FIRST OFF . . .

Lawyers reached a court-approved settlement in the $6-million lawsuit over the film version of Sylvia Plath’s novel, “The Bell Jar.” Under the agreement, Harvard psychiatrist Jane V. Anderson, 55, will receive $150,000, and copies of the 1979 film will now carry a disclaimer saying characters and events depicted are fictitious and any similarity to real-life characters is purely coincidental. Anderson said the movie based on the 1961 novel defamed her by changing a character based on her into a lesbian. “I feel absolutely great,” Anderson said Thursday after a Boston federal judge approved the agreement. “I feel the nightmare is over.” The “Bell Jar” case has been followed closely because it could have long-range implications for writers who base fictional characters on real people. Defendants included Plath’s widower, poet Ted Hughes; CBS Inc.; Home Box Office and 11 other individuals and companies.