FIRST OFF . . .

Songwriter Marvin Hamlisch--a personal favorite of First Lady Nancy Reagan and a frequent performer at the White House--was named by President Reagan on Monday to be a member of the National Council on the Arts. Hamlisch has written numerous scores for movies and Broadway musicals, including “They’re Playing our Song” and “Chorus Line,” which won a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony award. If confirmed by the Senate, Hamlisch would succeed novelist Allen Drury on the arts advisory council.