His pants have to be taken in for  his-relatively-trim 36-inch waist. And  if you're thinking of sending him a  Superman T-shirt, look for something in  the 2XL range. But Ferrigno, an actor who spends most of his on-camera time without a shirt anyway, will don his green body paint-it always fits just right-and flex and roar again tonight at 9 on NBC in "The Death of the Incredible Hulk."

    It's the third outing in TV-movie form for the series that aired on CBS from 1978 to 1982. Based on the Marvel Comics characters, "Hulk" tells of the endless-- till now, sort of-quest of scientist David Banner, played then and now by Bill Bixby, to free himself of his penchant for transforming into the Hulk whenever he's threatened.

    The Hulk-TV's original turtle-colored mutant-is played by Ferrigno, a former Mr. America, who has used the part as an entre to show business.

    In the 12 years that the Hulk has been apart of the TV landscape, Bixby has done another series, "Beantown," and directed extensively in episodic television, including the recent off-the-wall series"Sledge Hammer!"

    For "Death of the Hulk," Bixby serves as director and executive producer, a job that was done during the Hulk's series days by Ken Johnson, now the guiding force behind Fox's "Alien Nation."

    Over lunch, Bixby and Ferrigno -- he had a plate of veggies -- discussed the endless series and where it might be going, especially in light of the title of this week's episode.

    Bixby, relaxed and out-going, praised his more reserved co-star. "Lou will move you emotionally in this picture," said Bixby. "He's really improved as an actor."

     There are limits to how moving an actor can be dressed in green body paint and an orange wig, of course, but true believers may well be saddened by the green one's demise. Bixby noted that while Stan Lee, the Hulk's creator, was consulted for the show, it will not affect storylines in the Marvel Comics.

    Bixby also heaped praise on the movie's female lead, Elizabeth Gracen, who is by turns a terrorist-spy, a good-guy and Banner's love interest. "She was Miss America in 1982," said Bixby. "We had a hard time selling her to the network. A beauty queen?" said Bixby with feigned astonishment.

    Here, his assessment was more on target. Gracen is either a natural or has been taking a lot of acting lessons. While this is not a role Meryl Streep would fight for, Gracen handles it well. There are a number of hand-to-hand combat scenes with her foes and some arm-in-arm sessions with Banner, with a few shirtless shots thrown in. All in all, she does justice to the Bond-girl tradition.

    But what about the death of the Hulk? Will Lou Ferrigno have to seek work, as he has between Hulk stints, on stage and in other films, with no green monster to fall hack on? Why kill off the Hulk? "It's good drama," said Bixby. "It's great theater." It's also a test of Hulk fan reaction. Should the movie play to an ample audience, another Hulk TV movie surely would be in the offing. "Nothing successful on TV is ever closed off," said Bixby. Indeed, that has been one of the lessons of this February sweeps period. Several of the month's offerings -- supposedly the best the networks have to offer -- have been revivals of or sequels to past successes.' The Bradys are back, the Love Boat has taken another cruise, and thisweek ABC will offer yet another version of the Kennedy family saga.

     But if "Death" is not the best of television, it is at least good "Hulk"-far better than his recent encounter with Thor, another superhero. It returns to the elements that always made the Hulk series tolerable viewing for post-teens-the saga of the tortured loner, Banner, seemingly doomed to be forever tied to the Hulk, which severed him from most other meaningful personal connections. Most episodes ended with Banner pushing on to yet another town, to become, again next week, a stranger.

    This film, shot in Vancouver, opens on engaging note, with Banner working as an apparently mentally-limited janitor at a science laboratory. Re's there, ultimately, to meet Ronald Pratt (Philip Sterling), a scientist who may hold the secret to liberating Banner from the Hulk curse. He may also hold the secret to building the"perfect soldier," a concept that means one thing to the FBI and something else to pratt. The perfect soldier, he says, in effect, is a bored soldier.

    Before long, there are terrorists, chases, shootouts and a bit of romance. And, along the way, Banner gets to come face-to-face with the Hulk, thanks to the miracle of video tape.

    The Hulk has been a 12-year presence in Bixby's life, off and on, with persistent revivals. But if any of his series were to be revived on a weekly basis, he said, he would hope it would be "The Courtship of Eddie's Father." That show, in which he played a widower enduring the match-making of his son (Brandon Cruz played the boy and Jodie Foster played Eddie's schoolmate for two seasons), still has many fans, he said, even though it played only three seasons, 1969 to 1972.When fans approach him on the street, Bixby "can tell as they approach which show they want to talk about by their body language." Presumably "Eddie's Father" fans smile and laugh while Hulkees turn color.

    Professionally, Bixby, 56, is looking ahead, rather than back, and is working on a pilot for an hour-long medical drama. The dozen years of Hulkhood have been a learning process for Ferrigno, who found himself an instant TV star based largely on his appearance, then discovered there was more to acting than makeup and a good roar.

     I was naive when I went into the business," he said. "I realized when the series was canceled I had to learn my craft." That meant doing stage work. He would like one day to do a rendition of "Requiem for a Heavyweight."

     But fans will never let Ferrigno forget he's the Hulk. Being a hero begins at home-his 5-year-old son, Lou Jr., calls him Daddy Hulk.

     Ferrigno, who's 38 and also has an 8-year-old daughter Shanna, recalled an early visit to the set by Lou Jr. He knocked on the door to Ferrigno's trailer and was shocked to find Daddy in full Hulk-out. Lou Jr. ran and had to be chased down by his mother. Are you all right? "He said, 'Yes, but you'd better lock the door to that trailer!'"

     The impressionability of the young was on Bixby's and Ferrigno's minds as they contemplated the death of the Hulk-for this TV season, anyway. "It's d tragedy, which is good theater,'said Bixby, "and it's something we all have to face. I have no doubt the last five minutes of the show will be very emotional for Hulk fans . . . It's a reality of life-death-and it can be handled well. And for David Banner, it's a way to be free."

"Comic book characters never die," said Ferrigno. "But this one does."

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