Soderbergh, 2929 See Same-Day Film/DVD Release

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Director Steven Soderbergh and 2929 Entertainment, a media company owned by entrepreneurs Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner, on Friday unveiled a unique pact to make digital movies for simultaneous release in theaters, on television and on DVD.

The same-day distribution challenges long-held practices for Hollywood studios that first place films in theaters, hoping for solid box office revenues, then sell them months later on DVD or videocassette and offer them to TV broadcasters.

Studios and theater owners are concerned that altering the practice would cannibalize theater box office sales, but Wagner told Reuters it is time to explore new ways to get movies to audiences when and where they want them.

"Consumers should have the choice of how they want to consume movies," he said.

Under the deal between 2929 and Oscar winner Soderbergh -- whose work ranges from low-budget features to blockbusters like "Ocean's Eleven" -- the director would make six movies using high-definition digital technology. The first, a murder mystery titled "Bubble," is currently in production.

2929 would release the movies in its Landmark Theaters cinema chain, which operates 58 houses nationwide geared toward art, foreign-language and independently-made films.

The films also would be available on 2929's high-definition cable TV channel, HDNet Movies. The Dallas-based company said it is still in talks for home video and DVD distribution.

EMBRACING CHANGE

While HDNet reaches roughly half of all U.S. homes, it has yet to gain strong viewership, and Wagner said much of the reasoning behind the pact is to test simultaneous releasing.

"If you embrace (the tests), you can find new revenue models, but you aren't going to think of them if you aren't willing to experiment," he said.

For instance, he said it may be possible that filmmakers could share video and TV revenues with theater owners if the theater owners do not protest simultaneous releases.

The DVD market has been so strong in recent years that some filmmakers want to tap it faster to recoup the cost of making and marketing films. The studios have narrowed gaps between releases, too, but have not done a simultaneous distribution.

Last year, Atlanta-based Convex Group Inc. released a holiday film, "NOEL," in 10 cities and on the same day in a disposable DVD via online retailer Amazon.com Inc. .

One week ago, 2929 released a documentary it backed, "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room," simultaneously in theaters and on HDNet Movies.

Wagner said it was too soon to know exactly how the strategy panned out for "Smartests Guys," but he added that the movie's per screen average was a hefty $25,000.

"That tells me it hasn't cannibalized any audience yet," he said.

'Lou Grant' Actor Dies at 86

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) Mason Adams, whose distinct voice became familiar to millions before he gained fame for the "Mary Tyler Moore" spin-off "Lou Grant," died Tuesday, April 26 at the age of 86.

The Emmy-nominated actor, who also voiced numerous radio roles and commercials, died of natural causes in his Manhattan home, report news sources.

Adams was born in Brooklyn, New York on February 26, 1919. He received a master's degree in Theater Arts and Speech from the University of Wisconsin and later taught at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse.

Although he had what one colleague described as a "non-actor's face," Adams used his gravelly, friendly voice to advantage. He began working in radio in the 1940s, playing the title role in the soap opera "Pepper Young's Family." He was also heard on the "Batman" serials, "Golden Age," on the "CBS Mystery Theater" series and as the nefarious Atom Man on the "Superman" serials.
He finally gained recognition as Charlie Hume on CBS' "Lou Grant" sitcom, earning three consecutive Emmy nominations beginning in 1979.

Adams continued to do voice work and can still be heard as the pitchman in Cadbury Eggs and Smuckers commercials, the latter which always concluded with the tagline: "With a name like Smuckers, it's got to be good."

His film work includes parts in "F/X," "Son in Law" and "Houseguest." During his later years, he continued to act on stage, with one of his final roles in Arthur Miller's "The Man Who Had All the Luck" in 2002.

U2 shoots new video in Vancouver

U2 announced today that they are shooting their latest video at GM Place in Vancouver.

In a last-minute email from U2.com, the band invited fans to come down to the arena on Wednesday (Apr. 27) to take part in the live video for their upcoming single, "City of Blinding Lights."

The first 4,000 fans (as of 3 p.m. Pacific Time) were to be issued a ticket to a reserved seat surrounding the stage.

The video is being helmed by French directors Alex and Martin, the pair behind U2's Grammy-winning video "Vertigo." Their resume also includes The White Stripes, Kylie Minogue, Air, Jane's Addiction and Noir Desir.

U2 play two sold-out shows at GM Place tomorrow and Friday.

The new Bond is the old Bond, says co-star

LONDON - The new James Bond is the old James Bond, says an actress who has appeared in the last four films about the British spy.

According to Dame Judi Dench, Pierce Brosnan will reprise the role in the upcoming remake of Casino Royale, which is expected to be released next year.

"Despite the fact that everyone on the face of the Earth has been tested as his possible replacement, he'll be doing it again and it will be announced come summer," Dench told Britain's Daily Mirror newspaper.

Depending on which reports you believe, Brosnan was either dropped by the producers of the long-running film franchise or decided to quit the role while he was on top.

He last appeared as Agent 007 in 2002's Die Another Day. Since then, a long list of actors have been rumoured to be contenders for the job, from Daniel Craig to Dougray Scott to Clive Owen to Colin Salmon to Jude Law.

The latest speculation, however, had Brosnan having his licence to kill renewed. That said, the producers of the films have so far refused to back up Dench's comments.

"No cast members, locations or release dates can be confirmed," a spokesperson said.

Dench has played M, Bond's boss, since Brosnan took over the role. Her remarks came while talking to a gossip columnist in New York.

The new Casino Royale will be the 21st Bond film. When a new actor takes over the lead role in the series, it's often considered a risky move.

When George Lazenby replaced Sean Connery, for example, the result was 1969's On Her Majesty's Secret Service, which is considered a low point in Bond's screen history. Timothy Dalton, who replaced Roger Moore, lasted only two movies in the role.

Bond first appeared in the 1953 Ian Fleming novel Casino Royale, which was made into a spoof by a rival producer in 1967.

A good season, with reason

The great news is that the soon-to-conclude 2004-05 TV season truly does count as a "good thing," unlike most of its recent predecessors. After years of dedicating all their creative energy to cloning their own hits or stealing someone else's, the networks finally came up with a few new, popular ideas. Desperate Housewives alone might be enough to make the season a success — and that's not even counting the equally admirable Lost and House.

Nor was all the good news confined to new shows. Alias, 24 and Gilmore Girls bounced back from weak seasons to reclaim spots among TV's elite, while NYPD Blue showed how a classic can go out with class.

Obviously, no TV season is perfect, certainly not one that featured such reality abominations as Who's Your Daddy and The Will. The most we can ask is that the good outweigh the bad. This season, it did.

So with May on the way and the season on the way out, we pause to look at the best and worst the TV year had to offer — our picks for the High Five and the Low Five of '05.

The good

5. The revival of scripted TV

Desperate Housewives and Lost didn't just revive ABC's fortunes, they also reminded viewers and networks alike of the pleasures and profits to be found in scripted television. Certainly, after years in which it seemed the only thing people wanted to talk about was who was kissing Joe Millionaire in the woods or kissing up to Donald Trump in the boardroom, it has been a joy to see the conversation turn to the sexual antics on Wisteria Lane and the hidden secrets of that mysterious island.

Like a rising tide, the success of these two breakout hits seemed to spark interest in other scripted hours. Certainly, there's no happier surprise this season than the success of House, a whip-smart drama many people (well, OK: me) feared was too adult to fit into Fox's kid-friendly lineup. As for those kids, a small but savvy group of them discovered UPN's Veronica Mars — a cult hit now, but a show that could someday attract a wider audience.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg in a broadcast season that boasts such dramatic worthies as 24, Alias, Gilmore Girls, Without a Trace, CSI, CSI: Miami, Grey's Anatomy, Eyes and Jack & Bobby. Each offers a good reason to set aside reality and bask in the age-old glow of strongly etched characters and well-told stories.

4. Basic-cable dramas

In general, if you're looking for original dramas, you still need to look to the broadcast networks, Showtime or HBO. But over the past few years, a few basic-cable networks have carved out their own niche, producing shows that blend the unregulated creative freedom of premium cable with the popular appeal of broadcast hits.

The upshot this season were two of TV's best new series, FX's Rescue Me and Sci Fi's Battlestar Galactica (the best space adventure since Sci Fi's own Farscape).

Granted, these series bright spots are few and far between in a cable landscape still dominated by wrestling and reruns. Still, any business that can give us Rescue Me, Battlestar and FX's Nip/Tuck is a business worth encouraging.

3. Uninterrupted runs

How do you stretch 20-some episodes over a 36-week season? Sometimes, you don't.

The normal broadcast pattern is to premiere series in September and end them in May, which means networks either have to repeat episodes or replace the shows entirely for a spell. But now and then they offer us a third choice: uninterrupted, full-length runs.

The greatest beneficiaries of the twist were ABC's Alias and Fox's 24. Heavily serialized and amusingly complex, these series have stories that are best told straight through. Interruptions cause viewers to lose interest and patience and give them too much time to ponder the logic of the plot.

Economic realities mean such runs will always be the exception, not the rule. But for Alias and 24, that exception has paid creative and ratings dividends — and that's a good reason to break a rule.

2. Reality in retreat

Failure could be the best thing that ever happened to reality-based TV.

Last year, after all, it looked as if we all might drown in the reality tide. But that was before this season's rash of failures, a catalog of fast flops that included The Benefactor, Branson's Quest for the Best, The Next Great Champ, Wickedly Perfect and Who's Your Daddy - one of the most loathsome ideas in the genre's short, sorry history.

With any luck, this purge has taught the networks that the only way to preserve the genre for the long run is to cut back in the short run. The best shows will and should survive: TV would be a much more boring place without American Idol, Survivor, The Amazing Race and America's Next Top Model. But there's a limit to how many times you can recycle the exact same idea, a limit surpassed by The Starlet, BMOC, and The Road to Stardom with Missy Elliott.

The worst reality ideas haven't disappeared, unfortunately. They've simply migrated down to the basic-cable nether regions occupied by A&E and E! Though come to think of it, that is sort of like disappearing.

1. Freshened faces

Yes, TV creates new stars. But it also can give new life to old stars, and that can be an even greater gift.

The most obvious example is Desperate Housewives, which took four fabulous women — Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross and Eva Longoria — and turned them into cover girls. Or consider Lost, which turned teen-favorite Matthew Fox into an adult leading man; or Numb3rs, which gave sitcom-killer David Krumholtz his first appealing role; or Eyes, which has provided a showcase for previously underappreciated Tim Daly.

Still, when it comes to well-earned stardom, the season's prize goes to House's brilliant star, Hugh Laurie. Even those of us who adored Laurie's work in such British comic wonders as Jeeves and Wooster and the Black Adder series never knew he had House in him. Thank goodness the producers did.

The bad

5. The sitcom drought

Oh, Joey, what have you done?

Granted, the pilot for NBC's Friends spinoff Joey was no great breakthrough. But it was funny and self-assured and competent — something the show hasn't achieved since. And as Joey goes, so has the genre this season, stumbling from one horrid mess to the next. You know a genre is in trouble when the best current example of the form, Fox's Arrested Development, has a surer shot at an Emmy than at renewal.

That doesn't mean the sitcom is dead: There's no reason to think that the millions of people who made Friends the top-rated show on TV just a few years ago have suddenly deserted the genre en masse. If they're not watching sitcoms, it's because so few of them are worth watching.

How can the form be fixed? For a start, the networks might consider the success of Desperate Housewives, an hour-long comedy built around women. You remember women, don't you? They're the people who used to star in such shows as I Love Lucy, Designing Women and Roseanne, before the networks decided to consign most of them to playing smart, second-banana wives with dumb, unattractive husbands. Turns out women found that less than amusing.

Go figure.

4. Shows that will not die

Far too many shows these days are forgotten but not gone.

The problem is that the networks have grown so enamored of long-running hits and so afraid of development failures that they want to eke every possible season out of every TV success. Surely fear is the only reason NBC is bringing back Will & Grace, as nothing in the show this season could lead anyone to believe the writers have anything new to say or anyplace new to take these characters.

The sad truth is that most shows today outlive their welcome — tying up time, talent and money that would be better spent elsewhere. Most stories can't be stretched over a decade, and most series can't survive time-induced cast changes — a trick that works far better for a plot-driven show such as Law & Order than a character-driven show such as West Wing.

There's an art to knowing when the time has come to get off the stage. Unfortunately, at NBC these days it's a lost art.

3. Kiddie reality

It takes an electronic village to raze a child.

Once content to simply make bratty kids secondary targets in shows like The Osbournes, TV has now elevated them to stardom — the worst examples being those bottom-dwelling twins, Supernanny and Nanny 911. Never mind the drivel about "fixing" these families; these shows exist to mine entertainment out of out-of-control children. Which means parents who have failed to raise their children properly have now failed to protect those same children from public ridicule. And we all join in.

Though it pains me to say so, the same complaint goes for MTV's addictive teenage bratfest My Super Sweet 16, about overprivileged, undermannered kids bullying their submissive parents into throwing over-the-top birthday parties. The show makes a fairly compelling argument against inherited wealth; still, rich children are children. I don't know when we adults decided mocking children for fun and profit was suitable entertainment, but it's time we grew out of it.

2. TV franchisation

In September, we wondered how many Law & Orders and CSIs were too many. Now we know: for L&O, four; for CSI, three.

As it turns out, it takes more than a name to make a show. You also have to come up with a few compelling characters and some workable distinction that separates the copy from the original. CSI: NY failed the first task; L&O: Trial by Jury the second.

And while we're complaining about franchise creep, it would be nice if CBS would stop trying to turn The Amazing Race into Survivor on the Go. The nasty tricks and backbiting maneuvers that work on Survivor should stay on Survivor — and the people who play on Survivor, or any other reality show, should stay off TV afterward. You people aren't franchises. You get one outlet, and then get out.

1. Time games

All right, networks, repeat after me: Shows start and end on the hour or half-hour.

That means, ABC, that Desperate Housewives should end at 10, not 10:02; and Alias should start at 9, not 9:01. As for NBC's long-established habit of starting ER at 9:59 — stop it. You networks keep playing these games with viewers, and someone's going to get hurt. And trust me, it's going to be you.

Disney Wooing Pixar Again

The Walt Disney Co. "definitely" wants to renew its relationship with Pixar Animation Studios, Disney Studios chief Dick Cook has told the London Times. "This has been probably the most successful relationship in the history of Hollywood," Cook told the newspaper. "It's definitely our desire to further the relationship with Pixar for years to come, and develop it even more, and we're hopeful they feel the same way." It has been more than a year since Pixar Chairman Steve Jobs angrily broke off contract-renewal talks with CEO Michael Eisner. Although he has reportedly met with the heads of other studios, he reportedly has been taking a wait-and-see approach to determine whether the company's incoming CEO, Robert Iger, will be less intractable to his terms.

Tom Cruise, Actress Katie Holmes Dating

LOS ANGELES - Tom Cruise has a new girlfriend — actress Katie Holmes. Cruise, 42, and Holmes, 26, have been dating a few weeks, Cruise's publicist and sister, Lee Anne DeVette, said Wednesday.

The pair were photographed this week together in Rome, where Cruise on Friday will receive a lifetime achievement award at the Italian equivalent of the Academy Awards, the David di Donatello Awards.

Holmes' public relations firm — Baker Winokur Ryder — confirmed the two were dating.

Both actors have had high-profile relationships.

Cruise's first two marriages, to actresses Mimi Rogers and Nicole Kidman, ended in divorce. He was dating actress Penelope Cruz until the pair split last year.

Holmes and actor Chris Klein recently called off their engagement after dating five years.

Cruise in his nearly 25-year career has starred in such films as "Rain Man," "Jerry Maguire" and the upcoming Steven Spielberg remake of "War of the Worlds."

Holmes is best known for starring in the TV show "Dawson's Creek," and the movies "Wonder Boys" and "Pieces of April." She will co-star with Christian Bale in this summer's "Batman Begins."

Groening Ponders Future of 'The Simpsons'

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) It's a cliche for reporters to ask the creator of a long-running TV show about his favorite episodes, and the cliched response is for the creator to say that he loves them all and can't possibly single out one or two.

Yet upon meeting "The Simpsons" creator Matt Groening Monday (April 26) at a party celebrating the show's 350th episode -- which airs Sunday, May 1 -- the temptation to ask the favorites question was too hard to resist. Happily, he didn't give the usual non-answer, rattling off a list of his top secondary characters -- Apu, the Squeaky-Voiced Teen, Ralph Wiggum and Milhouse's dad, Kirk, among them -- and episodes he loves.

"I don't have a single favorite. There's a bunch I really like," Groening says. "I love 'Bart Sells His Soul,' the old episode [from October 1995] where he sold his soul to Milhouse for five bucks. I love the one where we had Frank Grimes ['Homer's Enemy,' from May 1997]. And I like an episode we have coming up where Bart converts to Catholicism."

That episode, originally scheduled for earlier this month, was pulled following the death of Pope John Paul II and is now set to air Sunday, May 15. Groening says the decision was one the network made: "We think it's offensive whenever you run it."

It's remarkable enough that "The Simpsons" has even made it to 350 episodes, more than any other scripted show currently on TV. That it can still create a buzz after that long, despite the now-familiar chorus that the show isn't what it once was, is pretty much unheard of in this era.

"No matter how hard people try to run it into the ground by putting it on too many times a day, putting it on multiple DVDs and oversaturating the marketplace and all the rest, we still keep going," Groening says. "In fact, I have to say I'm very proud of this season and the coming season."

Groening thinks the show has lasted so long because "with animation, there are so many possibilities to surprise the audience. That's really what we try to do. We try to keep surprising the audience and keep surprising ourselves."

Groening was quoted in The New York Times Sunday as saying "the show has almost reached its halfway point." Monday, he said he "was not serious at all" about whether "The Simpsons" can last another 350 episodes, but he quickly added, "I'll do them if we can.

"That's a long time, but if we, you know -- unless we all get killed," he says with a shrug. "I think five of the main people could get killed and the show could still go on. But any more than five -- that's why we all ride in separate airplanes."

LOW-KEY BRUCE

Bruce Springsteen kicking off his new acoustic tour Monday night at the Fox Theater in downtown Detroit, playing 27 tunes, including 10 songs off his new solo album, Devils & Dust, in an intimate setting.

Gyllenhaal 9/11 Comments Spark Outcry

NEW YORK - Maggie Gyllenhaal has waded into sensitive political waters by raising questions about Sept. 11 and American foreign policy. The 27-year-old actress, who stars in a new film about the 2001 terror attacks on the World Trade Center, said in an interview last week that the United States "is responsible in some way" for the attacks.

A fan Web site devoted to Gyllenhaal was overwhelmed with criticism, forcing the site's editor to remove the ability to post messages "because it's gotten too outta hand."

In a statement issued Monday by her publicist, Gyllenhaal said Sept. 11 was "an occasion to be brave enough to ask some serious questions about America's role in the world. Because it is always useful as individuals or nations to ask how we may have knowingly or unknowingly contributed to this conflict.

"Not to have the courage to ask these questions of ourselves is to betray the victims of 9/11."

She also expressed her grief for "everyone who suffered and everyone who died in the catastrophe."

Gyllenhall stars in "The Great New Wonderful," which features stories about people living in New York in the aftermath of the terror attacks. The movie is being shown at the Tribeca Film Festival, which was founded by Robert De Niro to help revitalize downtown Manhattan after Sept. 11.

Her screen credits also include "Secretary," "Mona Lisa Smile" and "Donnie Darko." She is the older sister of actor Jake Gyllenhaal. She lives in Manhattan.

Joni Mitchell compiles CD for Sask.

TORONTO (CP) - Joni Mitchell hasn't made it a secret that she's fed up with the music business and would prefer to spend her time painting.

She's happily done just that for several years now.

But she recently came out of her painter's studio long enough to cherry pick 13 of her songs for a CD tribute to her childhood home, Saskatchewan, which is celebrating its centennial.

Songs of a Prairie Girl, out Tuesday, includes Let The Wind Carry Me, River and Raised on Robbery.

"I've retired basically," she said in an interview this week with Canada AM from Los Angeles, which she now calls home. "They wanted me to perform (for the centennial), but I don't do that anymore. I'm a painter now."

The compilation, she said, was her way to show respect for her homeland.

"You carry your childhood with you. Saskatchewan is in my veins," she said.

She jokingly admitted frigid temperatures play a big part in her memories.

"When I put this together I thought 'Oh dear, it's all about wanting to get out of the cold,"' she joked.

In fact, in the album's liner notes Mitchell urges listeners to "get yourself a hot beverage and stand by the heater as you listen to these musical tales of long, cold winters, with a hint of short but glorious summers."

Mitchell says she's disheartened by what she sees going on in the music industry where listener polls and demographic studies rather than artistry are used to formulate songs.

"The things that I've been told to kill in my work by my record company and management . . . had I done that it would have been a tragedy," she said in the CTV interview.

"The idea that our youth is being brainwashed by this sarcasm and bad potty training . . . this contrived money music. You hear young artists talking and they're talking demographics.

"There's no muse in this. There's a drive to be looked at. These are not creative people. These are created people."

Mitchell will take part in centennial festivities in mid-May at a gala dinner to be attended by the Queen and Prince Philip, among other dignitaries.

Pearl Jam announces big Cdn. tour

Pearl Jam may be hard at work on their next studio album, but that didn't stop the band from announcing details of their largest Canadian tour ever.

The 15-city trek, which spans from coast to coast, kicks off at GM Place in Vancouver on Sept. 2, and ends at Mile One Stadium in St. John's.

"It's the most extensive tour of Canada by an international band of Pearl Jam's stature that I know of, and it's incredibly exciting and welcome news for Canadian music fans," states concert promoter Paul Mercs, whose office is handling the promotion of the tour.

"Pearl Jam will play songs spanning their 15-year career on the tour, but Canadian fans will also be the first in the world to hear new songs from the band's highly anticipated next record," adds Mercs.

Guitarist Mike McCready recently told Billboard.com that the Seattle band are about "halfway there" with the new disc, the band's eighth and first album under their brand new label J Records/BMG.

Tickets for the Canadian tour are expected to go on sale to the general public at the end of May. On sale ticket information for each market will be announced on May 19. Tickets for Pearl Jam's Ten Club (fan club) members will go on sale today at www.pearljam.com.

Pearl Jam's 2005 Canadian tour dates are as follows:

Sept. 2 -- Vancouver, General Motors Place
Sept. 4 -- Calgary, Pengrowth Saddledome
Sept. 5 -- Edmonton, Rexall Place
Sept. 7 -- Saskatoon, Credit Union Centre
Sept. 8 -- Winnipeg, MTS Centre
Sept. 9 -- Thunder Bay, Fort William Gardens
Sept. 11 -- Kitchener, Kitchener Memorial Auditorium
Sept. 12 -- London, John Labatt Centre
Sept. 13 -- Hamilton, Copps Coliseum
Sept. 15 -- Montreal, Bell Centre
Sept. 16 -- Ottawa, Corel Centre
Sept. 19 -- Toronto, Air Canada Centre
Sept. 20 -- Quebec City, Colisee Pepsi
Sept. 22 -- Halifax, Metro Centre
Sept. 24 -- St. John's, NFLD, Mile One Stadium

George Lucas to Appear on 'The O.C.'

NEW YORK - The force is with "The O.C." George Lucas will guest star as himself on the May 12 episode, the Fox network announced Tuesday. The "Star Wars" creator will express interest in the graphic novel of the main character, Seth Cohen (Adam Brody).

Brody's character, an avid "Star Wars" fan, frequently has the good fortune of meeting his heroes. His favorite band, Death Cab for Cutie, recently played on the show.

Earlier this season, the trailer for "Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith" premiered during the program. The final installment of the "Star Wars" saga will open in theaters on May 19.

Fox recently announced that "The O.C." will return for a third season. It airs Thursdays (8 p.m. EST).

'The Simpsons' Hit 350th Episode Milestone

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - You know that a show has been around a long time when they start measuring milestones in episodic increments of 50. But it's understandable that "The Simpsons" should want to make a big deal out of hitting 350 episodes with this Sunday's installment.

As the legendary Fox series wraps up its 16th season, the denizens of Springfield are wading in some uncharted prime-time waters. When executive producer Al Jean boasts that "The Simpsons" "just enjoyed the best 16th season of any comedy ever," that's because no other comedy has ever made it this far.

How many episodes is 350? More than the combined total of "Seinfeld" and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." "The Simpsons" will pass "Dallas" (357 episodes) on the all-time series list before 2005 is out. Then it takes aim at the only two comedies to have produced more segments: "My Three Sons" at 380 episodes and "The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet" at a somewhat astounding 435.

Can "The Simpsons" really make it to 435 -- a feat that would require the show see a (gasp) 20th season?

"You know, I can't believe I'm saying this, but it's really not out of the question," Jean admits. "The cast is already signed through season 19. I think we'll get at least that far. It required such a long negotiation to get the cast under contract for four years that I think it's likely we'll do them."

The show is renewed through a 17th season. The only conventional entertainment show to run at least as many years was 20-year war horse "Gunsmoke," though it need also be noted, of course, that "Law & Order" is nipping at the "Simpsons' " heels as it looks to a 16th season come fall.

At an age when any other comedy would be sputtering on fumes, "The Simpsons" is still pulling in respectable ratings -- it's the only thing keeping the lights on for Fox on Sunday nights this season -- despite the fact that older episodes run at all hours of the day and night in syndication.

"My best hope in the beginning was that maybe we'd be some kind of cult thing like 'Fawlty Towers' that would go for five years," admits Dan Castellaneta, the voice of Homer and Grampa, among many others. "Now we're more than three times that far."

People often ask Castellaneta how all of this happened, how this "Tracey Ullman Show" spinoff could survive fickle tastes and prime-time comedy lulls and the dismissive industry tag of being a mere cartoon.

The usual explanations for its uncanny longevity surround the fact that the characters never age and the magic of animation allows the writers to go places where live-action could never tread.

"I have to say that it really does come down to the writing," he believes. "I've actually written a few scripts myself, and it's just amazing how much time and effort goes into it. There are rewrites, rewrites of the rewrites, tweaks. And there's no fear in the writers room. It's all about getting it as good as it can possibly be."

Of course, the conventional wisdom has it that "The Simpsons" has suffered a great nosedive in quality -- and that if it hasn't yet officially jumped the shark, it's clinging to the shark's fin. But Jean will have none of it.

"Have you ever known people to say that something is better now than it was in the past?" he asks. "Of course not. You have to take it all with a grain of salt. I remember during our fourth season, Entertainment Weekly wrote that we were going downhill. When the fourth season DVD was released, they said it was the 1927 Yankees of comedy.

"That isn't to say we don't do some bad shows now and didn't then. But I say that by and large, the shows we're doing now are just as good as any I've been involved with."

The Couch Potato Report - April 26th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features a cinematic unfortunate series of events, a movie I am going to tell you very little about, and beaches.

My friends Chris and Debbie have two small children, Max and Ellie.

On my last visit to see them Debbie was kind enough to let Chris and I go out to a movie and bowling one afternoon while she watched the kids.

Due to their aforementioned children, Chris and Debbie don't get out to see movies much anymore. On the other hand, as I have no kids, I get to go all the time and I usually go and see films on the day that they open.

So, as Chris and I were trying to decide what film to go see we quickly realized that there was only one film that I hadn't seen.

As is his nature, he very graciously stated that we should go and see that one movie. Yes, there were films that I was willing to see again, but as he is a great guy, we went to see the one film I hadn't seen.

That film was LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS, a movie based on the popular series of kid's books by Daniel Handler.

Kids books.

My friend Chris and I, both men in our mid to late thirties, went to see a film based on a series of kid's books.

And you know what, we both completely enjoyed the movie!

Yes, I really liked it!

I haven't read any of the books, and I have no plans to, but I am told the film LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS is based on three of them.

After Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire's parents perish in a terrible fire, they are placed in the care of their uncle. Jim Carrey from DUMB & DUMBER and ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND plays the Uncle, a mysterious actor named Count Olaf.

In reality, he may or may not be their Uncle, but -either way - he is plotting to kill them and seize their fortune.

Yes, it is a family film where one character is trying to kill the kids, but that is never the point. If he fails or succeeds is never the question. How entertaining is the film - that's the question.

And I have a one-word answer for you: Very.

It is very entertaining.

Billy Connolly, Jude Law, Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep all play supporting roles, but this is Count Olaf's film. He keeps appearing in the strangest of places and each one is more entertaining then the last.

And true to the movie's title, there are a series of unfortunate events.

The movie is a cross between THE ADDAMS FAMILY, some Dr. Suess and Roald Dahl books, with a little bit of Charles Dickens and Tim Burton thrown in for good measure.

LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS is a very entertaining family film that is even good for a pair of men in their mid to late thirties.

And I'll tell you one other thing; I will be buying a copy of this for Chris' kids. This way, the next time Chris and I see it, we can see it with its intended audience.

It is a great film, an was unexpected surprise.

Our second film this week was unexpected as well, because I didn't know anything about THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON before I started watching it, and I don't think you should either.

If I had known anything about it, then I would have known too much. By not knowing anything, the film had the chance to play out in front of me.

But, since my reason for speaking about THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON here on The Couch Potato Report is to tell you something about it, I will.

But I'm not saying much!

Sean Penn stars in this film as a man whose life - circa 1974 - has become unbearable. Since he is unable to take the blame for his own downward spiral, he chooses to blame the President.

And that is all I will say about the plot of the film.

No, THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON is not a perfect film, and I can't fully recommend it as at times it is really slow and almost boring.

However, Sean Penn continues to be one of the best actors of this generation and every scene he is in is worth watching.

Yet even though I can't fully recommend it, if you would like to see an interesting character study about a man determined to leave his mark on the world, then you should see THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON.

And for the record, U.S. President Richard Nixon wasn't assassinated. He died on April 22, 1994 after suffering a stroke.

Enough said.

Hey, by the way, did you ever know that you're my hero? You're everything I wish I could be. I could fly higher than an eagle, for you are the wind beneath my wings.

Okay, well if I never told you that, I am sure sometime in late 1988 or early 1989 you heard Bette Midler's song "Wind Beneath My Wings" on the radio. The song came from her movie BEACHES, director Garry Marshall's touching drama about a 30-year friendship between two women, one wealthy, and the other seeking her fortune in show business.

Over the years BEACHES has remained a favourite amongst many friends of mine and they still find the movie touching and "worth a good cry."

For those friends, and you, if you are interested, there is now a BEACHES - SPECIAL EDITION DVD. There are no extra scenes as the film is great just as it is, but Gary Marshall offers his thoughts in a commentary, there is a blooper reel and some other features. Plus, if you haven't heard it enough already, the disc also features the "Wind Beneath My Wings" music video

I can't say I ever loved the film, but I did enjoy watching the movie again, and the extra features on the BEACHES - SPECIAL EDITION DVD.

It isn't the wind beneath my cinematic wings, but it is still a good movie.

BEACHES, THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON and LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS are all available now on video and DVD.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

Is the everything blows up real good film NATIONAL TREASURE, in which treasure seekers find a map written on the back of the American Declaration of Independence. Nicolas Cage, Sean Bean and Diane Kruger star in this really bad, but successful action film.

The POCAHONTAS - 10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION is a look back on a film I wonder if anyone wants to look back on. In the animated Disney release a Powhatan maiden falls for English settler. Irene Bedard gives voice to the title character and Mel Gibson is the settler.

Finally next week is the film version of ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER'S THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. For the record, Lloyd Webber's name is actually part of the title. If you are unfamiliar with the incredibly successful stage version of this story, a masked figure falls in love with a singer he is tutoring. Gerard Butler is the cinematic Phantom and Emmy Rossum from MYSTIC RIVER is his student.

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER'S THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, The POCAHONTAS -10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION, NATIONAL TREASURE, and some other releases in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

New 'Batman Begins' Trailer Shows Superhero's Human Side

Summer's approaching, and you know what that means: leisurely picnics, lazy air-conditioned nights — and at least one incredibly dark, psychologically challenging and explosion-filled summer blockbuster.

"Batman Begins" is the fifth (or the sixth, if we count last year's execrable "Catwoman") installment in the big-screen franchise, and all indications are that this entry will be as much a journey into Bruce Wayne/Batman's psyche and his tortured past as it will be a high-budget, blow-'em-up thriller. In fact, the most recent trailer suggests that the film will explore Bruce Wayne's tragedy-filled past (the murder of his parents) and will also delve into his more amorous inclinations, particularly those having to do with old flame Rachel Dodson (Katie Holmes).

Most significantly, though, the film will chronicle how Wayne became Batman in the first place, traveling the globe in search of the means to fight evildoers and protect the weak and innocent.

With a cast that includes Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe, Michael Caine and a host of other heavy hitters, chances are fair that the weighty subject matter will be handled with aplomb. But don't despair: Judging by the look of the new Hummerified Batmobile, for instance, there will be plenty of high-octane mayhem to keep the thespians and the audience on their collective toes.

Lucas: 'Star Wars' to Live on TV

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) The "Star Wars" movie saga is drawing to a close next month, but George Lucas says the universe he created may continue to expand on television.

Speaking at the biggest "Star Wars" convention ever held over the weekend, Lucas said he's approved the creation of two TV series to continue the franchise in the future.

"We're doing a pilot television series now called 'Clone Wars,'" Lucas told the audience at Celebration III, a huge "Star Wars" convention in Indianapolis. "Well, we're going to take that and turn it into a 3-D animated version full series."

The animated series will presumably pick up and expand the story of Cartoon Network's 2-D "Clone Wars" shorts, executive produced by Lucas and directed by "Samurai Jack" creator Genndy Tartakovsky.

The second project, Lucas says, will be a live-action series in the vein of "The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles," which had a one-season run on ABC in the early 1990s. According to StarWars.com, Lucas says the show would take place in the time between the events of the forthcoming "Episode III" and the first "Star Wars" film, which follows "III" in the story's chronology.

"There's none of the main characters from I, II, and III ...," Lucas says, before pausing to correct himself. "Well, actually, that's not exactly true now that I think about it. We haven't really started the TV show, so it's hard to answer. There's a lot of issues that are connected, but you won't necessarily see a lot of the people that are connected."

Lucas expects work on the live-action series to begin in about a year. He says he'll be involved with getting the show off the ground before ceding day-to-day control to a showrunner.

"Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith" opens in theaters on Thursday, May 19.

DualDisc breaks sound barrier

Springsteen's Devils & Dust arrives in stores today exclusively in the new DualDisc format — a single disc with CD on one side, DVD on the other. Devils' CD side is a traditional CD with 12 tracks, and the DVD has video of Springsteen talking about the music and performing five of the songs.

The booming DVD market is dominated by movies. But as CD sales have slipped in recent years, record labels have sought a way to make the visual medium work for musicians.

"There's nothing more powerful than the moving image," says Thomas Hesse, president of digital business for Sony BMG, which is releasing the Springsteen album. "You get more background flavor for what that artist stands for."

The two-sided hybrid — it can be played on either a DVD or CD player — is the latest effort to steer listeners away from free Internet downloads and back into stores. Springsteen is the biggest artist to release an album exclusively on DualDisc.

The format of offering audio on one side of a disc and video on the other side is less than a year old. The first DualDisc was Simple Plan's Still Not Getting Any from last October. Jennifer Lopez's Rebirth and Omarion's O were released as both CDs and DualDiscs this year, and about one-third of the sales were DualDiscs, according to Sony BMG, which also is releasing Springsteen's Devils & Dust.

"It's a huge vote of confidence from one of our biggest artists," says Pete Howard, editor and publisher of Ice Magazine, which covers music CD trends.

Just like movie DVDs, DualDiscs allow performers to record commentary that can play over the songs, discussing the writing, recording and ideas behind the lyrics.

"It gives the artists an ability to get a lot closer to the fans," says John Trickett, chairman and CEO of the 5.1 Entertainment Group, which has put out about 90 DualDiscs since October, many of them rereleases such as Lynyrd Skynyrd's Then and Now, Blues Traveler's Truth Be Told and Bob Marley & The Wailers' Soul Rebels.

Some DualDiscs include documentaries that explain the origins of the recordings, such as the recent DualDisc rerelease of Miles Davis' classic Kind of Blue.

Ice Magazine's Howard says that will motivate some buyers who want to hear directly from the artists about their work.

But "it only works for some artists," Howard says. "Bob Dylan has never explained how he wrote practically a single song. It could subtract from the mystique in a listener's imagination."

Springsteen's DVD also has a non-visual music track of the album that allows the songs to be played in 5.1 surround sound through a DVD player, enveloping the listener with sound.

"The artists really like that," Tricket says.

Devils & Dust retails for $18.98, about $1 more than music-only CDs. Many downloaders already have decided that cover art and CD packaging are worth sacrificing for free music, but they might have a harder time passing on the video.

"That, we hope, will drive people back to the store and away from taking a friend's purchased disc and just ripping it or going to the Web and stealing it," says Sony BMG's Hesse.

Howard says DualDisc "will be successful. But will it be successful enough to save the music business?"

Other upcoming titles to be released on DualDisc include:

Nine Inch Nails' With Teeth on May 3

Dave Matthews Band's Stand Up on May 10.

For another great story on DualDiscs go HERE

April 26th, New Tunage: Bruuuuuuce, New Order, Jo Dee Messina

Bruce Springsteen Devils and Dust (Columbia)

Bruce Springsteen's thirteenth studio album is, in many ways, his most conventional singer-songwriter record since his 1973 debut, Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. Devils and Dust is twelve songs of assorted vintage and narrative setting, rendered with a subdued, mostly acoustic flair that smells of wood smoke and sparkles in the right places like stars in a clear Plains sky. There is no connected, redemptive urgency to these stories; this is not The Rising. And there is no E Street Band to turn Springsteen's trademark compulsion to save and be saved into fireball baptism: You get Steve Jordan on drums, producer Brendan O'Brien on bass and Springsteen on almost everything else, with his wife, singer Patti Scialfa, and E Street violinist Soozie Tyrell making brush-stroke appearances.

Yet Devils and Dust is, in striking and affecting ways, also Springsteen's most audacious record since the home-demo American Gothic of 1982's Nebraska. It opens with mortal sin -- the title song, a sand-caked letter home from a war where both sides kill in God's name -- and ends in death: "Matamoros Banks," a prayer for remembrance by an illegal immigrant who doesn't make it across the Rio Grande. With its tender fingerpicking, singing-wire curls of dobro and soft, billowing orchestration, "Reno" floats like a night breeze through an open bedroom window. But the sex inside is adulterous and graphic, and it costs: "'Two hundred dollars straight in/Two-fifty up the ass,' she smiled and said."

In the next song, "Long Time Comin'," Springsteen uses the word "fuck" for the first time on record, in the sense of swearing never to screw up again. There is no apology, though, in "The Hitter": A fallen boxer frankly recalls the brutality of a life in which a man is paid to all but murder other men for entertainment. Springsteen first played the song in his 1995-1997 solo acoustic shows; he sings it here with a vivid, craggy exhaustion. The knockout punch actually comes in the first verse -- the palooka is confessing to his mother. After that, it's all blood, shards of bone and universal guilt: "Understand, in the end, Ma, every man plays the game/If you know one different, then speak out his name."

"The Hitter" is one of several songs on Devils and Dust that Springsteen wrote almost a decade ago, in a concentrated burst of inspiration as he toured behind the spectral-country song cycle, 1995's The Ghost of Tom Joad. He reprises the dust-bowl topography and marooned spirits of that album with moving results. In "Long Time Comin'," a rustic sprint lit with square-dance fiddle and pearly steel guitar, a father prays for his children as the family sleeps rough, under "the sword of Orion": "If I had one wish in this Godforsaken world, kids/It'd be that your mistakes would be your own."

But Devils and Dust is also as immediate and troubling as this morning's paper. These people are our neighbors, and these worries are Springsteen's, too. He wrote the title song in 2003, after the start of the Iraq War, and it shows. His cracked, vocal agony when he looks his God in the eye ("I've got my finger on the trigger/And tonight faith just ain't enough") is as old as Stephen Crane and as fresh as Fallujah. "All the Way Home," in contrast, is much older than it seems, predating Springsteen's plunge into party politics last fall with the Vote for Change Tour. But he steps into the first lines -- "I know what it's like to have failed, baby/With the whole world lookin' on" -- with the grizzled force of experience. The specific echoes of the Rolling Stones' "Street Fighting Man" -- the bees-army buzz of sitar and tamboura coating the rolling twang -- are no accident either.

There are times, like Springsteen's outbreak of whispered falsetto in the campfire rockabilly of "All I'm Thinkin' About," when you can't help waiting for the E Street payoff that never comes. But many of Springsteen's best songs, going back to "Born to Run," are about the salvation just out of reach, around the next curve and over the next hill -- and what it takes to get there. The rewards are often slender here, when they come at all. Still, the promise never fades. "These days I don't stand on pride/And I ain't afraid to take a fall," Springsteen sings with gravelly swagger in "All the Way Home" -- like a guy already back on his feet. (DAVID FRICKE)

New Order Waiting for the Sirens' Call (Reprise)

New Order have nothing to regret. If they'd broken up when Ian Curtis died, they'd still be remembered as Joy Division. If they'd broken up after the 1982 single "Temptation," they'd be remembered for the most achingly emotional seven-and-a-half-minute New Wave disco twelve-inch of all time. If they'd broken up after Low-life, in 1985, they'd be remembered for the most influential electro-vampire post-punk limp-wristed goth-twit album of the Eighties. But they didn't break up. They just keep making brilliant new records and inspiring brilliant new bands, such as the Killers, Bloc Party and Interpol. They took a break in the 1990s, cleansing their systems of toxic chemicals and even fuglier side projects. (Revenge? Electronic? Monaco? Jesus!) If their 2001 Get Ready was a toe-dip return, Waiting for the Sirens' Call is their best since Technique, taking the "Blue Monday" beat into new wacked-out realms.

Bernard Sumner still sings and strums with his boyish air of distractable pique, and he writes some of the most genius crap lyrics around ("The world is a beautiful place/With mountains, lakes and the human race"). His secret is his sincerity, the way he whoops and yelps through blood-curdling poetry that a more clever singer would shame himself trying to play straight. But he'd be nowhere without Peter Hook, the Keith Richards of the bass, and drummer/pinup boy Stephen Morris. They outdo themselves with the sleek pop uplift of "Krafty," the robot clank of "I Told You So," the moody shimmer of "Turn" and the towering title track. Every song is great, except the one called "Dracula's Castle." What more could a fan ask? (ROB SHEFFIELD)

Jo Dee Messina Delicious Surprise (Curb)

The challenge for many mainstream country artists? Coming across as a rebel shit-stirrer even as you play by a strict set of musical and career rules -- rules that constrain Nashville divas more tightly than anyone else. Bouncing back from a painful breakup -- as well as her record company's shelving of her fourth album in favor of a 2003 hits collection -- Jo Dee Messina delivers a can't-fail reconfiguration of that lost disc. Recalling Shania Twain at her feistiest, the lead single, "My Give a Damn's Busted," zaps guys in their most vulnerable place -- the one that requires that women care about guys' problems. The Massachusetts-born, Nashville-based singer proves she cares plenty after all on rockers and ballads that exude positive thinking and post-relationship remorse. Unfortunately, her studio-scrubbed packaging often undermines her exuberant sincerity, particularly on "I Believe It," which glibly recycles large chunks of "Sweet Home Alabama" for no apparent reason beyond ensuring another smash. With a few exceptions, Delicious Surprise tastes as predictable as lunch at Arby's. (BARRY WALTERS)

From ROLLING STONE magazine.

NEW CD RELEASES FOR APRIL 26, 2005

Acceptance Phantoms (Columbia/RED Ink)

Audio Caviar Transoceanic (Thump)

Cheryl Bentyne (Manhattan Transfer singer) Let Me Off Uptown (Telarc)

Debby Boone Reflections of Rosemary (Concord)

Brain Failure American Dreamer (guest members of Dropkick Murphys and the Unseen) (Thorp)

Tim Burgess (Charlatans vocalist) I Believe (U.S. release of 2003 UK album) (Koch)

Caesars Paper Tigers (w/new remix of "Jerk It Out") (Astralwerks)

Charivari A Trip to the Holiday Lounge (Rounder)

Jordan Chassan East of Bristol, West of Knoxville (Strong)

Chok Rock Big City Loser EP (Warp)

Coastline Sweet ‘n' Ripe (Landslide)

Steve Cole Spin (Narada)

Collective Soul From the Ground Up EP (all acoustic) (El Music Group)

The Complete Strategist We Care (Happy Home)

Mike Cruz Krash (Tommy Boy)

Jack DeJohnette Music in the Key of Om (Golden Beams/Kindred Rhythm)

Jack DeJohnette and Foday Musa Suso Music from the Hearts of the Masters (Golden Beams/Kindred Rhythm)

Discover America Psychology (Tooth & Nail)

DJ Spooky and Dave Lombardo (Slayer drummer) Drums of Death (guests Vernon Reid, Chuck D.; produced by Meat Beat Manifesto) (Thirsty Ear)

The Dresden Dolls The Dresden Dolls (re-release of 2004 debut) (Roadrunner)

Eau Claire Eau Claire EP (Clairecords)

eels Blinking Lights and Other Revelations (two CDs; guests Tom Waits, R.E.M.'s Peter Buck and the Lovin' Spoonful's John Sebastian) (Vagrant)

Feist Let It Die (Interscope)

Ben Folds Songs for Silverman (Epic)

The Frontline Now U Know (Rykodisc)

Josh Gracin Brass Bed (Hollywood)

Tracy Grammer Flower of Avalon (guest Mary Chapin Carpenter) (Signature Sounds)

Brian Haas The Truth About Hollywood (Hyena)

Hater (Ben Shepherd and Matt Cameron of Soundgarden) The 2nd (originally recorded in 1995 w/guest members of Ministry, Monster Magnet, Devilhead and more) (Burn Burn Burn)

Eric Heatherly The Lower East Side of Life (Koch)

Hiroshima Obon (Heads Up)

Hot Snakes Peel Sessions (recorded in 2004) (Swami)

Buddy Jewell Times Like These (Columbia)

Jim & Jennie & the Pinetops Rivers Roll on by (Bloodshot)

John Brown's Body Pressure Points (w/guests the Meditations on "Not Enough") (Easy Star)

Toby Keith Shock'n Y'all (DualDisc) (UMG Nashville)

Little Freddie King You Don't Know What I Know (Fat Possum)

Love as Laughter Laughter's Fifth (Sub Pop)

Luciano Jah Words (Sanctuary)

Lyrics Born Same !@#$ Different Day (CD/DVD combo; remixes of tracks from "Later That Day..." w/DJ Shadow, KRS-One, Morcheeba and more) (Quannum/Epitaph)

Mario Turning Point (DualDisc) (J Records)

Mountain Goats The Sunset Tree (Beggars Group)

Oliver Mtukudzi Nhava (Heads Up)

No Address Time Doesn't Notice (Atlantic)

Oz Noy Ha! (w/bonus live track and video) (Magnatude)

David Pack Travelin' Light (Concord)

The Perishers Let There Be Morning (Nettwerk)

Porcupine Tree Deadwing (guest Adrian Belew) (Atlantic)

John Prine Fair and Square (Oh Boy!)

Joel Rafael Band Woodyboye: Songs of Woody Guthrie (and Tales Worth Telling) Volume 2 (guests Jackson Browne, Arlo Guthrie, Van Dyke Parks and more) (Appleseed)

Red Stick Ramblers Right Key, Wrong Keyhole (Memphis International)

Jonathan Rice Trouble Is Real (Warner Bros.)

Peggy Seeger Love Call Me Home (Appleseed)

Settlefish The Plural of the Choir (Deep Elm)

Stars Are Falling/Skylines Split EP (Blood & Ink)

Susie Suh Susie Suh (produced by Glen Ballard) (Epic)

Jimmy Thackery Healin' Ground (Telarc)

Tiger Bear Wolf Tiger Bear Wolf (Hello Sir)

Tom & Joy Esquisse (Tommy Boy)

Emiliana Torrini Fisherman's Wife (Sanctuary)

TRU The Truth (Koch)

Us3 Questions (Us3.com/Megaforce/Rykodisc)

Bobby Valentino Disturbing tha Peace Presents (Island Def Jam)

Jim Verarros Rollercoaster (Koch)

The Virginia Sisters Last Pathetic Fool (Not Lame)

Weird War Illuminated by the Light (Drag City)

Z-Trip Shifting Gears (w/Chuck D., Linkin Park's Chester Bennington, Aceyalone, Lyrics Born and more) (Hollywood)

VA Africa Remix (Milan)

VA Broadway Today (Universal Classics)

VA Golden Slumbers II: A Father's Love (w/new songs from Solomon Burke, Phil Collins, Dave Matthews, Smokey Robinson and more) (Rendezvous)

VA Putumayo Presents: Mali (Putumayo)

OCR Forbidden Broadway: Special Victims Unit! (Koch)

OST Family Guy - LIVE in Vegas (animated TV series) (Geffen)

OST Fever Pitch (Rykodisc)

OST Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (film based on the Douglas Adams novel; starring John Malkovich and Mos Def) (Hollywood)

OST King's Ransom (Rykodisc)

OST L4yer Cake (w/Duran Duran, the Cult, Starsailor, Joe Cocker and more) (Virgin/EMI)

OST Sahara (Rykodisc)

DVD Black Beach Weekend (hip-hop documentary) (Fuel)

DVD Ultimate Critical Review: Argent, Nirvana and Rainbow (Classic Rock)

TOUR BUDDIES

John Mellencamp and John Fogerty hitting the road together for a summer tour kicking off June 24 in Cincinnati.

Star Wars gets uber-boxed

George Lucas announced over the weekend that not surprisingly, a box set of all six Star Wars films will be coming out next year. Although the supplements are far from complete, the films will be the versions currently available on DVD, and supplemental discs may contain deleted scenes from the original trilogy.
In related news, digitally projected versions of Episode III will contain more footage than traditionally projected versions.

Universal celebrates The Jerk

Currently available only as a fullscreen featureless release, The Jerk is finally getting respect with the upcoming The Jerk: 26th Anniversary Edition from Universal Home Entertainment.

The DVD releases will present the film in anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound. Extras include a trailer, production notes, and two featurettes.

The DVD is coming out on July 26th with a suggested retail price of $19.98.

Comedian George Lopez Has Kidney Transplant

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Comedian George Lopez was recovering on Monday from a successful kidney transplant surgery using an organ donated by his wife, his publicist said.

Lopez, who stars in the ABC sitcom "George Lopez," needed the transplant because of a genetic condition that caused his kidneys to deteriorate, publicist Ann Gurrola said. She said the surgery was not urgent for Lopez, who turned 44 on Saturday.

"It came to a point where his kidneys weren't operating at the full capacity that they needed to," Gurrola said, adding that both Lopez and his wife, Ann, were doing well after the operations.

Both George and Ann Lopez testified at the Michael Jackson child molestation trial. The couple befriended Jackson's young accuser at a Hollywood comedy camp in 2000 and lent him support when he was diagnosed with cancer.

Huffman Denies Tension Among 'Housewives'

Desperate Housewives star Felicity Huffman has rubbished reports the TV show's leading ladies despise each other following a series of bitter rows. The actresses - Huffman, Marcia Cross, Eva Longoria, Teri Hatcher and Nicolette Sheridan - have been plagued by claims their time on-set is being hindered by constant squabbling and walk-outs. But former Sports Night star Huffman - who plays Lynette Scavo on the show - has blasted the newspaper coverage, insisting they're all very close. She says, "We're all friends. We all get along. I love going to work."

Jennifer Connelly Thinks Big for 'Little Children'

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Academy Award-winning actress Jennifer Connelly is in negotiations to join Kate Winslet in "Little Children" for New Line Cinema.

Todd Field, the filmmaker behind the Oscar-nominated 2001 drama "In the Bedroom," is set to direct the adaptation of the Tom Perrotta novel. Field and Perrotta are co-writing the screenplay.

The novel revolves around a group of weird, suburban characters and their relationships with children. There's a bisexual feminist addicted to Internet porn (Winslet), a stay-at-home dad who resists his wife's ambitious plans for him, an uptight supermom who schedules sex with her husband and a pedophile fresh out of prison.

Connelly, who won an Oscar for best supporting actress for "A Beautiful Mind," most recently starred in "House of Sand and Fog" and "The Hulk." Her other credits include "Requiem for a Dream" and "Mulholland Falls." She next appears in Walter Salles' "Dark Water."

'Interpreter' Translates to Box-Office Win

LOS ANGELES - Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn's "The Interpreter" translated into solid box-office as the United Nations thriller debuted with $22.8 million to top the weekend for Hollywood.

The weekend's other main debut, Ashton Kutcher and Amanda Peet's romantic comedy "A Lot Like Love," had a so-so opening of $7.7 million, coming in at No. 4, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Expanding nationwide after two weeks in limited release, Stephen Chow's action comedy "Kung Fu Hustle" was No. 5 with $7.3 million, lifting its total domestic gross to just over $8 million.

Anthony Anderson's kidnapping comedy "King's Ransom," so bad it was not screened beforehand for critics, finished in 10th place with just $2.4 million.

In limited release, the documentary "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room" opened strongly with $70,000 at three theaters. The film offers an inside portrait of the corporate scandal at the energy company.

Overall business was down for the ninth-straight week, with the top 12 movies taking in $83.4 million, off a fraction from the same weekend last year.

"The Interpreter," directed by Sydney Pollack, stars Kidman as a U.N. translator at the center of an assassination plot after she overhears a death threat against an African dictator. Penn co-stars as a federal agent.

Reviews generally were positive, with critics calling "The Interpreter" an unusually brainy thriller.

"I think audiences were anxious for any good, solid story," said Nikki Rocco, head of distribution for Universal, which released "The Interpreter."

"The Interpreter" was a rare triumph for older audiences, with the over-35 crowd making up 60 percent of the film's viewers. The under-25 audience that drives most of the box office was divided among several movies, including "The Amityville Horror" and "A Lot Like Love."

"You look at the demographic and go, how can 'The Interpreter' be No. 1? But if you put the right movie in the marketplace, the older audience will go," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

"A Lot Like Love," which received mixed reviews, fell short of distributor Disney's hopes that it would hit $10 million over opening weekend. Considering Kutcher's solid box-office history, including the current hit "Guess Who," the performance of "A Lot Like Love" was another sign of audience disinterest in what Hollywood has had to offer the last two months.

The slump has left the industry limping into its busy summer season, with such big titles as "Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith," "Kingdom of Heaven" and "The Longest Yard" due out in May.

"There hasn't been that breakout picture the public's jumping to see yet, but it'll happen. It's just around the corner," said Chuck Viane, Disney head of distribution.

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. "The Interpreter," $22.8 million.
2. "The Amityville Horror," $14.2 million.
3. "Sahara," $9 million.
4. "A Lot Like Love," $7.7 million.
5. "Kung Fu Hustle," $7.3 million.
6. "Fever Pitch," $5.45 million.
7. "Sin City," $3.7 million.
8. "Guess Who," $3.5 million.
9. "Robots," $3.3 million.
10. "King's Ransom," $2.4 million.

Pixies, Weezer, Panic Set for Lollapalooza

NASHVILLE (Billboard) - The Pixies, Weezer, Widespread Panic, the Killers, the Arcade Fire, Liz Phair), the Black Keys and Death Cab For Cutie are among the acts that will play the reconfigured Lollapalooza festival, which will take place July 23-24 in Chicago's Grant Park.

Also on the bill are Cake, Dashboard Confessional, Dinosaur Jr., Kasabian, Kaiser Chiefs, Louis XIV, Tegan & Sara, M83, Los Amigos Invisibles, Blue Merle, the Redwalls, the Changes, Dandy Warhols, Digable Planets, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Billy Idol), the Bravery and Blonde Redhead.

The lineup was announced Friday in Chicago. Lollapalooza 2005 will be produced by Capital Sports & Entertainment and Charles Attal Presents -- the brain trust behind the successful Austin City Limits (ACL) festival -- along with Lollapalooza owners the William Morris Agency and Perry Farrell.

"This lineup is a cross between ACL and Coachella," Attal told Billboard of the event, which will feature more than 70 acts on five stages. "It's the ACL model that we're bringing to Chicago."

That model, Attal says, is a lower-than-expected ticket price, local food vendors, accessible stage layout and set times, as well as an amenity-heavy backstage vibe. "You've got to send a message," Attal says. "You take care of the bands, you take care of the music consumer who's buying the ticket, and they'll come back for more."

Earlier this month, 2,000 Internet presale tickets sold out in 80 minutes, according to Capital Sports' Charlie Jones.

"Whether or not that was a true indicator of the strength of this brand or the result of press leaks with the bands, we'll never know," Jones said. "But people who took that bet with us will get a fancy souvenir ticket."

Loggins, Messina Reuniting for Summer Tour

NASHVILLE (Billboard) - Kenny Loggins and Jim Messina will embark on their first tour as a duo in nearly 30 years with the Loggins & Messina Sittin' in Again Reunion Tour.

The outing has about 40 dates on the books, beginning June 24 at the Idaho Center in Boise. The route includes arenas, amphitheaters, casinos and other venues.

In conjunction with the tour, Columbia/Legacy will on May 24 release "The Best: Loggins & Messina Sittin' in Again," featuring such hits as "Your Mama Don't Dance," "Danny's Song" and "Angry Eyes."

After eight successful albums together between 1972 and 1977, including two live sets, the duo went their separate ways, touring for the last time in 1976. Messina says he and Loggins had reservations about embarking on a full-blown tour, but found that old wounds had healed.

"One of the sore spots was, I have a tremendous amount of respect for Kenny and his incredible voice, and part of the problem was not thinking I could live up to that," Messina told Billboard. "And, not to speak for Kenny, but I found out he experienced the same thing with me and my instrumentation."

A benefit show last year at the Arlington Theatre in Santa Barbara, Calif., was the catalyst for the tour.

"Things just sort of flowed together," recalled Loggins. "I'd been playing a lot of these songs, like 'Danny's Song' and 'House at Pooh Corner' alone for years, and when Jimmy came in, I remembered who we were. Something magic happens when the two of us sing together."

The artists will perform their hits together and solo, and a special "sittin' in" segment will feature special guests in some markets. "If we're in Nashville and Michael McDonald is free, or Rusty Young, or Clint Black, we hope they can get on stage and sit in," said Messina.

Nicks, Henley Lining Up Tour Plans

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Stevie Nicks and Don Henley have begun confirming dates for a summer tour.

Five shows are on tap so far, beginning June 3 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia. The tour will feature Nicks and Henley performing in solo and collaborative settings.

VIP ticket packages are available for the first five shows via ILoveAllAccess.com (http://www.iloveallaccess.com). The top-level package sells for $385 per ticket, including a seat in the first 10 rows, exclusive merchandise and a variety of on-site perks. The $195 package offers a ticket in the first 20 rows plus the merchandise.

Before the Henley trek, Nicks will play a four-night stand at the Colosseum at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas beginning May 10, under the moniker "Dreams." Backstage at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony last month in New York, the artist said the show would consist of "favorite songs, which you don't always get to do. This is a chance for me to go back through all those many, many years and pick out a few songs I haven't always done."

As for Henley, he will rejoin the Eagles for a new round of touring after the Nicks run, beginning Aug. 11 in Lake Tahoe, Nev.

Here are Nicks/Henley's tour dates:

June 3: Philadelphia (Wachovia Center)
June 4: Holmdel, N.J. (PNC Bank Arts Center)
June 8: Mansfield, Mass. (Tweeter Center)
June 10: Wantagh, N.Y. (Jones Beach)
June 13: Hershey, Pa. (Giant Center)

Def Leppard Covers Up, Hits The Road

Veteran pop/metal outfit Def Leppard is showing no signs of slowing down, as evidenced by its jam-packed summer/fall schedule. First up is a double-disc career overview, "Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection," due May 17 via Island. A few months later, an all-covers album will follow, in addition to a U.S. tour of minor league baseball stadiums this summer with Bryan Adams.

While the group will stick to the hits on the Adams dates, Leppard will likely dig up a few forgotten gems for its headlining gigs.

"We're actually going to do some other gigs as well -- we'll probably throw a few rarities in," guitarist Phil Collen tells Billboard.com. "I've been listening to some of the old sh*t, so you never know. 'Mirror Mirror,' maybe, or even 'Ride into the Sun,' from the first EP -- it'll be nice to throw things in like that. But we have a huge list of stuff to do."

Leppard followed the same mindset while assembling "The Definitive Collection," as several forgotten favorites, including "Die Hard the Hunter," "Paper Sun" and "Wasted" are spotlighted. "It's a double album," Collen explains. "It's like 'favorite tracks,' and that's how we went about doing that one. We asked our fans what they wanted to hear really, and they got a list together."

But fans seem most excited for the yet-to-be titled all-covers set. The song list has yet to be finalized, as the group decided to record more cuts than it originally planned. Collen admits that the idea for the project was first hatched years ago. "Joe [Elliott] has been wanting to do it for like 20 years," he says. "He's like, 'Oh, it'll be great, like [David Bowie's] "Pin-Ups"!' Someone mentioned it at the label and we just jumped on it. We kind of had a list for years anyway."

Collen confirms that the album will include "A bunch of stuff -- all '70s stuff. Most of it is songs that we grew up with in England. 'No Matter What' by Badfinger is going to be the leadoff single. We've done 'Waterloo Sunset' by the Kinks, T. Rex, Mott The Hoople, Roxy Music and Thin Lizzy. And a lot of it is obscure; it's not the standard stuff. It's not like Stones or Beatles songs."

As for the musical approach, Collen says, "They vary. Some of them are like we've kept almost karaoke versions, [while] other ones are completely different. It's not any one thing; it's however we felt for each song, really." A preview of what's to come can be sampled on the "Rock of Ages," which will feature "No Matter What."

Here are tracks that have been recorded for the all-covers album:

"10538 Overture" (ELO)
"20th Century Boy" (T. Rex)
"Don't Believe a Word" (Thin Lizzy)
"Drive in Saturday" (David Bowie)
"Hanging on the Telephone" (Blondie)
"Hellraiser" (Sweet)
"He's Gonna Step on You Again" (John Kongos)
"No Matter What" (Badfinger)
"Little Bit of Love" (Free)
"Rock On" (David Essex)
"Stay With Me" (The Faces)
"Street Life" (Roxy Music)
"The Golden Age of Rock & Roll" (Mott The Hoople)
"Waterloo Sunset" (The Kinks)
"American Girl" (Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers)
"Heartbeat" (Jobriath)
"How Does It Feel" (Slade)
"Kick Out the Jams" (MC5)
"Roxanne" (The Police)
"Dear Friends" (Queen)
"When I'm Dead and Gone" (McGuinness Flint)
"Winter Song" (Lindisfarne)

Veteran comic Phyllis Diller injuries head, neck after falling out of bed

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Comedian Phyllis Diller injured her head and neck falling out of bed at her Brentwood, Calif., mansion, her manager said Thursday.

"She has a big bruise on her forehead," Milt Suchin said. "I think she blacked out...She just awoke and a housekeeper came in and found her on the floor." Diller, 87, was in hospital after the accident early Monday, Suchin said. She was having diagnostic tests, including tests on a pacemaker that was inserted in 1999.

Diller recently released a book about her life called Like a Lampshade in a Whorehouse.

Weezer's Weird World

Rivers Cuomo hasn't had sex in two years, and boy, is he ready to rock

By VANESSA GRIGORIADIS

A couple of days ago, Rivers Cuomo was helping his parents out with an epic spring cleaning at their house in suburban Connecticut -- "I was the motivational coach," he says. "My role was to ask, 'Do you really need this third can of hair spray?' " -- when it was decided that it would be better not to do the European promotional tour for Weezer's new album, Make Believe, the band's first record in three years. That meant two weeks free before they started rehearsals for the Make Believe tour. That meant Cuomo could do some more vipassana, a strict style of meditation developed by the Buddha and passed down by Burmese monks.
"There was nothing else for me to do," explains Cuomo.

Nothing is exactly what one does on a vipassana retreat: ten days of twelve hours of silent meditation beginning at 4 a.m., with small breaks for food but none for conversing. Most people wouldn't enjoy this, but Cuomo, 34, is not most people. Life to him seems to be a gigantic behavorial experiment, a large part of why Weezer have put out only five albums in thirteen years, despite their Prince-like vault of hundreds of songs. Cuomo had been to ten retreats in less than two years -- following precepts like sleeping on the floor and fasting after noon -- and he was ready for another. In fact, he completed one in northern Massachusetts a couple of weeks ago. That one was twenty days long, and he spent it in a closet. "It was great!" he says.

So instead of asking the band to head to the East Coast for the Rolling Stone photo shoot and interview before leaving for Europe, Cuomo decided to fly to California for a retreat in Yosemite, and if it was possible to accommodate the magazine in Los Angeles, great, but if not, he wasn't missing his retreat. "How many people would love to be on the cover, and then you've got Rivers saying, 'I can only do it on this one day, and if you can't fit it in, it won't work'?" says Weezer guitarist Brian Bell, 36. "On one hand, I'm like, 'Jesus, how could you do that to us? We've worked hard for twelve years and we finally make the cover, and you screw it up with one sentence.' Then there's another part of me that's like, 'That guy has balls!' Even if it is really selfish."

These are the kinds of things that happen, though, when you're living the moment, which is Cuomo's new mantra -- untethered from miserable thoughts about the past and future and free at last from the greedy ego, Cuomo is currently in communion with his deep, true self. This self needs to be free, and, accordingly, Cuomo has been careful not to make any pacts about future Weezer recordings; he has also only agreed to support this album until the end of this year. "We were going to call this record Either Way I'm Fine," says drummer Pat Wilson, 36. " 'Cause Rivers kept saying that when we had to decide about things." Serenity is important to Cuomo. The shoot at the Playboy Mansion for the video for their first single, "Beverly Hills," posed a threat. "There were 150 fans around, and when we played we heard that sound, that deafening sound that you get onstage," says Wilson. "I could see Dude telling himself, 'Hold on, hold on, don't get too excited!' "

Dude, as in the chill stoner hero played by Jeff Bridges in The Big Lebowski, is the band nickname for Cuomo, though Cuomo and the Dude could not be more different. Cuomo is not chill. He has budgeted one hour for our initial interview, and when we sit down at a cocktail table in the plum-colored foyer of a Hollywood recording studio, he pushes the alarm on his tan-and-black digital watch. It is eighty-five degrees out, and he is wearing a sweater and has set a black parka on the couch. "I don't really notice where I am," he says. "I don't differentiate all that much. I don't look around much." Talking to Cuomo is like talking to a newscaster. He's altogether pleasant but stiff as a board. No emotion registers on his face, at least not until he hears something that interests him, at which point he curls his lips into something resembling a smile, widens his brown eyes from saucers to soup bowls and exclaims, "Wow!" "Great!" or "Holy cow!" The most interesting topic, of course, is meditation.

"At first I was vehemently opposed," says Cuomo. Rick Rubin, who produced Make Believe in off-and-on sessions that lasted more than a year, suggested meditation. "I sent him a very anxious page, saying, 'Rick, no. I cannot get into meditation because it will rob me of the angst that's necessary to being an artist.' And he said, 'OK, don't worry about it, forget it.' I think because he put no pressure on me, I began to get intrigued. Then I did a Tibetan-Buddhist meditation retreat. That wasn't intense enough for me. I knew I wanted something extreme."

Says Rubin, "I'm often associated, or in some cases blamed, for Rivers' meditation practice. It's worked for him -- you might see him smile or laugh now, and before you would never see that. I never suggested the particular style of meditation he's doing. Whatever Rivers is interested in, he dives in a thousand percent. He takes thing to radical extremes."

Radical extremes are what Cuomo has made his life from, and in the context of his history, the Either Way I'm Fine era isn't all that outrageous. It even makes some sense given his childhood, which was spent on ashrams -- first at the Zen Center in upstate New York and, after his father left the family when he was five (he eventually settled in Germany for a while as a suffragan bishop in a Pentecostal church), at "Woodstock guru" Swami Satchidananda's Yogaville commune in Connecticut. Everyone was a vegetarian, and no one raised his voice or cursed. Cuomo didn't like it much. He declared himself a metalhead at eleven and started playing Kiss covers with the neighborhood kids. "I was only interested in Slayer and Metallica then," says Cuomo. "I still love that music, but now I have so much appreciation for what my parents' generation did for opening up our country to Eastern philosophy and raising me like that. I feel so lucky."

Some of Cuomo's phases make a little less sense, though. Like when he followed the blockbuster success of Weezer's first album, Weezer, also known as the Blue Album, which went platinum in 1995, by getting his right leg broken: The leg was forty-four millimeters shorter than his left, and in order to make them equal, a metal cage was affixed to his right thigh; every day he'd tighten some screws on it to pull the leg a little longer. Or when, shortly thereafter, he shelved rock stardom to pursue an undergraduate degree at Harvard, studying there from 1995 to 1997, when Weezer's second album, Pinkerton, was released (he resumed his studies last fall and now has one semester left). When that record proved less critically and commercially successful than the Blue Album, Cuomo went back into his shell. Living in a Culver City apartment building under a Los Angeles freeway, he put fiberglass insulation over the windows and hung black sheets over the insulation. Then he painted all the walls black, disconnected his phone and spent a lot of time with his pet gecko.

Punishing himself has always seemed like a good bet to Cuomo, and you only have to look at his perpetually hunched shoulders and balled-up palms to realize that the assignations he keeps with himself are brutal. He gets off on deprivation. Cuomo doesn't own a car, even though he lives mostly in L.A. ("I don't have a parking space," he says, by way of explanation). He rarely listens to music. But one song he cued up recently was Kiss' "Goin' Blind": "Little lady, can't you see/You're so young and so much different than I/I'm ninety-three, you're sixteen/ Can't you see I'm goin' blind?"

"I'm so moved by those lyrics," says Cuomo. "I can't believe they came up with that."

As far as his lyrics are concerned, Cuomo has long protested that Weezer's songs are not funny or ironic or anything other than a reflection of his own anguished state. Most of the songs on the current album are about things that happened to him. "Pardon Me" was written after he attended a meditation course in which the teacher told him to repeat over in his mind "I seek pardon from all those who have harmed me in action, speech or thought." "Freak Me Out" is about a spider, says Bell. "Beverly Hills" is about, well, how Cuomo feels about Beverly Hills. "I could live in Beverly Hills, sure," he says, meaning he could afford it easily. "But I couldn't belong there."

(Excerpted from RS 973, May 5, 2005)

Olin Returns from Dead on 'Alias'

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) Scarcely an episode of "Alias" has passed this season without Sydney (Jennifer Garner) or one of her colleagues remarking on the death of her mother, Irina Derevko.

Hey, even double-secret CIA agents can be wrong.

ABC confirmed Thursday (April 21) that Lena Olin, who played Irina during the show's second season and had since resisted creator J.J. Abrams' entreaties to return, will guest-star in the show's final two episodes this season. They're scheduled to air at 10 p.m. ET Wednesday, May 18 (the second of two episodes that night) and May 25 (following the two-hour "Lost" finale).

Reports of Olin's return have been bubbling for several weeks, but ABC is also offering a few details about how her character will be worked into the show's story. After finding out she's alive, Sydney, Jack (Victor Garber) and Nadia (Mia Maestro) will track Irina down and enlist her help in stopping a catastrophe brought on by followers of the mysterious Rambaldi.

Unanswered for now is the question of just how Irina is still alive. Viewers have repeatedly been told that Jack, her former husband, killed her to prevent a hit on their daughter Sydney's life; that would mean she either survived Jack's assassination attempt, or he's not telling all he knows.

'Superman Returns'

A first look at Superman Returns— due in theaters in June 2006 — shows that the skin-tight costume stretches over only the actor's muscles and frame, without the augmented armored pecs or abs of recent movie superheroes.

Director Bryan Singer famously changed the fluorescent spandex suits of the X-Men into dark, leather-like uniforms for those movies — both of them smashes that sold more than $364 million in tickets. But on Superman Returns, he says, he wanted "something classic."

Tinkering too much with a hero's suit can aggravate traditionalist comic fans, who grumbled that Jennifer Garner's Elektra wasn't wearing her midriff-baring red suit in Daredevil or that Batman's armor had nipples in Batman Forever. They aren't likely to have much to carp about with Superman Returns.

Instead of reinventing the character's appearance, Singer — via e-mail from Australia, where he's shooting the film — says he wanted to remain faithful to the previous incarnations of Superman, from the Max Fleischer cartoons of the 1940s to the black-and-white George Reeves TV show to the Christopher Reeve movies of the 1970s and '80s.

Singer decided to keep the cape, the blue body suit, the red tights — even the V-cut opening of Superman's boots.

But Superman Returns makes a few subtle changes to the suit:

• The character's S insignia is slightly smaller and higher on his chest, and instead of being painted on, it's more of a three-dimensional plate.

• The insignia is added to Superman's belt buckle.

• Costume designer Louise Mingenbach preserved the blue, red and yellow motif, but the shades are slightly darker than the bright primary colors of the comics. Superman's yellow belt is more golden, and his cape is a deep scarlet.

The key to filling it out, however, depends entirely on the physique of Routh, 25, the Iowa native who was briefly on the soap opera One Life to Live in 2001. Singer says the Superman costume wasn't complete without Routh.

"I always had the general idea of the suit. However, when the conceptual art was evolving around the same time that I cast Brandon, I privately had paintings rendered with Brandon's face, which certainly brought it to life."

Superman's body is the key to his power, Singer says.

"With X-Men, although they had extraordinary powers, they also had physical weaknesses," he says. "The suits were for protection as well as costume. Superman is the Man of Steel. Bullets bounce off him, not his suit."

What does the movie's costume say about this Superman's personality?

"He's not afraid," Singer says.

Springsteen Bares Songwriting Soul on VH1

RED BANK, N.J. - Bruce Springsteen prefers to let his songs do the talking. When those songs include "Thunder Road," "Nebraska" and "The Rising," it's hard to disagree with his approach.

But for one night, before an intimate New Jersey audience, the Boss delved into his 30-year back catalog to offer a brief window into his songwriting. The oft-reticent Springsteen opened up during a taping for VH1's "Storytellers," detailing influences both obvious and obscure.

There's Roy Orbison's dark romanticism ... and actor Robert Mitchum's blood-chilling preacher in "The Night of the Hunter." Smokey Robinson's soulful voice ... and director John Ford's classic Western "The Searchers." The born in the U.S.A. rock of John Fogerty ... and the pulp fiction of Jim Thompson.

Who knew that a line from "Blinded By the Light," off Springsteen's 1973 debut album, referred to his Little League team? Or that he considers a lyric from the brilliant "Thunder Road" to be "probably the hokiest ... I ever wrote"?

Springsteen spills all this and more during "Storytellers," airing at 10 p.m. EDT on Saturday. The show was recorded at the tiny Two River Theater near Springsteen's Garden State home, an intimate venue with just nine rows of seats.

Springsteen brought along a loose-leaf binder filled with handwritten notes done at his kitchen table.

"I read 'em this morning, and I sounded kind of full of myself," Springsteen deadpanned. "I don't need notes for that."

Over the course of the evening, Springsteen was funny, glib, self-deprecating, chatty and occasionally revealing. His story of Spring-zophrenia — how the "holier-than-thou" Bruce, the blue-collar patron saint of the downtrodden, must co-exist with the guy who enjoys a few drinks in roadside strip joints — was worthy of an HBO comedy special.

The tale ended with Springsteen meeting a pair of horrified fans in the strip club parking lot. He quickly explained how the disparate Bruces co-exist, then informed the fans that they were addressing an apparition rather than the real Springsteen.

"Bruce does not even know I'm missing," he assured them. "He is at home right now, doing good deeds."

Springsteen also referenced his "Blinded By the Light" lyric about a "silicone sister with her manager's mister."

"Possibly the first mention of female breast enhancement in pop music," he said with mock pride. "So I was ahead of my time."

The stage patter gave way to some magnificent musical moments. Over the course of the show, the songs evolved and changed as Springsteen accompanied himself with just a guitar, a harmonica and a piano.

"The Rising," the Sept. 11-derived arena-rock anthem, becomes a gospel/folk song; Springsteen's impassioned version was done with his eyes closed tight as he leaned into the microphone during the chorus.

"Waiting on A Sunny Day," one of his more pop-oriented songs, took on a new patina in its stripped down presentation — exactly Springsteen's point in including it.

"I usually want to throw these right in the trash," he confessed of his pop efforts. But there was another confession to come: Springsteen sometimes imagines Smokey Robinson singing his more radio-friendly songs. And then he launched into an impression of Smokey singing "Waiting on a Sunny Day."

Springsteen clearly put much thought into the song selections, spanning the course of his career: "Nebraska" was included as an example of his narrative style, while "Brilliant Disguise" represented his songs about "issues of identity and love."

The solo Springsteen performance for television was a long time in coming. In 1992, he signed on for a taping of "MTV Unplugged," but did just a single song alone before bringing a band onstage for the rest of the show.

Before the taping began, Springsteen expressed reservations at delving into the secrets of songwriting.

"Talking about music is like talking about sex," he said. "Can you describe it? Are you supposed to?"

KATE BECKINSALE AND DAVID HASSELHOFF? HOW CAN YOU NOT GO SEE THIS MOVIE?

Kate Beckinsale and David Hasselhoff are in negotiations to star with Adam Sandler in "Click" for Columbia and Revolution Studios.

Production will begin in mid-June.

Beckinsale would play the female lead opposite Sandler. Hasselhoff would play Sandler's boss.

Frank Coraci ("The Waterboy") is directing the pic, about a workaholic architect who finds a universal remote that allows him to fast-forward and rewind to different parts of his life. Complications arise when the remote starts to overrule his choices.

Script was written by Mark O'Keefe and Steven Wayne Koren ("Bruce Almighty"), with revisions by Tim Herlihy.

Adam Sandler's Happy Madison shingle is producing along with Neal Moritz's Original Film. Sandler, his Happy Madison partner Jack Giarraputo and Moritz are producing.

Todd Garner is overseeing the pic for Revolution. Doug Belgrad is shepherding for Col.

Beckinsale was last seen in "The Aviator" as Ava Gardner. She'll next topline Screen Gems' "Underworld: Evolution."

Hasselhoff was recently seen on the bigscreen in "Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story" and voiced himself in "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie."

Ben Affleck, Jennifer Garner Said Engaged

NEW YORK - Call it Bennifer: Part Deux. Nine months after they started dating, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner are engaged, People and Star magazines are reporting.

Citing a "close friend" of Affleck's, People says the "Pearl Harbor" actor has been privately spreading the news. A friend of Garner's told the magazine in February that she expected Affleck to propose.

Affleck's publicist, Ken Sunshine, would not comment on the reports. A call to Garner's rep was not returned.

As you may have heard, Affleck got engaged to Jennifer Lopez in 2002, but they called it off in January 2004. As opposed to the ridiculous amount of publicity Affleck got with J.Lo, he and Garner have stayed on the down low.

They met while shooting the action flick "Daredevil," but didn't begin dating until 2004. Their lone public appearance together has been a trip to the 2004 World Series in Boston.

The marriage would be Garner's second. The 33-year-old "Alias" star was divorced from actor Scott Foley in March 2004.

Jack Black Hits the Mat in Wrestling Pic

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Jack Black has signed on to star in a new film co-written with longtime collaborator Mike White and Jared Hess, the latter of whom wrote and directed the 2004 hit comedy "Napoleon Dynamite."

The as-yet-untitled movie will be co-produced by Black and White's Black & White Productions in tandem with Nickelodeon Movies, with distribution by Paramount Pictures.

Inspired by a true story, the film will star Black as a Mexican priest who lives a double life as a masked wrestler to raise funds for an orphanage in financial need. "I can't think of two people I'd rather party with than Mike White and Jared Hess," Black says. "I can't wait to get down to Mexico."

Black and White previously have teamed behind the scenes and on-camera for "School of Rock" and "Orange County." Black recently wrapped work on the Peter Jackson-directed remake of "King Kong," and is expected shortly to begin shooting the film "Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny," the first feature for musical act Tenacious D, Black's spoof-metal project with Kyle Gass.

In related news, Black and White will co-produce a film with Warner Bros. Pictures based on the upcoming memoir "Yes Man," penned by British author Danny Wallace

Super Friends

Get ready for a superhero summit (of sorts) on Smallville's season finale. On the 90-minute May 18 episode, the young Superman (Tom Welling) will spare a few minutes for a visitor from Gotham City. That is, the episode will include an eight-minute sneak peek of Batman Begins, in which Christian Bale plays the Caped Crusader. For Batfans, it'll be the first extended glimpse of the long-awaited film, which opens June 17.

The Batvisit comes during a season finale that the WB says is already ''packed with murder, betrayal and an unforgettable graduation day for all.'' ''Superman and Batman have always been inextricably linked to each other, so it seems fitting that a show chronicling the Man of Steel's youth give you the first look at the birth of the Dark Knight,'' said Smallville executive producer Al Gough in a statement. David Janollari, the WB's president of entertainment, said, ''This is a great night for fans of the two most popular superheroes in the history of American Pop Culture.''

Gee, you'd think they were talking about convening a Middle East peace summit. Actually, getting Superman and Batman together has been tricky, even though both heroes spring from the pages of DC Comics (which, like the WB, Batman Begins distributor Warner Bros., and EW.com, is a Time Warner outlet). A few years ago, that corporate synergy was supposed to yield a Superman vs. Batman movie, but that plan was scrapped in favor of separate movies, with Bryan Singer currently directing newcomer Brandon Routh in the next Superman film. So this promotional event is about as close to sharing a screen as the two characters are likely to get.

Yoda Coda: 'Star Wars' Theme To Hit Charts

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com)- Apparently somebody at SonyBMG thinks that John Williams' theme for the new "Star Wars" movie has a good beat and you can dance to it. "Battle of the Heroes" will hit record stores through much of the world on Tuesday, May 23, selling as a single.

The theme refers to the lightsaber battle between Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) that makes up one of the climaxes in the elaborately named "Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith," which will hit theaters on May 19. Because the "Sith" soundtrack will be in US record stores on May 3, it's unclear if "Heroes" will drop as a single in domestic record stores.

As was the case with the original "Star Wars" theme 28 years ago, "Battle of the Heroes" features John Williams conducting the London Symphony orchestra. The single will be released a limited edition numbered CD format.

No word on whether the possible success of "Heroes" might lead to a single release for Bill Murray's classic 1977 "Saturday Night Live" rendition of Williams' "Star Wars" theme, which featured the immortal lyrics "Awww Star Wars/ Nothing but Star Wars/ Give me those Star Wars/ Don't let them end."

New Springsteen album to test market for CD/DVD hybrid

NEW YORK (AFP) - Fan fever over the release of a new Bruce Springsteen album next week is matched by recording industry interest in how sales may be affected by its US launch in the new DualDisc format.

"Devils and Dust," the Boss's 19th album, will only be available in the United States in the fledgling CD/DVD hybrid, which represents the first major change in retail music packaging since the compact disc was introduced more than two decades ago.

The format pairs a standard CD on one side with a DVD on the flip side, which offers video and a surround-sound mix of the album for home theaters.

The video on "Devils and Dust" shows Springsteen performing his new songs and discussing the making of the album.

The release date is April 26, with Springsteen kicking off a US and 10-country European tour the night before with a concert in Detroit. The singer will tour as a solo acoustic act, without the backing of his E-Street Band.

The album is a pared-down collection of country- and folk-influenced rock songs, which Springsteen told Rolling Stone magazine was in some ways a sequel to 1995's "The Ghost of Tom Joad," which inspired his first solo tour.

"I wrote a lot of this music after those shows, when I'd go back to my hotel room," he told the music magazine. "I still had my voice, because I hadn't sung over a rock band all night. I'd go home and make up my stories."

The album's title track was written at the start of the Iraq War and gives a soldier's point of view on the conflict.

Springsteen was on the road last year as part of the Vote for Change Tour, which urged voters not to re-elect President George W. Bush.

Although the effort failed, Springsteen said he had no regrets about his first public foray into the world of partisan politics.

"It was an experience that I'm glad I put myself into," he told Rolling Stone. "There was a lot of idealism out there -- I took a lot of that with me."

"Devils and Dust" is not the first DualDisc to hit the market, but Springsteen's stature means its performance will be watched closely to see if the new technology has a viable future.

The four major record labels, EMI, Sony BMG, Universal and Warner, announced in August last year the formation of a consortium to launch the new audio-video hybrid in the US market.

The first album to debut on DualDisc, "Still Not Getting Any" from the pop-punk band Simple Plan, has already gone platinum.

And since the beginning of this year, two major albums -- "O" from Omarion and "Rebirth" from Jennifer Lopez -- have been released in both CD and DualDisc formats.

Sony BMG, which produced both albums, said DualDisc purchases accounted for around 30 percent of total sales for both.

The Springsteen album, another Sony BMG offering, is different in being available exclusively in the new format, with no traditional CD pressings.

The DualDisc generally retails at one dollar more than a CD, and the music industry is hoping it will help recoup the slice of the retail market lost to piracy and illegal file-sharing.

"It's harder to file-share DVD content and it's virtually impossible for anyone to burn a DualDisc at home," said Thomas Hesse, president of global digital business for Sony BMG.

"We think all this will lure people back to the stores, because it's a product you can't really get in pirated fashion," Hesse said.

Critics, such as the California-based Independent Musicians Against Forced Music Industry Change, complain that the DualDisc is just another industry attempt to push consumers into repurchasing the albums they already have on CD.

"It is all about money," the non-profit group said in a statement.

Hesse, however, pointed out that unlike the introduction of the CD, which required consumers to replace their music hardware, the DualDisc could be played on existing CD and DVD players.

"It's really a new product, rather than a new format," Hesse said, adding that plans were afoot to roll out the DualDisc in European markets.

Music labels tell appeal court Kazaa users can't hide behind anonymity of Web

TORONTO (CP) - The fight to curb file-swapping by music fans moved to the Federal Court of Appeal on Wednesday with record labels arguing song pirates can't hide behind the veil of their Internet service providers.

The Canadian Recording Industry Association is seeking the identities of 29 Jane and John Does, who are currently only known by pseudonyms like Geekboy and Jordana.

The group wants the court to force Internet providers, including Shaw, Bell and Rogers, to hand over alleged infringers' real names based on an IP address that made hundreds of music files available on peer-to-peer networks Kazaa and IMesh.

A ruling in favour of the music industry could mean the beginning of U.S.-style downloading lawsuits in Canada.

The first of two days in front of a three-judge panel had lawyers for the music industry debating the fine points of privacy and disclosure law.

Harry Radomski, a lawyer for the association, said evidence presented during the original hearing showed someone at each of the 29 IP addresses moved a large number of songs into shared directories to "make them available to an unbelievable number of people."

At issue is whether the surfers are entitled to keep their anonymity using existing privacy laws. Internet companies must keep their customer files sealed unless ordered otherwise by a court.

Radomski also argued that when consumers sign up with an ISP they sign contracts "agreeing not to receive or transmit copyrighted material."

When contracts are broken, consumers no longer expect to be protected by privacy laws, he told the court.

Four Internet service providers are arguing against revealing the identities.

"Our participation in this appeal is to ensure that the rights of our customers are respected and that any order that's issued is granted on the basis of a solid case," said Jay Thomson, the lawyer representing Telus.

Quebec's Videotron has backed the record industry.

The case generated plenty of buzz last year after the lower court judge dismissed the motion to reveal the names, saying the record industry didn't have enough evidence proving they were doing anything illegal.

The ruling stated that placing a song in a shared directory wasn't a strong enough action to constitute copyright infringement.

That meant using peer-to-peer networks to nab music for free wasn't illegal in the eyes of the court, despite the music industry shouting otherwise.

A major spike in the amount of music piracy followed last year's ruling, admitted Graham Henderson, president of CRIA, outside court during a break Wednesday.

While he's risking another spike should CRIA lose this appeal, Henderson says establishing clarity in the law is more important.

"We have to try to get clear laws so that Canadians know what's right and what's wrong," he said, adding that an estimated 134 million songs are illegally acquired each month in Canada compared to one million paid ones via online stores like ITunes.

Last year's ruling prompted Prime Minister Paul Martin to take note of the issue and push forward copyright reform, added Henderson.

The bill - which would add a "making available" clause to the current rules - is working its way through government although a June election would kill it from the queue.

That makes winning this appeal all the more vital, says Henderson.

"We can't necessarily stand around and wait for that bill to become law because it's already taken us seven years to come this far," he said. "If the government calls a snap election it would set us back by several months."

The case is being watched closely by the film and television sectors who claim people are illegally accessing their products using newer and faster peer-to-peer services like BitTorrent.

Representatives from the film industry asked to speak at this appeal but were denied because the group hadn't been part of the original case.

A ruling is expected later in the summer.

Rob Thomas Goes It Alone

Carlos Santana didn't play a note on . . . Something to Be, the just-released solo debut from Matchbox Twenty singer Rob Thomas -- but the album wouldn't exist without him. Six years ago, Santana rescued Thomas from radio-rock facelessness, enlisting him to co-write and sing on the slinky pop smash "Smooth."

"Carlos kind of fortified my belief that 'Hey, I'm a songwriter, and this is what I'm supposed to do,'" says Thomas, who launched his first solo tour on April 15th. "And it just gave me the confidence to be able to say, 'OK, I can step off for the next couple years and just be on my own.'"

It looks like that self-assurance was justified: "Lonely No More," the album's first single -- which borrows the Latin flavor of "Smooth" -- has gone Top Ten on Billboard's pop chart. But Thomas still worries that the heavily produced "Lonely" is too slick. "I don't know, man, this could fucking be career suicide," he says. "I wanted it to be an ultra-pop song, but that is definitely as far to that side as I will go."

The other tracks on the album range from the funk pop of "Fallin' to Pieces" to the John Mellencamp-does-soul tune "Streetcorner Symphony" -- but little of it could be considered rock. For Thomas, though, that's not much of a change. "Matchbox Twenty stopped rocking a long time ago," Thomas says of his on-hiatus band. "I don't think we changed; mainstream rock got heavier, and we stayed kind of the same. I want my next record to be a stripped-down, folky kind of thing -- so why shouldn't this be my pop period?"

Ultimately, however, Thomas wanted to combine his guitar-centric roots with the deeper grooves of urban music. "The thing that gets me off is having tracks that have Tom Petty's guitar player and Dr. Dre's bass player on them," says Thomas, who also recruited John Mayer to play guitar. "I wanted a record that bass players would listen to and go, 'Man, that's funky.'" Adds the album's producer, Matt Serletic, "Rob's always been sort of a soulful singer. This was an opportunity to highlight that."

Thomas is enjoying the solo life -- "You don't have to wait for five guys to get things done" -- but he swears that he is still committed to Matchbox Twenty, who have released three platinum albums since 1996. "We've broken up so many times that I don't imagine it ever sticking," he says. "But we were uninspired. If we had made a record now, we would become every bad thing critics have said about us."

Hiatt Teams With Allstars For New Album

Singer/songwriter John Hiatt is backed by North Mississippi Allstars sibling duo Cody and Luther Dickinson on his upcoming album, "Master of Disaster." Due June 21 via New West, the project was produced family patriarch Jim Dickinson and also features longtime Muscle Shoals studio bassist David Hood.

"Master of Disaster" will be released as a Super Audio CD with a standard stereo mix as well as a high-resolution mix playable only on SACD-compatible devices. Raves Jim Dickinson of the latter mix, "It's like being in the room with first generation audio."

Hiatt's tour in support of the album will find him backed by the Allstars, who will also play their own opening set at some shows. The outing begins June 23 in Albany, N.Y.

"Master of Disaster" is the follow-up to 2003's "Beneath This Gruff Exterior," which debuted at No. 3 on Billboard's Top Independent Albums chart.

Here are John Hiatt's tour dates:

June 23: Albany, N.Y. (Hart Theatre)
June 24: Northampton, Mass. (Calvin Theatre)
June 25: New York (Webster Hall)
June 27: Hampton Beach, N.J. (Hampton Beach Casino)
June 28: Vienna, Va. (Wolf Trap)
June 29: Knoxville, Tenn. (Tennessee Theatre)
June 30: Columbus, Ohio (Promowest Pavilion)
July 2: Bloomington, Ind. (Axis)
July 3: Detroit (Comerica TasteFest)
July 4: Chicago (Taste of Chicago)
July 5: Milwaukee (Summerfest)
July 6: Apple Valley, Wis. (Music in the Zoo)
July 8: Boise, Idaho (Eagle Park Pavilion)
July 9: Portland, Ore. (Oregon Zoo Amphitheatre)
July 10: Seattle (South Lake Union Park)
July 11: Vancouver (Commodore Ballroom)
July 13: Medford, Ore. (Britt Festivals)
July 14: San Jose, Calif. (Plaza de Cesar Chavez)
July 16: Los Angeles (House of Blues)
July 17: Phoenix (Celebrity Theatre)
July 18: Tucson, Ariz. (Rialto Theatre)
July 20: Denver (Botantical Gardens)
July 21: Boulder, Col. (Chautauqua Auditorium)
July 23: Austin, Texas (Stubb's BBQ)
July 24: Dallas (Gypsy Ballroom)
July 27: Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. (Revolution)
July 28: Tampa, Fla. (Jannus Landing)
July 29: Asheville, N.C. (Bele Chere)
July 30: Nashville (Ryman Auditorium)
July 31: Atlanta (Botanical Garden)
Aug. 3: Glenside, Pa. (Keswick Theatre)
Aug. 4: Oyster Bay, N.Y. (FOTA Pavilion)

Coldplay Album Is High Stakes Gamble for EMI

LONDON (Reuters) - British group Coldplay, whose much delayed album is finally hitting the airwaves, could be the band that makes or breaks music giant EMI.

"This is the high stakes album of the year for EMI," said Numis Securities analyst Paul Richards of the world's third largest music group.

EMI Group shares fell 16 percent in February after it blamed delays in releasing key albums for lower than expected profits.

So a great deal is riding on the success of "X & Y," the follow-up to Coldplay's breakthrough second album "Rush of Blood to the Head" which sold more than 10 million copies.

"All eyes will be on the performance of this new album," Richards said. "They are certainly flavor of the month."

"Speed of Sound," the first single from the new album, was played on BBC Radio Monday, Coldplay are staging an MTV live invite-only gig in London Tuesday, and yet the album is still not being released until June 6.

Coldplay's perfectionist lead singer Chris Martin, who is married to Hollywood actress Gwyneth Paltrow, admits the pressure of expectation is getting to him.

Fears of the "Tall Poppy Syndrome" -- critics cutting them down after acclaiming the last album -- abound.

"When you're playing new songs, you tread a fine line between arrogance and, well, fear. It's a line we tread quite badly," he confessed at a U.S. charity concert in Los Angeles last month.

Martin called the making of Coldplay's third album "one of the most difficult experiences of my life."

"Lighten Up" is the message from the music industry to Coldplay, which scrapped many of the songs for the new album last year and went back to the studio, much to the chagrin of record executives.

"Sometimes they put too much pressure on themselves to make the greatest album ever," said Gennaro Castaldo, spokesman for the 200 HMV retail stores across Britain and Ireland.

"All the elements are in place for a successful long-term career. They have real staying power and have not only got a big and loyal following in Britain but have also been able to connect in America and the rest of the world," he told Reuters.

He too highlighted how big the stakes were -- and not just for the group.

"With share prices so sensitive and responsive to individual acts, all analysts become music experts. It seems the prospects of a whole company are riding on this album," Castaldo said.

Coldplay may never match the popularity of the Beatles and The Rolling Stones, but pop critics believe they are up there as one of the world's top rock groups.

"Coldplay follow a tradition of great British bands," said Julian Marshall, news editor of New Musical Express.

"I have heard the full record. It is easily as strong as their last album. I think they are now up there with U2."

Sting Teaches Star-Struck Music Students

CHICAGO (Reuters) - British singer Sting went back to the classroom this week, assuming the role of a musical mentor for a group of college students.

The one-time school teacher surprised students in a music composition class at the University of Illinois at Chicago, barging in with MTV cameras in tow to speak and jam with them on Monday.

The students, who had been told that their regular class was going to be filmed for a promotional video for the university, erupted in cheers as Sting and his band entered through a side door.

He started by playing "Message In A Bottle," a hit with the Police, the rock trio that he led to fame during the 1970s and '80s. Sting played an electric bass, accompanied by two acoustic guitars and a shaker.

He later took questions from the audience, discussing unusual time signatures, his music influences and his composition techniques.

"A blank page terrifies me, that's why I tour so much," Sting said of his own songwriting experience. "The more I figure out about music, the more I realize I haven't a clue."

He advised the students not to sweat the details and to keep playing music as a way to nourish the soul.

"We're not building cathedrals of sound here, we're building sheds," he said.

He finished the class inviting the students to join him and his band in an extended jam of his biggest hit, "Every Breath You Take."

"It was amazing," said junior Jenne Lennon after Sting asked her to play a solo on her Native American flute during the jam session. "Opportunities like that come only once in a lifetime, and I'm completely shocked."

The class was filmed for a program called "Stand In," which will air on mtvU next Monday. MTV's 24-hour college network, mtvU is available to about 6.4 million students on 700 campuses nationwide.

Sting is currently touring college campuses and other venues backed by only two guitarists and a drummer, a configuration reminiscent of his days with the Police.

Cardinal Ratzinger of Germany Is New Pope

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of Germany, a hard-line guardian of conservative doctrine, was elected the new pope Tuesday evening in the first conclave of the new millennium. He chose the name Pope Benedict XVI and called himself "a simple, humble worker."

2 Cdn. films to compete at Cannes

PARIS (CP) - Canada's premier film directors, Atom Egoyan and David Cronenberg, will be going head to head for the top prize, the Golden Palm, at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival next month.

Egoyan's Where the Truth Lies, said to be his most commercially accessible film to date, will compete for the top honour with David Cronenberg's A History of Violence at the 12-day festival which opens May 11.

The two Canadian titles will be among 20 from 13 countries in competition at the 58th festival, organizers announced Tuesday. The Golden Palm winner will be announced May 21.

A third Canuck entry will screen out of competition. Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream is a documentary by Toronto-based newcomer Stuart Samuels. All three will be world premieres.

Egoyan and Cronenberg had films at Cannes in 2002. Cronenberg's Spider was in competition, however, while Egoyan's Ararat was not. Cronenberg also entered Crash in competition in 1996 while Egoyan entered Exotica in '94, The Sweet Hereafter in '97 and Felicia's Journey in '99. The last time two Canadian filmmakers were in competition was 33 years ago, in 1972, says Stephen Lan, a spokesman for Telefilm Canada.

This year's festival is headed by the Sarajevo-born director Emir Kusturica. The festival opens with one of three French films, Dominik Moll's Lemming.

Other selections include Last Days by American director Gus Van Sant, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada by actor Tommy-Lee Jones, Don't Come Knockin' by Germany's Wim Wenders, Manderlay by Denmark's Lars Von Trier, and L'enfant by Belgium's Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne.

Movies by two legendary American directors beloved to the French will be among those presented out of competition: Woody Allen's Match Point and George Lucas' Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith.

A British movie, Chromophobia by director Martha Fiennes, will close the night of honours on May 21, although a rerun of the winning movie be shown on the final day, May 22.

A History of Violence stars Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello and William Hurt and is based on the graphic book by John Wagner. It is the story of a quiet small-town man whose act of heroism plunges him into the media spotlight and the kind of exposure he doesn't want.

Egoyan's Where the Truth Lies stars Colin Firth, Kevin Bacon, Alison Lohman and Maury Chaykin in a noirish story set in the 1950s about the decadent side of fame and fortune and how two decades later a writer decides to unearth a buried scandal.

Egoyan was reported to be rushing to have the film completed in time for its Cannes screening.

Here are the 20 films competing in the 58th Cannes Film Festival, starting May 11. Films are shown according to country and in alphabetical order:

Canada
-David Cronenberg, A History of Violence
-Atom Egoyan, Where the Truth Lies

China
-Johnny To, Election
-Xiaoshuai Wang, Shanghai Dreams

Belgium
-Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenner, L'Enfant (The Child)

Denmark
-Lars Von Trier, Manderlay

France
-Dominik Moll, Lemming (festival opener)
-Michael Haneke, Austrian, Cache (Hidden)
-Arnaud and Jean-Marie Larrieu, Peindre ou Faire l'Amour (Paint Or Make Love)

Germany
-Wim Wenders, Don't Come Knockin'

Israel
-Amos Gitai, Free Zone

Iraq (Kurdistan)
-Hiner Saleem, Kilometer Zero

Italy
-Marco Tullio Giordana, Quando Sei Nato Non Puoi Piu Nasconderti (Once You Are Born)

Japan
-Masahiro Kobayashi, Bashing

Mexico
-Carlos Reygadas, Batalla en el Cielo (Battle in Heaven)

Taiwan
-Hsiao-Hsien Hou, The Best of our Times

United States
-Jim Jarmusch, Broken Flowers
-Tommy Lee Jones, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
-Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez, Sin City
-Gus Van Sant, Last Days

Out of Competition

Great Britain
-Martha Fiennes, Chromophobia (festival closer)

CUT IT OUT ALREADY

How much "Meet the Fockers" do we really need?

Even its director admits that the new, extended cut of the Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller hit comedy, out today on DVD, is "very indulgent."

"It was long for a comedy in the first place," says Jay Roach of the original 115-minute theatrical cut.

Extended versions are a burgeoning trend in DVDs, with virtually every youth-oriented comedy — "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle" among them — being offered in a longer, "unrated" version.

"I have always called this the indulgent cut," Roach says of the new, eight-minute-longer version. "It's very presumptive to think people will want to watch more."

Nevertheless, he says, there were "literally hours and hours" of extra material, because co-stars Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand "can improv like crazy."

Unfortunately, those aren't the scenes that made it into the longer cut — though some of them are included in 12 or so additional minutes of deleted scenes not included in the extended version.

Restored instead is a scene where Stiller presents Hoffman with a "World's Best Dad" trophy — and Hoffman responds by saying "I'm sorry if I'm been a little smothering for the first 36 years of your life."

Other additions expand the role of Tim Blake Nelson, briefly seen in the theatrical cut as a state trooper who arrests the elder Fockers.

Nelson is now seen interrogating the Fockers and finding a cache of sex-instruction tapes in their car trunk. (Streisand's Roz Focker is a sex therapist.)

"It made me howl, but we needed to pick up the pace a bit," Roach says of deleting the scene originally.

With a few exceptions — like the longer, DVD release of "Ray" that some critics thought was superior to the theatrical cut — most extended versions aren't worth the extra time you spending watching them.

"Really, what I saw of 'Meet the Fockers' was plenty," says Time magazine critic and film historian Richard Schickel. "I wonder if many of these so-called director's cuts are just a way to market a video twice."

Schickel supervised an extended version of Sam Fuller's 1980 World War II drama "The Big Red One," which will be released next month by Warner Home Video. "It's pretty rare when you can find and restore 50 minutes of a film, which was butchered by the studio," he said.

But DVDs give studios huge incentives to scour their vaults.

The recent DVD release of the 1944 thriller "Laura" included a lengthy fashion- oriented montage cut from the original release because studio bosses thought it was too "decadent" during World War II.

Later this year, Sony Home Video will offer a new version of Sam Peckinpah's 1966 Charlton Heston Western "Major Dundee" that not only adds 12 minutes of cut footage, but also a new score more in keeping with the late director's wishes.

KERMIT OF OZ

THe Muppets are invading the Land of Oz.

The famous story of a Kansas girl who finds out the hard way that there's no place like home has been adapted for the Muppets.

Kermit is the Scarecrow, Fozzie Bear the Cowardly Lion and Gonzo the Tin Man (or "Tin Thing," as they say here).

Miss Piggy? Why she is the Wicked Witch of the West, of course.

Queen Latifah plays Auntie Em to singer Ashanti's Dorothy in this contemporary retelling of the original L. Frank Baum book, "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz."

ABC takes great pains to emphasize the movie is based on the 1900 book, not the 1939 Judy Garland film, which strayed broadly from the book.

"The Muppets' Wizard of Oz" airs May 20 on ABC, but the movie is unusual enough to get a live, sneak preview next week at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York.

The Couch Potato Report - April 23rd, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features some parents we haven't met yet, some flying daggers and a birth.

Expectations.

I talk a lot about expectations here on The Couch Potato Report. Specifically I speak about my expectations toward some films and how my expectations usually aren't met.

Yes, on several occasions, I have spoken about how my expectations were met or surpassed, but I must admit, you will usually hear me talking about how one movie or another was less than I expected.

And I am going to do that once again this week.

In October of 2000 a film was released called MEET THE PARENTS. It starred Ben Stiller of THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY and Oscar winner Robert De Niro of THE GODFATHER II and RAGING BULL.

Stiller played a male nurse named Greg Focker who wants to meet his girlfriend's parents before he proposes marriage.

De Niro was the woman's suspicious father.

Through actual interrogation and mind games he tormented his potential future son-in-law to make sure he was worthy of entry into his family's "circle of trust."

Stiller's exceptional comedic abilities, and the serious nature of De Niro made MEET THE PARENTS one of the funniest films of the last decade.

Even 5 years later, after repeated viewings, it still makes me laugh.

So, with that glowing recap of MEET THE PARENTS, you can imagine my expectations for its sequel!

MEET THE FOCKERS was released in theaters last December and has since gone on to become the top-grossing live-action comedy in history with almost $280 million in Box Office dollars to its credit.

I too spent my money to see it, and yes, my expectations were high.

And yes, my expectations were - once again - not justly rewarded.

In MEET THE FOCKERS De Niro and his family climb into their new bulletproof motor home with Stiller, and De Niro's infant grandson from his other daughter, for a trip to Florida to meet Stiller's parents.

Barbra Streisand plays Stiller's mother, and I was disappointed when I heard she had been cast because she hadn't made a comedy in twenty-four years.

But I have to admit that she is great in the film and the world of comedies has missed her!

Welcome back, Babs!

Dustin Hoffman plays Stiller's stay at home lawyer father and he is the best part about the film. He is warm and caring and very funny!

Unfortunately, once you get past the film's incredible cast the movie isn't any better than average.

If you want to watch a movie that is a side-splittingly funny comedy, that an abundance clever writing and witty repartee, then MEET THE FOCKERS just isn't the movie for you.

Instead, it is just a mildly amusing follow-up to the very funny - and far superior - MEET THE PARENTS.

But, MEET THE FOCKERS is worth your time, expectations or no expectations!

The Hoffman-Streisand-Stiller family are so good in this movie that I recommend it just for them. The movie lets them down, but their performances won't let you down.

The Fockers are great, even if MEET THE FOCKERS isn't.

So no, my expectations weren't met when I watched MEET THE FOCKERS, but they were met, and exceeded, when I saw HOUSE OF THE FLYING DAGGERS.

HOUSE OF THE FLYING DAGGERS has a great deal in common with the Oscar winning film CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON and it shares the director and star of last year's superb martial arts epic HERO.

All three films use unique martial arts choreography with incredible wire and stunt work to create fight scenes that have to be seen to be believed.

But no matter how much it is like the other two films, HOUSE OF THE FLYING DAGGERS manages to differentiate itself due to the amount of plot twists and double crossings.

In the movie two government officers set out to destroy an underground rebellion called the House of Flying Daggers.

Their only chance to find the rebels is blind women who has some lethal kung fu moves of her own.

In addition to the superb actions scenes and great acting in HOUSE OF THE FLYING DAGGERS, the film is a treat for the eyes! That is due to the movie's use of colours.

This is a visually stunning film that exceeded my expectations!

I have often used the words "visually stunning" to describe Nicole Kidman. Even when she appears in bad films like THE STEPFORD WIVES, COLD MOUNTAIN or THE HUMAN STAIN she is still visually stunning.

But even her looks can't save her new to video and DVD film BIRTH.

BIRTH is an interesting, yet failed movie about a young boy who claims to be the reincarnated husband of a widow. You might remember this film as the one that received some attention last year as Kidman appears naked in a bathtub with a ten-year-old boy.

Even if she is still visually stunning, Nicole Kidman can't save BIRTH.

That is too bad as the film was very interesting at the start, but the filmmakers didn't seem to know how to end their movie.

The ending was plausible, but it took away the leap of faith that the rest of the movie asked you to take.

As a result, BIRTH is ultimately unsatisfying. BUT, Nicole Kidman is still visually stunning.

BIRTH, HOUSE OF THE FLYING DAGGERS and MEET THE FOCKERS are all available now on video and DVD.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS is the film based on the popular series of kids books by Daniel Handler. Jim Carrey plays Count Olaf in this hilarious story about three orphans who are shuttled from one relative to the next. Meryl Streep and Jude Law also star.

In THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON a man plans an assassination attempt on President Nixon in 1974. Sean Penn, Naomi Watts and Don Cheadle from HOTEL RWANDA lead the cast.

SHAKE HANDS WITH THE DEVIL: THE JOURNEY OF ROMEO DALLAIRE is the real life story of Canadian Lt. Gen. Roméo Dallaire, and his controversial command of the United Nations mission to Rwanda during the 1994 genocide.

Finally next week there is the BEACHES * SPECIAL EDITION. Bette Midler and Barbara Hershey star in the 1988 drama about a 30-year friendship between two women.

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on BEACHES, THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON and LEMONY SNICKET'S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS, and some other releases in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

Isle to Aisle

Did Mariano and Brkich tie the knot?

Between their Survivor appearances and their current travels on The Amazing Race 7, Rob Mariano and Amber Brkich have traveled the globe for CBS, but their latest port of call, on CBS' dime, was reportedly a Bahamas wedding on Saturday. So far, CBS has kept mum, but Brkich's hometown paper, the Beaver County Times in Beaver, Pa., reports that the pair's secret nuptials were to take place on Saturday at a Caribbean resort, and that CBS filmed the ceremony for broadcast on May 24, the second-to-last night of May ratings sweeps, opposite the final performance episode of Fox's American Idol.

Despite the confidentiality agreements that the couple and their guests signed with the network, the Times reports that locals in the small town spotted CBS camera crews with Brkich at her bridal shower at a local country club and at an area bridal shop. The Times also reported that much of the wedding party departed on Wednesday for the Bahamas for the weekend ceremony.

Mariano and Brkich became an item during the filming of 2004's Survivor: All-Stars, where she won the $1 million jackpot and he was the runner-up. Their winning ways have continued on Amazing Race, whose finale is May 10.

Already, they've won trips to Monaco, London, and conveniently enough, the Bahamas. So it looks like CBS will be footing the bill for the million-dollar couple's honeymoon as well.

Paul McCartney gears up for new album, U.S. tour

Paul McCartney--who last toured the U.S. in 2002--returns to the country for a fall roadtrip that will back his next album.

The run kicks off Sept. 16 in Miami and is currently slated to touch down in 26 cities, including a Nov. 29 finale in Los Angeles; a lone Canadian stop is also planned. Tickets will begin hitting box offices Saturday (4/23) for some shows, according to McCartney's website.

The itinerary finds McCartney returning to some cities--such as Miami and Seattle--for the first time in almost 15 years, and making his first-ever stops in Des Moines, IA; and Omaha, NE, according to organizers.

Fans can expect to hear material from McCartney's Beatles, Wings and solo careers, as well as songs that "have yet to be or haven't been performed on American soil in nearly 15 years," according to a press release. Among the new numbers will likely be cuts from McCartney's follow-up to 2001's "Driving Rain"; neither a title nor a release date for the new set has been announced.

"We are looking forward to playing again in America," McCartney said in a statement. "They know how to have a good time and we're there to give it to them. It'll be fun to visit some new places, to see some old faces and to do things a bit differently this time. We're ready to rock."

Backing McCartney on stage will be drummer Abe Laboriel, Jr., guitarist Rusty Anderson, guitarist/bassist Brian Ray and keyboardist Paul "Wix" Wickens.

Tour Itinerary

September 2005
16 - Miami, FL - American Airlines Arena
17 - Tampa, FL - St. Pete Times Forum
20 - Atlanta, GA - Philips Arena
22 - Philadelphia, PA - Wachovia Center
26 - Boston, MA - BankNorth Garden

October 2005
4, 5 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
8 - Washington, DC - MCI Center
10 - Toronto, Ontario - Air Canada Centre
14 - Auburn Hills, MI - Palace Of Auburn Hills
18 - Chicago, IL - United Center
22 - Columbus, OH - Schottenstein Center
23 - Milwaukee, WI - Bradley Center
26 - Saint Paul, MN - Xcel Energy Center
27 - Des Moines, IA - Wells Fargo Arena
30 - Omaha, NE - Qwest Center Omaha

November 2005
1 - Denver, CO - Pepsi Center
3 - Seattle, WA - KeyArena at Seattle Center
4 - Portland, OR - Rose Garden Arena
7 - San Jose, CA - HP Pavilion At San Jose
11 - Anaheim, CA - Arrowhead Pond
16 - Sacramento, CA - ARCO Arena
19 - Houston, TX - Toyota Center
20 - Dallas, TX - American Airlines Center
23 - Glendale, AZ - Glendale Arena
25, 26 - Las Vegas, NV - MGM Grand Garden Arena
29 - Los Angeles, CA - Staples Center

BBC Confirms New 'Doctor Who'

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) Although Christopher Eccleston's first season as the star of "Dr. Who" is drumming up huge audiences on The BCC, the popular sci fi franchise has already moved forward. The BCC has confirmed one of the worst kept secrets in fandom, announcing that David Tennant will be the 10th actor to star in "Doctor Who."

"Christopher Eccleston has given an exceptional performance as the ninth Doctor," Julie Gardner, BBC head of drama, Wales says. "David Tennant is a great actor who will build on the excellent work already done by Christopher in establishing 'Doctor Who' for a new generation."

Tennant and Eccleston appeared together in Michael Winterbottom's 1996 adaptation of "Jude." The Scottish actor is a British television veteran, but he's probably an unknown to American viewers who haven't caught his performances in features including "Bright Young Things."

"I am delighted, excited and honored to be the tenth Doctor," Tennant says. "I grew up loving 'Doctor Who' and it has been a lifelong dream to get my very own Tardis. Russell T. Davies is one of the best writers television has ever had, and I'm chuffed to bits to get the opportunity to work with him again. I'm also really looking forward to working with Billie Piper who is so great as Rose."

Clearly, many parts of that statement make more sense if you're British or a "Doctor Who" fan. Davies, writer and executive producer on the most recent "Who" is also, um, chuffed.

"Christopher Eccelston's wonderful Doctor has reinvented the role, so that it now appeals to the best actors in the land," Davies says. "I'm already writing David's first new adventure on board the Tardis. Regeneration is a huge part of the program's mythology, and I'm delighted that new, young viewers can now have the complete 'Doctor Who' experience, as they witness their hero change his face."

Alanis Going Acoustic On Summer Tour

As exclusively revealed here last month, Alanis Morissette will embark on her first acoustic tour this summer in support of a newly recorded acoustic edition of her landmark 1995 debut album, "Jagged Little Pill." The tour will begin June 7 in Toronto, to be followed by the Maverick album six days later. The set will be sold exclusively by Starbucks for the first six weeks.

"We'll play the album from start to finish," the artist told Billboard recently of the summer jaunt, "although we'll probably play around some with the order. We'll also throw in some other songs from the last 10 years." Morissette added she is in no way saying goodbye to these songs: "I'll be playing them until I'm dead."

The six-week jaunt will play theatres through a July 17 finale in Costa Mesa, Calif.

Here are Alanis Morissette's tour dates:

June 7: Toronto (Hummingbird Centre)
June 8: Detroit (Masonic Temple)
June 10: Minneapolis (Orpheum Theatre)
June 11: Chicago (Auditorium Theatre)
June 14: Philadelphia (venue TBA)
June 15: New York (Radio City Music Hall)
June 17: Boston (Wang Theatre)
June 18: Baltimore (Meyerhoff Symphony Hall)
June 20: Cincinnati (Aronoff Center)
June 21: Nashville (Ryman Auditorium)
June 22: Atlanta (Fox Theatre)
June 24: Miami (Jackie Gleason Theatre)
June 25: Clearwater, Fla. (Ruth Eckerd Hall)
June 26: Orlando, Fla. (Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre)
June 28: New Orleans (Saenger Theatre)
June 29: Houston (Jones Hall)
June 30: Ft. Worth, Texas (Bass Hall)
July 2: St. Louis (Fox Theatre)
July 3: Kansas City, Mo. (Midland Theatre)
July 5: Denver (Paramount Theatre)
July 8: Portland, Ore. (Schnitzer Hall)
July 9: Vancouver (Orpheum Theatre)
July 10: Seattle (Paramount Theatre)
July 12: Oakland, Calif. (Paramount Theatre)
July 13: Los Angeles (Walt Disney Concert Hall)
July 15: San Diego (Copley Symphony Hall)
July 16: Phoenix (Dodge Theatre)
July 17: Costa Mesa, Calif. (Orange County Performing Arts Center)

NEW CD RELEASES FOR APRIL 19, 2005

22-20s 22-20s (Astralwerks)

All Shall Perish Hate, Malice, Revenge (Nuclear Blast)

allfrumtha i Larger Than Life (Free Agency)

Amerie Touch (Columbia)

Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti Worn Copy (Paw Tracks)

Autechre Untilted (Warp)

Balanescu Quartet Marie T (Mute)

Steve Bedunah Hand Me Down Land (Dogtrot)

Bleed the Sky Paradigm in Entropy (Nuclear Blast)

Blue Eyed Sons West of Lincoln (Eenie Meenie)

Born from Pain In Love with the End (Metal Blade)

Todd Bowie Lucky Space People (Machine)

Jim Brickman Grace (guests Michael Bolton and more) (RCA Victor)

Burden of Grief Fields of Salvation (Cleopatra)

Cadillac Jones Junk in the Trunk (re-release of 2003 album) (Harmonized)

The Chapmans Simple Man (Pinecastle)

The Chemistry The Chemistry (Razor & Tie)

Chixdiggit! Pink Razors (Fat Wreck Chords)

Circa Survive Juturna (Equal Vision)

Cirque du Soleil Solarium/Delirium (two CDs; w/remixes by Thievery Corporation, Cottonbelly and more) (Cirque du Soleil Musique)

CLIT 45 Self-Hate Crimes (BYO)

Cobra Verde Copycat Killers (all-covers album w/tunes by the Rolling Stones, Donna Summer, New Order and more) (Scat)

Judy Collins Portrait of an American Girl (Wildflower)

Consafos Tilting at Windmills (Greyday Productions)

Da Beatminerz Fully Loaded with Static (w/KRS-One, Dilated Peoples and more) (Priority)

DJ Me DJ You Can You See the Music (re-release of 2003 album) (Eenie Meenie)

The Dudley Corporation In Love with... (w/guest members of the Delgados and Camera Obscura) (Absolutely Kosher)

Stace England Greetings from Cairo, Illinois (Gnashville Sounds)

Esham A.1. Yola (Psychopathic)

The Esoteric With the Sureness of Sleepwalking (Prosthetic)

Fallen from the Sky Tune Out the World (Victory)

The Faraway Places Unfocus on It (re-release of 2004 album) (Eenie Meenie)

Final Breath Let Me Be Your Tank (Cleopatra)

Ad Frank The World's Best Ex-Boyfriend (Stop, Pop & Roll)

From Bubblegum to Sky Nothing Sadder Than Lonely Queen (re-release of 2004 album) (Eenie Meenie)

Giles (frontman for Between the Buried and Me) Giles (Victory)

Great Lakes Myth Society Great Lakes Myth Society (Stop, Pop & Roll)

Anne Heaton Give In (Q Division)

Heavy Trash (John Spencer of Blues Explosion and Matt Verta-Ray of Speedball Baby) Heavy Trash (Yep Roc)

Hell Within Asylum of the Human Predator (Victory)

Johnny Hickman (Cracker guitarist) Palmhenge (Campstove)

The High Water Marks Songs About the Ocean (re-release of 2004 album) (Eenie Meenie)

Billie Holiday Remixed Hits (Cleopatra)

Il Divo Il Divo (Columbia)

Infradig Kinetic Transfer (Harmonized)

Irving I Hope You're Feeling Better Now (re-release of 2003 album) (Eenie Meenie)

Danko Jones We Sweat Blood (Razor & Tie)

Mike Jones Who Is (Warner Bros.)

Junior M.A.F.I.A. Riot Musik (Mega Media)

Audra Kubat Since I Fell in Love with the Music (Times Beach)

Langhorne Slim Dance on Home (Narnack)

Lil Sicko The Anger & the Pain (Thump)

Carter Little Dare to Be Small (Lobby Door Music)

Lovethugs Babylon Fading (Rainbow Quartz)

LUCE From the World of the Lonely (Joe's Music)

Matisyahu Live at Stubbs - Austin, TX 2/19/05 (Or Music)

Maria McKee Peddlin' Dreams (w/cover of Neil Young's "Barstool Blues") (Eleven Thirty)

MIDIval PunditZ MIDIval Times (guest Anoushka Shankar, daughter of Ravi) (Six Degrees)

MODEREKO Solar Ignitor (w/Keller Williams; re-release of 2003 album) (Harmonized)

Murdocks Surrenderender (Surprise Truck)

Anna Nalick Wreck of the Day (Columbia)

Niyaz Niyaz (Six Degrees)

The Outlawz 4 Life 2005 A.P. (33rd Street)

Pantommind Shade of Fate (Sensory)

Paragon Revenge (Cleopatra)

Derryl Perry All Just to Get to You (Music City)

The Red Death External Frames of Reference (Metal Blade)

Jerry Reed Live Still (first live record; greatest hits plus two new songs) (R2K/Redeye)

Kyle Riabko Before I Speak (Columbia)

Adam Richman Patience and Science (Or Music)

Rift (Tony Williamson) Push on Through (Mandolin Central)

Ringside Ringside (Geffen)

Barbara Rosene All My Life (Azica)

Dino Saluzzi and Jon Christensen Senderos (ECM)

Dave Seaman Renaissance Presents The Therapy Sessions Vol. 2 (two CDs; mix CDs) (Thrive)

Seksu Roba Pleasure Vibrations (re-release of 2003 album) (Eenie Meenie)

Mem Shannon I'm From Phunkville (NorthernBlues)

Alina Simone Prettier in the Dark EP (Fractured Discs)

Sinai Beach Immersed (Victory)

Steel Train Twilight Tales from the Prairies of the Sun (guests David Grisman and The Byrds' Gene Parsons; enhanced CD) (Drive-Thru)

Curtis Stigers I Think It's Going to Rain Today (Concord)

Alice Texas Sad Days (Frago)

Rob Thomas (matchbox twenty singer) ...Something to Be (guests John Mayer, Robert Randolph and Mike Campbell of the Heartbreakers; available exclusively as DualDisc) (Atlantic)

Mary Timony (ex-Helium) Ex Hex (produced by Fugazi drummer Brendan Canty) (Lookout!)

The Track Record The Track Record EP (Drive-Thru)

Gianluigi Trovesi/Gianni Coscia Round About Weill (ECM)

Two Hoots and a Holler Rick Brossard (Stag)

Ulysses 010 (re-release of 2004 album) (Eenie Meenie)

Umbrellas Umbrellas (The Militia Group)

Variable Unit Mayhemystics Outbreaks (featuring members of Blackalicious) (Wide Hive)

Loudon Wainwright III Here Come the Choppers (w/Bill Frisell and Jim Keltner) (Sovereign Artists)

The Wingdale Community Singers (w/David Grubbs of Gastr del Sol and novelist Rick Moody) The Wingdale Community Singers (Plain)

Winter Blanket Prescription Perils (Fractured Discs)

XLOVER Pleasure and Romance (Gigolo)

Zion I True & Livin' (w/Talib Kweli, Del, Aesop Rock and Gift of Gab) (Live Up)

Saul Zonana 42 Days (production and guitar work by Adrian Belew) (20/20 Music)

VA Disco Dimensions Vol. 1 (dance compilation) (Smash Hit Music)

VA Disco Remixed (VI Music)

VA Global Indie Club Pop (re-release of 2003 album) (Eenie Meenie)

VA Is It Rolling Bob? Dub Versions: Visions of Jamaica (companion to 2004 Bob Dylan reggae tribute) (Sanctuary)

VA Preserve Volume 1 (Fractured Discs)

VA The Future of the Blues, Volume 2 (NorthernBlues)

OST Charmed: The Book of Shadows (WB TV show; w/Sarah McLaughlin, the Donnas, Liz Phair and more) (Treadstone)

OST XXX: State of the Union (w/Korn and Xzibit's cover of Public Enemy's "Fight the Power," plus previously unreleased tracks from Ice Cube, Chingy and more) (Jive)

DVD Scratch: All the Way Live (performances by Z-Trip, the X-ecutioners, Mix Master Mike and more; includes bonus commentary and footage) (Scratch Recordings)

DVD Elvis Costello & the Imposters Club Date: Live in Memphis (Eagle Rock)

DVD Dwarves F*ck You Up and Get Live (2004 concert w/bonus music videos) (Music Video Distributors)

DVD Hieroglyphics Full Circle (tour video; CD/DVD combo) (Hieroglyphics)

DVD Muse Manic Depression (Music Video Distributors)

INSIDE JOB

Variety is reporting that Jodie Foster is set to costar with Denzel Washington and Clive Owen in Universal's Inside Man, about a cop who winds up in a hostage situation when he goes up against a clever bank robber looking to pull off the perfect heist. Spike Lee directs.

Taylor Dayne Looks for Career 'Remaking'

NEW YORK - Former 1980s dance-pop diva Taylor Dayne is looking for a career makeover from VH1's "Remaking" reality series.

Known for her 1987 hit "Tell It To My Heart," Dayne, 43, will undergo consulting from a team of experts, including two personal trainers, a choreographer and producer Rodney Jerkins, who has created hits for the likes of Destiny's Child and Jennifer Lopez.

"To me, it was about finding new opportunities," Dayne tells the New York Daily News in Monday's editions. "I know my voice touches people. It has for years. I can't give that up."

The "Remaking" episode begins with Dayne performing three nights a week to distracted audiences at Florida's Walt Disney World.

"What was I thinking?" Dayne asks defensively, the Daily News reports. "I was thinking my kids got to have a good week at Epcot Center. I was thinking, it's paying my bills. I've grinned and beared a lot of crap, trust me."

Dayne eschews plastic surgery, although the episode shows her getting Botox injections in her forehead as part of her comeback attempt. Already, the single mom has made an appearance on "The View," where she performed her Jerkins-produced song "Right Now."

"Remaking" previously featured Motley Crue's lead singer Vince Neil and its future lineup includes Jody Watley and Vanilla Ice.

"Remaking: Taylor Dayne" premieres 10 p.m. Thursday on VH1.

'Arrested Development' Finale May Be Final

LOS ANGELES - The angst of the Bluth family multiplied in Sunday's season finale of "Arrested Development." But it's nothing compared to what fans will suffer if Fox's unconventional sitcom isn't renewed for a third season.

Despite a best comedy series Emmy and lavish critical praise, the series about a wildly dysfunctional Southern California family has been unable to pull respectable ratings.

In fact, viewership in the second season eroded a bit. For the season to date, the show has drawn an average 5.9 million weekly viewers, compared to the 6.2 million it averaged for the 2003-04 season.

A Fox management change also could affect the future of "Arrested Development," which was developed and given a second chance under Fox entertainment chief Gail Berman.

Berman left for a Paramount Studios job and it's uncertain if her replacement, Peter Liguori, will have the same affection for the show. Its fate will be announced when Fox unveils its 2005-06 lineup in May.

In the finale, the Bluth family's very foundation is rocked: The model house for their star-crossed real estate development is falling apart because of shoddy plumbing.

Meanwhile, brother Gob (Will Arnett) has proudly produced a CD of his ventriloquism act with a black dummy. Maybe "it will heal this country a little bit," he says — although its racist lyrics send a black studio technician storming out.

The puns also fly, including one about Pop Secret popcorn and the possibility that one man's uncle may really be his dad.

The series features Jason Bateman, who won a Golden Globe for his role as atypically normal Bluth son Michael. Others in the powerhouse ensemble cast are Jeffrey Tambor, Portia de Rossi and Jessica Walter.

Sunday's half-hour ended with scenes from the next episode, the one that would open the fall season. Devotees can only hope the optimism isn't misguided.

'Monday Night Football' to Move to ESPN from ABC

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Monday Night Football," a landmark of U.S. broadcast television since 1970, will move next year from Walt Disney Co.'s ABC to sibling sports cable network ESPN in an eight-year deal industry sources said was worth nearly $9 billion.

The agreement, announced on Monday by the National Football League, ESPN and ABC, came as the league and rival broadcaster NBC said they had reached a separate six-season deal for NBC to acquire Sunday NFL games now aired on ESPN.

Individuals familiar with both packages said ESPN will pay the NFL $1.1 billion a year for the "Monday Night Football" franchise -- the league's weekly marquee matchup -- while NBC, a unit of General Electric Co. GE.N, has agreed to pay $600 million a year for 16 regular-season Sunday night games and the annual Thursday season opener.

The NBC package will also include two playoff games and three prime-time preseason games each year, as well as the 2009 and 2012 Super Bowl championship contests, the NFL said.

Both deals go into effect starting with the 2006 football season.

"Monday Night Football" was hosted in its early years by Howard Cosell and also gave second careers in the announcer booth to such retired NFL greats as Frank Gifford, O.J. Simpson, Joe Namath and John Madden.

The show has been a keystone of ABC's prime-time schedule and the most watched weekly sports event on American television since its launch in 1970.

The program, a Monday evening tradition for pro-football fans, is billed as the most anticipated NFL contest each week, and the telecast still ranks ninth in household ratings among all prime-time programs for the 2004-05 TV season, drawing 16.3 million viewers.

Although ABC Entertainment President Steve McPherson had said months ago that he expected his network to renew its "MNF" contract, the new ESPN deal was not entirely a surprise.

Despite its ratings success, advertising revenues have never covered the show's costs. ABC, which pays $550 million a year for the games under its current contract with the NFL, has been losing roughly $150 million a year on the franchise, according to a person familiar with the contract.

By contrast, ESPN has managed to turn a profit while paying $600 million a year for the NFL package by sharing the financial burden with cable companies that carry the Sunday games.

George Bodenheimer, president of ESPN Inc. and ABC Sports, said the cable network would continue "to deliver double-digit growth to Disney over the next five years, and we couldn't do that without a sound economic deal with the NFL."

He also said ABC, rebounding from a ratings slump thanks to such new hits as "Desperate Housewives" and "Lost," remained on target with its improved financial projections.

Money-losing ABC has dragged down Disney earnings for years, but the company says the broadcaster may return to profit this year.

"It's tough for ABC to say goodbye to a landmark institution like this, but with the progress we're making on our entertainment programing, we're not looking back. It's been a wonderful 36-year run," Bodenheimer told reporters in a conference call.

NBC executives suggested they got a better deal than ESPN, casting the reshuffling of NFL broadcast rights as setting the stage for Sunday evenings to become the new premier night for televised football.

"It's really ABC's broadcast package on Monday night going to Sunday night," said NBC Television Network Group President Randy Falco said, noting that NBC would pay about 9 percent more per year for Sunday games than ABC paid for Monday night.

NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue seemed to concur, saying in a statement, "Sunday is now the better night for our prime-time broadcast package." NBC added that it expected to draw a bigger audience to its new Sunday night football lineup than ESPN has in the past, because the broadcaster has a wider reach.

But Bodenheimer insisted that "Monday Night Football," while filling the last big hole in ESPN's schedule, would remain the weekly NFL game that "the fans, the players and viewers look forward to" most.

News of Bond role bewilders Orlando Bloom

HOLLYWOOD -- There are plenty of pirates in Orlando Bloom's life but no spies. British papers recently reported the Pirates of the Caribbean star was in negotiations to play a young James Bond in a series of films about the early years before Bond became 007.

"They even had me quoted as saying I was in negotiations. My cousin called to say how distraught everyone was to have to read it in the papers," says Bloom who stars as a Crusader in Ridley Scott's Kingdom of Heaven, which opens May 6.

Bloom has been bombarded with phone calls from friends and family members over this story.

"I can assure you that I have never heard anything about such a project or an offer of any kind to play Bond from any member of my management team.

"It's just something someone somewhere made up and posted it on the Internet."

Bloom, 28, insists the same is true of rumours that he and longtime squeeze Kate Bosworth, 22, are once again an item.

The couple dated for two years but announced last fall they were no longer together.

In March, the two went to Brazil, fuelling speculation the affair was back on.

Some British websites have even posted stories the couple plan to wed later this year and that Bloom gave Bosworth a diamond engagement ring.

"I'm a long way from marriage at this point in my life. My career is so hectic, it's difficult to sustain a relationship. I'm happily single at the moment," insists Bloom.

Bosworth, who played Sandra Dee to Kevin Spacey's Bobby Darin in Beyond the Sea, is currently filming Superman Returns, in which she plays Lois Lane to Brandon Routh's Clark Kent.

Bloom is filming the two sequels to Pirates of the Caribbean with Johnny Depp and Keira Knightley.

TOM SNYDER DIAGNOSED WITH LEUKEMIA

April 18, 2005 -- TALK-SHOW legend Tom Snyder, who successfully battled heart disease four years ago, now has leukemia.

The onetime WNBC and WABC news anchor and host of NBC's "Tomorrow" — predecessor of David Letterman's late night show — got the bad news after bouts of "uncontrollable sweating" and "general lack of stamina."

"I have been diagnosed with something called chronic lymphocytic leukemia. Jesus H. Christ!" the 68-year-old wrote on his Web site.

"My doctors say its treatable.

"They say . . . people can live with it for 30 years," said Snyder, whose outspokenness and brusque style made him one of the nation's top-rated interviewers in the 1970s.

"Notice, they don't say people will live 30 years but they can live up to 30 years . . . I will be 69 next month; I ain't looking for 30 years — but 15 more would be nice!"

Snyder's younger brother, John, has been diagnosed with the same disease.

Off the topic, he remains as acerbic as ever.

"Early-morning network TV is not news anymore; it's a joke!" he offered. "I miss Dan Rather and Tom Brokaw. And I pray, in my own stupid way, for Peter Jennings to get well soon."

'Amityville' Tops 'Sahara' at Box Office

LOS ANGELES - "The Amityville Horror" returned from the dead with a vengeance, with the gory update of the 1970s fright flick taking in $23.3 million to top the weekend box office.

The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, the African desert adventure "Sahara," slipped to second place with $13.1 million, lifting its 10-day total to $36.4 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

"The Amityville Horror" stars Ryan Reynolds and Melissa George as a couple tormented by visions and voices in their new home, the scene of a grisly mass murder a year earlier.

The movie is the latest in a parade of successful horror remakes. With a built-in audience looking for scares and a string of hits such as "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," "The Grudge" and "Dawn of the Dead," horror movies have become almost a sure-thing in Hollywood.

Horror movies also typically cost far less than other big studio films, whose average budgets top $60 million. "The Amityville Horror" grossed more than its $19 million budget in just the first weekend.

"The Amityville Horror" received mostly bad reviews, yet the under-25 crowd that makes up the genre's core audience rarely heeds the critics.

"The only reviews that count are the public's reviews," said Erik Lomis, head of distribution for MGM, which released "The Amityville Horror."

In limited release, David Duchovny's directing debut, "House of D," opened strongly with $30,000 in two theaters. The coming-of-age tale features Duchovny, wife Tea Leoni, Robin Williams and Erykah Badu.

Todd Solondz's "Palindromes," featuring Jennifer Jason Leigh and seven others playing the same character in a series of vignettes, debuted well with $61,434 in seven theaters.

With overall revenues down for the eighth-straight weekend, Hollywood is limping into its busy summer season. The top 12 movies took in $73.9 million, off 13 percent from the same weekend last year.

"This is a major slump," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. "I think the industry is holding its collective breath for the turnaround. What is going to be the movie that reverses this down trend? Thankfully, summer looks really good."

Sydney Pollack's United Nations thriller "The Interpreter," starring Nicole Kidman and Sean Penn, and the Ashton Kutcher-Amanda Peet romantic comedy "A Lot Like Love," open Friday as summer lead-ins.

Next week brings the action follow-up "XXX: State of the Union," starring Ice Cube, and the science-fiction romp "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy."

May could get Hollywood back on track, with "Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith" as the industry's centerpiece for early summer.

Other big May releases include Adam Sandler's football tale "The Longest Yard," Will Ferrell's soccer comedy "Kicking & Screaming," Ridley Scott's Crusades epic "Kingdom of Heaven," the animated adventure "Madagascar," the horror remake "House of Wax" and Jennifer Lopez and Jane Fonda's comedy "Monster-in-Law."

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. "The Amityville Horror," $23.3 million.
2. "Sahara," $13.1 million.
3. "Fever Pitch," $8.8 million.
4. "Sin City," $6.7 million.
5. "Guess Who," $4.9 million.
6. "Beauty Shop," $3.8 million.
7. "Robots," $3.55 million.
8. "Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous," $2.9 million.
9. "The Pacifier," $2.4 million.
10. "The Upside of Anger," $1.9 million.

Studios To Release Movies for Playstation Portable

Sony's PlayStation Portable appears likely to become the dominant movie-watching player in the handheld market, Home Media Retailing reported Thursday. It noted that several studios are planning to issue movies in PSP's Universal Media Disc format, with Sony Films, not surprisingly, taking the lead. (Sony's Spider-Man 2 comes bundled with the player.) Apparently, the studios will be aiming at adults as well as kids, with Disney's Buena Vista Home Entertainment planning to release the R-rated Kill Bill Vol. 1 on April 19 (along with Pirates of the Caribbean: the Curse of the Black Pearl). Sony plans to release Hitch on both DVD and UMD on June 14.

Paramount to bow Star Trek: Insurrection Collector’s Edition in June

After six years of waiting, Star Trek: Insurrection starring the “Next Generation” cast is finally coming to DVD as a 2-disc Collector’s Edition as well this summer.

When the crew of the Enterprise learns of the Federation plot against inhabitants of a unique planet, Capt. Picard begins an open rebellion in an effort to defend the planet’s people and the principles in which the Federation was founded.

The Collector’s Edition will feature an anamorphic widescreen transfer of the movie with 5.1 channel Dolby Digital audio. A pretty impressive list of Featurettes will be included on the release, covering topics such as “It Takes a Village,” “Location, Location, Location,” “The Art of Insurrection,” “Anatomy of a Stunt,” “The Story of Insurrection,” “Making Star Trek: Insurrection,” “Director’s Notebook,” and “Creating the Illusion.” Also included on the DVD are Deleted Scenes and Story Boards, as well as a Photo Gallery.

This Collector’s Edition of Star Trek: Insurrection will come to DVD on June 7 and carry a suggested retail price of only $19.99.

Tom Green picks fight with Martin Short

Ottawa comic Tom Green says he can take a joke, as long as it's a funny one. Martin Short begs to differ.

And suddenly it looks like the fellow Canadian celebs are headed for a comic catfight, stemming from a four-year-old exchange on Short's now-defunct Comedy Central show Primetime Glick. This week Green launched a "Martin Short is Lame Game" and lashed out in his online diary about comments Short made about him in the May issue of W magazine.

"The sad truth is, Martin Short hasn't done anything funny since (former Saturday Night Live character) Ed Grimley," wrote Green on Tuesday. "I find it sad, that someone who admittedly was once very funny, can become so mediocre and lame."

Green is furious at Short and, on his website at least, says he'll only settle for a public apology after the W article promoting next month's release of Short's feature film Jiminy Glick in Lalawood.

Short says in the three seasons he played the fat, obnoxious, ill-informed celebrity reporter, Green was the only guest to take offence at his intentionally ignorant barbs.

At the time, Green had been telling jokes about his successful treatment for testicular cancer.

"So I asked about it," Short recalls in the piece, "and then I pretended to take a phone call during the answer."

In the article, due on newstands April 26, Short says Green stormed off the set and refused to let the spot air.

Green, who briefly recounted the episode in his 2004 autobiography Hollywood Causes Cancer, says Short went a little further than that.

"He of course didn't mention that he was making fun of my cancer/one testicle etc. ... He just plays it off to people like I am some sort of jerk," writes Green. "I can say here right now, I have never walked off anything in my life, except that. He pushed hard, he pushed mean, and I left."

Green even got his long-time manager, Howard Lapides, to back up his story on his blog. Lapides calls the incident "a massacre" that blindsided his client.

"I can't believe Martin would have the balls to bring it up again," wrote Lapides. "But, Martin has two balls ...so it was easy for him to 'make fun of' those who only have one ..."

Short told W he was sorry Green was offended, but it didn't stop his Glick from making other stars uncomfortable for laughs. In the opening scene of Lalawood, W reports, the faux journo mistakes Whoopi Goldberg for Oprah Winfrey.

Short interviewed Green once before the Glick fiasco, on a talk show he briefly hosted. As Short and Green's fellow guest Steve Martin looked on, Green proceeded to honk like a goose with a box on his head.

Short once parodied Green on that talk show, pretending to play him in a skit where he interviewed his beleaguered parents after he'd had them kidnapped and taken to Afghanistan.

Green's faithful fans obviously have his back. Hours after Green posted his rant Tuesday, several fans had already sent in photos of themselves wearing "Martin Short is lame" T-shirts.

Foo Fighters Album Preview: Grohl Gets Grand On In Your Honor

Band averted breakup to record double album featuring Norah Jones and John Paul Jones.

When record labels hold listening sessions for upcoming albums, there are usually speeches by marketing VPs and A&R reps that involve statements like "the first single is already impacting modern-rock radio." These speeches are usually given in lavish conference rooms with large oak tables and elaborate light fixtures. Often there are refreshments.

But when RCA previewed five tracks off the Foo Fighters' much-anticipated double album, In Your Honor (due June 14), there was none of the aforementioned hullabaloo. Just two burned CDs and a VHS cassette.

On the cassette was a seven-minute interview with a very tired Dave Grohl. Sitting in the band's guitar-strewn studio, he stretched his legs, scratched his patchy beard and delivered — in very slow, deliberate pauses — a mission statement, as it were. The Foo Fighters have been a band for almost a decade now, he said, and he wasn't quite sure if they had another record in them. Then he started listening to the tunes he and the band had been writing — enough for two whole albums, one of heavier material and one of "mellow" arrangements — and his whole plan changed.

"When someone comes up to you and asks which Led Zeppelin album they should buy, you should say Physical Graffiti," he said. "And, in 20 years, when your kid comes up to you and asks which Foo Fighters album he or she should buy, I want you to say In Your Honor."

A lofty goal, to say the least, which is probably why Grohl and the rest of the Foos come out reaching for the heavens from minute one of In Your Honor. The opener, from which the album takes its name, kicks in with a huge wall of guitar drones that escalates to a bowel-shaking crescendo while Grohl howls, "Can you hear me?/ Hear me screaming?"

The guitars are positively gigantic, the feedback nearly disorienting, but the whole thing is held together by Taylor Hawkins' massive, machine-gunning drum work. As the song piles on the sonics, Grohl is left yelping, "In your honor/ I will die tonight," and the tune comes crashing to an echoed conclusion ... only to be revived a split second later as a chugging guitar-and-drums freakout that proves Grohl learned a thing or three from his collaborations with Mötorhead's Lemmy Kilmister.

In stark contrast to the album's opening number is the first single, "Best of You," which is closely reminiscent of the Foo milestone "Everlong" (from 1997's The Colour and the Shape.) There are the churning guitars that bassist Nate Mendel imported from Sunny Day Real Estate, and Grohl delivers his lines like the famously late lead singer of some other band he used to be in. But again, the real star is Hawkins, who drums heavy and sloppy in all the right ways, holding things together and letting the colors run when necessary. While not as hard-hitting and precise as Grohl, he's at least become a reasonable facsimile of him.

"Resolve" is the softest number on Honor's heavy disc, with "Strawberry Fields" guitars, washes of chimes and some pretty vocal harmonization thrown in for good measure. It's a ballad, to be sure, but there's also muscular power chords to give it some added oomph. It serves as a nice bridge between the meaty first disc and the mellow second, which features the album's much-discussed guest stars.

Norah Jones lends her breezy vocals to Honor's most pleasant surprise: the jazzy "Virginia Moon." Over a shuffling guitar/drum rhythm straight out of Brazilian legend João Gilberto's playbook, Jones and Grohl coo lines like "Secret fascination/ Whisper a quiet tune" and "Hear me calling you." There's also an impressive, nearly bolero guitar solo thrown in for good measure. It's a tune that carefully treads the line between cheese-ball exotica and really good bossa nova.

That's opposed to the love-is-awesome ballad "Miracle," which features Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones on piano. Maybe the rest of the Foos were too in awe of JPJ to lend him any support, but on "Miracle" — which features Grohl singing, "I got my hands on a miracle/ And there ain't no way I'll let you take it away" — there's little more than lightly strummed guitars and string flourishes, and the tune as a whole fails to cover any new ground.

But that's what happens when you go for grandeur. On any double album, there's bound to be a clunker or two. With In Your Honor, Foo Fighters are clearly reaching for the stars ... or at least looking to ride Zeppelin's mystic coattails. As is the case with such epic pursuits, you're going to fall on your face from time to time. The real achievement here is that the Foos manage to look so good while looking they're dusting themselves off.

IT'LL MAKE YOUR HEAD SPIN

Morgan Creek Productions to unspool Paul Schrader's take on the prequel to the The Exorcist on May 20 in limited release, according to Variety. Schrader was fired after shooting the movie and replaced by Renny Harlin, whose version hit theaters last August, grossing about $80 million worldwide.

Last Stop for MGM: 'Amityville'

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The historic and no longer independent MGM will take a final bow this weekend without any direct competition in the marketplace.

Friday (April 15) marks the debut of the remake "The Amityville Horror," the last wide release to be managed solely by MGM's distribution team and the first MGM-produced film to count as part of Sony Pictures' market share as Sony takes over distribution of MGM titles. The film also is a co-production with Miramax's Dimension Films.

Based on the best-seller by Jay Anson, the remake from director Andrew Douglas follows the Lutz family, who move into their dream home only to find that demonic forces reside there too. Screenwriter Scott Kosar also wrote 2003's "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre," the film "Amityville" is most closely modeling itself on as it aims for opening-weekend grosses.

But while "Chainsaw" opened to $28 million before going on to earn $80 million, industry insiders believe the R-rated "Amityville" should scare up closer to $20 million, though it might climb into the mid-$20 million range. Like "Chainsaw," this "Amityville" comes from Michael Bay's Platinum Dunes, which produced along with Ted Field's Radar Pictures. Commercial and music video director Douglas is making his feature film debut.

The 1979 original, starring James Brolin and Margot Kidder, opened to $7.8 million on 748 screens before grossing $86 million. The remake features up-and-coming actors Ryan Reynolds ("Blade: Trinity") and Melissa George ("Down With Love," "Mulholland Drive"). It will bow in 3,323 theaters and should easily take hold of the No. 1 spot.

LIMITED OFFERINGS

The other films opening this weekend are all in limited release.

Lions Gate will bow two films this frame. "State Property 2," from rap impresario Damon Dash, is an R-rated film revolving around three gangsters who vie for control of the streets of Philadelphia. Dash directs and stars in the film, which will bow in 202 theaters. The original, released in 2002, made $2 million.

The company's other release is David Duchovny's directorial debut, "House of D." The film, which was screened at ShoWest and last year's Tribeca Film Festival, opens on two screens in Los Angeles and New York. Starring Duchovny, wife Tea Leoni and Robin Williams, "House of D" centers on Duchovny's character, who is seen in flashback as a teenager and begins working through problems stemming from his past.

Subversive director Todd Solondz ("Welcome to the Dollhouse," "Storytelling") is back with his fourth film, "Palindromes," and is likely to polarize audiences again. This time around, Solondz tells the story of 12-year-old Aviva, played by a handful of actresses, who runs away from home after her parents force her to have an abortion and ends up in the hands of several abusers. The unrated film, from Wellspring Media, bowed Wednesday in New York. Jennifer Jason Leigh and Ellen Barkin co-star.

Fine Line Features also will bow one of its last films, the documentary "The Year of the Yao," before it is swallowed up by the newly formed company run by Bob Berney and featuring the production assets of HBO and New Line/Fine Line. The uplifting story follows a year in the life of Yao Ming, the basketball star who left China and his career with the Shanghai Sharks to become the first pick in the 2002 NBA draft. The PG-rated documentary from directors Adam Del Deo and James D. Stern opens Friday on 12 screens.

Freestyle Releasing will bow "Down and Derby" Friday on 58 screens. The film, from director Eric Hendershot, centers on Phil Davis (Greg Germann), your average dad-next-door, who becomes obsessed with his son's Pinewood Derby competition. Lauren Holly and Pat Morita co-star in one of Freestyle's first releases as a distributor.

AC/DC working on new album

AC/DC brothers Angus and Malcolm Young are currently hunkered down in a U.K. studio working on the band's brand new studio album, Launch Radio reports.

The Aussie rockers have amassed so much material that the new as-yet-untitled effort may turn into a double album.

"I think, and I might be speaking out of turn, but I think they're doing a double, with the amount of songs, singer Brian Johnson told Launch. "I've been over a couple of times with the boys and added ideas on 46 tunes we had, and they've been working since then."

There is no scheduled release date as yet, but the band plan to tour in support of the disc when it comes out.

Backstreet's 'Never Gone' Due In June

As U.S. pop radio stations begin to embrace the Backstreet Boys single "Incomplete," Jive Records has set June 14 as the release date for the vocal group's fourth studio album, "Never Gone."

The new album features the writing and production talents of Five For Fighting's John Ondrasik, Savage Garden's Darren Hayes, Max Martin (Kelly Clarkson), Billy Mann (Pink, Sting), Dan Muckala (Jump5, the Afters) and John Fields (Switchfoot), as well as John Shanks, who in February won the Grammy award for producer of the year for his work on releases by Sheryl Crow, Clarkson, Hilary Duff and Ashlee Simpson.

The album's title track was co-written by Backstreet member Kevin Richardson as a tribute to his father. The cut was produced by Mark Taylor, whose resume includes work with Britney Spears, Cher, and Celine Dion. He also contributed to "Now or Never," 2002 the Jive solo album released by Backstreet's Nick Carter.

"Incomplete" is off to a strong start in its first week at U.S. radio outlets. The track debuts this week at No. 55 on Billboard's Hot 100, and jumps 90-27 on the Pop 100 thanks to the infusion of digital sales. On Billboard's Hot Digital Songs list, it opens at No. 30.

A video for "Incomplete" was recently shot with director Joseph Kahn, who was behind the lens for U2's "Elevation" and Britney Spears' "Toxic" clips. Fans will get a first peek at it April 25 online via AOL Music's "First View" program.

The Backstreet Boys are nearing the end of a club and theater tour that plays Atlanta tomorrow (April 14) and will wrap April 18 in Norfolk, Va. Details of a summer tour due to launch in mid-July and play larger venues have not yet been released.

Prior to that run, expect to see the group on television quite a bit, with performances lined up on NBC's "Today" (June 10), the syndicated "Live With Regis & Kelly (June 14), NBC's "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno (June 16) and "The CBS Early Show" (June 17).

Hollywood could use a hero at the box office right now.

More than a month before the arrival of juggernaut summer movies —Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith (May 19), War of the Worlds (June 29) — the film industry finds itself in the worst ticket sales slump in nearly five years.

Domestic ticket sales stand at$2.1 billion for 2005, about 4% behind last year's revenue, according to industry tracker Nielsen EDI. More troubling: Sales lagged last year's pace for the seventh straight weekend, the longest losing streak since an 11-week drought starting in July 2000.

And with ticket prices expected to rise to an average of $6.40 this year, the attendance drop is even more dramatic.

Studio executives point to a lack of Passion to account for the slump.

"We're down because we had The Passion of the Christ last year," says Rob Friedman, vice chairman of Paramount Pictures. "When you lose a movie that made nearly $400 million, your numbers are going to be a little off."

But other analysts say the absence of the film is just part of the problem.

"Ticket sales have hit a flat economic period," says Dan Ramer, editor of dvdfile.com, which examines box-office and home video trends. "Part of that may be due to more people purchasing DVD players and installing home theaters. But clearly a contributing factor is also the product, the films themselves."

The weakness is showing with small films in particular. Last weekend, for instance, 13 films took in more than $1 million. The same time last year, 18 films crossed that mark, EDI says.

"There just isn't the depth we had last year," says Paul Dergarabedian of box office tracker Exhibitor Relations. "People aren't responding yet to what Hollywood has to offer. The pressure is really building for the summer."

John Fithian, president of the National Association of Theatre Owners, says exhibitors are feeling the pinch and waiting for an unexpected hit such as Passion or National Treasure. "Every year you get a surprise movie or two that's stronger than anyone thought," he says. "We haven't had that surprise yet."

A few films have eclipsed expectations. Hitch has raked in more than $173 million and is the year's biggest film. The Pacifier became a surprise $100 million movie last weekend.

But executives concede that the summer, which typically accounts for 40% of movie sales, will have to be especially strong if box office is to rebound.

"It's as crowded a summer schedule as I can remember," says Chuck Viane, Disney's head of distribution. Disney's "summer" starts April 29 with The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. "If we can deliver then — and I believe the entire summer has a lot of potential — I think we're going to be fine."

Sole survivor of Ulong: 'I will not give up'

Can one person make a tribe? Survivor: Palau, the 10th season of CBS' hit reality show, is about to find out.

In the middle of an unprecedented turn of events, one of the two tribes battling for survival, the Ulong, is down to its final member.

Week after week, the humiliated Ulongs have lost a physical or mental contest, forcing them to vote one member after another off the South Pacific island. After 21 days and an original team of nine, Ulong has only a solo representative: athletic underdog Stephenie LaGrossa, 25, a pharmaceutical sales rep from Philadelphia.

Meanwhile, the eight members of rival Koror sit happily gorging on shark, enjoying their comparatively luxurious shelter (they won it after a bathroom-building reward challenge) and not worrying about drinking water (they won a 55-gallon drum's worth along with Crest toothpaste, Scope mouthwash and Pantene shampoo).

"The cliffhanger to last week — what you are going to see for the first time ever — is one person returning to camp alone," Survivor host Jeff Probst says of tonight's episode. "Stephenie doesn't have anybody to help her. If she can't find food longer than a day, she's in trouble."

"I'm so scared," LaGrossa said in last week's previews for the show (8 ET/PT) titled "I Will Not Give Up."

In responding to criticism that the show was getting too predictable, Survivor's producers decided from the start that the tribes would not merge at the point they have in the past, Probst says. That led to the lone-camper situation.

Bobby Jon Drinkard, 27, a waiter from Troy, Ala., and the last Ulong to be booted, says he expected the tribes to combine on Day 12. "Instead, " he says, it became "a pity party."

He adds: "You know conditions are going to be hard, but they're a lot harder than you imagine. Day 1, you think how grateful you are to get the chance to be on the show. But by Day 2 or 3, you're thinking, 'Why did I do this?' "

Probst, who won't confirm that a merge takes place tonight, says, "The risk if you don't merge is that one tribe decimates the other, and you have this horrible situation, and that's exactly what happened. What we anticipated as being a disaster turned into one of the greatest dramas we've had."

Among other "firsts" this season:

• The game started with 20 contestants instead of the usual 16 or 18. Two were eliminated as the tribes were formed.

• The contestants received no information or tools to start.

• The challenges have been more physical, many testing underwater stamina.

Survivor: Palau is consistently a top 10 show, with an average 21 million viewers. At least one person is voted off each week; the lone survivor wins $1 million. The finale airs May 15.

Black Eyed Peas Mean 'Business' On New Album

R&B outfit the Black Eyed Peas have set a June 7 release for their next Interscope album, "Monkey Business." The 14-track set sports guest appearances by Justin Timberlake on "My Style," funk legend James Brown on "They Don't Want Music" and singer/songwriter Jack Johnson on "Gone Going Gone."

First single "Don't Phunk With My Heart" can be streamed on the group's official Web site, which is also hosting a video for the track.

"Monkey Business" is the follow-up to BEP's 2003 breakthrough, "Elephunk," which has sold more than 2.57 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The single "Let's Get It Started" reached 11 different Billboard charts, peaking at No. 4 on Billboard's Mainstream Top 40 chart, while “Where Is the Love?” featuring Timberlake peaked at No. 8 on the Hot 100.

The Peas have begun confirming promotional appearances in support of the release, starting May 14 at Los Angeles radio station KIIS-FM's annual Wango Tango concert in Anaheim, Calif.

The group will also perform June 3 as part of the summer concert series on NBC's “Today,” June 6 on CBS' "The Late Show With David Letterman" and on the new album's release date on the syndicated "Live With Regis and Kelly."

Here is the track list for "Monkey Business":

"Pump It"
"Don't Phunk With My Heart"
"My Style" (featuring Justin Timberlake)
"Don't Lie"
"My Humps"
"Dum Diddley"
"Feel It"
"Gone Going Gone" (featuring Jack Johnson)
"They Don't Want Music" (featuring James Brown)
"Disco Club"
"Union"
"Bebot"
"Bump Ba Bump"
"Audio Delite"

Here are the Black Eyed Peas' tour dates:

May 14: Anaheim, Calif. (Angel Stadium; KIIS-FM Wango Tango)
June 11: Atlanta (Music Midtown Festival)
June 12: Tampa, Fla. (USF Sun Dome)
July 2: St. Louis (Fair St. Louis)
July 24: Seattle (Summer Nights @ South Lake Union)

The Couch Potato Report - April 13th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features three films that are hard to watch, but for different reasons.

In 1960, in between shows and parties in Las Vegas, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and the rest of The Rat Pack made a heist movie called OCEAN'S 11.

When viewed today, it isn't a great movie, but it does serve as a time capsule that allows us to look back on a great old era of entertainment.

In 2001 Hollywood heavyweights George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and Julia Roberts starred in a remake of OCEAN'S 11 that was directed by Oscar winner Steven Soderbergh.

The remake is an enjoyable romp that has a lot of wit and quick, funny dialogue. It is entertaining from beginning to end.

On the other hand, the sequel to the remake is anything but entertaining.

Sure Clooney, Pitt, Damon and Roberts all reprise their roles, Soderbergh is back behind the camera, Catherine Zeta- Jones joins the cast, and the heist that they are working on this time does have it's moments, but OCEAN'S TWELVE just isn't any fun. The first one was fun and I wanted more fun!

I expected more fun!!

Yet, perhaps it is my own fault that I didn't enjoy watching OCEAN'S TWELVE. Perhaps my expectations were too high and thus the film was doomed in my eyes before it even started.

Well, if it is my fault, I have to share the blame with Clooney, Pitt, Damon, Roberts, Zeta-Jones, Soderbergh and everyone else involved with OCEAN'S TWELVE.

Even if I had expectations that the film would be entertaining, the filmmakers have to share the blame in the end, because the film is just not entertaining.

What it is is a film that takes place three years after the last picture.

Robbed casino tycoon Terry Benedict finds each member of the 11 individually and tells them they have two weeks to get his money back with interest.

As they are now well known due to the heist in the first picture, Clooney and Pitt's characters realize they have to go to Europe for a heist with enough money to meets Benedict's needs.

But it isn't just this new heist that will get them the needed cash, it is the side bet they make with another thief. A thief who is reported to be the best in the world.

So both Ocean's 11 and the other thief set out to steal the same thing in the same week.

The person who becomes Ocean's twelfth joins them along the way, but I'm not going to tell you who it is.

That part of the film I did like.

OCEAN'S TWELVE isn't a bad movie, but due to the fact that the remake of OCEAN'S 11 was such a great movie, it suffers a great deal by comparison.

And it isn't any fun. The first one was fun and I wanted more fun!

Thus, I can't recommend it, but if you liked the original film with Clooney's cast, then you might enjoy it.

Just lower your expectations. A lot.

The lack of fun in OCEAN'S TWELVE made the movie difficult for me to watch.

The subject matter of this week's other two new films is what makes them difficult to watch, no matter what the quality of the movies themselves are.

The first of those two films is HOTEL RWANDA.

This is a difficult film to speak about because the intentions of the filmmakers to get this story in the public consciousness are to be applauded.

After all, those who forget history are condemned to repeat it.

What makes HOTEL RWANDA difficult to watch is that true story that still needs to be told, just so we don't ever forget.

In 1994 Rwanda a million people were slaughtered in a genocidal clash between tribal Hutus and the horrified Tutsis.

Don Cheadle plays a real-life hotel manager in the Rwandan capital who saved 1,200 "guests" from certain death.

Unfortunately HOTEL RWANDA isn't a great movie. The intentions may be well placed, but the movie isn't well made. Cheadle's performance gave him a well-deserved Oscar nomination, but I never once felt sorrow for the characters in the movie.

I just kept think about all of those poor Rwandans that were killed in real life.

That made it difficult to watch, but it was a story I needed to see.

HOTEL RWANDA is not a great movie but it's story is an important one that we all need to be aware of, so we never forget.

And if enough people see HOTEL RWANDA and wonder why the Western world didn't do anything in 1994, then maybe the ongoing genocide in the Sudan can be stopped.

There is currently a ceasefire in that ongoing crisis, but thus far, more than two million people have fled their homes and more than 330,000 people are estimated to have been killed.

Those who forget history are condemned to repeat it.

The final film I have for you this week is THE WOODSMAN.

Kevin Bacon gives a superb performance as Walter, a man who returns to his home town after completing a twelve year prison sentence.

Walter just wants to start over but he is a pedophile and his crimes cast a shadow on his new life and threatens to consume him once again.

Not many mainstream Hollywood actors would dare to play a character like this, but Bacon did and his acting is exceptional.

Now I won't lie to you, this film is not easy to watch. In fact, I was more than uncomfortable on several occasions.

But even with its difficult subject matter, THE WOODSMAN is a movie you should see if you like good acting and great writing.

I didn't and don't like the movie's subject matter, but I liked the movie. Not enough to ever watch it again, but I don't regret seeing it.

It is a difficult week for movie watching, but if you are up for it, THE WOODSMAN, HOTEL RWANDA and OCEANS TWELVE and THE WOODSMAN are all available now on video and DVD.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

The sequel to the hit film MEET THE PARENTS is called MEET THE FOCKERS. Robert DeNiro, his wife and daughter travel to meet bumbling Ben Stiller family, who are played with love and energy by Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand.

In the superb HOUSE OF THE FLYING DAGGERS a Chinese warrior attempts to infiltrate rebel a rebel force.

And Nicole Kidman stars in BIRTH, an interesting, if failed picture about a young boy who claims to be the reincarnated husband of a widow.

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on BIRTH, HOUSE OF THE FLYING DAGGERS, MEET THE FOCKERS, and some other releases in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

'Alias' duo still pals after break-up

HOLLYWOOD -- Michael Vartan insists a friendly atmosphere pervades the set of his hit TV show Alias.

On this spy-vs-spy adventure, Vartan plays the love interest of Jennifer Garner, the show's sexy star.

For several months in 2003, Vartan, 36, and Garner, 32, were also lovers off screen.

Garner dumped Scott Foley, her husband of three years, for Vartan who'd been her Alias co-star for three seasons.

Shortly after the couple become public with their affair, Garner began filming her Daredevil sequel Elektra in Vancouver.

Ben Affleck -- who'd played the blind superhero in Daredevil -- flew in to film a guest spot in Elektra.

Garner and Affleck rekindled an attraction that had been rumoured on Daredevil and Vartan found himself playing third-wheel on a bicycle built for two. Understandably people worried the break-up would effect the chemistry Garner and Vartan enjoyed for four seasons on Alias.

"It's not awkward. It wasn't for a second," says Vartan.

"Jennifer and I were best friends for three years before our little whatever-it-was happened. We're still best friends."

He feels it is other people who are turning the brief relationship into an issue.

"It's so not anything. Even if it was, Jennifer and I are professional actors. We would never let it impact the show."

He concludes by observing "there was not enough intensity in that relationship for it ever to be awkward."

Now in its fourth season, Alias -- which airs tonight at 10 p.m. on ABC -- is enjoying its biggest viewership.

"Being positioned behind Lost has definitely impacted our ratings," he says of the top-rated drama about survivors stranded on a mysterious island.

"We've been picked up for a fifth season on the strength of our new ratings so we're finally a hit after three years of struggling to get viewership to match our reviews."

Vartan says he has been contracted for six seasons and Garner for seven. "Though they gave us another season there were no negotiations for raises. The producers felt they'd like to see if we can keep up the momentum before they start talking more money."

He points out the producers "are in a no-lose situation. We've already filmed 88 episodes and they've sold the syndication rights. They don't really need us."

Alias will wrap up filming its fourth season in early May and will not begin filming season five until late July, so Vartan is looking around for a summer job. During his hiatus last year, he filmed the comedy Monster-in-Law with Jane Fonda and Jennifer Lopez.

"If I don't nail down a movie this summer I won't panic because unemployment is not exactly imminent."

Terry Fox book a profile in courage

It's a Canadian uniform as sacred as any battle-scarred Canadiens or Maple Leafs jersey: Terry Fox's familiar white T-shirt and grey running shorts.

In his new book Terry, author Douglas Coupland tells the story of Fox's mom Betty taking her son's brittle and aged shorts and shirt out of storage so they could be photographed.

In doing so, some of the red lettering on the T-shirt flaked off and landed on her carpet.

Anyone else would have been aghast. Not Betty Fox.

"It's 25 years later and that kid is still messing up my living room," she cracked.

The impact of Terry Fox's brief life continues to be felt, in more positive if less humorous ways. His Marathon of Hope remains a signal event in Canadian history which created a new kind of hero.

He didn't score a big goal, shoot down a World World I flying ace or pirouette behind the Queen's back. He merely captured the imagination of an entire nation and mobilized millions in the war against cancer.

His goal was to raise $24 million -- a dollar for each of Canada's citizens at the time -- for cancer research. Fundraising through all the years since has reached over $360 million as millions take to the streets each spring to keep the Marathon of Hope rolling.

Coupland, best known for his 1991 work Generation X and, like Fox, a child of the Left Coast, profiles the best of Canada's Boomers in this lovingly assembled album. He points out that cross-country fundraising expeditions today go largely unnoticed and unacclaimed. But the scope and scale of Fox's achievement remains breathtaking, cash tallies and charisma aside.

It began with two friends and a borrowed van -- no cellphones, no fax machines, no media strategy. Just a map and a long red line.

Those of us who have run marathons know the months of training, and the period of recovery, that go into the supreme effort of running 26 miles - once. In today's extreme-sports-mad world, supermarathoners may run 400 miles or more.

Fox ran the equivalent of a marathon a day - for 143 days -- with one leg! All the while meeting thousands of us, delivering speeches and giving hundreds of media interviews.

His familiar hopping gait, using a fairly primitive prosthetic limb, proved slow torture for his body.

"Nobody -- nobody in recorded history -- had ever run this many consecutive marathons, so there were no examples to learn from," Coupland writes.

"Terry had shin splints, he lost many of his toenails, his knee was inflamed, his stump was endlessly bruised and chafed and developed many cysts."

In an early personal diary entry of his marathon reproduced here, Fox betrays alarm -- and courage -- when he records an episode of dizziness on the 15th day of his journey on the road in Newfoundland.

"I was feeling pretty good and the first 2-and-3/4 miles went quite nicely then all of a sudden I was seeing 8 pictures of everything. I was dizzy and lightheaded but I made it to the van. It was a frightening experience," he wrote. "I told myself it is to (sic) late to give up. I would keep going no matter what happened. If I died, I would die happy because I was doing what I wanted to do. How many people could or can say that?"

Deciphering Fox's handwriting is one of the thrills of this interesting collection of ephemera. The book is also illustrated with a number of intimate family pictures - some never-before published --- including some of those grainy, out-of-focus, round-cornered ones we all used to take with cheap 110 cameras back in the '70s.

In these pictures Fox looks like anyone's brother, mugging or moody, a kid with endless possibilities. Coupland writes about a boy who had to try harder to fulfil his dreams of making the soccer and basketball team, who had the focus and determination to make it happen.

The book is also about us, the people he met on his journey and those he continues to touch. Homely cartoon drawings from kids, and well-wishes from their parents, are sprinkled throughout.

Coupland says he was staggered by the collection of get-well cards he encountered while sifting through the Marathon of Hope archives in Vancouver. When Fox suffered his relapse, putting an end to his cross-country quest on a highway in Northern Ontario, the outpouring of support swamped his local post office and it kept coming from Canadians who very badly wanted him to know he mattered to them.

Terry resembles Coupland's earlier Souvenir Of Canada projects, which pulled together an eclectic mix of True North images ranging from stamps and stubbies to the contents of his mom's pantry.

Some of the choices here are equally odd -- a picture of the hi-tech space station Canadarm is packaged together with Fox's decidedly lo-tech prosthetic leg. To illustrate the recollection of Fox's 1976 car accident, a smashed model of a Ford Cortina is offered -- along with a cutline confessing Fox's mishap didn't look as serious.

But the fender-bender that November day in Port Coquitlam just might have changed his destiny. Fox seemed lucky to walk away from the crash with just a sore right knee, but the pain persisted and months later X-rays detected shadows that turned out to be an osteosarcoma.

It's a form of cancer that strikes males between the ages of 10 and 25 during growth-spurt periods, and it's possible the crash may have triggered it.

Today, a young man with Fox's symptoms would likely get to keep his leg and live a long life, thanks to the huge strides made by cancer research over the past 25 years. Terry Fox, as a continuing symbol to inspire fundraising, can take much of the credit for that.

Coupland is donating his royalties to the Terry Fox Foundation to support cancer research.

What's on George W. Bush's iPod?

WASHINGTON - The songs on U.S. President George W. Bush's iPod have been revealed, and two Canadian tunes are among them.

According to a story in Monday's New York Times, Joni Mitchell's (You're So Square) Baby, I Don't Care and Swinging from the Chains of Love by Blackie and the Rodeo Kings are in heavy rotation on Bush's personal MP3 player.

Bush also likes to listen to country artists like Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson and George Jones, the story said. Van Morrison's Brown Eyed Girl is likewise programmed into the Apple iPod, as is John Hiatt's Circle Back.

In all, Bush has a playlist of about 250 songs, a fraction of the device's 10,000-song capacity.

Some of the songs were chosen by Mark MacKinnon, an advisor who accompanies Bush when he exercises on his mountain bike. Bush uses the songs on his iPod to help motivate himself on treks that can be as long as 29 kilometres.

MacKinnon was responsible for including My Sharona, the thumping 1979 hit by new-wave rockers the Knack.

Bush received the iPod as a birthday gift last July from his daughters. His songs are downloaded by personal aide Blake Gottesman, who purchases them from the iTunes online music store.

"What we're talking about is a lot of great artists from the '60s and '70s and more modern artists who sound like great artists from the '60s and '70s," Joe Levy, a Rolling Stone editor, told the Times.

"This is basically boomer rock 'n' roll and more recent music out of Nashville made for boomers. It's safe, it's reliable, it's loving. What I mean to say is it's feel-good music. The Sex Pistols it's not."

One selection, John Fogerty's Centerfield, has raised some eyebrows – but not because of its lyrics. Fogerty was one of the artists who participated in last year's Vote for Change tour, which was aimed at removing Bush from the White House.

However, "if any president limited his music selection to pro-establishment musicians, it would be a pretty slim collection," MacKinnon pointed out.

MacKinnon also said that, even though iPods are often considered indicators of an individual's identity, not much should be read into the President's music choices.

"No one should psychoanalyze the song selection," MacKinnon said. "It's music to get over the next hill."

'Sopranos' Set to Resume Filming

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) Ask any true "Sopranos" fan and they'll be able to tell you that the last episode of their favorite mob drama aired back on June 6, 2004. It's a drought that hasn't gotten any easier to bear as it approaches the one-year point. Fortunately, relief is on the way. In a call with reporters on Tuesday (April 12), "Sopranos" co-star Michael Imperioli revealed that production on the show's sixth season is set to begin on Friday, April 29.

Before he returns to his Emmy-winning role as Christopher Moltisanti on the HBO drama, Imperioli is squeezing in a four-episode arc on NBC's "Law & Order," filling in for Jesse L. Martin as Nick Falco, a young detective partnered with Dennis Farina's Joe Fontana. Imperioli's first "L&O" appearance is scheduled for two days before lensing starts on "The Sopranos."

Unfortunately for rabid "Sopranos" aficionados, Imperioli only knows what day he'll be reporting for duty. He hasn't seen a single script and he doesn't know when new episodes will premiere, though he hazards a guess of either January or March of next year. All information about the fate of Johnny Sack or blowback from the Adriana's death remains locked in creator David Chase's head, at least for the time being.

Imperioli says that while he's looking forward to rejoining the cast, he's never gotten antsy during the show's extra-long hiatus.

"For me, the idea that we're going back is enough security," he notes. "It's a luxury to have a sure thing in this business and have so much time in between to do other things. I knew it was coming back, so I knew I had time to do other stuff, like 'Law & Order.'"

Given that Chase only decided to extend "The Sopranos" to six seasons after deciding he was juggling too many storylines to do justice to all of them in the fifth season, the show's admirers are resigned to the idea that the end is approaching. Although Chase has been pretty adamant about ending "The Sopranos" after its next limited run, Imperioli remains a tiny bit skeptical that it's about to be over.

"He said that about the fifth season as well," he says. "They were saying the sixth would be the last and then I heard, a month ago, that we're gonna do a seventh. Then I heard we're not gonna do a seventh. I don't really know what's happening to be honest... Until I heard it out of his mouth as an official statement, I don't know."

It certainly sounds as if Imperioli would be open to the idea of doing a seventh season, provided his character can avoid getting clipped and Chase can keep thinking of plot twists.

"He's the one who comes up with storylines and has the end in sight and see how much space there is between now and then," he says. "Would I like it to go on? Yeah. As long as the stories are good, I could do it for another few years."

In addition to his acting duties, Imperioli has been a steady contributor to the show's writing team. Although he has yet to receive a scripting assignment for the year to come, he's pretty sure he has some idea of how things are going to conclude.

"I've always thought the story's going to end tragically -- for all of us," says Imperioli. "I don't think it's gonna be pretty."

White Stripes Feeling Devilish On New Album

The White Stripes have christened their new album "Get Behind Me Satan." As previously reported, the 13-track set will be released June 7 via Third Man/V2, and will be preceded by first single and album opener "Blue Orchid." The album will be premiered for media outlets tomorrow (April 13) in New York.

Guitarist/vocalist Jack White wrote, produced and mixed each track on "Get Behind Me Satan," which was recorded at his Third Man studios in Detroit. A spokesperson says all the tracks were written on acoustic guitar, piano and marimba.

A handful of spring White Stripes shows are confirmed, including a three-date run in Mexico beginning May 11 in Monterrey, and a June 10 visit to Atlanta's Music Midtown festival. Also newly added is a June 24 appearance at the U.K.'s Glastonbury festival. A more extensive North American tour will begin "at a later date."

Here is the track list for "Get Behind Me Satan":

"Blue Orchid"
"The Nurse"
"My Doorbell"
"Forever for Her (Is Over for Me)"
"Little Ghost"
"The Denial Twist"
"White Moon"
"Instinct Blues"
"Passive Manipulation"
"Take, Take, Take"
"As Ugly As I Seem"
"Red Rain"
"I'm Lonely (But I Ain't That Lonely Yet)"

TV's bubble troubles

It's not the first time a much-praised series has struggled to find a mass audience. But it's why Arrested is one of 19 shows hovering "on the bubble" between renewal and cancellation in USA TODAY's eighth annual Save Our Shows survey, even as its own network is lobbying to save it.

A new Web site, www.getarrested.com, urges viewers to aid its return by circulating "pledges" to watch Sunday's season finale (Fox, 8:30 p.m. ET/PT).

Fox has "always been pulling for us," says creator Mitchell Hurwitz. But "everything on this show has always been such a long shot. That's why I'm not too panicked. It's just been the karma of the show."

While Arrested has had two seasons to prove itself, other iffy series this year have had far less time to gain traction in their quest for renewal.

ABC's Grey's Anatomy is an exception — an instant hit that virtually guaranteed a second season with its strong premiere. But futures of ABC's Eyes, Fox's Life on a Stick and NBC's The Office are less certain.

In an effort to avoid crowded rollouts, networks increasingly are staggering their premieres. This season, that has meant several dramas and sitcoms started in late March and April, sometimes in time slots that once would have gone to short-run reality shows.

These newcomers have just a few weeks to prove their mettle before networks decide their fate when they unveil their fall lineups to advertisers in mid-May.

Some shows are too new to make the list. Fran Drescher's sitcom Living with Fran premiered on WB just Friday, and Wednesday night brings two more late starters: NBC thriller Revelations (9 p.m. ET/PT) and Pamela Anderson's sitcom Stacked (Fox, 8:30 p.m. ET/PT). Fox's animated Family Guy and American Dad return May 1.

"It's tough to get a bead on how these shows are really performing because a number of them are coming on opposite repeats," says Magna Global USA analyst Steve Sternberg. "It makes it more difficult to set (networks') schedules for next season."

Also included on the list are promising series that failed to deliver enough viewers (Joan of Arcadia, Kevin Hill, Jack & Bobby) and aging warhorses that have slipped (Judging Amy, Less than Perfect).

The fantasy is gone

Absent from this year's survey are sci-fi and fantasy series, which reliably draw the biggest fan outcry in the survey; in years past the list included The X-Files, Angel and Roswell.

Star Trek: Enterprise, which cheated death last spring and finished tops in the 2004 survey, has already been canceled.

Last season, CBS accounted for four of 10 new shows that won a second season. This year, ABC has the best record, boasting four of nine renewed to date, including the season's top hits: Desperate Housewives, Lost and Grey's Anatomy.

Network programmers consider several factors when weighing the fate of shows on the bubble.

Business concerns. Foremost is ratings progress — is the show steady or slowly building an audience, or do more viewers flee each week? Profit is also a big consideration: Do ad revenues more than offset the show's price tag?

•Subjective factors. A show is helped if it fits a network's "brand" or reflects a new direction. Among questions asked by NBC Entertainment president Kevin Reilly: "Does it pull the right audience? Does it have critical support or buzz? Where's the show in its life cycle: Does it have years of growth ahead of it, or is it waning?"

•Replacement potential. Sometimes shows stick around simply because pilots vying to supplant them aren't very good. "A lot of times what decides the fate of these shows is we need another comedy to put a certain night together," Reilly says. "Or it becomes a marketing challenge: You can't launch 10 new shows, so there's a point where sometimes sticking with a known product is better than launching a new one."

On the other hand, "If they think they have something that's better that can do better in our place, that show will go on," says producer Barbara Hall, whose Joan of Arcadia has plummeted in the ratings after early promise and Emmy nominations last season. (Hall also created Judging Amy.)

•Lobbying. Producers of wavering series often pitch changes in casts, stories or focus in bids to save their show — and their jobs. Though Fox has been "very generous in giving us a post-Simpsons time slot," Hurwitz says he'll appeal for another chance, hoping to be paired with a more specifically adult series.

Fans also make their views known, circulating petitions and e-mails and sending show-specific tokens of support — Tabasco sauce bottles to save WB's Roswell, bananas on behalf of Arrested— aimed at tipping the scales.

Sci-fi fans tend to be unusually obsessive: Backers of Enterprise said they've raised $3 million toward funding another season. But producer Paramount has no plans to revive the series, and such efforts often prove fruitless.

"They're effective only if you're inclined to do it in the first place," as a further testament to rabid support, Reilly says.

Once trigger-happy networks have become more patient with struggling shows that show potential. One Tree Hill appeared DOA last season before blossoming into a WB hit. Reilly is a fan of Committed, a romantic comedy that he thinks could flourish given the right time slot. And WB has shown unusual faith in Jack & Bobby, which has struggled mightily in two tough time slots, averaging 2.3 million viewers — low even by that network's modest standards.

The drama centers on a single mom and two boys, one of whom becomes president, and delves into more thoughtful subject matter than WB's typical teen fare.

"The show wasn't what people expected," says executive producer Greg Berlanti. "It mixes politics and teenagers, and those are two things that don't usually go together."

Still, "the fans we do have are rabid," Berlanti says. "We get fan letters from Harvard Law School."

While this season's final episodes "notch up" subject matter with episodes on abortion, a drunken-driving accident and the introduction of the boys' mysterious father, Berlanti hasn't sold the show's soul in a bid for renewal.

"I don't want it to be a show that changes so much to find an audience that you make the audience you do have angry," Berlanti says. "We're just going to try to do more of what we think we do well."

Britney Spears Says She's Pregnant

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Britney Spears announced on Tuesday that she was pregnant with her first child, ending months of speculation over whether the pop princess was launching a new career as a mother.

Spears, 23, who married dancer Kevin Federline last September in a surprise, private ceremony, made the announcement in a posting to fans on her official Web site.

"The time has finally come to share our wonderful news that we are expecting our first child together. There were reports that I was in the hospital this weekend. Kevin and I just want everyone to know that all is well. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. Love Britney and Kevin," the brief posting said.

No further details were available. The child will be a first for Spears but a third for Federline, who has two young children by his former girlfriend, actress Shar Jackson.

Spears has made no secret of her desire to become a young mother, writing on her Web site last October that she "can't wait to start a family."

Shortly after her wedding to Federline, she announced she was taking a few months off to "just chill" and enjoy married life with her new husband.

But that did not stop celebrity magazines and paparazzi photographers from following her every move, snapping her on the beach and shopping in maternity stores. Some reported that the marriage was already on the rocks.

Spears and Federline were married only eight months after Spears wed a former high school sweetheart in Las Vegas in a spur of the moment arrangement that was quickly annulled.

Spears became a world-wide pop phenomenon in the late 1990s when she shot to fame at the age of 15 with her 1999 debut "...Baby One More Time."

She has since sold more than 60 million albums and became the first female performer in the history of Billboard magazine to have her first three albums open at No.1 on the pop album chart.

She released a greatest hits album last November, launched her own perfume "Curious," but put touring, performances and public appearances on hold after her marriage.

There was no immediate word on how motherhood would affect her future career plans but Spears and Federline recently signed a deal to star in their own television reality series, which will document their courtship and wedding, and now, presumably, her pregnancy.

The first episode of the untitled series is expected to air before the end of May.

...will be here tomorrow.

Sorry, but I haven't seen two of the movies yet!!

Dan

Book gives new insight into Trudeau

Arrogant, shy, charming, rude, kind, thoughtless -- all the contradictory traits of Canada's best-known 20th century prime minister, Pierre Trudeau, show up in this collection of anecdotes by friends and colleagues, edited by Nancy Southam.

A close friend and fellow spiritual seeker, Southam has covered more that 150 reminiscences from Canada and around the world, from journalists, bodyguards, world leaders, girlfriends, canoeing buddies and prime ministerial staff.

While all have their own unique take on Trudeau, whose death in 2000 ignited a brief burst of Trudeamania once again, the consensus is that his great love in life were his children (he never got over the untimely death in an avalanche of his youngest son Michel), that he was a noted tightwad, and that as a politician he was one of a kind.

To economist John Kenneth Galbraith, he was "perhaps the most delightful person I ever met in the world of politics."

To actor Christopher Plummer: "What Glen Gould was to Bach, Trudeau was to Canada."

While he could be abrasive and hostile to people who disagreed with him (he once slugged a man who cursed him in B.C.), to others he was one of the kindest of men. While he could be witty and had a keenly developed sense of irony, to journalists like Jim Ferrabee, who covered him for 14 years, "he had very little sense of humor about himself or anyone else."

Love him or hate him, Trudeau was a one-off, and Southam's book shows him in all his vaunted complexity.

Rolling Stones to tour, possibly for last time

LONDON - The Rolling Stones will embark on a world tour this summer, possibly the group's last.

British newspapers and websites are reporting that the band will hit the road Aug. 21 with a date in Boston in support of an album that will be released in the summer.

Rumours are already swirling that the tour will be a final farewell to fans.

It's expected that the campaign will keep the band on the road for at least a year.

"It's their biggest and best tour," an unnamed source told Britain's Sun tabloid. "People joke about them being wrinkly old blokes, but they are still one of the best groups live."

Both Mick Jagger and lead guitarist Keith Richards are 61 years old. Drummer Charlie Watts is 63 and guitarist Ron Wood is 57.

Many fans expected that the band would not perform live again after the 2002 Forty Licks tour, but – as often happens with the Stones – the reports of the group's demise proved premature.

Indeed, Stones-coming-to-an-end rumours have been around for decades, despite the fact that the band weathered the departure, then death, of original member Brian Jones in 1969 and the retirement of Bill Wyman in 1991.

Among the venues that the Stones will play is the new Wembley Stadium. They will reportedly be the first musicians to take to its stage when it opens in 2006.

Famed producer Don Was has been working with the band on the new album.

"Mick and Keith are writing songs together in a collaborative fashion that probably hasn't been seen since the late '60s," Was told Billboard.com.

"I would say that long-time fans of the Rolling Stones will be thrilled with these results, and new fans will understand why they're the greatest rock 'n' roll band in the world."

Was also reported that drummer Charlie Watts, who had been diagnosed with throat cancer and undergone treatment, was "playing like a lion."

Now known as the elder statesmen of rock, the Rolling Stones were formed in 1961. They are known for hits like (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction, Angie, Brown Sugar and Tumbling Dice.

In 2003, they headlined a benefit for the city of Toronto to help it recover from the SARS crisis.

'Lost' Horizon

A THREE-HOUR TOUR ''Lost'' producers promise more surprises on the finale

New episodes of Lost have been few and far between lately, but ABC will make up for it with the season finale, which will last three hours, and which the network hopes will give the season finale of Fox's American Idol a run for its money. Part 1 of the finale, called ''Exodus,'' will air May 18, and the two-hour ''Exodus Part 2'' will air May 25, opposite the deciding episode of Idol. ''The final two hours is so full of incident and character and shocks and scares and drama, all the things that people love about Lost, that it would have been silly to cut things out,'' Javier Grillo-Marxuach, a Lost writer and supervising producer, tells Sci-Fi Wire. ''So we've got a 25-hour first season! We busted our butts on it, but it's not going to feel like it's been padded. We are very proud of it.''

Grillo-Marxuach says that the original plan was for a two-hour finale, to be split over two weeks, ''and then ABC asked if we could do 90 minutes [the second week] so they could schedule it against American Idol. Carlton [Cuse] and Damon [Lindelof, who co-created the show with J.J. Abrams] did an amazing job on the finale script, and their first draft came in a little long anyway.''

Early rumors about ''Exodus'' had it that one of the castaways would die during the finale. No word on whether these rumors were misdirection meant to leave viewers unprepared for the shocking death of Boone (Ian Somerhalder) on last week's episode, or if the islanders really will have to face another death on May 25.

Thanks in Advance

When it comes to awards shows, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences is on the cutting edge. This year's primetime Emmy show could be a lot shorter, thanks to changes the Academy approved this week. According to the Los Angeles Times, winners in some of the writing, directing, and other non-acting categories won't be taking up a lot of time making their way to the stage and thanking their agents and families. Not because they'll give their speeches from the aisles, as on this year's Oscar show, but because their remarks will be taped in advance. Also, the pre-taped comments will be not so much thank-yous as interviews, with strict time limits.

The move is a compromise meant to streamline the Sept. 18 show without shortchanging (too much) the off-camera talent. An earlier proposal would have shoved aside as many as 14 awards categories to the non-televised Creative Arts Emmys held a few days earlier, but the Writers and Directors Guilds considered that idea not only a snub but a contractual violation. Still, Emmy producers felt they had to pick up the pace or risk losing even more viewers. The Emmy show includes 27 categories, more than any other major awards show, and last year's telecast saw ratings fall 22 percent from 2003. (Other awards shows, including the Oscars, have also seen viewership drop this year.) ''I am confident we have made a giant first step in reshaping an event that will continue to honor excellence but will be much better paced and more compelling and entertaining for the television viewer,'' ATAS chairman Dick Askin said in a statement. Plus, there'll be less worry about winners getting stuck in the bathroom.

'Lost,' 'Housewives' Get Clip-Show Treatment

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) In an effort to re-introduce viewers to its two most talked-about shows -- and to fill what normally would be a rerun slot for both -- ABC is assembling clip-show specials for "Desperate Housewives" and "Lost."

The primary goal of the specials seems to be enticing new viewers by reviewing the ever-deepening mysteries behind the two first-year hits. Press materials for both say they'll bring viewers "up to speed" or "up to date" on what's happened so far.

The network also says "Desperate Housewives: Sorting Out the Dirty Laundry" (Sunday, April 24) and "Lost: The Journey" (Wednesday, April 27), might offer up some fresh insight for fans of the show -- although there won't be much new material in either one. In "Lost's" case particularly, the special will also help fill a four-week gap between new episodes (the next original episode is scheduled for May 4).

The "Housewives" special will look at each central character's story to date and recap some of the central mysteries of the show, including why Mary Alice Young (Brenda Strong, who also narrates the special) killed herself and what Mike Delfino (James Denton) is really doing on Wisteria Lane. It will also offer a preview of the season finale, scheduled for May 22.

"Lost: The Journey" will focus on the back stories of the stranded plane-crash survivors, arranging their stories chronologically to give a glimpse into the events that led them onto the doomed flight. It will also explore the mysterious island that's now their home.

Both specials will air in their respective show's regular time period.

Depeche Mode Recording New Album

Veteran electronic/rock outfit Depeche Mode is in Santa Barbara, Calif., recording the follow-up to 2001's "Exciter." The as-yet-untitled set is due in the fall via Mute internationally and by Reprise/Warner Bros. in North America. It is being co-produced by the band with Ben Hiller (Blur, Elbow, Doves).

"It's a great feeling to be back together in the studio again and we are very excited about the new material," Depeche Mode frontman Dave Gahan says. "We're all feeling incredibly positive about the album. Ben Hillier has brought a whole new dynamic to the group which is quite inspiring."

"Exciter" debuted at No. 2 on the European Top 100 Albums chart, while first single "Dream On" was an instant No. 1 in Germany and Italy. In the U.S., it opened at No. 8 on The Billboard 200 and has moved 421,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Last year, alternate versions of the group's hits were compiled for "Remixes 81-04," which sold more than 1 million copies worldwide, according to Mute. A remix of "Enjoy the Silence" by Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda hit No. 1 in Spain and Denmark and reached the top 10 in Germany and the United Kingdom.

NEW CD RELEASES FOR APRIL 12, 2005

ADULT. D.U.M.E. EP (Thrill Jockey)

Against All Authority/Common Rider Split EP (Hopeless)

American Hi-Fi Hearts on Parade (Warner Bros.)

Architecture in Helsinki In Case We Die (Bar/None)

The Bills Let ‘Em Run (Red House)

Bloc Party Silent Alarm (Dim Mak)

F.S. Blumm Zweite Meer (Morr Music)

Bottom Line Eloquence (Nice Guy)

Gary Burton Next Generation (Concord)

Camaro Hair Far from OK (Death on Vinyl)

Mariah Carey The Emancipation of Mimi (DualDisc same day; w/Kanye West, the Neptunes, Snoop Dogg, Nelly and Twista) (Island Def Jam)

The Dan Band Live (w/cover's of "Total Eclipse of the Heart," "Flashdance" and "Mickey") (SideOneDummy)

Diplomats of Solid Sound Destination...Get Down! (Touch and Go)

Dutch Dub (Nick deWitt of Pretty Girls Make Graves) Dutch Dub (Record Collection)

Emperor X Central Hug/Friendarmy/Fractaldunes (Discos Mariscos)

The Expressions Ike's Moods (Koch)

Friends and Lovers The Songs of Bread (Badman)

Garbage Bleed Like Me (enhanced CD) (Interscope)

Gatsbys American Dream Volcano (Fearless)

Goldie Lookin Chain Straight Outta Newport (Record Collection)

Gruf Hopeless (Peanuts & Corn)

Jeffrey Halford Railbirds (Shoeless)

Harmony Street Doo Wop and More (Collectables)

Collin Herring The Other Side of Kindness (Gravestone Picnic)

Micah P. Hinson And the Gospel of Progress (Touch and Go)

Ryan Holladay New Kid in Town (Skaggs Family)

Isis Oceanic: Remixes/Reinterpretations (two CDs; w/Mike Patton, Justin Broadrick of Godflesh, Venetian Snares and more) (Hydra Head)

Ashley Jade Dreaming (Varèse Sarabande)

K.E.V. Street Trophy (Centerline Music & Entertainment)

Kane Hodder The Pleasure to Remain So Heartless (re-issue of 2004 album w/new artwork) (Fueled by Ramen)

Maktub Say What You Mean (produced by Bob Power) (Velour)

Millencolin Kingwood (Epitaph)

Marcus Miller Silver Rain (Koch)

Mudvayne Lost and Found (Epic)

The National Alligator (Beggars Banquet)

Willie Nelson Songs for Tsunami Relief: Austin to South Asia (DVD same day) (Lost Highway)

No Address Time Doesn't Notice (Atlantic)

Christopher O'Riley (classical pianist) Hold Me to This: Plays Radiohead (solo piano versions of Radiohead rarities) (Harmonia Mundi/World Village)

Of Montreal The Sunlandic Twins (Polyvinyl)

The Old Haunts Fallow Field (Kill Rock Stars)

David Olney Migration (Loudhouse)

Ozone Cocktail Magnetic (Le Maquis/Dreyfus)

David Pack Unborn (Oglio)

Pelican March Into the Sea EP (Hydra Head)

Robert Pollard (ex-Guided by Voices) Zoom EP (limited edition of 1000) (Luna Music)

Amy Ray (of Indigo Girls) Prom (w/members of Luscious Jackson and Team Dresch) (Daemon)

Stacie Rose Shadow & Splendor (w/cover of U2's "New Year's Day") (Enchanted)

The Rosebuds Unwind EP (Merge)

Rova: Orkestra Electric Ascension (Touch and Go)

Shurman Jubilee (Vanguard)

The Sights The Sights (New Line)

Slipknot Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses) Deluxe Edition (two CDs; includes b-sides, live tracks and new artwork) (Roadrunner)

Keely Smith Las Vegas ‘58 - Today - Live at Feinstein's at the Regency (Concord)

So Called The So Called Seder: A Hip Hop Haggadah (Jewish hip-hop/klezmer fusion w/guests Killa Priest, Mr. Bungle's Trevor Dunn and others) (JDub Records)

Starflyer 59 Talking Voice vs. Singing Voice (Tooth & Nail)

Supersystem (formerly El Guapo) Always Never Again (Touch and Go)

Ian Tyson Songs from the Gravel Road (Vanguard)

Martha Wainwright Martha Wainwright (Rounder)

Darrell Webb Behind the Scenes (Lonesome Day)

Wednesday 13 (Murderdolls singer) Transylvania 90210 (Roadrunner)

Victor Wooten (Flecktones bassist) Soul Circus (Vanguard)

The Zincs Dimmer (Thrill Jockey)

VA Gangsta Rap Instrumentals (enhanced CD) (Thump)

VA Life Is Jazz (Le Maquis/Dreyfus)

OST A Lot Like Love (w/songs by the Cure, Third Eye Blind, Smashmouth and more) (Columbia)

OST Queer as Folk - Club Babylon (two CDs) (Tommy Boy)

OST Sprout (surfing documentary; songs by The Shins, Calexico, Tortoise and more) (Warner Bros.)

DVD DIG! (two DVDs; documentary w/the Dandy Warhols and Brian Jonestown Massacre) (Palm Pictures)

DVD Haack: The King of Techno (documentary on pioneering electronic musician Bruce Haack) (Koch)

DVD Howard Hewett Intimate: Greatest Hits Live (2004 concert; bonus features include an acoustic perfomance w/Stanley Clarke and George Duke, plus a conversation w/James Ingram) (Shout! Factory)

DVD Yes Songs from Tsongas: The 35th Anniversary Concert (Image)

Microsoft to Unveil Next Xbox on MTV May 12

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. on Monday said it would unveil the next generation of its Xbox video game console in a May 12 special on music and entertainment cable channel MTV.

The unveiling will be a first, as video game companies usually take the wraps off their new consoles at exclusive industry events like the trade show E3 -- which will be held the following week in Los Angeles.

"I think we need to signal a change that things aren't going to be the same in the next generation," said Peter Moore, corporate vice president in the Xbox division, in an interview. "While it's gaming at its core, there's a much bigger and broader entertainment message that we need to get out there."

Microsoft said the special would also air in Japan the morning of May 13 and across Europe that evening.

The special will include footage of next-generation Xbox games and also online play, Microsoft said. Actor Elijah Wood will host the show, with local hosts for each country.

The company has not set a release date for the Xbox successor or even announced a name, but the new hardware is expected to be released later this year.

Market leader Sony Corp. has said little about the timetable for its next-generation PlayStation console, but there is speculation it will offer details at E3 next month.

Last week Sony advised it would hold its E3 press conference a few hours before Microsoft's, a break with tradition that some saw as a sign Sony wanted to steal Microsoft's anticipated thunder.

Moore said Microsoft has been planning the MTV launch since last year and only found out about the Sony schedule change last week.

Moore said the show will be "live to tape," meaning it will be filmed as though it were a live event, and edited later to add celebrity interviews and the like.

Steele, Remington Steele

Having prevented Pierce Bronson from accepting the role of James Bond in 1987, it is somewhat ironic that 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment is leveraging Brosnan's later Bondian success on the cover of Remington Steele Season One.

"Before he was Bond, he was Remington Steele."

This popular television series launched Brosnan's career and established his unique onscreen persona. Years of sexual tension and bickering between Brosnan's Steele and Stephanie Zimbalist's Laura Holt as they solved crimes - he the con artist, she the licensed private detective - preceded the years of sexual tension and bickering between Cybill Shepherd's Maddie Hayes and Bruce Willis' David Addison as they solved crimes on Moonlighting.

The four discs in this DVD set will be double-sided and contain all 22 episodes (four with commentaries) and three featurettes. Presented in its broadcast aspect ratio of 1.33:1 and Dolby Surround 2.0, expect an SRP of $39.98. It will be released on July 26th.

Rock's Chances of 2006 Oscar Return Diminishing

Chris Rock's fears he won't be asked back to present at next year's Academy Awards have been confirmed by one of the ceremony's bosses. The 40-year-old comedian received mixed reviews for his efforts at the February show, stating afterwards that he'd happily take on duties again, if asked. But while Bruce Davis, executive director of the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences, is thrilled with how Rock handled his chores, he has huge doubts he'll be asking the funnyman back - at least not next year. He says, "I really shouldn't speculate. We have our own list of needs. If we did the Oscars by polls, we'd give the nominations to the top five box-office films." Davis continues, "When you have a new host that strikes some sparks, there is evidence that ratings go up," adding that it is rare for anyone to host for two years in a row. Rock helped TV network ABC attract 41.5 million viewers, which was down two million from 2004, but ratings were up from last year among viewers aged 18 to 34 - those most coveted by advertisers. It is speculated that Billy Crystal, Jay Leno and Ellen DeGeneres are among the favorites to helm March's 78th annual show.

McMahon to write memoir about Johnny Carson

NEW YORK (AP) - Ed McMahon, the longtime sidekick of Tonight Show host Johnny Carson, is writing a memoir, titled, of course, "Here's Johnny!"

"The stories he shares, with Johnny's blessing given before his death, paint a picture of the enigmatic Carson, so cool before the camera, yet genuinely shy and self-effacing," according to a statement issued Wednesday by McMahon's publisher, Rutledge Hill Press.

"McMahon recognized Carson's gift early in their partnership and felt blessed to 'hitch his wagon' to this rising star. These never-before-told stories reveal Carson's talent and comedic timing as well as his nervousness, admitting 'making it look easy is a hell of a strain."'

McMahon's book is scheduled to come out in October.

Carson died in January at age 79.

THINK PINK

“The Pink Panther" is back on the summer sked, set for an Aug. 5 bow.

First dated for July 22, late last year MGM pushed the remake's release back to Sept. 23. Move to return it to summer comes just as MGM's acquisition by Sony closes today.

"We looked at the picture again, and it screened very well," MGM distrib prexy Erik Lomis said. "We saw an opportunity to get it back into the summer where all age groups are available seven days a week, so we took it."

After "The Amityville Horror" bows on April 15, all remaining MGM titles waiting for release, including "Pink Panther," will be distribbed by Sony.

Also on the sked for Aug. 5 are Warner Bros.' "The Dukes of Hazzard," Universal's Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's vidgame adaptation "Doom," and an as-yet-untitled Mike Judge laffer starring Luke Wilson as the smartest man in a stupid future.

Moving out of the way this past week was DreamWorks', which pushed its thriller "Red Eye" back two weeks to Aug. 19. New Line also moved Tony Scott's Keira Knightley thriller "Domino" onto the date and Fox Searchlight announced it would unspool "Supercross" there, making for perhaps the most crowded berth of the summer.

In addition to those three new arrivals to the slot, three other wide releases were already skedded there, including Universal's "The 40 Year-old Virgin," Disney's toon "Valiant" and Sony's horror pic "The Cave." If Miramax's martial arts pic "Zu Warriors" goes out wide, that would mean seven wide releases on the same weekend.

It's a sure bet that some, if not most, of these pics will eventually find other launch pads.

While MGM's "Panther" moved back into the summer, the studio's "Into the Blue" dropped out. Paul Walker treasure-hunting pic was set for July 15 but is now set for release on Sept. 30.

Universal's Hilary Duff starrer "The Perfect Man" moved up from July 22 to June 17. That would set it up as counter programming against Warners' "Batman Begins," which is the only other wide release for that week.

Guest Dumps Mockumentaries

This Is Spinal Tap icon Christopher Guest has disappointed fans by refusing to make any more "mockumentary" movies - because he no longer finds them funny. The actor/director realized he'd made too many comic documentaries when he helped compile Best In Show, the Museum of Modern Art's retrospective of his movies in New York. Guest explains, "I had always intended to do just three movies in that format, and then do something else. I don't think I'll go back to the documentary-style genre. Eugene Levy (his friend and collaborator) and I talked about different possibilities. One was a Western. I'm not trying to make blockbuster movies. I don't know how to. I'm just trying to make movies that are funny for me."

'Sahara' Tops 'Fever Pitch' at Box Office

LOS ANGELES - Matthew McConaughey's "Sahara" heated up the weekend box office, with the action flick set in the African desert debuting at the top with $18.5 million. Audiences gave a cooler reception to "Fever Pitch," the weekend's other new wide release. The Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon baseball romance opened in third place with a so-so $13 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, "Sin City," slipped to second place with $14.1 million, lifting its 10-day total to $50.7 million.

In limited release, Stephen Chow's raucous action comedy "Kung Fu Hustle" had a big opening with $293,025 in seven theaters, averaging a whopping $41,861 per cinema. "Sahara" averaged $5,866 in 3,154 theaters, and "Fever Pitch" reaped $3,979 in 3,267 locations.

Already a hit in Asia, "Kung Fu Hustle" features writer-director Chow as a two-bit crook in pre-revolution China whose antics land him in the middle of a showdown between mobsters and martial-arts heroes. "Kung Fu Hustle" expands to nationwide release April 22.

Hollywood's box-office slump continued as overall revenues remained down for the seventh-straight weekend. The top 12 movies took in $80.3 million, off 18 percent from the same weekend last year.

Revenues for the year have fallen slightly behind those of 2004, when Hollywood rang up record domestic grosses of $9.4 billion.

"Sahara," adapted from Clive Cussler's adventure novel, stars McConaughey, Penelope Cruz and Steve Zahn as adventurers who turn up a long-lost Civil War vessel in the desert and try to stop a plague spreading through Africa.

Distributor Paramount had expected the movie to debut in the $15 million range, said Wayne Lewellen, head of distribution.

"This is a good, solid opening I think for this film," Lewellen said. "It played well particularly in the middle of the country, which always bodes well for it holding up."

"Fever Pitch," directed by the Farrelly brothers from Nick Hornby's memoir about his sports obsession, stars Barrymore as a career woman who stumbles into a relationship with a man whose world revolves around the Boston Red Sox.

"It may have alienated guys with too much romance, and it may have alienated women with too much baseball," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

But women made up 58 percent of the audience for "Fever Pitch." That may bode well for the movie's long-term prospects, since films appealing to women often have a longer shelf life than movies aimed at men.

"These romantic comedies tend to leg out. They play on and on," said Bruce Snyder, head of distribution for 20th Century Fox, which released "Fever Pitch." Barrymore's "Never Been Kissed" had an $11.4 million opening weekend and held on to do a solid $52.4 million when its domestic run ended, he said.

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. "Sahara," $18.5 million.
2. "Sin City," $14.1 million.
3. "Fever Pitch," $13 million.
4 (tie). "Beauty Shop," $7.1 million.
4 (tie). "Guess Who," $7.1 million.
6. "Robots," $4.65 million.
7. "Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous," $4.1 million.
8. "The Pacifier," $3 million.
9. "The Ring 2," $2.9 million.
10. "The Upside of Anger," $2.6 million.

Fats Waller, Nirvana Added to Preservation Registry

WASHINGTON (Billboard) - The Library of Congress is going to give a new set of 50 U.S. sound recordings long-term preservation to make them available to future generations.

The National Recording Registry houses sound recordings considered to be culturally, historically or aesthetically significant. The third annual selection of 50 recordings was announced April 5.

The recordings are chosen because they have become evergreens or helped forge a seminal style, but nonmusical selections like astronaut Neil Armstrong's broadcast from the moon also made the list.

The earliest pick is "Gypsy Love Song" by Eugene Cowles, from 1898. Among the other selections are Fats Waller singing and playing his own "Ain't Misbehavin' "(1929); Glenn Miller's "In the Mood" (1939); Hank Williams' "Lovesick Blues" (1949); the Penguins' doo-wop classic "Earth Angel" (1955); John Coltrane's groundbreaking "Giant Steps" (1959); "The Girl From Ipanema," with Stan Getz, Joao Gilberto, Antonio Carlos Jobim) and Astrud Gilberto (1963); and James Brown's "Live at the Apollo" (1965).

More recent recordings include the Allman Brothers Band's "At Fillmore East," from 1971; the "Star Wars" soundtrack by John Williams, from 1977; and Public Enemy's "Fear of a Black Planet," from 1989.

The registry tagged only one recording from the '90s: Nirvana's "Nevermind" (1991).

Recordings must be 10 years old to qualify. The public and registry panelists make the initial nominations.

During the press conference announcing the recordings, an audio preservationist at the Library of Congress revealed that he has uncovered a major document in jazz history: an album's worth of Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane playing together at a Carnegie Hall concert in 1957.

The two are considered one of the great pairings in modern jazz, but their work together was captured on only a few studio cuts. The long-lost concert was recorded by the Voice of America for its legendary Cold War-era overseas jazz programs hosted by Willis Conover.

Senior engineer and jazz specialist Larry Appelbaum says: "I was just rifling through the box of tapes, and on the spine of one were the words 'Jazz Concert 11/29/57.' I opened it up and saw the name T. Monk on the back. Then I saw the date. Then my heart started pounding."

The tapes will be preserved in transfers to high-resolution digital files stored and backed up on the Library of Congress' IT servers.

The Library of Congress will be custodian of the master. Ownership questions need to be resolved before the recordings can be released.

BOB SQUAD

The Krusty Krab is re-opening for business.

The fourth season of Nickelodeon's "SpongeBob SquarePants" premieres Friday, May 6 - the first time in a year-and-a-half that new episodes will air on a regular basis.

Nickelodeon had been parceling out new episodes sporadically, in part to avoid over-saturation with last fall's big-screen release of "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie."

"They were getting down to the bottom of the vault, and nobody was sure if there were going to be new episodes for a while," says Tom Kenny, who is the voice of SpongeBob.

"It's fun to be back in the saddle and to be doing SpongeBob again," he says. "I always kind of miss him when I don't do him for a while."

The 20 new half-hour episodes, airing every Friday (8:30 p.m.), bring back all the "SpongeBob" regulars: Patrick, Mr. Krabs, Squidward, Sandy Cheeks, Plankton and the rest of the Bikini Bottom gang.

The first episode, "Fear of a Krabby Patty"/"Shell of a Man," finds SpongeBob smack-dab in the middle of two different dilemmas.

In "Fear," the trouble starts when Mr. Krabs decides to keep SpongeBob's beloved workplace, The Krusty Krab, open 24/7 - to one-up Plankton's Chum Bucket across the street (which is open 23 hours a day).

What Mr. Krabs doesn't realize is that it's all a ruse on Plankton's part - he hopes SpongeBob will get so bleary from his long hours working the grill that he'll finally surrender the super-secret Krabby Patty recipe.

In "Shell of a Man," Mr. Krabs, who's packed on a few pounds, molts and loses his shell - just as he's about to attend a reunion of his old service buddies.

Fearing he'll be ridiculed, Krabs sends SpongeBob, who's now wearing Krabs' shell, in his place - and learns a valuable lesson about honesty.

"SpongeBob," which premiered in 1999, has been the top-rated kid's show (broadcast and cable) for the last three years - and has reaped millions in the merchandising arena.

"He's just an unflaggingly positive, high-energy sponge who works very passionately for minimum wage in a fast-food restaurant," Kenny says when asked to describe SpongeBob.

"And he has a circle of friends who are also oddballs and misfits in their own way."

The Wiggles Named Australia's Wealthiest

SYDNEY, Australia - The Wiggles have sung and danced their way to the top of a list of Australia's wealthiest entertainers, edging out Hollywood heavyweights such as Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe.

The four Australian performers topped BRW Magazine's list of Australia's 50 richest performers in 2004 with an estimated gross income of $34.5 million, up from $10.7 million in the previous year.

Kidman almost doubled her earnings and was Australia's second richest performer with $30 million, according to the magazine, which hit newsstands Thursday. She was followed by Crowe, who earned an estimated $20 million in 2004.

BRW managing editor Tony Featherstone said in an editorial that The Wiggles had topped the chart, which is based on the magazine's estimates of their 2004 gross income, thanks to a great product and marketing.

"They got into the market early, they took time to understand their audience, not only children but the parents who pay for everything," he said.

AC/DC were in fourth place, with an estimated income of $14 million.

Cookie Monster has changed on Sesame Street: 'Me eat less cookies'

NEW YORK (AP) - Something must be wrong in the land of Muppets. First PBS announced that Sesame Street would kick off its 35th season this week with a multiyear story arc about healthy habits. No problem there; childhood obesity rates are soaring. Then I learned of changes that turned my Sesame Street world upside-down.

My beloved blue, furry monster - who sang "C is for cookie, that's good enough for me" - is now advocating eating healthy. There's even a new song - A Cookie Is a Sometimes Food, where Cookie Monster learns there are "anytime" foods and "sometimes" foods.

"Sacrilege!" I cried. "That's akin to Oscar the Grouch being nice and clean." (Co-workers gave me strange looks. But I didn't care.)

Being a journalist, I did the only thing I knew how to do. I investigated why Sesame Street gave Cookie Monster a health makeover.

The answer would lead me into a world where television producers worked with health experts and politicians, a place where Cookie Monster does care about his health, and by association, the health of children.

The first place I headed was the Internet. On the Sesame Street website, little had changed. There was Cookie Monster, in all his blue furriness. He was holding a plate of cookies. He was chomping on a cookie. He still looked the same. But as we all know, looks can be deceiving.

So I searched the site for news on Cookie Monster and up popped a press release about the show's "Healthy Habits for Life" emphasis. Buried near the bottom was a one-sentence mention about Cookie Monster eating fewer cookies.

But what did that mean? Scarfing one plateful instead of two?

I picked up the telephone. "What's going on with Cookie Monster?" I asked the Sesame Street press office. "Why are you doing this?"

They sent me to Dr. Rosemarie T. Truglio, the show's vice-president of research and education.

She said the show changes every year, focusing not just on teaching numbers and letters but also emotional and physical health. With the rise in childhood obesity, Truglio said Sesame Street is concentrating on the need to teach children about healthy foods and physical activity.

This season, each episode opens with a "health tip" about nutrition, exercise, hygiene and rest.

Truglio said Sesame Street also will introduce new characters, such as talking eggplants and carrots, and offer parodies, such as "American Fruit Stand." Even guest stars will address healthy activities, such as Alicia Keys talking and singing about the importance of physical activity.

Even politicians have gotten into the act, filming public service announcements with Sesame Street residents. In one taping, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist taught Elmo to exercise - jumping up and down. In another, Sen. Hillary Clinton and the small red monster discuss the various textures and tastes of foods.

But what about their position on Cookiegate?

"Even Cookie Monster is learning to control his cookie cravings," Frist told me by e-mail. "His sage advice opened our eyes to the simple joys of a tasty cookie and now reminds us that moderation is the key to healthy living."

Cookie Monster was not available for comment. (I'm hoping he hasn't gone too Hollywood.)

"We are not putting him on a diet," said his spokesman, Truglio. "And we would never take the position of no sugar. We're teaching him moderation."

The furry one also plans to try different kinds of cookies (read: healthier cookies) rather than his just staple, chocolate chip.

But will he still scarf his food? Yes, plus the occasional object, Truglio said.

But isn't that unhealthy? Her reply: He's still Cookie Monster.

Cookie Monster appears to be happy with the new "sometimes food" song, because at the end he warbles: "Is sometimes now?"

"Yes," he's told.

So there it is. Cookie Monster still gobbles cookies, he's just a healthier version of his old self. His eyes are still googly, his fur is still scruffy and he's still messy.

Even Sesame Street recognizes that we all need guilty pleasures.

Alanis Learns to Laugh

With her rockumentary-style sitcom We're With the Band premiering this fall on Comedy Central, Alanis Morissette is shedding her angry-rock-chick label for good. The show, executive-produced by Morissette with Tom Hanks, will follow the pop star's life on and off the stage, chronicling the amusing situations she and her fellow bandmates fall into. Similar to the style of Curb Your Enthusiasm (which Morissette has appeared in), the dialogue will be unscripted, allowing Morissette to relive her teenage years as a member of an improvisation troupe.

Her blockbuster debut Jagged Little Pill (which sold more than 14 million copies in the U.S.) and its jilted-lover anthem "You Oughta Know" cemented her fiery reputation, even prompting SportsCenter announcers to shout over Toronto Maple Leafs highlights, "That was for Alanis Morissette's pain!" The singer-songwriter is embracing the album's tenth anniversary in June, re-recording all the tracks acoustically for a new release and a supporting U.S. tour.

But for now, she's just happy to make people laugh.

QUESTION - How important is it now for you to make fun of yourself?

ANSWER - Well, the older I get, the funnier things get. So I think there is a levity that has come as I grow and hopefully mature.

What is it about improv that you're drawn to?

I think the stream-of-consciousness of it. I love that it's not a crafted piece that I'm contorting into, but rather a story being told that is allowing me to personalize it. I've been in comedy improv troupes since I was fourteen. I love the teammate-ship aspect of it. There's no room for stealing the show.

Can you share some of the fodder for the show?

When I was backstage with my bandmates in '95 or '96, the lead singer of Hootie and the Blowfish [Darius Rucker] asked to come backstage. He came back, and we were all talking to him, but after he left I turned to my bandmates and said, "That wasn't him. I swear it wasn't him." It turns out that this guy would find his way backstage with all these bands by saying that. We wound up running into the real Darius in Nashville about a week later and we told him. He was . . . slightly amused [laughs].

Another example would be someone pretending to be blind in order to come backstage, and when they get backstage you realize that they're not. There's a humor to what happens behind the scenes that is often overlooked -- I think there's a preconceived notion that people who are in the public eye are very much fawned over, so it's fun and healing to show people that a lot of times the most famous person in the room can feel like the most invisible one.

Have you ever gone out of your way to meet someone you admired?

I'm usually tongue-tied when I meet authors. I'll run into someone who wrote a book that I love, and I can't speak and my cheeks are all flushed and I'm reduced to being an eight-year-old. Those are the people that I admire the most.

How do you feel about Jagged Little Pill a decade later?

I love it. I went back into the studio with [producer/collaborator] Glen Ballard, and I just finished the vocals [for the acoustic version]. It's going to come out ten years to the day it was originally released, which was June 13, 1995.

After Jagged Little Pill, people painted you as angry. Do you feel you were misrepresented?

No, I think it spoke more to the fact that women being rage-filled was not something that was easily accepted or embraced. I had been told that it was OK for me to be happy and friendly and poised, but it was not OK to be enraged or blaming or victim-y. So because I had repressed it in myself for so long, when it came time to write songs from a stream-of-consciousness place, that which had been sitting on the backburner came out with a vengeance.

Why do you think that was the facet of the album everyone picked up on?

If we were as OK with anger as we are with someone smiling in our culture, people wouldn't have even noticed. They would've said, "Oh, there's a lovely record." But because rage is such a taboo emotion -- and often a misunderstood one -- it was understandable that everyone freaked out.

What other projects are you considering?

I think I have a book in me. Having been so freaked out about my bouts of depression and everything that I've experienced, I've actively sought out different ways to turn to my innate joy. There's been many different workshops and books and journaling and artistic expression that I've done that I would love to put into one book and share with people.

Congratulations on your U.S. citizenship. Do you feel it came a few months too late in light of the election?

Yeah, no shit [laughs]! Although one vote wouldn't have made a difference. I actually asked people to vote on my behalf, which probably got a few more votes than had I just done it myself.

Being a twin myself, I have to ask about your connection to your brother.

Inexplicable. It was the bane of many romantic relationships in my life because a lot of times I would compare my boyfriends to him: "Do I have the connection that I have with my twin?" Which is a really tall order [laughs]. That was a companionship that I had throughout all my youth, so it took a minute or two to really get a sense of my own individual identity.

You seem to know who you are.

I don't know if I can fully achieve self-actualization while I'm here in the physical form, but I think I'm on a really great journey toward it.

'Lost' Writer Tells All ... or Not

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) "What else can I tell you that I can't tell you?" says Javier Grillo-Marxuach, a writer/supervising producer on ABC's "Lost." "That should be the motto for all interviews about 'Lost.'"

For weeks, fans speculated on which of the hit castaway drama's large cast of characters - survivors of the doomed Oceanic Airlines Flight 815, which crashed on a deserted island -- would die, as hinted at by series creators J.J. Abrams ("Alias") and Damon Lindelof.

In the Wednesday, April 6 episode, the unlucky soul turned out to be rich-boy Boone (Ian Somerhalder), who succumbed to injuries sustained when the crashed light airplane he was exploring slipped off a cliff edge. Boone and fellow castaway Locke (Terry O'Quinn), a former paraplegic turned island mystic, found the plane, loaded with heroin-stuffed Virgin Mary statues, while following Locke's visions through the jungle.

In an e-mail on April 7, Grillo-Marxuach quips, "He's dead? I better start watching that show. We established Boone as Locke's mentee for the very specific story reason of showing Locke as a character who has the capacity to attract others to his peculiar vision of the island. When the time came to test that vision, killing Locke's newfound 'son' figure was a natural place to go. Now Locke is going to have to deal with the consequences of following his vision and how that brings him into a mano-a-mano conflict with Jack over leadership of the island."

Jack (Matthew Fox) is a surgeon who has become the survivors' unofficial leader. His fury over losing Boone, and his realization that Locke lied about how Boone was injured, sent him into the jungle declaring that he would talk to Locke about the "murder" of Boone.

This plot twist also means that Ian Somerhalder is out of a job on the hottest new show of the year -- although industry trades report he has signed a one-year talent holding deal with ABC and Touchstone Television for a possible series next year.

"It's a terrible thing," writes Grillo-Marxuach, "when you have to part ways with an actor you like, who brings his A-game to the show and has given you really fantastic performances. But when you are doing a show like 'Lost,' which demands that you constantly remind the audience of the life-or-death nature of the characters' predicament while crafting a long-term epic narrative, you sadly have to kill people from time to time.

"Boone's death serves a long-term dramatic purpose, and we are lucky to have had Ian Somerhalder bring that character to life and, ultimately, give him a memorable send-off that will continue to pay off through the length of the season."

In an interview conducted over lunch on March 30, Grillo-Marxuach admits that the passengers did indeed cross paths before getting on the plane, but he will "neither confirm nor deny" that the crash was not exactly accidental.

"But the fact that everybody met each other before is something we're really threading into it," he says. It's the eternal question posed by Echo & the Bunnymen, it's fate up against the will. But as long as people ask those questions, we're very happy over at 'Lost' labs. That's what I call it."

With his last series, "Jake 2.0," having been axed just before Abrams and Lindelof hired their writing staff, Grillo-Marxuach came in very early in the process in the spring of 2004. He says he and fellow writers Paul Dini, Jennifer Johnson and Christian Taylor, were sent off to start fleshing out the characters.

Grillo-Marxuach recalls, "Damon would come in and say, 'Draw three names out of a hat, and that's going to be your character for the next three weeks. You have to develop their backstory.' So we would go create something for the characters, bring it back to the room and workshop the ideas with Damon and J.J. A lot of the backstories actually developed out of those sessions.

"Jack's backstory pretty much survived intact from what we first talked about in there. Hurley's changed a little bit. Sawyer's is very similar. Sun and Jin were born out of an idea that J.J. pitched and we developed. So a lot of the long-running strands of the show were born during those six weeks."

On "Alias," many fans track Abrams' use of the number 47, which recurs in the episodes. On "Lost," it's a different equation.

The number to watch on 'Lost' is not 47, it's 23," Grillo-Marxuach says. "Oh, yeah, and we've got 815, but 23 is also a very important number in the mythology of 'Lost.'"

During the whirlwind casting, many things changed, including rock-star Charlie morphing from middle-aged to mid-20s when Dominic Monaghan was hired. Sometimes, though, casting didn't change the character. That's the case with Vincent, the golden Labrador retriever belonging to boy Walt (Malcolm David Kelley).

"The dog's a girl," says Grillo-Marxuach. "I think that's probably the best-kept secret of 'Lost.' Lassie was a boy, and we're following in the great tradition of canine transgendering in television."

While Lassie's long coat hid the fact that she was a he, it's a bit harder to conceal what a dog has -- or doesn't have -- if it has a short coat.

"Yes," Grillo-Marxuach says, "and yet somehow we've managed."

Other mysteries include the polar bear from the pilot (explained, more or less, as a manifestation of Walt's powerful imagination), the unseen horror that tramps through the jungle, occasional appearances by the island's other human residents, and the buried hatch found by Locke, which appears lit from within.

"Everything is going to have a rational explanation and a sci-fi explanation," Grillo-Marxuach says, "until we decide to tell you exactly what that is. That's what's going to help us walk that tightrope for however many years the show has.

"The show will end when we tell you what the island is. On the day we say, 'The island is on the back of a cosmic turtle,' then you'll say, 'OK, done with that.'"

Pearl Jam Halfway Home On New Album

Pearl Jam is progressing on its eighth studio album in Seattle. Guitarist Mike McCready tells Billboard.com the band has "about 20-25" songs in the hopper, comprising "some ballads and some pretty harder stuff, and some Who-ish type-stuff."

In addition, McCready says Pearl Jam is approaching the project from a new angle. "How we're recording it is a first," he says. "We've been recording for awhile, and then we'll sit down and listen to the songs and then take a couple of weeks off, come back and re-record them and add stuff. We generally just go in, do some demos and record."

McCready is hoping the as-yet-untitled album will be out before the end of the year, with a tour to follow. The set will be Pearl Jam's first for J Records/BMG, following the dissolution of its career-long relationship with Epic.

However, the guitarist says Pearl Jam is "not anywhere close to being done. We're about halfway there. It's going to be a really awesome record, and I'm not just saying that like every band member says it. It's been really exciting."

The opportunity to revisit and potentially add to songs has been a welcome one, the guitarist says. "I've woken up a few times and had a riff going in my head that I really liked, say, of [bassist] Jeff [Ament]'s or something," he offers. "It's like, OK, cool. That one is sticking in my head. I want to keep doing that. Let's do that. Whereas before, you'd just do it and it'd be done."

Last month during a benefit at Seattle's Paramount Theatre, the band unveiled a fast, punky song co-written by McCready with guitarist Stone Gossard, tentatively titled "Crapshoot Rapture."

"I'm certainly by no means a punk rocker at all," McCready says with a laugh. "But, the guys in my band are. Jeff and Stone and Ed have that in them, and those guys bring that out of me. We have this joke that my punk is more Dio-like."

As previously reported, McCready will lead the U.F.O. tribute band Flight To Mars at a benefit tomorrow (April 8) at Seattle's Showbox for the Northwest chapter of the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation. Earlier in the day, he will serve as the featured speaker at a CCFA luncheon at Seattle's Westin.

DOUBLE-OH-WHO?

As MGM heads into its final hours as an independent studio, the question of who'll be the next James Bond has exploded.

Earlier this week, word circulated that the Bond franchise-controlling Broccoli clan had patched things up with former 007 Pierce Brosnan and were negotiating a two-picture $40 million deal for him to reprise his role as the dapper spy. Yet another rumor had Brosnan making a single film while Sony -- which is set to acquire the MGM studio this week -- and the Broccolis groomed a new agent for a film to come out shortly after.

On Wednesday, the U.K. press gave its vote to British heartthrob Daniel Craig, reporting that Craig had been offered a three-pic deal by the Broccoli clan. Stateside sources say he's no more of a certainty than other candidates that include previously rumored Clive Owen and Dominic West. Though unknown to most American auds, Craig has a Beatles-like following abroad and most recently appeared in the Brit pics "Layer Cake" and "Enduring Love."

Despite the vacillation, each rumor has made a degree of sense. Sony, which will run the franchise once the MGM sale is completed, could do worse than keep on Brosnan, who took over the 007 role at a time when the franchise was on life support. Brosnan averaged $350 million in worldwide gross and set a franchise record in his last film, "Die Another Day," with $425 million worldwide.

The Craig rumor seems plausible, given that "Die Another Day" scribes Neal Purvis and Robert Wade are using Ian Fleming's early Bond novel "Casino Royale" as the basis for a film to be directed by Martin Campbell. That novel, which was turned into a Bond spoof film starring David Niven, would lend itself to a secret agent in his formative years. And landing a young actor like Craig is possible because the actor wouldn't cost much (such a strategy was employed to relaunch the "Superman" franchise with Brandon Routh).

The Broccolis have been notoriously tightfisted with their stars. Though Brosnan brought the franchise to unparalleled heights, he never received a gross percentage, nor has any actor who played the Bond role before him. So while Brosnan's last Bond payday exceeded $20 million when bonuses were factored in, that was a fraction of the money Tom Cruise earned for the "Mission: Impossible" franchise or what Keanu Reeves got for "The Matrix" films. (That's why early speculation over actors like Hugh Jackman, Jude Law and Colin Farrell seemed absurd.)

Brosnan's reps have denied that any talks are taking place.

Brosnan and Craig aren't the only actors making Web and press reports. This month's Angeleno mag has its money on "Nip/Tuck's" Julian McMahon, splashing the tuxedoed Aussie on its cover along with the headline "Meet the Next James Bond."

Another name that has been floated in recent weeks is Gerard Butler ("Phantom of the Opera").

All the possible Bonds named, however, are in line with the Broccoli's tradition of casting aristocratic types -- men whose idea of roughing it is settling for 200-thread-count sheets. Considering how the franchise has aged and the competition Bond now faces from more modern celluloid spies (think Jason Bourne), it would be wise for MGM -- and now Sony -- to consider more diverse possibilities.

MGM has denied that any Bond has been chosen. No announcement is likely to be made until the franchise is controlled by Sony, which has long wanted to be in the Bond biz. In fact, that desire caused a huge lawsuit between the studios years ago, when John Calley left UA to become Sony head and then tried to use "Thunderball"-- the only book not completely locked down by the Broccolis at the time -- as the basis for a rival Bond picture. MGM won that suit and the movie never happened, but Sony will have its own Bond picture in production this year, with somebody filling the tux.

And the next Oscar host is ... Billy, Ellen, Dave?; search gets under way soon

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Wanted: Oscar host able to get laughs from star-studded in-house audience, keep at-home viewers glued to marathon show and mollify network censors.

Pay is scale, exposure worldwide and reviews sometimes harsh.

No wonder few people want to host two years in a row, according to Bruce Davis, executive director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The search for someone to preside when the golden boys are handed out for the 78th time in March 2006 gets under way soon.

Come August, Frank Pierson calls it quits as academy president, having completed a four-year term. Before leaving, he'll select the next Oscar producer, who in turn chooses the host in consultation with the academy.

This year, Gil Cates produced his record 12th Oscar show and boldly picked acerbic first-timer Chris Rock.

Rock helped ABC attract 41.5 million viewers. That was down two million from 2004, but ratings were up from last year among viewers aged 18 to 34 - those most coveted by advertisers paying millions of dollars for time during the show.

"We were very, very happy," Davis said. "We noticed the ratings of other movie award shows and everybody was in free fall this year. There was every chance we would've had a huge drop as well, so a drop of (two million) was pretty good."

Davis attributed the boost in younger viewership to Rock.

"Almost everybody onboard was willing to give him complete credit with bringing that audience into the tent," he said. "When you have a new host that strikes some sparks, there is evidence that ratings go up."

Afterward, Rock said he hoped to host the show again, although "who knows if they would want me again."

Davis was mum on Rock's chances.

"I really shouldn't speculate," he said. "We have our own list of needs. If we did the Oscars by polls, we'd give the nominations to the top five box-office films."

Asked about future hosts, Davis demurred, saying: "I won't play that game."

But we will. Let's have a look:

-Rock, who presided over one of the brisker shows in recent memory. The rookie had some funny bits, but never came close to being as dirty as was feared or as bawdy as his standup act. Clearly, he was constrained by the event's sensibility and the ABC censors. A daring choice, though, by Cates and the notoriously staid academy.

-Billy Crystal, eight-time host known for his opening song-dance number poking fun at the top nominees. Last appeared in 2004 after a three-year absence. His populist sense of humour is a proven winner with viewers, and his industry jokes play well to the industry audience.

-Mike Myers. Shrek and Oscar, why not? The former Saturday Night Live comic knows how to work live TV. He's a frequent presenter of award show hardware, making him worthy of a shot.

-Ellen DeGeneres, daytime talk show host whose twice-delayed hosting gig at the 2001 Emmy Awards earned major kudos. Her monologue was hilarious and she maintained a perfect balance between respect and irreverence two months after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. And wouldn't her goofy dancing look good next to those giant Oscar statues?

-Robin Williams, last seen taking this year's Oscar stage with tape over his mouth to protest censoring of some of his gags. He co-hosted the 1986 show with, strangely enough, Alan Alda and Jane Fonda. His manic energy is legendary; but could he keep it up for three-plus hours without exhausting the audience?

-David Letterman, hosted in 1995 and never invited back. Critics assailed him, but hey, maybe his "Oprah, Uma" chants weren't that bad. Give Dave credit: he drew 81 million viewers - at the time the most in 12 years - and the show was a hit with younger men, a demographic the Oscars are desperate to lure back.

-Jay Leno, late-night talk show host with minimal movie cache, but then again that didn't stop Johnny Carson. Leno would have to step up the barbs and ditch his ripped-from-the-nightly-news humour.

-Steve Martin, who hosted in 2001 and again in 2003. His smug, self-involved persona is perfect for the Hollywood crowd. He kept things moving along, and on Oscar night that can be the biggest victory of all.

-Whoopi Goldberg, four-time host whose jokes fell flat and came off as nasty without being clever in 1994. Her '99 gig wasn't much of an improvement, focusing on bodily functions and crude double entendres. Her most recent stint in 2002 resulted in the worst ratings in Oscar history. Hmm, maybe not.

-Conan O'Brien, late-night smart aleck who honed his hosting skills presiding over the 2002 Emmys. He could draw the college crowd. O'Brien's idea if he ran the Oscars? "I'd like to see people who present eating sandwiches or coming out with different food. Magazines could talk about not only, 'What was J. Lo wearing?' but 'What was she eating?' It looks like she's wearing Versace and eating a chicken parmesan grinder. That's good television," he told People magazine.

-Multiple hosts, an approach that made for some oddball pairings in the 1970s and '80s. Helen Hayes, Alan King, Sammy Davis Jr. and Jack Lemmon in '72; Richard Pryor, Jane Fonda, Ellen Burstyn and Warren Beatty in '77; Pryor returned in '83 with Liza Minnelli, Dudley Moore and Walter Matthau; and Chevy Chase, Goldie Hawn and Paul (Crocodile Dundee) Hogan teamed in '87.

Maybe it's time to return to those togetherness days, but with a tabloid twist: would ex-loves Jennifer Lopez, Sean (P. Diddy) Combs and Ben Affleck do it for you?

Nielsen: Men Spend More on Video Games Than Music

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Men spend more money on video games than they do on music, research group Nielsen Entertainment said on Thursday, lending credence to a growing belief that video games are displacing other forms of media for the attention of young men.

And video gaming in general is starting to attract an older audience, with nearly a quarter of all gamers over age 40, the agency also said.

The interactive unit of Nielsen Entertainment conducted a random survey of 1,500 people in January and February for its report. Nielsen Entertainment, a unit of VNU NV of the Netherlands, is best known for its benchmark SoundScan music sales service. Its corporate sibling Nielsen Media Research is the standard for TV ratings.

For males, Nielsen said, games now rank only behind DVDs as a purchase category, ahead of CDs, digital MP3 files and other ways of buying music. Nielsen also found that African-Americans and Hispanics spend more money on games each month than Caucasians.

Advertisers are quickly embracing video games as a better way to get to young men than the more traditional medium of television. Many games now have ads inside them, such as billboards in race games, and Nielsen is working on a method to measure audience response to the in-game ads.

Nielsen found 40 percent of U.S. households have some kind of system dedicated to game play, whether a gaming PC, a console or a handheld device. Among gamers, 23 percent own all three types of systems.

Among people who own at least one of the major consoles --Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 2, Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox and Nintendo Co. Ltd.'s GameCube -- 8 percent said they owned all three.

Nielsen also examined the amount of time spent playing alone versus socially and found that 79 percent of men and 79 percent of women over the age of 45 spend most of their time playing alone. Teen-age women tended to play more socially, Nielsen said, while women 25-54 are roughly split between playing alone and with others.

Overall, the firm said, active gamers tend to spend just over 5 hours a week playing alone and 3 hours a week playing with people or online.

The U.S. video game industry has $10 billion in annual revenue, roughly the same as U.S. box office sales.

In Boston, 'Fever Pitch' Smacks of 'Soxploitation'

BOSTON (Reuters) - After waiting 86 years for the Boston Red Sox to win baseball's World Series, some die-hard fans resent Hollywood's "Soxploitation" of their triumph in the new romantic comedy "Fever Pitch."

The film, which opens on Friday and stars Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore, tells of a romance between a long-suffering Red Sox fan and his girlfriend during the team's improbable run to the championship last season.

So far, so good. But the pivotal scene at the end of the movie in which the characters played by Fallon and Barrymore embrace and kiss on the field after the Red Sox's World Series triumph has led to cries of foul.

Directors Bobby and Peter Farrelly, New Englanders and lifelong Red Sox fans, shot the movie's final scene -- with permission from the Red Sox and Major League Baseball -- on the field in St. Louis after Boston defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in the final game of the World Series.

Bill Simmons, a Red Sox fan and columnist for ESPN.com, called Hollywood's intrusion into Boston's celebration offensive to all Red Sox fans who had waited their entire lives to see the team win its first championship since 1918.

"It was like cutting the umbilical cord of your first baby while Fallon and Barrymore were inexplicably making out 5 feet away," Simmons wrote in an online column.

"I hope the movie bombs because of it," he added.

Boston Globe film critic Wesley Morris said while the movie was heartfelt about the life of a die-hard fan, it reeked of "Soxploitation."

"The sight, last year, of Fallon and Barrymore hopping onto the field and making out ... after the team won the World Series smacked of Hollywood opportunism at its most nauseating," Morris wrote in his review this week.

At the film's red-carpet premiere at Boston's Fenway Park on Wednesday night, the Farrelly brothers said the team's success forced them to re-shoot the movie's original ending, which had the Red Sox disappointing their fans again.

"When the fans see the movie, they'll understand why we had to (be on the field)," Peter Farrelly said at the premiere.

More than 2,000 fans packed Fenway for the premiere, which was attended by Red Sox players Johnny Damon and David Ortiz, but some fans were hesitant to throw their full support behind the movie.

"I took my girlfriend to see the movie, because I felt I owed it to her," said Chris Ruettgers, a devoted Red Sox fan who went to the movie's sneak preview last weekend.

"But I'm not a fan of the behavior of the movie's makers."

Some have also taken umbrage at casting Fallon as the Red Sox-obsessed leading man because Fallon supported the New York Yankees, Boston's archrival, growing up.

Nick Hornby, whose memoir about his life as a supporter of Britain's Arsenal soccer club was adapted for the movie, said the film would not change anything for true fans.

"The fans will still be here, this season and the season after that," Hornby, who attended the premiere, told Reuters. "Movies do have quite a short life compared to the life of a sports club."

'Star Wars' Fans Line Up at Wrong Theater

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - One group of loyal "Star Wars" fans are hoping The Force is on their side.

Followers of George Lucas' sci-fi saga began lining up outside Hollywood's Grauman's Chinese Theater on Saturday, April 2, despite the fact that "Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith" won't be showing there, reports the AP.

Instead, 20th Century Fox has booked the ArcLight theater, which is about a mile east of Grauman's for the historic showing of the final installment of the beloved series.

The fans haven't made a mistake, though. They insist that "Episode III" should screen at the Chinese since the first film, 1977's "A New Hope," made its premiere there. In addition, rumors in 1999 and 2002 that previous "Star Wars" films weren't showing at the historic Hollywood landmark were unfounded.

"We've heard all this before," says fan Sarah Sprague. "This is still the epicenter for 'Star Wars' fans. For the big iconic pictures of the 1970s, people lining up were here."

Moreover, fans feel that the ArcLight's practice of allowing moviegoers to purchase tickets and reserve specific seats online negates the true dedication of lining up. Although Fox and ArcLight haven't finalized their deal, the studio insists they won't be screening the film at the Chinese.

In January, Seattle resident Jeff Twieden became the first person in the country to begin the final "Star Wars" vigil on the sidewalk outside his local theater in preparation for the Thursday, May 19th worldwide release.

The highly anticipated "Episode III" is set two years into the Clone Wars, when Chancellor Palpatine, with the help of his clone army and Sith Warriors, prepares to rid the galaxy of the Jedis in order to declare himself Emperor of the Galactic Empire. Anakin Skywalker will also make his final descent into evil, becoming the heavy-breathing, helmeted Darth Vader.

THE NAME IS BOND

Per the Hollywood Reporter, Sean Connery set to reprise his role as James Bond one last time for Electronic Arts' upcoming videogame based on the 007 adventure From Russia with Love.

Vicki Gabereau tapes final episode of Gemini-winning talk show

TORONTO (CP) - Eight years. One thousand episodes. More than 3,000 guests.

With that, CTV's Gemini-winning Vicki Gabereau taped her final show in Vancouver on Wednesday, to air April 13. Some of her favourite guests from the past were on hand for the finale, including Jann Arden, Michael Buble and Brent Butt.

Diana Krall and Elvis Costello also taped a surprise greeting.

"I'm not retiring, just moving on to the next thing," Gabereau said of her 30-year career in the business. "I'll take the summer to think about what I want to do, but moving to Las Vegas and advancing my career as a fan dancer is definitely one of my options."

Gabereau, 58, known as the Queen of Talk, began her daytime show in 1997. She's also been a radio host and is a published author.

CTV will continue to air encore episodes.

Solo Springsteen Ready To Tour

Bruce Springsteen will begin a solo acoustic tour April 25 in Detroit, in support of his upcoming Columbia album, "Devils & Dust." The first North American leg of the tour will play 2,500- to 5,000-seat theaters and theater configurations in arenas through May 20 in Boston, to be followed by a European run that begins May 24 in Dublin.

The Boss will finish in Europe on June 25 in Stockholm, with more North American dates likely. "Our hope is that sometime by the fall we will come back to the U.S. and make some additional appearances in our biggest Bruce markets," longtime Springsteen manager Jon Landau tells Billboard.com.

Initially, the plan is to quickly showcase the new album, due April 26. "Bruce has a beautiful new CD that we're very excited about and we want to get out and show the colors right off, touching base with as many cities as we can conveniently do," Landau reports.

Ticket prices are still being finalized, but Landau says they will be in the $85 range for the premium seats. Springsteen last toured solo in support of the 1995 album "The Ghost of Tom Joad." On that outing, he played only acoustic guitar and harmonica; this time around, Springsteen will also play some piano, Landau says.

"Bruce is rehearsing the show right now, creating a very specific perspective for it," Landau says. "As is always the case with Bruce, the set will evolve right up until the last show." Tickets for some shows go on sale this weekend.

Landau says the new album "has a combination of rock music and acoustic music, but as a body of work we thought that the intimacy of the solo show wound up best serving the CD as a whole. The full rock version of some of the new songs is sure to be part of the next E Street Band tour."

On Monday (April 4), Springsteen taped an episode of the occasional VH1 series "Storytellers" at the new Two River Theatre in Red Bank, N.J. He previewed the title track of "Devils & Dust," as well as "Jesus Was an Only Son," and touched on material from across his career, including "Thunder Road," "Brilliant Disguise" and "The Rising." The broadcast premiere is scheduled for April 23.

Here are Springsteen's tour dates:

April 25: Detroit (Fox Theatre)
April 28: Dallas (Nokia Theatre)
April 30: Phoenix (Glendale Arena)
May 2-3: Los Angeles (Pantages Theatre)
May 5: Oakland, Calif. (Oakland Theatre)
May 7: Denver (Convention Theatre)
May 10: St. Paul, Minn. (Xcel Energy Center)
May 11: Chicago (Rosemont Theatre)
May 14: Fairfax, Va. (Patriot Center)
May 15: Cleveland (CSU Convocation Center)
May 17: Philadelphia (Tower Theatre)
May 19: East Rutherford, N.J. (The Theater at Continental Airlines Arena)
May 20: Boston (Orpheum Theatre)
May 24: Dublin (the Point)
May 27-28: London (Royal Albert Hall)
May 30: Brussels (Forest Nationale)
June 1: Barcelona (Pavello Olimpic Badalona)
June 2: Madrid (Palacio de Deportes)
June 4: Bologna, Italy (Palamalaguti Arena)
June 6: Rome (Palalottomatica Arena)
June 7: Milan (Milan Forum)
June 11: Hamburg (Color Line Arena)
June 12: Berlin (ICC)
June 13: Munich (Olympia Hall)
June 15: Frankfurt, Germany (Festhalle)
June 16: Dusseldorf, Germany (Phillipshalle)
June 19: Rotterdam, Holland (Ahoy)
June 20: Paris (Bercy)
June 22: Copenhagen (Forum)
June 23: Gothenberg, Sweden (Scandinavium)
June 25: Stockholm (Hovet)

The Couch Potato Report - April 6th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features one movie that is actually better than I say it is and one that is even worse than I say it is.

The film SIDEWAYS was nominated for five Academy Awards - including Best Picture - and it won for Best Original Screenplay.

It actually earned Best Picture honors from movie critics in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, London, Toronto, San Francisco, Washington and Boston.

Plus, it was named to the top 10 lists of more than 350 critics lists including the American Film Institute, The National Board of Review, and Rolling Stone and Newsweek magazines, amongst others.

So if a film is proclaimed to be that good by that many people and groups, then it has to be good, right?

Well no, not always.

But in this case, SIDEWAYS is that good.

SIDEWAYS deserves all of the attention it received earlier this year during the movie Awards season, and it deserves your time now that it is available on video and DVD.

This is a superb film.

Paul Giamatti is Miles, a struggling novelist and wine connoisseur who takes his best friend on a wine-tasting tour of California vineyards for a kind of extended bachelor party.

Miles just wants to golf, taste wine and hang out with his friend. But his friend would rather sow some proverbial wild oats before walking down the aisle.

The friend is the comedic side of the film while Giamatti's Miles is the movie's heart.

Miles starts to spend time with a recently divorced waitress and every single one of their moments together are spectacular!

The scenes are well written and well acted and even though it is a movie, it seems as if they are two real people talking to each other.

Virginia Madsen plays the waitress and she is wonderful!

I still think she deserved to win the Oscar as Best Supporting Actress for her performance.

SIDEWAYS explores life's failures, struggles, and the lowered expectations of mid-life. But more importantly, it is a movie full of real people, living real lives.

So add me to the list those who recommend SIDEWAYS. It is a superb movie.

Prior to the release of his latest film SPANGLISH last December, the career of write director James L. Brooks was also superb.

Prior to last December, her had yet to make a misstep.

Brooks had worked on the classic television shows MY THREE SONS, THAT GIRL and THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW, before creating THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW, TAXI and developing THE SIMPSONS.

His films include the superb BROADCAST NEWS, TERMS OF ENDEARMENT and AS GOOD AS IT GETS.

Like I said, prior to the release of SPANGLISH last December, his career was superb and he had yet to suffer a misstep.

Then came SPANGLISH.

In the movie the very beautiful Paz Vega plays a Mexican woman who moves to Los Angeles to become the housekeeper for the wealthy, and troubled, Clasky family.

Adam Sandler and Téa Leoni are the head of the family, and they have too many problems to list.

But their main problem is the fact that he is a loving and supportive parent to their two kids, and she is...well, not so much.

Oh, and the housekeeper doesn't speak English, but her daughter does. Of course, the daughter doesn't always translate everything word for word.

Now all of that sounds pretty promising, doesn't it? I'll sure thought it did and with James L. Brooks behind it, I watched it thinking it would be a film that was a witty and perceptive collision of cultures and values.

Instead, it is just long, uninteresting and a huge misstep for James L. Brooks.

Admittedly, Paz Vega is beautiful to look at, plus Brooks did get a great performance out of Sandler and kept him away from his trademark work in HAPPY GILMORE and THE WEDDING SINGER.

And yes, Téa Leoni is as reliable as ever, Cloris Leachman is hilarious as Leoni's mother and Sarah Steele is a stand out as Bernice, Sandler and Leoni's daughter.

But those good things don't add up to anything special and SPANGLISH is a movie that isn't worth the time you will invest in it.

It isn't horrible, but it certainly isn't good either.

But, on the other hand, SIDEWAYS is good. In fact it is superb!!

So now we have the superb SIDEWAYS, the mediocre SPANGLISH and now we add the very bad ELEKTRA to the mix.

After the modest success of the comic book movie DAREDEVIL in 2003 a decision was made to spin off the very interesting supporting character ELEKTRA into her own film.

Great idea, bad film.

Jennifer Garner from TV's ALIAS reprises her role as Elektra, and in the film she is a hired assassin.

Admittedly, Elektra is just a variation on the character that Garner plays every week on TV, but the difference is the TV show is well written, well acted and full of action.

ELEKTRA is none of those things.

Yes, sure, Jennifer Garner looks great, and if that is reason enough for you to sit through this bad movie, then enjoy.

Personally, while I enjoyed looking at Jennifer Garner, I hated watching the movie she was in.

ELEKTRA is a waste of your time, but along with SPANGLISH and SIDEWAYS, it is also available in stores now.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

OCEAN'S TWLEVE is the less than enjoyable sequel to the all-star remake of OCEAN'S ELEVEN. George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts are all back on screen, but even with their star power this film is hard to watch.

HOTEL RWANDA is hard to watch as well, but for different reasons. Don Cheadle plays a hotel owner who offers shelter for refugees in Rwanda during the genocide of the mid-1990's.

In THE WOODSMAN Kevin Bacon gives a great performance as a flawed man who is attempting to rejoin society. Due to its subject matter, it too is a very difficult film to watch, but the acting is superb.

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on THE WOODSMAN, HOTEL RWANDA and OCEAN'S TWLEVE in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!

ABC Renews 'Lost,' 'Alias,' 'Housewives'

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) As April began last year, ABC had fallen into a distance fourth place in most ratings measurements and had become the subject of jokes and mockery. Just 12 months later, ABC is second to only CBS in total viewers for the season and the network is a strong third place behind FOX and CBS in the key adults 18-49 demographic. In little surprise, then, that on Tuesday (April 5), ABC gave early pick-ups to four of the shows responsible for that turn-around.

ABC has ordered second seasons of "Desperate Housewives," "Lost" and "Boston Legal," while lining up a fifth season of "Alias."

"Desperate Housewives" and "Lost" were two of the most buzz-worthy pilots of the last development season and became out-of-the-box hits for ABC.

"Housewives," created by Marc Cherry, has become a genuine phenomenon, averaging 22.8 million viewers per week and partnering with "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" to turn Sunday from a liability into a strength for ABC. In addition delivering to boosting ABC's time period audience by an amazing 180 percent and stirring up countless stories in major press outlets, "Housewives" has become an awards magnet, picking up Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild trophies for outstanding comedy series.

A Golden Globe nominee for best drama, "Lost" has developed one of television's most intense fan bases in less than a season. The J.J. Abrams-produced series has averaged 15.9 million viewers per episode, anchoring ABC's Wednesday line-up.

After several seasons as a critical darling and cult favorite, "Alias" received a major boost when it was paired with "Lost" this winter. Although the drama has been battered by "American Idol" in recent weeks, its viewership of 11.2 million viewers is up by 2.8 million from last season.

Thanks to its "Desperate Housewives" lead-in, "Boston Legal" has averaged 12.5 million viewers. The "Practice" spin-off has been competitive in a tough time slot, though another of ABC's new dramas, "Grey's Anatomy," has performed far better in the same period, which could lead to a new time for "Legal" next season.

ABC Renews 'Lost,' 'Alias,' 'Housewives'

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) As April began last year, ABC had fallen into a distance fourth place in most ratings measurements and had become the subject of jokes and mockery. Just 12 months later, ABC is second to only CBS in total viewers for the season and the network is a strong third place behind FOX and CBS in the key adults 18-49 demographic. In little surprise, then, that on Tuesday (April 5), ABC gave early pick-ups to four of the shows responsible for that turn-around.

ABC has ordered second seasons of "Desperate Housewives," "Lost" and "Boston Legal," while lining up a fifth season of "Alias."

"Desperate Housewives" and "Lost" were two of the most buzz-worthy pilots of the last development season and became out-of-the-box hits for ABC.

"Housewives," created by Marc Cherry, has become a genuine phenomenon, averaging 22.8 million viewers per week and partnering with "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" to turn Sunday from a liability into a strength for ABC. In addition delivering to boosting ABC's time period audience by an amazing 180 percent and stirring up countless stories in major press outlets, "Housewives" has become an awards magnet, picking up Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild trophies for outstanding comedy series.

A Golden Globe nominee for best drama, "Lost" has developed one of television's most intense fan bases in less than a season. The J.J. Abrams-produced series has averaged 15.9 million viewers per episode, anchoring ABC's Wednesday line-up.

After several seasons as a critical darling and cult favorite, "Alias" received a major boost when it was paired with "Lost" this winter. Although the drama has been battered by "American Idol" in recent weeks, its viewership of 11.2 million viewers is up by 2.8 million from last season.

Thanks to its "Desperate Housewives" lead-in, "Boston Legal" has averaged 12.5 million viewers. The "Practice" spin-off has been competitive in a tough time slot, though another of ABC's new dramas, "Grey's Anatomy," has performed far better in the same period, which could lead to a new time for "Legal" next season.

Frank Miller on SIN CITY

Comic book legend Frank Miller openly admits that director Robert Rodriguez seduced him into adapting three chapters of his graphic novel SIN CITY as a film.

"I wanted to keep my baby safe from the clutches of Hollywood. I didn't want some happy ending. I decided I didn't want a movie done and would continue doing my books. But that crazy Texan wouldn't let up.

Working with actors was . . . a real surprise and a thrill to me. More than anything that hooked me into this. Actors get bad reps. When Truman Capote said actors were dumb, he proved he wasn't a director. Mainly it was Robert's absolute commitment to remain absolutely faithful to the material. I was hooked.

You don't work with this level of talent without learning. Rosario Dawson and Clive Owen had very good chemistry going. The story became more romantic than it really was. It had to do with her performance and his performance and all that. The list can go on. When you work with Bruce Willis, you change. Bruce Willis is our Apollo. He'll give you everything you want. He'll just mumble something and make a connection you never made."

Canadian broadcasters plan coverage of Pope John Paul's Friday funeral

TORONTO (CP) - Like overseas Olympics coverage and royal weddings, Canadian TV watchers will have to either stay up late or rise very early Friday if they want to observe live telecasts of the funeral of Pope John Paul from Rome.

Both the CBC and CBC Newsworld will begin coverage at 3:30 a.m. EDT and continue an open-ended broadcast, probably through to 7 a.m. Host Peter Mansbridge will be joined by expert commentators including Rev. Thomas Rosica, who ran World Youth Day in Toronto in 2002. Repeats will be in order at 9 a.m. on the main network with a 90-minute version on Newsworld at 7:30 p.m., 10:30 p.m. and 1:30 a.m. Saturday.

CBC also plans a repeat airing of its expanded Life and Times episode of John Paul on Thursday from 8 to 10 p.m.

CTV says it will also begin live broadcasting at 3:30 in the morning Friday until 9 a.m. EDT with Lloyd Robertson anchoring from Rome, with assistance from Rev. Michael Bechard of St. Peter's seminary at King's College, University of Western Ontario.

Canada AM will replay funeral highlights later in the morning. On Friday night, from 8 p.m. EDT to 10 p.m., highlights will be carried on CTV Newsnet.

Global National plans live coverage, also beginning at 3:30 a.m. EDT, with a 9 o'clock re-broadcast. Kevin Newman anchors from Rome, with contributions from Troy Reeb, Francis Silvaggio and Wilf Dinnick.

Vision TV, the spiritual specialty channel, will air Friday's Requiem Mass from St. Peter's Square on a delayed basis at 7 p.m. EDT.

On Wednesday, Vision's flagship current affairs series, 360 Vision, will devote its entire edition to an examination of Jean Paul's 26-year papacy with an interfaith panel discussion and vignettes of Canadians of varying faiths sharing their thoughts on the pontiff's legacy. The host is Noelle Richardson. A repeat broadcast will air Thursday night.

Also on Wednesday, the channel will repeat the hour-long documentary, John Paul II: Almost an Autobiography, by Italian filmmaker Michelangelo Dotta.

Vision also has plans to air the documentary, Election of a Pope: White Smoke, part of the BBC series Absolute Truth. It examines the history of the Roman Catholic Church since Vatican II, including an inside look at the process by which Jean Paul's successor will be chosen in the days ahead. It's not expected to air, however, until after the new pope is elected.

TV's David Halton retires after four decades as a news correspondent

TORONTO (CP) - David Halton, the rock-steady Washington correspondent for CBC-TV News, is retiring after four decades on the job, the CBC announced Tuesday.

"There are few major stories in the past 40 years that don't have David Halton's fingerprints," said CBC news boss Tony Burman. "This is yet another reminder of the depth of talent in the CBC News organization."

But Burman noted that Halton, after a period of relaxation, has still agreed to be a special contributor to the news department. He's also planning to write a book.

Alison Smith will join Neil Macdonald in the CBC's Washington bureau this fall.

Halton joined CBC News in 1965 and a year later became the network's Paris correspondent at the age of 26. In 1971 he returned home and reported from Quebec. He's also been a correspondent in Moscow, London and Ottawa and, for the past decade, reported from Washington.

Born in Beaconsfield, England, he was brought to Canada when he was two years old. His father, Matthew Halton, was a famous correspondent for CBC Radio during and after the Second World War.

Peter Jennings Announces Cancer Diagnosis

NEW YORK - Peter Jennings revealed Tuesday that he is suffering from lung cancer and plans to continue on "World News Tonight" as much as possible after beginning chemotherapy next week. Jennings, ABC's chief anchorman since 1983, was replaced by Elizabeth Vargas on Tuesday but taped a message telling viewers about his diagnosis.

"I will continue to do the broadcast," he said. "On good days, my voice will not always be like this. Certainly, it's been a long time. And I hope it goes without saying that a journalist who doesn't value — deeply — the audience's loyalty should be in another line of work."

A former smoker who quit 20 years ago, Jennings resumed smoking briefly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The 66-year-old anchor was too ill to work Saturday during the network's special report on Pope John Paul II's death. He hasn't been feeling well the past few months, and didn't travel under doctor's orders after December's tsunami because of what was described then as an upper respiratory infection. He did go to Iraq in January for the elections.

Jennings said he was surprised at how fast the news traveled and at the kindness he had received from so many people.

"Finally," he said, "I wonder if other men and women ask their doctors right away: `OK, doc, when does the hair go?"

Lung cancer is the leading cancer killer in the United States, and roughly four out of five people diagnosed with the disease die within five years, said Dr. Cliff Connery, chief of thoracic surgery at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital in Manhattan.

Doctors said most lung cancer patients can continue to work throughout treatment, but need flexibility to take it easy on days they are not feeling well.

With his very visible position on television each night, Jennings could be an inspiration for many Americans going through a similar fight, said Dr. David Johnson, chief of oncology and hematology at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.

"I think it sets the right example," Johnson said. "I think it says you shouldn't stop your life if you have cancer. It may take your life, but you shouldn't let it control your life."

There are effective ways to treat lung cancer, but its mortality rate is so high because so many patients aren't diagnosed until their disease is in an advanced stage, Connery said.

Charles Gibson, Vargas and others will substitute for Jennings from time to time, said ABC News President David Westin. Gibson is in Rome for coverage of the pope's funeral, an assignment that Jennings, a former Rome and London correspondent for ABC News, normally would have taken.

"He's already bringing to this new challenge the courage and strength we've seen so often in his reporting from the field and in anchoring ABC News," Westin told ABC staffers. "I know that all of us will give him every bit of support that he needs and asks for."

Jennings is the last of the anchor troika that dominated broadcast network news divisions over the last two decades. NBC's Tom Brokaw stepped down last year and CBS' Dan Rather left last month.

"Peter is an old friend," Brokaw said Tuesday. "I'm heartbroken, but he's also a tough guy. I'm counting on him getting through this very difficult passage."

While still in his 20s, Jennings anchored ABC's evening news for two years in the 1960s. He returned to the desk in 1978 when third-place ABC tried a multi-anchor format, which was abandoned in 1983 when Frank Reynolds died from cancer. Jennings has been ABC's sole evening anchor ever since.

A Canadian who became a U.S. citizen in 2003, the urbane Jennings dominated the ratings from the late 1980s to the mid-'90s, when Brokaw surpassed him.

"Jennings has served American broadcast news with a graceful internationalist intelligence," said Rich Hanley, director of graduate programs at Quinnipiac University's school of communications. "His manner of news delivery stood in contrast to but not in opposition of the gentle Midwestern aesthetic expressed by Tom Brokaw and the don't-mess-with-Texas eccentricity of Dan Rather."

Saul Bellow, Author and Nobel Winner, Dead at 89

BOSTON (Reuters) - Saul Bellow, who rose from writing book reviews for $10 apiece to become one of America's greatest novelists after World War II, passed away on Tuesday at age 89.

Friend and lawyer Walter Pozen said Bellow died of natural causes at his home in Brookline, Massachusetts, with his wife and daughter by his side.

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the Nobel Prize, and three National Book Awards, Bellow was the author of such novels as "The Adventures of Augie March," "Herzog," and "Henderson the Rain King."

His work touched on the essence of human existence, the experience of immigrants and Jews, and class and social mobility in 20th century America.

"Saul Bellow was not only a great writer, he was also a superb teacher and friend -- a whole and marvelous man," said Boston University President Emeritus John Silber, who helped recruit the author to the school in 1993.

Born in 1915 in Canada to Russian immigrants, the young Bellow moved with his family to Chicago, the city with which his work would become most closely associated.

Bellow's mother wanted her son to be a Talmudic scholar, and he could read Hebrew before he entered kindergarten, but young Bellow always knew he wanted to be a writer.

"From my earliest days I had a conviction that I was here to write certain things and so from the age of 13, I kept working at that," he told Britain's Guardian newspaper in 1997.

After serving in the Merchant Marine during World War II, Bellow spent time as a self-described Bohemian in New York's Greenwich Village and supported himself writing book reviews.

His first published novel came in 1944 with "Dangling Man," but his literary career really only took off with 1953's "The Adventures of Augie March," a saga of an amiable but aimless young Chicago man borne along by the forces around him.

Bellow's greatest critical success was 1975's "Humboldt's Gift," which won him the Nobel and Pulitzer prizes.

Themes of death and mortality run through many of Bellow's works, and two near-death experiences marked the early and late stages of the author's life.

The first occurred when Bellow was eight years old and was hospitalized for six months with a respiratory infection.

In 1995, Bellow ate a toxic fish while vacationing in the Caribbean. Bacteria attacked his nervous system, and he spent five weeks in intensive care. It took the aging author more than a year to recover.

Bellow's five marriages resulted in four children. His fifth wife, Janis Freedman, gave birth to daughter Naomi Rose in 1999 when Bellow was 84.

"I learned that the sexual revolution is a very bloody affair, like most revolutions," Bellow told an interviewer in 1997 when asked for his thoughts on marriage.

He spent his later years teaching literature at Boston University, although he stopped holding regular classes several years ago because of declining health, the school said.

Bellow could be a cantankerous personality, bemoaning the quality of contemporary literature and the decline of reading in American society.

In an interview with Reuters in 1998, Bellow said: "There are only a few wonderful writers around, and then there's the field, as they say in horse racing."

He cited Philip Roth, Don DeLillo and Denis Johnson as contemporary writers he liked, but slammed Tom Wolfe as a "very gifted journalist," but not much of a novelist.

Asked about his thoughts on what happens after death, Bellow offered two scenarios: oblivion or immortality.

"My intuition is immortality," said Bellow, who was ambivalent about whether he believed in God. "No argument can be made for it, but it's just as likely as oblivion."

...will appear on Wednesday this week (Calm down, that is only tomorrow!).

Bill & Ted get a most triumphant box set

They are Bill S. Preston, Esquire and Ted Theodore Logan. And together they are Wyld Stalyons. And together, their two films are finally getting a box set with some new special features in Bill & Ted’s Most Excellent Collection coming from MGM Home Entertainment.

In addition to the two films, the set will contain a third disc of extras including an Air Guitar Tutorial, The Most Triuphant Making-Of Documentary, the featurettes The Original Bill & Ted: In Conversation with Chris and Ed, Score! An Interview with Guitarist Steve Vai and episode of the Bill & Ted cartoon, bios of the various historical figures from the films, an on-screen comic book and radio spots.

With a release date of July 12th, the set will carry a $29.95 suggested retail price.

SCTV DVD Volume 3 - What's Changed

Another DVD set, another set of mostly minor edits. What we've stumbled across so far:

Episode 1: The Tribute to John Belushi was cut.

Episode 2: A Harmonica Gang tune is changed in Maudlin's Eleven; Shake 'N Bake features all different music; the noise pollution in National Committee Against Noise Pollution is different.

Episode 3: The outro music for The Fishin' Musician ("Gone Fishin'", performed by Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong) has been replaced.

Episode 4: Edna Boil audition music by the sax playing family (Benny Hill Theme) has been changed.

Episode 5: Stairways to Heaven was cut. Linsk Minyik's performance of Stairway to Heaven on the Happy Wanderers was cut. The outro music for The Fishin' Musician ("Gone Fishin'", performed by Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong) has been replaced.

Episode 6: Clean.

Episode 7: Clean.

Episode 8: The outro music for The Fishin' Musician ("Gone Fishin'", performed by Bing Crosby and Louis Armstrong) has been replaced.

Episode 9: Music from The Graduate was replaced in The Days of the Week.

ALSO...SCTV DVD Volume 4

TVShowsOnDVD reports that SCTV Volume 4 is due August 2. They also report that it will be a six disc set, which would indicate that it will include both six episode cycles (4 and 5) of season 5, 12 shows in all. Also in the pipe are single-disc releases of the first two discs in the Volume 1 set.

Questions for Lisa Marie Presley

NEW YORK - As she sits in the backseat of an SUV, Lisa Marie Presley — looking particularly goth with her jet black hair, black jumpsuit and black sneaks — prepares for the first question of an interview with a look of dread.

Maybe that's from past experience. When the King's daughter released her album "To Whom It May Concern" two years ago, inquiring minds were more interested in Elvis and those brief marriages to Michael Jackson and Nicolas Cage than her budding music career.

As she releases the follow-up, "Now What," she's still facing the same questions — but only to some degree. With the critical acclaim and solid commercial success of her first record, there are plenty of people who want to know about Lisa Marie Presley, the singer, instead of the tabloid character.

AP: You had a lot to live up to when you first came out. Do you feel less pressure now with a second record?

Presley: There's never not going to be pressure on me, but I did feel a little more like I made a thumbprint on the last one because it was a credible record, because I felt a little more relaxed, but on the other hand ... I'm going to get attacked to some degree. I know that, regardless, so that's never comfortable.

AP: You said when you first started performing, some people were there just out of curiosity. How did you deal with that?

Presley: I think that happens less often then you'd think, but when it is happening it's very obvious and I can tell what's going on. I had some of that in the beginning, but I think that ultimately I got a pretty strong fan base based on just my personality alone, and my honesty, my music. So it wasn't based on anything else, and I did notice if someone else came looking for something else, they'd probably leave, or complain it was too loud or something. (Laughs.)

AP: Was it everything you expected it to be?

Presley: No, because I think most artists start off playing in front of people and are used to doing it before they go out. I kind of did it the opposite. The thing got blown sky high and I'm on TV on "Good Morning America" doing my first performance in front of everybody. I think it was backward and from that, what I got out of it, the end is what I wanted, which was headlining my own tour, having people come because they loved my record and loved my music ... that sort of let me to do the second record, because I was like OK, in the end, if all is said and done, if that song stopped someone from killing themselves and these people are actually listening and being moved my music, that was my whole purpose in the first place, and that's why I did the second one, and it wasn't because of any other reason.

AP: What was the most difficult thing about becoming an artist?

Presley: I don't think I realized what was going to be the hardest part until I dove off the diving board ... first I had to overcome a pre-speculated idea of me. I had to sort of burst through that and introduce myself, and that was the first hurdle, and then now sing in front of everybody, and then that was the second one, and I'm the offspring of — you know, who I'm the offspring of — I had a few hurdles to get through, no doubt about it. But the scales never tipped in the other direction too much.

AP: Talk about your new single, "Dirty Laundry" — why did you choose to remake the Don Henley song?

Presley: I think the song speaks for itself, in terms that it points out the state of affairs. I think it did in the early '80s. I think it's even worse now in terms of what our entertainment is and what we watch every night on TV.

AP: Celebrities often criticize the gossip, but do you ever find yourself being taken in by it — like, "I've gotta see what's happening with Brad and Jen?"

Presley: You know what? It's such a thing right now that I actually feel bad for everybody who gets it, honestly. I don't get wrapped up in it like that because I also know what they do. But the song is not just an attack on the tabloids, to be honest with you. It's like, what is our entertainment? Our entertainment is — whether it be reality shows or people's demise or having cameras in people's faces — when there's something tragic happening.

AP: So, you couldn't see a Lisa Marie Presley reality show?

Presley: No way. Never gonna happen. It's been asked. I'm so anti ... I turn them off, I can't do it. I think I kind of liked `Fear Factor' at first. But it's gone so far, and you realize, look what these people are doing for money, degrading themselves for money, and that's just not appealing to me.

AP: When you first came out, you were very honest talking about your father, Nicolas Cage and Michael Jackson. Do you think that took attention from your music?

Presley: Well, that was a really hard fence to walk, and it was a fence, because I knew there was so much that I needed to explain to some people. I understood the human nature and needing to fill that gap of all the voids that had been happening or all these questions marks. But at the same time, when I did talk about them, that's all that would be discussed in the interview, and that's what would be blown up ... you don't know whether or not you should say something, but you understand you need to explain yourself a little bit, but you don't want to then have the whole focus of the damn thing being on that — which it ends up being.

AP: It is difficult releasing this record now with Michael Jackson on trial?

Presley: To be honest, it makes it really easy for me to deal with, because I just say it's too hot of a stove. Anything about that subject is going to be way blown up out of proportion, so I don't even touch it.

Here are the New CD Releases for Tuesday, April 5th, 2005:

Absurd Minds The Focus (w/three bonus remixes) (Dancing Ferret)

ALOGIA Secret Spheres of Art (Locomotive)

Anointed Now Is the Time (Columbia)

Astral Doors Evil Is Forever (Locomotive)

Beelow Presents Louisiana's Sickest (Juvenile & Boosie) (Bungalo)

Benevento/Russo Duo Best Reason to Buy the Sun (Ropeadope)

Blivit Unhand the World (enhanced CD w/video game) (Crimson Five)

bloom. OSinner (Fighting Records)

Bludshot Another Day (Bludshot)

Blue Rodeo Are You Ready

Brainstorm Liquid Monster (Metal Blade)

British Sea Power Open Season (Rough Trade)

Choose Your Own Adventure The Long Defeat (Sit-n-Spin)

Corrosion of Conformity In the Arms of God (Sanctuary)

Alex Cortiz Magnifico (Varèse Sarabande)

The Crystal Method Community Service II (mix CD w/exclusive remixes of the Smashing Pumpkins, New Order and the Door) (3AM/Ultra)

Dirty Projectors The Getty Address (Western Vinyl)

DJ Skribble Perfecto Presents...Spring Break (mix CD w/exclusive tracks) (Thrive)

Doppler, Inc. Nu Instrumental (Favored Nations)

Early Man Early Man EP (Monitor)

Earth, Wind & Fire Illumination (Sanctuary)

Eligh (of Living Legends) Enigma (guests Murs, Scarub and Robert Miranda) (Legendary)

Faith Evans First Lady (Capitol)

Eyeball Skeleton #1 (My Pal God)

Fantômas Suspended Animation (available in deluxe limited edition; all editions include 30-page calendar w/artwork by renowned artist Yoshimoto Nara) (Ipecac)

Far from Finished East Side of Nowhere (Victory)

Fischerspooner Odyssey (co-produced by Mirwais; songwriting collaborations w/Linda Perry and writer Susan Sontag) (Capitol)

Scott Fisher Scott Fisher (1 AM Approach)

Fripp and Eno The Equatorial Stars (first new collaboration in 30 years) (Discipline Global Media)

Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band XXL (DualDisc; 2003 album) (Silverline)

Graveworm (N)utopia (Nuclear Blast)

Greater California Somber Wurlitzer (Earthling)

The Gun Shys The Gun Shys (Aeronaut)

Tord Gustavsen Trio The Ground (ECM)

Anthony Hamilton Live (Jive)

Scott Hamilton & the Bill Charlap Trio Back in New York (Concord)

Hammerfall Chapter 5 (Nuclear Blast)

Fareed Haque Group Cosmic Hug (Magna Carta)

Hot Hot Heat Elevator (Warner Bros.)

Issam Houshan Wassan Pharaon (Ark 21)

Illanotix Killa Products (EV Productions)

Ray J. Raydiation (Sanctuary)

Brandon Jenkins Down in Flames (Western Soul)

KOMA Sinonimo de Ofender (CD/DVD combo) (Locomotive)

Charles Lloyd Jumping the Creek (ECM)

Longshot Open Mouths Fed (EV Productions)

Lost City Angels Broken World (produced by Sean Slade and Paul Q. Kolderie) (Universal Motown)

Magnolia Electric Co. What Comes After the Blues (Secretly Canadian)

Keiko Matsui Walls of Akendora (Narada)

Irvin Mayfield Strange Fruit (Basin Street)

Donnie McClurkin Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs (Jive)

Kate McGarry Mercy Streets (Palmetto)

Neaera The Rising Tide of Oblivion (Metal Blade)

Calvin Newborn New Born (Yellow Dog)

NewFound Road Somewhere Between (Mountain Home)

OCS 3 & 4 (two CDs) (Narnack)

Okkervil River Black Sheep Boy (Secretly Canadian)

The Pale Pacific Rules Are Predictable EP (SideCho)

Ellis Paul American Jukebox Fables (Rounder)

Pepper's Ghost Shake the Hand That Shook the World (Hybrid)

Lisa Marie Presley Now What (guests Pink and Sex Pistol's Steve Jones; with a cover of Don Henley's "Dirty Laundry") (Capitol)

Pretendo Pretendo (54º40' or Fight!)

Razah Breath of Fresh Air (Virgin)

Red Letter Agent Burn the Good Ones Down (H Bar)

Reel Big Fish We're Not Happy Til You're Not Happy (w/cover of Morrissey's "We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful") (Jive)

Reverb Swirl (Elephant Stone)

Serena Ryder Unlikely Emergency (Isadora)

Diane Schuur with the Caribbean Jazz Project Schuur Fire (Concord)

Self Against City Take It How You Want It EP (Drive-Thru)

The Sound of Urchin The Diamond (Hybrid)

A Static Lullaby Faso Latido (Columbia)

Strength in Numbers The Veil (Victory)

Supersuckers Devil's Food (Mid-Fi)

Suzy Thompson Stop & Listen (Arhoolie)

Todd Purity Pledge (Southern)

Vast Aire & DJ Mighty Mi (members of Cannibal Ox and Hi & Mighty) The Best Damn Rap Show (guest Tame One) (Eastern Conference)

Aaron Watson Live at the Texas Hall of Fame (RED)

White Circle Crime Club Written in Black (54º40' or Fight!)

Yellow #5 (current and former members of Queens of the Stone Age, Kyuss and more) Demon Crossing (guest Chris Goss of Masters of Reality) (Scat)

Eli Young Band Level (Carnival/RED)

Z-Trip Mega Mix (Hollywood)

VA Bonnaroo 2004 (two CDs; live tracks from Bob Dylan, Dave Matthews, My Morning Jacket and more) (Sanctuary)

VA Electro Bossa (two CDs; Brazilian electronica compilation) (Varèse Sarabande)

VA Everything Comes and Goes: A Tribute to Black Sabbath (w/Four Tet, Matmos, Ruins and more) (Temporary Residence)

VA International DeeJay Gigolo Records Compilation 8 (compiled by DJ Hell; includes rare and exclusive tracks) (Gigolo)

VA One More: The Music of Thad Jones (IPO)

VA S.U.R.G.E. Presents Volume #1 (Sanctuary)

VA Verve Remixed 3 (Verve)

OST Millions (new action/comedy film from director of "Trainspotting") (Milan)

OST Music from the O.C.: Mix 4 (Fox TV show; w/Beck, Modest Mouse, the Futureheads and more) (Warner Bros.)

DVD Edgeplay: A Film About the Runaways (Image)

DVD The Game The Documentary - The DVD (Interscope)

DVD Bebo Valdes and Diego el Cigala Blanco y Negro: Bebo & Cigala en Vivo (two DVDs) (RCA Victor)

DVD VA You See Me Laughin': The Last of the Hill Country Bluesmen (Fat Possum)

Bacall Attacks Today's Actresses

Screen veteran Lauren Bacall has launched another attack on today's actresses - accusing them of being skinny, talentless and money-obsessed women who sacrifice everything for fame. The 80-year-old Birth star insists she's glad she put her movie career on hold to marry actor Humphrey Bogart, because her generation rightfully believed family and happiness was more important than the ruthless quest for money and celebrity status. And she fears movie star status has been cheapened by the influx of talentless women who win film and TV roles because they're thin and attractive. She complains, "I put my career in second place throughout both my marriages and it suffered. I don't regret it. You make choices. If you want a good marriage, you must pay attention to that. If you want to be independent, go ahead. You can't have it all. Today, women with minuscule talent are willing to sacrifice everything for their careers. Actors today go into TV, which I don't consider has a lot to do with acting. They only think of stardom. If you photograph well, that's enough. I have a terrible time distinguishing one from another. Girls wear their hair the same, and are much too anorexic-looking. We live in an age of mediocrity. Stars today are not the same stature as Bogie (Humphrey Bogart), Jimmy Cagney, Spencer Tracy, Henry Fonda and Jimmy Stewart."

Brosnan Back As Bond?

All bets are off about the new James Bond - it looks like Pierce Brosnan may be back as the suave super spy after all. According to Internet reports, Sony bosses want Brosnan to return as 007 in the next Bond film Casino Royale, and they're keen for him to star in one more movie after that. A source tells website Darkhorizons.Com, "All the stuff we heard about Brosnan being out is just a ploy from both camps. The negotiations between Brosnan and Eon (Bond production company) came to an end because, in the last year, things were up in the air, thanks to all the organizational changes taking place. Brosnan/Eon camps are still going through the motions of bluffing each other: an echo of the old poker game that Cubby Broccoli (former Bond boss) went through with Roger Moore - Moore frequently announced that he wouldn't be back. The mood around Sony is that Brosnan will be back. Hence, the reluctance of the filmmakers to come right out and announce that they have parted ways with Brosnan. Sony are not in a gambling mood. They could lose more with an unknown actor, or with an experienced but unpopular actor. They're well aware that you just can't place any actor in this role."

'Housewives' Catfight on Vanity Fair Photo Shoot

The stars of Desperate Housewives turned into desperate divas on the set of their Vanity Fair cover shoot when Marcia Cross took offense at the star treatment lavished on Golden Globe-winner Teri Hatcher. According to writer Ned Zeman, who was present when the bust-up occurred, Cross "lost it" when Hatcher was moved into the center of the group shot, despite publicists' demands that photographers treat cast members as equals. Zeman says, "ABC (TV) publicity demanded that, in all the different set-ups that the women would be posed for photographs, Teri Hatcher absolutely was not to be in the center of the women. There had been some tension on the set over who's getting the awards and who's getting most of the magazine covers - that would be Teri Hatcher." And when Hatcher seemed to be taking over the shoot, through no fault of her own, Cross showed off her fiery side. Zeman adds, "She screamed (the publicist's) name and said, in essence, 'I want you to get over here and do your bleeping job...' Then she launched into this profanity-laced tirade. Teri was most visibly upset and got very emotional and was tearing up and was on her cell phone seeking comfort from someone." Hatcher insists the spat has been blown out of proportion: "However it comes off, I believe that everyone is as grateful to be on the show as I am." Meanwhile, cast mate Eva Longoria claims the fight was sparked by over-the-top primping and preening: "They forget we just shot a 16-hour day the day before and when someone's tweaking every little hair, it's like, 'Stop touching us, just shoot the picture.'"

Avril, k-os triple winners at Junos

WINNIPEG (CP) - The pop-tinged rock of Avril Lavigne and the infectious beats of rapper k-os earned the performers three Junos apiece Sunday as the country's music community took care of business during a giant Prairie rock party.

With the Guess Who's Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman among those gracing the stage, Manitoba's most famous music exports were on display with the notable exception of international icon Neil Young, who cancelled after suffering a brain aneurysm.

Barefoot and misty-eyed, singer k. d. lang filled in for the Toronto-born, Winnipeg-raised Young, who is recuperating in New York where he watched the show at the Canadian consulate.

"If there is a beacon or a bastion of an artist who has maintained his integrity and his uncompromising vision and purity . . . it is Neil Young. So Neil, I sing this for you. Heal fast my friend," lang said before launching into a cover of Young's Helpless.

John Brunton, executive producer of the Juno telecast, said he had spoken to someone at the consulate who reported that Young was visibly moved by the tribute.

"He actually teared up and thought it was one of the most beatufil things," said Brunton.

The show's lineup had to be rejigged at the last minute after Young cancelled on Friday because he was still recovering from brain surgery he had late last month.

It was supposed to be a Canadian homecoming for the singer-songwriter. He hadn't attended a Juno ceremony since 1982 when he was inducted into the Music Hall Of Fame.

The two-a-half-hour spectacle, was - as promised in the show's slogan "the flatter the land, the harder the rock" - filled with plenty of crunchy guitars, wailing vocals and screaming Winnipeggers.

Clad in a KISS-inspired leather outfit, host Brent Butt kicked off the party shredding an electric guitar and shouting, "Are you ready to rock?" to an enthusiastic sold-out crowd of 13,000 at the MTS Centre on Winnipeg's famous Portage Avenue.

Toronto's k-os showed viewers why he deserved his three Junos with a high-energy performance of his songs B-Boy Stance and Crucial, accompanied by breakdancers and a rock band.

"It's a victory for showing alternative images of black people on television," the performer, whose real name is Kevin Brereton, said backstage. "I feel happy that I'm being rewarded for that."

His CD Joyful Rebellion was named rap recording of the year while his song Crabbuckit, a catchy, gospel-infused hip-hop track, took the best single trophy, beating out Shania Twain's Party for Two and the Trews' Not Ready to Go, among other nominees.

On the other side of the world performing in Singapore, Napanee, Ont.'s Lavigne was not on hand to pick up her hardware, which included artist of the year and fans' choice.

Punksters Billy Talent, indie darling Feist, and classical group Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra were double winners.

"This is an honour," Billy Talent's Ben Kowalewicz said in accepting the group of the year award.

Critics' favourite Ron Sexsmith was finally awarded a best songwriter Juno after losing the category three previous times.

"I'm glad to have finally won something," the soft-spoken singer said backstage.

Sarah Harmer took the best adult alternative album honour, a new category created to catch some of the country's more eclectic musicians who often get pushed out of the top categories by mainstream artists.

There are 39 Juno categories in all. Winners were selected in a voting process by members of the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

Eight awards were handed out during Sunday's show, which was broadcast on CTV and featured a specially designed stage that allowed Winnipeg kids to sit in the middle of the action.

The celebration included the induction of the Tragically Hip into the hall of fame. The veteran rock heroes gave a robust performance of their hits Fully Completely and Grace, Too.

Frontman Gord Downie was his usual slithering, head-shaking, rambling self. His seemingly impromptu poetic lines included asking the world to "move the UN headquarters to Halifax, all right?" and referencing the weekend's biggest headline by saying: "This might be my last Pope John Paul."

The Kingston, Ont., rock band, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, had been lauded at a formal industry-only dinner on Saturday night by the likes of hockey great Wayne Gretzky, environmental activist David Suzuki, Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson and Barenaked Ladies' Steven Page, who called the band his "older, stoner brothers" in a pre-packaged video.

Other winners included Diana Krall for best jazz vocal album, Marie-Elaine Thibert for francophone album, Green Day for international album and Bob Rock for producer for his work on Simple Plan's Still Not Getting Any and Metallica's Some Kind of Monster.

The show closed with a Winnipeg tribute featuring Bachman, Cummings, the Waking Eyes, Fresh I. E., Nathan and the Wailin' Jennys. The group performed Takin' Care of Business and Share The Land.

Jo Dee Messina Back With 'Surprise'

Country vocalist Jo Dee Messina has set an April 26 release for her first album of new material in five years. The 13-track Curb set "Delicious Surprise" is already off to a good start thanks to the single "My Give a Damn's Busted," which is No. 7 this week on Billboard's Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. The video is already among the top 10 most-played clips on CMT.

"Delicious Surprise" sports five songs written or co-written by Messina, while the title cut was penned by singer/songwriter Beth Hart and Styx bassist Glen Burtnik. Production was handled by Messina in tandem with Byron Gallimore and Mark Bright.

"To me, the 'delicious surprise' in life is the dreaming, getting there, without limits, without putting up boundaries, just having faith and working hard," Messina says. "Dreams are meant to be followed and if your heart speaks it then it doesn't matter how far-fetched it seems."

The new album is the follow-up to 2000's "Burn," which debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart. Messina has roadwork on tap through early September, beginning Tuesday (April 5) as part of a Boys and Girls Club dinner in Nashville.

'Sin City' No. 1 at Weekend Box Office

LOS ANGELES - "Sin City" proved an irresistible temptation for audiences as the highly stylized comic-book adaptation led the weekend box office with a $28.1 million debut.

Opening in second place was Queen Latifah's comedy "Beauty Shop," a spinoff of the "Barbershop" franchise, which took in $13.5 million for the weekend, according to industry estimates Sunday. Since opening Wednesday, "Beauty Shop" had grossed $17.3 million.

The comedy "Guess Who," the previous weekend's top-grossing movie, slipped to No. 3 with $13 million, lifting its 10-day total to $41.3 million.

Overall, movie revenues slipped for the sixth straight weekend. The top 12 movies took in $98.3 million, down 14 percent from the same weekend last year, when "Hellboy" and "Walking Tall" opened on top of the box office.

The slump follows a healthy start to 2005 in which movie revenues had surged about 10 percent ahead of 2004's. Revenues now are running even with last year's at about $2 billion heading into Hollywood's busy season.

"Summer's coming, and summer better save the day," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. "Better to have a slow pre-summer than a slow summer, I guess."

"Sin City" is adapted from Frank Miller's noirish comics in a wicked town filled with tough guys and gorgeous dames. The movie's huge cast includes Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Benicio Del Toro, Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Clive Owen, Elijah Wood, Alexis Bledel and Brittany Murphy.

Director Robert Rodriguez, who had Miller on the set as co-director, shot the actors against green-screen backgrounds, adding the jutting buildings, shadowy interiors and other backdrops later through computer-generated imagery.

The movie is presented largely in stark black and white, with a few splashes of color to highlight such images as splatters of blood, a woman's blond hair or a red dress.

Rodriguez, whose films range from the "Spy Kids" family franchise to the violent thrillers "Once Upon a Time in Mexico" and "From Dusk Till Dawn," is a multitasking director who handles his own shooting, editing and many other duties. His economical work ethic produces movies that resemble big Hollywood productions costing $100 million or more, only at a fraction of the price.

Costing about $40 million to make, "Sin City" grossed nearly three-fourths of its production budget in just the first weekend, putting the movie on the fast track to profitability.

"That's the genius of Robert Rodriguez," said Josh Greenstein, head of marketing for Dimension Films, the Miramax banner that released "Sin City" and the "Spy Kids" flicks. "His way of working is very cost-effective."

"Beauty Shop" stars Latifah reprising the hairdresser role she originated in "Barbershop 2: Back in Business," this time opening her own salon filled with wacky employees and customers.

With females making up two-thirds of the audience, distributor MGM figured "Beauty Shop" would have some longevity in theaters.

"Females, they don't rush out to the movies the first weekend, so I think this one's going to hang around for a while," said Erik Lomis, MGM head of distribution.

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. "Sin City," $28.1 million.
2. "Beauty Shop," $13.5 million.
3. "Guess Who," $13 million.
4. "Robots," $10 million.
5. "Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous," $8.4 million.
6. "The Pacifier," $6.1 million.
7. "The Ring 2," $5.8 million.
8. "The Upside of Anger," $4.1 million.
9. "Hitch," $3 million.
10. "Ice Princess," $2.6 million.

Neil Young Recovering From Brain Aneurysm

NEW YORK - Neil Young was treated for a brain aneurysm this week and remains hospitalized, although doctors expect a full recovery, his publicist said Friday.

The 59-year-old rocker underwent a procedure to treat it Tuesday night at a New York hospital, where he was expected to remain for a few more days, publicist Bob Merlis told The Associated Press.

Dr. Pierre Gobin, who performed the procedure with another doctor, said: "Mr. Young had a dangerous brain aneurysm and was treated successfully by the minimally invasive neuroradiology team here. He is now resting comfortably ... but we strongly recommend that he not travel for several days."

Young had been expected to perform Sunday at the Juno Awards — the Canadian equivalent of the Grammys.

"I'm really disappointed that I won't be able to make it to Winnipeg for the Junos as I had hoped. I grew up there and was really looking forward to the show as well as spending some time with my old friends and family," Young said. "Thanks to my doctors, I'm feeling a lot better now so I hope I can get a rain check."

The aneurysm was discovered when Young's vision became blurry after attending the March 14 induction ceremonies for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Merlis said. An examination by a neurologist detected the aneurysm and the procedure was scheduled.

The veteran rocker is expected to resume normal activities soon. But for now, Merlis said, "He's got to take it easy."

Marley Interview Requested 24 Years After His Death

LONDON (Reuters) - The British Broadcasting Corporation sent an e-mail requesting an interview with reggae star Bob Marley, 24 years after his death.

The publicly funded broadcaster confessed on Friday it was "very embarrassed" by the mix-up which appeared in an e-mail to the Bob Marley Foundation.

"We are obviously very embarrassed that we didn't realize that the letter to the Marley Foundation did not acknowledge that Mr. Marley is no longer with us," said a BBC statement.

The Bob Marley Foundation was not immediately available for comment, but the BBC said it had laughed off the mistake.

"The Marley Foundation have been extremely good humored about this and we have apologized for the error."

It said the mistake occurred in a standard letter the BBC sent out to hundreds of "icons and musicians" it wanted to take part in a series on digital channel BBC-3.

The approach followed the success of BBC-3 documentary "The Story of Bohemian Rhapsody" about the classic track by rock group Queen.

A BBC spokeswoman said the statement was not an April Fool hoax.

"It's a genuine mistake ... today of all days," she said.

Marley died from cancer in 1981 aged just 36. The 60th anniversary of his birth in Jamaica was celebrated in Addis Ababa earlier this year in an event attended by more than 200,000 Ethiopians who shared the legend's Rastafarian faith.

The BBC-3 program was to have concentrated on Marley's hit song "No Woman, No Cry."

The Couch Potato Report - April 2nd, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report has the six Academy Award nominated films that were released on video and DVD over the past three weeks.

I begin this week with THE INCREDIBLES, the film that recently won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film.

Mr. Incredible is a superhero; or he used to be.

After his forced, and unsuccesful, retirement, Mr. Incredible becomes insurance claims specialist Bob Parr and he moves to the suburbs with his wife Helen, the former superhero Elastigirl, and their three children.

Mr. Incredible is then offered the chance to be a hero again by the mysterious Mirage and her unknown employer.

That opportunity turns out to be a trap and the family must all work together for the benefit of the family, and each other.

Mr. Incredible is the star of this wonderful film, but it is called THE INCREDIBLES for a reason. Each member of the family is well written, well animated, and well, incredible.

Yes, the incredibles is totally wicked!!

FINDING NEVERLAND isn't exactly totally wicked, but it is an exceptional drama.

Johnny Depp from PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN leads the cast - and received an Oscar nomination for Best Actor - in this story of how J.M. Barrie came up with the play Peter Pan.

Kate Winslet from TITANIC is a widowed mother of four small boys and she, the child actors, and Depp, are superb in the movie.

There have been some writers and critics who have focussed on the reported historical accuracies in this film instead of the emotion. Admittedly, there are more than a few, but I say ignore them.

FINDING NEVERLAND is wonderful and if you are very familiar with Peter Pan then there are added benefits as you see the origins of the scenes from Barrie's eternal classic.

"Classic."

Let me pause now and focus for a minute on both sides of that word as it applies to romantic comedies.

The orginal BRIDGET JONES' DIARY film was a classic. It was funny, enjoyable and made you root for the heroine.

That film's sequel, BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON isn't a classic.

Not at all. Instead, we get a film that doesn't even seem to like it's main character.

Instead, every single, non-funny, horrible thing that can happen - except death - happens to her.

She gets splashed with water, falls off a roof, gets thrown in jail, and can't get off the lift while skiing.

It isn't funny, and after a while it just seems mean.

I admit it, I liked the orginal BRIDGET JONES' DIARY film and I like the character of Bridget Jones that Renee Zellweger created.

I want to see her succeed and be happy.

If she can't succeed, and since this is a movie, she can't succeed right away, but if she can't succeed, embarrass her and make fun of her with some respect and adoration.

But this sequel doesn't seem to respect her and thus I don't respect or recommend the film.

And yes, I know I am talking about a fictional person as if she was real, but Zellweger made her a real person in the first film and that is why it was a classic.

BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON is just a sad, unnecessary sequel, that I didn't care for at all.

I do know a lot of other people who didn't hate it, but my advice is to ignore this film and watch the original again.

Okay, enough negativity.

Let me be positive again and there is a lot to be positive about regarding the film BEING JULIA.

Annette Bening is Julia Lambert, a well known London stage actress in the 1930's. BEING JULIA is about Julia's eperiences with love and
revenge.

And the revenge part of the film, is the sweetest part to enjoy

Bening lost the Academy Award for best Actress to Hilary Swank, but in any other year she would have won. She is spectacular and the film is well acted and great to watch.

Our final two films this week were also Academy Award losers. But don't let the fact that they didn't win an Oscar stop you from seeing them as they contain unique and interesting characters.

Imelda Staunton received her Oscar nomination for Best Actress in the superb, but uneasy film VERA DRAKE.

Vera is a selfless woman who is completely devoted to, and loved by, her working class family. She also secretly visits women and helps them induce miscarriages for unwanted pregnancies.

I enjoyed every minute of VERA DRAKE and that was 100% due to Imelda Staunton. She is remarkable!

I would also proclaim Best Supporting Actor Oscar nominee Clive Owen to be remarkable in CLOSER. He plays a dermatologist who finds love under the most unlikely of circumstances in this erotically charged tale of love, loneliness and betrayal.

The all-star cast also includes Julia Roberts, Jude Law and Best Supporting Actress Oscar Nominee Natalie Portman.

CLOSER is a handbook about how not to act in a relationship and director Mike Nichols was able to get incredible performances from his entire cast.

Due to it's language and content CLOSER isn't for everyone, but if you don't mind seeing real people speak real words to each other, then you should see it.

CLOSER, VERA DRAKE, BEING JULIA, BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON,
FINDING NEVERLAND and THE INCREDIBLES are all available now on video and
DVD.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

The Oscar winning SIDEWAYS is about two buddies who take a bachelor
party trip to the California wine country.

In SPANGLISH a housekeeper teaches the family she works for about
love.

And Jennifer Garner from TV's ALIAS looks great in the awful action
film ELEKTRA.

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on ELEKTRA, SPANGLISH and
SIDEWAYS, and some other releases, in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next week on The Couch!