The Couch Potato Report - September 1st, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report peels six figures, history bites, heroes and our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD concludes.

Up first this week is the Canadian film SIX FIGURES.

Set in Calgary, SIX FIGURES introduces us to Warner. He is 35, married, the father of two children, and has a career that isn't going well.

Warner works hard at his job, and loves his family, but while he and his wife are looking for an affordable house to buy, he can't help but think that they should be further along in life by now.

Warner's wife Claire loves him so much that she ignores her Mother's advice that he is a loser, just like her father was.

As the film goes on, we see Warner struggle at his job, while Claire gets a raise and a promotion....and just when they finally find a house they are interested in, and can afford, Warner's boss tells him that maybe he shouldn't buy a house just yet.

Warner is 35, married with a wife who loves him, two children he adores, but he thinks that his life isn't going well.

But then it gets even worse. Claire is violetly attacked and left for dead, and the people closest to the couple suspect that Warner's general frustration with life may be to blame.

Since he is the prime suspect, the only suspect in fact, Warner is arrested and put in jail for 24 hours.

And after he gets out, his accounts are frozen, he loses his job, and his own parents aren't even sure that he's innocent.

SIX FIGURES is the type of film that wants to be a low concept thriller, and at times I will admit that it is interesting. Mostly, however, it is just a very, very slow film that isn't all that thrilling.

In fact, there is segment of the movie that comes at the one-hour-twenty-minute mark where absolutely nothing happens for five straight minutes. No action, no dialgue...nothing!

But that five minutes, or the movie's very slow pace aren't the main faults with the film.

No, the primary reason why SIX FIGURES isn't something I can fully recommend to you is that fact that it has a fatal flaw.

A flaw that prevents it from having any logical conclusion, a flaw that erases any hope of a conclusion that makes any sense....a flaw that I can't even discuss, because if I do it will ruin any suspense the film does possess, should you choose to watch it.

No, I won't tell you what the film's fatal flaw is, but I will tell you that I mentioned the fatal flaw just a few sentences ago.

SIX FIGURES wants to be the type of film that you'll talk about and dissect after it is over. But you won't do that. You may spend a few minutes making up your own mind about what you think happened, but it isn't good enough to compell you to discuss it with anyone.

SIX FIGURES isn't great, but it does have a few interesting moments.

Plus, the actress who plays Claire - Caroline Cave from THE L WORD - and Brooklynn Proulx, the young actress who plays the couple's daughter, are very good in the film.

Now, let me be honest, if SIX FIGURES wasn't a Canadian film, I probably would tell you that it is a waste of your time...but since it is Canadian, I happily cut it some slack, and you should too.

They even reference Saskatchewan in it!

Search it out and give it a watch! Support Canadian films!!

Up next this week is the three-DVD set for series five of the TV show HISTORY BITES.

HISTORY BITES was a Canadian sketch comedy show that ran from 1998-2003.

Each episode of the series looked at what might have been on television had the medium had been around for the last 5,000 years of human history.

Typically, a significant historical event was chosen and mock news, sports and entertainment programming was created around it.

For instance, the first Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims is done as a parody of ALL IN THE FAMILY, and renamed ALL IN THE PILGRIM FAMILY.

Each episode also includes several segments of the great Rick Green - of The Frantics!! - giving historical background of the episode's chosen era.

HISTORY BITES frequently goes from one comedy sketch to another, and often returns to running skits, as it is meant to represent a channel-surfing viewer who never watches anything for more than a few minutes at a time.

That was a great impression of ANNIE HALL-era Woody Allen, and the cast of HISTORY BITES all do great impressions, and the show is well researched and well-written, but as a whole, the show is hit and miss.

Some of it is exceptionally entertaining, while other parts aren't very good at all.

Plus, for a Canadian show, there was never much Canadian history included on the show...in fact, with the exception of The War Of 1812, there isn't much about our home and native land on this 15 episode set.

Still, if you have never seen it, HISTORY BITES is very worthy of your time...even if it is hit and miss.

Perhaps what was a miss for me, will be a hit for you. And when it is a hit, it is very, very funny.

HISTORY BITES - THE COMPLETE SERIES 5 is now available on DVD, and so is SEASON ONE of HEROES, the spectacular TV show that debuted last season about some ordinary people who discover that they have extraordinary abilities.

During the last television season, many of the anthology shows that had been entertaining us, and confusing us weren't as good as they had been. LOST and 24, to just pick on two, had awful years...but luckily there was a show that filled in the gap and gave action and adventure fans a weekly dose of confusion, an answer here and there, some great writing and very interesting characters.

That show...yes...was HEROES, the most talked-about television show of the 2006-2007 season.

The HEROES, who "thought they were like everyone else... until they realized they have incredible abilities", soon realized that they have a role in preventing a catastrophe and saving humankind.

HEROES tells it's story like a comic books with short, multi-episode story arcs that build upon a larger, more encompassing storyline.

But most importantly, the show doesn't just tease and tease and tease. It makes you ask questions, and then from time to time, it gives you answers.

And now, with the debut of Season Two coming in about four weeks on Monday, September 24th, SEASON ONE is available on DVD in a superb 7 disc Box Set full of special features, including cast commentaries, deleted scenes, and an extended version of the Pilot episode that shows where the series might have gone.

HEROES is a spectacular show, even if you don't usually watch science-fiction or fantasy based shows. The stories and plots are all very well-written, and the actors all make their characters seem like believeable people.

I highly recommend it.

And here's hoping that Season Two, and the upcoming seasons of LOST and 24 are all as good as Season One of HEROES!

Finally this week, when the Summer Movie Season began with the opening of SPIDER-MAN 3 on May 4th, the action filled, very loud, check-your-brain-at-the-door summer movie season began.

With the Labour Day upon us, that season has ended with box-office sales hitting a record $4 billion, surpassing the industry's previous high established in 2004.

Each week during the summer movie season I have been telling you about at least one current release on DVD that you'll need your brain to enjoy.

Welcome to the 18th and final entry in the FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD.

Our Festival continues with the superb Academy Award nominated Danish film AFTER THE WEDDING.

I can't think of a better way to end than with this movie. It is an exceptionally interesting and entertaining film!

Mads Mikkelsen, who played the villain in the most recent James Bond film, is a very human man named Jacob.

He is a Danish emigrant running an orphanage in India.

With the orphanage facing closure due to financial pressures, he returns to Denmark seeking funding from Jorgen, a multi-millionaire who will only give him the money if he goes there to get it.

Since their meetings will take a few days and since Jacob has no other engagements, Jorgen invites him to be a guest at the wedding of his daughter.

When he arrives at the church for the ceremony, Jacob discovers that Anna's mother and Jorgen's wife is an old flame.

And that's only the first of several startling revelations that will turn Jacob's short business trip into a life-changing experience.

When I watched AFTER THE WEDDING I repeatedly wanted to skip chapters so I could see how it ended. I was that curious.

Luckily I did not because what played out in front of me was a film full of tension, betrayal, and interesting people.

Like I said, I can't think of a better way to end thsi summer's FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD than with this movie.

Search it out, AFTER THE WEDDING is an exceptionally interesting and entertaining film!

And don't worry, I will continue to talk about Foreign Films here on CBC radio whenever there are titles available.

So, let me recap - the interesting and entertaining AFTER THE WEDDING, SEASON ONE of the great TV show HEROES, the hit and miss, but still entertaining Canadian TV show HISTORY BITES and the Canadian film SIX FIGURES, a movie that is worth seeing, even with it's fatal flaw, are all available now on DVD.

Coming up on the next Couch Potato Report

To some September of 1972 featured the greatest goal in Canadian sports history. To other, including me, that goal came in September of 1987. Next week, we will relive that goal, and much more with CANADA CUP '87 - THE FINAL SERIES.

Also next week, with the new TV season starting soon, I will tell you about the new DVD box sets that are available for THE OFFICE, 30 ROCK, THE BLACK DONNELLYS, WEEDS and FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS.

Plus, the one-of-a-kind eighties show VOYAGERS! is also now available on DVD!

So, to recap, next week I will cover 20 hockey games, from twenty years ago, and over 55 hours of television shows…and I will do it all in 12 minutes!

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!

Canadian City Featured In 'Heroes' Storyline

A "major city" in Canada will be part of the story line in the new season of Heroes.

Tim Kring, the creator of the popular TV series which airs on Global and NBC, made the announcement today through a pre-taped video message that was played to fans at a public gathering in Toronto.

"Actually, the story line is going to take us to a certain part of Canada," Kring said.

"Obviously, we're going to shoot it here in L.A. But the story line will take us to a major city in Canada."

Jeph Loeb, the executive producer of Heroes, has been in Toronto for the past two days, along with cast members Zachary Quinto (Sylar), James Kyson Lee (Ando), Noah Gray-Cabey (Micah) and newcomer Dania Ramirez (Maya).

"Well, if (Kring) didn't reveal (specifically which Canadian city it's going to be), then I can't do that yet," Loeb said. "But it is a major metropolis, and it actually is important.
"It's one of the many mysteries that you'll have."

The new season of Heroes debuts on Sept. 24.

New Young CD To Be Bundled With 'Archives' Sampler

In the surest sign yet that Neil Young's decades-in-the-works "Archives" boxed set is nearing release, a bonus CD featuring a track from the project will be bundled with copies of his next studio effort, "Chrome Dreams II," due Oct. 16 via Reprise.

According to Young's Web site, select retail outlets will have the bonus CDs with their own individual track from "Live at the Riverboat," which chronicles a week's worth of concerts from the Toronto shortly after Buffalo Springfield split. "It is one of [Young's] earliest known live recordings," the site says.

As previously reported, the first volume of "Archives," expected Feb. 18, 2008, will also include the previously released concert sets "Live at the Fillmore East" and "Live at Massey Hall." The remainder will feature material cut with Young's early Canadian band the Squires, recordings from the period during which he lived in Topanga Canyon, Calif., and scores of previously unreleased studio tracks.

Young is expected to tour in October, but for now, his only confirmed dates are next weekend at Farm Aid in New York and his annual Bridge School Benefit, to be held outside San Francisco on Oct. 27-28.

R.E.M. Reluctant To Pin Down New Album Direction

R.E.M. is "two-thirds to three-quarters of the way through" its next album, according to the group's Mike Mills, which means it's on target for a 2008 release, most likely some time in the spring.

"We've got another three weeks of recording and singing and what little overdubbing we're gonna do," Mills tells Billboard.com. "Michael's got a bunch of singing and I've got some backgrounds to do, and we've got a couple songs we hope Michael will finish. And then after the next three weeks or so is the mixing phase."

Mills' comment that "there isn't a whole lot of overdubbing on this record" supports reports -- as well as aural evidence from recent "working rehearsal" shows at Dublin's Olympia theater -- that it will be a guitar-dominated, hard-rocking record. For now, however, Mills says that he, Stipe and Peter Buck "made an agreement we weren't going to say what it is or not because we don't want to have expectations out there in any direction. But, of course, you can go on YouTube and listen to some of the Dublin shows and get a pretty good idea of where we're going."

Those concerts, he adds, did have a positive impact on the new material. "They did all the things we wanted in terms of not only generating excitement for the record but also helped us, I think, to make a better record," Mills says. "It just really kicked us into a higher gear."

Mills says working with producer Garret "Jacknife" Lee has been "fantastic. He's just what we needed at this stage of our career. He's very willing to experiment. He keeps things loose. It's a fun process; he just realizes this is something we're all lucky to be able to do, and we're all enjoying it as much as possible." R.E.M. has been recording with touring members Bill Rieflin and Scott McCaughey, but Ken Stringfellow hasn't been involved, Mills says, because "we're not using very many keyboards, and what we're using I do."

R.E.M. is hoping that its next release, the CD/DVD concert package "R.E.M. Live" from a 2005 show at Dublin's Point Theatre, will also provide "a springboard" for the new album. Mills says of the Oct. 16 Warner Bros. release, "it's actually so good that it's gonna whet people's appetite. It's nice to show people that we're still out here doing great work.

Britney Spears says "Gimme More" in new song

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Troubled pop star Britney Spears has released her first new song in years on the Web, a single called "Gimme More" that is expected to hit radio airwaves as early as next week.

The song was officially released late on Thursday on the Web site of New York radio station Z100, and by Friday it could be heard on YouTube.

Music industry magazine Billboard said the single is expected to get its first radio play next week, and several other media reports said Spears could have a new album out in early November.

A spokeswoman for Jive Records, Spears' label, was not immediately available for comment.

Spears, 25, is attempting to resurrect her flagging career, and the new single could be the first salvo in a media blitz. Rumors have been rampant that she will perform at the MTV Video Music Awards in Las Vegas on September 9, and for months she has been saying she is at work on a new album.

The singer has become a major subject for tabloid coverage for public behavior that has included being photographed with no underwear under her miniskirts, shaving her head bald, attacking paparazzi with an umbrella and performing in local nightclubs where she was accused of lip-syncing songs.

Earlier this year, she checked into a rehabilitation facility in Malibu, California, and more recently her divorce from second husband Kevin Federline was finalized. The pair remain embroiled in a bitter custody battle over their two sons.

Back in the early 2000s, Spears was a top-selling artist. Her records had sold more than 70 million units, and in 2002 she was ranked as the most powerful celebrity in the world by Forbes magazine.

Spears' first album was 1999 CD "...Baby One More Time," which featured hit songs like "Sometimes." Her most recent album of original music was 2003's "In the Zone."

Princes remember Diana as loving mother

LONDON - Princess Diana should be remembered as a loving, down-to-earth mother, Prince Harry said Friday at a memorial service where a bishop urged an end to a decade of bitterness over her death and her broken marriage.

The service organized by Prince William and Prince Harry climaxed a week of recalling Diana's life and re-fighting old battles, albeit in a far lower key than the emotional tidal wave that swept over Britain following her death 10 years ago.

In his eulogy, Harry said it was important "that we remember our mother as she would wish to be remembered, as she was: fun-loving, generous, down to earth and entirely genuine."

The service went off with typical royal dignity, following published criticism from one of Diana's friends that persuaded Prince Charles' second wife, Camilla, to abandon plans of attending. To the princess, her close friends and legions of Dianaphiles, Camilla was the other woman who destroyed the marriage.

Richard Chartres, the bishop of London, called for an end to the sniping.

"Still 10 years after her tragic death there are regular reports of 'fury' at this or that incident and the princess's memory is used for scoring points. Let it end here," Chartres said.

"Let this service mark the point at which we let her rest in peace and dwell on her memory with thanksgiving and compassion."

That may be wishful thinking.

Diana's face still sells magazines and newspapers, and her story inspires an unending stream of books.

A formal inquest into her death opens later this year. Mohamed al Fayed, whose son died with Diana in the car crash in Paris, has deployed a high-paid legal team to argue his belief that the couple were the victims of an Establishment conspiracy led by the queen's husband, Prince Philip.

A poll commissioned by Channel 4 television found that 25 percent of the public believes Diana was murdered. The telephone poll of 1,016 adults conducted this week had a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.

Diana's admirers, many of them suspicious of the cause of her death and resentful of Charles, tied bouquets, poems and portraits to the gates of Kensington Palace, her former home.

For Harry and his older brother, William, it was a simple tribute to an adored mother.

"To us, just two loving children, she was quite simply the best mother in the world," Harry said.

"When she was alive, we completely took for granted her unrivaled love of life, laughter, fun and folly. She was our guardian, friend and protector. She never once allowed her unfaltering love for us to go unspoken or undemonstrated."

Harry, who was 12 when Diana died, said losing a parent at such a tender age "is indescribably shocking and sad."

Hundreds of people gathered outside the chapel — a smaller crowd than the masses that lined the route of Diana's funeral procession to Westminster Abbey.

"She reached our lives deeply, even in America. She brought life to the palace and warmth, and that's what the monarchy needed," said Arlene Fitch, 54, of Boston.

Fitch's sister, Marie Schofield, 46, from Florida, said Diana "got married the same year as me, she had children the same year as me and, as her boys have grown up, they have done just the same kind of things as our boys would do."

Eileen Neathey, 56, of London, recalled a chance encounter with Diana at a hospital, where Neathey's mother was a patient.

"I had been up all night and was very upset, and when I bumped into Diana, I burst into tears," Neathey said outside Kensington Palace. "She put her arm round me and comforted me — that's the way she was."

John Loughrey, 52, painted "Diana" on his forehead and "the truth?" on his cheek. "We must get to the bottom of how she died," he said.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip were among the 500 people in the chapel. Prince Edward, Charles' younger brother, and his sister, Princess Anne, also were there, as were Prime Minister Gordon Brown, former prime ministers John Major and Tony Blair, and representatives of 110 charities Diana supported.

Al Fayed observed his own two minutes of silence at Harrods, his department store, an hour before the memorial service. His daughter, Camilla al Fayed, attended the royal memorial.

In the past, the royal family had refrained from any public remembrance of the anniversary of the princess' death.

This year, however, William and Harry took the lead in organizing the memorial service, as well as a rock concert on Diana's birthday, July 1, which drew 70,000 paying fans.

The Rev. Frank Gelli, who has led an informal service outside Kensington Palace every year, said Friday's probably would be the last.

"It would be good if the princess was allowed to rest," he said.

Joni Mitchell returns with new music

TORONTO (CP) - Nearly a decade after turning her back on the music industry to focus on painting, poetry and privacy, legendary songstress Joni Mitchell is returning to the spotlight with a new album, a mixed-media art exhibit and plans to expand her ballet for a cross-Canada tour.

Mitchell's long-awaited disc, "Shine," features nine new songs and a reworked version of her classic hit, "Big Yellow Taxi." It's a stirring collection of bittersweet laments that reveals the Canadian icon to be ever the pessimist, but one who believes in miracles, notes friend and collaborator Jean Grand-Maitre.

Grand-Maitre, the artistic director of the Alberta Ballet, says Mitchell's relentless concern for the planet and mankind has been one factor in her recent drive to take on a dizzying array of projects.

"It's been interesting, because there's what, two decades between us, although she has 10 times more energy, passion and ideas than I do," Grand-Maitre says by phone from Calgary, after spending the weekend with Mitchell at her summer home in remote Sechelt, B.C.

"She's an intense conversationalist, you know. I have to really work hard to keep up. At the age of 63 she can run circles around me."

The pair are planning to expand Mitchell's foray into the world of dance, "The Fiddle and the Drum," stretching it to an hour-long performance that could tour the country, and possibly the world, in 2009, Grand-Maitre says.

The ballet, which debuted in Calgary in February, is based on Mitchell's music and set against a backdrop of her politically charged paintings.

Mitchell is keen to work in three or four more songs from her new album, including the title track "Shine," and an original recording of her generation-defining song, "Woodstock," says Grand-Maitre.

The creative spurt comes alongside several Mitchell-related works on the horizon.

She releases her new album on Sept. 25, when she also launches a mixed-media art exhibit in New York, says Grand-Maitre. That same day, good friend Herbie Hancock releases the album "River: The Joni Letters," a tribute to some of her most compelling work, the second such disc this year. In April, "Dreamland" featured covers by admirers young and old, including Sufjan Stevens, Prince and James Taylor.

And in June, Canada Post came out with a stamp in her honour.

When Mitchell retreated from the spotlight years ago, it was with a cutting critique of a music industry she had called "corrupt" and "a cesspool."

She announced her retirement in 2002, spending time with her two grandchildren and reconnecting with her daughter, Kilauren Gibb, whom she gave up for adoption at the age of 19. They reunited in 1997.

Much of that time was spent at her oceanside home in Sechelt, says Grand-Maitre, describing the small stone retreat as a rustic abode filled with antiques.

Mitchell swore she would never record again. Her last album of new material had been 1998's "Taming the Tiger."

Nevertheless, she eventually found the songs spilling out of her.

"I came straight out of retirement into doing the work of three 20-year-olds," Mitchell told The Word magazine in an article published in April.

"I really burnt myself out physically but emotionally it was very uplifting. I realized I wasn't ready for retirement, for gardening and watching old movies, which is what I'd been doing for 10 years."

On "Shine," Mitchell offers up rich, piano-based melodies that touch on jazz, soul, pop and classical sounds but, like much of her diverse catalogue, defy categorization.

Stark lyrics mourn over environmental decline and war.

"This album is about the war of the fairy tales, possibly the end of our species from this macho I-got-a-bigger-bomb-than-you-have instinct," she told Word, a prestigious U.K. music magazine.

"This spaceship we are all riding on is dying, somebody tell the captain to stop punching holes in the wall, we have atrocious leadership everywhere, mankind at his most diabolical."

Mitchell's return to her 1970 classic, "Big Yellow Taxi," is a rhythmic jolt of African, Latin and jazz beats with guitars and synthesizers, but no percussion instruments.

Grand-Maitre notes that while the original version was very much a warning for its day, the modern take is more of a lament over what's already come to pass.

"There's a little bit of cynicism in there and a little humour," he says. "I find that when I hear it, it's certainly with that older voice, that voice of experience. It's almost like ... it's happening now."

The reworked song served as an encore to the original Alberta Ballet production.

Fans in Toronto will get a chance to see the dance in June 2008 as part of the Luminato festival, where Grand-Maitre says it will have a 10-day run in the Alberta Ballet's first-ever collaboration with the National Ballet of Canada.

He says he and Mitchell hope to begin reworking the ballet soon after that in Alberta, and send it across the country in 2009. Grand-Maitre says there is also interest in staging the ballet in Germany and Australia.

As well, "The Fiddle and the Drum" makes its television debut on Bravo in October.

Grand-Maitre calls Mitchell "a true creative artisan."

"She lives to be reborn and risk. She doesn't mind doing a ballet and doing a jazz album with Mingus or reinventing herself and I think the idea of being reborn through the creative process is one that's kept her very much alive."

New 'Seinfeld' Reunion on 'Old Christine'

Jason Alexander will join his fellow former "Seinfeld" co-star Julia Louis-Dreyfus on "The New Adventures of Old Christine."

CBS is holding "The New Adventures of Old Christine" for midseason, so it's unclear when Alexander's episode will air.

He's set to play a lizard handler for children's birthday party who somehow gets a date with Christine.

Louis-Dreyfus won an Emmy for "Old Christine" last year, adding that trophy to the one she won for "Seinfeld." Although Alexander was nominated for seven Emmys during the run of "Seinfeld," he never won.

Alexander's last regular series gig was on CBS' "Listen Up." He's most recently been seen in guest spots on shows including "Everybody Hates Chris," "Campus Ladies" and "Monk."

Flight Of The Conchords

Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie of New Zealand folk-comedy act Flight Of The Conchords are good at cracking people up. But the work that goes into accomplishing those giggles and guffaws is no laughing matter.

Clement wistfully tells Billboard.com, "We haven't been having much fun lately -- we've just been stuck inside studios of one kind or another."

In fact, Tony Kiewel, who heads up A&R for the band's label home Sub Pop, estimates that the duo has been punching the clock "seven days a week for over a year."

But at least that effort is paying off: FOTC's Sub Pop debut, an EP called "The Distant Future," entered Billboard's Top Comedy Albums chart in the pole position and started in the No. 2 spot on the Top Heatseekers tally.

Kiewel says the EP was meant to be a "teaser" for a full-length originally due in the fall, but the duo's busy schedule -- which of late has mostly revolved around their eponymous HBO series -- put the album's release on ice until January 2008.

"The HBO series has been quite difficult," says Clement. "We spent five months writing it, mostly ourselves, and we were on a pretty tight deadline. I mean, I've never done anything like this before, so I have nothing to compare it to, but it seemed like an unreasonable amount of time to make 12 episodes of television."

Besides the challenge of turning mostly pre-existing FOTC songs into fleshed-out plots for the series, Clement only half-jokes that much of the filming was "like NASA training. We filmed the pilot last summer and it was over 100 degrees. We did the shoot in an apartment and had to turn off the AC and block the windows with blankets for sound, and we're in a room with over 40 people surrounded by bright lights. Awesome."

Shooting for the other episodes began this past winter, and Clement laughs that this time they started "during the coldest week of the year, and of course we had to be outside a lot -- it was for an episode where we get mugged, so there we are freezing our asses off running down the street."

The full-length album, due in January, will consist of songs from the soundtrack for the HBO series, but Clement says he and McKenzie are adding flourishes to the tracks. "The songs were done in a hurry for the show, so we're going to go in and do some remixing and just work on them a bit."

Kiewel adds that the album, like the EP, will include HBO branding. "HBO has very much been our partner, especially on the creative/marketing side. For instance, they sent out an announcement to their email list for the EP release. It's been great working with them."

When the album is done, Clement and McKenzie would like to go back to "part-time" with the project, but realize it's not likely. "There's a lot of pressure on us to write a second HBO series as quickly as possible -- probably to air next summer," Clement says.

And of course fans are clamoring to see the act live. Kiewel reveals that "tentatively, there will be a full round of touring once the album's out."

But the easy-going Clement admits to being a little baffled to find himself at the center of all this attention. "Sometimes I'm really surprised I ended up being a performer. In a lot of ways, I've got a job that doesn't suit me. I'm not a particularly social person or the life of the party, but somehow it's ended up that way."

Kiewel, however, says the demand that's been building for FOTC has a simple explanation: "They're ridiculously talented. I saw them in 2005 at the Bumbershoot festival and people were already screaming for their favorite songs, singing along to all the lyrics. Everything they do seems to be met with an amazing response."

And for those already familiar with much of the material that appeared in the HBO show, Clement promises that if FOTC commits to a second series, he and McKenzie will write new songs. "We're already thinking about new material."

Strait, Paisley lead CMA Award nominees

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - George Strait, who had his 55th No. 1 single this year and was recently inducted to the Country Music Hall of Fame, was nominated Thursday for five Country Music Association Awards, including for entertainer and male vocalist of the year.

Strait tied Brad Paisley for the most nominations, and Paisley said he feels honored to share the spotlight this year with Strait, a Texan who debuted in 1981.

"Had he not existed, I don't know who I would be," Paisley said in a phone interview Thursday with The Associated Press. "He's one of the reasons I wear a cowboy hat."

Strait was also nominated for musical event of the year, for a performance with Jimmy Buffett and Alan Jackson; album of the year for "It Just Comes Natural"; and single of the year for "Wrapped," his 55th career No. 1 single.

Paisley's nominations included entertainer of the year and male vocalist. He also received nominations for his album "5th Gear," best single for "Ticks" and best music video with "Online."

The video centers on an out-of-shape pizza delivery driver, still living with his parents, who becomes a Hollywood hottie as soon as he hits the Web.

Paisley said the main character, played by "Seinfeld" star Jason Alexander, who also directed the video, is much more autobiographical than most people realize.

"I was a big `Star Trek' fan, not a star athlete (in high school)," Paisley said. "We all have moments in our life when we feel like outcasts."

Kenny Chesney, Rascal Flatts and Keith Urban rounded out the entertainer of the year category. CMA industry members have nominated only male entertainers of the year since the Dixie Chicks got a nomination in 2001.

The Chicks, who have had a troubled relationship with the country music industry since Natalie Maines' derogatory comments about President Bush in 2003, got their first nomination since then for best vocal group.

Chesney earned four nominations, including male vocalist, music video for "You Save Me" and musical event of the year with Tracy Lawrence and Tim McGraw.

"I've known Tracy and Tim practically since I got to Nashville," Chesney said in a statement. "Those old boys struggled with me, took off before me and never forgot who their friends were."

Josh Turner joined Chesney, Paisley, Strait and Urban as nominees for male vocalist of the year.

Alison Krauss was nominated for female vocalist of the year, along with Miranda Lambert, Martina McBride, Reba McEntire and "American Idol" winner Carrie Underwood.

The CMA Awards will be presented Nov. 7 in Nashville. The show will air on ABC.

Top nominations were announced in New York on ABC's "Good Morning America" by Sara Evans and Kristian Bush and Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland.

The rest were announced at Nashville's Sommet Center by duo Montgomery Gentry and 17-year-old Taylor Swift, who was nominated for the Horizon Award for new artists.

Montgomery Gentry, who were nominated for vocal duo, lauded Strait's career and said he was one of the hardest working entertainers in country music.

"He's the Energizer Bunny of country radio — he keeps going and going," said Eddie Montgomery.

Troubled Owen Wilson drops film project

LOS ANGELES - Owen Wilson, hospitalized after an apparent suicide attempt, has dropped out of the upcoming ensemble comedy "Tropic Thunder."

The 38-year-old actor will not appear in the DreamWorks movie, already six weeks into production in Hawaii. Sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to comment, told The Associated Press that Wilson was to have a cameo role in the film. "Tropic Thunder" stars Jack Black, Robert Downey, Jr., and Ben Stiller, who is also directing.

Wilson was taken by ambulance to a hospital Sunday after police responded to a call about a suicide attempt at his Santa Monica home.

Wilson's next big-screen appearance is in "The Darjeeling Limited," slated for release next month, in which he stars with Adrien Brody and Jason Schwartzman. In an eerie coincidence, Wilson plays a distraught man — bandaged throughout the film — who other characters imply has attempted suicide.

"Following a discussion between the cast and filmmakers, all have agreed `The Darjeeling Limited' will open as planned on September 29," Fox Searchlight said in a statement Wednesday.

Wilson's publicist, Ina Treciokas, has declined to answer questions about whether the actor tried to take his own life. Wilson issued a statement Monday asking for privacy so he could "receive care and heal ... during this difficult time."

A message left with Treciokas on Wednesday was not immediately returned.

Industry analyst Paul Dergarabedian of Media By Numbers said Wilson's personal issues could make marketing of his upcoming movies more difficult.

"Certainly it presents a challenge if you have a film toplined by a star who's having a troubled situation. It would give most marketing executives pause," he said. But, he added, "everyone's trying to be sensitive to what he's going through."

Production has wrapped on another Wilson-starring vehicle: Paramount's "Drillbit Taylor," set for a March release.

British actor Steve Coogan, who appeared with Wilson in "Night at the Museum" and "Around the World in 80 Days," denied tabloid reports Wednesday that he provided Wilson with drugs.

"My thoughts are with my friend Owen at this difficult time," Coogan said in a statement to The Associated Press. "But I do want to set the record straight and say that the allegations published today are completely and utterly false."

Coogan is also set to appear in "Tropic Thunder."

Mellencamp Plots Fall Tour, Next Studio Album

While he hunkers down in his Bloomington, Ind., studio with producer T Bone Burnett on his next album, John Mellencamp has confirmed a return to the road this fall. The 14-date tour will begin Oct. 26 in Terre Haute, Ind., and run through Nov. 15 in St. Louis.

According to his publicist, Mellencamp is likely to debut some of the new songs he's been working on with Burnett during the outing. The next album, which is as yet untitled, will be the follow-up to this year's "Freedom's Road."

Before the tour, Mellencamp will perform as part of the NFL kickoff telecast on Sept. 6 in Indianapolis, and will anchor the 2007 Farm Aid three days later at New York's Randall's Island.

Here are John Mellencamp's tour dates:

Oct. 26: Terre Haute, Ind. (Hulman Center)
Oct. 27: Champaign, Ill. (Assembly Hall)

Oct. 28: Louisville (Freedom Hall)
Oct. 30: Grand Rapids, Mich. (Van Andel Arena)
Nov. 1: Ft. Wayne, Ind. (Memorial Coliseum)
Nov. 2: Toledo, Ohio (Seagate Convention Centre)
Nov. 3: Indianapolis (Conseco Field House)
Nov. 6: Madison, Wisc. (Alliant Energy Center)
Nov. 7: Mankato, Minn. (Alltel Center)
Nov. 9: Des Moines, Iowa (Wells Fargo Arena)
Nov. 10: Sioux City, Iowa (Tyson Events Center)
Nov. 11: Omaha, Neb. (Qwest Center)
Nov. 14: Rockford, Ill. (Metrocentre)
Nov. 15: St. Louis (Scottrade Center)

Letterman to appear on `Oprah'

CHICAGO - Feud? What feud?

Talk-show host David Letterman will make his first appearance on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" next month, another sign the talk-show powerhouses have buried the hatchet after a rift that lasted more than a decade.

Winfrey's production company says Letterman will appear on the show airing September 10.

Letterman frequently joked about Winfrey through the years. And in 2003, Winfrey said she wouldn't go on his show because she was uncomfortable as the target of his jokes.

Their reconciliation began in 2005 when Winfrey was a guest on Letterman's CBS "Late Show." They also appeared together in a Super Bowl commercial in February.

Controversies fuel `Big Brother 8'

NEW YORK - It's just another summer in the "Big Brother" house. Or is it?

Bloggers have condemned scandalous remarks about incest, race, ethnicity, sex and sexual orientation made by contestants. Message board posters have debated about a physical altercation involving two participants and a lit cigarette. And thousands of YouTube watchers have eavesdropped on one contestant's unfiltered thoughts about Jewish people.

Should viewers be shocked? The CBS reality show's motto is, after all, "expect the unexpected."

For the past eight summers, "Big Brother" has isolated contestants (or houseguests, as they're referred to on the show) from the outside world, while under constant surveillance. Once a week, they vote to evict each other. The "Big Brother 8" winner will be selected live Sept. 18.

With several different versions of the show broadcast in different countries, the made-for-TV claustrophobia has proven endlessly fascinating across the globe — and so has its voyeuristic peep show.

In the United States, outside of the edited prime-time airings is the mostly uncensored access to the house's cameras on the Internet for $14.99 a month and, for the first time ever, for three hours every night on Showtime Too.

It's there that viewers can listen to 44-year-old bar manager Richard "Evel Dick" Donato's unbleeped expletive-filled tirades against his fellow houseguests.

And it was on the live Internet feed that Amber Siyavus, a 27-year-old cocktail waitress from Las Vegas, told fellow contestant Jameka Cameron, a 28-year-old school counselor from Waldorf, Md., that Jewish people tend to be "really money-hungry" and "selfish."

YouTube videos of that conversation ignited controversy on the Web and beyond, prompting CBS to issue a statement condemning her remarks and refusing to air them in prime time.

"The producers are operating essentially two differently realities," says Andy Dehnart, who blogs about reality TV at realityblurred.com. "One is for the feed watchers and the Showtime Too watchers at night. The other is on TV. They've condensed things that aren't really representative of reality. We can show that Amber has said anti-Semitic things without having to repeat them. We can show Dick is a horrible person without including the words he's using. But the producers choose not to."

If Siyavus, who's nominated for eviction this week, is booted from the house, she won't have to answer to the media about her comments. That's because the reporters granted access to houseguests-turned-jury members have been told by CBS they must agree not to ask Siyavus or Cameron about the controversial remarks.

Traditionally, reporters interviewing the six sequestered evictees who will make up the show's jury and decide the $500,000 grand-prize winner usually agree to only ask houseguests about conversations that they were physically present for in the house.

So why is asking Siyavus about her own comments off limits?

"Big Brother 8" executive producer Allison Grodner declined to be interviewed by The Associated Press. A CBS spokeswoman said asking Siyavus or Cameron about the comments could influence the jury voters and affect the integrity of the game.

"If we're going to interview them, we should we able to ask the questions that are on viewers' minds," says Dehnart. "We shouldn't just agree to participate in the production of the show and protect the participants from whatever information the producers don't want us to hear."

The AP will decline to interview Siyavus and Cameron.

This season's drama has boosted "Big Brother" ratings. Thursday's episode, which featured a physical altercation between "Evel Dick" Donato and 23-year-old nanny-model Jen Johnson, drew 8.1. million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research.

Donato has taunted Johnson verbally all season. He once dumped a glass of iced tea on Johnson's head.

The most-talked-about incident in the "Evel Dick" vs. Johnson feud occurred after Johnson threw away some of Donato's cigarettes. Donato blew smoke in her face. Then, Johnson repeatedly swatted at the lit cigarette in Donato's hand and kept telling him to stop trying to burn her.

The tussle was originally censored on Showtime Too's "Big Brother After Dark" but was later included in the edited CBS prime-time broadcast.

"It was clearly disturbing," says Dehnart. "It seemed out of left field as we watched it on TV because Jen has been mild-mannered all season long on TV. It ignored the fact that she's essentially been abused by Dick and others for weeks and weeks, and she finally snapped."

Neither Donato or Johnson were expelled from the house following the cigarette incident.

"I definitely think he should've been kicked out, but obviously he was definitely entertainment for the show, so that's why he wasn't," Johnson told the AP following her eviction.

In the past, houseguests have been removed following incidents that were deemed violent or racist.

Earlier this summer, broadcaster Channel 4 expelled a contestant from the British version of "Big Brother 8" after she used a derogatory term about a black contestant. In January, Britain's broadcast regulator received a record 44,500 complaints about racist abuse endured by Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty on "Celebrity Big Brother 5."

During the U.S. edition of "Big Brother 4" in 2003, contestant Scott Weintraub was expelled following a violent outburst in which he threw furniture. After holding a knife to another contestant's throat, houseguest Justin Sebik was removed during the U.S. edition of "Big Brother 2" in 2001.

More than 500 Muppets will move to Atlanta

Atlanta's Center for Puppetry Arts will become the home of hundreds of Muppet characters, props and art. The new Henson wing is scheduled to open in 2012 and will occupy 10,000 square feet of the museum.

Time’s fun when you’re having flies, Kermit the Frog once said. And how time has flown: Kermit, or more precisely one of the many puppets that have played Kermit, will be retired to Atlanta on Wednesday, part of a major gift being made by the Jim Henson Foundation.

The flippered phenom, who began life as a scrap of fabric cut from a green coat discarded by Jim Henson’s mother, will be presented to the Center for Puppetry Arts here. He is a symbol of a large gift of Mr. Henson’s work that will be donated to the center and exhibited in a planned Jim Henson Wing, said Cheryl Henson, president of the Jim Henson Foundation.

Ms. Henson, Jim Henson’s second-oldest daughter, and Jane Henson, her mother and Mr. Henson’s first performing partner, expected to be in Atlanta on Wednesday to announce the gift: 500 to 700 puppets, including some of the first Muppets built; props; scenic elements; posters; sketches; and drawings that Mr. Henson created for shows like “The Muppet Show,” “Sesame Street,” “Fraggle Rock” and “Sam and Friends” (where the Muppets first appeared). Cheryl Henson has also pledged $1 million of her own money to the center.

It is unclear how much the gift is worth. The Smithsonian Institution had its small collection appraised but would not make the figure public.

“At the moment, they have not been given the entire collection,” Cheryl Henson said in an interview on Friday. “We are assuming we are going to give them the best of our collection,” she added, explaining that the archive owned by the family consists of “a couple thousand” items, but that many have become too fragile to exhibit. “Some of our collection has gotten old; even in the last seven years it has deteriorated. It’s not that we’re holding back a large portion of the collection.”

Built from foam and fabric, each puppet character had multiple copies because of performance wear and tear. The gift covered puppets that could no longer be used to perform; in fact, the Kermit in question was a “photo Kermit” — used for photographs but with no opening for a puppeteer’s hand.

Ms. Henson said she and her four siblings, who bought back the Jim Henson Company in 2003, had saved the items with the idea of creating a stand-alone museum in New York dedicated to her father’s artistry.

But the realities of running a museum quickly became overwhelming, and the family searched for a home that would both preserve Jim Henson’s beloved characters and serve as an incubator for new work by emerging puppeteers.

“One of the things we really longed for was the thought of a living puppet center,” Ms. Henson said. “Kids, after looking at the puppets in cases, could then go and make their own work. All of that was just bigger than we could do ourselves.”

(The Smithsonian Institution has two Henson puppets, including a Kermit and Oscar the Grouch, in its permanent collection. A traveling exhibition with 13 puppets, “Jim Henson’s Fantastic World,” will start in Little Rock, Ark., on Sept. 7 and travel to several other cities over three years.)

The Center for Puppetry Arts was offered the Henson Foundation archive because of its long history with the Jim Henson Company. Alongside Kermit and Miss Piggy (dressed as Rhett and Scarlett), Jim Henson cut the ribbon at the center’s opening in 1978, and the center’s collection already includes the Pigs in Space from “The Muppet Show.” Another factor favoring the center was its plan to expand and complete an already impressive collection of international puppets.

The institution is “the prime center of puppetry arts in the country and really has been for a long time,” said Eileen Blumenthal, a professor of theater arts at Rutgers and author of the book “Puppety, a World History.”

“I think the center is well on its way already,” Professor Blumenthal added. Even before the gift, she added, it had “a world-class collection of puppets, and the Henson collection just adds a dimension to that.”

Vince Anthony, executive director of the center, described the gift as “institution changing.” “This grand opportunity challenges the center and the Atlanta community to make this unique monumental partnership come to fruition,” he said.

The gift of Mr. Henson’s archive comes at a time when puppetry is having a resurgence in the United States, particularly in shows geared toward adult audiences. These include the Broadway musical “Avenue Q,” the film “Team America World Police” and the Cirque du Soleil show “KA.”

Puppets have also been making inroads in opera. In 2006 a bunraku boy was a crucial element in Anthony Minghella’s staging of “Madama Butterfly” at the Metropolitan Opera. Next season at the Met, Phelim McDermott and Julian Crouch will mount a new production of the Philip Glass opera “Satyagraha” incorporating giant puppets made of newsprint.

“It really is wonderful for this to be happening now,” Ms. Blumenthal said, “because all of this is something that Jim Henson really helped to create.”

Mr. Henson died in 1990 at age 53 from a bacterial infection that caused toxic shock syndrome.

Whether the center will receive the entire collection is contingent on the center’s ability to raise an unknown sum to house and preserve it, Ms. Henson said.

To raise the millions needed for new construction and staff, the center may need to flex fund-raising muscles it has not had to develop.

The center is in the enviable position, for an arts organization, of owning the building it has lived in since 1978. Thanks to low overhead, it has been able to survive on ticket sales and small donations.

“We really want our collection to be shown well,” Ms. Henson said. “We’ll see how it all plays out.”

Doug Riley, Canada's 'Dr. Music,' dies at 62

Doug Riley, a Toronto-born composer, arranger and pianist known as Dr. Music, has died. He was 62.

Riley died suddenly of heart failure at the Calgary airport on Monday on his way to his home in Little Pond, P.E.I.

Riley is known for composing, arranging and performing with numerous artists in the classical, jazz and commercial genres.

He has collaborated on more than 300 recordings, with such musicians as Moe Koffman, Ray Charles, Molly Johnson, Jake Langley, Anne Murray and Natalie McMaster.

A musical chameleon who played with symphony orchestras as comfortably as he played in smoky bars, Riley's greatest love was jazz.

"Ray Charles was my first influence outside of boogie-woogie and stride pianists like Albert Ammons and Fats Waller," Riley said in a 2006 interview with the Toronto Star.

"I was enthralled by his jazz, blues and gospel music and really his roots and my roots were the same. It was the biggest break of my life when I played organ and piano and arranged his 1969 album Doing His Thing."

Charles asked him to join his band, but Riley opted to stay in Canada, a move that led to a career that combined arranging and producing with touring and performing.

"I've toured the country, every nook and cranny of its coasts. I've worked all my life and played all my life," he recalled.

"I've toured with singers Jackie Richardson, Dionne Taylor and Measha Bruggergosman, who's a riot to hang out with. Writing is the most lucrative, and the least fun. The most fun is playing," he said.

Born April 24, 1945 in Toronto, Riley suffered from polio as a child and took to the piano as a way of expressing his creativity.

At four he took lessons in classical piano at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. Later, in Montreal, he studied pipe organ with Harry Duckworth at St. Anne de Belleville Church, and piano with Paul DeMarky, Oscar Peterson's piano teacher.

"When I was six, I discovered jazz from my dad's stride and boogie piano 78s — Meade Lux Lewis, Albert Ammons, James P. Johnson, Fats Waller — I had perfect pitch so I learned from the records," Riley said.

He went on to earn a Bachelor of Music in composition from the University of Toronto, while playing R&B with the Silhouettes, appearing at the Blue Note and other Toronto nightclubs.

Riley was planning to work on his masters degree in composition and ethnomusicology — he had an interest in First Nations music that was reflected in later recordings — when he got the offer to play with Charles.

After deciding not to move to the U.S., he formed Dr. Music, a vocal and instrumental ensemble that would have several incarnations over the next 15 years.

With Dr. Music, he had a string of Top 20 hits in the 1970s, and released Try A Little Harder, Sun Goes By and Bedtime Story, as well as the later Dr. Music Circa 1984.

He composed jingles, working with Mort Ross, Tommy Ambrose and Larry Trudel, and then worked behind the scenes on television production.

He began to acquire a reputation as a pillar of Toronto's music community, forming the Toronto Sound Recording Studio and working as a session musician.

As a composer and arranger, he has worked alongside symphony orchestras and Placido Domingo, Ofra Harnoy and The National Ballet.

"All through the time I was writing and playing pop and jazz and commercial music I wrote three ballets for the National Ballet, a double concerto for flute (clarinet, sax) and string quartet for Moe Koffman, a piano concerto for Mario Bernardi's retirement from the National Arts Centre Orchestra and other works," he said.

Domingo commissioned him to arrange None But The Lonely Heart for tenor and orchestra, which he recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra.

"I like a lot of different kinds of music," Riley said. "Country, jazz, blues, funk, folk — I've recorded with Anne Murray (25 CDs), the Brecker Brothers, Gordon Lightfoot, etc."

He has produced and performed on countless recordings with Koffman, David Clayton Thomas, Bob Seger and Ringo Starr.

Riley also has numerous solo and group recordings under his own name, including Foxy Lady, Dreams, Freedom and Con Alma.

He served as musical director of the Famous People Players for over 20 years and participated in concerts in support of the Easter Seals campaign, the United Way and the Princess Margaret Hospital Lodge.

In 2006, he toured throughout Canada and the U.S. with Canadian star Michael Burgess of Les Miserables and played throughout Canada with his Doug Riley Quartet. His most recent release is Strike, recorded with Tyler Yarema and John Roby.

Riley's credits include numerous jazz festivals, including the P.E.I. Jazz Festival, which he started in the 1990s after he began spending part of the year on the island.

Doug Riley won jazz organist of the year continuously from 1993 to 2000 at the annual Jazz Report Awards. He was awarded the Order of Canada in the fall of 2004.

He leaves behind two sons and his wife Jan.

Eagles Double Up On 'Long Road Out Of Eden'

The Eagles' new album, "Long Road Out of Eden," will be a double-disc affair, Billboard.com has learned. The 20-song set is due Oct. 30 exclusively via Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stories in North America, as well as the band's Web site.

A physical copy of the group's first studio album in 28 years will be priced at $11.88; digitally, it will cost a dollar less. Fans who pre-order "Long Road Out of Eden" through the Wal-Mart, Sam's Club or Eagles Web sites will receive an immediate download of the album's first single, "How Long."

Album tracks include the seven-minute "Waiting in the Weeds" and "Last Good Time in Town," the 10-minute-plus title cut and the Glenn Frey-penned "No More Cloudy Days," which previously appeared on the 2005 live DVD "Farewell 1 Tour -- Live From Melbourne."

The Eagles will be back on stage in October during a six-night stand with the Dixie Chicks as part of the opening of the new Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles. An extensive tour will follow next year.

Here is the track list for "Long Road Out of Eden":

Disc one:
"No More Walks in the Wood"
"How Long"
"Busy Being Fabulous"
"What Do I Do With My Heart"
"Guilty of the Crime"
"I Don't Want To Hear Anymore"
"Waiting in the Weeds"
"No More Cloudy Days"
"Fast Company"
"Do Something"
"You Are Not Alone"

Disc two:
"Long Road Out of Eden"
"I Dreamed There Was No War"
"Somebody"
"Frail Grasp on the Big Picture"
"Last Good Time in Town"
"I Love To Watch a Woman Dance"
"Business As Usual"
"Center of the Universe"
"It's Your World Now"

Britney Wants 'More' On New Danjahandz Track

A new Britney Spears track, "Gimme More," is expected to hit the airwaves next week, according to sources at Jive Records. The up-tempo cut, produced by Timbaland right-hand-man Nate "Danjahandz" Hills, will appear on Spears' new album, but sources say it has yet to be decided whether it will be the official lead single or simply a setup track.

Spears is known to have worked with J.R. Rotem and Sean Garrett on as-yet-unnamed tracks. "I've got this one record I've been holding for 10 months that everyone has tried to buy, but I stayed with Britney on it," Garrett told Billboard in late June. "I guarantee it will shake up the world. It's uptempo, out of control ... it's wowzers, produced by me and Bloodshy."

In the past year, Spears' personal travails have far overshadowed her music career. But she is rumored to be making an appearance at the MTV Video Music Awards next month in Las Vegas, where she has previously made headlines by kissing Madonna and performing with a giant snake draped across her body.

The new Spears album, which is expected before year's end, is the follow-up to 2003's "In the Zone," which has sold just shy of 3 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Fall films bring Oscar buzz to Hollywood

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Get out the Oscar scorecards because next week Hollywood launches its new movie season, with a typical fall mix of adult dramas dealing with more serious topics than this past summer's popcorn flicks.

Movies like western "3:10 to Yuma," starring Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, and "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" aspire to be early frontrunners in the race for Oscars, the world's top film honors, which are given out in winter by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

But lovers of adventure and comedy should not despair. Plenty of other titles also fill the bill, ranging from Jodie Foster's actioner "The Brave One" to Ben Stiller's comedy "The Heartbreak Kid" and Disney fairy tale "Enchanted."

"I think people want to be entertained. I think they want to be moved. I think they want to be taken on a journey, and the last thing they want is be preached at," actress Charlize Theron told Reuters recently.

Theron stars in one of September's more serious movies, "In the Valley of Elah," from writer/director Paul Haggis, who brought out Oscar-winning "Crash." "Elah" tells the story of a former military cop (Tommy Lee Jones) investigating the murder of his son, an Army soldier home from Iraq.

Other top September tickets are "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" with Brad Pitt, and "King of California" starring Michael Douglas. Sean Penn directs drama "Into the Wild," and Ang Lee brings out "Lust, Caution," a thriller about seduction and betrayal in 1940s China.

SEPTEMBER BANG, OCTOBER LAUGHS

September ends in a bang with action flick "The Kingdom," starring Jamie Foxx and Jennifer Garner as FBI agents sent to Saudi Arabia to investigate a bombing, sparking a culture clash between mid-East and Western ideology.

"I wanted to make a film that dealt with the Middle East and that dealt with religious extremism, but I first and foremost wanted to make a film that ... people would be thrilled at," said director Peter Berg.

October starts on a lighter note with Stiller's "The Heartbreak Kid" from comedy writing and directing brothers Peter and Bobby Farrelly, who were behind Stiller's 1998 hit "There's Something About Mary."

"Heartbreak Kid" follows a man pursuing the woman of his dreams while on his honeymoon, and is filled with off-color jokes, strange sex and other Farrelly brother hallmarks.

One offbeat comedy creating big advance buzz in Hollywood is director Wes Anderson's "The Darjeeling Limited," about three friends who go on a spiritual quest throughout India.

Movies also get serious in October. George Clooney, who scored an awards hit in 2005 with "Good Night, and Good Luck," is back with "Michael Clayton," playing a man hired by a law firm to straighten out an attorney drawn into a conspiracy.

Finally in October, John Cusack stars in "Grace is Gone," a hit at 2007's Sundance Film Festival about a father grieving the loss of his wife in Iraq.

HOLIDAY HORIZON

By early November, Hollywood returns to fare aimed at mostly younger audiences, and computer animated "Bee Movie," created by comedian Jerry Seinfeld, fits that bill. It tells of a bee who escapes his hum-drum hive for life in Manhattan.

"You're not going to make anything good if you're not excited, and when I saw this technology and I saw how you can make anything, go anywhere ... this is fresh," Seinfeld said.

Another animated wonder in November will be "Beowulf," directed by Robert Zemeckis, who uses motion-capture technology to retell the epic poem that follows Beowulf's battles.

Paul Giamatti and Vince Vaughn portray rival siblings -- jolly ol' Kriss Kringle and his bad brother -- in "Fred Claus," and "Enchanted" tells of a princess who is plucked from her fairy tale life and put into the real world.

Finally, major stars Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe appear together in action thriller "American Gangster," and Tom Cruise takes a leading role in a rumination over war, "Lions for Lambs," directed by Oscar winner Robert Redford.

Yes, it is fall in Hollywood, and the Oscar race is on.

TV dramas lead the field for Gemini Awards

TV dramas Slings & Arrows, ReGenesis and Intelligence joined longrunning news series The Fifth Estate among the leading nominees for the 22nd Gemini Awards.

Announced Tuesday, the annual prize celebrates the best in Canadian English-language television.

The three dramas will compete for the best dramatic series title, with medical drama Jozi-H and Whistler also scoring nominations in the prestigious category.

Slings & Arrows, set backstage at a Shakespearean theatre festival, led the field with 14 nominations.

The show's nominations were dominated by nods for the many celebrated performers who made appearances last season, including stars Paul Gross, Susan Coyne, Martha Burns and the late William Hutt, as well as guests like Sarah Polley and Stephen Ouimette.

ReGenesis, about scientists at a biotechnology lab, scored 12 nominations, with numerous nods for its actors, including Peter Outerbridge and Wendy Crewson.

Right behind with 11 nominations each are the investigative documentary series The Fifth Estate and West Coast crime drama Intelligence, acknowledged for its writing, direction, sound, musical score and lead performers Ian Tracey, John Cassini and Klea Scott.

Other productions winning multiple nominations include:

Dragon Boys.
Doomstown.
Robson Arms.
Corner Gas.
Answered by Fire.
Roxana.
Shades of Black.
In God's Country.
The Robber Bride.
And
Words to Music: The Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Little Mosque snubbed for comedy series

Nominated for best comedy program or series are ratings powerhouse Corner Gas and stalwarts Royal Canadian Air Farce and This Hour Has 22 Minutes, with Odd Job Jack and Rent-A-Goalie rounding out the list.

Surprisingly absent from the category's nominees was the new sitcom Little Mosque on the Prairie, the lighthearted comedy about Muslims in a small Saskatchewan town that grabbed headlines around the globe upon its debut last season.

The show was also left out of running for the best ensemble comedy performance trophy, with the casts of Air Farce, Rent-A-Goalie, Corner Gas, Comedy Inc., The Business and 22 Minutes nominated.

Little Mosque did pick up two nominations in craft categories: best direction in a comedy program or series and best writing in a comedy, variety program or series.

The TV adaptation of Margaret Atwood's The Robber Bride will compete for the best TV movie title, competing with Doomstown, Eight Days to Live, In God's Country and Last Exit.

Veteran documentarian and past Gemini winner Allan King is once again nominated for a Donald Brittain Award for best social or political documentary, scoring a nod for his Empz 4 Life. His competition includes the documentaries Bombay Calling, Cottonland, Faith Without Fear, Fatherland and Martyr Street.

The news categories were dominated by CBC nominees, with Global, TV Ontario and Toronto's City TV also receiving nods. In 2006, CTV News withdrew from the awards, saying that the time involved in preparing entries was not worth the effort.

Select Gemini nominees include:

Newscast - CBC News: The National; CityNews at Six; Global National.
News anchor - Ian Hanomansing, CBC News: Canada Now National Edition; Gord Martineau, CityNews at Six; Kevin Newman, Global National.

News information series - CBC News: Sunday; Marketplace; The Fifth Estate.
Host or interviewer in a news information program/series - Gillian Findlay, The Fifth Estate; Hana Gartner, The Fifth Estate; Steve Paikin, The Agenda with Steve Paikin; Evan Solomon, CBC News: Sunday Night; David Suzuki, The Nature of Things with David Suzuki.

Sports play-by-play announcer - Bob Cole, Hockey Night in Canada; Chris Cuthbert, CFL on TSN; Gord Miller, IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship.

Sports studio analyst - Matt Dunigan, CFL on TSN; Kelly Hrudey, Hockey Night in Canada; Bob McKenzie, IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship.

Individual performance in a comedy program/series - John Cleese, Just for Laughs Gala Series; Phyllis Ellis, The Wilkinsons; Elvira Kurt, Halifax Comedy Fest 2006; Rick Mercer, Rick Mercer Report; Teresa Pavlinek, The Jane Show.

Actor in a continuing leading dramatic role - John Cassini, Intelligence; Paul Gross, Slings & Arrows; William Hutt, Slings & Arrows; Peter Outerbridge, ReGenesis; Ian Tracey, Intelligence.

Actress in a continuing leading dramatic role - Martha Burns, Slings & Arrows; Susan Coyne, Slings & Arrows; Klea Scott, Intelligence.

Performance in a performing arts program/series - Guillaume Côté, Moving to his Music: The Two Muses of Guillaume Côté; Jeff Healey, Opening Night; Chanti Wadge, Karen Young's Canticum Canticorum.

Animated program/series - Captain Flamingo; Naughty Naughty Pets; Ruby Gloom; Skyland; Sons of Butcher.

Children's or youth fiction program/series - Alice, I Think; Degrassi: The Next Generation; Jacob Two-Two; Spirit Bear: The Simon Jackson Story; Wapos Bay.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television will honour winners in the news, documentary, sports, lifestyle, youth and variety programming categories during three Toronto ceremonies on Oct. 15, 16 and 17.

A televised Gemini Awards gala will follow in Regina, which is hosting the festivities for the first time. The telecast will air live from the Conexus Arts Centre on Oct. 28.

Springsteen Hitting North America, Europe This Fall

As expected, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will tour North America and Europe before the end of the year in support of their new album, "Magic." The trek begins on street date for the Columbia set (Oct. 2) in Hartford, Conn., with North American shows wrapping Nov. 18 in Boston. A European leg begins a week later in Madrid.

In addition, the new album's first single, "Radio Nowhere," is available as a free download for a week beginning today (Aug. 28) via the iTunes store. Fans can also pre-order "Magic" and receive the single plus access to its video and a digital booklet.

In an interview with noted fan site Backstreets, Springsteen says this will not be his final tour with the E Street Band, which hasn't been on the road with him since 2004. "I envision the band carrying on for many, many, many more years," he says. "There ain't gonna be any farewell tour. That's the only thing I know for sure."

Of "Magic," he says, "It's just built" to be played live. "I wrote with a lot of melody, and with a lot of hooks, and there's a lot of band power behind the stuff that I wrote this time out."

Here are Bruce Springsteen's tour dates:

Oct. 2: Hartford, Conn. (Civic Center)
Oct. 5: Philadelphia (Wachovia Center)
Oct. 9-10: East Rutherford, N.J. (Continental Airlines Arena)
Oct. 14: Ottawa, Ontario (Civic Centre)
Oct. 15: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
Oct. 17-18: New York (Madison Square Garden)
Oct. 21: Chicago (United Center)
Oct. 26: Oakland, Calif. (Oracle Arena)
Oct. 28: Los Angeles (TBA)
Nov. 2: St. Paul, Minn. (Xcel Energy Center)
Nov. 4: Cleveland (Quicken Loans Arena)
Nov. 5: Auburn Hills, Mich. (Palace of Auburn Hills)
Nov. 11: Washington, D.C. (Verizon Arena)
Nov. 14: Pittsburgh (Mellon Arena)
Nov. 15: Albany, N.Y. (Times Union Center)
Nov. 18: Boston (TD Banknorth Garden)
Nov. 25: Madrid (Palacio De Deportes)
Nov. 26: Bilbao, Spain (Exhibition Centre)
Nov. 28: Milan (Datchforum)
Nov. 30: Arnhem, Holland (Geldredome)
Dec. 2: Mannheim, Germany (Sap Arena)
Dec. 4: Oslo (Spektrum)
Dec. 8: Copenhagen (Forum)
Dec. 10: Stockholm (Globe)
Dec. 12: Antwerp, Belgium (Sportspaleis)
Dec. 13: Cologne, Germany (Koln Arena)
Dec. 15: Belfast (Odyssey Arena)
Dec. 17: Paris (Palais Omnsiports De Bercy)
Dec. 19: London (O2 Arena)

Kevin Smith To Direct 'Battlestar Galactica'

It might not be "Clerks" or even "Dogma," but Silent Bob actor Kevin Smith is getting what might be almost a dream come true.

Smith, one of the more high-profile defenders of "Battlestar Galactica," will direct an episode of the show during the show's final season. The details were shared with Angel Cohen on AOL, and will mark the third television series Smith will be involved with this coming season.

"I know that I'm going to go up and direct an episode of 'Battlestar Galactica,' which I am kind of stoked about," Smith told Cohn. "It's cool, but it is scary because it is like, 'What the fuck? I can't bring anything to that show.'"

Don't expect to see anything wacky or outright different in terms of cinematography, however, as Smith said he knows how true to form the SciFi Channel show likes to be.

"That show is genius and they have a very distinctive visual style," he said. "But you are safe as a kitten. If you go in there and say, 'I"m going to shoot everything in one big master shot,' they'll go, 'No you're not, because that is not what we do on 'Battlestar Galactica.'

"I guess it is more about performance-oriented stuff, but at the same time that cast is top-notch. How do you fucking direct Mary McDonnell?"

It's not clear what episode Smith will direct, but now that the cast is about halfway through the final season on the production cycle, it likely will be an episode found late in the show's final season, which begins early next year.

Smith has been busy so far this television season. He directed the pilot of The CW series "Reaper" and also will write and direct the first episode of "Heroes: Origins," the mid-season spinoff series of NBC's hit show "Heroes."

Smith is well known for his character of Silent Bob, but also for writing and directing such movies as "Clerks" and "Dogma" as well as "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back." He has filled in for film critic Roger Ebert on "Ebert & Roeper," and has released some of his convention panel talks where he gives frank insight on film and television, straight to DVD.

"Battlestar Galactica" returns in November with the telemovie "Razor" before debuting its fourth and final season in early 2008.

20 YEARS OF THE REEGE

NEW YORK — As Live With Regis and Kelly/Kathie Lee celebrates 20 years in syndication, the man who holds the Guinness world record for hosting the most hours on TV (nearly 16,000) is pondering his future and wondering whether it might be time to pack it in.

His contract has two years to go, but re-upping "is a decision I have to make as we get closer to it," says Regis Philbin, 76, who will decide in the next year.

"I've had a good run. Maybe it's time," he says, breaking into Reege-speak. "We'll see how Regis feels. If Regis isn't up to it, 'Adios, amigos!' "

Philbin had triple bypass surgery five months ago and says he's feeling fine; his health is a "minor consideration" when it comes to deciding his future.

He co-hosts four days a week with Kelly Ripa and lives across the street from the ABC studios that are home to Live, averaging 4 million viewers a day.

It's a short enough commute, Philbin says. "It's still a job, although it comes easy. When I have a week off I really enjoy the fact that I don't have to get up, get dressed, shaved and get over here and be 'on.' "

Michael Gelman, Philbin's producer for the past 25 years, says he can't imagine Philbin ever retiring. "He has the energy of a 30-year-old," Gelman says, noting Philbin still plays clubs on weekends. "After his surgery he said, 'Gelman, any other man would be dead!' "

Philbin has an intuitive appreciation for and an encyclopedic knowledge of pop culture because he has been talking to celebrities longer than anyone else on TV, Gelman says. "Child stars he interviewed are now playing characters with bald heads."

Ripa, who replaced Kathie Lee Gifford full time in 2001, says that although she's still star-struck — "Oh my God, it's George Clooney!" — Regis "has stayed at his house on Lake Como" in Italy.

Ripa says she marvels daily at Philbin's skill at storytelling. "You and I would say, 'I went to the store and picked up juice.' Not Regis," she says. "He takes you on a journey with twists, turns, layers and characters."

On Sept. 14, Gifford will make her first appearance on the show since leaving in July 2000. It's part of a two-week anniversary celebration that begins Monday.

Philbin says both co-hosts "have been great. I've been lucky. They learned right away what it was all about and how to do it," he says. "They kind of remind me of each other: Kathie Lee was Kelly's age when she joined me and got married and had kids. Kelly was married and had one child and two with us. Kathie Lee got a dog, and now here's Kelly with her dog (Chewie, a Shih Tzu)."

"South Park" duo ink lucrative deal

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - An animated series is redrawing the lines of television mega-deals.

The eye-popping $75 million pact announced Monday by Comedy Central and the creators of "South Park" may be the most prominent example of the Internet as a bona fide backend window alongside syndication and DVD. The duo of Matt Stone and Trey Parker will get a 50-50 ad split on digital platforms but not on television.

The new extension will bring three more 14-episode seasons -- the same volume Stone and Parker re-signed for in 2005. "Park" is in place now through 2011, bringing its stint at Comedy Central to 15 seasons going back to 1997.

"Three more years of 'South Park' will give us the opportunity to offend that many more people," Stone said. "And since Trey and I are in charge of the digital side of 'South Park,' we can offend people on their cell phones, game consoles and computers too."

Stone and Parker already have negotiated a share of the hundreds of millions of dollars "Park" has poured in to the network via the backend, not to mention a robust licensing and merchandising revenue stream.

But this time around, they are poised to haul half of the unknown -- but up to now quite modest -- sum awaiting them on the Internet, where "Park" footage has been a fixture of Comedy Central's dot-com strategy, not to mention illegal file-sharing.

Also part of the deal is the formation of a digital animation studio launched jointly with the Viacom-owned channel, which would participate in any new programming spawned under the venture. South Park Digital Studios would come under the Web site it launched earlier this year, Southparkstudios.com.

The deal represents a coup for Kevin Morris, attorney for Parker and Stone, and Doug Herzog, president of MTV Networks Entertainment Group, who ran Comedy Central when "Park" became the channel's first breakout hit. Parent company Viacom also could use a boost in the digital domain, where the company has been criticized on Wall Street.

Abel Lezcano, a lawyer at Del Shaw Moonves Tanaka Finkelstein & Lezcano whose clients include "Desperate Housewives" creator Marc Cherry, was less impressed by the ad split than the total value of the pact.

"To me that's not as big a deal as if Comedy Central had given them a share of ad revenue from TV broadcasts, but the total amount is pretty big," he said. "The Big Four networks still won't let you share in any form of advertising (broadcast or Internet) because they sell ads across all platforms and don't want to separate it out, so in that respect, it's different."

Dan Black, partner at Greenberg Traurig in Santa Monica, agrees that this is not a precedent-setting deal.

"I've seen deals like that before with Web site revenue splits," he said. "The paradigm is familiar, but the $75 million is recognition of the success of the show."

But with the ink still drying, speculation already has begun as to what will be the next TV franchise to command a payday of similar scope. Bigger franchises from "The Simpsons" to "Saturday Night Live" also have established online presences that could complicate future negotiations.

Sameer Mithal, consultant for media and content at BusinessEdge Solutions, believes that only A-list content players will get a slice of the digital pie. "A lot of people are going to ask for it, but very few are going to get it," he said. "Someone just starting out doesn't have the leverage of the 'South Park' guys."

Lightning may well strike twice at Comedy Central, which already may be negotiating with another Internet darling: "The Daily Show" anchor Jon Stewart, whose current four-year contract expires at the end of 2008. The current deal for "Park" was also scheduled to elapse late next year.

James Dixon, who manages Stewart, applauded the "Park" pact but said his client is not concerned. "We'll see what happens with his next deal, but 'Daily' is a different animal than an animated series," he said. "A lot more than digital needs to be discussed."

Little Mosque filming 2nd season in Saskatchewan

Little Mosque on the Prairie is back on the Prairies.

CBC's hit TV series about Muslims in a fictional Saskatchewan town is wrapping up production in Regina on its second season.

Producer Michael Snook says on-location shooting for parts of 12 episodes will begin Monday and continue into September. Broadcasts of the second season episodes begin Oct. 3.

"We'll be shooting five days in Regina over the next couple of weeks and we'll be shooting five days in Indian Head," Snook said.

The comedy originated in Regina, although CBC ended up moving more than half of the production to a soundstage in Toronto.

Even so, according to Snook, the sitcom has a strong Prairie component.

"The vast majority of our crew are Saskatchewan, some of our day player cast are from Saskatchewan and the core production unit in terms of producer, production manager and so on … are all from here," he said.

After a successful pilot season, the series is ramping up production from eight episodes to 20.

Little Mosque on the Prairie will be aired in a number of other markets this year, including France and French-speaking parts of Switzerland and Africa.

New CD Releases, Aug. 28: Lyle Lovett, Ben Harper, Ringo Starr

Lyle Lovett "It's Not Big It's Large"

The four-time Grammy winner will find out if "13'' can indeed be a lucky number as he prepares to release "It's Not Big It's Large.'' The set, Lovett's 13th album, follows 2003's "My Baby Don't Tolerate" and, before that, 1996's "Road to Ensenada."

"It's Not Big It's Large" was produced by Lovett and longtime collaborator Billy Williams. The 12-track CD, as referenced in its title, features Lovett's signature Large Band. A deluxe version of the album, which includes a DVD with studio footage, is being released simultaneously.

Having recently finished up a co-headlining tour with K.D. Lang, the Texas troubadour will back "It's Not Big It's Large" with a handful of dates in his home state in October.

* * *
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals "Lifeline"

Having explored "Both Sides of the Gun" last year, Harper quickly returns with another major burst of creativity. The singer/songwriter's new album, "Lifeline," is an 18-track, two-disc affair, divided into two styles: softer acoustic grooves on one disc and more rocking tunes on the other. The record's lead single is the track "In the Colors."

Regular road warriors, Harper and his Innocent Criminals will, of course, tour to support "Lifeline." The band's major North American theater tour will kick off Sept. 1 in Boulder, CO, and is currently scheduled to last through mid-November. Two-night stands are booked in Montreal, Toronto, Los Angeles and Seattle.

* * *
Ringo Starr
"Photograph: Very Best of Ringo Starr"

The man who set the beat for John, Paul and George gets his turn under the spotlight with "Photograph: Very Best of Ringo Starr." This 20-track disc, which is bundled with a bonus DVD, features material from Starr's own impressive solo career.

Starr has had his share of post-Beatles success. Notably, he has charted seven Top 10 pop hits on his own. "Photograph: Very Best of Ringo Starr" includes such fan favorites as "It Don't Come Easy" and "Back Off Boogaloo."

* * *
Heaven and Hell "Live from Radio City Music Hall"

Heaven and Hell, the reunion of the Ronnie James Dio-era Black Sabbath, proved very popular with fans during a concert tour earlier this year. So popular, in fact, that the group--featuring vocalist Dio, guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Vinnie Appice--has decided to schedule another round of shows, which kick off in early September.

If you are still undecided about whether to attend an upcoming Heaven and Hell gig, you might want to check out the group's "Live from Radio City Music Hall." This concert set documents the band's March gig at the famed NYC venue, which was the first stop on the U.S. comeback trail for the band.

* * *
Casting Crowns "The Altar and the Door"

The Christian pop troupe returns with its third album, which follows the platinum-selling albums "Casting Crowns" and "Lifesong." The group has also released two popular concert discs, "Live from Atlanta'' and "Lifesong Live,'' which were certified, respectively, platinum and gold. Casting Crowns is led by singer/songwriter Mark Hall, a man who splits his time between being a pop star and working as a pastor at his local church.

* * *
Other new releases:
Aesop Rock, "None Shall Pass" (Def Jux)
Paul Anka, "Classic Songs, My Way" (Decca)
Atreyu, "Lead Sails Paper Anchor" (Hollywood)
Blu & Exile, "Below the Heavens" (Sound in Color)
Rick Braun, Richard Elliot, "RnR" (Artizen)
Epica, "Divine Conspiracy" (Nuclear Blast)
Victoria Hart, "Whatever Happened to Romance?" (Decca)
The Kingston Trio, "Nick, Bob & John: The Final Concert" (Collector's Choice)
Ledisi, "Lost and Found" (Verve Forecast)
Liars, "Liars" (Mute)
Sophie Milman, "Make Someone Happy" (Koch)
New Young Pony Club, "Fantastic Playroom" (Interscope)
Northern State, "Can I Keep This Pen" (Ipecac)
Deva Premal, "Sings the Moola Mantra" (White Swan)
Queensryche, "Sign of the Times: The Best of Queensryche" (Capitol)
Scorpions, "Humanity Hour 1" (New Door)
The Subdudes, "Street Symphony" (Back Porch)

Owen Wilson pleads for privacy after reported suicide bid

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Oscar-nominated actor Owen Wilson called for privacy on Monday after being hospitalized in Los Angeles following a reported suicide attempt.

The 38-year-old star of "Wedding Crashers" and "Zoolander" was said to be in a good condition at Cedars Sinai Medical Center, where he was transferred on Sunday after paramedics were called to his Santa Monica home.

"I respectfully ask that the media allow me to receive care and heal in private during this difficult time," Wilson said in a statement released by his representative to celebrity website TMZ.com.

A spokeswoman at Cedars Sinai said Wilson was in a "good condition."

There was no official word on the reasons for Wilson's hospitalization however reports said the actor had attempted suicide.

Later Monday, sources close to the actor cited by syndicated entertainment television show "Extra" said Wilson had attempted to take his own life.

The source cited by the show said Wilson had been discovered by his brother Luke and that the actor's family and friends were in shock.

Santa Monica police and fire department issued a statement saying that medical aid had been dispatched to Wilson's address in Santa Monica.

The statement said "a person" was taken to local hospital but did not provide any details. Local media reported unidentified police sources confirming that the person treated was Wilson.

Wilson is regarded as one of Hollywood's most bankable actors, having appeared in a string of hit comedies.

He was nominated for an Academy Award for his writing work on "The Royal Tenenbaums" in 2001, in which he also starred with brother Luke Wilson and close friend Ben Stiller.

Wilson has also been romantically linked to "You, Me and Dupree" co-star Kate Hudson although their relationship recently ended.

Wilson is currently working on a new comedy with Stiller, "Tropic Thunder".

The Simpsons: The Movie DVD Date, Extras

Our friends in the industry have passed along info to us about The Simpsons Movie on DVD; a jewel we just cannot resist. We think we're the first ones with these details, so we want reward all the Simpsons fans among our readers with the scoop on this:

Homer accidentally causes an environmental catastrophe which could doom Springfield forever. Homer now must save the city and rescue his family. Springfield's usual characters and new favorites all turn up in the first ever movie length version of the hit TV show, 18 years in the making.

The 87-minute big-screen feature will arrive home in both Widescreen and Fullscreen versions (get the Widescreen) on December 18th. Besides the film itself, it's loaded with these extras, all for $29.98 SRP:

Animators commentary: David Silverman, Mike B. Anderson, Steven Dean Moore, Rich Moore.

Producers Commentary: James L. Brooks, Matt Groening, Richard Sakai, Al Jean, Mike Scully, David Silverman, Dan Castellaneta, Yeardley Smith

Deleted Scenes:
Levels
Springfield News
DMV
Sausage Truck
Animals Painting

Promos:
Jay Leno Promo
American Idol Promo
American Idol Cold Open
Lobby Promo
TH Spoof

Audio is going to be English Dolby Surround 5.1 and also English DTS 5.1 ES, plus there will be Spanish and French soundtracks in Dolby Surround. Subtitles are English and Spanish, and the film is rated PG-13.

Our thanks to our friends in the industry who provided this to us; they did so on condition of anonymity. They do not have box art for this DVD release, nor have they yet received any information about a potential Blu-ray Disc hi-definition release of the film. We expect these to come later on. Please bear in mind that this info does NOT come from a public announcement, and is therefore subject to change.

HMV Canada Drops Prices

HMV Canada, the country’s leading music retailer with more than 104 stores, revealed today that it was cutting its catalogue pricing by up to 33%.

"Lowering prices will lead to greater value and offer more to our consumers," said Humphrey Kadaner, president of HMV Canada. HMV Canada is a division of HMV Group PLC, based in London, and operates 104 stores in the country.

Kadaner said HMV had been testing the concept in past months at its stores in Edmonton, Alberta, where prices were cut by around 20% on about 60% of compact discs for sale. The move was well received by HMV customers, he added, and the chain decided to continue the pricing cuts across the country.

“We wanted this move to be participative and involve the labels in the decision,” said Kadaner. “The truth is that if we don’t improve [back catalogue] sales, we’ll have to look at reducing inventory.”

The price cuts come at a time when music sales in Canada have slumped dramatically. According to the Canadian Recording Industry Association, the net value of wholesale physical music sales fell 35% in the first quarter of 2007 to $68.7 million, from $105.6 million a year earlier. Unit sales of CDs and music DVDs fell 30% during the quarter to 7.1 million. These figures have had many in the industry – both in retail and Canadian recording companies – concerned, especially since CD sales in the country had already declined by 7% in 2006.

Kadaner said both HMV and Canadian record labels were lowering their margins in the hope of increasing the volume of sales. Though Canadian recording companies have fought with HMV over pricing in the past, they publicly put a brave face on the price cuts.

“We applaud HMV for having the smarts to retain their depth of catalogue while offering lower pricing for consumers,” said Randy Lennox, president of Universal Music Canada.

'Pirates,' Bush Top Teen Awards

LOS ANGELES - "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" dominated the seventh-annual Teen Choice Awards Sunday, taking honors for Choice Movie: Action Adventure.

The movie's stars Johnny Depp, Keira Knightley and Bill Nighy also took home awards.

"High School Musical 2" also scored with Choice TV: Movie, as did two of its stars. Zac Efron was dubbed "Choice Male Hottie" and Vanessa Hudgens "Choice Music Breakout Artist: Female."

The Disney Channel movie's presence was felt early in the show, which opened with a 50th-reunion spoof, replacing the youthful cast members with senior citizens.

Even "Choice Comedian" Dane Cook thanked the "HSM2" team, joking, "I couldn't have done this without you."

Sophia Bush was the night's biggest competitive individual-category winner, scoring three awards: Choice Movie Breakout: Female, Choice Movie Actress: Horror/Thriller for "The Hitcher" and Choice Movie Actress: Comedy for "John Tucker Must Die."

Justin Timberlake also scored multiple honors. He won for Choice Music: Male Artist, Choice Music: Payback Track for "What Goes Around . . ..," and was honored with a special, Teen Choice answer to a lifetime-achievement award, "Ultimate Choice."

For all of the show's celebration of youth, it was 53-year-old John Travolta who seemed to cause the biggest stir with the 6,000-plus member audience, generating screams and a standing ovation as he walked to the stage to accept the Choice Summer Movie: Comedy/Musical for "Hairspray."

Hosted by one-time kid stars Hilary Duff and Nick Cannon, the show was telecast by Fox Sunday night from the Gibson Amphitheatre at Universal Studios Hollywood, with awards doled out at lightning speed.

Presenters blasted through more than 30 categories in less than two hours. Musical performers included Shop Boyz, Kelly Clarkson, as well as winners Avril Lavigne, and Fergie, the latter giving the night's most emotional acceptance speech.

"This award isn't paid for. This award isn't traded for favors," she said, while tearing up. "This is picked by you."

The awards are selected by the teen-voting public, who had been submitting picks online since July 2. Instead of statuettes, winners received life-size surfboards.

Digital music services try to nibble away at Apple

DENVER (Billboard) - The digital music wars are entering a new phase.

Several digital music service providers -- including MTV's Urge, Rhapsody, Verizon Wireless, Wal-Mart and Yahoo Music -- have unveiled new forays designed to shine light on their struggling services in the shadow of Apple's still-dominant iTunes.

While no individual effort is likely to dislodge Apple from its No. 1 position, all are clearly efforts to chip away at its commanding lead. According to data from NPD Group, Apple controls 73.7 percent of the retail digital-music market, with more than 3 billion tracks sold since it went live. iTunes is also the third-largest music retailer of any kind, surpassed only by Best Buy and Wal-Mart.

REALNETWORKS, MTV, VERIZON WIRELESS

In perhaps the most significant move, the three providers have joined forces to offer one integrated digital-music platform that includes Rhapsody's technology and music, editorial content and playlist programming from MTV's Urge and wireless distribution via Verizon Wireless. MTV brings strong marketing muscle -- to the tune of $230 million during the next five years, not to mention its on-air channels -- plus well-received blogs and other resources that should improve on Rhapsody's content. Verizon brings a mobile extension, something market leader iTunes still lacks. And Rhapsody brings the most popular subscription services on the market, its existing subscribers and back-end mobile technology.

The big bet, however, is on integration. Verizon will replace its Web-based digital music store with the new Rhapsody service and will send a copy of every song downloaded to a Verizon phone to the user's Rhapsody account. And Rhapsody subscribers will be able to transfer subscription-based music to Rhapsody-compatible Verizon phones once they're introduced later this year. But don't expect to download subscription tracks over the air from Verizon phones just yet.

On paper it's a strong alliance that emphasizes each partner's strengths and eliminates their weaknesses in what MTV Networks president Van Toffler called a "perfect storm" of capabilities. Whether they can execute it is another story.

WAL-MART

The big-box retailer has started a public relations initiative to highlight the availability of digital-rights-management-free (read: iPod-compatible) music from EMI and Universal Music Group. This is a particularly big deal for Wal-Mart, which has not been able to translate its success as a physical retailer to digital music. While it is responsible for about 22 percent of physical CD sales, Wal-Mart has less than 2 percent market share among music services, despite undercutting the competition on price. Protected tracks are 11 cents cheaper than on iTunes, while DRM-free tracks are 35 cents cheaper.

But this probably won't matter much until Wal-Mart can sell all its music without DRM, not just music from EMI and UMG. And the conservative company sells only edited versions of songs that otherwise would earn a parental advisory notice.

YAHOO MUSIC

Yahoo has unveiled plans to launch a Web-based music player that will allow current and non-subscribers to stream music from the service without requiring them to download the full Yahoo Music Unlimited software.

While its music portal receives more than 25 million unique hits per month, the Yahoo Music Unlimited subscription service continues to struggle for mass-market attention, just like every other subscription service out there.

According to Yahoo Music general manager Ian Rogers, the idea is to give its broader Internet community access to the same tools as subscribers and eventually convert them into paying members. Non-subscribers can hear only 30-second samples, while members can listen to the entire track.

Ebert denies 'thumb' ban

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Film critic Roger Ebert said he never gave a "thumbs down" to the use of thumbs in reviews for "At the Movies with Ebert & Roeper" during contract negotiations.

In a statement released Friday to The Associated Press, the TV show's distributor, Disney-ABC Domestic Television, said Ebert had "exercised his right to withhold use of the 'thumbs' until a new contract is signed." Ebert is a copyright holder on the signature "thumbs up-thumbs down" judgment that's part of each film review.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning critic responded in a statement Saturday on his web site, saying he "had made it clear the Thumbs could remain during good-faith negotiations," contrary to Disney's press release.

"They made a first offer on Friday which I considered offensively low," he wrote. "I responded with a counteroffer. They did not reply to this, and on Monday ordered the Thumbs removed from the show. This is not something I expected after an association of over 22 years."

Health problems have kept Ebert from appearing on the show for more than a year, with guest hosts filling in, although he has continued to write reviews and books. In the new season starting this weekend, co-host Richard Roeper is being joined for the first few months by movie critic Robert Wilonsky of the Dallas Observer.

Two episodes have been filmed so far without the thumb assessment, which has become a staple of movie marketing and, in turn, a big part of the show's influence.

Ebert, 65, holds the copyright to the critique with the estate of Gene Siskel, his original co-host. Ebert, a film critic at the Chicago Sun-Times since 1967, and Siskel, who was at the rival Chicago Tribune, launched the show in 1975. Siskel died in 1999. Roeper also is a Sun-Times columnist.

'Superbad' still No. 1 with $18 million

LOS ANGELES - Hollywood notched its first $4 billion summer as teen geeks helped Hollywood end the season in record fashion.

Sony's "Superbad," the comedy about three dorky high-schoolers trying to score booze for a party, was the No. 1 movie for a second straight weekend with $18 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday. The movie raised its 10-day total to $68.6 million.

"Superbad" was on its way to $100 million, an unusual accomplishment for a movie with no big stars.

"It just goes to show, you make them laugh, and they'll come," said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony, which kicked off Hollywood's big summer with a record-breaking debut weekend of $151.1 million for "Spider-Man 3" in early May. "To start the summer with `Spider-Man' and end it like this is an absolute blast."

Though business is slowing down as parents and students prepare for a new school year, Hollywood continued its summer hot streak. The top 12 movies took in $90.2 million, up 7 percent from the same weekend last year, when "Invincible" opened at No. 1 with $17 million.

Overall, Hollywood crossed the $4 billion mark for the summer season. The figure topped the $3.95 billion set in 2004, according to box office tracker Media By Numbers.

Movies will have grossed about $4.15 billion by the time the season ends on Labor Day, up 8 percent from last summer, estimated Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media By Numbers.

"Whether it be sequels, originals, comedies, action movies or whatever, this particular mix of films brought audiences in a record-breaking way," Dergarabedian said. "We still have to temper that with the fact that the number of tickets sold is nowhere near a record."

Factoring in higher admission prices, Media By Numbers estimated about 606 million movie tickets will have been sold this summer — a solid figure but only the sixth-best for modern Hollywood.

The best summer in recent times was in 2002, when 653.4 million tickets were sold.

The weekend's top debuts were Universal's "Mr. Bean's Holiday" and Lionsgate's "War."

"Mr. Bean's Holiday" features Rowan Atkinson reprising the goofy man-child character he played on British television and in the 1997 movie "Bean."

If the estimates hold when final numbers are released Monday, "Mr. Bean's Holiday" will finish No. 4 at the box office with $10.1 million. It already has taken in $190 million in overseas markets, where the character is enormously popular.

"War," an action showdown between Jet Li as a shadowy hit man and Jason Statham as an FBI agent, debuted at No. 5 with $10 million.

The MGM and Weinstein Co. release "The Nanny Diaries," starring Scarlett Johanssen as a recent college graduate who takes a live-in childcare job for a control-freak mom (Laura Linney) and a career-obsessed dad (Paul Giamatti), opened in sixth place with $7.8 million.

Yari Film Group's "Resurrecting the Champ," with Samuel L. Jackson as a former boxer now living on the streets and Josh Hartnett as a sportswriter who chronicles the man's story, opened weakly with $1.85 million.

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. "Superbad," $18 million.
2. "The Bourne Ultimatum," $12.4 million.
3. "Rush Hour 3," $12.3 million.
4. "Mr. Bean's Holiday," $10.1 million.
5. "War," $10 million.
6. "The Nanny Diaries," $7.8 million.
7. "The Simpsons Movie," $4.4 million.
8. "Stardust," $4 million.
9. "Hairspray," $3.5 million.
10. "The Invasion," $3.1 million.

The Couch Potato Report - August 25th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report peels a fracture, a superb documentary, an awful ex, and I…for India.

When the Academy Award nominations came out in January for last year, Canadian actor Ryan Gosling from London, Ontario, was included in the Best Actor category for his work in the superb film HALF NELSON.

When the nominations for this year are announced in January, it is unlikley that Gosling will get nominated for his latest film, but that doesn't mean that FRACTURE isn't worth seeing...because it is!

Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins from SILENCE OF THE LAMBS also stars in FRACTURE.

He plays a millionaire who loves his wife, but when he discovers that she is having an affair, he shoots her.

Gosling plays hot shot assistant D.A. Willy Beachum.

But Willy's head isn't in the game as he is about to start a new job with a prestigious law firm.

Plus, he thinks the case is a slam-dunk because there is a signed confession and a weapon.

Since the lawyer has one foot out the door, he isn't prepared to deal with a man who is a superb adversary, and he starts to lose the case.

While not a superb film, FRACTURE is a very entertaining cat and mouse thriller that won't overload you with "shocking" twists and "surprise" turns.

Yes, Hopkins can play this sort of role in his sleep, and at times he does seem a bit bored by the script, but at those times Gosling holds the film together as he spars with Hopkins.

FRACTURE is a movie that is worth your time, it is, as they say, a good rental.

Up next this week is a film that is not only also a good rental, it is a must see!

That film is the documentary GOD GREW TIRED OF US.

This film is about three of the "Lost Boys of Sudan", a group of some 25,000 young men who have fled the wars in Sudan since the 1980.

After showing some of the horrific realities of life for the thousands of men living in a refugee camp GOD GREW TIRED OF US then begins to focus on three of them as they move to the United States, and hopefully a brighter future.

But as they learn new customs, adapt to new and strange foods, and cope with the ordeal of getting and keeping a job, or multiple jobs, they never forget the loved ones they left behind in Africa.

GOD GREW TIRED OF US is utterly fascinating from the moment it begins, and in addition to being an exceptionally well-made documentary, it is also an entertaining film.

Especially once the boys get to American and have to learn how to use new devices.

Yes, GOD GREW TIRED OF US will entertain you, but it will also break your heart.

It might even move you to try and help...and if it does, the DVD also provides you with links and information on how you can help The Lost Boys Of Sudan.

However it affects you, I suggest you give it an opportunity to do so. GOD GREW TIRED OF US is a superb movie!

Yes, GOD GREW TIRED OF US is superb....our next release - THE EX - is an awful film about a slacker who is forced to work for his father-in-law.

Three television actors I love, I mean literally love to watch on screen star in this mess - Zach Braff from SCRUBS, Jason Bateman from ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, and Amanda Peet from STUDIO 60 ON THE SUNSET STRIP, and their talents are wasted

Braff plays a guy who has a history of being unable to keep any job for long.

His latest opportunity comes from his father-in-law, who invites him to leave New York and become part of his team at an advertising agency.

So, his wife, and their new baby, move to Ohio and he finds out that his mentor, the wheelchair-bound Chip, used to date his wife, and still has a thing for her.

THE EX has a great cast and a premise that could have resulted in something entertaining.

But the execution of all those elements is a film that should just be executed.

THE EX is just a movie populated by dislikeable individuals doing unpleasant things and you should ignore it, no matter how much you might like the actors who star in it.

I wish I had!

Alright, lets close this week with two good titles, two things that are worth watching, that are worth you rtime.

Starting with SEASON THREE of the superb TV series HOUSE.

HOUSE is an Emmy-winning show that stars British actor and comedian Hugh Laurie as Dr. Gregory House, a maverick medical genius who heads a team of young diagnosticians at a Teaching Hospital set in New Jersey.

The team goes to extraordinary lengths to accomplish a common task: diagnosing and treating unusual ailments.

HOUSE is one of those shows that I don't watch on TV every week. Instead, like many people do, I always wait for the DVD release so I can watch an entire season in a few days.

It is that good, and I enjoy taking it all in, as opposed to patiently waiting to see it unfold each week.

Yes, with HOUSE, a show about a doctor and the people he sees and the cases he and his team work on in each epiosde, I have no patience!

By the way...that joke is funnier than anything you will hear in THE EX.

In SEASON THREE of the show, HOUSE ups the ante by putting its main character in jail and threatening him with prison.

That changes the relationships that House has with all of the show's main characters, and makes for some engaging ongoing storylines, while the team works together to solve a medical mystery in each episode.

HOUSE mixes medical drama with some CSI-style investigating and graphics, and it challenges you. I always like it when a TV show challenges me and I enjoyed watching every episode of SEASON THREE this week on DVD.

Okay, finally this very busy week, our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD continues with the British film I FOR INDIA.

After moving to Britain from his home land of India in 1965, Yash Pal Suri bought two Super 8 cameras, a pair of projectors and two tape recorders so that he could keep in audiovisual contact with his relatives back in India.

The dialogue between the families is fascinating as Dr. Suri and his family enjoy life in Londaon and everything it has to offer, while his family in India misses him, and wishes that he will return.

Dr. Suri's now grown-up daughter has collected all of her family's correspondence, and with it she tells their story.

But she also charts the rise in immigrants to England, using vintage news reports and clips from BBC shows that were airing in the early sixties to help immigrants get acclimatized with their new home.

I FOR INDIA is a unique look back at the history of this family, a great time capsule for a era gone by, and it is the second to last entry in this summer's Foreign FIlm Festival on DVD.

The very interesting I FOR INDIA, SEASON THREE of the great TV show HOUSE, the awful non-comedy THE EX, the utterly fascinating documentary GOD GREW TIRED OF US and the very entertaining cat and mouse thriller FRACTURE are all available now on DVD.


Coming up on the next Couch Potato Report

The Canadian film SIX FIGURES asks, could a man in his mid-thirties, married, two kids, with a dead-end career in fund raising be capable of murder?

The TV show HISTORY BITES is a sketch comedy show that answers the question, "What if television had been around for the past 5,000 years?"

HEROES is the spectacular TV show about some ordinary people who discover that they have extraordinary abilities.

Also next week, our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD concludes with the Academy Award nominated Danish film AFTER THE WEDDING.

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!

McCartney Unearths Live Clips, Videos For DVD

Four decades' worth of rare footage, live performance and music videos have been rounded up for "The McCartney Years," a three-DVD set due Nov. 13 via MPL/Rhino Entertainment. McCartney has also recorded new commentary for the 40-plus videos, which can be viewed in chronological order or via his own custom playlists.

The first two discs comprise the videos, beginning with 1970's "Maybe I'm Amazed" and running through 2005's "Fine Line." Bonus features on these discs include a "Band on the Run" promo film and a documentary on the making of McCartney's 2005 album "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard."

The third disc features snippets from "Rockshow," filmed on the 1976 Wings tour, a new edit of McCartney's 1991 appearance on MTV's "Unplugged" and 11 songs from his 2004 headlining set at the U.K.'s Glastonbury Festival. The live footage also boasts new commentary from McCartney.

Here is the track list for "The McCartney Years":

Disc one:

"Tug Of War"
"Say Say Say"
"Silly Love Songs"
"Band On The Run"
"Maybe I'm Amazed"
"Heart Of The Country"
"Mamunia"
"With A Little Luck"
"Goodnight Tonight"
"Waterfalls"
"My Love"
"C-Moon"
"Baby's Request"
"Hi Hi Hi"
"Ebony And Ivory"
"Take It Away"
"Mull Of Kintyre"
"Helen Wheels"
"I've Had Enough"
"Coming Up"
"Wonderful Christmastime"

Disc two:

"Pipes Of Peace"
"My Brave Face"
"Beautiful Night"
"Fine Line"
"No More Lonely Nights"
"This One"
"Little Willow"
"Pretty Little Head"
"Birthday"
"Hope Of Deliverance"
"Once Upon A Long Ago"
"All My Trials"
"Brown-Eyed Handsome Man"
"Press"
"No Other Baby"
"Off The Ground"
"Biker Like An Icon"
"Spies Like Us"
"Put It There"
"Figure Of Eight"
"C'Mon People"

Disc three:

From "Rockshow":
"Venus And Mars"
"Rock Show"
"Jet"
"Maybe I'm Amazed"
"Lady Madonna"
"Listen To What The Man Said"
"Bluebird"

From "MTV Unplugged":
"I Lost My Little Girl"
"Every Night"
"And I Love Her"
"That Would Be Somethin"

From Glastonbury 2004:
"Jet"
"Flaming Pie"
"Let Me Roll It"
"Blackbird"
"Band On The Run"
"Back In The USSR"
"Live And Let Die"
"Hey Jude"
"Yesterday"
"Helter Skelter"
"Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band"

iTunes retail test in the cards for Apple

NEW YORK (Billboard) - In a move to enhance its already prodigious stature as a music merchandiser, Apple will lead a test this fall that places artist- and album-specific iTunes gift cards in brick-and-mortar retail stores.

The iTunes gift cards, according to label and retail sources, will each feature specific album covers against a standard DVD-size cardboard backing. Albums by Maroon 5, Norah Jones and Eddie Vedder are under consideration for inclusion in the tests, which will run at Safeway, Starbucks and Best Buy. Wal-Mart and Target have been approached, but there is no word on whether those merchants will participate.

The test creates a dilemma for the major labels. On one hand, executives like the possibility that the gift cards could get music into stores that don't carry it now. They also like the increased exposure for their artists. And they foresee a role for the gift cards in stores that already carry music but where music selection and CD sales are being reduced by store closures, inventory realignments and the CD format's oncoming obsolescence.

iTunes is pitching its album-specific gift cards, which will feature the Apple and iTunes logos, as a way to get more music in existing shelf space at stores that already carry music.

One major-label distribution executive noted that when CD sales ultimately get weaker, anything that encourages music buying is to be welcomed.

But other executives worry that the gambit might in fact accelerate the demise of the CD. The strategy also will enhance the prominence of Apple, which already is perceived to be heavy-handed in wielding its clout with labels.

"It sounds like a way to help Apple get 50 percent market share," one senior label executive said. A senior distribution executive added, "It's ridiculous for Apple to negotiate with retailers on our behalf."

Another distribution executive wondered why music retailers carrying CDs would go along with the idea, since it could drive more traffic to iTunes at the expense of brick-and-mortar merchants.

iTunes didn't respond to requests for comment.

Meanwhile, sources suggest that single-album gift-card titles would be priced between $11.99 and $14.99 -- above iTunes' main album price point of $9.99 -- but each could come with music videos and ringtones. It's unclear if the labels would get their traditional wholesale cost of $7 per album.

For all his uneasiness over the idea, one executive conceded, "You have to give it to iTunes for trying to press their dominance in interesting ways."