Newsday from New York, New York • 11

Vow to Fight For Studio 1 By Joy Allen New York Federal funds for the Astoria Film Studios can be saved only by congressional action or by renewed and successful lobbying by the Koch administration, according to the mayors in Washington. "When we met with them Reagan officials at the White House two weeks ago, they told us that the only grants that would be exempted from Reagans cuts are ones where there was already a legally binding commitment or a compelling public interest for it, Julian Spirer, Kochs Washington liaison, said. Koch administration officials including Deputy Mayor Karen Gerard and Economic Development Commissioner Kenneth Schuman told 'Reagans representatives during the meeting on March 11 that they believed the three major city projects which Reagan bad proposed cutting were of compelling public interest, Spirer said. The three projects are the conversion of the Brooklyn Army Terminal into an industrial park, the restoration of the Elgin Theater in Chelsea, and the renovation wd expansion of the Astoria Film Studios as workable studios for commercial films. The mayors officials argued that continued revitalization of the city was necessary if New York City was to recover completely from the fiscal crisis.

Reagan officials accepted the argument as it applied to the first two projects, but rejected it on the Astoria prqject, Spirer said. He added that his office will at some point go back to federal aides with another argument that there was a commitment by the Carter administration and that that commitment ought to be honored. Astoria Studios originally had been used for commercial films but for the past 30 years has been used as an Army training film center. In October, 1980, Carters housing secretary and chief of the Economic Development Administration gm to New York and announced that in order to renovate the studios, the federal government would allocate a Urban Development Action Grant and about $6miUion more in grants and loans from the EDA. The (6 million would provide for the eventual ownership by the city of the entire Astoria complex, according to Spirer.

The UDAG grant is contingent on the larger amount. The money would continue the renovation that the Astoria Film Studio Foundation began several years ago. The funds would pay for the creation of two soundstages in the seven-building complex at 35th Street and 35th Avenue, Schuman said. The money the foundation has raised so far has the old studios workable enough fin: the filming of such films as "Grease and "The Wiz. However, early in March, Reagan proposed eliminating the Economic Development Administration as a budget-reduction measure.

Spirer said Congress could block the dissolution of the EDA or at least save the funds promised to projects already under way. He said his office intends to talk to area congressional leaders to point out to them that film is an important industry to the city and that the federal government had made a commitment to provide for the entire renovation project in Astoria. Queens officials, including Borough President Donald Manes and Rep. Geraldine Ferraro (D-Woodside), have joined in the political fight to save the federal by Walter dal Tan Dana Keslow watches eggs stand up for spring Eggs Spring to Occasion Center in Manhattan, where Brooklyn artist Donna Henes balanced eggs on the center's front plaza as about 40 school children sang, "Happy Birthday, Spring Time." Tom Young, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, said he By James Bernstein Spring arrived at 12:03 PM yesterday, and while many people may not have realized it, did. to people who say they know about such things, it was possible to stand an egg on its end for about half an hour, from 12:15 to 12:45 PM.

This, they say, can occur only around the time of the vernal equinox, which signals the coming of spring. These people are not certain why the eggs stand up. They are not eggheads, they point out, and do not have all the answers. In the Newsday cafeteria before about 20 witnesses, a tried rolled eggs rolled over. When he tried again at 12:15, the eggs stood up.

Witnesses ooohed and ahhhed. Eggs also stood on end at the World Trade ed about the phenomenon were hardboiled. They said that at the time of the vernal equinox, the sun is directly over the equator, dividing the day there into equal segments of darkness and light. They knew of no scientific reason that would account for an egg unusual behavior during the vernal equinox, they said. Michael Simon, chairman of Stony Brook told the the eggs: Td say Universitys i reporter who had 1 you were lucky.

Doctors City Hold 1st Formal Strike Talks said that a Monday membership meeting was being set up to evaluate the situation. Harlem Hospital remained the hardest hit of the seven hospitals struck Tuesday by their 1,300 doctors-in-training, who had worked without a contract since September. Agreement on wage increases following a ritywide pattern had been reached before the strike erupted over city refusal to guarantee minimum levels of support personnel and equipment. strike began Tuesday, with little pro- grass. Jonathan House, president of the Committee of Interna and Residents, said that the union and the city exchanged "full and frank views, but that neither side altered its position on the key strike issue who shall govern staffing derisions.

"It would surprise me if things move very quickly, he said. Bruce Mclver, the citys chief labor negotiators attended, the meeting but their walkout tomorrow if convinced that they had won public backing for their goal to force the city to guarantee a higher level of support services at hospitals. The strikers at Kings County Hospital announced a mass rally tomorrow afternoon at the main entrance and said that they would measure public support and decide at the end of the rally whether to go back to work, according to one striking doctor, who stressed that she was not theCommittee of.Intems 4 Combined News Services New York Appealing to their "good senses, a mediator yesterday brought union end city negotiators together for the first formal bargaining HHfflinn in the 4-day-old strike by interns and residents at seven city and two voluntary hospitals. The two sides met for about 90 minutes and then caucused to determine if further talks would be usefiil. "They found out there is enough at to tlk about, jaid Aryid.

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