Measure for Measure; French Art Invades Brooklyn; WFMU Record Fair; Free Comics!; Public Theater Doings; Kentucky Derby; Rob Hardin; "Two Girls in Love with Rock n Roll"

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In case you thought Brooklyn's riverfront had not yet achieved the proper dose of Right Bank attitude, then get ready for the French invasion of New York's once-marginal, now-increasingly established artist neighborhoods. The first leg of a two-month exchange between galleries in Paris and (Zut alors!) Brooklyn takes place this week, with eight galleries in Williamsburg (Schroeder Romero, Plus Ultra, Roebling Hall, Pierogi, Parker's Box, Momenta, Star 67, Southfirst:Art) and one in DUMBO (Smack Mellon) hosting exhibitions by Parisian artists. A specially commissioned installation by French artist Hugues Reip is also at the Brooklyn Museum of Art. Visual prediction: hipsters in berets eating les hotdogs de Nathan's.

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So, you thought Quiet Riot was the first band to record "Cum on Feel the Noize"? That the Fat Boys only had one album? That you couldn't score Buckingham-Nicks on vinyl for under $100? Let the good folks at the WFMU Record Fair prove you wrong with LPs, 45s, CDs, videos, old newspapers, day drinking and, of course, an opportunity to run the gauntlet of hip that begins roughly one block away from this semi-annual "happening." Fri., May 3, 7-10 p.m., Sat.-Sun., May 4-5, 10-7; $5-$20. Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 W. 18th St. (betw. 6th & 7th Aves.), 201-521-1416 or www.wfmu.org/recfair.

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We're picturing hordes of 30-year-old geeks who live in their parents' basements and have their moms iron their Spawn t-shirts skulking into comic book stores all over the city for Free Comic Book Day, this Sat., May 4. But we suspect it's really intended to introduce comic books to a new generation (i.e., market segment). More than 2200 comic books stores around the U.S. and Europe will be giving away Justice League, Star Wars, Tomb Raider and of course Spider-Man comic books (the movie opens the day before). Take your kids, indoctrinate them. Participating stores include Jim Hanley's Universe, St. Mark's Comics, Kosmic Comics, Action Comics and Gotham City Comics; for the full list, go to www.FreeComicBookDay.com.

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Been to the Public Theater recently? Lately there just seem to be more and more reasons to go there. Right now the hot ticket is Rebecca Gilman's newest play, Blue Surge, a retelling of the Camille story?nice boy wants to save fallen woman?updated and desentimentalized. It runs Tues.-Sun. Meanwhile, though, the company's annual New Work Now! series has started up?in case you want to catch the latest batch of rising young dramatists while they're still callow and unformed. There's a different play every night. Saturday's offering, 80 Teeth, 4 Feet and 500 Pounds, sounds interesting: "A sophisticated allegory" by Gustavo Ott about three teens who commit a crime, according to the website, "...this crafted triptych begins with a fall and spins inexorably toward a Boschian justice." Don't know about you, but we never miss a Boschian justice play. Consult www.publictheater.org for the full New York Now! schedule. 425 Lafayette St. (betw. 4th St. & Astor Pl.), 260-2400.

The Kentucky Derby is a chance to watch sleek, elegant animals race their hearts out for $1 million. It's also a moneymaking opportunity, and never more so than this year, the 128th running. With the major prep races done, no clear favorite has emerged: of the top contenders?Came Home, Buddha, Johannesburg, Harlan's Holiday?none's listed at lower than 7-1 odds as of this writing. So go ahead and plunk down $2 on the 32-1 Castle Gandolfo, a timely hunch bet if ever there was one. Post time's 6:04 Sat., May 4; watch on NBC; visit www.kentuckyderby.com for Derby Day and contender info, and www.nycotb.com to find out where to get in on the action locally.

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It depresses us that a clunky plodder like Stephen King is accepted as a master of the horror story. It's airport reading, people. Nothing wrong with airport reading, but get a grip. He's not the contemporary Poe. You want to hear a couple of far less heralded writers who come far closer to classic, creepy, goth-n-gore-n-mystery tales, go to Tonic this Sat., May 4, 3-5 p.m., for "The Carnivorous Salon," a reading by Rob Hardin, author of the dark and disturbing Distorture, and Colin Raff, author of the elegantly mysterious The Premises of Otto Gast. No, you probably haven't read either of those books. You should. Put down Everything's Eventual, go to this reading and hope they've got copies to sell. (Otherwise, go to amazon.com.) 107 Norfolk St. (betw. Rivington & Delancey Sts.), 358-7501.

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Many Sunday nights we're at the Abbey?a dimly lit dive bar in Williamsburg where the sounds of Madonna, Pat Benatar and lots of Britpop draw a friendly crowd of mostly local gay men. Play the pinball machines or pool in the back room, have a few drinks (bartender Troy makes great raspberry kamikazes) and sing along. 536 Driggs Ave. (betw. N. 7th & N. 8th Sts.), 718-599-4400.

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"Two Girls in Love with Rock n Roll": Cheap beer, the Kinks and a couple of fine-looking women who like both?and are not too particular about the company they keep?kick off a new night Tuesdays, 10 p.m.-ish, at Williamsburg's ultrahip Stinger Club. There're rumors of initiating an Osbournes screening every week at 10:30, so be sure to bug the management. They spin 'em like you do at home, though if you're a Nirvana fan, we hear that the ladies do not take requests. 241 Grand St. (betw. Driggs & Roebling Sts.), 718-218-6662.