Stone Cold

'BASIC' EXTINCT When MGM told Sharon Stone to put her panties back on, she got them in a twist. The studio announced yesterday that it was no longer planning to make ''Basic Instinct 2.'' Also yesterday, Stone sued producers Andrew Vajna and Mario Kassar for $100 million, claiming she had a verbal ''pay-or-play'' agreement that entitled her to $14 million advance against 15 percent of the grosses, and that she had rejected other acting offers over the last few months in anticipation of making ''Basic 2.'' Vajna and Kassar haven't commented on the suit, but last December, they denied having a contract with Stone. The production had been unable to lock in a director (John McTiernan backed out to do another film, and David Cronenberg said no) or a leading man. Harrison Ford and Kurt Russell were among those who turned it down, while Stone delayed approving Benjamin Bratt, who then took another offer.

UN-'BREAK'-ABLE Staind broke the cycle of one-week wonders atop the Billboard chart and ruled for a second week, selling 326,300 copies of ''Break the Cycle,'' according to SoundScan. Destiny's Child's ''Survivor'' edged up one spot to No.2, selling 169,475 units. The soundtrack for ''Moulin Rouge,'' which opened nationwide this week, jumped five spots to No. 3, with sales of 133,675. Tool's ''Lateralus'' slipped two spots to No. 4 (120,000 copies), while ''NOW That' What I Call Music! Vol. 6'' took No. 5, leapfrogging over Missy Elliott's ''Miss E...So Addictive'' at No. 6.

Janet Jackson's ''All for You'' drops one spot to No. 7. Redman's ''Malpractice'' falls four places to No. 8. Weezer's self-titled CD holds at No. 9, and Train's ''Drops of Jupiter'' rises three slots to No. 10. Watch for a battle for the top spot next week among new releases from Radiohead Jessica Simpson, the St. Lunatics (featuring Nelly), plus the soundtrack to ''Lara Croft: Tomb Raider.''

RAVE MISTAKE Sony Pictures' invention of Dave Manning, the imaginary film critic whose praise for Sony movies from ''Hollow Man'' to ''The Animal'' was quoted in newspaper ads, may be more than just an embarrassment for the company; it may also be illegal. In Connecticut, home of the Ridgefield Press (where the ads said Manning worked), state attorney general Richard Blumenthal says he is launching an investigation in response to several complaints over Manning. ''We give this practice two thumbs down,'' he told the Associated Press yesterday. ''It could be deceptive and misleading advertising.'' He also said the probe may require him to issue subpoenas. He'll have a hard time issuing one to Manning....

Or maybe not. Slate's Mickey Kaus, who also publishes his own news-and-analysis website, Kausfiles, says he has hired Manning to write for him. ''Whatever David has done in the past -- or, rather, hasn't done -- we believe he deserves a second chance,'' Kaus writes. ''For too long there has been a subtle but pervasive discrimination in our society against those who don't exist.... The nonexistent are easy targets because they can't fight back.'' Kaus already has Manning reviewing energy policy. ''Millions of people now know his name and his work. You can't buy branding like that.''

COLLEGE ROCK Following in the footsteps of such renowned orators as Michael Jackson and Barry White, Jon Bon Jovi has agreed to address the Oxford Union. He'll visit the English university's 178-year-old debating society on June 15. He's not the only rocker to speak at an elite college. Bono spoke yesterday to graduating seniors at Harvard. Sitting on stage behind the U2 frontman/Third World debt relief activist was his economics adviser, Harvard professor Jeffrey D. Sachs. Said Bono, ''Sachs and I with my friend Bobby Shriver [son of Eunice Kennedy Shriver] hit the road like some sort of surreal crossover act. A rock star, a Kennedy, a noted economist crisscrossing the globe like the Partridge family on psychotropic drugs.'' Hey, maybe Sachs, John Kenneth Galbraith, and Noam Chomsky should cut an album and open for 'N Sync.

SAD SONG Sorry seems to be the hardest word, at least when you're Elton John, and you're accusing your accountants of losing millions of dollars of your money. A London High Court judge yesterday refused to entertain the singer's appeal of a dismissal of his lawsuit against accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers and his ex-manager, Andrew Haydon. The defendants charged that Sir's losses were due to his own free-spending ways, with Sir Elton admitting to spending $56 million for personal items over 20 months in 1996 and '97. At least John isn't broke. He netted $2.8 million in an auction last week that sent 20 of his classic cars down the yellow brick road.

CHER AND CHER ALIKE Those 'N Sync #1 Fan Barbies aren't the only new Mattel dolls who have a thing for boyish rock stars. The toy company has announced plans for a Cher doll, who will wear a halter dress ensemble designed by Bob Mackie, of course. Demand for such a doll surged after one was the centerpiece of a November ''Will & Grace'' episode. One question: Will Mattel manufacture new Cher dolls or just take the old Cher dolls made in 1976 by Mego and have them surgically altered and tattooed?

JOINT VENTURE There's a 0 percent chance that NBC thunder god Al Roker will appear on the ''Today Show'' before early July. Roker, 46, is having surgery today to replace his left knee, which has been held together by pins and screws since being injured in a car crash 15 years ago. But his time away from the show won't be a total loss -- he'll film his post-operative physical therapy for a future ''Today'' feature.

'PRICE' LINE Come on down! If you guess all these numbers correctly, you could win...A BRAND NEW CAR! Ready? How many years has Bob Barker been hosting ''The Price Is Right?'' How many more years has he just renewed his contract for? How many Daytime Emmys has he won? How old is he? How much longer can he keep at it? (Answers: 30, 5, 14, 77, and who knows?)

REEL DEAL Dustin Hoffman will make his feature directing debut with ''Personal Injuries,'' based on the Scott Turow legal-thriller novel. Hoffman will also star in the movie as a crooked lawyer who becomes an FBI informant. See, all that time he spent watching ''People's Court'' in ''Rain Man'' has finally paid off.