'Three's Company' heading to DVD

Fans of John Ritter's classic pratfalls and comical misunderstandings can look forward to next month's DVD release of "Three's Company," Variety reports.

The first season of the 1970s sitcom will be released Nov. 11. Rights holder DLT Entertainment plans to donate part of the proceeds to United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) in Ritter's memory.

"We thought it appropriate to do this [give the donation], since John was so closely involved with UCP for many years," DLT Entertainment vice president Don Taffner Jr. said Tuesday.

Ritter's recent death sped up DLT's release plans, leaving little time to include many bonus features on the first-season DVD. These features may be included with the release of subsequent seasons.

Foo Fighters to release tour DVD

The Foo Fighters' first DVD, "Everywhere But Home," will hit stores in late November, reports Rolling Stone.

The DVD will feature more than three hours of music, including behind-the-scenes and backstage footage from four shows on the band's "One By One" tour. The performances range from small acoustic club gigs to their August 23rd show at Ireland's Slane Castle in front of 90,000 fans.

Other features will be tour and studio photo galleries, more than 20 tracks of current and past hits, and an audio-only recording of the band's first show in Reykjavik, Iceland on August 26. The full set includes six acoustic songs, including Dave Grohl's solo version of "Everlong."

'Matrix Revolutions' Opens at Zero Hour

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - It's enough to make even Neo say, "Whoa" again.

On Nov. 5, audiences will be able to experience the premiere of "The Matrix Revolutions" at the exact same moment in time in every major city around the world.

This unprecedented distribution scenario will make the film available to fans simultaneously at 6 a.m. in Los Angeles, 9 a.m. in New York, 2 p.m. in London, 5 p.m. in Moscow, 11 p.m. in Tokyo and at corresponding times in over 50 additional countries worldwide.

"The zero hour simultaneous opening of 'Revolutions' once again positions the Matrix films as the cutting edge experience in motion pictures," says Dan Fellman, president of domestic distribution of Warner Bros. Pictures.

In "The Matrix Revolutions," the final chapter in the "Matrix" trilogy by brothers Larry and Andy Wachowski, the rebels' long quest for freedom culminates in an explosive battle. As the Machine Army wages devastation on Zion, its citizens mount an aggressive defense, trying to stave off the relentless swarm of Sentinels long enough for Neo (Keanu Reeves) to harness the full extent of his powers and end the war.

To date, "The Matrix Reloaded," the previous installment of the series, has earned over $734 million in worldwide box office, making it the highest-grossing film of 2003 and the highest-grossing R-rated film in history, both domestically and internationally.

Cash's 'Unearthed' Box Set Unveiled

A sprawling five-disc Johnny Cash box set will arrive Nov. 25 from American Recordings/Lost Highway. Dubbed "Unearthed," the set features 79 songs, 64 of them previously unreleased and produced by Rick Rubin during the late country great's sessions for his four "American Recordings" albums released between 1994 and 2002.

Rubin first unveiled plans for the set exclusively to Billboard.com in August. Cash died Sept. 12 from complications related to diabetes at the age of 71.

The first three discs feature such finds as solo acoustic versions of "Long Black Veil" and "Flesh and Blood," and covers of Steve Earle's "Devil's Right Hand," Roy Orbison's "Down the Line" and the Neil Young songs "Heart of Gold" and "Pocahontas."

Discs two and three boast several duets, some with old friends and others with newer acquaintances. On the veteran side, Cash's former Sun Records labelmate Carl Perkins joins him for a run through the familiar "Brown-Eyed Handsome Man" while his bandmate in the Highwaymen, Willie Nelson, shows up on "Like a Soldier." Glen Campbell sings with Cash on "Gentle on My Mind."

Skewing away from his contemporaries, late Clash lead singer Joe Strummer joins Cash on a version of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song" and Tom Petty appears on "The Running Kind." Fiona Apple also sings "Father and Son" with him and Nick Cave joins in on "Cindy."

Of the Strummer duet, Rubin told Billboard.com, "When we were recording [Cash's 2002 album] 'The Man Comes Around,' Joe was coming every day, because he loved Johnny Cash, and he just happened to be in L.A. on vacation. He actually extended his trip a week longer just to come every day and be around Johnny."

A solo version of "Redemption Song" also appears on Strummer's new album, "Streetcore" (Hellcat/Epitaph). "Originally, the song was supposed to be a duet, and we recorded it as a duet. But, just in case, both Johnny and Joe sang the whole song several times," Rubin explained, noting that the track was nearly complete ("It wasn't mixed, but most of the overdubs were there") before Strummer died suddenly in December.

The fourth "Unearthed" disc is subtitled "My Mother's Hymn Book," and is comprised of 15 songs from a book of hymns Cash's mother read to him as a child. Via solo acoustic performances, the deeply spiritual artist revisits such secular songs as "I Shall Not Be Moved," "Do Lord," "If We Never Meet Again This Side of Heaven" and "In the Sweet By and By."

The final disc is a "best of" representation of the four albums Cash released with Rubin at the helm: 1994's "American Recordings," 1996's "Unchained," 2000's "American III: Solitary Man" and last year's "American IV: The Man Comes Around."

"Unearthed" will also include a 104-page clothbound book including a track-by-track discussion by Cash, Rubin and others. Also featured is one of Cash's final interviews, in which he and Rubin talk about the body of work they created.

As previously reported, Cash's life and career will be celebrated with a musical tribute Nov. 10 at Nashville's Grand Ole Opry. Nelson, John Mellencamp, Dwight Yoakam, George Jones, Rosanne Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Travis Tritt, Hank Williams Jr. and Sheryl Crow are among those confirmed to participate.

Here is the "Cash Unearthed" track list:

Disc I - Who's Gonna Cry
"Long Black Veil"
"Flesh and Blood"
"Just the Other Side of Nowhere"
"If I Give My Soul"
"Understand Your Man"
"Banks of the Ohio"
"Two Timin' Woman"
"The Caretaker"
"Old Chunk of Coal"
"I'm Going to Memphis"
"Breaking Bread"
"Waiting for a Train"
"Casey's Last Ride"
"No Earthly Good"
"The Fourth Man in the Fire"
"Dark as a Dungeon"
"Book Review"
"Down There by the Train"

Disc II - Trouble in Mind:
"Pocahontas"
"I'm a Drifter" (Version 1)
"Trouble In Mind"
"Down the Line"
"I'm Moving On"
"As Long as the Green Grass Shall Grow"
"Heart of Gold"
"The Running Kind" (w/Tom Petty)
"Everybody's Trying To Be My Baby"
"Brown-Eyed Handsome Man" (w/Carl Perkins)
"'T' for Texas"
"Devil's Right Hand"
"I'm a Drifter" (Version 2)
"Like a Soldier" (w/Willie Nelson)
""Drive On" (alternate lyrics)
"Bird on a Wire" (live w/orchestra)

Disc III - Redemption Songs
"A Singer of Songs"
"The L & N Don't Stop Here Anymore"
"Redemption Song" (w/Joe Strummer)
"Father and Son" (w/Fiona Apple)
"Chattanooga Sugar Babe"
"He Stopped Loving Her Today"
"Hard Times"
"Wichita Lineman"
"Cindy" (w/Nick Cave)
"Big Iron"
"Salty Dog"
"Gentle on My Mind" (w/Glen Campbell)
"You Are My Sunshine"
"You'll Never Walk Alone"
"The Man Comes Around" (early take)

Disc IV - My Mother's Hymn Book
"Where We'll Never Grow Old"
"I Shall Not Be Moved"
"I Am a Pilgrim"
"Do Lord"
"When the Roll Is Called Up Yonder"
"If We Never Meet Again This Side of Heaven"
"I'll Fly Away"
"Where the Soul of a Man Never Dies"
"Let the Lower Lights Be Burning"
"When He Reached Down"
"In the Sweet By and By"
"I'm Bound for the Promised Land"
"In the Garden"
"Softly and Tenderly"
"Just As I Am"

Disc V - Best of Cash on American
"Delia's Gone"
"Bird on a Wire"
"Thirteen"
"Rowboat"
"The One Rose"
"Rusty Cage"
"Southern Accents"
"Mercy Seat"
"Solitary Man"
"Wayfaring Stranger"
"One"
"I Hung My Head"
"The Man Comes Around"
"We'll Meet Again"
"Hurt"

Dixie Chicks Hatch Live DVD/CD

The Dixie Chicks' 2003 Top of the World tour will be captured in an upcoming collection of live recordings, due Nov. 25 from Open Wide/Monument/Columbia Records. The release will come in double-CD and DVD editions. Titled "Top of the World," the set was recorded during the North American leg of the Chicks' 2003 tour of the same name.

Both the CD and DVD feature performances of songs such as "Goodbye Earl," "Long Time Gone" and "Travelin' Soldier," from the group's three most recent albums, 1998's "Wide Open Spaces," 1999's "Fly" and last year's "Home."

The double-disc CD version of "Top of the World" features 22 songs, while the DVD pares things down to 18, but includes a bonus video clip for "Top of the World."

As previously reported, the Top of the World tour grossed about $60 million in revenues, making the Dixie Chicks the top country touring act of the year. "Home" debuted at No. 1 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 5.6 million copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Here is the track list for the "Top of the World" CD:

Disc one:
"Goodbye Earl"
"Some Days You Gotta Dance"
"There's Your Trouble"
"Long Time Gone"
"Tortured, Tangled Hearts"
"Travelin' Soldier"
"Am I the Only One (Who's Ever Felt This Way)"
"Hello Mr. Heartache"
"Cold Day in July"
"White Trash Wedding"
"Lil' Jack Slade"

Disc two:
"A Home"
"Truth No. 2"
"If I Fall You're Going Down With Me"
"Mississippi"
"Cowboy Take Me Away"
"Godspeed (Sweet Dreams)"
"Landslide"
"Ready To Run"
"Wide Open Spaces"
"Top of the World"
"Sin Wagon"

HERE SHE IS

Sandra Bullock has signed on to produce and star in a sequel to the 2000 hit Miss Congeniality.

BIONIC BUTT TALK?

Jim Carrey starring in a comedic remake of the Six Million Dollar Man. Old School helmer Todd Phillips will write and direct. A fall 2004 production date is predicted.

To Boldly Go!

Paramount Home Entertainment has announced the sixth and final DVD voyage of the old crew of the Starship Enterprise.

On February 27th comes a two-disc special edition of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, will at last complete every Trekkers collection.

Presented in a newly remastered 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and Dolby Digital 5.1, extras include director and screenwriter audio commentaries, the "Movie Making," "The Star Trek Universe," "Art Imitates Life" and "A Farewell" featurettes, extensive storyboards and production gallery and theatrical trailers.

Actor Fred 'Rerun' Berry Dies at Age 52

LOS ANGELES - Fred Berry, the bulb-shaped, squeaky-voiced actor famous for playing red-beret-wearing Rerun on the 1970s TV sitcom "What's Happening!", has died at age 52, police said Wednesday.

Berry died Tuesday at his home in Los Angeles apparently of natural causes, police Officer Jason Lee said. The county coroner was investigating, but friends said Berry had been ill because of a recent stroke.

He wore his red beret and suspenders in real life, and it was unclear whether he originally brought his own style to the character of Rerun or whether he was forever mimicking the goofball character that made him famous.

"What's Happening!", which ran from 1976-1979, focused on three teenage friends — Rerun, Raj and Dwayne — who learn about life, women and trouble while growing up in Los Angeles.

The name Rerun, according to Berry, referred to the character's brainlessness: In the summer, he had to rerun all the classes he failed during the school year.

Among the more famous episodes was one in which Rerun joined a bizarre cult and another in which he was busted for making bootlegged tapes of a Doobie Brothers concert.

Berry's success on the show was clouded by his heavy use of marijuana and cocaine. "There were dealers right there in the studio, people that worked there," he said in 1996.

By the time "What's Happening!" ended, Berry said he had blown more than a million dollars on drugs, cars, homes and an airplane. With no acting jobs heading his way, Berry tried to live off his fame by charging for appearances at shopping malls.

Lately, he had earned money by calling fans on the telephone, taking part in the service www.HollywoodIsCalling.com. About $30 would earn a fan a 30-second call.

Rerun brought Berry another brief moment of success in 1985, when "What's Happening!" was revived as the syndicated "What's Happening Now!" Berry quit in a contract dispute after the first season, and the show ended in 1987.

By 1986, Berry says, he abandoned drugs and started speaking to churches, schools and other groups, finally working as a minister in Madison, Ala.

He continued to dabble in show business. Berry recently appeared on the TV shows "Star Dates" on the E! Entertainment Network, MTV's "Doggy Fizzle Televizzle" with Snoop Dogg and in a cameo role in the David Spade comedy film "Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star."

Berry married a dancer while in his 20s, and the two divorced, remarried and divorced again. Berry also married and divorced his second wife twice, most recently in 1991. He also married and divorced two other women.

Singer Elliott Smith Dead in Apparent LA Suicide

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Brooding singer-songwriter Elliott Smith, who earned an Oscar nomination and widespread notice for his 1997 single "Miss Misery" from the film "Good Will Hunting," has died at age 34 in an apparent suicide, officials said on Wednesday.

The body of the musician, who had appeared to have stabbed himself in the chest, was found by his live-in girlfriend at their Los Angeles home on Tuesday, city police spokeswoman Grace Brady said.

She said there was no sign of foul play and Smith's death was being treated as an apparent suicide, pending an investigation by the Los Angeles County Coroner.

Smith had battled drug and alcohol addiction for years, a subject he used as a metaphor in some of his songs. But Luke Woode, a DreamWorks Records executive who knew him, said Smith had been sober during the past year and seemed upbeat.

"He was in the middle of writing his next record. He had recorded a good chunk of it. He was incredibly optimistic," Woode told Reuters.

In an online interview with Salon.com in 2000, Smith acknowledged the attention focused on his melancholy persona, saying he was frequently asked "Why are you so sad?"

"Just because people have a range of emotions and thoughts ... sometimes they get ecstatically happy about something and at other times ridiculously depressed, doesn't mean that there's something wrong with them," he told the Web site.

DreamWorks Records, his label, said in a statement that Smith would be remembered as "perhaps his generation's most gifted songwriter. His enormous talent could change your life in a whisper. We will miss him."

The performer's touring guitarist, Shon Sullivan, called Smith a "musical genius" and "one of the sweetest people I've ever known."

"He played all the instruments on his records," Sullivan told Billboard.com. "Having him for a friend and playing in his band was one the highlights of my life."

Hailing from Portland, Oregon, Smith began writing songs at age 14 and started performing on the local music scene as a solo artist and with some friends in the rock band Heatmiser.

His debut solo album, "Roman Candle," was released in 1994, followed by two more LPs, "Elliott Smith" in 1995 and "Either/Or" in 1997, on the influential independent label Kill Rock Stars. He also recorded three albums with Heatmiser in the early 1990s.

But his breakthrough from folk-punk obscurity to mainstream success came in 1997 when filmmaker and fellow Portland resident Gus Van Sant sought Smith's permission to use some of his songs in the film "Good Will Hunting," starring Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Robin Williams.

Smith agreed and composed a handful of new songs for the film, including "Miss Misery," which went on to garner an Academy Award nomination for best original song. Smith did not win but performed "Miss Misery" during the Oscar telecast in March 1998, taking the stage alongside country star Trisha Yearwood and Canadian pop songstress Celine Dion, who sang the winning song, "My Heart Will Go On" from "Titanic."

Smith signed with DreamWorks in 1998 and quickly released his fourth solo album, "XO," named one of the year's top 20 albums by Spin magazine. The following year, his cover of the Beatles' "Because" was included on the soundtrack to the Oscar-winning film "American Beauty."

His latest album, "Figure 8," was issued in 2000, and Smith had begun writing songs for his sixth solo release, a planned double album, DreamWorks said.