— INC. hears the federal probe of State Rep. Larry Bullock is wending its way to a conclusion. It should be all over but the shouting in 30 days. INC. is told one of the main members of the fed prosecution team will be leaving office and going into private practice, so the feds want things wrapped up soon.
— Watch for former Mayor Jane Byrne to make a foray into the Chicago special aldermanic elections. INC. hears she plans to endorse one of the candidates Saturday. Who? Manuel Torres, who is running in the 26th Ward. Psssstttt! It`s a tough move. Political observers think such a move places her reputation on the line by testing her popularity and power to win votes in the Hispanic community.
— Who is kidding whom? INC. hears John Adams, who has been accused of taking $10,000 in the FBI mole probe, was deeply involved in activities in the city revenue department as late as mid-December despite assertions by top Washington aides that he was merely looking for a job. Adams was recommending personnel firings and forced through a four-day suspension for at least one disgrunted employee of the city purchasing department, according to City Hall sources.
— A real donnybrook: INC. hears U.S. Rep. William Lipinski (D., Chicago), who has been trying to cut deals all over town for Jerome Cosentino`s Dem primary candidacy for state treasurer, has switched sides. He is now on the team of State Treasurer James Donnewald and has just pledged his fealty to Donnewald`s mentor, U.S. Sen. Alan Dixon.
— INC. may put the screws to this by printing it before the announcement is made, but INC. hears a sneaky move is afoot at the city health department`s mental health division. Isn`t it true that a big department honcho fired 29-year vet Faye Price, the assistant director of mental health and one of the city`s top black administrators, and now plans to fill that spot with a relative? Price was ”forced to resign” last week and told to leave immediately or she`d be ”escorted” out.
THE VOTING GAME . . .
— The quack-quack vote: A new chapter in voter history: Don`t look for write-in votes for such characters as Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, Goofy and other celebs in the March 18 primary. That`s because of a state law that goes into effect this year that requires write-in candidates to file an affidavit before the election that they are running as a write-in candidate.
— Sorry, wrong number: INC. hears John T. McGuire, a candidate for Cook County commissioner, observed a major flaw in an absentee ballot. McGuire`s campaign ads advise voters to PUNCH 149 . . . but a mistake was made on the ballot and there are two No. 146s . . . and that makes McGuire number 148, doesn`t it?
WORD PLAY . . .
Oops! On Jan. 22, INC. said that Flooky`s restaurant, which served food at a recent charity dinner in L.A., was a ”ripoff” of the Chicago Fluky`s chain and was sued in August for trademark infringement. INC. should have said ”alleged ripoff”; the suit was filed a year ago last August and is still pending in court. Sorry, Flooky`s. And while we`re at it, the City of Hope didn`t sponsor the event; it just benefited from it.
REEL NEWS . . .
Geraldine (”Trip to Bountiful”) Page has been signed for a part in
”Native Son,” which gives producer Diane Silver two Oscar nominees: Page and Oprah (and if you don`t know her last name, you just haven`t been paying attention). . . . Family Ties: The young man who breaks into Kristy McNichol`s Manhattan apartment in ”Dream Lover” is Joseph Culp, and yes, he`s Robert`s son. . . . In addition to the extra parts and small speaking roles that will be cast Saturday for Michael J. Fox`s ”Light of Day” movie, the movie`s casting director will also be looking for a Fox stand-in/lookalike. You qualify if you`re 5`2” to 5`4” (yeah, he is short), weigh about 120 pounds, have sandy hair, and would be available from the end of March through the end of June. Show up between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. at the old Ludwig Drum factory, 1728 N. Damen.
TEEN SCENE . . .
John Hughes, film friend to teenagers, always slips into public sneak previews of his movies to see what kind of response they get, and that`s the reason he`s coming back to town Friday. He`ll be in one of the theaters sneaking ”Pretty in Pink,” which he wrote and produced (but didn`t direct). P.S. INC. hears that ”Pretty” star Molly Ringwald may wind up as a producer herself; she`s talking with a major studio about a three-picture deal that she`d star in and produce. . . . Oh, Daddy: INC. hears that Mick Jagger is furious that his daughter Jade is dating Christopher Tennant, the youngest son of Lord Glenconner, who owns the Caribbean island of Mustique. Mick thinks Jade, who`s 14, is too young to date.
INC.LINGS . . .
Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday for Kenny Rogers` just-added April 16 matinee at the Rosemont Horizon. . . . Friday birthdays: Tricia Nixon Cox, 40; Rue (”Golden Girls”) McClanahan, 61; Variety Club`s Haywood Mitchusson, 60. . . . Saturday birthdays: Robert (caffeine-free) Young, 79; U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy, 54; Richard Ogilvie, 63; John Mills, 78; Taylor Mason, 30; Drew Barrymore, 11; David Axelrod, 31; George Harrison, 43. . . . Don`t say we didn`t warn you: ”Weird Al`s Guide to the Grammys,” Channel 2`s Saturday special at 6:30 p.m., will feature a medley of the top-nominated Grammy songs, including ”We are the World” and ”Born in the U.S.A.”–as an accordion duet with Weird Al and Frankie Yankovic.
