Surprise! De Niro shocks pal Jackson

Samuel L. Jackson will get the surprise of his life tonight when pal Robert De Niro makes a rare TV appearance to present Jackson with an award during Fox’s telecast of the “15th Annual Essence Awards” (8-10 p.m./Ch. 5).

The awards, which “honor black Americans for courage and tenacity in the face of adversity” are co-hosted by Steve Harvey and D.L. Hughley from the Theatre at Madison Square Garden.

Meanwhile, actress Jamie Lee Curtis was in Washington yesterday to help “America’s Most Wanted” host John Walsh give out the National Missing and Exploited Children Awards in observance of National Missing Children’s Day.

Curtis, Walsh and “Malcolm in the Middle” star Bryan Cranston (Hal) honored the recipients on Capitol Hill. Curtis also taped an appearance for this Saturday’s “AMW” (9 p.m./Ch. 5) at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Yes, but did he know the correct answer?

Ch. 11 weatherman Irv “Mr. G” Gikofsky had the honor yesterday of answering the one-millionth “Dial-A-Teacher” homework hotline call while working the phones from 4 to 7 p.m.

The choice of Gikofsky was planned; after all, Irv used to be a public school teacher before going into TV news and was responsible for the New York City school system’s first computerized weather studies program while teaching at the Albert Einstein Intermediate School in the Bronx (1967-77).

Gikofsky frequently participates in the Board of Ed’s “Principal for a Day” program (which, his mom once pointed out, was a “promotion” for the ex-teacher).

In the Dial-A-Teacher program, teachers donate their time to a hotline to help kids with homework problems. It’s sponsored by the United Federation of Teachers and the Board of Ed.

The hotline averages 700 phone calls a night – meaning that about 70,000 calls have thus far been logged this school year.

“The last time I was at Dial-A-Teacher a bright third grader asked me a question about new math,” says Gikofsky. “I stared into the phone and asked all 48 teachers in the room for help. Only four of them were math teachers.”

The one-millionth caller received a $100 gift certificate to Barnes & Noble and $500 worth of textbooks for his/her school.

This just in . . .

* Bret Marcus has been named EP of MSNBC’s “The News with Brian Williams.”

* Former “Real World” (New Orleans) participant Julie Stoffer and her brother turned up in San Francisco yesterday to enter their BattleBot, “Mr. Snoogglepuss,” into competition for Comedy Central’s “BattleBots” series, now shooting in that fair city.

* Legendary Latin Quarter piano man Irving Fields visits Lynn Graham (Ch. 67) tomorrow (4:30 p.m.) and June 1 to talk about his memoirs, “The Pianos I Have Known.”

* Ch. 13 and CenterStage co-sponsor Children’s Day at the Twin Towers (June 9). “Sesame Street’s” Gordon hosts.