DATE: Saturday, May 10, 1997                TAG: 9705100278

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY ANGELITA PLEMMER, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH                        LENGTH:   50 lines

MARCIA CLARK AGREES TO RETURN PART OF FEE BUT SHE WON'T SAY HOW MUCH SHE'LL REPAY FOR HER DISAPPOINTING TALK AT WILLETT HALL.

Former O.J. Simpson prosecutor Marcia Clark has agreed to return a portion of the $37,500 honorarium she was paid for a speech last month that left her audience so bored sponsors offered refunds.

City officials would not disclose how much money Clark is expected to return, saying negotiations are ongoing. They expect a response from Clark on Monday to finalize the amount.

``Her agent sent to us an offer to refund a portion of the money. However, we have counter-offered her,'' said Sandy Craig, a spokeswoman for Willett Hall, where the event was held. ``We know now that she's willing to work with us.''

Promoters of Clark's speech have been negotiating for two weeks to recoup a portion of her fee, Craig said. Clark appeared at the theater as a part of the city-subsidized speakers' series.

Clark's agents assured Portsmouth officials before her April 17 appearance that the lead prosecutor in Simpson's murder trial would be able to discuss the trial ``in general terms,'' despite contract restrictions related to the release of her book last month.

A program given to patrons before the speech advertised much more than Clark delivered:

``The criminal trial said O.J. Simpson wasn't guilty. The civil trial said something entirely different. Tonight, you'll find out what Marcia Clark has to say. Would an innocent man have led police on a chase threatening to kill himself? . . . Ms. Clark is bound to have an opinion on these and other puzzling questions.''

During her hourlong speech, Clark criticized gender stereotyping and focused on women's self-esteem. She touched on the Simpson trial only during a short question-and-answer session after her speech.

Craig said that, although the series will lose money, ``it won't be as significant a loss because of (Clark's) giving some of the money back.''

Officials have issued more than $3,000 in refunds, to about a third of the 529 people who bought tickets. Ticket-buyers, who paid up to $30 each, are eligible for refunds until June 17 if they return their ticket stubs to the place of purchase.

Clark, who is represented by the William Morris Agency in New York, could not be reached for comment. Officials at East Coast Entertainment, the Richmond agency that brought Clark to Portsmouth, also could not be contacted. ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]

Marcia Clark

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