August 20, 1998

Billy Crudup will appear as title character in play Oedipus by Dare Clubb at CSC Theater; also in cast is Frances McDormand; photo; Garth Brooks, country music star, will stage his first show in South America when he appears in concert in Barretos, Brazil; O'Neill Cabaret Symposium, at Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Conn, will include some of biggest names in song-and-dance business, including Margaret Whiting and Julie Wilson, to discuss their craft and teach young show people tricks of trade; photo; Federal Communications Commission announces closing of 15 pirate radio stations in Miami, continuing its recent crackdown on unlicensed radio (M)

Most of world's consumer-electronics manufacturers will have new high-definition television sets ready for sale in September; least expensive one will cost $8,000; price is twice as high as manufacturers had estimated when they lobbied Federal Communications Commission to pass digital-television rules; manufacturers say some components cost more than they anticipated; retail price of HDTV set is also driven by fact that manufacturers do not expect to make or sell large numbers of such expensive sets; retailers say they expect to sell as many as industry makes, but industry is not expected to make that many; research shows that consumer electronics products reach true mass acceptance only after price falls below $500; manufacturers cannot even guess how long before industry is able to sell HDTV's at that price; photos; charts; drawings (M)

New York Liberty loses last game of regular season to Detroit Shock, 82-68, and fails to make Women's National Basketball Association playoffs (M)

Kenneth W Starr, Whitewater independent counsel, demands sample of Pres Clinton's genetic material to establish forensic proof that relationship with former intern Monica S Lewinsky was sexual; request suggests that FBI crime laboratory has determined that dress turned over to prosecutors by Lewinsky contains DNA evidence of sexual encounter; suggests Starr is determined to learn specific nature of physical contact between Clinton and Lewinsky and whether there are inconsistencies in their accounts; White House press secretary, Michael D McCurry, says sample of Clinton's genetic material can be obtained from Bethesda Naval Hospital, where he undergoes annual physicals; some Clinton advisers believe new push by prosecutors could work to his political benefit by making prosecutors look sex-obsessed, even as public opinion polls show majority Americans are tired of scandal; say careful vagueness about encounters with Lewinsky is central to Clinton's legal and political strategy, since it may help deflect possible perjury charge while also walling off seamy details from already queasy public (M)

Remarkable garden in Shelter Island, NY, is work of William Price, 84, who has been blind for 50 years; despite his disability Price gardens every day, raising plants from seed, laying out rows, planting, weeding, watering and picking vegetables and flowers in his 45-by-50 foot plot; photos (M)