Good times roll

TORONTO -- Mick Jagger was the undisputed host last night of SARS-stock, or as he called it "the biggest party in Toronto's history!"

"You're here and we're here, and Toronto's back -- it's booming," proclaimed the 60-year-old rock icon at Downsview Park.

But by the time the Rolling Stones got started at 10 p.m, about 15 minutes later than scheduled with Start Me Up, the crowd seemed ready to wind down.

Standing in a large field under the blazing sun for 12 hours -- gates opened at 8 a.m. and the sun didn't really start to go down until 8 p.m. -- will do that to you.

Still, Jagger, guitarists Keith Richards and Ron Wood and drummer Charlie Watts, eventually warmed to the task of reviving the masses with such classics as Brown Sugar, Tumblin' Dice, Ruby Tuesday, You Can't Always Get What You Want, It's Only Rock And Roll and Sympathy For The Devil.

And, eventually, the audience responded. Or at least those who weren't fleeing the grounds in droves trying to avoid the crush of the crowd once the Stones left the stage.

"It's a fantastic night, it's a fantastic time," Jagger said. "You've made us feel really welcome tonight. You've always made us feel welcome in Toronto.

The Stones interrupted their European tour to come across the Atlantic and play in the city where they've rehearsed for three world tours and often played surprise club shows.

The first real surprise of last night was the presence of Justin Timberlake on Miss You, although The Toronto Sun yesterday had exclusively reported the duet would occur.

Unfortunately, Jagger and Timberlake didn't really mesh in terms of style, particularly when Timberlake inserted the chorus of his song, Cry Me A River, into the Stones' disco-inflected chestnut.

Another strange twist was when Richards -- "Unexpected visit, huh?" were the only words I was initially able to make out -- took over lead vocals on a cover of the standard Nearness Of You.

Richards did much better on Happy.

"It's good to be back," he said. "It's good to be anywhere!"

The only other guest to join the Stones -- although U2 frontman Bono was reportedly sighted on the grounds -- was AC/DC guitarist Angus Young who returned to the stage for a cover of B.B. King's Rock Me Baby.

Young's brief appearance was enough to re-energize the crowd and sustain them through three more Stones classics Honky Tonk Women, Satisfaction and Jumpin' Jack Flash.

FANTASTIC, SAYS MICK

Not all the politicians were in the VIP section. Some of them were booked to play. Case in point, ladies and gentlemen, your headliners, the Rolling Stones.

"Welcome to Canada!" Mick Jagger yelled cheerfully to the backstage crowd of press, unleashing a string of "fantastics" in a fleeting meeting just before the Stones' headline set.

"I saw the crowd from the back of the stage and it looked fantastic," he said. "One of the most fantastic things we've ever seen. It is the biggest crowd we've ever played to, so it is a fantastic event."

But historic? "Well, in terms of numbers," he said. "But I'm not writing history. You have to do the day first."

For his part, Keith Richards (Charlie Watts and Ron Wood contributed little but bemused smiles) summed up his emotions thus: "I'm just waking up, and it feels great! It's a big day for everybody."

Jagger allowed as to how one or more of his daughters had made their way to the wings to watch Justin Timberlake. Asked for details of the clan in tow, he said enigmatically "We have tons of family everywhere! They're all here!" he said, indicating the carpet of humanity not far away.

Hard to argue with that.

Spector Case Hitting a Wall?

Nearly six months after being implicated in the death of a B-movie actress, record producer Phil Spector remains as unchained as one of his famous melodies.

Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department homicide investigators have yet to conclude their probe into the alleged slaying of Lana Clarkson, found shot in the head February 3 at Spector's castle-style retreat in a Los Angeles suburb.

As a result, Spector next week likely will receive a one- to two-month extension on his stay-out-of-jail pass. A hearing on the matter is scheduled for Tuesday.

Spector, arrested in connection with the Clarkson case, has been free on $1 million bail since shortly after the killing. No charges have been filed.

Sheriff spokesman Lt. Dan Rosenberg tells the Associated Press his department is waiting on crime-lab reports.

Without those reports, sheriff's investigators can't pass along their case to prosecutors, and without the case, prosecutors can't decide whether to file charges, or not.

A call seeking comment Spector's attorney, O.J. Simpson defender Robert Shapiro, was not returned Wednesday morning. The lawyer for Clarkson's family declined comment.

Spector, for one, is on the record as saying he did nothing wrong.

In an interview in the July issue of Esquire, the 62-year-old music mogul who constructed the "Wall of Sound" around a box-set's worth of 1960s hits, including "Unchained Melody," "Be My Baby," and "He's a Rebel," said Clarkson shot herself.

Spector described the 40-year-old star of Barbarian Queen as being "loud" and "drunk" the night of her death. In the end, he said, "she kissed [a] gun."

In the magazine, Spector, a renowned gun collector who once reputedly pulled a firearm on the Ramones, said he didn't know where Clarkson got the weapon, or why she pulled the trigger. Reports say the two met the night of February 2 at the House of Blues on L.A.'s Sunset Strip, where Clarkson worked.

Homicide detectives seemingly have ruled out the suicide theory, saying they believe a crime was committed.

Rock 'N' Roll Pioneer Sam Phillips Dies

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Sam Phillips, who discovered Elvis Presley and helped usher in the rock 'n' roll revolution, died Wednesday. He was 80.

Phillips died at St. Francis Hospital, spokeswoman Gwendolyn McClain said. No details were immediately available about the cause of death or how long he had been hospitalized.

Phillips founded Sun Records in Memphis in 1952 and helped launch the career of Presley, then a young singer who had moved from Tupelo, Miss.

He produced Presley's first record, the 1954 single that featured "That's All Right, Mama" and "Blue Moon of Kentucky."

"God only knows that we didn't know it would have the response that it would have," Phillips said in an interview in 1997.

"But I always knew that the rebellion of young people, which is as natural as breathing, would be a part of that breakthrough," he said.

Phillips was elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986. In 2000, the A&E cable network ran a two-hour biography called "Sam Phillips: The Man Who Invented Rock and Roll."

"When I first heard Elvis, the essence of what I heard in his voice was such that I knew there might be a number of areas that we could go into," Phillips said.

Presley was good with ballads, Phillips recalled, but there was no need to challenge the established balladeers like Perry Como, Frankie Laine and Bing Crosby.

"What there was a need for was a rhythm that had a very pronounced beat, a joyous sound and a quality that young people in particular could identify with," he said.

By 1956, when Phillips sold Presley's contract to RCA for $35,000, the rock 'n' roll craze had become a cultural phenomenon and a multimillion-dollar industry.

"It all came out of that infectious beat and those young people wanting to feel good by listening to some records," Phillips said.

Presley died in 1977 at age 42.

Phillips began in music as a radio station engineer and later as a disc jockey. He started Sun Records so he could record both rhythm & blues singers and country performers, then called country and western or hillbilly singers.

His plan was to let artists who had no formal training play their music as they felt it, raw and full of life. The Sun motto was "We Record Anything, Anywhere, Anytime."

In the early days, before Presley, Phillips worked mostly with black musicians, including B.B. King and Rufus Thomas.

After the success of Presley on Sun, others who recorded for the label under Phillips included Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, Conway Twitty and Charlie Rich.

"We were starting from scratch together," Phillips said in 2000.

He got out of the recording business in 1962 and sold Sun Records in 1969 to producer Shelby Singleton of Nashville. The Sun studio on Union Avenue in Memphis still exists as a tourist attraction.

In his later years, Phillips spent much of his time operating radio station WLVS in Memphis and others in Alabama. He stayed out of the limelight except for some appearances at Presley-related events after Presley's death.

"I'll never retire. I'm just using up somebody else's oxygen if I retire," he said in an Associated Press interview in 2000.

Born Samuel Cornelius Phillips in Florence, Ala., Phillips worked as an announcer at radio stations in Muscle Shoals, Ala., and Decatur, Ala., and Nashville, Tenn., before settling in Memphis in 1945. Before founding Sun Records, he was a talent scout who recommended artists and recordings to record labels such as Chess and Modern. He also worked as an announcer in Memphis.

His sons Knox and Jerry also were record producers.

Fans line up outside T.O. Stones show

TORONTO (CP) -- Lying on a patch of dried grass just outside Downsview Park, a tired-looking Haley Rose is gearing up for the massive Rolling Stones concert Wednesday.

The 20-year-old university student and two friends drove to the concert venue some 260 kilometres from Kingston, Ont., to find themselves first in line Monday evening for the big show.

But they weren't alone for long. Twenty-four hours before the all-day music festival was to begin, other fans were also in a queue waiting to enter the 320-hectare field that will host the spectacle.

By noon Tuesday, about two dozen people were camped outside one of three gates, some draped in Canadian flags, others in Stones T-shirts.

For Rose, the event is much bigger than an economic recovery project for Toronto in the aftermath of a SARS outbreak that hit the city in March.

"Nothing can beat Woodstock but this will be close," she said. "We planned our trip the second tickets went on sale. I saw the Stones in October and they were awesome. I want to see them again."

For others the inconvenience and stress of sleeping outdoors without any camping gear except blankets (in accordance with concert rules and regulations) is worth the chance of seeing their idols up close.

"It's a big band. I don't want to be in the back and have to watch screens. That's not why I came," said Erin Emms, from Orillia, Ont., who was ninth in line after arriving at 7 a.m. Tuesday.

Inside Downsview Park, a large sign emblazoned with the word Toronto in giant red letters hung over the concert stage, the middle "o" replaced with a picture of the Stones' trademark tongue logo. An enormous Canadian flag was draped across the back wall of the stage.

The Rolling Stones' production director said the band was looking forward to the show, which he promised would be monumental.

"This is a huge undertaking," Jake Berry said at a sunny outdoors news conference in front of the stage, where construction crews were busy with last minute details. "We're going to be the size of Woodstock."

However, Woodstock was planned in a year, he noted.

"We just call this Woodstock in a month here," he joked. "This is going to be superb. It's the biggest rock show in the world."

Further down the way, crews were busy setting up barbecue stations. Signs reading "Sticky Fingers," and "Award winning baby back ribs" adorned the section dubbed the Quarter Mile BBQ.

Chefs from as far away as Florida will be selling all Canadian beef products including things like steak on a bun.

"We're just trying to do a good job with beef," said Larry Murphy, from Alabama who will be serving beef all day Wednesday.

Up to 450,000 people were expected to attend the concert, which begins at noon Wednesday and is aimed at boosting Toronto's economy.

Nine video screens and 36 sound delay towers will ensure all attendees, including 45,000 U.S. ticket holders, can watch and hear the concert, said Berry.

The headline act Rolling Stones arrived in Toronto on Monday night to a welcoming party of about 100 fans waiting outside the Four Seasons hotel downtown.

The band will be playing a 90-minute set to close out the show, which begins at noon. Other acts include Justin Timberlake, AC/DC, the Guess Who, Flaming Lips and Isley Brothers.

Among the dignitaries taking part in the revelry: Premiers Ralph Klein of Alberta, Gary Doer of Manitoba, Lorne Calvert of Saskatchewan and Ernie Eves of Ontario, federal Health Minister Anne McLellan, federal Agriculture Minister Lyle Vanclief and Liberal leadership hopeful Paul Martin.

Prime Minister Jean Chretien wasn't scheduled to attend although some organizers said he may make a surprise appearance.

THE 'GIGLI' IS UP

By RUSSELL SCOTT SMITH

'I was shocked," says "Good Morning America'''s Joel Siegel. "It's very bad storytelling."

"It's horrible," moans Roger Friedman of Foxnews.com. "The worst movie ever made."

And those two made it to the end of Monday night's screening of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez's ultra-hyped "Gigli." More than one person walked out.

The buzz on Ben and Jen's first movie is so bad - think Madonna's "Swept Away" - Revolution Studios even had trouble filling the L.A. premiere, giving seats usually reserved for stars to the fans waiting outside.

"It's definitely not a fastball down the middle," Revolution partner Tom Sherak admitted to The Post. "It's a curve ball."

So how to get people to see it?

"I think that our main point was always Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez," says Sherak.

Thus the trailers, the poster and endless promotion, which all have presented the movie as a gooey romantic comedy.

Turns out "Gigli" also contains stomach-churning violence and lots of gratuitous vulgarity. ("I counted Ben saying the F-word 15 times in the first 10 minutes!" Friedman says. )

Just so you know what you're getting yourself into, here's Pulse's guide to everything else you should know about "Gigli" that producers have been afraid to tell you.

1 - It's pronounced "jee-lee."

Not "giggly" or "jiggly," despite what you might think of J.Lo's backside. Revolution considered calling it "Tough Love," but went back to "Gigli," the last name of Affleck's character.

"We knew people would make fun of it," Sherak says, "but we decided that would be a good thing because it would get people talking.

"Of course, you can make yourself believe anything in this business."

2 - Yep, she's gay (Not that there's anything wrong with that).

You'd never know it from the trailer, in which J.Lo tells Ben, "You're not my type."

But her character is in fact a lesbian - at least at the beginning of the movie. Later, she changes her mind and beds down with Ben (who pulled off the same feat in 1997's "Chasing Amy").

3 - Al Pacino's role is a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo.

Despite appearing in TV ads for "Gigli," Pacino is only on screen for about five minutes - a cameo he reportedly did as a favor to director Martin Brest, who directed his Oscar-winning role in 1992's "Scent of a Woman."

Even Christopher Walken - whom one critic dubs "the patron saint of bad movies" - shows up, delivering a rare bright spot, judging by the applause at Monday's screening.

4 - Yes, they airbrushed the poster.

The New York Post's Page Six report that the "Gigli" poster has been tinkered with to make J.Lo's butt look smaller and her breasts bigger wasn't entirely wrong.

"We didn't shrink her butt," says Sherak. "But in the original shot, her arm was alongside her body, blocking her curves. She didn't want people to think we were covering her up, so we manipulated it so her arm was on his shoulder."

5 - What chemistry?

Affleck and Lopez allegedly fell in love while making "Gigli" - but any on-screen proof is dampened by clunky dialogue.

Monday's audience burst into laughter during the seduction scene, when J.Lo spreads her legs for Ben and says, "It's turkey time. Gobble-gobble."

Brest and the studio decided to emphasize the romance, after test audiences didn't like the film's ending, in which (spoiler alert: don't read the rest of this paragraph) Ben's character died in a hail of bullets.

6 - It's finally here!

"Gigli" was supposed to open earlier this summer, but Revolution bumped it so the couple would have more time to publicize it - which they've certainly been making the most of.

The release was then moved again, from Wednesday to Friday, out of fear of bad reviews.

"We knew some people would like the movie and some wouldn't," Sherak admits.

Asked whether he likes "Gigli," Sherak launches into a long answer about what "nice people" the stars are. "I like watching them banter on screen," he says, "because I'm looking at two people I know and like so much."

But what about the movie?

"Well," he says, "I can't think of a single movie that I liked all the way through, can you?"

With reporting by Paula Froelich

"Nemo" Sinks Simba as Top 'Toon

Something fishy's going on at the box office.

It's only been nine weeks since audiences first found Finding Nemo, but already the Disney-Pixar joint has officially hooked the title of the highest-grossing 'toon of all time from Disney's The Lion King, according to box-office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations.

The spunky G-rated underwater adventure reeled in $4.39 million over the weekend, bringing its total North American take to $313.1 million, surpassing The Lion King's $312.9 million in domestic ticket sales generated when that film was released in 1994.

"I don't think anyone expected this to happen, since The Lion King has held this distinction for so long and deservedly so," says Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations. "It's a milestone."

And what's extraordinary is how much faster Nemo managed to reach those numbers, especially considering its stars--Albert Brooks, Willem Dafoe, Ellen DeGeneres and Allison Janney--are hardly marquee types.

"It's the coolest G-rated movie ever," added Dergarabedian. "This is a movie everybody can get behind and is appropriate for all audiences. Any audience can see this movie...[and] it's benefiting from a year where people are looking for some quality films."

Swimming into theaters May 30, the computer-animated fish flick netted $70 million its opening weekend, the best ever debut for a 'toon. Nemo's been packing 'em in like sardines and drowning rivals ever since.

Just look at what the little clown fish and pals did to DreamWorks' Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas.

Despite featuring the vocal talent of Brad Pitt, Michelle Pfeiffer and Catherine Zeta-Jones, the sailor 'toon grossed a paltry $6.9 million after opening over the July 4 holiday, but failed to come anywhere close to Nemo's $11 million catch that weekend.

"We're just thrilled," Disney Studios Chairman Dick Cook tells the Los Angeles Times. "It's going to be the biggest animated movie of all time, not only domestically but around the world."

The Lion King took more than six months after its June '94 premiere to reach its tally. Simba & Co's initial run lasted three and a half months and a gross of $267 million. But it didn't actually hit the $312.9 million mark until Disney decided to rerelease the African-set tale for a second 17-week run the following November.

That tally also excludes the additional $16 million made when the Mouse House released an Imax version of The Lion King last Christmas (counting those numbers, Simba technically retains his box-office crown with $328 million in the bank). The numbers also don't take into consideration the price of tickets, which have gone up considerably since The Lion King lorded over theaters.

But no matter, says Dergarabedian, who notes that while "Lion King has probably sold more tickets, Nemo is still playing and far from done, so we don't know what it's ultimately going to do in terms of box office."

Every one of the Disney-Pixar collaborations—Toy Story, Toy Story 2, A Bug's Life and Monster's Inc.--have opened at number one and toppped $100 million in domestic ticket sales, an impressive track record.

With its can't-miss reputation, Pixar is currently seeking a bigger slice of profits from Disney now that the two companies are renegotiating their existing deal. Under that agreement, the two companies share marketing and production costs and split profits 50-50. However, the Mouse House ends up taking home substantially more because Pixar pays a 12.5 percent distribution fee. Disney also gets extra revenue for marketing and distributing VHS and DVD versions of the 'toons.

Pixar Chairman Steve Jobs is looking to strike a new deal that would give his company ownership of all its films while paying a distribution fee of less than 10 percent to Disney. Such a move has been similarly compared to the handsome contract George Lucas struck with 20th Century Fox over the new Star Wars movies.

Under its agreement with Disney, Pixar has two more 'toons in the pipeline--The Incredibles, due out in 2004, and Cars, scheduled for release in 2005.

TORONTO SARS CONCERT ORDER OF PERFORMERS

1:30 p.m.

* Jim Belushi, Dan Aykroyd and Have Love Will Travel Revue
* Sam Roberts
* Kathleen Edwards
* La Chicane
* Tea Party
* The Flaming Lips
* Sass Jordan with Jeff Healey
* The Isley Brothers
* Blue Rodeo

5:45 p.m.

* Belushi-Aykroyd and Have Love Will Travel Revue
* Justin Timberlake
* The Guess Who
* Rush
* AC/DC
* Rolling Stones

Angels Forever?

They came, they saw, they didn't quite conquer. Failing to heat up the summer box office, Charlie's Angels Full Throttle will get another chance to rake in the cash on October 14th, when Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment releases the hyperkinetic sequel in separate PG-13 rated and Unrated versions. Each retails for $27.95, and here's a teaser of what to expect on the unrated version: 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, additional footage, a "telestrator" video commentary by director McG including a play-by-play dissection of scenes, multiple featurettes, a "Cameo-Graphy" to test viewers' knowledge of celebrity appearances and Pink's music video for "Feel Good Time." Watch for the full details in the weeks ahead.

Bond Is Back!

It may have taken a little while, but MGM Home Entertainment is finally set to re-release the Bond Collection 2 and Bond Collection 3 box sets on November 18th. Collection 1 is already available, and these remaining two sets will include the same special editions previously issued, even down to the cover art.

Collection 2 includes Diamonds Are Forever, For Your Eyes Only, From Russia with Love, THe Living Daylights, The World is Not Enough and You Only Live Twice. Collection 3 includes Die Another Day, Live and Let Die, Octopussy, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Thunderball and A View to a Kill. Each box retails for $124.95, while the individual titles have been newly repriced at $19.95 a pop. And - yep - after January 19th, Bond will go on moratorium yet again, so get 'em while you can. (Although word on the street is to expect newly remastered versions of all the flicks, most likely starting in 2005.)

Drunk Admits Driving on '20 Beers at Most'

BERLIN (Reuters) - An inebriated German driver's honesty cost him his license after he told police he had drunk "20 beers at most," authorities said Monday.

During a routine traffic check in the western city of Essen, police asked if the 25-year-old man had drunk anything. He answered: "Twenty beers at most if you want me to be perfectly honest, officer. But that's it, really."

Police carried out a breath test, confirming the man's claims, and confiscated his license. "I've no idea why he told them," said Raymund Sandach, a spokesman for Essen police. "Maybe because he was drunk."

Showbiz Auction Eyes $150,000 for Superman Suit

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - When Superman donned his red cape in the 1950s, he ran faster than a speeding bullet and was able to leap tall buildings with a single bound, but not even he could have known that his S-emblazoned outfit might fetch $150,000 at auction.

Los Angeles-based Profiles in History opens the bidding in an auction of Hollywood memorabilia on Thursday with some 360 items for sale from the Superman costume George Reeves wore in the 1950s TV show of the same name to the gloves Arnold Schwarzenegger used in "Terminator 2: Judgment Day."

While the auction features mostly items from science fiction movies and television shows, one piece up for grabs is Mel Brooks' first writing screenplay of the 1968 film "The Producers," an adaptation of which is now a hit stage play. It is expected to fetch between $8,000 and $10,000.

The Superman costume is the auction's centerpiece because it is one of only two authentic George Reeves Superman suits known to exist, said Profiles' Chief Executive Joseph Maddalena.

"I can't think of a more important TV show costume," said Maddalena, adding he expects the auction to bring in around $1 million in total with the costume going for about $150,000.

Maddalena said collecting show business material has become increasingly popular because it is more affordable than antiques and fine art.

Collecting goes in waves and currently Hollywood's sci-fi material is hot, he said. Last year, Profiles auctioned Captain Kirk's Command Chair from the "Star Trek" TV series for $306,000.

Authenticating pieces is made easier by the fact that many people who made or wore them are living. "The industry kind of polices me, and I work within the industry. If the material wasn't real, they would hang me," he said.

Or perhaps they would send Superman to do the job.

Bids can be made in person at Profiles in History's Beverly Hills office or online at eBay live auctions.

Schwarzenegger Close to Pulling Out of California Race

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, citing concerns about his family, is moving close to announcing that he will not run for California governor in a special October election, an aide said on Tuesday.

"There are still several things he needs to do to close the book on this, but that's the direction he is headed in right now," an aide, who asked not to be named, said.

"For all I know George Bush Sr., Ronald Reagan and Gerald Ford could all call and say 'hey, we need you,' but I don't think a scenario is likely that would push him toward running."

Meanwhile, a federal judge in San Diego struck down a portion of the law for the Oct. 7 recall as unconstitutional but his ruling neither delays nor stops the two-part vote.

In the unprecedented election, Californians vote on whether to unseat Democratic Governor Gray Davis, who is unpopular for his handling of the state's record budget deficit.

After voting "yes" or "no" on the recall, voters could then go on to pick a replacement candidate. Under the ruling by San Diego Federal Court Judge Barry Moskowitz voters who declined to cast a ballot on the recall section of the ballot can also vote on a successor to Davis. The portion of the law that Moskowitz struck down had barred voters from voting on a successor if they had not participated in the recall vote.

Schwarzenegger, the former Mr. Universe turned Hollywood heavyweight, had initially suggested he would run as a Republican. Analysts said his name recognition and personal wealth gave him a strong shot at the job in a state where actor Ronald Reagan got his start in politics as governor.

FAMILY CONCERNS

Schwarzenegger's aide said the actor's wife, television news personality Maria Shriver, a niece of former President John F. Kennedy and a member of the nation's most prominent Democratic family, was against a run.

"She has concerns about their young children and the quality of life they would have by a father who would be engaged 20 hours a day in state government," he said.

"Now they are between five and 14, it's a time when you don't get those days back and it's a time when kids really need to be with their parents, and that's where I think she comes down."

The aide said Schwarzenegger, the star of the "Terminator" films, would make an announcement as early as this week.

Politicians have often cited family as the reason to leave the political stage -- for at least a while. Prior to the 1992 election, Al Gore said he would not run for president for family reasons, but when Bill Clinton asked him to run as his vice president, he had a change of heart.

Some analysts have said Schwarzenegger may also be wary of exposing himself to campaign attacks on his personal life.

A Schwarzenegger withdrawal from the race could open the way for former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan, a moderate Republican who said he would not challenge the actor.

Also on Tuesday, multi-millionaire Republican Bill Simon Jr., who ran against Davis and lost in November, filed papers with the Board of Elections in preparation of trying once again. He said he had assembled his political team and was prepared to spend from his personal fortune to unseat Davis, a long-term veteran of California politics.

American Wedding Cake, Yes, but No More 'Pie'

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The pie is gone, and in its place is a humble, albeit small, serving of maturity and wedding cake for dessert.

Movie "American Wedding," the third and final chapter -- its backers say -- in the wildly successful series of raunchy, male coming-of-age comedies that started with 1999's "American Pie," debuts in theaters on Friday.

But there will be no "American Baby" after Jim (Jason Biggs) and Michelle (Alyson Hannigan) tie the knot in "Wedding." Nor will there be an "American Divorce," the movie's makers said in recent interviews.

"All the characters have gone from A-to-B. There is no more journey for them to take." said series creator and writer Adam Herz, 30. "We've watched them grow from kids to adults."

Even Steve Stifler (Seann William Scott), the oversexed troublemaker among the group of 20-something friends -- Jim, Kevin (Thomas Ian Nicholas), Finch (Eddie Kay Thomas) -- does a little growing up in "American Wedding."

When the first "Pie" hit theaters, it was in the vanguard of then-popular "gross-out" comedies. Several scenes pushed the boundaries of good taste including one in which Jim, a virgin, uses his mother's homemade pie as a sexual aid.

But in the end, "Pie" served up a rather sweet message about high schoolers losing their virginity, and the storytelling helped boost its U.S. and Canadian ticket sales to $101 million and made it a hit.

In 2001, "Pie 2" had the friends on college summer break and primed for a raunchy sex romp. While it raked in $145 million in ticket sales, "Pie 2" won only mixed reviews.

Herz said the storyteller in him was not pleased with "Pie 2," so for "Wedding" he went back to what worked in the first film. It wasn't the gross-out humor -- though there is plenty of that in "Wedding" including a running gag about shaving pubic hair -- but rather it was an emotional tale of what people will do for love and for the ones they love.

YOU GOT TO HAVE HEART

"It's more like the first movie," said Biggs, "It's a movie with heart."

Eugene Levy, who plays Jim's geeky yet emotionally available father, called the new movie's recipe "raunchiness underpinned by the sentimentality of the wedding."

As the movie picks up, Jim has decided to pop the big question to Michelle, with whom he finally hooked up at band camp in "Pie 2." She, of course, says "yes" to his proposal.

What follows is a walk down a rather well-worn pathway to the altar. There is the telling of the good news to friends, the meeting of the parents, the choice of a best man and bridesmaid and selection of a wedding dress, a caterer and a chapel -- which is difficult if the groom is Jewish and the bride is not.

But that pathway in a "Pie" movie is anything but well-worn. In this case, the walk includes sex in public places, a bachelors' night out in a gay bar and a war of words and pranks between Stifler and Finch for the affection of Michelle's sister, Cadence (January Jones).

While Jim and Michelle's wedding is the movie's climax, the love triangle between Stifler, Cadence and Finch provides much of the movie's tension. To win Cadence's devotion, Stifler must curb his overactive libido, and by the movie's end he has learned a thing or two about devotion to friends and family.

In fact, much of "American Wedding" is devoted to Stifler growing from a man who behaves like an adolescent to a man who behaves, at least sometimes, like a man.
 
"He is the last guy to really come of age," said Herz.

Who Will be the Next Wonka?

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - The original "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" introduced a generation of moviegoers to actor Gene Wilder who played the quirky lead character. He was kind and gentle with the Oompa Loompas, yet manic about his fizzy lifting drinks.

The adaptation of the Roald Dahl children's book was directed by Mel Stuart in 1971 at the suggestion of his daughter. She loved the book so much that she decided her father should bring it to the screen.

The story takes place in a dreary nondescript town in Great Britain. An eccentric candy maker opens his factory to five lucky children who all find golden tickets in a Wonka bar. Little do they know, the child who shuns Mr. Slugworth will be rewarded with the factory.

Tim Burton ("Nightmare Before Christmas," "Beetlejuice") is set to direct his own version of the classic. Danny Elfman is set to score. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" begins filming next year in and around London; however a lead actor has yet to be announced.

Naturally, fans of the original are very opinionated about who could fill Wilder's shoes. Some adamantly oppose a remake at all.

Early reports speculate that it is a horse race between three actors: Johnny Depp, Michael Keaton, and Christopher Walken. All have worked with Burton on previous projects.

CODA

Former Iron Butterfly guitarist Erik Braunn died Friday of heart failure at age 52. Braunn played on the band's epic 1968 hit, "In-a-Gadda-Da-Vida."

Cleaning Kate's House

Don't look for Katharine Hepburn's Oscars to pop up on eBay anytime soon.

The late acting great willed them to an undisclosed charity.

That's just one of the tidbits to emerge from Hepburn's last will and testament, which was obtained Monday by the Smoking Gun.

Hepburn, who died last month at the age of 96, bequeathed most of her estate to family and friends.

Per her will, written and signed in January 1992 and updated with a six-page addendum in March of '94, Kate's estate will mostly be divvied up between her sister Margaret, brother Robert and descendants of her late siblings Richard and Marion.

According to a July 7 application filed in the the Connecticut Court of Probate by ABC News correspondent and Hepburn's friend and executor Cynthia McFadden, the value of Hepburn's personal property is estimated to be $800,000. But that's a low-ball number, since the "gross taxable estate" on her property is $10 million and a recent appraisal put the figure at closer to $20 million.

Hepburn's siblings and their descendants will each receive a quarter of the sales of her homes in New York City and Connecticut. A nephew and a grandniece will each receive $100,000 trusts in their names.

Among her close friends and associates, Hepburn doled out $200,000 to longtime housekeeper Norah Moore; $50,000 to accountant Erik Hanson; $5,000 to her literary agent, Freya Manson; and $10,000 to her close confidante McFadden, who was also bequeathed furniture from Hepburn's Manhattan townhouse, including an 18th century oak dresser and two works of art, one painted by Hepburn herself. Another portrait was given to the National Gallery of Art.

Hepburn also set aside a piece of her 7.17-acre waterfront residence in Old Saybrook, Connecticut, to local or state officials or a select "environmental or conservation organization" to "protect the lot from development...for the benefit of the general public."

Hepburn honored her roots on both stage and screen with matching $10,000 donations to the Actors Fund of America and the Motion Picture and Television Fund. She also conferred another $10,000 to the Episcopal church in Maryland where her grandfather once served as a clergyman.

Her personal belongings--jewelry, furniture, clothing, cars, rugs, pictures, books, silver, china and artwork--were to be divided up among family and friends. Hepburn earmarked some items for charity and gave permission for them to be auctioned.

Then there are those Oscars--Hepburn won a record four Best Actress statuettes--which apparently won't be on the block. She requested the Oscars, along with an extensive memorabilia collection that includes scripts, photos, letters, costumes, clippings and scrapbooks to a "charitable organization" to be determined by McFadden. She also gave said charity permission to publish her "manuscripts, letters or other personal papers or records" should they choose to do so.

Today's New Releases

After weeks of out and out garbage, this week finally sees new titles that are actually worth watching debuting on video and DVD. Most notably is a movie I thought was great, but others didn't like at all. I'm talking about DAREDEVIL and I'm watching some of it even as I write this. Wow, Jennifer Garner is awesome!

Okay, so without further adieu, here are the major new DVD and Video releases for Tuesday, July 29th, 2003:

DAREDEVIL - A blind man uses his radar super power to fight crime in this superb comic book adaptation. And even if you don't liek BEn Affleck as Daredevil, and think that Colin Farrell is too over the top as Bullseye, I assure you that you will totally enjoy what Jennifer Garner does. Even when she is just standing still! (Ben Affleck, Colin Farrell, Jennifer Garner)

Piglet's Big Movie - Piglet goes missing and the gang must search for him. Unless you have no heart you'll enjoy this. So will teh kids. (John Fiedler, Jim Cummings, Ken Sansom)

Solaris - Strange and deadly things are going on aboard space station. Unfortunately they are also boring, slow moving and moody. Unless you are a fan of the actors in the movie, or director Steven Soderbergh, stay away from this space station! (George Clooney, Natascha McElhone, Jeremy Davies)

The Quiet American - A young Vietnamese woman must choose between two suitors. Michael Caine was Oscar nominated for his work in this movie I have yet to see. (Brendan Fraser, Michael Caine, Rade Serbedzija)

Spider - The plot is this: As a child, a man watches his father murder his mother. The film was directed by Canadian David Cronenberg but since it didn't get a large Canadian theatrical release many of us haven't seen it. Now's our chance! (Ralph Fiennes, Miranda Richardson, Gabriel Byrne)

XX/XY - Three New Yorkers enjoy the pleasures of youth. I just wish I could enjoy the pleasures of Kathleen Robertson. (Mark Ruffalo, Kathleen Robertson, Maya Strange).

Actor Campbell Escapes Weekend Accident

RUCH, Ore. - Actor Bruce Campbell, whose credits include "Evil Dead," "Hercules," "Xena, Warrior Princess" and "Spider-Man," suffered minor injuries in a weekend accident.

Campbell, 45, of Jacksonville, was driving late Saturday when his car was struck by a Jeep driven by 36-year-old Steven M. Sellars of Medford.

Sellars, who was ejected from his vehicle and struck the windshield of the Explorer, was listed in critical condition Sunday with head injuries.

Campbell, who has a cult following among horror film buffs, was treated at a local hospital and released.

The Jackson County Sheriff's Department cited Sellars for driving under the influence of intoxicants, assault, failing to maintain lane of travel, driving with a suspended license and for outstanding traffic tickets.

Friends Recall Hope's Life of Laughter

LOS ANGELES - His name said it all.

Over the course of a full century — through economic hardship, four wars and civil unrest — Bob Hope kept people looking on the bright side.

"Isn't it strange that he gave everybody 'hope' all the time?" Mickey Rooney reflected Monday. "That meant he was giving himself."

Rooney, who appeared with Hope in the 1953 boxing comedy "Off Limits," said his slope-nosed co-star was always "on," always ready with a story, a quip or a smart remark. "Whenever we'd go before the camera or come off there'd be a joke or a laugh or something. Life was a laugh and a memory for Bob Hope," Rooney said

He made presidents laugh. He made servicemen laugh. He tickled the funny bones of little kids and grandparents, and teased with the risque without ever going dirty. He grew from a smart-alecky young man to a smart-alecky old man.

Bill Cosby compared Hope's life to a high-stakes poker game: "He played the heck out of his hand, and I tip my hat to him."

Phyllis Diller, a favorite comic foil for Hope, focused on life with him instead of life without him. After all, Hope was never good with drama.

"He had his long moment in the sun, a long moment," she said. "He lived such a healthful life, no wonder he lived to be 100. He didn't smoke or drink, and he had all that outdoor exercise.

"Plus," she added with a cackle, "you know, when you're that rich you don't have so much worry."

She was only half-joking. Hope amassed a fortune by investing his show-business earnings in real estate in California's San Fernando Valley, Palm Springs and Malibu. Forbes magazine in 1983 estimated his wealth at more than $200 million, although he denied it.

So why did he keep working into his 90s?

Steve Martin may have hit on the answer: "Bob Hope not only entertained millions for decades, but we could also see that he was entertaining himself."

Hope's influence stretched far beyond Hollywood.

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan offered his thoughts about the comedian Monday: "I never met him, but he was a great man and he made lots of people happy."

Former President Ford lauded Hope for his "untiring devotion" to American servicemen. From World War II to Korea, Vietnam and Desert Storm, Hope swaggered fearlessly through battle zones as if strolling the back nine of a golf course.

"Nobody did what he did. He went to every front line, trench, and foxhole in every major war. In the history of entertainment, no one gave back so much," comedian Sid Caesar said. "There wasn't anything Bob Hope wouldn't do for someone wearing an armed forces uniform."

Diller often accompanied him on his wartime tours to be the butt of his jokes as he compared her aging, skinny frame to the curvaceous beauties brought along for eye candy.

"He believed in our country and the principles of our country and democracy. That's why he had such a desire to pay back or alleviate the problems of the GIs. He had such an empathy with the fighting guys," Diller said.

He wouldn't have been any good carrying a gun or jumping into a foxhole.

"I don't think he would have been a good shot," Diller joked. "However, he was pretty good with that golf club."

Schwarzenegger Denies Pulling Out of Governor Run

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, the former Mr Universe who is pondering a new role as Mr California Politics, has not decided yet whether to run for governor in a special Oct. 7 vote, an aide said on Monday.

The Republican star of the "Terminator" action films had suggested in recent weeks he would run if an unprecedented recall effort against California's Democratic Governor Gray Davis went forward. But on Monday Fox News television and a Sacramento Bee columnist quoted sources as saying the Austrian-born actor would not seek the position after all.

"There are reports in the media that Arnold Schwarzenegger has decided not to run in the California recall election. These reports are incorrect," Schwarzenegger's political adviser George Gorton said in a statement.

"Arnold spent the weekend continuing his due diligence regarding a possible run. He has made no decision at this time. He will continue to weigh the pros and cons with his family and will continue to seek the counsel of supporters and colleagues."

Media reports speculated that Schwarzenegger's wife, television news personality Maria Shriver -- a member of the nation's best known Democratic family as niece of former President John F. Kennedy -- opposed her husband's entry into high-profile politics.

The filing deadline for candidates seeking to replace Davis is Aug. 9.

Leading Democrats say they will not run in the Republican-backed recall vote. Among Republicans likely to run are Bill Simon Jr., who lost to Davis just last November. U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa, who spent $1.7 million of his own money to help qualify the recall petition against Davis, is already running to lead the nation's richest and most populous state.

The Oct. 7 ballot will ask Californians whether they want to remove Davis, who is unpopular over the state's record budget deficit, and in a second question, list replacement candidates. If voters recall Davis, the winner of the most votes on the second ballot will become governor.

Although Schwarzenegger has no experience in electoral politics, analysts say he could emerge as the strongest candidate because he could position himself as an outsider running against traditional insider Davis.

Meanwhile, Davis received a boost on Sunday night when the state senate voted to back a compromise $100 billion budget that puts off much of the pain of the current deficit to future years. The assembly is scheduled to vote on the matter this week and Davis has signaled he would sign it if it passed.

Entertainer Bob Hope Dies at 100

LOS ANGELES - Bob Hope, ski jump-nosed master of the one-liner and favorite comedian of servicemen and presidents alike, has died, just two months after turning 100.

Hope died late Sunday of pneumonia at his home in Toluca Lake, with his family at his bedside, longtime publicist Ward Grant said Monday.

The nation's most-honored comedian, Hope was a star in every category open to him — vaudeville, radio, television and film, most notably a string of "Road" movies with longtime friend Bing Crosby. For decades, he took his show on the road to bases around the world, boosting the morale of servicemen from World War II to the Gulf War.

President Bush said Monday that "the nation lost a great citizen" with Hope's death.

"Bob Hope served our nation when he went to battlefields to entertain thousands of troops from different generations," the president said. "We extend our prayers to his family. God bless his soul."

Hope perfected the one-liner, peppering audiences with a fusillade of brief, topical gags.

"I bumped into Gerald Ford the other day. I said, `Pardon me.' He said, `I don't do that anymore.'"

He poked fun gently, without malice, and made himself the butt of many jokes. His golf scores and physical attributes, including his celebrated ski-jump nose, were frequent subjects:

"I want to tell you, I was built like an athlete once — big chest, hard stomach. Of course, that's all behind me now."

When Hope went into one of his monologues, it was almost as though the world was conditioned to respond. No matter that the joke was old or flat; he was Bob Hope and he got laughs.

"Audiences are my best friends," he liked to say. "You never tire of talking with your best friends."

He was admired by his peers, and generations of younger comedians. Woody Allen called Hope "the most influential comedian for me."

Hope earned a fortune, gave lavishly to charity and was showered with awards, so many that he had to rent a warehouse to store them.

Through he said he was afraid of flying, Hope traveled countless miles to entertain servicemen in field hospitals, jungles and aircraft carriers from France to Berlin to Vietnam to the Persian Gulf. His Christmas tours became tradition.

He headlined in so many war zones that he had a standard joke for the times he was interrupted by gunfire: "I wonder which one of my pictures they saw?"

So often was Hope away entertaining, and so little did he see his wife, Dolores, and their four adopted children, that he once remarked, "When I get home these days, my kids think I've been booked on a personal appearance tour."

Hope had a reputation as an ad-libber, but he kept a stable of writers and had filing cabinets full of jokes. He never let a good joke die — if it got a laugh in Vietnam, it would get a laugh in Saudi Arabia.  

On his 100th birthday, he was too frail to take part in public celebrations, but was said to be alert and happy — and overwhelmed by the outpouring of affection. The fabled intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street was renamed Bob Hope Square, and President Bush established the Bob Hope American Patriot Award.

"He can't believe that this is happening and that he's made it to his Big 100," son Kelly Hope said at the time.

He was born Leslie Townes Hope on May 29, 1903, in Eltham, England, the fifth of seven sons of a British stonemason and a Welsh singer of light opera. The Hopes emigrated to the United States when he was 4 and settled in Cleveland. They found themselves in the backwash of the 1907 depression.

The boy helped out by selling newspapers and working in a shoe store, a drug store and a meat market. He also worked as a caddy and developed a lifelong fondness for golf. A highly competitive golfer, he later shot in the 70s and sponsored the Bob Hope Golf Classic, one of the nation's biggest tournaments.

Hope changed his name to Bob when classmates ridiculed his English schoolboy name.

He boxed for a time under the name Packy East — "I was on more canvases than Picasso" — and also tried a semester in college before devoting himself to show business. He quickly veered from song and dance to comedy patter, and his monologue routine was born.

By 1930, he had reached vaudeville's pinnacle — The Palace — and in the '30s he played leading parts in such Broadway musicals as "Roberta," "Ziegfeld Follies" and "Red, Hot and Blue," with Ethel Merman and Jimmy Durante. During "Roberta," he met nightclub singer Dolores Reade and invited her to the show. They married in 1934.

After a few guest radio spots, Hope began working regularly on a Bromo Seltzer radio program. In 1938, he was hired by Pepsodent to create his own show, and that led him to Hollywood.

Paramount signed him for "The Big Broadcast of 1938," in which he introduced the song that became his trademark: "Thanks for the Memory."

Soon he was teaming with Crosby in the seven "Road" pictures — "Road to Bali," "Road to Morocco," "Road to Zanzibar" and so on — playing best friends who lie, cheat and make fun of each other in comedic competition for glory and Dorothy Lamour.

In between, there were such pictures as "Cat and the Canary," "The Paleface," "Louisiana Purchase," "My Favorite Blonde," "That Certain Feeling," "I'll Take Sweden" and "Boy, Did I get a Wrong Number." He made 53 films from 1938 to 1972.

In 1950, he entered television, and his successes continued. Even 40 years later, he could be counted on to pull in respectable ratings. He also appeared more than 20 times at the Academy Awards, first on radio and than on television, as presenter, cohost or host between 1939 and 1978.

Hope started playing to troops well before the United States entered World War II.

He tried to enlist, but was told he could be of more use as an entertainer. He played his first camp show at California's March Field on May 6, 1941, seven months before Pearl Harbor.

His traditional Christmas tours began in 1948, when he went to Berlin to entertain GIs involved in the airlift.

"It's as if every one of them was his kid brother," Mrs. Hope once said.

His 1966 Vietnam Christmas show, when televised, was watched by an estimated 65 million people, the largest audience of his career. But his initially hawkish views on Vietnam opened a gap between the comedian and young Americans opposed to the war, who sometimes heckled him.

Later, Hope said he was "just praying they get an honorable peace so our guys don't have to fight. I've seen too many wars."

In 1990, he traveled to the Persian Gulf to entertain troops preparing for war with Iraq. Because Saudi Arabia bars female entertainers, he had to leave Marie Osmond and the Pointer Sisters behind in Bahrain.

Hope never had a regular straight man, but he worked often with crooner Crosby, first in radio, where they developed a routine of insulting each other merrily. Crosby helped make Hope's nose famous as a "droop snoot" and a "ski run." For his part, Hope replied: "Only in Hollywood could a meatball make so much gravy."

Hope's awards included scores of honorary degrees; special Oscars for humanitarianism and service to the film industry; the George Peabody Award; the National Conference of Christians and Jews Award; and the Medal of Freedom from President Johnson. He received honorary knighthood from Britain in 1998.

He was the author or co-author of 10 books, including his 1990 autobiography, "Don't Shoot, It's Only Me."

Hope's 85-year-old nephew, Milton Hope, said Monday he hopes his uncle is remembered not just for his jokes, but also for donating his money and time to charities.

"All I can say is he sure made a lot of people happy," Milton Hope said from his home in Aurora, Ohio.

In the mid-'90s, Hope played charity dates around the nation, but he seemed to slow his schedule. What was billed as his last NBC special, "Laughing with the Presidents," focusing on his long friendships with many occupants of the White House, appeared in late 1996. His more than 60-year association with the network was said to be a record.

In recent years, his hearing eroded, although he refused to wear a hearing aid. He suffered recurring eye problems, once remarking: "I've got a hemorrhage in the right eye now, and I used to have one in the left eye. I'm a walking hemorrhage."

Until increasing frailty slowed him down, Hope repeatedly pledged never to quit entertaining.

"I'm not retiring until they carry me away," he said. "And I'll have a few routines on the way to the big divot."

Congratulations To Dave and Mags! Well Done!!!

Grace Chant
Born July 27th 2003 @ 0930
Weight 6 lb / 2888 g
Apgars 9+9

Mom and Baby are doing great.

Wanna see some pictures?

Dido Dishes On 'White Flag'

It's been an emotionally difficult year for Dido, and the music on her forthcoming Life For Rent album will reflect some of that pain. The set's first single "White Flag" deals with Dido calling off her engagement with long time boyfriend Bob Page.

Dido tells the London Sun the song is an apology to Page for breaking his heart. "It was a big decision not to get married...," says Dido. “We're still friends, we still get along amazingly well and he's still the love of my life."

Dido called off the wedding due to a chaotic touring schedule, and the demands of her career.

Life For Rent is due out in the U.S. on September 30.

The album is the follow-up to No Angel, which was certified four-times platinum by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) with worldwide sales of more than 12 million copies.

'Nemo' floats DVD, outswims the rest

Finding Nemo is expected to become the highest-grossing animated film of all time today, the same day Disney announces plans for the Nemo DVD.
Since opening May 30, Nemo has grossed $312.7 million.

Since opening May 30, Nemo has grossed $312.7 million, just shy of Disney's 1994 hit The Lion King, which made $312.9 million. Nemo is already the biggest film of 2003.

"Who would have thought? It's pretty wild and we're all pinching ourselves," Nemo writer/director Andrew Stanton says. The Oscar-nominated filmmaker co-wrote all four previous Disney/Pixar films including Toy Story and Monsters, Inc.

The two-disc Nemo DVD will hit stores Nov. 4. Among the highlights: a Jean-Michel Cousteau documentary of Australia's Great Barrier Reef, where the film is set; a fish encyclopedia; deleted scenes; a cool option that allows you to turn your TV into a virtual aquarium; and a sneak peek at the next Disney/Pixar film, The Incredibles, opening November 2004.

As for Nemo's future, there are no plans for a sequel — yet. "We're not going to let the hype influence us into making rash decisions," Stanton says. "If there is a sequel, it will happen when there's a story that's equal or better than the first."

ON TOP OF THE HEAP

Fox renewing King of the Hill for a ninth year, through 2004-05 season.

SPLITSVILLE

...After a year of wedded bliss, lawsuits and general kookiness, Liza Minnelli and David Gest have separated, according to her publicist. No immediate word on whether they plan to divorce.

PASSING

Director John Schlesinger, who won an Oscar for helming Midnight Cowboy, died Friday, a day after he was been taken off life support. He was 77. The director had been in ill health since suffering a massive stroke in December 2000.

WHAT A DRAG IT IS GETTING OLD

Mick Jagger celebrating his 60th birthday Saturday with a private party in Prague, where the Rolling Stones are midway through their 40 Licks tour. On Sunday, the dino-rockers will play a gig at the Prague National Stadium for 60,000 fans.

Cartoon 'Futurama' Ending After 4 Seasons

NEW YORK - A prediction: Viewers eons from now will give "Futurama" the credit it deserves today.

Oh, it may not make them laugh. But when the show's time finally comes, this shrewd cartoon series could well be endorsed as an accurate picture of life, circa A.D. 3000.

For now, however, we ancients of the 21st century who love it will continue to celebrate "Futurama" as unbeatable satire — even as its prime-time cycle nears an end.

Fortunately, "Futurama" reruns air on Cartoon Network at 11 p.m. EDT Sundays through Thursdays as part of that network's "Adult Swim" program block. Next month, the second "Futurama" season will be released on DVD by Fox Home Entertainment.

And on the Fox network, the final three new "Futurama" episodes can be seen Sundays at 7 p.m. through Aug. 10.

Granted, four seasons in prime time is nothing to sneeze at — unless compared to "The Simpsons," still going gangbusters on Fox after 14 years.

Matt Groening's big "Simpsons" follow-up, "Futurama" has always been overshadowed by his brilliant first-born.

Who knows why? The verbal humor, sight gags, wicked cultural jabs and general irreverence that make "The Simpsons" great are found full-strength on "Futurama," as is spectacular voice talent (including Billy West, John DiMaggio and Katey Sagal).

What's more, "Futurama" took a bold step beyond "The Simpsons" (based as it is in Homer Simpson's hometown of Springfield) to take on the entire universe from a vantage point a thousand years away.

Its odd little band includes Fry, a twentysomething slacker who, on the first episode, inadvertently time-traveled from 1999 to 2999. There, in the city rechristened New New York, he fell in with Bender, a sarcastic robot-reprobate and Leela, a sexy, kick-boxing alien with a single large eyeball.

They work as the delivery crew for Professor Farnsworth, who at 160 years old is both a genius and senile, and happens to be Fry's great-(times 30)-nephew. One other notable is Dr. Zoidberg, a lobsterlike alien who serves as staff physician for Farnsworth's intergalactic FedEx.

Just these details should make it clear: "Futurama" goes anywhere, anytime, with every manner of creature and cargo, to deliver the laughs. And to drive home the show's bleakly funny lesson: Life as we know it (whatever the millennium or galaxy) is an exercise in lowered expectations.

Item: In mid-flight, Fry spots a planet and, hungry, wonders if it might have a restaurant.

"Don't get your hopes up," says Bender. "We're a billion miles from nowhere."

"Yeah," agrees Leela, eyeing the planet. "It's probably only got a Howard Johnson's."

In the future, clone candidates square off in meaningless elections. Santa Claus is a huge, evil robot who bellows threats like "Your mistletoe is no match for my TOW missile!" And nature is out of control (although, happily, nuclear winter has canceled out global warming).

Even death is a muddled institution. The heads of famous people from the past spend eternity alive, displayed in jars in a Head Museum where Richard Nixon ("I am not a crook's head!") can consort with George Washington, TV pitchman Ron Popeil or even Matt Groening.

"Futurama" informs us that, a thousand years from now, advertisements will be beamed into a sleeping person's dreams.

"That's awful!" says Fry. "It's like brainwashing."

"Didn't you have ads in the 20th century?" asks Leela.

"Not in our dreams!" replies Fry. "Only on TV and radio. And in magazines. And movies. And at ballgames. And on buses. And milk cartons. And t-shirts. And bananas. And written on the sky. But not in dreams! No sirree!"

Even when the "present day" of 3000 appears enlightened, any such sign of progress serves to underscore the follies of the "past."

For instance: Remember garbage, that signature of the 21st century? They don't in the future. No one knows what garbage is.

"We recycle EVERYTHING," Leela boasts to Fry. "Robots are made from old beer cans."

"Yeah," adds Bender, hoisting a brew, "and this beer can is made out of old robots!"

It falls to Fry to share long-lost techniques for littering. Just as, on another episode, he draws on 20th century logic to argue that TV should avoid all cleverness, since "clever things make people feel stupid, and unexpected things make them feel scared."

As viewers eons from now may discover, "Futurama" never bothered to take its own advice.

'Spy Kids' Outpaces 'Seabiscuit'

LOS ANGELES - The big story at the weekend box office was not which movie came in first — it was "Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over" with $32.5 million — but which of four possible contenders placed second.

Two new films — the Angelina Jolie adventure sequel "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider — The Cradle of Life" and the true-life racehorse drama "Seabiscuit" — became locked in a virtual dead heat for the follow-up slot with the recent releases "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" and the action-comedy "Bad Boys II."

Weekend earnings estimates Sunday placed all the films within $900,000 of each other. "There are four films here that could literally change places on Monday when we get the final figures," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Although No. 2 appeared too close to call, the prospective victor was "Pirates of the Caribbean," which estimates showed earning $22.4 million, followed by "Bad Boys II" with $22 million.

The "Tomb Raider" sequel ranked fourth with $21.8 million, less than half what the original film earned in its opening weekend June 2001, when it debuted with $47.7 million. Dergarabedian characterized the second "Tomb Raider" performance as further evidence of the unreliability of sequels this summer, comparing it with "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle."

"Seabiscuit" came in fifth this weekend, with $21.5 million, although Universal Pictures argued the movie was running in a different race, since it showed on at least 1,200 fewer locations than each of its rivals.

Nikki Rocco, Universal's head of distribution, characterized this weekend as a warm-up run for the movie, which will expand to more theaters next weekend. "This was to get the word of mouth to really sell the film," she said. "This picture is in for the long distance."

"Seabiscuit" was shown at about 1,989 sites, compared with "Spy Kids 3-D" at 3,344. The horse tale had the highest earnings per theater with $10,809 — compared with "Spy Kids 3-D," which had $9,719 and the other second-place competitors, which climbed no higher than $6,900.

"'Seabiscuit' was filling theaters," Dergarabedian said. "It was not in as many theaters as the others, but it filled more seats in those theaters."

"Spy Kids 3-D" nearly doubled the debut earnings of last summer's "Spy Kids 2." The film attracted a broader teenage audience with its paper blue-and-red tinted glasses, which made some images appear to pop off the screen, said Bob Weinstein, co-founder of Miramax Films, whose Dimension banner released the movie.

"Whatever they paid for those paper glasses was worth it," Dergarabedian said.

The top 12 movies earned $145.6 million, up about 10 percent from the same weekend last year, when "Austin Powers in Goldmember" was the top movie with $73 million. Weekend revenues this summer generally have trailed those of last year.

Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over," $32.5 million
2. "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," $22.4 million.
3. "Bad Boys II," $22 million.
4. "Lara Croft: Tomb raider — The Cradle of Life," $21.8 million.
5. "Seabiscuit," $21.5 million.
6. "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," $5 million
7. "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," $4.9 million.
8. "Johnny English," $4.3 million.
9. "Finding Nemo," $4 million.
10. "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde," $2.7 million.

Sex Pistols Ready to Bring Anarchy to U.S.A.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Billboard) - Never mind the bollocks. Can the Sex Pistols sell tickets?

"That's a good question," says Jim Glancy, vice president for promoter Clear Channel Entertainment in New York. The answer will come soon enough; the punk pioneers embark on their first tour in seven years this summer.

The Pistols' John "Johnny Rotten" Lydon has no false illusions that tickets will fly out the window.

"They won't blow out," he says with a sneer. "We're just filling in between . And I don't care; I just do what I do. Bloody hell."

Despite punk's enduring popularity -- perhaps best exemplified by the consistently successful Vans Warped tour -- the Sex Pistols' drawing power remains somewhat of an enigma.

Not counting their ill-fated, seven-date 1978 fiasco, the band has only toured North America once, on 1996's Filthy Lucre reunion tour.

The absence makes the band a bit of an unknown entity. "I have a pretty good idea about what I'm gonna do with something like classic rock, modern rock or country," Glancy says, "but with the Sex Pistols, I have nothing to compare it to."

The Pistols package includes Dropkick Murphys and the Reverend Horton Heat. The tour is just 13 dates, beginning Aug. 20 at FleetBoston Pavilion in Boston and wrapping Sept. 7 at the San Diego Street Scene festival.

The 1996 reunion tour did "solid business," according to Ron Opaleski, agent for the Sex Pistols at the William Morris Agency. Only 11 shows from that tour were reported to Billboard Boxscore, with an average gross of $96,578 and average attendance per show at 4,143.

Lydon considers the '96 tour "very successful, but not money-wise. How would it be? We're the Sex Pistols, nobody likes us and we don't care."

So why reunite now?

"Who says we reunited?" Lydon asks. "We never separated. We don't need a reason for anything. Let the copycats sit around and come up with reasons for things."

Still, Lydon seems to think the time is right to spread a little anarchy in North America. "There is a vast amount of disenfranchised in America," he says. "It's important to let them know we're still here."

BACK FOR MORE

Glancy would like to do better than the 1996 average on his Aug. 21 show at Tommy Hilfiger at Jones Beach Performing Arts Center in Wantagh, N.Y.

Break-even is between 5,000 and 6,000, and Glancy says the curiosity factor alone ought to be enough to hit that number. "I'd be disappointed if we didn't do 6,000-7,000," he says. Tickets are $27.50 and $47.50 for the Jones Beach show.

Elliott Lefko, VP of artist development for House of Blues Concerts Canada, promoted the Pistols in '96 and is looking forward to HOB's Aug. 25 Pistols show at Toronto's Molson Amphitheater.
 
Lefko says ticket sales are "about what we thought they would be" in the early going, at between 3,000 and 4,000. He says they ended up at about 5,000 in 1996, but the show was even more successful on another level.

"This was one of the best shows we've ever done here, not in terms of sales, but how the joint was rocking," Lefko recalls. "It seemed like the whole amphitheater was pogo-ing."

Lefko believes the Pistols tour fills an underserved niche. "This audience doesn't have much out there anymore," he says. "It's a really cool audience, but they're not gonna go see Korn or a lot of what's on the radio."

Individual promoter deals were cut in each market, with buyers including CCE, HOB and independents. "Everyone's really excited," Opaleski says. "This is a band that shaped the scope of contemporary music."

Lydon is not surprised that promoters came to the table. "They always do, mate," he says. "We need them, and they need us."

Despite the tour's brevity, it is unlikely other dates will be added. "We wanted to hit the major majors and keep it short and sweet," Opaleski says.

"This is all we could get," Lydon counters. "If we can get more along the way, we will."

The Pistol's production will be predictably low-fi. "There will be no twaddling about playing with knobs and all that," he says. "We're the smallest-equipped band possible, but we kick up a ferocious sound."

BIG IN BAGHDAD?

Lydon says he is indeed serious when asked about published reports that the Pistols want to play Baghdad.

"We're very, very interested in playing Baghdad, and we're meeting all kinds of denials and red tape," Lydon says. "I'm slowly cutting my way through it."

He adds: "If you want to give them democracy, do it properly. Give them the Sex Pistols. Wake up, America."

Lydon says the band would promote the show "as an act of charity," adding, "I don't do these things as a joke or a prank, as strange as that may sound to those of lesser mental abilities that really don't get the point of being alive."

Dropkick Murphys, a Boston-based, Celtic-tinged punk band, will hook up with the Sex Pistols following a stint on Warped, bringing some box-office clout of their own to the tour, particularly in their hometown.

According to Somers, "The last time Dropkick Murphys played Boston over St. Patrick's Day, they sold out four nights at the Avalon in advance -- over 8,000 tickets."

Lydon calls Dropkick Murphys "a good bunch of lads." But he is mostly unimpressed with today's punk artists.

"Britney Spears is as punk as that silly Lavigne bird," he says. "I never, ever cared for Green Day, with their ice cream van and huge video productions. As far as I'm concerned, anything that's MTV-led I worry about. MTV is like a headless chicken."

Lydon feels young punk acts might be well-served to see the Pistols in action this summer.

"We can't find sponsors, we don't have a record company. But we're still here. That might be a bloody good little education for anyone out there that wants to be a pop star. They shouldn't want to be. They should want to be something more serious -- a la us."

Yo! Joey Scores "Friends" Spinoff

Joey Tribbiani is leaving his Friends behind and heading to Hollywood.

Matt LeBlanc, twice Emmy-nominated for his role as the dim-witted wannabe actor, is going solo, inking a deal with NBC and producer Warner Bros. Television to star in a Friends spinoff, the parties announced in a joint statement Thursday.

As part of the package deal, LeBlanc will also star in two upcoming Warner Bros. movies.

In Joey, set to debut in Friends' longtime 8 p.m. Thursday slot starting in fall 2004, Joey heads out West to pursue his acting career.

"I'm pleased to say that NBC's wonderful relationship with such a once-in-a-decade series as Friends will continue in a sense but in a new direction that will keep it fresh," says NBC programming chief Jeff Zucker in a statement. "Matt's lovable character of Joey Tribbiani has come into his own in recent years on the series, and Joey's progression will continue as he emerges more on his own--we know that everyone will be rooting for him."

The idea of a Joey-centric spinoff were first floated last fall, with plans going into overdrive once LeBlanc and his Friends pals agreed to disband in May 2004 at the end of the upcoming 10th season.

With the Ross-Rachel storyline played out and Monica and Chandler married off, Joe became the show's most compelling character, and the perfect subject for his own series, the network says.

The network is hedging its bet for Joey by signing on Friends executive producers Kevin Bright, Scott Silveri and Shana Goldberg-Meehan to helm the spinoff.

For his part, LeBlanc says he can't wait to get started (and apparently bolster his already hefty bank account in the process).

"Matt is thrilled. Over the last couple of seasons, Joey has grown into such a rich character," said LeBlanc's publicist and lawyer on behalf of the actor, who is out of the country and unavailable for comment. "LeBlanc's arrangement with Warner Bros and the network is a complex deal of unprecedented proportion and includes, among other elements, a significant ownership position."

In other words: Cha-ching!

Of course, LeBlanc is going to have to prove he can score sans his Friends. So far, his non-Friends track record is abysmal. With the exception of his cameos in the two Charlie's Angels flicks, his film résumé includes such lowlights as Ed, the baseball comedy in which he starred opposite a chimp; the box-office black hole Lost in Space; and All the Queen's Men, where he starred as a soldier in drag.

But NBC is banking on the Friends pedigree. As the anchor of the Peacock's "Must-See" Thursday lineup since 1994, the show has won several Emmys and is up for 11 more this year, including Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for LeBlanc, his second straight nod. The sitcom remains TV's top-ranked sitcom and has averaged a whopping 21.8 million viewers during its nine-year run.

With both Friends and Frasier (which is, of course, the hugely successful spinoff of Cheers and what NBC hopes is a blueprint for Joey) on their way out at the end of the season, and CBS' CSI-Survivor Thursday roster seriously challenging in the Nielsens, NBC is desperate to come up with a new comedy franchise.

Already, the network's gambit seems to be working. Fans are peppering Internet chat boards with pro-Joey notices, delighted that Friends will live on, at least in part.

"Howww youuu doin'?" cheered one fan on a Yahoo board. "That's great--he's the best character on the show."

Missy Elliott Works MTV Vid Noms

Yeah, it's worth it for Missy Elliott to work it.

The rapper's efforts on her boot-knocking anthem "Work It" from her 2002 album, Under Construction, have paid off--she leads the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards Nominations with eight nominations, the music network announced Thursday.

Elliott's freaky music video, which features bumble bees, twisted trees and 360-degree head spins, is up for Video of the Year, Best Female Video and Best Hip-Hop Video. In the techie categories, it's nominated for Best Direction, Special Effects, Art Direction, Editing and Cinematography.

Close behind is Justin Timberlake with seven nominations for clips from his debut solo album, Justified (say bye-bye-bye 'N Sync), including two nods for his disco hit "Rock Your Body" and five for his lost love lament "Cry Me a River," featuring the boy bander's revenge on a cheating Britney Spears look-alike.

Next--and we're not making this up--Johnny Cash's version of the Nine Inch Nails song "Hurt" racked up six nominations, including Video of the Year, Best Male Video and Best Direction.

"I am overwhelmed by this great honor," the unlikely VMA candidate said in a written statement. "I thank you all for thinking of me. It's been 48 years since I cut my first record and it's nice that people are still digging them up."

At this point you may be wondering just who determines the nominees? The selections are made by a pool of 500 music industry types and viewers, according to MTV. Fans will get their chance to weigh in by voting on the Viewer's Choice and MTV2 Awards categories.

Elliott, Timberlake and Cash will go head-to-head with Eminem's "Lose Yourself" and 50 Cent's "In Da Club," for Video of the Year. Both rappers received five nods apiece.

The odds look good for Elliott, a two-time VMA winner who's on a roll. Last week she was nominated for two Lady of Soul Awards for her sexy single; she'll appear in a Gap ad campaign, which kicks off July 28, alongside Madonna to the strains of "Get Into the Groove" remixed; Elliott's also working on her fifth studio album, which is scheduled to hit stores in November.

Other nominees with multiple chances at carrying home the gold (or at least gold-plate) include Beyoncé Knowles and Jay-Z, who upped their chances by collaborating on each others videos. The are-they-or-aren't-they couple nabbed four nominations for her single "Crazy in Love" and one nomination for his single "03 Bonnie & Clyde."

Alt-rock band the White Stripes bagged four nominations for "Seven Nation Army." Ditto for Radiohead, which tallied a quartet of noms for "There There." Meanwhile, newbie Kelly Clarkson managed to pick up three nods for her hit "Miss Independent" off her debut album Thankful, almost rivaling pop diva J.Lo, who earned a respectable four nominations for "I'm Glad."

Hosting the August 28 shindig is Chris Rock, with performances scheduled at New York City's Radio City Music Hall from Christina Aguilera, who scored four nominations of her own for "Dirrty," and Coldplay, which received three nods for "The Scientist."

Here's a rundown of the major categories:

Video of the Year:

* 50 Cent, "In Da Club"
* Johnny Cash, "Hurt"
* Missy Elliott, "Work It"
* Eminem, "Lose Yourself"
* Justin Timberlake, "Cry Me a River"

Best Male Video:

* 50 Cent, "In Da Club"
* Eminem, "Lose Yourself"
* Justin Timberlake, "Cry Me a River"
* Johnny Cash, "Hurt"
* John Mayer, "Your Body Is A Wonderland"

Best Female Video:

* Avril Lavigne, "I'm With You"
* Christina Aguilera featuring Redman, "Dirrty"
* Missy Elliott, "Work It"
* Beyoncé featuring Jay-Z, "Crazy In Love"
* Jennifer Lopez, "I'm Glad"

Best Group Video:

* B2K and P. Diddy, "Bump, Bump, Bump"
* Good Charlotte, "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous"
* The White Stripes, "Seven Nation Army"
* Coldplay, "The Scientist"
* The Donnas, "Take It Off"

Best Rap Video:

* 2Pac featuring Nas, "Thugz Mansion"
* Eminem, "Lose Yourself"
* Nas, "I Can"
* 50 Cent, "In Da Club"
* Ludacris featuring Mystikal and I-20, "Move"

Best R&B Video:

* Aaliyah, "I Miss You"
* Ashanti, "Rock Wit U"
* Beyoncé featuring Jay-Z, "Crazy in Love"
* Nelly featuring Kelly Rowland, "Dilemma"
* R. Kelly, "Ignition Remix"

Best Hip-Hop Video:

* Busta Rhymes and Mariah Carey, "I Know What You Want"
* Jay-Z featuring Beyoncé, "03 Bonnie & Clyde"
* Missy Elliott, "Work It"
* Nelly, "Hot in Herre"
* Snoop Dogg featuring Pharrell and Uncle Charlie Wilson, "Beautiful"

Best Rock Video:

* Evanescence, "Bring Me to Life"
* Linkin Park, "Somewhere I Belong"
* The White Stripes, "Seven Nation Army"
* Good Charlotte, "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous"
* Metallica, "St. Anger"

Best Pop Video:

* Avril Lavigne, "Sk8er Boi"
* Christina Aguilera featuring Redman, "Dirrty"
* Justin Timberlake, "Cry Me a River"
* Kelly Clarkson, "Miss Independent"
* No Doubt featuring Lady Shaw, "Underneath It All"

Best New Artist in a Video:

* 50 Cent, "In Da Club"
* Evanscence, "Bring Me to Life"
* Sean Paul, "Get Busy"
* All American Rejects, "Swing Swing"
* Kelly Clarkson, "Miss Independent"
* Simple Plan, "Addicted"

Best Video from a Film:

* Britney Spears featuring Pharrell of N.E.R.D., "Boys Co-Ed" from Austin Powers Goldmember
* JC Chasez, "Blowing Me Up [With Her Love]" from Drumline
* Eminem, "Lose Yourself" from 8 Mile
* Madonna, "Die Another Day" from Die Another Day

Viewer’s Choice:

* 50 Cent, "In Da Club"
* Eminem, "Lose Yourself"
* Timberlake, "Cry Me a River"
* Beyoncé featuring Jay-Z, "Crazy in Love"
* Good Charlotte, "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous"
* Kelly Clarkson, "Miss Independent"

MTV2 Award:

* AFI, "Girl's Not Grey"
* Interpol, "PDA"
* The Roots featuring Cody Chesnutt, "The Seed 2.0"
* Common featuring Mary J. Blige, "Come Close"
* Queens of the Stone Age, "No One Knows"

Breakthrough Video:

* Coldplay, "The Scientist"
* Sum 41, "The Hell Song"
* Queens of the Stone Age, "No One Knows"
* Floetry, "Floetic"
* Kenna, "New Sacred Cow"

McCartney slams KFC in newspaper ad

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (CP) -- Music legend Paul McCartney is joining PETA's battle against fast-food giant KFC, taking out a full page ad in the city's biggest newspaper to accuse the company of mistreating chickens.

"If KFC paid for dogs or cats to be treated the way these unfortunate chickens are treated, they could be charged with cruelty to animals," McCartney, a longtime vegetarian, says in the open letter to KFC that's to appear Thursday in the Courier-Journal in Louisville, KFC's corporate headquarters.

"These remarkable animals are deserving of at least a little kindness."

KFC has long denied claims from PETA, the animal rights group, that it mistreats chickens. A spokesman for KFC could not be immediately reached for comment on Wednesday.

McCartney's letter to KFC's David Novak, the company's chief executive officer, challenges him to improve conditions for millions of KFC birds.

PETA claims KFC raises 750 million chickens each year in overcrowded, feces-filled sheds on "factory farms" and kills them in inhumane ways for KFC restaurants.

McCartney and PETA are calling on KFC to replace electric stunning and throat-slitting with painless gas killing, to phase out the forced rapid growth of chickens, and to implement automated chicken-catching, which they say would reduce the high incidence of bruising and broken wings and legs.

In May, the company said in a news release it would adopt "comprehensive industry-leading guidelines and audits for the humane raising and handling of poultry."

It also said KFC has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to review a proposal on the feasibility of gas-killing chickens following PETA's suggestion.
McCartney's letter is the latest volley in PETA's so-called Kentucky Fried Cruelty Campaign.

Last week, musician Chrissie Hynde was among several people arrested while protesting at a KFC in Paris, where she was performing.

Earlier this month, PETA filed a lawsuit against KFC for allegedly making deceptive statements about the treatment of its birds.

Weezer Toiling On Numerous Projects

Weezer fans wouldn't be blamed for being a bit confused as to the group's working schedule. After releasing only two albums during its first seven years of existence, the band dropped the Geffen sets "Weezer" ("The Green Album") and "Maladroit" in May 2001 and May 2002, respectively. Now the Weezer camp is hard at work on a variety of projects.

First, the group is in the pre-production stages for its fifth studio album, cutting demos and rehearsing. It plans to start recording in the late summer or fall with, as previously reported, celebrated producer Rick Rubin.

Weezer has recorded a number of new tracks for compilations, and is working on a DVD, a special edition reissue of its debut album and a brand-new studio set. As previously reported, the group is contributing an unreleased 1995 demo titled "You Won't Get With Me Tonight" to "Gimme Skelter," a compilation album due in September from Buddyhead Records.

A live recording of "Why Bother" was included on the Petra Haden benefit double 7" on Vegas Records, and Weezer is also readying a newly recorded cover of Green Day's "Worry Rock" for the Green Day tribute "A Different Shade of Green," released this week by Skunk Ape Records.

The DVD is expected to be released by December but no details are yet available as to its content. The group's official Web site says the main content of the disc is finished, with a projected running time of more than three hours. The site also says the band is working on ideas for an expanded reissue of its 1994 Geffen debut, "Weezer" ("The Blue Album").

NBC has sitcom plans for 'Friends' pal Joey

LOS ANGELES — Joey Tribbiani is headed for California — and life without Friends.

NBC today plans to announce a deal with Matt LeBlanc to star in Joey, a Friends spinoff featuring one of the more beloved characters from TV's top-rated comedy.

The series, which won't include any other Friends cast members, will premiere in September 2004, almost certainly in the newly vacated Thursday at 8 p.m. ET/PT time slot, after Friends ends its 10th and final season in May.

No script has been written, but the show is believed to be based on a scenario in which Joey moves to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career, probably to be joined by a love interest and an ensemble cast.

Friends creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane aren't involved in the project — they said last year that they had no interest in a spinoff — but partner and Friends veteran Kevin S. Bright will executive-produce the series along with Scott Silveri and Shana Goldberg-Meehan. They've written recent story lines about soap actor Joey, who has become a more prominent character in the past two seasons.

LeBlanc will take a significant pay cut from the roughly $1 million per episode that he'll make for the final season of Friends. And unlike with other star-driven series, he won't be a producer. But he'll have input into casting and earn a greater share of the show's profits if it's successful.

A Joey spinoff has been in the discussion stages for nearly two years but has been put off each time Friends has been extended for an additional season.

Yet Friends producers, Warner Bros. Television and NBC insist this will be the final season, with only 18 episodes produced instead of the customary 22.

All along they saw LeBlanc — who won his second Emmy nomination last week — as the likeliest spinoff character.

Top candidate Jennifer Aniston expressed zero interest in continuing the role of Rachel, and an idea to pair Joey with Matthew Perry's Chandler Bing in a buddy comedy was rejected as too limiting.

Either way, it's clear that NBC needs some help: The network hasn't found a new comedy hit since Will & Grace premiered in 1998, and both Friends and the fading Frasier will be history in May. With CBS winning Thursdays last season, NBC views Joey as an insurance policy to protect its most important night.

No one expects Joey to capture as large an audience as Friends, which averaged nearly 22 million viewers last season. And the history of successful comedy spinoffs is limited: For every Frasier (spawned from Cheers), there are several After M*A*S*Hes that quickly faded. Joey will be expensive by new-sitcom standards, costing NBC nearly $2 million an episode, but still far short of the $10 million that the network is shelling out for the final year of Friends.

BIG SCREEN-BOUND

Miramax joining forces with Archie Comics Entertainment to make Betty & Veronica, a live-action film based on the classic comic strip featuring the blond and brunette hotties.

HASTA LA VISTA, FILM CAREER?

Arnold Schwarzenegger returning to California from a promotional trip in Europe to file the necessary paperwork to run for governor should state officials certify the Republican-led recall drive against Governor Gray Davis.

Disney Inks Deal on Downloading Movies

LOS ANGELES - Scores of Disney films like "Chicago" and "Monsters Inc." will soon be available for downloading off the Internet through a licensing deal reached between the entertainment giant and online movie service Movielink, the companies said Wednesday.

The agreement between The Walt Disney Co. subsidiary Buena Vista Pay Television and Movielink was finalized last week. Financial terms were not disclosed.

The deal gives Movielink access to film titles from all the major studios except one — Twentieth Century Fox Studios — and boosts its library of digitized films to around 400 from the 175 the company had when it launched eight months ago.

Movies from Walt Disney Pictures, Touchstone, Miramax and Dimension New Releases will be available through the service. Among the first releases will be "Gangs of New York," "The Recruit" and "The Jungle Book 2."

The first batch of Disney titles won't be available until August because they have to be transferred to a format for downloading, Movielink CEO Jim Ramo said.

Plans by Disney to develop a video-on-demand service called MovieBeam this fall are still on, a Disney spokeswoman said. Unlike Movielink, MovieBeam would deliver films directly to consumers' TVs through a set-top box.

Disney will set the retail price for the movie downloads, which typically range between $2.95 and $4.99, Movielink said.

The movie files can be viewed on a PC or on a television connected to a computer, but customers have a maximum of 30 days to begin watching their downloaded movie. Once they begin to do so, the movie can be viewed only over the next 24 hours.

A computer with a broadband Internet connection is necessary to use the service.

Cheech and Chong Take Another Hit

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Think the Cheech & Chong film franchise ended with 1984's "Cheech & Chong's The Corsican Brothers?" Think again.

The comedy duo is reuniting after 20 years for a new feature set up at New Line Cinema that will catch up with Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong's wacky stoner personas in the present day.

The untitled project is in the early stages of development at New Line. Marin and Chong already have worked out a story line and will pen the script along with an additional writer to be recruited by New Line. Robbi Chong, one of Chong's daughters, will serve as a producer on the project.

"The world is ripe and ready for a new Cheech & Chong movie, especially considering they have a whole new generation of fans out there," said New Line senior vp production Kent Alterman, who is overseeing the project alongside New Line production president Toby Emmerich. "They came in and told us that they're ready to do something again, which we think is a great idea."

After parting company in the mid-1980s, Marin and Chong started talking about working together again about a year ago when they realized that there was a lot of Cheech & Chong-related merchandise being sold -- particularly through the Internet -- that they weren't profiting from at all.

The two started talking with Marin's manager, Power Entertainment CEO David Goldman (who now also represents Chong), about pursuing a licensing deal. At the same time, Chong's daughters, Robbi and Rae Dawn Chong, had written a script for a feature that included roles for two Cheech & Chong-esque characters.

That got them thinking about the prospect of reuniting onscreen (though the Chong sisters' script is not the basis for the New Line project), and they quickly realized that they were still very much in sync as writers and performers.

Marin, who is busy preparing for the start of production on his new Fox sitcom "The Ortegas," said the two have been approached many times over the years to reunite, but the timing never felt right. After their partnership broke up, Marin maintained a laser-like focus on establishing himself as a successful actor in his own right.

"The time finally came where I felt I had distanced myself enough from the old Cheech persona; people have accepted me as an actor," said Marin, who starred opposite Don Johnson in the CBS cop show "Nash Bridges" from 1996-2001. "I think Tommy and I have a better understanding of each other now, too. Creating with him again is the easiest thing I've ever done. It's so intuitive for us."

Chong, who most recently has been seen in a recurring role on Fox's "That '70s Show," echoed Marin's sentiments.

"It feels so good," he said. "When you've been together with someone as long as we were together, there's a oneness that can't be broken."

New Line was their first stop, Marin said, given the studio's track record with comedy franchises like "Austin Powers."

Chong credited Marin with having the foresight to allow the anticipation for a Cheech & Chong reunion to build over the years, even as the best of their films and albums achieved comedy-legend status.

"You know me -- if anybody wanted me to be in a movie with dope in it, I'm there," Chong joked. "But Cheech really protected the image. Those characters have been untouched, and now it's so fun to be back under that classic umbrella."

The six Cheech & Chong features released between 1978 and 1984 grossed about $150 million domestically. Goldman, who brokered the deal with New Line along with attorney Stan Coleman, called the new feature project "a monumental moment in comedy history that reunites the most successful comedy team since Martin and Lewis."

Marin said that they are even considering doing a live performance to promote the movie, which is expected to shoot next year during Marin's hiatus from "The Ortegas."

For the pair who first hooked up in 1968 in Vancouver -- when the Canadian-born Chong was running an improv theater group out of a topless bar -- the staying power of their older material, especially the success of the DVD release of the first Cheech & Chong flick, 1978's "Up in Smoke," has been gratifying.
 
"We've seen our audience grow and grow, even in the 20 years since we stopped creating stuff," Marin said. "The albums and the movies have become a rite of passage for each generation as they grow up."

Chong noted that a little stoner humor from the masters of the form should be a welcome tonic for the turbulent post-Sept. 11 era.

"This is going to be just what everyone's been needing," Chong said. "'Up in Smoke' sort of put the '60s in perspective. Now we need to put the '90s and 2000s in perspective and tell everyone that you can still laugh a little."

Plans for Stones T.O. show on track

TORONTO (CP) -- Organizers of the Rolling Stones-headlined concert to benefit Toronto said Tuesday plans to stage the mammoth event are going smoothly, with ticket sales expected to peak around 430,000.

"The Rolling Stones have been working very, very hard on making sure this is a spectacular, stellar event," said Riley O'Connor of House of Blues, the concert's promoter.

"And they've amassed one of, I think, the finest talent lineups that we've ever seen in this country."

The band has been very involved with the other 14 acts to appear at the show and have talked about "cooking up numbers" with various other bands during the July 30 show, O'Connor said.

Riley said ticket sales were approaching 400,000 and were expected to reach between 420,000 and 430,000.

Addressing concerns that some American companies would be brought in to set up for the Stones, Steve Howard of the band's tour management company said it was impossible to change some of the logistics providers.

Despite that, Howard said that "80 per cent of the non-talent budget for this show is being spent on Canadian suppliers."

"The Rolling Stones are interrupting a European tour to play this gig," said Howard, of TGA Entertainment.

"We can't ask them to change all of the international vendors" and complicate the setup, he said.

"Our aim is to deliver the best sound and visual experience to a crowd this size that anyone has ever done."

Meanwhile, the event's transportation co-ordinator, Ann Corbitt, said she was working on a plan similar to the one put in place when close to 800,000 people attended Pope John Paul's visit for World Youth Day, which also took place at Downsview Park.

"Just like World Youth Day, departure could take several hours," Corbitt said.
Corbitt said about 50,000 parking spots, all within six kilometres of the park, were in place and more would be added later.

Organizers speculated earlier it could take some people hours to leave the venue and that walking might be a better option than driving or taking public transit.
After a groundswell of public complaints about tight regulations for the concert, last week organizers softened the rules on what people can bring to the show.

Originally the list of banned items included blankets, coolers, and food and drinks -- except for two sealed bottles of water.

But organizers said concert-goers will be allowed to bring beach towels, binoculars, cellphones, sleeping bags, snacks, sealed soft drinks and soft-sided coolers.

Food and beverages will also be on sale at the concert site at lower prices than sports arenas and movie theatres, though organizers refused to say how much lower.

Broadcast rights for the show have yet to be finalized, but recent reports say talks are in motion between music network MuchMusic and CBC for a live national telecast of the event.

The coverage would have to be approved by the networks and all bands involved in the Toronto-boosting bash.

The event has been organized fairly quickly considering the massive crowd expected. Quiet planning started in mid-May after the Stones agreed to play a benefit concert for SARS-stricken Toronto, where they've practised for their last three world tours.

Twain leads CCMA nominations

CALGARY -- Shania Twain's got lots to be Up! about after her first album in five years yielded eight nominations Tuesday for the Canadian Country Music Awards.

Twain scored nods in seven categories, including two for video of the year. As well as top-selling album, the native of Timmons, Ont., is up for top single, album, song, female artist and entertainer of the year, which is selected by the fans.

Newcomer Aaron Lines (You Can't Hide Beautiful) received six nominations for entertainer, album, male artist, single, video and rising star.

Receiving five nominations each were Alberta's Terri Clark, Manitoba-based indie band Doc Walker and Gil Grand of Sudbury, Ont.

Clark, whose snarky I Just Wanna Be Mad was a No. 1 hit in the United States, will defend her top entertainer award. She's also nominated for single, album, video and female artist.

Doc Walker's nominations for group, single and song came on the strength of their hit single Rocket Girl, written by Jason McCoy.

The band also garnered nods for best independent group and independent song.
The awards will be handed out Sept. 8 in Calgary at a ceremony hosted by country crooner Paul Brandt, who is vying for male artist and entertainer.

Emerson Drive, which has lost several members since its first album scored two Top 5 releases in the United States, is up for one award, top group.

Brad Johner got three nominations for Free, a touching song outlining a father's bittersweet emotions as his daughter leaves home: top song, album and independent duo as part of the Johner Brothers.

It's not known if Twain, who is preparing for a fall tour, will attend the awards ceremony.

Twain has previously been nominated nine times and was entertainer of the year in 1999 after the smash success of Come on Over, which sold 35 million albums worldwide. She chose to pull out of the spotlight for several years have a child and cocoon at her home in Switzerland with husband producer Mutt Lange.

Grand, whose brother Jake Mathews is up for the rising star award, says it would be nice if they could both bring home hardware.

"We just had a chance to jam together during the (Calgary) Stampede on the same stage and now we're going to go to the awards show and cheer each other on," said Grand, who says moving to Calgary and the heart of Canadian country has made a huge impact on his career.

Costello Reissues Explode With Bonus Tracks

Rhino's upgrade of Elvis Costello's back catalog will continue with a staggering expansion of three early 1980s albums. Due Sept. 9 are two-disc versions of 1980's "Get Happy," 1981's "Trust" and 1983's "Punch the Clock."

A total of 73 additional tracks have been added across the three titles, which only comprised 47 songs in their original incarnation. All were recorded with the Attractions -- keyboardist Steve Nieve, drummer Pete Thomas and bassist Bruce Thomas -- as Costello's core backing band.

Each disc substantially grows from the mid-1990s Rykodisc reissues of the same albums. Those were part of a program to internationalize the titles in Costello's catalog, making U.S. and European versions the same. Rhino's distinguish themselves not only with additional bonus material, but keep the remastered original album on one disc, while adding a second to house outtakes, demos and live tracks.

The new incarnation of "Get Happy" grows the most, bolstering the original 20-track album with 30 added tracks for the reissue. The set keeps the 10 cuts that were added to the Ryko reissue and tacks on 19 more, including live versions of "High Fidelity" and "The Imposter."

Also new are alternate versions of "I Can't Stand Up for Falling Down," "From a Whisper to a Scream" (which features Squeeze's Glenn Tilbrook) and "Girls Talk." In the liner notes, Costello remembers, "The last song had been given away to Dave Edmunds in a moment of drunken bravado and went on to reach No. 2 in the U.K. charts for him." In the U.S., the song reached No. 59 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1979.

"Trust" gains 18 tracks over the original and nine of which did not appear on the Ryko reissue, including yet another alternate version of "From a Whisper to a Scream." Alternate takes of "Clubland" and "You'll Never Be a Man" are also added, as is an instrumental piano demo of "The Long Honeymoon." Not making the shift from the Ryko reissue to the Rhino version is the outtake "Seconds of Pleasure."

In its expansion, "Punch the Clock" also loses one from the first reissue, a live version of "Everyday I Write the Book." But the set gains plenty, roping in six new rarities plus the 20 additional tracks from the Ryko version. These include BBC sessions of "Big Sister's Clothes/Stand Down Margaret" and "Danger Zone," and live versions of "The Bells" and "Back Stabbers/King Horse."

Ten demo recordings also surface, most of which "were the product of a challenge from [co-producer] Clive Langer to provide more up-tempo material for the album," according to Costello. Among the additions are demos of "Love Went Mad," "Mouth Almighty," "Let Them All Talk" and "The Element Within Her."

Costello's liner notes attempt to frame the time and mood of each album. For example, he recalls "Trust" as "easily the most drug-influenced record of my career," and the U.K. politics behind several of the songs on "Punch the Clock."

Whaddayathink?

Is this a sell out or a trip down memory lane?

Welles' 'Citizen Kane' Oscar Pulled from NY Auction

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Orson Welles' Oscar for the classic movie "Citizen Kane" will not be auctioned after a dispute with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Christie's auction house said on Tuesday.

The Oscar, awarded to Welles for co-authoring a film many regard as the best ever made, was slated to go under the hammer on Friday as part of a sale of memorabilia.

Welles' daughter Beatrice Welles had wanted to sell the statuette, but it was withdrawn after the Academy invoked its right to buy the Oscar back for $1.

"The Oscar will not be offered for sale," said Bendetta Roux at Christie's in New York. "We have decided that the dispute between the Academy and our consignor was still ongoing and not settled."

John Pavlik, spokesman for the Academy, said, "We basically object each time (a sale is attempted) in those instances where we have agreements."

Beatrice Welles signed an agreement to give the Academy a right of first refusal when it gave her a duplicate Oscar after the original was thought to be lost.

The original was later recovered.

The Academy in 1950 demanded Oscar recipients sign an agreement giving it the right to buy back the coveted statuettes for $1 each if they were put up for sale.

Pavlik said talks between lawyers for the Academy and for Welles were still ongoing about whether it would buy back the Oscar in this case.

"Citizen Kane" was the top-ranked movie on the AmericanFilm Institute's "Greatest American Movies of All Time" list.

Christie's Friday auction of entertainment items will offer a costume tail coat from "Citizen Kane," offered by an anonymous seller, and among other items some Beatles memorabilia and a Gibson guitar once owned by Bruce Springsteen.

Springsteen Tour Heads West

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band's U.S. summer stadium tour has expanded with two dates on the West Coast.

Newly added into the middle of the Boss' itinerary is his first show in San Francisco since 1978 and his first ever at Los Angeles' Dodger Stadium.

On Aug. 16, the tour will visit Pacific Bell Park, home of the San Francisco Giants, followed the next day by the L.A. show. Tickets for both will go on sale Monday (July 28).

There is no official word as to whether or not the itinerary is now complete. It was previously announced that the tour would end on or around Sept. 30; at present, the last show is Sept. 27 in Milwaukee.

Monday night, the band played the fourth of 10 shows at New Jersey's Giants Stadium. Despite fierce thunderstorms that cropped up about halfway through the concert, the show continued and delivered several rarities, including an encore appearance by one-time E Street Band drummer Vini "Mad Dog" Lopez.

Here are Springsteen's remaining summer tour dates:

July 24, 26-27: East Rutherford, N.J. (Giants Stadium)
Aug. 1-2: Boston (Gillette Stadium)
Aug. 6: Pittsburgh (PNC Park)
Aug. 8-9, 11: Philadelphia (Lincoln Financial Field)
Aug. 13: Chicago (Comiskey Park)
Aug. 16: San Francisco (Pacific Bell Park)
Aug. 17: Los Angeles (Dodger Stadium)
Aug. 28, 30-31: East Rutherford, N.J. (Giants Stadium)
Sept. 6-7: Boston (Fenway Park)
Sept. 13: Washington, D.C. (FedEx Field)
Sept. 14: Chapel Hill, N.C. (Kenan Stadium)
Sept. 20: Buffalo, N.Y. (Ralph J. Wilson Stadium)
Sept. 21: Detroit (Comerica Park)
Sept. 25: Denver (Invesco Field at Mile High)
Sept. 27: Milwaukee (Miller Park)

TV Eyes Concert For Live Show

If MuchMusic gets its way, SARSstock with Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones will be a live TV event.

MuchMusic vice-president and general manager David Kines says negotiations are under way to broadcast the Rolling Stones concert next week.

Kines told The Sun the deal would be a collaboration between CHUM-owned MuchMoreMusic and the CBC.

The package has to be agreed on by the networks and all the bands involved in the Toronto-boosting bash.

Meanwhile, Calgary has already secured simulcast rights.

The free broadcast at Calgary's Pengrowth Saddledome is intended to show support for Toronto and a cattle industry suffering from the effects of mad cow disease.

These Are The New Discs For Tuesday, July 22nd, 2003

* JANE'S ADDICTION Hypersonic (Capitol/Warner)
* LOST PATROL Songs About Running Away (Burning Heart)
* MYSTIC Cuts For Luck And Scars For Freedom...Learning To Breathe (DreamWorks)

Today's New Releases

Final Destination 2 - Woman helps others on highway cheat death with premonitions. (Ali Larter, Andrew Downing, A.J. Cook)

The Life Of David Gale - An innocent professor faces the death penalty. (Kevin Spacey, Kate Winslet, Laura Linney)

Ararat - An historical film has an effect on a man working on it. (David Alpay, Arsinee Khanjian, Charles Aznavour)

Nicholas Nickleby - Charles Dickens' tale of family feuding. (Charlie Hunnam, Jamie Bell, Nathan Lane)

Spun - A college drop-out becomes driver for crystal meth cook. (Jason Schwartzman, John Leguizamo, Mena Suvari)

Felicity: The Complete Second Season - The complete second season of the TV series Felicity. (Keri Russell, Scott Speedman, Scott Foley)

Jackson 5 Will Reunite, Jermaine Says

In an interview with the BBC's Three's Liquid News, Jermaine Jackson claimed that the original Jackson 5 will be reuniting for a tour that will include Michael Jackson. He said the brothers are working on a new album that will be released around the time of the tour. The original Jackson 5 included Michael, Jermaine, Jackie, Tito and Marlon.

Jermaine left in 1976, and was replaced by Randy, though he returned for the 1984 Victory tour. Jermaine confirmed that Michael was "absolutely on board" for both the tour and album, though he couldn't confirm any concert dates or a release date for the album. Jermaine noted that, "Michael turned into this beautiful entertainer because of the foundation of the Jackson 5."

During the interview, Jermaine also defended Michael's abilities as a parent and said the recent attacks on him were just TV "propaganda" to bring up ratings.

You may be on record industry's hit list

Online swappers are wondering whether their names are on the record industry's hit list can check online to see if they're among 871 whose identities were subpoenaed in the first step of unprecedented mass legal action to stem Net piracy.

The Recording Industry Association of America says it plans to sue the song traders next month.

The U.S. District Court's Web site (ecf.dcd.uscourts.gov) is searchable, though users must first apply for an account; confirmation comes a week later in the mail, and there are fees for documents. The Electronic Frontier Foundation may offer quicker action: The activist group hopes to soon let the public check the same information through www.eff.org.

The subpoenas, sent to Internet providers, list the screen names of Kazaa users (Bency-987 and Sk8BoyBen, to name two) along with songs the RIAA says were traded. The provider must reveal personal data and inform the subscriber. "We've received 150 subpoenas in two weeks," Verizon's Sarah Deutsch says. "This type of activity is unprecedented."

Verizon, which has put several employees in charge of doing nothing but processing the requests, has been battling the RIAA over the question of naming names. Two recent court rulings opened the door for the wave of subpoenas; Verizon is appealing.

"The privacy questions are huge," the EFF's Fred von Lohmann says. "They treat everyone as a copyright infringer, and you're assumed guilty until proven innocent."

The RIAA doesn't always get it right. This year, it accused a Penn State professor of sharing a song by the musician Usher. In reality, it was a homegrown tune about astronomy by a professor named Usher. The RIAA later apologized.

RIAA president Cary Sherman initially said he was targeting the "most egregious" swappers, but the subpoenas list only handfuls from artists such as Avril Lavigne, Kenny Chesney and Snoop Dogg.

"A subpoena need not list every song a user is making available," the RIAA's Amy Weiss says. "It may only include a representative sampling."

Verizon directs users to www.subpoenadefense.org for tips on getting a lawyer and fighting charges.

"I've been getting thousands of e-mails," says Bill Evans, who runs www.boycott-riaa.com. "The RIAA is alienating a lot of people, not just file sharers."

Kennedy Says JURASSIC PARK IV Script Done

Producer Kathleen Kennedy has announced that William Monahan has completed a script for JURASSIC PARK IV. Little is known about the plot but, Kennedy said, "Let's just say it takes place someplace else. It will not be green. We will not go back to the jungle." Kennedy said that Steven Spielberg should come on as at least a producer. She also hopes the film will hit theaters in 2005.

This Could Be Cool!

Talks allegedly accelerating over a sitcom spinoff for Matt LeBlanc's Joey Tribiani character on Friends, reports the Hollywood Reporter. Friends writers and executive producers Scott Silveri and Shana Goldberg-Meehan eyed to pen the pilot script.

FOUL PLAY?

Chris Martin, Coldplay's frontman, allegedly clashing with a photographer who snapped pics of the singer surfing; Martin's been ordered to appear in an Australian court to answer an allegation of malicious damage after the shutterbug's windshield was broken and tires deflated.

STORK WATCH

Russell Crowe announcing Monday that he and his new wife Danielle Spencer are expecting their first child on Australia's Channel Nine television. The baby is due in January.

CBS Touts Study Challenging Ratings 'Myth'

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The CBS television network released a study on Monday challenging the widely held notion that viewers aged 18 to 49 matter the most to advertisers, and therefore to TV ratings.

The recent survey of more than 1,000 top media buyers and planners concludes that viewers aged 25 to 54 -- a demographic more favorable to CBS than 18 to 49 -- is the audience of choice for the greatest number of advertisers.

The Viacom Inc.-owned network said the findings debunked the prevailing gospel, propounded chiefly by rival network NBC and often repeated in media coverage of the industry, that the 18-49 demographic is the Holy Grail of network TV ratings.

"The current singular focus on adults 18 to 49 in the coverage of the television advertising market is resulting in a distorted view of the economics of that market," said David Poltrack, CBS executive vice president of research.

While CBS ranks as the most watched network overall, much has been made of NBC's primacy in the annual ratings battle for viewers in the 18-49 "demo."

Last season, CBS tied with ABC for third place in the 18-49 ratings derby, with Fox finishing a close second behind NBC. CBS, while much stronger in its 25-54 ratings, still finished No. 2 behind NBC in that demographic.

NBC dismissed the study, saying the nearly $3 billion it reaped from media buyers during this spring's "upfront" ad market was a more accurate gauge of advertising interest than CBS research.

"The buying community spoke and loud and clear with their checkbooks in May and June. They gave us 3 billion reasons to believe what matters most to them is adults 18-to-49," NBC spokeswoman Rebecca Marks said.

Poltrack said NBC, owned by General Electric Co., did better in upfront sales in part because of its higher 25-54 ratings. CBS earned $2.2 billion in upfront sales.

It remains to be seen to what extent the findings will alter the marketing practices of the major networks, the way they report their ratings or how the news media covers them.

For its part, CBS said it would continue to emphasize its dominant standing among total viewers and its strategy of targeting a broad-based audience.

The Top 10 VH1 200 Greatest Pop Culture Icons Are Revealed

On Dateline Sunday they revealed the top 10 list of VH1's 200 Greatest Popculture Icons. The series of specials begins airing Monday in America, and in Canada later this year, but NBC was able to get the top ten as follows:

10. Michael Jackson
9. Princess Diana
8. Michael Jordan
7. Madonna
6. Marilyn Monroe
5. Tom Cruise
4. Lucille Ball
3. Elvis
2. Superman (Cartoon)
1.Oprah

Seriously! Oprah!??!?!?!?!?!?!

She Can't Be Serious!!!

It seems that "Canadian Idol" judge Sass Jordan feels that the Canadian edition is much better than its American counterpart. "In Canada, it is more popular because it is us. It's relative to us and it's way more interesting and funny and exciting than American Idol. No offence to them, but we're 1000 times better. The American one sort of fits a brand, it's like Kraft Dinner. We're like motherf--king macaroni and cheese!

"It (American Idol) seems totally manufactured. Also the level of competition that they have doesn't even come close to what we have here. It's not the cookie-cutter ones you would expect."

I wonder what she is on! She should share it with everyone who watches the Canadian show. Maybe that way it would be entertaining, in anyway.

Oh well, the funniest thing you will actually read today is not that, it's this. And this is a true story:

One day Sass introduced herself to Gene Simmons, from Kiss, by simply saying "I'm Sass." Simmons promptly replied, "What's your last name? Katoon?

Ah ha ha ha!!! And she thinks Canadian Idol is better than the American one! Oh, man! Is that funny!

CBS Gets Jump on Fall with Next 'Survivor'

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - FOX has pretty much abandoned the idea of a mass launch of its lineup for the 2003-04 season, largely because it has to work around coverage of the major league baseball playoffs in October.

CBS has no such problem, and will roll out nearly its entire schedule in the traditional first week of the season, following the Emmy Awards on Sunday, Sept. 21.

With only a couple of exceptions, CBS' lineup will debut the week of Sept. 22. "Survivor: Pearl Islands," the seventh edition of the network's reality standard-bearer, will get a one-week jump on the regular season by premiering Thursday, Sept. 18.

"Becker," which is moving to Wednesdays, will open its season Oct. 1 to allow for a one-hour season premiere of "The King of Queens" the previous week.

Here's a rundown of CBS' premiere dates (new shows in bold, all times Eastern):

Thursday, Sept. 18

* 8 p.m.: "Survivor: Pearl Islands"

Monday, Sept. 22

* 8 p.m.: "Yes, Dear" (new timeslot)
* 8:30 p.m.: "Still Standing" (new timeslot)
* 9 p.m.: "Everybody Loves Raymond"
* 9:30 p.m.: "Two and a Half Men"
* 10 p.m.: "CSI: Miami"

Tuesday, Sept. 23

* 8 p.m.: "Navy NCIS"
* 9 p.m.: "The Guardian"
* 10 p.m.: "Judging Amy"

Wednesday, Sept. 24

* 8 p.m.: "60 Minutes II"
* 9 p.m.: "The King of Queens" (one-hour premiere; new timeslot)
* 10 p.m.: "The Brotherhood of Poland, N.H."

Thursday, Sept. 25

* 9 p.m.: "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation"
* 10 p.m.: "Without a Trace"

Friday, Sept. 26

* 8 p.m.: "Joan of Arcadia"
* 9 p.m.: "JAG" (new timeslot)
* 10 p.m.: "The Handler"

Saturday, Sept. 27

* 8 p.m.: "48 Hours Investigates" (new timeslot)
* 9 p.m.: "Hack" (new timeslot)
* 10 p.m.: "The District" (new timeslot)

Sunday, Sept. 28

* 7 p.m.: "60 Minutes"
* 8 p.m.: "Cold Case"
* 9 p.m.: CBS Sunday Movie

Wednesday, Oct. 1

* 9:30 p.m.: "Becker" (new timeslot)

Nickelback Readies 'The Long Road'

Nickelback will release its third album, "The Long Road," Sept. 23 in the U.S. via Roadrunner. The Canadian rock act self-produced the set, which will be led by the single "Someday." A video for the track was recently shot in Vancouver with director Nigel Dick (Alice In Chains, Britney Spears, matchbox twenty).

Other songs on the album include "Feelin' Way Too Damn Good," "Do This Anymore" and "Throw Yourself Away." Nickelback will support the release with a fall North American tour. Last month the band played a handful of Canadian dates.

As previously reported, the group contributed a cover of Elton John's Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)" to the "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" soundtrack (Columbia Records/Sony Music Soundtrax).

"The Long Road" is the follow-up to the band's breakthrough album, "Silver Side Up." Released in September 2001, the set debuted at No. 5 on The Billboard 200. The album spawned the smash single "How You Remind Me," which topped Billboard's Hot 100 as well as the Mainstream Rock Tracks and Modern Rock Tracks charts.

Spider-Man will do what he can against evil Doc Ock

No one can say the latest Spider-Man arch nemesis isn't well-armed. Something is definitely fishy in Spider-Man 2, the sequel to last year's comic-inspired box office sensation now shooting in Los Angeles. And we don't mean the leftovers in Aunt May's fridge.

Dr. Otto Octavius, the sinister scientist known to Spidey buffs as Doc Ock or Doctor Octopus, was unveiled this weekend at San Diego's Comic-Con bash.

Alfred Molina, who has done wrong in everything from Chocolat to Dudley Do-Right, is the man bearing those malevolent arms.

"Alfred happens to be a great actor who has some of the qualities of a loved character," says director Sam Raimi, who returns for a second spin with the web-slinging superhero reprised by Tobey Maguire and due next July 2. "Doc Ock had to have a commanding presence and intelligence," Raimi says. "He's got the look of a bodybuilder from 1954."

Molina fit the bill as well as the costume, which includes dark goggles and a swept-forward hairdo.

"I'm told he's one of the more popular villains," says Molina, 50, who occasionally flipped through the comics as a kid. "It would have been foolish to have said no." Originally a humanitarian, the doctor conducts an experiment that goes horribly awry and accidentally fuses a quartet of huge squid limbs to his spine.

Raimi considers the doctor to be Spider-Man's perfect foe, since both possess the nature of eight-legged creatures. "His many arms can really put an agile athlete like Spider-Man to the test."

The Doc also has more human pathos than Spidey's first movie opponent, Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin. "I never considered Doc Ock as a madman" — unlike Goblin, Raimi says. "He just gets his priorities out of order. He's ruthless, but I always thought of him as sane but misguided."

In a story not borrowed from the comic books, Spidey's alter ego, Peter Parker, runs into Dr. Octavius while attending college. "They meet in a laboratory," says Raimi. "Dr. Octavius is working on a project, and both share an interest in physics. He becomes an unwilling teacher."

Molina's arsenal of appendages, whose performance is half animatronic and half digital effects, weighs 75 to 100 pounds. "The first thing I did was to get in a gym with a trainer," he says. Sixteen puppeteers work the expandable 13-foot arms.

Dafoe recently made a visit to the set and appeared a bit green — with envy, Molina says. "He reckons I'm lucky since, as the Goblin, he was hidden behind a big mask and I haven't got one."

Molina doesn't sound as if he has been infected by any of the Doc's bad habits. But, he adds, "Funnily enough, I have not eaten calamari since filming began. Some subconscious thing must be going on."

'Bad Boys II' Takes Custody of Box Office

LOS ANGELES - Bad boys old and new ruled the box office.

The buddy-cop flick "Bad Boys II" debuted at No. 1 with $46.7 million, trailed by last weekend's top film, the buccaneer adventure "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," with $33.3 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The weekend's other new wide releases had so-so debuts. Rowan Atkinson's spy comedy "Johnny English," already a $100-million hit overseas, opened in fourth place with $9.3 million. Mandy Moore's teen melodrama "How to Deal" premiered at No. 8 with $5.8 million.

In limited release, director Stephen Frears' "Dirty Pretty Things" opened strongly with $101,000 in five theaters. Starring Audrey Tautou in a dark thriller about a human-organ black market centered at a London hotel, the film expands to more theaters Aug. 1.

The overall box office surged, with the top 12 movies taking in $137.6 million, up 33 percent from the same weekend last year, according to box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. Weekend revenues generally have trailed last year's, with the summer box office about 2 percent behind 2002's.

The weekend was a one-two punch for blockbuster baron Jerry Bruckheimer, who produced both "Bad Boys II" and "Pirates of the Caribbean."

"To take the No. 1 and 2 positions, which I don't think any producer has ever done in history, it's spectacular," said Chuck Viane, head of distribution for Disney, which released "Pirates of the Caribbean."

"Bad Boys II" reunited Bruckheimer, director Michael Bay and stars Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, the team behind 1995's action comedy "Bad Boys." By the end of its first week, "Bad Boys II" should pass the $65.8 million total gross of the original movie, said Jeff Blake, vice chairman at Sony Pictures, which released both flicks.

The sequel pits Smith and Lawrence's trash-talking police partners against an Ecstasy-smuggling ring. The movie overcame harsh reviews from critics, with many calling the action mean-spirited and the violence too far over the top.

"It's anything but a mean-spirited picture," Blake said. "Clearly, the public is having a lot of fun with it. It is over-the-top action, but it's got so many laughs."

"Pirates of the Caribbean" pushed its 12-day total to $132.2 million and is on the way to becoming the year's fifth movie to top $200 million.

The year's top-grossing movie, the animated fish tale "Finding Nemo," had a $7.3 million weekend to cross the $300 million mark.

Here ate the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "Bad Boys II," $46.7 million.
2. "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," $33.3 million.
3. "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," $10.1 million.
4. "Johnny English," $9.3 million.
5. "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," $9.2 million.
6. "Finding Nemo," $7.3 million.
7. "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde," $6.1 million.
8. "How to Deal," $5.8 million.
9. "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle," $3.7 million.
10. "28 Days Later," $2.55 million.

SHREK 2 Co-director Offers The Sequel's Plot

Kelly Asbury, co-director of the upcoming computer-animated sequel film Shrek 2, told SCI FI Wire that the movie will delve deeper into the characters and their relationships, while aiming its satire squarely at Hollywood. "Like with any sequel, what I like to go to a sequel for is to see the further adventures of these characters that I've fallen in love with," Asbury said in an interview after previewing the movie at DreamWorks in Glendale, Calif. "And that's what we're trying to do with this. We're not just trying to recreate the first one. We're trying to take it to the next level emotionally."

With tongue in cheek, Asbury calls the second movie Shrek Meets the Parents, because it turns on the first meeting between Shrek (voiced by Michael Myers) with the parents of his new bride, Fiona (Cameron Diaz). The parents are the King (John Cleese) and Queen (Julie Andrews) of Far Far Away, which Asbury says is the "Beverly Hills of the fairy tale world." "We like to think it's bigger, better, funnier, everything," he said. "That's always the goal when you make a sequel, especially, is to give the audience more."

While the first Shrek lampooned the conventions of typical fairy-tale movies, such as those produced by rival studio Walt Disney Co., the sequel aims a little broader, Asbury said. "I think if we're parodying anything here, we're more making fun of the Hollywood, Beverly Hills aspect of things," he said.

Conrad Vernon, who is also a co-director of the sequel, added in an interview, "Again, we're dealing with beauty and, you know, it's only skin deep and everything. And we figured where her parents live in Far Far Away is a perfect place to do that."

Shrek 2 brings back Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and adds the new characters Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas), Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) and Fairy Godmother (Jennifer Saunders). The movie, which is currently in production, is slated for release June 18, 2004.

Reloaded Answers

Nona Gaye, who played Zee in THE MATRIX: RELOADED, says REVOLUTIONS will give some answers.

Nona Gaye, who reprises the role of Zee in the upcoming sequel film The Matrix Revolutions, told SCI FI Wire that the conclusion of the trilogy will answer all of the questions raised by The Matrix Reloaded. "People will be relieved when they see Revolutions," Gaye said in an interview. "I know a lot of people are like, 'What's going on?'"

Gaye promised that the film will still be philosophically complex and that viewers will still have to work to understand the film's answers. "I think it depends on your perception," she said. "When I read the script, it made sense to me." The actress added that she was not surprised to see so many skeptics speak out against Reloaded in reviews and Internet postings after its May release. "There are always going to be skeptics," she said. "You can't make everyone happy."

Zee was only featured in a few scenes of Reloaded, in the human city of Zion. But Gaye said that viewers will see more of her in Revolutions. "Number three is where I get down," she said. "I'm doing a lot of diving and running and jumping and stuff." The Matrix Revolutions opens Nov. 5.

'Bad Boys' of Summer Are Back in Theaters

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The bad boys of summer are back. And Sony hopes that with enough blood, guns and car chases, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence will bring some real box-office heat to a summer movie season that's been cool toward most of the sequels parading through theaters in recent weeks.

Sony Pictures' "Bad Boys II" should have little trouble beating its competition -- meaning the other new releases as well as last week's holdovers, which are sure to fall at least 35 percent.

Reteaming Smith and Lawrence with the blow-'em-up producer-director team of Jerry Bruckheimer and Michael Bay, the R-rated 2 1/2-hour epic of destruction is banking on the success of the original 1995 film that made movie stars of the acting duo. The original reaped $65.8 million domestically after a $15.5 million opening weekend.

Considering that the stars have gained massive appeal in the eight years since "Bad Boys," industry executives are predicting that the sequel will gross $40 million to $50 million in its first weekend.

This time out, the story centers on two cops charged with breaking up a dangerous drug ring, only to find their personal issues getting in the way. "Boys II" co-stars Gabrielle Union and Joe Pantoliano and was written by Jerry Stahl, John Lee Hancock and Ron Shelton. It will bow in 3,186 theaters.

For a different take on the action hero who must solve the world's woes, Universal Pictures will release Working Title Films' "Johnny English" to U.S. audiences after scoring big with the "Bond meets Bean" film in the United Kingdom, Spain and Italy.

Star Rowan Atkinson, best known for his bumbling Mr. Bean character, has been transformed, slightly, into a bumbling secret agent thrown into a case involving Britain's queen and the potential loss of her throne.

The PG-rated film could benefit from Atkinson's growing U.S. popularity after starring in "Rat Race" and "Bean" and being featured in "Four Weddings and a Funeral," but industry executives don't expect the film to cross the $10 million mark. Co-starring Natalie Imbruglia and John Malkovich, "English" arrives in 2,236 theaters.

The third wide release in the mix is targeting the recently underserved female PG-13 audience. The New Line-distributed romantic drama "How to Deal" is looking to capitalize on the teenage appeal of its star, pop singer Mandy Moore.

Centered on a high school student who is disillusioned with love after seeing many dysfunctional relationships around her, the film co-stars Allison Janney and Trent Ford.

Adapted by screenwriter Heidi Ferrer from the Sarah Dessen novels "Someone Like You" and "That Summer," "Deal" is targeting an older audience than Buena Vista Pictures' "The Lizzie McGuire Movie," which bowed to $17 million in May.

But "Deal" stands more of a chance of getting lost in the shuffle of big-action movies that are filling theaters. Industry executives question whether the film will cross the $10 million mark.

In limited release, Miramax will bow "Dirty Pretty Things," from director Stephen Frears ("High Fidelity"), in five theaters in New York and Los Angeles. Starring Audrey Tautou ("Amelie"), "Things" is about a bizarre hotel murder that must be solved by an illegal Nigerian immigrant, a Turkish chambermaid and a Chinese prostitute. The R-rated film was nominated for three awards from the London Film Critics Circle.

Fox Searchlight's Australian film "Garage Days" debuts Friday in 23 theaters. The R-rated story of a young Sydney band trying to make it in the music business without tearing themselves apart, it is expected to find a solid audience in specialized markets.

Also arriving Friday are First Run's "The Embalmer," which centers on a woman entrenched in a doomed love triangle; Innovation Film Group's comedy "The Anarchist Cookbook," about a twentysomething slacker who starts his own anarchist group in East Dallas; and TriStar's Japanese drama "The Sea Is Watching," which features a screenplay by the late Akira Kurosawa.

ANOTHER LONG DAY

The Ford Motor Company once again sponsoring the season premiere of Fox's hit 24, meaning the first episode of the third season will be presented minus commercials when it airs October 28 at 9 p.m.

Woo Hoo!

British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, actors Glenn Close and Ian McKellen and documentarian Michael Moore among the guest voices lined up for the upcoming 15th season of The Simpsons.

'Six Feet Under' Leads Emmy Nominations

LOS ANGELES - The funeral home drama "Six Feet Under" received a leading 16 Emmy nominations Thursday, followed by three-time best drama winner "The West Wing" with 15.

"The Sopranos," back in contention after missing out on last year's awards because it didn't air during the eligibility period, received 13 nominations, along with the comedies "Everybody Loves Raymond" and "Sex and the City."

"Law & Order" missed out on setting a record, failing to receive the best drama series nomination that would have given it 12 consecutive best series nominations. It's tied for the record with "Cheers" and "M-A-S-H."

Besides a best drama series bid, "Six Feet Under" also earned nominations for cast members Frances Conroy as best actress and Peter Krause as best actor.

Other contenders for best drama series are "The Sopranos," "The West Wing," "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and "24."

Nominees for best comedy series are "Everybody Loves Raymond," "Sex and the City," "Curb Your Enthusiasm," "Will & Grace" and last year's winner, "Friends."

Jennifer Aniston, winner of last year's best comedy series actress award, received another nomination in the category this year. Her competition includes Patricia Heaton of "Everybody Loves Raymond," Jane Kaczmarek of "Malcom in the Middle," Debra Messing of "Will & Grace" and Sarah Jessica Parker of "Sex and the City."

Another member of the "Friends" cast, Matt LeBlanc, will be up again for the best comedy series trophy he missed out on last year. Other nominees are Larry David of "Curb Your Enthusiasm," Bernie Mac of "The Bernie Mac Show," Eric McCormack of "Will & Grace" and last year's winner, Ray Romano of "Everybody Loves Raymond."

Other actresses nominated in the drama series category are Edie Falco of "The Sopranos," Jennifer Garner of "Alias," Marg Helgenberger of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and Allison Janney of "The West Wing," who took home the trophy last year.

In addition to Krause, a drama series acting bid went to last year's surprise winner, Michael Chiklis of "The Shield," who received the first such honor for a basic cable show. Other nominees are James Gandolfini of "The Sopranos," Martin Sheen of "The West Wing" and Kiefer Sutherland of "24."

The Emmy Awards are the U.S. television industry's top honors, and the 55th annual broadcast of the awards program will air from Los Angeles on Sept. 21 on the Fox broadcast network.

Duran Duran Reunite At Roxy In L.A.

On Tuesday night the original '80s Duran Duran lineup (singer Simon Le Bon, keyboardist Nick Rhodes, guitarist Andy Taylor, bassist John Taylor, and drummer Roger Taylor) celebrated their 25th anniversary by playing Los Angeles's 450-capacity Roxy nightclub as a warm-up for their much-hyped brief U.S. reunion tour, which officially kicks off tonight at the Pacific Amphitheatre in Costa Mesa, California. Not only was this the group's first Stateside performance in 18 years, but it also marked another homecoming of sorts, as the Roxy was the first American venue Duran Duran ever played back in 1981.

Although Duran Duran have never stopped recording and touring, the original lineup only recorded three studio albums together--1981's Duran Duran, 1982's Rio, and 1983's Seven And The Ragged Tiger--before the departure of Andy and Roger Taylor. With the recruitment of Frank Zappa/Missing Persons guitarist Warren Cuccurullo, the band continued on as a quartet until John Taylor chose to leave in 1997, after which Le Bon, Rhodes, and Cuccurullo persevered as a trio. This year's tour--which began July 7 in Osaka, Japan--reunites the classic Duran Duran lineup for the first time since Live Aid in 1985.

Sponsored by DKNY//JEANS and The Fader magazine, this special event became the hot ticket in town the moment it was announced last week. Not only did the show and its swanky Chateau Marmont after-party attract a wide range of celebrity fans--including Beck, Nicolas Cage, Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale, No Doubt's Tony Kanal and Adrian Young, Christina Applegate, Jenna Elfman, Pamela and Michael Des Barres, hairstyling guru Paul Mitchell, Rush Hour movie director Brett Ratner, South Park co-creator Trey Parker, Styx's Tommy Shaw, local nightlife fixture Rodney Bingenheimer, and Mark McGrath (who memorably spoofed Duran Duran in Sugar Ray's "When It's Over" video)--but it also drew a large number of diehard Duranies willing to pay upwards of $500 for a scalped ticket. (Tickets went on sale for $25 at the Roxy box office the day before the show, and sold out immediately.)

Judging from the reaction inside the packed club, these Duran devotees--wearing customized T-shirts emblazoned in rhinestones with the individual band members' names and bearing roses and gifts for their idols--definitely felt they got their money's worth. The moment the band, still stylish as ever in their natty black suits and multi-zippered trousers, launched their 14-song set with "Friends Of Mine," the entire crowd was a seething, screaming, sweaty mass. No one in attendance seemed to mind that John had let his hair go gray, that Andy had put on a little weight, or that the long-missing-in-action Roger wore a hangdog expression throughout the set, as if he was less than overjoyed to return to the public eye; seeing the group perform new wave classics like "Hungry Like The Wolf," "Planet Earth," "Waiting For The Night Boat," "Is There Something I Should Know," "Wild Boys," "Careless Memories," "Girls On Film," and "Rio"--as well as later-period songs that Andy and Roger were playing live for the first time, like "Come Undone," "Ordinary World," and "Notorious" (although, strangely, no Seven And The Ragged Tiger tracks)--made them feel like it was 1983 all over again. The audience was even warmly receptive to two new songs from Duran Duran's upcoming reunion album (due out in 2004), the dreamy, "Ordinary World"-ish ballad "What Happens Tomorrow" and the funky uptempo number "Virus."

Duran Duran play tonight in Costa Mesa, and on July 17 and 19 at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas. In addition to their upcoming studio album, Duran Duran will release a greatest-hits double-DVD set this September.

WAKE UP WITH EMMY

E! News Live's 90-minute live coverage of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' unveiling of this year's Primetime Emmy nominations begins Thursday morning at 8 a.m. ET/5 a.m. PT.

CODA

Grammy-winning Queen of Salsa Celia Cruz has died. The Cuban-born singer, known for her supersized vocals and towering wigs, succumbed to brain cancer Wednesday at her New Jersey home. She was 77.

Travolta Says Turning Down 'Chicago' Big Mistake

BERLIN (Reuters) - John Travolta, who became an icon for the disco craze with is dancing in "Saturday Night Fever," says he made a big mistake in turning down a starring role in this year's Academy Award winning film "Chicago."

"You're rubbing salt in my wounds," Travolta told Germany's Bunte magazine in an excerpt released ahead of publication on Thursday. "I'm still angry with myself that I turned down the role of the lawyer in Chicago that Richard Gere then got."

Travolta said Gere did a great job with the dance numbers in Chicago, which dominated the Academy Awards and won best picture.

"But oh, how I would have loved to have showed them all what I can do one more time," said Travolta, 49.

Miramax to Split Tarantino Film Into Two Parts

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Miramax Films, a major player in distributing independent movies, is taking the unusual step of splitting a new movie from director Quentin Tarantino into two parts and releasing each as separate films, a studio spokesman said on Wednesday.

"The idea was thought of when the script was in development and after seeing the (film) footage, it made sense," said the spokesman.

The movie, called "Kill Bill," is the first from the critically acclaimed director since 1997's "Jackie Brown," and has been widely anticipated by his fans.

But with preliminary versions running at three hours, it was almost twice as long as a normal movie, meaning theaters would have fewer screenings in a day and risk losing ticket sales.

The movie is about a female assassin, played by Uma Thurman, who survives an attempt on her life and, after spending five years in a coma, sets out for vengeance.

The first part of the story will be released as planned on Oct. 10, with the debut date for the second part as yet to be determined, the spokesman said.

Splitting a film's story into two parts is unusual, but does have recent precedent.

The makers of "The Matrix" shot two sequels to that popular 1999 movie at the same time, and when the first, "The Matrix: Reloaded," debuted in May this year, producer Joel Silver made a point of saying "Reloaded" was only half of the story.

The second part, "The Matrix: Revolutions," hits theaters this coming November.

HERE'S 'JOHNNY'

EVEN a spy as clueless as Austin Powers knows he has no shortage of rivals. In the past year alone, we've encountered juvenile spies ("Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams"), maverick spies ("The Recruit"), deluded spies ("Confessions of a Dangerous Mind"), African-American spies ("Undercover Brother") and, of course, the ultimate spy ("Die Another Day").

This Friday, we'll meet a spy who began life in a credit card commercial.

The bumbling, over-confident British secret agent of "Johnny English" was originally a character named Richard Latham created by rubber-faced Brit comic Rowan Atkinson in the early 1990s for a hugely popular series of TV ads for England's Barclays Bank.

"[The ads] were only one minute long but they had the feel and the scale and the tone of a proper spy movie," says Atkinson.

"And we liked the comedy of the central character and we liked the dynamics between him and his sidekick, Bough. We always thought that we might like to make a movie based on those characters, and that's exactly what we've done."

Atkinson's English is a junior desk-bound agent who is elevated to Number One spy after his ineptitude results in the demise of every other agent in the British Secret Service.

With the assistance of his partner, Bough (Ben Miller), and undercover Interpol agent Lorna Campbell (Australian pop star Natalie Imbruglia, making her feature film debut), he must stop fiendish French businessman Pascal Sauvage (John Malkovich) from becoming king of England.

Atkinson, best known in the U.S. for 1997's "Bean," believes the nationality of the villain will help "Johnny English's" fortunes in America, where there is still lingering resentment over France's opposition to the Iraq war.

He's also the first to admit "Johnny English" - which has already raked in $120 million at the international box office - owes a debt to the mythology of 007.

Neal Purvis, who penned the screenplays for the last two Bond films - "The World is Not Enough" and "Die Another Day" - is a co-writer on the film, whose trailers promise "Bean meets Bond."

And - obscure trivia alert! - Atkinson himself once appeared in a Bond film, as a whining embassy official who gets thrown into a pool by Sean Connery in 1983's "Never Say Never Again."

While "Johnny English" is no James Bond film, not by a long stretch, Atkinson believes that, in terms of scale and tone and size, it's more a James Bond film than "Austin Powers."

While comparisons between "Johnny English" and "Austin Powers" are inevitable, the two spy comedies do occupy different ground.

Mike Myers' Austin Powers is an American parody of the British super-spy, its hero existing in an oversexed, pop-psychedelic alternate universe; Johnny English is a minor British Secret Service Agent who takes his work very seriously, and the world of MI-7 is his milieu.

And where the three PG-13-rated "Austin Powers" movies rely heavily on sexual innuendo and toilet jokes for their humor, the squeaky-clean and chaste "Johnny English" is aimed firmly at the eight- to 12-year-old market.

But there is one thing they have in common: There's already talk of a "Johnny English" franchise.

Disney Sets Sail on 'Pirates' Sequel

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Eager to unearth more buried treasure now that "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" raised its flag high at the box office this past weekend, the Walt Disney Co. is already talking of setting sail on a sequel to the theme park ride-inspired feature.

In anticipation of the film's success, Disney had already made sequel arrangements with such key cast members as Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley, as well as with the behind-the-scenes duo of producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Gore Verbinski. And the studio has also begun talks with "Pirates" scribes Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio about drafting a sequel, though no specific story line has yet been set.

Since its opening last Wednesday, "Pirates" has earned more than $78 million, including a $46.6 million opening-weekend take that easily won last weekend's box office battle.

File-sharing dips after threats

LOS ANGELES -- Use of several Internet file-sharing services declined the week after the music industry threatened to sue online music swappers, according to data from an Internet tracking firm.

Kazaa and Morpheus -- two popular file-swapping services -- had 15 percent fewer users during the week ending July 6, Nielsen/NetRatings said Monday. The decline translates to about 1 million fewer users on Kazaa. About 41,000 fewer users signed on to Morpheus and the iMesh file-sharing service that week.

The firm tracks a specific number of people who sign on to the services from home and extrapolates the data to estimate how many people use the services at least once in a week.

"With the negative publicity and threat of steep fines, some surfers appear to be backing off," said Greg Bloom, a senior Internet analyst with the firm. "However, with millions of loyal users, these applications aren't likely to go off-line in the near future."

Bloom said the data so far merely suggests a possible link between the threat of lawsuits and the apparent dip in file-sharing traffic. And seasonal factors, such as the holiday weekend, could also skew any trend. A better determination will be possible when all the data is in for July, he said.

The Recording Industry Association of America, which represents the major recording companies, said last month the industry would soon begin suing individuals engaging in online music file-swapping.

Record companies blame music downloading and CD burning for lagging sales in recent years and hope that by going after users directly, they curb traffic to the sites.

StreamCast Networks, the company behind the Morpheus software, said it had not detected any decline in user traffic.

"What we're seeing is that users are actually staying on the Morpheus client longer per session," StreamCast CEO Michael Weiss said. "We can pretty much tell usage by our bandwidth, and our bandwidth has been pretty constant."

Sharman Networks, which owns Kazaa, said fluctuations in user numbers is common.

"Aside from normal seasonal drops experienced on the Internet, we regularly see fluctuations in the number of users online, and there are numerous factors that play a part in these cyclical changes, but they are rarely permanent," the company said.

TV series can live long and prosper on DVD

By Mike Snider, USA TODAY

Despite being a self-described DVD junkie, Michael J. Fox had not noticed how the video stores he frequented had become inundated with hardcover-book-size DVD collections of TV series.

So the actor was surprised when DreamWorks called seeking his help in creating one for Spin City, in which he starred from 1996 to 2000. "I was napping when this whole TV-shows-to-DVD thing got started," he says.

Fox, 42, who won an Emmy for his role as deputy mayor Michael Flaherty, picked 22 favorite Spin City episodes from his four years on the show. Then the studio taped his comments about each one as an extra for the DVD release. "We had so much stuff going on in the show," Fox says. "It was fun trying to recall it."

The two volumes — each has two discs and sells for $22.95 — arrive in stores Aug. 26, adding to the latest rage in home video, TV DVDs. Spin City fits perfectly into the trend, he says. "It was obviously popular enough to be on for six years, but it was never a breakout hit. So the upside is that it leaves it open for discovery."

Television studios have discovered that series need not live on only in syndication these days. A wave of shows reborn on DVDs began in May 2000 with the arrival of complete first-season sets of Sex and the City ($40) and The X-Files ($150).

Since then, the flow of series to DVD has turned into a flood. The 222 released so far this year are closing in on the 264 released all last year. Sales of TV DVDs are outpacing all other categories, too, says Video Store magazine, accounting for 10% of all sales last year (about $870 million), up from about 6% ($300 million) in 2001.

In addition to improved video quality, "TV DVDs are just so highly collectible and their success reflects the American passion for television," says the magazine's director of research, Judith McCourt. She predicts that TV DVD sales will easily surpass $1 billion this year. "You can own your absolute favorite TV series or one you may have missed or one you want to have your children watch."

TV DVD choices include:

• Classics such as All in the Family, I Love Lucy and M*A*S*H (the Season Four three-disc set, out this week, $40).

• More recent faves Friends: Season 4 ($45, this week) and ER: The Complete First Season (Aug. 26, $60).

• Fringe series such as Transformers, Son of the Beach and The Man Show (just out, $30).

In fact, it seems as if no show is too small for DVD. "Time will tell if it is a short-lived novelty," says Scott Hettrick, editor of Video Business and home entertainment editor for Variety. "But for now, just about everything is selling at some level. Until the surge in interest subsides, studios are rapidly putting anything and everything they have on DVD."

After its early successes, HBO tested the depths of DVD devotion last year with Mr. Show: The Complete First and Second Seasons ($35), a two-disc collection of the late-night comedy show (1995-1998) starring little-known comedy writers David Cross and Bob Odenkirk. The sales "told us there might not be a mass audience out there but there is definitely a core audience," says HBO's Cynthia Rhea. A third season set ($35) is out Aug. 26.

Other studios are branching out, too. Last year The Osbournes ($30) and Felicity ($60) sold well enough to make Disney's Buena Vista "feel a lot more comfortable about what we can bring out on DVD," the studio's Gordon Ho says. Due Tuesday are Alias Season 1 ($70) and Felicity: Season Two ($60), and classic soap operas General Hospital and All My Children are being prepared for release next year.

Studios won't release sales figures on individual DVDs, but Video Store magazine market research estimates that The Simpsons — Season 1, the best-selling TV series on DVD so far, has sold nearly 2 million copies — still way short of best-selling movie DVDs such as Spider-Man (12.7 million) and Shrek (10 million).

But TV DVDs are holding their own. "If you look at our top 25 on any given day you will see Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Simpsons and Stargate," says Stefan Pepe, group manager for DVD/Video at Amazon.com. "Customer demand for these titles is just like that for large theatrical ones."

TV DVDs can play various roles in studio strategies. Universal will cross-promote the six-disc Battlestar Galactica: Complete Epic Series set (out Oct. 21, $120) and the SciFi Channel's new Battlestar Galactica miniseries Dec. 7. Buena Vista is quickly releasing Alias Season 2 Dec. 2 to get fans caught up with the series during its third season.

And Universal has started to release individual DVDs with pilot episodes for series such as Monk, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Eventually, full sets will be released, but "there might be people who want to try a show rather than buy the whole thing," the studio's Ken Graffeo says.

While many beloved series have found a new home on DVD and on viewers' shelves, a few holdouts such as Seinfeld and Northern Exposure remain — but not for long. DVD releases are in the works for both series. They are among the most requested DVDs on Amazon.com. Also in the works: Jon Lovitz's animated The Critic, King of Queens andBarney Miller.

And studios have begun to pack TV DVDs with the kind of extras buyers have come to expect on their movie discs. Felicity: Season Two has an unreleased original version of the series' pilot. CSI — The Complete Second Season (Sept. 2, $70) has commentaries and more short features, including one with technical adviser Elizabeth Devine.

ER: The Complete First Season has interviews with co-creators Steven Spielberg and Michael Crichton. Fox's The X-Files SeasonSeven ($150) features Gillian Anderson's first commentary and the 24 Season Two set (Sept. 23, $70) has an entire disc of extras.

The first-season DVD set for 24 had just an alternate ending and an introduction from star and producer Kiefer Sutherland. But during the second season, "we had a (DVD) crew capturing stuff on the set from day one," Fox's Steven Feldstein says.

"You now find producers of TV shows trying to keep in mind material that would be potentially interesting for the DVD," Ho says.

For Spin City, DreamWorks enlisted Fox because "we wanted to really tap into his personality and his insight into the making of that series," DreamWorks' Kelly Sooter says.

The disc also has information about Fox's research foundation for Parkinson's disease. Fox was diagnosed with the disease in 1991.

As for a Family Ties DVD, Fox says, "I imagine if this trend continues, someone could get around to that." The best episodes from the series' six years, 1982-1989? "I'd just pick the ones my wife (Tracy Pollan) was in," Fox says.

Madonna to Star in Gap Ad Campaign

NEW YORK - Madonna will be the new face for Gap's fall multimillion dollar ad campaign.

Gap spokeswoman Claudia Hawkins would give few details on the campaign, set to break July 28, other than to say the campaign also features rap star Missy Elliott.

Over the past several years, Gap has enlisted a diverse group of celebrities for its advertising, including actors Christina Ricci, Anjelica Huston, and Dennis Hopper. But experts believe signing the pop icon is the biggest coup yet for the retailer, which needs additional buzz to continue its turnaround.

"This is the coolest idea. Madonna has kept her image fresh," said Mike Toth, president and chief creative director for Toth Brand Imaging, a brand and advertising company with offices in New York and Concord, Mass.

Toth said the pop icon will resonate well with the group that the chain wants to bring back to the stores — shoppers in their 30s and early 40s.

Madonna hasn't done a lot of commercials for products, though she endorsed Pepsi several years ago, said her publicist Liz Rosenberg.

And why Gap? "Why not Gap?" Rosenberg asked, noting that Madonna wears the clothes.

Madonna is also set to do some tie-ins with Gap to promote her children's book, "The English Roses," due out Sept. 15. Rosenberg declined to offer details.

After two years of disappointing sales, Gap started seeing business bounce back last fall with a return to the more basic fashions that fueled the company's expansion during the 1990s.

Gap announced in May a significant improvement in its first-quarter earnings. The company reported $202.5 million in profits for the three months ended May 3 — five times higher the year-earlier period.

Neil Young Surveys 'Greendale'

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Neil Young has set an Aug. 19 release for his next Reprise album, "Greendale."

The 10-song set chronicles the life and times of the Green family, residents of the fictional town from which the album takes its name. "Greendale" will be bundled with a bonus DVD of Young performing the album in sequence during a recent solo acoustic show in Dublin.

In his review of the show for Billboard.com, Nick Kelly said the Green family seemed to "represent the best of America -- they're by turns kind, loyal, creative, rebellious, and self-possessed. We heard tales of Grandma and Grandpa Green and it's almost as if we were back on Sugar Mountain or at home with the Waltons."

Young is backed on the album by Crazy Horse drummer Ralph Molina and bassist Billy Talbot. The artist is right at home as the all-knowing narrator of the stories, which run the gamut from "Carmichael" (where one character murders a policeman after being caught with drugs in his car) to "Bandit," marked by the bittersweet lament: "someday you'll find everything you're looking for."

"Greendale" will also exist as a stand-alone film, directed by Young under his alias Bernard Shakey. No dialog is included in the movie, which features a number of Young's family members and such longtime associates as musician Ben Keith and "Greendale" album co-producer L.A. Johnson. Young himself cameos as entertainer Wayne Newton.

The "Greendale" film will premiere in September at the Toronto Film Festival and will be released as a separate DVD in the fall. The "Greendale" acoustic concert will air on local cable television stations in more than 100 markets in August, as well as on DirecTV.

On the same day "Greendale" is released, Reprise will reissue the long out-of-print Young albums "On the Beach," "American Stars 'N Bars," "Hawks & Doves" and "Re.ac.tor," which were originally slated for June 24.

Young and Crazy Horse are in the midst of a summer North American tour, which hits Auburn, Wash. Wednesday. Young will also play Farm Aid on Sept. 7 in Columbus, Ohio.

Not Just For Completeists!

Paramount has just announced the DVD release of the 2-disc Star Trek V: The Final Frontier - Collector's Edition on 10/14.

The disc will include the film in anamorphic widescreen video, Dolby Digital 5.1 audio, audio commentary by director/star William Shatner and Liz Shatner (his daughter and author of Captain's Log, William Shatner's personal account of the making of the film), another text commentary by Michael Okuda and Denise Okuda, numerous behind-the-scenes featurettes (including Herman Zimmerman: A Tribute, Original Interview: William Shatner, Cosmic Thoughts, That Klingon Couple and The Green Future?), Harve Bennett's pitch to the sales team, The Journey documentary, make-up tests, a look at pre-visualization models, a look at the abandoned "rock man" costume, video of a press conference for the film, deleted scenes, theatrical trailers (including the teaser and theatrical trailers, as well as the trailer for The Complete Adventures of Indiana Jones), storyboard art and a gallery of production photos.

Don't forget, a 2-disc edition of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country is being prepared for release early in 2004.

Bullet Time

On October 14th Warner Home Video will release The Matrix Reloaded!

This two-disc set includes a 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, English 5.1 and 2.0 and French 5.1 Dolby Digital surround tracks, English, French and Spanish subtitles, plus four new featurettes: "Preload" (go behind the scenes with the cast and crew), "Freeway Chase" (anatomy of the mind-blowing scene), "The Matrix Unfolds" (a look at the Matrix phenomenon) and "Enter the Matrix" (making of the groundbreaking video game), a look at "What is the Animatrix?", the "Get Me an Exit" still gallery with Matrix-inspired design advertising and the MTV Movie Awards "Reloaded" skit.

There will also be weblinks to the official Matrix online portal, but no other ROM features yet announced...stay tuned!

A Digital Christmas

The Griswolds are getting a special holiday edition on October 7th. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation will feature a new anamorphic widescreen transfer, Dolby Digital 2.0 surround track, an audio commentary with director and the cast including Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo, and the trailer.

Retail is just right for a stocking stuffer...only $19.95.

'American Idol 3' Sets First Audition Dates

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - FOX is getting an early start in searching for the next "American Idol."

Although the show isn't scheduled to return to the air in 2004, auditions for the third edition of the talent search will begin in August. "American Idol" scouts will set up shop in Los Angeles, Houston, Atlanta and New York to see what will most likely be thousands of would-be Kelly Clarksons, Ruben Studdards and Clay Aikens.

Tentative dates for the auditions are as follows:

* Los Angeles, date TBA
* Houston, Wednesday, Aug. 13
* Atlanta, Wednesday, Aug. 20
* New York, Monday, Aug. 25

Venues for each city will be announced later. Other audition cities may also be added at a later time. The show's web site, idolonfox.com, will carry updates on the audition process.

About 50,000 people flocked to seven cities last fall to try out for the second "American Idol." When the show ended in May, Studdard was the last man standing, narrowly beating Aiken to claim the title of American Idol. Both singers have since seen their debut singles hit the top of the Billboard charts; full-length albums from Studdard and Aiken are due later this year.

Linkin Park Explains Rejecting Download Of Single Tracks

Linkin Park, whose Meteora is one of the biggest selling rock albums of 2003, has joined the likes of Kid Rock, Metallica, and Green Day in nixing Internet sales and downloads of individual album tracks. The bands only want their full albums available for sale via Internet download.

Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington told LAUNCH that the band still wants fans to get the music via the Internet, but he said it has to be done in a way that works for fans and the bands. "We're all going to have to adjust,” says Bennington. “You know what I'm saying? Eventually everything is going to be purchased online. It's just a matter of how you're going to do it. You know? Do you sell albums by track or do you sell albums to download for one cost when you go in to download the music? Who knows? It's not up to me, it's up to the people to figure out the way they want to do it, and to do it in a way that's not going to destroy the bands that they love."

Bennington added that Linkin Park and the others think that downloading the album may be the better way to go, but they don't want to endorse or climb aboard a system that isn't proven. "Bands like us that have commercial success by selling records are in a different place than the bands that are in a lower playing field, so it's hard for us to really understand from our point of view,” Bennington says. “But we do understand that there's an issue there, and until everybody kind of figures it out and there's more education on how to fix it, we're not really going to run around and preach anything that we don't know is going to work for certain."

Linkin Park isn't afraid of the Internet. In fact, before the band got signed to Warner Brothers, they used technology to allow fans to download free MP3s, and used their website to assemble street teams to build a loyal core audience around the United States.

Linkin Park's Meteora, is still holding strong at Number 15 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The band has released its second single from the effort, "Faint," which follows in the footsteps of "Somewhere I Belong."

AWARDS ARE NOT ENOUGH

James Bond star Pierce Brosnan bestowed an honorary Order of the British Empire award by Queen Elizabeth for his outstanding contributions to drama and the British film industry.

Woo Hoo!

After today, and not including the original Star Wars Trilogy, the only film I want on DVD that has yet to come out is QUICK CHANGE.

That's after today because ONE, TWO, THREE comes out today!

AWESOME, baby! AWESOME!!!

One, Two, Three - Berlin 1961; weeks before "The Wall" was built. The contrast between East & West was never portrayed in a more black/white comparison. James Cagney is the ultimate "Capitalist"; Horst Buchholz the 110% "Communist". Add a beautiful 17-year old Southern Belle Executive's Daughter, Cagney's super sexy "bilingual" blond secretary, and an international cast of comedic actors, along with several "international incidents", and you have one of the best comedies Hollywood has ever produced! This movie is in my personal all-time top 20!

Here's what else is coming out today, Tuesday, July 15th, 2003:

Shanghai Knights - Buddies go from Wild West to Old London in next adventure. (Jackie Chan, Owen Wilson, Aidan Gillen)

Gods And Generals - Story of Confederate Gen. Stonewall Jackson in Civil War. (Jeff Daniels, Robert Duvall, Chris Conner)

Laurel Canyon - Conservative Harvard grad clashes with free spirit mom. (Frances McDormand, Kate Beckinsale, Christian Bale)

Pinocchio - Classic tale of a wooden puppet who longs to become a boy. (Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi, Carlo Ciuffre)

Friends: The Complete Fourth Season - The complete fourth season of the TV series Friends. (David Schwimmer, Jennifer Aniston, Matt Leblanc)

M*A*S*H: Season Four Collector's Edition - The complete fourth season of the TV series M*A*S*H. (Alan Alda, Wayne Rogers, Mike Farrell)

Schwarzenegger to Decide Soon on California Race

BERLIN (Reuters) - Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger said on Monday he would decide within the next month whether to run for California governor.

Speaking to journalists in Berlin ahead of the European premiere of his latest film, "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," the Austrian-born actor said his decision would depend on the political developments in his home state.

When asked about his political ambitions, Schwarzenegger, 55, said: "I can tell you that within the next month.

"But at the same time, something else could develop -- that's up to California. How that develops, if there will be a recall or not a recall and all those kind of things."

Republicans in California are leading a movement to remove the U.S. state's Democratic governor Gray Davis in a recall election. The organizers say they have collected signatures to force a vote in the autumn.

Schwarzenegger, who has eyed a political career on and off for years, has until recently insisted he was not thinking about running for governor. He has, however, said he is capable of leading and putting things in order.

'The Sopranos' Returns to Crowded Emmy Race

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "The Sopranos" are back as favorites to grab a piece of the action in this year's Emmy Awards, muscling in on a crowded field of TV politicians, cops, undertakers and spies vying for nominations for television's highest honors.

The critically acclaimed HBO mob drama, which sat out the 2002 Emmys due to a production hiatus but returned to the running with fresh episodes last season, is widely seen as a major contender for best drama and other categories when nominees are announced on Thursday.

"The Sopranos" has been nominated three times before as best drama, but the big prize has thus far eluded the show.

Other front-runners for a bid in the drama contest are NBC's three-time winner "The West Wing," Fox's breakout espionage thriller "24," perennial NBC nominee "Law & Order" and the HBO funereal family soap opera "Six Feet Under," which was last year's most nominated show.

But any of those series could be bumped out of the competition by the CBS hit "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," television's highest-rated drama, or HBO's gritty freshman series about Baltimore's inner-city drug scene, "The Wire."

Two other critically favored newcomers are likewise considered longshots in the drama competition -- the CBS missing-persons tale "Without a Trace" and NBC's crime series "Boomtown.

In the race for best comedy, the slate of nominees will probably bear a striking resemblance to 2002's contenders, including last year's winner, the NBC smash hit "Friends," and HBO's "Sex and the City," the 2001 comedy winner poised for its fifth consecutive nomination in that category.

'LAW & ORDER' SET TO BREAK RECORD

"Law & Order" stands to earn a best-drama bid for a record 12th straight year, surpassing "M*A*S*H" and "Cheers" for the most consecutive nominations for outstanding series by either a drama or comedy. Those three shows are currently tied at 11 consecutive nods each.

Awards pundit Tom O'Neil, host of the showbiz awards Web site GoldDerby.com and author of the book "The Emmys," said "Law & Order" has a special advantage by virtue of its longevity.

"I'll bet more than a quarter of the people voting on the Emmys probably have worked on 'Law & Order' in one way or another, and they have a very strong emotional attachment to the show," he said. "Remember, this is the industry voting on itself."

ABC's spy adventure "Alias" and the FX cable channel's cop show "The Shield," which earned its star, Michael Chiklis, an Emmy last year, also are expected to pick up nominations, primarily in the acting, directing, writing and crafts categories, according to GoldDerby predictions.

The Fox drama "24," starring Kiefer Sutherland, is tipped by some critics to emerge as this year's Emmy nominations darling, much the way "Six Feet Under" was in 2002.

In the performance categories, O'Neil said he considered two-time winner Edie Falco a shoo-in for a best actress nod again for her role as a mobster's wife on "The Sopranos" (it would be her fourth consecutive nomination).

He also said two dark horse candidates were likely to make a splash in this year's acting nominations -- Treat Williams for his role as a widower on the WB's "Everwood," and Tony Shalhoub, for his portrayal of an obsessive-compulsive detective on the USA Network comedy "Monk."

The 55th annual Primetime Emmy Awards will be presented Sept. 21 during a Fox telecast from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

White Stripes singer injured in crash

White Stripes frontman Jack White was injured after being involved in a car accident, NME reports.

White suffered a fractured hand in the crash, which occurred on Wednesday in his hometown of Detroit.

NME also reports that Hollywood star Renee Zellweger was a passenger in White's car at the time of the accident, although she was not hurt.

The crash has forced the band to scrap two weekend shows at Scotland's T In The Park festival, and the Witnness event in Ireland.

It is uncertain whether the injury will affect the group's upcoming North American tour which begins on July 19.

Clay Aiken Fans Claim 'American Idol's' Results Fixed

It seems that not everyone was happy with the outcome of this season's American Idol. A large group of AI fans have banded together online and have started an email campaign to Fox and the Federal Communications Commission (or FCC), alleging that the talent contest was fixed in favor of winner Ruben Studdard.

A group of emailed complaints collected by TheSmokingGun.com--who requested them from the FCC under the Freedom Of Information Act--profile various complaints, including the accusation that Fox provided fewer lines for runner-up Clay Aiken's voters, that judge Simon Cowell deliberately refrained from picking on Studdard's weight, and that the Fox producers lied about the number of votes received.

The FCC is said to be looking into the matter.

Three weeks ago, just prior to the final vote, Ruben Studdard said there's no rivalry between him and Aiken. "We're really good friends, man,” Studdard said. “You can't help to be with, around these people that long, and not build friendships. I think me and Clay's albums will both do well, and will sell a lot of copies, and everybody'll be happy."

'Pirates' Plunders Box Office for $46.4M

LOS ANGELES - Disney was rolling in doubloons as "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" plundered the box office for $46.4 million in its first weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Overall box-office revenues were up slightly, ending a string of four down weekends. The top 12 movies grossed $140 million, up 3.5 percent from the same weekend last year.

For the year, Hollywood receipts are running about 5 percent behind 2002 revenues.

Based on the Disney theme-park attraction, the movie starring Johnny Depp had taken in $70.4 million since opening Wednesday.

Debuting in second place was Sean Connery's literary superhero adventure "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," which had a $23.25 million opening weekend. Connery stars as Victorian-era adventurer Allan Quatermain leading a team of characters lifted from literature, including Dorian Gray, Capt. Nemo and Dr. Jekyll.

"Pirates of the Caribbean" commandeered the box-office lead from the previous weekend's No. 1 flick, "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," which fell to third place with $19.6 million. "Terminator 3" pushed its 12-day total to $110.5 million.

"Finding Nemo," the year's top-grossing movie, was No. 5 for the weekend with $8.2 million, lifting its total to $290.8 million.

The surreal fairy tale "Northfork" debuted strongly in limited release, taking in $61,000 at five theaters. From sibling filmmakers Mark and Michael Polish, "Northfork" stars Nick Nolte, James Woods and Daryl Hannah in the story of locals who refuse to evacuate their town to make way for a hydroelectric dam.

"Pirates of the Caribbean" stars Depp as a rascally pirate on a quest to retrieve his stolen ship from his first mate (Geoffrey Rush) and a crew of cursed mutineers who turn into skeletons in moonlight.

Produced by blockbuster baron Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Gore Verbinski, the well-reviewed "Pirates" offered elaborate stunts and visual effects for the action crowd and a classy cast that elevated it above the usual summer popcorn picture.

A staple in Errol Flynn's days, pirate movies had fallen on hard times in Hollywood with such modern bombs as "Cutthroat Island" and "Treasure Planet."

"Everybody had said pirate movies were cursed. The curse is officially over," said Chuck Viane, Disney head of distribution.

Disney bombed with its previous theme-park adaptation, last summer's "The Country Bears." But with the success of "Pirates," audiences skeptical about seeing movies based on Disney attractions might be a bit more primed for the next one, this fall's "The Haunted Mansion," starring Eddie Murphy.

The studio is running trailers for "The Haunted Mansion" before "Pirates of the Caribbean."

Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc., with final figures to be released Monday:

1. "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," $46.4 million.
2. "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," $23.25 million.
3. "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," $19.6 million.
4. "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde," $12 million.
5. "Finding Nemo," $8.2 million.
6. "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle," $7.3 million.
7. "Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas," $4.6 million.
8. "28 Days Later," $4.25 million.
9. "The Hulk," $3.7 million.
10. "The Italian Job," $2.8 million.

TOTALS TO DATE

Finding Nemo ......................... $290.8 million
The Hulk ............................. $124.7 million
Terminator 3 ......................... $110.5 million
The Italian Job ...................... $ 88.9 million
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle .......$ 81.7 million
Pirates of the Caribbean ............. $ 70.4 million
Legally Blonde 2 ..................... $ 62.9 million
28 Days Later ........................ $ 28.5 million
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. $ 23.3 million
Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas ..... $ 19.1 million

Jazz Great Benny Carter Dead at 95 in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Legendary jazz pioneer and big band leader Benny Carter, who helped break Hollywood's bar to black composers, died on Saturday at Cedars Sinai hospital in Los Angeles, friends said on Sunday. He was 95.

Carter, who was one of the first black composers and arrangers to work on mainstream Hollywood films, including such classics as "Stormy Weather," had been hospitalized for about two weeks, complaining of bronchitis and fatigue, said family friend Virginia Wicks.

"If Benny was not there, we wouldn't be here," said composer and arranger Quincy Jones, a close friend and protege. "We walked through the door on his shoulders. He was a quiet and dignified man. And one of a kind."

In a career that spanned seven decades, Carter played with such jazz luminaries as pianist Willie "The Lion" Smith, Fats Waller, Miles Davis and Dizzie Gillespie. He is also credited with launching Ella Fitzgerald's career by introducing her to bandleader Chick Webb.

A largely self-taught musician, Carter established the swing-era, big band sound through ensemble compositions for the Fletcher Henderson orchestra and later his own band.

Born in 1907 in New York City, Carter studied piano with his mother and was inspired by his neighbor, Bubber Miley, a musician with Duke Ellington's band.

He began sitting in at Harlem night spots at the age of 15, having left school. By 1928, he was recording with Henderson's band and is credited with groundbreaking arrangements like "Keep A Song In Your Soul."

"He was one of the architects of the big band sound," said longtime Carter friend and biographer Ed Berger.

Carter applied the principles of the jazz solo to whole sections of the orchestra in a way that made them swing as they never had before, said Berger.

As a result, the major big bands at the peak of their popularity in the 1930s sought him out and his own orchestra attracted a who's who of jazz musicians, including such sidemen as saxophonist Chu Berry and pianist Teddy Wilson.

"They were sort of an incubator for great soloists," said Berger.

Carter's compositions, including "Blues in My Heart" and "When Lights Are Low," have become jazz standards.

In 1941, he formed a sextet that included such bebop pioneers as trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie and drummer Kenny Clarke. Known as a courtly and patient mentor, Carter nurtured some of the next generation's major stars in jazz.

"Everyone should listen to Benny Carter, he's a whole musical education," said Miles Davis, who played with Carter in his California-based big band that also included trombonist J.J. Johnson and drummer Max Roach.

Carter was also a pioneer in breaking down color barriers for black musicians and composers. He formed the first international and interracial band in the Netherlands in the mid-1930s and a decade later became one of the first black composers to work in film and television.

A self-effacing and private man, Carter was modest about his accomplishments. "No one was ever more articulate than Benny Carter -- except about himself," said Berger. "He would not admit that this was any great, earth-shattering thing. To him it was just another gig."

Carter is survived by his wife, Hilma, a daughter, Joyce Mills, a grandchild and a great grandchild, said Wicks.

Awesome! Absolutely awesome!!!

The wait is finally over. Warner Bros. has officially announced their first DVD release of classic Looney Tunes animated shorts for October 28th. Here's what to expect...

The Looney Tunes Golden Collection will retail for $64.92 and will contain 56 of the very best animated shorts, restored and remastered to pristine quality, on 4 discs. You'll also get audio commentaries, music-only tracks, behind-the-scenes featurettes and documentaries and much more.

The Looney Tunes Premier Collection will retail for $26.99. It's 2 discs will feature 28 of the best restored and remastered shorts, featuring the "best of favorite characters" and some supplemental material.

Also available that day will be Looney Tunes: Reality Check! and Looney Tunes: Stranger Than Fiction (SRP $19.98 each). Reality Check features newly-created shorts spoofing reality TV, while Stranger Than Fiction includes new shorts spoofing sci-fi movie blockbusters and TV shows.

We should have all the details for you on Monday.

Also... be sure to come back here for ANOTHER big announcement from Warner on Monday morning. You can probably guess what it is.

We suggest you take the RED pill.

See you then!

Judas Priest Reunites With Halford

Judas Priest will reteam with estranged lead singer Rob Halford for a new album and tour in 2004, marking the veteran British heavy metal band's 30th anniversary. It's been more than a dozen years since Halford performed with longtime guitarists Glenn Tipton and K. K. Downing and bassist Ian Hill, as well as drummer Scott Travis, who joined the band in 1990.

"We all agreed that we feel the time is right," Tipton tells Billboard.com. "Everything just seems to have locked into place, and we just felt like we wanted to do it now, and maybe if we don't do it now, we never will."

The last Judas Priest album with Halford fronting the band was 1990's "Painkiller" (Columbia). After leaving the fold, he formed the thrash band Fight, which released three albums through Epic. Halford followed with the industrial-leaning act Two, which issued one album through Trent Reznor's nothing label, and then the short-lived metal quintet Halford.

Rumors of a reunion have circulated for the last several years, but Tipton insists that the band made the decision only last week. "We've been bonding our friendship again with Rob over the last two years or so, and we've had a lot of offers to reunite, but we've all been doing our own things," he says. "We've only just come to a point where we felt everything's right.

"Obviously when we split there was a lot of animosity and we didn't speak for a number of years," Tipton continues. "I saw [Halford] for the first time in years about two years ago, and it was very emotional. Anything that was said or done was all forgotten. We've been together for 30 years and we've been through a lot together in this band. It just needed time really. We all did our own thing, and it ran its course. It's all about timing."

In returning, Halford will be in the position of replacing his replacement in the band, Tim "Ripper" Owens. The former singer of the Judas Priest tribute band British Steel has been the singer in Judas Priest since 1996. The rock fan's dream-come-true story was the inspiration for the 2001 film "Rock Star," which starred Mark Wahlberg and Jennifer Aniston.

"There is no one who could have stepped into Rob's shoes except Ripper," Tipton enthuses. "He's been fantastic. We told him last week, and basically, he said, 'Look, I've got to agree with you.' He's a big Priest fan. And he's been a real gentleman about it."

The band released two studio albums with Owens, 1997's "Jugulator" (CMC) and 2001's "Demolition" (Atlantic), plus the concert set "98 Live Meltdown" (CMC).

The reunited Judas Priest expects to begin work on new material in September. "Rob is a great lyricist," Tipton says. "And it's the old team back together, it's the three of us [Halford, Tipton and Downing] writing and it's exciting because that is the team that's written Priest classics for the last 30 years. There's just some magic about it and we shall just proceed and start where we left off, really. I'm sure the floodgates will open. It's been a long time and we're quite eager to get going, so that's when you usually write your best material."

A world tour will follow. "And we'll stay out for a long time," Tipton guarantees.

Also in the offing is a Judas Priest box set, described by Tipton as "a retro-album, right from the old record days right through to the Ripper years. There are lots of things in the pipeline and lots of things we'll be working on."

VIRGIN LOVE

As expected, Courtney Love signing a three-album deal with Virgin Records, Billboard reports. Her first disc, America's Sweetheart, is due out October 28.

New John Mayer Album Expected This Fall

John Mayer's eagerly-anticipated follow up to 2001's Room For Squares will be released in the fall. Mayer recently spent five weeks in a New York City studio working on the release before beginning his current co-headlining tour with the Counting Crows. Mayer said he enjoyed working in the Manhattan space, and that "the studio had a great vibe that allowed me to focus all my energies on creating music."

Mayer is one of the many musicians using the latest in computer technology to help him produce his material. He tells LAUNCH Apple's iPod has been instrumental in his writing. "I have the Apple iPod, it's great. Because I can burn my demos and put them into the iPod and then listen to them as I'm driving, or as am going to a radio station, and just really just have time to sit in it and think about it," Mayer said. "And it's really fun. It's really really fun."

'Angels' flops, 'Sinbad' sinks: What the Hulk's goin' on?

The incredible Hulk took an incredible fall. Charlie's Angels took a devil of a dive. And Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas sunk straight to the bottom of the box office sea.

Shed a tear for the summer blockbusters that weren't to be.

By the standard of a low-budget independent movie, or even a typical Hollywood film released at any other time of year, the big bucks snatched by The Hulk and Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle would be impressive. But given the big budgets of these high-profile projects and the hefty marketing costs involved, most Hollywood observers were disappointed in these three films, all of which are approaching the end of their shelf life.

And leaving some resentment in their wake.

"You have three good examples here of how the studios spent a lot of money trying to trick us into thinking these were great movies," says Russ Leatherman, founder of AOL Moviefone, who monitors thousands of e-mails and postings each week. "All that marketing muscle can open a movie, but if it isn't any good, the movie won't survive."

Box office analyst John Shaw of Movieline International argues that only a movie's first weekend matters anymore. "I don't think anything went wrong," Shaw says. "You have a large majority of your audience seeing the film in the first seven to 14 days." Shaw projects that The Hulk eventually will bring in more than $130 million and Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle will pass $100 million.

Those figures are a great deal less than originally expected. The Hulk's audience dropped a spectacular 70% in just one week. Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle also fell fast. And Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas didn't attract an audience at all.

Here's a look at what went wrong?

The movie:The Hulk

The budget: Estimated at $120-$137 million, not including marketing costs

The letdown: One of the most anticipated and hyped movies of the summer had the largest June opening ever. Sounds good, but it was about $20 million short of what some analysts had predicted. Worse, moviegoers polled by CinemaScore.com gave it a B-minus, shockingly low for an opening-night crowd. Then the other shoe dropped, and it was Hulk-sized: The next week, the big green monster shrunk an incredible 70%, one of the worst second-week drops for an expected blockbuster ever.

What went wrong:

• A bad Super Bowl advertisement and trailer that showed the Hulk looking fake. "He looked like a CGI Jolly Green Giant on steroids," Leatherman says. "Viewers started saying, 'This is a really cheesy-looking monster, but I'll go see it anyway. Ang Lee's a great director, so maybe the rest of the movie is good.' " When it wasn't, there was backlash.

• The film substituted arty pomposity for fun. "The Hulk sagged under its own pretentious weight," says Rose "Bams" Cooper, co-author of the book 3 Black Chicks Review Flicks. The very concept was flawed, says Garth Franklin, who edits darkhorizons.com, a popular source of movie gossip on the Internet. "Ang Lee tried to blend a dark adult drama with a kiddie action movie," he says. "On their own, they would've been fine but together neither gelled and (it) alienated both audiences." Adds Thelma Adams, film critic for Us Weekly: "You just can't fool American audiences on their junk food."

• It was really slo-o-ow. "My son kept asking me when the movie was going to start," says Pia Scarborough, 29, a Nashville massage therapist. "I said, 'It started half an hour ago!' " Says Leatherman: "Moviegoers disliked the slow, plodding, humorless story."

• Bad worth of mouth: "Word of mouth spread quickly on the Internet," says Brandon Gray, an analyst with BoxOfficeMojo.com. "That's what really hurt it."

The movie:Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle

Estimated budget: $120 million, not including marketing costs

The letdown: The much-hyped Charlie's Angels sequel (was there a magazine that didn't feature one or more of the Angels on its cover?) brought in $38 million in its debut, a little less than the first film in the series. These days, sequels are expected to open bigger than the originals. Then it dropped 63% in its second weekend.

What went wrong:

• No wide allure. "It seemed to have had its core appeal to women and did not branch out much beyond that demographic," says box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations.

• People flocked to the first one, but they didn't love it. "There weren't that many fans of the first movie," says BoxOfficeMojo.com's Brandon Gray. "The first Charlie's Angels was a blockbuster by default, the first movie of the holiday season in 2000, the only game in town."

• Overfamiliarity. After all, it was a sequel to a TV spinoff. "Moviegoers seem to be getting fed up with all the summer reruns at the theaters and want something fresh and new," says Gitesh Pandya, editor of boxofficeguru.com.

• All surface and no substance. "People were sick of the movie before they even saw it," Gray says. "It was all style, all glitz, all glamour, no substance at all." Leatherman is blunter: "It stunk. There was an arrogance about the entire movie that played out on screen."

The movie:Sinbad

The budget: $60 million, not including marketing costs

The letdown: DreamWorks' ambitious animated adventure never drew an opening-weekend audience, even with a Shrek giveaway CD. It opened to a mere $6.9 million this past weekend, making it the studio's first outright failure in animation.

What went wrong:

• Audiences don't like animated adventure films. "Traditionally, animated adventures tend to have a bad time at the movies," Gray says. "Treasure Planet was one of the biggest bombs of last year. The most spectacular animated failures have been of the adventure variety, like Titan A.E. and Quest for Camelot." Adds Leatherman: "This movie smelled so much like last year's Treasure Planet. Same story line, same look. It came out with little fanfare and tanked. It just got buried at sea."

• Straight animation is over. Sadly, the old-school animated feature appears to be dying, with more edgy and lifelike CGI comedies taking over. "Without the very rich 3-D Pixar animation, these old-school animated movies are really having a hard time," Leatherman says. "What we're finding is that that's not fun for kids." Adds Pandya: "The types of animated films that attract large paying crowds to the multiplexes are computer-animated films with comedy. Shrek, Monsters, Inc., Ice Age, and most recently Finding Nemo." And that bring us to ...

•Finding Nemo rules. Why see Sinbad when you can laugh and cry at Finding Nemo over and over again? "Pixar clearly rules the seas with Nemo," Adams says.

• Unnecessary voice casting. Why cast Brad Pitt, Michelle Pfeiffer and Catherine Zeta-Jones — none noted for a distinctive speaking voice or sense of humor — in Sinbad? The concept backfired disastrously. "What kind of voodoo sorcery did Brad Pitt perform on DreamWorks to convince them to voice-cast him as Ken-doll Sinbad in this flick?" Cooper asks. "I mean, really; can you picture Little Timmy and Little Jane asking Mommy, 'Hey Mom, can we go to see Sinbad? It's got Brad Pitt in it!' "

David Duchovny's "Sex" Files

The sex is out there, and it's up to David Duchovny to find it.

In a conspiracy hatched by the producers of Sex and the City, the former X-Files G-man will be investigating mysteries of the female kind on HBO's hit comedy.

"Yes, he will guest star. You'll see him in the August episode," Sex and the City publicist Angela Tarantino confirmed Thursday.

Duchovny will heat things up as a potential suitor to Sarah Jessica Parker's Carrie Bradshaw during SATC's final batch of episodes airing in January 2004.

Though the rep wouldn't elaborate how many episodes Duchovny will appear in, it's likely he'll give Carrie's old boyfriend, the currently San Francisco-based Mr. Big (Chris Noth), a run for his money once her romance with latest hottie Jack Burger (Ron Livingston) flames out.

Executive producer Michael Patrick King says Duchovny's presence will keep Carrie's love life interesting.

"Why would we bring in a major name if [Big] was already [the clear winner]?" King tells TV Guide Online.

Duchovny becomes the second high-profile thespian this week to be wooed by Sex, following former L.A. Law star Blair Underwood, who signed on for a fling with one of the show's four leading ladies beginning at the end of the summer.

SATC will also be joined this season by former child star and Oscar winner Tatum O'Neal, who was tapped to play Carrie's photographer in the August 17 episode. Legally Blonde star Jennifer Coolidge turned up in last week's episode throwing a handbag party.

Having had enough of aliens, ghosts and monsters by swearing off the role of FBI Special Agent Fox "Spooky" Mulder (at least until he's abducted to reprise the part for a planned X-Files feature), Duchovny, 41, has been busy making movies and raising four-year-old daughter Madelaine West and one-year-old son Kid with actress-wife Téa Leoni.

His most recent credits include Return to Me, Zoolander, Evolution and Steven Soderbergh's little-seen 2002 indie drama, Full Frontal.

Having written and directed several episodes of The X-Files, Duchovny is getting behind the camera again and will make his feature helming debut with House of D, a New York-based drama that he wrote about a man coming to terms with his life by confronting his present relationships with friends. Robin Williams, Tyler Hoechlin (Road to Perdition) and Leoni will star alongside Duchovny.

He next turns up on the big screen in the Universal comedy Connie and Carla opposite Nia Vardalos and Toni Collette, due out later this year.

Another Indy DVD Update

More than a few internet and retail sources have been posting information regarding the Indiana Jones Box Set online, and it's been confirmed with Paramount that this is real deal with Paramount. Here's the official word about the bonus features on the upcoming Indy DVDs...

"Indiana Jones: Making the Trilogy - The Lucasfilm archives were raided to give you unprecedented access to the making of the Indiana Jones trilogy. Join the cast and crew of all 3 films on an epic movie-making adventure, including all-new interviews with Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Harrison Ford, Frank Marshall, Karen Allen, Kate Capshaw and more. Go on set and experience firsthand the rough-and-tumble world of the films' creation. Illustrated with never-before-seen footage, outtakes, screen tests, production drawings and photographs, Making the Trilogy is your first-class ticket to behind-the-scenes movie-making history.

The Light and Magic of Indiana Jones - In an era before computer-generated effects existed, Industrial Light and Magic managed to bring to life the unique world of Indiana Jones by using groundbreaking techniques in special and mechanical effects. The ILM wizards reveal how they employed miniatures, matte paintings, morphing and more to make Indy's spectacular quests and supernatural adventures believable.

The Sound of Indiana Jones - Academy Award-winning sound designer Ben Burtt takes us on what director Steven Spielberg describes as "an adventure in sound." Discover the crucial role that sound effects and editing play in the Indiana Jones films and learn the aural history behind some of your favorite scenes.

The Stunts of Indiana Jones - Each Indiana Jones film topped its predecessor with heart-stopping, perilous stunts. The stunt crew takes you behind the scenes to witness the intense coordination required by the entire production team to make certain a death-defying scene looks convincing on film. Learn how the Indy films paid homage to the past and were pivotal to the future of movie stunts.

Original trailers - Watch the original theatrical teasers and trailers for the Indiana Jones movies along with a trailer for the Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb video game from LucasArts.

Exclusive DVD-ROM content - Each of your Indiana Jones DVDs has the ability to unlock exclusive Indiana Jones content available only through a special DVD-ROM Web site. In addition, you can link to www.indianajones.com and check out the daily features and updates on Indiana Jones 4."

'Secret' Hepburn biography to be published

NEW YORK (AFP) - A biography of Katherine Hepburn that was two decades in the making, will finally go on sale in accordance with the screen legend's wish that it be published posthumously.

"Kate Remembered" appears to have been one of the best kept publishing secrets in recent memory, with fewer than 10 people at the publishing house, G.P. Putnam's Sons, even aware of its existence.

With Hepburn's death on June 29 still fresh in the public mind, the biography is virtually guaranteed to hit the bestseller lists, although the author, Scott Berg, stressed that the timing had nothing to do with marketing strategies.

"Kate often suggested the importance of publishing a book right away because she presumed there would be many books about her over the years, and she presumed they would be filled with the same misstatements of facts that have appeared over the years," Scott said in a statement.

Scott said the book was based on intimate conversations with Hepburn that began immediately after their first meeting in 1983.

"She made it very clear that she hoped all that she was imparting would somehow be preserved in a book, one that would not be published until after her death," he said.

"With this book, I think, she imagined there would be at least a foundation of truth -- of what she actually said and thought about things, in many cases things she felt could not be printed until she died."

The publisher's were giving little away regarding the book's content, saying only that it would reveal "untold details" of her entire career and her relationships with billionaire Howard Hughes and Spencer Tracy.

Berg is the author of three previous biographies, including a Pulitzer Prize-winning life of aviator Charles Lindbergh published in 1998.

Berg said he actually finished all but the final page of "Kate Remembered" in 2001 and that G.P. Putnam Sons had agreed to Hepburn's dictate that it could not be published, "indeed even discussed," until her death.

"In the last few weeks of her life, I wrote the final paragraphs, the hardest I've ever had to write," he said.

In fading health for several years, Hepburn died at her home in Old Saybrook, Connecticut. A family spokeswoman gave the cause of death as "old age."

During Hepburn's career she became one of the most acclaimed actresses of all time. She was outspoken and her longstanding affair with actor Spencer Tracy brought drama and controversy to her life.

They made nine films together and remained a couple until Tracy's death in 1967.

No woman has matched the four Academy Awards she won, and the American Film Institute counts her among the greatest film icons, alongside Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant and Bette Davis.

Springer to File Papers for Senate Bid

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Jerry Springer, the talk show host who put wife-swappers, strippers and skinheads on the air and then watched the punches fly, will file papers to run for the U.S. Senate as early as Friday, advisers said.

Springer, 59, the former Cincinnati mayor, will not decide whether to actually run until later this month, said Mike Ford, his political adviser.

The early filing is necessary to avoid getting into legal trouble for raising money without officially declaring a candidacy, Ford said.

Springer is airing 30-minute infomercials across the nation to raise money and build support for his possible run for the Democratic nomination next year.

The infomercial, paid for by Springer, is part biography and part fund-raiser. It explains how Springer's parents fled Nazi Germany for England, then moved to the United States just before Springer's fifth birthday. The ad seeks small donations and offers T-shirts, bumper stickers and CDs of Springer singing "rockabilly" music.

The infomercial will air for about two weeks in several U.S. cities including Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Memphis, Tenn., New Orleans, San Antonio and New York. Ford would not say how much it cost.

It was not immediately scheduled to air in Ohio because of concerns over equal access, meaning TV stations would have to offer equivalent time to other candidates.

The infomercial also addresses potential problems by Springer's talk show, known for its profanity, fistfights, cheating spouses and incestuous relationships.

Springer repeats a theme he has voiced several times in recent months — that his show is not responsible for problems in Ohio with schools, jobs and the economy.

The infomercial focuses on a comment by National Review commentator Jonah Goldberg on a Sunday morning talk show several months ago. Goldberg warned of new people brought to the polls by Springer, including "slack-jawed yokels, hicks, weirdos, pervs and whatnots."

The infomercial offers that quote on a T-shirt and inserted into a signed photograph of Springer next to a sign for Hicksville, Ohio. Springer refers to the quote and talks about wanting to reach out to "regular folks ... who weren't born with a silver spoon in your mouth."

State Sen. Eric Fingerhut, a Democrat, has already announced his candidacy for the Senate seat. The Democratic winner will probably take on Republican Sen. George Voinovich.

"A half-hour infomercial doesn't wipe out what he's been doing for a decade," Fingerhut said Thursday. "All it does tragically is identify Ohio with his level of entertainment."

'Pirates' Set to Make Movie Rivals Walk the Plank

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Sean Connery's league of famous misfits from the Victorian Age is likely to have a difficult time if they expect to snatch away some of the booty already being reaped by Johnny Depp and his gang of pirates.

Swords will be drawn on both sides as Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" faces off against 20th Century Fox's "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" this weekend, fighting over moviegoers flocking to the theaters for one of the two action-adventurers hitting the big screen.

"Pirates" opened Wednesday to $13.5 million, getting a head start on the coveted PG-13 audience. It was the best Wednesday opening of the year -- surpassing the R-rated "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," which earned $12.4 million last week -- and the eighth-best Wednesday opening ever.

Inspired by the fabled Disneyland ride, the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced "Pirates" pairs Depp with Orlando Bloom as 17th century adventurers Captain Jack Sparrow and Will Turner, respectively. They are out to fight Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), who has kidnapped the governor's beautiful daughter Elizabeth (Keira Knightly) and taken over Sparrow's ship.

The film, directed by Gore Verbinski, is playing in 3,269 theaters and is predicted to reach the $45 million-50 million mark for the Friday-Sunday period. Its Wednesday and Thursday take could boost the picture's five-day total to $65 million-$70 million.

The fate of Fox's "Gentlemen" is more open to question. Connery stars as Allan Quatermain, who heads a disparate band of unlikely 19th century superheroes brought together to fight a dangerous foe who could trigger a world war. Based on the unique comic book series created by Alan Moore, the film is sure to benefit from a last-minute media blitz, but industry tracking suggests that it won't come close to "Pirates."

"Gentlemen" looks more likely to earn $17 million-$20 million for the three-day period. Directed by Stephen Norrington of "Blade" fame, the PG-13 film will bow in 3,002 theaters.

Not only does "Gentlemen" have to fight the younger fan base looking forward to seeing Depp and Bloom in eyeliner and long hair, it also goes up against the second weekend of Arnold Schwarzenegger's "T3." The sophomore session of the franchise's third installment could suffer a 50% drop from its $44 million debut weekend, putting it squarely in the same box office range as "Gentlemen."

On the limited-release front, Paramount Classics opens "Northfolk," the epic film from the Polish brothers ("Twin Falls, Idaho"), in four theaters. The PG-13 drama, a festival favorite, stars James Woods, Nick Nolte, Daryl Hannah and Anthony Edwards in a surreal tale about a town threatened by a new dam project. The film already has received rave reviews, with some critics calling it the brothers' best film yet.

Sony Pictures Classics is releasing the Russian film "The Cuckoo" in New York and Los Angeles. The PG-13 film centers on a Russian idealist, a Finnish college student and a Swedish peasant woman who are confined to a tiny backwoods hut near the end of World War II.

IDP will debut "I Capture the Castle" on eight screens in New York and Los Angeles. The R-rated U.K. import is a Jane Austen-style romance about a young fledgling writer who is being married off, much to her chagrin, by her family in search of a better lifestyle.

Maguire Vows Spidey II to Be Better Than the First

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Actor Tobey Maguire, who shot to A-list stardom in 2002 smash hit movie "Spider-Man," on Thursday vowed to fans that the web of a tale being spun for next year's sequel will be even stickier than the original.

"I'm really happy with it ... It's going to be better than the first one. The story is a lot better," he told reporters at a news conference for upcoming film "Seabiscuit" in which he plays a jockey.

Maguire, who portrays the comic book crime fighter Spider-Man and his alter ego Peter Parker, said the filming for "Spider-Man II" was about two-thirds complete.

He declined to provide details of the plot. What is known, however, is that Parker is now attending college at Empire State University while two new villains, Dr. Octopus and the Lizard, plot his destruction.

The first "Spider-Man" became one of 2002's biggest hits by thrilling audiences with action and digital effects and delighting critics with its story of Parker -- conflicted by the human desire for love and his superhuman abilities.

"Spider-Man" racked up $806 million at global box offices and in its first weekend alone in the United States and Canada, it sold a record $114 million worth of tickets.

Earlier this year, Hollywood was buzzing with talk that Maguire had hurt his back portraying racehorse jockey Johnny "Red" Pollard, who rode the legendary Seabiscuit in the 1930s and 1940s.

Various news reports speculated that because of his back problems, Maguire might be out of a job as Spider-Man/Parker for the sequel, but the 28-year-old actor shot down that talk.

"It's not true that I was fired," he said.

Maguire characterized his back problem as an ailment that had nagged him for years and was not the result of filming "Seabiscuit." He declined to detail his back problems.

He said that because the stunt work in "Spider-Man II" is more strenuous and acrobatic, there had been some "concerns" and some "questioning" by the filmmakers and himself as to how physically fit he was for the job. But he added that he always intended to reprise his role for the sequel.

"I didn't have any doubts," he said.

"Spider-Man II" is scheduled to be released in July 2004.

Olmos Warns Viewers Away from GALACTICA

Edward James Olmos, star of the new tv movie BATTLESTAR GALATICA, says that if you're a fan of the original series, don't watch this version.

Edward James Olmos has a message for die-hard "Battlestar Galactica" fans who want to watch the Sci Fi Channel's remake of the 1970s series:

Don't.

"A person who really has a strict belief in the original, I would advise them not to watch this program," Olmos ("Miami Vice," "American Family") said Tuesday (July 8) at the TV Critics Association press tour. "It'll hurt them. ...

"I know that Sci Fi Channel wants to say that everybody's going to enjoy it. They're not."

The point Olmos, who plays Commander Adama (Lorne Greene in the original) in the remake, was making is that those expecting to see a copy of the first "Galactica's" swashbuckling style won't see it when they tune into to the remake in December. The look of the four-hour miniseries and some of the characters are the same, but the tone is markedly different.

Writer Ron Moore says that in re-watching the series pilot, he was struck by its "extraordinarily dark" premise: Nearly all of humanity, save for the people on the Galactica and a handful of other ships, is wiped out at the beginning of the story.

"You wake up one morning and your world has changed forever, and what happens to you?" Moore says. "What do you do? How do you react to it?"

The original series, Moore says, eventually developed a more escapist tone -- which he believes it probably had to do in order to survive on network television at the time. The new "Galactica" will focus on the question of "What would really happen if your world was destroyed?"

Then there's the fact that Starbuck, first played by Dirk Benedict, is now a woman. Katee Sackhoff ("The Education of Max Bickford") is playing the part of the top fighter pilot and close friend of Apollo (Jamie Bamber, "Band of Brothers").

Moore ("Roswell," HBO's "Carnivale") says the rogue-pilot character Benedict was able to carry off is somewhat played out now, and he was intrigued by how the relationship between Apollo and Starbuck would change if Starbuck were a woman.

"I hadn't seen that relationship played on camera," Moore says. "The whole notion of women in the military, in the U.S. military, is a relatively new idea."

If "Battlestar Galactica" does well -- despite Olmos' warnings to purists -- it could become a weekly series. The principal cast is under contract to continue on a weekly show if the network decides to pick it up.

Sci Fi is clearly hoping people who do have fond memories of the original will watch the remake. The channel's president, Bonnie Hammer, made an appeal to reporters as the session was ending.

"We do hope you position your pieces so that you'll be writing in a way that everybody who does want to watch has to now watch," she said. "Correct?"

Unconfirmed details about the DVD of X-MEN 2.

The release date of the X2 DVD is still tentative, but will either be towards the last week of September or the first weeks of October. Here are the detail of the DVD (Keep in mind, these may change):

DISC I

*Feature Film
*Deleted Scenes:

-Professor Xavier and Cyclops return
-Fight in the mall
-Extended Wolverine/Deathstrike
-Nightcrawler's Mark
-Rogue/Bobby talk about Pyro
-Alternative Scene 1
-Alternative Scene 2
-Rogue helps kids during mansion raid
-Extended Colossus/X-Kids Scene
-Wolverine enters the 'Danger Room' door

*Featurettes (On set footage)

*Commentaries:

-Director/Producer
-Director/Cast Members

*1 Easter Egg

DISC II

*Featurette's:

-Return of the Mutants
-Mutant Effects
-X2: The Cast
-Press Conference
-Reflections
-On Set: Making of X2
-HBO First Look: X2
-Art Gallery/Animatics
-4 Trailers, 7 TV Spots
-Future of the X-Men

*2 Easter Eggs

Dunst, Kutcher Traveling to Crowe's 'Elizabethtown'

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Kirsten Dunst and Ashton Kutcher are attached to star in Cameron Crowe's next project, "Elizabethtown," which is slated to begin production in the first quarter of 2004 in Oregon and Kentucky.

DreamWorks Pictures and Paramount Pictures are in final talks to finance the film, which is being produced by Crowe's Vinyl Films and Tom Cruise's C/W Prods. Cruise previously starred in Crowe's "Vanilla Sky" and "Jerry Maguire."

"Elizabethtown," which Crowe also wrote, is described as a rich ensemble comedy with two central leads. The project is intended to be a love letter to the resilience of the life force and is a story of an unexpected romance that develops against the backdrop of a Southern patriarch's hilariously elaborate memorial. Like Crowe's previous works, music will figure prominently in the film.

A portion of the filming will also occur in October before resuming in the new year.

There's a Mighty Wind a blowin'

Christopher Guest, the master of the mockumentary is coming to DVD again with the folk-singing insight of A Mighty Wind. Warner Brothers Home Entertainment will be presenting a special edition of the DVD this fall.

Documentary-style Comedy. Christopher Guest follows up his acclaimed ensemble comedies Best in Show and Waiting for Guffman with a docu-comedy about three folk groups from the 60s who reunite for a memorial concert in New York City following the death of a legendary folk manager.

Dolby Digital 5.1 and an anamorphic widescreen will grace the film. Also included will be an audio commentary with director Christopher Guest and Eugene Levy, biographies and discographies for the fictional bands of the film, the television broadcast from the climax of the film and other made-up television appearances.

The disc will arrive on September 23rd.

'Canadian Idol' finalists chosen

TORONTO (CP) -- The phones lit up, and text messages came in from across the country, as television viewers had their say after Canadian Idol aired on Monday night.

Their verdict: Toronto's Mikey Bustos and Candida Clauseri as well as Calgary's Billy Klippert will advance to the Top 10 in the singing competition.

Altogether, a total of about 700,000 votes were cast, CTV said Wednesday. It's possible for people to vote more than once on the toll-free telephone line or 25-cents-per-vote text messaging service.

CTV says there was an average national viewing audience of 1.84 million for the show.

Bustos, 22, sang Dan Hill's Sometimes When We Touch, Clauseri, 20, performed Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You and Klippert, 24, weighed in with a rendition of The Carpenters' Superstar.

Two more groups of 10 still have to compete on Canadian Idol -- next Monday and the Monday after -- before there's a final Top 10.

Concert Tour Attendance Up This Year

NEW YORK - Concert attendance jumped by 24 percent in the first half of the year as acts like the Dixie Chicks, Cher and the Rolling Stones helped reverse a two-year slide in ticket sales.

Fans bought 13.1 million concert tickets to the top 50 concert tours from January to June, compared to 10.6 million sold during the same period last year, according to Pollstar, the industry trade magazine. Gross receipts were up 26 percent to $678 million, up from $538 million in 2001.

"We're back up to kind of where we were in 2000," said Gary Bongiovanni, Pollstar's editor-in-chief. "We had progressively been selling fewer tickets as the prices escalated."

But trouble may be looming for summer tours due to cold, rainy weather that delayed the traditional kickoff in late May and early June. "It's really hard to sell a ticket to an outdoor concert if it's raining all the time," Bongiovanni said.

Concert attendance had been declining steadily since 2000, when 12.9 million tickets were sold. The average ticket price for the first six months this year was approximately $52 — up only one dollar from the previous year, according to Pollstar. Last year, ticket prices cost an average of $51, up from $47 the previous year.

Yet for the biggest acts, prices continue to rise. Tickets for the top-grossing tour — Elton John and Billy Joel — cost an average of $113. The Rolling Stones' average ticket cost $158, up from $119 when they toured last year.

"The really expensive tickets are largely being bought by the aging baby boomers," said Bongiovanni.

Baby boomer acts such as the Stones, Fleetwood Mac and Cher represented half of the top 10 concerts for the first six months of the year. But country acts such as the Dixie Chicks, Kenny Chessney and Tim McGraw also performed strongly.

"The Dixie Chicks were one of the few acts that seemed to do great business just about everywhere they went," Bongiovanni said of the female trio, which wasn't hurt by the Bush-bashing controversy that engulfed them earlier this year.

Though Chessney was the 10th-highest grossing tour, he actually was the top draw according to tickets sold. His tour sold 682,000 tickets at an average price of $36, grossing $24.4 million. In comparison, Elton John and Billy Joel sold approximately 465,000 tickets at an average price of $113, grossing $52.7 million.

One act placed in the top 10 without even going on tour. Celine Dion's Las Vegas stage show has grossed $33.2 million since it opened in March.

"That was something of an experiment, and that did very well," Bongiovanni said.

Lavigne releasing live CD, DVD

Avril Lavigne's live CD and DVD, "My World," is due out Sept. 29 and promises live footage from her world tour, plus backstage and on-the-road shenanigans with her band and opening acts.

"I can't really think of anything off the top of my head, but we toured with Gob and Simple Plan," Lavigne says, referring to two fellow Canadian pop-punk bands prone to silly antics. "We do a lot of skateboarding and scooter-ing around in the venues. Kind of felt like I was back in high school for a bit."

Meanwhile, now that the Napanee, Ont. native is off the road after non-stop touring behind her 2002 debut, "Let Go," which has sold over 13 million albums worldwide, she will get to work on her next studio album. Lavigne has been playing both electric and acoustic guitar onstage backed by a solid group of rock musicians, all in their early 20s, that has helped toughen her music.

"I think I've really come along in my songwriting and I really believe in myself, and I'm going to make a record that I really feel and that comes from inside, and my feelings," Lavigne says. "I did that on the last record but more so on this record because I've had time to grow and become a better writer, a better guitar player, and I've learned more about studio work."

As for the big screen treatment of Lavigne's hit single, "Sk8er Boi" that Paramount Pictures has optioned and Dark Angel/ER writer David Zabel will create, the 18-year-old singer-songwriter is keeping her distance, despite the fact that the song's co-writers, the Matrix, have signed on as consultants.

"The movie has nothing to do with me," Lavigne says. "I don't have any say in it. And no, I won't be in it."

Disney 'Pirates' Looking for Box Office Booty

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Walt Disney Co.'s "Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl" sets sail for movie theaters on Wednesday hunting for box office booty and looking to put some wind behind the aging "Pirates" ride at Disney's theme parks.

The live action pirate adventure has its risks since Disney can ill afford a flop on a big budget movie like last fall's animated "Treasure Planet."

"Planet" cost a reported $140 million to make and took in only $16.5 million in its debut weekend. Before it ended its run in theaters, Disney was forced to lower its fiscal 2002 earnings by $47 million, or 3 cents a share.

New York-based money manager and veteran media company analyst Hal Vogel reckons that at a reported cost of $125 million, "Curse of the Black Pearl" needs a $35 million to $40 million debut weekend to be deemed a hit on the box office boat and please Disney shareholders.

But Hollywood's summer of sequels like "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle" seems to have missed the mark with audiences who want ideas in their new movies and not simply new movies based on rehashing old ideas.

"It's been a very, very tough summer to fool the people," Vogel said.

'A PIRATE'S LIFE FOR ME'

While "Curse of the Black Pearl" stems from the popular ride that opened at Disneyland in 1967 and still features 64 animatronic pirates singing "Yo Ho, Yo Ho; A pirate's life for me," Disney executives and the moviemakers are quick to say the ride is merely an inspiration for the movie.

Nina Jacobson, president of Disney's Buena Vista Motion Pictures Group, called it "a great jumping off point" to tell a tale of treasure hunting, sea battles and ghosts aplenty.

"The studio suggested the movie to the (Disney) brass, not the other way around," Jacobson said. "The rides don't have a narrative. We're taking evocative images and using them as the beginning threads to a story. Ultimately, the story stands on its own."

Instead of trying to make a movie from the ride, Disney hired big-time producer Jerry Bruckheimer to make a film that was "inspired by" the ride with the action and intrigue of hits like "Pearl Harbor" and "Black Hawk Down."

Bruckheimer said he knew audiences might be dissuaded from seeing "Pirates" because of its legacy as a Disney ride. So he talked one of Hollywood's most offbeat, yet critically praised youthful stars, Johnny Depp, into playing Captain Jack Sparrow -- a pirate with a quick wit, a light heart and a swift sword.

"I felt you needed to counter the Disney name. I knew that (adding Depp) would tell audiences this movie is something different. This is not, 'Country Bears,"' he said.

"The Country Bears," which landed in theaters last summer, was Disney's first try at an old-ride-to-new-movie synergy. It was based on the "Country Bear Jamboree" that opened at Walt Disney World in 1971 with animatronic, singing bears.

It had been a popular ride that needed a breath of life. Yet, it tanked as a G-rated movie and earned only $17 million at U.S. and Canadian box offices, according to tracking service Exhibitor Relations Inc. The attraction is still in the parks.

"I don't think that one had much impact. This is a situation where you either win, or it's not an effect," said financial analyst Jeffrey Logsdon of Gerard Klauer Mattison.

Instead of a G-rated, family film, Bruckheimer set out to make a PG-13 movie that would have enough adventure and sex appeal to attract mass-market audiences and still keep with Walt Disney Pictures' reputation for family-friendly films.

Tenacious D Unveils Its 'Masterworks'

As first tipped here in May, comedy/rock duo Tenacious D has compiled its short-lived HBO series, music videos, short films, a 90-minute concert from London's Brixton Academy and a tour documentary for the double-DVD set "The Masterworks." The project will be released Sept. 9 by Epic.

The Brixton Academy show features such D favorites as "Wonderboy," "Explosivo," "Kielbasa," "F*** Her Gently," "Tribute" and "Rock Your Socks." The DVD's second disc will include videos and "making of" featurettes for "Wonderboy" and "Tribute," TV appearances on "Mad TV" and "Crank Yankers" and in-studio footage.

"This is the package all D fans will want," director Liam Lynch told Billboard.com in May. "I'm even sick of having things on so many different videotapes all over my house. Now everything will all be in one spot. We want it as much as the fans do."

For a true glimpse behind the scenes, "The Masterworks" also offers the 30-minute feature "On the Road With Tenacious D," shot Lynch. "I toured with them for three months so I had like 60 hours of video of us playing 'Grand Theft Auto,'" he says.

Lynch and Tenacious D's Jack Black are hard at work on the script for a feature film, "Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny." Lynch hopes shooting will get underway before the end of the year. In the meantime, Black will appear in the film "Envy" with Ben Stiller, due Aug. 22 in U.S. theaters.

Simon Cowell on THE SIMPSONS

AMERICAN IDOL judge Simon Cowell will be making a guest appearance next season on THE SIMPSONS. In the episode, Cowell will play an admissions screener at Springfield's most prestigious pre-nursery school. Cowell will be parodying himself on the show. "Homer and Marge are trying to get Maggie into the school, but she has to interview [with Cowell's character] first," says an insider. Apparently Cowell's character doesn't react favorably when he discovers Maggie doesn't talk.

Stamos Officially Joins THE PUNISHER

Rebecca Romijin-Stamos (X-MEN 2) has officially joined the cast of THE PUNISHER. Stamos will play Joan, the sexy neighbor of Frank Castle, aka The Punisher. Like Castle, she has a troubled past. "Rebecca is a dynamic addition to the cast of THE PUNISHER," said Marvel Studios' Avi Arad. "She is no stranger to the Marvel Universe on screen and will have a chance to showcase her talents in a much different role. We have a great story to tell and a great cast is coming together to match it." In the film, Thomas Jane plays Castle, a gun-toting vigilante on the streets of New York who tries to take down Howard Saint (John Travolta). Jonathan Hensleigh is directing.

Is There More CADDYSHACK In the Future?

Brian Doyle-Murray, brother to Bill Murray, says that CADDYSHACK 3 is in the works. "OK, the second one sucked. This one is going to be good. It's Chevy [Chase], Rodney [Dangerfield], Louie Anderson, Michael O'Keefe and me. We're even trying to get Bill to do a short appearance as Spackler."

James Cameron gives his thoughts on TERMINATOR 3 and the possibility of ALIEN 5.

James Cameron recently talked with BBC1 and revealed he's very happy with how Terminator 3 ended up: "In one word : Great. There was a small part of me that hoped it wasn't good - but another part of me hope'd it succeeded. And it did. And I'm so glad it did. Jonathon's made a great movie. Arnold's in great form. I really like what he's done with it". If he had done it, would he have handled it differently: "Yes. That's only natural. I mightn't have structrued it the same, nor may I have ended it the same way - but coming in where he has, such a hard thing to do, and I give Jonathan points for it".

This isn't a man whose going to whitewash his opinion either, take for example his reaction to "Alien 3" - "Hated it. Simple as that. I hated what they did.... I couldn't stand Alien 3 - how they could just go in there and kill off all these great characters we introduced in aliens, and the correlation between mother and daughter. It stunk, but hopefully I'll get a chance to rectify all that". You mean the talk about him being tied to "Alien 5" is true? "To an extent. yes. We're looking at doing another one. Something similiar to what we did with Aliens. A bunch of great characters, and of course Sigourney. I've even discussed the possibility of putting him [Arnold Schwarzenegger] into the Alien movie".

Britney Spears Says She's Not a Virgin

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Pop princess Britney Spears has admitted that she had sex with former boyfriend Justin Timberlake despite once vowing to remain a virgin until she wed.

In the upcoming issue of W magazine, Spears details her relationship with Timberlake, the most-watched music industry romance since Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain.

"The most painful thing I have ever experienced was that breakup," Spears told W. "We were together so long and I had this vision. You think you're going to spend the rest of your life together. Where I come from, the woman is the homemaker, and that's how I was brought up -- you cook for your kids."

The 21-year-old Spears, whose stratospheric rise from Mouseketeer to pop megastar mirrored Timberlake's success, revealed that she had sex with the 'N Sync boy band singer because she believed they would marry someday.

"I've only slept with one person my whole life," she said. "It was two years into my relationship with Justin, and I thought he was the one. But I was wrong!"

Spears, now cutting an image-shifting, comeback album after an 18-month hiatus, said she now realizes "I need my single time" to learn to "be self loving."

"I know it sounds cliche and cheesy, but I really believe that if it's meant to be, it's meant to be," she said.

For now, Spears said, she's hunting far afield for a new beau -- especially in Australia and Spain where men are less "fuddy duddy."

As for reports linking Spears to Irish heart throb Colin Farrell, she said: "Yes I kissed him. Of course I did! He's the cutest, hottest thing in the world -- wooh! He's such a bad boy. But it was nothing serious."

The kiss left her with a "craving" for more of the same. "I haven't had a boy in a really long time ... just a kiss, man. Just a kiss would be nice."

Stones T.O. ticket sales reach 475,000

TORONTO (CP) -- When the Rolling Stones asked people to spend the night together to help SARS-stricken Toronto, fans listened.

As of the weekend, 475,000 tickets for the star-studded concert have been sold, J.P. Pampena, a spokesman for the event, said Monday. Of those, 50,000 were sold to U.S. consumers.

Organizers say sales will likely be capped at 600,000 tickets although Pampena said the facility, an old military base in the city's north end, can hold a lot more.
"The Pope had more than 800,000," he said referring to last year's World Youth Day.

The show, an all-day musical extravaganza on July 30, will also feature AC/DC, The Guess Who, Rush, Sam Roberts, The Flaming Lips, The Isley Brothers, Kathleen Edwards, Justin Timberlake and Sass Jordan.

Tickets are $21.50 each.

Indy DVD Extras

So you wanna know the details about the documentaries on the Indiana Jones bonus disc? The British Board of Film Classification's revealed them. All such materials have to be submitted to the BBFC in order for them to be released in the U.K., and the BBFC makes the details public. So here's what to look for on Indy according to them.

--The Making of the Indiana Jones Trilogy - Part 1: Raiders of the Lost Ark (51 mins)

--The Making of the Indiana Jones Trilogy - Part 2: The Temple of Doom (41 mins)

--The Making of the Indiana Jones Trilogy - Part 3: The Last Crusade (35 mins)
The Stunts of Indiana Jones (11 mins)

--The Light and Magic of Indiana Jones (12 mins)

--The Music of Indiana Jones (12 mins)

Keep in mind that none of these details have been confirmed by Paramount and Lucasfilm, but I suspect they're accurate nonetheless.

The DVD set will be released on November 4th.

Trisha Yearwood Writing With Garth Brooks

Trisha Yearwood has been testing out her skills as a songwriter with her boyfriend, Garth Brooks. Yearwood says she's been collaborating with Brooks and other songwriters in the hopes of creating some material for her new album.

"I've been trying to write some, and he and I have written some things, but so far nothing that's going to be on a record anywhere," Yearwood says about working with Brooks. "I've been a frustrated songwriter for a long, long time, and I'm not a great songwriter because I'm not a patient person. If it comes easily to me, I'm all over it, but if it's hard work, forget it, and songwriting is not easy."

Yearwood says that her recent foray into the world of songwriting has upped her respect for those who have a knack for the craft, especially someone as talented as Garth Brooks. "He's really encouraged me, and I just have such a healthy respect for songwriters that I don't wanna be like, 'Oh, all of a sudden Trisha Yearwood thinks she's a writer,'" Yearwood adds. "I believe there's potential there. I believe I have something to say. Really, when I started listening to songs and wasn't finding anything, I thought, 'You know things are really bad if I've gotta write something,' you know, and so I started."

Yearwood says that at this point, it doesn't look like anything she has written will make the new album, but she has high hopes of recording her own songs in the future.

'Nemo' could float by 'Lion King' as top cartoon film

Finding Nemo could be swimming to a new record: biggest animated movie ever.

Already, the tale of a father clownfish who searches the oceans to find his missing son has topped The Matrix Reloaded as summer's biggest film, with $274.9 million.

If the film continues to attract large schools of moviegoers, it could top the current record holder, 1994's The Lion King, which made $312.9 million, or $378.9 million in 2003 dollars.

"A lot has changed in the ways movies perform," says Andrew Hindes of box office trackers Nielsen EDI. "The Lion King opened on over 2,500 screens, which was very wide for the time, but Finding Nemo is in about 3,400 theaters. That said, Finding Nemo is still showing incredible holding power."

To compare other animated fare this year, Rugrats Go Wild took in $11.6 million its first weekend in June; Nemo took in $70.6 million its first weekend, an animation record.

"When it becomes a part of the fabric of the culture, it just takes on a life of its own," says Dick Cook, chairman of Walt Disney Studios, which produced both Nemo and LionKing.

Cook suspects that Nemo stood out this summer partly because of what it was not — a sequel. Other key factors:

• Director Andrew Stanton's characters and story. "I love the way the characters look and the way they're funny," says Andy Sampson, 6, of Franklin, Mass.

• The father-son relationship between Marlin and Nemo. "I loved it so much because it's about a father who loves his child so much he goes finding for his son," says Allison Mansell, 9, of Winston-Salem, N.C.

• Hunger for a true family comedy. "With the economic and political environments the way they are, people have been flocking to comedies all year," Hindes says. "But people liked this movie more than the other ones. Like Lion King, it has an epic mythological quality to it that makes couples without kids and teenagers want to go."

•Because kids love the sharks, who attend an Alcoholics Anonymous-like 12-step program to keep them from eating fish. Says Mallory Goldberg, 4, of Woodland Hills, Calif., "I like Nemo because it's really funny, and there are no scary parts. The only scary part is the three sharks, but they were having a meeting, and they were trying not to eat the fish, and they didn't."

• Because for kids, once isn't enough. Andy has seen it twice and believes he could enjoy it at least eight more times. Allison has gone twice, and her first Game Boy Advance game is a Nemo game.

Three for DALLAS

Bruce Willis, Collin Farrell and Jessica Lange are rumored to have joined the cast of the film adaption of the tv series DALLAS. Willis will supposedly play oil magnate J.R. Ewing, while Farrell will play Bobby Ewing and Lange will play Sue Ellen. Larry Hagman is also reportedly lined up to do a cameo in the film. Dave Jacobs, who created the original show, is writing a script for the new film. Regency Enterprises and Twentieth Century Fox are financing.

Oh, its summer time, and pickens are slim...

Well, nothing much to report on the new on Video and DVD front today, with two exceptions.

Here are the two big releases for Tuesday, July 8th, 2003:

Phone Booth (R) - NY publicist answers a deadly phone call. (Colin Farrell [Stu Shepard], Kiefer Sutherland [The Caller], Forest Whitaker [Captain Ramey])

Basic (R) - A DEA agent tracks missing troops in Panama. (John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Connie Nielsen)

Hollywood's Box-Office Slump Continues

LOS ANGELES - This year's movie superheroes are getting licked by last year's.

While "The Matrix Reloaded," "X2: X-Men United," "The Hulk" and "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" had big weekend openings, Hollywood revenues lag behind the record pace of 2002, when "Spider-Man" and "Star Wars" ruled the summer.

Since early May, when "X2" kicked off the summer blockbuster season, domestic revenues are at $2.11 billion, down 3.3 percent from summer 2002, according to box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

For the year, revenues are $4.65 billion, a 4.5 percent drop from 2002, when movie grosses hit an all-time high of $9.32 billion.

The picture is even worse factoring in this year's higher ticket prices. With an average admission cost of $6.03, up from $5.80 in 2002, Hollywood has sold about 772 million movie tickets this year, off 8.2 percent from 2002.

Moviegoers seem less enchanted by this summer's crowd of explosive action flicks, none of which has approached the $400 million-plus performance of "Spider-Man" and $300 million payday of "Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones."

Audiences may be a bit worn out by the onslaught of comic-book adaptations such as "The Hulk," "X2" or "Daredevil," and by Hollywood's record number of sequels — about two dozen this year.

In summer 2002, fans were still buzzing about "Spider-Man" when the low-budget sleeper "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" grew into a blockbuster on audience word-of-mouth alone. Moviegoing tends to breed more moviegoing, but this summer, the films are not catching people's fancy in quite the same way.

"Maybe this is just my esoteric theory, but it could be that people just feel like doing something else than going to the theater," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations. "Maybe they did so much moviegoing last year that they're burned out."

This year's most anticipated movie, "The Matrix Reloaded," came in second behind "Spider-Man" among best weekend debuts ever and grossed $135.8 million in its first five days. But unlike the staying power of "Spider-Man," "Matrix Reloaded" earned mixed reviews and so-so word-of-mouth, with revenues falling steeply in subsequent weekends.

The animated fish tale "Finding Nemo" swam past "Matrix Reloaded" last weekend to become this year's top-grossing movie, at $274.9 million and counting.

Other big action flicks have opened strongly then nose-dived, most notably the "The Hulk." Second-weekend revenues plunged 70 percent from its $62.1 million debut.

Meantime, "Finding Nemo" and other lighter tales such as the heist caper "The Italian Job" or the comedies "Bruce Almighty," "Bringing Down the House" and "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" held up better week after week.

Despite lagging revenues, a few surprise hits could be enough to put Hollywood on track to overtake last year's record box office.

This year's advantage is a solid lineup of potential hits in the second half of summer, traditionally a quieter time at theaters than the stretch from Memorial Day to the Fourth of July. Summer 2002 closed with a whimper, while this season has a chance to go out with a bang.

This week brings the big-budget adventures "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" and "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen." Still to come are such comedies and action romps as "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider — The Cradle of Life," "Bad Boys II," "Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over," "S.W.A.T." and "American Wedding," the third in the "American Pie" series.

"I do believe it's too much to ask that every year be a record year, but I wouldn't discount this year yet," said Chuck Viane, head of distribution for Disney, which distributed "Finding Nemo." "There's still a lot of stuff in the bags of all the studios."

Spike Lee, Viacom Settle Name Dispute

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Movie director Spike Lee and Viacom Inc. on Monday settled a legal fight over the U.S. media conglomerate's plans to rebrand its TNN cable network as "Spike TV," representatives for both sides said.

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed but Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Walter Tolub lifted an order that he had issued last month barring Viacom from using the "Spike" name.

A source familiar with the situation told Reuters the lawsuit was being withdrawn and that TNN would proceed with its planned name change.

Both sides were ordered to appear in court before Tolub on Tuesday morning.

A Viacom spokesman refused to comment prior to the hearing, but a TNN spokesman said, "We are very happy with the outcome and we are issuing a joint statement tomorrow."

Said Lee's attorney Terry Gross, "The case is settled."

Lee, the director of such films as "Malcolm X," "25th Hour" and "Do The Right Thing," had argued that he feared he would be mistakenly associated with the network.

Viacom maintained that Spike was a common name.

The name change was planned to coincide with a programming shift for TNN, which recently added some racy animated series to its schedule, such as "Stripperella," featuring the voice and cartoon likeness of Pamela Anderson, and "The Ren & Stimpy Adult Party Cartoon."

The lawsuit has complicated efforts by the cable channel to newly promote itself as the "first network for men." TNN officials have said they chose the word "spike" to convey an image both male and irreverent.

Buddy Ebsen - Forever a Beverly Hillbilly

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Actor Buddy Ebsen, who died on Monday aged 95, had an illustrious film career: kissing Barbara Stanwyck, playing Audrey Hepburn's husband and co-starring with the likes of Shirley Temple and Gregory Peck.

But he will forever be identified with one enduring television role -- genial Jed Clampett, patriarch of the dirt-poor Ozark hills family that became rich with an oil strike and moved to California in "The Beverly Hillbillies."

The show aired for nine seasons, from 1962 to 1971, making it one of CBS' longest-running sitcoms. The first two years, it was the number one rated show on television attracting as many as 60 million viewers a week.

Yet after the first episode, critics pounded the show as an example of how low television would stoop for laughs. But Ebsen won over the viewers and made the role of Clampett his own and the show became a hit in 35 countries.

Ebsen then starred in another long-running TV show, playing the title role in the detective series, "Barnaby Jones," which ran from 1973 to 1980, also on CBS.

In later life, he developed an oil-painting hobby into a thriving business, selling his self-portraits and folksy recreations of rural life on his Web site.

And in 2001, at the age of 93, he made became a novelist, publishing a romance called "Kelly's Quest" that became a best-seller.

LOTS OF HIM

"There are a lot of me's," he commented at the time. "I didn't retire. They retired me ... So I just moved on to other things."

By the time he became a TV star, Ebsen already had a full career on Broadway, including a featured spot in the "Ziegfeld Follies" and in movies, playing alongside such stars as Shirley Temple, Gregory Peck, Robert Taylor and Eleanor Powell.

Barbara Stanwyck, a former dance partner, held a special place for Ebsen, who made the 1937 film "Banjo on my Knee" with her. "She gave me my first screen kiss. When she finished I couldn't remember my next line," he said with a smile.

Other films include "Captain January" with a 6-year-old Shirley Temple in 1936, "Davy Crockett" in 1955 and "Breakfast at Tiffany's" in 1961.

In "Breakfast at Tiffany's," in which he played Audrey Hepburn's husband Doc Golightly, Ebsen described working with Hepburn as like "trying on a perfectly tailored sport coat for the first time."

A series of breaks, good and bad, marked the direction of Ebsen's career. Rejected from his first Broadway role as being too tall, he later won a screen role in "Night People," because at six-feet, three-inches (1.9 m), he was tall enough to play alongside Gregory Peck.

Another time, his dance act with his sister Vilma was spotted in an Atlantic City night club in 1930 by the influential columnist Walter Winchell, whose glowing review won the pair a part in the Broadway musical "Flying Colors."

Bad luck was responsible for the biggest part he never played -- a serious allergy to aluminum paint that was part of the make-up for the plum role of The Tin Man in the 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz."

Ebsen was hospitalized for two weeks in an oxygen tent from inhaling the paint but MGM executives thought he was malingering. "They told me to get the heck back to work," Ebsen said. When he said he could not return, the role as one of Judy Garland's friends on the Yellow Brick Road went to Jack Haley.

Born Christian Rudolph Ebsen on April 2, 1908, in Belleville, Illinois, he moved with his parents and four sisters to West Palm Beach, Florida, when he was 12.

He trained in his father's dance school and took ballet lessons.

Married three times, he had seven children from his first two marriages. He is survived by his third wife Dotti.

PASSING

N!xau, the diminutive Bushman plucked out of the Kalahari Desert for stardom in the hit film The Gods Must Be Crazy has died, police officials confirmed to the Associated Press on Saturday. No cause of death has been determined. He was said to be 59.

Terminator 3' Annihilates Competition

LOS ANGELES - Arnold Schwarzenegger's "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" annihilated the competition, grossing $44 million in its first weekend and $72.5 million since opening Wednesday.

Reese Witherspoon's "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde" debuted in second place with a $22.9 million weekend and $39.2 million since its Wednesday premiere.

The weekend's other new wide release, the animated "Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas," bombed despite a voice cast that includes Brad Pitt, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michelle Pfeiffer. "Sinbad" opened in sixth place with $6.8 million for the weekend and $10 million since debuting Wednesday.

Despite the rush of high-profile new movies, Hollywood's box-office slump continued, with revenues down for the fourth straight weekend. The top 12 movies grossed $127 million, down 9 percent from the same period last year, which was the highest-grossing Fourth of July weekend ever.

Movie revenues are running about 5 percent behind last year's, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

"I really don't know why. That's the million-dollar question, or hundred-million-dollar question," Dergarabedian said.

"Terminator 3" out-grossed the opening weekend of its 1991 predecessor, "Terminator 2: Judgment Day," by about 40 percent. But factoring in higher admission prices since then, "Terminator 3" sold slightly fewer tickets.

Theaters are more crowded today with franchise flicks competing for the audience's attention, "so to be in the midst of a lot of competition and still improve on the previous film's numbers, we're pretty happy," said Dan Fellman, head of distribution for Warner Bros., which released "Terminator 3."

The new movie features Schwarzenegger's time-traveling cyborg battling a female terminator programmed to kill the destined savior of humanity in a future war with intelligent machines. The film was directed by Jonathan Mostow, taking over for "Terminator" creator James Cameron, who decided against returning for a third installment.

"Legally Blonde 2," with Witherspoon's perky, stylish attorney on a lobbying mission in Washington, outdid the opening weekend of its 2001 predecessor by about $2.5 million.

With an $11 million weekend, "Finding Nemo" pulled its total haul to $274.9 million, passing "The Matrix Reloaded" as the top-grossing movie so far this year. "Finding Nemo" also passed "Shrek" to become No. 2 on the all-time list for animated movies, second only to "The Lion King," which grossed $328.5 million.

In limited release, Francois Ozon's "Swimming Pool" opened strongly, taking in $286,000 in just 13 theaters. The film, which expands to more theaters Friday, stars Charlotte Rampling as a mystery writer whose prudishness is tested by the wanton ways of her publisher's daughter.

Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," $44 million.
2. "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde," $22.9 million.
3. "Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle," $14.2 million.
4. "Finding Nemo," $11 million.
5. "The Hulk," $8.2 million.
6. "Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas," $6.8 million.
7. "28 Days Later," $6.1 million.
8. "The Italian Job," $4.3 million.
9. "Bruce Almighty," $4 million.
10. "2 Fast 2 Furious," $2.4 million.

A Musical Stroll Down Sesame Street

NEW YORK (Billboard) - In a time of musical segmentation and stratification, there remains a place where artists of all genres can play on common ground: "Sesame Street."

In celebration of the 35th anniversary of the seminal -- and seminally hip -- children's show, on Sept. 2, Legacy/Sony Wonder will release the three-CD boxed set "Songs From the Street."

The commemorative box features 63 digitally remastered artist tracks, 22 of which are being released for the first time and 12 of which are no longer commercially available.

The set, which also includes an extensive booklet with liner notes from Grammy- and Emmy-winning songwriter/composer/producer Christopher Cerf, kicks off a year-long campaign sponsored by "Sesame Street" creator company Sesame Workshop.

Slated to roll out throughout 2004 are a new teen-oriented clothing line, a separate video project, a possible Hollywood Bowl concert and a new series of classic artwork.

"'Songs From the Street' is a celebration of one of the most creative and influential programs in the history of children's television," says Michele Anthony, executive VP of Sony Music Entertainment. "We're very proud to be associated with Sesame Workshop as they mark their 35th year in children's entertainment."

Indeed, from its inception in November 1967, "Sesame Street" began building a musical guest roster without rival. The likes of Johnny Cash, Ray Charles, Celine Dion, Lena Horne, Billy Joel, B.B. King, R.E.M., Paul Simon, James Taylor, Steven Tyler and Stevie Wonder have all stopped by to mingle with the Muppets.

ARTIST PERFORMANCES

"I'll tell you why 'Sesame Street' is so cool," says longtime fan Tony Bennett, whose 1995 performance of "Little Things" is featured on the new set. "When I play with my quartet, the music is very much in the moment. And they are doing the same thing at 'Sesame Street' with words. It's spontaneous; it comes right from the head and the heart, and it is just wonderful."

"Being on 'Sesame Street' was one of the biggest highlights of a career that's had many; I got to sing with Grover -- how cool is that?" Trisha Yearwood says of her 1998 version of "I'm Talkin' Love." "There is a magic about 'Sesame Street' that endures no matter what your age. I'm honored that I got to be a part of it."

Cerf says, "We learned early on that if we write 'little kiddie' songs, the older kids and parents wouldn't mind the songs, and then you get a much broader audience. The music is crossover music; that's part of the mission. We've always tried to do things parents think catchy and funny, but never at the expense of the child."

Witness, for example, Cerf's transformation of Melissa Etheridge's "Like the Way I Do" into the letter-of-the-day salute, "Like the Way U Does" in 1996.

"Once it started airing, people would come to my concerts with a big letter U on their T-shirts," Etheridge says. "My fans still request the version, and I say I don't know it anymore -- so it's good that they'll now have a chance to have the TV version with this album."

APPROVED BY PARENTS

According to Arlene Sherman, senior creative consultant to "Sesame Street" and a former longtime executive producer, "Everything we've done musically at 'Sesame Street' has been deliberate so it would be palatable for parents.

"We wanted to appeal to things parents might be listening to at the moment and expose kids to a variety of styles, and this CD reflects that breadth very well," Sherman says.

To be consistent with this core philosophy, Sony is marketing the $49.98 set to adult music fans first, with children as a secondary target. The promotional fanfare kicks off Aug. 25 with a direct-response campaign, which will be followed by an aggressive retail debut.

"In some cases, we will end up with traditional boxed-set placement; in some stores we will be located along with the kids product," says David Pierce, Sony Wonder executive VP/GM. " 'Sesame Street' as a brand commands a tremendous amount of retail space in a lot of categories."

Tamra Seldin, VP of marketing for Sesame Workshop, notes, "The album is the natural cornerstone of the 35th anniversary campaign. We've used music through the years to educate, and that music has stayed with the adults. It's the emotional connection of the show."

Sometimes an appearance on "Sesame Street" has also been career-defining.

"We've had the privilege of playing at Woodstock, opening for the Rolling Stones and getting a Grammy nomination, but more people come up to me and comment on our appearance on 'Sesame Street,"' says Chris Barron of the Spin Doctors, who performed "Two Princes" in 1993. "To be included on this album with these musical giants, I'm thrilled all over again."

Music will also have a starring role in the preschool-focused "What's the Name of That Song," a commemorative VHS/DVD slated for release in January that weaves 12 clips of musical guests and culminates with a celebrity pastiche of the anthemic "Sing."

A VIDEO COMPANION

Additionally, Pierce says Sony is "trying to pull together" a video complement to "Songs From the Street."

Although the nonprofit Sesame Workshop has released countless titles into the early-childhood market, its only other project with mass-market appeal is 1999's "Elmopalooza."

Released in conjunction with a television special, "Elmopalooza" has sold 172,000 on audio and 229,000 on video/DVD, according to Nielsen SoundScan/VideoScan.

The opportunity to be included in a "Sesame Street" tribute is sweet for "Elmopalooza" alumni the Fugees, whose 1993 performance of "Just Happy to Be Me" is featured on the new set.

"It's funny, because kids see me now, and they know me from 'Sesame Street,"' former Fugee Wyclef Jean says. "Doing the show was great; it gave me a childhood vibe. Every time you do something, you want it to be simple enough for a little kid to understand. Then it's easy to take it to the world."

Jane's Addiction Back with 1st Album in 13 Years

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Assembling a promotional campaign for a veteran band that has been out of the spotlight is a tough enough feat. But Capitol Records is facing the daunting task of reintroducing a group that hasn't released a new album in 13 years.

Luckily, the campaign behind pioneering alternative rock outfit Jane's Addiction's "Strays," due July 22, has had a huge prerelease boost from first single "Just Because."

The song is No. 4 on Modern Rock Tracks after four weeks, returning Jane's Addiction to the top of the format at which it scored five top 15 hits between 1988 and 1991.

The tremendous response bodes well for the fortunes of "Strays," as well as the revived Lollapalooza tour, which the band will headline for the first time since the event's inaugural 1991 run.

"We had to make sure we brought Jane's back to its core base," Capitol senior director of marketing Ricky Riker says. "We distributed several hundred thousand stickers in rock clubs and tattoo parlors to remind kids that Jane's is back together."

Once "Just Because" went to radio in early June, Capitol "moved into making the band accessible," according to Riker. Jane's made surprise appearances at festivals sponsored by WBCN Boston, KROQ Los Angeles and WHFS Baltimore, ensuring that fans were aware that "Jane's is headlining Lollapalooza, they'll have a new record out soon and they already have a huge song on the radio," Riker says.

As an added incentive for buyers, a limited-edition pressing of "Strays" will include a bonus 30-minute DVD, featuring live versions of three new tracks, interviews and studio footage. "We wanted this to be something the fan of Jane's Addiction would look at as a prime piece to add to their collection," Riker says.

And although Lollapalooza's July 5 launch in Indianapolis comes more than two weeks before "Strays" hits retail, Capitol hopes to have in place a promotion wherein fans who preorder the album will receive a download of the full album that times out at street date.

"The band is on the road, and we want people to know the new music," Capitol VP of new media Ted Mico says. "But we want to do it in a fashion that still allows us to sell records."

BACK IN THE GROOVE

The first incarnation of Jane's Addiction -- frontman Perry Farrell, guitarist Dave Navarro, bassist Eric Avery and drummer Stephen Perkins -- splintered in 1991, just as alternative rock was exploding into the mainstream.

Its members pursued various side projects before reuniting for a 1997 tour minus Avery, who was replaced first by Red Hot Chili Peppers' Flea and then by Porno for Pyros' Martyn LeNoble.

According to Navarro, the band did not get serious about returning to the studio until its 2001 Jubilee tour.

"We saw how it was going, and we were really digging it," he says. "It was then that Perry said, 'What do you think about making another record, because we can't continue touring without new songs. We're going to go crazy.' I said, 'I agree.' I mean, I love our catalog, but come on. Let's play something else."

Remarkably, the music on "Strays" in no way betrays the decade-plus layoff since Jane's Addiction's 1990 swan song, "Ritual de lo Habitual," which has sold 1.1 million copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Produced by Bob Ezrin (Pink Floyd, Kiss, Lou Reed), the new set is awash with the group's signature heavy, psychedelic sound.

Highlights include the groove-rooted "Wrong Girl" and "The Riches" and the intense rock of "Price I Pay," "Just Because" and "To Match the Sun," which Farrell describes as "a deep love song about a fellow who has to travel an awful lot and leave his loved ones behind."

Aside from "Suffer Some" and the acoustic-tinged "Everybody's Friend," all songs were written in the studio. Navarro says sessions "kicked up to another hyperspeed notch" once bassist Chris Chaney joined the band (tracks recorded with LeNoble were scrapped). The guitarist also credits Ezrin with helping the band "turn songs around that we didn't really believe in.

"I think it is possible that 13 years ago, we wouldn't have approached the level of musicianship that we did here," Navarro admits. "Something comes from just playing our instruments for this long. We have limitations on what we want to present, but when it comes to trying stuff, we're completely open guys."

ON THE ROAD

Farrell says that the new material will have a major presence on the band's Lollapalooza setlist. "We want to give the people who have never seen Jane's some old songs," he says, "but at the same time, we're extremely excited to play them new material 13 years in the making."

At each Lollapalooza show, audience members will have the chance to meet the band or have their tickets upgraded by participating in the interactive "Mindfield" game.

In a further element of interactivity, Mico says fans will be able to remix tracks from Jane's and other Lollapalooza bands using raw materials found on the soon-to-relaunch janesaddiction.com.

Riker says Capitol has four different street teams mobilized to spread the word about the album and tour, including one that will visit other major summer package treks. On street date, Jane's will make its first-ever in-store appearance at a location to be determined in New York, and it will also perform on CBS' "The Late Show With David Letterman."

Capitol expects the "Strays" campaign to last well into the fall, when the band will tour Europe and then return for a North American headlining jaunt.

"We have gotten unbelievable feedback," Riker says. "No one was really aware of how many big hardcore Jane's fans were still out there."

Indeed, both Farrell and Navarro insist "Strays" is not a one-off venture and say they are reveling in the fact that Jane's is once again a full-time, functioning band.

"I went and I thought I made some good records, but I came to find after that journey that there's no place like home," Farrell says. "It has just been a matter of time for us to get to this point. By all means, this is not another reunion. This is where the band is right now."

Eminem at Work on Shady's Future

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - When he's not tossing baby dolls out of a hotel window in Scotland, Marshall Mathers, aka Eminem, continues to work on his next project.

Songwriter Luis Resto, with whom Eminem and Jeff Bass shared an Oscar this year for "Lose Yourself," tells Billboard that when Mathers is in Detroit, " and I work together every day. We're writing for artists on Shady Records: Obie Trice and D12 and after that, it will be Eminem again."

Resto continues, "A lot of the time we're writing for all three projects. You go in and you're jamming, doing music, and it gets spread here and there. Some stuff goes to Em, some to Obie and some to other artists. We sit down and write and we parcel it out. Marshall takes home CDs and he listens to them, some things intrigue him, some things not as much -- you just keep backlogging the ideas and see what comes of it."

Trice's Shady Records/Interscope debut is set for a September release, while street dates for D12 and Eminem have yet to be set. An Interscope Records representative says Eminem's album will not come out until 2004.

Love Crooner Barry White Dies in L.A. at 58

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Soul singer Barry White, whose rich bass crooning stirred romance in the hearts of a generation of fans, died on Friday at the age of 58, his manager Ned Shankman said.

Shankman told reporters White, a two-time Grammy winner, died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles where he had been battling kidney failure brought on by high blood pressure. He suffered a stroke May.

Born in Galveston, Texas, White had been hoping to regain enough strength to undergo a kidney transplant, his daughter Shaheara White said in May.

With smoky ballads like "Can't Get Enough of Your Love" and "You're the First, The Last, My Everything," White provided the soundtrack to countless candlelight dinners and late-night trysts.

He also found success as a composer, a conductor of instrumental recordings and as the producer of the female vocal trio Love Unlimited.

"The Doctor of Love" achieved pop icon status as a romantic mentor in the hit TV series "Ally McBeal" and on the animated TV series "The Simpsons."

He reached the peak of his popularity in the mid-1970s, but won two Grammys in 2000 for best male and traditional R&B vocal performance for the song "Staying Power."

White's was the classic rags-to-riches tale -- raised in the Los Angeles suburb of Watts, he was exposed to gang violence on a daily basis. He burgled homes, stole cars, drank and fought. He became a father twice while still in his teens.

While serving a five-month jail stint in 1960 for stealing tires, he heard an Elvis Presley song that changed his life. He took the words of "It's Now or Never" to heart, and decided he had to change his life.

He will be missed!

Shania Twain Named Sexiest Canadian

The results of a poll of 500 Canadian beer drinkers has found Shania Twain the sexiest female in Canada. Pin-up model Pamela Anderson came in second. The poll was held in conjunction with Canada Day.

An interesting second part of the poll found 14 percent of respondents believe having sex in a canoe is the most interesting place to do it.

This is the second poll award Twain has won this week. She and Bryan Adams were named the sexiest vegetarians alive by the People For The Ethical Treatment Of Animals on June 30.

Rap is radio's biggest hit source

Rap, an underground phenomenon since the '70s, is now American radio's most popular form of music.

More than a quarter of the most-heard radio songs of 2003 so far are by rappers. Even more telling: 40% of the year's top 30 are rap hits. And those figures don't count guest appearances by rap artists on several big R&B hits.

Rap's radio popularity eclipses its sales influence. Although albums by 50 Cent, 2003's airplay champ, and others have topped the sales chart, rap accounted for only 13% of 2002 album sales, well below rock's 31%, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

But hits by 50 Cent, Busta Rhymes, Ja Rule and dancehall reggae rappers Sean Paul and Wayne Wonder helped propel hip-hop to the top of radio playlists.

Since last year, USA TODAY has been publishing a unique radio airplay list each week. The list combines airplay data from top 40, R&B, adult contemporary, rock and country radio stations to rank songs by their total listening audience. It provides the most comprehensive overview of the styles of music Americans choose to hear on the radio.

Other airplay trends:

• Pop music (encompassing Justin Timberlake, Avril Lavigne and John Mayer) was No. 2 in popularity.

• Country ranked third but had only one song in the top 25: a cover of a Fleetwood Mac song by the Dixie Chicks, who have since become pariahs at country radio stations. But country songs made up more than 40% of the top 100's bottom third.

• R&B makes up one-sixth of America's favorite songs. If you combine rap and R&B and throw in a few R&B-flavored pop hits, the urban rhythmic sound comprises half the top hits.

• Rock, while less dominant on radio than in previous eras, remains a significant presence with more than 10% of the top songs, led by 3 Doors Down's When I'm Gone, No. 6 for the year.

• Sparked by 50 Cent, Sean Paul and Lavigne, new and emerging artists accounted for nearly 30% of the top 100 hits, including four of the top 10.

Sharon Stone, Newspaper Editor Husband to Divorce

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Basic Instinct" star Sharon Stone and her newspaper editor husband Phil Bronstein said on Thursday they were divorcing after five years of marriage.

Stone, 45, married Bronstein, editor in chief of the San Francisco Chronicle, on Valentine's Day in 1998.

They said in a statement their split was "amicable and mutual."

According to the syndicated television program Entertainment Tonight, Bronstein filed divorce papers on Thursday, citing irreconcilable differences.

The New York Post reported on Thursday that the pair decided to separate when Stone returned to California after filming "A Different Loyalty" in Europe last month. The newspaper said Stone was living in Los Angeles and Bronstein in their San Francisco home.

The couple made headlines two years ago when a Komodo dragon at Los Angeles Zoo bit Bronstein in the foot during a private visit arranged for him by Stone to celebrate Father's Day.

'Brady Bunch' Films Hawaii Documentary

HONOLULU - Thirty years after their family vacation was almost ruined by the curse of an ancient tiki doll, the Bradys are back in Hawaii.  

"Is this like an acid flashback or what?" joked Barry Williams, who played oldest son Greg on "The Brady Bunch."

Several original cast members from the '70s sitcom have been in the islands this week filming a 90-minute documentary for the Travel Channel. Robert Reed, who played father Mike Brady, died in 1992.

"The Bradys are the foremost family in television history," said executive producer and creator James Romanovich. "I thought with the 30-year anniversary of their filming in Hawaii, it would be great to bring them back and have them be themselves in a 'Real World'-style show."

Cast members have visited most of the locations the TV family toured 30 years ago. Even famed island crooner Don Ho makes a surprise appearance, just as he did in the 1973 episode, and sings a song with Carol Brady herself, Florence Henderson.

"It's like a wonderful children's book that you loved as a child that you want to share with your children," Henderson told the Honolulu Star-Bulletin for Thursday's editions. "When another generation comes along and finds the show, their parents know it already, so it gives the family something to relate to."

Other cast members taking part are Christopher Knight (Peter), Mike Lookinland (Bobby) and Susan Olsen (Cindy). Producers said Ann B. Davis, who played wisecracking housekeeper Alice, is retired and doesn't like to travel.

The documentary is scheduled to air early next year.

Duran Duran Follow Beckham Formula in Comeback

TOKYO (Reuters) - Pop legends Duran Duran, famous for a string of smash hits in the 1980s, have been taking style tips from England soccer captain David Beckham in preparation for their latest comeback.
 
The British band, who begin a world tour in Japan next week, declared they were back for good after a protracted period of declining record sales and expanding waistlines.

"We all follow the David Beckham regime -- his hairdressing regime that is," keyboard player Nick Rhodes told reporters on Thursday.

He said the band had been recording for a year and a half, on and off. "The new album is near completion. The tour is to get some energy for the final recording."

Duran Duran, who have sold over 60 million albums since releasing their first single, "Planet Earth," over 20 years ago, insisted they were no 1980s revival act, appearing at a Tokyo news conference looking slim and dressed in black suits.

"These guys had very successful records in the 1990s, so this is not just some revival band," said drummer Roger Taylor, who retreated to the English countryside after quitting in 1985.

Bassist John Taylor, whose attempt to break into Hollywood peaked with a role in the 1999 Flintstones movie "Viva Rock Vegas," said he was happy to be back with Duran Duran following an acrimonious split.

"It's all about chemistry. That only happens once in a lifetime if you're lucky," he said.

Although often ridiculed for videos that showed them perched on elephants or the front of yachts wearing silk suits, more than 50,000 Internet pages are devoted to Duran Duran, who counted the late Princess Diana among their legions of female fans during the 1980s with such hits as "Girls on Film" and "Hungry Like the Wolf."

Their penchant for eyeliner and hairspray still intact two decades on, the 40-something rockers have added an extra date to their Japan schedule after selling out one Tokyo venue in less than 30 minutes.

"We wanted to start the tour somewhere where we could be sure of a good reception," said singer Simon Le Bon, who has been in the tabloids as much for his racy lifestyle and occasional boating accidents as his involvement with Duran Duran.

"Being in a band keeps you young and wild at heart."

OFF LIMITS

Linkin Park and Red Hot Chili Peppers joining artists--including Green Day and Metallica--who are refusing to sell their songs on iTunes, reports Rolling Stone. The bands claim by not selling individual tunes they're preserving the album as an art form.

SPEAKING OF ITUNES

Billboard and SoundScan announcing on Wednesday that they will begin charting online music downloads starting this week. The charts will cover legitimate services like iTunes, MuiscNet, Listen.com, Liquid Audio, pressplay and AOL's forthcoming music store.

Rocky Mountain Muppets

On August 26th, Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment will release the musical variety special John Denver and the Muppets - Rocky Mountain Holiday. Featuring 16 classic family songs, the special is presented in its original 4:3 full screen and mono, and although there are no extras, retail is just $19.95.

Jazz Flutist Herbie Mann Dies at 73

SANTA FE, N.M. - Herbie Mann, a versatile jazz flutist whose restless search for new sounds took him around the world and influenced a generation of musicians, has died at 73.

Diagnosed six years ago with inoperable prostate cancer, Mann died late Tuesday at his home in Pecos, near Santa Fe, with his family at his bedside. "It was very peaceful," said his daughter, Claudia Mann-Basler.

Mann was tireless in his efforts to expand his own musical horizons, and was an early practitioner of fusion and world music. At times, his music defied categories.

"He really did extend the vocabulary of jazz. ... I think it's a devastating loss to the music community," said Robert O'Meally, director of Columbia University's Center for Jazz Studies.

Mann, who moved to the Santa Fe area in 1989 after spending most of his life in his native New York City, performed for the last time on May 3 at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. He got a standing ovation as he walked on stage, lugging a bottle of oxygen with him to help him cope with the cancer that had spread to his bones six months earlier.

"It wasn't just a jazz fest. It was a love fest," said his wife, Susan Janeal Arison, who accompanied him. "I think sometimes he didn't really realize how much he was appreciated. He was a path maker."

Sy Johnson, a New York City composer and music arranger who knew Mann for some 40 years, called him "a wonderful Pied Piper of jazz, drawing our attention to what's happening around the world and the country."

Mann experimented with various styles, then combined them. He explored the music of Africa, India, Cuba, Jamaica, the Middle East, Japan and Brazil.

The group Family of Mann, formed in 1973, played world music before it was called that. Mann's best-selling "Memphis Underground" was a founding recording of fusion.

If a genie offered Mann anything he wanted, he said in a 1995 Associated Press interview, he would choose a big band including three rhythm sections for straight-ahead jazz, Brazilian music and soul.

"I'd be able to play all that music; I wouldn't have to play any one thing all the time," he said. "And I would always like to try to evolve the music to another step. Once you reach the point where you play it perfectly in a genre, to me it gets boring. Then I want to try to evolve by combining things."

When he was diagnosed with cancer in 1997, he began thinking about his musical legacy, Arison said.

"He made a musical odyssey throughout most of the world's music, but he never really tapped into the music of his own origins — Eastern Europe," his wife said.

At 70, he put out a CD called "Eastern European Roots."

"I've played Cuban music, but I'm not Cuban," he once told the Rocky Mountain News. "I've played Brazilian music, but I'm not Brazilian. I've played jazz, but I'm not African-American. What I am is an Eastern European Jew. I love all the music I've played, but I wanted something that is mine."

When he left Atlantic Records in 1979 he started producing his own records, and later he began his own label, Kokopelli. In all, he made more than 100 albums as a leader.

His last four albums were released by Lightyear Entertainment, which on Wednesday called him "a giant and a visionary."
 
"The years of pleasure he has given have touched millions. He will be sorely missed," said Lightyear President Arnie Holland.

Born Herbert Solomon in Brooklyn in 1930, he started his career when he was 15, playing in groups at Catskill Mountain resorts for the summer. He studied saxophone but preferred flute. In the 1950s, after three years in the Army playing with the Army Band in Trieste, Italy, Mann toured France and Scandinavia.

He credited visits to Africa and Brazil in the early 1960s with changing his musical outlook.

"When I came back (from Africa), I hired (Babatunde) Olatunji, a Nigerian drummer living here, and we started doing music based on African motifs," he told the AP.

As for the Brazil tour, he said, "Revelation doesn't touch it. Up to that point, the ethnic music I had heard had 14 drums playing different parts but the melodies were very simple. Then I saw the `Black Orpheus' movie and heard multiple rhythm parts along with the most beautiful melodies in the world."

He returned and recorded with Brazilian musicians, including Antonio Carlos Jobim and a 19-year-old Sergio Mendes.

"As much as I love music, I never really thought it was my life. I thought it was the vehicle I used to express my life," he said.

Mann founded the Herbie Mann Prostate Cancer Awareness Music Foundation, which provided onsite screenings for thousands of men at concerts and other events.

Mann is also survived by his mother, Ruth Solomon of Hallandale, Fla.; sister Judi Burnstein of Niceville, Fla.; sons Paul Mann of San Francisco and Geoff Mann of New York City; and daughter Laura Mann of New York City.

Academy Sets Tough Oscar Campaign Rules

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is cracking down on Oscar campaigning that pushes the proverbial envelope.

And, in a separate development, the Academy's board of governors has also made rule changes in several Oscar categories, such as foreign film, animation and sound, which will now be known as sound mixing.

The Academy took a stern tone in announcing its new campaign rules Wednesday. "There will now be personal consequences to improper campaigning," Academy president Frank Pierson warned.

But while it toughened several rules, the Academy also relaxed one prescription that has prevented studios from sending out screener videos and DVDs to Academy members beforeNov. 1. Companies may now send out screeners as early as they like.

In place of what had previously been known as "guidelines," the Academy called its new campaign standards "regulations" and warned that serious violations "could result in a film losing its eligibility for awards consideration."

When rules were violated in the past, the Academy's standard penalty was to revoke tickets to the Oscar ceremony.

Chief among the new rules is a ban on "any form of advertising that includes quotes or comments by Academy members."

During the most recent Oscar season, the Academy took issue with ads from Miramax Films in which Robert Wise, a past Academy president, argued that Martin Scorsese deserved to win a directing Oscar. The year before, 20th Century Fox ran a "Moulin Rouge" ad that carried testimonials from such Academy members as Wise and Stanley Donen.

One new bit of wording added to the preamble that accompanies the regulations was already causing concern among some Academy campaigners Wednesday.

In an attempt to outlaw overzealous campaigning for which no specific rule had been formulated, the Academy said: "Any Academy member who has authorized, approved or executed a campaign activity that is determined by the board of governors to have undermined the letter or spirit of these regulations will be subject to suspension of membership or expulsion from the Academy."

To some that suggested the possibility that some future campaign could be accused of inadvertently violating rules that had not been specifically enunciated.

But veteran Oscar campaigner Tony Angelotti argued: "It simply holds us accountable for what we were already accountable for. It cautions anyone of a mind to cross the line that they will risk punishment for either themselves or those they report to. There isn't one soul among the 6,000 Academy members willing to risk that."

In a separate action, the board of governors, which met last week, also approved several rule changes affecting specific Oscar categories:

* The sound award has been renamed the "sound mixing" award. "I think there has been some degree of confusion, among even knowledgeable individuals within the industry, as to the distinctions between the (sound and sound editing) awards," said Paul Huntsman, a member of the Academy board of governors, sound branch.

* In the foreign-language film category, films must be in the official language of the country submitting the film, with the exception of "films involving subcultures that speak a non-English, nonofficial language ... if their subject matter concerns life in the submitting country."

Academy spokesman John Pavlik said the rule was refined in response to submissions like the Hindi-language "The Warrior," which Great Britain attempted to enter last year. The new rule would still disallow that film since it wasn't shot in Britain, but would allow a film about Hindi-speaking characters shot in Britain.

* For the animated feature, the Academy may now hand out two Oscar statuettes per winning film. Previously, it permitted only one name, the key creative person, to be submitted for the award. It will now accept the nomination of a two-person team if that team has "shared and equal directing credit."

'T3' Blasts $4 Million in Previews

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The nearly unstoppable time-traveling cyborg from the future is back in theaters after a 12-year absence as Warner Bros. Pictures' "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" opened in early previews Tuesday night and vaporized $4.04 million.

The R-rated sci-fi actioner, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger in his near-legendary recurring role, began unspooling at 8 p.m. in 2,569 theaters.

"The previews were sensational; it's one of the biggest preview openings of all time," said Dan Fellman, president of domestic distribution at Warner Bros. Pictures. "The matinee grosses are very strong, and we are looking forward to a very successful holiday weekend."

The second film in the series, "Terminator 2: Judgment Day," also had preview sales the night before its wide release in July 1991, though showtimes started later in the evening, and there were fewer theaters.

"T2" was in 1,390 venues on a Tuesday night, with shows beginning at 10 p.m. The James Cameron-helmed picture grossed $2.4 million from those preview shows, and "T2" went on to take in $52.3 million by the end of the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

It's very difficult to compare or forecast a weekend gross for a film based solely on previews because of the varying number of theaters, time the film started playing, day of the week, time of the year, its MPAA rating and genre. All of these factors factor in to how a film will finally play out at the box office, and it's nearly impossible to find two previews that are identical, allowing an apples-to-apples comparison, because the majority of films do not have previews, and they're done on a picture-by-picture basis.

But in 1997, the calendar dates fell on the same days of the week as 2003, and coincidentally, another event film opened with previews on a Tuesday night before the wide release Wednesday, July 2. Sony's "Men in Black" opened in 2,452 theaters beginning at 8 p.m. and grossed $4.8 million. "MiB" went on to take in $51.1 million during the three-day holiday weekend and $84.1 million for the five days, including the preview sales.

But a big difference between "T3" and "MiB" is that the latter was a sci-fi action comedy that carried a PG-13 rating, for which a much wider audience was available, particularly in the middle of the summer box office season when schools are out and younger patrons have time on their hands.

Vancouver Wins Bid to Host 2010 Olympics

PRAGUE, Czech Republic - The Olympics are returning to North America in 2010, to a scenic Pacific coast city beneath snowcapped mountains.

By a mere three votes, Vancouver was selected Wednesday as the host of the Winter Games, taking the Olympics to Canada for the first time since 1988 and perhaps hurting New York's bid for the 2012 Games.

"It was a photo finish," Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien said. "That's what is so great about sport. But winning is winning. I just want to guarantee everybody that it will be a great success."

The vote was closer than expected, with outsider Pyeongchang, South Korea, nearly pulling off a stunning upset in the first round of secret balloting by International Olympic Committee members.

The election wasn't without controversy — several members didn't vote, which could have swung the result the other way. The IOC said it was unsure why.

With a simple majority needed for victory, Pyeongchang got 51 votes in the first round, followed by Vancouver with 40 and Salzburg with 16. But Vancouver picked up Salzburg's votes in the next round and defeated Pyeongchang 56-53.

The words that Canada had waited to hear came from IOC president Jacques Rogge, who opened a white envelope and declared: "The International Olympic Committee has the honor of announcing that the 21st Olympic Winter Games are awarded to the city of Vancouver."

Awarding the 2010 Games to North America leaves Europe in a strong position for the 2012 Summer Olympics — at the expense of New York. Some members say back-to-back games in North America are unlikely.

"It's not complicated," said senior Italian member Mario Pescante, head of the European Olympic Committees. "With five countries interested in the Summer Games, the majority of European IOC members preferred to have games outside Europe. This is a very political vote in view of the summer games."

Paris, London, Madrid, Moscow, among others, are in the running for the 2012 Games.

Rogge disputed any 2010-2012 trade-off.

"We had two consecutive games in 2004 and 2006," he said. "There have been many other examples. This so-called continental rotation, we don't believe in that."

Officials working on New York's bid were quick to say they didn't believe Vancouver's selection would hurt the city's chances.

"We really didn't feel like we had a stake in the outcome here," said Dan Doctoroff, the leader of New York's 2012 bid. "Ultimately we've got to do the job in 2005. Between winter and summer, there's no evidence that it's ever made any difference whatsoever."

Vancouver, whose "Sea to Sky Games" concept plans for events in the city and the ski resort of Whistler, had been considered the front-runner.

The announcement was greeted with huge cheers from Vancouver boosters in the convention hall in Prague. And in Vancouver, wild cheering and flag-waving erupted among those gathered at a downtown arena.

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God! We did it!" screamed Jennifer Goepel, 28, her face painted like the red and white Canadian flag.
 
Vancouver was a top pick on technical merits alone. A recent IOC report gave Vancouver the best overall review, with high marks for its plans for sports venues, accommodations and financing.

Canada's understated campaign focused on the technical strengths of its proposal, with most indoor venues in Vancouver and ski and sliding events at Whistler.

"We made a decision that our program was going to be 100 percent about athletes and sport," bid president John Furlong said. "That's what we think tipped the scales for us."

Canada has hosted two previous Olympics — the 1976 Summer Games in Montreal and 1988 Winter Games in Calgary.

The games of 2004 (Athens, summer) and 2006 (Turin, Italy, winter) are being held in Europe and 2008 (Beijing, summer) in Asia, leaving North America in line for 2010.

Vancouver's selection was welcomed by NBC, which won the U.S. television rights to the 2010 and 2012 Olympics last month for just over $2 billion. "We're delighted with a win in the North American continent because it will allow much of the events to be shown live in prime time," NBC sports chief Dick Ebersol said. "It's like having a Games at home."

Ebersol said the time difference in Vancouver, three hours earlier than the East Coast, shouldn't be a problem. He said organizers could schedule finals from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. (9 p.m.-midnight in the East.)

Wednesday's biggest surprise was the showing by Pyeongchang, the least known of the three bidders.

Of 111 ballots distributed in the first round, only 107 were cast. In the second round, 109 out of 112 eligible voters cast ballots. Had the missing four votes in the first round gone to Pyeongchang, the South Korean city would have won with a majority of 55. Had it received the extra three votes in the second round, the two cities would have tied 56-56.

The Koreans scored points with a strong presentation stressing how the games could promote winter sports in Asia and bring peace on the divided Korean peninsula.

Cho Myung-soo, vice governor of Gangwon province, said he was disappointed. "We will try again in 2014," he said.

Salzburg, which prided itself on its winter sports tradition and world-class venues, sustained a bitter defeat.

"We knew that we are not a favorite but we didn't expect to fall out after the first vote," Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel said. "There are many reasons for that ... the geographical and geopolitical situation."

Pete Townshend Speaks Out

The Who's Pete Townshend says his life is getting back to normal after a traumatic six months. Townshend was accused of using his credit card to access a Web site containing child pornography (true, he says, but for research on an Internet campaign against child porn and for his autobiography, which details sex abuse perpetrated on him as a child) and downloading such material (untrue, and declared such by British police).

"I know I'm innocent," Townshend tells Billboard.com, "and apart from the first day when I heard the news when I was quite shaky and made quite a shaky statement I think, I've been absolutely certain that it was not about me." After accepting a caution from police, Townshend was shocked to be placed on the U.K. sex-offenders' list, albeit for a limited period and at very low status.

Due to recent events, Townshend's name is now known to a wider section of the general public than even the millions of Who fans, but he feels to an extent insulated from that scrutiny. "The people that I really care about are the people who have reached out to me in these troubles, and those are friends, fans, family and strangers who feel they know me through my work," he says.

He emphasizes that he is not smug about what has occurred. "I have been rapped on the knuckles and I don't want to appear like I don't take this thing seriously," he says. "There is a measure of the kind of rock'n'roll arrogance that I still carry in my dotage that made me think I'd have no trouble with it. I really thought of myself as a professional researcher who worked to help victims, not a guitar-smashing rock star. But the old rock star arrogance carried me into very dangerous water."

However, there's no disguising the sadness that Townshend now feels too awkward about the issue of child abuse to do anything other than continue raising funds for its treatment. "I should say no more really because I think what's actually happened here is that I have been silenced," he says. "On this issue, the issue that I was so passionate about, which was the subversion of the Internet, here I am: I can't really say a thing."

Townshend has been working on his autobiography, but the project has stalled for unrelated reasons. "I'm about a third of the way through," he offers. "I was loving it and I got to the part where I leave art school and then off I go with my guitar and I join the Who, and I started to get incredibly depressed. I started to think, 'Oh f*ck, I've got to sit here for two years writing about the Who'. So I couldn't do it. And then circumstances recently made me feel that people really need to know who I actually am, and the only way that they'll have a chance of understanding that is if I dispassionately write my life story. So I'm thinking about getting back to what I call the morning program: sitting down with a piece of paper and picking it up."

Writing about the Who may not be something Townshend is keen on, but there is the probability of one last new studio Who album, rehearsals for which had started before Who bassist John Entwistle's sudden death in June 2002. The impetus for completing the album is coming from vocalist Roger Daltrey.

"He seems to be determined to get me back into a studio and to push me to making what he would call a Who album with him," says Townshend, "and I'm in no mood really to turn away from his friendship. He's been such a fantastic support to me in my recent troubles. So we'll probably go into the studio later this year and try and [get] some material out."

Hollywood Producers Rise Again with 'Terminator 3'

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Everyone knew that HE -- "Terminator" Arnold Schwarzenegger -- would be back. But Wednesday's debut of "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" also marks the return of two producers who were once among the hottest teams in Hollywood before splitting in the 1990s.  

Movies made by Andrew Vajna and Mario Kassar have raked in $3 billion at box offices. Their former company, Carolco Pictures, backed the "Rambo" movies starring Sylvester Stallone and big-budget action adventures like "Total Recall" and "Terminator 2: Judgment Day" with Schwarzenegger.

The pair went their separate ways in the mid-1990s over differences over Carolco's future, but neither enjoyed the kind of hits they made at the former company.

Vajna started a new company that mounted films like 1996's "Evita," and Kassar took the reins of Carolco before one flop too many sent it into bankruptcy in 1995.

"We had a very good run at being able to pick the right projects during our heyday at Carolco, and we felt the team was better than either one of us alone," Vajna said. "To simplify, two heads are better than one."

Under their new film label, C2, the pair returned to the formula that made them a hit -- a non-stop action flick with an emotionless leading man who doesn't really say much but wreaks havoc and destruction everywhere he goes.

In short, they went to "Terminator," whose star Schwarzenegger uttered the now classic line, "I'll be back."

"Everytime you say, 'I'll be back,' you think of 'Terminator,"' said Kassar.

He added that Carolco's collapse was a huge disappointment personally, but it has led him to look at the movie business in a more mature way and put priorities in order.

TERMINATOR REBIRTH

Winning the rights to make "Terminator 3" proved no easy task, however. The pair bought 50 percent of the rights from their old company in a bankruptcy auction and the other 50 percent from "Terminator 2" executive producer Gale Anne Hurd.

C2 partnered with film producer Intermedia, an affiliate of German company IM Internationalmedia AG, and they auctioned distribution rights to major studios such as Warner Bros., a unit of AOL Time Warner Inc and Columbia Pictures, part of Sony Corp.'s Sony Pictures Entertainment.

Schwarzenegger had to be signed to a contract, and a new director found to replace original writer/director James Cameron, who declined a chance to return. C2 hired "U-571" director Jonathan Mostow.

Published reports of the amounts paid Schwarzenegger run as high as $30 million. The movie's overall cost has been estimated between $150 million and $175 million.

The producers, however, declined to talk about the money involved because of one thing they think is a sure thing. "Terminator" movies make a lot more cash than they cost.

"Terminator" in 1984 and "Terminator 2" in 1991 raked in over $550 million at global box offices.

Moreover, the fans who have helped "Terminator" achieve cult status around the world were much younger than the producers thought, said Intermedia chief Moritz Borman.
 
"We did a Google search on 'T3,' and got 17,000 pages," Borman said, "before we even decided to go with the movie."

What will those young fans get from a pair of producers steeped in 1980s and 1990s action movies? "Terminator 3" has the same combination of big explosions, blasting guns, sci fi special effects and Schwarzenegger utterances that made the first two films huge hits. "I don't think the audiences' tastes have changed that much," said Vajna.

If that is the case, expect the 55-year-old action star to keep making big-budget Hollywood films, if he doesn't jump into politics. But one thing is for sure: behind the cameras will be a couple of producers named Vajna and Kassar.

Dreamworks exec Jeffrey Katzenberg talks the plot for SHREK 2.

Jeffrey Katzeberg has been busy talking up the Shrek sequel and Animated Movies scored a quote about what we can expect storywise: "'Shrek 2' is about coming to terms with the fact that everything that happened in the first Shrek was a gigantic mistake. Shrek was not meant to rescue Fiona. Her true love was meant to be Prince Charming. There was a whole plan of what was going to happen to Fiona, her future and her kingdom, and Shrek has made a fine mess of all of it. It begins with an invitation from Fiona's mom and dad, who, you recall, locked her away in a castle to await Prince Charming's kiss".

Now if you thought the fees Marlon Brando got for "Superman" or Anthony Hopkins scored for "M:I-2" were exorbitant, wait till you hear about this. Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy and Cameron Diaz will be reportedly getting $10 million each for just 15 or 20 hours' worth of vocal work on "Shrek 2", plus a bonus $5 million if the film is a success.

Comic Actor Buddy Hackett Dead in L.A. at 79

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Veteran U.S. comedian Buddy Hackett, a talk-show staple whose career stretched from the early days of television to such features as "The Love Bug" and "The Little Mermaid," has died in California.

Hackett, who was 79, was found dead on Monday at his Malibu beach house, his son, Sandy, told local Los Angeles media outlets. The cause of death was not immediately known.

Buddy Hackett's feature credits also included the 1963 ensemble comedy "It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World," and he recently co-starred in "Action," a critically acclaimed but short-lived TV series that satirized Hollywood.

Hackett, who was born in Brooklyn, New York, got his start by working as a stand-up comic at resorts in New York's Catskill mountains. After guest-starring on an early TV show, 1945's "Laff Time," he made his feature film debut two years later as the voice of a talking camel in "Slave Girl."

Following a two-year stint on Broadway in the comedy "Lunatics and Lovers," he landed the title role in the 1956 sitcom "Stanley," which co-starred Carol Burnett. He eventually became a favorite on TV talk and variety shows, and maintained a parallel career as a racy nightclub comic.

His feature career was dominated by work in family films, such as 1961's "Everything's Ducky," 1962's "The Music Man" and 1969's "The Love Bug." The hit Disney cartoon "The Little Mermaid," in which Hackett played the voice of Scuttle the seagull, introduced him to a new generation of fans in 1989. He reprised his role 11 years later in a direct-to-video sequel.

The Origin Of The Name "Canada"

After Columbus landed in the Western Hemisphere in 1492, European rulers sent explorers across the Atlantic to the Americas to claim territory and discover riches. The Spanish, Portuguese, English, Dutch and French all wanted a piece of the "New World" for themselves. Sometimes we forget that the "new world" was not new at all, but the ancient home of many people who were called "Indians" by the Europeans. Jacques Cartier came from the French court of King Francis I to explore North America. In 1534, on his first voyage, he explored the Gulf of St. Lawrence. In Chaleur Bay, he met aboriginal people for the first time. They were Micmac people, and their meeting was the first time that the French and the natives traded furs. For centuries to come, fur trading would be important in the development of the North American colonies.

When Cartier sailed farther up the gulf and into the Bay of Gaspé, he and his men were greeted warmly by a group from the Iroquoian nation of Stadaconé.

They had come from their home, which is now the site of Québec City, on a fishing expedition.

The story goes that Cartier asked the chief, Donnacona, what the land was called. The chief, who was inviting Cartier into their camp, replied "kanata," their word for village, as well as their name for the area around their home, Stadaconé.

Maybe Cartier understood Donnacona, or maybe he did not, but "Canada" has remained the name of the whole vast territory that comprises our country.

Cartier sailed back to France with two of Donnaconna's sons, then returned again to Canada. On his second voyage, he sailed up the St. Lawrence River and visited the site of Montréal. He opened the door to French settlement of the rich land, and later colonists followed.

At first the aboriginal people were friendly, but many became hostile when they understood that their old way of life could not survive with the arrival of so many strangers. The struggle to establish peace and understanding between the people of the First Nations and the European settlers has continued during the many centuries since Cartier's arrival.

The 'You're a Great Canadian' Canada Day Quiz 2003

True or false? Wilfrid Laurier was the first Prime Minister born in what is now Quebec

By Randy Ray and Mark Kearney

Canada Day is a time for enjoying a ball game, lounging around the pool or taking part in the fireworks and festivities at Parliament Hill. But let's not forget the other national pastime that commands the attention of Canadians -- politics.

Canadians of all stripes love talking, reading, and debating about the people and events that make up Canada's political scene. But while they may be familiar with the faces and issues, what do they know about our rich political heritage and the people who shaped it, especially all you political insiders on Parliament Hill and across the country?

On this Canada Day 2003, take a few moments to test your knowledge of the politicians, symbols and political events that are an integral part of Canada's history.

Score well and you might just deserve the title "Right Honourable." (The answers are below).

1. Canadian-born Andrew Bonar Law was once Prime Minister of which country?

a) Great Britain b) Australia c) Canada d) South Africa

2. When Canada was formed in 1867, what was the maximum yearly salary a Member of Parliament could earn?

a) $300 b) $600 c) $1,200 d) $3,000.

3. What was Prime Minister John Diefenbaker's middle name?

a) Herbert b) Albert c) Michael d) George e) Arthur

4. What is the name of the statue on the dome of the Manitoba Legislative Building in Winnipeg?

5. True or false? Wilfrid Laurier was the first Prime Minister born in what is now Quebec.

6. In which year was "O Canada" officially proclaimed as Canada's national anthem?

a) 1939 b) 1967 c) 1977 d) 1980 e) never

7. Red and white are the colours of Canada's national flag. Who designated them as Canada's official colours?

a) King George V b) Prime Minister Lester Pearson c) Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent d) Queen Elizabeth II

8. In addition to being Prime Ministers of Canada, what do Sir John A. Macdonald and Sir John Sparrow David Thompson have in common?

a) both were born in Kingston b) both died while in office c) they were elected to the House of Commons on the same day d) neither ever married.

9. E.B. Eddy was the founder of a successful lumber, paper and match business in Hull and in the late 1800s, served as the community's mayor. While mayor, which of the following can he take credit for?

a) introduction of a bill to create the city of Hull b) a 50-per-cent reduction in property taxes for Hull businesses c) opening the first tavern in Hull.

10. Where in Canada did women first have the legal right to vote?

a) Quebec b) Ontario c) Nova Scotia d) Manitoba

11. Who held the office of Prime Minister for the shortest period of time?

a) Alexander Mackenzie b) Sir Charles Tupper c) Joe Clark d) John Turner

12. What final alteration was made in 1965 before the red and white Maple Leaf flag was adopted?

a) the maple leaf was enlarged by one inch b) a deeper shade of red was used c) two points were removed from the base of the maple leaf d) the stem of the maple leaf was shortened.

13. What was flying atop the Peace Tower on Feb. 15, 1965 before the first official raising of Canada's Maple Leaf flag took place?

a) the Union Jack b) nothing c) Red Ensign d) the Governor General's standard

14. Who was the first Senator to serve as Canada's Prime Minister?

15. In what year did the Conservative Party and the Progressive Party merge to become the Progressive Conservative Party?

a) 1939 b) 1952 c) 1941 d) 1954

16. What did the federal government outlaw in September 1972 for safety reasons?

a) firecrackers b) open-wheeled go-carts c) smoking in airplanes d) expense accounts for politicians.

17. I was a champion of justice issues including women's rights when I was elected to the House of Commons in 1921. Who am I?

18. Three of the four original provinces that made up Canada on July 1, 1867 were Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia. Name the fourth.

19. Where did MPs meet after fire gutted the Centre Block of the Parliament Buildings in 1916?

a) The East Block b) Ottawa City Hall c) the Museum of Nature d) Lansdowne Park

20. Unscramble the following letters to form the name of one of Canada's Prime Ministers: tarruh gmeenhi.

Randy Ray of Ottawa, a former Parliament Hill correspondent, and Mark Kearney of London, Ont., are the authors of The Great Canadian Trivia Books and I Know That Name! The People Behind Canada's Best-Known Brand Names. For more Canadiana, visit their Web site at www.triviaguys.com

ANSWERS

1. a) Great Britain, in 1922
2. b) $600
3. d) George
4. The Golden Boy
5. False. Sir John Abbott, Canada's third prime minister, was born in Lower Canada (now Quebec)
6. d) 1980
7. a) King George
8. b) both died while in office, Macdonald, on June 6, 1891 and Thompson, on Dec. 12, 1894.
9. a) a bill to create the city of Hull
10. d) Manitoba, where females won the right to vote in January 1916.
11. b) Sir Charles Tupper, who led the country for 69 days in 1896. John Turner came second, being PM for 80 days in 1984.
12. c) two points were removed from the base of the maple leaf reducing the number of points to 11 from 13.
13. d) the Governor General's standard.
14. Sir John Joseph Caldwell Abbott, who served as Canada's second Prime Minister from June 16, 1891 until Nov. 24, 1892.
15. c) 1941 under leader John Bracken of Manitoba
16. a) firecrackers
17. Agnes Macphail
18. New Brunswick
19. c) in the auditorium at the Museum of Nature, then known as the Victoria Museum
20. Arthur Meighen, Canada's ninth PM.

Sorry, The Stores Are Closed!

In Canada its Canada Day and the stores are closed. In America, and elsewhere around the world..well you are on your own!

Here are the new music releases for this week:

Monday June 30, 2003

* ASHANTI Chapter 2 (Universal)
* LEGALLY BLONDE 2 OST Legally Blonde 2 OST (Curb)
* THREE 6 MAFIA Da Unbreakables (Epic)
* THREE DAYS GRACE Three Days Grace (Jive)

Tuesday July 1, 2003

* GILLIAN WELCH Soul Journey (Stony Plain)
* MORCHEEBA Brixton to Belving (DVD Audio) (Warner)
* MORCHEEBA Parts Of The Process (Warner)
* NICKEL CREEK Nickel Creek (Warner)
* PETER TOSH Peter Tosh: Best Of 1978-1987 (EMI)
* PUNJABI MC Beware (Sequence)
* QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE Go With The Flow (CD Single) (Universal)
* ROBERT CRAY Time Will Tell (Sanctuary Records)
* ROSCOE Philaphornia (Capitol)

Chaplin fans strike gold with DVD set

Sydney Chaplin, the veteran stage actor and son of Charlie Chaplin, is finally getting a DVD player this week.

The occasion: the release on disc today of four of his father's most important films, groundbreaking comedies starring cinema's first comedic superstar.

The Gold Rush, Modern Times, The Great Dictator and Limelight have been remastered and restored under the supervision of the Chaplin family estate. They make their debut in lavish two-disc packages ($30 each) that include gobs of extras, including documentaries, extensive production notes, deleted scenes and rare home movies.

Though he has seen each of these films more times than he can count — mostly at his dad's home in Switzerland — Sydney Chaplin, 77, is plenty excited about watching them on DVD. "It's good that it keeps the films alive and preserves them," Chaplin says. "He made wonderful pictures. ... They deal with human problems, human feelings, much more so than most of the pictures coming out today."

The releases kick off a major DVD initiative in which Warner Home Video, working with French production company MK2 and Associated Chaplin (the family estate), will issue 15 Chaplin films and two collections of shorts. Subsequent releases are planned for the first quarter of 2004.

"This is one of our biggest campaigns of the year," says George Feltenstein of Warner Home Video. "Charlie Chaplin was the first superstar of cinema; he was, and still is, in a class by himself."

Accordingly, Warner is backing the release with a major marketing campaign. The studio arranged for a special screening of the cleaned-up Modern Times at the Cannes Film Festival. A documentary, Chaplin, was commissioned and shown at the American Film Institute's recent documentary film festival in Washington, D.C. And July 8 will be Chaplin Night on Turner Classic Movies, with back-to-back showings of all four films.

"One of the things we really needed to do was bring awareness of Chaplin to critical mass," Feltenstein said. "There's a natural interest in him — people may know of his character, his hat and cane — but they might not have seen his films. It's our job to pique that curiosity."

Russ Solomon, founder of the Tower Records and Video chain, says customers have been asking about the DVDs for weeks. "Chaplin is an icon," Solomon says. "Some of this stuff was available before, but only on VHS, in somewhat crappy prints. To come out on DVD, with nice cleaned-up masters, hopefully it will turn into kind of a cult item."

Chaplin at a glance
 
The Gold Rush (1925): Chaplin's most famous film, this silent cemented his role as the beloved "Little Tramp." The DVD includes both the silent original and the 1942 edit in which Chaplin added sound narration. Extras include the original score, remastered in surround sound, and an interview with his former wife, Lita Gray Chaplin.

Modern Times (1936): His final silent finds Chaplin at his slapstick best, as a factory worker tired of both his job and his tyrannical boss. Extras include the complete version of the nonsense song Chaplin sings in the cafe scene and an interview with the musical arranger David Raksin.

The Great Dictator (1940): Chaplin's first film with dialogue, in which he plays the dual roles of a kindly Jewish barber and a murderous dictator. The DVD includes rare home movies shot in color on the set.

Limelight (1952): Chaplin's final American film includes several of his children, including Sydney. DVD extras include home movies of Chaplin and his kids in London, and six minutes of Chaplin's unfinished 1919 film, The Professor.

OH BROTHER

Producers confirming Monday that, to jazz up the upcoming fourth season of CBS' Big Brother, contestants will be sequestered in the house without being told that some of their ex-girlfriends/boyfriends/spouses are also participating. The reality show premieres July 8.

Today's New Releases

Even though you might enjoy some time spent outside this week, celebrating the birth of our nation, I'll still tell you what movies are debuting today on disc and tape.

Personally, I'm outside!

How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days - A woman has to write an article about relationship breakups. (Kate Hudson [Andie Anderson], Matthew McConaughey [Benjamin Barry], Michael Michele [Spears])

Gangs Of New York - A man seeks vengenance for his father's death in 1860s NYC. (Leonardo DiCaprio [Amsterdam], Daniel Day-Lewis [Bill "The Butcher Poole], Cameron Diaz)

The Real Cancun - MTV's Real World hits the big screen for spring break. (Amber [Herself], Brittany [Herself], Heidi [Herself])

King Of The Hill: The Complete First Season - The complete first season of the TV series King Of The Hill. (Mike Judge (voice) [Hank Hill/Boomhauer], Brittany Murphy (voice) [Luanne], Kathy Najimy (voice) [Peggy Hill]).

Sean Connery tops bad film accent awards

LONDON (AFP) - Scottish actor Sean Connery created the worst accent in the history of cinema in the 1987 movie "The Untouchables", according to a poll conducted by British film magazine Empire.

His attempt at pulling off an Irish twang in his Oscar-winning performance as a cop was voted worse than US actor Dick Van Dyke's bid at playing a cockney chimneysweep in Disney's classic family film "Mary Poppins" (1964).

US actor Brad Pitt came third in the poll, for his role as an Austrian mountaineer in the 1997 film "Seven Years in Tibet".

Although James Bond star Connery won a supporting actor Oscar for his role as Jim Malone in Brian de Palma's film "The Untouchables", a jury of industry professionals crowned him top of their bad accent list, which appears in the magazine's July issue.

"Whether he's a Russian sub captain ("The Hunt For Red October") or even an English King ("First Knight" and "Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves"), always that baritone Highland burr remains," the verdict read.

In seventh position, Hollywood icon Julia Roberts was singled out for her linguistic performance in the 1996 movie "Mary Reilly".

Meryl Streep came 10th for her work in "Out of Africa" in 1985, where she played the role of South African author Karen Blixen, alongside Robert Redford.

Book: JFK Jr., Wife Were Having Problems

NEW YORK - John F. Kennedy Jr. and his wife, Carolyn, were having marital problems and were living apart when they died in an airplane crash in July 1999, a new book claims.

The August issue of Vanity Fair magazine contains excerpts from Edward Klein's new book, "The Kennedy Curse," which asserts Kennedy and his wife differed on whether to have a family, on drug use, on Kennedy's outgoing lifestyle and on their TriBeCa apartment.

At times, each feared the other was being unfaithful, the excerpts say. Most of the information is attributed to unidentified friends of the couple.

Kennedy married Carolyn Bessette on Cumberland Island, Ga., in 1996.

It had been reported earlier the couple had marital problems.

In 1999, Klein says, the couple began marriage counseling but after four months, Bessette Kennedy stormed out when the therapist mentioned her drug use. She began sleeping in a spare room of the apartment and Kennedy, "on the verge of calling it quits," moved into the Stanhope Hotel on Fifth Avenue.

Two days before they were killed, Klein says, they met for lunch at the Stanhope with Bessette Kennedy's sister, Lauren Bessette, who persuaded them to fly together to the wedding of Kennedy's cousin, Rory Kennedy, in Massachusetts. Lauren Bessette said she would go with them as far as Martha's Vineyard.

Ann M. Freeman, Bessette Kennedy's mother, did not immediately return a telephone call for comment Monday.

On July 16, 1999, Kennedy, 38, his wife, 33, and her sister, 34, were killed when the single-engine plane Kennedy was piloting crashed in the ocean near Martha's Vineyard.

Klein says when Kennedy graduated from flight school, he gave his instructors a photo of himself and inscribed it, in part, with, "People will only care where I got my training if I crash."

Klein is also the author of "All Too Human: The Love Story of Jack and Jackie Kennedy" and "Just Jackie: Her Private Years."

'The Harder They Come' Prepped for Another Reissue

NEW YORK (Billboard) - A remastered, two-disc version of "The Harder They Come" will hit stores on Aug. 5 to mark the 30th anniversary of the landmark reggae album's original release.

The first disc of the Universal Music Enterprises "Deluxe Edition" is a remastered version of the soundtrack to the 1973 film starring reggae great Jimmy Cliff as Ivan, an aspiring musician turned gangster. Both the film and the 12-song soundtrack, half of which was comprised of his songs, went on to make Cliff an international star.

The second disc collects some of reggae's most commercially successful singles to predate the April 1973 release of Bob Marley & the Wailers' Island debut, "Catch a Fire." Included are a number of additional tracks from the same artists on the original disc -- Cliff ("Vietnam"), Desmond Dekker ("Israelites") and the Maytals ("54-46 (That's My Number)").

Dana Smart, Universal's reissue supervisor for the project, says because "The Harder They Come" is a various-artists title, and because each song from the original soundtrack was used in the movie, he had to deviate slightly from the company's model for its Deluxe Editions.

In most cases, the lavish Deluxe Editions focus on a classic album by one artist, like Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On," and embellish the set with demos or live recordings from the album sessions or the era. But, the same approach couldn't be taken here: there just weren't any leftovers.

Smart chose tracks by many of the artists from the original soundtrack to make the project cohesive. "It was their music that was lifting reggae out of the Caribbean area into the mainstream," he told Billboard.com.

Smart says the second disc investigates "'What else is there from that time and place?' And there was a handful of songs that started to break reggae in the pop mainstream prior to Marley's arrival. So it's things like 'Israelites,' which was a pop hit -- even in the U.S. -- in '68; it's Johnny Nash's 'I Can See Clearly Now,' which isn't a reggae tune per se, but it has a definite Caribbean feel and really started opening ears to what that sound was like. The other Johnny Nash tune that's on there is 'Guava Jelly' -- not a hit, but that's a Marley composition, and album came out in '72, before anybody knew who Marley was in the U.S."

Catering to the many Jamaicans who had relocated to the U.K., both the movie and soundtrack were released there. in July 1972, prior to their U.S. debut. And while the album appeared in U.S. stores in February 1973 (on Mango/Island) -- two months before "Catch a Fire" -- it didn't hit the national charts until 1975.

In 2001, Universal reissued "The Harder They Come" in a single-disc format, remastering the album and restoring lyrics and jacket photos that were lost in the album's conversion to CD in the mid-'80s. The new disc finds the album remastered once again. The tracks on the second disc are also sonically restored.

New artwork is being added, as are essays by reggae historian David Katz, the film's director/co-writer Perry Henzell, Island founder and reggae icon Chris Blackwell and Clash bassist Paul Simonon.

Elvis' '2nd' to Complement Hits Collection

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Having celebrated Elvis Presley's career with the 2003 release of "ELV1S 30 #1 Hits," RCA/BMG has set an Oct. 7 release date for a companion hits collection, "Elvis 2nd to None."

The compilation will boast a host of additional No. 1 singles alongside other classic Presley tunes and a new remix.

Renowned DJ Paul Oakenfold has remixed the lesser-known Presley b-side "Rubberneckin"' for the album, following in the footsteps of Junkie XL, whose remix of "A Little Less Conversation" was the lead single for the "30 #1 Hits" release.

"Elvis 2nd to None" will include 30 tracks in all, mixed and mastered from the original master tapes. Among the other cuts set for inclusion are "That's All Right," "Viva Las Vegas," "Blue Suede Shoes," "I Want You, I Need You, I Love You," "Always on My Mind" and "Don't Cry Daddy."

"ELV1S 30 #1 Hits" debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and has sold 2.9 million copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. The disc, which was accompanied in the U.S. by a national TV special and a DVD audio release, shipped more than 9 million copies worldwide, according to BMG.

BMG Heritage will on Tuesday release the four-disc box set "Elvis: Close Up," which is full of unreleased material ranging from stereo master tapes and film music to a complete concert recorded April 18, 1972, in San Antonio.