January 30, 1997

Corporate spinoffs are booming, with diversified firms spinning off to shareholders far larger chunks of their business than in past; much of pressure for spinoffs is coming from institutional investors (M)x

Re-release of George Lucas's Star Wars movie trilogy, enhanced with new special effects, is seen by experts as paradigm of marketing prowess and example of how movie industry has become art in service of huge commercial superstructure; Lucasfilm has distributed to hundreds of Star Wars licensees chart detailing, month by month, all merchandising and marketing events related to films through 1999; photos (M)

Mercury Finance's senior vice president John A Doyle, who supervised accounting policies, vanishes after accounting irregularities are discovered; company slashes its reported profits for last four years; cuts 1996 net earnings to $56.7 million, from $120.7 million it reported last week (M)

Former Mayor David N Dinkins, declaring that Mayor Rudolph W Giuliani can be easily defeated by determined and focused opponent, says that he is considering ending his political retirement and challenging Giuliani in this year's election; Dinkins's comments suggest continuing unease in Democratic Party about four candidates already in race; they are also reminder of Dinkins's personal distress with circumstances of his loss and how his record has been portrayed since then (M)

Hamas Warns the U.S. The militant Islamic group Hamas said the extradition of one of its leaders to Israel could provoke efforts to ''punish America.'' Page A3. Simpson Jury Weighs Case The O. J. Simpson jury began deliberating, sending for a magnifying glass to study photographs. Page B7. N.R.A. Power Struggle A hard-line faction is threatening to oust the leadership of the National Rifle Association. Page B6. Still a Patriot, for Now If the Jets want Bill Parcells as coach, they will have to compensate the New England Patriots. Page B9.