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Couples planning lavish weddings in the United Arab Emirates now have more than the guest list and venue to consider: the possibility of time in jail.

A new law imposes a prison sentence or a $137,000 fine for couples who have expensive weddings, the Gulf News reported Sunday.

The law aims to make it more affordable for young men to marry local women, the paper said. High wedding costs have forced many Emirates men to seek foreign brides. Dowries and other wedding expenses, including the cost of a dress and jewelry, can add up to more than $70,000.

Al-Amiri said the length of jail terms to be imposed - and the maximum allowable price for a wedding - have not been determined.

Family gets oily surprise

Steve and Christy Barrie had plenty of home heating oil pumped into their basement in Tacoma, Wash. Trouble was: They long ago converted to natural gas.

Instead of pumping 250 gallons of fuel oil into a neighbor's storage tank, a delivery man poured it into the Barries' basement Wednesday.

``When I saw the oil delivery guy at my house, I was shocked,'' said Christy Barrie. ``When I went into my house, the whole basement was covered with red oil.''

The oil ended up 8 inches deep in the Barries' basement, ruining children's toys, a computer, photographs and other belongings.

The oil supplier, Star Ice & Fuel Co., is helping with the cleanup and president Richard Reisinger said the company is accepting the liability.

Reisinger wouldn't identify the delivery man, but said he was likely fooled by the presence of an old fuel spout remaining on the side of the Barrie's home.

For now, the Barries and their two young children are staying with relatives.

Double-deck outhouse has tourists agog

Paris has the Eiffel Tower, New York the Statue of Liberty. The little town of Gays, Ill., has a two-story outhouse.

The privy is the closest thing to a claim to fame for the community of about 250 people, and carloads of tourists occasionally stop to take pictures.

``People can stop and see it and then go back to Chicago, St. Louis or New York and say, You'll never believe what I saw,'' said Bob Vail, who lives next door.

The double-decker convenience has been here since 1869, when Samuel Gamill built his general store across from the train depot on Front Street in Gays, 45 miles south of Champaign.

Apartments were located above the store. Having an adjacent two-story outhouse, connected to their level by stairs and a short ramp, meant the apartment dwellers didn't have to walk down to the ground, and also gave them privacy away from the general store customers downstairs.

Each level had two holes, just like ordinary one-story conveniences.

``Back then they didn't think it was funny. It was just an accommodation to the people who were living upstairs,'' said Nancy Goodwin, a village trustee and unofficial overseer of the outhouse.

The main building, with the store and apartments, was torn down in 1984 because it was falling apart, but the double-decker outhouse remained and was restored.

While travelers stop to marvel at the little building, they can't try it out. The building is padlocked to keep out vandals and the occasional passers-by who can't resist.

But who in their right mind would ever have used the first floor of a two-story outhouse?

``It really is the secret of the town how you could have somebody on both top and bottom,'' Goodwin said.

Actually, it's no longer a secret. The holes on the top level are set back farther than the ones on the lower level. A false wall hides the difference.

Severinsen sound inspired swinger

Brian Setzer, who helped revive rockabilly in the 1980s with the Stray Cats, said his foray into swing music stems from an appearance his band almost made on the old ``Tonight'' show.

``They wanted us to do `Rock This Town,' '' the guitarist Setzer said of one of the Stray Cats' hit songs. Although the band didn't appear on the show at the time, talks ``came close enough that they asked us if we wanted to use Doc's (Severinsen) big band. And a light bulb went off. That was one of the first times I ever got the idea.''

The Brian Setzer Orchestra's remake of the Louis Prima toe-tapper ``Jump Jive an' Wail'' was featured in a Gap commercial this year, but Setzer tells Rolling Stone magazine that the resurgence in swing has been building for some time.

``Let's face it, swing is huge,'' Setzer said. ``But we were doing it six years ago. Last year I was selling 7,000 tickets at the Greek Theater in L.A. with no radio play . . . No MTV or VH1. It was word-of-mouth.''

Katzenberg studies to avoid holy wrath

Animate a story that's sacred to three major religions, pick a voice to sound like God and mass-market the result around the world - all without offending anybody.

That was the delicate task before Jeffrey Katzenberg, co-founder of DreamWorks, as he shepherded the forthcoming film ``The Prince of Egypt'' - which tells the story of Moses - from concept to reality.

Katzenberg met with 700 clerics and scholars, journeyed to the Vatican, studied the Bible and spoke to professors at Harvard's divinity school, all in an effort to get things right - without stepping on anyone's toes. And instead of Moses action figures, the promotional tie-in will consist of a package containing a book, compact disc and tickets to the movie.

Italian actor wins Europe's film title

Italian Roberto Benigni was named best European actor at the 10th annual 1998 European Film Awards for his performance in the award-winning ``Life is Beautiful.''

The film, which Benigni also directed and co-wrote, was awarded best European film of the year at the ceremony in London's Old Vic Theatre on Friday.

``I am overjoyed and extremely grateful to receive this extraordinary honor,'' Benigni said. ``These awards fill my heart with happiness, knowing that people throughout Europe have been touched by our film.''

It's the latest in a stream of honors given to ``Life is Beautiful,'' which has won prizes at film festivals including Cannes, Jerusalem, Toronto and Warsaw.

The film also collected nine prizes at the Donatello Awards, Italy's equivalent of the Academy Awards.

U.S. troops receive bit of home, Hootie

Hootie and the Blowfish brought holiday cheer to about 2,000 Americans on the tiny Middle Eastern island of Bahrain.

Wearing Santa Claus hats, the band staged a two-hour concert for military men, women and their families at the U.S. 5th Fleet's base on Friday.

``It's just like a part America flew in to say hello to us,'' said Chief Petty Officer Jeff Strickland, 33, of Tampa.

News Lite is compiled from Daily News staff and wire reports

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

PHOTO (1) SETZER

(2) A two-story outhouse in Gays, Ill., stands as a monument to convenience, circa 1869. Yes, people did use the lower facility without harm.

Associated Press