MTV's "Unplugged" reborn with Police, Bon Jovi

NEW YORK (Billboard) - MTV's on-again, off-again "Unplugged" program will return in a big way this summer, with new episodes featuring the Police, Bon Jovi, Kenny Chesney, Mary J. Blige and John Mayer.

This time around, however, the show will be rolled out on a variety of related channels and platforms, including VH1, CMT and MTV.com.

Bon Jovi will usher in the 2007 edition of the series beginning June 22 on MTV. The next two evenings, VH1 and CMT will air a version of "Unplugged" specifically tailored to those channels' audiences.

Bon Jovi is credited with inspiring the "Unplugged" format after its stripped-down performance on the 1989 MTV Video Music Awards. The group's appearance coincides with its new country-tinged album, "Lost Highway," due in stores June 19.

No information has yet been unveiled about the other tapings, although the Police will reportedly hold their "Unplugged" show in mid-July in Miami.

Ed McMahon wants DVD gifts for troops

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. - Former longtime "Tonight Show" sidekick Ed McMahon is urging people to donate DVDs for U.S. troops in Iraq, saying movies offer a safe and comforting escape from wartime realities.

"This program accomplishes two things: the troops are entertained and they know that citizens at home care and support them," McMahon, 84, said Wednesday during ceremonies at the Palm Springs Airport's USO facility.

Operation DVD collects new and used DVDs to distribute overseas to U.S. military personnel. The year-old program has already collected more than 250,000 DVDs.

"This war in Iraq is unusual because soldiers never know where the next attack will come from. They need a safe mode of recreation since they become potential targets playing soccer or softball outdoors," said McMahon, a retired Marine officer who flew artillery-spotting missions in the Korean War.

Operation DVD began when a soldier approached the Rev. Scott Dryden in Kansas last May requesting parishioners donate books and DVDs for fellow troops overseas. The group American Veterans — AMVETS — then signed on to the project.

Robert Boots, California spokesman for Operation DVD, said the goal is to eventually have 1 million DVDs distributed to U.S. troops with more than 200 titles in rotation at each base.

"The least we can offer them is some DVDs for entertainment so they can escape their realities for a while," Boots said.

Collection boxes are located nationwide at schools, retail stores, churches, and government offices.

Heigl: Washington apologized for slur

NEW YORK - Katherine Heigl says castmate Isaiah Washington apologized to her on the set of "Grey's Anatomy" after she publicly denounced his use of an anti-gay slur.

"Isaiah thanked me, which I didn't understand," the 28-year-old actress tells Entertainment Weekly. "He was almost grateful. I don't know Isaiah well, but he takes his work seriously and he loves his character."

Washington came under fire for using the epithet at the Golden Globe Awards in January while denying he'd used it previously against fellow "Grey's" star T.R. Knight. Heigl, who plays outspoken Dr. Izzie Stevens on the hit ABC medical drama, says she was "furious and frustrated" at the time, so she leapt to Knight's defense.

"He made a big mistake, and it was thoughtless and boneheaded, and I think he's very sorry and embarrassed," she says in the magazine's Friday issue. "This is something that will have changed the scope of his life."

Heigl, who stars in the new Judd Apatow-directed comedy "Knocked Up," speaks out in the interview, too, about her protracted contract negotiations with ABC. The bottom line, she says, is that she wants "the same respect they're showing the other actors."

And she says she doesn't like the label that seems to go along with a woman who stands up for what she wants.

"In this town, women who don't just snap and say, `Okay, yessir, yes ma'am,' start to get a reputation for being difficult," she says. "But within the last five years, I've decided it's not worth it to me to be pushed around so much."

Heigl, who calls "The Notebook" one of her "all-time favorite movies," says she'd rather laugh than get too serious when it comes to movie roles.

"I just want to play happy people," she says. "I'm a commercial kind of gal, and yeah, I would love to do a `Monster,' but I don't have any grand aspirations to do my Academy Award-winning movie. I love Kate Winslet, but I know I couldn't have her career."

Disney sets "Lost," "Desperate," "Anatomy" DVD releases

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Disney wants to breathe some excitement into the TV-DVD business, which after several years of explosive growth is beginning to lose some of its luster.

The studio is taking the unusual step of announcing all its upcoming marquee TV-DVD releases at once and packing into them a wealth of novel extras, from Spanish-language audio tracks to a virtual fashion show, extended and bonus episodes and unaired story lines.

The highlight: Season 3 sets of top-rated shows "Lost," "Desperate Housewives" and "Grey's Anatomy." Breaking tradition, each set gets a special name, similar to special editions of movies.

"Desperate Housewives: The Complete Third Season -- The Dirty Laundry Edition" will arrive in stores September 4. The six-disc set includes all 23 episodes along with such extras as a behind-the-scenes look at the season finale, a Spanish audio track, a conversation with series star Eva Longoria in which she shares stories from some of her favorite bloopers, a collection of creator Marc Cherry's favorite scenes and several unaired story lines, deleted scenes and outtakes.

A week later, on September 11, comes "Grey's Anatomy: The Complete Third Season -- Seriously Extended Edition," a seven-disc set with all 25 episodes, four of them extended exclusively for the DVD release. Other bonus features include a one-on-one with series star Ellen Pompeo, a visit to the race track with star (and race-car enthusiast) Patrick Dempsey, cast and crew members' favorite scenes and audio commentaries.

"Lost: The Complete Third Season -- The Unexplored Experience" follows December 11 on DVD and Blu-ray Disc. The 23-episode, seven-disc set comes with a one-on-one with star Matthew Fox, a featurette on "The Others," a documentary chronicling 24 hours in production and a selection of never-before-seen flashbacks. Also included are behind-the-scenes looks at 10 episodes, audio commentaries, deleted scenes and bloopers.

Also in the pipeline are three new series that never before have been available on DVD.

"Ugly Betty: The Complete First Season -- Bettyfied Edition" will be out August 21. The six-disc set contains all 23 episodes as well as an exhibit of some of the first season's best and worst fashions, a Spanish audio track, a discussion with the cast on the show's origins and a behind-the-scenes documentary with the show's production, costume and set designers.

"Brothers & Sisters: The Complete First Season," also a six-disc set, is scheduled for a September 18 release. On September 25 comes "What About Brian? -- Seasons 1 & 2," a five-disc set.

The Disney announcement comes at a time when the pace of TV-DVD releases is slowing. Just 158 multi-disc TV-DVD season sets came to market in the first four months of this year, according to the DVD Release Report, down 12.2% from the same period last year.

Extras goes to Series Two

It's sad that the BBC/HBO series Extras can't be brought up without a call to Ricky Gervais' work on The Office. D'oh, I just did it. But Extras can stand on its own, and its second and final season will hit DVD soon from HBO Home Video.

Andy Millman is a 40-something actor who gave up his day job to pursue movie fame – only to find he couldn't land the substantial parts. Undaunted by failure and convinced of his star potential, Andy’s success finally turns the corner when a comedy pilot he wrote gets picked up by a British TV network. Despite his many gaffs and foibles, Andy may well be on his way to fame and fortune...if only he can survive meddling network executives, questionable fans, and the gross ineptitude of his clueless agent, Darren Lamb. Throughout Andy's latest misadventures there is one reassuring constant: his ongoing friendship with Maggie Jacobs, the perky if none-too-bright actress who continues to slog away as an extra on various big-budget movie sets, all the while searching for a man with two even legs.

The DVD contains all the episodes and some featurettes including Art of Corpsing, Extras Backstage and Taping Nigel: The Gimpening plus outtakes and bloopers.

The set arrives on July 10th with a suggested retail price of $29.98. Hopefully one day we'll get the talked about final episode, but until then, this is all for Andy Millman.

Apple's iTunes begins selling unlocked songs

Apple Inc.'s iTunes Store started selling thousands of songs without copy protection Wednesday, marking the trendsetting company's latest coup and providing a model for what analysts say will likely become a pattern for online music sales.

Launching initially with songs from music company EMI Group PLC, iTunes Plus features tracks that are free of digital rights management, or DRM, technology — copy-protection software that limits where songs or movies can be played and distributed.

The unrestricted content means some songs purchased from iTunes will work for the first time directly on portable players other than Apple's iPod, including Microsoft Corp.'s Zune.

The inaugural batch of iTunes Plus songs includes music from Coldplay, the Rolling Stones, Norah Jones, Frank Sinatra, Pink Floyd and more than a dozen of Paul McCartney's classic albums.

The DRM-free tracks feature a higher sound quality and cost $1.29 US apiece — 30 cents more than the usual 99-cent price of other, copy-protected songs at the market-leading online music store.

If available, users could upgrade existing purchases to DRM-free versions for 30 cents a song or $3 US for most albums, Apple said.

London-based EMI, the world's third-largest music company by sales, and Cupertino-based Apple announced their partnership in April to deliver the industry's first major offering of DRM-free songs, sharing a vision of what both companies say their consumers want: flexibility and CD-audio quality.

Other smaller online music vendors, such as EMusic.com, already offer songs without DRM, but the selections have been limited to mostly content from independent labels.

Barney Wragg, the global head of digital music at EMI, said the iTunes Plus launch capped six months of work to convert almost all of the company's digital catalogue into a DRM-free format.

"Our customers told us two things deterred them from buying digital," Wragg said. "They weren't 100 per cent confident that the songs they'd purchase could play on their devices, and they wanted something closer to CD quality."

Earlier this year, Apple CEO Steve Jobs called on the world's four major record companies to start selling songs online without copy-protection software.

Rolling Stones' 'Bang' tour to hit Best Buy shelves on DVD

Just a few months after finishing up the US leg of what their publicist claims is the best-selling tour of all time, The Rolling Stones return with a concert DVD documenting the band's "A Bigger Bang" tour.

The Stones will partner with electronics and entertainment retailer Best Buy for the four-DVD set, titled "The Biggest Bang." The seven-hour collection, which features two complete concerts along with two documentaries, will be available at all Best Buy stores starting June 12.

The package, which will retail in the US for $29.99, can be pre-ordered through Best Buy's website starting today (5/30). The set will also be available in Canada at Best Buy outlets as well as Future Shop stores, and an international release is planned later this summer.

"'The Biggest Bang' DVD set lets fans join us as we traveled around the world," the band said in a press release. "They will go behind the scenes at the Super Bowl, see us play an intimate club show in Toronto and for 2 million people on the beach in Rio, as well as gigs in Shanghai, Buenos Aires and Japan. It features classics but also rarities--songs we've never released before on DVD."

"The Biggest Bang" marks the second time that the legendary rockers have worked with retailing giant Best Buy on a concert DVD. In 2003, the band and the company teamed up on "Four Flicks," an exclusive, four-DVD concert set that became the highest-selling long form concert DVD in US history, according to the retailer.

"'Four Flicks' was great, but practice makes perfect and 'The Biggest Bang' is even better--it's got all the right stuff," said "A Bigger Bang" tour promoter Michael Cohl in a press statement. "It's great to be back with Best Buy, and we're pleased that they have decided to offer fans the same low price as they did with Four Flicks three years ago."

Approaching two years since the band launched its record-breaking outing, the Stones continue to tour behind their latest studio album, 2005's "A Bigger Bang." The group is currently gearing up for a fresh European leg, which kicks off June 5 in Werchter, Belgium. The full European itinerary is included below.

June 2007
5 - Werchter, Belgium - Werchter Park
8 - Nijmegen, Netherlands - Goffert Park
10 - Isle of Wight, United Kingdom - Isle of Wight Festival
13 - Frankfurt, Germany - Commerzbank
16 - Paris, France - Stade de France
18 - Lyon, France - Stade Gerland
21 - Barcelona, Spain - Olympic Stadium
23 - San Sebastian, Spain - Estadio de Anoeta
25 - Lisbon, Portugal - Alvalade Stadium
28 - Madrid, Spain - Estadio Vicente Calderon
30 - Almeria, Spain - Estadio Santo Domingo

July 2007
6 - Rome, Italy - Olimpico Stadium
9 - Budva, Montenegro - Jaze Beach
14 - Belgrade, Serbia - Hippodrome
17 - Bucharest, Romania - National Lia Manoliu
20 - Budapest, Hungary - Puskas Ferenc Stadium
22 - Brno, Czech Republic - Outdoor Exhibition Centre
25 - Kiev, Russia - Olympic Stadium
28 - Saint Petersburg, Russia - Palace Square

August 2007
1 - Helsinki, Finland - Olympic Stadium
3 - Goteborg, Sweden - Ullevi Stadium
5 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Parken Stadium
8 - Oslo, Norway - Vallehovin Stadium
11 - Lausanne, Switzerland - La Pontaise
13 - Düsseldorf, Germany - LTU Arena
15 - Hamburg, Germany - AOL Arena
18 - Dublin, Ireland - Slane Castle
21, 23, 26 - London, United Kingdom - O2 Arena

New Kanye Album Coming Sooner Than Expected

Kanye West's forthcoming album, "Graduation," is coming sooner than expected. The album, originally due in September, has been pushed slightly ahead to a late August release, according to Def Jam.

West leaked the news through a recently released, 25-track Internet mixtape called "Can't Tell Me Nothing," which features him rapping over such intriguing samples as Daft Punk's "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" and Peter Bjorn & John's indie hit "Young Folks."

"Can't Tell Me Nothing," the first single from "Graduation," was co-produced by West and DJ Toomp. A Hype Williams-directed video for the song debuted last Friday on West's Web site.

As previously reported, the new album will also include a collaboration with Coldplay frontman Chris Martin on the song "Graduation."

Toronto's iconic Sam the Record Man flagship to close

Sam the Record Man, the one-time cross-Canada music store chain, will close its iconic downtown Toronto flagship location next month.

Jason and Bobby Sniderman, sons of founder Sam Sniderman, announced Tuesday evening that the venerable Yonge Street location will close its doors for good on June 30.

"Culture and society are changing. Our decision is a reflection on the state of the industry. We can't compete with what's happening in technology," Bobby Sniderman told CBC Wednesday morning.

He cited declining traditional CD sales and the vast availability of CDs and digital music from online retailers for the decision to close — one his family has "agonized" over.

"It was an inevitable decision. The role of the record retailer is being phased out," Sniderman said. "The store's been a labour of love for us. It's just different now than what it used to be."

Over the past decade, the doors have closed on most of the Sam the Record Man locations, stores that were often touted for their devotion to Canadian artists, cache of hard-to-find titles and knowledgeable staffers.

"The greatest asset we have are this wealth of employees that have worked with us, that are like our family and who have an encyclopedic knowledge of music," Sniderman said.

The Sniderman family originally operated a shop selling appliances and car radios, but Sam Sniderman decided to break away and get into the record business in 1937 — in order to impress a girl who was interested in music, Bobby Sniderman said.

"That story of love has turned into this overall labour of love we all have for this store," he said.

The first Sam the Record Man location was on College Street, but around 1960, the operation moved to its now famed location on Yonge Street, where the four-storey store sits emblazoned with the fabled spinning records neon signage.

Though the chain was once one of Canada's top music retailers, with 130 stores across the nation, it has suffered from fierce competition from multinational chains and the advent of online music sharing and purchasing.

In 2001, the firm filed for bankruptcy, but the flagship shop in Toronto was able to reopen in 2002.

As one of Canada's most vocal proponents of domestic artists and a major supporter of the establishment of Canadian content regulations for radio, Sam Sniderman has won a host of honours, including being named a member of the Order of Canada and winning the Ramon John Hnatyshyn Award for Voluntarism in the Performing Arts. He retired in 2000.

Following the upcoming shuttering of the Toronto flagship, two franchise locations in Ontario will remain open: Belleville and Sarnia.

Upbeat ceremony sheds light on new CBC-TV season

CBC has raised the curtain on a schedule of slick, vibrant and youthful programming set to roll out over the 2007-2008 television season.

In a glitzy afternoon ceremony presided over by host George Stroumboulopoulos and peppered with the broadcaster's most famous faces, the CBC unveiled a raft of programming — both brand new and returning shows — scheduled to hit the airwaves beginning this fall.

The high-energy presentation kicked off with a nod to the CBC's recent runaway hit, Little Mosque on the Prairie, which was given the heady title of "saviour of the CBC" and is one of next season's highlights.

"I thought it was hilarious. My favourite headline of all time is 'The Muslims have saved the CBC,'" Little Mosque creator Zarqa Nawaz told CBC Arts Online.

Even before its January premiere, the sitcom drew international interest. It has since played to packed audiences in Los Angeles, New York and overseas, where it has been sold for distribution in France and piqued interest from Norway to Australia, said producer Mary Darling.

Other surprise hits set for sophomore seasons include crime drama Intelligence, the entrepreneur-based reality show Dragon's Den and a language-related edition of the quiz show Test the Nation.

Though many criticized the public broadcaster's entrance into the world of reality programming, the audience has warmed to it, said Kirstine Layfield, CBC-TV's executive director of network programming.

'[Audiences] saw that we weren't going to this kind of weird, Extreme Makeover plastic-surgery place … they understand we're doing this with a purpose.'—Kirstine Layfield, CBC-TV
"It was hard for people to understand what reality TV was in the world of CBC," she said Tuesday afternoon.

"Now that they've seen what we've done, I think it's less scary. Now that they've seen Dragon's Den, they've seen Test the Nation, they saw that we weren't going to this kind of weird, Extreme Makeover plastic-surgery place and they're less frightened and they understand we're doing this with a purpose."

Current affairs and entertainment show The Hour, hosted by Stroumboulopoulos, comedy hits like Rick Mercer Report, long-running drama Coronation Street and David Suzuki's venerable The Nature of Things are among other returning favourites.

Flagship newscast The National will be added to CBC-TV's expanding slate of high-definition programming, joining documentary specials and hockey broadcasts.

In addition to building on traditional strengths like hockey and curling coverage, CBC Sports will tackle the Olympics in Beijing, Blue Jays baseball games and two World Cup soccer tournaments: the FIFA U-20 and the Women's World Cup.

Noteworthy new CBC productions and co-productions will range from the sexy Henry VIII miniseries The Tudors and an adaptation of Mordecai Richler's St. Urbain's Horseman to the reality show No Opportunity Wasted and Garth Drabinsky's theatre world talent search Triple Sensation, hosted by CBC Radio's Andrew Craig.

Former theatre impresario Drabinsky called his show "the antidote of all the other reality shows" and a celebration of young Canadian talent.

"It's not about a publicity stunt to find an audience for an old and tired musical," he said. "It's not a karaoke contest."

For the three-episode series, competitors will be whittled down to a dozen finalists who will compete for a $150,000 scholarship to the world-renowned theatrical training school the winner chooses.

"We didn't follow any of those judging gimmicks," said actress Cynthia Dale, who joins Drabinsky as one of the show's five judges.

"It's scrutinizing talent in a very rigorous way and in an intelligent way," Drabinsky said. "Not to destroy talent, but to raise them up."

While Layfield admitted the schedule is an attempt to attract younger audiences, "I'm not going after 16-year-olds."

More importantly, she said, she wants to draw all viewers who want more than the "typical American programming that they're going to get on our competition.

"Television is about trying and risk and experimentation. It's also about doing it in as measured a way as you can," Layfield said.

"We have to try things that are different. We can't just make Canadian versions of American shows. We have to make things that are truly our own."

New CD Releases, May 29: R. Kelly, Richard Thompson, Jason Alden

R. Kelly "Double Up"

The R&B king has called upon a number of his talented pals, including T.I., Nelly, Snoop Dogg and Kid Rock, to help on his latest offering, "Double Up."

The set features the song "Rise Up," which was penned in response to last month's killings at Virginia Tech. According to a press release, Kelly and his label, Jive, will donate 100% of the net proceeds from the digital sales of that single to Virginia Tech's official fund, the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund.

* * *
Richard Thompson "Sweet Warrior"

The British troubadour, who first came to fame as part of the influential folk-rock band Fairport Convention, plugs in for his first electrified rock record since 2003's "The Old Kit Bag." The 14-song "Sweet Warrior" includes some overtly political numbers, notably the "War on Iraq"-inspired "Dad's Gonna Kill Me."

* * *
Jason Aldean "Relentless"

The cowboy crooner will try to live up to his fast start(he was dubbed the Academy of Country Music's Top New Male Vocalist for 2006) on this sophomore set. The album contains the mega-hit single "Johnny Cash" as well as a duet with Miranda Lambert on "Grown Woman."

* * *
Perry Farrell's Satellite Party "Ultra Payloaded"

The former leader of Jane's Addiction, undeniably one of the most important bands in alt-rock history, is out to make some noise with a different cast of characters. Farrell's fellow Party-goers include The Red Hot Chili Pepper's Flea, dance-queen Fergie and--get this--classic-rock legend Jim Morrison, who makes a posthumous appearance on this set.

* * *
Johnette Napolitano "Scarred"

The voice behind Concrete Blonde, the eclectic rock band best known for the hit "Joey," returns to the fray with this new solo effort. Napolitano performed some of the "Scarred" material during her set at South by Southwest earlier this year and is supporting the album with a tour that currently stretches through mid-June.

* * *
More new releases:
Herb Alpert, "Rise" (Shout Factory)
Cary Brothers, "Who You Are" (Bluhammock)
Circa Survive, "On Letting Go" (Equal Vision)
Glenn Gould, "Bach: The Goldberg Variations 1955 Performance" (Sony)
Juliana Hatfield, Frank Smith, "Sittin' in a Tree" (EP) (Ye Olde)
Katatonia, "Live Consternation" (Peaceville)
Kool Keith, "Ultra-Octa-Doom" (2b1)
Gary Moore, "Close as You Get" (Eagle)
Piano Magic, "Part Monster" (Important)
Len Price 3, "Rent a Crowd" (Wicked Cool)
Ray Price, "The Essential Ray Price" (Sony)
Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, "In Glorious Times" (The End)
Jay Soto, "Stay a While" (Nu Groove)
Spur of the Moment, "Urban Renewal" (SOTM)
Russell Watson, "The Voice: The Ultimate Collection" (Universal)
Cephalic Carnage, "Xenosapien" (Relapse)

Soundtracks and scores:
"Transformers: The Movie" (Sony)

There'll Be a 'Shrek 4' and '5,' But That's All

DreamWorks Animation plans to produce two more Shrek movies before shutting down the franchise, CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg has told the Australian newspaper The Age.

"It's a finite story, has been from the beginning and I think that's part of its integrity, part of its strength, that we're not thinking this up as we go," he said in an interview with the Melbourne newspaper.

"Ultimately we will come back to understand how Shrek arrived in that swamp. We will reveal his story."

Although acknowledging that he is committed to making movies that will make money for DreamWorks' investors, Katzenberg maintained that he himself never thinks about money.

"I've never done anything in my entire life for money. ... I'm amazingly disengaged from it, always have been. I probably would have done even better had I ever paid any attention to it. [His wealth is estimated at $800 million.] My partner David Geffen is a genius at it. He's worth a gajillion times more than me because he does pay attention to it -- he's brilliant at investing."

Springsteen Rocks With 'Seeger' Band On CD/DVD

The last time Thom Zimny edited a Bruce Springsteen concert film, it was "Hammersmith Odeon, London '75," a recording that -- as the legend goes, anyway -- was literally forgotten and left in a cold dark corner of Springsteen's vaults.

When the tapes were finally discovered a few years ago, it took Zimny a while to figure out what they contained, as they had no labels, set lists, track titles, scribbled-on notebook paper, sticky notes -- anything that would have offered the slightest hint what he was looking at.

The new "Live in Dublin," due June 5 via Columbia, was probably a little easier. Shot at the Point in Dublin over three nights in November, it captures the final stand of Springsteen's Seeger Sessions band (credited on the live set as only The Sessions Band) as it roars through nearly two dozen traditionals ("Jesse James," "Eyes on the Prize"), resculpted folk and rave-up gospel numbers ("When the Saints Go Marching In," "This Little Light of Mine").

There are also radically reconfigured takes on songs from Springsteen's own catalog, including a 10-minute big-band take on the "Nebraska" track "Open All Night," a shimmering, violin-flavored "Atlantic City" and an effervescent run through "Blinded by the Light."

To capture "Live in Dublin," which will see release as a concert DVD, a Blu-ray disc (both featuring stereo and 5.1 surround sound), a two-CD release and a combination DVD/CD package, Zimny set up nine HD-ready cameras in the Point and operated under a rule he uses whenever shooting Springsteen in performance: try to stay out of the way.

"In all my experiences working with Bruce, the music is the central focus," he tells Billboard.com. "You want to make sure the energy is translated, but in a way that doesn't interfere with the dialogue between performer and audience."

Zimny's relationship with Springsteen began back in 2000, when he edited the Emmy-winning "Live in New York City," which documented Springsteen's reunion tour with the E Street Band. Since then, he's worked on 2003's Emmy-nominated "Live in Barcelona" and Springsteen's 2005 edition of "VH1 Storytellers."

"Each film really has its own unique journey," Zimny said, "With 'Storytellers,' for instance, it's a smaller space and you want to incorporate the sense of audience. But this was a really different experience. It's such a large band, and a great band, and it's crazy to see the effects of all the performers in this footage."

Zimny adds that Springsteen plays as big of a role behind the scenes as he does on stage. "Bruce and (manager Jon) Landau are always involved in the filmmaking process," Zimny said. "Bruce is very aware of that film process; he's always been there in the cutting room. I imagine it's what it's like to be working with him as he makes the albums: all the details are examined, from the writing to the stage design to how things translate to screen. All the choices are tried. That's the beauty of the cutting room: that's where you find the soul of the piece."

GM Place, Vancouver - May 28, 2007 - Police kick off reunion tour

VANCOUVER - And they said it wouldn't happen.

The reunion tour that no one ever thought was going to materialize finally did on Monday night as '80s New Wave kingpins The Police opened their 30th anniversary trek with a sold-out show at GM Place in front of some 20,000 ecstatic fans.

Singer-bassist Sting, 55, the lone holdout all these years - 23 to be exact since The Police last toured for their last studio album, Synchronicity - seemed genuinely happy to be on stage again with his former bandmates - drummer Stewart Copeland, 54, and guitarist Andy Summers, 64 - who have patiently been waiting for him to return to the fold while he enjoyed a hugely successful solo career.

For God's sake, the trio of two Brits and one American even hugged each other in front of the cheering crowd after performing a two-hour, hit-heavy set from their seven year career (1977-1984) that saw them sell a staggering 50 million albums while infighting broke out towards the end.

"Tonight is our first official concert in 25 years, we chose Vancouver, 'cause you're Vancouver, alright?" said Sting, who had been rehearsing with Copeland and Summers most recently in a log house on the Squamish Indian reserve in North Vancouver. "I like this city very much."

Still, anyone expecting the fierce punk-tinged reggae rock of The Police at their prime when they split up in 1984, instead got a jazzier, more mellow version of the acclaimed trio of accomplished musicians.

Many songs got some serious retooling and not always for the better: Don't Stand So Close To Me, Truth Hits Everybody, and Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic were among the disappointments.

Still, The Police's show, a comparatively stripped down affair compared to the huge productions put on by the likes of The Rolling Stones and U2, opened strongly with Message In A Bottle, Synchronicity II, Spirits In The Material World and the combo of Voices In My Head/When The World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around.

But there was a serious lull in the middle portion of the show with plenty of slow songs or ballads - Driven To Tears, Walking On The Moon, Wrapped Around Your Finger, The Bed's Too Big Without You, and Murder By Numbers.

At a press conference earlier this year to announce their reunion tour, Sting insisted it would be just "three guys on stage, that's all. Simple but spectacular."

Well, he was mostly right.

Their in-the-round stage saw the trio playing in a pit with steps up to a semi-circular catwalk behind them so they could play to audience members behind them whenever the mood struck.

There was also small steps up to ramps on either side of the stage which Sting used to the delight of the crowd.

It has to be said that Sting looked and sounded outstanding with his brilliant blue eyes offset by a nice tan, chiselled arms and a tight-fitting sleeveless white shirt and narrow black pants along with black combat boots.

Whenever he performed a scissor-kick at the end of song or stood on Copeland's drum riser and wiggled his bum, the reaction from fans was palatable.

But other than genuinely slick lighting and a video screen, onto which footage of a moving dinosaur skeleton was projected during Walking In Your Footsteps, it was a surprisingly simple affair.

Musically, the most interesting choices came from Copeland, who looked like a mad scientist behind his enormous drum kit with white gloves, glasses and a head band.

He often alternated with a second set of percussion instruments that were placed on a riser above his drum kit, including a gong that he struck to kick off the entire evening.

By the final third of the show, such highlights as Invisible Sun, during which warn-torn video of Iraq was shown, I Can't Stand Losing You, Roxanne, King Of Pain, So Lonely, Every Breath You Take and Next To You, saw that old Police magic return.

Opening Monday night was Fiction Plane, a rock trio fronted by Sting's 31-year-old son Joe Sumner, whose upper register sounds uncannily like that of his father's. (Also seen in the audience was Sting's second wife, Trudie Styler and L.A Law alum Corbin Bernsen.)

Fiction Plane's 45-minute set was perfectly serviceable but hardly exceptional and given the circumstances, they can hardly be blamed for being a little overwhelmed.

With the passage of time, they are sure to become more relaxed, and hopefully, the headliners will pick up a little more steam in that troublesome middle section or just change the songs outright.

The Police return to the same Vancouver venue for a second show Wednesday night before heading to Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium on Saturday where some tickets are available - a rarity on the otherwise mostly sold out tour. The trio don't arrive in Toronto until July 22-23 for shows at the Air Canada Centre followed by Montreal's Bell Centre on July 25-26 before a return to the ACC on Nov. 8.

SET LIST

What The Police played on Monday night at their world tour launch in Vancouver:

Message in a Bottle

Synchronicity II

Spirits in the Material World

Voices Inside My Head/When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around

Don't Stand So Close to Me

Driven to Tears

Walking on the Moon

Truth Hits Everybody

Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic

Wrapped Around Your Finger

The Bed's Too Big Without You

Murder by Numbers

De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da

Invisible Sun

Walking in Your Footsteps

Can't Stand Losing You

Roxanne

ENCORE:

King of Pain

So Lonely

Every Breath You Take

SECOND ENCORE

Next to You

Can Wii prolong winning streak?

SEATTLE — As it raced past rivals to become the hottest new video-game console, some analysts predicted that Nintendo Co.'s Wii was little more than a fad.

Try telling that to Geoff Allen, who hasn't grown sick of playing the Wii after almost five months. He, his wife and his father all are hooked on "Wii Sports."

"Within minutes, I can have fun," said Allen, a 36-year-old technology entrepreneur from Potomac Falls, Va. "I don't have to spend hours crawling through dungeons and learning all the complex button combos to become proficient. I love the Wii. It makes me happy."

U.S. consumers have snapped up 2.5 million Wii consoles since they hit the market in November. It's a sharp turnaround since the last round of the console wars, when its GameCube got wiped out by Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox.

But Nintendo isn't taking its initial success for granted. At an event here last week, it unveiled a series of games, such as "Mario Strikers Charged" and "Big Brain Academy," aimed at keeping a wide range of players interested, not just teenage boys and traditional video-game enthusiasts. The Osaka, Japan-based company also is relying on girls, women and older players to continue its growth.

Some analysts think the novelty may wear off and, when it does, consumers will stop buying new games for the Wii. The difference between the Wii's graphics and those of its rivals, the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, also may become more noticeable as developers create new games that take advantage of the more powerful consoles' processing power.

"Its appeal is primarily to casual gamers, and there's a serious question about how long casual gamers will stay engaged with the platform," said Van Baker, a consumer technologies analyst with Gartner Inc., which is headquartered in Stamford, Conn. "It wouldn't be surprising to see them lose interest after a relatively short amount of time."

So far, demand is outstripping supply. Stores are selling out of the Wii within hours of getting them. Sales of the Wii are so hot, the Japanese company is widely expected to increase its annual sales forecast of 14 million units for its current fiscal year.

It helps that the Wii is $249, compared to the PS3 at $599 and the Xbox 360, priced from $299 to $479, depending on the features. Last month, U.S. consumers bought 360,000 Wii systems, versus 174,000 Xbox 360s and 82,000 PlayStation 3s, according to NPD Group.

Reginald Fils-Aime, president and chief operating officer for Nintendo's North American division, said at the press event last week that Nintendo in April had taken the No. 1 spot for sales of consoles, games and hand-held game devices, with its DS portable player. The last company to accomplish that feat, he said, was Nintendo itself — in the 1980s. "We have become a viral and cultural phenomenon," Fils-Aime said.

To bring in more casual gamers who don't have the time or patience to learn their way around a 16-button controller like the PS3, Nintendo developed a novel remote that uses a motion sensor to let players use their arm movements to control the action on the screen. For example, to swing a club in "Super Swing Golf," players swing the controller.

That's what hooked Allen and his family. When he showed the games to his 63-year-old father, Allen had to pull him away from the TV screen. "He was so into it, he forgot he was playing a video game," Allen said.

The controller, Allen explained, makes games such as the Wii version of tennis much more intuitive to play.

"If I want a cross court shot, I start low and rotate my forearm, and I get a nice cross-court spinning shot, just like real tennis," he said. "I don't have to learn anything new."

That ease, combined with realistic physics, has led the Wii to pop up in some unexpected places. The Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital in Edmonton, Canada, uses the Wii to help physical therapy patients improve movement and balance. Norwegian Cruise Line, which caters to seniors, has purchased the system for all of its ships.

The Wii's popularity has made it an attractive system for game publishers, whose ability to crank out fresh games for the device is vital to keeping consumers interested. It also generally costs less to create games for Wii than for the Sony and Microsoft systems, especially since it shares technology with its predecessor, the GameCube.

Wii games can cost anywhere from $1 million to $7 million and take less than a year to make, whereas a typical PS3 and Xbox 360 game can cost more than $20 million and take more than a year to produce because of the complexity and high-level graphics involved in those consoles.

"The console with the greatest momentum now is the Wii," said Brian Farrell, chief executive of THQ Inc., the Calabasas-based game publisher. "The controller is highly innovative. The price point is attractive. The demographics are broad. And the cost to develop games on the system is relatively low. There's a lot to like about the Wii."

Developers also like the Wii because it frees them to focus less on making games look visually beautiful and more on just making them fun to play.

"Coding for the PS3 and the 360 is a daunting challenge," said Kevin Ray, chief technology officer for Majesco Entertainment Co., a game publisher in Edison, N.J., that found the Wii business model so attractive that last year it decided to make games exclusively for that console. "With the Wii, we can afford to get creative and develop something really fun and bizarre."

Nintendo's in-house games studio plans to release its own stable of titles later this year, such as "Metroid Prime 3: Corruption" and "Super Mario Galaxy."

While this coming holiday season is shaping up to be a blockbuster one for Nintendo, some analysts question whether the Wii has enough steam to last longer. The sophisticated hardware for PS3 and Xbox 360 is expected to keep those consoles relevant for another decade.

"The Wii in a couple of years is going to look like old technology with low resolution, slow performance," Baker said. "People may not be accepting of that."

But 31% of Wii owners surveyed in March by Frank N. Magid Associates, a media consulting firm, said they expected to play the Wii more often a year from now, compared to 21% of Xbox 360 owners.

"We don't see it fading," said Mike Vorhaus, a managing director with the Sherman Oaks firm. He credits the success to families who play together, as well as singles who get together for Wii parties.

That's what Nintendo is banking on. While the Xbox 360 and the PS3 are played primarily by young men, the Wii is played on average by more people in each household. That means Nintendo has a good shot at selling more games per console than its rivals, said George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing.

"Before, it was the teenage boy playing by himself," Harrison said. "Now, the whole family is playing."

Big Studios Hate Woody Allen

Woody Allen is one of the most eccentric and arguably the greatest filmmaker in the history of Hollywood. The New York obsessed neurotic has been nominated for an astounding twenty-one Academy Awards. Fourteen of those honors came in the screenwriting category. His 1977 masterwork Annie Hall is one of the greatest films I have ever seen and still sets the bar for the entire romantic comedy genre. After a lull of mediocre films in the early ‘aughts, Allen stormed back with his brilliant 2005 release Match Point. So why the hell won’t anyone buy his new film?

According to Teletext through Film Stalker, none of the big studios have shown interest in purchasing the quirky helmer’s new film. Cassandra’s Dream, which stars Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell, centers on the relationship of two brothers who turn to crime after a girlfriend pits the two against each other. I’d pay to see this movie right now!

It’s really a shame to see a cinematic legend struggle at the end of his career. It’s true that most of his films are set on an elevated intellectual level, alienating a large portion of American audiences, but he still has a rabid, cult following. For some reason, I don’t really think this bothers Woody to much, though; after all, he was the one that said, “If you’re not failing now and again, it’s a sign that you’re not doing anything very innovative.”

The Police Return To The Stage With Vancouver Warm-Up

The Police played their first concert in more than 20 years last night (May 27) in front of a fan club-only audience at Vancouver's GM Place, rocking through a 21-song, 125-minute set that went heavy on hits from the band's early 1980s heyday. The show opened with "Message in a Bottle" and closed with the spirited early hit "Next to You."

The group officially begins its mammoth reunion tour tonight at the same arena, with support from Fiction Plane. The trek is expected to last through the end of the year and will likely finish as the top ticket seller of 2007, according to estimates by Billboard.

Among the oddities that appeared in the warm-up show set list were "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic," which was rarely played live during the band's first incarnation, and a medley of "Voices Inside My Head" and "When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around," which was first tested out during a February press conference in Los Angeles.

Here is the Police's May 27, 2007, set list:

"Message in a Bottle"
"Synchronicity II"
"Don't Stand So Close to Me"
"Voices Inside My Head"/"When the World Is Running Down, You Make the Best of What's Still Around"
"Spirits in the Material World"
"Driven to Tears"
"Walking on the Moon"
"Truth Hits Everybody"
"Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic"
"Wrapped Around Your Finger"
"The Bed's Too Big Without You"
"Murder by Numbers"
"De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da"
"Invisible Sun"
"Walking in Your Footsteps"
"Can't Stand Losing You"
"Roxanne"
"King of Pain"
"So Lonely"
"Every Breath You Take"
"Next to You"

Early summer movies underperform at box office

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Moviegoers are not following the script written for them by the Hollywood studios. In a sign that big-budget sequels may be losing their allure, North American ticket sales for the first three big films of the lucrative summer season have not kept pace with their respective predecessors.

The numbers for "Spider-Man 3," "Shrek the Third" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" are still impressive, and the studios do not seem too worried. For the most part, they blamed increased competition, although -- apart from the big three -- there is little else of significance playing in theaters.

The third film in Walt Disney Co.'s "Pirates" trilogy led the Memorial Day holiday weekend with four-day sales of $156 million, setting a record for the busy period, the studio said on Monday. The previous record of $123 million was set last year by "X-Men: The Last Stand."

The Friday-to-Monday haul for "Pirates" was boosted by estimated sales of $14 million from Thursday-night previews, drawing moviegoers who likely would have seen the film at some other time during the weekend. Disney's inclusion of the Thursday tally raised eyebrows at other studios.

If the Monday and Thursday figures are stripped out, the traditional three-day sum of $115 million pales against the then-record $135.6 million start of last year's "Pirates" installment, "Dead Man's Chest," as well as those of "Spider-Man 3" ($151 million) and Shrek the Third ($122 million).

OVERSEAS STRENGTH

Mark Zoradi, president of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Marketing and Distribution, said he was "as pleased as could be" about the opening, given the tough competition.

On a worldwide basis, the film has earned $401 million, with hefty contributions from the likes of Britain ($26 million), Korea ($18 million) and Germany ($16.8 million).

The first film, 2003's "The Curse of the Black Pearl," finished with $653 million worldwide, while "Dead Man's Chest" topped out at $1.1 billion.

Meanwhile, the previous weekend's champion, "Shrek the Third" has earned $219 million in North America after 11 days. By contrast, "Shrek 2," released at the same time in 2004, had earned $260 million through the Memorial Day holiday. (The earlier film opened two days earlier, however.)

The latest installment in DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc's family comedy series earned $69.1 million during the four-day weekend, the studio said. But the three-day portion of $53 million represented a hefty 56 percent slide from its first weekend.

Anne Globe, head of marketing at DreamWorks Animation, said she was "very happy" with the new film's performance, and comparisons with "Shrek 2" were invalid because of the tougher competition.

Sony Corp's "Spider-Man 3" was third for the weekend with four-day sales of $18 million, driving its total to $307.6 million. "Spider-Man 2," also released in 2004, had earned about $328 million in that time.

"It's really hard to complain about $307 million," said Rory Bruer, president of domestic theatrical distribution at Sony's Columbia Pictures unit. "Ultimately, we're going to be fine."

According to industry analyst boxofficemojo.com, "Spider-Man 3" took 24 days to hit $300 million, two days slower than 2004's "Spider-Man 2" and five days slower than 2002's "Spider-Man."

But on a worldwide basis, the new film is on track to beat the $821 million total of "Spider-Man" later this week, said Columbia. "Spider-Man 2," despite a stronger start, finished with $784 million worldwide.

Romanian film wins top Cannes prize

CANNES, France -- A modest film from a humble filmmaker put Romania on top of the world yesterday at the 60th anniversary Cannes Film Festival.

Cristian Mungiu's drama 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days -- the story of how two female university students deal with an illegal abortionist who wants to exploit them sexually -- won the Palme d'Or as best film.

The surprise triumph by the 39-year-old Romanian, who won with only his third feature film, pushed aside higher profile films from established directors.

That list included the Coen Brothers' No Country for Old Men, David Fincher's Zodiac, Wong Kar Wai's My Blueberry Nights, Gus Van Sant's Paranoid Park, Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof, Bela Tarr's The Man From London, James Gray's We Own the Night, Emir Kusturica's Promise Me This and Alexander Sokurov's Alexandra.

Former Palme d'Or winners such as the Coens, Tarantino and Kusturica got nothing this time around from the nine-member, star-studded jury headed by British filmmaker Stephen Frears.

That was shocking in the case of the Coens because their macho stars, Javier Bardem and Tommy Lee Jones, were thought to be contenders for best actor and the film itself was thought to be in the running for the Palme d'Or.

Another humble filmmaker, Japan's Naomi Kawase, took the second prize, or the Grand Prix, for her contemplative human drama Mogari No Mori (The Mourning Forest).

One former Palme d'or winner Van Sant, meanwhile, took home the made-up third prize, the Prix du 60th Anniversaire, for Paranoid Park. "It had very humble beginnings," the gracious Van Sant said of his project, the story of a Portland skateboarder who accidentally kills a security guard and covers up the incident.

Two other films shared the Prix du Jury, which essentially put them in a tie for fourth. One was Mexican director Carlos Reygadas' Silent Light. The other was the enormously popular animated film Persepolis from Franco-Iranian director Marjane Satrapi and French filmmaker Vincent Paronnaud. Satrapi essentially told her own story of growing up in the politically volatile Iran and emigrating to France.

The best actor prize went to a Russian, Konstantin Lavronenko, who played the role of the father who returns to his birthplace with his young family in The Banishment, a film that hardly anyone had been talking about.

The best actress prize went to a Korean, Jeon Do-Yeon, who played a distraught widow whose son is kidnapped in Secret Sunshine. It is another performance that few outsiders had been talking about before the jury made its decision.

An American -- colourful painter-filmmaker Julian Schnabel -- won the best director prize for making a French-language drama about the triumph of the human spirit.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is the true-life story of a French socialite who, by blinking his eye for an interpreter, writes a book about his anguish after a stroke totally paralyses his body.

A sweetly excited Schnabel, rambling through a monologue, finally said: "In my wildest dreams, I never thought that I would be here because, basically, I am just a movie fan. I never thought I would become a movie director."

The best screenplay prize went to Turkish writer-director Fatih Akin, who quickly issued thanks for his award. Then he made a declaration to his countrymen, who are about to vote on whether to maintain a secular state: "I have one message for Turkey. All is one; united we stand; divided we fall."

The Palme d'Or for short films -- which was selected by a separate jury -- went to Watching It Rain from Mexico's Elisa Miller. Special mentions went to New Zealand's Mark Albiston for Run, and Singapore's Anthony Chen for Ah Ma.

In the Un Certain Regard section, a parallel group of official selections, the top prize coincidentally went to another Romanian film.

Yet another jury handed the Prix Un Certain Regard Cristian Nemescu's California Dreamin' (Endless).

The Camera d'Or, a coveted prize for first-time directors with films in any of the official programs, went to Meduzot, co-directors Elgar Keret and Shira Geffen's entry in the International Critics Week.

"I haven't worn a suit since my bar mitzvah," Keret quipped. Anton Corbun's Control earned a special mention in this category.

Actor Charles Nelson Reilly dies at 76

LOS ANGELES - Charles Nelson Reilly, the Tony Award winner who later became known for his ribald appearances on the "Tonight Show" and various game shows, has died. He was 76.

Reilly died Friday in Los Angeles of complications from pneumonia, his partner, Patrick Hughes, told the New York Times.

Reilly began his career in New York City, taking acting classes at a studio with Steve McQueen, Geraldine Page and Hal Holbrook. In 1962, he appeared on Broadway as Bud Frump in the original Broadway production of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying." The role won Reilly a Tony Award.

He was nominated for a Tony again for playing Cornelius in "Hello, Dolly!" In 1997 he received another nomination for directing Julie Harris and Charles Durning in a revival of "The Gin Game."

After moving to Hollywood in 1960s he appeared as the nervous Claymore Gregg on TV's "The Ghost and Mrs. Muir" and as a featured guest on "The Dean Martin Show."

He gained fame by becoming what he described as a "game show fixture" in the 1970s and 80s. He was a regular on programs like "Match Game" and "Hollywood Squares," often wearing giant glasses and colorful suits with ascots.

His larger-than-life persona and affinity for double-entendres also landed him on the "Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson more than 95 times.

Reilly ruefully admitted his wild game show appearances adversely affected his acting career. "You can't do anything else once you do game shows," he told The Advocate, the national gay magazine, in 2001. "You have no career."

His final work was an autobiographical one-man show, "Save It for the Stage: The Life of Reilly," about his family life growing up in the Bronx. The title grew out of the fact that when he would act out as a child, his mother would often admonish him to "save it for the stage."

The stage show was made into the 2006 feature film called "The Life of Reilly."

Reilly's openly gay television persona was ahead of its time, and sometimes stood in his way. He recalled a network executive telling him "they don't let queers on television."

Hughes, his only immediate survivor, said Reilly had been ill for more than a year.

No memorial plans had been announced.

STORK REALITY

May 27, 2007 -- FAME, FORTUNE and box-office records be damned - Judd Apatow swears he will never be one of the popular kids.

"I'm the guy the girl breaks up with," the director insists. "I'm never the guy who breaks up with the girl."

Nor is Ben Stone, the lead character in his new movie, "Knocked Up." Or, for that matter, Steve Carell's character in 2005's "40-Year-Old Virgin."

Or any of the scrawny guys in his short-lived TV shows, "Freaks and Geeks" and "Undeclared," or in his other projects over the years: "The Larry Sanders Show," "The Ben Stiller Show" and "The Critic."

Apatow's underdog schtick is getting a little harder to pull off, though. What do you do when you see yourself as the nerdy outsider, but are nonetheless making a major name for yourself in Hollywood?

You stick to your roots, casting the guy least likely to be the leading man - that would be actor Seth Rogen - as the leading man.

Then, you prominently feature a close-up of his naked butt (maybe the closest you can get to actually mooning Hollywood).

"When we were shooting, we saw it small, on the monitor - but on the big screen, every hair on his butt is like a pine tree," says Apatow. "Seth said that if you were in stadium seating, it'd look like you might get sucked into it. It was like a scene out of 'Willy Wonka.'"

"No one," adds Rogen, "should see their a-- that big."

Like many of the movie's most memorable bits, that scene was a spur-of-the-moment thing.

"It was supposed to be that they woke up in bed together, that Katherine Heigl woke up with Seth breathing in her face," explains Apatow. "But when we were shooting, it occurred to me that it might be hilarious to have her already showered, waking him up, with his a-- out there for all to see. For way too much of the scene."

It's a small moment that encapsulates much about what's put Apatow on the map - first with "40-Year-Old Virgin," his big-screen directorial debut, and now with "Knocked Up," the story of an unlikely one-night stand that results in an unintended pregnancy.

Apatow has several stylistic staples: The ability to push comedy well into the realm of the awkward and still pull it off. An improvisational energy on his sets. Easy camaraderie that comes from working with the same group of actors, movie after movie.

And, of course, the Rogen factor.

The 25-year-old Canadian has been involved in nearly everything the director's done since 1999's "Freaks and Geeks," which was cancelled after only 18 episodes. In that show - and in every role since - Rogen's played the sarcastic, stonery sidekick type. The guy who may not get the girl, but reliably gets the funniest line.

Except now, he gets the girl, too. Much to Apatow's delight.

"I wanted Seth to be the lead of 'Undeclared,'" says Apatow, "and they laughed. They really laughed at me. They acted like it was the most insane idea. So it's nice to see him carry this movie and really do a great job.

"Seth's a great comic presence," he adds. "I just find him a very kind of relatable everyman."

"40-Year-Old Virgin" fans may know Rogen best from a scene in which he and Paul Rudd goof on macho posturing:

"You know how I know you're gay?"

"How? How do you know I'm gay?"

"Cause you macraméd yourself a pair of jean shorts."

"You know how I know you're gay? You just told me you're not sleeping with women anymore."

"You know how I know you're gay? You like Coldplay."

"You know how I know you're gay? I saw you make a spinach dip in a loaf of sourdough bread once."

That largely improvised scene - which can be viewed in all its unedited glory on the DVD - is a stellar example of why Apatow's directorial style works. He may start with the scripted version, then go off-book, either feeding new lines to his actors via earpieces, or simply letting them roll with it.

"I'm really just trying to make the performances come alive," says Apatow. "I find that when all the actors in a scene know that at any moment, an actor may change his lines a little bit, everyone is on their toes. And I tend to cast people who aren't that different from their part, so they can riff and speak naturally. Seth can talk all day long from his character, because it's 70 percent his real life."

One of Apatow's favorite improvised bits in this movie, he says, is a conversation between the couple about why Ben didn't wear a condom on their one-night stand.

"She says, 'I thought you were wearing one.' And Seth says," Apatow laughs, "'How come you couldn't tell? Did you think I was wearing a condom made of penis skin?'

"Another," he adds, "was a really funny line where he asks her if they can do it doggie style. And she says, 'I don't want you to do it like I'm a dog.' And he says, 'Well, it's just a style.'

"And then Seth adds this: 'I mean, we don't have to go outside or anything.'"

The movie's core group of stoners - Ben's four roommates - is particularly close to Apatow's heart, as they're drawn from his TV shows. Jason Segel and Martin Starr come from "Freaks and Geeks," while Jay Baruchel was the star of "Undeclared." (Jonah Hill, the youngest of the bunch, stars in an upcoming movie, "Superbad," which was co-written by Rogen). The actors have been close ever since, and it shows in their effortless banter onscreen (not to mention that all four play characters with their own names).

In the film's longest running gag, Starr grows out his facial hair on a bet with his housemates, who rib him about which hirsute personality he resembles. "We fed them a lot of lines," says Apatow. "We're like, do one about Serpico! Do one about Yasser Arafat! Do one about ZZ Top!"

As befits the R-rated comedy genre - which Apatow has been credited with reviving - off-color jokes are the mainstay. But the director also clearly relishes pushing the boundaries of what adult comedy entails.

The climactic birth scene is where he breaks new ground this time around. "I thought if I didn't show something very graphic, it would feel like a sitcom," he says. "In the script, it says: 'You see everything. This is not 'The Cosby Show.'"
And yet, popularity-wise, "Knocked Up" looks to be similarly huge. Which tends to make Apatow and co. nervous.

"Before, we could say 'well, the critics like us, and f--- everyone else,' like [we did] with 'Freaks and Geeks' and 'Undeclared,'" says Rogen. "[But] it's much scarier to be accepted on a wide scale."

"Pirates" opens with $112.5 million

LOS ANGELES - Box-office treasure is a little harder to come by on the new voyage of "Pirates of the Caribbean." The third installment in the Walt Disney Co. franchise, "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," hauled in $112.5 million from Friday to Sunday, well below last summer's $135.6 million opening weekend for its predecessor, "Dead Man's Chest."

"At World's End" had the fifth-biggest three-day opening ever, with this month's "Spider-Man 3" ($151.1 million) and "Shrek the Third" ($121.6 million) both outperforming it.

Adding in $14 million from Thursday night preview screenings, "At World's End" had taken in $126.5 million domestically, according to studio estimates Sunday. The Thursday night screenings skewed the weekend figures for "At World's End," which likely would have done much of that business on Friday without those previews.

"At World's End" took in an additional $205.5 million internationally since it began rolling out overseas Wednesday, putting its worldwide total at $332 million.

Though it missed out on key box-office records, "At World's End" is on course to surpass last year's "X-Men: The Last Stand," which had the best four-day Memorial Day weekend debut with $122.9 million.

"We will go flying by that," said Chuck Viane, Disney head of distribution.

After 2003's acclaimed "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," reviews were mixed at best for both sequels.

Critics found the second and third movies more akin to the Disney theme-park attraction on which the franchise is based, cinematic thrill rides whose huge visual set pieces supplanted much of the charm of the first film, which earned Johnny Depp an Academy Award nomination as boozy buccaneer Jack Sparrow.

Released just 10 months after "Dead Man's Chest," the new movie picks up from that cliffhanger as Sparrow's friends and foes ( Keira Knightley, Orlando Bloom and Geoffrey Rush) set sail to rescue him from Davy Jones' locker.

It remains to be seen how well "At World's End" will measure up in the long run to "Curse of the Black Pearl," which topped out at $305 million, and "Dead Man's Chest," last year's biggest hit with $423 million.

"Fifth-biggest opening of all time. There's really nothing to complain about here," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers. "These numbers tell us that people love to see these `Pirates' movies, regardless of reviews, regardless of any other factors."

With a big first weekend behind it, "At World's End" appears positioned to avoid the fate of some third installments such as "Jurassic Park III" and "The Matrix Revolutions," whose returns fell far short of their predecessors.

The new "Pirates" poached the box-office crown from DreamWorks Animation's "Shrek the Third," whose No. 1 debut a week earlier was a record opening for an animated film. "Shrek the Third" slipped to second place with $51 million, pushing its domestic total just beyond $200 million.

With $13.7 million, Sony's "Spider-Man 3" came in third, raising its domestic take to $303.3 million. Worldwide, "Spider-Man 3" has topped $800 million.

"At World's End" was hindered by a running time of two hours, 47 minutes, limiting the number of screenings theaters could schedule. "Dead Man's Chest" was about 15 minutes shorter and "Spider-Man 3" was nearly a half-hour shorter.

But "At World's End" made up for that by playing in more theaters, an all-time high of 4,362, 110 more than "Spider-Man 3," the previous record-holder.

Here estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Tuesday.

1. "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," $112.5 million.
2. "Shrek the Third," $51 million.
3. "Spider-Man 3," $13.7 million.
4. "Bug," $3.3 million.
5. "Waitress," $3.1 million.
6. "28 Weeks Later," $2.5 million.
7. "Georgia Rule," $1.9 million.
8. "Disturbia," $1.8 million.
9. "Wild Hogs," $1.1 million.
10. "Fracture," $1.08 million

The Couch Potato Report - May 26th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report peels some Inuit journals, a few Oscar nominees and a moustache.

Another very busy week with five new films to talk about, so let me get right to them!

The original Inuktitut language is spoken in THE JOURNALS OF KNUD RASMUSSEN, a Canadian film about an Inuit shaman and his headstrong daughter.

This is the latest release from the people who gave us the superb THE FAST RUNNER back in 2001.

THE JOURNALS OF KNUD RASMUSSEN is told from the views of a man who traveled the Arctic in the 1920s. There is no narration, but what he sees and discovers is what we experience as well.

And these experiences are very uique.

This is a movie with some great stories, and some superb acting, from a mostly unknown cast of actors.

There is a point in the film where the shaman is explaining how he survived his birth, despite a curse on his mother, and became the leader of his people.

It is all done in one extremely long take, one that goes on for almost twenty minutes.

I'd like to see some of the biggest names in Hollywood do that!!

My only complaint with THE JOURNALS OF KNUD RASMUSSEN is that it has some of the worst subtitles I have ever seen.

There are many times when people on screen are talking, mostly in groups to other people, and instead of telling us what is being said, the subtiles just read "lamenting", "murmuring" and "chattering".

I wanted to know what was being said so I could understand the characters even more, but I didn't get it.

And unless you speak Inuktitut, you'll never get it either, because the subtitles don't tell us.

And you may not even want to, THE JOURNALS OF KNUD RASMUSSEN isn't the type of film that is for everyone because it is very, very slow moving.

But, this film that takes place in the Canadian Arctic in January of 1912 does feature several things in it that you aren't going to see in many films - like the construction of an igloo, for instance - and that is why it is worth seeing.

It is not an exceptional film, but it is exceptionally interesting from start to finish.

Up next this week is VENUS. This movie features screen legend Peter O'Toole in his Oscar Nominated role as an aging actor who finds a new friend in a young woman who becomes his ideal of female beauty

Peter O'Toole has starred in some of the greatest films ever made - including Goodbye, Mr. Chips, The Lion in Winter, and Lawrence of Arabia - and in VENUS he plays a famous actor who - not unlike the man himself - is in the twilight of his career, and life.

His "Venus" is the niece of his friend.

At first she ignores him as she does her elderly Uncle.

But then they come to a mutally beneficial arrangement.

He spends money on her, and she makes him feel young.

O'Toole and the other actors in VENUS do a great job, but I was ultimately disappointed by the film.

The emotions and relationships seem real, but parts of the story feel forced. There is also a subplot about a boyfriend for the neice that is completely unnecessary.

VENUS isn't a bad film, but it isn't good enough to recommend.

And that is true about THE GOOD GERMAN as well.

Tobey Maguire, George Clooney and Cate Blanchett star in THE GOOD GERMAN.

Clooney is an American military journalist in post-war Berlin who is drawn into a murder investigation involving his former mistress, his driver, and a man named Emile Brandt.

The film tries to answer the question: Who is Emile Brandt, while the question that I have is how did director Steven Soderbergh let a film with this many flaws get released. The story moves from one uninteresting plot point to another with no sense of momentum, the acting is unfocussed and even though the film was shot in black-and-white, there is nothing special about that either.

If you are the type of film lover who always laments that "they don't make 'em like they used to", then you might enjoy the look and feel of THE GOOD GERMAN.

Usually I am that type of person, but this film just didn't do it for me. I am glad I saw it, but I won't ever see it again.

I will see our next film this week again...in fact, I have seen it three times already.

That film is Clint Eastwood's Academy Award nominated LETTER FROM IWO JIMA.

Originally envisioned as a companion piece to Eastwood's FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS this second movie is no companion. It surpasses that movie!

FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS is a very uninteresting movie that tells the life stories of the six men who raised the flag at The Battle of Iwo Jima, those men have been seen millions of times in the iconic photograph that was taken of them.

LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA tells the other side of that Battle...a side unseen in a Hollywood film until now.

This film shows us the Battle from the perspective of the Japanese.

Whereas FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS was over long, boring at times, and a complete waste of my time, LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA is engaging, full of interesting characters, and with it's unique perspective, I enjoyed it immensely.

The film was nominated for 4 Academy Awards including Best Writing, Original Screenplay for Canadian Paul Haggis' original story, and Best Picture.

It certainly was one of the best films of 2006.

And since it is in Japanese with subtitles, it gives me a great segue into our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD.

The action filled, very loud, very hyped, check-your-brain-at-the-door summer movie season is upon us in theatres, this week's entry is the very loud, very explosive and very hyped sequel PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN - AT WORLD'S END.

So, if you would like something different, I'll be offering you an alternative every week.

This week's selection is the French film LA MOUSTACHE.

This film begins in a bathtub as a man is washing and shaving.

He tells his wife that he is thinking about shaving off his moustache and her immediate reply is "I don't know you without it."

So as she goes out to get some food, he shaves it off.

Once she returns home he playfully hides his face and the reveals his newly shaven face to he, and waits patiently for his wife's reaction.

But neither she nor his friends seem to notice.

Then, he calls them on it, and they all insist he never had a mustache.

Is he going crazy?!?

Is he the victim of some elaborate conspiracy?!?

Or has something gone terribly awry with the world just because he has shaved off his moustache?!?

Well, I am sure not going to tell you.

LA MOUSTACHE is a very interesting film because it doesn't provide an easily understood ending with everything explained and a bow on top.

Instead, it will leave you with more than a few questions, and you can fill in the blanks any way you'd like.

Watch it with someone you enjoy talking about movies with, because you will definately want to discuss it when it is over.

It is another must see entry in the FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD

LA MOUSTACHE, the engaging LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA, the not very special THE GOOD GERMAN, and VENUS, and the not exceptional, but exceptionally interesting, Canadian film THE JOURNALS OF KNUD RASMUSSEN are all now available on DVD.

Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report

THE MICHAEL J. FOX COMEDY COLLECTION features four of his best known films not named BACK TO THE FUTURE, including THE SECRET OF MY SUCCESS.

We will also meet a cinematic monster in HANNIBAL RISING and a real one in the documentary DELIVER US FROM EVIL. Plus, Season Two of teh superb television series THE CLOSER is now on DVD and the FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL on DVD continues with the Finnish film FC VENUS, a romantic comedy about men, women and soccer.

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!

Sandler's 'Gay Robot' May Get Animated

Comedy Central is reportedly considering reimagining Adam Sandler's "Gay Robot" pilot as a potential animated series.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Comedy Central is giving thought to redeveloping the property after clips of "Gay Robot" acquired a cult following on sites including MySpace and YouTube.

Sony Pictures Television and Sandler and Jack Giarraputo's Happy Madision Productions did "Gay Robot," based on a Sandler skit, in live action form for Comedy Central back in 2005.

The cable network opted not to pick up the pilot, which featured the voice of Nick Swardson, who also co-wrote the pilot with Tom Gianas and originated the character on Sander's comedy album "Shhh... Don't Tell."

"Gay Robot" tells the story of a robot who turns out gay after his designer accidentally spilled a wine cooler on his circuits. In the pilot, the rainbox-festooned title character was prone to hanging out with a group of frat boys who try to get him a date to the homecoming dance.

Gay Robot has 32,000-plus MySpace friends and the clips on YouTube have tens of thousands of page views.

Green Day Punks Up 'Simpsons' Theme Song

In a new twist, the score soundtrack for the upcoming "Simpsons" movie, featuring Green Day's rendition of the show's famous theme, will be released simultaneously by three companies.

On July 24, three days before the film opens in U.S. theaters, Warner Bros. Records will put out the Green Day single (the band also appears in the film). Fox Music will make a digital score album available through its Web site and other outlets. And Extreme Music, usually known for its vast production music library, will release 25,000 pink doughnut cases to such specialty retailers as Best Buy, Circuit City, Wal-Mart and Barnes & Noble.

For traditionalists, jewel-cased CDs also will be available. "We really wanted to think outside of the box," Fox Music president Robert Kraft says. "'The Simpsons Movie' was a perfect vehicle to try a new approach."

The idea largely was the brainchild of Kraft and composer Hans Zimmer, who scored the film. "Hans has a great relationship with Extreme Music," Kraft says. "They are known for their creative packaging. The model of handing over a soundtrack or score to a traditional label and then hoping it does well is changing. This is a coordinated marketing effort of behalf of Extreme, the studio and Warner Bros. Records."

As previously reported, Green Day recently recorded a cover of another famous tune, John Lennon's "Working Class Hero," for the upcoming Darfur benefit "Instant Karma." The song, which the group performed on Wednesday's "American Idol" finale, climbs 25-14 on this week's Billboard Modern Rock chart.

New Garbage Song Enriches CD/DVD Compilation

A newly recorded Garbage single, "Tell Me Where It Hurts," will be included on an upcoming best-of collection, "Absolute Garbage." Due July 17 via Geffen, the CD/DVD combo includes 17 audio tracks on its first disc, a second disc with 14 remixes and a DVD with 15 music videos, live clips and behind-the-scenes footage.

Among the acts chipping in with remixes on the bonus disc are UNKLE, Massive Attack, the Crystal Method, Todd Terry and Felix Da Housecat.

Meanwhile, "Tell Me Where It Hurts" will arrive July 9 on two separate 7-inch vinyl singles -- one with the B-side "Bad Boyfriend (Sting Like a Bee remix)" and the other with "All the Good in This Life." The CD single sports the B-side "Betcha." A video for the new song, directed by Sophie Muller, began airing internationally last week.

Garbage has been on hiatus since 2005, although the group reunited in late January to play a benefit concert in Glendale, Calif. It is unknown if further activity is in the offing, as frontwoman Shirley Manson is moving forward with her first solo album.

Here is the track list for "Absolute Garbage:

Disc one:
"Vow"
"Queer"
"Only Happy When It Rains"
"Stupid Girl"
"Milk"
"#1 Crush"
"Push It"
"I Think I'm Paranoid"
"Special"
"When I Grow Up"
"You Look So Fine"
"The World is Not Enough"
"Cherry Lips"
"Shut Your Mouth"
"Why Do You Love Me"
"Bleed Like Me"
"Tell Me Where It Hurts"
"It's All Over But the Crying"

Disc two (remixes):
"The World Is Not Enough" (UNKLE remix)
"When I Grow Up" (Kagz Kooner remix)
"Special" (Brothers In Rhythm remix)
"Breaking Up the Girl" (Timo Maas remix)
"Milk" (Massive Attack remix)
"Cherry Lips" (Roger Sanchez remix)
"Androgyny" (Felix Da Housecat remix)
"Queer" (Rabbit In The Moon remix)
"Paranoid" (Crystal Method remix)
"Stupid Girl" (Todd Terry remix)
"Androgyny" (the Neptunes remix)
"You Look So Fine" (Fun Lovin' Criminals remix)
"Push It" (Boom Boom Satellites remix)
"Bad Boyfriend" (Garbage remix)

DVD:
"Vow"
"Queer"
"Only Happy When It Rains"
"Stupid Girl"
"Milk"
"Push It"
"I Think I'm Paranoid"
"Special"
"When I Grow Up"
"You Look So Fine"
"The World Is Not Enough"
"Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go)"
"Shut Your Mouth"
"Why Do You Love Me"
"Bleed Like Me"
"Tell Me Where It Hurts" (ex-North America ONLY)
"Thanks For Your Uhh Support"

Paul Newman says he's too old for acting

NEW YORK - Paul Newman says he's given up acting.

"I'm not able to work anymore as an actor at the level I would want to," Newman, 82, told ABC's "Good Morning America" on Thursday. "You start to lose your memory, your confidence, your invention. So that's pretty much a closed book for me."

Newman, star of films such as "Hud," "Cool Hand Luke" and "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," added: "I've been doing it for 50 years. That's enough."

He has other plates spinning. Newman plans to focus on the Dressing Room, his new organic restaurant in Westport, Conn., and his Hole in the Wall Gang camps for critically ill children.

His Newman's Own brand of dressings, pasta sauces, popcorn and salsa has raised more than $200 million for charities.

Newman, who won an Oscar for his leading role in 1986's "The Color of Money," was last seen — or heard, rather — as the voice of Doc Hudson in the 2006 animated feature "Cars."

Rosie fights last fight on 'The View'

NEW YORK - Rosie O'Donnell has fought her last fight at "The View." ABC said Friday she asked for, and received, an early exit from her contract at the daytime chatfest following her angry confrontation with co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck on Wednesday. She was due to leave in mid-June.

It ended a colorful eight-month tenure for O'Donnell that lifted the show's ratings but no doubt caused heartburn for show creator Barbara Walters. O'Donnell feuded with Donald Trump and frequently had snippy exchanges with the more conservative Hasselbeck.

O'Donnell said last month she would be leaving because she could not agree to a new contract with ABC executives.

"Rosie contributed to one of our most exciting and successful years at `The View,'" Walters said. "I am most appreciative. Our close and affectionate relationship will not change."

In a statement, O'Donnell said that "it's been an amazing year and I love all three women."

No one was feeling the love on Wednesday, when the argument with Hasselbeck began over O'Donnell's statement last week about the war: "655,000 Iraqi civilians have died. Who are the terrorists?"

Talk show critics accused O'Donnell of calling U.S. troops terrorists. She called Hasselbeck "cowardly" for not saying anything in response to the critics.

"Do not call me a coward, because No. 1, I sit here every single day, open my heart and tell people what I believe," Hasselbeck retorted, and their riveting exchange continued despite failed attempts by their co-hosts to cut to a commercial.

According to a New York Post report, O'Donnell's chief writer, Janette Barber, was allegedly led out of the building on Wednesday after she was caught drawing mustaches on photographs of Hasselbeck in "The View" studios. ABC executives didn't return repeated calls for questions on the incident Friday.

On Thursday O'Donnell had asked for a day off to celebrate her partner's birthday. "The View" aired a taped show on Friday.

On her Web site, O'Donnell posted a scrapbooklike video on Friday with pictures and news clippings of her tenure at "The View." Cyndi Lauper's "Sisters of Babylon" played in the background.

A day earlier, she posted messages on her Web site indicating she might not be back.

"When painting there is a point u must step away from the canvas as the work is done," she wrote. "Any more would take away."

Fall Out Boy on high

"Wait, (wasn't) it going to be that Sanjaya guy?" Patrick Stump says, prematurely reacting to last night's American Idol finale. "He was doing great wasn't he?

"To be honest," he goes on, laughing, "my only interest in that show was seeing if he'd win. So when he was voted off, I stopped watching."

It's a Friday morning, and as he steps onto the balcony of his Los Angeles condo, besides forecasting Idol's end, Fall Out Boy's lead vocalist is wondering if it's too early to go shopping for CD's.

"As we speak, I'm looking at the Virgin Megastore, just kind of contemplating," he says. "Should I go over there? Do you think they're open yet," he asks, gazing towards Sunset Blvd.

"I don't think they are," he continues, moving back inside, "but I might walk over there anyway. Everything you want to waste your money on, they have in triplicate. I'm so stoked about it. I could go on forever."

Days away from starting an amphitheatre trek in support of their platinum-selling sophomore disc, "Infinity on High," Stump, 23, pondered the Illinois-foursome's uncanny rise from suburban outcasts to mainstream hitmakers.

Scoring one of the decade's biggest rock singles, "Dance, Dance," the band's major-label debut, "From Under the Cork Tree," moved close to three million copies following its release in 2005.

Bass player, Pete Wentz's lyrics a kaleidoscopic romp through teenage angst, Fall Out Boy found itself shoved from Warped Tour oddities, to trading licks with Jay-Z (on "Thriller") and adding hooks to Timbaland's "One & Only."

"It was right before Christmas when we got the call from Timbaland, and I flew out to Norfolk, Va., with Andy and we were there, we were doing it and everything was awesome," he says, speaking at a rapid pace. "But on the way out, every flight got cancelled and it was almost like 'Home Alone,' where we didn't make it back. I called my mom and said, 'Mom, I might miss Christmas this year. I'm here with Timbaland.'"

Kanye West also got in on the act, producing a remix of "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race," and when the boys asked Babyface to help produce "Infinity on High," he graciously obliged.

"We bluffed really," Stump says. "We were talking to MTV or someone and we just said that Babyface was going to produce some of the songs. Then, when they were fact-checking it, they called him up and he was like, 'Who Out Boy?' But he decided to do it."

Friends since meeting inside the clubs flogging Chicago's hardcore scene, Stump says the band's members gravitated towards one another because of a shared desire to do something different.

After splintering off from the metalcore outfit, Arma Angelus, ex-members Wentz, Andy Hurley and Joe Trohman hooked up with Stump, and the musical bond between vocalist and lyricist was instant. "He writes words and I write background music. We're constantly writing. In fact, we've written three songs since starting this interview.

"He gives me his words and I just start writing melodies around those lyrics," adds Stump. "The first verse of 'You're Crashing, But You're No Wave,' the one about the DA dressed to the nines, I love that. I thought that was such a cool image when I first read that."

Now headliners on the seventh-annual edition of the Honda Civic tour, Stump says that playing in front of 16,000 fans (as they are expected to do this weekend in Toronto) hasn't really fazed them. "We're really just stoked on playing anywhere.

"Our first show was our first big break. It was at DePaul University (in Chicago) in a mess hall in front of a bunch of really mathy, experimental hardcore bands.

"No one liked us, but we were really hyped about it anyways."

In retrospect, though, it shouldn't surprise anyone that record labels were vying for the rights to the band's airtight teen melodramas.

At the merchandise table hawkers sell everything from T-shirts to action figures. "You can't really call them action figures," Stump says, with total seriousness. "Because there isn't really that much action. My guy just stands there.

"However, the real me doesn't get that much action in the first place, and the legs don't move and you can't take the hat off. So, maybe they are just like real life."

Almost as intriguing as the collectibles, however, is Stump's unabashed adoration of singer-songwriter Prince. "I've heard a surprising amount of Prince," he allows.

"I was in Missoula, Mont., walking through a used record store and they had two cassette tapes. Count them, two cassettes in the entire place. One was Dr. Dre's 'The Chronic' and the other was the Time's 'Pandemonium.'

"'Pandemonium' just looked ridiculous and I'd always wanted a copy of 'The Chronic,' so I bought both thinking I was mostly going to listen to 'The Chronic.' I don't think I've ever listened to that copy of 'The Chronic,' though. I exclusively listened to the Time and I got obsessed with that record. Then, I went through all the bands that Prince made and all the bands he put together, working my way back to him."

But with virtually all aspects of the band's personal life made public (anyone recall seeing shots of Wentz's penis on the Internet?), isn't Stump worried that Fall Out Boy are getting too big to stay true to their humble beginnings?

"Chris Rock has a good quote that being famous is a lot like having a girlfriend with a really nice rack," he chuckles. "A lot of people will be really nice to you and give you a lot of attention, but nine times out of ten, they're just looking at your rack."

Here are the remaining dates on the Honda Civic Tour:

May 2007

25 - Montreal, Quebec - The Bell Centre

26 - Toronto, Ontario - Molson Amphitheater

27 - Clarkston, MI - DTE Energy Music Theater

28 - Darien Center, NY - Darien Lakes Performing Arts Center

30 - Saratoga, NY - Saratoga Performing Arts Center

31 - Mansfield, MA - Tweeter Center for the Performing Arts

June 2007

1 - Camden, NJ - Tweeter Center at the Waterfront

2 - Hartford, CT - New England Dodge Music Center

4 - Columbia, MD - Merriweather Post Pavilion

5 - Wantaugh, NY - Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre

6 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Center

8 - Noblesville, IN - Verizon Wireless Music Center

10-11 - Chicago, IL - Charter One Pavilion at Northerly Island

13 - Charlotte, NC - Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

14 - Atlanta, GA - HiFi Buys Amphitheatre

15 - Tampa, FL - Ford Amphitheater

16 - West Palm Beach, FL - Sound Advice Amphitheater

18 - The Woodlands, TX - Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

19 - Dallas, TX - Smirnoff Music Centre

20 - Selma, TX - Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

22 - Phoenix, AZ - Cricket Pavilion

23 - Inglewood, CA - The Forum

24 - Las Vegas, NV - The Pearl

25 - West Valley City, UT - The E Center

27 - Tacoma, WA - Tacoma Dome

28 - Vancouver, British Columbia - Pacific Coast Coliseum

29 - Portland, OR - The Rose Garden Arena

30 - Concord, CA - Sleep Train Pavilion

July 2007

1 - Chula Vista, CA - Coors Amphitheater

2 - Anaheim, CA - The Honda Center

Love Kicks Cobain Shoe Ad to the Curb

Thanks in part to an outraged Courtney Love, a new Doc Martens ad has been given the boot.

The 42-year-old entertainer was steamed after learing that a new advertising campaign for the footwear company features late husband Kurt Cobain and other iconic punk rockers modeling boots in heaven.

The print ads, promoting the manufactuer's AirWair line and only approved for use in the United Kingdom, portrayed the Nirvana star sitting in a cloudbank, clad all in white except for a pair of black boots. A tag line in corner reads: "Dr. Martens. Forever." Similar ads featured the Sex Pistols' Sid Vicious, the Clash's Joe Strummer, and the Ramones' Joey Ramone. The photos were leaked earlier this month via the music blog thedailyswarm.com.

"Courtney never approved the use of these images [for commercial gain] nor would she ever approve it. She knew nothing about it," Love publicist Alan Nierob tells E! Online.

The rep said British law, unlike American, appears to allow companies to use the images of dead celebrities without explicit permission from their estates.

Nierob said that Love was having her lawyers double check, but added that any suggestion she'd take legal action at this point was "premature."

Dr. Martens wasn't willing to push the issue. Facing a PR nightmare and backlash from the same fans the company was trying to court, the shoemaker said it was scuttling the campaign.

"Dr. Martens is very sorry for any offense that has been caused by the publication of images showing dead rock icons wearing Dr. Martens boots," the company said in a statement to E! Online. "Dr. Martens did not commission the work as it runs counter to our current marketing activities based on FREEDM, which is dedicated to nurturing grass roots creativity and supporting emerging talent.

"As a consequence, Dr Martens has terminated its relationship with the responsible agency."

The "responsible agency," London-based Saatchi & Saatchi, defended the work, saying the photographs of Cobain and company were legally purchased from Corbis, one of the world's largest stock photo companies.

“We believe the ads are edgy but not offensive. There has been blog commentary both for and against the ads, but it is our belief that they are respectful of both the musicians and the Dr. Martens brand,” said Kate Stanners, the agency's executive creative director.

Earlier, another campaign mastermind explanied the concept behind the ads to British music site NME. com

"We wanted to communicate that Dr. Marten boots are 'made to last' and we discovered that these idolized musicians wore them," copywriter Andrew Petch said. "Showing them still wearing their Docs in heaven dramatized the boots' durability perfectly. And, as images, they feel very iconic."

But Nierob says Dr. Martens made the right move.

"They obviously realized they did something wrong," the publicist said. "It was in poor taste."

Aside from Love, many fans took issue with anti-establishment punkers being used to promote shoes, others questioned the veracity of the ads.

"Kurt wore...Converse. Don’t know about Doc Martens," Ruby 17 wrote on Love's official Website, moonwashedrose.com. "Even so, they could have at least asked permission. Wondered if they asked permission from Joey Ramone’s estate or Sid Vicious estate as well? Does look tacky I agree."

"I can’t say I knew Kurt, but to me he doesn’t seem like the guy that would wanna be a spokesperson for clothing and shoes. Neither does Sid or Joey," a user named Linn added.

Love and Cobain married in 1992 and had a daughter, Frances Bean, before the grunge star killed himself in the couple's Seattle home two years later.
Love controls Cobain's estate and has been very hands-on when it comes to overseeing her late husband's legacy.

But earlier this month, the "Doll Parts" singer announced plans to auction off the bulk of Cobain's belongings.

"I still wear his pajamas to bed," she told spinner.com. "How am I ever going to go form another relationship in my lifetime wearing Kurt's pajamas? Everyone's been positive and behind me on it," she told the site. "We'll make a lot of money and give a bunch of it to charity."

No word yet on a date or which organization/s will receive the spoils. The garage sale comes about a year after Love struck a $50 million deal with Primary Wave Music Publishing for a 25 percent stake in Cobain's music royalties.

Love, meanwhile, has been putting her past drug problems behind her, boasting online that she's now clean and sober, has dropped 44 pounds, has fixed what she said was a botched nose job and is now living on a macrobiotic diet. She's also prepping a new solo album, Nobody's Daughter, which should be out later this year.

Paul McCartney debuts video on YouTube

NEW YORK - Paul McCartney snagged Natalie Portman to star in his new music video — thanks to his fashion designer-daughter, Stella.

Portman, 25, makes a cameo as a ghost in the video for "Dance Tonight," a track from McCartney's new studio album, "Memory Almost Full." The video had its world premiere Wednesday on YouTube.com.

"The connection with Natalie came from my daughter Stella, who makes non-leather shoes that Natalie buys, so I just thought, `Well, I'll ring her up and just see if she'll do it.' So I rang her up and said, `Hey, I'm Stella's dad!'" the 64-year-old former Beatle said in a statement posted on his Web site.

Portman, whose screen credits include "Closer" and "V for Vendetta," plays a "futurist electronic ghost" who is summoned by the sound of McCartney's mandolin.

Filmmaker Michel Gondry ("Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind") directed the video.

"Memory Almost Full," McCartney's 21st solo album, will be released June 5 in the United States. It's his first release for Hear Music, Starbuck Corp.'s new record label.

McCartney last released the acclaimed "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard," in 2005.

Osmonds reuniting for 50th celebration

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Osmonds will reunite this summer for a TV special celebrating a half-century in the entertainment business.

Seven Osmond siblings — Alan, Wayne, Merrill, Jay, Donny, Marie and Jimmy — are scheduled to be onstage Aug. 13-14 at The Orleans Hotel Showroom, publicist Kevin Sasaki said Thursday from Los Angeles.

Tickets for the live shows range from $75 to $125.

The shows will be taped for "The Osmonds 50th Anniversary," which will air next March on PBS stations.

"At first it was just a tribute to my brothers, but it came together as a celebration of everybody. It's out of control," Jimmy Osmond, producer of the special, said Thursday.

"We started so young, you would think 50 years means we're a bunch of old guys. We aren't a bunch of old guys," he said, noting that family members perform frequently before audiences young and old.

Third "Pirates" sets sail for Memorial Day record

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Spider-Man 3" and "Shrek the Third" may have set opening weekend box office records this month, but Hollywood thinks the latest "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie will steal a hefty chunk of the summer movie season's treasure.

"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," which opens on Friday in 102 countries and territories is the final film in a trilogy that has so far grossed $1.7 billion at global box offices and has sold 40 million DVDs and home videos for the Walt Disney Co..

Advance ticket sales for the film were on par with the record-breaking $151 million debut earlier this month for Sony Corp.'s "Spider-Man 3," but the film's length -- nearly three hours with trailers -- will limit the number of times it is shown and could affect its 3-day total, said Jeff Bock, an analyst for box office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations.

But "At World's End" will be opening in a record 4,362 North American theaters, about 110 more than "Spider-Man 3" and about 200 more than DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc.'s "Shrek the Third," which set an opening-weekend record last week for an animated film at $122 million.

"We are looking at a bow (debut) that's got to be between 'Shrek the Third' and 'Spider-Man 3,' and if everything works out it, could surpass it," Bock said.

"No doubt it will be the biggest Memorial Day opening weekend, eclipsing 'X-Men: Last Stand' with a four-day $122 million total."

Top U.S. online ticket sellers Fandango.com and MovieTickets.com both showed "At World's End" outpacing "Spider-Man" at the same point in the sales cycle.

Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger told attendees at the Society of American Business Editors and Writers this week he was anxiously awaiting the public's reaction to the new film.

"This is one of those weekends where you are on your computer or waiting by the phone to get the results almost on an hourly basis," Iger said.

"Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," the second film in the series, was the first live-action movie to pass $1 billion in global box-office sales during a theatrical run. Disney has positioned itself to reap the full benefit of what could be the lucrative franchise's final film.

The company enlisted 13 corporate partners -- the most ever for any Disney film -- to promote "At World's End." The partners include Volvo, Verizon Communications Inc., Coca-Cola Co., Circuit City, Best Buy and Toys 'R Us.

Disney has shipped 2.8 million of its new video game and 2 million books from its "Pirates of the Caribbean" series in conjunction with the release of "At World's End." The book franchise, which boasts 60 titles, has already sold 9 million copies.

"Pirates" merchandise is the company's No. 2 selling line from a feature film, behind "Cars," and the company plans to continue with the line of clothing, jewelry, furnishings, toys and collectibles for years to come, a Disney spokesman said.

The Walt Disney World and Disneyland theme parks installed WiFi hot spots that let gamers download exclusive content for the online "Pirates" game. Disneyland retooled its Tom Sawyer Island as a "Pirates Lair" that opens on Friday.

'Star Wars' 30th anniversary marked

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Seventeen hours to go in a darkened theatre not so far away?

Welcome to the "Star Wars" marathon. A free showing of all six "Star Wars" movies began Wednesday morning at the Los Angeles Convention Center and was expected to end at 2 a.m. Thursday. The event kicked off a celebration of the 30th anniversary of the release of the original film.

Several thousand people showed up for the screening, which included brief intermissions.

"Because the saga spans 30 years, it spans multiple generations of fans as well," event spokesman Jonathan Zaleski said. "There are people in costume, families. It's an interesting mix."

"You get the usual assortment of stormtroopers running around," he added. "I imagine its pretty uncomfortable to sit for 17 hours encased in plastic."

Lucasfilm Ltd. supplied the digital prints for the movies and also is involved in "Star Wars Celebration IV" at the Convention Center.

That event, open to fan club members on Thursday and to the paying public on Friday through Monday, was to include costume contests, exhibitions of movie props, autograph opportunities from "Star Wars" celebrities, and even a stormtrooper "Olympics."

Jordin Sparks crowned `American Idol'

LOS ANGELES - Jordin Sparks grew up on "American Idol," watching the show since she was 12 years old and telling her mother it was what she wanted to do.

"Now I'm actually doing it," the 17-year-old told reporters backstage after winning the competition in Wednesday's season finale.

The announcement that the Arizona teenager bested Blake Lewis, 25, the beat-boxer from Washington, came at the end of a two-hour extravaganza at the Kodak Theatre.

"I've just been trying to top myself each week," Sparks told The Associated Press. "I would sing my song and after I was done I was like, `OK, what am I going to do next week that's going to be ... either just as good or better."

Sparks, with a floor-length gown and movie-star hair, gushed like a teenager when her name was called.

"Thank you so much for everything," she told the crowd. "Mom, Dad, I love you. Nana, Papa, P.J., thank you guys."

Then she began "This Is My Now," the tune picked by viewers in a new online "American Idol" songwriting contest. Both she and Lewis performed the track Tuesday, and judge Simon Cowell reiterated Wednesday the song sold him on Sparks.

"If I'm going to call it, based on the last song, congratulations Jordin," Cowell said, before the winner was announced.

The contest came down to the stronger singer, Sparks, or the better entertainer, Lewis. Sparks delivered her songs simply and powerfully; Lewis' flourishes included beatboxing and sharp dance moves.

Lewis said backstage that he didn't mind coming in second.

"I picked Jordin Sparks at the top 24 as the American Idol winner," he said proudly. "I was actually going to try to wear a `Vote for Jordin Sparks' T-shirt last night but they wouldn't let me do it."

Lewis compared his sound to Michael Jackson and Jamiroquai and said his forthcoming album will be "like electro pop, very danceable."

Sparks won a recording contract as part of her "Idol" prize, but Lewis hasn't yet secured a deal.

"Hopefully some creative minds would like to work with me," he said.

The finale pulled out the stops and the stars, with Gwen Stefani, Smokey Robinson, Tony Bennett, Bette Midler, and Green Day among the performers.

Stefani sang her new single, "4 in the Morning," via satellite from a tour stop in Massachusetts.

Midler took the stage as the show drew near its close, singing "The Wind Beneath My Wings."

Past "Idol" winners and this season's contestants got a hefty share of attention, starting with first-season winner Kelly Clarkson. She performed her new single "Never Again," the gritty rock song matched by her black dress and thigh-high boots.

Carrie Underwood, the fourth-season idol, sang "I'll Stand by You" and was honored by legendary music mogul Clive Davis for reaching 6 million in sales for her debut album, "Some Hearts."

Taylor Hicks, last season's winner, also had his moment, as did Ruben Studdard, the winner from year two.

Robinson, a Motown great, performed "Being with You" after the top six male contestants, including fan fave Sanjaya Malakar, sang "Ooh Baby Baby," a hit for Robinson and his group the Miracles.

"All the guys are very nice guys, wonderful young people" Robinson said of the Idol finalists backstage. Sparks deserved to win, he said.

"She is an awesome singer. She sings so good it's hard to believe she's 17," he said. "To sing like that, you would have to have lived for a long time. She's an old soul."

Blake, whose beat-boxing scored with viewers and brought a hip-hop element to "Idol," performed with veteran rapper Doug E. Fresh on his old hit, "The Show." It was a signature moment for a contest that has introduced young viewers to Gershwin and other standards.

"True originals," host Ryan Seacrest said of the duo.

Backstage, Fresh called Lewis "an incredibly talented, good guy."

"He just has such an incredible energy and he loves hip hop so much," Fresh said from behind aviator sunglasses.

Gladys Knight took the stage with the six female finalists, belting out "I Feel a Song" and "Midnight Train to Georgia." Bennett performed a mellow version of "For Once in My Life" that ended with a big finish.

"A true idol, Tony Bennett, ladies and gentlemen," gushed Seacrest.

Melinda Doolittle, arguably the best "Idol" contestant to miss out on the finale, returned to impress the crowd again as she sang "Hold Up the Line" with gospel stars BeBe and CeCe Winans.

"She has proven in the last few months to be spectacular," BeBe Winans said backstage of Doolittle.

The show took a serious turn when Green Day performed "A Working Class Hero is Something to Be," a single from "Instant Karma: The Campaign to Save Darfur," a fundraising album for the embattled region.

Viewers cast more than 74 million votes in making Sparks the winner. Hundreds of "American Idol" fans lined Hollywood Boulevard leading up to the theater before the show.

On Tuesday, judges Cowell and Randy Jackson made it clear Sparks was their favorite. Diplomatic Paula Abdul kept her counsel as usual, praising both singers. Although the judges didn't have a say in the decision, their opinions can sway voters.

Gripping 'Lost' season-ender offers hope

NEW YORK - The good news: The plan hatched by our "Lost" friends to call for help actually worked. The bad news: They may be in deeper trouble than before.

Wednesday night's season finale of ABC's adventure-mystery was terrific, a two-hour testament to being careful what you wish for (even when things seem to go right for the "Lost" crew, they actually get worse).

This season was often slow-moving and unfocused. But the powerful season-ending episode redeemed the series with the shrewdness and intrigue that made it so addictive in the first place. It will be a long wait for smitten viewers until early 2008, when "Lost" comes back for its fourth season.

Spoiler alert: Go no further if you don't want to know what happened in the finale.

The latest opportunity to get off the island had presented itself with the parachute arrival of Naomi and her satellite phone, which could contact a freighter just a few miles offshore.

But two obstacles remained: Rousseau's tape-loop plea for help, which had aired nonstop for 16 years from the island's radio tower and was blocking any sat-phone calls. Worse, the infamous Others were jamming all radio signals from an underwater lab.

Last week, Charlie volunteered to make the perilous dive to the submerged station and disable the jamming device — despite Desmond's premonitions that the excursion would end with Charlie drowning.

Nothing ever happens as expected on "Lost," of course. But despite unforeseen complications, rock star Charlie (played by Dominic Monaghan) shut off the jammer, as he hoped. Then, as predicted, he drowned.

For a while, it appeared that three other regulars — Jin, Sayid and Bernard — were also on the show's hit list: They were taken prisoner during the Others' beach raid, and were thought to have been executed. But by episode's end they were alive and free.

Meanwhile, the main group, led by Jack, made the journey to the radio tower, where Rousseau's message was successfully silenced.

But then, as Naomi attempted to place the sat-phone call to the ship, she was stabbed to death. The killer was none other than Locke, who long ago "went native" and has sabotaged efforts by his fellow plane-crash survivors to flee the island.

Locke's appearance was a surprise: Two episodes ago, viewers saw him shot and left for dead in the jungle by Ben, leader of the Others.

When Jack retrieved the phone from the fallen Naomi, Locke aimed a gun at Jack, threatening to kill him, too, if he made the call.

"You're not supposed to do this," Locke said.

Naturally, none of the survivors bought his argument.

Nor had they believed Ben, arriving moments earlier to implore Jack not to place the call. Naomi wasn't who she claimed to be, he warned Jack. She was "one of the bad guys."

"If you phone her boat," declared Ben, who has been known to lie for his own purposes, "every single living person on this island will be killed."

But Jack completed the call. It seemed that help was on the way.

That is, unless Ben and Locke were right that alerting the boat was a grave mistake — a fear that viewers were starting to share.

"I'm telling you," Ben said, "making that call is the beginning of the end."

Maybe Ben was telling the truth. And with the narrative cutaways throughout this episode, "Lost" may have signaled a shift into a new phase next season, positioning the saga for its end: Instead of the customary flashbacks, viewers for the first time got a glimpse of the future.

And that future guarantees there's life after the island.

The scenes focused on Jack, in miserable shape in Los Angeles. A lost soul, he was drunk and drugged out, barely able to function. When his eye fell on a newspaper story that reported someone's death (just who, the viewer didn't learn), he was nearly driven to suicide.

Then, in the closing scene, he met up with Kate, for whom he seemed to be carrying a torch. Pathetically, he told her he makes a practice of taking airline flights — hoping that the jet will crash and put him back where he thinks he belongs.

"Every little bump we hit, I actually close my eyes and pray that I can get back," he said. "We made a mistake. We were not supposed to leave."

"Yes, we were," Kate said sternly.

"We have to go back, Kate!" Jack said in despair.

Viewers, left mystified and tantalized, won't be able to go back to "Lost" until next year.

Barker's Final 'Price' Right for Primetime

After months of suspense, we finally know when Bob Barker's final episode of "The Price Is Right" will air.

CBS announced on Wednesday (May 23) that Barker's 35-year tenure on "The Price Is Right" will conclude with an episode set for Friday, June 15.

Likely to tape at least a week before, Barker's final "Prince" will show first in the game show's regular daytime slot (11 a.m. ET and 10 a.m. PT) and will then get an encore showing that night in primetime, showing at 8 p.m. and leading directly into CBS' telecast of the 34th Annual Daytime Emmys, a ceremony that will see Barker up for two awards to add to an already hefty pile.

After a number of previous hosting gigs, including "Truth and Consequences," Barker began hosting "The Price Is Right" on Sept. 4, 1972. In his time as host, Barker earned 13 individual Emmys and three Emmys as one of the show's producers. He received a Daytime Television Lifetime Achievement Emmy in 1999 and was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in June 2004.

Although he's ready to go off into the sunset, Barker's ratings might is still impressive. This past week a pair of specials dedicated to his retirement -- one a "Price Is Right Million Dollar Spectacular" and the other a retrospective of his TV tenure -- averaged roughly 14 million viewers apiece and ranked among the Top 11 most watched shows for the frame.

New CD Releases, May 22: Ozzy Osbourne, Maroon 5, Joan Osborne

Ozzy Osbourne "Black Rain"

If you want to attend this year's Ozzfest, you might want to get a copy of tour founder Ozzy Osbourne's latest CD.

As previously announced, tickets for Ozzfest will be free. That, of course, brings up the issue of how those tickets will be distributed. Osbourne, a master at marketing, is enticing fans to purchase "Black Rain" by including Ozzfest tickets with the CD.

Specially marked, limited-edition copies of the set include a code that fans can use to obtain two Ozzfest tickets via tour-promoter Live Nation's website.

If you need another reason to buy the disc, "Black Rain" is Osbourne's first studio set of all-new material in six years.

* * *
Maroon 5 "It Won't Be Soon Before Long"

The melodic pop-rock band is back with a proper studio follow-up to its multi-platinum debut, 2002's "Songs About Jane." The first single from the album is "Makes Me Wonder."

Maroon 5 worked on "It Won't Be Soon Before Long" in a Hollywood mansion reputed to have once been owned by legendary magician Harry Houdini. Some of Houdini's magic apparently has carried over to the recording: it's already a top-seller thanks to blistering Internet pre-sales.

The group will first support the album with a short tour of small venues, beginning May 30 in Boston and continuing through a June 11 date in New York. After that, a longer trek through arena-sized venues is expected.

* * *
Joan Osborne "Breakfast in Bed"

Everybody's doing it--going all retro and recording albums of oldies-but-goodies, that is. Osborne is the latest to jump on the bandwagon with her new set, "Breakfast in Bed."

The bluesy vocalist, who recently collaborated with members of The Dead, has chosen to cover such songs as Hall and Oates' "Sara Smile" and Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine."

* * *
The Used "Lies for the Liars"

The Used called upon the talents of producer John Feldmannn (The Matches, Story of the Year) to help with its third release, "Lies for the Liars," the studio follow-up to 2004's gold-certified "In Love and Death." The group's previous release was "Berth," a CD/DVD combo recorded and shot in Vancouver, British Columbia, during its last headlining tour.

* * *
The Bravery "The Sun and the Moon"

The Bravery will attempt to lick the sophomore jinx with the release of its second album. "The Sun and the Moon," which features production work by Brendan O'Brien (Pearl Jam, Bob Dylan), follows the band's self-titled 2005 debut.

* * *
More new releases:
Tim Armstrong, "A Poet's Life" (Hellcat)
Battles, "Mirrored" (Warped)
The Beach Boys, "The Warmth of the Sun" (Capitol)
Michael Brecker, "Pilgrimage" (Heads Up)
Jeff Buckley, "So Real: Songs from Jeff Buckley" (Sony)
Barbara Cook, "No One is Alone" (DRG)
Chick Corea, Bela Fleck, "The Enchantment" (Stretch)
Hillsong United, "All of the Above" (Integrity)
Candye Kane, "Guitar'd and Feathered" (Ruf)
The National, "Boxer" (Beggars Banquet)
Sonata Arctica, "Unia" (Nuclear Blast)
U.S.D.A., Young Jeezy, "Young Jeezy Presents U.S.D.A.: Cold Summer" (Def Jam)
Various Artists, "Crucial Acoustic Blues" (Alligator)
Various Artists, "Crucial Rockin' Blues" (Alligator)
Various Artists, "More Crucial Guitar Blues" (Alligator)

Soundtracks and scores:
"La Vie en Rose: La Mome" (EMI)
"Once" (Columbia)
"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (Disney)

Barker's Final 'Price' Right for Primetime

After months of suspense, we finally know when Bob Barker's final episode of "The Price Is Right" will air.

CBS announced on Wednesday (May 23) that Barker's 35-year tenure on "The Price Is Right" will conclude with an episode set for Friday, June 15.

Likely to tape at least a week before, Barker's final "Prince" will show first in the game show's regular daytime slot (11 a.m. ET and 10 a.m. PT) and will then get an encore showing that night in primetime, showing at 8 p.m. and leading directly into CBS' telecast of the 34th Annual Daytime Emmys, a ceremony that will see Barker up for two awards to add to an already hefty pile.

After a number of previous hosting gigs, including "Truth and Consequences," Barker began hosting "The Price Is Right" on Sept. 4, 1972. In his time as host, Barker earned 13 individual Emmys and three Emmys as one of the show's producers. He received a Daytime Television Lifetime Achievement Emmy in 1999 and was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in June 2004.

Although he's ready to go off into the sunset, Barker's ratings might is still impressive. This past week a pair of specials dedicated to his retirement -- one a "Price Is Right Million Dollar Spectacular" and the other a retrospective of his TV tenure -- averaged roughly 14 million viewers apiece and ranked among the Top 11 most watched shows for the frame.

Borat, the book, coming this fall

NEW YORK - Glorious booksellers of America: Please welcome the esteemed Borat Sagdiyev.

The ever eloquent ambassador from Kazakhstan has a book, with two titles, coming out this fall: "Borat: Touristic Guidings To Minor Nation of U.S. and A." and "Borat: Touristic Guidings To Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan."

"There is one and only Borat and we are honored to have him join our pantheon of international writers," Suzanne Herz, publisher of Flying Dolphin Press, an imprint of Random House, Inc.'s Doubleday Broadway Publishing Group, said in a statement Wednesday.

"There is no doubt he will deliver a brilliant book."

According to Flying Dolphin Press, "one half will be a guide to America for Kazakhs and the other half ... a guide to Kazakhstan for Westerners." It will feature Borat's timeless wisdom, plus illustrations and photographs.

'Uncle Bobby' dead at 82

TORONTO (CP) - "Uncle Bobby," a popular Canadian children's entertainer during the 1960s and '70s, has died at age 82.

CTV.ca reports that Bobby Ash, originally from the U.K., died in Elliot Lake, Ont., on Sunday of a heart attack. Ash starred in "The Uncle Bobby Show," which began its run on CTV's Toronto flagship station, CFTO, in 1964.

His co-stars included the puppet "Bimbo the Birthday Clown," and the characters "The Singing Policeman" and "The Ventriloquist."

The 30-minute show was later titled "Uncle Bobby and Friends" and ran for two years on CTV to become a staple of weekday afternoons for many Canadian children.

CTV says funeral and memorial service arrangements are pending.

Ash began his career in children's entertainment as a clown.

Even after "Uncle Bobby" left the airwaves, he continued to entertain kids in his retirement as the author of children's books.

'Heroes' wraps up its season tonight

If Heroes wants to be truly heroic tonight, it will make good on its promise.

Everyone associated with the show has assured the public that tonight's season-finale (Global, NBC) won't neglect the "finale" part of the equation.

The main storylines from this spectacular first season will wrap up in a decisive way, they say.

Season No. 2 will have a different plot, they maintain.

Please stick with that, folks. Nobody wants this to turn into The X-Files, you know?

"The questions do get resolved in a huge way," said Adrian Pasdar, who plays ambiguously tormented politician Nathan Petrelli, in a recent conference call.

"(Nathan has) a big part in the final decision-making in the last few moments of the finale, in which all those questions that are posited in the pilot are answered almost to a 'T'. It's a beautifully structured finale."

As the role of Jack Coleman -- a.k.a. Mr. Horn-Rimmed Glasses -- has decreased in recent episodes, the role of Nathan has increased.

And predictably in the polarized politics of the United States, Pasdar has been asked more than once if Nathan is a Republican or a Democrat.

"I think it's kind of a conglomerate," said the 42-year-old Pasdar, who is married to Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks.

"I've taken the best and the worst of politicians that have come across me in my personal life and also people that I don't know. We haven't defined whether Nathan is Republican or Democrat. I'm sure an argument can be made for the (former) in many, many ways.

"But no, I haven't really based this guy on anybody in particular, just a nice mix of the worst and the best that I've seen. The most morally liquid characters that I have run across, I've based this guy on."

Heroes has provided viewers with a great ride this season. The ones who have enjoyed it most, probably, are the ones who just went along with it, and didn't become obsessed with trying to figure out what's going on well ahead of when they're supposed to know it.

Potential twist tonight: Maybe enigmatic villain Sylar (played by the delightfully menacing Zachary Quinto) has an attack of morality at the last second and can't quite bring himself to blow up half of New York City.

The actual ad promos for tonight's season-finale have included the phrase, "Forget what you think you know." Which, of course, merely reiterates the folly of applying real-life logic to fantasy TV.

As long as there are some significant payoffs tonight, whatever they may be, the masses will be happy.

"(The finale) does posit a brand new place for season two," Pasdar said. "I can't talk about where. But the very end of the finale is where season two will pick up. And it shows you a good three minutes, or two minutes or so, of where that is going to pick up.

"I don't think anybody is going to guess where. It's a very, very interesting place."

In other season-finale developments, tonight also marks the end of a rather mundane campaign for 24 (Global, Fox).

Now, using "mundane" to describe the action-packed 24 doesn't seem quite right, admittedly. But in this case, mundane can be used as a synonym for "repetitive."

Jack Bauer and Chloe O'Brian showed up on The Simpsons last night. Maybe Bart and Lisa will return the favour this evening ... and in a shocking twist, Jack will have to save them!

Cynicism is a dangerous thing. Please support the afflicted. Thank you.

Ricky Gervais wins his 7th British TV award at the BAFTAs

A comedy about film extras and a drama about a wartime housewife were some of the winners at the BAFTA television awards, rewarding the best in British broadcasting.

Ricky Gervais, who created and starred in the original comedy series The Office, captured best comedy performance for his role in Extras.

Gervais now has seven Baftas — standing for British Academy of Film and Television Arts — under his belt. That's the same number earned by actress Victoria Wood, who won this year for best drama actress for her portrayal of a frustrated wartime wife in Housewife, 49.

There were a few surprises at the gala on Sunday night in London. The BBC One hospital drama Casualty beat out longtime favourites Coronation Street, EastEnders and Emmerdale in the continuing drama category.

Veteran actor Jim Broadbent won best actor for his portrayal of Lord Longford, who campaigned to get murderer Myra Hindley released from prison. The late Hindley and her boyfriend Ian Brady were convicted of killing five young people between 1963 and 1965 and dumping their bodies near a moor.

ITV's fictionalized account of the moors murders — See No Evil — triumphed over critical favourite Prime Suspect, starring Helen Mirren, for best drama serial.

Other awards:

Best situation comedy: The Royle Family

Best comedy series: That Mitchell and Webb Look

Best drama series: The Street

Best factual series: Gangs

Best entertainment program: The X Factor

Audience Award: Life on Mars

'Shrek' sets 'toon record with $122M

LOS ANGELES - The big green ogre keeps getting bigger.

"Shrek the Third" took in $122 million in its first weekend, breaking the franchise's own record for best debut ever for an animated film, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The latest adventure of the ogre shot past 2004's "Shrek 2," the previous record-holder for animated openings with $108 million.

Produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Paramount, "Shrek the Third" was the third-biggest debut ever, coming in behind the $151.1 million haul of this month's "Spider-Man 3" and the $135.6 million gross of last summer's "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest."

Executives at DreamWorks Animation and Paramount had expected "Shrek the Third" to open more in range with the debut of "Shrek 2." Strong business from audiences across the board lifted "Shrek the Third" well above projections.

"The opening was significantly beyond our expectations," said Anne Globe, head of marketing for DreamWorks Animation. "The movie played much more like an all-audience movie. It played broadly to general and family audiences."

Adding in $900,000 the movie grossed during previews Thursday night, "Shrek the Third" has taken in $122.9 million.

Factoring in higher admission prices, "Shrek the Third" also drew more fans — 18 million — than did "Shrek 2," which pulled in 17.4 million people over opening weekend.

"Shrek the Third" also took in $13.3 million in four overseas markets: Russia, Ukraine, Romania and the Philippines. The film rolls out to most major countries between mid-June and early July.

The movie reunites Mike Myers, who provides the voice of the lovably gruff ogre, and co-stars Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz and Antonio Banderas. Justin Timberlake joins the cast, providing the voice of the future King Arthur, an awkward teen Shrek grooms to rule the land.

After ruling the box office for two weekends, Sony's "Spider-Man 3" slipped to second place with $28.5 million, raising its domestic total to $281.9 million. Worldwide, "Spider-Man 3" has taken in $747 million.

"Shrek the Third" will have a short reign as the No. 1 movie. On Friday, Disney releases "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," with Johnny Depp returning as woozy buccaneer Jack Sparrow in the franchise's third installment.

Box-office analysts say "At World's End" has a shot at breaking the debut record of "Spider-Man 3," though it faces stiff competition from the Spidey sequel and "Shrek the Third." "At World's End" also runs nearly three hours, limiting the number of screenings theaters can fit in each day.

"The third film of this massive triumvirate is on the way. Given the strength of `Spider-Man 3' and `Shrek the Third,' anticipation is running extremely high for `Pirates 3,'" said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers. "Both `Spider-Man' and `Shrek' exceeded expectations, so who knows with `Pirates'? The marketplace is just exploding right now."

Like "Spider-Man 3," "Shrek the Third" boosted the overall box office. The top 12 movies took in $172.9 million, up 12 percent from the same weekend a year ago, when "The Da Vinci Code" opened at No. 1 with $77.1 million.

In limited release, Fox Searchlight's Irish music romance "Once" debuted strongly with $60,511 in two theaters in New York City and Los Angeles. The low-budget film stars Glen Hansard of the rock group the Frames as a Dublin street musician who falls for a Czech immigrant and collaborates with her to write and record songs.

A critical favorite that came out of last January's Sundance Film Festival, "Once" expands to 11 more cities Friday.

Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "Shrek the Third," $122 million.
2. "Spider-Man 3," $28.5 million.
3. "28 Weeks Later," $5.15 million.
4. "Disturbia," $3.7 million.
5. "Georgia Rule," $3.5 million.
6. "Fracture," $2.4 million. 7. "Delta Farce," $1.8 million.
8. "The Invisible," $1.3 million.
9. "Hot Fuzz," $1.26 million.
10. "Waitress," $1.14 million.

New fall TV season gets its freak on

NEW YORK - Old friend Jerry Seinfeld walked onto a Radio City Music Hall stage during NBC's yearly sales presentation to advertisers last week not to tout a new show, but his appearance in some gussied-up promos for a new movie.

Bad enough that he was a physical reminder of how far fourth-place NBC had tumbled from the heights of "Seinfeld." He had to talk about it, too, reminiscing about days when people watched what NBC offered, "or lived in fear of the consequences."

"Sometimes I feel like the whole industry just picked up and joined the circus," he said.

Uncertainty and modest expectations were the backdrop of the annual week of fall-schedule announcements. Viewership is down this spring, time-shifting is up and the whole notion of watching television is changing before our eyes. NBC, CBS and Fox cut the time of their usually elaborate sales presentations nearly in half.

Only three years ago CBS entertained advertisers with The Who. This year, networks couldn't shuffle their customers out to open bars fast enough.

It was enough time for some clear trends to emerge that viewers will see in a few months.

HIGH CONCEPT:

A simple family or police precinct isn't enough anymore. Networks sought out plenty of fanciful, suspend-your-disbelief ideas for series, particularly after seeing how NBC's "Heroes" proved the surprise hit of this season.

This fall you'll be able to watch a man who can bring back the dead with one touch, a time-traveling reporter, a modern-day vampire, a bounty hunter for the devil, a 400-year-old immortal man, a family of cavemen and a bionic woman. There are cruel twists, too; the immortal man becomes mortal if he falls in love; the man who can raise the dead kills them again permanently with another touch, a complicating factor when his late childhood sweetheart is involved.

That latter show, ABC's "Pushing Daisies," is the most intriguing.

The flip side is that few of the new shows are designed with family viewing in mind, leaving unfilled a hole created by the departures of "Gilmore Girls" and "7th Heaven." That's why "Kid Nation," CBS' unscripted series about a group of youngsters taking over a ghost town and running it without adult supervision, is a potential hit.

SERIALS:

There were two lessons from this season that television executives clearly didn't forget: Don't overdo the serial dramas with complex story lines that require a serious viewer commitment, and keep interruptions for successful ones to a minimum.

More dramas — and network TV is primarily in the drama business these days — will tell stories that won't baffle the viewer who happened to miss last week's episode.

Three successful serials were particularly hurt this season by long intervals with reruns. That was fatal to CBS' "Jericho," which was canceled. The other two, ABC's "Lost" and NBC's "Heroes," will run their new episodes uninterrupted next season, following the model of Fox's "24." So will the CW's "One Tree Hill." CBS will try the same thing with "Swing Town," one of its most promising newcomers.

"I don't know if we know the ideal model yet for each of them," said Kelly Kahl, chief of scheduling at CBS. "We're looking, experimenting, trying to find the best way to do it."

NO LAUGHS:

The slow death of the network sitcom is continuing.

Next fall ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and the CW will introduce fewer comedies (6) than unscripted series (7). New dramas outnumber new comedies by 17-6. NBC, the home of "Friends," "Frasier," "Cheers" and "The Cosby Show," won't have any new sitcoms in the fall. The network has a hard enough time trying to find an audience for a Thursday night comedy lineup that gets critical praise, the idea of finding new ones seemed too daunting.

"They're gun-shy, frankly," said Stacey Lynn Schulman, media analyst for HI: Human Insight. "They've tried and tried and tried, and nothing works."

Fox's "Back to You" will be followed most closely. It has proven sitcom performers in Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton starring as TV news anchors in Pittsburgh.

Oh, and don't expect much from "Cavemen." The few clips ABC presented made the insurance ads seem brilliant.

COMMERCIALS:

With an estimated one-fifth of American homes expected to have digital video recorders by fall, some of the most creative thinking at networks these days is devoted to finding ways to deliver commercial messages that people won't fast-forward past.

The CW will experiment with five-second commercials and an entertainment newsmagazine that incorporates sponsorship instead of commercials. Fox has tried inserting entertaining "shorts" within commercial pods, which is where NBC will place the small skits created by Seinfeld. Several networks have tried backloading commercials — letting a show run longer without ads at the beginning with more ads in the second half.

Later this month, Nielsen Media Research for the first time releases ratings for commercial minutes.

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS:

Networks essentially turned out the lights on Saturdays a few years ago, and it was feared they were going in the same direction on Fridays. Judging by the schedules, they seem to at least be making an effort on Fridays. That's where Fox is putting its "American Idol" spinoff that tries to find a good new band. CBS' vampire series will be tried on Friday, too.

It's also where NBC has moved its critically acclaimed drama "Friday Night Lights," in the hope of finding an audience.

WHICH SEX SELLS:

Last year NBC offered two series about backstage life at a late-night network comedy show, and only one survived. This year ABC and NBC each have shows purported to be the next-generation "Sex and the City," one by the woman who wrote the book behind the HBO hit, the other by the man who turned it into a series. The ABC series stars Lucy Liu; NBC's has Brooke Shields.

The early line? NBC's "Lipstick Jungle" looks better.

The Couch Potato Report - May 19th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report peels an old Joni Mitchell concert film and asks: Who the bleep is Jackson Pollock?

While we will always have her music, on CDs and albums, we will likely never get the chance to see Joni Mitchell live in concert anytime soon.

In a 2002 interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Mitchell voiced her discontent with the current state of the music industry, describing it as a "cesspool.

She also stated her dislike of the record industry's dominance and her desire to control her own destiny.

So Joni no longer tours or performs in concerts, and that is too bad for those of us who never got the chance to see her.

Even though we may never get to see her live, there are now several DVDs available that document her tours during the heyday of her success.

Including REFUGE OF THE ROADS

This sixty-minute disc features a performance from Joni's "Wild Things Run Fast" tour in 1983.

Okay, it is a concert, but we only hear the audience a few times, and they are never seen.

But we don't really need an audience, because REFUGE OF THE ROADS gives us Joni Mitchell, live, on a stage with musicians, and they all look like they are having a great time.

The DVD also includes some very interesting film footage, including Joni backstage.

No, you and I may never get the chance to see Joni Mitchell live, but if more great DVDs like REFUGE OF THE ROADS are made available, it will be a pretty good substitute.

Up next this week is a film I will not use the words "pretty good" to describe.

Instead, I will refer to THE FOUNTAIN as a wonderful failure.

Partially filmed in Montreal THE FOUNTAIN is the latest film from director Darren Aronofsky, who worked for four years to complete this epic-sized love story that stretches across centuries and galaxies.

The film takes place in three time periods - the 16th century, the present day, and the 26th century.

Hugh Jackman from the X-MEN films and Academy Award winner Rachel Weisz from THE CONSTANT GARDENER play a couple who struggle to stay together, only to keep losing each other through death and time.

Much like Darren Aronofsky's other films - PI and REQUIEM FOR A DREAM - THE FOUNTAIN is very poetic, beautiful to look at and has an interesting premise and great performances, but it just isn't a good piece of entertainment.

I respect this film, and continue to admire the filmmakers and actors, but I just didn't care for their movie

As I said, THE FOUNTAIN as a wonderful failure.

Okay, now on to our next film...a film that is a great piece of entertainment.

Teri Horton is a very profane 73-year-old former long-haul truck driver with an eighth grade education.

She bought a painting for her friend and she paid five dollars.

But there is a chance it is worth a few dollars more...fifty million dollars more.

Jackson Pollock was an influential American painter and a major force in the abstract expressionist movement. In November 2006 Pollock's "No. 5, 1948" became the world's most expensive painting, when it was auctioned to an undisclosed bidder for the sum of $140,000,000.

Teri's decade long attempt to sell her painting is chronicled in the film WHO THE BLEEP IS JACKSON POLLOCK?

This documentary is exceptionally engaging because of Teri Horton personality, and because of the lengths she has gone to prove skeptical Pollock and art experts of the validity of her painting.

Some say that she has a Jackson Pollock...some say she doesn't.

After you watch WHO THE BLEEP IS JACKSON POLLOCK?, and I recommend that you do, you will have your own opinions as well

Finally this week, our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD continues.

The action filled, very loud, very hyped, check-your-brain-at-the-door summer movie season is upon us in theatres, this week's entry is the animated sequel SHREK THE THIRD.

So, if you would like something different, I'll be offering you an alternative every week.

This week's selection is the Mexican film PAN'S LABYRINTH from director Guillermo del Toro Rating.

There were two fantasy films released in the past year that featured a young girl as the main character.

One of those films was the made-in-Saskatchewan, non-Academy Award nominated film TIDELAND.

The other is the three time Academy Award winning PAN'S LABYRINTH.

When TIDELAND came out on DVD I invited some people to watch it with me and this is what one of those people - Russ - had to say.

Now the opposite of what Russ said is the truth about PAN'S LABYRINTH.

It is entertaining.

And it does have a great story!

PAN'S LABYRITH is a masterpiece!!

Set in rural Spain in 1944, this film is a fairytale for adults about a young girl who moves in with her new stepfather, a tyrannical military officer.

As he forces he life to change, she is only left with her imagination, but with it she discovers a mysterious labyrinth and the lines between fantasy and reality begin to blur.

PAN'S LABYRITH features real characters, is beautifully made, and it is an exceptional movie.

It is a must see entry in the FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD

The masterpiece PAN'S LABYRITH, the very entertaining documentary WHO THE BLEEP IS JACKSON POLLOCK?, the wonderful failure that is THE FOUNTAIN, and the concert film from Joni Mitchell REFUGE OF THE ROADS are all available now on DVD.


Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report

THE JOURNALS OF KNUD RASMUSSEN is a Canadian film about an Inuit shaman and his headstrong daughter; VENUS features screen legend Peter O'Toole in his Oscar Nominated role; George Clooney and Cate Blanchett star in THE GOOD GERMAN; Clint Eastwood's LETTER FROM IWO JIMA tells the story of the battle of Iwo Jima from the perspective of the Japanese who fought it; and our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD will continue with the exceptional French film LA MOUSTACHE, about a man who shaves off his moustache...and his whole world changes.

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!

De Niro, Pacino to reunite on-screen for upcoming thriller

Veteran Hollywood tough guys Robert De Niro and Al Pacino are set to team up for only the second time ever for a new detective thriller, producers revealed at the Cannes Film Festival.

The deal was sealed late Thursday, with just a few details revealed to the media.

The movie, to be called Righteous Kill, will see the two stars portray police detectives on the hunt for a serial killer. The screenplay is by Russell Gerwirtz, who penned last year's tense Denzel Washington-Clive Owen bank heist thriller Inside Man.

Unlike the two actors' previous match-up, Righteous Kill will feature De Niro and Pacino "on screen together for virtually the whole film," Avi Lerner, head of the movie's Los Angeles-based production company Millennium Films, told the Hollywood Reporter.

The two Oscar-winning actors starred as epic rivals on different sides of the law in Michael Mann's well-regarded 1995 crime thriller Heat. However, they appeared together in just a few scenes.

De Niro and Pacino also both starred in The Godfather Part II, but did not share any scenes.

According to Randall Emmett, one of Righteous Kill's six producers, the idea for the film originated from De Niro and Pacino's desire to be co-stars again.

"They're friends and this really all got started from that," Emmett said at a short press briefing in Cannes.

Rumoured to have a budget of $60 million US, Righteous Kill is expected to begin filming in Connecticut and New York in August.

Pacino will also be honoured by the American Film Institute next month, with the group set to present him with its 35th Life Achievement Award on June 7.

Past recipients include De Niro, who won the award in 2003, Meryl Streep, Frank Capra, George Lucas, Billy Wilder, Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock, Sidney Poitier and Elizabeth Taylor.

White Stripes Put Trust In New Label For 'Icky Thump'

As the June 19 release of the White Stripes' new album, "Icky Thump," approaches, Jack White is less concerned about "indie cred" than at any other time in the band's 10-year history.

Not only is the band now signed to a major label (Warner Bros.), but White, in a first, also used a modern recording facility (Nashville's Blackbird) to make a record. (Though with "Icky Thump" he still recorded to reel-to-reel and mixed to tape, as is his typical analog approach.) Last year, White quietly recorded music for a Coke commercial that ran briefly in the United Kingdom and Australia. And in touring in support of "Icky Thump," the band will play venues it attempted to avoid on prior outings.

"At the tail end of [2003's] 'Elephant,' we were touring these hockey arena kind of things, and we were just like, 'Eh, I don't know, man. It's a little cold and sterile,'" White tells Billboard. "But you just take it for what you can do. Right now, we're just trying to find the right spot for each town."

For his part, White seems unfazed about life on a major label. "We were leery for a long time ... we'd never had the trust in us to do it," he says. "It would have been a bad idea to do that on 'White Blood Cells.' We had them all offering it then. But I think it would have been over very quickly for us. We would have been a new flavor of the week and probably would have been a one-hit wonder with 'Fell in Love With a Girl.'"

At this point in the band's career, White says those types of concerns are no longer an issue. "Everything's happening at the right time," he says. "In some ways, we look back and we're kind of like, 'Man, maybe we were stupid with this naive thing about if artistic freedom and business collide, something bad happens.'"

White's joie de vivre is apparent on "Icky Thump," which after 2005's moody, piano-dominated "Get Behind Me Satan," marks a return to the raw electric blues that fueled the White Stripes' breakthrough 2003 album, "Elephant."

"When it comes to the songs themselves, the songs are in charge, not me," White says. "Take a song like 'You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told)' [from "Icky Thump"]. That was pretty much a country song in my mind. If I really was in control I could have just said, 'Hey, how dare you allow electric guitar and heavy organ on there.' But I don't do that. I let the song tell me what it wants."

Sunday episodes take 'Simpsons' to No. 400

Mmmm … 400!
With Sunday's two episodes (Fox, 8 ET/PT), The Simpsons hits 400, a milestone reached by just four other prime-time scripted series. That's something Homer can drool about.

"It's so hard today to keep something on the air," says executive producer Al Jean, who runs the day-to-day operation. "It's immodest, but I think our achievement is unbelievable."

Creator Matt Groening says The Simpsons, which premiered in 1989 after starting as short segments on The Tracey Ullman Show, has succeeded because Homer, wife Marge, children Bart, Lisa and Maggie and a cast of hundreds can appeal to all.

"I love the style that we stumbled into, this high-velocity pacing that allowed us to do every kind of comedy we could think of, from the most high-falutin' literary references to sub-Three Stooges physical abuse," he says.

The Simpsons, followed closely by Law & Order, trails only Gunsmoke (633), Lassie (588), The Adventures ofOzzie & Harriet (435) and Bonanza (430), says Ron Simon, curator at The Museum of Television & Radio.

He says it's tougher today to hold onto an audience because of cable and the Internet. "We're dealing with a much more crowded TV universe."

The Simpsons, winner of 23 Emmys, no longer gets the big ratings that helped put Fox on the map (Season 18 average: 8.7 million viewers, ranking 67th), but it remains strong with prized young adults, ranking 34th, according to Nielsen Media Research. Syndication, DVD sales and product licensing have been a bonanza, with some sources listing the yield at more than $1 billion.

Groening credits then-fledgling Fox — a frequent Simpsons target — with taking a risk on animation, which can fly under the radar with satire, double-entendres and the like. "We were in this overlooked medium associated with children."

Since the Janet Jackson incident, bare bottoms are out, but the boundaries of humor remain the same, Jean says. In the age of South Park edginess, the show no longer is a lightning rod for complaints.

In recent years, it has made digs about the decision to invade Iraq and its consequences. "The show always takes on who's in power," Jean says.

Creatively, the series can keep on going, Groening and Jean say. Groening disagrees with critics who say it has declined, calling current episodes as "smart and twisted" as ever. However, the chances of matching Gunsmoke's 20-season run depend on re-signing the voice actors, whose deals end after next season, the 19th.

On his wish list, Groening says, he would like to see a series spinoff centered on Homer "in all stages of his life."

That remains a faraway prospect, he says, with The Simpsons Movie opening July 27, a video game due later this year and a Simpsons theme park ride, along with the TV series. "And we're trying to figure out how to fix the holes in the Bart Simpson balloon so we can get it back in the Macy's parade."

'The Office' Star Fischer Breaks Back

The Office star Jenna Fischer has fractured her back in four places after falling down a set of stairs in a New York bar on Tuesday.

The actress, who plays Pam Beesly in the Emmy Award-winning U.S. comedy, was taken to St. Vincent's Hospital in Manhattan after the fall at Buddakan.

Her representative tells the New York Daily News, "She avoided anything scary near the spine and she'll make a full recovery in time to shoot season four of The Office this summer."

Fischer most recently appeared onscreen in hit comedy Blades Of Glory opposite Will Ferrell and Jon Heder.

Rep: Isaiah Washington's staying 'Grey'

LOS ANGELES - Isaiah Washington's Dr. Preston Burke packed his bags on the season finale of "Grey's Anatomy" but that doesn't mean the actor is being dumped by the show, his publicist said Friday.

"We fully expect to be back in the fall," spokesman Howard Bragman said. "The deal's not done but we have no reason to believe he won't be putting on the scrubs."

A furor over Washington's use of an anti-gay slur had provoked speculation that his job might be in jeopardy. He said the word backstage at the Golden Globe Awards in January while denying he'd used it previously against castmate T.R. Knight.

Thursday's finale seemed to open the door for the departure of Washington's character. Burke was on the verge of marrying Dr. Cristina Yang ( Sandra Oh), but her doubts at first delayed and then derailed their splashy wedding.

"I'm up there waiting for you to come down the aisle and I know you don't want to come," Burke told a shocked Cristina. "If I loved you, I wouldn't be up there waiting for you. I would be letting you go."

Then he did just that. Later, Cristina found that Burke had cleared his favorite possessions out of their apartment.

ABC declined comment Friday on Washington's status.

But a source close to the production, speaking on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to comment publicly, said the finale doesn't indicate that Washington is a goner from "Grey's."

"A lot of character story lines were left in question. It's a cliffhanger finale," the source said. "T.R's character looks like he could be going. ... It doesn't necessarily mean anything."

Knight's character, George O'Malley, was the only intern to fail the end-of-year exam and he was seen in the finale cleaning out his locker after deciding against repeating his intern stint.

Washington will spend the summer working, his publicist said, not worrying about the show. The actor leaves next week to continue his charity work in Sierra Leone, which a DNA test showed to be his ancestral home.

Washington, who started a nonprofit foundation last year to improve the lives of people in the West African nation, plans to deliver mosquito netting and check on a school he helped found.

He'll also spend part of his summer break working on an independent film, "The Least of These," Bragman said. Washington expects to be back at work on "Grey's Anatomy" when production resumes in August, he said.

Washington filmed a public service announcement on behalf of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation and the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network after the flap. The spot is in post-production, a GLAAD spokesman said Friday.

Delays continue for former SNL comedian jailed 2 years awaiting trial

Former SCTV and Saturday Night Live comedian Tony Rosato must wait until June to find out if he will get a bail hearing this summer after spending two years in jail without trial.

On Friday, lawyers involved in Rosato's case met in court in Kingston, Ont., but were unable to agree on moving up court proceedings to discuss his bail and the exceptional delay in his trial for charges of harassing his wife.

They will be discussing the issue again in June, said Rosato's lawyer Daniel Brodsky.

If Rosato is granted bail, he will be released to a psychiatric hospital, Brodsky said.

Rosato, 53, has been in jail since May 2005.

He was charged with harassment after he complained to police that his wife Leah Rosato and their daughter had gone missing and had been replaced by imposters.

On Friday, the Superior Court of Justice offered to move Rosato's hearing on bail and court delays from November to July, but the lawyer for Rosato's wife said she was not available.

"Tony is shocked that he may have to wait until November to accommodate the complainant's lawyer," Brodsky said in an e-mail. "I'm appalled."

Lawyer wants charges dropped

Brodsky is arguing that charges against Rosato should be dropped because of an unreasonable delay in his trial.

That delay has prompted Karl Pruner, the president of Rosato's union, to speak to Ontario's attorney general about the case.

"From what I can find out about the case, nobody's done anything wrong. There's no malice here," said Pruner, head of the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists. "It's just this guy has wedged himself into a crack and we need to get him out."

A spokesperson for Ontario's Attorney General's Office told CBC that the Crown has taken steps to have Rosato's case moved forward "judiciously and expeditiously" and to have Rosato held in a psychiatric facility instead of jail.

Rosato was born in Italy, grew up in Ottawa, and rose to fame after he joined Second City in Toronto. He was on SCTV and Saturday Night Live in the '80s and went on to star on other TV shows and in movies through the '90s.

CBC to honour McKenzie brothers

TORONTO (CP) - The Trailer Park Boys may be Canada's latest low-rent darlings, but beer-swilling hosers Bob and Doug McKenzie were blazing a proud trail of loserdom when Ricky, Julian and Bubbles were mere children.

And so CBC-TV is celebrating the SCTV favourites, portrayed by comics Dave Thomas and Rick Moranis, this Sunday with its so-called "Two-Four Anniversary Special."

The title is an homage to three beloved Canadianisms: the country's May 24th holiday weekend, the beverage of choice for Bob and Doug - an ice-cold case of 24 beer, colloquially known as a 2-4 - and the 24th anniversary of the Bob and Doug movie, "Strange Brew," a film that became something of a campus cult classic in the U.S. upon its release in 1983.

"Someone was saying to me recently that if you did a montage of all of Canada's best-known symbols, there wouldn't be too many of them, but Bob and Doug would definitely be on there," Thomas said Thursday on the line from Los Angeles, where he's lived for more than 20 years.

"We are certainly icons."

The special - airing on Thomas's 58th birthday - features a long list of personalities paying tribute to Bob and Doug, including Canadians Martin Short, Tom Green, Paul Shaffer and Dave Foley. But there are also some longtime American fans like "The Simpsons" creator Matt Groening and actor Ben Stiller, who remembers lining up with his mother for hours at a New York City record store as a child to get Bob and Doug's autographs.

One of the funniest parts of the special, Thomas says, is former prime minister Paul Martin's deadpan appearance as he pleads for Canadians to reject the Bob and Doug stereotype once and for all. At one point, Martin sadly recalls: "I'll never forget the four-year-old girl in Buenos Aires who looked up at me with her pretty eyes and asked, 'Where's your beer, you knob?"'

"He absolutely nailed it," Thomas says incredulously. "I couldn't believe how hilarious he was."

In honour of the 24th anniversary, even beer-makers are getting in on the party - Red Cap Ale has created a limited-edition range of six Bob and Doug collectible stubbies available in Ontario all summer long.

In every 12 pack of Red Cap stubbies, beer fans in Ontario will find one of the six anniversary edition clear stubby bottles, showcasing some of Bob and Doug's finer moments.

Thomas loves Bob and Doug - characters created as a sort of raised finger to the CRTC's strict Canadian content regulations when SCTV was one the country's biggest television hits - but he admits to having frequently thrown out the Bob and Doug costume of toques and parkas in the past. He figured he and Moranis, one of his closest pals, had closed the door on the characters for good.

"And every time, here we go again - I have to get another parka and another toque," he says with a laugh. When told he should hang on to the costume this time because they'll likely be expected to resurrect Bob and Doug again on the 50th anniversary, Thomas is rueful.

"If I'm still alive, that is."

He may be approaching 60, but Thomas doesn't appear to be slowing down. He makes the odd television appearance, playing Charlize Theron's uncle on an "Arrested Development" episode ("Who would turn that down?" he asked). And he's currently working on a movie about Canadian bandleader Guy Lombardo, and awaiting word on two television pilots - one a sitcom set in a hospital.

Thomas admits he misses Canada, even though he sold his cottage on Ontario's Lake Simcoe years ago.

"My wife caught me hurling rocks at our motorboat in anger and frustration and she said: 'You know, maybe you're just not a cottage person,"' he recalls. "And she was right. It was a hassle maintaining that cottage."

But he marvels every time he returns to Toronto, saying he's astonished at how bustling and vibrant the city is now compared to how it was in the 1970s and '80s, when he was launching his comedy career.

"I sometimes wonder if Toronto was the city it is now when I was starting out, if I would have even needed to leave it," he said. "It is really such a great, vital place now."

Hagar to bring next Cabo Wabo trek indoors

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - Sammy Hagar will bring his Cabo San Lucas-themed summer tour indoors to theaters this winter, Billboard.com has learned.

"We're bringing the Cobo spirit to Christmas," Hagar's booking agent, Jonny Podell with the Podell Talent Agency told Billboard.com. "The additional thrills normally associated with Hagar's Cabo Wabo tour will include bikini girls in the lobby, Waborita bars, mariachi bands and many more surprises."

An official itinerary is still in the works, but Podell said the outing, billed as "Cabo Wabo Presents the Red Rocker, Sammy Hagar and the Wabos," will visit venues of approximately 3,000-seat capacity in such cities as Chicago, St. Louis and Detroit.

The tour is scheduled to begin in October and will run through May 5, 2008, when Hagar will perform at his Cabo Wabo Cantina in Lake Tahoe, Nev. Special guests on the tour will include Mad Anthony's Express, Los Tres Gusanos and the Other Half, according to Podell.

A summer tour is expected to follow the theater dates. "He's probably going to be on tour all year," Podell said.

Hagar's summer amphitheater trek in 2006 grossed $3.4 million from 26 concerts, according to Billboard Boxscore. Nearly 184,000 fans attended the shows.

Earlier this year, the Red Rocker treated 750 loyal fans to the second annual Are We Having Any Fun Yet? cruise. "We throw this giant party, everybody gets drunk off their ass and then they leave," Hagar told Billboard before the March cruise. "I love being able to meet the fans on a more personal level."

In related news, Hagar recently sold an 80 percent stake in his Cabo Wabo Tequila brand to an Italian beverage company for a reported $80 million.

Bo Diddley hospitalized after stroke

DES MOINES, Iowa - Bo Diddley is in intensive care after suffering a stroke in western Iowa, a publicist said Wednesday.

The 78-year-old singer-songwriter-guitarist and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer was listed in guarded condition at Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha, Neb., said Susan Clary, a publicist for the musician's management team.

Diddley, who has a history of hypertension and diabetes, was hospitalized Sunday following a concert in Council Bluffs in which he acted disoriented, she said.

Tests indicated that the stroke affected the left side of his brain, impairing his speech and speech recognition, Clary said.

Clary said she has no other details on Diddley's condition or how long he would be in intensive care.

Diddley, with his black glasses and low-slung guitar, has been an icon in the music industry since he topped the R&B charts with "Bo Diddley" in 1955. His other hits include "Who Do You Love," "Before You Accuse Me," "Mona" and "I'm a Man."

Diddley was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987 and was given a lifetime achievement Grammy in 1998.

Chauffeur: Spector Said, "I Think I Killed Somebody"

The closest thing the Phil Spector prosecution has to a smoking gun took the stand today.

Adriano De Souza, who worked as Spector's driver the night that Lana Clarkson was killed, reiterated his grand jury testimony from 2004, testifying Tuesday that his former boss came out of his house at about 5 a.m. on Feb. 3, 2003, and said, "I think I killed somebody."

The Los Angeles District Attorney's Office is arguing that Spector, who supposedly has a history of getting drunk and threatening his girlfriends with guns, killed Clarkson with a gunshot wound to the mouth in the hallway of his Alhambra mansion.

With De Souza's input, prosecutors are looking to refute Spector's explanation of the incident, which is that the actress shot herself.

Continuing the chain of testimony from people who saw Spector that night, De Souza described driving Spector and two different female companions to four L.A. nightspots, saying that, as the evening progressed, the Wall of Sound creator became increasingly intoxicated and moody.

Spector and Clarkson left the House of Blues in West Hollywood together at around 2:30 a.m., De Souza said. Spector seemed drunk and smelled of alcohol, and Clarkson at first refused his invitation to go home with him.

"I think she was afraid to go," De Souza said. "She said she could lose her job if she got a ride with a customer."

Eventually she relented. "I opened the door for her and she said she was going just for a drink," he recalled.

"What did Mr. Spector say?" Deputy District Attorney Alan Jackson asked.

"Don't talk to the driver…He screamed it," De Souza recalled.

When asked if he had any trouble understanding his boss, De Souza, a Brazilian immigrant who says he had been in the United States for four years before the night of Clarkson's death, said he had no problem. He testified that he had worked for Spector 13 or 14 times in the past, usually at a rate of $30 an hour.

After making the 30-minute drive from West Hollywood to Alhambra, De Souza stayed in the car when Spector and Clarkson walked inside the famed music producer's mansion, he testified. Spector returned a few moments later to grab a briefcase from the black Mercedes-Benz S430, but didn't tell De Souza what was in it.

At about 5 a.m., De Souza said, he was asleep in the Mercedes, which was parked a few feet from the back entrance of Spector's house, when he was awakened by a "pow" noise.

Spector walked out the back door a minute later, the driver said, holding a Colt Cobra .38-caliber revolver in his right hand. The defendant also had a smudge of blood on his right index finger, De Souza said.

"I think I killed somebody," Spector said, according to De Souza.

The driver then asked his boss, "What happened, sir?" To which Spector simply shrugged his shoulders, De Souza testified.

De Souza then told the court how he looked through the back door and saw Clarkson's legs. Taking a closer look, he saw Clarkson, with blood on her face, slumped in a chair in the foyer.

The former Brazilian army lieutenant is expected to take the stand again Wednesday, where he's sure to face heated cross-examination from Spector's team.

In his opening statement a few weeks back, defense attorney Bruce Cutler called Spector's purported confession to De Souza "five words allegedly said to someone taking a siesta." Cutler has also dismissed the various stories from female witnesses who claim Spector once threatened them as "tall tales."

Also tomorrow, forensics expert Henry Lee is expected to testify, without the jury present, with regard to the bit of acrylic fingernail the prosecution is contending Lee picked up at the scene of Clarkson's death. The D.A.'s Office has accused the defense of tampering with evidence by not turning the so-called piece of nail over to prosecutors.

Before De Souza took the stand today, the jury heard from Sophia Holguin, Spector's waitress at the House of Blues on Feb. 3, 2003, who testified that the man seemed "angry in general" and that, after he finished his drink, he asked her to come home with him, as well.

She refused, Holguin said, telling him she had something to do the next morning. She characterized his demeanor that night as agitated. He was also talking fast and slurring his words, she said.

Holguin testified that she asked Clarkson, who was working as a hostess in the House of Blues' Foundation Room, to send Spector over to her section because he was a multimillionaire and a good tipper. It was a good call—Spector left a $450 tip on a $13.50 tab, she said.

"24" renewed for 2 more days

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The clock on "24" will keep ticking for two more seasons.

Fox has renewed the Emmy-winning real-time drama starring Kiefer Sutherland through the 2008-09 season. Sutherland is already locked to stay with the show through 2009.

"24" has had a roller-coaster ride the past couple of seasons, earning rave reviews for season five, which was capped by a best drama series Emmy and drawing criticism by some fans for the plotline in the current sixth season.

Clarkson says Davis reports exaggerated

LOS ANGELES - Kelly Clarkson says the media is exaggerating reports that she and music mogul Clive Davis clashed over her upcoming CD, "My December."

"You know what it is: This situation is just blown up," the 25-year-old singer told AP Television News last week. "This record is no different from my other records. Every record I've come out with, people have not liked."

The Grammy-winning pop star and original "American Idol" is signed to RCA Records, one of the labels Davis controls as chairman and CEO of BMG Label Group. She has been dogged by recent reports that Davis hated songs on her third album.

Clarkson, who called the disc "really cool" and versatile, said artist-label disagreement — a reality in the music business — can be healthy.

"There's always this battle, and it's not a bad battle to have," she explained. "I mean, you obviously don't want `yes' people around you. And, obviously, (Davis) and others at the label have been in the business far longer than I have. So you obviously take their opinions in."

In the end, though, "I always go with my gut," she said. "My gut has obviously done pretty well for me thus far, so I don't see why I shouldn't keep listening to it."

"My December," is slated for release in July. Clarkson will visit nearly 40 U.S. and Canadian cities on her upcoming tour, set to open July 7 with the Live Earth concert at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. The tour will end in Las Vegas in September.

"My whole goal is not just to sell millions of records," she said. "My whole goal is to have people like my music, come out to shows. That's basically it. I'm pretty low-key."

'Indy Jones' sequel to shoot in Conn.

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) - Some star power is coming to downtown New Haven, where scenes are scheduled to be filmed next month for a sequel to the popular "Indiana Jones" movie series.

A spokesman for director Steven Spielberg has confirmed that the fourth instalment of the action series will include a car chase set to be filmed on Chapel Street between College and High streets.

A preproduction crew visited the city last week and Monday to check locations and talk with merchants, one of whom said they were told that filming would occur June 28 and 30, the New Haven Register reported Tuesday.

"I really have no details on it at all, except to say that there will be some filming there," Marvin Levy, a spokesman for Spielberg, told the newspaper.

The movie, starring Harrison Ford and Sean Connery is set to open May 22, 2008. It will be the fourth in the series, which began with the 1981 film "Raiders of the Lost Ark."

That movie was followed by two sequels: "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" in 1984 and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" in 1989.

The new instalment is tentatively titled "Indiana Jones IV" and, in addition to Ford and Connery, is slated to feature actors Cate Blanchett and Shia LeBeouf.

Several New Haven merchants said their storefronts will be transformed to capture the 1950s-era look of the film, which centres on the adventures of fictional archaeologist and professor Indiana Jones.

The last Hollywood visit to the city was in September, when Uma Thurman filmed a scene for the thriller "In Bloom," planned for release later this year. That also was shot on Chapel Street.

The Board of Aldermen must approve the street closings and other details before filming can occur.

Alderman Nicholas Shalek, who represents the city's downtown area, said he had not heard the names Spielberg, Lucas and Ford in connection with the project, but that city officials were told the movie would be "big."

"Generally, I think its a terrific thing for the city," he said.

ABC to air `Grey's' spinoff this fall

NEW YORK - ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" spinoff will air next fall on an all-new Wednesday night schedule, one of 11 new series the network plans for next season.

"Private Practice" features Dr. Addison Shepard, who leaves Seattle for work in Los Angeles. A special "Grey's Anatomy" that effectively served as the show's pilot was seen by 21 million people earlier this month.

Veteran TV actors Merrin Dungey, Tim Daly, Taye Diggs and Amy Brenneman will join star Kate Walsh in "Private Practice," which will air at 9 p.m.

Two other new series will air Wednesdays on ABC in the fall. "Pushing Daisies," described as a forensic fairy tale, features a boy who can touch dead people and bring them back to life. "Dirty Sexy Money" is a prime-time soap opera about a wealthy New York family.

ABC also gave the go-ahead to "Cavemen," a comedy adapted from the Geico insurance commercials.

The network canceled the comedies " George Lopez," "Help Me Help You" and "Knights of Prosperity." "What About Brian" did not make the cut, and ABC is still debating the future of "According to Jim," while leaving it off the fall schedule.

The first prime-time series from Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Productions, "Oprah's Big Give," will debut in midseason. It's a reality series where contestants compete in philanthropy.

In contrast to last year, when "Grey's Anatomy" made its successful switch to Thursday nights, ABC plans no major shifts of its existing series. "Men in Trees" moves to an earlier time slot on Friday nights.

"Lost" will return in midseason, but ABC made no commitment Tuesday on where it will land on the schedule.

Other new series that ABC plans for next season:

_"Big Shots," a drama about four hard-charging friends who are dysfunctional CEOs. Dylan McDermott, Christopher Titus, Joshua Malina and Michael Vartan play the lead characters.

_"Cashmere Mafia," ABC's attempt to inherit the "Sex and the City" mantle. Four women, friends since business school, juggle their personal and professional lives in New York. NBC has a similar new show — with three women.

_"Eli Stone," a drama about a top lawyer in San Francisco who begins having visions because of a brain aneurysm.

_"Women's Murder Club," based on James Patterson novels, is a drama about four women in San Francisco — a detective, district attorney, medical examiner and reporter — who work together to solve crimes.

_"Carpoolers," a comedy about four men from different backgrounds who get together each day for some male bonding on the drive to work.

_"Miss/Guided," a comedy about a former high school geek who returns to her alma mater as a guidance counselor, only to see an ex-cheerleader and former nemesis come back as an English teacher.

_"Sam I Am," a comedy with Christina Applegate about a woman who awakes from a coma with no memory, only to find out she was a creep before.

Rev. Jerry Falwell dies at 73

LYNCHBURG, Va. - The Rev. Jerry Falwell, who founded the Moral Majority and built the religious right into a political force, died Tuesday shortly after being found unconscious in his office at Liberty University, a school executive said. He was 73.

Falwell was hospitalized in "gravely serious" condition after being found unconscious Tuesday in his office at Liberty University, a school executive said earlier.

Ron Godwin, the university's executive vice president, said Falwell, 73, was found unresponsive around 10:45 a.m. and taken to Lynchburg General Hospital. Godwin said he was not sure what caused the collapse, but he said Falwell "has a history of heart challenges."

"I had breakfast with him, and he was fine at breakfast," Godwin said. "He went to his office, I went to mine, and they found him unresponsive."

Falwell, a television evangelist who founded the Moral Majority, became the face of the religious right in the 1980s. He later founded the conservative Liberty University and serves as its president.

Falwell survived two serious health scares in early 2005. He was hospitalized for two weeks with what was described as a viral infection, then was hospitalized again a few weeks later after going into respiratory arrest. Later that year, doctors found a 70 percent blockage in an artery, which they opened with stents.

Liberty University's commencement is scheduled for Saturday, with former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich as the featured speaker.

Lindsay Lohan tops Maxim `Hot 100' list

NEW YORK - Lindsay Lohan rules. According to Maxim magazine, at least this month, she's the hottest woman in the world.

The "Georgia Rule" actress-troublemaker tops the magazine's eighth annual "Hot 100" list, a ranking by editors weighing buzz and beauty for women in film, TV, music, sports and fashion.

"There is no other star in the world (who) causes more of a stir in the public eye than Lindsay," said Maxim Editor in Chief Jimmy Jellinek in a statement. "Her every move is watched and reported on."

Not surprisingly, Jellinek described his young, male readership as being "obsessed" with the 20-year-old Lohan, a ubiquitous party girl who spent the weekend soaking up the sun (with a new boyfriend) in the Bahamas.

Jessica Alba had to settle with the No. 2 on the list, which is in the magazine hitting stands Saturday. She's followed, in order, by Scarlett Johansson, Christina Aguilera, Jessica Biel, Ali Larter, Eva Mendes, Rihanna, Eva Longoria, Fergie, Sienna Miller, Angelina Jolie, Beyonce Knowles and Katherine Heigl.

Celebrity sisters Ashlee and Jessica Simpson are on the list at No. 16 and No. 41, respectively. Ashley Olsen, half of the mogul acting twins, placed 37th, while sister Mary-Kate didn't make the cut.

The cover of the Hot-100 June issue features a picture of No. 29: Sarah Silverman.

B.C. gives half a million dollars to Sarah McLachlan Music Outreach project

VANCOUVER (CP) - A beaming Sarah McLachlan said Monday she'll gladly accept half a million dollars from the B.C. government for a music education project in her name.

Premier Gordon Campbell made the announcement before taking a tour of the Sarah McLachlan Music Outreach facility with the songstress in tow. More than 200 school children from six Vancouver schools study at the facility, learning everything from guitar to percussion to voice.

"They're exploring their creative potential," Campbell said.

"And I'm sure in their hearts they are thinking to themselves maybe someday I can be like Sarah McLachlan, maybe someday I can touch the lives of millions of people all around the world."

The duo sat in on a djembe drum class, a piano lesson and a guitar seminar, where both the premier and McLachlan joined in for some strumming.

The premier said he'd always wanted to learn the banjo and the guitar, having been inspired by the legendary folk singer Pete Seeger.

The children at the school seemed nonplussed by the celebrities in their midst, though the 2010 Olympic pins being handed out by the premier were a hit.

Open six days a week, the Music Outreach projects has been working with students at Vancouver's inner city schools for the last five years.

McLachlan says music has made a huge difference in her life and knowing its positive impact is what made her want to share the gift with others.

"To see students enthusiastically learning musical instruments, some for the very first time - it is an ultimate reward," she said.

"It's also gratifying to see others embracing this program along with me."

The funding for the project comes from the Ministry of Tourism, Sport and the Arts as well as the Ministry of Children and Family Development.

New Releases, May 15: Linkin Park, Rufus Wainwright, Wilco

Linkin Park "Minutes to Midnight"

The multi-platinum rap-rockers return with their long-awaited third studio release, which follows 2003's "Meteora."

"Minutes to Midnight" was co-produced by Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda and heavyweight producer Rick Rubin. The first single from the album is called "What I've Done," which hit radio in early April.

The group celebrated the new set's impending release with a May 11 gig at New York City's Webster Hall. As previously reported, that concert is showing tonight (5/14) in theaters across the country as part of National CineMedia's FATHOM series. The concert will also be available for on-demand viewing at AOL Music.

For those who prefer the real thing, Linkin Park will kick off its Projekt Revolution Tour in late July.

* * *
Rufus Wainwright "Release the Stars"

The pop star is set to deliver his first self-produced album, "Release the Stars."

The record, which follows 2004's "Want To," features several key contributors, including guitarist/vocalist Richard Thompson, violinist/guitarist/singer Joan Wasser, veteran British actress Sian Phillips and the London Session Orchestra. Pet Shop Boys singer Neil Tennant served as the set's executive producer.

Wainwright, who last month performed at the Coachella music festival, will support the new album with a number of solo shows, as well as a slot on the True Colors Tour with Debbie Harry, Cyndi Lauper and Erasure.

* * *
Wilco "Sky Blue Sky"

"Sky Blue Sky" marks Wilco's first studio effort since 2004's "A Ghost is Born." The alt-country-rock band did, however, release a concert CD, "Kicking Television: Live in Chicago," in late 2005.

Jeff Tweedy and gang will support "Sky Blue Sky" with a bunch of North American dates in June. The tour kicks off June 13 in Davenport, IA, and continues through a June 30 gig in Toronto. The group will also perform June 17 at the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, TN.

* * *
Megadeth "United Abominations"

The heavy-metal titans make their Roadrunner Records debut with "United Abominations," the band's 11th studio album overall.

The disc was recorded in Los Angeles and England by the band's founder and sole original member, Dave Mustaine, along with guitarist Glen Drover, drummer Shawn Drover and bassist James Lomenzo.

Megadeth is currently backing the disc as the main support act for Heaven and Hell--a.k.a. the Ronnie James Dio-era version of Black Sabbath.

* * *
Gretchen Wilson "One of the Boys"

The honky-tonk cowgirl is ready to kick in the taillights again with her third studio set, which follows 2005's platinum-selling "All Jacked Up."

Wilson, who remains best known for the anthem "Redneck Woman," will prove that she's "One of the Boys" during a lengthy North American tour that kicks off in earnest next month and stretches into late September.

* * *
More new releases:

The Avett Brothers, "Emotionalism" (Ramseur)
Balkan Beat Box, "Nu Med" (Jdub)
Dry Branch Fire Squad, "Thirtieth Anniversary Special" (Rounder)
Ian Hunter, "Shrunken Heads" (Yep Roc)
Jefferson Airplane, "Sweeping Up the Spotlight: Jefferson Airplane Live at the Fillmore East 1969" (RCA)
Job for a Cowboy, "Genesis" (Metal Blade)
Maria Muldaur, "Naughty, Bawdy and Blue" (Stony Plain)
Dolores O'Riordan, "Are You Listening" (Sanctuary)
Ozma, "Pasadena" (Reincarnate)
Pink Martini, "Hey Eugene!" (Heinz)
Bruce Robison, "It Came from San Antonio" (Premium)
Spanish Harlem Orchestra, "United We Swing" (Six Degrees)
Tank, "Sex, Love and Pain" (Blackground)

Soundtracks and scores:
"High Fidelity: 2006 Original Broadway Cast" (Ghostlight)
"Shrek the Third" (Geffen)

'Heroes' Expands Universe with 'Origins'

NEW YORK -- You want more "Heroes"? NBC is going to give you more "Heroes" next season.

The network has hit upon a way to keep the show repeat for nearly the entire season, ordering more episodes of the show and embarking on a quasi-spinoff called "Heroes: Origins." Combined, the shows will account for 30 original episodes next season.

"We've got something I call the 'bulk-up challenge' for next year, which is trying to stay more consistent in our scheduling for the audience," NBC chief Kevin Reilly told reporters Monday at a press conference announcing the network's 2007-08 schedule. "We asked ['Heroes' creator] Tim Kring to come up with an idea, and what I love is not only did we bulk up with 30 hours next season, but also a whole new idea which I think is going to take the show to the next level."

The "Origins" series will consist of six stand-alone episodes, with each one introducing a new character and telling his or her back story. They'll take place within the "Heroes" universe but won't be tied into the main arc of the series, although one or two regular characters may pop up.

It will also carry an interactive element: After all six "Origins" episodes air, viewers will be able to vote on which character joins the main show the following season.

The idea for "Origins" springs from positive fan reaction to several side characters introduced this season -- Reilly cites Charlie (Jayma Mays), the waitress with the perfect memory, as an example -- and a desire to avoid momentum-draining breaks like the one the show took earlier this spring.

"I don't think the audience minds taking a week off, particularly during the holidays," Reilly says. "It's just the long hiatuses or weeks worth of repeats where we get in trouble."

Just how the "Origins" episodes will be scheduled along with the main "Heroes" storyline has yet to be worked out. The most likely scenario, Reilly says, will be to have "Heroes" start its second season in the fall and run more or less straight through its 24 episodes, with perhaps a short break during the holidays. "Origins" would then follow at the end of the season. Another option would be to run "Origins" "as a chunk" in the spring, before the concluding episodes of "Heroes."

"I'll tell you one thing you won't see is 'Origins' peppered throughout," he says. "I think that would be difficult for the audience to navigate."

Crowded House Taps Yorn For Summer Tour

As expected, Crowded House will tour North America for the first time in more than 10 years, beginning Aug. 4 at Calvin Theatre in Northampton, Mass. The recently reunited Aussie rock troupe has tapped Pete Yorn and 16 Frames as openers for the 27-date trek.

The tour runs through mid-September and includes a previously announced appearance at Bumbershoot on Sept. 1 in Seattle. Crowded House will also perform with Fountains Of Wayne on Aug. 22 in Denver.

The tour comes in support of the band's forthcoming album "Time on Earth," to be released July 10 via ATO. The group debuted its new lineup, with new drummer Matt Sherrod, last month during a pre-Coachella warm-up show in Pomona, Calif.

Here are Crowded House's tour dates:

Aug. 4: Northampton, Mass. (Calvin Theater)
Aug. 5: Boston (Bank of American Pavilion)
Aug. 6: Philadelphia (Mann Center for Performing Arts)
Aug. 8-9: New York (Beacon Theatre)
Aug. 11: Montreal (St. Denis)
Aug. 13: Toronto (Massey Hall)
Aug. 14: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Michigan Theatre)
Aug. 17: Milwaukee (Pabst Theatre)
Aug. 18: Chicago (House of Blues)
Aug. 20: Kansas City, Mo. (Uptown Theatre)
Aug. 22: Denver (Fillmore)
Aug. 24: San Diego (Humphrey's)
Aug. 25: Santa Barbara, Calif. (Santa Barbara Bowl)
Aug. 26: Oakland, Calif. (Paramount Theatre of the Arts)
Aug. 28: Los Angeles (Greek Theater)
Aug. 29-30: Saratoga, Calif. (Mountain Winery)

Sept. 1: Seattle (Bumbershoot Festival)
Sept. 2: Portland, Ore. (Arlene Schnitzer HAll)
Sept. 3: Vancouver (Orpheum Theatre)
Sept. 5: Calgary, Alberta (Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium)
Sept. 6: Edmonton, Alberta (Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium)
Sept. 8: Winnipeg, Manitoba (Winnipeg Concert Hall)
Sept. 9: Minneapolis (Orpheum Theatre)
Sept. 11: Nashville (Ryman Auditorium)
Sept. 12: Atlanta (Tabernacle)

McCartney Solo Catalog Finally Heading Online

Paul McCartney's entire solo catalog will appear online for the first time as part of a "comprehensive re-launch" of the Beatles legend's repertoire, his former record company, EMI Music, said today (May 14).

EMI Music also confirmed its Parlophone label has retained the McCartney catalog, terms for which were not disclosed. Through the planned reissue campaign, albums from McCartney and his group, Wings, will be made available across all digital platforms and in physical formats.

The project will cover the singer/songwriter's post-Beatles legacy, from his first album "McCartney" (1970), to his most recent studio album "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard" (2005), which earned three Grammy Award nominations and worldwide sales in excess of 1 million copies.

"Our digital campaign will be DRM-free," explains an EMI spokesperson, adding that more details will follow shortly.

The news follows McCartney's recent revelation to Billboard that a deal to finally make the Beatles catalog available for sale online is "virtually settled."

McCartney left EMI earlier this year to sign with Hear Music, the label formed by Starbucks Entertainment and Concord Music Group. His new studio album, "Memory Almost Full," arrives June 4 internationally and a day later in North America.

Potter author pleads: Don't spoil plot

NEW YORK - J.K. Rowling has a request for those with inside dirt on her seventh and final Harry Potter book: Please keep it to yourself.

"We're a little under three months away, now, and the first distant rumblings of the weirdness that usually precedes a Harry Potter publication can be heard on the horizon," Rowling wrote on her Web site Monday.

"I want the readers who have, in many instances, grown up with Harry, to embark on the last adventure they will share with him without knowing where they are they going."

The author's comments came in response to an April 28 editorial by a leading Potter fan site, http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org, which noted that it had been receiving "spoiler" e-mails — and expected many more — alleging advance knowledge of the book's contents.

Rowling has said two major characters will die in "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," which comes out July 21. Although the Potter books are released under tight security, copies often are obtained before the publication date.

"If Harry dies, we don't want to know about it until J.K. Rowling decides to tell us," Leaky Cauldron webmaster Melissa Anelli wrote. "And if you decide to tell us before that, you'll incur the wrath of a staff of almost 200, most of whom have been waiting almost 10 years for these final revelations and can NEVER get back the moment you rob by spoiling them.

"That's some wrath right there. We own pitchforks, hot wax and feathers. And we're not afraid to use them."

On Monday, Rowling seconded the fan site's plea.

"Some, perhaps, will read this and take the view that all publicity is good publicity, that spoilers are part of hype, and that I am trying to protect sales rather than my readership," Rowling wrote on http://www.jkrowling.com. "However, spoilers won't stop people buying the book, they never have - all it will do is diminish their pleasure in the book."

More than 300 million copies have sold of the previous six Potter books. "Deathly Hallows" has more than 1 million pre-orders on Amazon.com alone.

NBC sews up 'Scrubs' run

For the past two years, "Scrubs" creator/executive producer Bill Lawrence had to face months of uncertainty about the future of his underrated comedy on NBC -- and rumors of it moving to ABC -- only to land an eleventh-hour renewal at the peacock both times. And he is OK with that.

"In today's landscape, it is hard to pony up money for show that does 2s in the ratings," Lawrence said. "It's testament to NBC that they want quality comedy on the network."

Word that ABC, where entertainment president Stephen McPherson developed "Scrubs" at ABC Studios, would pick up the show if it was canceled at NBC gave Lawrence and his team security that the show's current sixth season won't be its last. But the seventh one will be.

"We're happy we can end the show on our own terms," he said. "We've been building toward the next season and the show's last 18 episodes."

As it did last year, NBC picked up the quirky medical comedy, starring Zach Braff, for fewer than 22 episodes. That helps NBC manage its cost because an older show like "Scrubs" requires the network to cover the entire production budget. "Scrubs' " modest ratings also prompted NBC to go for a reduced license fee, which still is expected to keep the series profitable for the studio considering syndication and international sales as well as its reasonable production cost.

With production contained within one location -- a Los Angeles-area hospital -- the series has managed to stay around $2 million per episode, impressive for a long-running single-camera comedy.

Although he is happy that his show is coming back, Lawrence said he can't ignore the dire straits of the genre, with the networks picking up only a handful of comedies this year.

"I worry about this becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy with the networks thinking that the only thing to do is to put less and less comedies on the air," he said. "I hope other comedies get picked up and have a good shot."

Sorry, 'Studio 60' fans

It's official: NBC has axed Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. The network announced its fall lineup today, and it looks like Bradley Whitford and Matthew Perry can start seeking employment elsewhere.

Fairytale goes on for 'Shrek'

HOLLYWOOD -- Thing is, fairytales are defined by their endings.

Cinderella stuffs her dainty hoof into the glass you-know-what. The cross-dressing, child-devouring wolf is eviscerated by the woodsman. The third little pig's house proves remarkably fortified.

So what to make of a fairytale -- even one with a satirical bent -- for which a happily ever after may be years, even decades, away?

As the brain-trust behind the Shrek franchise will tell you, the lime-skinned ogre and his posse of fantastical parodies have become the stars of their own never-ending story.

With Shrek the Third out on Friday, plans are already being drawn for a fourth and fifth Shrek feature, bridged by a spin-off centered on Antonio Banderas' swashbuckling feline, Puss In Boots.

On TV, there's Shrek the Halls, a Christmas special set to air in December. And if that didn't suffice, a lavish Shrek musical is bound for Broadway.

Yes, sometimes dreams do come true -- even for studio executives.

Not that it ever occurred to Mike Myers that his patented Scottish brogue would one day signal the dulcet sounds of one of the industry's most formidable franchises.

In fact, the Canadian superstar recalls, when he was first approached about the CG-animated project, based on the children's book by William Steig, nearly a decade ago, his initial reaction was "that's the worst title in history."

Myers, 43, remembers the day well.

"I was at the reception of (Saving) Private Ryan," he says.

"(I heard about Shrek) before the movie, thankfully."

Title aside, Myers was consequently won over by a visit to the DreamWorks animation campus as well as the enthusiasm of studio co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg, the executive responsible for the resurgence of Disney cartoons in the 1980s and '90s.

Still, Myers recalls, "People would say, 'Mike, I hear Shriek is coming out.' Nobody could figure out the title."

Given this, does he find it remarkable that he's now discussing Shrek the Third after the first two movies grossed more than $1 billion US combined?

"I wanted to be an actor since I was four. Everything is remarkable to me," he responds.

"I didn't come from a show business family. My dad sold encyclopedias and my mom worked in the office of a factory. So for me this is all great."

Rejoining Myers for Shrek the Third are Cameron Diaz as Shrek's true love Fiona and Eddie Murphy as wise-cracking Donkey.

Six years after the original, Diaz now admits she had little clue what she was doing while performing Fiona for the first time.

"I didn't know how she would fit in. It's different with animation -- you come in and you don't have time with the script, you just go in, they have a storyboard for what you're doing ... It's a whole different process.

"With the first film, I was completely thrown off by it. I was learning how to do it.

"Now three films later, I've gotten to know who she is. I have a relationship with her ... I want to protect her and look out for her. It's easier for me to come in and know who she is ... She means a lot to me ... I'm going to do these movies for as long as they'll have me."

Picking up where Shrek 2 left off, Shrek the Third finds the titular ogre still living in -- and temporarily ruling -- Far Far Away, the kingdom overseen by his frog king father-in-law, voiced by John Cleese.

When the frog croaks, Shrek is faced with either having to permanently occupy the throne and never see his beloved swamp again -- or convince teenage cousin Artie ((Diaz's former beau Justin Timberlake) that he should wear the crown.

Meanwhile, while Shrek, Donkey and Puss In Boots are searching for the future king, a vengeful Prince Charming (Rupert Everett) launches a coup against Fiona and her mother, the Queen (Julie Andrews).

Mom and daughter are aided in fending off the assault by the so-called Princesses -- Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and Rapunzel -- voiced by Shrek newcomers Amy Sedaris, Amy Poehler, Cheri Oteri and Maya Rudolph.

"The joy of being part of the Shrek world," notes director Chris Miller, "is that people want to be a part of it."

In concocting this latest story, producer Aron Warner explains, "What we started at was what's the next logical place for Shrek to go -- what's the next step in his life and how do we make it funny? ... The first Shrek set the tone for parody, which was then taken by lots and lots of people in lots of movies and we didn't want to repeat that we'd already created."

In other words, Shrek the Third had to look more than just Hoodwinked 2.

Says Banderas, a Shrek fan before he leapt aboard the franchise in 2004's sequel, "The feeling you have of being in this family is being around people who want to leave a legacy ... I think that was very clear from the first film."

And, speaking of legacies, what should audiences expect from Shrek 4, which is due in 2010?

Warner and Miller are understandably mum on the subject, although, given what happens in this sequel, some plot points are a given.

As Andrews predicts, "I think grandma's going to do a lot of babysitting."

Miranda Lambert scares up an audience

When mainstream country listeners first met Miranda Lambert, she was torching an unfaithful boyfriend's house in "Kerosene," the title track from her multimillion-selling 2005 major-label debut. That collection entered the country charts at No. 1, and last week her follow-up, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend," arrived in the same position and a similar thematic vein.

Lambert, 23, again plays the jilted-psycho role on the banjo-rattled title track, but the real show-stopper is "Gunpowder & Lead," a blues-rocking blast of double-barreled payback at an abusive boyfriend, ranking alongside the Dixie Chicks' "Goodbye Earl" as a modern country classic of over-the-top female revenge.

"If somebody hurts me, I'm gonna get even. That's the way I was raised," says the Texas-born singer-songwriter, whose parents, Rick and Bev, taught her to stand up for herself. With their private-investigation business, they also inadvertently provided vivid examples of the rotten things people do to each other, especially in relationships. Her dad, a former police officer who's also a musician, inspired her to become a singer-songwriter, and they even co-wrote the "Kerosene" track "Greyhound Bound for Nowhere." Nowadays her career is a full-on family affair: Younger brother Luke, 18, runs her website (MirandaLambert.com), Dad handles the merchandising and Mom heads her fan club. She bought her first house close to home — on her parents' property, in fact — to help keep her grounded even as her star continues to rise.

Indeed, Lambert hardly seems like a hair-trigger harpy in person, despite the tattoo of her logo — two crossed pistols with angel wings — on her left forearm. Interviewed at an L.A. cafe the week after performing at the inaugural Stagecoach country festival in Indio, she's friendly and Southwestern casual-cool in a blue sundress and cowboy boots.

"People sometimes ask me, 'Do you just hate guys?' And I'm like, 'No. I have the best dad in the world, I have a great brother, great boyfriend,' " the last-mentioned being fellow country artist Blake Shelton. "But if they give me [grief], I'm not gonna take it." She laughs.

Still, the nutty plunking of banjos and comedic looniness of the song "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" make it more fun than scary. "Girls are like, 'I would never say that, but I'm a crazy ex-girlfriend; I'm just afraid to admit it,' " Lambert says with a giggle. "But I also have a lot of guy fans. I think it's because their girlfriends go, 'Hey, listen to this,' and they end up liking it." She's raised eyebrows, not only for her Gretchen Wilson-esque grit but also because she wrote or co-wrote most of the songs on both her albums, rare for a young artist and uncommon in mainstream country. Her writing voice is distinctive, though not always as in-your-face as "His fist is big, but my gun's bigger / He'll find out when I pull the trigger," from "Gunpowder." Some lines are quite achingly heartbroken, like "Love letters, on wet paper / Forgivers and no takers" from the willowy ballad "Love Letters." The former contestant on "Nashville Star," country music's "American Idol," is among a growing group of country hit makers mixing the "outlaw" stance of icons such as Merle Haggard with the smooth production of contemporary country. Lambert's broad appeal has landed her opening spots with touring acts as diverse as bad boy Keith Urban, superstar traditionalist George Strait, and fellow maverick-mainstream hybrid Dierks Bentley. Her next jaunt, starting in June, will be with Toby Keith.

She also appeals to pop audiences. "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" debuted last week at No. 6 on Billboard's Top 200 Albums chart, and Lambert's been featured in Entertainment Weekly and People as well as in alt-country bible No Depression, which put her on its cover this month.

She credits Wilson, of "Redneck Woman" fame, with paving the way for her modern brand of twangy feminine rebellion. Yet perhaps paradoxically, Lambert hopes listeners will tune in to her sensitive side on "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend." "I'm not trying to be this badass chick all the time," she says. "I'm about being strong. People ask, 'Why are you so angry?' " The question bewilders her. "I'm like, 'I'm not angry, I'm happy.' I have a lot of sides, and I think this album, more than 'Kerosene,' portrays them." The romantically frustrated "Desperation," the shattered warble of "Love Letters," and the bitter ballad "More Like Her" do reflect different emotional facets with surprising nuances. The album also includes three covers: Gillian Welch and David Rawlings' rollicking lament "Dry Town," Patty Griffin's boyfriend-kiss-off "Getting Ready," and Carlene Carter's "Easy From Now On," long associated with Emmylou Harris. Yet even when she's vulnerable, Lambert's not exactly a wilting flower in love's fiery furnace. She's just too old-school.

"Country music is about real things, like drinkin' and cheatin'," she says, citing such heroes as Hank Williams, Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette. "I just think it got stopped, especially for women, just singing about how happy everything is all the time. That's not reality. I say things a lot of other women wouldn't say.... It just became part of my music, because it's part of me. And I'm really glad, because that's what sets me apart."

D'oh!: Fox slams parody "O.J. Simpsons"

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - An Internet parody of "The Simpsons" has drawn the ire of 20th Century Fox.

The studio is pressuring online video hub Broadcaster.com to remove "The O.J. Simpsons," three animated clips that reimagine the Fox series starring the former football star. After receiving notices from Fox lawyers, Broadcaster Inc. is reviewing their demand but noted Friday that fair-use doctrine protects parodies.

"We respect the rights of content owners," Broadcaster CEO Martin Wade III said. "We are examining all the issues raised by the Fox request. Our goal is to be a respecter of content rights and at the same time find legal ways to bring our community members the content they enjoy."

Fox, which declined comment, has been aggressive about protecting perceived copyright infringements. In January, Fox had Google subpoenaed over uploaded episodes of "24" and "Simpsons." Google complied, disclosing the names of individuals who did the uploading.

The three "O.J. Simpsons" clips are titled "Black and White Christmas," "Warzone" and "If I Did It," which directly references Fox and its decision to withdraw publication of O.J. Simpson's proposed book about the murder of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and Ron Goldman.

"Battlestar" going on, Sci Fi says

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Sci Fi Channel has not decided to end "Battlestar Galactica" after its upcoming fourth season, despite comments made to the contrary by some of its cast members at the Saturn Awards last week.

"Battlestar" star Edward James Olmos was quoted saying the next batch of episodes were definitely the last ones, but Sci Fi countered Friday with a statement.

"For those of you have been paying attention over the years, this is not the first time Eddie has made an announcement about the possibility of the show's end," executive producer David Eick said. "I promise you that when (executive producer) Ron (Moore) and I make a decision about 'Galactica's' future, we'll let you know."

Music piracy crackdown nets college kids

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — At first, Sarah Barg thought the e-mail was a scam.

Some group called the Recording Industry Association of America was accusing the University of Nebraska-Lincoln sophomore of illegally downloading 381 songs using the school's computer network and a program called Ares.

The letter said she might be sued but offered her the chance to settle out of court.

Barg couldn't imagine anyone expected her to pay $3,000 — $7.87 per song — for some 1980s ballads and Spice Girls tunes she downloaded for laughs in her dorm room. Besides, the 20-year-old had friends who had downloaded thousands of songs without repercussion.

"Obviously I knew it was illegal, but no one got in trouble for it," Barg said.

But Barg's perspective changed quickly that Thursday in March, when she called student legal services and found out the e-mail was no joke and that she had a pricey decision to make.

Barg is one of 61 students at UNL and hundreds at more than 60 college campuses across the country who have received letters from the recording industry group, threatening a lawsuit if they don't settle out of court.

"Any student on any campus in the country who is illegally downloading music may receive one of these letters in the coming months," said Jenni Engebretsen, an RIAA spokeswoman.

Barg's parents paid the $3,000 settlement. Without their help, "I don't know what I would have done. I'm only 20 years old," she said.

At least 500 university students nationwide have paid settlements to avoid being sued, Engebretsen said. Students who don't take the offer face lawsuits — and minimum damages of $750 for each copyrighted recording shared if they lose.

UNL officials have been told 32 more letters are on the way. At least 17 UNL students who did not take the settlement offer have been sued, according to the RIAA, although the university has been asked to forward only five subpoenas.

But the students coughing up the cash question why they're the ones getting in trouble.

"They're targeting the worst people," UNL freshman Andrew Johnson, who also settled for $3,000. "Legally, it probably makes sense, because we don't have the money to fight."

Johnson got his e-mail in February, with the recording industry group's first wave of letters targeting college students. He had downloaded 100 songs on a program called LimeWire using the university network.

The money to settle came from the 18-year-old's college fund. He'll work three jobs this summer to pay back the money.

Johnson compares what he did to people driving 5 miles per hour over the speed limit.

"It's not like I downloaded millions of songs and sold them to people," Johnson said.

But just one song can bring a lawsuit, Engebretsen said.

"It is important to send the message that this is illegal, you can be caught, and there are consequences," she said.

The industry realizes attitudes need changing, and money from the settlements is reinvested in educational programs schools and other groups can use to spread the word that song sharing can have severe consequences.

Some of the programs are tailored to start with third-graders.

"We do recognize that by the time students reach college, many of their music habits are already formed," Engebretsen said.

Earlier this month, members of Congress sent a letter to officials from 19 universities, including UNL, asking for information about schools' anti-piracy policies.

According to the letter, more than half of college students download copyrighted music and movies. The information requested is intended to help assess whether Congress needs to advance legislation to ensure illegal downloading "is no longer commonly associated with student life on some U.S. campuses," the letter says.

Barg is still angry about her letter from the recording industry group, which she calls bullying. But she agrees sharing music is common, and that other students don't understand the consequences.

"Technically, I'm guilty. I just think it's ridiculous, the way they're going about it," Barg said. "We have to find a way to adjust our legal policy to take into account this new technology, and so far, they're not doing a very good job."

Barg thinks the university should send an e-mail to all students, warning them that the recording industry won't look the other way.

As campus clears out for the summer, UNL officials are considering launching a new educational campaign in the fall.

"If we can do anything to help educate students about what illegal file-sharing is, we're willing and interested in doing that," said Kelly Bartling, a university spokeswoman.

Bartling said no one wants students to have to worry about how to pay tuition because of an expensive settlement. "It is a hugely expensive lesson," Bartling said.

Johnson, the UNL freshman, doesn't think the threats from the recording industry group are going to solve the problem. Friends who know he got in trouble still share music online.

"People are still going to do it until they get caught, and they can't catch everyone," Johnson said.

NBC OKs deal to save 'Law & Order' shows

NEW YORK - NBC Universal and producer Dick Wolf struck a last-minute deal Sunday to keep "Law & Order" and its two spinoffs on the air, although "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" episodes will first be seen on the USA cable network.

The deal ensures an 18th season of "Law & Order" on NBC. That's second only to "Gunsmoke," which aired from 1955 to 1975 and was the longest-running network drama series on TV.

NBC announces its fall television schedule on Monday, opening a week where all the broadcasters outline next season's plans to advertisers in New York.

NBC had essentially concluded it had room for only two of Wolf's series on next year's schedule. "Law & Order: SVU" has the highest ratings of the three, so that was safe. After some brief conversations about shifting "Law & Order" to Time Warner Inc.'s TNT, the decision was made to keep "Criminal Intent" for USA, said Jeff Zucker, chairman of NBC Universal.

NBC and USA are corporate cousins within NBC Universal, and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" reruns make up some of its most popular programming. Now USA will be able to premiere a full season's worth of 22 episodes of what had been an established network series, a first for the business. The series is entering its seventh season.

"This was a strategic decision by us," Zucker said. "We are really taking USA to a new stratosphere."

It's not clear when "Criminal Intent" episodes will air on NBC; they will likely be used to fill a hole when a new fall drama fails.

"Law & Order" sank sharply in the ratings this year, although that was partly expected with a move to Fridays, one of the least-watched nights on television. While it will be back for an 18th season, NBC executives declined Sunday to say whether it will start in the fall or midseason.

The deal also forces Wolf to cut production costs for the series and hit new financial targets, although they weren't publicly outlined. Wolf said this wouldn't result in any significant cast changes or be visible to viewers.

"Nobody was casting aspersions on the creative process," he said. "It was just costing too much for the realities of how the business has evolved."

NBC has suffered in the ratings this season, particularly this spring, with only "Heroes" emerging as a new hit. At the same time, USA is a very profitable operation.

NBC said the status of Fred Thompson, who plays District Attorney Arthur Branch on "Law & Order" and is considered a potential GOP presidential candidate, had nothing to do with the discussions. Thompson is under option for another season of ripped-from-the-headlines crime drama, but Wolf said Sunday he knew nothing of the actor-politician's plans.

"I haven't talked to him for the last two weeks," he said. "So your guess is as good as mine."

Keeping "Law & Order" on the air long enough to eclipse the "Gunsmoke" record is his "ultimate dream," Wolf said.

"Creatively, the show is still firing on all cylinders and I have no doubt the show's quality can and will continue for years to come," he said.

Spidey takes a fall but still nets $60M

LOS ANGELES - Even when he takes a huge fall, Spider-Man comes out on top.

Sony's "Spider-Man 3" took in $60 million in its second weekend, a hefty 60 percent drop from its record debut a week earlier but good enough to easily outdistance the competition and remain the No. 1 movie, according to studio estimates Sunday.

"After a record-breaking opening weekend, to me this is an appropriate second-weekend drop," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers. "Any studio would be happy to have a movie opening with $60 million, let alone a second weekend with $60 million."

With $242.1 million domestically in just 10 days, "Spider-Man 3" continued to beat the box-office pace of its predecessors. After 10 days, 2002's "Spider-Man" had grossed $223 million, while 2004's "Spider-Man 2" had taken in $225 million.

"Spider-Man 3" quickly became the year's top-grossing film, hurtling past "300," the Warner Bros. battle epic that has taken in $208 million.

Second-weekend drops for successful studio films typically are well below 50 percent. But "Spider-Man 3" shattered records with $151.1 million in its first weekend, making a big decline virtually inevitable since so many people already had seen the film.

"When you're in that stratosphere, we had to assume we would be in the range of a 60 percent drop," said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony.

The weekend's other new movies had fair to poor openings.

Debuting in second place with $10 million was Fox Atomic's horror sequel "28 Weeks Later," a follow up to "28 Days Later" that continues the story of a virus in Britain that turns people into raging, cannibalistic zombies.

Universal's "Georgia Rule," starring Lindsay Lohan, Jane Fonda and Felicity Huffman, opened at No. 3 with $5.9 million. Lohan plays a rebellious teen who's put under the charge of her no-nonsense grandma (Fonda).

Lionsgate's "Delta Farce" premiered at No. 5 with $3.5 million. Larry the Cable Guy stars in the comedy about three weekend warriors mistakenly dumped in Mexico, where they take on a gang of bandits.

The Weinstein Co. and MGM's workplace comedy "The Ex" tanked with $1.4 million, coming in at No. 12. The movie stars Zach Braff as a husband dueling with a co-worker who also is his wife's ex-boyfriend.

"Spider-Man 3" made up for an otherwise soft crop of movies. The top-12 films took in $96.9 million, up 14 percent from the same weekend last year, when "Mission: Impossible 3" was No. 1 with $25 million and "Poseidon" debuted in second place with $22.2 million.

Overseas, "Spider-Man 3" pulled in an additional $85.5 million for the weekend, raising its international total to $380 million and worldwide total to $622 million. The previous "Spider-Man" movies each took in about $800 million worldwide, a number "Spider-Man 3" should easily beat.

"Spider-Man 3" has a shot at topping $1 billion worldwide, Bruer said. Only three other movies, "Titanic," "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," have hit that mark.

After two weekends of light competition, "Spider-Man 3" faces the summer's next heavy-hitter Friday with the debut of DreamWorks Animation's "Shrek the Third," the latest adventure of the cartoon ogre.

A week later, Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" sails into theaters, the Johnny Depp action comedy joining "Spider-Man 3" and "Shrek the Third" to set up what could be Hollywood's biggest Memorial Day weekend ever.

Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "Spider-Man 3," $60 million.
2. "28 Weeks Later," $10 million.
3. "Georgia Rule," $5.9 million.
4. "Disturbia," $4.8 million.
5. "Delta Farce," $3.5 million.
6. "Fracture," $2.9 million.
7. "The Invisible," $2.2 million.
8. "Hot Fuzz," $1.7 million.
9. "Next," $1.604 million.
10. "Meet the Robinsons," $1.6 million.

The Couch Potato Report - May 12th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report peels a show about an apartment building in Vancouver and our Foreign Film Festival Continues!!

Robson Street is a major thoroughfare in downtown Vancouver.

Its name honours John Robson, a major figure in British Columbia's entry into the Canadian Confederation, and Premier of the province from 1889 to 1892.

ROBSON ARMS is a Canadian anthology television series that takes place in and around the Robson Arms apartment building in Vancouver.

Each episode of the show focuses on a different tenant of the building.

The stories include a recently divorced Mother and her son starting a new life with a widower, newlyweds who are working hard to trust each other, a gay couple dealing with health issues, a teenager learning to get along with his grandmother, and one woman who is just looking for her place in life.

The show also has lots of Canadian music and references and in addition to a new story every week ROBSON ARMS also features a large ensemble cast of well known Canadian actors that rotates from week to week as well.

I really enjoyed seeing some of these folks on screen again, especially Anne of Green Gables herself - Megan Follows, who still has one of the world's greatest smiles, William B. Davis from "The X-Files", Mark McKinney from "The Kids In The Hall", Margot Kidder, MadTV's Will Sasso, Saskatchewan's own Shirley Douglas, and almost all of the cast of CORNER GAS, including Brent Butt.

Unfortunately, while ROBSON ARMS is engaging at times, most of the episodes just aren't that interesting, in fact...some of the characters are exceptionally unlikeable, and...in the end, I just didn't find the show really isn't all that entertaining.

To me, a television show, or a radio show for that matter, has to entertain. The people who put these show on the air can't expect me to watch, or listen, just because they have spent the time to create it.

While I have always had a great time on Robson Street in Vancouver, the show ROBSON ARMS didn't entertain me, and so I can't recommend the two-disc set for SEASON ONE that is now available on DVD.

Up next this week are three new movies now on DVD, and the first of those is the wannabe romantic comedy MUSIC AND LYRICS.

Hugh Grant plays a washed up star from the eighties who used to be in one of the world's biggest pop duos, before his partner left him for a tremendously succesful solo career.

He is given an opportunity to write a song for a Britney Spears-like pop star, but he only has a few days to get it done, and he doesn't write lyrics.

Drew Barrymore walks into his apartment one day to fill in for the woman who normally waters his plants, and wouldn't you know it, as it happens in movies like this, she becomes the one person who can help him in his work, and his love life.

Now I like Hugh Grant, and I love Drew Barrymore, but together they just don't work. There is no chemistry, and absoluety nothing about the premise of the film seems in any way logical.

MUSIC & LYRICS is a cinematic love story that just doesn't work on any level. It is best ignored.

Now, if you want to watch a love story that does work...well then, check out the wonderful film THE PAINTED VEIL.

Now this is a love story!!

Naomi Watts from THE RING films and KING KONG plays a spoiled upper-class woman in the mid-1920s who is in need of a husband as her parents no longer want to support her.

She meets and marries a middle-class doctor for the wrong reasons and after they move to Shanghai, she falls in love with someone else.

Edward Norton from THE ILLUSIONIST is the Doctor and when he uncovers her secret, he accepts a job in a remote village in China ravaged by a deadly epidemic as an act of revenge, and explains to her that she has no choice but to accompany him.

It is at this point that their love story begins, and even though the film moves very, very, very slow at times, it is that love story that made me love this film.

THE PAINTED VEIL is exceptionally made, full of beautiful people, and I completely enjoyed it, even though it is very, very slow at times.

I also enjoyed BREAKING AND ENTERING, but not quite as much.

This is the latest film from director Anthony Minghella - the man who gave us the Academy Award winning film THE ENGLISH PATIENT.

Jude Law from CLOSER and ALFIE is an architect working in the bad part of London who loves his job and long-time girlfriend and her behaviorally challenged thirteen year old daughter.

But after a series of unsolved break-ins he starts to re-evaluate his life.

Soon he is dating the mother of one of the teenagers who broke in to his office, and she finds out. Juliette Binoche from THE ENGLISH PATIENT is the Mother and once she realizes that this man holds the key to her son's future she has to decide how far to go to protect her son.

BREAKING AND ENTERING is a a very interesting character driven movie that is also very slow moving.

It is not the type o fmovie that everyone will enjoy, but once you get used to the pace of the film, I think you will enjoy it.

It is another one of those movies that is good for mature people who love movies.

Finally this week, our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD continues.

The action filled, very loud, check-your-brain-at-the-door summer movie season is upon us in theatres, this week's entry is the zombie film sequel 28 WEEKS LATER.

So, if you would like something different, I offer you an alternative.

This week's selection is the German movie INTO GREAT SILENCE.

If you want the opposite of loud, then this is your film.

INTO GREAT SILENCE is a documentary that takes place in a monastery in the French Alps.

The monks there have been praying in nearly-total silence and solitude for nearly a millennium.

It took the filmmakers over a decade to obtain permission to film at the monastery, but the results are incredible as it follows the monks through their day and over the course of a year, from the deep snows of winter, through the planting season, and around again to winter.

INTO GREAT SILENCE is a film that features very little talking, but does include long, lingering shots of the monks at prayer -- favoring closeup shots of an ear, fingers, lips and eyes.

I started watching it in the morning of a day that was sunny and twenty-seven degrees. I thought I would start it, and then finish it after a day outside...but I watched it all the waythrough in one sitting.

I just found the sights, sounds and silence of it all, fascinating!!

The Foreign film INTO GREAT SILENCE is now available on DVD, along side the mature film BREAKING & ENTERING, the slow, but enjoyable THE PAINTED VEIL, the useless MUSIC & LYRICS, and SEASON ONE of the not very entertaining Canadian television series ROBSON ARMS.

Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report

JONI MITCHELL performs live in the 1983 concert film REFUGEE OF THE ROADS that is now available on DVD; THE FOUNTAIN is a very poetic cinematic failure; WHO THE BLEEP IS JACKSON POLLOCK is a documentary about a woman who may have bought a fifty million dollar painting for five dollars; and our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD will continue with the Academy Award winning masterpiece PAN'S LABYRINTH.

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!

Pink Floyd Members Appear At Barrett Tribute

The surviving members of Pink Floyd took part in a tribute concert Thursday night (May 10) to pay respects to their former frontman, Roger "Syd" Barrett.

Guitarist David Gilmour, bassist Roger Waters, drummer Nick Mason and keyboardist Rick Wright all appeared on stage at the "Syd Barrett -- Madcap's Last Laugh" gig, held at the London Barbican venue.

But it would appear the long-feuding Gilmour and Waters have yet to bury the hatchet. The pair appeared separately, the BBC reports, and were not photographed together.

Gilmour, Mason and Wright performed "Arnold Layne," the group's first hit and one of Barrett's best-known works. Waters performed a solo version of his own track, "Flickering Flame."

The concert was held to pay homage to Barrett, who died on July 7, 2006, at the age of 60, following complications from diabetes. The artist had spent the better part of the past 30 years living in seclusion in Cambridge, England, after being forced out of the band due to deteriorating mental health issues.

Other performers on the night included Blur and Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn, the Pretenders' Chrissie Hynde and Soft Boys singer Robyn Hitchcock.

They then took part in an all-star finale of one of Barrett's best-known compositions, the psychedelic track "Bike" taken from the band's debut 1967 album, "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn." Waters, however, did not join in.

The Barrett concert is part of the Barbican's Only Connect series of events, which offers a podium for unusual collaborations and cross-arts experimentation. Contemporary composer Philip Glass and punk-era artist Patti Smith will take part in a performance of piano and poetry on Oct. 19, under the Only Connect banner.

Q&A: McCartney looks forward with "Memory"

LONDON (Billboard) - Paul McCartney's new album, "Memory Almost Full," ends his near-45-year association with Capitol/EMI and begins a new dawn for the former Beatle.

Due June 5, the set is the first release on Hear Music, the label formed by Starbucks Entertainment and Concord Music Group.

McCartney's 21st solo album is a spirited set with occasional echoes of his '70s work with Wings. It's also his first to be available digitally -- and, as he revealed to Billboard, there are signs of a settlement in the long-running digital-distribution saga involving EMI, Apple and his former band.

In North America, the lead song from the new set is the upbeat "Ever Present Past," one of several tracks with an autobiographical, sometimes retrospective lyrical flavor. "It's quite personal," McCartney said, "but that often happens unless you set out to write an 'arm's length' album, which I hardly ever do."

In a first, Starbucks is creating a special global listening event on June 5 in which more than 10,000 locations in 29 countries around the world will play "Memory" throughout the day. Starbucks estimates that, globally, more than 6 million people will hear at least some of the new album that day.

In another first, the new album will be available for digital download via online retailers.

McCartney spoke to Billboard about "Memory Almost Full," other upcoming work and the fresh challenge of working with a new label as he approaches his 65th birthday on June 18.

Q: You must be aware that in current circumstances you're under greater scrutiny than ever with the lyrics on this album?

A: Yeah, well -- what else is new? Remember "How many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall" (from the Beatles' "A Day in the Life")? I got a question on that last week at a football match. It was just some mate. He happened to be from Blackburn. So they're still asking questions, still examining the lyrics ... I don't mind. It's when they stop examining them that you've got a problem, I suppose.

Q: People will think about your personal life and say, "Oh, he's throwing himself into his work," but haven't you always done that?

A: I don't mind work. I don't work that much. I'm never in any office before 11, I don't work every day of the week and most of what I do is playing music. I often point that out to people. It's something I love, and I always say, if I didn't do it for a living, I'd do it as a hobby.

Q: Was the Starbucks deal in the works for a long time?

A: About a year ago, I was talking to my producer David Kahne. We were in the throes of the excitement of making an album and loving it.

I said, "The only thing is, I'm kind of dreading releasing it." Because there comes this sort of wall you hit -- a bit like the marathon -- and everyone sits around in suits and rather glumly listens to it, then gives you a half-smile and says, "Nice album." And you go, "Oh, thank you." Somehow it doesn't capture the spirit you had when you were making it.

So I said, "We've got to try and do something to keep it exciting." When we first released records, every single little thing about it was exciting, even doing the photo session. David himself knew (Starbucks Entertainment VP of content development) Alan Mintz, who had just been appointed head of the music division at Starbucks.

So he introduced me to Alan, who started having some real bright ideas and had a nice twinkle in his eye. He's a bass player, after all, so I said, "We've got to definitely stick together." So he started to outline the Starbucks thing, and then I met with (Starbucks chairman) Howard Schultz and the boys when we were finishing the album in New York. They've got a lot of passion.

Q: You started "Memory Almost Full" in 2003, so was there a period when you had three albums in the works, including your 2006 classical piece "Ecce Cor Meum?"

A: Yes. I've always got a few things on the (go). I like to be able to work that way, because if suddenly your producer's not available or whatever, it's nice to be able to pick up another thread. Now, even though I've got all this happening, I've got a guitar piece in the works -- an orchestral guitar concerto? I never know what to call it. And I've got a photographic project I've been working on for a while. It's nice to have a bit of variety.

Q: Was there any bleed-through of songs from "Chaos" to the new album?

A: It was the same pool of songs. Some of them crossed over. Some of them we nearly did on "Chaos," but mainly it was pretty separate. Anything we'd started, I didn't want to remake for "Chaos," so I kept what we'd started, then wrote new stuff for it as we went along. That was one of the fun things we used to do with the Beatles. John and I would have seven or eight things ready by the time we went into the studio, and then we'd try and write the other six or seven.

Q: Is the discussion about the Beatles' catalog going online anywhere nearer to being settled?

A: Oh, yeah, very much so. It's virtually settled. And in a virtual world, that's something.

Q: So we should expect an announcement soon?

A: Hopefully, yeah. I don't want to pre-empt anything, but we're well on the way to something happening there, which is very exciting.

Q: And are you planning to go back on the road?

A: I'm going to do some little bits and pieces to support the album, but it won't be a major tour until possibly next year, and that's basically down to personal circumstances -- "he said" (laughs).

Q: Touring is obviously something you still enjoy.

A: I do love it, and while the audience seems to love it, I will. All that singing and playing -- it's good for you.

CBC Radio One unveils summer schedule

Ian Hanomansing looks at ways Canadians can help the environment and Dr. Brian Goldman takes an inside look at the medical system in new programs planned for the summer schedule on CBC Radio One.

Shows focusing on health care and the environment — hot button issues with Canadians — lead the lineup for the summer schedule released by CBC Radio One Friday.

Hanomansing, host of CBC TV's Vancouver newscast, will host Feeling the Heat, a show that showcases innovative ways to keep the planet healthy and livable with an emphasis on individual responsibility.

Anna Maria Tremonti of The Current will host a show to be called Climate Currents with highlights of The Current's environmental coverage and portraits of the people and places affected by climate change.

Goldman, an emergency room physician who has long been a biting commentator on medical issues on Toronto radio, will be hosting White Coat, Black Art. The show will look inside hospitals and doctors' offices and contrast patient expectations with what doctors can actually deliver.

A second health-related series will be Destination Wellville, presented by national health reporter Pauline Dakin, which will look at the stories of Canadians in a single community — Kentville, N.S. — as they try to find their way through the health system.

Something for soccer fans

On the lighter side, Steven Page of Barenaked Ladies fame will explore fads and trends through the ages and the surprising ways they connect to our lives today on All the Rage.

There'll be a country music show, Twang, with Lisa Brokop, and a culinary show, Flavour of the Week, with Fred Lee and Margaret Gallagher.

In Hidden City, Nick Purdon will be unearthing the secret rules, behaviours and activities that make the modern city work.

In Live by the Drum, Wabanakwut Kinew will examine how different cultures around the world express universal experiences like war, sex and death using the beat of a drum.

Drama and comedy series such as Afghanada, Monsoon House, Man, Woman & Child, Steve the First and Steve the Second will be rebroadcast.

A new five-part drama, Y Soccer, will follow the lives of a group of soccer-obsessed individuals. This summer also brings live coverage of two FIFA Under 20 World Cup matches, on July 1 and July 22.

Also debuting this summer is the previously announced Preston Manning series, This I Believe, about Canadian's personal values.

The summer schedule begins June 25 and runs until Sept. 2.

McCartney's Memory Downloaded; Beatles Next?

Better clear some space on your hard-drive for Memory Almost Full.

Paul McCartney's upcoming solo album is going to be available for downloading and streaming via PCs and cell phones, marking the first time an entire disc from the former Beatle will be obtainable through legal online channels.

The contemplative Memory Almost Full, which McCartney has described as "evocative, emotional" and "rocking," is due out June 5 on Starbucks' recently formed Hear Music label. As part of its digital marketing push, the international java chain will prominently feature McCartney's latest effort in the Hear Music section of Apple's iTunes Music Store.

A few of McCartney's collaborations with other artists, select Ringo Starr solos and John Lennon and Yoko Ono's Double Fantasy have made the kosher Internet rounds in the past, but for the most part the "Let It Be" purveyors have been conspicuously absent from online music stores and subscription services, leaving a gaping hole in many digital libraries.

But while the Beatles' catalog has been under lock and key for years, it turns out that the chance to click-wheel one's way through Rubber Soul may have arrived at last.

McCartney said in an interview for Billboard's May 11 issue that a deal to clear the way for digital distribution has been "virtually settled" in light of the settlement of a lengthy trademark dispute between Apple Inc. (the Mac maker) and Apple Corps (the Beatles' company).

The warring yet similarly named sides made amends in February, with Apple Inc. retaining ownership of all of the trademarks and logos associated with iTunes, including the bitten apple, and in return the computer purveyor agreed to license the trademarks that pertained to specific Apple Corps music back to the Beatles' outfit. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, except that both parties agreed to pay their own litigation fees.

Apple Corps exec Neil Aspinall confirmed earlier this year that the entire works of John, Paul, George and Ringo were in the process of being remastered for a digital release.

Last year, Apple allowed the Beatles' main producer, George Martin, access to the band's master tapes so that he and son Giles Martin could score the Cirque du Soleil show Love, which opened in Las Vegas last June to much acclaim from Fab Four aficionados.

Eddie Murphy Lands on Fantasy Island

It's a bird, it's a plane... No, it's "de plane, de plane!"

Eddie Murphy is set to star in a big-screen adaptation of Fantasy Island, the Aaron Spelling-produced primetime soap that ran from 1978-1984 on ABC and made a white-suited star of Ricardo Montalban, who played the island's mysterious owner, Mr. Roarke.

As he's wont to do, Murphy will play multiple characters in the film, which is being written by Norbit co-scribes Jay Scherick and David Rom, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Of course, aside from Roarke, the most memorable actor from the TV series was Hervé Villechaize as Tattoo, whose French-accented cry of "De plane! De plane!" ended up being the show's trademark line.

While Villechaize's little person stature would be a stretch for Murphy, one can't put anything past the recent Academy Award nominee, who's been fat, white, a woman and otherwise mired in makeup in multiple films.

Murphy most recently went under the prosthetics for Norbit which, although critically panned, made more than $157million worldwide (half that of The Nutty Professor, but not bad for being nowhere near as good).

Before the Dreamgirls star has a chance to make anyone's dreams come true—for a price—on Fantasy Island, however, he's set to star in the sci-fi comedy Starship Dave, about a troop of aliens who travel in a spaceship that looks like a human being. Trouble arises when the personable-looking UFO falls for an Earth-bound woman. This one bombs, er, blasts into theaters in May 2008.

Sure to pack 'em in the aisles, though, is Shrek the Third, which promises to be an all-star showcase of vocal stylings, or at least a partial Saturday Night Live reunion. Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Mike Myers, Antonio Banderas, Julie Andrews, John Cleese and Rupert Everett are joined this time around by Justin Timberlake, Amy Poehler, Eric Idle, John Krasinski, Ian McShane, Maya Rudolph, Cheri Oteri and Amy Sedaris as Shrek tries to get out of being heir to the throne of Far, Far Away.

"Spider-Man 3" poised for another easy victory

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - After destroying every record in sight with its $151.1 million opening, "Spider-Man 3" is on track to continue his triumphal march at the weekend box office.

Given that schools aren't yet out for the summer, the Sony Pictures release lost a little momentum during the week, but it should rebound Friday.

The previous opening-weekend record holder, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," dropped 54% in its second weekend back in July, picking up $62.4 million after having bowed to $135.6 million. So if "Spider-Man" dropped 55%, it still would take in $64 million.

Of the weekend's new arrivals, the one with the best chance of posting a solid number is 20th Century Fox's apocalyptic sequel "28 Weeks Later." Universal Pictures' femme-centric "Georgia Rule" might give it some competition as it bids for older women, but Lionsgate's "Delta Farce" and "The Ex," from MGM and the Weinstein Co., probably are fated to be footnotes in the story of "Spider-Man's" box office domination.

"28 Weeks" is looking to attract some of the same genre fans who rushed to see "Spider-Man 3" on opening weekend, so if that segment of the audience has had its fill of Spidey and his assorted nemeses, the tale of a deadly virus wrecking havoc on London could be just the ticket.

In summer 2003, Fox Searchlight carefully nurtured "28 Days Later" from cult status into a modest $45.1 million box office success. Danny Boyle, who directed "28 Days" and executive produced the sequel, couldn't coax Cillian Murphy to reprise his role as one of the survivors of a viral zombie plague, so the R-rated new film is headed by Robert Carlyle ("Angela's Ashes").

The original bowed in fourth place to $10.1 million in 1,260 theaters. Its follow-up is being handled by nascent genre arm Fox Atomic and arrives in 2,303 theaters, so its initial gross could move into the midteen-millions territory with an eye toward a second-place showing.

If "Spider-Man" were playing only to guys, then "Georgia," which is clearly aimed at female moviegoers, would provide smart counter programming. But since the romantic travails of Peter Parker also are seducing lots of women, "Georgia" will have a tough time peeling away distaff moviegoers.

Reminiscent of the intergenerational drama of "On Golden Pond," "Georgia" stars "Pond's" Jane Fonda as a strict woman whose alcoholic daughter ( Felicity Huffman) drops off a troubled granddaughter ( Lindsay Lohan) to live with her in small-town Idaho, and all three confront family secrets.

Veteran Hollywood hand Garry Marshall ("Pretty Woman") directed the R-rated film from Morgan Creek Prods.

Fonda enjoyed a solid hit with her return to the screen in the 2005 comedy "Monster-in-Law," which opened to $23.1 million. But as more serious fare, "Georgia," opening in 2,523 theaters, is probably looking just to crest the $10 million mark.

Making a stand in 1,931 theaters, Lionsgate will launch the PG-13 comedy "Farce," starring Larry the Cable Guy in a tale of Army reservists who are sent to what they think is Iraq but end up liberating a rural Mexican village.

Last year, the eponymously titled "Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector" bowed to $6.9 million. This new entry -- co-starring Bill Engvall and DJ Qualls and directed by veteran TV writer-director C.B. Harding -- isn't likely to top that number.

MGM will be playing on the margins with its PG-13 romantic comedy "The Ex," starring Zach Braff and Amanda Peet as newlyweds. Directed by Jesse Peretz, it is expected to produce only a few million dollars at best from 1,009 theaters.

Dolores O'Riordan goes it alone

"Stop it," Cranberries frontwoman Dolores O'Riordan chides. "Is it that gorgeous there? You're making me jealous now. We could be in the boat out on the lake."

Calling from Dublin late one April evening, the lithe singer-songwriter retreats downstairs eager to hear news about Toronto, her home-away-from-home. "You know, my husband's from there," she says giddily. "We moved over to Canada for a bit, lock, stock and barrel. The kids went to school there and everything."

In between packing for a trip to Hong Kong to promote her first solo album - "Are You Listening?" - since the Cranberries went on an indefinite hiatus a few years back, O'Riordan says it was her solitary walks near her northern Ontario cottage that got her creative juices flowing again.

"I was kind of writing as a hobby, it'd gone back to being a hobby for me, and I found I got a lot of material done up there in Ontario in the middle of the forest," she says.

After auditioning and winning the lead vocalist gig with the Cranberries in 1990, O'Riordan, 35, was the voice behind some of Ireland's most memorable songs during the '90s. While U2 flirted with electronica, and Sinead O'Connor watched her career get eclipsed by her erratic personal life, the Limerick, Ireland, quartet etched out a spot for themselves on alternative radio dials across the continent with their alternating mix of slow-motion pop ("Linger") and explosive rock ("Zombie").

Sporting a spunky new hairdo with each new release following 1993's wildly popular, "Everyone Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We?" the band went from playing tiny clubs to packing Toronto's Molson Amphitheatre in a few short years. But following 2001's "Wake Up and Smell the Coffee," the group went their separate ways to pursue solo projects.

O'Riordan made "Are You Listening?" at home while raising her children. "One second I could be upstairs hanging with the family and then if I got an idea, I could go downstairs and lay it down," she says. "I'd sit down once every few weeks and start writing and then when I had six or seven songs, I'd call Dan Brodbeck (the album's co-producer) and we'd put down everything with Pro Tools, then send them off to the musicians. After they'd had a chance to be with the songs for a bit, they'd fly in and join me in the studio.

"There was a lot more room for artistic freedom and scope for experimentalism. It wasn't the same as being in a big studio with all those overheads where you're aware of time and how much it's costing."

Affecting a vocal delivery that's vulnerable, musically, the record's 12 tracks mine the same folk-rock territory as the Cranberries. Some of the cuts have interesting stories, but mostly, she says, the songs are messages to herself.

"Most of it's just personal," she says. "Really, I think I decided to make (a full album) because I had buckets of songs and I thought, 'It's now or never,' 'cause I'm not getting any younger."

Recording the album over the last four years in two of the places she lives - Toronto and Dublin - O'Riordan says the whole process was liberating. "I had a great kind of flow, whereupon there was no pressure," she says. "No time pressure, no pressure to be away from the family. If something didn't work, I could just scrap it and move on."

She hasn't ruled out a Cranberries reunion in the future ("We never really shut the door on the band, so who knows," she says), but there's an unmistakable glimmer in her voice when she gives listeners a glimpse into the studio.

"After 14 years with the Cranberries, it was fun to have the whole palace to myself and work with a completely clean canvas and a brand new set of brushes and paints," she says. "Lots of brushes, actually, and lots of paint."

"Are You Listening?" is in stores May 15.

Here are Dolores O'Riordan's upcoming North American tour dates:

July 2007

5, 6 - Montreal, Quebec - PDA Theatre

7 - Toronto, Ontario - The Phoenix

9 - Boston, MA - Avalon Ballroom

10 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza

12 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club

13 - Philadelphia, PA - Theater of Living Arts

15 - Chicago, IL - House of Blues

17 - Denver, CO - Gothic Theater

19 - West Hollywood, CA - House of Blues

20 - San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore

22 - Seattle, WA - Showbox

23 - Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore Ballroom

The single returns to haunt music biz

NEW YORK - It sounds like a horror movie: a beloved friend is callously exterminated, then reincarnated in a different form to wreak havoc on the killer.

That's the nightmare currently facing the music industry. Almost a decade after virtually eliminating 45s and cassette singles, thereby forcing fans to spend more money on whole albums, the digital single is largely responsible for the industry's woes.

Consumers no longer need to buy an album if they want that cool jam they heard on the radio — and in growing numbers, they're choosing 99-cent downloads over $15 CDs.

Some worry this trend is worsening the quality of albums as a cohesive musical work, and that label executives are more and more interested in quick hits than lasting music or artists.

While the vast majority of music consumers still buy CD albums, they are buying less of them, while digital tracks are exploding: According to Nielsen SoundScan, sales of physical CDs this year have declined 20 percent from the same point in 2006, from 112 million to 89 million. Digital tracks are up to 288 million from 242 million at the same period last year. And that's not counting the millions of singles that are illegally downloaded.

"Now, we're in a very difference place in terms of the single business," Jim Donio, president of National Association of Recording Merchandisers, said in an interview. "The single business is alive and well, and it's in the form of track downloads."

The same cannot be said, however, for albums. Even counting albums that are downloaded along with physical CDs sold, album sales are down 10 percent from the same period last year, according to Nielsen SoundScan, continuing a decline that has been growing for several years.

The industry's hard times are evident in recent label consolidations, widespread layoffs, reduction in budgets and an overall air of belt-tightening.

In 1996, music companies shipped more than 1.1 billion units — all physical product — for a value of $12.5 billion, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. Ten years later, despite a decline in physical product sold, they industry has "shipped" approximately 1.6 billion units — but its value is down by a billion dollars, to $11.5 billion.

"There's probably a fair amount of purchases that would have been albums but are now individual track sales instead," said Geoff Mayfield, director of charts at Billboard magazine.

And at 99 cents or so, singles bring in much less profit than albums (which is why iTunes has been pressured by record companies to raise their prices).

Other signs show of the singles-driven market: One of the most consistent album chart-toppers is the blockbuster "Now That's What I Call Music!" series, which features a compilation of the hottest tracks of the season and routinely debuts at No. 1.

And of course there is the enormous popularity of music download services like iTunes. Recently, iTunes introduce its "Complete the Album" feature, an enticement which gives credit for songs purchased from an album toward purchasing the rest of it.

The question remains whether consumers are as interested in completing the albums as they used to.

Ciara hopes so. The 21-year-old's latest platinum album, "Ciara: The Evolution," on La Face/Jive Records (a unit of Sony BMG Music Entertainment, a joint venture between Sony Corp (NYSE:SNE - news). and Bertelsmann AG) wasn't designed to provide just hits, but as an entire experience about her development into a woman, complete with interludes between the tracks.

"For me growing up, there was nothing like listening to an album that you could literally sit down and listen to from the beginning to the end," she said. "It can't just be about singles. That's the purpose of an album, it's almost like a story within itself."

Avril Lavigne, 22, who's latest album "The Best Damn Thing" on RCA (also a part of Sony BMG) debuted at No. 1, is also still in love with the album: "I'm so all about going to the store and buy a CD."

"(But) times are changing," she added. Someday "people aren't going to do records, they're just going to do singles, probably."

That would have been hard to believe just a few years ago, given that the single — which gave birth to the recording industry and dominated it for decades — was virtually phased out at a time of huge industry profits. While there are still physical singles in stores, the numbers are so minute that Nielsen SoundScan doesn't even track them.

"We tried to stop selling a commercial single because people were making great, great records and albums were selling like hotcakes," says longtime music industry executive Steve Rifkind, founder Street Records Corporation, home to platinum singer/producer Akon, and Loud.com.

But removing the option of purchasing a single may not have helped the album much, either — and may have actually boosted the original illegal downloading services like Napster, says Mayfield.

"The notion that someone would jump to an album-length purchase because they couldn't find the one song they wanted available was a naive one," he said.

Rifkind acknowledges that "we are definitely in a singles market," — but blames the problem on a lack of creativity and "lazy" executives.

"People are going after one hit. They are not really caring what the album sounds like ... They are not into artist development anymore. If us as an industry went and started developing talent again, and not worrying about one hit, it would be more than a singles-driven business again."

In a recent interview with The Associated Press, Jay-Z, the superstar rapper and president of Def Jam Records, also blamed the quality of the music for the current climate.

"We're making disposable music. You can't make disposable music again and again and again and again and not expect anything to happen. We have these huge radio records ... and then won't sell any records," he said. "If you're making just songs, they'll listen to it in the clubs, that's great, they'll listen to it in their car, that's beautiful. Will they buy it? No."

Viewers are hot and cold on TV finales

NEW YORK - Summer's coming, and darn good thing! There's still a chill in the air for viewers who in years past could count on their favorite dramas heating up as the end of the season approached.

But this year? Brrrrrrr!

Consider: Is the audience really hot for ABC's "Desperate Housewives," where on Sunday Lynette ( Felicity Huffman) got locked in a freezer (!) with her hunky restaurant employee?

So what if Gabrielle ( Eva Longoria) is engaged to marry the town's new mayor? And was anyone surprised that Susan ( Teri Hatcher) is back with Mike the Plumber — after getting herself lost in the wilderness pursuing him?

Can events on Wisteria Lane raise the mercury by the season finale May 20? Or will late frost still be clinging to those manicured lawns?

Jack Bauer's been busy trying to keep the country from going radioactive. But his crusade has received a cool reception from "24" viewers, who, sensing a familiar routine to this Fox thriller, are maybe wearied by nukes in the clutches of terrorists and the White House in the clutches of knaves.

The sixth season started promisingly, with counter-terrorist go-to guy Jack ( Kiefer Sutherland) getting sprung from imprisonment and torture by Chinese officials. But on Monday's episode, which was 21 hours into Bauer's current day-from-hell, darned if the Chinese didn't seize the ultra-secure CTU headquarters — putting Bauer (along with the rest of the free world) in further peril, with his own father playing a key role in the villainy.

Odds are the Chinese (and Dad) will be thwarted by Bauer during the May 21 season finale. But could it leave viewers feeling as burned-out as Jack?

NBC is hyping the May 16 finale for "Crossing Jordan" with an intriguing mishap: Sassy Boston medical examiner Jordan ( Jill Hennessy) and her coroner cronies go down in a plane crash.

This would barely be worth noting ("Crossing Jordan" has never generated much sizzle) were it not such a missed opportunity: What if their plane ended up on the mysterious "Lost" island?

Why not? More scattered and elliptical than ever this season, ABC's "Lost" seems to have an unlimited capacity for taxing its viewers with new characters and new plot twists.

Just recently, yet another intruder dropped in when her helicopter crashed. She brought a disturbing message: The entire wreckage of Oceanic Air Flight 815 had been found at the bottom of the ocean miles away, along with the bodies of all its passengers.

Huh? Many island dwellers on "Lost" from that doomed flight not only survived it, but, after three seasons, remain visibly alive. That is, with the possible exception of Locke ( Terry O'Quinn), who, when last seen, wasn't looking too lively.

Maybe the May 23 finale will shed needed light, if not heat, on the show's burning issues. But, based on its tepid ratings lately, viewers may have begun to despair of ever finding out the whole truth. (The series' conclusion, announced this week for 2010, is an awfully long time to wait.)

On the other hand, "Heroes," in its first season, is cooking, and viewers will be hot to learn what happens on its finale May 21.

The bottom-line question seems simple: Will a large chunk of New York City go out with a bang, blown up by a human nuke?

That might be the only simple thing about "Heroes." NBC's mystic saga is packed with characters whose mission, alliances and fate seem in constant flux. These folks seem to have only one thing in common: wildly varying special powers.

A prime example is Claire the Cheerleader ( Hayden Panettiere), who is physically indestructible. But can she (or anybody) ward off New York's devastation?

And who, if anyone, will be the one who goes boom? Bad guy Sylar (Zachary Quinto), who has a habit of leeching powers from all the good guys? Or good guy Peter ( Milo Ventimiglia), already haunted by a vision that "I wipe out this whole city" — and whose hands were glowing frightfully when he was last glimpsed?

Like its characters, "Heroes" is unfettered by time, space or other ordinary restraints. Fueled by freshness and imagination, it revels in its own pyrotechnic sense of privilege.

Where does that leave New York? Right now, up for grabs.

Meanwhile, across the river, time is running out for "The Sopranos."

These days, the main heat associated with this HBO drama is the heat Tony and his fellow Jersey mobsters are packing. But even if, now, in its final season, "The Sopranos" isn't the phenomenon it once was, the series conclusion should be a towering event.

Why? From the first episode in January 1999, Tony Soprano was a man with no way out. Since then, he's been a father, husband and criminal living on borrowed time — time shared unforgettably with viewers. On June 10, time is up for this masterpiece. It ought to be a scorcher.

'Terminator' back for a new trilogy

Sorry folks, Arnie won't be back.

The Halcyon Company has acquired the rights to the "Terminator" franchise and put "Terminator 4" into immediate pre-production.

Although original franchise star Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and original franchise director James Cameron are unlikely to play any role, the new "Terminator" film should be ready by early 2009, if not earlier. The film's starting point will be a script treatment by John Brancato and Michael Ferris.

"With 'T3,' we included many incidental details and plot points that, along with the main narrative, set the stage for an entirely new set of inter-related stories covering the future adventures of John Connor and the Terminators," says "T3" producer Moritz Borman. "This new Terminator trilogy will build upon the already huge worldwide Terminator fan base, which was both revitalized and expanded with the global success of 'T3.'"

Released in the summer of 2003, "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" took in more than $425 million worldwide. Halcyon hopes that "Terminator 4" will serve as the launching point for a new trilogy.

Halcyon is a recently formed, privately financed film development, production and financing company, headed by co-CEOs Derek Anderson and Victor Kubicek, who will both serve as executive producers on any new "Terminator" feature properties. They bought out the rights from C2's Mario Kassar and Andrew Vajna. The acquired rights include certain future revenues derived from "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines," plus certain (unspecified) rights in the FOX TV pilot "The Sarah Connor Chronicles," which is considered a likely addition to the network's upcoming slate.

"The Terminator franchise represents by far the most popular and successful franchise not owned by a major studio," Kubicek says. "While we have several other projects in the works, we see this global franchise as a cornerstone of Halcyon's future business plans."

Anderson adds, ""We also plan to maximize the potential of the Terminator franchise by entering into strategic relationships with world class merchandising and licensing partners. By quickly pursuing and finalizing these new opportunities, we are confident that all of these ventures can be completed in time to fully maximize their value."

All great art begins with such words.

'Spider-Man 3' Is "Silly," Says Lucas

George Lucas has joined the major newspaper critics in their negative appraisal of Spider-Man 3.

In an interview with FoxNews.com's Roger Friedman, Lucas said, "It's a silly movie. ... There just isn't much there. Once you take it all apart, there's not much story, is there?"

Over the weekend, Spider-Man 3 surged ahead of Lucas's Star Wars' episode Revenge of the Sith to take the record for the biggest weekend box-office record.

Star Wars was also criticized as being "silly," Lucas noted. "But it wasn't."

He also disclosed that he is working on at least two other Star Wars movies for television.

"But they won't have members of the Skywalker family as characters. They will be other people of that milieu."

New Order breaks up

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - British rock band New Order, which arose from the ashes of post-punk band Joy Division in the early 1980s, has broken up, according to a Web posting by the group's bass player.

"I'm relieved really hated carryin on as normal with an awful secret so lets move on shall we?" Peter Hook wrote in a blog published on Wednesday on his MySpace page.

Hook first revealed the split as an aside during an interview last weekend with Manchester radio announcer Clint Boon, when he said, "... me and Bernard (Sumner, New Order singer/guitarist) aren't working together."

Hook and Sumner have been working together since the mid-1970s, when they co-founded Joy Division, the gloomy combo best known for the mournful single "Love Will Tear Us Apart."

After singer Ian Curtis hanged himself in 1980, the pair -- along with Joy Division drummer Stephen Morris -- formed New Order, and recruited Gillian Gilbert on keyboards.

The group issued its debut album in 1981, and went on to enjoy enormous success throughout the decade with such singles as "Blue Monday" and "Bizarre Love Triangle," and albums like "Power, Corruption and Lies" and "Low-Life."

New Order was less prolific during the 1990s, as its members took on side projects. The band's most recent album, "Waiting for the Siren's Call" -- a follow-up to 2001's "Get Ready" -- debuted at No. 46 on the U.S. pop album charts in May 2005. It did better in Japan, opening at No. 3, and in Britain, at No. 5.

Furtado joins lineup for tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales

Canadian superstar Nelly Furtado has joined the lineup for the memorial concert in honour of Diana, Princess of Wales, in London this July 1.

Furtado will be spending Canada Day at the Concert for Diana being organized by Princes William and Harry to mark the 10th anniversary of their mother's death.

The event is at Wembley Stadium on July 1, which would have been Diana's 46th birthday. It has been described by William and Harry, who will appear on stage, as "the best birthday present she ever had."

Organizers also on Wednesday added singer Tom Jones, rapper P Diddy and British Pop Idol winner Will Young to the lineup, which is believed to represent both Diana's tastes and the preferences of her sons.

Furtado, who hosted Canada's Juno Awards earlier this year, was at the top of the U.K. charts late last year with Maneater.

Elton John, Roger Hodgson, former singer for Supertramp, Rod Stewart and Duran Duran are among the selections from Diana's era.

A performance is also being planned by the English National Ballet, and some of London's theatre stars will perform a medley of Andrew Lloyd Webber music.

Also on the list are:

Take That.
James Morrison.
Lily Allen.
Kanye West.
Status Quo.
Pharrell Williams.
Joss Stone.

More than 32,000 tickets have already sold to the event, which will be televised worldwide.

Tom Selleck back to TV in `Las Vegas'

LOS ANGELES - Tom Selleck, who reigned in Hawaii as "Magnum, P.I.," is getting ready to take over "Las Vegas."

Selleck will join the cast of the NBC drama next season, playing a billionaire with a mysterious past who becomes the new owner of the show's centerpiece hotel, the Montecito Resort & Casino, the network said Wednesday.

Selleck is coming to the series as the same time that James Caan, who starred as the casino's surveillance chief and chief exec, departs. Caan, who had previously announced he would leave after the season finale in March, will be back for the premiere next season, NBC said.

Selleck played the brawny but easygoing detective Thomas Magnum on the hit CBS drama from 1980-88. He appeared on NBC's "Friends" as boyfriend to Monica ( Courteney Cox) and has starred in a number of TV movies, including "Ike: Countdown to D-Day" and the "Jesse Stone" films.

His films include "3 Men and a Baby," "In & Out" and "Quigley Down Under."

Less people are watching TV

NEW YORK (AP) - Maybe they're outside in the garden. They could be playing softball. Or perhaps they're just plain bored.

In TV's worst spring in recent memory, an alarming number of Americans drifted away from television the past two months: More than 2.5 million fewer people were watching ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox than at the same time last year, statistics show.

Everyone has a theory to explain the plummeting ratings: early Daylight Savings Time, more reruns, bad shows, more shows being recorded or downloaded or streamed.

Scariest of all for the networks, however, is the idea that many people are now making their own television schedules. The industry isn't fully equipped to keep track of them, and as a result the networks are scrambling to hold on to the nearly $8.8 billion they collected during last spring's ad-buying season.

"This may be the spring where we see a radical shift in the way the culture thinks of watching TV," said Sarah Bunting, co-founder of the website Television Without Pity.

The viewer plunge couldn't have come at a worse time for the networks - next week they will showcase their fall schedules to advertisers in the annual "up front" presentations.

The networks argue that viewership is changing, not necessarily declining. Some advertisers respond that they are no longer willing to pay full price up front to reach viewers that may not tune in later.

This fall, both sides will be watching what happens with families like Tony Cort's. During prime-time, Cort, his wife and four kids tend to scatter to computers or other activities in different parts of their New Jersey home. (Not during "American Idol" or "Lost," though.) They're definitely watching less TV, said Cort, who runs a website for martial arts aficionados.

"I remember when '24' was on, that was something there was a lot of interest and excitement about," he said.

News flash: "24" is still on. Its ratings are down, too, amid a critically savaged season.

More bad news abounds. NBC set a record last month for its least-watched week during the past 20 years, and maybe ever - then broke it a week later. This is the least popular season ever for CBS' "Survivor." ABC's "Lost" has lost nearly half its live audience - more than 10 million people - from the days it was a sensation. "The Sopranos" is ending on HBO, and the response is a collective yawn.

Events like "American Idol" on Fox (which is owned by News Corp.) and "Dancing With the Stars" on ABC (owned by The Walt Disney Co.) are doing the most to prop up the industry. But still, in the six weeks after Daylight Savings Time started in early March, prime-time viewership for the four biggest broadcast networks was down to 37.6 million people, from 40.3 million during the same period in 2006, according to Nielsen Media Research.

Millions of missing viewers could translate into millions of missing dollars for the networks heading into the up-front sales season.

Advertisers don't believe that the drop in viewership is as dramatic as the numbers suggest, but they're no longer willing to spend what they once did in the spring market, said Brad Adgate of Horizon Media, an ad buying firm. Johnson & Johnson and Coca-Cola sat out the spring market last year - betting they could get lower prices later - and it's likely other companies will do the same this year, he said.

The early start to Daylight Savings Time has hurt ratings. Prime-time viewership traditionally dips then as people do more things outside, and this year folks had a three-week head start to get into the habit of doing something else. More network reruns during March and April dampened interest, too.

"We let them get out of the habit of watching television a little bit, and it's going to take some time to get these people back in front of their television sets," said David Poltrack, chief researcher for CBS (owned by CBS Corp.).

Strategic decisions to send some popular serial dramas on long hiatuses appeared to backfire. NBC's "Heroes," CBS' "Jericho" and "Lost" lost significant momentum when they returned. Besides HBO's "The Sopranos," there are no lengthy countdowns toward the end of very popular series, unless you count "The King of Queens."

There also are technical reasons that this apparent diminished interest in television may be overstated.

This year, for the first time, Nielsen is measuring viewership in the estimated 17 per cent of homes with digital video recorders. Since last year's Nielsen sample contained no DVR homes and this year's sample does, logic dictates that fewer Nielsen families are watching TV live this year, deflating ratings.

If you recorded "Desperate Housewives" this spring and watched it more than 24 hours later, you're not counted in the show's ratings. Same thing if you bought a copy of a show on iTunes and watched it on your iPod or cellphone, or streamed an episode from a network website.

"People are not consuming less television, they're watching it in different ways, and the measurements haven't caught up," said Alan Wurtzel, chief research executive at NBC (owned by General Electric Co.).

The numbers can be significant. When "The Office" aired on NBC on April 5, Nielsen said there were 5.8 million people watching. Add in the people who recorded the episode and watched it within the next week, and viewership swelled to 7.6 million, a 32 per cent increase, Nielsen said.

"The Sopranos" is another interesting case study. For its first four episodes this season, the show averaged 7.4 million viewers for its weekly Sunday night premiere, down from 8.9 million at the same point its last season.

But HBO shows each new episode eight times a week. Between the multiple plays and DVR viewing, each episode this spring gets 11.1 million viewers, down from 13 million last year. And these figures don't count people who watch on demand.

Numbers for "The Sopranos" may be down because people can watch whenever they want. They may not be as interested in the show as they used to be - or it could be a combination of both.

Television has made billions based on how many people watch a show at its regular time. That idea may already be obsolete. So should the industry use DVR viewing when setting ad rates? If so, how quickly must people watch the shows - within two days? A week? What about people who watch shows on their cell phones or on network websites, which Nielsen doesn't measure yet? Later this month Nielsen will begin measuring how many people watch commercials. Should those be used to compute advertising costs?

Right now, none of those questions have answers.

However, "if we continue to do business assuming people will watch television as they always have," said NBC's Wurtzel, "it's a dead-end game."

No Summer Break for 'Entourage'

HBO has been known to let the better part of two years pass between seasons of its original series. That will emphatically not be the case with "Entourage" this summer.

The show's current season is scheduled to come to an end Sunday, June 3. It will then be off the air for all of 14 days before a new season kicks off on June 17, where it will anchor a Sunday lineup that also features two new shows, David Milch's drama "John From Cincinnati" and another comedy, "Flight of the Conchords."

HBO has also set a premiere date for the second season of "Big Love," which will migrate to Monday nights starting June 11.

The short turnaround for "Entourage" owes to the fact that the current episodes are part of the show's third season, which was broken up into two parts, the first 12 airing last summer and the remaining eight saved for this run. The episodes starting June 17 are part of the series' fourth season.

"John from Cincinnati," which centers on a Southern California surfing family and stars Bruce Greenwood, Rebecca De Mornay and Austin Nichols, is set to debut Sunday, June 10, following the series finale of "The Sopranos." It will then move to 9 p.m. the following week.

Season two of "Big Love" will follow the polygamous Henrickson family, whose lifestyle had been exposed at the end of the previous season. "Flight of the Conchords," which debuts after "Entourage" on June 17, centers on a pair of musicians from New Zealand trying to make it in New York.

New Clarkson Album Arriving In Late July

On the heels of gossip that Kelly Clarkson's third studio album, "My December," had been pushed back indefinitely, RCA has confirmed the set will arrive as planned July 24. First single "Never Again" debuted last week at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and in the top 5 on the Hot Digital Songs and Hot Digital Tracks tallies.

"My December" was produced by David Kahne (Paul McCartney, Sugar Ray) and, as previously reported, features bass work by indie veteran Mike Watt (the Minutemen, fIREHOSE). Tracks include "Haunting," "Chivas," "Be Still," "One Minute" and "Sober."

Clarkson will showcase the new material during a summer tour that begins July 11 in Portland, Ore., and will run through Sept. 26 in Los Angeles. She will also perform July 7 at the Live Earth benefit in East Rutherford, N.J.

Before the tour, Clarkson will appear May 12 at Los Angeles radio station KISS FM's Wango Tango show in Irvine, Calif., and will perform May 15 with Reba McEntire at the Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas.

Next Powers Will Be Evil

Mike Myers, creator of the Austin Powers film franchise, told SCI FI Wire that he definitely wants to make another movie and will get to it after he finishes his next project, called The Love Guru. And it might focus on Austin's nemesis, Doctor Evil.

"I have figured out that the story will be taken from the point of Doctor Evil," Myers said in an interview while promoting Shrek the Third. "It will be powered from Doctor Evil's point of view." Myers added: "That will be the first of a trilogy. ... I'm just joking! ... I haven't figured it all out. Who knows?"

Doctor Evil is one of many characters Myers played in the previous Austin Powers movies. In the last one, 2002's Austin Powers in Goldmember, Doctor Evil became a good guy and passed the baton of evil to his son (Seth Green).

"It takes three and a half to four years for me to do a movie, and it has to be something I'm feeling passionate about at the time, and so I may go into that after The Love Guru," Myers said. (The Love Guru is about a Canadian raised in India who becomes a guru and helps the Toronto Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup.)

Myers voices the title character in Shrek the Third which opens on May 18.

The Simpsons hit the decade mark

Well, at the rate Simpsons DVDs are hitting the market, we'll be all caught up... by 2014. The good news is that The Simpsons: The Complete Tenth Season is arriving this summer with a great assortment of extras.

The set will contain the complete season along with commentary tracks on seventeen episodes, A Line from Matt Groening, deleted scenes with optional commentary, animation showcases and animatics, a sneek peak at the upcoming movie, several Butterfinger spots & an Intel spot, some Australian promos for CC's Chips, a sketch gallery, a featurette on crank calls and a bit from the animators. Missing this time around is the odd foreign language clips.

All joking about the schedule aside, each season set for The Simpsons continues to be a work of high commitment to great DVDs. A tip of the hat to Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. The set arrives on August 7th for $49.98 and will come in both a Bart head box and a traditional box. Word from Fox is that starting with season 11 a new box scheme may come into play.

Gill Deacon show cancelled

CBC Television is cancelling the Gill Deacon Show, the daytime lifestyle and living show hosted by Gill Deacon.

The last show will be aired May 30 and there will be a selection of "best of" episodes aired the following week, then it will air in reruns this summer.

The show was cancelled because it wasn’t pulling in enough viewers, said CBC spokesman Jeff Keay, so it’s "back to the drawing board" for midday programming, he said.

"It just didn’t seem to resonate with an audience," said Keay.

Deacon was an upbeat host who focused on crafts projects, cooking and feel-good stories, rather than the celebrity fodder of much daytime TV.

The show was among a slate of new shows that began last year.

It is not known what will fill the 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. time slot in the fall. CBC will announce its new lineup at the end of May.

New CD Releases, May 8: Bjork, Barbra Streisand, Elliott Smith

Bjork "Volta"

The Icelandic alt-rock princess returns with her highly anticipated sixth solo effort. "Volta" follows 2004's "Medulla."

Bjork wrote and produced the set, with production help from Mark Bell and Timbaland on three tracks. The album features collaborations with other artists, including vocalist Antony Hegarty (Antony and the Johnsons).

Bjork, who first came to fame as a member of the Sugarcubes, is supporting "Volta" with a short North American tour, which included a headlining set at the Coachella festival last month. The tour currently runs through a May 23 date in Vancouver, British Columbia. She's also scheduled to perform at the Virgin Music Festival on Sept. 8 in Toronto.

* * *
Barbra Streisand "Streisand: Live in Concert"

Those who missed Barbra Streisand's hugely successful 2006 North American tour--or those who simply want another dose--can now get the full Babs concert experience.

The two-disc "Streisand: Live in Concert" features such classic tunes as "Starting Here, Starting Now," "Evergreen," "Come Rain or Come Shine," "Happy Days are Here Again" and "Funny Girl."

* * *
Elliott Smith "New Moon"

Fans of the late, great singer/songwriter will be highly interested in this posthumous release. "New Moon" includes many previously unreleased demos that Smith recorded prior to his death in 2003. Notably, the set features a cover of legendary pop-rock band Big Star's "Thirteen."

* * *
Travis "The Boy with No Name"

The Brit-rock act returns with its long-awaited new album, its first since 2003's "12 Memories." The band gave fans a sneak peek of the new album in April with a short tour that included a set at the Coachella festival. Travis will next embark on a UK trek to support "The Boy With No Name."

* * *
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony "Strength and Loyalty"

The Midwestern troupe, known for such past hits as "Thuggish Ruggish Bone" and "Tha Crossroads," returns with "Strength and Loyalty." The record features pop-diva Mariah Carey on the song "Lil Love."

* * *
More new releases:
Keren Ann, "Keren Ann" (Blue Note)
The Bad Plus, "Prog" (Heads Up)
Bone Brothers, "Bone Brothers 2" (Koch)
Chanticleer, "And On Earth Peace: A Chanticleer Mass" (Warner Classics)
Sage Francis, "Human the Death Dance" (Epitaph)
The Ike Reilly Assassination, "We Belong to the Staggering Evening" (Rock Ridge)
Jaylib, "Champion Sound" (Stones Throw)
Mike Jones, "The American Dream" (Ice Age)
Lavender Diamond, "Imagine Our Love" (Matador)
Maximo Park, "Our Earthly Pleasures" (Warp)
Jessica Molaskey, "Sitting in Limbo" (PS Classics)
Rush of Fools, "Rush of Fools" (EMI)
The Sea and Cake, "Everybody" (Thrill Jockey)
Bobby Valentino, "Special Occasion" (Def Jam)
Dale Watson, "Little Darlin' Sessions, Vol. 1" (Koch)

WB bans previews in Canada

TORONTO -- In a pre-emptive strike against movie piracy originating from Canada, Warner Bros. Pictures said Monday that the studio will cancel preview screenings of its movies north of the border.

Frustrated with unauthorized camcording of its new releases in Canadian cinemas, Warner Bros. Pictures Canada said it will immediately halt all "promotional and word-of-mouth screenings" of upcoming releases.

"We regret having to cancel our screenings in Canada, but our studio must take steps to protect not only our branded assets but our commitment to our filmmakers and to our distributors," Warner Bros. president of domestic distribution Dan Fellman said.

The studio said that the Canadian ban will begin with the upcoming release of "Ocean's Thirteen" and continue with the July 13 release of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix."

Warners said it is reacting to the failure of the Canadian government to introduce legislation here to make camcording of films for trafficking around the world illegal and a punishable offense.

"Canada is the No. 1 priority in terms of anti-camcording legislation," said Darcy Antonellis, senior vp worldwide anti-piracy operations at Warner Bros. Entertainment.

Warners is the first studio to take action against Canada to stem movie piracy. Last year, 20th Century Fox threatened to delay releases of its movies in Canada to eliminate the threat of unauthorized camcording.

"Within the first week of a film's release, you can almost be certain that somewhere out there a Canadian copy will show up," Antonellis said.

The action from Warners came the same day as representatives for the major studios told a parliamentary committee probing domestic counterfeiting and piracy that unauthorized camcording of Hollywood movies in Canadian theaters was rampant.

For Apatow, opportunity knocks

SANTA MONICA, Calif. — It's Judd Apatow's world. We just laugh at it.
Sitting at a conference table outside his production office, the Long Island native, 39, looks as if he's more likely to deliver a pizza to your door than dictate what tickles the nation's funny bone. But don't let that fool you.

He's the Peter Parker of comedy, unassuming yet powerful. A stand-up turned multi-hyphenate, Apatow has spent the past two decades spinning a web of connections to some of the industry's biggest and funniest names.

As a writer, he has put jokes in the mouths of Ben Stiller, Garry Shandling, Roseanne Barr, Jim Carrey and Will Ferrell. As a film producer, he has overseen such Frat Pack hits as Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. Plus, he was a creative force behind 2001's Undeclared and 1999's Freaks and Geeks, two of the most acclaimed TV series to ever last only one season.

Those in the know already have their sights on Apatow's sophomore feature-directing effort, Knocked Up, opening June 1. How could they not? Since early spring, an eager Universal Pictures has been showing off its R-rated relationship romp to anyone who would look, like some crazed flasher flapping his trench coat.

After a March screening at the South by Southwest festival, Variety declared Knocked Up "more explosively funny, more frequently, than nearly any other major studio release in recent memory."

Right now, Apatow is at his apex. He has at least nine movie projects in various stages of readiness, from the biopic spoof Walk Hard with John C. Reilly to onetime roommate Adam Sandler's You Don't Mess With the Zohan. The list also includes Year One, a film co-written and directed by one of Apatow's idols, Harold Ramis of Animal House and Ghostbusters fame.

"He is the busiest man in comedy," says Ramis, who has been recruited for small roles in both Knocked Up and Walk Hard. "He has more films in production than DreamWorks."

Let all those alpha action flicks rely on arachnid comic-book avengers and swishy pirates to reel 'em in this summer. This is one filmmaker who is not afraid to grab our attention the old-fashioned way: daring to show us something we've never seen before, at least in a mainstream Hollywood comedy.

In The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Apatow's film-directing debut from 2005, it was the opener with star Steve Carell in his skivvies, strolling to the bathroom in a very apparent state of early-morning arousal.

In Knocked Up, in which a drunken one-night stand shared by a stoner slob (Freaks and Geeks grad Seth Rogen) and a fast-track career gal (Katherine Heigl of Grey's Anatomy) results in a pregnancy, the money shot arrives late in the game. As Heigl's character is on the verge of giving birth, the camera boldly dives under the hospital sheets to the place where the main event is well underway. The reaction by preview audiences has been split between horrified groans and embarrassed laughter.

"It's so difficult to shock America these days," says Apatow, explaining his need to expose a sight best enjoyed by trained professionals. The shot, much to Heigl's relief, was achieved by stand-alone prosthetics.

Adds Apatow, "It's impossible not to look like an episode of Friends without adding something new to the mix. I needed a big laugh at the end of the movie, something that would wake people up a little bit."

But it isn't merely a cheap jolt that he is after. It's also a realistic re-enactment of the intensity of the labor experience, with every aspect — good, bad and ugly — on display.

"Any time you see a movie about birth, you never see what it's really about," says the dedicated family man whose daughters, Iris, 9, and Maude, 4, as well as his wife, actress Leslie Mann, are in the film.

"It really hurts, and you go through a very emotional experience together. There was no way to get that feeling without showing it. Because that is something that all men talk about afterward: 'Did you look?' "

Yes, it might be a gross-out, but one with a higher purpose. "Judd Apatow has figured out how to not do a dumb male comedy but to do it smart," says Variety.com deputy editor Anne Thompson. "He gets into the nitty-gritty of what actual relationships are like. He digs into what people in the real world contend with, then wrings humor out of it. And in Knocked Up, he takes it to a sensitive, authentic level."

Anybody can make a movie with foul language, gratuitous nudity and stupid gags. But how about a debate on abortion (or, as it is so gingerly referred to in the film, "shmashmortion") between two of Rogen's roommates, played by sweet Jay Baruchel, star of Undeclared, and cynical Jonah Hill, the eBay store geek of The 40-Year-Old Virgin? Or, as Apatow calls them, "two of the biggest idiots on Earth"?

Or a deeply filthy yet incredibly funny discussion on negotiating intercourse during late-term pregnancy?

Or Rogen and his banter buddy ("You know how I know you're gay?") from The 40-Old-Virgin, Paul Rudd, running off to Vegas to see Cirque du Soleil after ingesting hallucinogenic mushrooms?

Those are the kind of priceless moments you can only get from an Apatow production. How the guy gets away with it:

•A knack for inspiring loyalty. Apparently, working with Apatow is like crack. Once you try it, you are hooked.

Says Rudd, who used to be known as that adorable stepbrother from Clueless until he went Apatow crazy in Anchorman, "It spoiled me from a creative standpoint. It's so much more fun to do his movies than others. I was working on another film and I kept talking about how Judd would do it. It was like being in a new relationship and you can't stop yourself from talking about the old one."

Even Spider-Man's best pal, James Franco, whose breakthrough role was as a sexy underachiever in Freaks and Geeks, has returned to the Apatow fold, first in a Knocked Up cameo and next starring opposite Rogen in the pothead comedy The Pineapple Express. Rogen reports from the set that, unlike his sullen Spider-Man 3 character, Franco "smiles this whole movie."

•A desire to be collaborative. Apatow is less a boss and more a co-conspirator. He is never afraid to allow his actors to rely on their instincts and go off the page.

"If I've learned anything from him, it's to trust your funny actors," says Rogen, who now produces because of Apatow. "There is no point in hiring the funniest people in the world and not taking advantage of it. Someone once said directing is casting, and he is great at casting."

Since his TV days, Apatow has tried to hire actors as soon as possible and shape roles around their strengths. "When we get to the set, we shoot the script. But then we have all these ideas from the other times we played with the scene during rehearsal. And we start feeding those ideas in and shoot a million feet of film. Garry Shandling taught me to always save space for something else to happen, something kind of magically funny."

•A need to avoid marginalizing women. It's not every day you see someone like two-time Oscar nominee Catherine Keener of The 40-Year-Old Virgin play "the girl" in a sex farce.

"In a lot of these movies, the females are an afterthought," Apatow says. "I think when you care about the characters and they aren't just a prop to the guys, the movie is that much better."

He also knows women don't live by chick flicks alone. Too much Must Love Dogs could kill. Most can roll with the raunch in the right context.

"I've seen The 40-Year-Old Virgin about three times, and I'm not a girl who sees a film more than once," Heigl says. "Blades of Glory is a really broad comedy. That is more of a guy thing. They go to movies and wait for the lines they can repeat. Girls don't do that. Judd's films are about honest relationships. You know people like that. Everyone knows pregnant women are daffy. Judd sure does."

The only negative that Apatow has encountered lately was from the Academy of Motion Picture of Arts and Sciences, which rejected his application for membership even though he was sponsored by such Oscar-winning scribes as Akiva Goldsman (A Beautiful Mind) and Stephen Gaghan (Traffic).

Still, the academy didn't have any trouble with including A Comedian at the Oscars in this year's ceremony, a production number Apatow co-wrote with Anchorman director Adam McKay and composer Marc Shaiman. As performed by Ferrell, Reilly and Jack Black, the ode to Oscar's lack of respect for comedy was a showstopper.

Doesn't matter, Rogen says. "Judd just wanted the free DVDs."

Sony Execs Promise at Least Three More Spidey Sequels

The success of Spider-Man 3 brought promises of additional episodes of Spidey and his enemies. "There'll be a fourth and a fifth and sixth and a seventh," Sony Pictures Entertainment co-chairman Amy Pascal told Daily Variety.

"As many stories as Peter Parker has to tell, we'll do sequels." Her colleague, Michael Lynton, told the BBC that there would be "as many as we can make good stories for. ... Everybody's been so busy trying to get this one out that that's been the focus. ... When everybody comes up for air, we can think about how to make the next one."

Lynton added that, although the critics by and large drubbed the film, "the exit polls show that the audience really loved the movie, and that's what counts." Sony distribution chief Jeff Blake told the New York Times that the box-office count "justifies the expense of a franchise picture like this. And I think it's a great sign for the summer."

Several analysts predicted that the film will exceed the revenue produced by the previous two Spider-Man installments, which grossed $821 million and $783 million respectively worldwide -- although they expressed doubt that it could overtake the all-time box office champ Titanic, which took in $1.85 billion.

`Lost' end is in sight: the year 2010

LOS ANGELES - ABC is attempting to rescue once-hot "Lost" by ending the show — in 2010.

Bowing to the fact that convention isn't working for the drama about plane-crash survivors on a surreal island, the network is taking the unusual step of turning "Lost" into a limited-run series.

It will run for three shorter and uninterrupted seasons until its "highly anticipated and shocking finale" in the 2009-10 season, ABC said Monday.

The series, which saw its ratings drop this season amid complaints about scheduling, an increasingly meandering plot and unpopular new characters, still must prove itself to disenchanted viewers to survive.

"Due to the unique nature of the series, we knew it would require an end date to keep the integrity and strength of the show consistent throughout and to give the audience the payoff they deserve," ABC Entertainment President Stephen McPherson said in a statement.

Typically, networks milk a series until it runs dry of ratings and then drop the ax.

Last January, "Lost" producers said they were talking with the network about setting an end date.

Executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse have agreed to remain with the show, now in its third season, through the end, ABC said. Lindelof created the show with J.J. Abrams and Jeffrey Lieber.

"We always envisioned `Lost' as a show with a beginning, middle and end," Lindelof and Cuse said in a statement. "By officially announcing exactly when that ending will be, the audience will now have the security of knowing that the story will play out as we've intended."

A total of 48 episodes will air over the next three seasons, with 16 episodes running without a break each season in the style of Fox's "24." That will take care of viewer complaints about reruns that left them dangling.

ABC's effort to make this a two-part season for "Lost" by pausing midway to make room for another show, the quickly canceled "Day Break," also proved a flop. Serial dramas with complex plots, like "Lost" or CBS' "Jericho," have found it difficult to regain viewers after a break.

The average number of episodes for a series is 22, which isn't enough to stretch through an entire season without reruns or a hiatus.

"Lost" once drew an impressive 20 million-plus viewers as it helped raise ABC from ratings purgatory, gained cultural-phenomenon status and won the 2005 Emmy for best drama.

But in its third season "Lost" took a nose dive, with recent episodes drawing 12 million or fewer viewers. A time-slot change, to 10 p.m. EDT Wednesday, which put it up against CBS' "CSI: NY," was a factor.

Viewership numbers also don't reflect how many people save the shows on their digital video recorders to watch more than 24 hours later, and "Lost" gains viewers when the DVR audience is taken into account.

The ensemble cast includes Naveen Andrews, Matthew Fox and Evangeline Lilly among the survivors of Oceanic Air flight 815 and Michael Emerson as the leader of the dangerous "Others" who live on the island.

Spirit of Rush reborn

Together for 33 years, singer-bassist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson and drummer-lyricist Neil Peart are enjoying their most successful single in a decade, Far Cry, from the band's just-released studio album, Snakes & Arrows.

Meanwhile, ticket sales for the accompanying tour, which kicks off June 13 in Atlanta and hits Canada for a slew of dates in July and September, are up 35% from the last time Rush hit the road in 2004.

Lee said there were two key ingredients in making Rush sound fresh again: Recording the 2004 EP of '60s covers, Feedback, and recruiting Grammy-winning co-producer Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Velvet Underground) for Snakes & Arrows, which was recorded in the Catskills and mixed in L.A., where Peart has lived for the past six years.

"It felt fresh," said Lee, relaxing in a back room recently at Rush's management offices in Toronto.

"A couple of things happened. The way we recorded Feedback was so basic and so back to roots, you know the three of us just in a studio playing together, that made us realize how much more exciting recording should be, rather than computerizing the whole thing and belabouring it. And also, playing those songs from that period was a great way of reminding us about certain truths that existed about writing rock songs back then, that shouldn't have changed. But in our own way we got very dense about our songwriting, and that was a way of bringing us out of ourselves a little bit more and reminding us about some of the fundamentals that go into writing a great rock song."

Secondly, as you might imagine, when the trio, which has sold 35 million albums worldwide, sets out to make a studio album --- the most-recent being Vapor Trails in 2002 --- there are many willing participants. Lee said finding the right one is key.

"We were talking to a number of producers and they were all very accomplished but we remained unsure. And then (Nick's) name was put forth, so we asked for a reel to be sent to us, and his reel was really good. It was well recorded. All the songs were well-written songs and really well-arranged songs, which is a rarity. You'd be surprised how many producer's reels have bad songs on them and let me tell ya, if you hear a bad song on a producer's reel, it's not a good sign."

Raskulinecz was then summoned to Lee's house in Toronto for a first meeting.

"Alex and I were working at my house at that time and we just sat down with him and within an hour we were totally enamoured with him," said Lee. "And we played him a couple of songs and he really responded and made some insightful comments right off the bat and we just had a feeling that this was a good thing to be around."

Raskulinecz then went to meet Peart in L.A., and the drummer, whose lyrical explorations of religion and war on Snakes & Arrows was partially inspired by his motorcycle trips across America's Bible Belt, came away with the same good feeling.

It was only when they got Raskulinecz into Allaire Studios that they realized what a big Rush fan he really was.

"He was a very stealth fan, I didn't really know he was that big a fan when we met him," said Lee. "He kept it quiet. He was very professional. And slowly as we got working together, it started to seep out. And the engineer we worked with Canadian Rich Chickie, also knew a lot more about our music than he initially led me to believe. So throughout the making of the record there was this little relationship they were having, little obscurities, like certain lyrics would be quoted out of the blue, and they'd be riffing on our songs from the past that I couldn't even remember. And I'm going, 'What's that from?' And they'd go, 'That's from one your songs, dude!' You couldn't help but smile because they very sweet."

As for Peart, who lost his wife to cancer and 19-year-old daughter in a car accident in a 10-month period in the late '90s, Lee said it was good to see him laugh again in the recording studio.

"He's doing great," said Lee of Peart. "I mean, what he's gone through in his personal life, I don't think it's something that ever really heals, but you move on. I think having the environment we had in this studio session and working with Nick and Rich, just created the most pleasurable recording experience in many, many, many years. And I think that showed us all, and particularly (Neil), how much fun it is to make a record. To be in a rock band. There are many, many aspects of what we do that are work, job-like, and there's a lot of pressure involved in it.

"(But) the appeal that rock music had to us as kids, it made us want to do this. And it's important to remember that because your music needs it to really be 'rock.' There's got to be fun in it. There's got to be that spirit. It was great to see everybody in that headspace again."

Practice makes perfect

When Rush launches its first tour since 2004 on June 13 in Atlanta, the band will be ready.

The veteran prog-rock trio from Toronto is as meticulous about gearing up for the road as it is about making albums --- in this case the just-released Snakes & Arrows.

"This time we're rehearsing in Toronto," Rush singer-bassist Geddy Lee told Sun Media recently.

"Rehearsal kind of takes three different stages. We do a couple of weeks of rehearsing on our own so that we can know all our notes and get them all in right order. Then we do four weeks of rehearsal as a band in a small hall. That's where we fine-tune the music. Then we spend two weeks in an arena with the full production while everybody tweaks the audio-visual. At the end of that, the show's ready for public consumption."

Adding to Lee's already hectic work schedule is the June wedding of his 26-year-old son. Julian, a mere four days before Rush hits the road.

"I have to be around," said Lee of why the band eventually will be rehearsing at a Toronto arena. "We're cutting it close."

As for whether Lee will be bringing new appliances on this trek -- for their 30th anniversary road trip he had both clothes dryers and vending machines on stage -- he's definitely mulling over his options.

"That's a hard decision," he said. "Listen, if a guitar player can have a bank of amps that he doesn't really need, I can have a bank of things that I don't really need. It's a comment. People ask and you always have fun with it, 'Well, you know, we want that warm, dry sound.' I don't think I'm bringing dryers on this trip. I have a few ideas I'm working on right now."

'Amazing Race' host seeking Canadian contestants for his new CBC reality show

TORONTO (CP) - Fans of "The Amazing Race," the award-winning travel-themed reality show, are accustomed to seeing a stern Phil Keoghan waiting at the end of every race to tell each team whether they've made it to the next round.

And now Canadians aspiring to compete on his new reality show, "No Opportunity Wasted," can meet Keoghan face-to-face to try to convince him they've got what it takes to be contestants on the show.

Keoghan arrives in Canada this week to interview potential participants on "NOW," as he calls it, a half-hour show that gives people the opportunity to complete a 72-hour, life-changing challenge that involves either conquering a lifelong fear or doing something to benefit others.

Based on his bestselling book of the same name, "NOW" has already had runs on U.S and New Zealand television. And now Keoghan, a native New Zealander who lived in Guelph, Ont., for four years as a child, is bringing the show to Canada where it will air on CBC-TV in October.

"It's exciting to be able to do it in Canada just because the psyche of Canadians is such that they're really going to get this," Keoghan said in a recent phone interview from Los Angeles. "Canadians love underdogs, they love people who are taking on the impossible and trying to better themselves."

As a New Zealander, Keoghan says he feels a real affinity for Canadians.

"I think the reason that New Zealanders and Canadians really connect is because Canadians are to Americans what New Zealanders are to Australians. There's this little brother mentality that makes us fighters, and we don't like to be told we can't do something - we just like to head out there and do it."

Starting in St. John's on Tuesday, Keoghan will make stops in cities across Canada for eight days, ending up in Vancouver on May 16.

"I am flying across the country to meet people in person," said Keoghan, who's also the executive producer of "The Amazing Race." "This is how I've always done it and I really believe this is the best way to do it, to meet people face to face."

In each 30-minute episode, two challengers who don't know they've been chosen will be surprised by Keoghan and asked to take on a "NOW" challenge. The show clears their schedules with bosses, families and friends.

Then the two challengers, total strangers with a common goal, work to complete a series of time targets to complete their challenge.

Keoghan says he's proud to be making reality television that has some meaning and substance.

He was inspired to follow a more motivational career path, he says, when he almost drowned in a scuba diving accident at the age of 19. The near-death experience prompted him to make a list of all the things he wanted to do in life before he died.

"It was a real wake-up call to follow my life list - it was a real motivator," Keoghan recalls. "In the beginning, at 19 years old, it was a very selfish list; it was everything that I wanted to do for me. Over a period of time following that list and turning that into a career, with maturity came the awareness that it wasn't all just about me.

"Now what I want to do is try to help people, and I've seen 'NOW' help people. I get these e-mails from people telling me how it's changed their life, and that's huge."

It's not always easy, Keoghan admits, to get television executives to see the benefit in making reality shows that don't humiliate people.

"I call them train wreck shows, and it's much easier to sell them because they can be huge; they get huge ratings. But after people have driven by those train wrecks and watched them for a while, they want something else."

"The Amazing Race," Keoghan says, is an example of a reality show that offers a bit more substance as viewers take in cultures and countries they might never see in their lives. "NOW," too, he says, offers something more.

"The biggest challenge in television, as a program-maker, is trying to make something that has some take-away, that actually gives the audience and the people who are on the show more than is taken from them to make a show," he says.

"Any show that you make, there is a certain amount of exploitation that takes place with people who are in front of the camera; you take something from them to create entertainment. And sometimes the balance is so out of whack that these people walk away from these shows in a terrible situation where they're demoralized ... I'm not judging it, but that's not real - ly what I want to make."

-

On the Net:

www.noopportunitywasted.com.

-

(CP) - Phil Keoghan, host of "The Amazing Race," is in Canada for a week starting Tuesday to interview would-be contestants for his new reality show, "No Opportunity Wasted," and to sign copies of his bestselling book of the same name.

A list of stops on his tour of Canada:

St. John's, N.L.: Tuesday, May 8, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., Chapters, 70 Kenmount Road

Dartmouth, N.S.: Tuesday, May 8, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Chapters, 41 Mic Mac Boulevard

Montreal: Wednesday, May 9, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Indigo, 1,500 McGill College Avenue

Toronto: Saturday, May 12, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Indigo, 55 Bloor Street West

Winnipeg: Sunday, May 13, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Chapters, 1,225 St. Mary's Street

Regina: Monday, May 14, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Chapters, 2625 Gordon Road

Calgary: Tuesday, May 15, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., Chapters, 9631 MacLeod Trail SW

Vancouver: Wednesday, May 16, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Chapters, 788 Robson Street

U2 Brings PopMart To DVD In June

U2 will on June 26 offer up the first DVD release of the 1998 home video "PopMart Live From Mexico City," which was taped at the city's Foro Sol Autodromo on Dec. 3, 1997.

The Island Records/Interscope/UMe project was originally filmed on analog video but has been transferred to digital and optically enhanced for the new version. The audio has also been remastered and mixed in 5.1 Surround Sound.

In addition to a single-DVD set, "PopMart" will be available in a special limited edition with a second disc featuring unreleased material. Among them are four live audio tracks recorded in Rotterdam, Holland, and three others taped in Edmonton, Alberta, plus alternate videos for "Staring at the Sun" and "Last Night on Earth," four tour documentaries and a stage visuals montage.

U2 is at work writing material for its next studio album, the follow-up to 2004's "How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb." No release date has been set for the effort.

Here is the track list for "PopMart Live From Mexico City":

"Pop Muzik"
"Mofo"
"I Will Follow"
"Gone"
"Even Better Than the Real Thing"
"Last Night on Earth"
"Until The End of The World"
"New Year's Day"
"Pride (In the Name of Love)"
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"
"All I Want Is You"
"Desire"
"Staring at the Sun"
"Sunday Bloody Sunday"
"Bullet the Blue Sky"
"Please"
"Where the Streets Have No Name"
"Lemon (Perfecto Mix)"
"Discothèque"
"If You Wear That Velvet Dress"
"With or Without You"
"Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me"
"Mysterious Ways"
"One"
"Wake Up Dead Man"

Apple, labels focus on copy protection

LOS ANGELES - The last time Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs took on major recording companies, he refused to budge on his 99-cent price for a song on iTunes.

As a new round of talks ramp up this month, however, Jobs has opened the door to higher prices — as long as music companies let Apple Inc. sell their songs without technology designed to stop unauthorized copying.

Jobs contends that would "tear down the walls" by allowing consumers to play music they buy at Apple's iTunes store on any digital music player, not just the company's iPods.

Although most of the major labels insist that safeguards are still needed to stave off online piracy and make other digital music business models work, one company has already struck a deal with Apple.

Last month, Britain's EMI Music Group PLC, home to artists such as Coldplay, Norah Jones and Joss Stone, agreed to let iTunes sell tracks without the copy-protection technology known as digital-rights management. The DRM-free tracks cost 30 cents more than copy-restricted versions of EMI songs and feature enhanced sound quality.

The other major labels — Warner Music Group Corp., Vivendi's Universal Music Group, and Sony BMG Music Entertainment, a joint venture of Sony Corp. and Bertelsmann AG — will be watching closely to see how the unrestricted EMI tracks sell.

"At this point, no one can ignore Apple or what Apple wants, given its position in the marketplace," said Michael Gartenberg, an analyst with Jupiter Research. "The fact that they were able to do this deal with EMI puts more pressure on some of the other labels to follow suit."

For their part, at least two of the recording companies will ask Jobs to sell a wider variety of content in digital bundles of songs, videos and other multimedia, according to two recording company executives familiar with their companies' plans. They spoke on condition of anonymity, citing the confidential nature of the negotiations.

Apple already sells some bundled tracks, but the music companies hope expanding those offerings will boost online revenue and help offset lagging CD sales.

Apple and the recording companies declined official comment on their negotiations.

Four years ago, the majors bought into Jobs' one-price-fits-all vision and agreed to such licensing terms at a time when online music services were failing to attract significant interest from music fans.

Since then, the popularity of Apple's iPods has swelled and the sleek devices now dominate more than 70 percent of the digital music player market, by some estimates.

While studies have suggested that only a fraction of the music on most iPods is actually purchased on iTunes, the service has ridden the iPod's coattails and helped cement its position as the top-selling online music service and one of the biggest music retailers overall.

That's given Apple considerable leverage in its dealings with the recording industry.

Last year, the main issue that dominated iTunes licensing talks was pricing, as some of the big music companies urged Jobs to entertain charging more for some songs than others.

The dispute percolated for months, but Jobs didn't budge, not wanting to complicate iTunes' simple pricing scheme for singles.

Eventually, the music companies each agreed to one-year deals, which expire this spring.

Now, Apple is facing pressure in Europe to license its brand of DRM technology to rivals so consumers can play the music they buy on iTunes on any digital music player, not just iPods.

Critics of the recording industry have argued for years that the labels are alienating customers by placing copy restrictions on legal music downloads, especially as many CDs have been sold without them.

The technology behind such measures differs, depending on the retailer and the music device. Apple, for example, has its own version, called FairPlay, that only works with iPods, making it cumbersome for consumers to transfer songs from iTunes across other portable digital devices. Likewise, DRM systems used at other online stores won't work with iPods.

Many music fans who don't want to deal with the hassle simply turn to online file-sharing networks to download no-strings tracks for free.

The recording industry has argued that copy protection software itself is not what makes some songs incompatible with some digital players, but the fact that there are different versions of the technology in use. The music companies have called on Jobs to license FairPlay to makers of rival devices.

Jobs has countered that the best way to get rid of technological barriers is for record labels to strip the copy safeguards from their music. He defends keeping FairPlay closed, saying that if it was widely available, it would become easier for hackers to figure out how to bypass it.

No matter what, Apple plans to continue selling standard, copy-restricted versions of songs for 99 cents each. With the EMI deal, Apple will this month start selling $1.29 premium tracks that are not only DRM-free but also of higher quality, compressed at twice the usual bit rate.

John Heard, an iTunes user in Santa Monica, said he would jump at the chance to buy no-strings downloads, even if it costs more.

"If I have the choice between something that doesn't have copy protection or it does, I'm always going to choose the thing that doesn't have copy protection," said Heard, 28, a television producer who spends about $300 a year on music, almost all on iTunes.

Buying a better-sounding track is appealing to David Sholle, 54, of Long Beach, a college professor who has purchased several hundred songs from iTunes.

"I'd be willing to pay for that," he said.

Anticipating a more competitive market, other companies are looking to break into online music sales. Online retailer Amazon.com Inc. first approached the major recording companies 18 months ago about launching an online music store.

A recent meeting prompted speculation that Amazon might begin selling unrestricted MP3s and other music downloads as early as this month. The company has declined to comment.

David Pakman, president and CEO of eMusic.com Inc., said the elimination of copy protection could help his company mine the rare, catalog recordings owned by major labels but not typically available on iTunes.

EMusic already sells music from independent labels in the MP3 format and boasts some 300,000 subscribers.

Pakman believes the major record labels will also eventually relent on requiring copy restrictions.

"We really think the market is breaking our way," Pakman said. "A noteworthy major will probably take some steps in this direction later this year."

Clemens signs deal to return to Yankees

NEW YORK - The seventh-inning stretch was ending when the low, familiar voice of public-address announcer Bob Sheppard told fans at Yankee Stadium to direct their attention to the owner's box behind home plate. Standing there, microphone in hand, was Roger Clemens to personally announce his return to New York.

"Well, they came and got me out of Texas and I can tell you it's a privilege to be back," he said. "I'll be talking to y'all soon."

With his brief address, shown on the right-center field videoboard to 52,553 fans and many more watching on television, the Rocket rejoined the Yankees in most dramatic fashion.

He agreed to a $28 million, one-year contract that will start when he is added to the major league roster for his first start, most likely in three to four weeks. Clemens will earn about $18.5 million under the deal, which will cost the Yankees approximately $7.4 million in additional luxury tax, meaning they are investing about $26 million in a seven-time Cy Young Award winner who will turn 45 in August.

"Roger Clemens is a winner and a champion, and he is someone who can be counted on to help make this season one that all Yankees fans can be proud of," owner George Steinbrenner said in a statement. "The sole mission of this organization is to win a world championship."

Clemens helped the Yankees win World Series titles in 1999 and 2000, then left after the 2003 season intending to retire. But when Andy Pettitte signed with the Houston Astros, Clemens also joined their hometown team.

The Rocket retired again after the 2004 and 2005 seasons, only to re-sign the Astros both times. Pettitte changed the dynamic when he rejoined New York this season.

Clemens had limited his field to the Yankees, Astros and Boston Red Sox, his original team. But when Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, spoke to the Astros and Red Sox in recent days, they said they'd prefer he join up with them in late June or early July. The Yankees, according to Hendricks, said: "We'd like you yesterday."

"Make no mistake about it, I've come back to do what they only know how to do here with the Yankees, and that's win a championship," Clemens said. "Anything else is a failure, and I know that."

Yankees manager Joe Torre had known for a couple of days that a deal was in the works. Talks intensified Thursday, with general manager Brian Cashman negotiating by Blackberry with Hendricks, who was at Fenway Park. Hendricks called Clemens on Friday, when the pitcher was in Austin, Texas, and a deal was approved by New York during a Friday late-afternoon conference call with Steinbrenner, Cashman, team president Randy Levine and Steinbrenner's two sons.

Clemens got up in Houston at 5:30 a.m. on Sunday and flew up to New York. He arrived at LaGuardia Airport at about 1 p.m., changed at a Manhattan hotel and arrived at the ballpark in the sixth inning. He wore a Yankees cap and one of his Yankees World Series rings during a postgame news conference, but wasn't sure which one.

"It's nice to have a choice," he said.

After Clemens addressed the crowd, fans started chanting his name in waves, as more and more realized he had returned.

"It feels like coming back home," Clemens said. "You feel like you're welcomed and you know what it's all about."

He begins with a minor league contract, and will start his workouts in Lexington, Ky., where his son Koby is playing in the Houston Astros' farm system. He hopes to start pitching in minor league games in about two weeks.

Clemens didn't even have a chance to tell Pettitte or other friends about the deal in advance.

"I'm not looking forward to the phone call or seeing Andy here shortly. He's going to be mad at me," Clemens said.

Clemens is eighth on the career wins list with 348 and second in strikeouts with 4,604. He was 7-6 with a 2.30 ERA last season for Houston.

"The only time I'll be disappointed is if my body breaks down, and I'm going to put the work and the time in to hopefully not allow that to happen," he said. "I expect to perform like I was 25, that's my expectations. Anything short of that would be a disappointment."

The Yankees, 14-15 and 5 1/2 games behind AL East-leading Boston, have seen so many pitchers get hurt that they are set to become on Monday the first team in major league history to use 10 starters in its first 30 games. The Yankees tried to persuade Clemens to join them when he visited their spring training camp on March 7.

"Make no mistake about it, the Yankees were in both of my ears the whole time," Clemens said. "And that was well before they even had the problems that they've had on the mound."

Clemens will have the same travel privileges he had with Houston last year, when he sometimes skipped road trips if he wasn't scheduled to pitch, spending time at home with his family and working with Astros minor leaguers. Torre discussed the arrangement with his veteran players before the Yankees agreed.

"If he'd like, I'd carry his bags out to the car," Jason Giambi joked.

Red Sox players were saddened to lose out on Clemens, but being in first place cushioned the blow.

"It would have been nice to have him, but we didn't need him," Curt Schilling said. "I feel like we were a legitimate World Series contender without him."

Houston catcher Brad Ausmus was disappointed.

"I would much rather have Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens on this team with us," he said. "They're big-game winning pitchers. I loved playing with them."

Clemens, despite annual retirement announcements, shows few signs of slowing down. He joked when a question was asked about the length of the contract.

"That's what I'd like to know," he said. "I think I can go right into senior softball."

Spidey shatters records with $148M

LOS ANGELES - Spider-Man caught just about everyone in his web. The superhero's latest adventure, "Spider-Man 3," smashed box-office records with $148 million in its first three days, according to studio estimates Sunday.

That put it ahead of the previous record debut of $135.6 million set last summer by "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest."

With $59.3 million on opening day Friday, Sony's "Spider-Man 3" broke the single-day box-office record, also held by "Dead Man's Chest" with $55.8 million in its first day.

Since it began rolling out overseas on Tuesday, "Spider-Man 3" has taken in $227 million in foreign markets, bringing the film's worldwide total to $375 million. In just days, the movie has grossed $117 million more than its whopping $258 million production budget.

In just two days, it also nearly matched the $114.8 million opening weekend of 2002's "Spider-Man," which had held the debut record until "Dead Man's Chest" opened.

"Spider-Man 3" reunites director Sam Raimi, who also made the previous two installments, and stars Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst.

"Sam Raimi is a genius," said Amy Pascal, Sony Pictures co-chairman. "I could have never envisioned this. What I was hoping was we would just break the `Spider-Man 1' record. This is beyond my wildest dream."

The overall box office soared from "Spider-Man 3," with the top-12 movies taking in $176.6 million, up 77 percent from the same weekend a year ago, when "Mission: Impossible III" opened with $47.7 million.

"Spider-Man 3" outdid that movie by $100 million and grossed more in each of its first two days than "Mission: Impossible III" did over the full weekend.

Also among the records smashed by "Spider-Man 3" was a $4.8 million domestic gross at huge-screen IMAX theaters, topping the previous best of $3.6 million set by "300" in March.

Playing in a record 4,252 locations domestically, "Spider-Man 3" averaged a whopping $34,807 a theater.

Domestically, "Spider-Man 3" could enter its second weekend Friday with $200 million already in the bank. The film has the market largely to itself for the next week and a half, with no major competition arriving until DreamWorks Animation's "Shrek the Third" arrives May 18.

With "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" and an onslaught of other potential blockbusters following, studio executives predict this could be a record summer for modern Hollywood.

"Spider-Man 3" packed in enormous crowds that were captive audiences viewing trailers for those upcoming flicks.

"If you could imagine the best kickoff to what could be the biggest summer of all time, this is the scenario," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers. "This will have a ripple effect on audiences exposed to the marketing for all the other summer films."

The gap between "Spider-Man 3" and the No. 2 movie — DreamWorks and Paramount's "Disturbia" at $5.7 million — was larger than any other movie's debut. "Disturbia," which had been No. 1 for three-straight weekends, raised its total to $59.9 million.

The weekend's only other new wide release, the romantic drama "Lucky You" from Warner Bros., bombed with $2.5 million to come in at No. 6.

Directed by Curtis Hanson ("L.A. Confidential"), "Lucky You" stars Drew Barrymore as a budding Las Vegas singer, Eric Bana as skilled gambler and Robert Duvall as his estranged father in a tale set against the World Series of Poker.

Two critically acclaimed films opened well in limited release.

Fox Searchlight's "Waitress," starring Keri Russell as a small-town woman whose flavorful pies are named after the hard knocks in her messy personal life, debuted with $91,470 in four theaters. "Waitress" was written and directed by co-star Adrienne Shelly, who was slain in her Manhattan apartment last fall.

Lionsgate's "Away From Her," the directing debut of actress Sarah Polley, premiered with $56,000 in four theaters. "Away From Her" stars Julie Christie as a woman losing her memory from Alzheimer's and Gordon Pinsent as the devoted husband agonizing over her loss.

Both films expand to more theaters throughout May.

Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "Spider-Man 3," $148 million.
2. "Disturbia," $5.7 million.
3. "Fracture," $3.4 million.
4. "The Invisible," $3.1 million.
5. "Next," $2.8 million.
6. "Lucky You," $2.5 million.
7. "Meet the Robinsons," $2.46 million.
8. "Blades of Glory," $2.3 million.
9. "Hot Fuzz," $2.1 million.
10. "Are We Done Yet?", $1.7 million.

The Couch Potato Report - May 5th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report peels an inspiring, yet tragic Canadian story, some little children and our summer FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL will begin!

The CF-105 airplane - The Avro Arrow - is the stuff of legend!

Canadian legend!!

The Avro Arrow was an interceptor developed in Malton, Ontario, in the 1950s for the Canadian military.

This is a plane that could have been the fastest plane in the world, it could have been the best Military defence against our enemies at the time, and it could have been the catalyst for Canada becoming one of the world leaders in aircraft design and construction.

Could have been...instead, The Avro Arrow is now only the stuff of legends!

The reason the Arrow is a legend, and not a reality, is the fact that just as the team of designers and engineers were close to finishing the plane, and the unique Canadian engine for it, the Canadian government - lead by Saskatchewan's own John Diefenbaker - cancelled the project, destroyed all of the research information, documents and blueprints pertaining to it, and demolished the few planes that had been built.

However, Canadians haven't forgotten this unique part of our history and the inspiring, yet ultimately tragic story and the legacy of the plane itself is told in the CBC film THE ARROW.

Make no mistake, THE ARROW is not a documentary.

It is a based-on-a-true-story film, with composite characters and scenes that take place in offices, rooms and homes where we will never - sadly - know what actually happened or what was actually said.

No, THE ARROW isn't a documentary, but it is a very entertaining film about a unique time in Canadian history.

The bonus features on the DVD include stories from two great CBC programs that no longer exist as well - Midday and The Journal - as we are given the chance to meet the real engineers, politicians and military reps in The Arrow's story, and watch an investigation of the real story behind Canada's most famous aircraft.

From the stuff of Canadian legend, we go now to LITTLE CHILDREN - a very, very interesting movie starring Kate Winslet.

Winslet plays a housewife and mother who spends her days at the playground with other neighborhood mothers. She is bored and feels alienated from the others until the day she meets the only stay-at-home father in the neighborhood.

Winslet was justifiably given an Academy Award nomination for her work, and so was Jackie Earle Haley, the one-time child star who played Kelly Leak in the BAD NEWS BEARS films.

His character returns home following a conviction for exposing himself to a child. The townspeople react to him with predictable venom, even as their own misdeeds play out before our eyes.

LITTLE CHILDREN is a well-written film, populated by a wealth of lonely, interesting characters who aren't all likeable, and don't always communicate what they are feeling or thinking.

It also features a great narrator.

Due to it's sometimes graphic content and language LITTLE CHILDREN isn't a film for everyone, but I recommend it as a great film for adults.

It is a very complex movie with characters who go from likeable to pathetic and back again within a few minutes, and are - at all times - interesting.

Alright, lets go from a complex movie with many characters, to an easy to understand - and laugh at film - with one man playing many characters.

The one man is Chevy Chase, and the film is FLETCH.

FLETCH is one of my favourite movies of all time, and even though I have seen it dozens of times, I still laugh out loud to it each and every time.

Chase is at his career best playing an investigative reporter for a L.A.. newspaper who has gone undercover to expose drug smuggling activity among the Los Angeles Police Department.

Along the way he is asked to commit a murder, meets a beautiful woman, dons numerous disguises, and says one classic line after another.

THE JANE DOE EDITION of FLETCH is a special edition that features some interesting extras, but sadly, Chase himself doesn't appear.

That makes the extras less than spectacular, but the film itself remains a classic.

Finally this week, with the opening of SPIDER-MAN 3 in theatres yesterday, the action filled, very loud, check-your-brain-at-the-door summer movie season is upon us.

If you'd prefer an alternative, each week during the summer movie season I will tell you about at least one current release on DVD that you'll need your brain to enjoy.

Welcome to the FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL!

This week's film is LE PETIT LIEUTENANT from France and it is a great alternative to the loud summer films.

This movie takes 30 minutes to introduce everyone before the major plot point is introduced, and I found that an inventive decision by the filmmakers.

In LE PETIT LIEUTENANT you get to know the personal lives of an elite French police unit on the most intimate level.

Yes, there is murder and death and crimes to be solved, and they allow us to see some of the flaws of human behavior on both sides of the law.

I think it is best if you don't know much about the plot in advance in order to enjoy the film, but even if you do, I think you will find this to be a very interesting, quiet and engaging film.

LE PETIT LIEUTENANT is the first entry in our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL and it is available in stores now, alongside the always entertaining film FLETCH, the complex LITTLE CHILDREN, and THE ARROW, a very entertaining movie about a unique time in Canadian history.

A time when Canada almost ruled the skies.

Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report

The TV series ROBSON ARMS debuts on DVD; Drew Barrymore and Hugh Grant star in the wanna be romantic comedy MUSIC AND LYRICS; THE PAINTED VEIL is a love story set in the 1920s that tells the story of a young English couple; in BREAKING AND ENTERING an Architect's dealings with a young thief cause him to re-evaluate his life; and our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL will continue on DVD.

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!

Paris Hilton going to jail for 45 days

LOS ANGELES - A judge sentenced Paris Hilton to 45 days in county jail Friday for violating her probation, putting the brakes on the hotel heiress' famous high life.

Hilton, who parlayed her name and relentless partying into worldwide notoriety, must go to jail by June 5 and she will not be allowed any work release, furloughs, use of an alternative jail or electronic monitoring in lieu of jail, Superior Court Judge Michael T. Sauer ruled after a hearing.

The judge, saying "there's no doubt she knew her license had been suspended," ruled that she was in violation of the terms of her probation in an alcohol-related reckless driving case.

"I'm very sorry and from now on I'm going to pay complete attention to everything. I'm sorry and I did not do it on purpose at all," she told the judge before he announced the sentence.

She was then ordered to report to a women's jail in suburban Lynwood by the set date or face 90 days behind bars. The judge's ruling excluded her from paying to serve time in a jail of her choice, as some are allowed.

Hilton was among a series of witnesses who took the stand during the hearing. She testified she believed her license was initially suspended for 30 days and that she was allowed to drive for work purposes during the next 90 days.

She said that when an officer who stopped her in January made her sign a document stating her license was suspended, she thought he was mistaken and did not actually look at the document.

Also called to the stand was Hilton's spokesman, Elliot Mintz. Hilton and her attorneys characterized Mintz as a liaison between Hilton and her lawyers.

Mintz testified that to his knowledge Hilton did not drive during the 30-day period. He said he then advised her that he believed her license was no longer suspended.

The judge called Mintz's testimony worthless and expressed disbelief at Hilton's lawyers.

"I can't believe that either attorney did not tell her that the suspension had been upheld," the judge said. "She wanted to disregard everything that was said and continue to drive no matter what."

As a city prosecutor said during closing arguments that Hilton deserved jail time, Hilton's mother, Kathy, laughed. When the judge ruled, Kathy Hilton then blurted out: "May I have your autograph?"

Paris Hilton looked forward and didn't speak to news media as she left court. Her mother looked upset.

When a reporter asked what she thought of the judge's decision, a visibly angry Kathy Hilton responded: "What do you think? This is pathetic and disgusting, a waste of taxpayer money with all this nonsense. This is a joke."

Defense attorney Howard Weitzman said he would appeal.

"I'm shocked, I'm surprised and really disheartened in the system that I've worked in for close to 40 years," Weitzman said.

He said the sentence was "uncalled for, inappropriate and bordered on the ludicrous."

"I think she's singled out because of who she is," Weitzman said.

Hilton had arrived at the Metropolitan Courthouse 10 minutes late and ignored screams of photographers as she swept in with her attorneys, mother and father, Rick Hilton. Wearing a gray jacket and white shirt over black slacks and with a black headband on, she said nothing and appeared serious.

The celebrity case brought an unusual scene to the austere courthouse south of downtown in a commercial area. As if at a red carpet event, dozens of photographers and reporters lined up at the rear entrance. Yellow police tape substituted for velvet ropes.

Hilton, 26, pleaded no contest in January to reckless driving stemming from a Sept. 7 arrest in Hollywood. Police said she appeared intoxicated and failed a field sobriety test. She had a blood-alcohol level of .08 percent, the level at which an adult driver is in violation of the law.

She was sentenced to 36 months probation, alcohol education and $1,500 in fines.

Two other traffic stops and failure to enroll in a mandated alcohol education program, are what landed the socialite back in court.

On Jan. 15, Hilton was pulled over by California Highway Patrol. Officers informed her that she was driving on a suspended license and she signed a document acknowledging that she was not to drive, according to papers filed in Superior Court.

Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies stopped Hilton on Feb. 27 and charged her with violating her probation. Police said she was pulled over at about 11 p.m. after authorities saw the car speeding with its headlights off.

Mintz said at the time Hilton wasn't aware her license was suspended. A copy of the document Hilton signed on Jan. 15 was found in the car's glove compartment, court papers say.

Hilton was also required to enroll in an alcohol education program by Feb. 12. As of April 17, she had not enrolled, prosecutors said.

Hilton, heiress to the Hilton Hotel fortune, first gained notoriety for her hard partying as a teen. She attracted worldwide attention when a sex tape she made with a boyfriend was released on the Internet.

She stars in the reality-TV series, "The Simple Life," now in its fifth season, with Nicole Richie. She appeared in the 2005 film, "House of Wax" and recently finished filming "The Hottie and the Nottie." She also is a handbag designer and has a namesake perfume.

What Paris can expect behind bars

LOS ANGELES - Paris Hilton better like chicken. The hotel heiress was sentenced Friday to 45 days at the Century Regional Detention Center, Los Angeles County's jailhouse for women just south of downtown in Lynwood.

Inmates get three low-sodium meals a day, with dinner the only hot meal. Beef and pork aren't permitted — "it's all poultry-based," said Capt. Alice Scott, who oversees the 2,200-inmate facility she describes as "a very nice place."

Like other high-profile Los Angeles County inmates — O.J. Simpson, Robert Blake, Robert Mitchum, Sirhan Sirhan and Charles Manson — Hilton will be segregated from the general population for her own safety, living in a one- or two-person cell.

Her cell will be Spartan: 12-by-8 feet with a toilet, sink and a window 6 inches wide. She'll comb her blonde locks in a mirror made of polished metal.

Breakfast is served between 6 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., hours when Hilton sometimes gets in after a night of partying.

Inmates in segregation are allowed outside their cells for at least an hour each day to shower, watch television in the day room, participate in outdoor recreation or talk on the telephone, Scott said. There are a bank of phones that use prepaid phone cards — cellular telephones and Blackberries aren't allowed.

There have been other celebrities at the women's jail. Actress Daryl Hannah, arrested last year for failing to leave a 14-acre inner-city garden where farmers were being evicted, spent a few hours there.

A year ago, former "Lost" actress Michelle Rodriguez showed up to serve a 60-day jail sentence for violating probation terms after her drunken driving arrest in Hawaii. She was released in hours because of overcrowding.

Sometimes stars are allowed to do their time in a jail of their choosing. In such cases celebrities pay a daily room-and-board fee to the smaller jails, which afford them more privacy and comfort.

Sean Penn found a jail in Bridgeport, a remote town on the eastern flank of the Sierra, to serve a 60-day sentence in 1987 for fighting with a photographer in violation of his probation for a barroom brawl.

Cop-slapping actress Zsa Zsa Gabor served three days behind bars in 1990 at the El Segundo jail near the Los Angeles International Airport. She paid $85 a day.

But the judge in Hilton's case wouldn't allow such an arrangement, so she'll head to Lynwood on June 5.

Jessica Biel wants respect as an actress

NEW YORK - Jessica Biel says she still struggles to get respect in Hollywood. "Parts that I really want aren't going to me," the 25-year-old actress says in Elle magazine's June issue, on newsstands Tuesday.

"Like `The Other Boleyn Girl' with Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman. I don't want to say that there's nothing I love that I can have. But there's still the occasional script that the director doesn't want to see you for. They want that top tier of girls."

Biel, who began her career on the family-friendly TV series "7th Heaven," has starred in such movies as "The Illusionist," "Home of the Brave" and "Next." In July, she can be seen with Adam Sandler and Kevin James in "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry."

Lately, she has been a fixture in the tabloids and on red carpets, sitting front row at Paris fashion week and sending celeb gawkers into a tizzy over her alleged fling with Justin Timberlake.

"The scary thing about having this opportunity is that if it's `your moment,' that eventually disappears," says Biel. "I think about reaching for `the moment' but never really achieving it. That way, I'm always striving."

Asked if media attention makes dating hard, she says, "It makes everything hard because you can't even go to pick up a prescription without somebody trying to snap a photo of what you have in your Longs Drugs bag.

"Thank goodness I'm a nice person."

'Gilmore Girls' cancelled

After seven seasons of witty banter, all will be soon be quiet in Stars Hollow.

Following weeks of speculation and a critically-uneven season, the CW and Warner Brothers Television have decided to cancel the long-running series "Gilmore Girls," Variety.com reports.

The network released a statement thanking the producers and cast for their work and promising that the May 15th series finale will be a send off that the show deserves.

"Announcing the final season of 'Gilmore Girls' is truly a sad moment for everyone at The CW and Warner Bros. Television," the statement read.

"This series helped to define a network and created a fantastic, storybook world featuring some of television's most memorable, loveable characters."

Debuting in the fall of 2000 on the now-defunct WB network, "Gilmore Girls" quickly became a critical favourite and flagship series for the fledgling channel.

Chronicling the adventures of single mother Lorelai and her daughter Rory, the series went through a number of creative ups and downs over the last year, including the defection of the show's creator, Amy Sherman-Palladino, and the move to a brand new network.

"The Matrix" tops mag's sci-fi list

NEW YORK - The best science-fiction movie or TV show of the past 25 years?

As a classic episode of "The Twilight Zone" once so memorably underscored, beauty is in the eye of the beholder — so the answer is surely endlessly debatable. But, according to a list compiled by the editors of Entertainment Weekly, it's "The Matrix."

The 1999 movie, starring Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne, is No. 1 on the magazine's top-25 list, in the issue hitting newsstands Monday.

"The Matrix" is followed by the Sci Fi Channel series "Battlestar Galactica," 1982's "Blade Runner," the cult TV hit "The X-Files" and — another 1982 production — "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan."

The 1985 movie "Brazil" ranks No. 6, and is trailed in the top-10 by "E.T."; "Star Trek: The Next Generation"; "Aliens"; "The Thing," starring Kurt Russell.

NBC's "Heroes" — about a group of super-people, including an indestructible cheerleader — ranks No. 18. The series' cast members are featured on five different covers of the magazine's upcoming issue.

Roots, childhood fantasies spark cross-Canada White Stripes tour

Jack White admits there's little that makes practical sense about the White Stripes' upcoming tour through Canada — an ambitious journey that involves stops in every province and territory, from B.C. to Newfoundland to Nunavut.

He doesn't expect the expansive — and expensive — trek to make any money. And in large part, it's rooted in childhood fantasies of life in the North.

"Even when it doesn't break even, it's still not the point of it, you know," White said by phone from a recording studio in Nashville, Tenn.

"As a kid, I saw some cowboy TV shows where they talked about the Yukon a lot, and the Alaskan-Yukon border. Sometimes there'd be like a bank robber or some kind of a cowboy outlaw that kind of went across the border to the Yukon side of it, and these cowboys or Lone Ranger types couldn't get to them … That was always exotic to me. I always liked that word — Yukon."

Besides, it's the rock duo's 10th anniversary this year, and to mark it, the guitarist and his drummer Meg White are on a mission to visit every region in Canada and the United States.

They start their 18-city Canadian adventure in Burnaby, B.C., on June 24 and wrap it up in St. John's, N.L., on July 16. The U.S. leg that follows includes stops in the 16 states they have yet to visit.

Canadian roots

But the rocker with the wild dark mane is also on a quest to discover his Canadian roots. White notes that family from his father's Scottish side spent "a couple generations" in Nova Scotia before heading south to work in Detroit car factories.

"There's family all throughout there — all around Sydney Mines and Antigonish and all those places," said White, whose family background is also half Polish.

"Supposedly there's ties from me to [fiddlers] Ashley MacIsaac, Natalie MacMaster."

White admits he has no proof of this, so fans may want to take that claim with a grain of salt.

After all, the man's own relationship with bandmate Meg White has long been a bone of contention since they claimed early in their career to be brother and sister. Court documents subsequently revealed them to be divorced.

White steers clear of questions that get too personal, but nevertheless insists that a highlight of the tour is a stop in Glace Bay, N.S., on July 14 — the band's 10th anniversary. White said the confluence of that landmark date with the Maritime province was a happy coincidence.

"I'd always wanted to go to Nova Scotia, I'd never been there and it landed on our 10th anniversary — it was kind of perfect," White said.

"We found this beautiful theatre, it's all red and white and black inside, and it seemed to be a 'God-bless-the-moment.' Hopefully it'll be a good show."

Most of the Stripes' other Canadian stops involve provincial capitals, but there are also smaller communities often ignored by rock itineraries.

For a time, larger centres like Montreal and Toronto were left off the Whites' list altogether.

"I first started off saying I don't want to play the major cities in Canada," White said.

"That's where my head's at. Let's just play everywhere else in Canada that we can. But, you know, you got to make the tour work, you got to pay for the bus and the truck that's got your gear in it. There's got to be something that makes sense business-wise, I suppose."

Tour economics aside, White insists that smaller shows tend to equal bigger fun. They often draw diverse crowds that are more appreciative of the performance, he said.

"Playing in a smaller club is better than playing in a big arena, playing in a small town is better than playing in a big town, and playing in a town that is on the outskirts that people don't usually go to is, of course, way better than playing a huge, major city in any country," he said.

"You're always going to have better shows because people are just more involved. In the bigger towns, sometimes you'll find crowds that kind of go to rock 'n' roll shows and kind of treat it like they're going to watch a movie or sit in front of a television. They're not involved actively in any way, and it's disappointing. Because the show, it could be so much better if people would sort of put forth some energy. Sometimes you're dying up there. You need a helping hand."

'Heavy record" set for release

The White Stripes' sixth studio album, Icky Thump, comes out June 19.

White said the name is derived from the expression "ecky thump," a traditional phrase from northern England that his wife, model Karen Elson, would use.

"I was just saying it out loud when we were writing the song and it sort of summed up that song and it started to sum up the entire album, and that sort of started to sum up the whole 10 years we've been together … It just felt right every time the word got written or said."

White said fans can expect "a heavy record" that touches on a wide range of genres including Scottish music, mariachi music, speed metal and southern American country music.

Amid all the tour planning, White is also hard at work on his second Raconteurs disc. He said they've put down about 20 tracks so far.

Beastie Boys Go Instrumental On 'The Mix-Up'

Returning to a style dabbled in with 1996's "The In Sound From Way Out!," the Beastie Boys will release an instrumental album, "The Mix-Up," June 26 via Capitol. The 12-track set is the follow-up to 2004's "To the 5 Boroughs," which debuted at No. 1 on The Billboard 200.

"The Mix-Up" features guest turns from longtime collaborator Money Mark and percussionist Alfredo Ortiz. Sources say down the road, an alternate version of the project may be released with vocals from outside contributors.

As previously reported, the Beasties will play some instrumental shows this summer in tandem with a slate of regular gigs. Dates get underway May 26 at the Sasquatch! festival in George, Wash.

Here is the track list for "The Mix-Up":

"Be for My Name"
"14th St. Break"
"Suco De Tangerina"
"The Gala Event"
"Electric Worm"
"Freaky Hijiki"
"Off the Grid"
"The Rat Cage"
"The Melee"
"Dramastically Different"
"The Cousin of Death"
"The Kangaroo Rat"

Ashlee Simpson 'confident' about looks

NEW YORK (AP) — Ashlee Simpson, who made headlines last year when she turned up with a new image and profile, says she's still the same on the inside.

"I feel very confident with the way I look," the 22-year-old singer says in Cosmopolitan magazine's June issue, on newsstands Tuesday. "But I felt just as confident the way I looked before. I've always been confident with who I am."

Simpson — the sister of 26-year-old Jessica Simpson, another tabloid fixture — raised eyebrows when she debuted a more feminine look and softer profile, fueling speculation that she'd removed the bump that made her nose distinctive. When asked last spring if she'd had surgery, she told The Associated Press: "Maybe — who knows!"

Though she's been seen recently with Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz, Simpson has a soft spot for surfer dudes.

"It's really hard for me to like Hollywood-type guys," she says. "I like guys who are relaxed and chill and who think I'm sexy no matter what I do. And I like guys who are into surfing. They're cute and seem more laid-back, and I'm a pretty laid-back person."

Simpson, who is working on her third album, says she has matured both as a person and an artist.

"I'm in a stronger place now," she says. "I'm coming into my womanhood, and it's changing my music."

Record summer in store for Hollywood?

LOS ANGELES - Everyone in Hollywood expects a big summer. The industry will get an idea of just how big come Friday, when "Spider-Man 3" opens a season laden with more potential blockbusters than the movie business has ever seen.

Will the third adventure of Tobey Maguire's web-slinger surpass the then-record $114.8 million opening weekend for "Spider-Man" in 2002?

Will it rival last year's record-breaking $135.6 million weekend of "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest"?

"There is no better way to start a summer than with a `Spider-Man' film," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers. "If you had to create a template for the perfect summer movie season, this is pretty much it."

Hollywood could have its first $4 billion summer, topping the record $3.95 billion haul from the first weekend in May through Labor Day in 2004. Factoring in higher admission prices, modern Hollywood's best summer for attendance came in 2002 with 653 million tickets sold, another record that could fall.

How well "Spider-Man 3" does will be a sign of how much Hollywood can expect from the onslaught of films to follow.

Two weeks after "Spider-Man 3" comes "Shrek the Third," with Mike Myers back as the voice of the crusty ogre in the franchise whose second installment is the highest-grossing animated film ever with $436.7 million domestically.

The next week brings the debut of Johnny Depp's "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," following "Dead Man's Chest," last year's biggest hit with $423.3 million.

Previous installments in those three franchises account for three of the four biggest opening weekends ever ("Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith" was the other). And four earlier chapters — "Shrek 2," "Dead Man's Chest" and the first two "Spider-Man" flicks — are among the top-10 highest-grossing pictures ever.

Hollywood always schedules big leadoff batters in May, but the month has never packed three heavy-hitters like this. They could combine to lift Hollywood to its busiest Memorial Day ever, topping 2004's record of $246.2 million over the four-day weekend.

"You've seen three pictures in May do just tremendous business in the past, but I think with these three pictures, you're going to see numbers like you've never seen before," said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony, which is releasing "Spider-Man 3." "Theaters are just going to be a happening place. They're going to be absolutely the place to be over Memorial Day weekend."

The question is how well the three movies can do against one another. "Spider-Man 3" has two full weeks without a major competitor, but "Shrek the Third" has just one week before the "Pirates" sequel sails in.

"Do we wish `Pirates' were on a different date? Absolutely," said Jim Tharp, head of distribution for Paramount, which is distributing DreamWorks Animation's "Shrek the Third." "But the market should be able to expand to take care of both movies."

Summer generally slacks off once the summer behemoths run their course. This season, the schedule barely lets up, with such sequels as " Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," "Ocean's Thirteen," "The Bourne Ultimatum," "Rush Hour 3" and "Evan Almighty," plus the animated comedies "The Simpsons Movie" and "Surf's Up."

While big new films arrive nearly every weekend, they often will be angling for different audiences. The family-friendly cartoon "Ratatouille" opens against Bruce Willis' action sequel "Live Free or Die Hard" one weekend, the sci-fi saga "Transformers" against Robin Williams' comedy "License to Wed" the next.

The teen girls' mystery "Nancy Drew" debuts opposite the superhero sequel "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer," while Adam Sandler's comedy "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" premieres the same weekend as John Travolta's musical "Hairspray."

"The greatest part of this summer is the consistency of options we're offering," said Chuck Viane, head of distribution at Disney, whose films include the "Pirates" sequel and "Ratatouille." "Whatever you want to see on a given weekend will be in the marketplace."

Dan Fellman, head of distribution at Warner Bros., said he counts 18 to 20 movies this summer with potential to gross more than $100 million. Most summers might have 10 films with such prospects, he said.

The picture has changed wildly from two years ago, when Hollywood had its worst summer since the late 1990s, with attendance dropping 11.5 percent.

Studio executives said it was just an off year full of weak movies. Critics speculated that video games, home-theater systems and other entertainment options were luring away movie crowds, but a solid rebound at theaters in 2006 and this year indicate otherwise.

"A few years ago, when the box office was in a little dip, many of us were talking about content, or the lack of it," said Fellman, whose Warner Bros. titles include the "Harry Potter" sequel and "Ocean's Thirteen." "It boils down to content. The way things lined up, it just all hit this year."

Still, the movie business is fickle. Revenues were surging a month ago, but Hollywood has stumbled through a few dreary weekends since then, the year's early gains now trimmed to a marginal 1.2 percent rise in attendance compared to 2006.

A few hits can turn a bad year into a good one, while a few misses can send a solid year into the dumps.

"The only cautionary note that should be in this whole thing is, there's always something that doesn't work," said David Tuckerman, head of distribution at New Line Cinema, which is releasing "Rush Hour 3" and "Hairspray." "So the question is, what isn't going to work?"

'Spider-Man 3' hauls in $29M in opening

LOS ANGELES - "Spider-Man 3" cast a worldwide web with a blockbuster first day, hauling in $29.15 million in 16 overseas markets and beating the debuts of the previous two "Spider-Man" flicks in each locale.

The film had the best opening day ever Tuesday in some countries, including France, Italy, South Korea and Hong Kong, distributor Sony Pictures said.

"Spider-Man 3" opens over the next couple of days in dozens of other countries, including the United States on Friday.

"`Spider-Man' is a worldwide franchise, and the thing we're most excited about is that in two pretty completely separate parts of the world we've gotten off to a great start," Jeff Blake, Sony vice chairman, said Wednesday. "We certainly hope for the same in North America."

Domestically, 2002's "Spider-Man" opened with $114.8 million in its first weekend, a record debut that stood until "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" shattered it last year with a $135.6 million weekend.

"Spider-Man 2" opened on a Wednesday before the Fourth of July weekend in 2004, pulling in a record $180.1 million in its first six days.

The two previous films combined for a total of $1.6 billion worldwide, about half of that coming in the United States.

In France, "Spider-Man 3" took in $6.8 million on opening day, more than the first-day grosses there for "Spider-Man" and "Spider-Man 2" combined.

It grossed $4.6 million in Germany, $4 million in Italy, $3.7 million in Japan, $3.4 million in South Korea, $1.1 million in the Philippines and $1 million each in Hong Kong and Thailand.

The third installment in director Sam Raimi's superhero series, "Spider-Man 3" reunites Tobey Maguire as the web-slinger, Kirsten Dunst as the love of his life and James Franco as his old pal turned enemy.

Adapted from the Marvel comic books, the film also introduces two new villains, Thomas Haden Church as the Sandman and Topher Grace as Venom.

Along with bad guys, Spidey ends up battling his own dark side as he fights the temptation to use his powers for evil after an alien entity infects his superhero outfit.

Police Report: Compilation, Reissues, Fan Club Show On Tap

As the start of the Police's reunion tour approaches, there is a flurry of activity in the group's camp, including a new double-disc compilation, reissues of albums from guitarist Andy Summers and drummer Stewart Copeland, a book of Sting's lyrics and a special warm-up gig for fan club members on May 27 in Vancouver.

On June 5, A&M/UMe will issue an eponymous Police collection featuring 28 tracks spread over two discs. The same day, remastered editions of the Summers/Robert Fripp 1982 collaboration "I Advance Masked" and Copeland's 1985 release "The Rhythmatist" will hit stores.

On June 29, Copeland's Police documentary "The Police Inside Out" will be released in Japan, most likely with a bonus disc of previously unreleased footage, according to the band's Web site.

Meanwhile, the Sting lyric tome "Lyrics by Sting" is due Oct. 23 via Dial Press, which previously published his memoir, "Broken Music." The new book will boast lyrics from 100-plus songs plus commentary about the writing process from the artist.

As for the May 27 warm-up, tickets are only available to fan club members and will not be sold to the general public. The venue will be scaled back for a more intimate seating configuration than what will be utilized the following night for the tour's proper kick-off.

Finally, the trio is in talks to play a free show in Havana in December "as an expression of their gratitude to Cuban fans who have supported the Police throughout the years," according to its site.

Here is the track list for "The Police":

Disc one:
"Fallout"
"Can't Stand Losing You"
"Next to You"
"Roxanne"
"Truth Hits Everybody"
"Hole in My Life"
"So Lonely"
"Message in a Bottle"
"Reggatta De Blanc"
"Bring on the Night"
"Walking on the Moon"
"Don't Stand So Close to Me"
"Driven to Tears"
"Canary in a Coalmine"

Disc two:
"De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da"
"Voices Inside My Head"
"Invisible Sun"
"Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic"
"Spirits in the Material World"
"Demolition Man"
"Every Breath You Take"
"Synchronicity I"
"Wrapped Around Your Finger"
"Walking in Your Footsteps"
"Synchronicity II"
"King of Pain"
"Murder by Numbers"
"Tea in the Sahara"

Lyrics by Sting coming out in book form

NEW YORK - The lyrics of Sting, almost every word he wrote, from his solo records to his years with the Police, will come out in book form this fall.

"Lyrics by Sting" will include the words of such hits as "Roxanne," "Every Breath You Take" and "Spirits in the Material World," along with commentary by Sting.

"Over time, the meaning of a song can continue to reveal itself," Sting, the bassist and lead vocalist for the Police, said Monday in a statement released by The Dial Press, an imprint of the Bantam Dell Publishing Group.

"In putting this book together, I have relished the opportunity to revisit my songs, the times in which they were written and pay tribute to those with whom I've shared my creative life."

The Police, which includes Sting, guitarist Andy Summers and drummer Stewart Copeland, broke up in 1986, but have reunited and will tour North America and Europe this summer and fall.

Sting has also written a memoir, "Broken Music," which came out in 2003.

"Spider-Man 3" kicks off hot Hollywood summer

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - This may be one hot summer movie season.

When "Spider-Man 3" debuts on Friday, it kicks off four months of Hollywood movies with at least 14 that promise blockbuster status and more than 100 others vying to be the surprise hit at summer box offices.

In May, "Spidey 3" is joined by "Shrek the Third" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End." The following three months feature even more sequels such as "Ocean's Thirteen," "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" and "The Bourne Ultimatum."

And the summer's movie stars read like a Who's Who of global pop celebrity: Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Jennifer Lopez, George Clooney and even an animated Bart Simpson. Lindsay Lohan has two movies to please her fans.

So, how does one film break through the clutter of sequels like the ones above? "Transformers" producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura thinks he has the answer: giant autobots.

"Our movie is fresh, so it has an ability to surprise audiences in ways sequels can't ... It is fun, has a lot of heart, and we have 32-foot beings," di Bonaventura said of the film, in which cars transform into massive, robot-like machines that battle aliens.

Major movie studios pump hundreds of millions into making and promoting summer movies because the period from May through August can account for up to 40 percent of annual ticket sales in the United States and nearly as much in other countries..

Last year, the season generated nearly $3.9 billion of the roughly $9.5 billion domestic -- U.S. and Canada -- box office haul, according to box office tracker Media by Numbers.

Spurred by smash hit "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," 2006 ranked No. 3 among top summer seasons. At No. 1 is 2004, when "Shrek 2" and "Spider-Man 2" rocked theaters.

Whether the new versions of those three movies generate excitement and expand ticket sales in May or, as some fear, cannibalize each other's box office remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure, excitement in Hollywood is running high.

"I can't think of a more appropriate film than 'Spider-Man 3' to kick off what could be a record summer," said Media by Numbers president Paul Dergarabedian.

So hold onto your popcorn, Summer 2007 is about to start.

SUMMER OF SEQUELS

The backers of both "Spider-Man 3" and the third "Pirates" promise to complete their trilogies on high, exciting notes. "Spider-Man" alter ego Peter Parker ( Tobey Maguire) learns how to handle the dark side of superhero fame, and in the final week of May pirate Captain Jack Sparrow ( Johnny Depp) is plucked from depths of the deep blue sea.

But in between those movies come a host of flicks ranging from big-budget animated fairy tale "Shrek the Third" with the voices of Mike Myers, Cameron Diaz and Eddie Murphy, to more modest ones like low-budget "The Waitress," starring Keri Russell as a woman working in a diner and dealing with troubled relationships.

Lindsay Lohan plays a troubled teenager -- which should not be a stretch for the young actress who has battled her party girl image -- in "Georgia Rule," which comes out in May. (In July, she's back starring as a woman escaping a serial killer in "I Know Who Killed Me.")

June brings the boys of big-budget "Ocean's Thirteen" -- Pitt, Clooney, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, and the rest -- back to Las Vegas to try to pull off another casino caper.

After a long absence from theaters, Bruce Willis reprises his role as justice-seeking tough guy John McClane in "Live Free or Die Hard," and on the comedy front, funnyman Steve Carrell plays a TV news anchorman turned into a version of the Bible's animal-saving Noah in "Evan Almighty."

Also in June, Angelina Jolie portrays the wife of slain journalist Daniel Pearl in drama "A Mighty Heart," and, a bit like Peter Parker in "Spider-Man," actor Kevin Costner plumbs his dark side playing a serial killer in "Mr. Brooks."

If audiences tire of sequels such as fantasy "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," then by late July Oscar-winning writer, director and producer James L. Brooks and "Simpsons" creator Matt Groening bring "The Simpsons Movie" to theaters.

It features the politically incorrect, nuclear family that TV audiences have loved for years. Brooks is not saying much about the plot except that father Homer is "screwing up worse than he ever did."

"The summer never seems to stop this year," Brooks told Reuters. "There's never been a summer like it."

`Newhart' sidekick Tom Poston dies

LOS ANGELES - Tom Poston, the tall, pasty-faced comic who found fame and fortune playing a clueless everyman on such hit television shows as "Newhart" and "Mork and Mindy," has died. He was 85.

Poston, who was married to Suzanne Pleshette of "The Bob Newhart Show," died Monday night at home after a brief illness, a family representative, Tanner Gibson, said Tuesday. The nature of his illness was not disclosed.

Bob Newhart remembered Poston as a "versatile and veteran performer and a kindhearted individual."

"Tom was always the `go-to guy' on `Newhart' in addition to being a good and longtime friend," Newhart said in a statement Tuesday.

Poston's run as a comic bumbler began in the mid-1950s with "The Steve Allen Show" after Allen plucked the character actor from the Broadway stage to join an ensemble of eccentrics he would conduct "man in the street" interviews with.

Don Knotts was the shaky Mr. Morrison, Louis Nye was the suave, overconfident Gordon Hathaway and Poston's character was so unnerved by the television cameras that he couldn't remember who he was. He won an Emmy playing "The Man Who Can't Remember His Name."

But when Allen moved the show from New York to Los Angeles in 1959, Poston stayed behind.

"Hollywood's not for me right now; I'm a Broadway cat," he told a reporter at the time.

When he did finally move west, he quickly began appearing in variety shows, sitcoms and films.

His movie credits included "Cold Turkey," "The Happy Hooker," "Rabbit Test" and, more recently, "Christmas With the Kranks," "Beethoven's 5th" and "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement."

On "Mork and Mindy," which starred Robin Williams as a space alien, Poston was Franklin Delano Bickley, the mindless boozer with the annoying dog. On "Newhart," he was George Utley, the handyman who couldn't fix anything at the New England inn run by Newhart's character. And on Newhart's show "Bob," he was the star's dim-bulb former college roommate.

"These guys are about a half-step behind life's parade," Poston commented in a 1983 interview. "The ink on their instruction sheets is beginning to fade. But they can function and cope and don't realize they are driving people up the walls.

"In ways I don't like to admit, I'm a goof-up myself," Poston continued. "It's an essential part of my character. When these guys screw up it reminds me of my own incompetence with the small frustrations of life."

Goof-up or not, Poston was a versatile actor who made his Broadway debut in 1947 playing five roles in Jose Ferrer's "Cyrano de Bergerac."

One role called for him to engage in a duel, fall 10 feet, roll across the stage and vanish into the orchestra pit. Other actors had auditioned and failed but Poston, who in his youth had been an acrobat with the Flying Zepleys, did the stunt perfectly.

He went on to play secondary roles in Broadway comedies and starred at regional theaters in such shows as "Romanoff and Juliet" and "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum." For 10 years he was also a panelist on the popular TV quiz show "To Tell the Truth."

He made guest appearances on scores of television shows, including "Studio One," "The Phil Silvers Show," "The Defenders," "Get Smart," "The Bob Newhart Show," "The Love Boat," "St. Elsewhere," "The Simpsons," "Coach," "Murphy Brown," "Home Improvement," "Touched by an Angel," "Will & Grace," "Dream On," "Just Shoot Me!" and "That '70s Show."

Poston and his first wife, Jean Sullivan, had a daughter, Francesca, before their marriage ended in divorce. He married his second wife, Kay Hudson, after they met while appearing in the St. Louis Light Opera, and they had a son, Jason, and daughter, Hudson.

Poston and Pleshette, who had appeared together in the 1959 Broadway play "The Golden Fleecing," had had a brief fling before marrying other people. Both now widowed, they reunited in 2000 and married the following year.

Their paths had crossed on "The Bob Newhart Show" in the 1970s. Poston made several guest appearances on the sitcom in which Pleshette played Newhart's wife.

In 2006, Pleshette underwent chemotherapy for lung cancer that her agent said was caught at an early stage.

Born in Columbus, Ohio, on Oct. 17, 1921, Thomas Poston moved from city to city as a child as his father hunted for work during the Depression. As a teenager, he made money as a boxer.

Following two years at Bethany College he enlisted in the Army Air Corps and flew troops to the European war zone during World War II.

Hunting for a postwar occupation, Poston read an interview with Charles Jehlinger, creative head of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and was inspired to sign up for a two-year course at the Academy.

Besides Pleshette, 70, Poston is survived by his children, Francesca Poston of Nashville, Tenn., Jason Poston of Los Angeles and Hudson Poston of Portland, Ore.

A private service was planned for immediate family. Details of a public memorial service were to be announced later.

Sundin needs surgery

Mats Sundin's future in Toronto -- and his future as a National Hockey League player -- suddenly is in question after it was learned yesterday that the Maple Leafs captain requires hip surgery.

According to a source in the medical community, Sundin needs surgery almost immediately to repair a hip problem, complicating his still-to-be determined contractual status with the Leafs.

It isn't known which hip requires the repair.

The hip trouble and surgery is similar, the source says, to the operation that all but ended Alexander Mogilny's career as an NHL player at the age of 37.

Sundin, coming off his lowest goal-scoring total in a decade, turns 37 himself in February.

The Maple Leafs hold an option on Sundin's contract for next season but already have hinted that it is their intention to sign the long-time centre with a two-year or three-year extension.

For Sundin to be ready in time for next season, assuming there is a next season, he would need to have the surgery sooner rather than later. In recent years, any Leaf player needing hip surgery went to Dr. Marc Phillipon in Pittsburgh.

If the Leafs' off-season status wasn't already complicated enough, dealing with the Sundin situation makes it all the more so. For one thing, general manager John Ferguson has yet to be confirmed to return next season. Ferguson, meanwhile, has to make a decision now on what do about his captain's situation.

In the past, Ferguson got himself into some difficulty signing Ed Belfour to a long-term contract before determining the goalie needed back surgery. Considering the heat Ferguson took on the Belfour contract, would he be willing to take that leap of faith again -- and still, will he be given the authority to do so?

Recently, Ferguson did sign wayward forward Boyd Devereaux to a two-year contract even though Devereaux had wrist surgery in this off-season.

MAINLY GOOD HEALTH

Sundin has been a picture of good health and consistency for most of his 12 years as a Leaf. Not only has he led the Leafs in point scoring in 11 of those seasons, he was, on average, 16 points better than the second-leading scorer on the team. While he has missed only 43 regular-season games to health issues as a Leaf -- which are mind-boggling numbers -- he has been injured more frequently in recent years.

It isn't known if Sundin's hip is considering degenerative nor is it known if he suffers from osteoarthritis, the conditions that is hastening the end of Mogilny's career.

Poetic directing debut for Sarah Polley

LOS ANGELES - Becoming big in Hollywood has never been Sarah Polley's agenda. It shows in her acting choices, almost exclusively small, intimate tales made far outside the American studio system.

And it shows in the actress' directing debut with "Away From Her," a mature, thoughtful but downbeat drama about a woman (Julie Christie) succumbing to Alzheimer's and the impact it has on her husband (Gordon Pinsent).

The film opens Friday, a bit of counter-programming to the blockbuster debut expected for "Spider-Man 3."

It's an unusual choice for a 28-year-old, a love story in life's waning years, yet Polley has always worked beyond her age, from her days as a child actress through the acclaimed body of work in her teens and 20s.

Polley wanted to make something that reflected the passion that still can exist between lovers after 40 or 50 years together.

"That's something I find is really missing in films that portray love between people in their 60s or 70s," Polley said in an interview with The Associated Press. "It generally lacks chemistry, like somehow that's all died away, and that's just not my experience of people in their 60s and 70s, that that whole part of yourself disappears somehow.

"It's a really pessimistic and inaccurate attitude that a lot of films have had, so it was really important for me to have that vibrancy between them, because I've seen it in relationships that have lasted that long. And I haven't seen it very often in films."

Polley's directing career began in 1999, after she backed out of the role of Penny Lane in Cameron Crowe's "Almost Famous," a part that went to Kate Hudson.

More than a decade of impressive work in Atom Egoyan's "The Sweet Hereafter" and "Exotica," David Cronenberg's "eXistenZ" and such independent films as "Go," "The Hanging Garden" and "Guinevere" had established Polley as one of the finest young actresses around.

A Toronto native who had focused heavily on Canadian films, Polley sensed that a major Hollywood movie might pull her away from the sort of career she wanted.

"I think I knew instinctually that I was not immune to losing myself if I had that kind of high-profile life, and that was what that film was going to bring," Polley said. "It was important to my sense of self to stay really grounded in a life that made sense to me and that was not completely out of control.

"And it's strange, because it led directly to me figuring out that I wanted to make my own films."

During the time she would have spent on "Almost Famous," Polley directed a short film, the first in a series she made over the next few years. The decision also led Polley to her future husband, David Wharnsby, who was editor on that first short and all of her movies since, including "Away From Her."

After turning down "Almost Famous," Polley continued to act mainly in small productions, including Michael Winterbottom's dark Western "The Claim," Hal Hartley's beauty-and-the-beast fantasy "No Such Thing," Wim Wenders' family-roots saga "Don't Come Knocking" and two stirring films with director Isabel Coixet, "My Life Without Me" and "The Secret Life of Words."

Polley finally relented on Hollywood movies with a surprising choice, costarring in 2004's remake of the gory zombie flick "Dawn of the Dead."

"Over the years, as I became more comfortable with who I was and felt less threatened about how things could kind of work my identity, I became less earnest," Polley said. "The majority of what I do are independent, small films, but the truth is, as somebody who goes to the movies, every now and then, I do indulge myself in a big Hollywood film or a zombie movie.

"I figured, this will be a really fun three months. I really like the original. There's no reason for me not to do this except a kind of preciousness. I don't think I'll spend my life doing movies like that, but it was good for me to just say, `You have nothing to prove to anyone, so just do what you want to do.'"

Polley adapted the screenplay for "Away From Her" from Alice Munro's short story "The Bear Came Over the Mountain," which she read on a plane flying home from Iceland after filming "No Such Thing," which costarred Christie.

From the start, Polley had imagined Christie, an Academy Award winner for 1965's "Darling," in the role.

"The decision to actually make the film was partly to see Julie play the part," Polley said.

Christie stars as a gracefully aging woman who has come to terms with betrayals years earlier by her husband (Canadian star Pinsent). Their happy, tender twilight crumbles after she is diagnosed with Alzheimer's and checks into a care facility, her memory loss and growing affection for another patient (Michael Murphy) testing the devotion of her husband.

Olympia Dukakis co-stars as Murphy's pragmatic wife, who forges her own odd relationship with Pinsent.

Along with the characters and subject matter, "Away From Her" shows true filmmaking maturity. Unlike many films from first-time directors who grew up in an age of quick-cutting music videos, "Away From Her" has stillness and restraint in its cinematography and editing.

"It was really important to honor the tone of the story, which is very still and elegant and full of grace," Polley said. "I also felt it would be really impertinent for me to use this story to prove my chops as a young filmmaker. It is expected almost of filmmakers especially under 35 that it will look like a music video. I just thought it would be the most inappropriate thing you could do to a story like this."

Upcoming acting roles for Polley include the HBO miniseries "John Adams" and the film "Mr. Nobody" with Belgian director Jaco van Dormael.

She spent much of the past year promoting "Away From Her" on the film-festival circuit, where the story has resonated with audiences in the same way it did with Polley.

"It was the opposite kind of love than we usually celebrate in films, which is new love without knowledge and without hardship," Polley said. "It's the whole idea of love after life has had its way with you, and after you have kind of failed each other and things have gone off the rails. Yet love still somehow exists between them."

New CD Releases, May 1: Rush, Tori Amos, Michael Buble

Rush "Snakes and Arrows"

The prog-rock trio returns with its first disc of new material since 2002's "Vapor Trails." The band recorded the set in late 2006, and shared production duties with Grammy-winner Nick Raskulinecz (Foo Fighters, Velvet Revolver).

The Canadian rockers will support "Snakes and Arrows" with a 45-date North American tour--their first since the group's 30th anniversary trek in 2005. The road show kicks off June 13 in Atlanta and is scheduled to run through late September.

* * *
Michael Buble "Call Me Irresponsible"

The young crooner delivers another set of standards and classic pop tunes. "Call Me Irresponsible" includes such chestnuts as "The Best is Yet to Come," "I've Got the World on a String," "That's Life," "Always on My Mind" and "Me and Mrs. Jones." It also features contributions from Boyz II Men and other guest stars.

* * *
Tori Amos "American Doll Posse"

The vocalist/pianist, whose confessional approach to songwriting has made her an idol to millions, is ready to drop her ninth studio album. The lengthy, 23-track recording is Amos' first new offering since 2005's "Little Earthquakes."

* * *
Feist "The Reminder"

Canadian singer-songwriter Feist is back with a follow-up to 2004's "Let It Die." The vocalist, born Leslie Feist, supported the previous effort with a mammoth 33-month tour, and she and her band (also known as Feist) will again hit the road to sell "The Reminder." The tour is scheduled to visit 26 cities and will begin May 15 in Victoria, British Columbia.

* * *
Various Artists "Spider-Man 3: Music From and Inspired By"

Spider-Man's powers haven't been felt solely at the box office; the film franchise has also produced successful soundtracks and singles. The third installment of "Spider-Man" hits theaters later this week, and its soundtrack includes offerings by the likes of Snow Patrol, The Flaming Lips and Wolfmother.

* * *
More new releases:
Joan Armatrading, "Into the Blues" (429)
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, "Baby 81" (Red Ink)
Corbin Bleu, "Another Side" (Hollywood)
Elizabeth Cook, "Balls" (Thirty Tigers)
Elvis Costello, "The Best of Elvis Costello: The First 10 Years" (Hip-O)
Dinosaur Jr., "Beyond" (Fat Possum)
Robbie Fulks, "Revenge" (Yep Roc)
Angelique Kidjo, "Djin Djin" (Razor and Tie)
Kimberley Locke, "Based On A True Story" (Curb)
Ne-Yo, "Because of You" (Def Jam)
Puppini Sisters, "Betcha Bottom Dollar" (Verve Forecast)
Blake Shelton, "Pure BS" (Warner Bros.)
Various Artists, "High School Musical: The Concert" (Disney)
Various Artists, "We All Love Ennio Morricone" (Sony)
Patrick Wolf, "The Magic Position" (Fontana)