ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT REPORTS FROM THE TIMES, NEWS SERVICES AND THE NATION’S PRESS.

THE ARTS

Sills Sets Departure Date From Lincoln Center

Beverly Sills, the former opera great who has led Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts for eight years, announced Monday that she is resigning at the end of the month.

“I feel privileged to have served this great performing arts center, and very happy to have, hopefully, made a difference in the city where I was born and love so much,” Sills said in a statement.

Sills, who turns 73 next month, has for some time expressed a desire to retire from the volunteer post as chair of the world’s largest performing arts center. During her tenure, she helped nurture a redevelopment project estimated to cost about $1 billion. The project has been a source of some turmoil for Lincoln Center, with competing arts groups arguing over its size and scope.

Sills had indicated that she would leave after the board found a successor to Gordon Davis, who abruptly resigned as Lincoln Center’s president last fall after less than a year in office. Last month, the board of directors approved his successor, Reynold Levy, a senior lecturer at Harvard Business School who has led several high-profile nonprofit organizations.

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TELEVISION

‘Nightline’ Again Delays Its Series on Gay Life

ABC’s “Nightline” had hoped to air next week its once-postponed weeklong series on gay life in America, but breaking news has again gotten in the way.

Last fall the series was postponed for coverage of the aftermath of the terrorist attacks; next week, producers are worried that the unstable situation in the Middle East will make it impossible to air all five installments. The network said it will try to find another air date as soon as possible.

Separately, ABC has scheduled a news special, anchored by Peter Jennings, on the growing sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church, for Wednesday at 10 p.m.

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CBS Military Series Struggles in Ratings

CBS’ “AFP: American Fighter Pilot,” the first of several series profiling real members of the armed services, got off to a poor start in its premiere Friday. The program averaged less than 5 million viewers, based on Nielsen Media Research estimates, finishing last among the four major broadcast networks in its time period.

“The Ten Commandments,” meanwhile, demonstrated its durability, as ABC’s four-hour-plus Easter Sunday telecast of the 1956 film easily won the night, averaging 12.5 million viewers.

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POP/ROCK

Hitmaker for Boy Bands Cleared of Labor Charge

Lou Pearlman, the hitmaker behind the Backstreet Boys and ‘N Sync, has been cleared of allegations that he broke child labor laws.

The Florida Department of Labor said there was no evidence that Pearlman and his Orlando-based company, Trans Continental Entertainment, violated such rules as making minors work past 11:30 p.m., as alleged by the mother of two of his former entertainers.

“I’m happy to say that we are vindicated, as expected, from all allegations,” Pearlman said.

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James Taylor to Receive Songwriting Award

James Taylor was named Monday to receive the Founders Award from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. The award is “given to pioneering songwriters who have made exceptional contributions to music,” the organization said.

Taylor will receive the award May 20 at ASCAP’s 19th annual pop music awards ceremony at the Beverly Hilton. ASCAP President Marilyn Bergman praised him as “a truly defining American musical voice.”

Previous recipients of the ASCAP Founders Award include Joni Mitchell, Stevie Wonder, Stephen Sondheim, Billy Joel, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Burt Bacharach and Hal David, Andre Previn, Steely Dan and Tom Waits.

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QUICK TAKES

American Ballet Theatre has received a $1.2-million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to support the creation and presentation of new work over the next three years.... Phil Donahue is in discussions about hosting a prime-time show on cable outlet MSNBC.... The Moscow Stanislavsky Ballet will make its first Southland visit June 4-9, performing “Swan Lake” and “Don Quixote” at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.... Marcel Marceau has been booked for a three-week engagement at the Geffen Playhouse in Westwood, beginning July 30.... Today marks the 46th anniversary and the 11,725th episode of the CBS daytime drama “As the World Turns.” ... For the first time, CBS plans to offer a Spanish-language audio feed with its broadcast of the Daytime Emmy Awards on May 17.... The comedy team of Dick Martin and (the late) Dan Rowan, hosts of “Laugh-In,” will be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 11:30 a.m. today, at 7080 Hollywood Blvd.

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Lee Margulies