Better Red Than Dead

NINA HAGEN would much rather slather herself scarlet with paint--a stand-in for blood--than wear anything made of fur. The German-born punk diva--Would you believe she just happens to have a new album?--demonstrated her outrage in New York City as 58 designers showed their latest creations made from animal skins. Hagen, a longtime antifur crusader, stood in the jaws of a giant leg-hold trap while joining fellow supporters of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals in a blitz against her countryman Karl Lagerfeld.

A Lady Not for Mailing

Philatelically speaking, the times they are achanging. Hong Kong's skyline is replacing QUEEN ELIZABETH'S crowned head on stamps that go on sale early next year. The royal visage has been disappearing, as coins and banknotes are being issued minus the monarch's face. The stamps, bearing Hong Kong's name in English and Chinese, will take the former colony through the transition from British to Chinese rule, ending a tradition that began in 1862 with Queen Victoria. Goodbye, Ma'am.

Seen & Heard

Who owns Bambi? Though the Disney Co. claims the 1923 tale is in the public domain, a U.S. court ruled that the Austrian author's daughter properly renewed the copyright. This clears the way for a book company that acquired the rights from her heirs to sue Disney. Bambi learned early about life's dangers, noted the court, but his creator could not know that the world of copyright protection was equally dangerous.

He Shoots, He Scores

When Canada has its first National Basketball Association star center, chances are he will be JAMAAL MAGLOIRE, 18. But first the 2.11-m-tall Toronto sensation heads to the U.S. college with the No. 1 basketball team: the University of Kentucky. He promised his parents he'll get a degree in business, but meanwhile he'll have a higher education in hoops.

Now Repeat After Me

Parody is the least sincere form of flattery. But it has made a runaway hit out of a weekly 12-minute TV program in Israel. Titled Hartsufim--a combination of the Hebrew words for cheeky and face--it stars puppet likenesses of Prime Minister SHIMON PERES, right, and his Likud Party challenger BENJAMIN NETANYAHU. As elections neared and the leaders began sounding more alike, Israelis savored an episode with puppet Peres intoning slogans before a mirror that reflects Netanyahu spouting the same phrases.