billy Corgan stepped in.

``Do you know who the Spice Girls are?'' he asked.

``Yes!'' the kids hollered.

``OK,'' Corgan said, acknowledging a new generation gap. ``We don't listen to the Spice Girls.''

The band hopes to raise $2.3 million for local charities, including The Family Place, during its summer tour, which opened Tuesday.

`Godzilla' fans fill theaters around Japan

``Godzilla'' returned home Saturday and tens of thousands of Japanese crowded into theaters to see the legendary lizard.

Hollywood's version of ``Godzilla'' premiered at a record 385 theaters in the country that first created the monster 44 years ago.

In Tokyo's Yurakucho shopping district, more than 1,000 fans lined up in front of the Nihon Gekijo theater to catch the nation's earliest showing at 7:20 a.m. Nearly 100 camped overnight to be among the first to get inside.

Hidekazu Takahashi, 30, said he is happy to see his hero's return.

``This one looks different from the Japanese Godzilla, but I think he is handsome,'' Takahashi told reporters.

Some Japanese Godzilla fans have expressed concerns about drastic changes made in the U.S. version, including the monsters's iguana-like looks and his character.

They said the American ``Godzilla'' relied too much on sophisticated special effects, losing the low-budget, hand-made charm of the original.

Godzilla's Japanese distributor, Toho, said it expects the movie to beat the first-day audience record of 300,000 viewers set here by ``The Lost World: Jurassic Park,'' Kyodo News reported.

Chevy dealer drives juicy bargain

Colors and styles are limited, options are nonexistent and the resale value is nil. But there isn't a lemon anywhere on the lot, gas mileage is off the scale and they'll never leak oil on the driveway.

Faced with a dwindling supply of cars because of the strike against General Motors and a sales force with not enough to do, Reeder Chevrolet in Knoxville, Tenn., turned to something it could at least get plenty of - new 1998 watermelons.

``Right now, our special is a lovely two-tone, jade-green exterior,'' said sales manager Travis Shields. ``Seeds are standard with this model. We can't offer rebates or long-term financing on these extra-clean melons, but we do guarantee there'll be no lemons.''

They have a sticker price of $2.99 - salespeople get a commission of 50 cents each - and they're rolling out of the showroom: 77 were sold Friday.

Many of the staff showed up for work Friday wearing overalls and straw hats.

``Everyone's happy when you're selling something,'' dealership owner Paul Siler said. ``We need to keep morale up, and so we'll have a little fun with the whole situation.

``Who knows? Maybe our salespeople can make a little lunch money.''

News Lite is compiled from Daily News staff and wire reports

CAPTION(S):

3 Photos

PHOTO (1) The deluxe-model LT Melon watermelon on display at Reeder Chevrolet in Knoxville, Tenn., features an anti-theft device, pinstripes and the Chevy emblem, all for the list price of $2.99.

Margaret Bentlage/News-Sentinel

(2) Sea brass

Debbie Lumley, left, Bill Becker and Nancy Herlehy mime a concert Saturday at the Underwater Music Festival in the Florida Keys. More than 600 divers came to Looe Key National Marine Sanctuary to tune in a radio broadcastvia special speakers beneath the waves.

Bill Keogh/Associated Press

(3) LENO