Daily News from New York, New York • 131

An expensive Scllcck-tion of denim Is Dlana becoming a princess of wails? ducer Roger Berllnd and 3IIE BEAUTIFUL Princess of and Mrs. Berllnd, banker Jerry Dunleavy, Henry Clay and Eleanor Howard's sister, Jean Bankler, an assistant to producer Roger Stevens in New York. Jack Howard the Howard comes from Scripps-Howard -stood up and said he'd known and admired "Romy" for 50 years and regarded him as "one of the family." Romy said thank you very much and told four jokes while Eleanor Howard, in a smart ted silk Stavropoulous, laughed her head off. You had to be there. "STAR GODS of the Ancient Americas" is the next major exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History, giving Mrs.

Charles A. Dana Robert Goelet and -Arthur Ross the perfect excuse for a party. These chairmen are calling the gala at the museum Wales, still suffering from postnatal blues since the birth of her son, Prince William, and feeling crushed by her new life's role, is under the most severe mental strain. She has her up days and her down days, but there are always more downs than ups. The Prince of Wales, born and bred to contend with royal duties, ever mindful of the incredible stress his adored i wife is under is sympathetic and understanding.

Time may resolve the persistent dilemma, but there are fears among those close to the couple that things could get worse as pressures mount Once carefree, Diana has never really been schooled in the rigorous, often deadly boring, daily schedule that royalty is heir to. She cannot be expected to manage with the equanimity of her mother-in-law, the queen. "Dorothy is suddenly finding out she r- i 74 JTI-aiVE YEARS after Congress I rescued New York City from Li bankruptcy, midtown Manhattan is booming at least relatively so much so that it helped elevate the economic statistics released for New York State," writes Joyce Wadler in jthe Washington Post Joyce goes on to say that since new jobs have been created," more than 6,500 new hotel rooms have been built in the last three years, and "commercial construction is feverish." Among the 10 largest states, New York had the lowest increase in unemployment during the first nine months of the year. And you thought all the news was bad news! BEHINDS FOR CHARITY: The Good Will jeans celebrity auction, wherein the organization auctioned off denims with indelible autographs on the back pockets, raised $7,000 at the Grand Hyatt the other day. Everyone expected Brooke Shields'.

Calvins to bring in big bucks and indeed they did drawing $350. But it was "Magnum, P.L's" Tom Selleck whose jeans brought the top price of Pat Carroll: working out ill! 111 MBSmlSM J'- V. I 4 Princess Diana and her little prince: a picture of pure love 1 THE AMERICAN PLACE Theater is aghast at rumors that it is going bankrupt! If anything, the theater is on one of the best rolls in its 19-year history, having extended its last three attractions. The summer "Salute to Texas" raised a lot of money for APT, -since then they've done socko business with "The Regard of Flight" "The Stage That Walks," and the current hit "Do Lord Remember Me?" which has been extended through January. On Dec.

2, the APTs Women's Project will field a fund-raiser with luminaries Lauren Bacall, Harry Belafonte, Dina Merrill, Phyllis Newman and Joanne Woodward. Get your red-hot $100 tickets. Call 246-3730 now. HIDDEN CAMERAS and concealed mirrors in most stores are trained as much on employes and managers as on customers. Staff thefts are said to be responsible for almost half the tremendous yearly losses experienced by retailers Pat Carroll installed a gym in her upstate New York farmhouse which she now calls "Jane Fonda East" She is slimming for her West Coast opening in "Gertrude Stein, Gertrude Stein, etc." on Jan.

12. At Nirvana the other' eve, they actually applauded CBS' superstar Dan Rather when he ankled in. Dan just ducked modestly. The Friars Club missed its chance to ride in style when they failed to make Victor PotamMn one of the planks in their board of governors. You can get on my board, Victor.

Demolition of the Piccadilly Hotel for the proposed Portman project in Times Square is running about 30 days behind schedule because of all those demanding ordinances. Opposites attract ticket buyers two of the city's successful movies aren't even new. One is Walt Disney's "Fantasia" and the other Bob Guccione's "Caligula." People in the know are calling TMary Ann Tighe the East Coast Sherry Lansing. The VP for production at ABC Video is high on the list of those being considered for Henry Geld-zahler's cultural commisioner job. ENDQUOTES: Stuart Scheftel, who once ran for mayor of this town, is the questioner on National Public Radio Dec.

14 at 1 p.m. when "Insight" will ask Irving Lazar about super-agenting. Lazar says: "One morning I was home on Sunday and wondered if I could make a deal for a million dollars before sunset I did, signing Burt Reynolds to do his autobiography." isn't in Kansas anymore," says a close friend of Princess Diana. And indeed she is. Everyone 'has only the highest praise for the Prince of Wales.

He and Diana love each other very much and worship their infant son. But they also have Problems (with a capital P) and they're not going away. THE DISTINGUISHED, articulate and witty foreign minister of the Philippines, Carlos P. Romulo, and the pretty Mrs. Romulo were guests of honor at Eleanor and Jack Howard's dinner for 20 the other night at the spacious East End Ave.

apartment. The piece de resistance, other than Romulo his best friends call him "Romy" was beef stew, per the request of another one of the guests, Jean Mac-Arthur, who made a charming little speech expressing her gratitude to "Romy" for always being so loyal to "my General." "Your General," said Romulo to Mrs. MacArthur, "was the greatest military strategician of his time." Among the guests was the fascinating Zoe Caldwell, certainly one of the greatest actresses of her time. All slimmed down and sexy, Zoe was wearing a black silk pleated Mary McFad-den. She and her husband, the distinguished producer Robert Whitehead, drove in from their house in Pound Ridge for the dinner that also drew Alexandra and Robert Goelet, our former ambassador to Ireland John (Moore, Phyllis and Robert Wagner, "Star Gods" because, you see, the exhibition explores how Indians from the Arctic Circle to Tierra del Fuego used the moon and the stars to explain their daily lives.

We're still doing today aren't you? Diane Love is planning spectacular decorations worthy of Montezuma, Ata-hualpa and, who knows, maybe even Sitting Bull. There will be a huge Christmas tree in Roosevelt Hall dec-, orated with thousands of origami ornaments, Lester Lanin has lined up 16 jazz babies to provide the big band sound for the dinner dance I think I'd better tell you now that the date is Dec. 7 and among the "star gods" expected are the Rand Araskogs, the David Schiffs, Phyllis Dillon Collins, Annette and Sam Reed, the Percy Pynes, Linda de Roulet, the Lewis Prestons, Cynthia Phlpps, Connie Mel- ion, the Clay Frlcks and absolute -B flocks of Manlces. Can't you see all those celestial bodies dancing under the big blue whale? (You're supposed to say yes, whether you mean it or not.) DAVID ROCKEFELLER'S lovely friends will be out in force when 8 United Cerebral Palsy presents him with their 1982 Humanitarian Award at a dinner at the Waldorf on Nov. 29.

Walter Hoving, one of David's good buddies, will deliver the evening's blessing and Walter's wife, Jane Pickens Hoving, will sing the National Anthem. Roberta Peters will sing a couple of arias to further uplift what already sounds like one of the most uplifting evenings in years. Tom Selleck: bottom's up $400. One bidder burst into tears when she couldn't up the amount. I suppose you think they had to give away my used denims or pay somebody to take them.

But, no, Liz' ragged old size 12s drew down a hefty $15. (I think that's as much as I paid for them in the first place down at the store on the main square in Gonzales, Tex.) HOT ROMANCE! In New York they don't ask as in Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice" "What's new on the Rialto?" No, they say, "What's going on up at Elaine's?" Well, in an unguarded moment our man on this paper Pete Hamill brought his new heartthrob right into the Second Ave. saloon-salon and though they sat in the back far behind what is called "Woody's table," you couldn't miss Pete and his newest Patti Davis. (Not the President's daughter, but the daughter of Marvin Davis of 20th Cent- ury-Fox and a foxy lady very much in demand in this town.) Writer Hamill is an absolute connoisseur of women who count He has dated the likes of Shirley MacLalne, Jacqueline Onassis and Linda Ron-stadt He says he likes to keep a low profile on his private life. (In which case, if I were Pete, I wouldn't go to Elaine's.) Nancy and Hank L.uce, oroaaway pro-.