THE BUZZ HOLLYWOOD GETTING READY FOR KODAK'S MOMENT.

Byline: - Staff and Wire Services

Los Angeles' shiny new Kodak Theatre opens for business Nov. 9 when international opera sensation Russell Watson performs with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra and a 60-member choir conducted by William Hayward.

Watson's performance will inaugurate the theater, now home to fine arts, live theater and concerts as well as the Academy Awards.

Opening attractions include Melissa Etheridge ``live ... and alone ... in Hollywood.'' Her concert dates are Dec. 7-8.

Barry Manilow performs at the end of the month, Dec. 28-31.

In addition to music, L.A.'s newest performance hall, on the corner of Hollywood and Highland boulevards, will feature the ``Bear in the Big Blue House Live,'' Nov. 15-18, and the American Ballet Theatre's ``The Nutcracker.'' Performances of the holiday favorite run Dec. 14-23.

Other attractions include the Ovation Awards for excellence in legitimate theater, hosted by Theatre L.A. on Nov. 12. After the Oscar ceremony in March comes an April 2002 engagement of the Broadway hit ``The Full Monty.'' Tickets for ``The Full Monty'' will be announced shortly, but Ovation Awards tickets can be purchased by calling [phone].

Tickets for all other attractions go on sale Sunday at all Ticketmaster locations, on the Web (www.ticketmaster.com) or by calling [phone]. For group tickets, call [phone].

WHAT A FALL: In the opening scene of Thursday night's ``ER'' season premiere, a woman jumped from a hospital window and landed with a loud ``thump.''

To some, it was a jolting reminder of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, where many victims either fell or jumped from the upper stories of what was New York's tallest building.

The ``ER'' character, upset at what her mother had said on a TV talk show, later died.

``We looked at it and we thought it was OK,'' NBC Entertainment president Jeff Zucker said on Friday. ``It's not like we ignored it.''

Television networks hurriedly reviewed the scripts of their entertainment shows following the attack, taking out scenes that some viewers might feel were inappropriate.

For instance, CBS removed a reference to a building collapse from its new ``Ellen'' comedy and NBC rewrote an upcoming ``Friends'' where newlyweds Monica and Chandler run into airport problems on their honeymoon.

Later in Thursday's ``ER,'' a hospital administrator makes a dismissive reference to a ``jumper.''

Zucker said he was unaware of any viewer complaints about the opening scene.

``I think we make a mistake if we go overboard in being too cautious,'' he said.

BOYS NAME SUIT: Chrysalis Records and teen pop outfit Hanson have filed copyright infringement lawsuits against Vivendi Universal's online subsidiary MP3.com, Billboard Bulletin reports. The suits, which were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California in Los Angeles, join a similar complaint filed May 7 against the San Diego-based music file-sharing service by Tom Waits, Randy Newman and the group Heart.

The suits, which allege that MP3.com illegally offered hundreds of copyrighted songs from Hanson and Chrysalis Records' artists on its streaming service, seek up to $150,000 in statutory damages for each illegal track, according to the artists' lawyer Bruce Van Dalsem. Last year MP3.com paid more than $120 million to settle similar suits with the majors, including Vivendi Universal, which then purchased the service in May for $372 million.

``Since Universal won, there's a very good chance that MP3.com will not be able to defend these cases on the merits,'' says Van Dalsem. ``You can't retry over and over the same case.'' Hanson's most recent album, ``This Time Around,'' peaked at No. 19 on the Billboard 200 in May 2000.

BIG GAMBLE: Twelve-time Grammy Award winner Ray Charles on Sunday will introduce the first slot machines that will be user-friendly for the blind. Charles helped design the machines, which feature his music and new video and audio of the entertainer. Charles will debut the three games - America the Beautiful, What'd I Pay and Ray Charles - at a charity performance Sunday at the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, coinciding with the Global Gaming Expo in that city starting Monday. The machines feature audio-assist functions and a Braille button deck for the visually impaired. ``Independence is a helluva thing, man,'' said Charles, who has been blind since an early age. ``I can go out and have as much fun as the next guy, and I don't have to depend on anybody else to do it. I think it's great.''