People

By Belinda Luscombe

CBS AFFILIATE GOES POSTAL OVER LETTERMAN

Sometimes even small guys like to flex their muscles. Nick Evans, owner of Spartan Communications, a CBS affiliate, was miffed when some advertiser-friends of his had trouble getting into the Late Show with DAVID LETTERMAN. Seats were found for them eventually but apparently not fast enough. Evans yanked the show off the air for a week on the six stations he runs because of "the arrogance of the Letterman organization and the weak ratings," he says. Viewers were treated instead to infomercials, reruns of Married...with Children and Judge Judy. Perhaps that's why a local lawyer filed an informal complaint against Evans with the FCC.

ATTABOY, ATATURK

It's the fight over Cyprus all over again, starring ANTONIO BANDERAS this time. The Mask of Zorro star, apparently responding to pressure from Greek Americans, has pulled out of a movie about the life of MUSTAFA KEMAL ATATURK, founder of modern Turkey. At least that's the story being told by Tarquin Olivier, a financier and the son of actor Laurence Olivier. Though this is his initial venture in film production, he'd enlisted Bruce Beresford as director and, according to the New York Times, had managed to get a lot of the financing on the strength of Banderas' participation. The star's press rep says he's committed to another film. A friendly warning to Banderas: Ataturk fans won't go quietly. TIME was deluged last year with millions of missives supporting him as one of the statesmen of the century. Watch that mailbox, Antonio.

AND SOON THEY'LL BE ABLE TO VOTE!

Celebrity weddings have become a hot media commodity these days. Photo rights are haggled over by magazines; impressive sums of money are paid to the couple's charity of choice in return for access. But MACAULEY CULKIN and RACHEL MINER, who got married at the perilously young age of 17 last month and only now have released (free of charge!) their photos, didn't play that game. Cynics may remark that it's only because this is just the first wedding for each. Romantics, which these two seem to be, might insist that they are young, in love and nothing else matters. Take a look at the picture: two out of three ain't bad.

THE LONG WALK TO REMARRIAGE

When you've spent 27 years in prison, every birthday is precious. NELSON MANDELA of South Africa made his 80th even more so by marrying his sweetheart, GRACA MACHEL, 52, the widow of a former President of Mozambique and an advocate for international child welfare. Rumors of wedlock had been rife, but Mandela had betrayed no hint of matrimony, even as he received birthday gifts early on Saturday at the presidential residence in Pretoria. Then, in the afternoon, a press conference of "national importance" was announced, luring reporters from Mandela's home outside Johannesburg. With the press out of the way, the couple were wed in a private ceremony. Mandela was reportedly sending a herd of cattle to Machel's family as a traditional African bride payment. Machel will keep her name and continue to commute between South Africa and Mozambique, where she remains an influential figure. Because of her love, Mandela once declared, "late in my life, I am blooming like a flower." Now it's all legal.

KINSLEY IS KING FOR A DAY

Tina Brown, queen bee of buzz, couldn't have scripted better the kerfuffle over who would replace her as editor of the New Yorker. Just before the warmly received announcement that the job was going to DAVID REMNICK, a smart, youngish New Yorker staff writer with a low profile, came a furious e-mail from Michael Kinsley, a smart, older editor with a high profile. He had been wooed for the job by the magazine's rich-enough-to-change-his-mind owner S.I. Newhouse, and had accepted, but perhaps not eagerly enough. "[Newhouse] was clearly annoyed that I didn't slobber a bit more," says Kinsley. "But I slobbered plenty. I'm not pure." Before Kinsley told his bosses at Microsoft that he was leaving Slate, his online magazine, Newhouse changed his mind. Kinsley sent an account of his adventure to his influential friends, which was duly published in high-circulation newspapers. "If you're not going to burn your bridges after this," says Kinsley, "when are you?"