Wynonna Accused of Harassment

Country star Wynonna and her husband reportedly are being accused of sexual harassment and discrimination by a woman who used to manage their farm. USA Today says Andria Surles is suing for $800,000. According to the paper, she claims Wynonna asked her for a massage and made suggestive remarks -- and that the singer's husband Arch Kelley tried to measure her buttocks with a tape measure. Surles also claims she wasn't paid as much as the previous farm manager, who was a man. She was fired from the job in May.

Travolta: Pansexual?

John Travolta has been called many things, but Nora Ephron, who directs him in the upcoming fantasy "Michael," says he's "totally pansexual." How does Travolta, who plays a lustful angel in the film, relate to that assessment of his allure? "Nora just thinks I'm so many things," he says, then quickly segues to an Ephron remark he'd just as soon not have repeated. "According to Nora, I eat 11 meals a day. I wish she wouldn't have said that in Premiere magazine," says Travolta, who is back to his old "Pulp Fiction" bulk in "Michael." He staunchly defends his diet. "I have snacks. They're not real meals."

Sly at 50

Sylvester Stallone says he wept on his 50th birthday last July. "That made me reach for the Xanax. It's a nightmare. When you're younger, you think you're going to live forever. Twenty years is so far away. But twenty years is really just a speed bump in the middle of life." Stallone admits he suffered from too much vanity in his younger days. He gained 30 pounds for "Copland" and made excuses for the poundage during the first week of filming. But then he told himself, "If you're going to play this fellow, shut up and stop my excuses for how you look. Be loyal to the character. Once I started doing that I lost this vanity, and I realized how much I'd been involved with bodybuilding and how much vanity goes into it."

Wrinkles and All

Another Hollywood legend has also found the big 5-0 a bit daunting. "Fifty is really the beginning of the end," says Diane Keaton. "You see the end. The wall is there and the wall is visible. Before it wasn't visible so much. Now it is and you see it. What can you do?" Keaton can take comfort in the fact that, at 50, she has the one-two punch of "The First Wives Club" and "Marvin's Room," which has industry insiders talking a third Oscar nomination for the actress. In "Marvin's Room," she really showcases her wrinkles. How did the fashion-plate actress avoid being sucked into the Beauty Myth? "I don't think I've avoided it. People are always going to obsess about being young. They can't let go. I don't blame them. But the thing is, I'm just being honest."

Once is Not Enough

What with "Marvin's Room," "Mother," "Ransom," and "The First Wives Club" under his belt, Scott Rudin is definitely the producer du jour. Despite his success, he has run into a snag with studio execs who keep trying to second-guess his upcoming project "In and out," about a gay high school teacher, played by Kevin Kline, who is outed. Rudin says every time there's some male-on-male contact in the movie, an executive will say, "Isn't that repetitious?" The producer has had the question put to him so often that he now says, "The new word in Hollywood for homosexuality is 'repetitious."'

MacLaine Hits a Bull's Eye

Paramount unspooled "The Evening Star," the sequel to "Terms of Endearment," for the press this past weekend in New York City. Once again, Shirley MacLaine is the indomitable Aurora Greenfield. Understandably, Debra Winger couldn't make the return trip: her character died of cancer in the first movie. Not that she's exactly missed. The two actresses did not part on terms of endearment 12 years ago. However, photos of Winger literally populate "The Evening Star." Will Winger enjoy the sequel? "I think she'll like it," says MacLaine. "And I think she'll be very glad that I didn't throw darts at her picture."

Branson Returns to Music Roots

British entrepreneur Richard Branson has returned to his roots in the music business, launching a new record company aimed at rivaling the five major labels that dominate the industry. The V2 Music Group is Branson's first foray into the recording industry since he sold Virgin Records to Thorn EMI for $940 million four years ago. Branson said the sale had been unavoidable because he needed the money to support his Virgin Atlantic airline but added that he had regretted the decision "almost from the word go." V2 has signed two obscure bands to its British label but also has sealed deals with a number of independent companies and is establishing a network of foreign affiliates.

China Critical of Disney

China says the Walt Disney Company shouldn't sing the praises of Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. That's in response to Disney's backing of a Martin Scorsese film about the life of the Buddhist leader. A foreign ministry spokesman did not say, however, if Disney's involvement in the film "Kundun" would hurt its business plans in China. The entertainment giant is eager to expand into Asia, particularly China, where demand for U.S. products is high.

NBC Claims Sweeps Crown

With the November sweeps approaching the finish line, NBC is declaring victory in all the key battlegrounds, but there are races going on for second place in several categories that won't be determined until next week. While NBC has reason to cheer its eighth straight sweeps win, the Big 3 once again are facing declines in households against basic cable. Nielsen has ABC, CBS and NBC averaging a 31.6 rating and 50 share in households the November 1996 sweeps through this Monday, off from a 33.2 rating and 53 share for the comparable period in the November 1995 sweeps.

Thursday Changes for NBC

Look for changes in NBC's Thursday-night powerhouse lineup in January as the network looks to try out new series. NBC Entertainment President Warren Littlefield said the network will try out a midseason show in one of its "satellite" time periods, which means either 8:30-9 p.m. where "The Single Guy" airs, or 9:30-10 p.m. where "Suddenly Susan" is slotted. There is speculation that "The Naked Truth," which was plucked from ABC last May, will end up in one of those slots. There is also speculation that the police drama "Prince Street" will get a run in the "ER" slot to get a sampling as well as to give a rest to the top-rated drama.

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