Superman Returns Final Running Time
We have learned that the final running time for Warner Bros. Pictures' Superman Returns is 2 hours and 33 minutes with credits included. That's 153 minutes.
Superman Returns, directed by Bryan Singer, hits conventional theaters, IMAX and IMAX 3D on June 28th, with screenings starting the night before on the 27th.
It is rated PG-13 for some intense action violence.
Original Muppets come home to Washington
The Smithsonian recognizes Jim Henson’s Legacy with inclusion of the original Muppets from "Sam and Friends" and "The Muppet Show"
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Jim Henson’s iconic Muppets and Kermit the Frog, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History and its Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation present “Muppets and Mechanisms: Jim Henson’s Legacy,” opening May 19. Two special displays will feature Henson’s earliest Muppet work—on view for the first time at the museum—as well as his later work in animatronics.
“Jim Henson embodied the innovation and ingenuity that is inherent in American culture,” said Brent D. Glass, director of the museum. “Beyond the entertainment value Henson’s creations provided, his work helped educate and inform his audiences, an influence that continues today.”
In 1955, Henson’s “Sam and Friends” debuted on local D.C. station WRC-TV, which introduced the American audience to Muppets and launched what would become a global phenomenon. “Sam and Friends” featured a number of unique, zany characters from the titular Sam to the first Kermit, a lizard-like creature made from a green felt coat discarded by Henson’s mother. Ten of the characters from “Sam and Friends,” including Henson’s oldest surviving creation Pierre, will be on display at the museum, adjacent to the “American Popular Culture” displays on the third floor.
Also on view will be a number of characters from “The Muppet Show” and other Muppet specials and movies that were originally voiced by Henson himself, including a Kermit the Frog from 1969, Rowlf the Dog, the Swedish Chef, Dr. Teeth and the Banjo Player from the Country Trio, which is actually a self-portrait of Henson.
Jim Henson’s contribution to puppeteering and entertainment extends beyond the characters themselves to technology as Henson and his “Creature Shops” pioneered uses of animatronics, or remote-controlled Muppets. This animatronic technology was a prominent component of a number of Henson projects, including the 1982 film “The Dark Crystal.” On view in cases outside the Lemelson Center on the museum’s first floor will be characters from “The Dark Crystal,” including the film’s villain Skeksis, as well as examples of animatronic technology.
Jim Henson came up with the word Muppet in the mid-1950s. Seemingly a combination of puppet and marionette, Henson insisted that he chose the term simply because he liked the way it sounded. Central to the design of a Muppet is the way its face is constructed, creating a pattern with the eyes, nose and mouth called “the magic triangle.” This establishes a point of focus essential in bringing a puppet to life in the eye of a TV or movie camera.
The National Museum of American History collects, preserves and displays American heritage through exhibitions and public programs about social, political, cultural, scientific and military history. Documenting the American experience from colonial times to the present, the museum looks at growth and change in the United States. The museum, located at 14th Street and Constitution Avenue N.W., is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. during the summer beginning May 26 and continuing through Sept. 4. The museum will close for major renovations beginning Sept. 5. Admission is free. For more information, visit the museum’s Web site at or call (202) 633-1000, (202) 357-1729 (TTY).
Aguilera Doubles Up On New Album
Christina Aguilera's upcoming album, "Back to Basics," has grown into a double-disc affair, according to her spokesperson. The project will arrive Aug. 15 via RCA and is led by the single "Ain't No Other Man," which can be purchased via Apple's iTunes Music Store. Aguilera debuted the cut over the weekend at the MTV Movie Awards.
As previously reported, the set find Aguilera paying tribute to soul, jazz and blues from the 1920s, '30s and '40s with assistance from producers DJ Premier and Linda Perry. "They're going to see a whole other side of Christina," Perry previously told Billboard.com of her contributions, which rely exclusively on live instrumentation.
I really like to go left field, think a little bit out of the box and go with someone, maybe a little bit more obscure, that I really respect," Aguilera told Billboard earlier this year of her decision to work with DJ Premier. "Not to say that Premier is that, but just to say that I'm not going to go to the obvious person, say, the Neptunes, Pharrell or Lil Jon. I really like to go someplace different that people haven't approached."
Other tracks set "Back to Basics" include "Save My From Myself" (dedicated to Aguilera's new husband, Jordan Bratman), "Candy Man," "I Got Trouble," "Thank You" (which features bits of prior Aguilera hit "Genie a Bottle") and "Still Dirrty," described by RCA as a "sassy club track.
WORLD EXCLUSIVE...KINDA
People magazine paying a reported $4.1 million to publish the first pictures of Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt in its upcoming issue, while U.K. counterpart Hello! magazine paid a similar sum for the international rights to the photos. Unfortunately for the high-bidding publications, a number of blogs, including perezhilton.com, socialitelife.com and Defamer.com, already publishing scans of the Hello! cover featuring Shiloh and her parents.
At age 81, Paul Newman stars in animated movie
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Reuters) - He's won Oscars, raced cars, been on President Richard Nixon's enemies list, helped found the famed Actor's Studio and established a food company to fund charities.
So what is the 81-year-old Paul Newman doing playing a crusty old automobile with blue eyes for headlights in the animated film "Cars," a cartoon set in the world of race cars.
"I wanted to be the first animated character on screen to demonstrate method acting," the trim, silver-haired actor said with a playful shrug as he readied for the premiere of the latest film from the lucrative Disney/Pixar partnership, makers of such hits "Finding Nemo" and "Toy Story."
The premiere was held last week at the Lowe's Motor Speedway, a center for NASCAR racing outside Charlotte, and attracted some 30,000 people -- more than a few making the trip just to see Newman.
The movie, which features a rookie race car driven to succeed and a mysterious old timer, played by Newman, opens in general release on Friday.
Newman said, "Making an animated film was a lot more fun than I thought it would be. I didn't have to go on location for a long period of time. I didn't have to deal with temperamental actors or wait a long time for the lights to be set up.
"I just drove from my New England home to New York City and recorded my dialogue in four days. ... Joanne (Woodward, his wife of 48 years,) thinks I'm coming back as a race car in my next life, so she says this is one role that I shouldn't overact!"
At a "Cars" news conference where he answered questions for an hour and in a private follow-up, Newman touched on a broad range of subjects, including the secret of why his show business marriage has lasted so long.
He made it sound simple: "I never ask my wife about my flaws. Instead I try to get her to ignore them and concentrate on my sense of humor. You don't want any woman to look under the carpet, guys, because there's lots of flaws underneath. Joanne believes my character in a film we did together, 'Mr. and Mrs. Bridge' comes closest to who I really am.
"I personally don't think there's one character who comes close ... but I learned a long time ago not to disagree on things that I don't have a solid opinion about."
It's hard to believe Newman lacks an opinion on anything. Newman marched for civil rights and in anti-Vietnam war demonstrations and used his star power to prompt a reluctant media cover those events.
HAPPY ON ENEMIES LIST
"Being on President Nixon's enemies list was the highest single honor I've ever received," Newman said with a smile and added, "Who knows who's listening to me now and what government list I'm on?"
Later in an isolated hallway, he gave some advice to aspiring actors: "Study your craft and know who you are and what's special about you. Find out what everyone does on a film set, ask questions and listen. Make sure you live life, which means don't do things where you court celebrity, and give something positive back to our society."
As for his credo on how to live life, Newman says, "It's useless to put on the brakes when you're upside down!"
While that wisdom was odd but funny, his response in private to a report that Ben Affleck and Matt Damon may do a "Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid remake is clear -- don't.
"I think we did a good enough job with the first one. Someone at the press conference asked about me about doing a sequel to 'Butch Cassidy.' Doesn't he know we died at the end of the picture? I was waiting for someone to ask if we'd do a prequel so I could tell them to go rent the DVD ("Butch and Sundance:The Early Years) ..."
Newman said he is working with Robert Redford on a project but refused to give details. "Let's just say we better make the movie soon before Redford gets too old," he said, grinning.
But if Newman doesn't make another movie again, one gets the impression he won't mind.
"I started my career giving a clinic in bad acting in the film 'The Silver Chalice' and now I'm playing a crusty old man who's an animated automobile. That's a creative arc for you isn't it?'
Singer-songwriter Billy Preston dead at 59
PHOENIX - Billy Preston, the exuberant keyboardist who landed dream gigs with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones and enjoyed his own series of hit singles including "Outta Space" and "Nothing From Nothing," died Tuesday at 59.
Preston's longtime manager, Joyce Moore, said Preston had been in a coma since November in a care facility and was taken to a Scottsdale hospital Saturday after his condition deteriorated.
"He had a very, very beautiful last few hours and a really beautiful passing," Moore said by telephone from Germany.
Preston had battled chronic kidney failure, and he received a kidney transplant in 2002. But the kidney failed and he has been on dialysis ever since, Moore said earlier this year.
Known for his big smile and towering Afro, Preston was a teen prodigy on the piano and organ, and lent his gospel-tinged touch to classics such as the Beatles' "Get Back" and the Stones' "Can't You Hear Me Knocking?"
He broke out as a solo artist in the 1970s, winning a best instrumental Grammy in 1973 for "Outta Space," and scoring other hits with "Will It Go 'Round In Circles," "Nothing From Nothing" and "With You I'm Born Again," a duet with Syreeta Wright. He also wrote Joe Cocker's weeper "You Are So Beautiful."
Other career highlights included being a musical guest, in 1975, on the debut of "Saturday Night Live"; having a song named after him, by Miles Davis; and appearing last year on "American Idol." Among his film credits: "Blues Brothers 2000" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band."
His partnership with the Beatles began in early 1969 when friend George Harrison recruited him to play on "Let It Be," a back-to-basics film and record project that nearly broke down because of feuding among band members. Harrison himself quit at one point, walking out on camera after arguing with Paul McCartney.
Preston not only inspired the Beatles to get along — Harrison likened his effect to a feuding family staying on its best behavior in front of a guest — but contributed a light, bluesy solo to "Get Back," performing the song with the band on its legendary "roof top" concert, the last time the Beatles played live. He was one of many sometimes labeled "The Fifth Beatle," a title he did not discourage.
Preston remained close to Harrison and performed at Harrison's all-star charity event "The Concert for Bangladesh," and at the "Concert for George," a tribute to Harrison, who died of cancer in 2001. He played on solo records by Harrison, Ringo Starr and John Lennon.
Preston also toured and recorded extensively with the Rolling Stones, playing on such classic albums as "Sticky Fingers" and "Exile on Main Street." In the mid-'70s, he parted from the Stones, reportedly unhappy over not getting proper credit for "Melody" and other songs, but reunited with the band in 1997 on its "Bridges to Babylon" record.
His sessions credits included Aretha Franklin's "Young, Gifted and Black," Bob Dylan's "Blood on the Tracks" and Sly and Family Stone's "There's a Riot Goin' On," three of the most acclaimed albums of the past 35 years.
"His legacy is so huge I don't even know where to start," Moore said. "It's many genres, so many years. ... It's rock 'n' roll, it's soul, it's funk, it's everything. He was truly, truly, truly a genius."
A Houston native who soon moved to Los Angeles when his parents split up, Preston was in and around show business for much of his life. He was taking piano lessons at age 3 and was just 10 when he played keyboards for gospel singer Mahalia Jackson.
Two years later he portrayed a young W. C. Handy in the 1958 biopic "St. Louis Blues." He toured with mentors and fellow piano greats Ray Charles and Little Richard in the early 1960s, first encountering the Beatles while on the road in Germany.
Exposed to drugs and alcohol early on, Preston had numerous personal troubles in recent years. In 1992, he was given a suspended jail sentence, but ordered incarcerated for nine months at a drug rehabilitation center for his no-contest pleas to cocaine and assault charges. Five years later, he was sentenced to three years in prison for violating probation. In 1998, he pleaded guilty to insurance fraud and agreed to testify against other defendants in an alleged scam that netted about $1 million.
"It (jail) was a great lesson, an awakening. I needed to reflect, to get rid of some of the dead weight around me," he later said. "You take the bitter with the sweet and I have to say it was my faith that kept me going. I had nothing else to fall back on."
The Couch Potato Report - June 6th, 2006
This week The Couch Potato Report shines the spotlight on yet another sports movie, Dumbo Jumbo, The Duke and the former Gordon Shumway.
Regardless if the story is true or not, sports movies in this day and age have become quite predictable and full of clichés.
They all usually start off with a team - or individual athlete - who no one ever expects to win, or in a situation that is preventing them from excelling.
Then, you add a coach who works them too hard because he believes in them, and he knows that they can win if they just apply themselves.
The coach also has a loving, understanding and supportive wife who is usually a very minor character in the film...well, until the coach starts to doubt himself, and then she is there to stand him back up again!
Now, once all of that has happened in these films, the odds must be stacked against the team - or individual athlete - and there absolutely has to be a scene in a locker room where they are prepared to quit, before they are inspired to play on either by the coach or one of the players who has "...no where else to go."
Do they win? Do they lose? Well, it isn’t always about winning. It is sometimes just about the journey.
REMEMBER THE TITANS, MIRACLE, PREFONTAINE, and FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS are just four recent examples of this new genre, a genre I will name “Predictable Sports Films.”
And you can now add GLORY ROAD to that list.
GLORY ROAD is “based on the true story” of Don Haskins. He was the 1966 Texas Western coach who led the first all-black starting line-up for a college basketball team to the NCAA national championship.
Every single one of those aforementioned predictable clichés are used in this film. Every single one of them, and even a few more!
Yes, the cast does great work, the film is expertly made, and the story is incredibly inspiring, but if you have seen any recent sports movie, you will know exactly what happens at every moment of the film.
Since I have seen almost every recent sports film, I found GLORY ROAD way too predictable to recommend.
Now, if you only watch films about basketball, or if the last sports movie you did see was SLAP SHOT, well then maybe GLORY ROAD has something for you.
Otherwise, take another road, or just watch another movie.
How about Walt Disney’s 1941 classic DUMBO, for instance.
The 64-minute DUMBO is the simple story of a long-eared, baby elephant, who is cherished by his mother, and mistreated by nearly everyone. Eventually he rises - literally - above every one else, and you will just about have seen everything, when you see an elephant fly.
Even though DUMBO has already been issued twice on DVD before, I am happy to tell you about this new BIG TOP SPECIAL EDITION DVD of the film because it gives me another opportunity to praise this marvelous movie.
No, this new version doesn’t have all of the Making Of" documentaries and bonus music videos that were on the "60th Anniversary Edition" DVD release just a few years ago, but it does have the main thing: The film itself.
And as I watched it again this week, for the twentieth or thirtieth time, I even realized something I had never noticed before.
The stork calls out for Mrs. Jumbo when he is attempting to deliver the baby elephant to it’s mother. Her last name is Jumbo, her fellow elephants name the baby Dumbo, so that makes his name Dumbo Jumbo.
I never noticed that before, and I found it funny, both that I never noticed it before, and that his name is Dumbo Jumbo.
Okay, moving on. Lets go from the highly recommended 1941 film DUMBO to a two disc set that has the 1940 film SEVEN SINNERS, 1941’s THE SHEPHERD OF THE HILLS, PITTSBURGH from 1942, THE CONQUERER from 1956 and JET PILOT from 1957.
Yes, all of those films can be found in the JOHN WAYNE - AN AMERICAN ICON COLLECTION.
Sadly, there are no extras or bonus materials included, once again we just get the films.
However, they are all interesting in their own right and they all feature great sound and picture quality.
John Wayne completists unite, and enjoy the set!
Finally this week is the 4 disc set for ALF - SEASON THREE.
In season three the former Gordon Shumway, refugee of the long-gone planet Melmac, continues to wreak hilarious havoc upon his adoptive Earth family the Tanners.
He annoys the father, upsets the mother, angers the teenage daughter and plays with the young son.
Oh, and he also hosts The Tonight Show.
I watched ALF every Monday night when it was on in the 80s, and I have no problems recommending it now...to those who also watched it when it was on in the 80s.
But, if you never saw the show before 2006, and you’re interested in finding something to make you laugh, I think you will definitely have a few laughs with Mr. Shumway and the Tanner family.
ALF - SEASON THREE, the JOHN WAYNE - AN AMERICAN ICON COLLECTION, the BIG TOP EDITION of Walt Disney’s classic DUMBO and GLORY ROAD are all available now on DVD.
Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report
In FIREWALL the once great Harrison Ford play a security specialist who is forced into robbing the bank that he's protecting, as a bid to pay off his family's ransom.
The 1991 film FRIED GREEN TOMATOES is celebrating it’s 15th year with an EXTENDED ANNIVERSARY EDITION.
TAMARA is a Canadian made film about a girl who is murdered and then returns from the dead to exact revenge.
And in THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS - THE FRANCHISE COLLECTION you get the original FAST AND THE FURIOUS film, plus it’s sequel 2 FAST 2 FURIOUS, plus a bonus look inside the soon to be released THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS: TOKYO DRIFT.
Ah yes, good mindless summer fun, all in one DVD Box Set!
I'm Dan Reynish. I'll 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 time on The Couch!
Battlestar Galactica - Season 2.5 flies onto store shelves this September
We've received early word from one of our retail sources that Universal has tentatively scheduled Battlestar Galactica 2.5 for September 19. The set will include the second half of the season (episodes 11-20), as well as the longer version of "Pegasus."
We'll have more information when the set is officially announced by the studio.
Here's a list of the final 10 episodes from season 2:
Resurrection Ship, Part 1
Resurrection Ship, Part 2
Epiphanies
Black Market
Scar
Sacrifice
The Captain's Hand
Downloaded
Lay Down Your Burdens Part 1
Lay Down Your Burdens Part 2
Please keep in mind that this is a rumored date until made official by the studio.
Chicks' Big Gamble
Country fans haven't forgiven the Dixie Chicks for bashing Bush -- but the trio isn't shutting up
It's been three years since Dixie Chicks singer Natalie Maines told a London audience, ''Just so you know, we're ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas'' -- a statement that generated death threats and got the trio all but banned from country radio. Now the Chicks are back with a new disc, the Rick Rubin-produced Taking the Long Way, and country radio's response to the album's first single, ''Not Ready to Make Nice,'' has been chilly -- if not downright dismissive.
''There are a number of country radio stations that won't even accept our money for paid advertising,'' says AEG Live CEO Randy Phillips, who is promoting the group's Accidents and Accusations Tour (which kicks off in Detroit on July 21st). ''I've never experienced that before.'' The station that staged a Dixie Chicks CD-crushing party after Maines' comments, KRMD in Shreveport, Louisiana, gave ''Not Ready'' a few halfhearted spins before abandoning it altogether. ''We've done some research and Internet polls to see if the public was ready to forgive -- and they're not,'' says KRMD program director Les Acre. ''When they're ready, we'll be ready.''
It's not surprising that the trio's critics haven't embraced ''Not Ready,'' which includes lyrics that address the 2003 incident: ''How in the world can the words that I said/Send somebody so over the edge/That they'd write me a letter/Sayin' that I better shut up and sing/Or my life will be over?'' The decision to release ''Not Ready'' is the most recent of several bold moves that began with the selection of Red Hot Chili Peppers producer Rubin and rock songwriters Linda Perry (who penned the pop ballad ''Voice Inside My Head'') and the Heartbreakers' Mike Campbell (the bluesy roadhouse rocker ''Lubbock or Leave It''). ''I don't know where this album falls genre-wise -- it falls pretty much across all genres,'' says the Chicks' manager, Simon Renshaw. ''It's a huge artistic step forward -- a different sound, a different quality.''
First-week sales predictions for Taking the Long Way were topping out at around 400,000 units at press time -- just over half of what the Chicks' last album, 2002's Home, sold in its first week -- which would make it the fifth-biggest debut of 2006. Many in the music industry believe the Chicks are on the road to gaining a new audience. Both CMT and VH1 are playing the video for ''Not Ready" (a witch-hunt-themed clip directed by No Doubt video director Sophie Muller). Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Amazon.com predict the album will be a major seller.
''[This album] will appeal to a wider fan base,'' says Best Buy music buyer James Hire. ''It sounds very adult-contemporary. Their broad appeal -- especially with the new sound on this album -- should help it succeed.'' And tour promoter Phillips says that radio stations boycotting the Chicks' music won't ruin the chances of a blockbuster outing. ''The Chicks have transcended a reliance on radio -- they don't need a hit single to sell records or tickets,'' he says. ''People love them, and they're great live. My gut tells me the tour is gonna do great.''
Beck Eyeing Fall For Next Album
Beck has finished recording his next studio album and will release it this fall via Interscope. While there is no official street date for the as-yet-untitled effort, it comes only a year-and-a-half after his last full-length set, "Guero," hit stores.
According to Beck's Web site, the new album was produced by Nigel Godrich, who has been behind the boards for such prior releases as 1998's "Mutations" and 2002's "Sea Change."
Beck will be previewing new material this month during a 10-date North American tour, which also visits Tennessee's Bonnaroo festival. In August, he will hit the European festival circuit and open two dates for Radiohead in Edinburgh and Dublin.
"Guero" gave Beck the highest chart position in his career when it opened at No. 2 on The Billboard 200. It has sold 800,000 copies in United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Oilers lose Game One and Roloson
RALEIGH, N.C. (CP) - The Edmonton Oilers' bid to become the first Canadian team to win the Stanley Cup in 13 years is a longshot proposition now that goaltender Dwayne Roloson has been lost for the balance of the NHL's championship series.
Ty Conklin or Jussi Markkanen will have to start Game 2 Wednesday.
Roloson hurt his right knee in a pileup in his crease with the score 4-4 with about five minutes remaining in the opener Monday night, Conklin was sent in to replace him, and Rod Brind'Amour jumped on his first mistake to score with 31.1 seconds left to cap a furious comeback and give the Carolina Hurricanes a thrilling 5-4 win.
Afterwards, coach Craig MacTavish emerged from a gloomy Oilers dressing room to announce the worst.
''Our goalie's not good,'' said MacTavish. ''He won't be back in the series.''
The Oilers now face the prospect of trying to become the first Canadian team to win the title since the Montreal Canadiens in 1993 without the leading candidate for playoff MVP honours.
''I know we can, I feel very confident that we can, bounce back from it,'' said MacTavish. ''Our goaltenders are capable of coming in here and playing well, both Jussi and Ty.''
It might be wishful thinking because Conklin, for one, certainly didn't look up to the task on Brind'Amour's winner. Conklin, who hadn't played a post-season minute, stopped two shots after replacing Roloson before leaving his crease to go after a puck in the last minute. He backhanded it, it struck teammate Jason Smith's stick, and trickled right to Brind'Amour. The Canes captain couldn't believe his good luck as he slipped it into the open net.
''It was just a matter of flipping it into the net,'' Brind'Amour said after his playoffs-leading 11th goal. ''You don't get too many of those, but I'll definitely take them.''
Conklin said he held onto the puck too long.
''I didn't make the play quickly enough,'' he said. ''It's not a mistake I would normally make.''
He'd been inactive for weeks so it was unfair to blame him for the loss. It was his teammates' failure to protect a three-goal lead that led to the loss despite a 38-26 advantage in shots on goal.
Brind'Amour and Ray Whitney scored two goals each and Justin Williams had one for the Hurricanes, who trailed 3-0 late in the second period. The Hurricanes have made a habit of comeback victories this spring, and they'd done it again.
Carolina equalled the biggest comeback in championship series history, becoming the sixth club to win a game in the final in which it trailed by three goals.
Chris Pronger, with the first successful penalty shot in championship series history, Fernando Pisani, Ethan Moreau and Ales Hemsky scored for the Oilers.
Roloson was hurt when Andrew Ladd, being pushed by Marc-Andre Bergeron, crashed into him.
''He was coming with a lot of speed,'' Bergeron said of his attempt to contain Ladd. ''I tried to shut him off before he got to the net.
''Unfortunately, he ran into Rollie. Rollie was runner over like that a few times like that in the playoffs and he was always fine. It's just bad luck this time. Obviously, it's something we didn't want to have to deal with.''
Canes goalie Cam Ward was outstanding. He made a win-saving stop of a Shawn Horcoff shot with three seconds remaining. At 22, Ward was the youngest goalie to start a championship series game since a 20-year-old Patrick Roy helped the Canadiens win the title in 1986.
''He definitely played outstanding hockey,'' said coach Peter Laviolette. ''There were a couple of goals he had no chance on just based on redirects, and there were some that should have been in the net and weren't because of his play.
''I don't think a situation like this, being in the Stanley Cup final, fazes him.''
Brind'Amour started the Carolina comeback when he scored off a rebound at 17:17 of the second period.
''We were not panicking and we knew if we could pick it up we had a chance,'' he said afterwards.
Whitney made it 3-2 at 1:40 of the third when he beat Roloson to the short side with a slapper from the circle to the goalie's right.
Whitney tied it 3-3 off another rebound during a power play at 5:09.
Williams scored a short-handed goal at 10:01 after the puck hopped over Steve Staios' stick blade at the Carolina blue-line to set up a Williams breakaway.
Ward then made one of his most spectacular save of the night when he slid to get his mitt in front of a Horcoff shot that was headed for the open side of the net.
''Just out of pure desperation I put my glove out and I was very fortunate to make the save,'' he said.
Hemsky tied it 4-4 with a spectacular effort while Eric Staal served a high-sticking penalty. Dashing down the right wing, the speedy Czech cut across the front of the crease, pulled the puck to his backhand and stuffed it in at 13:31.
Roloson got hurt, Conklin coughed up the puck on Brind'Amour's winner, Ward again robbed Horcoff, and 18,700 erupted in a victory celebration.
''My dad was probably having a heart attack,'' said Brind'Amour, who also scored the winner in the Eastern final last Thursday. ''We're fun to watch but that's not the way you want to do it.''
The Hurricanes had dodged a bullet.
''We played terrible for two periods,'' said Whitney. ''We left feeling very fortunate.
''We are not kidding ourselves. We're not real pleased with the way we played.''
Notes: Edmonton was 1-for-7 and Carolina 1-for-5 on power plays ... There have been 15 teams, most recently Tampa Bay in 2004, that rallied from a Game 1 loss to win the Stanley Cup ... 26 of the 40 players in uniform were Canadians - 14 Oilers and 12 Hurricanes ... Ward is from the Edmonton region and will be married there next month ... The teams hadn't met since December 2003 ... Carolina has to re-sign Erik Staal, Justin Williams and injured forward Erik Cole this summer. To find the cash, it might let go recently acquired veterans Doug Weight and Mark Recchi, who can become unrestricted free agents July 1
Meat Loaf claims 'Bat Out of Hell' rights
LOS ANGELES - Someone else might have written the "Bat Out of Hell" song, but Meat Loaf claims he should be the only one to use the phrase in connection with music.
In a federal lawsuit dated May 26, the rocker, whose name is listed in the action as Michael Aday, said the expression had been publicly associated with him since the 1977 release of his "Bat Out of Hell" album.
The lawsuit claims defendant Jim Steinman, who wrote the original song of the same name, wrongly claims ownership of the phrase.
The album and its 1993 follow-up, "Bat Out of Hell II," sold 48 million copies worldwide, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit seeks damages of more than $50 million.
Steinman and co-defendant David Sonenberg, listed in the action as having been Meat Loaf's manager, have been trying to disrupt the October release of the third "Bat Out of Hell" album by telling the singer's distributors that Aday had no right to use the phrase, according to the lawsuit.
"This contention is blackmail and a holdup," said the complaint, which claimed Steinman and Sonenberg have infringed Aday's trademark rights in the phrase and are interfering with distribution contracts.
Steinman wrote and produced the second album, and would have produced the third, but he and Aday had a falling out, according the lawsuit.
Attempts to reach Steinman and Sonenberg for comment after business hours Monday were unsuccessful.