By David E. Thigpen

IF YOU COULD HEAR HER NOW

Viewers were aghast. No, not at TV hostess KATHIE LEE GIFFORD's mawkish reports of her son Cody's every hiccup and hangnail. They're used to that. Last week, however, labor activist Charles Kernaghan testified in Congress that the Wal-Mart clothing line bearing Kathie Lee's name is stitched together by children in Honduras who work for 31 cents an hour. As co-host Regis Philbin flinched, Gifford launched into a teary, it's-not-my-fault, TV hissy fit: "You can say I'm ugly, you can say I'm not talented, but when you say I don't care about children, how dare you!" She called the activist a nobody, but ordered Wal-Mart to sever ties with the factory.

PRE PRODUCTION NOTES

Citizens of Eugene, Oregon, may soon be treated to the spectacle of two movie studios tripping over each other. This summer Disney and Warner plan to shoot competing versions of Pre, the tale of legendary Olympic runner STEVE PREFONTAINE, far left, who died in a 1975 car crash at age 24. Disney, which is spending about $7 million, had the edge initially, shooting crowd scenes last year. But script rewrites slowed the pace. Warner, with $25 million budgeted, has surged ahead, reserving the college track where Prefontaine ran. Filming could begin in June. Both sides had casting setbacks. Warner wanted Tom Cruise but got BILLY CRUDUP, left. Disney had eyes for Brad Pitt but got JARED LETO, right.

CASHING A REALITY CHECK Earthy-voiced troubadour TRACY CHAPMAN has long cast herself as a rootsy folk heroine. Trouble is, she's always preferred to keep her distance from real-life record-buying folk. In concerts, even the most ardent acclaim left her stonefaced and unmoved. Much of her time was spent holed up in her San Francisco mansion. Fans eventually repaid the favor: Chapman's last two albums sank with nary a trace. Well, the reality check has finally arrived. Chapman now reads fan mail aloud in concerts. The new style is helping: last week her latest album, New Beginning, vaulted into the hard-to-crack Top 10.

SEEN & HEARD

Have trouble letting go? Months after losing his nasty lawsuit against Sony Music, George Michael seemed off to a fresh start at DreamWorks. But in a version of his new video, Fastlove, a deejay's headphones are inscribed with a dig at the old boss; they read "Fony."

After 29 years, Phil Donahue, the father of daytime-TV talk, taped his final show. As part of the celebration, he was doused with champagne. Later he jokingly said, "I wish today to announce my candidacy." If he wears a dress, it'll liven up the campaign.