TELEVISIONNew ABC Schedule: ABC on Wednesday announced...

TELEVISION

New ABC Schedule: ABC on Wednesday announced several midseason replacement series that will premiere in March. Starting March 4 is the police drama “High Incident,” starring David Keith, followed on March 5 by “Buddies,” a sitcom about two best friends, one African American and single and the other white and married (ABC had previously scheduled the show’s premiere in April 1995, but pulled it to recast one of the leads). Two new series debut on March 8, “Muppets Tonight!” and the sitcom “Aliens in the Family.” On March 12 comes “The Dana Carvey Show,” followed on March 13 by Meredith Baxter in “The Faculty.” The new shows will displace “The Naked Truth,” “The Drew Carey Show,” “Boy Meets World” and “Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper,” but the latter two series will return in May. ABC said that “The Naked Truth” and “The Drew Carey Show” both remain strong contenders for renewal next fall. Meanwhile, ABC’s new Tuesday night series “Champs” goes on temporary hiatus after next week’s broadcast.

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Magical Ratings: Ratings for Magic Johnson’s return to the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night were more than double what TNT has been averaging this season with its National Basketball Assn. telecasts, the cable channel reported Wednesday. The Lakers-Warriors game was seen in more than 2.9 million homes nationwide--the largest audience for an NBA game on TNT or TBS this season, just ahead of the Bulls-Rockets game that preceded it Tuesday night. Prime Sports, which also carried the Lakers game, said it was the highest-rated show in the channel’s history, but declined to provide specific figures.

MOVIES

‘Evita’ Watch: The Argentine Actors’ Assn. said Tuesday that some Argentine actors working on director Alan Parker’s “Evita” have received telephoned death threats and that the union has “asked Interior Minister Carlos Corach to intervene immediately with the necessary security.” About three dozen Argentine actors have won minor roles in the $60-million movie, whose casting of Madonna in the role of Eva Peron has angered many Peronists.

POP/ROCK

Olympic Spirit: Top pop and R&B; artists including Gloria Estefan, Toni Braxton, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, Boyz II Men, Luther Vandross, R. Kelly, Vanessa Williams and Tevin Campbell will show some team spirit by uniting for “Rhythm of the Games,” a compilation album to be issued jointly by LaFace Records and the 1996 Olympic Games. The album, scheduled to hit stores in April, is one of five planned compilation albums that will help fund the U.S. Olympic Team and the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. Additional compilation projects include a country album and Latin, jazz and classical themes.

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Amos Slides Into Second: Tori Amos’ third album, “Boys for Pele,” sold about 109,000 copies during its first week in release, debuting at No. 2 on the national album sales chart, according to figures released Wednesday by SoundScan. Meanwhile, the “Waiting to Exhale” soundtrack extended its reign at the top of the chart to a fourth consecutive week, selling about 131,000 copies during the week that ended Sunday. The soundtrack includes three singles among the Top 10: Mary J. Blige’s “Not Gon’ Cry,” which debuts at No. 2; Whitney Houston’s “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” at No. 3; and Brandy’s “Sittin’ Up in My Room” at No. 9.

OPERA

La Fenice Update: Italian Culture Minister Antonio Paolucci said Wednesday that he believed Venice’s historic La Fenice opera house, destroyed by fire Monday, would be rebuilt and ready to reopen in three years. Paolucci’s report came after city and opera house officials met to decide how to recoup the devastating loss. A special commissioner has been appointed to steer the rebuilding job. In the meantime, the opera company will continue to perform at other theaters in and outside Venice.

QUICK TAKES

LAPD Det. Philip L. Vanatter, a prominent figure in the O.J. Simpson murder trial, gives his first post-trial interview to KCBS-TV Channel 2 reporter Drew Griffin in a two-part session airing today and Friday on the station’s 5 p.m. news. Vanatter, accompanied in the interview by his wife, Rita, discusses the Nicole Simpson Brown-Ronald Goldman murder investigation, the Simpson trial and Vanatter’s impending retirement after 27 years on the police force. . . . The artist formerly known as Prince has announced that he will wed his backup singer, Mayte, on Valentine’s Day at an undisclosed location in Paris. Neither has been married before.