Celebs Bound for Springfield

No one knows for sure where the hell Springfield is, but we're guessing it must be pretty close to Hollywood.

After all, look at the latest batch of celebs set for guest shots on The Simpsons this season.

William H. Macy, Lily Tomlin, Ricky Gervais, Frances McDormand, Richard Dean Anderson, Rob Reiner and Michael York will drop by during the 17th season, which kicks off Sept. 11. Also coming back for more 'toon hijinks are previous guests Alec Baldwin, Kelsey Grammer and Joe Mantegna.

The season opener, titled "Bonfire of the Manatees," will find Homer in serious trouble after allowing Springfield's notorious Mafia don , Fat Tony (voiced once again by Mantegna), to use the Simpsons' living room to shoot a "gentlemen's film" to pay off a gambling debt. Having a cow, Marge runs away from the family to find herself and ends up meeting Caleb Thorn (Baldwin), a handsome marine biologist on a quest to save the endangered manatee--and Marge from her boorish hubby. Homer must figure out how to win back her affections. Baldwin previously appeared on the show as himself in 2002's episode "Gump Roast."

Meanwhile, fans will be treated to the first episode in three years featuring villainous Sideshow Bob (Grammer). When last he popped up in Springfield, Krusty the Clown's former sidekick was released from prison into the custody of the Simpsons to help Homer catch a would-be killer. When Bob finally decided to murder long-time nemesis Bart, he ultimately couldn't because he'd grown to like the kid.

And sure to please Patty and Selma will be the arrival of Richard Dean Anderson, who will undoubtedly use some of his MacGyver know-how to help the family out of yet another jam.

Other big names lending their voices to the show include Yankees' pitcher Randy Johnson, boxing champ Joe Frazier, former basketball star Dennis Rodman and NFL legend turned Fox Sports broadcaster Terry Bradshaw. The latter two will appear as themselves in The Simpsons annual "ghoultide" special, "The Simpsons Tree House of Horror XVI" airing in its traditional post-Halloween slot on Nov. 6.

While unveiling the roster of guest stars, Fox reps and show producers didn't immediately comment on Internet reports that Christina Aguilera turned down a Simpsons slot that would have had the "Dirrty" pop tart competing in an American Idol-esque show.

The Simpsons remains one of TV's biggest franchises, consistently ranking tops in the advertiser-friendly 18-48 demo in its Sunday time slot. With the broadcast of its 350th episode last season, The Simpsons, ranking behind only Ozzie & Harriet as the longest-running comedy series in TV history.

Even though series mastermind Matt Groening has occasionally suggested the show's end might be nigh, there's no sign of stopping.

After some protracted negotiations, Fox agreed to a new four-year deal with the show's six stars, giving each a raise to $250,000 per episode and keeping The Simpsons around for a potential 20th season.

And according to Fox reps, preproduction work is under way on a Simpsons animated movie, though no timetable for its release has been announced.

No levy on IPods, court rules

TORONTO (CP) - The fight over a levy on IPods and other digital music devices ended Thursday when the Supreme Court of Canada refused to hear any further arguments on the matter.

That means there will be no levy applied to digital audio recorders such as Apple's popular IPod and IPod Shuffle as well as other MP3 players like IRiver.

"Obviously we're disappointed. We felt it was self-evident that those products are sold for the purpose of copying music," said David Basskin, of the Canadian Private Copying Collective (CPCC), the non-profit agency which collects tariffs on behalf of musicians and record companies.

The group had wanted the high court to overturn last year's Federal Court of Appeal decision which quashed the levy on the popular gadgets.

The non-profit agency had been collecting the tariff - $2 for non-removable memory capacity of up to one GB, $15 for one to 10 GBs, $25 for more than 10 GB - since December 2003 through a tax built into the price of the devices.

It stopped in December 2004 when the Federal Court overturned the policy at the urging of retailers and manufacturers such as Future Shop, Apple Canada and Dell Computer Corporation of Canada.

The CPCC argued that since the new technology opened yet another avenue to make illegal copies of songs, a levy should be collected on behalf of music creators.

The group said Thursday that approximately $4 million was collected between December 2003 and December 2004.

The money is sitting in an account and will be returned to the importers and manufacturers of the products, said Basskin.

The CPCC is an non-profit agency which collects and distributes tariffs on behalf of performers, songwriters, music producers and record companies. It also collects a levy on blank audio such as CDs and mini-discs.

COUP D'STEW

Sorry Stewie.

The highly anticipated, uncensored "Family Guy" movie doesn't come out on DVD until September, but some Internet whiz-kids are already trading full-length, pirated copies of "Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story" online.

The film is technically three closely related, never-before-aired "Family Guy" episodes linked together.

One tells a tale about Stewie - the evil baby bent on world domination - that closely resembles Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's fall. In it, Stewie, sporting a wild Saddamesque beard, is found hiding in a spider hole - as was the Butcher of Baghdad.

Murray keeps up the good work

NEW YORK — For a self-described retiree, Billy Murray never stops working.

"I'm officially retired," he joked at the premiere of his newest movie. "I officially retired before this!"

"This" is Broken Flowers, which won the Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and stars the soulful Murray as a playboy who finds out that he might have a grown son from a former relationship.

An uncharacteristically gregarious Murray turned up at the film's premiere Wednesday night, telling reporters that he'd just had "a perfectly good cup of ice cream that someone took from me, so I had to do this," meaning red-carpet interviews. Dessert aside, his secret to chilling out on a hot summer night?

"This seersucker's pretty cool," Murray said.

In the film, which opens Aug. 5, Murray's Don Johnston embarks on a cross-country journey to track down the boy and becomes, as his character says, "a stalker in a Taurus." Along the way, he reconnects with old girlfriends played by Jessica Lange, Sharon Stone and Frances Conroy.

Could Murray, a father of five sons, imagine a situation like Johnston's? "It could happen to anyone," he said. "Well, not to a woman. A woman would know."

As for the future: "Now that I'm retired, I'm going to try again to learn guitar. And I'm going to try to work on my Spanish. I can speak some French, but I've got to work on my Spanish."

'Penguins' march defies summer box office trend

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - At summer film box offices plagued by slow ticket sales, the hottest documentary this year is about a very cold topic: Emperor Penguins in Antarctica.

"March of the Penguins" is rising fast up the charts and on Thursday is expected to top $12 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales, said Mark Gill, president of domestic distributor, Warner Independent Pictures.

This week, the cinematic tale of the penguins' mating season will surpass hits "Winged Migration" and "Super Size Me" to become the fourth highest-grossing documentary of all time in domestic theaters, according to box office trackers.

Concert film, "Madonna: Truth or Dare," at $15 million, looks destined to succumb, and even No. 2 "Bowling for Columbine," director Michael Moore's Oscar-winner, at $21.6 million could be beaten when "March of the Penguins" expands to 1,400 theaters on Aug. 5 from just under 700 currently.

"It definitely has a shot (at 'Bowling for Columbine')," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box office tracking company Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc.

"This is a breath of fresh air in terms of positive news on the box office front, and it also shows that people want something different. They want something unique," he added.

The No. 1 documentary is Moore's 2004 hit "Fahrenheit 9/11" at $120 million, which most industry watchers agree is an anomaly.

"March of the Penguins" tosses away old rules of documentary-making to become more like a narrative feature film with different story lines, plot twists and characters.

The story follows the Emperor Penguins on a long march across frozen expanses from their summer feeding grounds to their winter mating arena. Audiences watch the penguins pair off, the female bear an egg and the male carry it on his feet to keep it from freezing until it hatches.

French director Luc Jacquet, whose four-man crew spent 14 months in Antarctica filming the penguins, likens the film to an Impressionist painting. "I wanted to tell a story that would capture emotional involvement," he said.

In the French version, actors' voices were used to speak the penguin roles much like an animated movie and French pop music was used for the score. Neither, however, worked for U.S. audiences, according to Gill.

For the English version, the distributors trimmed the movie by about five minutes, hired noted screenwriter Jordan Roberts to produce a narration that is read by Morgan Freeman, and commissioned Alex Wurman to write a symphonic score.

"All that seems to have made a difference," Gill said. "What really works is when you get a movie that people are so adamant about that they force their friends to go, and that's what this is. You get one or two of those a year."

Cusack 'Must Love' Romantic Comedies

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com)- With apologizes to strong against-type performances in films like "The Grifters" and "Eight Men Out," John Cusack has built a career on playing modern men with very specific ideas about modern romance.

In turn, Cusack characters like Gib in "The Sure Thing," Rob in "High Fidelity" and -- best of all -- Lloyd in "Say Anything," have educated a generation of young males in a specific post-Redford kind of somewhat ironic, entirely self-aware brand of making woo. A bestselling book could be written on his movies and John Cusack's Rules of Love.

"Yeah, but they're wrong," Cusack laughs now. "They're always wrong."

It's true that the typical Cusack hero has to lose the girl -- often in the most emotionally goring way possible -- before finding happiness. Yet, despite those regular failings and despite the actor's regular attempts to branch out, he's become forever associated with a single character type.

"Women keep telling us, 'I wish John would only make these kinds of movies, because I love him in these kinds of movies,'" says Suzanne Todd, one of the producers of "Must Love Dogs," Cusack's latest effort in the genre.

Cusack has often admitted to taking certain obvious crowdpleasers -- appealing, but unremarkable films like "America's Sweethearts" or "Serendipity" -- to then use his stature to assist darker, more independent-minded productions like "Being John Malkovich" or "Max." He chafes at the idea of typecasting, though.

"It seems to be this one thing that people do over and over again which is to try and figure out how to get married, stay married, fall in love, how to rekindle all of this stuff," Cusack explains. "It seems to me to be a pretty eternal thing. So I don't think that you can get typecast into making movies about men relating to women. That kinda seems to be what happens on this planet a lot."

In "Dogs," Cusack plays Jake, an old-fashioned guy whose ethos will be familiar to the actor's devotees. Hurt once too often in love, Jake has retreated into repeated viewings of David Lean's classic "Doctor Zhivago," fearing that the ideal cinematic romance is more satisfying than anything in real life. That all changes when he meets equally lovelorn preschool teacher Sarah (Diane Lane). It's no accident that Jake sounds like something of an evolution of Lloyd or Lane Meyer. Ask Cusack's co-star what he brings to his movies and the answer is swift and warm.

"A lot of rewrites," Lane replies, before adding other adjectives like "freedom," "levity" and "confidence."

Television veteran Gary David Goldberg, who wrote and directed "Dogs," estimates that around half of Cusack's performance came from his own script additions and ad libs.

"I would never deny John Cusack anything that he wanted to do," Goldberg says. "He is an absolute prince. He had some thoughts about this character much deeper and better than mine. I had constructed a much more generic guy."

Surely Cusack, the romantic movie legend and personal script doctor, has some quality recommendations for male readers, or the possibility of hope for females.

"Do I have dating advice?" he ponders. "No. I don't have any dating advice. Except endurance is more important than truth. I don't know what that means, but it sounds cool."

"Must Love Dogs" hits theaters nationwide on Friday, July 29.

Phair Balances Old, New On 'Miracle'

Liz Phair has finalized the track list for her fifth album, "Somebody's Miracle." As previously reported, the 14-track set will arrive Oct. 4 via Capitol. First single "Everything to Me," one of the album's three co-writes with producer John Shanks, will arrive imminently at U.S. radio outlets.

"Somebody's Miracle" is the follow-up to Phair's 2003 self-titled effort, which spawned her first crossover hit in the form of "Why Can't I?," but alienated longtime fans with its glossy sound and mainstream ambitions.

Phair has not exactly returned to her lo-fi, indie-rock roots; streamlined cuts like "Stars and Planets," "Giving It All to You" and "Count on My Love" seem primed for pop radio airplay.

But several tracks here should bring a smile to the face of devotees of her 1993 Matador debut, "Exile in Guyville," and its 1994 follow-up, "Whip-Smart." "Why I Lie" rides a sexy, Stones-style rock groove, while "Got My Own Thing" lopes along on a detuned riff that recalls the "Guyville" touchstone "Stratford-on-Guy."

While not as openly sexual as an earlier single like "Supernova," "Can't Get Out of What I'm Into" is a similarly fast, fun rocker about a relationship that flies in the face of better judgment. "It gives me something to laugh about / because my real life ain't f***in' funny," she sings.

Fresh off an appearance last weekend at Lollapalooza in her Chicago hometown, Phair kicked off a solo acoustic tour last night (July 26) in Boston and will be on the road through Aug. 19 in San Francisco.

Here is the track list for "Somebody's Miracle":

"Leap of Innocence"
"Wind in the Mountain"
"Stars and Planets"
"Somebody's Miracle"
"Got My Own Thing"
"Count on My Love"
"Lazy Dreamer"
"Everything to Me"
"Can't Get Out of What I'm Into"
"Table for One"
"Why I Lie"
"Lost Tonight"
"Everything (Between Us)"
"Giving It All to You"

Madonna Names Comeback Single

Madonna has chosen "Hung Up" as the first single from her new album, "Confessions on a Dancefloor." No release dates have been unveiled for either item, but both are expected in the fall via Warner Bros.

The artist's official Web site says "Hung Up" was produced by Stuart Price, who previously served as the musical director on Madonna's 2004 Re-Invention tour. As previously reported, that outing will be the subject of a DVD due out near year's end.

Madonna told ABC's "The View" in June that the new album is dominated by dance music and will likely be supported by a tour in 2006.

The set will be the follow-up to 2003's critically maligned album "American Life," which debuted at No. 1 on The Billboard 200, but posted the lowest sales of any Madonna album to-date (657,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan).

DAYTIME TO DVD

Oprah Winfrey releasing a 20th anniversary DVD in November featuring highlights from two decades of The Oprah Winfrey Show, per the Hollywood Reporter.

Dark Knight returns on DVD

LAS VEGAS (Hollywood Reporter) - With "Batman Begins" nearing the $200 million mark at the North American box office, fans of the Dark Knight will soon be able to buy double-disc editions of the previous four "Batman" movies.

"Batman," "Batman Returns," "Batman Forever" and "Batman & Robin" will be released Oct. 18 via Warner Home Video. They will be available individually and as a gift set, "Batman: The Motion Picture Anthology 1989-1997."

Each DVD features a new digital transfer of the movie. Bonus features include director commentaries by Joel Schumacher and Tim Burton, cast and crew interviews, several new documentaries, "making of" featurettes and nine music videos from Prince, Seal and the Smashing Pumpkins.

D'Onofrio: Happy to share 'L&O' duties with Noth

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — Vincent D'Onofrio, who was hospitalized briefly last year for exhaustion, says he now has "the cushiest job on television."

D'Onofrio will be splitting the workload on NBC's Law & Order: Criminal Intent with Chris Noth, who left the original Law & Order series 10 years ago. Each actor will appear in 11 episodes.

"I wouldn't be doing a fifth season if it wasn't for Dick Wolf stepping in and coming up with a better idea," D'Onofrio told reporters recently, according to AP Radio.

Wolf is the creator and executive producer of the Law & Order crime drama franchise, which also includes Law & Order and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Kathryn Erbe co-stars with D'Onofrio on Criminal Intent.

The 46-year-old actor fainted on the set of the New York-based crime drama in November and was hospitalized. Several days later, he fainted at home. Medical tests revealed exhaustion.

"It was just too much. Kate and I, we work our butts off," he said. "It's not digging ditches but ..."

With Noth signing on, "Now I have the cushiest job on television. I do," D'Onofrio said. "Eleven episodes a season. I mean, you can't beat that."

D'Onofrio said exhaustion "crept up" on him and put him down "like a rabid dog."

"I was worried. My family was worried. My kids worried. And my exes were worried. Everybody was worried. And the doctors were worried. There were four neurologists and heart guys, specialists at NYU, New York University, that's where I was, at the hospital there."

Noth will again play Detective Mike Logan, his character from Law & Order. His partner will be played by Annabella Sciorra.

McCready Apparently Attempted Suicide

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Mindy McCready apparently attempted suicide, and a man charged last spring with trying to kill her was with the country singer when police found her unconscious in a Florida hotel lobby, authorities said Tuesday.

William McKnight, 39, had been charged with attempted criminal homicide and aggravated burglary in an attack on the 28-year-old entertainer earlier this year. The couple had broken up about two weeks before the attack, which occurred at McCready's Nashville home.

McKnight, who described himself as McCready's fiance, told authorities at the Holiday Inn Harborside in Indian Rocks Beach that she had taken a large amount of two substances and drank a lot of alcohol, according to a Pinellas County Sheriff's Department report.

Sgt. Jim Bordner refused to identify the substances, citing McCready's medical confidentiality rights.

Bordner also refused to release McCready's condition or the hospital where she was taken. He said only that she was "recovering at a local hospital."

According to the report, McKnight told authorities that he "had been having some relationship problems" with McCready and gave them a four-page suicide note he said she had written.

The note wasn't released.

McCready had testified in May that McKnight punched her in the face and choked her after he said she wasn't going to make a fool out of him by seeing other men. He posted $130,000 bail last month.

A few days before the attack, McCready — who had a hit in 1996 with "Guys Do It All the Time" — was arrested and charged with driving under the influence and driving on a suspended license.

Last year, she pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining the painkiller OxyContin at a suburban Nashville pharmacy and was fined $4,000, sentenced to three years of supervised probation and ordered to perform 200 hours of community service.

Stones Back with a "Bang"

The birth of the universe was a pretty big deal--but not as important as the first new Rolling Stones record in eight years.

The Bigger Bang, the band's first studio effort since 1997's Bridges to Babylon, is set for release Sept. 6 in the United States, Virgin Records announced Tuesday--which not so coincidentally is Mick Jagger's 62nd birthday.

The new disc will bow a day earlier overseas.

In addition to the lead single, "Streets of Love," the album includes two Keith Richards-sung tunes; "This Place Is Empty" and "Infamy."

Among the 16 cuts Bang are: "Rough Justice," "Back of My Hand," "Laugh, I Nearly Died" and "Oh No, Not You Again," which the Stones previewed in May at New York's Juilliard School after announcing their forthcoming world tour.

One track earning some prerelease controversy is "Sweet Neo-Con," which apparently takes aim at the Bush administration and its strong-armed foreign policy.

Don Was, who produced the band's previous two studio sets, Bridges to Babylon and 1994's Voodoo Lounge, was behind the board for Bang. The eight-year lapse between studio albums is the longest in the band's 43-year history, although the Stones did issue the live album No Security in 1998 and the greatest-hits compilation Forty Licks in 2002.

Bang was recorded during late 2004 and early 2005 in France. Drummer Charlie Watts, who spent much of last year receiving treatment for throat cancer, played on all the tracks. (He's fully recovered and will tour with the band.) Although early reports suggested longtime guitarist Ron Wood was missing from many of the recording sessions, a press release Tuesday confirmed Wood was indeed a part of Bang.

The Stones have been working out the new material in an empty airplane hangar in Toronto in advance of their 35-date North American tour (now dubbed the Bigger Bang Tour), which launches Aug. 21 at Boston's Fenway Park. Rumors have been circulating that the Stones may play a warm-up club date or two in advance of their official tour kickoff, most likely in Toronto or New York.

The North American road show will feature rotating A-list opening acts, including Beck, Black Eyed Peas, Maroon 5, John Mayer, Pearl Jam and Joss Stone. According to Virgin, fans have already snapped up 97 percent of all tickets currently available for sale.

The band will hit most of the rest of the world next year.

Report: Eminem Says He's 'Taking a Break'

NEW YORK - Is Eminem headed for retirement — or just taking a break? Earlier this month, reports from his hometown of Detroit quoted sources as saying the 32-year-old rapper would play his last concert at Slane Castle in Dublin, Ireland, on Sept. 17, at the end of "Anger Management" tour.

In a posting on its Web site, MTV quotes Eminem as saying, "I'm not retiring," and also denying that "Encore" is his last album.

Eminem, whose real name is Marshall Mathers III, is quoted as saying: "When I say I'm taking a break, I'm taking a break from my music to go in the studio and produce my other artists and put their albums out."

He is also quoted as saying, "When I know my next move, I'll tell everyone my next move. Not some reporter who writes a story about `This is Eminem's last album.' I never said (`Encore') was my last album."

Phone messages and e-mails left with the rapper's publicist by The Associated Press hadn't been returned Monday.

Eminem has won nine Grammys, including best rap album for "The Slim Shady LP," "The Marshall Mathers LP" and "The Eminem Show." He won an Oscar for the song "Lose Yourself" from the 2002 film "8 Mile," in which he also starred.

The Couch Potato Report - July 26th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features two films I love, one from 2005 and the other from 1979.

Kevin Costner has starred in the baseball themed films FIELD OF DREAMS (1989) FOR LOVE OF THE GAME (1999) and BULL DURHAM (1988).

Since I enjoyed all three of those films, and I love baseball and baseball movies in general, I was excited when I heard that Costner would once again portray a baseball player in the film THE UPSIDE OF ANGER.

I was doubly excited when I heard that he was also playing a radio announcer!

But THE UPSIDE OF ANGER has little to do with baseball, or radio broadcasting for that matter. In fact, Costner's role is a supporting one.

The actual star of this wonderful film is Joan Allen, from THE NOTEBOOK and PLEASANTVILLE.

When THE UPSIDE OF ANGER begins, Allen's character has lost her husband. He has literally vanished without a trace, and she presumes that he has run off to Europe with his secretary.

In addition to dealing with her own anger she has to care for her four teenage daughters, none of whom she is particularly close to.

Along comes Costner, the ex-baseball player turned radio talk show host neighbour who has always had feelings for Joan Allen's character.

Despite his alcoholism, and his refusal to talk baseball with anyone, he turns out to have a bit of a stabilizing effect among the women, and the family.

That all might sound way too dramatic but THE UPSIDE OF ANGER is exceptionally well written and features an abundance of smart dialogue.

It is dramatic, but it is also funny and quite touching at times.

In addition to Allen and Costner THE UPSIDE OF ANGER features four of today's most talented up-and-coming young actresses - Alicia Witt from VANILLA SKY, Keri Russell of TV's FELICITY, Erika Chistensen from TRAFFIC and Evan Rachel Wood, who is best known for the film THIRTEEN.

All four actresses are wonderful, and so is Kevin Costner, but as I mentioned earlier, this is Joan Allen's movie.

She gives her character a unique combination of raw emotion, alcoholism, sex appeal and pain, and the whole time you still aren't sure what to think of her.

From beginning to end THE UPSIDE OF ANGER is a great movie!

It is one of my favourite films of 2005, and I am very happy that it is finally available on video and DVD.

I remember back in the early nineteen eighties when I was excited about another film that had been released in a home viewing format.

That film was THE JERK and I have since owned it on Beta, VHS, Laserdisc and already once on DVD. It remains one of my favourites and one of the funniest films ever made!

And now we have a new widescreen 26TH ANNIVERSARY DVD EDITION of the film to enjoy!

Then stand up comic Steve Martin made his film-starring debut in THE JERK portraying Navin Johnson, the adopted son of a poor sharecropper family.

One of his inventions leads him from rags to riches and then he goes right back to rags.

Along the way, he's smitten with a lady motorcycle racer, survives a series of attacks by a deranged killer, and finds out what his "special purpose" is.

Yes, the film is stupid and idiotic and Martin is more than willing to play the fool.

And yes, I am the fool who has been laughing and following THE JERK for 26 years now!

It was the film that made me realize I had a "special purpose!"

For a few seasons back in the late nineties the special purpose of the television show SLIDERS was to entertain people.

SLIDERS is the show about four people who found a gateway to another dimension, but they forgot one problem... how to get back!

My older sister was a fan of the show, but I only watched it when we were visiting each other.

Since she wasn't with me, I must admit that I wasn't very excited about having to sit and watch the 25 episodes of the show that are contained in the 4-disc box set SLIDERS - THE THIRD SEASON.

In the end, I didn't mind watching the show, but I would never call myself a fan of SLIDERS.

The plots aren't very interesting and the special effects are very low budget.

But, I still enjoyed watching the box set because of the show's cast, namely Jerry O'Connell, John Rhys-Davies, Sabrina Lloyd and Kari Wuhrer.

SLIDERS may not have been the best science fiction TV show of all time, but it is entertaining enough, and if you are a fan, you now have this four-disc box set to enjoy whenever you'd like.

As for the box set that I have, well I am sending it to my sister, so she can enjoy it whenever she'd like.

The box set for THE THIRD SEASON OF SLIDERS, THE JERK and THE UPSIDE OF ANGER are all available now at a store near you.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT...

...is a look at the SPECIAL EDITION of the hilarious 1994 film SWIMMING WITH SHARKS.

Kevin Spacey from AMERICAN BEAUTY and SEVEN stars as the "boss from hell."

Spacey also starred in the 1997 film MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL, a movie directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Clint's daughter Alison.

The younger Eastwood ventured away from her Dad's career to star in the horror film THEY ARE AMONG US and it too is now available on video and DVD.

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on those films, 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!

'Extras' Special: New Gervais Comedy Premieres Big

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) Nobody's saying it's better than "The Office," but the early results for Ricky Gervais' "Extras" seem positive. The comedy, which has earned strong reviews from the British press and positive buzz from American critics, had a rousing premiere last Thursday (July 21) night.

According to the British media, "Extras" drew some 4.6 million viewers to BBC2 on Thursday night. The comedy, which features Gervais as a frustrated actor working as a film extra, was the most watched program on British TV for its 9 p.m. half-hour slot, a somewhat rare occurrence for BBC2.

The opening numbers for "Extras," which premieres on HBO on Sunday, Sept. 25, were only slightly behind figures for the second season premiere of "The Office" in 2002. In both cases, the Gervais premieres captured a 24 percent audience share.

Gervais had insisted that "Extras" air on BBC2 rather than on the BBC mothership in order to give the show a slow build and prevent immediate mainstream success.

'Alias' star's baby won't be covert

LOS ANGELES — Jennifer Garner won't have to hide her pregnancy when Alias returns for its fifth (and probably final) season this fall.

That's because Garner's Sydney Bristow also is expecting with Vaughn (co-star Michael Vartan).

Though Ben Affleck's newlywed bride is due in December, Alias creator J.J. Abrams expects she won't miss work on the series, scheduled to resume production Friday. Producers plan to shoot earlier some scenes that would have been filmed during her short maternity leave: "She'll be in every episode," he says.

The decision to write her pregnancy into the plot also means the show can now air largely uninterrupted in its new home, Thursdays at 8 ET/PT, ABC says. An early plan called for the series to air eight episodes, take a long breather and return in the spring.

'L&O' means $$:

NBC may want to take creative risks, but for Law & Order producer Dick Wolf, it's all about business. He'd prefer that the press focus on the fact that the Law franchise generated $1 billion in ad revenue last season and not on the ratings declines posted by two of the shows and the cancellation of a third (Trial by Jury).

"We're not looking to be the hot show," he says of the series and its spawn. "We're about longevity, we're about repeatability, staying on the air and being a profit center for years to come."

Law & Order: Criminal Intent, which again faces Desperate Housewives this fall, is splitting its season in two with alternating episodes led by Vincent D'Onofrio and Chris Noth, returning as Detective Mike Logan. It's aimed at reducing the actors' schedules. And in a first, a foreign version of CI is in production for French network TF1. It's due next year.

Fame windfall:

Lottery winners aren't the only people who can go a little crazy.

Jason Gedrick (Boomtown) is returning to NBC in Windfall, a midseason soap about instant millionaires who get carried away by riches. But money, he says, isn't the only thing that can throw a person off. So can sudden fame. "When you come in, there are so many things that are promised to you. ... You can fall into the trap of 'Oh, maybe I deserve this.' "

What pulled Gedrick out of the trap? "I had friends in Chicago who said, 'You're just seconds away from being slapped.' "

Birth daze:

Babies are booming at NBC's Inconceivable.

Angie Harmon just had a daughter, and her co-star, Ming-Na, is pregnant. Co-creators Marco Penette and Oliver Goldstick each have used surrogates, and Goldstick and his partner are expecting their second baby in August.

Which explains why Goldstick thinks this NBC drama about a fertility clinic is timely. In the old days on TV, he says, women used to borrow a cup of sugar from a neighbor. "Now they can borrow an egg or a uterus."

Harmon, who joined the show after the pilot was shot, says she also felt a timely pull: She read the script when she was pregnant and fell in love with it. But she says it wasn't the hormones.

"I watched it after I had my baby, and I still liked it."

Spielberg's Olympic saga titled 'Munich'

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Steven Spielberg's next film finally has a title: Munich.

DreamWorks and Universal, which are co-financing the movie, announced the name Monday for the long-untitled thriller, which centers on the aftermath of the killings of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany.

Eric Bana (Troy) stars as a Mossad agent who leads a secret Israeli squad assigned to assassinate 11 Palestinians suspected of planning the killings. Munich co-stars Geoffrey Rush, Daniel Craig and Mathieu Kassovitz.

The film is due out Dec. 23.

Spielberg's War of the Worlds, released in late June, just passed the $200 million mark at the domestic box office.

This marks the second time in recent years that Spielberg will have directed two movies released in the same year. Spielberg's Minority Report and Catch Me If You Can both came out in 2002.

NEW CD RELEASES FOR JULY 26, 2005

3 Doors Down Away from the Sun and Seventeen Days (both DualDiscs) (Universal)

Jason Aldean Jason Aldean (Broken Bow)

Appart Nu Tango (Milan)

Babyface Grown & Sexy (Arista)

Barcode Showdown (Nuclear Blast)

Natasha Bedingfield Unwritten (Epic)

Jeff Black Tin Lily (DualTone)

Blessing the Hogs The Twelve Gauge Solution (w/covers of Quicksand and the Melvins) (Goodfellow)

Boondogs Fever Dreams (Max)

Boys Night Out Trainwreck (Ferret)

Brad Brad vs. Satchel (Establishment Store)

Bratz Rock Angels (Hip-O)

Tom Braxton Bounce (Rendezvous)

Kai Brown Better Now (How Now Brown Cow)

Andy Caldwell Late Night with (house and downtempo mix CD) (Swank)

Caliban vs. Heaven Shall Burn The Split Program II (Lifeforce)

Eddie Cane Presents (PR Records)

Chameleon Struggle to Survive (Solidwave)

The Cherry Valence TCV3 (Bifocal Media)

Chiodos All's Well That Ends Well (Equal Vision)

The Church El Momento Descuidado (acoustic remakes of classic songs w/five new tunes) (Cooking Vinyl)

Cipher Children of God's Fire (Uprising/SideCho)

Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra Live at MCG (MCG Jazz)

Cobra Noir Abode of the Dead (Cyclop Media/Magic Bullet)

The Commercials vs. Shadow Agency The Split EP (Blackout!)

The Concretes Layourbattleaxedown (b-sides and rarities) (Astralwerks)

Cool Calm Pete Lost (Embedded)

Copperpot Chapter Seven Instrumentals (EV Productions)

Cru Jones A Roadside View EP (Undecided)

Brian Culbertson It's On Tonight (Verve)

Daikaiju Daikaiju (Reptile)

Aram Danesh and the Super Human Crew The Spot (Mammoth Entertainment)

Daphne Loves Derby On the Strength of All Convinced (Outlook)

The Dayton Family Family Feud (Koch)

Robert Deeble This Bar Has No One Left EP (Fractured Discs)

deSoL deSoL (Curb)

DJ Williams Projekt Projekt Management (Harmonized)

Dope American Apathy (also available as limited edition two-CD version w/six bonus tracks) (Artemis)

The Dying Light The Killing Plan (Willowtip)

The Early November/I Am the Avalanche Split EP (Drive-Thru)

Lauren Ellis Feels Like Family (Silverline)

Fear My Thoughts Hell Sweet Hell (Lifeforce)

Danny Federici Out of a Dream (V2)

Fight Paris Paradise, Found (Trustkill)

Norman Finkelstein An Issue of Justice (Alternative Tentacles)

Fruit Bats Spelled in Bones (Sub Pop)

Galactic Zoo Dossier #6 Magazine (Drag City)

Garage a Trois Outre Mer (Telarc)

Macy Gray Live in Las Vegas (DVD same day; 2004 performance at House of Blues) (Nutech Digital)

James Hardway Collective Over Easy (Lunaticworks)

Walter Hawkins A Song in My Heart (Coda)

Gary Higgins Red Hash (Drag City)

The High Dials War of the Wakening Phantoms (Rainbow Quartz)

Charlie Hunter and Bobby Previte with DJ Logic Longitude (Thirsty Ear)

Jason Isbell Sirens of the Ditch (New West)

Jan Martens Frustration Jan Martens Frustration (guest members of the Soundtrack of Our Lives and Hellacopters; includes new album plus debut EP and bonus b-side) (Hidden Agenda)

Kids Like Us Outta Control (Eulogy)

King Elementary Kudzu (Sweet Tea/Terminus)

Ani Kyd Evil Needs Candy Too (Alternative Tentacles)

Latin Pimps Me Voy! (Basement Front)

Keith LeBlanc Stop the Confusion (Collision)

Emily Lord Brand New Day (Jungle Queen)

The Love Hall Tryst (John Wesley Harding) Songs of Misfortune (includes traditional British folk songs, originals and a cover of Leonard Cohen's "Joan of Arc") (Appleseed)

Yngwie Malmsteen Unleash the Fury (Eagle Rock)

Mas Rapido Mas Rapido (Parasol)

Mazarin We're Already There (guest members of Lilys, Icarus Line and the Walkmen) (I & Ear)

Mcgowan Mcgowan (Manic Pop Thrill)

Mecca Bodega Skin (Harmonized)

Thee Minks Are You Ready Now? (Steel Cage)

Mon Frere Real Vampires EP (Cake)

Moonbabies War on Sound (Hidden Agenda)

Alanis Morissette Jagged Little Pill Acoustic (new version to celebrate album's tenth anniversary) (Warner Bros.)

Bob Mould Body of Song (Yep Roc)

Jason Mraz Mr. A-Z (produced by Steve Lillywhite) (Elektra/Atlantic)

Milton Nascimento Pieta (Savoy Jazz)

Nations by the River (Luke Steele of the Sleepy Jackson) Holes in the Valley (Astralwerks)

Odiorne Heavy Wish (guest members of Mercury Rev, Longwave and more) (file13)

Outspoken Spotlight (Indecision)

A Perfect Murder Strength Through Vengeance (Victory)

Mike Phillips Uncommon Denominator (Hidden Beach)

Psalm One Bio Chemistry 2: Esters & Essays (Birthwrite/Ev Productions)

Ian Rankin and Jackie Leven Present Jackie Leven Said (two CDs; live 2004 performance) (Cooking Vinyl)

Emma Rugg Oceans/Depart EP (Indreams)

Brian Setzer Rockabilly Riot Vol. One - A Tribute to Sun Records (hits and rarities made famous by Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison and more) (Surfdog)

Kevin Sharp Make a Wish (Cupit)

Shawn C This Is My Life (SA Music Group/456/Fontana)

Brian Simpson It's All Good (Rendezvous)

Trey Songz I Gotta Make It (Atlantic)

Space Vacuum from Outer Space Starcade (Dionysus)

Spellbound Encantos (Selfish)

Summer Lawns First We Waited...Then It Started (Stunning Models on Display)

Keith Sweat Candy Store (Sanctuary)

Third World Black, Gold and Green (Shanachie)

This Moment Finding a Voice in the Dark (Uprising)

Twiztid Mutant (Vol. 2) (Psychopathic)

The Unusual Suspects The Unusual Suspects (Teflon Muzik)

Yoko Utsumi Yoko Utsumi (Asian Man)

Gerald Veasley At the Jazz Base (Telarc Jazz)

Veda The Weight of an Empty Room (Second Nature)

Roger Alan Wade All Likkered Up (Oglio)

Lari White Green Eyed Soul (Skinny WhiteGirl)

Chris Whitley Soft Dangerous Shores (Messenger)

Wire The Scottish Play: 2004 (CD/DVD combo; live performance from Scotland's Triptych Festival) (Pinkflag)

Denison Witmer Are You a Dreamer? (w/Sufjan Stevens and members of the Innocence Mission) (The Militia Group)

Jim Yoshii Pile-Up Picks Us Apart (Absolutely Kosher)

Young Jeezy Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101 (w/Trick Daddy, TI, Young Buck and more) (Def Jam)

Young Sicc The Statement (PR Records)

VA Celtic Christmas (Eagle Rock)

VA Chicano Rap Explosion (Thump)

VA Gangbangin' Hits Mix (PR Records)

VA Honey Love - Smooth Jazz Plays R. Kelly (Shanachie)

VA Last Tango in Buenos Aires (Milan)

VA Meditation for Organ and Instruments (Milan)

VA reBOOT: Notes for the Next Generation (previously unreleased tracks from Thievery Corporation, Louie Vega, Mark Farina and more; benefit album for NextAid, which helps African children orphaned by AIDS) (Om)

VA Ruff Ryders - Ryde or Die Volume 4: The Redemption (w/DMX, Jadakiss, N.O.R.E., the Lox, Bunny Wailer and more) (Artemis)

OST Marilyn's Man (Empire)

OST Queer as Folk - Season 5 (Tommy Boy)

OST Sky High (Disney film w/Kurt Russell; w/covers of '80s songs by They Might Be Giants, Elefant, Bowling for Soup and more) (Hollywood)

OST The Island (Dreamworks/Milan)

DVD Maestro (two DVDs; documentary on early dance music from the late '60s through early '80s) (Sanctuary)

DVD Mixtape Legends Volume 2.0 (interviews and performances from underground rap artists) (Warlock)

DVD Death Cab for Cutie Drive Well, Sleep Carefully: On the Road with (tour documentary w/performances and interviews) (Plexiflim)

DVD Bruce Hornsby Three Nights on the Town (performances from three New York shows in October 2004; includes documentary and behind the scenes footage) (Columbia)

DVD Mushroomhead Volume 1 (music videos, live performance and behind the scenes footage) (Filthy Hands)

DVD S.O.D. 20 Years of Dysfunction (includes previously unreleased footage; w/rare live bonus CD, "Pussywhipped") (Megaforce)

Green Day, Stefani, Elliot Lead VMA Nods

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. - Luxury yachts and tricked-out cars. P. Diddy. And lots and lots of water. MTV announced Monday that its Video Music Awards will feature all of those elements next month as it seeks once again to reinvent an awards show that routinely lures big stars and makes racy headlines.

Punk rockers Green Day led all musical acts with eight nominations. Missy Elliott followed with six, and Stefani and U2 each had five.

P. Diddy will host the Aug. 28 awards show, which comes at the height of Miami's steamy summer and peak of hurricane season. The hip-hop mogul — or someone dressed like him (he was too far away to tell for sure) — swooped into Monday's beachfront announcement on a jet pack.

"One word — hot," said P. Diddy, wearing a white suit and a gray shirt with no tie. "It's hot out here, and it's going to be hot at the show."

P. Diddy promised that the show would include scene-stealing stunts like in the past. While there was plenty of sex appeal last year, there was little shock value compared to the 2003 show that featured the infamous Madonna- Britney Spears kiss.

"I'm going to tell the artists that if you want to get naked and run across the stage, go ahead and do it," P. Diddy said. "I'm not going to do teleprompter reading and corny jokes."

Besides Green Day, scheduled performers at the AmericanAirlines Arena overlooking picturesque Biscayne Bay include Kanye West and Kelly Clarkson. Also, for first-time, the VMAs will be scored with original music composed by Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park and hip-hop producer Lil Jon. West and Clarkson announced some of the nominees Monday.

Water will be the show's theme, and MTV promised to create the most elaborate water effects ever produced in an awards show. The water show will be engineered in the arena by the same production company that erected the fountain in front of the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas.

"It could be a gigantic waterfall in the arena. It could be remote performances from pools around Miami," said Dave Sirulnick, the show's executive producer.

Celebrities once again will pull up to the arena in gleaming yachts.

But they will receive competition from other stars who will arrive in souped-up cars on the red carpet. As the celebrities arrive, viewers will get tours of those cars from the talent themselves.

"I want to show up in a pimped-out (Ford) Bronco," said Clarkson, a native of Texas. "I want big Texas wheels and I want them to jack it up."

Diddy also said he will be offering a $100,000 prize for the best-dressed who tread the red carpet, which could be changed to white this year at the host's request.

"I'm bringing a suitcase full of cash," he said.

This year's show promises to be different from last year's, when politics played a part because of the presidential campaign: The daughters of Democratic candidate John Kerry and President Bush made appearances to urge people to vote — and were roundly booed.

Green Day's eight nominations include six for their socially conscious song "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" and two for the "American Idiot," which also is the name of their critically acclaimed album.

"One thing I really want to plan for is ... to play great, of course," Billy Joe Armstrong, Green Day's front man, said in a telephone interview. "If we don't win anything, I know we'll walk away with everyone knowing that we played really hard."

Sony's Mega Payola Pay Out

Not that it's surprising or anything, but apparently getting radio stations to play a Jennifer Lopez song is a crime in New York.

Sony BMG decided to get right with New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, agreeing Monday to pay $10 million to the state in a blockbuster payola settlement that has rocked the music industry.

Among the revelations coming out of the settlement: Sony BMG routinely gave radio deejays and music directors cash or gifts to hype Sony BMG artists like Lopez.

In one email memo obtained in response to the lawsuit, a Sony radio promotions exec wrote: "Please be advised that in this week's Jennifer Lopez Top 40 Spin Increase of 236 we bought 63 spins at a cost of $3,600."

The "Get Right" singer's camp had no immediate comment on the label's pay-for-play practices involving her music. But Sony and its affiliated labels (including Arista, Columbia and Epic) did not limit their aggressive radio campaigns to Lopez.

Audioslave was linked to the scandal in a series of dispatches that showed VPs would do virtually anything to get an add for stations in large markets. "What do I have to do to get Audioslave on WKSS this week?" one missive read. "Whatever you can dream up, I can make it happen."

While outright pay-for-play was thought to be finished after strict legislation was enacted following scandals in the late 1950s, Spitzer characterized the practice as still "pervasive" in the music industry. He threatened to take on other labels in the wake of his success with Sony BMG.

While labels routinely hire independent record promotion companies to secure airplay for their artists in the increasingly competitive corporate-owned radio environment, outright gifts of laptops or trips tied to radio "adds" are prohibited under a 1960 federal law.

Still, Spitzer's suit against Sony BMG said the label was engaged in precisely that kind of payola scheme over the past few years--in a big way.

For its part, Sony BMG tried to move beyond the scandal, saying in a statement some of its employees had engaged in "wrong and improper" practices.

The label, whose market share dipped from 34 percent in the first half of 2004 to just 27 percent this year, also said it looked forward to "defining a new, higher standard in radio promotion" going forward.

One member of the FCC said that the email trail uncovered by Spitzer and his investigators was "a whole arsenal of smoking guns."

"This is a potentially massive scandal," Jonathan Adelstein, a Democratic member of the FCC, told the Associated Press. Spitzer has handed over his evidence against Sony to the commission, which could penalize any stations found to have been willing partners in payola.

Meanwhile, the $10 million penalty will go to nonprofit music-education programs, Spitzer said.

Country Singer Mindy McCready Hospitalized

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Troubled country singer Mindy McCready has been hospitalized in Florida after an overdose.

McCready, 28, was found unconscious Friday in a hotel lobby, according to authorities in Pinellas County, Fla. An incident report did not list the nature of the overdose.

Last week, McCready was charged in Arizona with identity theft and other counts. Within the past two years, she has also faced allegations of driving under the influence and a drug violation.

Dennis Tomlin, who had been her attorney until midday Monday, declined comment on the singer's situation Monday night except to say the singer has retained another lawyer.

Tomlin said earlier Monday that McCready had gone to Florida "to visit her mother when she found out about the potential charges in Arizona. The stress got to her and she ended up in the hospital."

He said then that she was in intensive care.

Details concerning the charges filed last week in Mohave County, Ariz., were not immediately available. Besides identity theft, charges against McCready included attempted fraudulent scheme and artifices, unlawful imprisonment and hindering prosecution.

Tomlin said last week that the singer was helping Arizona authorities apprehend a con artist who had bilked her and other celebrities out of large sums of money.

He did not elaborate on the details and declined to discuss them Monday night.

In May, McCready was charged in Tennessee with driving under the influence and driving with a suspended license.

Last year, she pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining the painkiller OxyContin at a pharmacy. She was fined $4,000, sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to perform 200 hours of community service.

She was scheduled to be in a Williamson County court Monday for a probation violation hearing. A judge ordered Tomlin to produce an affidavit from her doctor by Wednesday.

McCready had a No. 1 hit in 1996, "Guys Do It All the Time."

Jodie Foster sweet on 'Sugar Kings'

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Jodie Foster is returning to the director's chair for the first time in 10 years with "Sugar Kings," a drama in which she may also star.

The Universal Pictures project centers on a female lawyer, fresh out of law school, who teams with a veteran public-interest attorney to take on a powerful sugar baron on behalf of exploited migrant workers.

It is based on the Vanity Fair article "In the Kingdom of Big Sugar" by Marie Brenner, and the script is being written by Ned Zeman and Daniel Barnz.

The last time Foster directed a film was 1995's "Home for the Holidays." She made her feature directing debut in 1991 with "Little Man Tate."

Foster was last on screen in 2004's French-language "A Very Long Engagement." She returns to theaters in September with the Disney thriller "Flightplan."

'Sith' DVD, game set for Nov. 1 release

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The Force will return to retail stores Nov. 1 with a double whammy: "Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith" will be released on DVD, and "Star Wars Battlefront II" will be made available for all the top video game platforms.

"Sith" is the year's top-grossing movie, with domestic box office earnings of $373.9 million (and an additional $425 million overseas). The two-disc set will include a full-length documentary; two new featurettes, one exploring the prophecy of Anakin Skywalker as the Chosen One and the other on the movie's stunts; and a 15-part collection of "Web documentaries."

The five previous "Star Wars" movies have sold "well in excess" of 100 million units on DVD and VHS, said Steve Feldstein, senior vp marketing communications at 20th Century Fox, which is partnering on the release with "Star Wars" creator George Lucas' Lucasfilm production banner.

Lucas was personally involved in the creation of the "Sith" DVD and its bonus features, said Lucasfilm vp marketing and distribution Jim Ward.

"From the beginning of production, George wanted to be sure we chronicled everything that went into the making of 'Episode III' specifically to create an incredible DVD experience," Ward said. "This DVD has literally been three years in the making."

For video gamers, LucasArts' "Star Wars Battlefront II" will be available for Sony's PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable, Microsoft's Xbox and Windows platforms. It is the sequel to the best-selling "Star Wars" video game of all time and adds all-new space combat, playable Jedi characters and never-before-seen environments from "Sith."

The game also offers a new single-player experience that takes the player through an epic saga centered on Darth Vader's elite 501st Legion of Stormtroopers. Every action the player takes has an impact on the battlefield and, ultimately, on the entire "Star Wars" galaxy.

The "Sith" DVD will include a demo of two levels from the game, playable only on Xbox.

Courtney Love, David Grohl Still Feuding

NEW YORK - Though some have labeled David Grohl of the Foo Fighters the "nicest guy in rock," Courtney Love would beg to differ.

"Dave gets to walk away unscathed and be the happy guy in rock, when he's one of the biggest jerks," Love says in the August issue of Spin, on newsstands Friday. "He's been taking money from my child for years."

Love, the widow of Kurt Cobain, and Grohl, who played drums in Nirvana, have feuded before. Grohl and Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic became mired in three years of litigation in a dispute over the timing of the famed grunge band's box set, "With the Lights Out."

They settled their legal issues in September 2002 and the CDs were released last year.

The office of Grohl's manager, John Silva, told The Associated Press Monday that Grohl wouldn't comment on Love's criticism.

As for being the "nicest guy in rock," Grohl wonders where the title came from.

"I don't know. Because I don't do coke?" Grohl asks Spin. "I supposed it's not taking anything for granted and feeling lucky to be here.

"There's ... thousands of nice guys in the world! Maybe it's because I have a goofy smile and people are like, `Ahttp://www, he's like a little kid!' I'm 36!"

The Foo Fighters are on tour of North America in support of their double album, "In Your Honor."

Love, 41, the former lead singer for the band Hole, was praised Friday by a Los Angeles judge for making progress in a court-ordered drug treatment program. The treatment is tied to a misdemeanor count of being under the influence of a controlled substance in 2003 when police said she tried to break into a former boyfriend's home.

Her daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, is 12.

Summer Movies Become Winter DVDs

Okay, we've checked in with our industry and retail sources, and have obtained what we believe will be the official street dates for a number of upcoming DVD releases for the end of 2005.

Look for 20th Century Fox's 2-disc Kingdom of Heaven to be released on 10/11.

Lucasfilm and Fox will release Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith on 11/1. They'll also release Star Wars: Clone Wars - Volume 2 on 12/6.

Warner Home Video will debut Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants on 10/11, with Batman Begins following on 10/18. Also, look for the new Batman live action special editions (all four films) to be released on 10/18 as well.

Finally, Sony will release MGM's remake of The Amityville Horror on 10/4.

Watch for official announcements on these titles to be made soon.

'Housewives' producer criticizes CTV

BEVERLY HILLS -- Marc Cherry had no idea that CTV used his hit show Desperate Housewives as a Juno Award promotional stunt last season.

"It sounds horrible," was the Emmy-nominated executive producer's initial reaction when the Sun told him of the brazen programming ploy.

Last February, CTV -- the rights holder to Desperate Housewives in Canada -- took an hour-long episode of the hit ABC soap and broadcast it over 90 minutes. Padding it out was red-carpet coverage from Winnipeg -- the site of The Junos -- at the beginning and end of each commercial break.

"I don't think it's the best way to showcase Desperate Housewives," said Cherry. "I think it takes people out of the moment of the show, so I would question the wisdom of doing that in terms of what the fans would like to see."

Viewers who wrote the Sun at the time felt frustrated and "hijacked" by the CTV stunt.

"It's not how I like my show being viewed," Cherry added, while at the same time acknowledging that CTV "bought it, they paid for it and they can show it however they like."

That being said, CTV's Juno coverage may not be so Desperate next time. Despite the unprecedented use of the imported hit to hype a domestic award show, ratings for the annual music industry salute were down for the second year in a row, according to BBM Canada.

Cherry was all over the Television Critics Association's 21st annual award show Saturday night. Besides accepting the critic's nod for Program Of The Year, he stuck around for the rowdy after party, which has descended of late into a tipsy salute to the most intimidating critic on press tour (The Tony Soprano Award), the purveyor of the most useless knowledge (The Cliff Clavin Award) and other frat house funnies.

Cherry took time out from the hijinx to confirm that some new faces are moving on to Wisteria Lane next season.

Former Partridge Family mom Shirley Knight will appear as Marcia Cross' mother-in-law from Hell. Joely Fisher (Ellen) is also confirmed for next season. And Cherry let slip that he recently had lunch with former Knots Landing diva Donna Mills, who could re-team with hottie Nicolette Sheridan.

Crow Runs 'Wild' On New Album

Sheryl Crow has named her new album "Wildflower" after a track on the album inspired by her boyfriend, championship cyclist Lance Armstrong. As previously reported, the set is due Sept. 27 via A&M/Interscope and will be led by the single "Good Is Good," which will be featured in an ad campaign for computer supplier Dell.

In addition, Crow's Web site reports she has recorded acoustic covers of James Taylor's "You Can Close Your Eyes," Willie Nelson's "Blue Eyes Cryin' in the Rain" and Aretha Franklin's "I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Loved You)" for an expanded, Dual Disc edition of her "Artist's Choice" compilation via Hear Music/Starbucks.

Footage of Crow in the studio will be included on the DVD side of the album, which will be available in the fall.

As previously reported, Crow will join such acts as Paul McCartney, Wyclef Jean and Snoop Dogg on a Bee Gees tribute album, due next year via a label yet to be determined.

BROADWAY BOUND

Huey Lewis joining the Broadway production of Chicago as lawyer Billy Flynn, beginning Nov. 1.

Wonka, 'Wedding Crashers' Top Box Office

LOS ANGELES - "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and "Wedding Crashers" held off a rush of new releases to retain the top two spots at the weekend box office.

But after two straight weekends of rising revenue, Hollywood slid back into the slump that has lingered most of the year. The top 12 movies took in $128.9 million, down 7 percent from the same weekend in 2004.

"The business was there. It just got spread pretty thin among a lot of movies," said Bruce Snyder, head of distribution for 20th Century Fox, whose films include "Fantastic Four."

"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," starring Johnny Depp as candyman Willy Wonka, remained the top movie with $28.3 million, bringing its 10-day total to $114.1 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn's "Wedding Crashers" held on to the No. 2 spot with $26.2 million, raising its 10-day total to $80.9 million. "Wedding Crashers" held up strongly, its revenues off just 23 percent from opening weekend, compared to a 50 percent drop on "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."

Michael Bay's cloning thriller "The Island" and the remake of the baseball comedy "The Bad News Bears" both debuted weakly.

"The Island," starring Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson as clones on the run from a facility that has raised them as spare body parts, took in $12.1 million to finish at No. 4. It came in just behind "Fantastic Four," which grossed $12.3 million to lift its 17-day haul to $122.6 million.

Never a critics' darling, director Bay ("Armageddon," "Pearl Harbor") actually earned somewhat better reviews than usual for "The Island." Distributor DreamWorks was puzzled why Bay's action fans failed to turn up.

"I don't know. Clearly, it's a disappointing opening," said Jim Tharp, DreamWorks' head of distribution. "We can only hope the film finds its audience in the next few weeks."

"Bad New Bears," featuring Billy Bob Thornton as a washed-up ballplayer coaching a team of Little League misfits, came in fifth with $11.5 million.

The acclaimed independent film "Hustle & Flow," starring Terrence Howard as a pimp trying to become a rap singer, debuted at No. 7 with $8.1 million. That was a solid opening compared to "The Island" and "Bad News Bears," which played in more than 3,000 theaters, three times as many as "Hustle & Flow."

Rob Zombie's horror tale "The Devil's Rejects," a follow-up to his 2003 slasher flick "House of 1000 Corpses," opened at No. 8 with $7 million.

The Antarctic documentary "March of the Penguins" expanded to 695 theaters, up from 132 the previous weekend, and cracked the top 10 with $4.3 million.

With an $8.8 million weekend, Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise's "War of the Worlds" climbed to $208.3 million, second-best for the year after "Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith," which has hit $376 million.

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. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," $28.3 million.
2. "Wedding Crashers," $26.2 million.
3. "Fantastic Four," $12.3 million.
4. "The Island," $12.1 million.
5. "The Bad News Bears," $11.5 million.
6. "War of the Worlds," $8.8 million.
7. "Hustle & Flow," $8.1 million.
8. "The Devil's Rejects," $7 million.
9. "Batman Begins," $4.7 million.
10. "March of the Penguins," $4.3 million.

'Wind' Blowing In New, Rare Young Albums

Neil Young has christened his new studio album "Prairie Wind," which will be released as a CD/DVD package Sept. 20 via Reprise. "The DVD shows us recording the whole record," the artist writes on his Web site. "Every note you hear, you see!" The set is expected to feature contributions from keyboardist Spooner Oldham, pedal steel guitarist Ben Keith and drummer Carl Himmel.

As first reported here, Young will also be the subject of a concert film to be shot during several performances next month at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium. The project will be directed by Jonathan Demme ("Stop Making Sense," "The Silence of the Lambs").

And while full touring plans have yet to be confirmed, Young is set to appear at the annual Farm Aid benefit concert Sept. 18 in Tinley Park, Ill., which will feature performances from Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Dave Matthews, Wilco and new addition Kenny Chesney.

Young will also perform at his long-running Bridge School fundraiser Oct. 29-30 in Mountain View, Calif.

Finally, the artist's site says his next major project will be the release of "Archives Vol. 1" on a yet-to-be-announced date. Young has been conceptualizing the release of material from his extensive vaults for decades, and the project has frequently come and gone from release schedules over the years.

Eva Longoria Shrugs Off Emmy Snub

NEW YORK - "Desperate Housewives" star Eva Longoria has shrugged off being snubbed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in this year's Emmy nominations.

"I'm new. I just arrived. I didn't expect at all to be in the minds of the Academy," she tells syndicated TV show "Extra" in an interview set to air Friday night.

Three of the ABC show's stars, Teri Hatcher, Marcia Cross and Felicity Huffman, were nominated for best comedy series actress. (Also overlooked was Nicollette Sheridan, who had gotten a Golden Globe supporting-actress nomination for the show.)

"I was disconnected from newspapers," says Longoria, who was in China when the nominations were announced last week. "I didn't experience the hoopla."

"Desperate Housewives," a dark satire about life in suburbia, cleaned up with 15 nominations. The show asked to be considered in the comedy series category, usually home to half-hour sitcoms.

"I'm so happy that we're in the comedy category," says Longoria. "I love going against the traditional comedy."

On her budding romance with Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs, Longoria says: "They (the press) got it right ... it's so hard to keep things private because then you compromise your own lifestyle. It's like I don't want to hide, I don't want to eat in every day ... we have a good time and we don't care what is written."

Longoria says she's decided to learn French, since Parker is a native of France.

"It's a beautiful language. I mean his whole family speaks French and all his friends. I mean I want to be in the conversation," she says. "I am going to have to get with it."

Blues legend Long John Baldry dies

VANCOUVER (CP) -- Vancouver-based blues legend Long John Baldry has died after a four-month battle with a chest infection, his agent said Friday on the musician's website.

The 64-year-old musical giant was admitted to the intensive-care unit of a Vancouver hospital in April after returning from a trip to his native Britain with respiratory problems.

Baldry is credited as one of the main forces in British blues, rock and pop music in the 1960s and first hit the top of the U.K. singles charts in 1967 with Let the Heartaches Begin. He has released over 40 albums.

Baldry, nicknamed Long John because of his six-foot-seven-inch height, had been living in Canada for most of the past 25 years.

He has performed and recorded with such top rock 'n' rollers as Rod Stewart, Elton John, Charlie Watts and Mick Jagger. The Rolling Stones even opened for Baldry in London during an early performance in the 1960s, before the band became a household name.

The British press reported that Stewart considered Baldry a mentor, and was at his bedside when he was first admitted to hospital after he fell ill in March. There were reports Stewart even helped to pay his ailing friend's medical bills.

Baldry claimed blues legends like Big Joe Turner, Muddy Waters and Chuck Berry as his earliest musical influences.

'BB6' contestant's legal past revealed

Contestant Janelle Pierzina was in deep trouble even before entering the ‘Big Brother’ house. According to The Smoking Gun site, Pierzina answered a three and a half year-old arrest warrant just days before starting the ‘Big Brother’ game.

In 2001, Pierzina faced a misdemeanor theft charge after being accused of stealing from a Macy’s store. Court records show that between 2001 and 2004, three warrants were issued for Pierzina’s arrest when she failed to appear in court. On June 24, Pierzina pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor theft charge. She was fined $982 U.S. and ordered to stay at least 100 yards from Macey’s.

The Smoking Gun also reports that Pierzina has faced bench warrants before when she failed to appear for an arraignment on a misdemeanor DWI count. Pierzina was sentenced to a 60-day suspended jail term, placed on a year's probation, fined $1000, and directed to enroll in an alcohol education program. Pierzina failed to complete the alcohol education program and another bench warrant was issued for her arrest. Pierzina later appeared in court and completed the program.

Scotty's ashes to be sent into space

LOS ANGELES (AP) - He made his name in Hollywood beaming his colleagues back to the safety of the Enterprise on Star Trek. Now, actor James Doohan's family is hoping to beam him up to the "final frontier" that Doohan's character Scotty loved so dearly.

The actor, who died Wednesday at age 85, had told relatives he wanted his ashes blasted into outer space, as was done for Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry.

"He'll be there with his buddy, which is wonderful," said Doohan's agent and longtime friend, Steve Stevens.

Doohan died at his home in Redmond, Wash., with his wife of 31 years, Wende, at his side. He had retired from public events last year, not long after announcing he had Alzheimer's disease.

Houston-based Space Services Inc., which specializes in space memorials, plans to send a few grams of Doohan's ashes aboard a rocket later this year. Remains are sealed in an aluminum capsule that stays in orbit up to several hundred years before falling and vaporizing in the Earth's atmosphere, the company has said.

It should be a fitting finale for an actor who, as the Starship Enterprise's frazzled chief engineer, saved the Enterprise almost every week from blowing up, burning up or being overrun by renegade aliens when the warp drive, the phasers, the shields, the power cells or some other futuristic collection of doohickies failed.

As the man who commanded the Enterprise's particle beam transporter, Doohan's character also inspired the phrase, "Beam me up, Scotty." Capt. Kirk and other members of the Enterprise crew never really issued the order quite that way, however, until the fourth Star Trek film when Kirk said, "Scotty, beam me up."

A master of dialects from his early years in radio, the Canadian-born Doohan experimented with seven different accents for the hard-pressed engineer.

"The producers asked me which one I preferred," Doohan recalled 30 years later. "I believed the Scot voice was the most commanding. So I told them, 'If this character is going to be an engineer, you'd better make him a Scotsman.' "

Doohan was born March 3, 1920, in Vancouver, the youngest of four children of William Doohan, a pharmacist, veterinarian and dentist, and his wife, Sarah. He wrote in his autobiography, Beam Me Up, Scotty, that his father was a drunk who made life miserable for his wife and children.

At 19, he escaped the turmoil at home by joining the Canadian army, where he became a lieutenant in the artillery and was among the Canadian forces that landed on Juno Beach on D-Day.

After the war, Doohan enrolled in a drama class in Toronto on a whim. He showed promise and won a two-year scholarship to New York's famed Neighborhood Playhouse, where fellow students included Leslie Nielsen, Tony Randall and Richard Boone.

His commanding presence and booming voice brought him steady work as a character actor in films and television in Canada and the United States. Then came Star Trek and fans forever screaming "Beam me up, Scotty."

"Good gracious, it's been said to me for just about 31 years," he said in an 1998 interview. "It's been said to me at 70 miles an hour across four lanes on the freeway. I hear it from just about everybody. It's been fun."

Married three times, Doohan was the father of nine children.

"A long and storied career is over," William Shatner, who played Kirk, said Wednesday.

In Toronto, members of Toronto Trek, an annual convention that just wrapped up last weekend, plan to hold a memorial gathering at an east-end pub on Saturday evening.

They will share memories and photos, sign a condolence book to be sent to the family, and will no doubt toast old Scotty with a glass or two of single malt.

'Half-Blood Prince' is a full-on smash

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince blasts to the top of USA TODAY's Best-Selling Books list Thursday, the fifth consecutive No. 1 debut for author J.K. Rowling. First-weekend sales of the book, the sixth in the series, were 23% higher than sales of 2003's Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, according to the list. A deluxe edition enters the list at No. 3.

U.S. Publisher Scholastic says 6.9 million copies sold in the first 24 hours and 13.5 million are in print.

The buzz over Half-Blood Prince pushed the series' first five books back into the list's top 50 and lifted sales of Harry Potter Schoolbooks and a box set of the first five books into the top 150. But there are indications Potter-mania is reaching saturation. Sales of the Potter back catalog tracked by the list were 41% lower than two years ago, when Phoenix went on sale.

The Couch Potato Report - July 20th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features two films that I nether loved or hated.

It is very rare that an edition of The Couch Potato Report has two films that I am indifferent toward.

Usually I will really like at least one of the films I am reviewing.

But this week, indifference is the order of the day.

Since it doesn't really matter, let me start with the supernatural action film CONSTANTINE.

Keanu Reeves follows up the very successful MATRIX TRILOGY by playing a man who keeps a delicate balance between Heaven and Hell.

CONSTANTINE is based on the very unique comic book Hellblazer. The comic is unique because it is part horror, part action and part fantasy.

Sadly, the film is never horrific enough, doesn't have enough action, and the fantasy elements are okay at best.

Even if you've never read or seen the comic, that statement is true.

The film's title character is John Constantine. He walks the streets of Los Angeles to eradicate those who don't belong on this mortal coil in order to ensure that "the balance" between God and the devil is maintained.

Throw in a police officer who is trying to clear up the mystery surrounding her sister's death and some comments on religion and Catholic salvation, and that is CONSTANTINE.

To its credit, CONSTANTINE is never boring. There is enough things going on in the film - either actually on screen or in your head due to the script - that you will feel like seeing how it ends.

But once it ends, that is when the indifference will come.

The film isn't bad, but it isn't good either.

It is just there, and then its over.

If you like cinematic comic book adaptations, or really loved THE MATRIX TRILOGY, then perhaps your feelings after watching the film will be different than mine.

I however, remain just as indifferent to CONSTANTINE after seeing it twice, as I did after seeing it just once.

Once was enough for this week's other new film, the not great, but not bad ICE PRINCESS.

If you know a young lady who enjoyed THE PRINCESS DIARIES films then this is another movie for her.

It is a fairy tale for girls who dream about what or who they would like to be.

Michelle Trachtenberg of EUROTRIP and BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER is an A plus student who begins studying the science of figure skating as a project to get a University scholarship.

Along the way she discovers that not only does she have talent, she likes figure skating.

And to simplify the rest of the synopsis, with the help of her coach, her parents, and the boy who drives the Zamboni machine, nothing can stop her from having her dreams come true!

ICE PRINCESS doesn't take itself too seriously, and admittedly it is geared for a younger audience than me, but in the end the film just follows the tried and true movie formula of: dream, go for your dream, dream comes true.

Had it given its audience something more, I might happily recommend it.

As it is, the film isn't bad, but it isn't good either.

It is just there, and then its over.

As for me, I'm just indifferent, toward both of this week's releases.

That said, CONSTANTINE and ICE PRINCESS are both available now at a store near you.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

THE UPSIDE OF ANGER is one of my favourite films of 2005, and it is finally available on video and DVD. Joan Allen from THE NOTEBOOK and PLEASANTVILLE plays a woman who's husband has vanished without a trace. The film is about her attempts to save herself and her family. It is a superb movie!

Another superb film, for a different reason is the one that Steve Martin made his film debut in back in 1979. Now, in 2005, we have a 26th ANNIVERSARY EDITION of THE JERK.

We also have the THIRD SEASON of the late nineties TV show SLIDERS, the show about four people who found a gateway to another dimension, but they forgot one problem... how to get back!

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on SLIDERS, THE JERK, THE UPSIDE OF ANGER, 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!

Cusack's new film a labour of 'Love'

LOS ANGELES (AP) - After some 20 years playing unconventional heroes, it's surprising to discover that John Cusack looks classically heroic in the flesh.

In a hotel promoting the new romantic comedy Must Love Dogs, the beefy six-foot-two actor seems to loom larger than most of his best-known screen characters.

Among them: the romantically challenged, boom-box hoisting Lloyd Dobler in Say Anything (1989); bumbling, stumbling young playwright David Shayne in Woody Allen's Bullets Over Broadway (1994); and the wise-beyond-his-years U.S. Marshal Vince Larkin in the action blockbuster Con Air (1997).

In Must Love Dogs, Cusack is Jake, a down-out divorcee dragged into the world of Internet dating, where he meets another reluctant romantic, played by Diane Lane. Based on Clare Cook's 2002 confection of a novel, the breezy date film is one of the last places you'd expect to find the 39-year-old Cusack, who generally prefers meatier fare.

AP: The character of Jake builds boats that he seems to care more about crafting than selling. It seems as if putting art over commerce is an important tie that binds you with this guy.

Cusack: I think the character has started a small business and made some money and now he's sort of doing what he wants to do, and so I think sometimes that might be kind of what I've done, which is I've tried to do some more commercial movies so that I can go do movies that I want to do. In that sense, I'm like him in a way. You know, he's sort of stubborn in a way. And I think I probably am, too.

AP: You seem to have always favoured artier films over commercial ones. And when you have gone for the blockbusters, there's been surprising artistic integrity. Take Con Air.

Cusack: There's always that balance. I mean, I would be totally disingenuous if I said I didn't always think, Well, can this movie be good and successful. Can this be commercial, but is it going to be a big release? And you think about all those things. It would be a lie if I said I don't. A movie like (Con Air), you know it's going to be a big summer release and it's (produced by) Jerry Bruckheimer ... it's designed to be this big, commercial thing.

AP: Still, it doesn't appear as if you've ever sold your soul.

Cusack: No, I actually think a movie like that is actually more straight up than some movies that pretend to be art-house movies but are really kind of pandering.

AP: How about Must Love Dogs?

Cusack: This is one that's kind of both. I was going to go off and make another film, and it fell apart because the business is so weird these days. ... And then they called and said, Well, there's this romantic comedy with Diane Lane. I went, Wow! I guess that would be pretty good because I hadn't done a lot of romantic comedies lately, and I thought the opportunity to work with her was so great. And then I met (director) Gary Goldberg and he seemed like just the greatest guy in the world: totally collaborative, open, and just this great person. ... And it ended it up being a really great experience - really wonderful, wonderful group of people. You know, it's light fare in the sense that it's not about war and disease or any of that stuff. It's about dating and love and it's a very kind of springtime movie. ... But (Goldberg) very much was intensely interested in these characters, and loved them, and really wanted to give them the biggest stage to work on that he could, flesh them out. So, it was a very, very enjoyable kind of artistic process to go do it.

AP: What do you think the film says about dating and romance?

Cusack: We're all kind of God's fools. The process is going to make fools out of all of us, I think: fools in the best sense, in the sense of struggling and innocent and vulnerable.

AP: Are you a dog guy?

Cusack: Yeah, I love dogs.

AP: It's got to be hard, because you're on the road a lot.

Cusack: Yeah, it's hard for my lifestyle, because you're gone. But one day ...

'Star Trek' Star James Doohan Dies

LOS ANGELES - James Doohan, the burly chief engineer of the Starship Enterprise in the original "Star Trek" TV series and movies who responded to the command "Beam me up, Scotty," died Wednesday. He was 85.

Doohan died at 5:30 a.m. at his Redmond, Wash., home with his wife of 28 years, Wende, at his side, Los Angeles agent and longtime friend Steve Stevens said. The cause of death was pneumonia and Alzheimer's disease, he said.

He had said farewell to public life in August 2004, a few months after being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.

The Canadian-born Doohan was enjoying a busy career as a character actor when he auditioned for a role as an engineer in a new space adventure on NBC in 1966. A master of dialects from his early years in radio, he tried seven different accents.

"The producers asked me which one I preferred," Doohan recalled 30 years later. "I believed the Scot voice was the most commanding. So I told them, 'If this character is going to be an engineer, you'd better make him a Scotsman.'"

The series, which starred William Shatner as Capt. James T. Kirk and Leonard Nimoy as the enigmatic Mr. Spock, attracted an enthusiastic following of science fiction fans, especially among teenagers and children, but not enough ratings power. NBC canceled it after three seasons.

When the series ended in 1969, Doohan found himself typecast as Montgomery Scott, the canny engineer with a burr in his voice. In 1973, he complained to his dentist, who advised him: "Jimmy, you're going to be Scotty long after you're dead. If I were you, I'd go with the flow."

"I took his advice," said Doohan, "and since then everything's been just lovely."

"Star Trek" continued in syndication both in the United States and abroad, and its following grew larger and more dedicated. In his later years, Doohan attended 40 "Trekkie" gatherings around the country and lectured at colleges.

The huge success of George Lucas' "Star Wars" in 1977 prompted Paramount Pictures, which had produced "Star Trek" for television, to plan a movie based on the series. The studio brought back the TV cast and hired director Robert Wise. "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" was successful enough to spawn five sequels.

The powerfully built Doohan, a veteran of D-Day in Normandy, spoke frankly in 1998 about his employer and his TV commander.

"I started out in the series at basic minimum - plus 10 percent for my agent. That was added a little bit in the second year. When we finally got to our third year, Paramount told us we'd get second-year pay! That's how much they loved us."

He accused Shatner of hogging the camera, adding: "I like Captain Kirk, but I sure don't like Bill. He's so insecure that all he can think about is himself."

James Montgomery Doohan was born March 3, 1920, in Vancouver, British Columbia, youngest of four children of William Doohan, a pharmacist, veterinarian and dentist, and his wife Sarah. As he wrote in his autobiography, "Beam Me Up, Scotty," his father was a drunk who made life miserable for his wife and children.

At 19, James escaped the turmoil at home by joining the Canadian army, becoming a lieutenant in artillery. He was among the Canadian forces that landed on Juno Beach on D-Day. "The sea was rough," he recalled. "We were more afraid of drowning than the Germans."

The Canadians crossed a minefield laid for tanks; the soldiers weren't heavy enough to detonate the bombs. At 11:30 that night, he was machine-gunned, taking six hits: one that took off his middle right finger (he managed to hide the missing finger on screen), four in his leg and one in the chest. Fortunately the chest bullet was stopped by his silver cigarette case.

After the war Doohan on a whim enrolled in a drama class in Toronto. He showed promise and won a two-year scholarship to New York's famed Neighborhood Playhouse, where fellow students included Leslie Nielsen, Tony Randall and Richard Boone.

His commanding presence and booming voice brought him work as a character actor in films and television, both in Canada and the United States.

Oddly, his only other TV series besides "Star Trek" was another space adventure, "Space Command," in 1953.

Doohan's first marriage to Judy Doohan produced four children. He had two children by his second marriage to Anita Yagel. Both marriages ended in divorce. In 1974 he married Wende Braunberger, and their children were Eric, Thomas and Sarah, who was born in 2000, when Doohan was 80.

In a 1998 interview, Doohan was asked if he ever got tired of hearing the line "Beam me up, Scotty."

"I'm not tired of it at all," he replied. "Good gracious, it's been said to me for just about 31 years. It's been said to me at 70 miles an hour across four lanes on the freeway. I hear it from just about everybody. It's been fun."

Springsteen 'Storytellers' Headed To DVD

Bruce Springsteen's recent turn on the VH1 series "Storytellers" will emerge on DVD Sept. 6 via Columbia Music Video. The footage has been re-edited, expanding the program from the one-hour version that premiered April 23 on the music channel to nearly two hours for the home video release.

Beyond Springsteen's introductions and anecdotes regarding the eight songs he performed at the April 4 taping at the River Theater in Red Bank, N.J., the DVD includes a Q&A session with the audience that was not part of the VH1 broadcast. The show was recorded in high definition and the DVD boasts a 5.1 Surround Sound mix and a PCM Stereo mix.

The material Springsteen selected to discuss and perform for the show was equally balanced between recent fare and vintage songs. Two songs stemmed from his latest solo album, "Devils & Dust" -- the title track and "Jesus Was an Only Son" -- and two from 2002's "The Rising" -- the title track and "Waitin' on a Sunny Day."

For the older selections, Springsteen reached back to his 1973 debut album, "Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J.," for "Blinded by the Light" and to his 1975 classic "Born To Run" for the anthem "Thunder Road." He also explained the title track to 1982's spare solo project "Nebraska" and was joined by wife/E Street Band singer/guitarist Patti Scialfa on "Brilliant Disguise," from 1987's "Tunnel of Love."

Springsteen is in the midst of his second leg of solo North American tour dates in support of "Devils & Dust," playing Bridgeport, Conn., tomorrow (July 20). As with the tour's first leg, each show pays dividends to a local food bank through World Hunger Year's (WHY) Artists Against Hunger & Poverty Program.

Each organization receives a pair of tickets to a show to auction, an arrangement that raised more than $50,000 for the 14 groups participating in the tour's first leg, according to WHY. The charities also distribute information and collect donations at their local concert.

Here is the "VH1 Storytellers" DVD track list:

"Devils & Dust"
"Blinded by the Light"
"Brilliant Disguise"
"Nebraska"
"Jesus Was an Only Son"
"Waitin' on a Sunny Day"
"The Rising"
"Thunder Road"

A Smurfin' Movie Deal

Fans of a certain animated tribe of small, blue woodland creatures haven't gotten a lot of love lately: No new TV episodes, no old TV episodes on DVD (outside of a couple of import releases), no real news on a long-rumored movie.

Now, finally, things are looking rather smurfin'.

A 3-D, CGI-animated Smurfs feature film will bow in theaters in 2008, Daily Variety reported Tuesday. The extravaganza from Paramount's Nickelodeon Movies will be the first in a planned trilogy, it said. According to Newsweek, the project has been trying to get off the ground since at least 2003.

Word of the done deal comes a week after DreamWorks and Paramount set a July 4, 2007, release date for The Transformers, another animated TV series due for a big-screen makeover. But while Transformers fandom has thrived, fueled by new series and product, the smaller legions of Smurf faithful have waited.

"Dude, a Smurf movie?" went a message-board post on TheMovieBlog.com last month after Newsweek noted a film was nigh. "That's the smurfing best thing I've heard in smurfing forever."

Like the Transformers, the Smurfs were a phenomenon of the 1980s, unless one lived in Europe, where the characters have been mainstays since 1958, when Belgian artist Pierre Culliford, better known as Peyo, introduced them in the comic pages. The new movie's planned release date supposedly is tied to Smurfdom's upcoming 50th birthday.

Peyo's creations--the aforementioned small, blue woodland creatures who lived in homes shaped like mushrooms, whistled happy tunes, conjugated the word "smurf" in any way they saw fit, and named themselves Ramones-style (Papa Smurf, Brainy Smurf, Grouchy Smurf, etc.)--blew up as big as any Transformer robot in 1981 when The Smurfs debuted on NBC. The Hanna-Barbera-produced series won two Daytime Emmys, moved much merchandise, from Smurf-Berry Crunch cereal to countless figurines, and dominated Saturday morning TV until 1990. A 1983 big-screen adventure, The Smurfs and the Magic Flute, grossed $11 million, per the box-office site The-Numbers.com, even though it was nothing more than a retitled, redubbed version of a 1976 Belgian-produced movie.

There was no word on voice actors for the new film. The Smurfs' family recently lost Gargamel, the bad, and Baby Smurf, the good, in the death of performer Paul Winchell. Don Messick, who voiced Papa Smurf and others, died in 1997. Smurfette, meanwhile, lives. Lucille Bliss, who gave high-pitched voice to the tribe's lone female member, is 76, and still working.

As for Peyo, he died in 1992. His progeny, however, has kept right on their merry way.

'Reader's Digest' reaches 1,000 issues

CHAPPAQUA, N.Y. (AP) - If your grandmother claims she's squirrelled away every issue of Reader's Digest, there will soon be an easy way to check: just go up to the attic and count to 1,000.

The 1,000th issue of the 83-year-old mini-magazine comes out this week, and the occasion is likely to prompt thoughts about the Digest's colourful history and its status as an American symbol.

But the magazine, which is celebrating with a party in Manhattan on Thursday night, is studiously looking forward rather than back. The commemorative August issue includes a 95-page section devoted to "the big ideas that will change our lives in the next five to 10 years," such as do-it-yourself doctoring, food as medicine and extreme vacations.

"History can be found anywhere these days, books or the Internet or whatever," editor-in-chief Jacqueline Leo said in an interview with The Associated Press. "We have to tell people that we are not only of their present but of their future, too, and that we're looking out for them."

The cover proclaims Special 1000th Issue, but the magazine barely mentions its own history. There's nothing about founder DeWitt Wallace, who priced the first issue in 1922 at 25 cents - it's now $2.99 US on the newsstand. His magazine was a quick success, and by 1925 the Pleasantville, N.Y., post office was forced to expand to handle all the mail. The Digest moved to Chappaqua in 1939.

There's "Laughter, the Best Medicine" and "Humor in Uniform," but no mention that Reader's Digest has run more than 100,000 jokes and paid more than $25 million for them.

And there's a table of contents, of course, but no mention that until 1998, all the stories were listed on the cover. For its first three-quarters of a century, you didn't have to open up the magazine to see what was inside.

Soon you won't have to open the magazine at all. Beginning July 26, the entire issue will be available on the Reader's Digest website. It's free for now, but Leo said that may become a new way to subscribe. The magazine's small size means it can be seen at actual size on the computer screen, she noted.

"Reader's Digest is going to be available any way the reader wants it," she said. "We find that young people love the size. It fits in their pocket, it fits in their backpack, it fits in their glove compartment."

The Digest, which started as a collection of articles condensed from other sources, is now at least 80 per cent original. It still favours gripping adventures and inspiring human interest pieces but has more consumer-oriented stories than in the past.

"We want to own this century like we owned the last one," Leo said. "We want to help our readers deal with it."

Once considered a conservative magazine, "we now present the issues instead of a strong point of view," said spokeswoman Ellen Morgenstern. She said the Digest now stresses "fairness, decency, hope and optimism."

Circulation, once as high as 17.75 million, was purposely trimmed from 11 million to 10 million in 2004 to focus on the magazine's most loyal readers. That's still enough to make the Digest the largest paid magazine in the world.

There is a Spanish-language edition, Selecciones, sold in the United States, plus 48 editions - including a Canadian edition - in 19 languages sold in more than 60 other countries.

Publishing Director Laura McEwen said readership is 41 million, "and you can't get that even with a Desperate Housewives finale."

Leo said the age of subscribers recently showed "a slight downtick" from 51 to 50.

"It's no longer your grandma's magazine," Leo said. "Or maybe it is, but it's yours, too."

Peas' Fergie still single

You can relax boys.

If you're one of the delusional who likes to fool himself into thinking you actually have a shot -- Fergie is technically still on the market.

Contrary to recent published reports, the member of the Black Eyed Peas is not engaged to Las Vegas star Josh Duhamel.

"Oh, no," Fergie (Stacy Ferguson) told the Calgary Sun on Monday.

"No, no, no -- I'm not engaged.

"That's all a rumour ... it's crazy. (I can) entirely dismiss that right now."

"I'm not engaged -- there's no time to have a wedding right now."

And when and if there finally is, don't expect to see the pictures splashed all over People, Us or any of the other celeb-watching supermarket magazines.

"Josh and I try to stay out of the limelight together," the 30-year-old says.

"It's not like we're the couple that goes down the red carpet and flashes a big smile at the camera -- that's just not our style."

But the fact that people actually care, that gossip columnists would even speculate about it -- and the rest of us would have to follow up on it -- shows exactly how far Fergie has come since joining the veteran Black Eyed Peas prior to their 2003 breakthrough album Elephunk, which yielded seven million copies sold, a Grammy, several hits and high profile gigs.

She is now officially a star -- much photographed, much sought-after -- something she can can acknowledge while at the same time reiterating she's only one member of a successful four-piece act.

"I just think it's really flattering ...," she says."

"But in different areas we all have our different audiences."

Granted, but there is an increasingly larger audience that is waiting for a solo album from the singer -- who could easily have a career comparable to that of Gwen Stefani's.

Fergie admits that's a possibility, but for now, she's happy to be part of the biggest act in hip hop and pop music.

"It's always been transparent and well known that I'm going to do a solo record," says the one-time child star, featured on the TV show Kids Incorporated, as well as a member of the all-girl R&B act Wild Orchid.

"It's just a matter of when. And after Elephunk it just didn't feel right -- it felt right to make another Black Eyed Peas record.

"So mine will come after.

"Everyone's got their time and it's got to be the right time. I wasn't ready to be onstage without my boys."

Good thing, too. Because together, the four-piece from L.A. (Fergie, Will.I.Am, apl.de.ap and Taboo) are responsible for this year's Monkey Business, one of the best summer party albums -- and mainstream records -- to come along in ages.

It is very much the sum of its parts, with the chemistry -- much like on Elephunk -- of all of the Peas coming into play.

All of their unique personalities as well as, rather importantly, the gender makeup contributes a great deal to their wide appeal.

"I think that people can relate with it, the whole female and male perspective -- giving both sides of that is nice," she says.

"Because a lot of times you'll often hear just from the female perspective when you go to a show or you'll see the opposite.

"This is a two-sided perspective on things, like relationships.

"It's nice to have that contrast."

It's also nice that their music and their performances are more about fun than anything else.

Take Monkey Business tracks such as the James Brown collaboration They Don't Want Music and the ridiculously stoopid but wonderfully catchy My Humps -- it's all about the get-up and have a great time.

"The key thing for us is not taking ourselves seriously," she says.

"And we want the people to do the same when they come to the show -- just let loose.

"We're acting like idiots onstage and getting buck wild and not really caring about how we look or trying to be pretentious, it's all about having a good time and that's what the record's like as well."

Of course, with the success, there have been some calling the addition of Fergie -- after several years of BEP in the underground -- and the move towards pop music a calculated stab at stardom.

Of the criticism, Fergie doesn't seem to concerned, merely taking the opportunity and making the most of it.

"People can call it what they want," she says, "but it's just making great music and not really thinking too hard about that."

Foo Fighters, Weezer Tour To Bow In September

Details of the co-headlining Foo Fighters/Weezer tour Foos leader Dave Grohl hinted at in June are beginning to come together. The North American arena tour, with support from Kaiser Chiefs, will open Sept. 8 in Atlanta and run through late October.

A handful of other early shows have been nailed down: Sept. 10 in Sunrise, Fla.; Sept. 11 in Tampa, Fla.; Sept. 13 in Houston; Sept. 14 in Austin, Texas; and Sept. 15 in Dallas.

The trek will then proceed to San Diego and Fresno, Calif.; Phoenix; Denver; Minneapolis; Chicago; Champaign, Ill.; Detroit and Grand Rapids, Mich.; Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio; Baltimore; Worcester, Mass; New York; Philadelphia; Seattle; and Portland, Ore.

The Foos are in the midst of a slate of international shows that continues July 29 at Japan's Fuji Rock Festival, with Canadian and European dates to follow, including appearances at England's Reading (Aug. 27) and Leeds (Aug. 28) festivals. The band's double album "In Your Honor" (Roswell/RCA) debuted last month at No. 2 on The Billboard 200, where it is No. 9 in its fourth week on the chart. The set has sold nearly 580,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Weezer's U.S. tour stops in Orlando, Fla., tomorrow (July 19) and wraps July 23 at the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago. Japanese and European dates will then keep the band busy through August supporting the Geffen album "Make Believe." The set, which debuted at No. 2 on The Billboard 200, has sold 526,000.

The fourth season of Alias comes to DVD in October

Buena Vista Home Entertainment has just announced the release of Alias: The Complete Fourth Season for October 25.

The DVD box set will feature over 4 hours of bonus features, including extras such as an Interview with Jennifer Garner and a Featurette called “Meet Mia Maestro.” Also included on the box set are Deleted Scenes and Outtakes as well as other features.

“Alias: The Complete Fourth Season” is scheduled for release on October 25 at a suggested retail price of $59.99

Potter sales tallied, author dreads day it's over

LONDON (Reuters) - Bookstores around the world tallied sales of the sixth Harry Potter installment on Sunday, but after the eagerly awaited global launch over the weekend, the magic was wearing off for some.

"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" is expected to be the fastest-selling book in history, with British retailer Waterstone's forecasting that 10 million copies would have been snapped up worldwide during the first 24 hours of trade.

The early feedback was bullish. British book chain WH Smith reported first-hour sales of 13 books per second across the 391 shops it opened in the early hours of Saturday, compared with eight per second for the fifth Harry Potter adventure.

In the United States, the largest bookseller, Barnes & Noble Inc., said it sold 1.3 million copies in the first 48 hours. In the first hour, the bookstore chain said it sold 379,000 copies or 105 copies per second.

Borders Group, headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, said it sold more than 850,000 copies in the first 24 hours. Meanwhile, online bookseller Amazon.com reported that customers had ordered more than 1.5 million copies.

The launch, at one minute past midnight British time on Saturday, ended months of hype and elaborate steps to protect the contents of the penultimate chapter in the seven-story saga.

Children poured into book shops across the globe, dressed as witches, wizards and other favorite Harry Potter characters.

Underlining the anticipation surrounding the book, instant reviews appeared on the Internet within hours of the release, most of them favorable.

Young readers picked up on the darkness of the plot.

"With its dramatic, violent conclusion, this book is by far the darkest and unsettling HP yet," wrote 12-year-old Indigo Ellis in the Sunday Telegraph. "Maybe it will leave a few more seven-year-olds in tears. But it also makes it the best so far."

A sizeable minority of older readers, however, was less than impressed by the 607-page work.

"It's wordy, flabby and not very well edited -- perhaps a bit less inventive than previous ones," wrote Suzi Feay, literary editor of Britain's The Independent on Sunday. "We could have done with some better gags."

AUTHOR "DREADING" DAY IT'S OVER

Author J.K. Rowling, 39, said she had already finished the final chapter of the last book in the series.

Fourteen-year-old Owen Jones, who won a competition to hold a rare interview with the writer, asked Rowling if she was looking forward to completing the Harry Potter series.

"I'm dreading it in some ways, because I do love writing the books and it's going to be a profound shock to me, even though I've known it's coming for the past 15 years," she said in a televised interview.

Eyeing the huge marketing opportunity, publishers issued two hardback versions of the book on Saturday, one for adults and another for children.

Supermarkets, Internet stores and book shops engaged in a fierce round of discounting, with one British outlet offering the book to young buyers for 4.99 pounds ($8.80), less than one third of the recommended retail price.

Rowling has been credited with winning over a new generation of young readers. British newspapers predict that her fortune, already estimated at $1 billion, was set to grow by 20 to 25 million pounds as a result of the first-day sales alone.

The plot of the latest episode was shrouded in secrecy. When a handful of copies were sold before the deadline in Canada, purchasers were ordered not to disclose its contents, and, according to media reports, even to read it.

Rowling defended the security surrounding the launch.

"I find it upsetting and disquieting that some elements are so keen on spoilers because it seems such a mean-spirited thing to do," she said. "This isn't about money or anything other than the pleasure of reading."

Some sought to put the Harry Potter phenomenon into perspective.

"Oh for a timely spell of reality," Roland White wrote in the Sunday Times.

"Let's keep things in perspective. Until Friday, the Harry Potter series had sold about 270 million copies worldwide. Which is considerably less than the one billion shifted by the late, rather unfashionable, Barbara Cartland."

Mandy Moore Set for Scrubs?

Singer/Actress Mandy Moore will having fun on the set of TV’s Scrubs next season. TV Guide says Scrubs actor, Zach Braff, who plays Dr. John 'J.D.' Dorian on the show, has managed to woo his rumored squeeze to appear on the show this fall. The show’s creator, Bill Lawrence, says "The one thing I can tell you is I think we got Mandy Moore on the show. Zach is friends with her, so he got her to come on the show for fun." While Moore hasn’t confirmed her Scrubs appearance, Lawrence says, "She said she'd do it, but nothing's ever definite in acting until someone signs on the dotted line. She's such a talented young lady, she can play whatever the hell she wants to."

Wedding Crashers

At first, it's a little disconcerting hanging out with Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn at Dodger Stadium, in Los Angeles, watching a ballgame. Given what you know about them from their movies, you expect a few things. You expect Owen to act lazy, goofy and stoned-out, and Vince to be tossing off raised- eyebrow wisecracks, and girls to be gathered around, hoping for a ride home. Instead, after ordering two hot dogs, two bottles of water, two Cokes, nachos and a bag of peanuts, they turn to each other and start riffing in a Gauloise-smoking, grad-student kind of way, not a joke in sight.
"What exactly does the word 'circa' mean, do you think?" Vince says to Owen, apropos of nothing, really.

"It means 'around,' " Owen says to Vince.

"Right. But what exactly does it mean?"

"It's just a bullshit kind of thing to say to sound kind of smart. 'Presupposes' is another."

" 'Presupposes.' "

"And 'Cite your sources.' "

" 'Cite your sources.' "

Then Vince offers up an example of his own. " 'Parenthetically speaking.' "

" Oh, yeah," says Owen, savoring the phrase. "That's a good one."

Briefly, both are silent. But then, suddenly, Vince erupts with another random query: "Who was the president of the Confederacy?"

Owen: "Jefferson Davis. Who wouldn't know that?"

This is all very well and good, but it isn't exactly what you want to hear from these two, especially since they've got a movie coming out called Wedding Crashers, about a pair of pickup artists who specialize in hooking up at weddings. Skip the history lesson. Let's talk chicks. But that would be so crass, so expected. So, the conversation veers off in any number of different directions.

They both firmly deny that they, along with Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Will Ferrell and Owen's actor-brother Luke, are part of some highly organized, tightknit, power-consolidating, new- order comedy mafia, as recently postulated by the thinking heads at the New York Times.

Getting back to the game, they both say that as kids they stunk at baseball.

"I just wasn't any good," Owen says, looking a bit down. "I'm afraid of the ball."

Licking nacho goo off his fingers, Vince says, "On my team, they called me Eagle Eye. At first, I was excited, like, 'Hey, Dad, they love my eye!' And then, when I'm at bat, they tell me, 'Come on, Eagle Eye. A walk's as good as a hit.' And then I sort of figure it out: 'Hey, wait a minute. They're not cheering me on to swing but to not swing!' It wasn't exactly flattering."

Owen is about to add more of his two cents when out of the blue a dolled-up, exceedingly top-heavy brunette makes an appearance a few rows away. All talk of childhood traumas comes to an end.

Vince checks her out. "There'll be no babies starving on her shift!" he says.

Owen grins.

And suddenly all is right with the world again.

Owen Wilson is most often seen around L.A. wearing jeans and a T-shirt, chewing peppermint Altoids gum, maybe sitting on the lap of some Playboy Bunny or other, his blunted, twice-broken nose not holding him back any, flopsy- mopsy blond hair looking beach-boy-slacker perfect. On the Internet, Wilson watchers refer to him as "the Butterscotch Stallion," for the color of his hair and his presumed wild, wild ways. It's well known but bears repeating: He's a writer as well as an actor, and with senior-year University of Texas roommate Wes Anderson has penned three great movies, Bottle Rocket, Rushmore and the Oscar-nominated Royal Tenenbaums, all of them featuring the roundabout loopy dialogue that suits him so well when he speaks it. His snappy flapping lip single-handedly saved Armageddon from being totally unwatchable, and he's not a bad flyboy-hero-under-pressure, either (Behind Enemy Lines).

Vince Vaughn is staggeringly tall and pretty beefy, with a sometimes puffy-looking face and an odd penchant for wearing fatherly wingtip shoes. Whereas Wilson's laugh is honk-honk-honk, Vaughn's can be a nearly girlish squeal. His first major movie role, playing fast-talking semi- loutish Trent in 1996's Swingers, made him an instant star, though in the movies that followed (way-serious acting roles in The Locusts, the dreadful Gus Van Sant remake of Psycho, The Cell, etc.) he lost his way, only to find it again starting in 2003, in comedies like Old School and then DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story. Nowadays he's most often seen playing a softer, mellower version of his old Swingers self, a welcome sight.

In the past, Wilson has dated Sheryl Crow and, most recently, Argentine burlesque dancer Carolina Cerisola. Vaughn once dated Ashley Judd, Joey Lauren Adams and Janeane Garofalo. At the moment, however, neither is seeing anybody. They're single, out there, on the loose, a couple of ladies' men who are pleased to be free and, of course, free to be pleased, just like their characters in Wedding Crashers.

On the lush green grounds of the Getty Museum, in Los Angeles, Wilson is sitting in the shade, at a table, munching away on a Rice Krispie Treat, just hanging out and talking about some of his preferences in women. He is, he says, primarily an ass man. "It seems to me if a girl has a good ass, she has a good body," he's saying, "but I'd almost just as soon not have sex if you're going to have to wear one of those, even though it's hard to find the moral high ground when making that argument to a girl. Anyway, there are other ways."

As it turns out, this overall general attitude of his recently made the news, in a half-blind item in the New York Post, as follows: "Which blond stud, nicknamed the 'Butterscotch Stallion,' has a perverse sexual bent? He recently picked up a girl at a wedding [!], and the two went back to his hotel room. When the woman asked if he had a condom, the actor replied, 'I don't want to have sex with you, but I do want to do something else' -- and proceeded to lick her buttocks for 'over two hours.' "

OK, so Wilson's real interest in butts is allegedly as objects to be licked. It's nothing to be ashamed of, really, and Wilson probably isn't, nor is he likely to be upset by his fling's loose talk. It comes with the territory, and he's got a sunny attitude about such things.

"It's like, 'Who cares?' " he says. "I play it as it lays. OK, so I may not be the greatest lover in the world. Well, let's make that angle work. There's lots of different paths to the waterfall. You don't have to be Don Juan. And wasn't it Gloria Steinem who said that women have to be responsible for their own orgasms? Well, I take her at her word. I'll do my best, OK, but at a certain point you've got to, like, you know...."

(Excerpted from RS 979, July 28, 2005)

NOT EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS

Imagine Entertainment has set Brett Ratner to helm an untitled heist drama being planned as a screen vehicle for Eddie Murphy and Chris Rock. Scribes Adam Cooper and Bill Collage are negotiating to write the screenplay. Brian Grazer will produce.

Project will mark Imagine's second heist pic at Universal, with Spike Lee-directed drama "The Inside Man" currently in production with Denzel Washington, Clive Owen and Jodie Foster.

New project, about a couple of blue-collar guys who aspire to pull off the perfect heist, will be played for laughs. Plot came out of a meeting between Grazer and Murphy, who've collaborated in the past on such pics as "The Nutty Professor" and "Bowfinger."

Murphy hatched the idea and expressed a desire to work with Rock, who is coming off "The Longest Yard" and voicing "Madagascar." They enlisted Ratner, who's directed buddy comedies "Rush Hour" and "Money Talks."

The scribes just worked on the U pics "Accepted" and "Once in a Lifetime," and they will pen the heist pic while Ratner directs the third installment of the "X-Men" franchise for 20th Century Fox.

Project will be overseen by Imagine's James Whitaker, Kim Roth and Chris Wade and U's Donna Langley and Dylan Clark.

Apple says iTunes music downloads top 500 million

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Apple Computer Inc. on Monday said its iTunes online music service has sold more than 500 million songs since its inception over two years ago.

While iTunes by itself is not viewed as a money maker for Apple, it has helped drive sales of the company's iPod, by far the most widely used digital music player which has helped boost profits.

GEEK PEEK

"Aeon Flux" is a hit. "X-Men 3" is not.

Or at least that's the early buzz from Comic-Con, alternatively known as nerd prom, or "Cannes for fans." The comics convention, which wrapped up this weekend in San Diego, has become a bellwether for summer blockbusters, with film studios actively wooing the nearly 100,000 attendees with star visits and sneak peeks.

"People will talk about a movie preview, go online and blog about it, and tell their friends. It's the best way to get a grassroots promotion going," says DreamWorks spokesman Olivier Moroux.

The buzz this year included:

* Charlize Theron generated the most excitement when she appeared to promote her upcoming film "Aeon Flux." Adapted from a short-lived animated series on MTV, it features Theron (in a skin-tight black catsuit) as an assassin after the head of a corrupt future government. It's due sometime in the fall.

* There's a lot of skepticism about "X-Men 3," which is slated for a spring release. Fans aren't sure the film can be turned around that fast and look as good as the beloved first two chapters. They also worry about the casting of a mutant hooker and Kelsey Grammer as a giant blue furry character, Beast. But mostly, there's grumbling over the director — Brett Ratner, director of "Rush Hour."

* But geeks are ga-ga over the film director Bryan Singer (who helmed the first two "X-Men" movies) left for: "Superman Returns." Singer has been releasing little teases of the film online, including a shot of newcomer Brandon Routh (as Clark Kent) throwing a baseball over an entire cornfield. There's also a rumor (unconfirmed) that the movie, out next summer, will include footage of the late Marlon Brando that was left out of Richard Donner's "Superman" film.

* Could "The Chronicles of Narnia" be the next "Lord of the Rings"? Disney certainly hopes so, and was teasing fans with posters and a trailer from the film. Initial verdict — could be very cool, especially because of the top-notch special effects. It's out this fall.

* Less effect-ing is "King Kong," the new film from "Lord of the Rings" director Peter Jackson. Though fanboys love Jackson's work, the initial peeks show a monkey that has many geeks snickering. They're hoping things turn around by the holiday release.

* Also hot: A bald Natalie Portman in the comic adaptation "V for Vendetta," "Ghost Rider" with Nicolas Cage, Tim Burton's latest stop-animation film, "Corpse Bride" and a movie that won't be out until 2007, but already has split the ranks of geeks. Will "Transformers," about giant transforming robots, be brilliant, or the worst idea ever?

Eminem's Early Retirement?

The rapper is apparently ready to hang up his mike, at least according to a report Friday in his hometown newpaper, the Detroit Free Press.

Citing sources close to the platinum-selling hip-hop star, the Free Press says the real Slim Shady will play his last concert in Dublin on Sept. 17.

The report also speculates that the rapper's most recent release, Encore, will be his swan song, as he focuses on producing other rap artists.

Paul Rosenberg, Eminem's longtime manager, told the Press no final decision has been made regarding Em's future plans. However, Rosenberg did say that Encore, which topped the charts when released in November, was "certainly the cap on this part of his career." The rapper, known for his arch sense of humor, is pictured giving a final bow on the cover of the album and closes out the set with the track "Curtains Down."

If indeed Encore is his last official offering as Eminem, the 33-year-old, born Marshall Mathers III, will go out as the best-selling hip-hop artist of all time. His four solo studio albums--1999's The Slim Shady LP, 2000's The Marshall Mathers LP, 2002's The Eminem Show and Encore--have moved more than 25 million copies in the U.S. alone; he has generated sales of more than $1 billion worth of records.

He's also won nine Grammys to go along with his Best Song Oscar for the 8 Mile track "Lose Yourself."

Eminem has already established himself as a deft A&R man and producer, guiding the debut release of mega-selling Shady Records artist 50 Cent, Get Rich or Die Tryin'. Em also produced two offerings from his Detroit rap crew D-12.

As with his other artists, Em will likely make a cameo on new protégé Stat Quo's debut offering, Statlanta, due early next year on Shady/Aftermath. Quo, who has been touring on Eminem and 50 Cent's Anger Management 3 trek, was hospitalized Wednesday after a tour bus crashed en route to a Denver concert. He is said to be recovering nicely and will likely rejoin the tour Sunday outside Seattle.

Of course, even if Eminem says he's giving up the spotlight, it might be easier said than done. He need look no further than Jay-Z, who announced his retirement from the rap game late last year and has since guested on tracks with Linkin Park, OutKast, Kanye West and Memphis Bleek.

Bullock Marries Jesse James

Hollywood beauty Sandra Bullock married American TV star Jesse James on Saturday. Several hundred guests including Jamie Lee Curtis, William Shatner and Regina King attended the ceremony held at a rented Californian ranch near Santa Barbara, according the Us TV show Entertainment Tonight and People magazine. Bullock and James, who hosts Monster Garage on the Discovery Channel, arrived in a red monster truck, while many guests were unaware they were attending a wedding until the last minute - they were told it was a party to celebrate Bullock's 41st birthday. James presented his new wife with a vintage ring made by Neil Lane while Bullock made her husband a unique steel band. Premature media reports suggested the Speed actress wed James on Friday after photographs of a series marquees erected at the ranch were published. However, Bullock claimed the celebration was being held to mark her 41st birthday - even though her special day isn't until July 26 - but her claim was a smokescreen to hide her imminent nuptials from the media's attention. This is the first time Bullock has been married despite an engagement to actor Tate Donovan and a romance with Matthew McConaughey, while James, 35, has been married twice before and has three children with his ex-wives.

Music Videos May Be Coming to iPods

NEW YORK - An iPod with video? Apple Computer Inc. has been talking to several major recording companies, looking to license the sale of music videos through the popular iTunes music site, The Wall Street Journal reported in Monday's editions.

Negotiations are an indication that Apple is moving to release a device that plays video files, possibly by September, The Journal said. Analysts see the development as likely because of Apple's strength in video software, including the Quicktime movie format and video-editing software, such as Final Cut Pro and iMovie.

An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment.

The Journal notes that so far, commercial movie download services have not met with much success, nor have devices already on the market allowing users to transfer video files from their PCs.

Tempers erupt on 'Big Brother' feeds

A personal grudge between two HouseGuests spilled over into a physical confrontation on the 24/7 live Internet feeds on Saturday night.

After the players were given some alcohol they had won in a Friday afternoon Food Challenge by the producers, HouseGuests Michael Donnellan, the 28-year-old artist from California and Eric Littmann, the 36-year-old firefighter from Las Vegas, got into a shouting match and Eric had to be physically restrained by the other players in the backyard when he charged at Michael. Both had been drinking Saturday night.

The live 24/7 Internet feeds were immediately sent to a camera inside the fish tank, the standard practice when the producers do not wish the public to witness certain events like an important competition.

Bad blood has been brewing in the house for some time over Michael's behaviour towards the female players. Many of the women have expressed their dissatisfaction with the way Michael has physically interacted with them to their fellow HouseGuests and the producers themselves. Michael has been seen biting one player's behind and kissing some of the women on the neck. Some days ago, Eric, this week's Head Of Household, confronted Mike over the allegations and used the term "sexual harassment". He asked Michael to cease his behaviour. Since that time, both men have held a grudge against one another.

Remarks Michael may or may have not made about Eric's family sparked the confrontation tonight. Already fuming after being told of the comments, Eric erupted when Michael came into the backyard.

Eric asked Michael if he had a problem.

"Yeah, I got a problem with you. You got a problem with me?," Michael reponded.

When Michael said Eric was all talk and no action as well as having a small penis, Eric leapt out of his chair and charged in Michael's direction.

"Don't talk about my family you (expletive) piece of (expletive)," yelled Eric. "That's right, talk about my family behind my back."

The other HouseGuests intervened and Eric was held back by several of them. On many occasions in the house, Michael has claimed to be well versed in martial arts.

"You're going home," Eric shouted as 'Big Brother' made an announcement.

On Friday, Eric had nominated Michael and Janelle for eviction.

As per the rules of the 'Big Brother' game, anyone making verbal or physical threats against another player can immediately be removed from the house and disqualified from the game.

When the feeds returned late Sunday morning after being blacked out for hours, both Eric and Michael were still in the house. In talking with Rachel as they made breakfast, Eric said he was sure 'Big Brother' was going to ask him to leave the house over the incident but it appears they have given him and Michael a second chance.

“My actions in throwing the chair back was deemed a threat. It still wasn't right by me. It is over and I am glad I am still here,” Eric told Rachel and Ivette.

Later on in the dining room, the HouseGuests spoke about Michael wanting to leave the house but the producers convincing him to give the idea some thought.

"I would never strike another man. I gotta say the producers have everyone's interest at heart," said Eric speaking more about the incident. "If everyone wasn't safe with me being in the house, I would have packed up my stuff and left."

During 'Big Brother 2' in 2001, contestant Justin Sebik was ejected for putting a knife to contestant Krista Stegall's throat, asking her if she would still love him if he killed her. This happened after a night of boozing by the younger House Guests, partying which both Justin and Krista participated in. Kristin laughed off Justin's actions and kissed him.

In 2003 on 'Big Brother 4', contestant Scott Weintraub, the 33-year-old waiter from Chicago, was removed from the house and the game for throwing a temper tantrum in the house. The outburst caused some of the players to fear for their own personal safety.

HBO plugs 'Entourage' posse

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The "Entourage" crew is coming back for more adventures in celebrity-dom next year -- many more adventures, if HBO has anything to say about it.

The Emmy-nominated comedy, which stars Adrian Grenier as a young movie star and Jeremy Piven as his shark-ish agent, has been renewed for a third season to debut next year. HBO chairman and CEO Chris Albrecht told reporters that he's looking to hire more writers for the show in order to produce more than 13 episodes per season.

"We're certainly going to try to get more than that," Albrecht said Friday during HBO's portion of the summer Television Critics Assn. press tour at the Beverly Hilton.

The renewal of "Entourage" topped a state-of-HBO address delivered by Albrecht that included updates on such shows as "The Sopranos" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm," as well as news of a formal green light for the long-gestating "John Adams" miniseries.

No HBO session at TCA would be complete without the semiannual speculation on the potential for additional episodes of "The Sopranos" beyond the sixth season, scheduled to bow in March. Albrecht offered the series' open-ended fate as a continuous source of discussion between himself and new Paramount Pictures chairman and CEO Brad Grey, who formerly headed the Brad Grey TV banner that produces "Sopranos."

He said the decision to produce more "Sopranos" ultimately rested with its creator, David Chase, whom Albrecht depicted as "most concerned with leaving the audience feeling great about the show."

"Curb Your Enthusiasm," meanwhile, will return for a fifth season Sept. 25, at 10 p.m. The 10-episode installment will be paired with "Extras," a similarly themed BBC comedy starring Ricky Gervais ("The Office").

HBO begins production in the fall on the 10-hour "Adams" miniseries about one of the nation's founding fathers who also had the formidable task of following George Washington as the second president of the United States. Shooting is expected to continue on sites in Virginia and Europe through next year in time for a 2007 airdate. Tom Hanks will serve as an executive producer, and will direct one of the episodes.

Hanks and Steven Spielberg will also produce a miniseries about World War II battles in the Pacific theater. The World War II miniseries and "Adams" together will cost HBO about $300 million, according to Albrecht.

Albrecht also offered candid assessments on a range of current HBO programing, defending the likes of the new Lisa Kudrow comedy "The Comeback" and "Six Feet Under," which he admitted was not well served by its brief switch to Monday from Sunday nights.

He professed awe at the fan support greeting "The Wire" and the now-canceled "Carnivale," which he deemed ultimately too expensive to continue given its huge production costs and ensemble cast. "It's not a big show in the foreign (market), there's not a lot of investment to recoup from that," he said.

Also in the longform department, HBO has recruited Helen Mirren and Jeremy Irons for the two-part miniseries "Elizabeth I," which is filming in Lithuania, in anticipation of airing next year. Mirren plays the 16th century monarch, with Irons and Hugh Dancy depicting two of the politically ambitious lovers she had late in her reign.

In other programing news from the session:

= HBO will introduce a late-night series, "One Night Stand," beginning Aug. 19, featuring stand-up comedy from the likes of Earthquake, Louis C.K. and Caroline Rhea. The network is also producing stand-up specials through the end of the year for Bill Maher, George Carlin, Dennis Miller and Robert Klein, who will mark his eighth HBO special. He headlined the first HBO comedy special 30 years ago.

= HBO also laid out its schedule of documentaries for the "America Undercover" franchise for the second half of the year, including "A Father ... A Son ... Once Upon a Time in Hollywood," an examination of the relationship between movie stars Kirk Douglas and Michael Douglas, directed by Lee Grant.

The elder Douglas, who was present via satellite because of recent knee surgery, cracked up the room by suggesting he was eyeing a potential TV project for himself and his son's wife, Catherine Zeta-Jones. "I want to audition next season for (the ABC summer hit) 'Dancing With the Stars,"' he joked.

= The original film "Walkout" will air next year. Directed by Edward James Olmos, it depicts the protest movement in the East Los Angeles public school system during the civil rights era. Alexa Vega ("Spy Kids") stars.

Wonka Gives Movie-Goers Their Sugar Fix

LOS ANGELES - Willy Wonka gave movie-goers their sugar fix for the weekend. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," starring Johnny Depp as candyman Wonka, had a sweet debut of $55.4 million, helping Hollywood make a dent in a box-office downturn that has lingered most of the year.

Opening as a solid No. 2 was Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn's comedy "Wedding Crashers," which took in $32.2 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The two new movies bumped the previous weekend's No. 1 flick, "Fantastic Four," which slipped to third place with $22.7 million, lifting its 10-day total to $100.1 million.

Overall business was up solidly, the second-straight weekend Hollywood revenues rose after a slump that had lasted since late February.

After a slight uptick at the box office the previous weekend, the top 12 movies took in $151.4 million, a rise of 7.5 percent from the same weekend last year, when "I, Robot" premiered as the No. 1 movie.

"People are just waiting for the right kinds of movies to come along, and they will show up in big numbers," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Director Tim Burton's "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" is the second adaptation of Roald Dahl's beloved children's book, following Gene Wilder's 1971 version "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory."

For Depp, whose earlier collaborations with Burton include "Edward Scissorhands" and " Ed Wood," "Charlie" marked his biggest opening ever, surpassing the $46.6 million debut for his 2003 blockbuster "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl."

The movie received high marks from critics for Burton's fanciful visuals and Depp's quirky rendition of the anti-social Wonka, backed by a roster that includes Freddie Highmore, Helena Bonham Carter, Noah Taylor and James Fox.

While "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" locked up the family audience, the R-rated "Wedding Crashers" gave adult crowds a dose of raunchier humor. The movie stars Wilson and Vaughn as men who crash strangers' weddings to pick up women.

Distributor New Line had briefly mulled whether to tone the movie down to a PG-13 rating, but test audiences gave the racy film a thumbs up, said Russell Schwartz, the studio's head of marketing.

"There's been such a move toward more sanitized movies, so I think the R rating actually helped," Schwartz said. "And it's not a hard R. I think it of more as a soft R. It's a movie that wears the R on its sleeve very proudly."

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. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," $55.4 million.

2. "Wedding Crashers," $32.2 million.

3. "Fantastic Four," $22.7 million.

4. "War of the Worlds," $15 million.

5. "Batman Begins," $5.6 million.

6. "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," $5.05 million.

7. "Dark Water," $4.4 million.

8. "Herbie: Fully Loaded," $3.4 million.

9. "Bewitched," $2.4 million.

10. "Madagascar," $2.1 million.

Ashlea booted from 'Big Brother 6'

It is back to the sunshine state for Ashlea Evans. The 22-year-old fashion design student from Florida was the first HouseGuest to be evicted on 'Big Brother 6'. To those who have watched the 24/7 live feeds on the Internet, the boot was no surprise, however, to the television-only viewers, the real reason which led to her elimination remained a secret after last night's episode aired.

Though it is true Ashlea was targeted because of Rachel's pact with the Surf Board Alliance (the team that won last week's Food Competition) and the fact that of all the HouseGuests, she was one that Rachel didn't connect with right off the bat, Ashlea and Janelle's attempt at forming an early alliance in the house also greased the skids.

A secret 'Big Brother 6' team, friends Ashlea and Janelle discovered through talking to the other HouseGuests that a number of them were from the state of Florida. Janelle and Ashlea's effort to shape an alliance out of that common bond backfired. The twosome were immediately characterized as "hardcore" players and neither could shake that label.

What television viewers also aren't aware of is the significance of the 9 to 2 vote. James and Eric conspired to rig that vote to create an atmosphere of mistrust and dissention in the house. Following through with their underhanded plot and knowing that Janelle would vote to keep her friend Ashlea in the house, James deliberately switched his vote to Kaysar. The thinking being that the other HouseGuests would wonder who went back on their promise to the group and voted for Ashlea to stay.

On the first live eviction show, the producers revealed what most feed watchers had already guessed - who the teams of pairs are in the 'Big Brother' house. It was announced that the partnerships are: Eric and Maggie (workmates, friends), Beau and Ivette (friends), James and Sarah (boyfriend, girlfriend), Howie and Rachel (friends), April and Jennifer (sorority sisters), Janelle and Ashlea (friends, roommates), Michael and Kaysar (friends).

In the weekly Head of Household Competition involving trivia about the 'Big Brother' house, Eric, the 36-year-old firefighter was victorious. Eric's nominations for eviction will air on Saturday night's episode of 'Big Brother 6' on CBS.

'Charlie' set for sweet weekend at box office By Nicole Sperling

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Johnny Depp is set to lure kids of all ages to movie theaters this weekend when "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" rolls down the conveyer belt.

Industry experts put the film's three-day gross in a wide range: conservative estimates are at the high $40 million mark, while optimistic predictions reach as high as $60 million.

Also opening Friday is "Wedding Crashers," a raunchy comedy starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson. Insiders place the film's gross in the $30 million range.

Both films are tracking well with audiences and could do much to boost overall sales, which ended a 19-week losing streak last weekend thanks to the better-than-expected $56 million debut of "Fantastic Four." Twentieth Century Fox's Marvel Comics adaptation is likely to fall at least 50% this weekend.

Warner Bros.' "Charlie," in which Depp plays reclusive confectionery magnate Willy Wonka, has received primarily positive reviews leading up to its opening in 3,770 locations.

Director Tim Burton's take is truer to Roald Dahl's classic 1964 fantasy novel, faithfully adapted by screenwriter John August, than to the beloved 1971 film, "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory," which starred Gene Wilder.

The PG-rated film co-stars Freddie Highmore (Depp's co-star in last year's "Finding Neverland"), Deep Roy, David Kelly and Helena Bonham Carter, among others.

If whimsy and fantasy don't do it for the average filmgoer, perhaps sexual escapades and R-rated comedy will. "Wedding Crashers" stars Vaughn and Wilson, as business partners and lifelong friends who share the unique hobby of springtime wedding crashing.

From director David Dobkin, who worked with Wilson on "Shanghai Knights" and Vaughn on "Clay Pigeons," "Crashers" co-stars Canadian uber-babe Rachel McAdams, while Sen. John McCain makes a cameo. New Line Cinema's R-rated release opens in 2,925 theaters.

In limited release this weekend, Lions Gate Films will bow "Happy Endings," written and directed by Don Roos and starring an ensemble cast including Lisa Kudrow, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Tom Arnold. The film weaves multiple stories in a look at love, family and the unpredictability of life.

Miramax Films will open "The Warrior," the first film from British director Asif Kapadia. Shot throughout India, the drama centers on a warrior who renounces his longtime role as an enforcer.

Stars flock to 'Entourage'

In Hollywood, it's cool to join an Entourage.

Celebrities increasingly are turning up in cameos on HBO's Entourage (Sunday, 10 p.m. ET/PT). The hip movie-industry satire centers on a rising young star and his close New York buddies as they taste L.A.'s fast-lane life.

In Entourage's second season, several actors have played twisted versions of themselves. Bob Saget dissolved his saccharine Full House reputation appearing as the bong-toking, prostitute-chasing neighbor of actor Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier). Ralph Macchio, guesting as an old buddy of Johnny Drama (Kevin Dillon), riffed on his Karate Kid persona.

Sunday, Titanic director James Cameron — central to this season's plot — shows up at the Sundance Film Festival and orders Sour Patch Kids candy at a concession stand. The Station Agent's Peter Dinklage appears as a foul-mouthed bar patron. Future cameos will include Bono, Mandy Moore and Brooke Shields.

"Whenever we run into people, they say they want to do the show," series creator Doug Ellin says. "It often provides them a different take on who they are."

Entourage was inspired by actor Mark Wahlberg, the show's executive producer. It's filled with disparaging references to A-listers, most delivered with dead-on aplomb by super-agent Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven, nominated Thursday for an Emmy).

Mixing in cameos — Larry David, Scarlett Johansson, Anthony Anderson, Jessica Alba, Jaime Pressley, Gary Busey and Hugh Hefner also have appeared — adds to Entourage's behind-the-scenes authenticity, Ellin says.

Not all play themselves. Last season, Val Kilmer, in waist-length wig and ZZ Top-style beard, was unrecognizable as a mystical pot dealer. Last week, Bai Ling was an amorous martial arts trainer.

For Saget and others, the exposure is more than a fun gig. "The show is brilliant," Saget says. "Doing it helps people take me more seriously as an actor."

Macchio had been asked to spoof his Karate Kid image for years, but he didn't agree until Entourage. Cameos "always seemed cheesy, but Hollywood watches, so it seemed like a smart idea," says Macchio, now filming the independent film Beer League. "I thought it would be cool to poke fun at myself."

And psychologist Dr. Joyce Brothers, who appears in a future episode as a supermarket shopper who has her box of Froot Loops stolen by Entourage's entourage, says, "Professionally, it helps me enormously to show up in things that attract young people."

'Housewives,' 'Grace' top Emmy noms

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Desperate Housewives, a dark satire about suburbia that became an instant hit in its debut season, was among the top Emmy nominees announced Thursday.

The ABC series, competing in the comedy category, received 15 nominations, sharing status as series front-runner with the NBC sitcom Will & Grace, which also got 15.

Premium cable channel HBO once again dominated the made-for-TV movie category with two of its films: The Life and Death of Peter Sellers and Warm Springs, each garnering 16 bids to top all nominees.

Nominations for the 57th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards were announced in an early morning ceremony at the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Leonard H. Goldenson Theatre.

There were Emmy riches for both departing series and newcomers.

Everybody Loves Raymond, which wrapped after nine seasons, received 13 nominations including best comedy.

Lost, a freshman drama about air crash survivors stranded on a mysterious island, got 12.

Joining Desperate Housewives, Will & Grace and Everybody Loves Raymond in the best comedy series category were last year's winner, Arrested Development, and Scrubs.

Besides Lost, the other best-drama series contenders were Deadwood, Six Feet Under, 24 and the veteran White House drama The West Wing.

Three stars of Desperate Housewives were named in the category of best lead actress in a comedy series - Marcia Cross, Teri Hatcher and Felicity Huffman. Left out were co-stars Eva Longoria and Nicollette Sheridan. Other nominees in the category: Patricia Heaton of Everybody Loves Raymond and Jane Kaczmarek of Malcolm in the Middle.

Among those in the category for best lead actor in a comedy series were two Emmy newcomers, Jason Bateman of Arrested Development and Zach Braff of Scrubs. Also nominated: Eric McCormack of Will & Grace, Ray Romano of Everybody Loves Raymond and Tony Shalhoub of Monk.

James Spader, last year's winner of the lead actor in a drama series award, was nominated again for Boston Legal. Other nominees were Hank Azaria for Huff, Hugh Laurie for House, Ian McShane for Deadwood and Kiefer Sutherland for 24.

Film star Glenn Close, who joined The Shield last season, received a bid as best lead actress in a drama series. Other nominees were Frances Conroy of Six Feet Under, Jennifer Garner of Alias, Mariska Hargitay of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and first-time Emmy nominee Patricia Arquette of Medium.

In addition to The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, which dramatized the life of the great comic film star, and Warm Springs, which recounted Franklin D. Roosevelt's struggle with polio before he became president, other nominees in the TV movie category were Lackawanna Blues, The Office Special and The Wool Cap.

Elvis Presley scored again in the outstanding miniseries category as Elvis garnered six nominations including one for its star, Jonathan Rhys Meyers. The lead nominee, with 10 bids was Empire Falls, and other contenders included The 4400 and The Lost Prince.

The Emmy Awards are scheduled to air Sept. 18 on CBS. A host has yet to be announced for the Shrine Auditorium ceremony in which 27 awards will be presented.

Other honours, including those for technical achievement and guest actors and actresses in series, will be given at a ceremony a week before the award show.

Here is the full list of nominees in all categories for the 57th annual Primetime Emmy awards, announced Thursday by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences:

1. Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour): Family Guy: North by North Quahog, Fox; Samurai Jack: Episode XLIX, Cartoon Network; The Simpsons: Future Drama, Fox; South Park: Best Friends Forever, Comedy Central; SpongeBob SquarePants: Fear of a Krabby Patty/Shell of a Man, Nickelodeon.

2. Animated Program (For Programming One Hour Or More): Dragons: A Fantasy Made Real, Animal Planet; Star Wars Clone Wars Vol. 2 (Chapters 21-25), Cartoon Network.

3. Art Direction for a Multi-Camera Series: George Lopez: Leave it to Lopez/The Simple Life/Trouble in Paradise, ABC; That '70s Show: Down the Road Apiece/Angie/Don't Lie to Me, Fox; Two and a Half Men: It Was 'Mame' Mom/A Low, Guttural Tongue Flapping Noise, CBS; Will & Grace: The Birds and the Bees, NBC.

4. Art Direction for a Single-Camera Series: Carnivale: Old Cherry Blossom Road/Damascus, NE/Outside New Canaan, HBO; Cold Case: Factory Girls, CBS; Deadwood: Requiem for a Gleet/Complications/Childish Things, HBO; Desperate Housewives: Suspicious Minds, ABC; Six Feet Under: Grinding the Corn/Bomb Shelter/Untitled, HBO.

5. Art Direction for a Miniseries or Movie: Empire Falls, HBO; Faith of My Fathers, A&E; The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO; The Lost Prince (Masterpiece Theatre), PBS; Warm Springs, HBO.

6. Art Direction for a Variety, Music Program or Special: 77th Annual Academy Awards, ABC; American Idol: Episode 419, Fox; First Invasion: The War of 1812, The History Channel; The 47th Annual Grammy Awards, CBS; MADtv: Episode 1006, Fox.

7. Casting for a Comedy Series: Arrested Development, Fox; Desperate Housewives, ABC; Entourage, HBO; Scrubs, NBC; Will & Grace, NBC.

8. Casting for a Drama Series: Deadwood, HBO; Grey's Anatomy, ABC; House, Fox; Lost, ABC; Nip/Tuck, FX; 24, Fox.

9. Casting for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special: Elvis, CBS; Empire Falls, HBO; Lackawanna Blues, HBO; The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO; Warm Springs, HBO.

10. Choreography: A Christmas Carol, NBC; MADtv: 1023, Fox; 2005 NAACP Image Awards, Fox; Reefer Madness, Showtime; Smucker's Stars on Ice 2005, A&E.

11. Cinematography for a Multi-Camera Series: Everybody Loves Raymond: Pat's Secret, CBS; Hope & Faith: Carmen Get It, ABC; Reba: Flowers for Van, WB; Two and a Half Men: Back Off, Mary Poppins, CBS; Will & Grace: Friends With Benefits, NBC.

12. Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series: Carnivale: The Road to Damascus, HBO; Carnivale: Lincoln Highway, HBO; Deadwood: Complications, HBO; Six Feet Under: Untitled, HBO; 24: 5:00 AM-6:00 AM, Fox.

13. Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie: Faith of My Fathers, A&E; The 4400: Part 1, USA; The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO; Mitch Albom's The Five People You Meet in Heaven, ABC; Warm Springs, HBO.

14. Cinematography for Nonfiction Programming (Single or Multi-Camera): The Amazing Race: We're Moving Up the Food Chain, CBS; The Contender: The Final Four, NBC; Death in Gaza, HBO; Living With Wolves, Discovery Channel; Survivor: Palau: This Has Never Happened Before, CBS.

15. Commercial: Applause, Budweiser; Drink Up, Aquafina; Glen, Starbucks Doubleshot; The One Campaign, One.org; Surprise Dinner, Ameriquest Mortgage.

16. Costumes for a Series: Alias: Tuesday, ABC; Carnivale: The Road to Damascus, HBO; Deadwood: Boy the Earth Talks To, HBO; Desperate Housewives: Suspicious Minds, ABC; Six Feet Under: Grinding the Corn, HBO.

17. Costumes for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special: Conquest of America: The Southwest, The History Channel; Elvis: Part 1, CBS; The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO; The Lost Prince (Masterpiece Theatre): Episode One, PBS; Warm Springs, HBO.

18. Directing for a Comedy Series: Desperate Housewives: Pilot, ABC; Entourage: Pilot, HBO; Everybody Loves Raymond: Finale, CBS; Monk: Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine, USA; Will & Grace: It's a Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad World, NBC.

19. Directing for a Drama Series: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation: Grave Danger, CBS; Deadwood: Complications, HBO; Grey's Anatomy: A Hard Days Night, ABC; Huff: Crazy, Nuts and All Messed Up, Showtime; Lost: Pilot (Part 1 & Part 2), ABC; Rescue Me: Pilot, FX; The West Wing: 2162 Votes, NBC.

20. Directing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program: 77th Annual Academy Awards, ABC; Da Ali G Show: Rekognize, HBO; The Daily Show With Jon Stewart: 9010, Comedy Central; The Games Of The XXVIII Olympiad -- Opening Ceremony, NBC; Late Show With David Letterman: 2269, CBS.

21. Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special: Empire Falls, HBO; Lackawanna Blues, HBO; The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO; Warm Springs, HBO.

22. Directing for Nonfiction Programming: American Idol: Finale, Fox; The Apprentice: Season Two Finale, NBC; Death In Gaza, HBO; Extreme Makeover: Home Edition: The Dore Family, ABC; Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson, PBS.

23. Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series: Deadwood: A Lie Agreed Upon (Part I), HBO; Lost: Pilot (Part 1 & Part 2), ABC; 24: 7:00 AM-8:00 AM, Fox; 24: 6:00 AM-7:00 AM, Fox; 24: 7:00 PM-8:00 PM, Fox.

24. Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series: Arrested Development: Mother Boy XXX, Fox; Arrested Development: Let 'Em Eat Cake, Fox; Arrested Development: Good Grief, Fox; Desperate Housewives: Pilot, ABC; Desperate Housewives: Pretty Little Picture, ABC.

25. Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Miniseries or a Movie: Back When We Were Grownups (Hallmark Hall Of Fame Presentation), CBS; Empire Falls: Part 2, HBO; Faith of My Fathers, A&E; The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO; The Wool Cap, TNT.

26. Multi-Camera Picture Editing for a Series: Everybody Loves Raymond: The Faux Pas, CBS; Scrubs: My Life in Four Cameras, NBC; That '70s Show: Angie, Fox; Two and a Half Men: It Was Mame, Mom, CBS; Will & Grace: The Newlydreads, NBC.

27. Picture Editing for a Special (Single or Multi-Camera): 77th Annual Academy Awards, ABC; Dave Chappelle: For What It's Worth, Showtime; Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Festival (Great Performances), PBS; The Games Of The XXVIII Olympiad -- Opening Ceremony, NBC; Tracey Ullman Live & Exposed, HBO.

28. Picture Editing for Nonfiction Programming (Single or Multi-Camera): The Amazing Race: We're Moving Up the Food Chain, CBS; The Apprentice: Lights! Camera! Transaction! NBC; The Contender: The Hangman's Noose, NBC; Survivor: This Has Never Happened Before, CBS; Survivor: Culture Shock and Violent Storms, CBS.

29. Hairstyling for a Series: Alias: Nocturne, ABC; American Dreams: Starting Over, NBC; Carnivale: Outside New Canaan, HBO; Deadwood: Boy the Earth Talks To, HBO; MADtv: Episode 1017, Fox; Star Trek: Enterprise: In a Mirror, Darkly, UPN.

30. Hairstyling for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special: Lackawanna Blues, HBO; The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, HBO; Their Eyes Were Watching God, ABC; Tracey Ullman Live & Exposed, HBO; Warm Springs, HBO.

NHL, Players OK Agreement to End Lockout

NEW YORK - Open the arenas, break out the skates and fire up the Zamboni. The NHL is back. After losing an entire season to a lockout, players and owners ended an all-night bargaining session Wednesday by reaching their goal: a tentative deal, expected to include a salary cap, that virtually ensures hockey will return this fall.

The six-year pact still needs to be ratified by both sides. The players' association has scheduled a members meeting in Toronto next week, while the NHL board of governors plans to gather next Thursday in New York for a vote.

"It's a new day," Philadelphia Flyers coach Ken Hitchcock said. "It's pretty exciting."

And about time.

"At the end of the day everybody lost," said Wayne Gretzky, the NHL's career scoring leader and the managing partner of the Phoenix Coyotes. "We almost crippled our industry. It was very disappointing what happened."

The last round of negotiations began Tuesday at noon and culminated around noon Wednesday with a joint news release announcing the deal.

Though details won't be released until both sides approve it, a salary cap would be something players' union executive director Bob Goodenow never wanted.

Once everyone signs off on the deal, the league can begin the difficult task of gaining public support. No matter who won or lost, the fight cost the NHL a full season.

"To be totally honest, I really don't care what the deal is anymore. All I care about is getting the game back on the ice," Flyers star Jeremy Roenick said in a telephone interview during a celebrity golf event in Nevada.

"I think the deal is not great for the players. It is definitely an owner-friendly deal. For the last 10 years, the players have made a lot of money and now we are in a position where everybody is going to make money," he said. "Unfortunately, it had to take a whole year to get to a point where we could have been last year."

This lockout was worse than any in sports, dwarfing the one that cut the 1994-95 hockey season nearly in half and resulted in the agreement that expired last September.

In February, commissioner Gary Bettman canceled the season, making the NHL the first North American sports league to lose a year because of a labor dispute.

"I don't want to get to the relief point yet until everything's finalized," said Carolina Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford, a former goalie. "What we went through was necessary. We had to get some controls on our business and certainly I'm hoping that's what this new agreement does."

While the NHL seems to have gotten what it wanted, there is no way to measure the damage done to a sport that already was the least popular of the four major leagues in the United States.

"That's going to be our next big step — winning back the fans," said Nashville Predators forward Jim McKenzie, a 15-year NHL veteran. "We'll have our work cut out for us."

If all goes according to plan, a scaled-down draft is expected to be held later this month and training camps will open in September from Vancouver to Miami. NHL games will be back on the schedule in October.

"It'll be a great thing to get the game back up," Columbus Blue Jackets coach Gerard Gallant said.

Selling the sport might take a while longer.

During the lockout, disgruntled Buffalo fan Doug Sitler sold more than 15,000 magnetic car ribbons that read: "I need my hockey fix(ed)."

"I think it's going to take a little bit of time for people to get back in the swing of things," he said. "But sports fans are pretty fickle. They have short memories. They really do."

It took all night and then some for the final round of negotiations to produce an agreement.

The sides met for 10 straight days in New York, and it became clear Wednesday morning — the 301st day of the lockout — that they weren't going to leave the room without an agreement.

The expected salary cap likely will have a ceiling of $39 million and a minimum around $22 million.

Player salaries will not exceed 54 percent of league-wide revenues, expected to be around $1.8 billion. Players will also put money into escrow, and after each season that will be used to balance out the set percentage based on actual revenues.

Bettman warned in February that offers the union passed up were better than any it would see once a year of hockey was lost.

Just days before the season was wiped out, the players' association said for the first time it would accept a salary cap if the league dropped its desire to link player costs to revenues.

That started a wild week that included the cancellation of the season Feb. 16 and a false hope three days later that it would be saved. Even Gretzky and Mario Lemieux — superstars turned executives — couldn't resurrect it during an emergency bargaining session in New York.

Negotiations resumed in mid-March.

Bettman promised "cost certainty" in the form of a hard salary cap to the owners and he has gotten it.

The landscape of the NHL will be quite different than it was in June 2004 when the Tampa Bay Lightning skated off with the Stanley Cup in the league's last game before the lockout. For the first time since a flu epidemic in 1919, there was no Stanley Cup champion in 2005.

When the league relaunches in the fall, it will do so with a new salary structure that keeps high-spending teams such as Detroit, Toronto, Philadelphia and the New York Rangers in check.

The first order of business after ratification will be to get a majority of the players signed. The belief is that last season's contracts will be wiped from the books, leaving many players without deals.

Those who are still under contract will have their salaries reduced by 24 percent, a concept first proposed by the union last December. Some high-priced players will also be on the market as teams pare payrolls to get down to the cap.

Even with the salary rollback, nine teams would've been over the cap based on payrolls at the end of the 2003-04 season.

There will also be rules changes, some that could include the size of goaltender equipment to a shootout to eliminate tie games.

"Our focus right now, from the coaches standpoint, is we're waiting to see what our roster is going to look like and what the playing rules are going to look like," Hitchcock said.

The draft was supposed to be held last month in Ottawa, and the Canadian capital might get to host the event soon.

Junior hockey phenom Sidney Crosby is the consensus choice to be the No. 1 pick. Where he goes will be determined by a weighted draft lottery that will give each team some opportunity to snag him.

NBC will start its two-year television deal a year late, but the NHL still needs to find a cable partner.

"We are thrilled for the fans that hockey is returning to the ice, and we're delighted to be the network television partner of the NHL as it moves into what I believe will be an exciting new era," NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol said.

The deal finally came down during sport's biggest lull of the year — the baseball All-Star break.

The NHL probably won't hold such an event until 2007 as next year's All-Star game is expected to be replaced by an Olympic break, allowing for players to represent their countries in Turin, Italy.

Another Re-Issue I will Have To Buy

In news today, Universal has officially announced the Mallrats: 10th Anniversary Extended Edition for release on 9/20 (SRP $26.98).

The DVD will feature two versions of the film via seamless branching - the original theatrical version and a new extended version that includes 30 minutes of new footage. Extras will include new cast interviews, a 'multi-angle' commentary, the A Look Back at Mallrats, The Making of Mallrats and A Cast Reunion featurettes and more.

Beatles breakup film due on DVD

Could the end of the long, long winding road to the release on DVD of the Beatles' 1970 breakup flick, Let It Be, actually be in sight?

According to Beatles Anthology director Bob Smeaton, the Let It Be DVD, punched up with "remarkable bonus material," will be released in September. Smeaton told a Denver, Colo., radio station that the DVD release had been delayed due to the sheer volume of film stock shot, and colour restoration issues.

Although Smeaton did not identify any of the extra material, Beatles fans are clamoring for a 5.1 surround sound mix, and the inclusion of what's known as the complete rooftop gig. That's the Jan. 30, 1969, 35-minute show played by the Fab Four on the roof of their London headquarters, but which was only partially shown in the film.

Good quality audio-only bootlegs of the complete show are in circulation, but film of the mini concert has remained secure in Apple Corps vaults.

The original 80-minute Let It Be film, unavailable on home video for over 20 years, is expected on DVD to be fleshed out with original Nagra audio recordings that went missing from Apple in the early '70s, but which were recovered in a police raid on bootleggers in the Netherlands in January 2003.

The recovered tapes would allow some film footage that was without original sound to be used for the DVD, including many Beatles takes of old time rock 'n' roll and jam sessions.

Also on the reissue front, George Harrison's 1971 Concert For Bangladesh on both remastered CD and DVD will be released Oct. 25.

Early reports say that the reissued Concert For Bangladesh, perhaps the first all-star rock benefit of its time, will also contain extra material, including a song by Bob Dylan left off the original three-album deluxe box set.

Details are sketchy, but some Internet Beatles news sites suggest that the reissued Bangladesh could contain unissued material from both the matinee and evening performances of the show, held at Madison Square Garden, Aug. 1, 1971, and featuring the likes of Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and Leon Russell.

Reportedly, Harrison had been searching unsuccessfully for the master tapes of the concert just prior to his death, but they were eventually located, and the reissue may contain a heretofore unissued Dylan song from the concert.

Finally, Sir Paul McCartney will be touring this fall behind a new release, his first since 2001. Chaos And Creation In The Back Yard, said to be "a return to basics" for McCartney, will debut Sept. 13.

Springfield's New "Day"

Eighties heartthrob Rick Springfield has decided to revisit the past on his new album. But on The Day After Yesterday, released Tuesday on his own Gomer label, the fifty-five-year-old rocker is indulging his nostalgia through the songs of others.

A covers collection of tunes Springfield says "I wish I'd written," the new outing is a ballad-heavy affair that may surprise fans familiar with the power-pop of "Jessie's Girl" and "Don't Talk to Strangers."

"I had the phrase 'moody and atmospheric' in mind for this album," explains Springfield. "The last record [2004's Shock/Denial/Anger/Acceptance] was pretty pedal-to-the-metal, and I wanted this one to be the exact opposite."

There are mainstream selections such as Foreigner's "Waiting For a Girl Like You" and Mr. Mister's "Broken Wings," a duet with Mr. Mister singer Richard Page, who provided background vocals on Springfield's biggest hits. But Yesterday also includes Springfield's takes on Eighties alternative cuts including the Church's "Under the Milky Way," the Dream Academy's "Life in a Northern Town" and the Blue Nile's "Let's Go Out Tonight," as well as "Blue Rose," by current jazz singer Lizz Wright.

"If a track stood out, it didn't matter what style it was in," says Springfield, who adds that the album's arrangements "stay faithful to the originals, but just try to take advantage of the newer technology."

The lone original, "Cry," was chosen because its melancholy theme seemed to fit the aesthetic. Composed in the late Eighties, when Springfield's career was on the wane and he was going through his "darkest period," the song is "definitely about me, and about letting go and feeling the pain, instead of doing things like drinking."

The disc also features Springfield's take on the Beatles' "For No One" and John Lennon's "Imagine" -- appropriate choices for the Aussie-born, English-raised singer, who covered the Fabs' "Eleanor Rigby" in one of his early Down Under bands, Zoot.

That track, in fact, leads off Written in Rock, a recently released Springfield anthology (which also concludes with "For No One") on Sony/BMG. Springfield picked tracks and wrote liner notes for the double-disc set, the first career retrospective in which he's been personally involved. That, he says, addresses a longtime sore spot.

"I always felt a little used," he says. "I'd put out a new album, and someone would put out a greatest hits album. But when Sony and BMG merged, things changed."

Springfield, who was on the Philadelphia bill for 1985's historic Live Aid concert, is touring extensively this year, even if it means leaving behind Gomer, the twelve-year-old pit bull after whom he named his label.

"Gomer is kicking ass," says Springfield with a laugh. "But he's a studio dog."

Rick Springfield tour dates:

7/15: Manchester, IA, Delaware County Fair
7/23: Minot, ND, State Fair
7/28: St. Paul, MN, Rib America Festival
7/29: St. Louis, Roberts Orpheum Theatre
7/30: Ames, IA, Stephens Auditorium
8/17: Hampton Beach, NH, Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
8/19: Red Bank, NJ, Count Basie Theater
8/20: Baltimore, Rams Head Live
8/26: Kansas City, Crown Center
8/27: Florence, IN, Belterra Casino and Resort
9/1: Oshkosh, WI, Waterfront Series
9/2: Indianapolis, Ribfest
9/3: Pontiac, MI, Arts Beats and Eats
9/5: Cleveland, Tower City Amphitheater
9/9: Westlake, LA, Isle of Capri Casino
9/10: Westlake, LA, Isle of Capri Casino
9/16: Robinsonville, MS, Gold Strike Casino
9/17: Biloxi, MS, Isle of Capri Casino
9/23: Waukegan, IL, Genesee Theatre
9/24: Merrillville, IN, Star Plaza Theatre
9/25, Taylorville, IL, Nashville North
9/30: Burgettstown, PA, Pepsi Cola Roadhouse
10/1: Atlantic City, Borgata Hotel and Casino
10/2: Plymouth, MA, Memorial Hall

Grim Weezer: Band's Leather-And-Wolfman 'Drugs' Video Not Their Video At All

Weezer's new video for the song "We Are All on Drugs" features a whole lot of leather, a good amount of medieval chicanery, gratuitous torches, a sweet hovercraft, a bunch of enslaved humans, a really fierce-looking werewolf and absolutely no Weezer.

Or any drugs, for that matter.

In fact, it's not even a real Weezer video — it's the 1985 clip for "Fear No Evil," a tune by British theatrical metal act Grim Reaper, in which the leather-clad rockers storm the stronghold of an evil wolfman and liberate his human slaves with the power of Reaper guitarist Nick Bowcott's axe and pug-faced frontman Steve Grimmett's pipes.

But why did Weez decide to join forces with the Reaper? Well, according to a post on Weezer.com, the whole thing kind of started as a joke, and spiraled out of control from there.

"This video (let's call it 'We Are All on Drugs V1.0') is a cleverly re-edited version of the 'Fear No Evil' video by Grim Reaper," the post reads. "The video was prepared as an experiment and was immediately embraced as funny and strange — not a bad match for Weezer. Mucho thanks and props to Grim Reaper for letting Weezer use the footage."

The video is actually just "We Are All on Drugs" played over the Reaper clip, with a few edits made (Cuomo's vocals now pseudo-sync up with Grimmett's mouth and his guitar solo now matches up with Bowcott's, etc.). According to Weezer's label, Geffen Records, the Grim Reaper version of "Drugs" will only see the light of day in "international" markets (i.e. the U.K. and Canada), and the band fully intends on shooting a proper video for the U.S.

Exactly when that video will be shot remains a bit of a mystery, especially since frontman Rivers Cuomo has wavered back and forth on treatments for the better part of a month. But according to Weezer.com, it'll happen soon enough, and when it does, fans will have two versions of "We Are All on Drugs" to choose from (though one will definitely be heavier on the medieval imagery).

Sammy Hagar plots shows with Wabos, Montrose

Sammy Hagar, who spent last summer on a reunion tour with Van Halen, will head up another revival this summer when he joins his former Montrose bandmates on stage during a handful of shows he'll headline with his current group, The Wabos.

So far, Hagar has lined up five August concerts, three of which will feature Montrose. Details are included in the itinerary below.

During a recent interview with Norway's Metal Express, Hagar outlined what fans can expect if they're attending one of the Montrose dates.

"I'll go out and play an hour and a half, two hours with the Wabos, and then, for the encore, we'll bring Montrose, the original Montrose--you know, [drummer] Denny [Carmassi], [bassist] Bill [Church], myself and [guitarist] Ronnie [Montrose]--and we'll play about 40 minutes of Montrose stuff," he said.

Hagar fronted Montrose in the early '70s, but went solo after a falling out with the group's namesake guitarist. The band's self-titled 1973 debut spawned the cuts "Space Station No. 5," "Bad Motor Scooter" and "Rock Candy."

The Wabos, a backing band that Hagar formed following his 1996 split with Van Halen, features his pre-VH solo-band drummer David Lauser, bassist Mona and former Bus Boys guitarist Victor Johnson. The group was on hiatus for much of 2004 while Hagar mounted an 80-date reunion run with Van Halen, an occurrence that The Wabos won't have to worry about again any time soon, according to Hagar's recent comments to Metal Express.

"I'm not saying that we would never do it again, but some people would have to change, including maybe myself," Hagar said. "Maybe I'm the first guy that should change. But we would have to change. We couldn't just do it the way it was being done. It was falling apart."

Hagar went on to say that the last show on the 2004 Van Halen tour was a "disaster."

"It was a horrible experience," he said. "We had to be pushed off the stage separately, [with] me taken this way and Eddie [Van Halen] taken this way, and Alex [Van Halen] and Michael [Anthony] down the middle, because we were ready to go to blows. It was that bad. So that was horrible. The rest of the tour wasn't that bad, but at the end ... I don't know. Something got crazy."

Before heading out on tour with Van Halen, Hagar and the group recorded three new songs--"It's About Time," "Up for Breakfast" and "Learning to See"--which appeared on last year's two-disc hits collection, "Best of Both Worlds."

Hagar and The Wabos, meanwhile, issued their most recent studio album, "Not 4 Sale," in 2002. The concert set "Live - Hallelujah" followed in 2003.

Last month, Hagar and the Wabos released a cover of the classic Staple Singers hit "I'll Take You There." The cut is available exclusively via Apple's iTunes Music Store.

In October, Hagar and The Wabos will make their annual pilgrimage to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, the site of Hagar's Cabo Wabo nightclub. There, they'll celebrate Hagar's 58th birthday with several live performances. Details for the multi-night event--known as the Birthday Bash--have not yet been announced.

Hagar and The Wabos hope to put out a new record soon, but nothing definite is lined up, according to a spokesperson.

August 2005 Shows

6 - Clarkston, MI - DTE Energy Music Theatre (w/ Montrose)
9 - Phoenix, AZ - Dodge Theatre
11 - San Diego, CA - Harrah's Rincon
13 - Lake Tahoe, NV - Harrah's Tahoe (w/ Montrose)
14 - Concord, CA - Chronicle Pavilion @ Concord (w/ Montrose)

Odds Favor Head-Scratching Emmy Nominations

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) The Primetime Emmy nominations are almost upon us, and there is much speculation that this will be the year that some previously unrecognized series will break through.

With stalwarts like "Friends" and "Frasier" no longer on the air, and "The Sopranos" ineligible on account of its extra-long hiatus, the thinking goes, shows like "Scrubs," "Gilmore Girls" and "Nip/Tuck" might be able to break into the Emmy party. Then there are last season's big hits, "Desperate Housewives" and "Lost," which seem all but certain to gobble up a pile of nominations.

Of course, we've been saying that this looks like the year "Scrubs" or "Gilmore Girls" could break through for, what, four years now? And while "Nip/Tuck" wrangled five nominations last year, none went to its actors or writers.

With that in mind, we offer up the following, highly unscientific odds on what will happen at Thursday morning's (July 14) nominations press conference. And remember, odds are for entertainment purposes only.

Odds an FX show will make the outstanding drama series field: 4 to 1.

With "The Sopranos" not competing and last year's surprise, the now-cancelled "Joan of Arcadia," unlikely to make the cut, the field is more open to the likes of "Nip/Tuck," "The Shield" and "Rescue Me." Denis Leary's firefighting drama has received more ink recently, but we wouldn't be surprised if "The Shield," which had the added attraction of Glenn Close this season, makes the cut.

Odds at least one "Will & Grace" cast member will be nominated:

Even. Emmy voters are notoriously set in their ways, and it would be a pretty big upset if none of the long-running NBC show's stars receives yet another nomination -- despite the show's ratings downturn last year.

Odds "Arrested Development" will again be nominated for outstanding comedy series: 3 to 2.

"Desperate Housewives" will likely grab one of the spots in the category and may be favored to win, even if it's not exactly a comedy. But it would be pretty hard to pick four other shows ahead of "Arrested," particularly since the show won the award last year.

Odds ABC will receive more nominations than it did last year: 1 to 5.

ABC had 33 nominations last year. "Desperate Housewives," which could rack up multiple acting and writing nods, and "Lost," which should be a shoo-in for a number of technical categories, to say nothing of the above-the-line people, could get that many just among the two of them.

Odds your favorite WB or UPN show will once again be ignored: Even.

If critics and anythingbut.com readers ran the Emmys, "Gilmore Girls" and "Veronica Mars" would be locks in their respective fields. We don't, though, and despite the quality of both shows (to say nothing of "Everwood" or "America's Next Top Model"), the TV Academy's capacity to ignore both networks seems limitless.

Odds you'll say "What the $&#@??" at least one time after seeing the nominees: Even.

Odds Kelsey Grammer will be nominated for outstanding actor in a comedy, just for old time's sake: 50 to 1. But we wouldn't be all that surprised.

Brad Pitt Diagnosed With Viral Meningitis 31 minutes ago

LOS ANGELES - Actor Brad Pitt has been diagnosed with a mild case of viral meningitis and was released from the hospital Wednesday, his publicist said.

Pitt, 41, checked himself into Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on Monday night complaining of flu-like symptoms. He went home Wednesday afternoon, publicist Cindy Guagenti said.

"The actor is at home and doing well," she said in a statement.

Most patients recover from viral meningitis in a week. Severe illness and death is uncommon, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Pitt was in Ethiopia last week with his "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" co-star Angelina Jolie to pick up the actress' newly adopted baby girl, the second child she has adopted.

Guagenti declined Wednesday to say if Pitt contracted the illness while in Africa.

The "Troy" and "Fight Club" star separated from "Friends" actress Jennifer Aniston in January after 4 1/2 years of marriage. She filed for divorce in March citing irreconcilable differences.

'Cooter' Urges Fans to Skip 'Dukes' Movie

ATLANTA - If television's "Crazy Cooter" has his way, fans of the "Dukes of Hazzard" may be speeding away from a new movie version of the cornpone classic faster than the Duke boys running from Sheriff Roscoe P. Coltrane.

Ben Jones, a former Georgia congressman who played the wisecracking mechanic on the popular series from 1979-85, said profanity and sexual content in the film make a mockery of the family friendly show.

"Basically, they trashed our show," said Jones, who now lives in the mountains of Washington, Va. "It's one thing to do whatever movie they want to do, but to take a classic family show and do that is like taking "I Love Lucy" and making her a crackhead or something."

Jones said he read a script of the movie, which is scheduled to be released next month, and that it contained profanity, "constant sexual innuendo and some very clear sexual situations."

On Wednesday, Jones wrote an open letter to fans on his web site, cootersplace.com, urging them to stay away.

"From all I have seen and heard, the "Dukes" movie is a sleazy insult to all of us who have cared about the "Dukes of Hazzard" for so long ... ," Jones wrote. "Unless they clean it up before the August 5th release date I would strongly recommend that true blue Dukes fans hold their noses and pass this one up."

A spokeswoman at Warner Brothers pictures, which is releasing the movie, did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment on Wednesday.

"The Dukes of Hazzard" was a surprise hit for CBS, combining with "Dallas" to earn some of the highest Friday-night ratings in television history.

The show pitted "good-ol' boys" Bo and Luke Duke and their moonshine-running Uncle Jesse against the crooked politician Boss Hogg and his bumbling henchman, Sheriff Coltrane, in fictional Hazzard County.

Reruns of the show began airing on the CMT network this year, earning some of the best ratings ever on the country music cable channel.

In the movie, Johnny Knoxville, who made his name on MTV's controversial stuntfest "Jackass," and Seann William Scott, who starred in the raunchy "American Pie" movies, play the main characters.

Pop star turned reality TV icon Jessica Simpson plays Daisy Duke.

Jones was elected to Congress in 1988 as a Democrat. He lost his bid for a third term in 1992 after his district was redrawn, then lost two other bids for House seats, one in Georgia and another in Virginia.

He owns Cooter's Place, a "Dukes" memorabilia shop in Gatlinburg, Tenn. and plans to open another in Nashville. He also is an organizer of "Dukesfest," an annual outdoor concert and convention celebrating the show in Bristol, Tenn.

Gag order issued over 'Potter' leak

COQUITLAM, British Columbia (AP) -- A handful of people in Canada got a sneak peak of the latest Harry Potter book, but a British Columbia Supreme Court judge ordered them to keep it a secret.

The book was sold to 14 people who snagged a copy of J.K. Rowlings' much anticipated "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," when it landed on shelves last Thursday at a local grocery store.

The book, officially set for release this coming Saturday, has been shrouded in secrecy and its debut has been highly orchestrated to enable everyone -- readers, reviewers, even publishers -- to crack it open all at once. It's the sixth in Rowling's seven-book fantasy series on the young wizard.

But the store slipped up and sold 14 copies before realizing its mistake.

"It was an inadvertent error on behalf of one of our staff," said Geoff Wilson, a spokesman for the Real Canadian Superstore. He said the books were quickly removed.

Justice Kristi Gill last Saturday ordered customers not to talk about the book, copy it, sell it or even read it before it is officially released at 12:01 a.m. July 16.

The order also compels them to return the novel to the publisher, Raincoast Book Distribution Ltd., until the official release. At that time it will be returned to them.

As an added incentive, Raincoast will include Rowling's autograph and a gift pack.

INXS Not Trying to Replace Hutchence

LOS ANGELES - Although INXS is looking for a new singer, guitarist Tim Farriss says the band isn't "in any way, shape or form trying to replace Michael Hutchence."

"What we really want is somebody who brings their own personality along and someone completely different," Farriss told AP Radio in a recent interview. The band has used guest vocalists since Hutchence died in 1997.

A new reality show to find a lead singer, "Rock Star: INXS," premiered Monday night on CBS, hosted by Dave Navarro, former guitarist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Jane's Addiction, and TV personality Brooke Burke.

Fifteen performers are competing on the show. The last singer standing will make an album with INXS and go on tour with the band, known for their hits "What You Need" and "Need You Tonight."

What would Hutchence say about the contest?

"I think he'd think it was kind of funny in a good way, 'cause in some ways it is," Farriss said. "But in another way, it's really an organic way to find a new singer. It's the best way we could think of."

'Simpsons', 'Family Guy' Have Cartoon Feud

NEW YORK - "The Simpsons" took a shot at fellow Fox cartoon "Family Guy." So that series' creator is taking a shot right back.

Seth MacFarlane said an episode of "The Simpsons" where a Homer Simpson clone was identified as "Family Guy" dad Peter Griffin was "definitely a slam."

But since the "Family Guy" team dishes out plenty of its own insults, it should be able to take some, MacFarlane told Blender magazine.

"To me, Peter is much more similar to Ralph Kramden than he is to Homer, right down to his voice," he said, referring to the character from "The Honeymooners." "That's what I see. But because `The Simpsons' and `Family Guy' are really the only two shows of their kind of television, there'll be comparisons made."

MacFarlane said he was definitely influenced by "The Simpsons."

"I mean, in its prime, it was one of the greatest comedy shows of all time," he said. "But it's not the show it was. It can't be. You can't do 16 seasons and be consistent."

The Couch Potato Report - July 12th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features an Academy Award winning masterpiece.

In this day of twenty-four hour media coverage, the internet, and all of the many other ways that are available for you and I to find out the things we know about movies, and the people who star in movies, it is very rare that a film can be released without many people knowing about it.

Whether it is a big summer film like BATMAN RETURNS or a smaller film such as THE UPSIDE OF ANGER, we usually hear about films prior to their release.

Usually.

That wasn't the case late last year when a film called MILLION DOLLAR BABY was released.

There was very little information about it, and hardly any publicity, but then, there it was, coming soon to a theatre near you.

I must admit that when I first heard the title of the film, I thought it might have been a remake of the 1994 TV movie MILLION DOLLAR BABIES about the Dionne Quintuplets.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

Clint Eastwood's MILLION DOLLAR BABY has no quintuplets, or quadruplets, triplets, or even twins for that matter.

Instead this film is about an aging trainer and a woman from a small town who wants to be a boxer.

The narrator is a former boxer himself, who is also the trainer's best friend.

Hilary Swank plays Maggie Fitzgerald. Her hope is that Eastwood's Frankie Dunn will train her.

He declines. He doesn't train girls.

Eventually the relentless Maggie wins him over and they work together. Morgan Freeman plays the narrator and with his help Maggie and Frankie eventually find themselves on their way to a championship fight.

Yes, this film has boxing in it, but if you don't like boxing or sports movies, I implore you not to be scared off by that. MILLION DOLLAR BABY is not a boxing movie. It is a movie about a boxer.

It is also a masterpiece.

Hilary Swank won her second Academy Award for her work, and Eastwood was honoured with his second Oscar for Directing. Both are very deserving.

Morgan Freeman also won an Oscar, his first, for his efforts.

In a time of special effect filled, uninteresting movies, MILLION DOLLAR BABY stands out as it is exceptionally well written and full of real people.

Simply put, and I will say it again, it is a masterpiece.

I have seen MILLION DOLLAR BABY about half a dozen times now, and every time I see it something new reveals itself to me. The story has so many levels and the characters say so little, but upon repeated viewings they also say so much.

I could continue on about the film, but since this is a film that snuck up on all of us prior to its theatrical run, it should so the same upon its video and DVD release. The less you know about MILLION DOLLAR BABY before you see it, the more there will be to enjoy as you are watching it.

So stay away from the media coverage, the internet, and every other way that is available for you and I to find out the things we know about movies and just pick this film up and press play.

MILLION DOLLAR BABY is a movie about heart, faith, trust, love, forgiveness, and the ultimate test of friendship and love.

It is a one hundred and thirty two minute masterpiece!

Movies like this are why I fell in love with movies in the first place!

Clint Eastwood's Academy Award winning masterpiece MILLION DOLLAR BABY is available now at a store near you.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

In CONSTANTINE Keanu Reeves follows up THE MATRIX TRILOGY by playing a man who keeps a delicate balance between Heaven and Hell.

Keanu Reeves is a star that we have known about for a while now. A young star on the rise is Michelle Trachtenberg. She plays the lead in the film ICE PRINCESS about a smart, but unpopular young student who follows her figure skating dreams. The film also features performances from Kim Cattrall and Joan Cusack.

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on those films, 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!

In the Pipeline

Seeing as we're almost exactly at 2005's half-way mark, here's a quick update of the year's most popular films as well as their DVDFile reviews and/or retail release dates.

Box Office Stats:

1. Revenge of the Sith (Fox):
$361,000,000 - DVD release date: 1 November 2005 (subject to change)

2. Hitch (Sony):
$180,000,000 - Now Available

3. Madagascar (DreamWorks):
$164,000,000 - DVD release date: TBD

4. The Longest Yard (Paramount):
$144,000,000 - DVD release date: 20 September 2005

5. Batman Begins (Warner Bros.):
$133,000,000 - DVD release date: TBD

6. Mr. and Mrs. Smith (Fox):
$132,000,000 - DVD release date: TBD

7. Robots (Fox):
$128,000,000 - DVD release date: 20 September 2005

8. The Pacifier (Buena Vista):
$113,000,000 - Now Available

9. Are We There Yet? (Sony):
$83,000,000 - Now Available

10. Monster-in-Law (New Line):
$80,000,000 - DVD release date: 30 August 2005

(all data valid as of 30 June, 2005)

Johanson's Sunday sex show cancelled

TORONTO (CP) - No more TV sex from Sue, at least not in Canada.

Sex counsellor Sue Johanson says she's ceasing production on her Sunday Night Sex Show on the W network, but insists it has nothing to do with ratings. The popular therapist, grandmother and former nurse says she will continue to do the U.S. version of her show here, which she had been taping immediately after the Canadian one. It began airing on the Oxygen network south of the border in 2002.

"I've been doing the show now on Canadian television for 21 years," she says. "So I felt that if something's going to give, it has to be the one that's longest in the tooth."

Johanson says she will, however, continue to teach sex ed to Canadian college and university students right across the country.

She insists she didn't cease the Canadian show because doing both of them was too tiring.

"I'm one of these women that has too much energy. I'm a pain in the butt."

She says it was simply a case of contract renewal time and while the show was a ratings winner for W, which owned the show, her travel commitments made it impossible to stretch herself any further.

"I do 60 colleges and universities a year right across the country."

Johanson concedes W was surprised by her decision but that Canadian kids and their parents have been exposed to her "yapping" for a long time now.

She doesn't know of any plans at present for a Canadian broadcaster to start importing the Oxygen show.

Johanson's sex counselling show started on Toronto radio in 1984, then moved to WTN in February 1996. With WTN re-branded as W, the live show continued on Sundays with classic episodes running during the week.

Johanson has been a popular guest on such U.S. talk shows as The View, David Letterman and Conan O'Brien. Her show also airs, with Portuguese subtitles, in Brazil.

Her quarter century of experience includes establishing Toronto's Don Mills Birth Control Clinic in 1970, where she remained as a clinic co-ordinator until '86. She began teaching sex and sexuality in schools in 1974. And she's written three books on sexuality, not including one on her show, Nocturnal Emissions: Behind the Scenes of the Sunday Night Sex Show.

The last original show has already aired on W. Repeats will continue until the fall.

SINGULAR SENSATIONS IN THE RUNNING

Just last year, Fountains of Wayne made big pop news with the surprise hit "Stacy's Mom." Now they're being called one-hit wonders.

Remember the Donnas? They're the California girl band famed for "Take It Off," their hit rock song on Billboard's charts — way back in 2003.

They, too, are performing in the Run Hit Wonder race in New York's Central Park on July 20, where bands with only one big song play along the route.

"I hate to admit it, but it's kind of accurate," Fountains of Wayne's Adam Schlesinger told The New York Post. "At this point we are a one-hit wonder."

You can quibble about the lineup, but there's no disputing how popular the Nike-sponsored run has become in a year's time.

More than 10,000 New Yorkers have already paid $20 to reserve a spot along the five-mile course in the park's lower loop.

Last year, for New York's first such event, the roster was more faithful to the definition of one-hit wonder bands, with performances from Devo ("Whip It"), A Flock of Seagulls ("I Ran [So Far Away]"), Tone-Loc ("Wild Thing") and Tommy Tutone ("867-5309/Jenny").

This year's performers, on the other hand, include acts who've technically had more than one hit — like rap artist Chingy ("Right Thurr" and "Holidae Inn") and '80s rocker Joan Jett ("I Love Rock 'n' Roll" and "Crimson & Clover").

One dollar of each entry will go to "Save CBGB," the fund to help prevent the downtown punk club from closing (savecbgb.com).

David Lee Roth to replace Howard Stern

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Infinity Broadcasting isn't commenting on an online report penned by a former Howard Stern Show regular that suggests David Lee Roth will be one of the personalities that ultimately replaces the ribald DJ on the airwaves.

Chaunce Hayden, a gossip and celebrity writer for New York/New Jersey entertainment guide SteppinOutMagazine.com, writes that "an Infinity source has confirmed the signing."

In February, the Securities and Exchange Commission reportedly questioned Hayden about possible insider trading of shares in Sirius Satellite Radio. Hayden was in Stern's studio Oct. 6, 2004, the day Stern announced his plans to move to Sirius in January 2006. The news drove up Sirius shares by 16% at the close of that day's trading.

What is certain is that Roth is among many entertainers that Infinity has auditioned on-air since Stern's bombshell announcement last year. Infinity executives have repeatedly made it clear that they are not looking for a singular personality to succeed Stern.

In April, Infinity president of programing Rob Barnett told Billboard Radio Monitor he was working with Roth in Boston at classic rock station WZLX. "The station has kind of turned the town on its ear with cab drivers, waiters and waitresses and employees of Barnes & Noble talking about this amazing guy on the radio," Barnett said. "It's an example of just being able to surprise and entertain your listeners without necessarily giving them the exact same menu every day." In Boston, Stern is heard on Infinity modern rock station WBCN.

The Diamond Dave-as-morning-man idea actually sprung from an Infinity station 3,000 miles away. VP of FM talk Jack Silver put Roth on the air for three hours earlier this year at KLSX Los Angeles, which Silver programs. "We were so taken by that performance that we created a stunt here in Boston to give classic rock listeners the opportunity to hear him all week long," Barnett said in April.

Infinity chairman and CEO Joel Hollander said in February, "One thing you should expect not to happen, is one person to be dropped in to replace (Stern) at 27 radio stations."

While Stern's contract is set to end Dec. 31, 2005, Hayden says that Roth will hit the airwaves in early September. Asked to comment on the Roth rumor, an Infinity spokesperson said, "We are looking at a number of personalities to replace Howard Stern, however there are no imminent announcements at this time."

Roth has two summer concerts on his schedule: July 15 in Sarnia, Ontario, and July 29 in Redding, Calif.

Chicago to host Farm Aid's 20th anniversary benefit show

The Chicago area will be the site of the 20th anniversary Farm Aid concert, co-founders Willie Nelson and John Mellencamp announced Monday (7/11).

This year's show is set to take place Sept. 18 at Tinley Park, IL's Tweeter Center, the site of the first Farm Aid Concert in 1985. (The venue was known at the time as the New World Music Theatre.) Tickets will go on sale July 30, organizers said.

Besides Nelson and Mellencamp, this year's Farm Aid show will also feature longtime supporters Neil Young and Dave Matthews. Other performers will be announced, according to a press release.

The anniversary concert will be preceded by a week's worth of food and music events in Chicago aimed at drawing attention to the city's efforts to promote foods grown on family farms.

Last year's Farm Aid concert took place at the White River Amphitheatre in Auburn, WA, which is located about 35 miles southeast of Seattle, and previous shows have been held in Burgettstown, PA; Noblesville, IN; Columbus, OH; and Bristow, VA, among other farming regions.

Nelson, Mellencamp and Young staged the first Farm Aid concert in 1985 to raise awareness about the loss of family farms and to raise funds to keep farm families on their land. Matthews, who has appeared on several Farm Aid bills, joined Farm Aid's board of directors in 2001.

Organizers say that Farm Aid has raised more than $27 million over its history to support family farms.

Marvel Chief Urges Patience for Ratner's 'X-Men'

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com)- Marvel CEO Avi Arad has just finished a lengthy discussion on the dangers of Internet rumor-mongering and the evils of reviewing unfinished projects, which perfectly segues into the excitable mogul's feelings about online reaction to the selection of Brett Ratner to direct the next "X-Men" film.

"Idiots," he says plainly, before continuing. "Idiots."

Ratner, best known for relentless self-promotion and the blockbuster "Rush Hour" films, became a last-minute fill-in director on "X-Men 3" after original director Matthew Vaughn bailed last month to spend more time with his family. From the second Ratner's name entered the equation, netizens from Aint-It-Cool-News to IMDB messageboards began spewing outrage, sadness and resignation, jotting off open letters to imaginary executives at Fox and launching purely hypothetical petitions to enlist a new director. Arad, who was close to hiring Ratner several times previously, is just confused by all the vitriol.

"Did you see 'Red Dragon?' Did you see that?" Arad asks, referring to Ratner's reasonably well-reviewed Hannibal Lecter remake. "And you saw 'Family Man,' which is totally different, a very emotional story. Then, you have two giant comedies. What are they thinking? This is a great filmmaker. Do you know how much experience this guy has? Let alone his new Jessica Simpson video? This guy knows what he's doing."

Although Arad can't find positive words for "Money Talks" or "After the Sunset," he's certainly effusive about his new employee. Fans, though, aren't as certain.

Although few details from the sequel have come forth since Ratner's introduction, rumors of the addition of a new hooker mutant who may or may not be little-used character Stacy X have produced reactions from confusion -- several new characters including Beast and Juggernaut already need to be introduced -- to general disgust. Arad won't confirm or deny any specific changes, but he says that Ratner has, indeed, already left his fingerprints all over the script, originally written by Zak Penn and Simon Kinberg.

"Brett Ratner came onto this thing and from the get-go, you felt experience," notes Arad. "He's made lots of changes in the script that are very good, because he's thinking picture, not words. He's very cinematic."

Arad doesn't really sound concerned. He's been through the same thing before.

"Tell me a director they didn't go after," he challenges. "Maybe the only guy who got away with it was Sam [Raimi]. When Bryan [Singer] came on board the first time? Oh boy."

Working in Arad's favor is the overwhelming fan community support for the first two "X-Men" and "Spider-Man" films, as well as the fact that all four films have reached blockbuster status.

"So far, so good," he chuckles. "Give us a little break. Not much, just a little bit."

Production on "X-Men 3" is slated to begin in August, as Fox has already claimed Memorial Day 2006 for its premiere.

'Wedding Crashers' Breaks the Rules of Engagement

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - Weddings, with their curious mix of sanctity and revelry, pose the ultimate temptation and challenge to any self-respecting party crasher. The cast of New Line Cinema's latest comedy "Wedding Crashers," however, didn't have the guts to meet that challenge in real life, even though they had the opportunity.

"We thought about it when we were shooting," reveals actress Rachel McAdams. "We were in Maryland staying at this beautiful hotel, and there was a wedding on the grounds. We were kind of jealous and thought, 'You know, we could say it was research,' but we chickened out."

The film's titular buddies played by Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn aren't so faint-hearted or scrupulous. John (Wilson) and Jeremy (Vaughn) are lifelong pals who share a love for crashing weddings so they can score food, booze and women -- especially women. They've even devised an elaborate set of guidelines, including "Invites are for losers" and "No one goes home alone."

Although the script only specified two rules, the Frat Packers tapped into their improv skills so they could one-up each other with additional rules.

"Over the course of the movie whenever Vince was on one of his rants, he would throw in rules to support whatever argument he had," says Wilson. "So I started to throw my own rules into the mix. Eventually, it got to Rule 87: 'Don't quote a rule to another. Don't go throwing rules in another wedding crasher's face.'"

Following the old adage that rules are meant to be broken, the movie's Casanovas find that they're the ones being pursued by aggressive women. Jeremy accidentally violates Rule No.7 -- "Avoid virgins. They're too clingy" -- when he hits on bridesmaid Gloria Cleary (Isla Fisher) at her sister's wedding.

After an interlude on the beach, Gloria declares her love, invites Jeremy to her family home and forces him into sexual situations. In a way, Vaughn also found the tables turned when acting opposite Fisher, whose portrayal of Gloria relegates the normally over-the-top Jeremy to playing the straight man.

"[Gloria] is on mood enhancers and Jeremy is crazy too," observes Fisher, who modeled her character's "crazy eyes" on an unnamed friend's features. "That's why they're the perfect match.

John finds himself in a similarly uncomfortable situation. Although he has his eye on Gloria's sister Claire (McAdams), it's her mother Kathleen who responds with amorous ardor. To play the Mrs. Robinson-esque "Kitty Kat" who goes topless in one scene, the filmmakers made an unusual choice, casting former "Dr. Quinn: Medicine Woman" star Jane Seymour.

"I kind of knew her also as Dr. Quinn," says Wilson, whose character reluctantly gropes Kathleen. "So it was a little bit of a hiccup for me to be all of a sudden doing a scene where I'm supposed to be putting my hands on her in a slightly inappropriate way."

"Owen was very nervous about it," Seymour confirms. "We shot his side first and his hands came out like little ferret hands. I said, 'It's alright, Owen, squeeze. Do whatever you need to do. Don't worry about it.' Afterwards, he gave me a huge hug and thanked me for being brave enough to do it."

Bradley Cooper, who's best known for playing nice guy Will on ABC's "Alias" (although his new fall show, "Kitchen Confidential" will probably change that) is also cast against type. This time, he portrays Claire's arrogant boyfriend Sack Lodge, who's suspicious of interlopers John and Jeremy. He sets out to discredit them and goes overboard when body checking Jeremy in a supposedly friendly game of football.

"Sack's an amalgamation of four or five guys that I went to high school with ... that I just hated because they always got the girl," explains Cooper. "I never understood why. They were just such asses. I thought, 'What do you see [in him]?'"

In contrast, Christopher Walken traded his usual intimidating villain role for that of a doting father, William Cleary.

"I play a good guy basically. He's the Secretary of the Treasury. I got to play one of our nation's leaders. They don't usually ask me to do that," says Walken, who enjoys challenging people's expectations.

"I think that it'd be interesting for me to play something really different like ... 'Father Knows Best,'" he says, imagining a conversation between him and his offspring. "I'd have a pipe and say, 'Just try and do the right thing.' That would be a good part -- or I'd like to play a psychiatrist."

"Wedding Crashers" breaks with tradition beginning Friday, July 15.

Franz Ferdinand Unveils North American Tour

Having nearly completed work on its sophomore Domino/Epic album, U.K. rock act Franz Ferdinand has unveiled plans for a fall North American tour. The month-long trek will begin Sept. 20 in Chicago and has dates on tap through Oct. 18 in Toronto. The group is expected to return for more shows in the first portion of 2006.

Like its 2004 predecessor, the new album will be a self-titled affair. A number of songs from the set, due Oct. 4, were road-tested earlier this spring during a series of gigs in Russia, which allowed the band to fine-tune them before recording final versions.

"By the time we'd gone to Russia, we had the rough versions of the songs down," lead singer Alex Kapranos tells Billboard.com. "But in some ways, it was very, very good for us to play them in Russia. I don't think a song is complete until you've performed it in front of people live, which brings up a whole interesting point. I don't think a song is ever complete. Songs are always evolving. They're never quite the same. But you understand a song in a different way when you see how an audience responds to it. You can exaggerate the things that are working because you can see how people react."

Following the North American dates, Franz Ferdinand will embark on a European tour Oct. 28 in Paris. The group is also assembling its first DVD, which will feature footage contributed by fans.

Here are Franz Ferdinand's tour dates:

Aug. 9: San Sebastian, Spain (Estadio de Anoeta; w/ U2)
Aug. 11: Madrid (Estadio Vicente Calderon; w/ U2)
Aug. 20-21: Staffordshire/Chelmsford, England (V Festival)
Aug. 30-31: Edinburgh (Edinburgh Castle)
Sept. 20: Chicago (Aragon Ballroom)
Sept. 21: Minneapolis (Target Center)
Sept. 22: Kansas City, Mo. (Uptown Theatre)
Sept. 23: St. Louis (Pageant)
Sept. 25: Austin, Texas (Austin City Limits Festival)
Sept. 27: Denver (Fillmore Auditorium)
Sept. 28: Magna, Utah (Great Salt Air Amphitheatre)
Oct. 1-2: Seattle (Paramount Theatre)
Oct. 3: Portland, Ore. (Rose Garden Arena)
Oct. 4: Vancouver (Orpheum Theatre)
Oct. 6: San Francisco (Bill Graham Civic Auditorium)
Oct. 7: Los Angeles (Greek Theatre)
Oct. 9: San Diego (SDSU Open Air Theatre)
Oct. 11: Las Vegas (the Joint)
Oct. 17: New York (Theatre at Madison Square Garden)
Oct. 18: Toronto (Ricoh Centre)
Oct. 28: Paris (Zenith)
Oct. 31: Rouen, France (31st)
Nov. 1: Lille, France (Zenith)
Nov. 2: Metz, France (Les Arenes)
Nov. 4: Grenoble, France (Zenith)
Nov. 7: Dusseldorf, Germany (Phillishalle)
Nov. 8: Berlin (Tempodrom)
Nov. 9: Hamburg, Germany (Colour Line Arena)
Dec. 12: Munich (Zenith)

Stefani, Mario capture sound of 2005

Downloads were Gwen's world, while a super Mario hit dominated radio in the first half of 2005.

Gwen Stefani's Hollaback Girl outsold all competition as the top downloaded track so far this year. Stefani also scored the No. 8 track with Rich Girl. Total download sales hit 159 million, triple last year at this time.

Teen R&B crooner Mario's Let Me Love You easily topped the radio airplay list with a total audience of 2.6 billion (determined by total plays and listeners at radio nationwide) over the past 26 weeks. But his reign is not likely to last out the year.

Mariah Carey's We'll Be Together, which shattered total audience records in June, reached No. 6 for the first half on only three months' worth of airplay. It should soon surpass Mario's total and is the song to beat for the entire year.

The download top 10 continues to strongly reflect radio's hits. But radio leans more toward R&B and hip-hop: 51% of the top 100 first-half hits, compared with 20% for pop, 19% for country and 10% for rock.

Radio's strong R&B/hip-hop orientation may be waning: At the end of 2004, 61% of the hits were R&B/hip-hop records.

Meanwhile, the top 100 downloads are more balanced: 33% R&B/hip-hop, 32% pop, 31% rock (and 4% for country).

Each of the top 10 download tracks reached the top 20 at some point this year on the national airplay chart. And radio's biggest hits generally become top-priority downloads. Nine of the top 10 radio hits ranked among the top 40 download tracks.

Although the download track list is rigorously oriented toward current hits, the occasional intriguing older title does crop up. Green Day's 1997 hit Good Riddance (The Time of Your Life) nearly cracked the top 50, likely boosted by the success of songs from the group's most recent album, American Idiot.

Also showing up in the top 200: Oasis' Wonderwall, Lynyrd Skynyrd's Sweet Home Alabama, Survivor's Eye of the Tiger, Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody, Lee Ann Womack's I Hope You Dance, The Eagles' Hotel California and Vanilla Ice's Ice Ice Baby.

NEW CD RELEASES FOR JULY 12, 2005

A Love Ends Suicide The Cycle of Hope (Brand Name)

About the Fire Six Anthems from the Comfortably Jaded EP (HCNL)

The Adolescents O.C. Confidential (Finger)

All-American Rejects Move Along (Interscope)

Angelville We Are the Wolves (HCNL)

Apotheke (members of Hella, RxBandits and Satori) Apotheke (Mashdown Babylon)

Bronson Arroyo (pitcher for Boston Red Sox) Covering the Bases (all-covers album; songs by Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, Foo Fighters and more) (Asylum/WEA)

Astronautalis You and Yer Good Ideas (Fighting)

The Bel Airs Got Love (HighTone)

Adrian Belew Side Two (Sanctuary)

The Black Dahlia Murder Miasma (Metal Blade)

Pat Boone Ready to Rock (guest members of the Eagles and Three Dog Night) (Oak)

Bow Wow Wanted (Dual Disc same day) (Columbia)

Meredith Bragg and the Terminals Meredith Bragg and the Terminals Vol. 1 (The Kora)

Tom Brosseau What I Mean to Say Is Goodbye (w/members of the Heartbreakers and Nickel Creek, Jon Brion and drummer Pete Thomas) (Loveless)

Paul Brown The City (Verve)

Stephen Bruton From the Five (New West)

Buckshot & 9th Wonder Chemistry (Duck Down)

Bury Your Dead Alive (DualDisc) (Victory)

Andi Camp Magnetic (Grafton)

B.C. Camplight Hide, Run Away (One Little Indian)

Capone Pain, Time & Glory (w/Devin the Dude, Raekwon, Scarface and more) (Koch)

Brian Capps Walk Thru Walls (HighTone)

Brandi Carlile Brandi Carlile (Columbia)

Philip Catherine Meeting Colours (Dreyfus)

Chicago Blues Reunion Band Buried Alive in the Blues (CD/DVD combo) (33rd Street/Out of the Box)

Circle of Dead Children Zero Comfort Margin (Willowtip)

Cirque du Soleil Dralion (Cirque du Soleil Musique)

Crime in Stereo The Contract EP (Blackout!)

Cruna A Hustla's Love Story (Reprise)

Dexter Danger Hellafornia (Orange Peal)

Darkane Layers of Lies (Nuclear Blast)

Ernest Dawkins and the Chicago 12 Misconceptions of a Delusion and Shades of a Charade (Dawk Music)

The Decemberists The Tain EP (Kill Rock Stars)

Deep Dish George Is On (guest Stevie Nicks on Fleetwood Mac's "Dreams;" includes bonus disc) (Thrive)

Brett Dennen Brett Dennen (Flagship)

Dew-Scented Issue VI (Nuclear Blast)

Dezeray's Hammer The Past That Decorates Me (Rock Ridge)

The Diplomats Present DipSet: More Than Music (w/Cam'ron, Jim Jones, Juelz Santana and more) (Koch)

Doleful Lions Shaded Lodge and Mausoleum (Parasol)

The Domino Kings Some Kind of Sign (HighTone)

DopeGame DopeGame 2 (w/E-40 and Bonecrusher) (Sumday)

Down to Nothing Splitting Headache (Thorp)

The Dream Is Dead Hail the New Pawn (Escape Artist)

Driving East A Black Eye or a Broken Heart EP (Brand Name)

Nob Dylan and His Nobsoletes 12 Positively Stiff Dylans (garage-rock covers of Bob Dylan tunes) (Alternative Tentacles)

Kenny Ellis Hanukkah Swings! (holiday album) (Favored Nations)

Embrace Today We Are the Enemy (Deathwish)

The Endless Blockade Turn Illness Into a Weapon (Mordam)

Terry Evans Fire in the Feeling (Valley Entertainment)

Fatty Koo House of (Columbia)

Federation X Rally Day (Touch and Go)

Flipsyde We the People (Interscope)

Forensics Hogback Mountain Sessions Vol. 1 (limited edition improvised studio sessions) (Magic Bullet)

Susan Gibson OuterSpace (w/songs co-written by Randy Scruggs and Jim Lauderdale) (For the Records)

The Giraffes The Giraffes (Razor & Tie)

Gorod Neurotripsicks (Willowtip)

Gravy Train!!!! Are You Wigglin'? (Kill Rock Stars)

Hard-Fi Cash Machine (Vice)

Paul Hardcastle Tripping in Rhythm Volume 4 (V2)

Headrush Weight of the Water (DMI)

The Heart Attacks Heart Scissor Killers (Brand Name)

Heron Black Dog (Hux)

Hockey Night Keep Guessin' (enhanced CD) (Lookout!)

Hot Karl The Great Escape (guests MC Serch, Will.I.Am and 9th Wonder) (Headless Heroes)

How It Ends Beloved (Thorp)

William Hung Miracle: Happy Summer from (Koch)

Iommi (Black Sabbath guitarist) Fused (w/Deep Purple's Glenn Hughes and drummer Kenny Aronoff) (Sanctuary)

Sherman Irby Faith (Black Warrior)

J-Henry Another Long Day (Rock City/Fontana/Universal)

Chubby Jackson Takes Over (Empire)

Jemima James Book Me Back in Your Dreams (first album in 15 years) (Tomato)

JamisonParker Sleepwalker (Interscope)

Kyle Jason Revolution of the Cool (CD/DVD combo) (Music Video Distributors)

The Junior Varsity Wide Eyed (Victory)

Just Surrender If These Streets Could Talk (East West)

Carole King The Living Room Tour (two CDs; live versions of hits plus two previously unreleased tracks) (Hear Music)

Kinski Alpine Static (Sub Pop)

Jeff Klein The Hustler (produced by ex-Afghan Whigs/Twilight Singers' Greg Dulli; guests Ani DiFranco and Soul Asylum's Dave Pirner) (One Little Indian)

The Knitters (members of X) The Modern Sounds of (Rounder)

Al Kooper Black Coffee (Favored Nations)

Daniel Lanois Belladonna (Epitaph)

Last Exit Koln (Touch and Go)

Lee Lessack In Good Company (duets with Michael Feinstein, Maureen McGovern and other cabaret singers) (LML Music)

Dave Liebman and Phil Markowitz Manhattan Dialogues (Zoho)

Lion Fever Haunted Water (Dim Mak)

Magnetophone The Man Who Ate the Man (Beggars Banquet)

Masters at Work Kings of House (two CDs; mixed compilation) (BBE/Rapster)

The Del McCoury Band The Company We Keep (McCoury Music)

Marian McPartland and Elvis Costello Piano Jazz (Concord)

Metalux Victim of Space (Kill Rock Stars)

Mixel Pixel Contact Kid (Kanine)

Marilyn Monroe A Life in Pictures (includes trailers, newsreels and performances) (Stardust)

The Morells Think About It (HighTone)

The Most Serene Republic Underwater Cinematographer (Arts & Crafts)

Natalia y La Fourquetina Casa (produced by members of Café Tacuba) (Sony BMG)

Natalise I Came to Play (Stars823)

Willie Nelson Countryman (Lost Highway)

Neon Blonde (members of the Blood Brothers) Headlines EP (Dim Mak)

The New York Rifles Faraway Faster (Empty)

Michelle Nixon & Drive What More Should I Say? (Pinecastle)

Nor Am I Cause Above the Conquest (Brand Name)

Orange Park Songs from the Unknown (Young American)

Paul Oscher Down in the Delta (Blues Fidelity)

The Oxford Collapse A Good Ground (Kanine)

Dave Peck Good Road (Let's Play Stella)

Pelican The Fire in Our Throats Beckons the Thaw (Hydra Head)

Piglet Lava Land EP (Team Av)

Poet Name Life (Black Eyed Peas' DJ) Calm Before the Storm (DualDisc) (Myutopia)

Pras Win Lose or Draw (guests Sean Paul and Wyclef; w/cover of U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For") (Universal Motown)

Prefuse 73 Reads the Books EP (Warp)

Primes Primes (Action Driver)

The Quarter After The Quarter After (Bird Song)

Recourse Weakening the Structure (Dark Reign)

The Reigning Sound Home for Orphans (Sympathy for the Record Industry)

Frank Rose this is now, that was then (Infinity)

Röyksopp The Understanding (Astralwerks)

Rufio The Comfort of Home (Nitro)

Rupee 1 on 1 (Atlantic)

The Michael Schenker Group Heavy Hitters (covers album w/members of Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and more) (Deadline)

Scratch Perverts Fabric Live 22 (mix CD w/tracks by the Roots, Dilated Peoples, Radiohead and more) (Fabric)

Sirone Live (Touch and Go)

Slim Thug Already Platinum (two-CD limited edition available same day) (Geffen)

Slug and Murs Present Felt 2: A Tribute to Lisa Bonet (Rhymesayers)

Slum Village Prequel to a Classic (Barak)

Snow and Voices Snow and Voices (Bird Song)

Son Volt Okemah and the Melody of Riot (w/new line-up; DualDisc w/interviews and video) (Transmit Sound/Legacy)

Rick Springfield The Day After Yesterday (covers album; songs by the Beatles, Human League, Foreigner, the Church and more) (Gomer/DKE)

Statistics Often Lie (Jade Tree)

Stephen From the Five (New West)

Liz Story Night Sky Essays (DMI)

Subthunk You Should Have Been Here Yesterday (Ureneely)

Michael B. Sutton (Motown songwriter/producer) Hopeless Romantic (Little Dizzy)

Suzukiton Service Repair Handbook (Crucial Blast)

Sweet Honey in the Rock Raise Your Voice (soundtrack to PBS special) (Earthbeat!)

Swift The Absolute Uncontrollable (Tribunal)

Ten Years After Now (new album) (Fuel)

Through the Eyes of the Dead/The Knife Trade The Annihilation of Expectation (split release) (Lovelost)

Tom & Joy Antigua (Tommy Boy)

Transplants Haunted Cities (Atlantic)

Travers & Appice Live at the House of Blues (2004 show) (NMS)

Unto Ashes Grave Blessings (Projekt)

Chris Walker I Know It's Love (Canvas)

Nick Warren Shanghai (two CDs) (Global Underground)

The Dave Weckl Band Multiplicity (Concord)

Mary Lou Williams Collective (led by pianist Geri Allen) Zodiac Suite

Witness Speak to the Generations (Axiom)

Wolf Parade Shine a Light/You Are a Runner, and I Am My Father's Son EP (Sub Pop)

Jaguar Wright Divorcing Neo to Marry Soul (w/tracks produced by Raphael Saadiq) (Artemis)

Xiu Xiu La Forêt (Kill Rock Stars)

Yerba Buena Island Life (Razor & Tie)

Zucchero & Co. (guests Eric Clapton, Sheryl Crow, B.B. King, Sting and more) (Concord/Hear Music)

VA An All Star Tribute to Shania Twain (w/Wanda Jackson, Lisa Loeb, Tiffany and more) (All Starz)

VA Awaken (DualDisc; electronic compilation w/Rabbit in the Moon, King Britt and more) (Myutopia)

VA bargrooves: Cosmopolitan (two CDs; house music mix CDs w/Masters at Work, Ron Trent, Rollercone and more) (Seamless/Ultra)

VA Dance Mix 7 (mixed by Lil Cee) (Tommy Boy)

VA Fragile: The Piano Tribute to R.E.M. (Vitamin)

VA Hands in the Air (Water Music)

VA On a Dark Desert Highway: A Bluegrass Tribute to the Eagles (CMH)

VA Pick This Way: A Bluegrass Tribute to Aerosmith (CMH)

VA Pickin' on Montgomery Gentry (CMH)

VA Sah Presents: Supporting Radical Habits (w/Kottonmouth Kings, Slightly Stoopid and more; w/bonus DVD) (Suburban Noize)

VA The Piano Tribute to John Legend (Vitamin)

VA Vans - Triple Crown of Surfing (CD/DVD combo) (Epitaph)

OCR Sweet Charity (Koch)

OST Fantastic 4 (movie based on the Marvel Comics superheroes; score by John Ottman) (Varèse Sarabande)

OST Hustle & Flow (Anthony Anderson/Ludacris film; w/songs by Juvenile, Lil Scrappy, Paul Wall and more) (Atlantic)

OST March of the Penguins (Milan)

OST Me and You and Everyone We Know (score by Michael Andrews) (Everloving)

OST Stealth (Jamie Foxx film; w/three new Incubus songs, including duet w/Chrissie Hynde) (Epic)

OST The Cave (horror film w/tracks by Atreyu, Shadows Fall, Killswitch Engage and more) (Lakeshore)

OST The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (score by Cliff Eidelman) (Varèse Sarabande)

OST The Wedding Crashers (Owen Wilson/Vince Vaughn comedy; w/new song by the Flaming Lips and tracks by Death Cab for Cutie, Bloc Party and Jimmy Eat World) (New Line)

DVD Bodysong (documentary w/score composed and produced by Radiohead's Johnny Greenwood; bonus features include interviews w/Greenwood and director Simon Pummell) (Music Video Distributors)

DVD Music Box Biographical Collection: Britney Spears (unauthorized documentary) (MVB Films)

DVD Music Box Biographical Collection: Christina Aguilera (unauthorized documentary) (MVB Films)

DVD Music Box Biographical Collection: George Harrison (unauthorized documentary) (MVB Films)

DVD Music Box Biographical Collection: Paul McCartney (unauthorized documentary) (MVB Films)

DVD Paper Chasers (documentary on the business side of hip-hop industry; w/Ludacris, Fat Joe, Master P and more) (Koch)

DVD Crazy Club Chicks Back from Rehab (Music Video Distributors)

DVD Chris Cunningham Rubber Johnny (short film w/original soundtrack by Aphex Twin) (Warp)

DVD Mickey Gilley In Concert (2004 show) (Goldenlane)

DVD The Louisiana State Mass Choir Live in New Orleans (Koch)

DVD Sadie Shaw, Sarah Reed and Various Artists Charm the Movie (Touch and Go)

DVD Sweet Honey in the Rock Raise Your Voice (PBS documentary) (Firelight Media)

DVD VA Hip Hop by Da Bay (w/Zion I, Krushadelic, Pro and other undergound groups from San Francisco/Oakland area; w/28-page booklet) (Music Video Distributors)

DVD VA Kill Rock Stars Video Fanzine (Kill Rock Stars)

DVD VA Tino Vision (videos by Meatbeat Manifesto, DJ Shadow and more) (Music Video Distributors)

'Desperate Housewives,' 'Lost' head for Emmy race

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Two surprise hits driving a ratings rebound at ABC -- "Desperate Housewives" and "Lost" -- are now front-runners at this week's Emmy Award nominations, joining a mix of newcomers and old favorites vying for U.S. television's highest honors.

"Desperate Housewives," a wry, episodic tale of suburban intrigue, is widely seen as a leading contender for best comedy series, and the castaway thriller "Lost" is heavily favored to clinch a bid for best drama when Emmy nominees are announced on Thursday. The winners will be announced in September.

The Emmy-sponsoring Academy of Television Arts and Sciences is notorious for repeat coronations of past nominees. But new entries and previously snubbed shows are given better odds than usual this year because such recent Emmy heavyweights as HBO mob drama "The Sopranos" and NBC's smash sitcom "Friends" are out of the running.

"It's a great year for the Emmys to redress past oversights and welcome the hot new players," said entertainment awards pundit Tom O'Neil, author of "The Emmys" and senior editor of In Touch Weekly magazine.

While most TV series typically gain little Emmy attention their first season on the air, "Housewives" and "Lost" both drew Emmy buzz as breakout hits that reversed a three-year ratings slump at ABC while winning mostly favorable reviews.

Some observers have cried foul over "Desperate Housewives" competing as a comedy, arguing the hourlong show hews closer to a drama than a half-hour sitcom. But supporters of the show point to the precedent set by "Ally McBeal," the Fox legal "dramedy" that ran as an hourlong comedy and won in 1999.

The Emmy race for best comedy is seen as especially wide open this year due to the absence of several perennial nominees -- "Friends," "Frasier" and "Sex and the City" all went off the air last year, and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" was on hiatus this past season.

Last year's critically praised but ratings-poor comedy champion, Fox's "Arrested Development," is expected back to defend its title, and the CBS sitcom hit and 2003 winner "Everybody Loves Raymond" is considered likely to claim a nomination for its just-finished ninth and final season.

Emmy watchers also give strong odds to two NBC comedies, "Will & Grace" and "Scrubs, as well as HBO's new satire of Hollywood culture, "Entourage."

The race for best drama series is considered a less open contest, with three past nominees expected to make the cut again his year -- NBC political saga and four-time winner "The West Wing," CBS's top-rated detective show "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" and Fox espionage thriller "24."

Last year's most nominated series and winner for best drama, "The Sopranos," is on the sidelines for lack of qualifying episodes this past season, possibly making room for another HBO critical favorite, the gritty, foul-mouthed western "Deadwood."

CBS will broadcast the 57th annual Primetime Emmy Awards live on Sept. 18 from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.

When "Harry" Met "Charlie"

Will Harry steal Charlie's golden ticket at the cash register?

That's the tantalizing new question gripping Hollywood now that the great box-office slump has been busted. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, J.K. Rowling's sixth installment in her mega-selling magic boy franchise, arrives in bookstores at the same time Warner Bros. is unspooling Tim Burton's update of Roald Dahl's kids classic Charlie and the Chocolate Factory hits movie theaters.

Warners execs have good cause for hand wringing. The heavily hyped Half-Blood Prince goes on sale at 12:01 a.m. Saturday with more fanfare than all the previous Potter books combined.

Rowling's U.S. publisher, Scholastic, has ordered a record-setting initial print run of 10.3 million copies of the 672-page tome, and booksellers nationwide are gearing up to host Midnight Magic Parties. The buzz is so great that book chain Barnes & Noble plans to celebrate the landmark release with Potter gatherings at more than 670 of its outlets, according to PotterParties.com.

And both the book and the movie target the same family-friendly demo.

While it's hard to compare rival media like books and movies, especially with differing price points, recent history has shown that Harry has some serious sales magic no matter the competition.

The fifth chapter, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, was released in 2003. Retailing for $30, it sold a whopping 5 million copies its first 24 hours. That $150 million in first-day grosses for Scholastic far surpassed that revenue generated by the weekend's blockbuster movie opening: Universal's The Hulk, which took in $62 million in its three-day debut weekend.

"It's an interesting concept that people even acknowledge that the Potter books are so popular that they have an effect on other media," says Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations. "But that said, the people who want to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory will see Charlie. There's plenty of time for both."

Derbarabedian believes that Charlie has a built-in audience of those adults who grew up with Dahl's book and the 1971 adaptation, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, who are now parents who want take their children to see it.

Then there's the Johnny Depp factor, says Gitesh Pandya, editor of BoxOfficeGuru.com. The Oscar-nominated actor, whose quirky take on Willy Wonka sparked talk in recent days over whether he based the candy man on Michael Jackson, is a big draw for cinephiles who enjoyed his previous collaborations with Burton (see Edward Scissorhands and Ed Wood).

"You have two giant audiences [the filmmakers] are tapping into," Pandya tells E! Online, "the family audience that loves all those lavish effectsand the audience which loves to see Tim Burton and Johnny Depp together."

Both Degarabedian and Pandya conclude that Harry won't dent Charlie's box office. Traditionally, they say, competition among various media hasn't stopped moviegoers from flocking to the megaplex because people can usually squeeze both events into a weekend.

"If you look at past history, Disney and DreamWorks tend to fight it out a lot," explains Pandya, "so you'll see Shrek 2 come out on DVD the same day The Incredibles hit theaters. You might think people will stay home for the weekend and watch Shrek 2, but The Incredibles grosses $70 million its opening weekend."

Adds Dergarabedian: "You can counterprogram a book or video to a movie opening, but once people make a decision to go see that movie, they'll do that--and buy whatever competing property is out there. To me [the Half-Blood Prince] is less problematic than two movies chasing the same audience."

That's one thing Warners won't have to worry about. The only other big release this weekend targets a more adult audience, not families: The Wedding Crashers, starring Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson. The R-rated film is being released by New Line, which also happens to be owned by Time Warner, parent company of Warner Bros.

Besides, Warners owns the movie rights to all the Harry Potter books. (The next celluloid installment, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, based on the fourth of Rowling's books, is due out in November.)

Meanwhile, as fans around the globe get ready for a return to Hogwarts, Harry's publishers are casting a dark spell over anyone who attempts to spill Half-Blood Prince's secrets before Saturday.

Rowling's Canadian publisher, Raincoast Books Ltd., revealed that several copies of the penultimate adventure were sold by a store in Vancouver and it has since gone to court to obtain an injunction barring those buyers from disclosing any tidbits about the plot. As an incentive, the publisher also promises that those who return the title before the on-sale date will receive book plates autographed by the celebrated author.

Skateboarder Clears Great Wall of China

LOS ANGELES - Daredevil skateboarder Danny Way rolled down a massive ramp at nearly 50 mph and jumped across the Great Wall of China on Saturday, becoming the first person to clear the wall without motorized aid, an event sponsor said.

Way botched the landing on his first attempt but then successfully completed the jump across the 61-foot gap four times, adding 360 degree spins on his last three tries, sponsor Quiksilver, Inc. said.

"I was aware of the dangers and my heart was pumping in my chest the whole time, but I managed to pull it off with the help of my team, and I'm honored to have my visions embraced by the people of China," Way said in a statement.

A crowd of several thousand people, including China's ministers of extreme sports and culture, gathered at the Ju Yong Guan Gate about a 40-minute drive from Beijing, Quiksilver's greater China marketing director Ryan Hollis said.

"It was pretty fantastic," Hollis said in an interview from Beijing. "He really has spent quite a few years even thinking about this whole idea. It's been in logistical planning for about eight months. ... It was pretty amazing today to see this happen, to see it adopted by the culture, adopted by the government."

Way's made the jump on an adaptation of the so-called mega ramp, a gigantic structure that he helped create near his home in the Southern California desert. He set a skateboard jump world record for distance (79 feet) on a mega ramp at last summer's X Games, and in 2003 set the height record of 23 1/2 feet at the desert ramp.

Event sponsor Quiksilver, based in Huntington Beach, makes skateboard apparel.

ALL ROCK AND ALL AMERICAN

For John Mellencamp to get the kind of respect he's earned — outside his fan base — he should lie down in a coffin and die.

Music's hipsters who move and shake the charts don't esteem a lifetime of achievement, or even a kick-ass concert like the one Mellencamp nailed Friday at Jones Beach — they respect death.

File it under you don't know what ya got 'til it's gone. Just ask Luther Vandross whose untimely death last week became the ultimate career move. Suddenly everyone and their brother loved Luther again.

But at Mellencamp's concert, the guy didn't die — he killed with a program that showcased him as a songwriter and performer.

At this rainy-night open-air show, the 53-year-old rocker could have held back, rested on his laurels and stayed dry with a short, low-key set.

But obviously jazzed about playing Jones Beach for the first time in four years, Mellencamp performed like he wanted to impress. He displayed his durability with a high-test performance that cranked through his entire career, chronicling his evolution from Cougar to man.

Mellencamp seamlessly mixed songs about alienated youth like "Jack and Diane" with unabashed devotionals including "Lonely Ol' Night."

The Long Island audience embraced his defiant "Authority Song" and his celebration of community life, "Small Town." "Paper in Fire" the midshow highlight sizzled in an electric/acoustic arrangement featuring a fiddled lead.

Then there were the songs with a musical conscience, such as "Rain on the Scarecrow." On that one, Mellencamp supercharged the music by enlisting opening act John Fogerty to sit in with him. The two elegantly captured the song's rage about how the small farmer is becoming an endangered species in America.

While most of the songs were classics from Mellencamp's songbook, one of the show's other highpoints was the new tune "Walk Tall" off of his latest album, "Words And Music." That one nicely blended the tune's R&B swagger with rock poise.

That recent album and this show seem to be statements from Mellencamp painting a picture of both who he used to be and what he's become. That notion was cemented with video clips of his highs and lows that covered his '80s MTV golden-boy days to his becoming one of the elder statesmen of rock.

After the video segment, Mellencamp came back with a fire-in-the-belly greatest hits set. You might predict that "Pink Houses," "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A," "Hurts So Good" and "Cherry Bomb" were played, but the music wasn't predictable note-for-note copies of studio records. Instead, Mellencamp twisted and bent those old songs with honest roots rock inflections.

Chalk that appeal up to Mellencamp's ability to forget he's a star and project a regular-joe image that's sarcasm- and irony-free.

If you don't think Mellencamp exudes cool onstage, is no longer relevant and isn't a national treasure who deserves to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, head to New Jersey on Saturday when he plays the PNC Bank Arts Center and have your attitude adjusted.

Canadians listening to the radio less: report

Canadians are not spending as much time listening to the radio as they once did, according to a new government report that was released on Friday.

The report says that Canadians spend 90 fewer minutes per week tuning in to their favourite stations compared to a decade ago.

A joint venture of Statistics Canada, Heritage Canada and the CRTC, the survey compares the listening habits of Canadians in the fall of 2004 with the figures for 1995.

It found that the average person spends 19.5 hours a week listening to the radio. That number represents a drop of an hour and a half.

Despite the overall decline, people are listening to the radio more in their cars and at work.

In 1995, people spent 56 per cent of their listening time at home; that number has now fallen to 49 per cent.

Meanwhile, Canadians now spend 27 per cent of listening time in the car (up from 22 per cent) and 23 per cent while working (up from 20 per cent).

As for regional differences, residents of Prince Edward Island are the most avid radio listeners, logging an average of 21.2 hours a week of listening time. People in British Columbia, by contrast, spend the least amount of time – an average of 17.8 hours – listening to the radio.

The report also found differences between the listening habits of teens and those of adults.

"Radio still has very little appeal for teenagers," it states. "In the fall of 2004, they tuned in for only 8.5 hours a week, the least amount of time devoted to the medium by any age group."

Indeed, teens are tuning out more rapidly than adults. The 2004 figures indicated an average decline of three hours per week for teens compared to five years ago.

The average adult decline, on the other hand, was about an hour.

The numbers come from log-type questionnaires and cover a six-week period from Sept. 6 to Oct. 31, 2004. Only people over 12 years old were allowed to participate.

The response rate was 41.4 per cent, which StatsCan says is "in line with Canadian and international broadcasting industry practice for audience measurement."

"However, the data should be interpreted with caution," the agency added.

Depp defends 'Chocolate Factory' remake

Actor Johnny Depp has spoken out to defend his new movie, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which lands in theatres July 15.

The film is based on the Roald Dahl book of the same name. It has been adapted once before, as 1971's Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

Gene Wilder, who originated the role of the candy magnate in the 1971 version, condemned the new adaptation in a recent interview.

"It's just some people sitting around thinking 'How can we make some more money?' Why else would you remake Willy Wonka? I don't see the point of going back and doing it all over again," Wilder told Britain's Daily Telegraph newspaper.

"I like Johnny Depp, and I appreciate that he has said on the record that my shoes would be hard to fill. But I don't know how it will all turn out. Right now, the only thing that does take some of the edge off this for me is that Willy Wonka's name isn't in the title.''

In an interview this week with the Associated Press, Depp struck back at Wilder.

"Somebody sent me an article where Gene Wilder said 'Why would they remake Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory?' We didn't remake Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, we remade [the book] Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It's based on the same book they based theirs on," Depp told the news agency.

Depp said he was careful to play Wonka, who hosts a tour of his candy-making plant for a group of children, in a new way.

"I was really conscious about making sure I went to a different area than Gene Wilder," he explained.

Many consider Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory to be a classic film. Wilder's performance was much lauded, and he went on to be one of the biggest film stars of the 1970s.

In the run-up to the release of the new movie, director Tim Burton has revealed that he added a number of his own touches to the story.

Chief among these is a series of flashbacks in which Wonka relates with his father, a dentist played by Christopher Lee. These scenes were added, Burton says, so the audience can understand what makes the off-centre Wonka tick.

Dahl's book, as well as the first movie, are silent on the issue of Wonka's origins.

Depp, known for his turns in movies like Benny & Joon and on television's 21 Jump Street, also said Wilder's criticisms about the financial motives behind the new film sound strange to him.

"Making a statement that they only made this film because of the money is a really odd statement to make from a guy who has been in the business as long as he has ... all movies were made because somebody somewhere wanted a return on their dollar that they spent," he noted.

"Ultimately, it's a business."

Chan Says Tucker Holding Up 'Rush Hour 3'

HONG KONG - Jackie Chan says the third installment of "Rush Hour" is stuck in neutral because co-star Chris Tucker is making too many demands.

"He wants too much power. The movie company hasn't obliged. He wants final editing rights and the final look at the movie and so on," Chan told The Associated Press Thursday.

Chan called Tucker a "good friend" but questioned whether he had the stature to be so demanding.

"He's still a new actor," Chan, 51, said. "How many movies has he made? Two movies have already made him very famous and made him a lot of money."

"He needs to learn slowly," he added.

A call by The Associated Press to Tucker's publicist, Samantha Mast, wasn't returned Friday.

While "Rush Hour 3" remains in limbo, Chan said he's going ahead with another project — one with famed Chinese director Zhang Yimou. Zhang's recent films include "House of Flying Daggers" and "Hero."

Chan declined to reveal details of the movie, saying only that it would be "galvanizing" and is set in the 1980s. He said the idea is his, but Zhang will work on the script.

"He relies on imagination ... like an arrow flying through water," said Chan. "He has elevated the martial arts genre. I believe he can make any type of movie now."

Stone, Cage to Team Up on Film About 9/11

NEW YORK - Nearly four years after the collapse of the World Trade Center, Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone will direct a film based on the story of two police officers who were trapped in the rubble on Sept. 11, 2001.

Nicolas Cage, who won a best-actor Oscar for "Leaving Las Vegas," will star as Port Authority police Sgt. John McLoughlin. McLoughlin and fellow officer William J. Jimeno became trapped during rescue efforts after the collapse of the twin towers.

Paramount Pictures said the movie is expected to be released next year.

"It's a work of collective passion, a serious meditation on what happened and carries within a compassion that heals," Stone said in a statement Friday. "It's an exploration of heroism in our country — but it's international at the same time in its humanity."

Paramount said the film also will focus on the officers' rescuers and their families. McLoughlin and Jimeno are said to be the last two men rescued.

"I feel someone had to tell the story of the people who were in the Trade Center before and after it collapsed," McLoughlin said in a statement. "It needs to be told how this horrific tragedy brought Americans and the world together to help those in need."

While the star power of Stone and Cage will likely make the movie the most high profile film to tackle 9/11, it's not the first. Many independent films have turned their lens to downtown New York, and in the 2002 film "The Guys," Anthony LaPaglia played a fire captain who lost eight men in the towers' collapse.

Stone has won best-director Oscars for "Platoon" and "Born on the Fourth of July." He also has directed "Alexander," "Nixon," "JFK" and "Wall Street."

Screen credits for Cage include "Adaptation," "City of Angels" and "Moonstruck."

'Fantastic Four' Snaps Hollywood Slump

LOS ANGELES - The latest superhero movie may have been just fantastic enough to snap Hollywood's longest modern losing streak at the box office.

The comic-book adaptation "Fantastic Four" raked in $56 million during its first three days, apparently helping to end a swoon in which domestic movie revenues had been down 19 weekends in a row compared to last year's.

The top 12 films took in $141 million, up 2.25 percent from the same weekend in 2004, according to industry estimates Sunday. Numbers often drop slightly when studios release final figures Monday, but this past weekend still should come in ahead of last year's, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

"It took four superheroes to end this slump, and Hollywood is grateful," Dergarabedian said. "Comic-book movies, if properly marketed, are exactly what mainstream audiences want to see in their summer movies."

The movie bumped the previous weekend's top film, "War of the Worlds," into second place with $31.3 million. "War of the Worlds" raised its 12-day domestic total to $165.8 million.

"Fantastic Four" far surpassed industry projections of an opening weekend of $40 million or less. 20th Century Fox, which released the film, had expected a debut "in the high 30s," said Bruce Snyder, the studio's head of distribution.

Based on the Marvel Comics series that debuted in the early 1960s, "Fantastic Four" stars Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Michael Chiklis and Chris Evans as astronauts who gain superpowers after exposure to a cosmic storm.

If Sunday's estimate holds, it would come in ahead of the opening weekend of fellow Marvel adaptation "X-Men," which debuted in 2000 with $54.5 million. Marvel's first "Spider-Man" movie had a record opening weekend of $114.8 million in 2002.

Unlike the well-reviewed "Spider-Man" and "X-Men" films, "Fantastic Four" overcame a drubbing by critics, with some calling it a lightweight tale with a sitcom tone.

While Hollywood appeared to have ended its downturn of 19-straight weekends, movie revenues remain in the doldrums. Revenues this year are running 7 percent behind last year's, and factoring in higher ticket prices, admissions are off 10 percent.

Revenues may continue to sag in the coming weeks compared to this time last year, when such hits as "I, Robot," "The Bourne Supremacy" and "The Village" had huge opening weekends in July and early August.

Johnny Depp and Tim Burton's "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" is expected to do big business this weekend. Other movies coming this month and next include the remake "The Bad News Bears," the action films "The Island" and "Stealth," the comedy "Wedding Crashers" and "The Dukes of Hazzard."

Here is 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. "Fantastic Four," $56 million.

2. "War of the Worlds," $31.3 million.

3. "Batman Begins," $10.2 million.

4. "Dark Water," $10.1 million.

5. "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," $7.85 million.

6. "Herbie: Fully Loaded," $6.3 million.

7. "Bewitched," $5.5 million.

8. "Madagascar," $4.3 million.

9. "Rebound," $2.9 million.

10. "Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith," $2.6 million.

Drama kick-starts 'Big Brother 6'

The summer of scheming has begun.

The sixth season of 'Big Brother' premiered last night with more drama and intrigue than ever before. If the secret partner twist, a luxury Head of Household suite and a new two-storey house wasn't enough, the producers gave the series a healthy boost by including a Head of Household/Food competition and a nomination ceremony in the premiere episode.

Rachel Plencner, the 33-year-old horse breeder, became the first Head of Household on 'Big Brother 6' by outlasting the other HouseMates in an endurance challenge. Divided into two teams, the players first competed in a Food Challenge requiring them to stand on enormous surfboards and toss coconuts through the mouth of an idol. The team of Maggie Ausburn, April Lewis, Janelle Pierzina, Howie Gordon, Sarah Hrejsa, Rachel Plencner and James Rhine bested the team of Ashlea Evans, Beau Beasley, Ivette Corredero, Jennifer Vasquez, Kaysar Ridha, Michael Donnellan and Eric Littmann in the Food Challenge. Ashlea's team are now on the infamous peanut butter and jelly diet for the week.

The Food Challenge immediately splintered the house into alliances. As the winning team competed in a stand-on-the-surf board-as-long-as-you-can endurance competition for the coveted Head of Household crown, the plotting began. Maggie's team collectively agreed not to nominate or vote each other out for the first week. Confident in their ready-made alliance, most of the competitors bowed out of the challenge leaving Howie Gordon and Rachel Plencner alone to battle it out. It wasn't much of a battle. Howie made a pact with Rachel and agreed to step down under the pretence of having to go to the bathroom at two hours and 30 minutes in.

When it came to nominations, the Surf Board Alliance held strong as practicing Muslim of Iraqi descent Kaysar Ridha and the flirtatious Ashlea Evans were put up by Rachel for eviction. Rachel claimed that she didn't have much to go on to make her decision so she nominated the two HouseGuests she had not connected with on a personal level.

Several sub-alliances were also formed when the male HouseGuests discovered there were eight female players and only six men. Eric Littmann, the 36-year-old firefighter cobbled together a male alliance which deliberately left out gay HouseGuest Beau Beasley and Howie Gordon. Eric stated that Beau belonged with the females and he just couldn't trust Howie.

The Summer of Secrets theme grew even more mysterious with host Julie Chen stating that the teams of players would not be officially revealed until next Thursday's live eviction broadcast. The 14 contestants are actually seven teams of secret partners from the outside world playing the game as covert duos.

Each team believes they are the only such partnership in the house. As an added stipulation, if one team can keep their secret and end up being the last two people in the house, the winner will win $1,000,000 with the second place finisher winning $250,000. If a twosome does not make it to the final two, the winner will win $500,000.

Showing promo footage of a female HouseGuest finding a secret passage of some sort and perhaps a spy cam, Chen also stated that one secret of the new 'Big Brother' house would change the way the game is played forever. The producers have previously stated that the house itself and the HouseGuests too have secrets that will be revealed as the season progresses.

Gang of 'Four' ready to rumble at box office

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - With such sci-fi and comic movies as "War of the Worlds" and "Batman Begins" already dominating ticket sales, the superheroes of "Fantastic Four" face a tough task at the weekend box office.

The Marvel Comics adaptation should have less trouble fending off competition from fellow rookie "Dark Water," a horror remake starring Jennifer Connelly.

20th Century Fox originally planned to open "Fantastic Four" on the Fourth of July holiday weekend and even had ballyhooed a "Fantastic 4th" in early materials for the film, but Paramount's "War of the Worlds" bullied itself onto the coveted date (eventually earning $77.6 million for the four-day weekend) and Fox backed down, shifting back a week its hopeful summer bonanza.

It remains to be seen whether the strategy will work. Conservative estimates for the film's first three days are running in the mid- to high-$30 million range.

That would be an improvement over Fox's most recent entry into the Marvel arena; the studio opened "Elektra" in January to a disappointing $14 million. Although Marvel has had tremendous success with Sony's "Spider-Man" and Fox's "X-Men" and "Daredevil" films, not all adaptations are hits, with "Elektra" and Lions Gate's "The Punisher" being prime examples.

Rated PG-13, "Four" stars Ioan Gruffudd as Mr. Fantastic, Michael Chiklis as the Thing, Jessica Alba as Invisible Woman and Chris Evans as Human Torch. With a lesser-known cast and an inexperienced action-adventure director in Tim Story ("Taxi"), Fox is fielding a number of unknown variables. Many in the industry predict that if the box office wasn't in the middle of a slump, the film likely would cross the $40 million mark.

Meanwhile, Disney bows its first entry in the Japanese horror-remake game, "Dark Water." In the wake of the success of DreamWorks' "The Ring" and "The Ring Two," along with Sony's surprise hit "The Grudge" last year, the genre still looks ripe for the picking. But industry insiders believe "Dark Water" might not measure up. Industry insiders put its opening in the $10 million-$12 million range.

From Brazilian director Walter Salles ("The Motorcycle Diaries"), the PG-13 release is an adaptation of the Japanese film from writer Koji Suzuki. Connelly stars as a woman who rents a decrepit apartment with her daughter only to find eerie happenings that threaten her sanity. John C. Reilly, Tim Roth and Dougray Scott round out the cast. "Dark Water" is tracking best among young girls.

"The Grudge" opened last year to $39 million, while "The Ring," which bowed in 2002 and also was an adaptation of a Suzuki novel, opened to $15 million before going on to gross $128 million. "The Ring Two" opened this year to $35 million but stalled at $76 million.

In limited release, ThinkFilm will bow the Sundance favorite "Murderball," a documentary about rugby-playing quadriplegics, in Los Angeles and New York.

Sony Pictures Classics will open "The Beautiful Country" in Los Angeles and New York. Roth, Bai Ling and Nick Nolte star in the R-rated film about a young man who flees Vietnam on a quest to find his American father.

McCartney Conjures 'Chaos' On 20th Solo Album

Paul McCartney returns to the one-man-band approach that marked his 1970 self-titled solo debut on "Chaos and Creation in the Back Yard," his 20th solo album since the dissolution of the Beatles. Due Sept. 13 via Capitol, the 13-track set was co-produced by McCartney with Nigel Godrich (Radiohead, Beck) and is the artist's first new studio album since 2001's "Driving Rain."

"I did not want to rush this album," says McCartney, who played everything from guitar, bass and drums to flugelhorn and harmonium on the project. "I think it was worth the wait though. The music became more interesting over time and I'm really proud of what we did."

The album runs the gamut from piano-led tracks like "Promise To You Girl" and "Fine Line," to a self-described "daughter of [the Beatles'] 'Blackbird'" dubbed "Jenny Wren" to the contemplative "Riding to Vanity Fair" and "At the Mercy."

"We really made a lot of it up as we went along," McCartney says. "I'd try something and if it didn't work I'd try something else until it did. It was like making a go-cart in the backyard."

"Chaos and Creation" will be supported with a previously announced fall North American tour, which begins Sept. 16 in Miami.

Here is the track list for "Chaos and Creation in the Back Yard":

"Fine Line"
"How Kind of You"
"Jenny Wren"
"At the Mercy"
"Friends To Go"
"English Tea"
"Too Much Rain"
"A Certain Softness"
"Riding to Vanity Fair"
"Follow Me"
"Promise To You Girl"
"This Never Happened Before"
"Anyway"

The Body & Soul of Jessica Alba

Jessica Alba is hiking in Hollywood's Runyon Canyon with one hand gripping her left cheek. She is talking about her body. The body. Hers of the mesmerizing torso showcased to full, undulating perfection in several films, most recently Sin City and in this month's summer opus Fantastic Four, and bested only by the aforementioned ass, a heart-shaped beauty that sends men into fits of sputtering praise, but an ass that Alba nonetheless believes is a tad too large.

"I hear people in this industry talking shit all the time about how Jennifer Lopez is fat," she says tersely. "And I know if they're calling her fat, they're saying the same shit about me."

Rightly, Alba worries about this. At twenty-four, she has, thus far in her acting career, been largely defined by her body. Of her last eight films, she has been nearly naked in seven. She is five feet six and a half, 34-25-34, and weighs 120 pounds, depending upon her training schedule. But the numbers tell little of the story. Even beneath the baggy sweats she favors, Alba's body is a marvel of feminine proportion. A siren song. Everything slopes and curves where it should. Nothing juts or strains. Muscles blend into soft arcs.

As a result, Alba has consistently been ranked in the top ten on various men's-magazine fuckability polls. Web sites devoted to her celebrity hammer on her hotness with creepy persistence. Mark Wahlberg's reality-infused HBO show Entourage devoted an entire story arc to the conquest of Alba, her body hounded like the Holy Grail of scores by the young male cast, a quest Wahlberg himself has supposedly pursued in real life. Us Weekly even reported the rumor that Alba was Tom Cruise's first choice for a publicity girlfriend -- the plum position ultimately handed over to default pick Katie Holmes. The thinking: Alba's carnal appeal is so powerful it could endear Mr. Cruise to a youth audience and affirm his virility once and for all.

She is good-humored about the scrutiny, but she confesses the one-note quality of it all is starting to wear her out. "The scripts I get are always for the whore, or the motorcycle chick in leather, or the horny maid," Alba says as she climbs a hill, panting slightly. "I get all these screenplays that start, 'Tawnya is in the shower. The water streams down her naked, perky breasts.' " She sighs, then laughs a tired laugh. "I don't think this is happening to Natalie Portman."

There are many reasons for this, and Alba, to her credit, has a firm grasp on most of them. Cast as she is, she hasn't yet had much opportunity to "act." The closest she comes to a scene-stealing turn is as one of the popular snots in Never Been Kissed, where she is indisputably funny and natural. The rest of her curriculum vitae -- including schlocky thrillers, the short-lived James Cameron sci-fi television series Dark Angel and the ill-conceived hip-hop-heroine picture Honey -- is less impressive. Her turn in Sin City stands out, but largely because Alba plays a stripper with a heart of gold. And a lasso.

"It's not always so great to be objectified," she says. "But I don't feel I have much of a choice right now. I'm young in my career. I know I have to strike when the iron is hot."

Alba plans to capitalize on her God-given assets for the moment, saturate the market with her sultry image and then, when she "won't have to do that stuff just to get people's attention," she hopes to transition into someone like Diane Keaton or Goldie Hawn, women she admires for their kookiness and pluck. "I look forward to the day when I can do a small movie and act," Alba says, "and it's not about me wearing a fucking bathing suit or chaps."

Problem is, Alba isn't kooky. Kooky does not come with plum lips and amber skin and a beckoning grin. Alba, for better or worse, is a babe. More than that, she is a certain strain of babe -- the kind that invites rather than intimidates. She is a good girl, playing a bad girl. Her face is open and warm. She smiles often. She is fresh-scrubbed. She never struts, but ambles. She has normal-size breasts and no plans to enhance them. She points to pimples on her forehead and laughs. She eats -- a lot. In short, she is girlfriend material, and it is this accessibility, when married to her liquid body, that makes her walking kryptonite -- an effect in evidence whenever she exits the house and leaves a trail of double takes in her wake. Men on the street take note initially because she is pretty, but then, as she walks closer, it registers -- "Man, that's Jessica Alba!" -- and the admiration explodes into palpable desire.

"She doesn't even notice it," says her close friend and sometime personal trainer Ramona Braganza. "We went into Starbucks in Ohio, and all these guys were falling all over themselves and whispering. She had no idea."

Alba herself tells a charmingly naive story about how in L.A. she is never able to dine alone.

"Everyone feels bad for you," she says. "For some reason, waiters, cooks, they all have to come out and talk to you: 'How's the food? Did someone not show up?' I'm like, 'No, I'm reading my book. I'm totally happy.' "

When it is suggested that perhaps these concerned gentlemen emerge specifically to see her, that surely not every gal eating solo gets the pity party, Alba shakes her head. "Men in Los Angeles get uncomfortable when a woman is by herself," she says. "Unless she's shopping."

On any other actress, such an observation would smack of disingenuousness, but somehow Alba pulls it off. Maybe because she has been acting since she was twelve and has already in her short lifetime "had periods where I was in everybody's face and times when nobody knew who I was."

Alba has already been back and forth on the celebrity trip and has decided, ultimately, "Fuck it." Now she ignores fame completely, staying in a bubble of her creation, a sunny, insular place where life is as deliciously sweet as she wills it to be. A place where men talk to her because they are kind, not horned up. A place where the future has nothing to do with her haircut or her high-riding buttocks.

"I don't need to be famous," she says adamantly. "I'm not that ambitious. At this point, if I'm not sucked in, I'm never going to get sucked in. Being the so-called hot girl, I disconnect from that. It's not that deep."

(Excerpted from RS 977-978, June 30, 2005)

Chapman Flies With Flea

Tracy Chapman will release Where You Live, her seventh studio album and first album in three years, on September 13th. Co-produced by Chapman and Tchad Blake (Phish, Bonnie Raitt), the album features the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Flea on bass, Joe Gore (PJ Harvey, Tom Waits) on guitar, Mitchell Froom (Paul McCartney, Sheryl Crow) on keyboards and Quinn (Belinda Carlisle, Paula Cole) on drums.

"I made some great friends on this album," says Chapman, who in addition to acoustic guitar tried her hand at clarinet. "I had run into Flea a few times over the years, and he'd said to me at one point, 'If you're making a record and you want me to, I'll play on it.' So I took him up on the offer."

Flea makes his presence known behind Chapman's passionate vocals on the anthemic single "Change." Other standout tracks include the gospel-tinged "Talk to You," the jazzy, percussion-heavy "Before Easter" and the sparse, haunting "Never Yours."

"It's mostly recorded live," Chapman says of the album. "It's a new direction for me, sonically and thematically."

Chapman is planning a worldwide tour behind Where You Live in the fall.

Album sales down for midyear count

Unless the rest of 2005 ushers in Usher clones, the record industry could be backsliding into a familiar slump.

A year ago, album sales were ahead of 2003. This year, sales trail 2004 by about 7%, and that's before the weekly tallies go against last fall's streak of increasingly hefty hauls.

Hopes for a solid turnaround were pinned on 2004's tiny growth spurt, the first since 2000. That victory may be short-lived. So far this year, consumers have bought 282.6 million albums, compared with 303.0 million by midyear 2004, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Sales of digital tracks continue to skyrocket, with 158.8 million tracks sold this year vs. 55 million in the first half of 2004. But 99-cent downloads can't offset the losses of CDs costing up to $18.

"It's a disappointing first half, but it's probably too early to panic," says Geoff Mayfield, Billboard's director of charts. "The top 10 is not as strong as it was last year. At the same time, we've seen a few artists capture their best SoundScan weeks ever in this period."

Norah Jones and Usher dominated early 2004, with the latter winning the year-end race after selling roughly 8 million copies of Confessions. 50 Cent's The Massacre is on a similar track, but he'll need help. So far only three albums have exceeded sales of 2 million copies. At this stage in 2004, five had.

"There's reason for concern," Mayfield says. "But how a second half fares may have less do with what's out than with what's coming, and we know the last four months are always chock-full of big releases."

50 Cent is midyear heavyweight

50 Cent's Massacre, the top-selling album of 2005 at the year's halfway point, has almost double the sales of the runner-up, the resurgent Mariah Carey's The Emancipation of Mimi.

Seventeen albums have surpassed the 1 million mark this year.

Figures, supplied by Nielsen SoundScan, represent 2005 sales to date.

Rank/artist Title Sales (in millions)
1. 50 Cent Massacre* 4.02
2. Mariah Carey The Emancipation of Mimi* 2.30
3. The Game Documentary* 2.11
4. Green Day American Idiot 1.93
5. Kelly Clarkson Breakaway 1.60
6. Gwen Stefani Love Angel Music Baby 1.52
7. Coldplay X&Y* 1.38
8. The Killers Hot Fuss 1.31
9. various Now 18* 1.21
10. Eminem Encore 1.16
11. Jack Johnson In Between Dreams* 1.16
12. Ciara Goodies 1.16
13. John Legend Get Lifted 1.15
14. Rascal Flatts Feels Like Today 1.08
15. Ray Charles Genius Loves Company 1.05
16. System of a Down Mezmerize* 1.03
17. Usher Confessions 1.00
18. Dave Matthews Band Stand Up* .99
19. Kenny Chesney Be as You Are* .98
20. 3 Doors Down Seventeen Days* .94
21. Ludacris Red Light District .87
22. Rob Thomas Something to Be* .84
23. Fantasia Free Yourself .84
24. Lil' Jon & the East Side Boyz Crunk Juice .83
25. Toby Keith Honkytonk University* .78
* 2005 release

Jacko and the "Chocolate Factory"

The longish black hair. The pale skin. The ornate suit jacket. The--how should we say?--less than traditional adult male speaking voice.

That is fabled candymaker Willy Wonka as embodied by Johnny Depp in director Tim Burton's new take on the children's classic Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

One problem: "I think the casual viewer is going to see Michael Jackson."

So says Patrick Lee, news editor of online's Sci Fi Wire. And chances are the casual viewer wouldn't disagree.

"It's very scary," laughs Houston-based blogger Laurence Simon.

Like other moviegoers, Simon made the Depp-Jackson-Wonka connection almost instantly when he saw the Chocolate Factory trailer. An offhanded remark last month on his blog, This Blog Is Full of Crap (IsFullofCrap.com), about how much he wasn't looking forward to Burton's film led one commentator to crack, "What's the problem...? Don't have the stomach for Michael Jackson and the Chocolate Factory?"

The properly titled Charlie and the Chocolate Factory opens July 15. In a summer dominated by bad buzz about the less than blockbuster box office, it is one of Warner Bros.' brightest hopes, along with Batman Begins and The Dukes of Hazzard.

Having one of its prized properties--much less, a PG-rated kids' fantasy--linked to a fallen pop star with longish black hair, pale skin, a whisper for a speaking voice, a penchant for military garb and a recent acquittal on child-molestation charges is likely not what the Hollywood studio had in mind when it turned Burton and company loose on author Roald Dahl's beloved, if preternaturally creepy, tale.

And, according to Depp, who openly copped to stealing riffs from rocker Keith Richards for his turn as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, it is absolutely not what the actor had in mind when he was conjuring the eccentric first brought to the big screen by Gene Wilder in 1971's Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Children-show hosts like Captain Kangaroo and Mr. Rogers, these are the innocuous sorts who inspired Depp's Wonka, he has said.

"Everyone is entitled to think what they want," Depp said last week in a news conference in Nassau, Bahamas, "even while being violently wrong."

Wrong or no, the suspicions abound. At that press conference, Lee says the Jackson question came up "a lot."

Lee, for one, is more willing to give the benefit of the doubt to the filmmakers, perhaps because he's seen the movie in its entirety. "The nature of the character Willy Wonka is not Michael Jackson," he says. "Willy Wonka hates children--that there sets him apart from Michael Jackson."

Box-office analyst Paul Dergarabedian also has seen the film. Depp's Wonka, he says, "comes off more as Mr. Rogers than Michael Jackson."

If the trailer is creeping out audiences, says Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations Co., then that might not be such a bad thing for the film's box office. Dahl's tale of gluttony, greed and Oompa Loompas, after all, has never been confused for a Disney fairy tale. As such, the trippier the trailer, the potentially more intrigued the audience.

"They have come to expect the unexpected with Johnny Depp," says Dergarabedian. "Were it another actor, maybe it wouldn't come off as well."

The last time Depp arguably veered into Jackson territory, in Finding Neverland, the 2004 biopic about big-kid-at-heart Peter Pan author J.M. Barrie, the actor earned a Best Actor Oscar nomination.

As long as Depp doesn't earn sustained unwanted comparisons to Jackson in Chocolate Factory, the Oompa Loompas likely will go along their merry, vaguely unsettling way.

London Awarded 2012 Olympic Games

SINGAPORE - London was awarded the 2012 Olympics on Wednesday, narrowly defeating European rival Paris in the final round of voting to take the games back to the British capital for the first time since 1948.

After Moscow, New York and Madrid were eliminated in the first three rounds, London beat its cross-Channel opponent 54-50 on the fourth ballot of the International Olympic Committee vote — capping the most glamorous and hotly contested bid race in Olympic history.

"I'm looking forward to what I'm sure will be a fantastic Olympic Games," said Prince William, speaking from New Zealand.

Paris had been the front-runner throughout the campaign, but London picked up momentum in the late stages with strong support from Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Part of London's pitch was that it stepped in to help the Olympic movement by staging the games as Europe was still recovering from World War II.

The race had been considered too close to call as an unprecedented collection of world leaders and sports celebrities converged on Singapore to lobby for the bids.

London's victory handed Paris its third stinging Olympic defeat in 20 years, following failed bids for the 1992 and 2008 Olympics. Paris hasn't hosted the games since 1924.

IOC president Jacques Rogge opened a sealed envelope and declared the result in a live televised ceremony: "The International Olympic Committee has the honor of announcing that the Games of the 30th Olympiad in 2012 are awarded to the city of London."

The tan-suited London delegates in the convention hall leaped out of their seats, arms raised in jubilation and cheering wildly.

The voting figures weren't immediately released.

In London, crowds cheered and waved flags as they watched the announcement from Singapore on a giant screen in Trafalgar Square, and in the east London area where the main Olympic complex will be based.

The results of the first three rounds came as no surprise. Moscow was always considered the longshot, with New York and Madrid outsiders. Moscow went out with 15 votes in the first round, New York dropped out next with 16, then Madrid with 31.

Paris had the perceived advantage of bidding for a third time, especially since the IOC tends to reward persistence. The French capital also had a ready-to-go Olympic stadium in the Stade de France and embraced the IOC's blueprint for controlling the size and cost of the games.

But not even a personal appearance in Singapore by French President Jacques Chirac could secure victory.

"The heart of Paris and the heart of France are beating in unison in the hope of becoming Olympic host in 2012," Chirac said during the city's final presentation to the IOC. "You can put your trust and faith in France, you can trust the French, you can trust us."

Blair, who spent two days of lobbying in Singapore before leaving to host the G8 summit in Scotland, spoke in a video message — half of which was delivered in French, one of the IOC's two official languages.

"My promise to you is we will be your very best partners," Blair said. "The entire government are united behind this bid. ... It is the nation's bid."

London centered its bid on the massive urban renewal of a dilapidated area of East London. It's the fourth bid from Britain after failed attempts by Birmingham for the 1992 Olympics and Manchester for 1996 and 2000.

London got off to a slow start, but made big strides under Sebastian Coe, a two-time Olympic 1,500-meter gold medalist who replaced American businesswoman Barbara Cassani as head of the bid in May 2004.

Fincher Will Go Back-to-Back for Paramount

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com)- "Fight Club" helmer David Fincher, who hasn't directed a film since 2002's "Panic Room," is expected to return to the big screen in a big way, shooting two long-rumored Paramount projects back-to-back.

According to Variety, Fincher has officially signed on to direct "Zodiac" and "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" over the next year-and-a-half. "Zodiac" is currently in preproduction with a September production start, while "Button" will aim to begin filming next October. Fincher had been linked to both films in recent months, but the actual time table was unclear for the notoriously fickle director.

"Zodiac" is based on the pair of books by Robert Graysmith focusing on the famous serial killer. Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo, Jake Gyllenhaal will appear in the film, which will shoot in San Francisco and in Los Angeles.

"Button," adapted from the work by F. Scott Fitzgerald, will take advantage of Louisiana tax incentives by shooting in New Orleans with Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett starring in the tale of a man aging backwards. Eric Roth ("Forrest Gump") wrote the script.

Since "Panic Room," Fincher has been mentioned in discussions of the Anthony Bourdain adaptation "Seared," the supernatural thriller "Stay," the third film in Tom Cruise's "Mission Impossible" franchise, a remake of "The Reincarnation of Peter Proud," the skateboard epic "The Lords of Dogtown," the war drama "Fertig" and an eternally gestating version of "Rendezvous at Rama."

The Couch Potato Report - July 5th, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features one of John Candy's greatest films and some cartoons that date back as far as 1928

While I was buying my DVD copy of the 1991 film ONLY THE LONELY a few weeks back the teenage cashier looked at the title of the film and said, "'Only The Lonely.' Ohhh, I love Elvis Presley."

She then proceeded to speak with her two - also teenage - co-workers about Elvis and his music, and how much she enjoyed it.

I debated whether to say anything, and then after my transaction was complete, I spoke up and I said, "'Only The Lonely' is a Roy Orbison song."

They thanked me politely for the information, but as I walked away I overheard the cashier asking her friends, "Who's Roy Orbison?"

Although I have friends who do, I never feel old when I find myself in situations where someone younger than me doesn't know the music I know and love.

What does come to mind is a hope that people - such as this teenage cashier and her friends - get the chance to listen to artists like Roy Orbison some day.

That is my hope for many reasons, but primarily due to the fact that Bo Bice, Gavin DeGraw, Rob Thomas, Howie Day, and many of the other artists you can currently find at the top of the charts added together don't equal one Roy Orbison.

And many of the actors working in Hollywood today don't equal one John Candy, the man who is the main reason why I was buying the DVD of ONLY THE LONELY.

Now, prior to his work in that movie Candy had put his comedic talents to good use on the television show SCTV and in the movies SPACEBALLS, PLANES, TRAINS & AUTOMOBILES, THE GREAT OUTDOORS, UNCLE BUCK and HOME ALONE.

In ONLY THE LONELY Candy was given one of the few dramatic roles of his career, and he is wonderful!

With his comedic background Candy easily handles the film's lighter comedic moments, but he also does a superb job with the more serious parts of the script.

In the end his Danny Muldoon is a believable and sympathetic person.

That person, Danny, is a 38-year-old Chicago cop who still lives with his mother.

Screen legend Maureen O'Hara plays the mother and even though she had appeared in the classic films HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY, MIRACLE ON 34th STREET, THE QUIET MAN and THE PARENT TRAP when ONLY THE LONELY came out in 1991 it was her first role in almost 20 years.

But I digress.

O'Hara's character is named Rose, but she is an irate, stubborn woman. That said, she is also a loving, caring mother to Danny.

Without actors like O'Hara and Candy in the leading roles, this could have turned into a film about a mama's boy and his mean old momma.

Instead the actor's talents allow them to give us people we like and care about.

Candy's talents shine even brighter when he meets an introverted make-up artist played by Ally Sheedy of THE BREAKFAST CLUB.

Their relationship initially flourishes, but the son can't quit worrying about his mother long enough to be any kind of lover or partner.

Plus, the Mother is uncomfortable and challenges the young lady as she finds her place as the only woman in her son's life threatened.

ONLY THE LONELY succeeds as a love story, and a comedy. It is a very beautiful film that is heartwarming and poignant and very worthy of your time.

And if the cashier at the store where you buy it or rent it doesn't know who sings the title song, or who John Candy is, make sure you tell them as well!

Yes, from time to time we may have to remind people who Roy Orbison is, or John Candy for that matter, but it is unlikely that we will ever have to tell anyone who Mickey Mouse is.

However, that isn't due to the fact that people in this day and age love his cartoons, that is due to the fact that Mickey is the corporate image for The Walt Disney Company.

Yet it was cartoons that brought fame to Mickey Mouse, and Walt Disney.

Now some of those very first Mickey Mouse cartoons are available on the DVD VINTAGE MICKEY.

The disc has nine of the mouse's most memorable cartoons, including the classic "Steamboat Willie" from 1928, the first Mickey Mouse cartoon released and the first cartoon with sound.

No, Mickey doesn't wear his trademark gloves and he doesn't speak either. All he does is whistle and play music.

VINTAGE MICKEY also includes the Academy Award nominated "Mickey's Orphans" and "Building A Building", plus the always entertaining "The Birthday Party."

Yes, it is true that all of these cartoons have already appeared on DVD in the Walt Disney Treasures releases MICKEY MOUSE IN BLACK & WHITE, but since those releases were limited editions, and are no longer available, this disc is an inexpensive, fun, and wonderful way to own and look back at the origins of the little mouse who became one of the world's most famous images.

Whether he is speaking, or just whistling and playing music.

VINTAGE MICKEY and the superb ONLY THE LONELY are both available now at a store near you.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

Clint Eastwood's Academy Award winning masterpiece MILLION DOLLAR BABY debuts on video and DVD.

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on that film, 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!

Live 8 Coming Soon On DVD

EMI has confirmed they have secured the DVD for this past weekend’s Live 8 extravaganza. The entertainment giant have worked out a deal with the organisers which will see them release a DVD of the event in all territories around the world.

However, the DVD will differ from country to country, tailored to include footage from each of the various Live 8 events. It will be hitting shops in November and the Live Aid organisation will receive what EMI describe as a "major financial contribution" from the DVD deal.

Bob Geldof explained, "I hope this will be the biggest-selling DVD of all time. It deserves to be. More importantly perhaps, it should be, for it will help us achieve our goal of changing the lives of the extreme poor for the better and making our generation the one that helped end the disgrace of poverty.

“We are very grateful to EMI for their financial contribution which helped to make the July 2 concerts happen everywhere on the planet and thus nudge the world a little closer towards our shared aim."

Will There Be A Charlie’s Angels III?

Drew Barrymore has announced her interest in proceeding with Charlie’s Angels III. Teenhollywood reports Barrymore says, "I know Cameron, Lucy and I would all sign up if there was, but there are no plans in the works. All three of us still hang out all the time anyway, so we might as well be filming it." While the previous two films’ box-office profits earned Sony $260 million worldwide each, the runaway budget for the second film has the studio weary about green-lighting chapter 3.

'Big Brother 6': Bigger, Better, More Fragrant

LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) At the end of production last year on the fifth season of CBS' summer reality series "Big Brother," the house -- actually a series of linked temporary trailers -- on a studio lot in the San Fernando Valley was demolished to make room for a new CBS office building. For Allison Grodner, who executive produces the show with partner and fellow executive producer Arnold Shapiro, it didn't come a moment too soon.

Each summer, the house plays host to contestants who live in it minus contact with the outside world for three months, scheming and planning and conniving in hopes of staying in long enough to win the $500,000 grand prize. Shapiro and Grodner have produced the second, third, fourth and fifth seasons so far, all in the same location.

"I can tell ya," Grodner says, "after five years, that house that was torn down stunk. It was awful. No one wanted to go in. A lot of it can be attributed to Marvin's stinky feet last year, but when we had to put the houseguests on lockdown outside to go in to clean things up or set things up, I mean, people would go in with masks. It was horrible."

"Big Brother 6" launches its thrice-weekly airings Thursday, July 7, on CBS. The Thursday episode, with host Julie Chen, is the live edition of the show, featuring the weekly eviction of one of the housemates. Pre-taped episodes air on Tuesday and Saturday. As always, cameras and microphones monitor the houseguests 24 hours a day, both on television and continuously on the Internet.

At the premiere, fans will get their first look at the new home of "Big Brother," a two-story, loft-style house built inside a soundstage on the same lot. (There's still an outdoor back yard and large pool.)

"We've got a whole new space," Grodner says. "It doesn't smell yet. We'll see how long it takes. It's got high ceilings and just gives the whole thing a different look. We're able to look down on them, get different perspectives, and it gives us more space to do bold decorating statements as well.

"That's pretty much all I can reveal right now about the house, that it's a very bold, colorful design. Our chief engineer, who's been with us forever, is responsible for putting together the initial construction design for this and making it work for a two-story inside a soundstage, (making something) that's livable, that can sustain the weight and the wear and tear, which is very different from a regular sitcom set. This has to be functional.

"It has high ceilings, big walls, balconies, lots of ways for people to keep an eye on each other, lots of new nooks and crannies for people to scheme and hide, not from us, but from each other."

Strangely enough, enlarging the set seems to have had a corresponding effect on the cast.

"There are a lot of very tall people here," Grodner says. "That works. We actually have the ceilings to contain tall people. Whereas in past years, I have to say, not that we've stopped ourselves from putting tall people in the cast, but we're always worried about the bigger people, wondering how they would be able to fit into these rooms, bend with the lights and cameras."

While fans enjoy the drama inside the house, Grodner says there's no lack of drama behind the scenes.

"It's a whole other story that we've only touched on in the media, but it's an amazing little city that goes on behind the scenes at 'Big Brother.' For us, it's summer camp. We get a huge return with our staff and our crew. It runs like a top. It's very well-planned, with up to 200 people working on the show behind the scenes.

"I'm here 24 hours a day as well, with everyone else, getting my hands dirty, eating my peanut butter."

With her new space to play with, Grodner got to do something she's wanted to since she and Shapiro took over the show. "When we took over 'Big Brother 2,' we added the head-of-household component and therefore the head-of-household room. The way it was with the original set, we had a limited amount of space to work with.

"I will say, this year, the head-of-household room is very special. I will go so far as to say it's sort of the penthouse suite. We're excited by that because we really were able to design it from the ground up instead of having to shoehorn something in. You earn that, you win it, it's a powerful position to have, so the space should be deserving of that power and that prestige in the game."

Last season, Grodner and Shapiro introduced the twist of having identical twins in the house, pretending to be the same person -- a twist, Grodner says, imitated by the Australian edition of "Big Brother."

"The twin twist gave them one of the highest ratings they've ever had on the show. The twins went in and switched out every day, which isn't something we did. That was a very bold move on their part. They were caught on the seventh day, and it was the most-watched show they had. It was high drama."

Asked how "Big Brother 6" will top last year's twist, Grodner says, "Every season is different. There will always be surprises, twists and turns, and we will guarantee that again this summer."

Summer films: Sales bells ring

Look for many of the summer blockbuster movies — even ones that haven't opened in theaters yet — to arrive on DVD in time for holiday shopping.

As video marketers seek to maximize the momentum from theatrical campaigns, movies are coming to video a lot sooner than ever, in about four months, down from six months just a few years ago, according to The DVD Release Report.

That means most of the summer movies will be in stores as holiday shoppers head to the mall.

"The progression from a summer theatrical release to a holiday video release is a well-worn path," says industry analyst Tom Adams, president of Adams Media Research. "Even late-summer releases will be out in time for the holidays."

The year's No. 1 movie so far, Star Wars, Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, is expected to arrive in stores Nov. 8. That was the same week that top sellers Shrek 2 and Finding Nemo came out in previous years.

Other movies that will be released for holiday sales, although no dates have been announced, include The Longest Yard, The Amityville Horror and Cinderella Man.

Also likely to be released in the fourth quarter of this year: War of the Worlds, Madagascar, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Fantastic Four, Bewitched, Kingdom of Heaven, The Interpreter and Batman Begins.

Other releases aimed at gift buyers include:

•The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Sept. 13.

•Robots, Sept. 20.

• Last year's holiday hit, Polar Express, Nov. 22.

"The fourth quarter is going to be wildly competitive," says Craig Kornblau, president of Universal Studios Home Entertainment.

Older audiences pass on theaters

Karen Shinoda loves Ray, the Oscar-nominated movie starring Jamie Foxx as the late Ray Charles, but she didn't see it in theaters.

"I missed it because of the cost of going to the theater, and I was unemployed at the time," says Shinoda, 54, a legal secretary in Castro Valley, Calif.

But for $15, she picked up a copy on DVD a few months after the film opened in theaters. That's about half what she would have shelled out on a movie ticket, popcorn and drink, gas and parking.

Ray has earned nearly $150 million from DVD sales and rentals, twice its $75 million gross in theaters, says Craig Kornblau, president of Universal Studios Home Entertainment. It is one of a growing number of dramas that performed much better on DVD than they did in theaters, primarily because they appeal to older movie fans.

Cost is one factor keeping older moviegoers from theaters, as is time. For some films, up to 80% of the people who buy the DVD didn't see the movie in the theater, says Buena Vista's Lori MacPherson.

"People's lives are becoming increasingly busy. Consumers don't always have a chance to get to the theater to see every film they would like."

Turnaround is another factor: Most movies are available for home viewing about four months after opening in theaters.

People who are just now buying DVD players, Kornblau says, are "primarily older consumers who are significantly embracing not only the DVD phenomenon but also, more specifically, DVD dramas."

Dan Gurlitz, general manager of Koch Vision, also credits older adults with fueling sales of those dramas that had limited runs in art-house theaters.

One such film is the critically acclaimed DearFrankie, which showed in just 96 theaters and arrives today on DVD. The movie is about a single mother who invents a tale that her son's father is away at sea, but the lie catches up to her.

"Drama is quite possibly our best-selling genre," Gurlitz says. "The core audience is intensely involved in collection-building, and while many visit their local theaters, most yearn to own."

Steve Beeks, president of Lions Gate Entertainment, discovered the power of the over-45 set with the drama Beyond the Sea, starring Kevin Spacey as Bobby Darin. It showed on just 383 screens (wide release is considered 500 or more) and earned just $6 million in theaters, but it sold about $17 million in DVDs.

Older adults are buying 10% more DVDs now than they were at the end of 2004, says Kornblau, citing internal research. "As evidenced by the runaway success with such dramatic titles as Seabiscuit, Friday Night Lights and Ray, the late adopters are the prime catalyst for these films' overperformance on DVD."

Marketers are responding to the trend by tailoring ad campaigns for dramas to older adults and releasing special anniversary editions of older films such as Jaws and Casino

For the Oscar-nominated Finding Neverland, "we targeted a broad audience, including parents, many of whom did not get a chance to see the film in theaters," says Gordon Ho, executive vice president of Buena Vista Home Entertainment.

The Oscar-nominated Sideways was advertised on cable channels with high mature-adult viewership, such as A&E, Bravo, Lifetime and Fox News, says Mike Dunn, president of Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

London Live 8's 'Hey Jude' finale offered

LONDON (AP) — London Live 8's Hey Jude finale led by Paul McCartney was offered as a download Monday, while the concert's opening number was topping the online charts in several countries, the distributor said.

The McCartney/U2 concert opener, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, was No. 1 on the iTunes charts in Britain, Canada, Ireland, Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Belgium, said Adam White of Universal Music International.

The track was also No. 2 in Spain and No. 3 in France.

Universal said it logged the first Pepper sale just 45 minutes after the performance.

McCartney's performance of The Long and Winding Road, also from the end of the concert, was made available for downloading on Sunday, White said.

Universal is donating its share of the sales to Live 8, White said.

Putting Pam On The Menu

Pamela Anderson will become the first female recipient of a "Comedy Central Roast" spec, skedded to tape Aug. 7 for an Aug. 14 airdate.

Jimmy Kimmel will host the roast, which Tenth Planet Prods.' Joel Gallen is exec producing. Elizabeth Porter oversees for the comedy net.

A few months ago, "The Comedy Central Roast of Jeff Foxworthy" premiered to 6.2 million viewers, making it the second most-watched cablecast in the net's history, after a 1998 episode of "South Park."

Anderson, who will be lampooned for her animal activism among other things, is donating her fee to PETA.

McCartney Makes History with "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band"

Sir Paul McCartney's "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" performance with U2, which kicked off Live 8 in London Saturday, was the first time the former Beatle had ever played the song live. The British rocker has never included the tune in live sets, because he always felt odd performing it without his former group. But McCartney thought it was a great idea to open the show with Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band as it has the perfect opening line - a reminder of Live Aid 20 years ago. He says, "I was rung up, initially, by Bob Geldof... and he said, 'We want you to open up with U2. We've got this idea: 20 years ago today... Do Sgt Pepper. I said, 'You know what, that's a good idea, ' so I did it."

Union agrees BBC deal, job cut talks to begin

LONDON (Reuters) - The BBC can begin plans to cut 4,000 jobs after a technical workers' union voted on Monday to accept a revised offer put forward by the public broadcaster's Director General Mark Thompson.

About 92 percent of members of the Broadcasting Entertainment Cinematograph and Theatre Union (Bectu) voted to accept a one-year guarantee of no compulsory redundancies while talks move forward on how to reduce staff by 20 percent.

About 41 percent of Bectu members voted on the proposal. The other two BBC unions, the National Union of Journalists and Amicus, previously had agreed to the offer.

Talks are now set to begin at a divisional level to seek redundancy volunteers, according to Luke Crawley, Bectu's top BBC official. The union said it has reserved the right to strike if too many people are offered such packages.

"Managers with direct responsibility for day-to-day activities will be expected to explain how the BBC can continue to function properly with 20 percent fewer staff," Bectu said.

In addition to delaying any compulsory redundancies for one year, the BBC agreed to put off the sale of its BBC Resources unit for at least two years. It had been scheduled to be sold much sooner.

Staff at BBC Broadcast also were promised access to final salary pension scheme comparable to the BBC's and other assurances that terms will remain unchanged for at least three years.

The unit is being sold to Australia's largest investment bank Macquarie Bank Ltd. and investment fund Macquarie Capital Alliance Group. The group agreed to a one-year moratorium on compulsory job cuts.

The compromise deal with the world's largest public broadcaster came about after the unions had gone on strike for a day and had been planning more work stoppages.

Luther Vandross' Swan Song

Luther Vandross wasn't just a singer. He was a wedding day. A radio-show song dedication. A seduction.

The supremely smooth Grammy winner died Friday at a hospital in New Jersey, his record label confirmed. He was 54.

Vandross, whose hits included the romantic renderings "Power of Love/Love Power," "Here and Now" and "Always and Forever" was felled by a stroke on April 16, 2003, at his Manhattan apartment.

His label said, "Luther Vandross had a peaceful passing under the watchful eye of friends, family and the medical support team. As you know, Luther Vandross suffered a stroke two years ago, which he never fully recovered from.

"Throughout his illness, Luther received excellent medical care and attention from his medical team. Luther was deeply touched by all the thoughts and wishes from his fans."

Less than two months after his stroke, what would be his final studio album, the reflective Dance with My Father, was released.

The album proved to be Vandross' most successful, immediately topping the charts and winning four Grammy Awards in 2004, including Song of the Year for the title cut.

While Vandross regained consciousness, and sufficiently recovered to appear in a taped message at the 2004 Grammys and on The Oprah Winfrey Show later that same year, he never resumed his recording or performing career.

In a heartbreaking statement to the Associated Press in May 2003, the entertainer's mother, Mary Vandross, said she was banking on her son to rebound. "He has to recover, he's all I have left," Mary Vandross said. "He's my last surviving child."

In a 2001 interview, Luther Vandross, who'd long battled obesity, diabetes and hypertension, said his father, brother, nephew, maternal grandfather and paternal grandfather had all succumbed to diabetes.

Luther Ronzoni Vandross, his middle name cribbed from a pasta label, was born April 20, 1951, in New York City.

The future R&B crooner got his start in gospel. As a teenager, he played Harlem's famed Apollo Theatre with the gospel-soul group Listen My Brother.

At the age of 20, his career moved downtown to Broadway, where his composition "Everybody Rejoice (A Brand New Day)" was featured in the hit musical The Wiz.

The young Vandross went on to pay the bills as a commercial jingle writer and backup vocalist for the likes of Bette Midler, Barbra Streisand and David Bowie.

Vandross scored the Bowie gig through an old school friend. At the time, the English rocker was working on his landmark 1975 album, Young Americans. Hired as a singer, Vandross ended up arranging the vocal parts and cowriting the song "Fascination."

The following year, Vandross moved from the background to the foreground with the disco group Luther. To the relief of wedding deejays, Vandross' bout with Saturday Night Fever was brief. Luther, the group, was a bust. Vandross, the sultry R&B star, was about to be born.

His breakthrough--more than 10 years in the making--came with his 1981 solo debut, Never Too Much. The seven-track collection included the hit title track and a cover of a Burt Bacharach standard he made his own, "A House Is Not a Home."

The platinum-selling album was a career definer. No more would Vandross ping-pong from Broadway to Bowie. He was, always and forever, the standard-bearer of the smooth love song.

"[My style is] not 'Meet me in the shower' and 'Let's rub oil on each other,' " he once said in an interview. "You'll never hear me sing about those things."

Vandross' more understated style brought him the 1990 Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Here and Now." He repeated in that category in 1991 for "Power of Love" and in 1996 for "Your Secret Love." In all, Vandross won eight Grammys and sold more than 25 million albums.

If his career held steady, Vandross' health did not. By his own admission, he was a carb addict who lost, and gained, more than 100 pounds 14 times--often in the very public eye. As recently as 1998, the six-foot-three singer weighed in at 340 pounds.

"[When you're that heavy it] feels like you're wearing an 80-pound hat and a coat that weighs 300 pounds," Vandross told ABC News in 2001, during one of his slender, 220-pound periods. "You wear it externally, so the minute you walk through the door, everybody knows, Luther's not winning his battle with his demon."

"An alcoholic can't have half a martini," he said, "and you know, I can't have bread."

Fortunately, Vandross always had song--and admirers. Mariah Carey dueted with him on "Endless Love," off his 1994 cover-tune collection Songs. Whitney Houston recorded his "Who Do You Love," for her 1990 album I'm Your Baby Tonight. Foxy Brown, Busta Rhymes and Queen Latifah contributed to Dance with my Father. His duet with Beyoncé from that collection, "The Closer I Get to You," earned the Grammy for Best R&B Performance By a Duo Or Group with Vocals.

Vandross called Dance with my Father a personal album; the title track "the best song he ever wrote," according to his mother.

"When I heard it, I felt like I was going to, well, scream," Mary Vandross said in a statement around the time of the album's release. "I played it over and over, and I cried and cried. I was amazed how well Luther remembered his father, how we used to dance and sing in the house. I was so surprised that at seven and a half years of age, he could remember what a happy household we had. It was always filled with a lot of music."

The song debuted during an April 2003 episode of Fox's Boston Public. American Idol alum Tamyra Gray handled the singing honors. Vandross himself was to have graced the Idol stage in 2003 as a guest judge, but then the stroke struck.

To the end, his mother held out hope for his full recovery.

"Knowing how he loves this new album, I believe Luther would want it to come out now, and I'm so grateful that he can get this chance," she said in 2003. "He is going to recover, and when he does, I want him to be greeted with a big success story. "

Vandross was remembered in the 2004 tribute album Forever, for Always, for Luther, featuring the work of jazz artists such as George Benson. A new R&B-style tribute album was announced just last month. Carey, Celine Dion and former Idol champs Fantasia and Ruben Studdard were among those scheduled to contribute tracks.

"Remember, when I say goodbye it's never for long," Vandross said during his videotaped appearance at the 2004 Grammys. "Because," he continued, slipping into one of his trademark tunes, "I believe in the power of love."

CTV says 10.5M watched Live 8

TORONTO (CP) - Despite the lure of the great outdoors on a long weekend, a "stunning" 10.5 million Canadians tuned in Saturday to watch some or all of Live 8 on television, CTV said Monday.

The network said one in three Canadians - and 45 per cent of all households - tuned in for the 18-hour, 23-minute broadcast at some point, according to data from BBM Canada.

Peak viewership was over two million at 8:16 p.m. EDT when Neil Young closed the show at Park Place in Barrie, Ont., with Keep On Rockin' in the Free World. Coverage of the Canadian concert lasted nine hours and 20 minutes and had an average audience of 1.1 million viewers per minute.

"The television audience is even more remarkable when considering that the Live 8 event fell on Canada's July 1 long-weekend and doesn't reflect audiences watching from seasonal residences (cottages)," CTV said in a statement.

The broadcast showed every act on the stage in Barrie - there were more than 20 - as well as international hits, sometimes on a split screen, in other locations, including London, Paris, Philadelphia, Johannesburg, Moscow, Berlin, Rome and Tokyo.

Around the world there were an estimated two billion Live 8 television viewers. The free concerts were organized by musician Bob Geldof to pressure leaders of the G8 countries at their meeting in Scotland later this week to increase aid to poverty-stricken African countries.

CTV said 18 separate feeds were pulled in from all the international concerts, and 23 cameras were in position for the Barrie event.

"Never before have the people across this company pulled together to do the impossible and as such, it was a defining moment for CTV," Ivan Fecan, CEO of CTV Inc., said in a statement.

Spielberg, Cruise Wage 'War' With $77.6M

LOS ANGELES - "War of the Worlds" conquered the box office as easily as the movie's aliens overpowered Earth, but it did not have enough firepower to overcome Hollywood's prolonged slump.

Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise's sci-fi tale took in $77.6 million over the long Fourth of July weekend, lifting its total since debuting Wednesday to $113.3 million, according to studio estimates Monday.

That fell well short of the all-time high held by "Spider-Man 2," whose $180.1 million haul in its first six days led Hollywood to a record Fourth of July weekend last year.

The top 12 movies took in $160.1 million, off 25 percent from that 2004 record weekend.

It was the 19th straight weekend that domestic revenues were down compared with last year's, extending the longest slump since analysts began tracking detailed box-office figures. The worst downturn previously recorded was 17 weekends in 1985.

For the year, revenues are down about 7 percent, while factoring in higher ticket prices, admissions are off 10 percent. The longer the slump drags on, the harder it gets for Hollywood to dig itself out of that revenue hole, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

"There's a spotlight on the slump and people's dissatisfaction about going to the movies. That negative perception can create a negative reality," Dergarabedian said. "It also gives people the opportunity to vent all the reasons they don't like going to movies, whether it's high ticket prices or the costs at the concession stand. So they feel validated in that by the slump."

"War of the Worlds," Spielberg and Cruise's update on H.G. Wells' classic about space invaders laying siege to Earth, had the second-best four-day opening over Fourth of July, behind the $115.8 million for "Spider-Man 2."

"Anybody disappointed with the second-biggest opening ever on Fourth of July weekend should really sort of seek help," said Rob Friedman, vice chairman for motion pictures at Paramount, which handled domestic distribution for "War of the Worlds."

The studio hopes "War of the Worlds" will have a long shelf life at theaters, since Spielberg and Cruise's audiences tend to skew older than crowds that rush out over opening weekend for such comic-book adaptations as "Spider-Man 2," Friedman said.

"This is not a sequel. It's not based on a comic book and a young fan-based property. This is based on a 100-year-old literary property," Friedman said. Spielberg and Cruise's "movies tend to play longer, stay in the marketplace longer, so I think as it relates to `Spider-Man 2,' we'll have to wait and see what the long haul brings."

Opening in 78 countries last week, "War of the Worlds" took in an additional $102.5 million overseas from Wednesday to Sunday, putting its worldwide total at well over $200 million. Paramount did not yet have figures on how much the movie took in internationally on Monday.

"War of the Worlds" bumped "Batman Begins" to second place after two weekends in the top box-office slot. "Batman Begins" hauled in $18.7 million over the four-day weekend to raise its three-week domestic total to $154.1 million.

The weekend's other new wide release, the Martin Lawrence basketball comedy "Rebound," fouled out with just $6 million from Friday to Monday, coming in at No. 7.

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

1. "War of the Worlds," $77.6 million.
2. "Batman Begins," $18.7 million.
3. "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," $12.7 million.
4. "Bewitched," $10.8 million.
5. "Herbie: Fully Loaded," $10.5 million.
6. "Madagascar," $7 million.
7. "Rebound," $6 million.
8. "Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith," $5 million.
9. "The Longest Yard," $3.5 million.
10. "George Romero's Land of the Dead," $3.2 million.

Christian Group Slams Simpson

An American Christian group have demanded Jessica Simpson apologise for her raunchy new music video. The Resistance have dubbed the video for her cover of "These Boots Are Made For Walking" as "slutty" - and ordered her to shoot a cleaner version. They object to her risque behavior in the video - the song is taken from the soundtrack for The Dukes Of Hazzard - in which she washes a car wearing a skimpy bikini - particularly because Simpson's father is a Baptist pastor and they view her as a Christian role model. The group's representative John Conner says, "It's sad to see her whore herself out like this. She's a singing stripper."

Acts see album sales soar after Live 8 gigs

LONDON (Reuters) - They came out of charity. They left with booming record sales.

The galaxy of rock stars who took part in Live 8 concerts on Saturday to help beat the curse of poverty have seen their records fly off the shelves in British music stores, proving that cash balances as well as consciences were the winner.

According to HMV, one of Britain's main record retailers with 200 stores nationwide, Pink Floyd's "Echoes" album posted a staggering 1,343 percent increase in sales on Sunday compared with the same day a week ago.

The band re-formed for the Live 8 concert in London's Hyde Park, where they joined pop legends Paul McCartney, Madonna, U2 and Elton John among others in front of 200,000 people.

"Even allowing for the relative nature of this exercise ... this snapshot still shows that the Live 8 concert is having a marked effect on sales of featured artist recordings," said Gennaro Castaldo spokesman for the HMV chain.

He stressed that the increase for Pink Floyd and other acts appearing in Hyde Park was partly due to the small number of records sold on Sunday, June 26. Total sales of the album on Sunday, July 3, the day after Live 8, were approaching 1,000.

Next came The Who's "Then & Now," with an increase of 863 percent, Annie Lennox's "Eurythmics Greatest Hits" (500 percent) and Dido's "Life For Rent" (412 percent).

Ironically, Coldplay's "X&Y," which has stormed the charts in Britain and the United States, registered one of the smallest increases out of the London Live 8 acts at just three percent.

But according to HMV, the band still sold the highest number of copies at more than 2,800.

The only Live 8 performer to have clocked a drop in sales was Pete Doherty. His former group the Libertines saw sales of their "Up the Bracket" album drop by 35 percent.

Doherty's performance was singled out by the British media as one of the worst of the nine-hour Hyde Park music marathon.

The Mirror tabloid called his duet with Elton John "shambolic."

Reporters at the gig said he struggled with the words of the classic song "Children of the Revolution" and looked unsteady on his feet.

Virgin Megastores, another major British music outline, could not immediately be reached for comment on post-Live 8 sales.

Birthday boy Cruise wages 'War' at box office

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Tom Cruise celebrated his 43rd birthday on Sunday atop the worldwide box office with "War of the Worlds," the costly alien-invasion thriller directed by Steven Spielberg.

The impressive $204.2 million global tally, reported on Sunday by distributor Paramount Pictures, includes $101.7 million from its first five days of release in North America, where business is getting a much-needed boost from Monday's July 4 holiday in the United States.

While solid, the North American haul falls short of the record $152 million that "Spider-Man 2" earned in its first five days during the July 4 span last year, when the holiday fell on Sunday.

"War of the Worlds" did, however, beat the opening mark of incumbent box office champion "Batman Begins," which earned $72.9 million during its first five days two weeks ago, albeit without the benefit of a holiday crowd.

Internationally, "War of the Worlds" has earned $102.5 million from 78 countries, including $15 million in the United Kingdom and $15.5 million in Japan, a Paramount spokeswoman said.

"War of the Worlds," budgeted at about $135 million, began its campaign on Wednesday with $21.3 million, topping the $15 million Wednesday start of "Batman Begins," but not the $40 million bow of "Spider-Man 2."

Saturday's sales of $22.7 million represent the biggest single-day haul for both Paramount and Cruise, said the studio, a unit of Viacom Inc.

For the "traditional" three-day period beginning Friday, the film earned $66 million, the second-highest number for 2005, behind the $108.4 million weekend for "Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith." That film opened on a Thursday with midnight screenings, making comparisons with "War" difficult.

Some Hollywood commentators have speculated that the movie's prospects could be hurt by Cruise's unorthodox publicity campaign. The usually strait-laced actor has raised eyebrows by giddily professing his love for fiancee Katie Holmes, and defiantly extolling the superiority of Scientology over psychiatry.

But the critics liked the movie, which is based on the novel by Victorian writer H.G. Wells. Cruise plays a blue-collar worker who flees with his two children from aliens who are destroying everything in their path. Paramount partnered on the project with closely held DreamWorks SKG, of which Spielberg is a founding partner.

Because the year-ago period set a record for the July 4 holiday, overall sales this time are expected to fall for a 19th consecutive weekend. A clearer picture will emerge on Monday, because most studios did not report figures on Sunday. "Batman Begins" led the field last weekend with $27.6 million.

The Couch Potato Report - July 2nd, 2005

This week The Couch Potato Report features one thirty year old classic, a casino and a pacifier that won't pacify anyone.

If you look at the Box Office results for this year - so far - there are eight films that have made over $100 million.

STAR WARS: EPISODE III, HITCH, MADAGASCAR, THE LONGEST YEARD, BATMAN BEGINS, MR. & MRS. SMITH, ROBOTS and THE PACIFIER have all grossed more than $100.

This year is half over and there are eight films over the $100 million mark.

In 1975 there was one for the whole year.

Thirty years ago this summer Steven Speilberg's film JAWS became the first movie to ever make more than $100 million at the Box Office.

JAWS was the movie industry's first blockbuster and now the classic film is being released on DVD in a 30th ANNIVERSARY EDITION.

JAWS is the story of Amity, a Long Island summer town.

After some great-white-shark attacks, the business owners and residents find that not only their tourist business is threatened.

JAWS is a movie that features some beautifully crafted, crowd-pleasing sequences of action and suspense supported by a trio of terrific performances by Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and especially Robert Shaw.

JAWS continues to be a movie classic, even thirty years later.

The only thing for me that is different about watching JAWS now, as opposed to when it first came out, is that I no longer worry about letting my legs dangle over the edge of my bed.

When I was a kid, the film made me stop doing that for a while.

And I suspect I am not alone!

I also suspect I am not alone in being very happy that this new 30th ANNIVERSARY EDITION of JAWS if finally giving us fans of the film many of the special features that were issued ten years ago on the laserdisc celebrating the movie's 20th ANNIVERSARY.

This 30th ANNIVERSARY EDITION has a very insightful 2 hour retrospective documentary, a sixty page booklet, an interview from the film's set in 1974, and much more from the "Jaws Archives", including this admission from director Steven Speilberg.

JAWS was the first Hollywood blockbuster, and thirty years removed, the film is still worth watching.

How many of this year's $100 million grossing films will we say that about in 2035?

Certainly not THE PACIFIER, but I will get to that film in a moment.

Right now, lets focus on the 10th ANNIVERSARY EDITION of Martin Scorsese's film CASINO.

In 1995 the legendary director reunited with members of his Oscar nominated GOODFELLAS team. Specifically writer Nicholas Pileggi and actors Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci.

The result was a three-hour movie about how the Mafia seized, and finally lost control of, Las Vegas gambling.

The first hour of CASINO plays like a fascinating documentary on Las Vegas, intricately detailing the inner workings of casinos.

The first hour sets you up to think that another masterpiece is in the offing.

But after that first hour, the film goes down in quality and - well, if I am being honest - it always just makes me want to watch GOODFELLAS again.

CASINO isn't a bad film, it is actually very, very good, but it is no GOODFELLAS and that latter film's shadow looms large over this picture, even if the movies are filled with different characters.

No, CASINO isn't as fast paced, enthralling or as interesting as GOODFELLAS, but it is still very worthy of your time.

Yes, the movie is worth your time, but I reccomend that you be a bit wary of this 10th ANNIVERSARY EDITION of CASINO.

There are only a few extra features on the DVD. Even though they are really good, limited features on a DVD for a movie such as this usually means that there will be other special editions coming out in the future!

So be wary.

You should also be wary of any editions of THE PACIFIER that are released!

Personally, I hope there will never be a 10th, 30th, or even a 1st Anniversary edition of this movie.

THE PACIFIER features action hero Vin Diesel from XXX and PITCH BLACK as a Navy SEAL who is called upon to baby sit a group of kids.

THE PACIFIER isn't very entertaining, and that is too bad as there is a precendent for an action film star to make a kiddie comedy.

In 1990 Arnold Schwarzenegger went from the action of TOTAL RECALL to the kids he faced in KINDERGARTEN COP.

That film was very entertaining, but Schwarzenegger had two things that Diesel doesn't have: talent or a good script.

The biggest problem with THE PACIFIER is that it is just a generic fish-out-of-water kiddie comedy.

The second biggest problem with the film is the fact that Vin Diesel has no comedic timing and he just isn't funny.

Young kids who will watch anything might find the movie funny, but parents and older kids will likely find THE PACIFIER a waste of time and they will quit watching it about twenty minutes.

The 30th ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF JAWS, the 10th ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF CASINO and THE PACIFIER are all available now at a store near you.

COMING UP IN THE NEXT COUCH POTATO REPORT

The late great John Candy stars in the wonderful 1991 film ONLY THE LONELY, and we'll go back to 1928 for some VINTAGE MICKEY MOUSE cartoons.

I'm Dan Reynish and I will have more on those, 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!

One Step Closer To “The Bourne Ultimatum”

The next chapter in the Bourne movie franchise is one step closer to production. Variety reports that Universal Pictures has officially signed Tony Gilroy to return as writer for the next adaptation, expected from Robert Ludlum’s “The Bourne Ultimatum.” The success of the first two films has Matt Damon keen to reprise his role as the keenly-skilled but memory-challenged spy. Although no deal is yet in place for Damon to return to the franchise, it’s expected the film’s casting as well as news as to who will direct, will be made public once the script is complete. Since the first two films proved to be “Bourne” to storm the box-office, there’s no doubt Universal will want the film’s drawing cards stacked in their favor.

R&B Crooner Luther Vandross Dies at 54

NEW YORK - Grammy award winner Luther Vandross, whose deep, lush voice on such hits as "Here and Now" and "Any Love" sold more than 25 million albums while providing the romantic backdrop for millions of couples worldwide, died Friday. He was 54.

Vandross died at John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Edison, N.J., said hospital spokesman Rob Cavanaugh. He did not release the cause of death but said in a statement that Vandross "never really recovered from" a stroke two years ago.

Since the stroke in his Manhattan home on April 16, 2003, the R&B crooner stopped making public appearances — but amazingly managed to continue his recording career. In 2004, he captured four Grammys as a sentimental favorite, including best song for the bittersweet "Dance With My Father."

Vandross, who was still in a wheelchair at the time, delivered a videotaped thank you.

"Remember, when I say goodbye it's never for long," said a weak-looking Vandross. "Because" — he broke into his familiar hit — "I believe in the power of love."

Vandross also battled weight problems for years while suffering from diabetes and hypertension.

He was arguably the most celebrated R&B balladeer of his generation. He made women swoon with his silky yet forceful tenor, which he often revved up like a motor engine before reaching his beautiful crescendos.

Jeff O'Conner, Vandross' publicist, called his death "a huge loss in the R&B industry. He was a close friend of mine and right now it's shocking."

O'Conner said he received condolence calls Friday from music luminaries such as Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle, Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones.

Vandross was a four-time Grammy winner in the best male R&B performance category, taking home the trophy in 1990 for the single "Here and Now," in 1991 for his album "Power of Love," in 1996 for the track "Your Secret Love" and a last time for "Dance With My Father."

The album, with its single of the same name, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts while Vandross remained hospitalized from his stroke. It was the first time a Vandross album had topped the charts in its first week of release.

In 2005, he was nominated for a Soul Train Music Award for a duet with Beyonce on "The Closer I Get To You."

Vandross' sound was so unusual few tried to copy it; even fewer could.

"I'm proud of that — it's one of the things that I'm most proud of," he told The Associated Press in a 2001 interview. "I was never compared to anyone in terms of sound."

Vandross' style harkened back to a more genteel era of crooning. While many of his contemporaries and successors belted out tunes that were sexually charged and explicit, Vandross preferred soft pillow talk and songs that spoke to heartfelt emotions.

"I'm more into poetry and metaphor, and I would much rather imply something rather than to blatantly state it," he said. "You blatantly state stuff sometimes when you can't think of a a poetic way to say it."

A career in music seemed predestined for the New York native; both his parents were singers, and his sister, Patricia, was part of a 1950s group called the Crests.

But he happily toiled in the musical background for years before he would have his first hit. He wrote songs for projects as varied as a David Bowie album ("Fascination") and the Broadway musical "The Wiz" ("Everybody Rejoice (Brand New Day)"), sang backup for acts such as Donna Summer and Barbra Streisand, and even became a leading commercial jingle singer.

Vandross credited singer Roberta Flack for prodding him to move into the spotlight after listening to one of his future hits, "Never Too Much."

"She started crying," he recalled. "She said, `No, you're getting too comfortable (in the background). ... I'm going to introduce you to some people and get your career started.'"

Vandross' first big hit came as the lead vocalist for the group Change, with their 1980 hit, "The Glow of Love." That led to a recording contract with Epic Records, and in 1981, he made his solo recording debut with the disc "Never Too Much." The album, which contained his aching rendition of "A House is Not a Home," became an instant classic.

Over the years, Vandross would emerge as the leading romantic singer of his generation, racking up one platinum album after another and charting several R&B hits, such as "Superstar," "Give Me The Reason" and "Love Won't Let Me Wait."

Yet, while Vandross was a household name in the black community, he was frustrated by his failure to become a mainstream pop star. Indeed, it took Vandross until 1990 to score his first top 10 hit — the wedding staple "Here & Now."

"I just wanted more success. I didn't want to suddenly start wearing blond wigs to appeal to anyone," he told the AP.

"This is the same voice that sang Pepsi-Cola, Coca-Cola, NBC 'proud as a peacock,' ... America, the world, has heard the voice, so there's no reason that that music shouldn't have gone the complete distance, I mean, to number one."

Another frustration for Vandross was his lifelong battle with obesity. Health problems ran in his family, and Vandross struggled for years to control his waistline. When he first became a star, he was a hefty size; a few years later, he was almost skinny. His weight fluctuated so much that rumors swirled that he had more serious health problems than the hypertension and diabetes caused by his large frame.

Vandross' two sisters and a brother died before him. The lifelong bachelor never had any children, but doted on his nieces and nephews. The entertainer said his busy lifestyle made marriage difficult; besides, it wasn't what he wanted.

Official Lyrics of O Canada!

O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.

With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!

From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

The History of the National Anthem

Summary

"O Canada" was proclaimed Canada's national anthem on July 1, 1980, 100 years after it was first sung on June 24, 1880. The music was composed by Calixa Lavallée, a well-known composer; French lyrics to accompany the music were written by Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier. The song gained steadily in popularity. Many English versions have appeared over the years. The version on which the official English lyrics are based was written in 1908 by Mr. Justice Robert Stanley Weir. The official English version includes changes recommended in 1968 by a Special Joint Committee of the Senate and House of Commons. The French lyrics remain unaltered.

Full History of "O Canada"

Many people think of Calixa Lavallée as an obscure music teacher who dashed off a patriotic song in a moment of inspiration. The truth is quite different. Lavallée was, in fact, known as "Canada's national musician" and it was on this account that he was asked to compose the music for a poem written by Judge Adolphe-Basile Routhier.

The occasion was the "Congrès national des Canadiens-Français" in1880, which was being held at the same time as the St. Jean-Baptiste Day celebrations.

There had been some thought of holding a competition for a national hymn to have its first performance on St. Jean-Baptiste Day, June 24, but by January the committee in charge decided there was not enough time, so the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, the Honourable Théodore Robitaille, commissioned Judge Routhier to write a hymn and Lavallée to compose the tune. Lavallée made a number of drafts before the tune we know was greeted with enthusiasm by his musical friends. It is said that in the excitement of success Lavallée rushed to show his music to the Lieutenant Governor without even stopping to sign the manuscript.

The first performance took place on June 24, 1880 at a banquet in the "Pavillon des Patineurs" in Quebec City as the climax of a"Mosaïque sur des airs populaires canadiens" arranged by Joseph Vézina, a prominent composer and bandmaster.

Although this first performance of "O Canada" with Routhier's French words was well received on the evening, it does not seem to have made a lasting impression at that time. Arthur Lavigne, a Quebec musician and music dealer, published it without copyright but there was no rush to reprint. Lavallée's obit in 1891 doesn't mention it among his accomplishments, nor does a biography of Judge Routhier published in 1898. French Canada is represented in the 1887 edition of the University of Toronto song book by "Vive la canadienne", "A la claire fontaine" and "Un canadien errant".

English Canada in general probably first heard "O Canada" when school children sang it when the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall (later King George V and Queen Mary) toured Canada in 1901. Five years later Whaley and Royce in Toronto published the music with the French text and a translation into English made by Dr. Thomas Bedford Richardson, a Toronto doctor. The Mendelssohn Choir used the Richardson lyrics in one of their performances about this time and Judge Routhier and the French press complimented the author.

Richardson version:
O Canada! Our fathers' land of old
Thy brow is crown'd with leaves of red and gold.
Beneath the shade of the Holy Cross
Thy children own their birth
No stains thy glorious annals gloss
Since valour shield thy hearth.
Almighty God! On thee we call
Defend our rights, forfend this nation's thrall,
Defend our rights, forfend this nation's thrall.

In 1908 Collier's Weekly inaugurated its Canadian edition with a competition for an English text to Lavallée's music. It was won by Mercy E. Powell McCulloch, but her version did not take.

McCulloch version :
O Canada! in praise of thee we sing;
From echoing hills our anthems proudly ring.
With fertile plains and mountains grand
With lakes and rivers clear,
Eternal beauty, thos dost stand
Throughout the changing year.
Lord God of Hosts! We now implore
Bless our dear land this day and evermore,
Bless our dear land this day and evermore.

Since then many English versions have been written for "O Canada". Poet Wilfred Campbell wrote one. So did Augustus Bridle, Toronto critic. Some were written for the 1908 tercentenary of Quebec City. One version became popular in British Columbia...

Buchan version:
O Canada, our heritage, our love
Thy worth we praise all other lands above.
From sea to see throughout their length
From Pole to borderland,
At Britain's side, whate'er betide
Unflinchingly we'll stand
With hearts we sing, "God save the King",
Guide then one Empire wide, do we implore,
And prosper Canada from shore to shore.

However the version that gained the widest currency was made in 1908 by Robert Stanley Weir, a lawyer and at the time Recorder of the City of Montréal. A slightly modified version of the 1908 poem was published in an official form for the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation in 1927, and has since been generally accepted in English speaking Canada. Following further minor amendments, the first verse of Weir's poem was proclaimed as Canada's national anthem in 1980. The version adopted pursuant to the National Anthem Act in 1980 reads as follows:

O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North, strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free !
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
Many musicians have made arrangements of "O Canada" but there appears to be a scarcity of recordings suitable for various purposes.

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Calixa Lavallée

Calixa Lavallée was a "canadien errant", a man who left his country for greener fields, but who nevertheless loved Canada and returned to it, returned with a reputation well earned in the United States and France to become the "national musician" of Canada. He was, in his time, a composer operettas, at least one symphony, various occasional pieces and songs; he was a pianist and organist of considerable note and he was a teacher who wanted to found the first Canadian Conservatory.
The famous Canadian choral conductor Augustus Stephen Volt said of him: "I became acquainted with Lavallée in the 80's of the last century, when I was in Boston as a student of music, and he impressed me as a man of extraordinary ability - not merely as a clever executant of the piano, and not merely as an adroit deviser of pretty melodies and sensuous harmonies, but as a genuinely creative artist, a pure musical genius".

Calixa Lavallée was born in Verchères, Canada East, on December 28, 1842, the son of Augustin Lavallée, a woodcutter and blacksmith, who became an instrument repairman, bandleader and music teacher. Later when the family moved to St-Hyacinthe, the father worked for the famous organ-builder Joseph Casavant and led the townband. Calixa showed talent early and played the organ in the cathedral at the age of eleven. Two years later he gave a piano recital at the Théâtre Royal in Montréal.

In Montréal Lavallée met Léon Derome, a butcher who loved music. He became Lavallée's lifelong patron and friend, often coming to his aid in bad times.

About this time, Calixa tired of regular lessons and left Montréal to try his luck in the United States. In New Orleans, he won a competition which in turn won him a job as accompanist to the famous Spanish violinist Olivera. After touring with Olivera in Brazil and the West Indies, Lavallée joined the Northern army during the American Civil War.

Leaving the U.S. army as a lieutenant, Lavallée returned to Montréal where he gave piano lessons and played cornet in a theatre orchestra.

In 1865 he returned to the United States to teach and give a series of concert tours. He married and began to work with Arnold de Thiers, with whom he composed a comic opera called "Loulou". The night before its first performance, the owner of the opera house was shot and the theatre closed. Lavallée, who had been conductor and artistic director of the theatre, the NewYork Grand Opera House, found himself out of a job.

He returned to Montréal in 1872 to a warm welcome from his friends, and had soon set up a studio with Jehin Prume and Rositadel Vecchio, well-known musicians. Success in Montréal brought him the fulfillment of a lifelong dream, to continue his musical education in Paris. A group of friends led by Derome made him a monthly allowance while he studied with Bazin, Boieldieu and Marmontel. A Lavallée symphony was performed by a Paris orchestra in 1874 and his teachers predicted a great future for him.

Lavallée decided to devote his life to the establishment of a conservatory in Canada. To prove that talent existed, he mounted a Gounod drama with an all-Canadian cast of 80. The venture was a great success and Lavallée had high hopes of interesting the government in his idea. But although the public responded warmly to his productions, official quarters gave nothing but vague promises.

It was during this Quebec period, in 1880 that Lavallée composed the music of "O Canada" for the "Congrès national des Canadiens-Français". But he could see nothing ahead but routine teaching and playing, so once again he took off for the United States.

Things took a turn for the better. He was appointed an organist and choirmaster; he toured with the famous Hungarian soprano Etelka Gerster; he increased his composing; many of his works were performed including "Tiq", a "melodramatic musical satire"on the Indian question and his comic opera "The Widow". As a member of the Music Teachers' National Association, he organized a number of very successful concerts, and finally, in 1887, was elected president.

In 1888 Lavallée represented the professional musicians of America in London and introduced American compositions in London where the Lord Mayor gave a dinner in his honour.

Lavallée's health had been poor for some years and after his return to Boston became much worse. By the autumn of 1890 he was bedridden and in financial straits. He died on January 21, 1891,at the age of 49, leaving some 60 works, only about half of which have been found.

Lavallée was buried near Boston but his body was brought back to Canada in 1933 and now rests in Montréal Cemetery Côte-des-Neiges.

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Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier

Adolphe-Basile Routhier was born in May 8, 1839 in Saint-Placide (Lower Canada). He studied at the University of Laval, and was a distinguished lawyer in Kamouraska.

He was appointed judge of the Quebec Superior Court in 1873, and later became Chief Justice of Quebec from 1904 until his retirement in 1906.

He was probably better known as a poet than as a judge, and it was natural that the Honourable Théodore Robitaille, Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, should turn to him to write the words of an hymn for the great "Congrès national des Canadiens-Français" in 1880. His poem "O Canada!" was widely praised on its first presentation.

Sir Adolphe was made a knight of the The Most Honourable Order of the Bath in 1911. He was a founding member of the Royal Society of Canada, and was president of that society from 1914-1915.

Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier died on June 27, 1920, at Saint-Irenée-des-Bains, Quebec.

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The Honourable Robert Stanley Weir

Robert Stanley Weir (1856-1926) was born in Hamilton, in what was then Canada West. He took all his higher education in Montreal, and was qualified for both teaching and the law. He chose law and rose rapidly in the profession, becoming in due course, like Routhier, a judge first as Recorder of the City of Montréal and later to the Exchequer Court of Canada (now the Federal Court of Canada). He wrote both learned legal works and poetry, and his fame as a writer won him election as a Fellow of the Royal Society which Routhier had helped found.

Weir had been a member of the Quebec Legislative Assembly for Argenteuil from 1903 to 1910, during which period he served in the Parent and Gouin Ministries as Minister without portfolio, Minister of Public Works or Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.

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Parliamentary Action

By the time the World War broke out in 1914, "O Canada" was the best known patriotic song in Canada, edging out "The Maple leaf Forever" and others less well-known today.

1924 - The association of Canadian Clubs passed a unanimous resolution recommending the Weir version as suitable for use at Club meetings.
Since then the I.O.D.E. and the Canadian Authors Association have endorsed it and in 1958 the Native Sons of Canada found in favour of it.

1927 - An official version of "O Canada" was authorized for singing in Canadian schools and for use at public functions.

1942 - July 27. The Prime Minister, the Right Honourable William Lyon Mackenzie King, was asked if he did not think this an appropriate time for proclaiming a national anthem. He replied that "There are times and seasons for all things and this time of war when there are other more important questions with which parliament has to deal, we might well continue to follow what has become the custom in Canada in recent years of regarding "God Save The King" and "O Canada" each as national anthems and entitled to similar recognition." He said further that this was his opinion, his government's opinion and he had no doubt it was the opinion of most people in the country.
Some years later, his successor as Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Louis St-Laurent made a similar statement.

1964 - A government resolution authorized the formation of a special joint committee to consider the status of "God Save The Queen" and "O Canada".

1966 - January 31. The Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Lester B. Pearson, placed a notice of motion on the order paper "That the government be authorized to take such steps as may be necessary to provide that "O Canada" shall be the National Anthem of Canada while "God Save The Queen" shall be the Royal Anthem of Canada.

1967 - March 15. The special joint committee "unanimously recommends that the government be authorized to adopt forthwith the music for "O Canada" composed by Calixa Lavallée as the music of the National Anthem of Canada with the following notation added to the sheet music: With dignity, not too slowly.

"God Save The Queen" was found to be in the public domain as the Royal Anthem of Canada, but for "O Canada" the committee deemed it "essential to take such steps as necessary to appropriate the copyright to the music providing that it shall belong to Her Majesty in right of Canada for all time. This provision would also include that no other person shall be entitled to copyright in the music or any arrangements or adaptations thereof."

The committee recommended further study of the lyrics. It suggested keeping the original French version and using the Weir English version with minor changes - that is replacing two of the "Stand on guard" phrases with "From far and wide" and "God keep our land".

There was no trouble with the music copyright which had by now descended to Gordon V. Thompson. They were willing to sell for $1, but the heirs of Judge Weir objected to the changes in the original version. Since Judge Weir died in 1926, the Weir version would not come into public domain until 1976. There was some doubt that the Weir family had legal grounds for objection since Thompson's apparently held copyright on both music and English words. However the committee preferred to settle the matter amicably if at all possible. The Government acquired the rights from G.V. Thompson in 1970.

The version recommended by the committee:
O Canada! our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

1972 - February 28 - The Secretary of State of Canada, the Honourable Gérard Pelletier, presented a bill in the House of Commons proposing the adoption of "O Canada" as the National Anthem of Canada. The recommendations of the 1967 study in Parliament are incorporated in the bill, which did not receive further study in Parliament and died on the order paper. The same legislation was reintroduced by Mr. Pelletier's successors at further sessions of Parliament; no action was ever taken.

1980 - June 18 - The Secretary of State of Canada, the Honourable Francis Fox, presented a bill, similar to previously presented bills on "O Canada", fulfilling a promise made earlier in the House that "O Canada" be proclaimed as Canada's national anthem as soon as possible in this year of the centenary of the first rendition. The bill was unanimously accepted by the House of Commons and the Senate on June 27; Royal assent was given the same day.

July 1 - The Governor General, His Excellency the Right Honourable Edward Schreyer, proclaimed the Act respecting the National Anthem of Canada, thus making "O Canada" an official symbol of the country. A public ceremony was held at noon on Parliament Hill in front of thousands of Canadians. Descendants of Weir and Routhier were on the official platform, as well as the successor of Robitaille, the Honourable Jean-Pierre Côté.

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Original Poem by Weir

Originally "O Canada" was a patriotic poem by Sir Adolphe-Basile Routhier, a Quebec judge. Calixa Lavallée, the well-known Canadian composer, was commissioned to set it to music, and it was first sung in 1880 during a national convention of French Canadians in Quebec City. Many English versions have appeared, but the one which was widely accepted was written in 1908 by another judge, R. Stanley Weir, in honour of the 300th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City. It was amended in 1913, 1914 and 1916 and published in an official form at the time of the Diamond Jubilee of Confederation in 1927 and during the Royal visit of 1939. A slightly modified version of the first verse of Weir's poem was proclaimed as Canada's national anthem in 1980. The original poem of 1908 by Stanley Weir reads as follows:

O Canada! Our home and native land!
True patriot love thou dost in us command.
We see thee rising fair, dear land,
The True North, strong and free;
And stand on guard, O Canada,
We stand on guard for thee.

Refrain
O Canada! O Canada!
O Canada! We stand on guard for thee.
O Canada! We stand on guard for thee.

O Canada! Where pines and maples grow.
Great prairies spread and lordly rivers flow.
How dear to us thy broad domain,
From East to Western Sea,
Thou land of hope for all who toil!
Thou True North, strong and free!

Refrain
O Canada! O Canada! etc.

O Canada! Beneath thy shining skies
May stalwart sons and gentle maidens rise,
To keep thee steadfast through the years
From East to Western Sea,
Our own beloved native land!
Our True North, strong and free!

Refrain
O Canada! O Canada! etc.

Ruler supreme, who hearest humble prayer,
Hold our dominion within thy loving care;
Help us to find, O God, in thee
A lasting, rich reward,
As waiting for the Better Day,
We ever stand on guard.

Refrain
O Canada! O Canada! etc.

English Translation of the French Version of the National Anthem

O Canada! Land of our forefathers
Thy brow is wreathed with a glorious garland of flowers.
As in thy arm ready to wield the sword,
So also is it ready to carry the cross.
Thy history is an epic of the most brilliant exploits.
Ch.
Thy valour steeped in faith
Will protect our homes and our rights
Will protect our homes and our rights.

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Music and lyrics

As the National Anthem Act only sets the melody for the anthem, musicians are free to arrange the score to suit their requirements.

There is no copyright on the melody and the words of the national anthem, the Act having declared them to be in the public domain. It is possible, however, to copyright the arrangements made to the melody.

It is possible to translate the words of the national anthem in languages other than English or French; it should be kept in mind, however, that this translated version will not have an official status.

Playing of anthems at events

There is no specific rule as to when it is appropriate to sing the national anthem at an event. It is up to the organizers to determine if "O Canada" will be sung at the beginning or at the end of a ceremony. If two anthems are to be played at the beginning of an event, "O Canada" should be played first followed by the other one. When anthems are played at the end of an event, "O Canada" should be played last.

Etiquette during the playing of the national anthem

As a matter of respect and tradition, it is proper to stand for the playing of "O Canada" as well as for the anthem of any other nation.

It is traditional for civilian men to take off their hats during the playing of the national anthem. Women as well as children do not remove their hats on such occasions.

There is no law or behaviour governing the playing of the national anthem; it is left to the good citizenship of individuals.

Commercial use

"O Canada" and "God Save The Queen" are in the public domain and may be used without having to obtain permission from the Government.

Watching Live 8: TV, Web, Mobile Options

Dozens of artists are poised to perform on stages around the world during Saturday's (July 2nd) Live 8 concerts. In the United States, if you're not planning to attend the show in Philadelphia, you can catch everything from highlights to entire regional concerts via television, online and mobile broadcasts.

As previously reported, the massive global initiative is being spearheaded by Live Aid organizer Bob Geldof in an attempt to fight poverty and influence leaders of Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States to act when they meet July 6-8 in Perthshire, Scotland, at the annual G8 summit.

AOL Music (AOLmusic.com) will offer the most music, with live feeds from six of the 10 concerts. The first will come from Berlin Brandenburg Gate beginning at 8 a.m. ET, followed by events in London's Hyde Park (9 a.m. ET), Rome's Circus Maximus (9:30 a.m. ET), Toronto's Molson Park (11 a.m. ET), Philadelphia's Benjamin Franklin Parkway (12 p.m. ET) and Paris' Palais de Versailles (1 p.m. ET).

Because simultaneously watching multiple Live 8 concerts will be a struggle for even the most adept Internet surfer, AOL Music will offer viewing of all six complete concerts on demand for six weeks after the event.

In addition, AOL Music will also provide a "global" feed with highlights from all of the shows, presumably including the remaining Live 8 events in Johannesburg's Mary Fitzgerald Square, Moscow's Red Square, Cornwall, England's Eden Project Arena and Tokyo's Makuhari Messe. (An additional July 6 show will be held in Scotland's Murrayfield Stadium to coincide with the opening of the G8 summit.)

On television, MTV and VH1 will start their live broadcast at noon ET, coinciding with the beginning of the Philadelphia concert, with coverage running through to 8 p.m. ET. ABC will air a two-hour highlights show, "Live 8: A Worldwide Concert Event Presented by Nokia," beginning at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

Those on the move tomorrow will not have to miss the action, as GoTV Networks will broadcast from various shows around the world to mobile phones on its newly launched alternative music channel ALTitude. Additionally, the service, which is available on Sprint, Nextel and Boost Mobile wireless platforms, will offer Live 8 content on its premium GoTV video package and Diva channel.

Although subject to change, AOL Music has confirmed the order of the Philadelphia bill, with a live from London feed of Paul McCartney and U2 to kick off the show. In addition to local performances by the Black Eyed Peas, Bon Jovi, Toby Keith, Maroon5 and more, additional sets from London (Madonna, Pink Floyd), Rome (Tim McGraw) and Berlin (Green Day) will be cut into the show. Stevie Wonder will close out the event.

Here is the Philadelphia broadcast rundown (times are approximate):

12:04 p.m. ET - Paul McCartney and U2 live from London
12:14 - Black Eyed Peas
12:33 - Bon Jovi
12:54 - Madonna live from London
1:00 - Destiny's Child
1:16 - Kanye West
1:30 - Will Smith
1:50 - Coldplay live from London
1:56 - Toby Keith
2:13 - Dave Matthews Band
2:40 - Alicia Keys
2:52 - Def Leppard
3:10 - Linkin Park and Jay-Z
3:50 - Tim McGraw live from Rome
3:56 - Sarah McLachlan
4:11 - Maroon5
4:28 - Green Day live from Berlin
4:34 - Keith Urban
4:48 - Jars of Clay
4:56 - Pink Floyd live from London
5:00 - Rob Thomas
5:21 - Stevie Wonder

...Nickelback Finishing Up New Album

Canadian rock act Nickleback is putting the finishing touches on its next studio album, which will be released Oct. 4 via Roadrunner. The as-yet-untitled set was produced by the band and recorded at frontman Chad Kroeger's home studio. It's the follow-up to 2003's "The Long Road," which has sold more than 2.7 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Billboard.com recently previewed three tracks from the set, including the potential singles "Photograph" and "Savin' Me." The former is a mid-tempo reflection on days gone by, as Kroeger recalls wasting time in “the old arcade” and his first kiss ("She's had a couple of kids since then / I haven't seen her since God knows when").

"Savin' Me" doesn't stray far from the sound of past singles like "Someday," but adds acoustic guitar touches and a bit of piano at its conclusion. "Fight for All the Wrong Reasons" is a more electric guitar-driven rocker a la Nickelback's breakthrough hit, "How You Remind Me."

The group has begun lining up late summer dates, beginning Aug. 25 in Las Vegas. A Sept. 10 appearance at NASCAR's Chevy Rock'n'Roll 500 in Richmond, Va., is also on tap. A more extensive tour is in the works for later in the fall.

In related news, Kroeger's 604 Records imprint has inked Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee for the Canadian release of the artist's upcoming solo album, "Tommyland: The Ride." The disc is due Aug. 9 and features a guest appearance by Kroeger.

'War of the Worlds' Rakes in $21 Million

LOS ANGELES - Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise's sci-fi thriller "War of the Worlds" raked in about $21.3 million at the domestic box office on its opening day, according to studio estimates released Thursday.

Spielberg's update of the H.G. Wells classic about invaders from outer space earned about $34.6 million worldwide when it debuted Wednesday, Paramount Pictures said.

The haul marked the most successful first day for a Cruise movie, the studio said.

Even with a big Fourth of July weekend expected from the film, it may not be enough to lift the industry out of its longest modern box-office slump. Domestic movie revenues have declined for 18 straight weekends compared to 2004.

The film opens over the same long weekend as last year's "Spider-Man 2," whose record $180.1 million in its first six days paced the industry to its best Fourth of July ever.