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."

'Seinfeld'-In-A-Box

Just in time for Festivus — the "Seinfeld"-centric holiday "for the rest of us — comes the ultimate "Seinfeld" DVD collection, all nine season in one box.

Nearly 10 years after the beloved sitcom left the air, "Seinfeld" releases its complete-season run on DVD, Nov. 6 - a four disc seat with all 24 episodes of the final season. But the real treat that day is an elaborate boxed set with all nine seasons. "Seinfeld: The Complete Series" features 32 discs and will sell for around $283.95.

That includes not only all 180 episodes, but also a bonanza of bonus materials including a 226-page coffee-table book filled with photos, quotes, trivia and personal reflections from star Jerry Seinfeld himself.

"When the show wrapped, the book, which had taken years to assemble, was privately shared with only the cast and crew," Marc Rashba, VP marketing at Sony Pictures Home Entertainment told Reuters.

"When we were launching the TV-DVD series sets five years ago, we loved it so much, but we took a look, and it was ridiculously expensive to put it out. Now, we reshaped and redesigned it, and we were able to make it happen. It's the first time the public will get to see it."

Other special materials in the big-boxed set are documentaries on all nine seasons, bloopers, deleted scenes, commentaries and more. "We talked about this from the beginning, when we launched this," Rashba said. "We always knew we wanted to wrap up with something special."

Timberlake goes for laughs in Mike Myers movie

U.S. star Justin Timberlake has signed on to play a hockey player in Mike Myers' new comedy, The Love Guru.

Myers and Timberlake last worked together when they voiced characters on the third - and worst - Shrek film.

The comedy will begin shooting in Toronto in September, according to Variety.

Myers, the Canadian comedian perhaps best known for the Austin Powers movies, plays a man who was raised by gurus and helps couples with relationship problems.

His unorthodox methods are put to the test when he provides marriage counseling to a hockey star, whose wife promptly leaves him for Timberlake.

Marco Schnabel, who worked on Goldmember, is directing.

Timberlake earned seven nominations, including male artist of the year, for the upcoming MTV Video Music Awards and is touring in support of his Future Sex/Love Sounds album.

The former 'N Sync frontman also starred in the movies Alpha Dog and Black Snake Moan.

The cast of The Love Guru includes Jessica Alba, best known for appearing in Fantastic Four, Romany Malco of the figure-skating comedy Blades of Glory and Verne Troyer, who played Mini-Me in the Austin Powers movies.

Updated Epcot Center film has Martin Short as voice of Canada

Disney is finally updating the film that presents the face of Canada at Epcot Center in Florida, and has chosen Hamilton-born comedian Martin Short to tell the story.

The SCTV and Saturday Night Live star will play a cowboy, a member of Cirque du Soleil and several other characters in the film that gives visitors an introduction to Canada.

It will be shown in the Canada Pavilion at Epcot, one of Walt Disney World's theme parks, beginning next month.

Canadians have been complaining for years about O Canada.

The footage of Canadian scenes and cities was shot in 1979 and has been criticized for its portrayal of Canadians as lumberjacks, fishermen and Mounties.

"I'd say that in the last 10 years … we got a lot of complaints from Canadians who said, 'I don't think this is reflective of Canada. We're not just about geese. We're not about flannel jackets and we're definitely not about just great, wide open landscapes,"'said Gisele Danis with the Canadian Tourism Commission.

"The letters just poured in."

The CTC has been lobbying for years to have the Disney-made film updated.

The agency that promotes Canadian tourism has played a role in creating the new version, and agreed with Disney on the choice of Short as narrator.

Film emphasizes Canadian star power

The entertainer said the new film will definitely give people a more realistic view of Canada, if a mildly humourous one.

"It's more of a comedic look … it's, shall we say, a lighthearted examination of Canada," he said. "It's little vignettes and things, and I narrate it as well."

In the last 25 years, Canadian comedians have emerged with a distinct sensibility in the minds of Americans, Short said.

The film makes the most of that reputation and points out other big stars with Canadian roots.

"There is a montage of all the kinds of, I guess, celebrity lights that have come from Canada 'cause it is an unusually disproportionate number when you think of it," Short said.

The film also features new music and vocals by last year's Canadian Idol, Eva Avula.

Chris Cornell maps out fall tour plans

Chris Cornell continues his post-Audioslave career with a new round of headlining dates this fall supporting his first solo album in more than seven years.

The singer will make a Sept. 15 appearance at radio station KROQ's LA Invasion festival (which also features Smashing Pumpkins and Velvet Revolver, among other acts) before kicking off the headlining portion of his outing Sept. 25 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The tour spans 11 cities and wraps up Oct. 7 in Reno, NV. All dates are below.

In February, Cornell announced that he had split with Audioslave due to "irresolvable personality conflicts as well as musical differences," and simultaneously announced the impending release of "Carry On," which eventually hit stores June 5.

"Carry On," Cornell's first solo collection since 1999's "Euphoria Morning," was produced by Steve Lillywhite (U2, Rolling Stones). Among the album's 14 tracks is the cut "You Know My Name," a song that first turned up in last year's James Bond flick, "Casino Royale," and the lead-off single "No Such Thing."

Alongside the set's 13 original tracks will be Cornell's "slow-grind cover of Michael Jackson's 'Billie Jean' that gives the familiar song a completely new feeling," according to a press release.

Cornell's old bandmates in Audioslave created a flurry of attention earlier this year when they reunited as Rage Against the Machine with singer Zack de la Rocha for a performance at this summer's Coachella festival. The band has remained together since the comeback gig, appearing subsequently at various summer festivals and other events, although the group has yet to make an official announcement concerning its long-term plans.

September 2007
15 - Carson, CA - Home Depot Center
25 - Winnipeg, MB - Burton Cummings Theatre
26 - Regina, Saskatchewan - Conexus Centre of the Arts
28 - Saskatoon, Saskatchewan - Prairieland Park
29 - Edmonton, Alberta - River Cree Resort and Casino
30 - Calgary, Alberta - MacEwan Hall @ University of Calgary

October 2007
2 - Vancouver, British Columbia - Vancouver Centre of the Performing Arts
3 - Seattle, WA - Paramount Theatre
4 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theatre
6 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Depot
7 - Reno, NV - Grand Sierra Resort and Casino

First Husband Cast on '24'

Canadians will infiltrate the White House on the next season of "24."

While Colm Feore won't be claiming the highest office in the land, the veteran actor -- a resident of Our Friendly Neighbor to the North -- has been cast as the First Husband on "24."

Cherry Jones was previously announced at the first female "24" president.

It isn't spoiling anything to note that there's a spotty history when it comes to "24" First Ladies and their sanity. Will Feore's character follow in the footsteps of Penny Johnson Jerald's Sherry Palmer or Jean Smart's Martha Logan?

While he's earned a reputation as one of Canada's most decorated stage and screen stars, Feore was actually born to Irish parents in Boston. Feore's American TV credits include the HBO film "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" and a guest turn on "Battlestar Galactica." He's been seen on the big screen in films ranging from "National Security" and "Paycheck" to the bilingual smash "Bon Cop, Bad Cop."

The seventh season of "24" is set to begin shooting on Sept. 10, a date that's already been pushed back due to a variety of production delays. In addition to Feore and Jones, new additions to the Emmy-winning drama include Janeane Garofalo.

Bill Murray Arrested for Drunk Driving in a Golf Cart

Hollywood star Bill Murray has been arrested on suspicion of drunk driving in a golf cart in the Swedish capital Stockholm.

The actor was stopped by police in the early hours of Sunday and alcohol was smelled on his breath, according Stockholm police detective inspector Christer Holmlund.

Holmlund says, "He refused to blow in the (breath test) instrument, citing American legislation. So we applied the old method - a blood test. It will take 14 days before the results are in."

Murray - who is in the city attending a golf tournament - signed a document admitting driving under the influence and permitted a police officer to enter a guilty plea on his behalf if the case goes to court.

The 56-year-old will only be charged if his blood alcohol level is higher than the legal limit. If it is excessively high he could face a prison sentence - but a fine is more likely.

Holmlund adds, "There were no obvious signs, like when someone is really tipsy." The officer claims mystery surrounds the golf cart and who owns it - although Murray isn't facing theft charges:

"It was a golf cart. How it ended up in this predicament I don't know. I have done this since 1968 and I've never experienced anything like this."

"Superbad" set to extend box office reign

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - As the lucrative summer moviegoing season winds down, this weekend's debutants -- led by the action-thriller "War" -- are looking to distinguish themselves simply by cresting the $10 million mark.

Last weekend's champion, Sony Pictures' teen comedy "Superbad," will likely log a second round on top with a three-day tally in the $16 million-$18 million range.

Besides "War," the other key newcomers are the Scarlett Johannson comedy "The Nanny Diaries," the latest Rowan Atkinson farce "Mr. Bean's Holiday," and the fact-based drama "Resurrecting the Champ."

"War" has the advantage of two marquee names in the action arena, Jet Li and Jason Statham, facing off as assassin and FBI agent, respectively. Lionsgate's R-rated film should get pulses racing among younger males, and conservatively should grab $10 million-$12 million.

"The Nanny Diaries," on the other hand, appeals to female audiences. Selling itself as this summer's equivalent to "The Devil Wears Prada," it stars Johansson as a nanny struggling to please a forbidding employer (Laura Linney).

MGM is handling the release for the Weinstein Co., with a likely opening gross in the $7 million-$8 million range. It could push up to $10 million if recent tracking showing interest perking up among younger females bears fruit.

British comic Atkinson is celebrated around the world for his goofily inept creation Mr. Bean. "Bean" grossed more than $250 million worldwide in 1997, though only $45 million of that tally came from North America. In "Mr. Bean's Holiday," the very English Bean heads off for a vacation in France.

The Universal Pictures comedy already has grossed nearly $190 million internationally, but there's a real question about whether Americans will get the joke, and so "Holiday" might end up loitering around the $5 million mark.

The Yari Film Group will attempt to counterprogram against the surrounding late-summer escapism by presenting a dramatic character study, "Resurrecting the Champ." Based on a true story, it stars Josh Hartnett as a journalist who learns life lessons when he stumbles across a homeless man (Samuel L. Jackson) who once was a boxing champ. "Champ" appears fated to enter the ring at somewhere less than the $5 million mark.

Two films are coming out in moderate release: "September Dawn," the controversial depiction of the 1857 massacre of settlers by a group of Mormons; and the Latino crime drama, "Illegal Tender."

`Anchorwoman' canceled after one airing

LOS ANGELES - Here's news that Fox's series "Anchorwoman" wouldn't want to deliver: It's been canceled after one low-rated airing.

The debut of the reality show about Lauren Jones' attempt to turn herself into a news anchor for a Texas TV station drew an estimated 2.7 million viewers Wednesday, according to preliminary figures from Nielsen Media Research.

That number is about a third of the viewership Fox attracted a week earlier with the finale of its popular "So You Think You Can Dance."

Jones was a Barker Beauty on "The Price Is Right," Miss New York and featured WWE Diva before the series put her into the newsroom of KYTX Channel 19 in Tyler, Texas.

Unaired episodes of "Anchorwoman" will be available on Fox's website through Fox on Demand, the network said Thursday.

Sharapova unveils U.S. Open wardrobe

NEW YORK — Maria Sharapova loves New York, especially its style and skyline. When Sharapova defends her U.S. Open title next week, she'll be wearing tennis dresses decorated with graphic interpretations of the cityscape on the chest.

The designs, created in collaboration with Nike senior designer Colleen Sandieson, were unveiled Wednesday evening on a rooftop at Rockefeller Center.

Like last year, Sharapova will have one outfit dedicated for day play and another for night matches.

"It's always important to feel comfortable in what you're wearing when you're playing, but in tennis, you can do so many things with your wardrobe," Sharapova said wearing the flame-red dress in a flared shift silhouette that she'll wear at night.

The color is in honor of the Big Apple. "I've worn a red top before but never a red dress, but there is no better place to do it than New York," she told the Associated Press.

The dress is a sleek garment made of a breathable wicking jersey and constructed with a no-sew technique with seams bonded with heat and silicone instead of thread.

There are more than 600 Swarovski crystals incorporated into the design, adding a little flash to the outfit, but Sharapova said it's simple and classy, which suits her taste. "I don't like things with too much pattern ... things that are tacky."

There also are three crystal buttons down the back, creating a keyhole effect.

For the daytime, the look is similar but in black and white — and without the crystals. It has a scoop-back design that facilitates movement, according to Sandieson.

Performance is always the priority, Sandieson said, but she and Sharapova strive for designs that marry function with fashion.

"She has a fantastic game and I have a lot of respect for that but she has a great eye for detail," Sandieson said. "She's got a style that's very natural to her, and she also knows what she likes and doesn't like."

Sharapova, 20, has become a player in the fashion world and has sponsorship deals with Parlux Fragrances, handbag company Samantha Thavasa and watchmaker Tag Heuer in addition to Nike. She follows Venus and Serena Williams and Anna Kournikova as tennis players who are also seen as style icons.

"She wears clothes that a lot of other women would like to own and look good in," said Susan Kaufman, editor of People StyleWatch.

Kaufman also notes that today's tennis stars are photographed when they're off the court, too, giving more of a glimpse of their personal style.

Sharapova noted that the U.S. Open, which runs Aug. 27-Sept. 8, coincides with New York Fashion Week and she tries to make it to at least one show. For the past two years, it's been Marc Jacobs but she also hopes to make it to Michael Kors, Peter Som and Vera Wang this year.

Once her tennis career is over, she said, fashion is something she'd like to further explore.

24 Takes Left Turn with Garofalo

Los Angeles (E! Online) - Attention, clockwatchers: Janeane Garofalo will now be punching a 24 timecard.

The über-liberal actress has signed on for the seventh season of Fox's conservative-leaning, clock-ticking drama, according to published reports.

Per the Hollywood Reporter, Garofalo will play a government agent investigating the latest crisis befalling Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) & Co.

Her presence on the set could make for an interesting back and forth with series co-creator and executive producer Joel Surnow, who has jokingly described himself as a "right-wing nut job."

The comedian and activist is the second major addition to the 24 cast in recent weeks, following last month's casting of Tony winner Cherry Jones as the series' commander in chief.

Garofalo's most recent small-screen stint was a recurring role as controversial campaign adviser Louise Thornton on the final season of NBC's West Wing.

Up until July 2006, she served alongside Sam Seder as a cohost of The Majority Report on Air America Radio but resigned after her relationship with Seder grew strained.

The outspoken thesp will have some time to get used to the idea of her latest gig before stepping in front of the cameras.

Production on the upcoming season of 24 was recently delayed a second time to allow writers the chance to flesh out the story arc.

Shooting is now due to commence on Sept. 10.

Family Guy doesn't wait for complete set

Many shows have been putting out complete series box sets lately. But Family Guy has got to be the first show to do it while the show is still on the air. While this box set is going to be instantly obsolete. It's still a really interesting package.

The new box set, entitled the Family Guy Freakin' Party Pack comes with all the DVDs from the first Five Volumes of Family Guy along with the straight to video DVD Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story. An 18th DVD is included with special features including deleted scenes a recording booth featurette, interviews and more.

The thing that makes this a "party pack" is what's included aside from the DVDs. The large box also contains Family Guy themed ping pong equipment and 100 poker chips and playing cards.

The set arrives on October 30th, a busy day for DVD with a suggested retail price of $149.98.

New CD Releases, Aug. 21: Josh Ritter, Joe Bonamassa, New Pornographers

Josh Ritter "The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter"

The acclaimed singer/songwriter returns with his follow-up to last year's "The Animal Years," a work that wowed many critics and wound up on several year-end Top 10 lists. The excellently titled "The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter" is the vocalist's fourth album.

Although born in Idaho, Ritter first made his fame through touring and recording in Ireland. The Emerald isle still boasts his most fervent fan base, but his home country is quickly catching up in that race.

Big fans won't want to wait long before picking up a copy of "The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter," since the disc's first run includes a bonus 4-song EP.

* * *
Joe Bonamassa "Sloe Gin"

The blues-rock star is back with his seventh album, "Sloe Gin," which re-teams him with producer Kevin Shirley (Joe Satriani, Led Zeppelin).

The set, which follows last year's "You and Me," includes originals and cover songs. The cover material ranges from the Ten Years After classic "One of These Days" and Paul Rodgers' "Seagull" to the John Martin tune "Jelly Roll" and Charles Brown's "Black Night."

The stellar guitarist/vocalist, who began playing at age 4, will support "Sloe Gin" with a lengthy North American tour. The trek kicks off Aug. 27 in Sellersville, PA, and is set to finish Nov. 30 in West Palm Beach, FL.

* * *
The New Pornographers "Challengers"

The Canadian indie-pop ensemble, known for having a shifting lineup that still usually includes core members Dan Behar and Neko Case, is set to release a follow-up to the 2005 breakthrough set "Twin Cinema."

The New Pornographers will back "Challengers" with a North American road show set to begin with a Sept. 13 show in Victoria, British Columbia. The tour is scheduled to run through a Nov. 5 date in Englewood, CO, and will feature a plethora of opening acts--including Lavender Diamond, Emma Pollock and a pair of New Pornographers side projects, Immaculate Machine and Fancey.

* * *
Rilo Kiley "Under the Blacklight"

The pop-rock outfit is back with its fourth full-length album, which marks its debut on Warner Bros. The first single from the set is "The Moneymaker."

"Under the Black Light" follows an 18-month hiatus, during which time lead singer Jenny Lewis released her debut solo album, singer/guitarist Blake Sennett released a second album with The Elected, and drummer Jason Boesel recorded with Bright Eyes.

Now reunited, the band will perform "Under the Black Light" during a five-week North American tour that starts Sept. 6 in San Francisco.

* * *
Talib Kweli "Ear Drum"

The hip-hop great has lined up an impressive cast of stars for his latest release. "Ear Drum" features production assistance from Kanye West, Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am, Madlib and Hi-Tek, as well as guest appearances by Norah Jones, Jean Grae and UGK.

* * *
More new releases:
Architecture in Helsinki, "Places Like This" (Polyvinyl)
Louis Armstrong, "Monterey Jazz Festival Live 1958" (MJF)
As I Lay Dying, "An Ocean Between Us" (Metal Blade)
Miles Davis, "Monterey Jazz Festival Live 1963" (MJF)
The Flaming Lips, "U.F.O's at the Zoo: The Legendary Concert in Oklahoma" (Reprise)
Darren Hayes, "This Delicate Thing We've Made" (Powdered Sugar)
M.I.A., "Kala" (Interscope)
Loreena McKennitt, "Nights from the Alhambra" (Verve)
Thelonious Monk, "Monterey Jazz Festival Live 1964" (MJF)
Joe Nichols, "Real Things" (Univeral South)
Ratt, "Tell the World: The Very Best of Ratt" (Rhino)
Sixx: A.M., "The Heroin Diaries" (Eleven Seven)
Luciana Souza, "New Bossa Nova" (Verve)

Soundtracks and scores:
"Halloween" (Hip-O)

Meet Your 'Survivor: China' Castaways

A grave digger, a Christian talk radio host, a chicken farmer and a WWE wrestler lead the newly announced castaways for CBS' "Survivor: China."

The 15th installment of the Mark Burnett-produced CBS staple will premiere on Thursday, Sept. 20 in an episode that finds the castaways starting in downtown Shanghai and moving to HuangPu Mountain's Mi Tuo Temple for a Buddhist ceremony. Then the castaways will be placed on separate islands on the Zhelin Lake in the Jiangxi Province.

Each tribe will be given a copy of Sun Tzu's "The Art of War" for motivation and assistance.

Brilliant or vaguely racist? We'll leave it to the castaways and host Jeff Probst to decide.

In case you're curious, the WWE wrestler is Ashley, winner of the 2005 RAW Diva Search. She was also on the cover of the April 2007 issue of Playboy, according to her bio.

The chicken farmer? None other than Chicken Morris, who is also this season's oldest contestant at 47.

And not only does Leslie host a mid-morning radio show on Christian talk radio, but she was also represented North Carolina in 2001's Mrs. USA pageant.

Based on a quick skim of the other contestants, we're looking forward to seeing how Jean-Robert's professional poker skills will play in the wilderness, much less how Frosti will convert his parkour athleticism to a more rural environment.

Here's a little info on the 16 new castaways viewers will meet formally when "Survivor: China" premieres on Thursday, Sept. 20:

Name: Jean-Robert Bellande
Age: 36
Hometown: Las Vegas
Occupation: Professional poker player

Name: James Clement
Age: 30
Hometown: Lafayette, La.
Occupation: Grave digger

Name: Dave Cruser
Age: 37
Hometown: Simi Valley, CA
Occupation: Former model

Name: Jaime Dugan
Age: 22
Hometown: Columbia, S.C.
Occupation: Student

Name: Todd Herzog
Age: 22
Hometown: Pleasant Grove, Utah
Occupation: Flight attendant

Name: Erik Huffman
Age: 26
Hometown: Nashville
Occupation: Musician

Name: Amanda Kimmel
Age: 23
Hometown: Los Angeles
Occupation: Hiking guide

Name: Peih-Gee Law
Age: 29
Hometown: Marina Del Rey, CA (born in Hong Kong)
Occupation: Jeweler

Name: Sherea Lloyd
Age: 26
Hometown: Atlanta
Occupation: Elementary teacher

Name: Denise Martin
Age: 40
Hometown: Douglas, Mass.
Occupation: School lunch lady

Name: Ashley Massaro
Age: 28
Hometown: East Northport, NY
Occupation: WWE wrestler

Name: Chicken Morris
Age: 47
Hometown: Marion, Va.
Occupation: Chicken Farmer

Name: Leslie Nease
Age: 38
Hometown: Tega Cay, S.C.
Occupation: Christian radio talk show host

Name: Aaron Resiberger
Age: 32
Hometown: Venice, CA
Occupation: Surfing Instructor

Name: Courtney Yates
Age: 26
Hometown: New York City
Occupation: Waitress

Name: Frosti Zernow
Age: 20
Hometown: Chicago
Occupation: Parkour athlete/Student

Neil Young Polishes 'Chrome Dreams' For October

Neil Young is borrowing the intended title for a 30-year-old shelved album for his next release. "Chrome Dreams II" is due Oct. 16 via Reprise. The 10-song set includes three previously penned tunes and seven new cuts. Two unnamed songs run well past the double-digit mark, at 13:00 and 18:30, respectively.

Young recorded the album quickly with assistance from Crazy Horse drummer Ralph Molina and pedal steel guitarist Ben Keith, and only played it for Reprise reps last week. The project is the follow-up to 2006's "Living With War" and will be supported by a North American tour set to begin around Oct. 13, according to Young's publicist.

The original "Chrome Dreams" was scrapped in 1977 for unknown reasons, but a number of the songs pegged to appear on it become Young classics after being released on later albums, including "Pocahontas," "Sedan Delivery," "Powderfinger," "Look Out for My Love" and "Like a Hurricane."

According to Young's Web site, "all original documentation and art for this album was lost in a fire that destroyed Neil's Malibu home in early 1978."

Meanwhile, the first volume in Young's "Archives" boxed set series is holding steady with a Feb. 18 release date, however, the project's arrival has shifted countless times in recent years.

Ryan Seacrest to host Emmy Awards

LOS ANGELES - Ryan Seacrest of "American Idol" is hosting next month's Emmy ceremony, but viewers still won't be able to call in and pick the winners.

Seacrest's appeal is expected to be a "magnet" that pulls viewers, especially younger ones, to the awards show on Fox, Dick Askin, chairman and chief executive officer of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, said Monday.

The 59th Primetime Emmy Awards will air Sept. 16.

Last year's Emmys, hosted on NBC by Conan O'Brien, drew about 16.1 million viewers, the second least-watched Emmy telecast since 1991. It aired unusually early, in August, to make way for NBC's National Football League telecast.

The awards ceremony rotates among the four major broadcast networks.

The Emmys were to have even more of an "Idol" touch, with two of the talent show's executive producers, Nigel Lythgoe and Ken Warwick, producing. But they withdrew from the job earlier this year, citing their demanding schedules, and veteran producer Ken Ehrlich stepped in.

HBO's recently departed "The Sopranos" is the most-nominated series with 15 bids, while the made-for-TV movie "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" has the most nominations, 17, for all programs.

Cutting-edge shows such as "30 Rock" dominated the comedy series category, with "Ugly Betty" leading the charge with 11 nominations. Fox may also be hoping that another hot new show, NBC's "Heroes," proves an Emmy draw for advertiser-favored young adult viewers.

How did `Superbad' top the box office?

NEW YORK - When the summer began, "Superbad" appeared like a possible sleeper hit, but by the time late August rolled around, it was a bona fide box-office favorite.

Made for less than $20 million, starring two relative unknowns and R-rated (somewhat contradictory for a teen comedy), "Superbad" gradually grew into one of the most acclaimed and talked-about comedies of the summer.

In its opening weekend, it took in $33.1 million, according to figures released Monday by Media by Numbers LLC, easily topping the box office and surpassing expectations. Most predictions had "Superbad" in the $25 million range.

The movie follows two teenage friends (Michael Cera and Jonah Hill) in a quest for alcohol and girls in their final high-school days. Written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, the film was directed by Greg Mottola and produced by Judd Apatow.

Apatow has recently become one of the most powerful players in Hollywood comedy, showing a Midas touch for making inexpensive, R-rated, earnest comedies like "Knocked Up" and "The 40 Year-Old Virgin," both of which he directed. He and Rogen (a frequent collaborator) shopped "Superbad" for seven years before their success made "Superbad" more attractive to studios.

The humor quotient of the key actors — Hill, Cera, Rogen, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Bill Hader — was more important to the success of "Superbad" than casting known performers, Apatow said.

"I never think in terms of who's famous. I just think in terms of who's funny," Apatow told The Associated Press as he headed to the "Knocked Up" premiere Sunday at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in Scotland. "I knew these five actors were hilarious and that people would love them."

Though Apatow's involvement in "Superbad" was highly publicized, the success of the film can't be traced to the Apatow brand alone. A Sony Pictures release, the movie smartly adopted the marketing strategy of "Knocked Up" and "Virgin," both released by Universal.

"He's not a behind-the-scenes guy — he's out in front promoting these movies," said BoxOfficeMojo.com founder and president Brandon Gray of Apatow. "He's developed a brand, but it's more about the style and the sensibility than it is about him as a name."

By comparison, "Knocked Up" opened earlier this year with $31.6 million, and eventually made $146 million. In 2005, "Virgin" opened with a haul of $21 million, going on to make $109 million at the box office.

Like both of those films, "Superbad" was played heavily to preview screenings well before its August release, drumming up strong word-of-mouth.

"We kind of took a grass-roots approach," said Rory Bruer, head of distribution at Sony. He added that that strategy fits "when you feel like you have something that is such a crowd pleaser."

"Superbad" capitalized as well on videos posted on YouTube and FunnyOrDie.com, a site for comedic videos co-created by Will Ferrell. Over 1.5 million people have watched videos of the movie's R-rated trailer on YouTube. Also popular have been videos of a mock argument during a press junket involving Cera and Hill, and those of Rogen and Hader performing in character as police officers.

"The R-rated trailer has been sort of the biggest marketing thing they could have done," Hill recently said on the AMC program "Sunday Morning Shootout." "The Internet has been the biggest way to get the word out about the movie and what the movie is actually like."

More traditional media coverage also helped. "Superbad" found extensive coverage in newspapers and magazines, aided by the dearth of competition among other August releases — a time when studios often dump their mediocre offerings.

But the studio had more freedom to advertise online with R-rated and long-form material.

"The Internet played a really big part in it because it gave us an opportunity to see aspects of (`Superbad') that they weren't going to get otherwise and it kind of gave it more of an organic feel," said Bruer.

Owen to give Marlowe a shot

Clive Owen is set to star as iconic gumshoe Phillip Marlowe in a film he also will produce.

No licence to kill? No problem, as Clive Owen continues to prove with his hard-boiled, bullet-ridden resume.

Case in point: Following in the powder burns of next month's explosively violent Shoot 'Em Up and 2006's live-action comic book Sin City, he's planning to star as Raymond Chandler's Phillip Marlowe, the iconic gumshoe previously embodied by such screen legends as Robert Mitchum and Humphrey Bogart. Owen will also produce.

"So no," he says when asked if playing noirish anti-heroes is wearing thin, "I'm not stepping away from it."

Frank Miller, the graphic novelist behind Sin City and 300, will pen the Marlowe project.

Prior to that, Owen will star in The International, an action thriller with Naomi Watts that casts the one-time Bond contender as a federal agent trying to expose a corrupt European bank. Thomas Tykwer (Run Lola Run) is directing.

Still, Owen is not all about gun play and leather dusters, either. He'll attend this year's Toronto International Film Festival for the premiere of Elizabeth: The Golden Age, in which he portrays Sir Walter Raleigh.

DREAM ROLE: Owen's Shoot 'Em Up co-star Paul Giamatti wants to play influential science fiction author Philip K. Dick in a biopic, he told journalists last weekend in New York City.

Dick wrote Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, which the 1982 classic Blade Runner was based on, as well as the short stories Minority Report and A Scanner Darkly.

OSCAR KICKS THE BUCKET: The L.A. Times reports that Warner Bros. has slotted a Dec. 25 bow for The Bucket List, a tearjerker about two geezers going on a last hoorah before they croak.

Given that it stars Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, it's safe to assume the studio believes the Rob Reiner project has a lively shot at multiple Oscar nominations.

BARBARIAN INVASIONS: By Crom! Did 300 do what even a god couldn't -- namely, inspire Hollywood to resurrect Conan The Barbarian?

Apparently.

You can add a Conan remake to the litany of sword-and-sorcery epics inspired by 300's global success. Among them, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe and a re-imagining of 1981's Clash of the Titans (penned by no less than Lawrence Kasdan, director of Body Heat and The Big Chill, as well as writer of Raiders of the Lost Ark and Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back).

Don't look for California's guvenator to don the fur diaper and iron crown again, though.

The new Conan, ramping up to go into production by spring, will be sans Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Star Wars actors named film couple with least chemistry

British audiences have voted the pairing of actors Natalie Portman and Hayden Christensen as having the least onscreen chemistry, according to a new poll.

The survey of 3,000 movie-goers by British cinema advertisers Pearl and Dean rated the young pairing from two Star Wars movies, including Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, as having the least plausible chemistry.

The two beat Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez for their performance in Gigli. That film was made when they were a real life couple.

Affleck hit the top 10 twice, in fact. His not-so-hot chemistry with Kate Beckinsdale in Pearl Harbor took the No. 7 spot.

Rounding out the top three were British thespians Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom who were thought "too stiff upper lip" in the Pirates of the Caribbean series, and just didn't have "enough lust."

Madonna and Italian actor Adriano Giannini sat in the No. 4 spot for Swept Away, the 2002 box-office flop directed by the pop superstar's husband Guy Ritchie.

Catherine Zeta Jones's romance with Sir Sean Connery in 1999's Entrapment ended up in fifth place, partly because of the 39-year age difference, according to the poll.

Hugh Grant and Andie MacDowell are sixth for Four Weddings and a Funeral.

Then-married couple Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman were eighth, for their roles in the Stanley Kubrick film Eyes Wide Shut.

Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal were ninth as gay lovers in the cowboy film Brokeback Mountain followed by Titanic stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet.

MOVIE COUPLES WITH THE WORST ONSCREEN CHEMISTRY
1. Natalie Portman and Hayden Christensen in Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones

2. Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez in Gigli

3. Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom in the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy

4. Madonna and Adriano Giannini in Swept Away

5. Catherine Zeta Jones and Sir Sean Connery in Entrapment

Timberlake Dicking Around at the Emmys?

Will Justin Timberlake be allowed to show his “Dick” at the Emmys?

Maybe.

I hear there are ongoing talks for Timberlake and Andy Samberg to perform “Dick in a Box” on the big night (Sept. 16) at L.A.’s Shrine Auditorium.

No surprise there, because they’re nominated for the skit, which originally aired on Saturday Night Live in December. Problem is, not everyone is a fan of the racy ditty.

Taking its cue from early '90s R&B videos, the number features Timberlake and Samberg with wrapped presents attached to their waists. They sing about giving very special gifts to their ladies for Christmas. The song even explains how to do it:

1. Cut a hole in a box.
2. Put your junk in that box...

I’m told executives at Fox—the network airing this year’s ceremony—still haven’t given their final approval.

When it aired on NBC, “dick” was bleeped out 16 times! A few days later, NBC came under fire from conservative groups when the network posted an uncensored version on the SNL website and YouTube.

Reps for the Emmys and Fox did not comment, nor did reps for Timberlake and Samberg.

Considering Fox is home to The Simpsons, you’d think there would be no hesitation.

It’s not like Timberlake doesn’t have experience handling controversial television performances, but let’s just hope he and Samberg keep their junk well hidden. The last thing they need to be worrying about is a wardrobe malfunction.

Garth Brooks to release hits album

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Garth Brooks may be retired from touring, but he's not slowing down.

Brooks announced Saturday that a greatest hits package called "The Ultimate Hits," with four new songs and a DVD full of videos, will be released on Nov. 6.

Brooks, 45, retired in 2001 to be a stay-at-home dad. He said he has no plans to tour, but he assured more than 200 radio executives and music retailers that he will be promoting the album.

"You're going to see us everywhere," said Brooks. "It's my job to let people know it's out there. And then after February, I'm going to go back to whatever I was doing before this."

Brooks' hits include "Friends in Low Places," "Shameless" and "Longneck Bottle."

'Superbad' has super haul of $31 million

LOS ANGELES - "Superbad" was super good at the box office, proving that a no-name cast could hold its own amid A-list summer blockbusters.

The teen comedy from Sony, the misadventures of two high school buddies trying to score booze, took in $31.2 million to debut as the weekend's No. 1 movie, according to studio estimates Sunday.

"Superbad" knocked off the previous weekend's top flick, New Line's "Rush Hour 3," which slipped to second place with $21.8 million, raising its total to $88.2 million.

The Warner Bros. sci-fi tale "The Invasion," starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig in an update of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," opened a weak No. 5 with $6 million.

"Superbad" maintains the pattern of producer Judd Apatow's earlier hits, "Knocked Up" and "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," which he directed. Apatow and his collaborators, including "Knocked Up" star and "Superbad" co-writer and co-star Seth Rogen, have a knack for packaging crude, R-rated humor with clever, authentic dialogue far smarter than what's normally seen in summer comedies.

Shot on a modest $20 million budget, "Superbad" had a slightly better debut than "Knocked Up," which opened in June with $30.7 million and went on become a $100 million hit.

"I think a genuinely funny movie always has a shot at doing well, because so few movies are really funny," Apatow told The Associated Press as he headed to the "Knocked Up" premiere Sunday at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in Scotland.

"Superbad," co-written by Rogen and his high school best friend Evan Goldberg, stars Jonah Hill and Michael Cera as pals on a quest for alcohol to impress the foxy host of a party. Rogen co-stars as an inept cop who ends up carousing with the teens, while Christopher Mintz-Plasse proves a scene-stealer as Hill and Cera's super-geeky friend.

Though centering on high schoolers, "Superbad" drew in older crowds, with 40 percent of the audience over 30, said Rory Bruer, head of distribution for Sony.

"The Apatow comedy machine itself is a brand now, and it's a brand that has created movies that appeal to older audiences who now follow whatever he does, even in the teen genre, which is very unusual," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers.

Overall Hollywood revenues rose with the top 12 movies taking in $110.5 million, up 21 percent from the same weekend last year, when "Snakes on a Plane" opened at No. 1 with $15.2 million. Movie attendance is running 5 percent ahead of last summer's, according to Media By Numbers.

The Weinstein Co. release "The Last Legion," featuring Ben Kingsley in an action tale set in ancient Rome, tanked with just $2.6 million, finishing at No. 12.

In narrower release, MGM's comedy "Death at a Funeral," a tale of outrageous goings-on at a British patriarch's farewell, opened solidly with $1.3 million.

Warner Independent's "The 11th Hour," a global-crisis documentary on ecological issues co-written, co-produced and narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, debuted well in four theaters with $56,000.

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," $31.2 million.
2. "Rush Hour 3," $21.8 million.
3. "The Bourne Ultimatum," $19 million.
4. "The Simpsons Movie," $6.7 million.
5. "The Invasion," $6 million.
6. "Stardust," $5.2 million.
7. "Hairspray," $4.3 million.
8. "Underdog," $3.6 million.
9. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," $3.54 million.
10. "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry," $3.5 million.

THE COUCH POTATO REPORT - August 18th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report peels a Manitoba made lookout, some wild hogs and Welcome Home!

Up first this week is a great little thriller called THE LOOKOUT

In THE LOOKOUT Joseph Gordon-Levitt - who played the kid, Tommy, on the TV show THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN is Chris, a star high school hockey player with a bright future and a gorgeous girlfriend.

One night, on a back country road, everything changes.

An accident leaves him with a brain injury, and he now needs notes to remind him to do simple things, like to grind the coffee beans before trying to make a pot of coffee, to take a shower when he wakes up, and such.

The film primarily focusses on the time four years after the accident, when Chris is as recovered as he is likely to be.

All he wants is to lead a normal life, but he has no girlfriend, he works as a night janitor in a bank, and his only real buddy is his blind, older roommate, Lewis.

Then, one day at a bar, he meets Gary and the two become friends.

They two hang out and play pool together, Gary introduces him to a woman, and everything appears to be going well ...until the day that Gary asks for Chris's help....to rob the bank.

And that is about all I am going to tell you about this film, because any more details might ruin it for you, and I do not want to do that. I want you to see it!

Screenwriter Scott Frank - who gave us LITTLE MAN TATE, MALICE, OUT OF SIGHT and GET SHORTY has given us another well-written film with real-life characters.

He also makes his directorial debut with THE LOOKOUT...a film shot in and around Winnipeg.

THE LOOKOUT is one of those films that most people would probably skip over at the store, it was bypassed by almost everyone it when it played in theatres back in March, but you should not miss this film.

It is full of grit, has a great deal of tension, and is always interesting.

THE LOOKOUT is a film I highly recommend.

Now...on the other side of that coin, the polar opposite if you will, is our next film this week.

A film I disliked, dispised...actually, let me be blunt...this next title is a film that I absolutely hated!

That film is WILD HOGS, and it is one of the worst movies I have ever seen.

Four actors I really like, respect, and usually enjoy star in WILD HOGS - John Travolta, Tim Allen, William H. Macy and Martin Lawrence.

They play four middle aged men who ride their motorcycles after work and on weekends.

It is something they do as a group for fun and relaxation, but then one day they decide to take it to the next level.

They plan to take a road trip from their home in Cincinnati to the Pacific, in order to get away from their lives which - they feel - are leading them nowhere.

Now let me stop there and remind you of the plot of the 1991 film CITY SLICKERS - Mitch and his friends Ed and Phil are having mid-life crisis. They decide to go on a two week holiday in the wild west driving cattle from New Mexico to Colorado. There they become real cowboys, and find out one or two other things about life in the open air of the west.

Sound familiar? Well it is...but that is where the similarities end. CITY SLICKERS is a classic, WILD HOGS is awful!!

The main problems I have with WILD HOGS is that it doesn't seem to give any respect to the very talented actors it has playing the leads.

The script never allows them to act, and thus, inhabit their characters.

Had they done that, this could have been a pretty good movie.

Now, I usually don't sit here and tell you how a movie could have been better, but this week I will make an exception.

Had WILD HOGS followed it's premise of just sending their characters on a road trip, and let time, the guys' egos, the elements and the things that actually happen along the road take their course, this could have been a great film.

But instead of letting life be the antagonist, the filmmakers had to include a biker gang as the Wild Hogs' enemies.

The minute we meet this gang is when the film loses any momentum it had built up, and instead of being entertained, we get Ray Liotta - as the lead bad guy - yelling.

And then he yells some more.

Now I know my dislike and disdain for WILD HOGS isn't shared by the majority of people who have seen it.

After all, it made over 168 million dollars at the box office since it debuted last March, and within a few days an announcement will come that it is the best selling DVD of the past week in North America.

So the film has found an audience...but I don't know why...this movie just doesn't work.

The screenplay isn't funny, the actors spend so much time trying to outdo each other on screen that they aren't believable as friends, much less comrades, and...I...can't be bothered talking about this movie anymore.

If you decide to see it, go ahead, maybe you will like it better than I did.

But to be clear, I did not like WILD HOGS at all.

It is one of the worst movies I have ever seen.

Ever!!

Okay, from the awful, lets get back to some good.

And we will cleanse ourselves from the stench of WILD HOGS with Jim Henson's classic television program THE MUPPET SHOW, because SEASON TWO of the show is now available on DVD!!

All 24 episodes from the show's second season are included on this digitally remastered and restored 4-disc DVD set.

The set also includes THE MUPPETS VALENTINE SPECIAL, rare archival footage and more.

But mostly, it features the classic characters we grew up with, doing what we best remember them for.

SEASON TWO of the show saw Jim Henson and crew win an Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy-Variety or Music Program, and the guest stars included Steve Martin, Peter Sellers, Elton John, Julie Andrews, Don Knotts, Bernadette Peters, George Burns, John Cleese, Bob Hope, and many others.

I loved THE MUPPET SHOW when I watched it as a kid and a teenager, and I also enjoy watching it now on DVD, as an adult. I think you will too!!

Finally this week, our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD continues with the very entertaining Spanish Film WELCOME HOME.

Out of all of the foreign films I have told you about this summer, this is one of my favourites!

WELCOME HOME is about Samuel and Eva, a young couple, who move to Madrid after she is hired to play viola in the orchestra.

The two have been dating for a while, but had been living apart, and now Samuel is very nervous because they are moving in together.

However, Eva has an even bigger bit of news for him. News that will worry him even more...and make him reconsider everything he thinks he knows...she is pregnant.

In addition to the relationship side of WELCOME HOME, we meet the interesting people that Samuel works with and runs in to, including a movie critic who is blind, and an old friend who never got over the crush she had on him.

WELCOME HOME isn't spectacular, in fact it isn't really even all that unique a relationship movie.

But Pilar López de Ayala - the actress who plays Eva - and Alejo Sauras - who is Samuel - are just so believeable as these people, that the film works, perhaps in spite of itself.

It is an enjoyable way to spend two hours, and it is the third last selection in the FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD.

The very enjoyable WELCOME HOME, SEASON TWO of the classic televison program THE MUPPET SHOW, the absolutely awful WILD HOGS, and the made-in-Manitoba thriller THE LOOKOUT are all available now on DVD.

Coming up on the next Couch Potato Report

Canadian Oscar nominee Ryan Gosling takes on manipulative criminal Anthony Hopkins in FRACTURE; and GOD GREW TIRED OF US is an utterly fascinating documentary about a group of Sudanese refugees granted asylum into the USA after wandering around Africa for years having been displaced by the wars in the 1990s.

Also next week, THE EX is an awful film about a slacker who is forced to work for his father-in-law; SEASON THREE of the superb TV series HOUSE debuts on DVD and our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD continues with the British film I FOR INDIA.

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!

'Conchords,' 'Entourage' Keep Flying

HBO has renewed its comedies "Entourage" and "Flight of the Conchords," lending a measure of stability to a lineup that's in a little bit of flux.

The two shows, which air back-to-back on Sunday nights, are poised to end their current seasons -- the fourth for "Entourage" and the first for "Conchords" -- on Sept. 2. HBO says they'll be back with new episodes sometime next year.

"'Entourage' is a full-fledged cultural phenomenon, and 'Flight of the Conchords' has quickly become a show to watch," HBO Entertainment president Carolyn Strauss says. "I'm delighted that we'll be bringing new seasons of these distinctive series to our subscribers."

An Emmy nominee for best comedy series, "Entourage" has seen its ratings grow steadily over the course of its life. Debut airings now average about 3 million viewers a week (encores and on-demand viewing push that number up).

The season's remaining episodes will deal with Eric (Kevin Connolly), Vince (Adrian Grenier) et al taking their movie "Medellin" to Cannes and trying to get a new project off the ground with impossibly difficult director Billy Walsh (Rhys Coiro).

"Flight of the Conchords," which stars Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement as a New Zealand folk-rock band taking New York not especially by storm, has become a cult show this summer. Though it draws only a million or so viewers on its initial airing, it's earned a lot of critical praise, and clips from the show and the duo's live performances are big draws on YouTube.

Sub Pop records released a Conchords EP titled "The Distant Future" earlier this month and will follow up with a full-length album in January.

Paul Anka does 'Classics' his way

Age has apparently mellowed Paul Anka. With his last CD, 2005's Rock Swings, the 66-year-old pop veteran raised eyebrows by performing tunes made famous by Nirvana, Soundgarden and Van Halen. But his latest project covers the softer turf of Billy Joel, Joni Mitchell and, well, Anka himself.
"I obviously didn't want to do Rock Swings II," says Anka.

So for Classic Songs, My Way, out Aug. 28, the former teen idol, whose own songwriting credits include one of Frank Sinatra's signature tunes and the theme for The Tonight Show, decided to "expand things a little. I wanted to take songs from different genres that I could turn into ballads."

The result is a collection that swings — literally — from Joel's I Go to Extremes and Mitchell's Both Sides Now to ditties introduced by Cyndi Lauper (Time After Time), Duran Duran (Ordinary World), Daniel Powter (Bad Day) and, for edgy good measure, The Killers (Mr. Brightside).

There are also new renditions of vintage Anka material. My Way, adapted from a French song, "became especially important, because of my anniversary," says Anka, who is commemorating his 50th year in the music business. The Sinatra staple is featured as a duet with Jon Bon Jovi, while You Are My Destiny, a hit for Anka back in 1958, pairs him with latter-day crooner and fellow Canadian Michael Bublé.

Anka traces the more contemporary direction he began pursuing on Rock Swings to his enthusiasm for Bublé's first album, which he supported in the song selection and arranging stages.

"I saw there was a window for swing, and thought that Michael had the instrument for it, and this wonderful young energy that could put it back out there," Anka says.

Conversely, Anka realized "there's this pool of songs from the '80s and '90s that are today's standards, which brought me to Rock Swings. It was paramount to keep the integrity of the music, because anybody's reaction could have been, 'Anka, doing Teen Spirit? What is this, Pat Boone all over again?' "

(He's referring to Boone's 1997 camp classic, In a Metal Mood: No More Mr. Nice Guy. "A novelty record, I'd say — though Pat is a wonderful artist and an old friend.")

For Classic Songs, too, Anka chose songs "out of respect for the artists and the music. Many are songs that I wish I had written. The credibility I bring to them, perhaps, is that as a writer and musician myself, I can see and hear the songs in another way."

Anka stresses that he draws on different experiences than the younger artists whose repertoires he tapped. "When I started out, all you did was write and record something and give it to the record company. Then you went out and lived rock 'n' roll. Now you have to run a business and do a lot of other things."

Touring has changed as well, Anka observes.

"I started on a bus, and I'm not talking about a bus in today's terms, with beds and bathrooms and catering. These were buses that barely made it. And I was in some cases the only white kid, working my way through parts of the country where my friends couldn't get off to go to the bathroom or get something to eat."

Insecurity about his career was also an issue, even after writing chart-toppers such as Diana and (You're) Having My Baby and hits for Tom Jones and others. Anka recalls "not having the confidence to sing My Way, even though I was embraced by the Rat Pack."

Such travails will likely be explored in greater depth in an autobiography that Anka began planning after an interview on Howard Stern's Sirius satellite radio program last summer.

"I just told it like it was, talking about Sinatra, the Kennedys, the Mafia, everything that had been around me. People started calling in, asking when I was going to write a book."

Now signed to St. Martin's Press, Anka, who once flirted with a career in journalism, is "going through my archives with a writer who will work with me, because I don't have the time." He hopes to finish the book by late 2008.

In addition to promoting Classic Songs, he's already plotting his next album, which may contain original material, "though I can't commit yet."

Having recently returned from a European tour, Anka also is eager to launch a series of American dates in September — past misgivings about life on the road notwithstanding.

"Today I love it, because I survived to become part of something ongoing," he says. "With every song, you see a different look in people's eyes or a different rush to the stage. By the time you get to My Way, they're reaching up, some of them crying.

"That's the part you work your whole life for."

Best-of albums worst of choices for some

NEW YORK - A side-effect to today's fractured, tumultuous music industry is the fluctuating meaning of the greatest-hits album.

On one hand, it remains a giant moneymaker for labels, which are urging their artists to make best-of compilations increasingly earlier in their careers. On the other, iTunes has made greatest-hits albums redundant. If you want an act's highlights, you can assemble them yourself.

This dichotomy has, for some bands, made the decision to make a best-of album an increasingly difficult, sometimes contentious one. Some view greatest-hits albums as a blatant money grab that disrespects the integrity of the album. Pressure from labels can also come sooner than expected.

The Sacramento, Calif., band Cake (its hits include "The Distance" and "Short Skirt, Long Jacket") was requested by its former label, Columbia Records to make a greatest-hits album. With only a handful of well-known albums to its name, the band judged a best-of disc to be premature. They refused, prompting a legal fight between Cake and Columbia.

In the end, Cake left to form its own label, Upbeat Records, and will instead release "B-sides and Rarities" on Oct. 2, with a live disc to follow this fall.

"I have mixed feelings about greatest-hits albums," said Cake lead singer and guitarist John McCrea. "They're a force that can be used for good or evil."

"For us at that point, we felt like it wasn't the appropriate moment — that we hadn't existed long enough to warrant some sort of wistful retrospection. It kind of reeked of desperation."

In recent years, a number of acts have released greatest-hits albums early in their careers, including Britney Spears, Hilary Duff and Sugar Ray.

Though the advent of iTunes (not to mention illegal downloading and MySpace) has meant a band's most-popular songs can be instantly sampled or bought, greatest-hits discs remain lucrative to labels. In recent Nielsen SoundScan sales charts, at least half of the top 50 top-selling catalog albums typically are compilations.

Labels often add rare unreleased material or unique packaging to these albums to entice die-hard fans. They are also viewed as a way to introduce audiences to an act with whom they may be unfamiliar.

Still, there are several notable holdouts, including AC/DC, Radiohead, Phish and Metallica. Many artists feel greatest-hits discs corrupt the integrity of their prior albums. For the same reason, Radiohead and AC/DC have thus far resisted putting their music on iTunes, where albums are chopped into single tracks.

It's a stance Chris Lombardi, founder of independent label Matador Records, often encounters.

"I've been trying to encourage some of our bands to do greatest-hits records, but I think artistically they have a real difficult time taking away the identity of the album as it stands alone," said Lombardi.

Many of the artists on Matador's roster haven't had hits in the conventional sense, but could benefit from having highlights assembled to make it easier for the more passive music fan. In 2003, Matador released "The Best of Guided by Voices: Human Amusements at Hourly Rates" — a sensible collection for Guided by Voices, whose prodigious output included 16 full-length albums.

"I felt the output was so huge for that band that to narrow it down would be helpful," said Lombardi. "Somebody might be intimidated by the size of the catalog."

Whether a label needs the consent of an act to issue a compilation varies from contract to contract. Catalog sales account for approximately 40-50 percent of a label's annual gross, so rereleasing and repackaging old material is far more than an afterthought.

"If an artist has a say in these kind of things, you'd think that they'd want a greatest-hits record to be an intro to the band as a way to guide you into buying the rest of the records as opposed to being a substitute," said Steve Kandell, deputy editor of Spin magazine.

Some greatest-hits records take on a life of their own — like the Eagles' "Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975)," which is the best-selling album ever in the U.S. Similarly, Bob Marley's "Legend" was (and still is) a sensation. At one point, it spent 106 straight weeks atop the Nielsen SoundScan catalog chart.

Other bands like U2 and Aerosmith have been criticized for their seemingly unceasing parade of greatest-hits albums. U2 followed 1998's "The Best of 1980-1990" and 2002's "The Best of 1990-2000" with 2006's "U218 Singles." Last year's "Devil's Got a New Disguise: The Very Best of Aerosmith" was the band's eighth compilation over the course of their 27-year career.

"There's a reason why it doesn't seem very artistic: it's not. It's a commercial ploy," says McCrea. "That said, there are some terrific greatest-hits albums."

CD celebrates 25th anniversary

EINDHOVEN, Netherlands (AP) - It was Aug. 17, 1982, and row upon row of palm-sized plates with a rainbow sheen began rolling off an assembly line near Hanover, Germany.

An engineering marvel at the time, today they are instantly recognizable as Compact Discs, a product that turns 25 years old on Friday - and whose future is increasingly in doubt in an age of iPods and digital downloads.

Those first CDs contained Richard Strauss' Alpine Symphony and would sound equally sharp if played today, says Holland's Royal Philips Electronics NV, which jointly developed the CD with Sony Corp. of Japan.

The recording industry thrived in the 1990s as music fans replaced their aging cassettes and vinyl LPs with compact discs, eventually making CDs the most popular album format.

The CD still accounts for the majority of the music industry's recording revenues, but its sales have been in a freefall since peaking early this decade, in part due to the rise of online file-sharing, but also as consumers spend more of their leisure dollars on other entertainment purchases, such as DVDs and video games.

As the music labels slash wholesale prices and experiment with extras to revive the now-aging format, it's hard to imagine there was ever a day without CDs.

Yet it had been a risky technical endeavour to attempt to bring digital audio to the masses, said Pieter Kramer, the head of the optical research group at Philips' labs in the Netherlands in the 1970s.

"When we started there was nothing in place," he said in an interview at Philips' corporate museum in Eindhoven.

The proposed semiconductor chips needed for CD players were to be the most advanced ever used in a consumer product. And the lasers were still on the drawing board when the companies teamed up in 1979.

In 1980, researchers published what became known as the "Red Book" containing the original CD standards, as well as specifying which patents were held by Philips and which by Sony.

Philips had developed the bulk of the disc and laser technology, while Sony contributed the digital encoding that allowed for smooth, error-free playback. Philips still licenses out the Red Book and its later incarnations, notably for the CD-ROM for storing computer software and other data.

The CD's design drew inspiration from vinyl records: Like the grooves on a record, CDs are engraved with a spiral of tiny pits that are scanned by a laser - the equivalent of a record player's needle. The reflected light is encoded into millions of 0s and 1s: a digital file.

Because the pits are covered with plastic and the laser's light doesn't wear them down, the CD never loses sound quality.

Legends abound about how the size of the CD was chosen: Some said it matched a Dutch beer coaster; others believe a famous conductor or Sony executive wanted it just long enough for Beethoven's 9th Symphony.

Kramer said the decision evolved from "long conversations around the table" about which play length made the most sense.

The jump into mass production in Germany was a milestone for the CD, and by 1982 the companies announced their product was ready for market. Both began selling players that fall, though the machines only hit U.S. markets the following spring.

Sony sold the first player in Japan on Oct. 1, with the CBS label supplying Billy Joel's "52nd Street" as its first album.

The CD was a massive hit. Sony sold more players, especially once its "Discman" series was introduced in 1984. But Philips benefited from CD sales, too, thanks to its ownership of Polygram, now part of Vivendi SA's Universal Music Group.

The CD player helped Philips maintain its position as Europe's largest maker of consumer electronics until it was eclipsed by Nokia Corp. in the late 1990s. Licensing royalties sustained the company through bad times.

"The CD was in itself an easy product to market," said Philips' current marketing chief for consumer electronics, Lucas Covers. It wasn't just the sound quality - discs looked like jewelry in comparison to LPs.

By 1986, CD players were outselling record players, and by 1988 CDs outsold records.

"It was a massive turnaround for the whole market," Covers said.

Now, the CD may be seeing the end of its days.

CD sales have fallen sharply to 553 million sold in the United States last year, a 22 per cent drop from its 2001 peak of 712 million, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Napster and later Kazaa and BitTorrent allowed music fans to easily share songs over the Internet, often illegally. More recently, Apple Inc. and other companies began selling legal music downloads, turning the MP3 and other digital audio formats into the medium of choice for many owners of Apple's iPods and other digital players.

"The MP3 and all the little things that the boys and girls have in their pockets ... can replace it, absolutely," said Kramer, the retired engineer.

CDs won't disappear overnight, but its years may be numbered.

Record labels seeking to revive the format have experimented with hybrid CD-DVD combos and packages of traditional CDs with separate DVDs that carry video and multimedia offerings playable on computers.

The efforts have been mixed at best, with some attempts, such as the DualDisc that debuted in 2004, not finding lasting success in the marketplace.

Kramer said it has been satisfying to witness the CD's long run at the top and know he had a small hand in its creation.

"You never know how long a standard will last," he said. "But it was a solid, good standard and still is."

Warner to reprise Enter the Dragon

Warner Bros. has asked The Shield producer Kurt Sutter to write and direct a remake of the 1973 Bruce Lee classic Enter the Dragon.

Sutter has been writer, producer and even actor in the Golden Globe-winner TV series The Shield, which follows life inside a Los Angeles police precinct.

The new film, to be called Awaken the Dragon, will tell the story of an agent investigating a Shaolin monk and underground kung fu clubs, according to Warner Bros. publicist Laura Kim, who announced the movie Thursday in Hong Kong.

There was no news on casting choices or the shooting schedule.

The original Enter the Dragon, the first U.S.-produced martial arts film, starred Lee as an agent infiltrating a crime syndicate by taking part in an invitational martial arts competition.

The crime lord is a renegade Shaolin monk and, like Lee, trained in the famed Chinese martial arts tradition.

The non-stop action of Enter the Dragon awakened a taste for martial arts in North America and made the Hong Kong-raised Lee an international star.

He died in 1973 at age 32 from swelling of the brain.

China recently announced plans to make a 40-part television series on his life and a Hong Kong studio is planning a biopic.

"Superbad" vies for box office honors

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Does the summer box office have room for just one more break-out hit? As an overheated season draws to a close in North America, Sony Pictures is betting that it can eke out yet one more chart topper with the teen-sex comedy "Superbad," which opens Friday.

By contrast, the weekend's other new wide arrivals -- Warner Bros. Pictures' sci-fi remake "The Invasion" and the Weinstein Co.'s fall-of-the-Roman-Empire actioner "The Last Legion" -- are shaping up more like traditional, late-summer entries, which aren't expected to burn up the box office.

"Superbad," which stars relative unknowns Jonah Hill and Michael Cera as high school buddies bent on sampling that good ol' American Pie, appears headed for an opening in the mid-$20 million range.

The only thing that could stand in its way is the second weekend of Rush Hour 3." New Line's buddy cop flick debuted last weekend to a chart-topping $49.1 million. If it holds to a typical 55% drop, it will pick up $22 million or so, but a steeper fall would see it fall below the $20 million level.

"The Invasion," starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, is the weekend's starriest offering. But this latest adaptation of the Jack Finney novel about body snatchers from outer space -- its fourth film adaptation -- has been through four directors, credited filmmaker Oliver Hirschbiegel, the Wachowski brothers and James McTeigue. The film will probably find itself stuck in the teen-million-dollar range.

"The Last Legion" stars Colin Firth and Ben Kinglsey in a tale that weaves the final days of the Roman empire with the rise of the Arthurian legend. It should arrive at one side or the other of the $5 million mark.

Other titles entering the race include MGM's "Death at a Funeral," a Frank Oz-directed comedy of dark British manners; Picturehouse's documentary about die-hard gamers "The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters"; and Warner Independent Pictures' environmentally minded documentary "The 11th Hour," with Leonardo DiCaprio narrating.

Shrek the Third Comes To Disc

Paramount Home Entertainment will cover the distribution of the latest Shrek DVD which will be arriving later this fall. Shrek the Third is coming.

The new DVD will include several deleted scenes, a behind the scenes featurettes as well as the featurette Tech of Shrek, a Donkey Dance video, a gag reel, kid's games, and two interactive features Worcestershire Academy Yearbook and Shrek's Guide to Parenthood.

The DVD is on the way on November 13th for $29.99.

Eagles Unveil New Single, Album Release Date

The Eagles have unveiled "How Long," the first single from "Long Road Out of Eden," their first new studio album in 28 years.

The cut was delivered today (Aug. 16) to U.S. radio outlets and will be available exclusively via walmart.com, samsclub.com and eaglesband.com starting Monday. A video for the track, shot recently in Los Angeles, premieres the same day on CMT.

"Long Road Out of Eden," which will also only be available at Wal-Mart, Sam's Club and via the band's Web site, is due in October. Guitarist Joe Walsh recently told Billboard.com the Eagles will tour extensively next year in support of the project.

"I didn't want us to be too ballad-y" on the album, Walsh said. "We need some stuff we can play live, so I made sure there was that element in the record."

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.

Springsteen Finds 'Magic' With E Street Band

Bruce Springsteen is ready to rock again with the E Street Band. The artist will on Oct. 2 release "Magic," his first Columbia album with his longtime backing group since 2002's "The Rising." A North American arena tour is expected follow, but dates have yet to be announced.

The 11-track "Magic" was produced by Brendan O'Brien and includes such tracks as "Gypsy Biker," "Last To Die," "Devil's Arcade" and "Long Walk Home," which is the only song to have previously been played live. Springsteen manager Jon Landau describes the project as a "high energy rock CD."

After "The Rising," which has sold 2.1 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, Springsteen went solo with 2005's "Devils and Dust" and last year rounded up a host of new musicians for his "Seeger Sessions" album and tour.

His return to the road with the E Street Band should provide a big boost to the industry's fourth quarter bottom line. Springsteen's 2003 tour with E Street was the most financially successful of his stellar touring career, selling out stadiums in both Europe and the U.S., and dozens of arenas across North America.

Springsteen's $182 million gross from 82 shows, on one of the most conservative ticket prices among all superstar acts at $75 in most markets, was second only to the Rolling Stones in 2003. The Boss' remarkable 10 sellouts at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford New Jersey that summer, with a gross of $38.7 million and attendance of 566,650, remains the top Boxscore ever reported to Billboard.

Prior to the release of "Magic," Springsteen will unveil some new recordings with Pete Seeger on two separate compilation albums due next month from Appleseed Recordings. He also guests on his wife Patti Scialfa's new Columbia album, "Play It As It Lays," due Sept. 4.

Here is the track list for "Magic":

"Radio Nowhere"
"You'll Be Comin' Down"
"Livin' in the Future"
"Your Own Worst Enemy"
"Gypsy Biker"
"Girls in Their Summer Clothes"
"I'll Work for Your Love"
"Magic"
"Last To Die"
"Long Walk Home"
"Devil's Arcade"

Jim Carrey Deal -- Unmasked

Jim Carrey, the first movie star ever to command a salary of $20 million per picture, has signed a deal with Warner Bros. in which he will receive no upfront cash and no percentage of the gross for the upcoming film Yes Man.

Instead, he will receive a so-called cash-break deal on 36.2 percent of the back end -- that is, the amount the studio holds onto after it recovers its production, prints and advertising costs.

In her Deadline Hollywood blog, writer Nikki Finke remarks that this "could just turn out to be the worst talent deal ever" for a major star.

"The conventional wisdom in Hollywood is always to get as much fixed compensation as you can upfront because you're never going to see the back end thanks to the studios' creative accounting," Finke wrote.

She quoted one unnamed talent manager as saying, "Let me put it this way: if his reps were a hospital, they would be shut down for malpractice. This is a new kind of Hollywood stupid."

Jazz master Max Roach dies at 83

NEW YORK - By his 30th birthday, Max Roach was already considered the greatest jazz drummer ever by his peers. By the time he died this week, the 83-year-old master percussionist was known worldwide as much more: innovator, activist, teacher, genius.

Roach, whose rhythmic innovations and improvisations defined bebop jazz during a career marked by expectations defied and musical boundaries ignored, died late Wednesday in a Manhattan hospital after a long illness.

No additional details were available, said Cem Kurosman, spokesman for Blue Note Records, where Roach played on seminal recordings with Thelonius Monk, Duke Ellington and Miles Davis. Roach was elected to the Downbeat magazine Hall of Fame in 1980, and the Grammy Hall of Fame 15 years later.

"Max was one of the founders and original members of the A-Team of bebop," said fellow music legend Quincy Jones. "Outside of losing a giant and an innovator, I've lost a great, great friend. Thank God he left a piece of his soul on his recordings so that we'll always have a part of him with us."

In 1988, he became the first jazz musician ever honored with a MacArthur Fellowship — receiving a $372,000 "genius grant."

The creatively restless Roach, who debuted with Ellington's band as a self-taught 16-year-old drummer in 1940, challenged his listeners and himself by making music that connected the jazz of the pre-World War II era with the beats of the hip-hop generation.

His place in the pantheon of jazz greats long since secured, Roach collaborated with drummers from around the world, with a string quartet that featured daughter Maxine, and with rapper Fab Five Freddy.

"I try to show my students the correlation between hip-hop and Louis Armstrong," he once said. "That's how well-rooted hip-hop is, coming out of an environment where people were denied any kind of cultural enrichment."

The North Carolina native was born on Jan. 10, 1924, and moved to Brooklyn with his family four years later. A player piano left by the previous tenants gave Roach his musical introduction.

But he was looking for another instrument while singing with the children's choir at the Concord Baptist Church. Roach found a snare drum, and was quickly hooked. His father gave the eighth-grader his first set of drums, and Roach was drumming professionally while still in high school.

He would take often the nickel train ride from Brooklyn to Harlem, listening to the music spilling out of the Apollo Theater or the Savoy Ballroom. While there, he befriended saxophonist Charlie Parker and trumpeter Dizzie Gillespie as the burgeoning bop movement took flight. By 1942, he was playing behind Parker in a Harlem after-hours club; two years later, Roach joined Gillespie and Coleman Hawkins in one of the first bebop recording sessions.

What distinguished Roach from other drummers were his fast hands and ability to simultaneously maintain several rhythms. By layering different beats and varying the meter, Roach pushed jazz beyond the boundaries of standard 4/4 time. His dislocated beats helped define bebop.

Roach's innovative use of cymbals for melodic lines, and tom-toms and bass drums for accents, helped elevate the percussionist from mere timekeeper to featured performer — on a par with the trumpeter and saxophonist.

"One of the grand masters of our music," Gillespie once said.

Through the jazz upheaval of the 1940s and '50s, Roach played bebop with the Charlie Parker Quintet and cool bop with the Miles Davis Capitol Orchestra. He joined trumpeter Clifford Brown in playing hard bop, a jazz form that maintained bebop's rhythmic drive while incorporating the blues and gospel.

In 1952, Roach and bassist-composer Charles Mingus founded Debut Records. Among the short-lived label's releases was a famed 1953 Toronto performance in Massey Hall, featuring Roach, Mingus, Parker, Gillespie and pianist Bud Powell.

Around this time, a panel of 100 jazz musicians voted Roach the greatest jazz drummer ever.

But bad times were lurking. Roach watched several friends — including Parker — die from heroin addiction. He was further devastated when Brown and Powell died in a 1956 car accident, slipping into his own battle with drugs and alcohol.

Roach rebounded with the help of his first wife and frequent collaborator, singer Abbey Lincoln. The couple, married in 1962, split after eight years.

Roach re-emerged in the free jazz era with a new political consciousness, becoming one of jazz's loudest voices for civil rights. Albums like "We Insist! Max Roach's Freedom Now Suite," released in 1960 to celebrate the upcoming centennial of the Emancipation Proclamation, reflected his support of black activism.

Roach eventually expanded his repertoire and explored new challenges. He taught at the University of Massachusetts, traveled to Ghana in search of new music, and performed with groups from Japan and Cuba.

He also formed an all-percussion ensemble known as M'Boom, an ensemble of eight pecussionists; a quartet that performed with a 22-member gospel choir; and a double quartet — his band, plus a string quartet — that included Roach's daughter Maxine Roach on viola. Ignoring critics, Roach insisted rap had a place on music's "boundless palette."

He was survived by five children: sons Daryl and Raoul, and daughters Maxine, Ayo and Dara.

Everlasting Elvis: Fans, tribute artists gather to honour icon

Thousands of Elvis Presley fans have descended on Memphis, Tenn. this week to celebrate the life of the iconic singer and, on Thursday, to mark the 30th anniversary of his death.

Each year, fans queue for a candlelight vigil at his former home Graceland and partake in a solemn procession past the singer's grave in a small garden on the sprawling estate.

Officials from Elvis Presley Enterprises, which manages Graceland, anticipate a particularly large crowd for this year's vigil Wednesday night, despite the serious heat wave that has enveloped the region. In 2002, the 25th anniversary of Presley's death, organizers estimated that more than 30,000 fans gathered for the vigil.

Presley, who died at Graceland on Aug. 16, 1977, has remained a musical icon, with many giving credit to the efforts of his ex-wife Priscilla Presley, who helped open Graceland to the public as a sort of museum and pushed to license the pioneering rock and roller's name and image.

For instance, the world renowned Cirque du Soleil has been working on an Elvis-themed permanent show to join its many others in Las Vegas.

As well, Presley was recently edged out of the top spot in Forbes's top-earning dead celebrity list, with grunge icon Kurt Cobain pushing the King, who earned $42 million US in 2006, down to second place. Presley had topped the list since its inception.

Special concert planned

Memphis has spent the past week hosting Presley-related events. Aside from an Elvis conference, highlights on the schedule include a special concert featuring his former backup singers and band who will perform alongside video footage of the King and a massive competition of international Elvis tribute artists.

After years of resistance to the "Elvis impersonator" phenomenon, Graceland will also host the finale of the Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest on Friday. Jay Zanier of Guelph, Ont., is among the top 10 finalists vying for the title of Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist 2007.

Lisa Marie Presley, who has since followed in her father's footsteps as a singer, and the AOL website Spinner.com have also announced the release of a duet featuring father and daughter singing his famous song In the Ghetto.

Timed for release during the 30th anniversary celebrations, the song's music video will be posted online Friday along with an interview with the Presley, 39, about the project.

"We had two hours to lay down my vocals," she said about the remixed track.

Presley admitted she cried when a rough version of their combined voices was first played back for her the following morning.

"I've never cried when I've done anything," she said, "but I just lost it when I heard it."

Proceeds from the new song and video will be earmarked to groups helping build temporary housing for the homeless in New Orleans, Presley said.

Gifford to return for 'Live' anniversary

NEW YORK - Kathie Lee Gifford will drop by "Live With Regis and Kelly" to celebrate the daytime talk show's 20th anniversary. Gifford, who left as co-host in 2000, is slated to appear Sept. 14, when Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa take a look back at the show's most memorable moments. Ripa joined the show as co-host in 2001.

"Our 20th anniversary is a huge milestone for the show," Executive Producer Michael Gelman said Tuesday in a statement. "Few television shows reach a year on the air, much less two decades."

"Live" will celebrate its 20th season in national syndication with two weeks of on-air festivities starting Sept. 3 and ending with Gifford's guest appearance.

The Grindhouse is broken

It looks like there will be no DVD release for Grindhouse in the immediate future.

Death Proof and Planet Terror are getting seperate releases this fall.

Death Proof will come as a 2 DVD set with 30 additional minutes of footage, four featurettes a Double Dare trailer and an art gallery. Likewise Planet Terror will come on 2 discs with deleted scenes, featurettes and trailers.

Both titles will be available seperately for $29.95.

Death Proof arrives on September 18th and Planet Terror follows on October 16th. Let's hope the full versions of Grindhouse is on the way as well.

James Bond's Origin Story Isn't Over

Daniel Craig has been out talking about that next Bond movie. By the way, for those of you keeping track The Bourne Ultimatum had a bigger opening than Craig’s reboot prequel flick. Take that 007.

But, the next Bond film will soldier on anyway, even in the face of overwhelming Bourne supremacy. IGN caught up with Craig, and he tells them that they aren’t done playing around with the whole James Bond origins thing. “I think the process [of how he becomes Bond] is still happening,” he says.

“Bond is still maybe too headstrong and he doesn't make all of the right decisions. I want to continue what we've set up in the last movie.” So expect more Bond bumbling. If that worked for you in the first movie, you should be happy.

Truth be told, Jason Bourne messing up a bad guy by punching him in the neck with a book has raised the stakes for Bond again!

Instead of cars in Bond 22, it looks like James may be riding horses. IGN also dug up a story from TimesOnline.co.uk which indicates that they’re shooting a scene at the Palio, a centuries-old bareback horse race which PETA hates because the riders mounts sometimes have a tendency to drop dead. Whoops. Murdering horses, now that’s certainly a new twist for 007.

iTunes now selling John Lennon tracks

LOS ANGELES - Apple Inc. has begun selling downloads of tracks from 16 of John Lennon's post-Beatles albums, including "Working Class Hero" and "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band," on iTunes, the company said Tuesday.

The albums represent Lennon's recording output while he was with Capitol Records, a unit of Britain's EMI Group PLC.

While many of the late singer-songwriter's solo recordings have been available for download commercially elsewhere, this marks the first time they have been available on Apple's market-leading online music service.

Songs on two albums — "Lennon Legend" and "Acoustic" — were being made available for download exclusively on iTunes, the company said.

Video content was also being included with the purchase of some of the albums for a limited time.

The Lennon tracks will also be available without copy-protection restrictions and in higher-quality audio for $1.29 each. Regular versions are priced at 99 cents each.

"John would have loved the fact that his music will now be available in a format suited to a new generation of listeners," Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, said in a statement released by Apple.

Duet for Elvis and daughter Lisa Marie

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - A new video of Lisa Marie Presley singing "In the Ghetto," accompanied by her late father, Elvis Presley, will be posted Friday on the AOL Internet site Spinner.com, a company spokesman said Tuesday.

To mark the 30th anniversary of her father's death, Lisa Marie Presley's voice was added to the original version of her father's hit song from 1969. The video duet also features images of her late father.

Spinner.com will post the video along with the transcript of an interview with Lisa Marie Presley, AOL spokesman Kurt Patat said. In the interview, Lisa Marie Presley said the project was emotionally stirring.

"We had two hours to lay down my vocals," she says. "So the next morning, I heard the rough ... and ... I've never cried when I've done anything ... ever ... but I just lost it when I heard it.

Lisa Marie Presley also talks in the interview about how she was offended to see her father's song "Viva Las Vegas" used in a Viagra commercial. "I find that revolting," she said. "Some songs we have no control over. I know we didn't license that one."

Proceeds from the new song and video will be used to help build temporary housing for the homeless in New Orleans, she said. The project is to be similar to Presley Place, a 12-unit apartment building for the homeless built in Memphis by Elvis Presley Enterprises Inc. in 2001.

At the time, Elvis Presley Enterprises was owned by Lisa Marie Presley. She sold 85 percent of the company two years ago to CKX Inc., which now controls the worldwide business in marketing Elvis' name and image.

Elvis Presley died at his Memphis home, Graceland, on Aug. 16, 1977, and thousands of fans are in town this week for the 30th anniversary of his death.

Lisa Marie Presley, 39, is scheduled to attend a concert Thursday in Memphis that will feature her father performing on video, with live support from his former backup singers and band members.

Her most recent album of her own music was "Now What" in 2005, but she said in the interview that she hopes to put out a new album soon.

"I'm definitely going to do it," she said. "I just have to figure out the right way. I'm on a clean slate right now — I just got off my label (Capitol Records). So I'm figuring out my next route."

Yankees' Rizzuto dies at 89

NEW YORK - Phil Rizzuto, the Hall of Fame shortstop during the Yankees' dynasty years and beloved by a generation of fans for exclaiming "Holy cow!" as a broadcaster, died Tuesday. He was 89.

His death was confirmed by the Yankees. Rizzuto had been in declining health for several years and was living at a nursing home in West Orange, N.J.

Rizzuto, known as "The Scooter," was the oldest living Hall of Famer. He played for the Yankees throughout the 1940s and '50s, won seven World Series titles and played in five All-star games.

Rizzuto was a flashy, diminutive player who could always be counted on for a perfect bunt, a nice slide or a diving catch in a lineup better known for its cornerstone sluggers. He played for 13 seasons alongside the likes of Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle.

He stood just 5-foot-6 but was equipped with a productive bat, sure hands and quick feet that earned him his nickname. A leadoff man, Rizzuto was a superb bunter, used to good advantage by the Yankee teams that won 11 pennants and nine World Series between 1941 and 1956.

Rizzuto tried out with the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants when he was 16, but because of his size was dismissed by Dodgers manager Casey Stengel, who told him to "Go get a shoeshine box." He went on to become one of Stengel's most dependable players.

A Rizzuto bunt, a steal and a DiMaggio hit made up the scoring trademark of the Yankees' golden era, and he played errorless ball in 21 consecutive World Series games. DiMaggio said the shortstop "held the team together."

Rizzuto came to the Yankees in 1941 and batted .307 as a rookie, and his career was interrupted by a stint in the Navy during World War II. He returned in 1946 and four years later became the American League MVP. He batted .324 that season with a slugging percentage of .439 and 200 hits, second most in the league. He also went 58 games without an error, making 288 straight plays.

He led all AL shortstops in double plays three times and had a career batting average of .273 with at least a .930 fielding percentage. He played in five All-Star games.

After the Yankees released him in 1956, Rizzuto began a second career as a broadcaster, one for which he became at least equally well known.

In his decades on the radio and TV, Rizzuto's favorite phrase was "Holy cow!" It became so common, the team presented him with a cow wearing a halo when they held a day in his honor in 1985. The cow knocked Rizzuto over and, of course, he shouted, "Holy cow!"

"That thing really hurt," he said. "That big thing stepped right on my shoe and pushed me backwards, like a karate move."

Yankee fans also loved his unusual commentary. In an age of broadcasters who spout statistics and repeat the obvious, Rizzuto delighted in talking about things like his fear of lightning, the style of an umpire's shoes or even the prospect of outfielder Dave Winfield as a candidate for president.

He liked to acknowledge birthdays and anniversaries, read notes from fans, praised the baked delicacies at his favorite restaurant and send messages to old cronies. And if he missed a play, he would scribble "ww" in his scorecard box score. That, he said, meant "wasn't watching."

Despite his qualifications, Rizzuto was passed over for the Hall of Fame 15 times by the writers and 11 times by the old-timers committee. Finally, a persuasive speech by Ted Williams pushed Rizzuto into Cooperstown in 1994.

Williams, a member of the committee, argued that Rizzuto was the man who made the difference between the Yankees and his Red Sox. He was fond of saying, "If we'd had Rizzuto in Boston, we'd have won all those pennants instead of New York."

As in his playing days, Rizzuto was overshadowed by the headliners, teammates like DiMaggio, Mantle, Whitey Ford and Yogi Berra. All of them reached the Hall of Fame before he did.

"I never thought I deserved to be in the Hall of Fame," Rizzuto would say. "The Hall of Fame is for the big guys, pitchers with 100 mph fastballs and hitters who sock homers and drive in a lot of runs. That's the way it always has been and the way it should be."

Old-timers still talk about his suicide squeeze in the ninth inning during the 1951 pennant race to score DiMaggio, beating Cleveland 2-1 and putting the Yankees in first place for the rest of the season.

Rizzuto remembers Aug. 25, 1956, as a day he thought was the "end of the world," the day Stengel released him to make room for clutch-hitting Enos Slaughter in the pennant drive.

"It was Old-Timers Day, and I was out taking pictures, as I did every year," Rizzuto remembered. "The bat boy came over and told me that Casey Stengel and George Weiss wanted to see me in Stengel's office. It was the last day to add a player to the roster and have him eligible for the World Series. We were trading for Enos Slaughter because Stengel said we needed another outfielder, so we had to send someone down to make room on the roster.

"They asked me to read through the list of players and to check each player's eligibility, to see who we could let go," he said. "I sat there thinking that I was a veteran and they wanted my opinion. As we read through the list I pointed out a few players who I thought could be sent down, a pitcher we had hardly used and a catcher who had been in only nine games. But each time they said, 'No, we might need him.' We started to go through the list a second time, and then half way through it dawned on me."

"The Scooter" was done.

Rizzuto is survived by his wife, the former Cora Anne Esselborn, whom he married in 1943; daughters Cindy Rizzuto, Patricia Rizzuto and Penny Rizzuto Yetto; son Phil Rizzuto Jr.; and two granddaughters.

French Harry Potter publisher lets teen translator off the hook

The French publisher of the Harry Potter books has decided not to sue the overeager high school student who posted segments from his own French-language translation of the highly anticipated final novel.

A spokeswoman for Paris-based publisher Gallimard said that, in agreement with author J.K. Rowling, the unnamed 16-year-old from Aix en Provence will not be sued, nor will the company seek compensation from him.

"The aim [of the initial police complaint] was never financial, it is only aimed to protect authors' rights," the spokeswoman said over the weekend.

French anti-piracy investigators came across what they described as the teen's "near-professional" translations of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows on the internet during their probe of organized pirating networks shortly after the book's English-language release worldwide on July 21.

The teen, who was arrested and briefly detained, said that he had not sought to profit from his unauthorized translation, which has been taken offline.

Gallimard's official French translation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter et les reliques de la mort) is set to hit stores Oct. 26.

The seventh and final instalment of Rowling's blockbuster Harry Potter series sold more than 11 million copies in North America and the U.K. in the first weekend of sales.

The previous six books about the teen wizard have sold more than 325 million copies around the globe and been translated into more than 60 languages, turning Rowling into one of the world's best-known authors.

New CD Releases, Aug. 14: 'High School Musical 2,' Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds, Blaqk Audio

"High School Musical 2" Original Soundtrack

Attention all other CDs: just step away from the charts. A new boss is about to arrive. And, to paraphrase The Who, this new boss looks pretty much the same as the old boss.

What are people expecting from the soundtrack to "High School Musical 2"? Nothing short of complete chart domination, which is basically what happened with the first "High School Musical" release. That disc spent much time at No. 1 on the charts, even making repeat visits to the spot, and wound up being the top-selling album of 2006.

The Disney Channel juggernaut doesn't appear to have lost its grasp on tweens across the country. What began as an original TV movie has expanded into a multi-media sensation, which now includes a concert tour, theatrical performances and an ice show.

* * *
Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds "Live at Radio City Music Hall"

Say what you want about Dave Matthews, but the mega-star takes care of his old friends. Case in point: ol' Virginia pal, Tim Reynolds.

During his sporadic breaks from the Dave Matthews Band, the vocalist has continued to find ways to collaborate with guitarist Reynolds. Notably, that resulted in the pair recording 1999's multi-platinum "Live at Luther College." Now, the musical chums return with another concert recording, "Live at Radio City Music Hall."

This new 2-disc set, also available as a 2-DVD package, was recorded at the landmark NYC venue back in April. The setlist includes Dave and Tim performing such fan favorites as "Bartender," "Crash Into Me" and "Lie In Our Graves."

* * *
Blaqk Audio "Cexcells"

Davey Havok and Jade Puget take a break from AFI to release their debut record as Blaqk Audio. This side project is said to be more synthesizer driven and electronic-music oriented than AFI.

"Cexcells" (read "Sex Sells") was recorded while AFI was touring in support of 2006's chart-topping "Decemberunderground" and was mixed by Dave Bascombe (Tears for Fears, Depeche Mode).

* * *
Paul Van Dyk "In Between"

The popular DJ has enlisted an impressive array of talents for his latest release. Contributors include David Byrne and Pussycat Doll Jessica Sutta. Van Dyk is one of the most successful DJs on the planet, having received a Grammy nomination in 2005 for Best Dance/Electronic Album for "Reflections."

* * *
Linda Thompson "Versatile Heart"

The talented vocalist, best known for her work with ex-husband Richard Thompson, returns with her first new album in five years. "Versatile Heart" features contributions from Antony (of Antony and the Johnsons), Martha Wainwright and Thompson's son Teddy.

* * *
More new releases:
Luke Bryan, "I'll Stay Me" (Capitol)
Stewart Copeland, "The Stewart Copeland Anthology" (Koch)
Eisley, "Combinations" (Reprise)
Erik Friedlander, "Block Ice and Propane" (SkipStone)
Halfway to Hazard, "Halfway to Hazard" (Mercury Nashville)
Dean Martin, "Forever Cool" (Capitol)
Lori McKenna, "Unglamorous" (Warner Bros.)
Matt Nathanson, "Some Mad Hope" (Vanguard)
Recoil, "Subhuman Deluxe" (Mute U.S.)
12 Stones, "Anthem for the Underdog" (Wind-Up)
Y&T, "Live: One Hot Night" (Locomotive)

Soundtracks and scores:
"As You Like It" (Varese)
"Entourage" (Atlantic)
"The Last Legion" (Varese)

Indy IV Has Six Titles?

The plot thickens! ComicCon came and went without an announcement on the Indiana Jones IV title, but news has emerged today that LucasFilm has filed six possible titles for the sequel with the MPAA - any of which may or may not turn out to be the real thing (cause that Lucas and Spielberg can be a bit tricksy, you know).

Here are the six titles, with our best guesses as to plot:

Indiana Jones and the City of Gods: Indy and son head to Rio in search of the perfect bikini for Marion Ravenwood, and find themselves in the middle of a gang war in the city's biggest slum. Ahem. But seriously, this could carry on the series' general Judeo-Christian theme. And it is the one that we had been tipped off about a few months back...

Indiana Jones and the Destroyer of Worlds: Seems a bit over the top, this title, but it's worth noting that this piece of Hindu scripture is associated with the first nuclear test on July 6, 1945. That might fit in with the 1950s Cold War setting.

Indiana Jones and the Fourth Corner of the Earth: Indy finds the lost continent of Atlantis, full of lots of little men in diving helmets teaching philosophy.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: Well, it could be a reference to that Damien Hirst bit with the diamonds, but there is a modern legend that thirteen crystal skulls exist around the globe, of ancient origin and full of mystical power (power to do what is less clear). Five have apparently been found already, and it's already been rumoured that they could provide a MacGuffin for the picture. Still, kinda corny title.

Indiana Jones and the Lost City of Gold: The Central American legend of El Dorado's always been fertile ground for filmmakers and, amazingly, Indy's never been near it (unless you count a German Young Indiana Jones novel, which we don't). Or it could be a quest to find all 39 episodes of the Mysterious Cities of Gold, but perhaps that's less likely.

Indiana Jones and the Quest for the Covenant: Indy goes in search of...that Renny Harlin film of last year, about teen models with magical powers? Or not. It could of course be the Ark of the Covenant, but he found that once already and it'd be kinda careless if he had to find it again. This could refer to any number of things - "the covenant" is the sort of phrase that crops up in Dan Brown novels to refer to some evil organisation but it doesn't really mean anything.

So, what have we learned? Well, very little. The fact that cities are mentioned in two titles might mean it's fractionally more likely to be one of those; the fact that the crystal skulls have already been rumoured might give credence to that title; the Destroyer of Worlds bit would sit best against a nuclear background.

And of course, it might be none of these - other titles may follow to the MPAA.

Agent says Simpson book to be published

LOS ANGELES - A literary agent for the family of stabbing victim Ronald Goldman has made a deal to repackage and publish O.J. Simpson's canceled "If I Did It" book about the slayings of Goldman and Simpson's ex-wife, a spokesman for the agent said Monday.

Details of the agreement, including the name of the New York publishing house, will be released Tuesday, said Michael Wright, a spokesman for Los Angeles-based literary agent Sharlene Martin of Martin Literary Management.

"The family and publisher have pledged to leave Simpson's manuscript entirely intact, but they will also add key commentary," Wright said in a prepared statement. "The Goldmans, the publisher and Sharlene Martin will all contribute portions of sales proceeds to the Ron Goldman Foundation for Justice."

Wright declined further comment. Martin primarily represents self-help, nonfiction and memoir writers, including "You'll Never Nanny in This Town Again" author Suzanne Hansen, according to her Web site.

The Simpson book, in which he reportedly explains how he might have committed the killings, was not released last year as originally planned because of public outrage.

Last month, a federal bankruptcy judge awarded rights to the book to Goldman's family to help satisfy a $38 million wrongful death judgment against the former football star.

Simpson has maintained his innocence in the 1994 killings of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Goldman. Simpson, who now lives near Miami, was acquitted of murder in 1995.

Van Halen Tour Kicking Off In Late September

The first leg of Van Halen's long-awaited reunion tour with frontman David Lee Roth will kick off Sept. 27 in Charlotte, N.C., and run through Dec. 11 in Calgary, Alberta. Tickets for the trek, announced today at a Los Angeles media gathering, go on sale beginning Saturday (Aug. 18) via LiveNation.com.

A proposed summer amphitheater tour by the group, first tipped here in late January, never got off the ground, with guitarist Eddie Van Halen entering a rehabilitation facility for undisclosed reasons in March.

Roth has not toured with the act in more than two decades; the bass spot formerly occupied by Michael Anthony will be filled by Eddie Van Halen's teenage son, Wolfgang.

"It's a new band," Roth said. "I've done more rehearsal in the last four months than I've done in the past 20 summers. The whole sound is better than it has ever been."

Roth added, "It was Wolf who picked the song list, and we've got close to 25 of your greatest hits -- all the favorites that you've been hearing tearing out of the back of a pickup truck at the Burger King drive-through for how many summertimes. It's all very well intact -- the same sh*tty attitude but with a whole new look."

Various allusions were made to a potential new Van Halen studio album, which would be the band's first with Roth since the seminal "1984."

"There's a high standard here," Roth said. "We could waddle out there and halfway do it. A band like this could totally come in after an absence of this amount of time and get away with a lot, if we only do one tour. That's not our ambition. This is not like the Police. The idea is that it will continue on and on, and you have to get a good start."

"None of us want to give you less than our best, and we are at our best," Eddie Van Halen added.

For more on today's Van Halen announcement, visit the Billboard blog at JadedInsider.com.

Here are Van Halen's tour dates:

Sept. 27: Charlotte, N.C. (Bobcats Arena)
Sept. 29: Greensboro, N.C. (Coliseum)
Oct. 1: Philadelphia (Wachovia Center)
Oct. 7: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
Oct. 10: Cleveland (Quicken Loans Arena)
Oct. 14: Indianapolis (Conseco Fieldhouse)
Oct. 16: Chicago (Allstate Arena)
Oct. 18: Chicago (United Center)
Oct. 22: Auburn Hills, Mich. (Palace of Auburn Hills)
Oct. 24: Minneapolis (Target Center)
Oct. 26: Kansas City, Mo. (Sprint Center)
Oct. 28: St. Louis (Scottrade Center)
Oct. 30: Boston (TD Banknorth Garden)
Nov. 3: East Rutherford, N.J. (Continental Airlines Arena)
Nov. 13: New York (Madison Square Garden)
Nov. 20: Los Angeles (Staples Center)
Nov. 23: Glendale, Ariz. (Jobing.com Arena)
Nov. 25: San Diego (Cox Arena)
Nov. 27: Sacramento, Calif. (Arco Arena)
Nov. 29: San Jose, Calif. (HP Pavilion)
Dec. 1: Portland, Ore. (Rose Garden)
Dec. 3: Seattle (Key Arena)
Dec. 5: Vancouver (GM Place)
Dec. 9: Edmonton, Alberta (Rexall Palace)
Dec. 11: Calgary, Alberta (Pengrowth Saddledome)

AND NOW A WORD (FROM OUR MOVIE)

As the summer movie season winds down, it's time to take a look at how the big hits stack up - not in quality, of course, but in product placement. This summer's movie screens were packed with more plugs than Axl Rose's head, occasionally distracting viewers, but giving companies priceless opportunities to have their stuff blown up by giant robots.

Was this summer the most product-placed ever? You bet your Timex (now available at Wal-Mart and finer stores near you). Even the latest "Harry Potter" - which last we checked isn't set in the real world - managed to sneak in a nod to Nike, dressing Dudley Dursley in a logo'd shirt.

"I think it's inevitable, that's there's more product placement this summer, just given the amount of money that's being poured into it," says Abram Sauer, who writes about the topic for marketing site brandchannel.com. According to PQ Media, placements saw a jump of 44.5 percent last year, to more than $2 billion. Sauer estimates 2007 will see a similar increase.

But does it work? Do consumers really leave movies hungry to seek out items contained within? It depends. A Maserati featured in "Ocean's 13" and "Entourage" has seen a sales increase of about 30 percent, and celebrity nudie site Mr. Skin saw a 35 percent jump in traffic after being featured in "Knocked Up."

For other products, the correlation may not be so easy to determine.

Here's an evaluation of some of the more prominent cameos in the season's blockbusters.

VW

Film: "The Bourne Ultimatum"

Context: The superspy drives a Touareg 2 in a car chase, busting it up violently and emerging unscathed.

Flagrance rating: Still has a ways to go to rival the tackiness of previous James Bond movie placements.

Cost: Part of a massive $40 million deal VW signed with NBC Universal in 2005.

Did it work? Seems not. Although VW is pleased with "Bourne," the company is vocally dissatisfied with the partnership overall. "Until recently, the placements have been marginal. That weakness is a cause for our disappointment," VW international entertainment marketing manager Martin Biswurm told the Hollywood Reporter.

DODGE

Film: "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer"

Context: Mr. Fantastic builds a flying car that inexplicably has a Dodge emblem on the front. The Human Torch takes time out from saving the world to ask if it has a Hemi.

Flagrance rating: "That's a perfect illustration of how not to do something. You only estrange everybody," Sauer says.

Cost: Dodge won't say, but Sauer has heard rumors of $1 million to $3 million.

Did it work? Toss-up. Dodge spokesperson Carrie McElwee says, "It's difficult to measure direct correlation, because this one doesn't have an exact product that consumers can buy."

GM

Film: "Transformers"

Context: The Autobot heroes turn into a Solstice, Hummer and Topkick.

Flagrance rating: Well, guess the robots couldn't very well transform into Kias.

Cost: Nada. Director Michael Bay approached GM - probably because he has directed commercials for the company in the past.

Did it work? Not really. GM spokesperson John M. McDonald says most people don't make a decision to purchase a $50,000-plus vehicle because they saw it kick Decepticon butt. But the placement helped "awareness."

WEST VIRGINIA

Film: "Live Free or Die Hard"

Context: To establish that Bruce Willis and Justin Long are driving into West Virginia, the camera quickly cuts to the state's welcome sign, which bears the slogan, "Open for business." The sign wasn't even shot in West Virginia, but was re-created by filmmakers on a lot in California.

Flagrance rating: Incorporated relatively seamlessly into the plot.

Cost: "We didn't pay for it," says a West Virginia spokesperson.

Did it work? According to Pam Haynes, director of the West Virginia Film Office, the mention has driven business to the state - but only one kind. Other productions have inquired about shooting there.

NOKIA N93i

Film: "Transformers"

Context: Megan Fox's phone morphs into an evil Decepticon.

Flagrance rating: About as subtle as Megatron whacking you over the head.

Cost: Nokia ain't sayin', but Sauer notes the company has paid about $1 million to have its products placed previously.

Did it work? The company wouldn't confirm, but here are two clues: Nokia employs a person whose title is "head of product placement," and the company plans to release a "Transformers" edition of the phone later this year.

MAKER'S MARK

Film: "Spider-Man 3"

Context: Director Sam Raimi is a fan and has put the drink in all three movies - always in the apartment of evil Harry Osborn.

Flagrance rating: Smooth as that third glass of whiskey.

Cost: Nothing.

Did it work? Chris Swonger, senior VP for corporate affairs, likes the publicity but perhaps wishes the bourbon wasn't always swilled by evildoers. "Maker's Mark is a good guy's drink, so I don't think the underlying message about villains enjoying it will determine who drinks it. We are looking for law-abiding, good people to drink it."

HOT SEAT - FRANK OZ

By SARA STEWART

August 12, 2007 (New York Post) -- The white-bearded gentleman sitting opposite me looks fairly unassuming, but he is nothing less than the pre-eminent voice of my childhood. And millions of other childhoods. In fact, you'd be hard-pressed to find someone you know who isn't familiar with at least one Frank Oz creation: Grover, Cookie Monster and Bert of "Sesame Street." Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, Animal and Sam the Eagle from "The Muppet Show." And, of course, the fuzzy Jedi who needs no introduction: Yoda.

When not busy establishing himself as an indelible Muppet icon, Oz found time to direct some top-notch comedies: 1988's "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," 1991's "What About Bob?" and 1999's "Bowfinger." Not to mention "The Muppets Take Manhattan" (1984) and "Little Shop of Horrors" (1986).

His new movie, "Death at a Funeral," is a comedy about what happens when you mix uptight British mourners, potent hallucinogens and blackmail. The film happily marks a return to form for Oz, who flew under the radar for a couple of years after his ill-fated 2004 remake of "The Stepford Wives."

Q: OK. CGI Yoda: pro or con?
A: It had to happen. Because, first of all, it's a different time. But also George [Lucas] had to do action sequences, and there's no other way. I was totally supportive of it. If he didn't do that, he couldn't be true to his story. The actual character, in the first three movies, was very tough to do, very hellish. He can't go out and jump and fight.

Q: So how do you feel about those first three old movies, when you go back and watch them now? Do they feel hokey?
A: What people don't understand is that George fashioned those movies on an old series called "Flash Gordon." And I used to see those, and the acting was not great, the effects were not great. But people always talk about the acting not being great in "Star Wars." If you had fabulous actors, you wouldn't have the fun. That's not what it's about. You can't have a blast, a fun big movie, if you're bogged down with the deep emotion of acting.

Q: Do the actors in your movies always bug you to do Muppet voices for them?
A: Yeah. But if people ask me to do voices on set, I say no - I won't do them until the very last day. I'm not an easy lay! I'm not a cheap date. If I do the voices, they'll take it easy. I want them to work hard. And so they know they're not gonna hear the voices until the very last day.

Q: How do you feel about the direction "Sesame Street" has gone in, from the early days when you and Jim Henson worked on it?
A: It's just become a kids show, instead of a hip show. I've told them that, so many times - there's nothing I can do. I've given a master class in that stuff, but they don't get it. They're very nice people, and there are some really gifted people there. But the show was begun by people who were actually performers and actors.

The business now, it's mainly about people who are more executive, and people who come from television, and there's a difference, I think. I don't often watch the show, but I did a little bit, to see how it's going, and it's become a little kiddie show, and it's very sad. It was never like that with Jim and I, and everyone else back then. We always f - - - ed around, and did it for ourselves, and that's changed. I probably should be politic and diplomatic - but I'm not.

Q: I'm going to guess you're not a fan of their decision to make Snuffleupagus non-imaginary, so he'd be less confusing for children.
A: That's bulls - - t, if that's true. When that happens, the curriculum and the teaching aspect have taken over the imagination aspect, and it's a shame. Everyone's so f - - - ing politically correct, it's ridiculous. People are much more discerning than other people think.

Q: Even kids.
A: More so!

Q: Do you think there's some kind of unifying comedy principle that links fairly disparate movies like "What About Bob," "Bowfinger" and "Death at a Funeral"?
A: I know this sounds reeeeeeally hifalutin, and really didactic, and come on, Frank, get off your f - - - ing high horse - but: honesty. And I don't mean honesty in this world, I mean honesty in the world in which the characters live. I mean, "Airplane," which is hysterical, I think is honest within its world. I try to be honest within the world I create.

Q: You sometimes go years without making a movie. Why?
A: Why do something I don't believe in? I'm very blessed. If I had a mortgage and had to put my kids through college, I'd be the first one to prostitute myself. I'm very blessed, and I don't have to.

Q: "Death at a Funeral" was a relatively short, and low-budget, shoot. Was there a lot of pressure involved there?
A: I love pressure. The shoot itself was a frigging delight. But there are other shoots that were not a delight. "What About Bob?" was tremendous tension. I like pressure, I don't like tension. There were problems between the producer and me, and also Bill [Murray] and Richard [Dreyfuss] didn't get along. But for me, as a director, that worked well for the characters. Behind the scenes, it was tough, but I was thrilled it worked on-screen.

Q: "Death at a Funeral" is kind of a new genre for you - the British comedy of manners. Are you going to explore some other niches now?
A: I'm looking forward to doing some tough action stuff, or horror stuff. I've been successful in comedy, so people give me the best comedy scripts, but they don't give me the best thriller scripts, because they think I can't do that, or God knows what. I did "The Score" just to show I'm not a one-trick pony. I love horror. I'm trying to get a script, but it's so hard.

Q: This might be a touchy subject, but - what happened with "The Stepford Wives"?
A: I f - - - ed up. It was the first time I said yes to a movie that had no script. I saw the movie as a smaller relationship movie. And as it got more and more expensive, I thought, "Geez, maybe I should listen to [the producers] more." And I didn't do what I wanted, for the first time in all my movies. That's where I screwed up.

Q: What did you do to recover after that?
A: I had lost my confidence, and I wanted to do something really small. I went back to my acting coach and audited three classes, to get back to the purity of what I was doing. And then I found this script [for "Death at a Funeral"] and I said, "Absolutely." So I went back to what I love doing.

The score

Age: 63

Born: Hereford, England

Unsung role: He played the Swedish Chef's human hands on "The Muppet Show"

Misconception: He's not Fozzie Bear's namesake. Fozzie was named for Faz Fazakis, who invented a device enabling Fozzie to wiggle his ears
Cameo: Appears as a corrections officer in "The Blues Brothers"

On-set clash: While directing 2001's "The Score," Oz tangled with Marlon Brando, who reportedly told him, "I bet you wish I was a puppet so you could stick your hand up my a - - and make me do what you want."

Peter Jackson Wanted For The Hobbit?

New Line Cinema has apparently done an about face and is now courting Peter Jackson to direct the film, the way they should have been. The strange thing is that the news comes from Bob Shaye, New Line’s studio head who not long ago famously screamed the equivalent of you’ll never work for New Line again at Jackson, burning all the bridges between them and then blowing them up again with a stick of dynamite, just for good measure.

Now Shaye has suddenly come to his senses and when the LA Times re-asked him the is there any hope of getting Peter Jackson directing The Hobbit he said, “Notwithstanding our personal quarrels, I really respect and admire Peter and would love for him to be creatively involved in some way in The Hobbit.” The Times claims that New Line is quietly trying to repair their relationship with Jackson, the question is whether or not he's interested in forgiving them.

If you’re wondering what could turn Shaye from a raving, Peter Jackson hating loon into a guy who seems to really want to work with him again, look no further than job stability. It’s been widely reported that New Line is in a slump, and that could mean that Shaye, as company head, is headed for the guillotine.

Peter Jackson and Lord of the Rings made New Line a powerhouse, the best way for Shaye to save his own ass is probably to get Peter Jackson back. If you’re Jackson though, why the hell would you want to do it? Maybe he’s passionate about the material, but to me Peter Jackson has begun to sound like a guy who has moved on to ‘Entourage’ cameos and other more personal projects. He can write his own ticket, and doesn’t need the hassle of working with backstabbers like New Line Cinema. New Line may suddenly want him back, but there’s a good chance they’re too late. Shaye should have used his head before they publicly pissed on their biggest director and threw their biggest moneymaker out with the trash.

Rush Hour 3 beats Bourne to box office title

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hapless martial arts hero Jackie Chan knocked amnesiac assassin Jason Bourne out of the top spot at the box office this weekend.

"Rush Hour 3," the buddy film starring Chan and Chris Tucker that comes six years after the duo's last romp, grossed $50.2 million in its first weekend at U.S. and Canadian theaters.

"The Bourne Ultimatum," the third installment of the espionage action series starring Matt Damon as a one-time CIA hit man searching for his past, took in $33.7 million in its second weekend playing in North American theaters, a 51 percent drop, according to studio estimates on Sunday.

Animated feature "The Simpsons Movie" dropped 56 percent in its third weekend to $11.1 million, but pot-bellied anti-hero Homer Simpson still came out on top of two newcomers.

In their first weekends, "Stardust," a fantasy film starring Claire Danes, grossed $9.0 million at number four on the charts, and "Daddy Day Camp" took in $3.6 million and debuted at number 10.

The long delay since the last "Rush Hour," was seen as a challenge for Tucker and Chan. "Rush Hour 2" set a record August opening of $67.4 million in 2001, which held until last week, when "The Bourne Ultimatum" took in $69.3 million.

"Rush Hour 3" was released by New Line Cinema, a unit of Time Warner Inc. "The Bourne Ultimatum" was released by Universal Pictures, a unit of General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal Inc.

"The Simpsons Movie" was released by 20th Century Fox, a unit of News Corp., "Daddy Day Camp" was released by TriStar Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp., while "Stardust" was released by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc.

Merv Griffin dies at age 82

LOS ANGELES - Merv Griffin, the entertainer turned impresario who parlayed his "Jeopardy" and "Wheel of Fortune" game shows into a multimillion-dollar empire, has died. He was 82.

Griffin died of prostate cancer, according to a statement from his the family that was released by Marcia Newberger, spokeswoman for The Griffin Group/Merv Griffin Entertainment.

From his beginning as a $100-a-week San Francisco radio singer, Griffin moved on as vocalist for Freddy Martin's band, sometime film actor in films and TV game and talk show host. His "The Merv Griffin Show" lasted more than 20 years, and Griffin's said his capacity to listen contributed to his success.

"If the host is sitting there thinking about his next joke, he isn't listening," Griffin reasoned in a recent interview.

But his biggest break financially came from inventing and producing "Jeopardy" in the 1960s and "Wheel of Fortune" in the 1970s. After they had become the hottest game shows in television, Griffin sold the rights to Coca-Cola for $250 million in 1986, retaining a share of the profits.

After they became the hottest game shows in television, Griffin sold the rights to them to the Columbia Pictures Television Unit for $250 million, retaining a share of the profits. He started spreading the sale money around in treasury bonds, stocks and other investments.

He made Forbes' list of richest Americans several times and started putting money in treasury bonds, stocks and other investments. But he went into real estate and other ventures because "I was never so bored in my life."

"I said, `I'm not going to sit around and clip coupons for the rest of my life,' " he recalled in 1989. "That's when Barron Hilton said, `Merv, do you want to buy the Beverly Hilton?' I couldn't believe it."

Griffin bought the slightly passe hotel for $100.2 million and completely refurbished it for $25 million. Then he made a move for control of Resorts International, which operated hotels and casinos from Atlantic City to the Caribbean.

That touched off a feud with real estate tycoon Donald Trump. Griffin eventually acquired Resorts for $240 million, netting a reported paper profit of $100 million.

"I love the gamesmanship," he told Life magazine in 1988. "This may sound strange, but it parallels the game shows I've been involved in."

It was in 1948 that Martin hired Griffin to join his band at Los Angeles' Coconut Grove at $150 a week. With Griffin doing the singing, the band had a smash hit with "I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Cocoanuts," a 1949 novelty song sung in a cockney accent.

The band was playing in Las Vegas when Doris Day and her producer husband, Marty Melcher, were in the audience. They recommended him to Warner Bros., which offered a contract. After a bit in "By the Light of the Silvery Moon," starring Day and Gordon MacRae, he had a bigger role with Kathryn Grayson in "So This Is Love." A few more trivial roles followed, then he asked out of his contract.

In 1954, Griffin went to New York where he appeared in a summer replacement musical show on CBS-TV, a revival of "Finian's Rainbow," and a music show on CBS radio. He followed with a few game show hosting jobs on TV, notably "Play Your Hunch," which premiered in 1958 and ran through the early 1960s. His glibness led to stints as substitute for Jack Paar on "Tonight."

When Paar retired in 1962, Griffin was considered a prime candidate to replace him. Johnny Carson was chosen instead. NBC gave Griffin a daytime version of "Tonight," but he was canceled for being "too sophisticated" for the housewife audience.

In 1965, the Westinghouse Broadcasting introduced "The Merv Griffin Show" in syndicated TV. At last Griffin had found the forum for his talents. He never underestimated the intelligence of his audience, offering such figures as philosopher Bertrand Russell, Pablo Casals and Will and Ariel Durant as well as movie stars and entertainers.

With Carson ruling the late-night roost on NBC in the late 1960s, the two other networks challenged him with competing shows, Griffin on CBS, Joey Bishop (later Dick Cavett) on ABC. Nothing stopped Carson, and Griffin returned to Westinghouse.

Meanwhile, Griffin sought new enterprises for his production company. A lifelong crossword puzzle fan, he devised a game show "Word for Word," in 1963. It faded after one season, then his wife, Julann, suggested another show.

"Julann's idea was a twist on the usual question-answer format of the quiz shows of the Fifties," he wrote in his autobiography "Merv." "Her idea was to give the contestants the answer, and they had to come up with the appropriate question."

"Jeopardy," begun in 1964, became a huge moneymaker for Griffin, as did a more conventional game show, "Wheel of Fortune," starting in 1975.

Mervyn Edward Griffin Jr. was born in San Mateo, south of San Francisco on July 6, 1925, the son of a stockbroker. His aunt, Claudia Robinson, taught him to play piano at age 4, and soon the boy was staging shows on the back porch of the family home.

"Every Saturday I had a show, recruiting all the kids in the block as either stagehands, actors and audience, or sometimes all three," he wrote in his 1980 autobiography. "I was the producer, always the producer."

After studying at San Mateo Junior College and the University of San Francisco, Griffin quit school to apply for a job as pianist at radio station KFRC in San Francisco. The station needed a vocalist instead. He auditioned and was hired.

Griffin was billed as "the young romantic voice of radio." He attracted the interest of RKO studio boss William Dozier, who was visiting San Francisco with his wife, Joan Fontaine.

"As soon as I walked in their hotel room, I could see their faces fall," the singer recalled. He weighed 235 pounds. Shortly afterward, singer Joan Edwards told him: "Your voice is terrific, but the blubber has got to go." Griffin slimmed down, and he would spend the rest of his life adding and taking off weight.

Griffin and Julann Elizabeth Wright were married in 1958, and a son, Anthony, was born the following year. The couple divorced in 1973 because of "irreconcilable differences."

"It was a pivotal time in my career, one of uncertainty and constant doubt," he wrote in the autobiography. "So much attention was being focused on me that my marriage felt the strain." He never remarried.

The Couch Potato Report - August 11th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report peels dissent, boiling, a starter and guys who don't cry.

A few weeks ago, while I was reviewing Canadian filmmaker Debbie Melnyk's documentary CITIZEN BLACK about Conrad Black, I said that it wasn't a spectacular documentary as too often it told Debbie Melnyk's story and not Conrad Black's.

I also said that - when it comes to making documentaries - Melnyk is no Michael Moore, even though she really, really, really wants to be.

In the end, I stated that CITIZEN BLACK was always interesting, so ultimately I recommended the film as one that is worth your time.

Now, here we are five weeks later, and here we have another documentary from Debbie Melnyk and her husband Rick Caine.

And once again, she really, really, really wants to be Michael Moore, the celebrated filmmaker who gave us ROGER & ME, FAHRENHEIT 9/11, SICKO and the Academy Award winning BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE.

No, Melnyk is no Michael Moore, and her latest subject is the man himself.

This film is definitive proof that those who can't do...do a documentary about who they aspire to be.

MANUFACTURING DISSENT is a documentary that tries to distinguish what is fact, fiction, legend, and otherwise about American filmmaker Michael Moore as he tours with his film FAHRENHEIT 9/11.

Because of his style, Moore is one of the most controversial figures to ever join the world of documentary filmmaking.

Moore is best known for his in-your-face-style interviews with high-profile politicians and actors and his now well-known use of editing to re-write the truth.

In MANUFACTURING DISSENT the filmmakers attempt to turn Moore's own tactics against him.

They follow him around North America hoping for an interview, which he does not grant them, and they lie about their credentials to gain access to events he is holding, and they leave their cameras on after telling people they are off..

But none of those things lead up to what they want...a sit down interview with Michael Moore.

Since Moore won't talk with them, the filmmakers then spend too much time interviewing his friends and colleagues...and way too much time telling their story as they follow him around.

No Debbie Melnyk is no Michael Moore, as much as she really seems to want to be, and she and her partner Rick Caine sure can't make a film like Moore either.

But, in spite of itself - MANUFACTURING DISSENT is not that bad.

Much like CITIZEN BLACK it is always interesting, and has more than a few good interviews about Moore, so ultimately I recommended it as one that is worth your time.

And after you watch it, or any documentary for that matter, make sure you search out websites and books on the film's topics so you can get the whole story.

Alright, let me quickly tell you about two of this week's other new films, beginning with STARTER FOR 10 - a bittersweet comedy about life at a British university in the 1980s.

James McAvoy from THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND is a first year student at a high class British university whose main goal is to become a contestant on the popular game show "University Challenge."

It is a show that is not unlike the legendary Canadian show "Reach For The Top."

Since it is a film, our hero achieves his goal, but he has other road blocks ahead of him - namely, choosing between Alice and Rebecca - two women who both seem right for him, for different reasons.

Since STARTER FOR TEN takes place at a university in the eighties, the clothes, the attitudes of people, and the music will all seem familiar, and lead to some nostalgic moments for some.

I didn't go to University, but I enjoyed the eighties, and it is that nostalgia that made me enjoy the film.

Yes, the plot is a little boring, the romances a little obvious, and some of the supporting characters seem pulled from bad sitcoms, but I did enjoy this movie.

STARTER FOR TEN isn't the best film you will see this year, but if you are the same vintage as me, I think you will enjoy it. It is what people refer to as a "Good rental."

The next release I have for you this week is the classic John Woo Hong Kong action film HARD BOILED.

It is now available in a TWO-DISC ULTIMATE EDITION and it must be said that director Woo made a film that contains some of the best action sequences ever filmed!

The great Chow Yun-fat plays a take-no-prisoners cop on the trail of the Hong Kong Mafia, when his partner is killed during a gun battle.

His guilt propels him into an all-out war against the gang, including an up-and-coming soldier in the mob - played by the also great Tony Leung - who turns out to be an undercover cop.

The two men must come to terms with their allegiance to the force and their loyalty to each other as they try to take down the gangsters.

HARD BOILED is smart, funny, well-written and features an incredible wealth of hard-to-believe action sequences!

Simply put, it is one of the greatest action films ever made!

I was originally going to make HARD BOILED this week's selection in our ongoing FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD, but since it is a classic, I thought I would give it a seperate review.

I then chose the Polish film GUYS DON'T CRY as this week's film from a foreign land to focus on.

GUYS DON'T CRY is about Kuba, a young violinist who tries to find a girl for his bumbling buddy Oscar.

With no luck, they call an escort service, but then they don't have the money to pay, putting Kuba on the wrong side against the local Polish mafia. .

Luckily for him, these mafiosos are incompetent at best.

GUYS DON'T CRY is an action filled black comedy.

It is stupid at times, it is funny at times, and I enjoyed it from start to finish.

This is also the type of foreign film I always enjoy watching, because it shows up people and places we don't usually see in North American films.

I guess that is why it is this week's entry in the FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD.

GUYS DON'T CRY, the TWO-DISC ULTIMATE EDITION of the classic Hong Kong film HARD BOILED, teh good rental STARTER FOR 10, and the interesting Canadian made documentary MANUFACTURING DISSENT about American filmmaker Michael Moore are all available now on DVD.

Coming up on the next Couch Potato Report

THE LOOKOUT is a film made in Winnipeg about a once promising high school athlete whose finds himself caught up in a planned bank heist.

WILD HOGS stars John Travolta, Tim Allen, William H. Macy and Martin Lawrence as suburban biker wannabes who hit the open road looking for adventure; Canadian Oscar nominee Ryan Gosling takes on manipulative criminal Anthony Hopkins in FRACTURE; and the classic Jim Henson characters we grew up with are back on DVD in SEASON TWO of THE MUPPET SHOW.

Plus, our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD continues with the very entertaining Spanish Film WELCOME HOME about a young couple trying to cope with moving in together, and having a baby.

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!

Report: Winehouse had overdose

Troubled singer Amy Winehouse is recovering from a suspected drug overdose in a London hotel, NME.com reports.

Her record label had initially claimed she was suffering from "exhaustion," following her admittance to hospital after collapsing earlier in the week.

The article indicates Winehouse was treated with an adrenaline shot before her stomach was pumped.

Tabloid reports stated that she had entered a rehabilitation centre in London after being released, but the latest information has her recovering from the incident in a hotel room.

Winehouse was forced to cancel festival appearances in Europe this week. She is still scheduled to play Toronto's Virgin Festival on September 8, and Vancouver's Orpheum on September 24

Garth's Return: Retail, Radio, Live Stage?

The Garth Brooks juggernaut is setting the table for a new release. And this time, Billboard has learned, you won't find it only at Wal-Mart. After exclusively selling his music through that big-box merchant for the last two years, Brooks will once again make it available to all retailers. But in a surprise move, his Pearl Records imprint will apparently be self-distributed.

Meanwhile, speculation regarding a live performance aspect to Brooks' resurfacing has been centered around an extended run in one market.

According to retail sources, the country star will issue a three-disc boxed set, "The Ultimate Garth Brooks," that will street either Nov. 6 or 13. The set will contain a 34-track, two-CD greatest hits retrospective with four new songs, and a DVD with videos, many of them recently filmed, for all tracks on the CDs. In addition, Brooks is rereleasing his catalog titles, some of which have been on moratorium at general retail since 1998.

Nashville-based Big Machine Records is involved with promoting the new cuts to radio; the first single is expected in September. One of the new cuts is reportedly a remake of Huey Lewis' 1982 hit "Workin' for a Livin'," on which Lewis plays harmonica.

Programmers from across the country, who have been given few details, have been invited to an Aug. 17-18 event in Nashville. Brooks has also scheduled an Aug. 18 press conference there.

In 2005, Brooks split from Capitol Records and left with ownership of his catalog. Later that year, he issued a "Limited Series" boxed set exclusively through Wal-Mart, which contained three of his prior albums, a previously unreleased DVD and a disc of never-before-heard songs. In early 2006, Brooks rereleased his catalog exclusively at Wal-Mart and then, in time for Christmas 2006, he issued "The Entertainer," a five-disc DVD package, solely at the giant merchant.

On the live front, standing offers from promoters have apparently been on the table for Brooks since his retirement in 2000. Last time out, Brooks shattered country touring records with an outing centered around his 1998 Capitol release "Sevens." The three-year extravaganza grossed more than $105 million (country's first $100 million run) and drew close to 5.5 million people. Notably, Brooks charged a relatively paltry $20 per ticket when he likely could have demanded three times that amount.

Since retiring, Brooks has made sporadic live appearances, including a Hurricane Katrina benefit, a Grand Ole Opry appearance in 2005 and a more recent performance at a Live Earth concert in Washington, D.C. He previously said he would not embark on a full-blown tour until his youngest daughter graduates from high school in 2015.

Chris Noth to return as Mr. Big in movie

NEW YORK - Mr. Big and Carrie Bradshaw will be together again, this time on the big screen.

Chris Noth, who played Sarah Jessica Parker's love interest on HBO's "Sex and the City," is slated to reprise his role in a feature film spun from the long-running TV series.

Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon will also reprise their roles for the romantic comedy, to be distributed by New Line Cinema in association with HBO.

"There is no need for funeral arrangements," said Michael Patrick King, who will direct the film. "I assure you that Mr. Big is a very `big' part of the `Sex and the City' movie."

"While I have not spoken to him myself, Chris Noth assures me that Mr. Big is alive and well and ready to report to the set in September," King said in a statement Wednesday.

King was one of the executive producers of the TV series, which ended in 2004.

Noth, 50, plays police Detective Mike Logan on NBC's "Law & Order: Criminal Intent."

50 Cent: I'll quit if outsold by West

NEW YORK - 50 Cent believes his new album will outsell Kanye West's upcoming disc, and he's betting his solo career on it. Both 50 Cent and West have albums due out Sept. 11. 50 Cent, who has sold better than West, has been riled by forecasts that sales of West's "Graduation" could rival those for his "Curtis" CD.

"Let's raise the stakes," the 31-year-old rapper told hip-hop Web site SOHH.com in an interview posted Friday. "If Kanye West sells more records than 50 Cent on September 11, I'll no longer write music. I'll write music and work with my other artists, but I won't put out anymore solo albums."

An e-mail sent to West's publicist wasn't immediately returned Friday.

50 Cent, whose real name is Curtis James Jackson, has been publicly disparaging of West before. In 2005, he suggested the 29-year-old rapper's popularity was only possible because of 50's own success.

But they recently collaborated in the studio. Their work, though, isn't scheduled to appear on either new album.

50 Cent's last full-length solo album, "The Massacre," was the best-selling disc of 2005 and sold more than 1.14 million copies in its first week of release. The same year, West's "Late Registration" opened by selling more than 860,000 copies in its first week.

Neil Young to release comic book

TORONTO (CP) - Outspoken musician and political activist Neil Young is putting his anti-war and environmental convictions into a graphic novel.

The book will be an adaptation of Young's 2003 disc "Greendale," a 10-song concept album that was turned into a film of the same name in 2003 and also spawned an art book and multi-media tour.

The legendary artist, renowned for his strong anti-George W. Bush sentiments, has made it clear that the project will be just as biting politically as the rest of his artistic catalogue, said writer and collaborator Joshua Dysart.

Dysart, who describes his own political leanings as "left of Lenin," says the graphic novel's theme is decidedly anti-war and pro-planet. The story is set in the fictional town of Greendale on the eve of the Iraq invasion in 2003.

"It's just sort of a smorgasbord of the political reality of that moment of 2003 when we went into Iraq," Dysart said Thursday in a telephone interview from his home Los Angeles.

"Greendale is a fictional town but it's in northern California and the politics and concerns of northern California are going to be very prevalent and that's: anti-war, environmentalism and the raping of the California resources by major corporations in the pocket of the Bush administration."

The novel has been two years in the making and will be published by the DC Comics subsidiary Vertigo. Dysart said he's only completed a sketch of the storyline so far and hopes the book could be completed next year.

The idea for the novel came from Young himself, he adds, but so far the Canadian rocker has taken a largely arms-length approach to directing the narrative.

Major elements, however, are drawn directly from his disc "Greendale," said Dysart, also behind an Avril Lavigne graphic novel released earlier this year called "Make Five Wishes."

Young's album "Greendale" told the story of a tragic event and its effects on three generations of an American family.

The graphic novel focuses on the story of Sun Green, a teenager and burgeoning activist whose life is changed when a mysterious stranger pays a visit to her small town.

It also places great significance on her family's unique ability to connect with nature, an aspect referred to only casually in the art book, said Dysart.

"I just clued into that because it hadn't been explored in other mediums and the last thing I wanted to do was just kind of regurgitate the storyline," Dysart explained.

A big challenge for Dysart will be just how to capture Young's unconventional persona.

"There is this sort of low-fi, loose E-string humming Americana rock-n-roll about that album and about a lot of his work," he notes.

"I want to find that (feeling) inside of our medium. And part of that is going to be what (artist) Sean (Murphy) brings to it, obviously. I think, for instance, the way he uses ink is going to very much have that sort of a strong intensity. He can be a splatterer when encouraged with his ink and I think that will help a lot."

Those who know the album well will likely recognize a few song lyrics Dysart hopes to insert into the text.

"I'm sure there will be many because there are some great storylines in there," he said. "I will probably be altering them so they do not rhyme. That's not really the kind of piece we're going for. It's not a music video on paper."

As for Young himself, Dysart was coy about whether the music great would make a cameo.

"In the film, a sort of a supernatural entity arrives in town who is like a white blues man, basically all dressed in a red suit and a red fedora and patent leather shoes," he says. "Now, that character is going to be in the piece and if that character looks strikingly similar to Neil Young, then I don't know what to say."

"Rush Hour 3" in driver's seat at theaters

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - There's no statute of limitations on sequels, but "Rush Hour 3" will be pushing the envelope this week as it launches in North America six years after "Rush Hour 2."

Even so, the New Line Cinema buddy action flick starring Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan is in line to pick up the baton from Universal Pictures' "The Bourne Ultimatum," which dominated the previous weekend and should hold down the No. 2 spot this frame with a $30 million-plus haul.

By contrast, the weekend's other new wide arrivals aren't looking to hit any home runs as Paramount Pictures unveils its fantasy film "Stardust" and Sony Pictures rolls out the family sequel "Daddy Day Camp."

Still, it should make for another upbeat weekend for Hollywood compared with the same frame a year ago, when Sony's comedy "Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" led the field for a second weekend with sales of $22.1 million.

Despite the wait between "Rush Hour" films, the key creative components of the fast-talking action franchise have reunited: Brett Ratner is again at the helm, and screenwriter Jeff Nathanson, who penned the second installment, also is on board as Tucker and Chan this time around take their mismatched buddy routine to the streets of Paris.

The first "Rush Hour," released in 1998, opened to $33 million. Three years later, "Rush Hour 2" bowed to $67.4 million, a record for an August opening until "Ultimatum" grabbed $69.3 million last weekend.

One of the challenges that the $140 million-budgeted "Rush Hour 3" faces is that Tucker hasn't appeared onscreen since "Rush Hour 2." Expectations are that the movie could open somewhere in the $50 million-$60 million range, but given how many films have surprised the handicappers in recent weeks, it could break $60 million if it can gather enough support from younger males and black audiences.

"Stardust" is looking at more terrestrial returns. In a change of pace, British director Matthew Vaughn, who most recently shot the gangster drama "Layer Cake," has taken on the fantasy tale based on the novel by Neil Gaiman. Newcomer Charlie Cox plays a young man who goes in search of a fallen star, embodied by Claire Danes. Something of a modern-day "The Princess Bride," the film is courting fantasy fans as well as younger women and is expected to surface somewhere in the teen-million-dollar range.

"Daddy Day Camp" might be a sequel to 2003's "Daddy Day Care," but mostly in name only. Cuba Gooding Jr. and Paul Rae have taken over the roles that Eddie Murphy and Jeff Garlin played in the original -- that of the stay-at-home, pratfall-prone dads who open a day care center (in the new movie, they move on to a summer camp). Fred Savage of "The Wonder Years," now an established TV director, is making his feature directorial debut. But where the first film opened to $27.6 million and went on to gross $104.3 million domestically, this "Daddy," which opened Wednesday, likely will be relegated to the $5 million-$10 million range for the weekend.

Scialfa Album Beats Springsteen's To The Punch

Patti Scialfa admits the prospect of releasing her third solo album just in front of husband Bruce Springsteen's next project is "challenging."

"It's just the way it worked out," Scialfa, who releases "Play It As It Lays" on Sept. 4, tells Billboard.com. "When we came off 'The Seeger Sessions,' I had already started this record and had three or four things cut. I was dying to get back to work and I stared working and (Springsteen) started working ... and then we knew we were coming close together and he wanted me to be able to put mine out before his. When I was younger I would probably have wanted more room to myself, but at this point it doesn't matter."

What it has meant, Scialfa says, is that "it's been an exciting time at home because we're both pretty busy. It feels like a great, creative time. It just feels very positive."

As part of the E Street Band, of course, Scialfa appears on Springsteen's album, which is expected out in October, while Springsteen plays guitar and organ on four "Play It As It Lays" tracks, including the first single, "Town Called Heartbreak."

Scialfa wrote all 10 songs on the album, her first since 2004's "23rd Street Lullaby," and co-produced it with Steve Jordan and Ron Aiella. Besides Springsteen, players include E Streeters Nils Lofgren and Soozie Tyrell, as well as Jordan, bassist Willie Weeks and keyboardist Clifford Carter.

Scialfa has a number of TV appearances set for the week of the album's release, but she says her own concerts will have to wait until "maybe in the new year," during a break from a Springsteen tour that's expected to be announced shortly.

She said his new songs "are going to be a lot of fun to play live," but she plans to carve out time to give her material a live airing, too.

"I went out with '23rd Street Lullaby,' and I had so much fun," she says. "It was a really liberating experience for me. It's fun after working alone on a record to take it out there. I'd like to do that with this one, too."

Coogan Is Eddie The Eagle Edwards

In the Most British Film News Story Ever, Steve Coogan has signed on to play sporting legend Eddie "The Eagle" Edwards, Blighty's ski-jump Olympic disaster area and national hero, in a biopic (called, of course, Eddie The Eagle) due out next year.

Edwards was the first person ever to represent the UK at the ski jump, at the Olympics in Calgary in 1988. Ranked 55th in the world, Edwards was completely self-funded (he worked as a plasterer to make ends meet) and was the sole applicant to represent Blighty. Once there, his weight (nine pounds more than the next contestant), lack of financial support, long-sightedness (which required him to wear glasses that frequently fogged during the competition) and fear of heights rather affected his medal chances, and he finished last. Still, his good spirits and can-do attitude won him fans around the world, leading to a brief pop career and, now, this biopic.

John Heyman, producer of films like A Passage to India and father of Harry Potter producer David, has long cherished the idea of an Edwards film and has finally got it off the ground, with Coogan starring. The script's by Simon Kelton (who at one point had Nanny McPhee's Kirk Jones set to direct) with a rewrite by Sean Macaulay, and Declan Lowney is directing. Who's Lowney? Well, he's chiefly a TV comedy director, but since he directed the immortal "A Christmassy Ted" episode of Father Ted (and indeed some of that paragon of sitcoms other high points), we must assume that this will be the greatest film ever.

Shooting starts in January, so with a bit of luck we'll see it soon after next year's summer Olympics.

Unreleased Tunes Revived For Jagger Collection

A handful of unreleased tracks will enrich "The Very Best of Mick Jagger," due Oct. 2 via Atlantic/Rhino. Chief among them is 1973's John Lennon-produced "Too Many Cooks (Spoil the Soup)," which features Cream bassist Jack Bruce, Harry Nilsson on backing vocals and keyboardist Al Kooper, among others.

Two buried tracks from a session with producer Rick Rubin are seeing the light here: a cover of Sonny Boy Williamson's "Checkin' Up on My Baby" with Los Angeles blues band the Red Devils, and "Charmed Life," which has been remixed by producer Ashley Beedle.

Also featured on "Very Best" are Jagger's two biggest solo hits on the Billboard Hot 100: a cover of Martha and the Vandellas' "Dancing in the Street" with David Bowie (No. 7) and "Just Another Night" (No. 12). His collaboration with Peter Tosh on the Temptations' "(You've Got To Walk And) Don't Look Back" rounds out the track list.

Here is the track list for "The Very Best of Mick Jagger":

"God Gave Me Everything"
"Put Me in the Trash"
"Just Another Night"
"Don't Tear Me Up"
"Charmed Life"
"Sweet Thing"
"Old Habits Die Hard"
"Dancing in the Street"
"Too Many Cooks (Spoil the Soup)"
"Memo From Turner"
"Lucky in Love"
"Let's Work"
"Joy"
"Don't Call Me Up"
"Checkin' Up on My Baby"
"(You Gotta Walk And) Don't Look Back"
"Evening Gown"

Three get intimate with 'Guru'

Jessica Alba, Romany Malco and Verne Troyer have signed on to join Mike Myers in Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment's "The Love Guru."

Paramount also has slotted the comedy for a June 20 release.

The film, which marks Myers' first original character since Austin Powers, will begin shooting next month in Toronto.

Myers will play Pitka, an American who was left at the gates of an ashram in India as a child and raised by gurus. He moves back to the U.S. to seek fame and fortune in the world of self-help and spirituality, specializing in settling intimacy issues between couples.

His unorthodox methods are put to the test when he must settle a rift between star hockey player Darren Roanoke (Malco) and his estranged wife. After the split, Roanoke's wife starts dating the star member of a rival team, sending her husband into a major professional skid -- to the horror of the team's owner, Jane Bullard (Alba), and Coach Cherkov (Troyer).

Marco Schnabel, who served as second unit director on "Austin Powers in Goldmember," will helm from a screenplay penned by Myers and Graham Gordy.

Myers and Michael De Luca are producing, while Donald J. Lee Jr., Roger Birnbaum and Gary Barber are executive producing.

Alba recently reprised her role as Sue Storm in "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer." She next stars in the romantic comedy "Good Luck Chuck" with Dane Cook and the thriller "The Eye" for C/W Prods.

She is repped by Endeavor, Thruline Entertainment and attorney Warren Dern.

Malco most recently co-starred in the hit comedies "Blades of Glory" and "The 40-Year-Old Virgin."

Troyer teamed with Myers on the second and third installments in the "Austin Powers" franchise, playing Mini-Me.

Fox To Push $150,000 Movie

Fox Searchlight is planning to give the $150,000 art-house musical Once an advertising push after the film raked in $6.5 million on just 140 screens, USA Today reported on Wednesday.

The film has also received the attention -- and praise -- of Steven Spielberg, who told the newspaper, "A little movie called Once gave me enough inspiration to last the rest of the year."

The film's success has apparently surprised the filmmakers, singers Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, who say that they originally planned to sell it only at their concerts.

Aaron outrates Bonds on television

NEW YORK - Hank Aaron is still the home-run king when it comes to television ratings.

ESPN2's broadcast of Barry Bonds' record 756th homer received a 1.1 cable rating on ESPN2 Tuesday night, which translates to 995,000 households.

When Aaron hit his 715th home run on April 8, 1974, to break Babe Ruth's record, NBC's broadcast received a 22.3 rating on NBC, the equivalent of 14.9 million homes.

Back in Aaron's day, there were only a fraction of the TV channels that viewers can choose from today. Also, baseball had far less competition for the attention of fans.

Aaron's historic home run in Atlanta was hit at 9:07 p.m. EDT, while Bonds' drive in San Francisco came at 11:51 p.m. EDT. During the 11:45 p.m. to midnight time period, ESPN2's telecast averaged a 1.7 cable rating (1.6 million homes), and for the following 15 minutes the rating jumped to 1.9 (1.8 million homes).

NBC did not have 15-minute breakdowns available for the 1974 game.

Bonds' game did better in San Francisco, where is received a 7.2 rating and 15 share on FSN Bay Area (172,000 homes). During the 15-minute time period when Bonds homered, the telecast got an 11.1 rating (265,000 homes).

Tuesday's game was the 10th added Giants telecast by ESPN/ESPN2 during Bonds' home run chase.

The rating is the percentage of television households watching a broadcast, and the share is the percentage watching among those homes with televisions on at the time.

Bonds makes history with 756th home run

SAN FRANCISCO - Barry Bonds hit No. 756 over the right-center field wall Tuesday night, and hammered home the point: Like him or not, legitimate or not, he is baseball's new home run king. Bonds broke Hank Aaron's storied record in the fifth inning, connecting on a 3-2 pitch from Washington's Mike Bacsik. Three days earlier, Bonds tied the Hammer with a shot to left-center in San Diego.

Conspicuous by their absence were the commissioner and Aaron himself.

Bud Selig was on hand for the tiebreaking homer, deciding to put baseball history ahead of the steroid allegations that have plagued the San Francisco Giants slugger. On this night, he sent an emissary, Major League Baseball executive vice president Jimmie Lee Solomon.

As for Aaron, he said all along he had no interest in being there whenever and wherever his 33-year-old mark was broken. He was true to his word, but he did offer a taped message of congratulations.

Absent, too, were the fans who held up asterisk signs, sure that Bonds wasn't the real deal and that his power came from steroids.

Bonds didn't face such suspicions at AT&T Park, in front of a loyal, home crowd that included his godfather, Hall of Famer Willie Mays. Bonds has always denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs.

Yet even with Bonds at the top of the chart, fans will surely keep debating which slugger they consider the true home run champion. Some will continue to cling to Aaron while other, older rooters will always say it's Babe Ruth.

"It's all about history. Pretty soon, someone will come along and pass him," Mays said before the game.

A seven-time NL MVP, the 43-year-old Bonds hit his 22nd home run of the year. Bonds broke Mark McGwire's single-season record by hitting 73 in 2001 and while he's no longer such a force, opposing pitchers remain wary.

Bonds and Giants management bickered in the offseason over contract issues. This big night was the main reason owner Peter Magowan brought back the star left fielder for a 15th season in San Francisco, signing him to a $15.8 million, one-year contract.

Bonds' once-rapid quest for the record had slowed in recent years as his age and balky knees diminished his pace. He hit 258 home runs from 2000-04, but has only 53 since then.

While steroids have tinged Bonds' pursuit, it was race that was the predominant issue when Aaron broke Ruth's mark in 1974. Aaron dealt with hate mail and death threats from racist fans who thought a black man was not worthy of breaking the record set by a white hero, the beloved Babe.

Former commissioner Bowie Kuhn watched Aaron tie the record but was not present for the record-breaker, a slight that bothered many fans of Aaron. Selig is a close friend of Aaron's and offered Bonds tepid congratulations when he tied the record.

"I think Hank is his own man," Mays said. "I think if he wanted to be here he would be here."

"When he hit 715, the commissioner wasn't there," he said. "You may not blame him because he wasn't represented the right way."

Bonds was destined for stardom at an early age. The son of All-Star outfielder Bobby Bonds and the godson of one of the game's greatest players, Bonds spent his childhood years roaming the clubhouse at Candlestick Park, getting tips from Mays and other Giants.

"I visualized him playing sports at a high level. He was 5 when he was in my locker all the time," Mays said.

In a matter of years, Bonds went from a wiry leadoff hitter with Pittsburgh in 1986 to a bulked-up slugger. That transformation is at the heart of his many doubters, who believe Bonds cheated to accomplish his feats and should not be considered the record-holder.

There are plenty of fans already hoping for the day that Bonds' total — whatever it ends up — is topped. Rodriguez may have the best chance, with his 500 home runs at age 32 far ahead of Bonds' pace.

Honeymoon over for "Greek Wedding" creative team

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Alleging big, fat accounting problems, the creative team behind "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" is suing the independent production company behind the 2002 low-budget comedy phenomenon.

Plaintiffs in the suit, filed late Monday in Los Angeles Superior Court, include business entities controlled by Nia Vardalos, who wrote the screenplay and starred in the film, and those of producers Tom Hanks, Rita Hanks and Gary Goetzman.

Collectively, the creative team has shared in profits rising into the tens of millions, but it claims that a lack of transparency in accounting by film co-financier Gold Circle Films has left the plaintiffs uncertain of how much they are owed. Gold Circle is backed by billionaire Gateway Inc. co-founder Norm Waitt Jr.

The suit seeks unspecified monetary damages and a full accounting of film profits under court supervision. In addition to Gold Circle, the suit names as defendants related entities Big Wedding Prods. and Vortex Pictures.

"The accounting statements rendered by defendants have been vague and inadequate in failing to provide information consistent with industry standards," alleges the suit.

The plaintiffs claim Gold Circle reports gross receipts of the film -- produced on a budget of $5 million -- total $287 million, even though media reports indicate a tally closer to $400 million. The defendants have failed to provide an audit requested to clarify the matter, the plaintiffs said.

Vardalos' contract stipulates an 8% participation in adjusted gross profits, while the other three plaintiffs are owed one-third each of the net balance remaining after backend disbursements, according to the suit.

IFC, the domestic distributor of "Greek Wedding," was a nonequity contractor on the film and is not a party to the suit.

Scott Niemeyer, a principal at Gold Circle, issued a company statement denying all claims in the lawsuit, which he labeled as "frivolous."

"The lawsuit filed by the plaintiffs is completely without merit," Gold Circle said. "Gold Circle has fully complied with its contractual obligations and has already paid plaintiffs a combined total of over $44 million in profits on 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding.' Gold Circle has never thwarted the producers' audit rights.

"Since receiving plaintiffs' initial audit request over two years ago in early 2005, Gold Circle has invited plaintiffs' auditors to schedule and conduct their audit," the statement added. "However, for over two years the plaintiffs and their auditors have done nothing to advance an audit. Plaintiffs' representatives have filed this frivolous lawsuit as a desperate attempt to cover up their failure to initiate potential audit claims that have since been time-barred under the express terms of the applicable contracts."

Timberlake, Beyonce top VMA nominations

NEW YORK - Justin Timberlake and Beyonce lead the pop parade of nominees for the MTV Video Music Awards with seven nods apiece, it was announced Tuesday.

Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" was nominated for video of the year, as was Timberlake's ambitiously cinematic "What Goes Around ... Comes Around," which co-starred Scarlett Johansson. Also competing in the category are Amy Winehouse's "Rehab," Kanye West's "Stronger," Rihanna's "Umbrella" (featuring Jay-Z) and Justice's "D.A.N.C.E."

Timberlake was also nominated for male artist of the year and "most earth shattering collaboration" for pairing with Timbaland for "Sexy Back." Beyonce was nominated for female artist of the year and for her collaboration with Shakira on "Beautiful Liar."

West landed five nominations, including male artist of the year. He has often appeared prickly about losing awards, and on Tuesday he was still sore over being snubbed last year for his Evel Knievel spoof video "Touch the Sky." (In 2005, he did win best male video for "Jesus Walks.")

"I come to win. I don't come to lose," West told MTV Tuesday on "TRL," where the awards were announced. "I think there's some really strong competition this year."

Rihanna also received five nominations, propelled by her hit single, "Umbrella," which is up for "monster single of the year."

Also nominated for male artist of the year was Akon, T.I. and Robin Thicke. Rounding out the nominees for female artist of the year were Fergie and Nelly Furtado.

Amy Winehouse, whose album "Back to Black" was her second disc but her first released in the U.S., was nominated for best new artist. She received three nods, including female artist of the year. In the best new artist category, Winehouse will compete with her compatriot Lily Allen, as well as Carrie Underwood, Gym Class Heroes and Peter Bjorn & John.

Up for best group are Fall Out Boy, Gym Class Heroes, Linkin Park, Maroon 5 and the White Stripes.

The 24th annual VMAs will be handed out during a live two-hour show on Sept. 9 in Las Vegas at the Palms Hotel and Casino. Only eight categories will be awarded on the broadcast. Performers will include Kanye West, Fall Out Boy, Amy Winehouse, Chris Brown, the Foo Fighters and Rihanna.

Timbaland will serve as "maestro" for the night, booking the show's acts.

"By me being maestro," said Timbaland, "I am the show."

Why the web hates Ratner

Across the entertainment landscape of the Internet, perhaps no director is so reviled as Brett Ratner. The bloggers, it seems really, really hate him. And while they gleefully admit to hating lots of people, their most searing venom tends to be reserved for Ratner.

Defamer has described him as a "preternaturally hacky" director (we can't print what Defamer's readers like to call him in the comments section.) And Suicide Girls' entertainment blogger Kevin Seccia is planning to file a post called "Brett Ratner: Please Kill Yourself" imminently.

Which left us wondering why. Surely the world of entertainment is rife with loathsome people, ruining franchises, destroying beloved characters. What has Mr. Ratner done to upset the fanboys and film loving bloggers so deeply?

There was, of course only one way to find out. Ask the entertainment bloggers themselves. So The Los Angeles Times sent out a mass email to a few of our favorite web folks and asked them the simple question. "Why does the web hate Brett?"

Here's what they had to say.

Chris Thilk, www.MovieMarketingMadness.com
"The net hates Brett Ratner because he symbolizes everything that's slick and soulless about Hollywood right now. So much of the net is devoted toward celebrating films that are off the beaten path and feature original voices and brave performances. Ratner, on the other hand, is all about style with absolutely no substance. He's like a frat boy with a $150 million budget. The net, on the other hand, is all about sending people down the Long Tail toward more worthwhile, artistic films. He's everything the net has set out to protect people from. And to add insult to injury his movies often make decent cash, which just infuriates people."

Jeffrey Wells, www.Hollywood-Elsewhere.com
"Because he gets paid too much and laid too much for being, at best, a passable but mediocre director. It's not that he's greatly hated -- Michael Bay and McG have been much more deeply despised. Last week's Ratner-bash came in response to Scott Foundas' L.A. Weekly piece that argued that Ratner is a serious director who's worthy of respect. That's what caused the big outburst. Ratner's a likable guy, all in all.

Erik Davis, Cinematical.com
"Apart from the fact that he's one casting session away from an appearance on Dateline's To Catch a Predator series, the guy's films are all style and no substance. When he stops using scripts to get himself laid, and starts using them as the first step toward a compelling motion picture, perhaps "The Web" will like him more. But seeing as his smile is creepier than his take on Hannibal Lecter, I'd say most folks aren't very optimistic."

Kevin Seccia, http://suicidegirls.com/members/TheCoolerKing/news/
"I think they hate Brett because, for whatever reason, people enjoy movies that are well made... and Brett has yet to bother catering to that. Also, I think when you're the least interesting person in the room... and this room also contains Paris Hilton, the last thing you should be doing is putting your vision' on screen.

I mean, he accomplishes more in less time. It took him one movie to undo what Brian Singer accomplished in 2."

Berge Garabedian, www.joblo.com
"I don't personally hate him myself ('The Family Man' is actually one of my favorite movies), but the sense is that he comes from a rich background (i.e. he's spoiled), doesn't really know all that much about movies (started as a rap-music video director, I believe) and messed up the 'X-MEN' franchise with part 3 -- although in his defense, the producers who hurried the project were more to blame for that, in my humble opinion. He also seems to be known more for partying and nailing hot chicks than directing, which probably bothers some as well...hehehe. I'd say that he's more of a so-so director who's caught some damn lucky breaks, it seems."

Dave Davis, www.joblo.com (too)
"This isn't necessarily my own opinion (not completely), but I think the general perception is that his success is unjustified -- he seems to have skated on minimal talent, an abundance of luck, and being a very slick talker to the people in the business who matter. Some people are probably annoyed by his socialite behavior and a few bonehead statements he's made to the press (and more than a few rumors about his aloof filmmaking process and extracurricular activities), while he has yet to develop any real visual style to define himself as a director. That said, I wouldn't mind being him for a few days."

Cruise As Pike In "Star Trek"?

IGN Movies says that according to a trusted source, director J.J. Abrams would like to have an A-list star cameo in his forthcoming big-screen reboot of "Star Trek."

The source claims that Abrams is wooing his "Mission: Impossible III" star Tom Cruise to cameo as Captain Christopher Pike. Cruise's last big-screen cameo was in "Austin Powers in Goldmember."

Pike was James T. Kirk's predecessor as captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise and Mr. Spock's first commanding officer. Jeffrey Hunter portraryed him in the unaired TV pilot, "The Cage."

'Once' isn't enough: Film gets marketing push

Once is getting a second wind.

The Romeo and Juliet-style romance about two star-crossed musicians has been maintaining strong ticket sales since May, amid a season of one-weekend wonders.

Once is now attempting to expand on its art-house accomplishments and find a broader audience, after also catching the attention of the stars' musical and filmmaking heroes, Bob Dylan and Steven Spielberg.

Playing in 140 theaters, Once has earned $6.5 million — tiny compared with studio blockbusters playing on thousands of screens, but huge considering its creators thought they'd be selling the movie, which cost a mere $150,000, only at their concerts.

Distributor Fox Searchlight has a new advertising push, while stars Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova are on a seven-city tour with appearances last week on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno and a live concert on National Public Radio.

Hansard, frontman for the band The Frames, has dreamed about this kind of exposure his whole life.

"If you flirt with success, don't be surprised if it offers you sex," Hansard jokes. "To be honest, I've spent the past weeks trying to make sense of all this."

They are beginning a low-key Oscar campaign for the original songs, with screenings and performances for Los Angeles' Society of Composers and Lyricists and other Hollywood award-season voters.

Once, written and directed by John Carney, is the story of an Irish singer/songwriter (Hansard) who finds a muse in a Czech flower seller and aspiring pianist (Irglova) he meets on the streets of Dublin.

The film has been praised as a kind of natural musical, loaded with songs by the musicians who play together in real life under the name The Swell Season.

The film has been seen by some of their idols: Spielberg said Monday, "A little movie called Once gave me enough inspiration to last the rest of the year."

Also, Hansard credits Once with getting The Frames an invitation to open for Dylan's upcoming Australian tour, and he and Irglova were asked to do a cover version of Dylan's You Ain't Goin' Nowhere for the soundtrack of I'm Not There, a reality-bending Dylan biopic.

"It is such a great boost for us," says Irglova. "We've been playing that song together for years."

There are no plans for a Once sequel, but Hansard says the pair has been creating new music throughout the experience: "It's been good ground for growing ideas."

Forbes: Damon's a `Bourne' moneymaker

NEW YORK - Matt Damon is Hollywood's best investment, says Forbes. com.

For every dollar he was paid for his last three roles, Damon brought in $29 of gross income, the site calculated.

That put the 36-year-old "Bourne" star atop a Forbes list of 22 film heavyweights, ranked by the same financial formula.

The first two "Bourne" movies grossed an estimated $850 million at the box office and in DVD sales, Forbes said. The third installment, "The Bourne Ultimatum," opened last weekend and raked in $70.2 million at the box office. It was the biggest August film opening ever.

Brad Pitt took second place on the list, with a gross income return of $24 for each dollar of his pay, and Vince Vaughn tied with Johnny Depp for third with $21.

Pitt's ex-wife, Jennifer Aniston, is the most profitable actress with a gross income return of $17. Pitt's current significant other, Angelina Jolie, ranked sixth with $15.

"The biggest stars in Hollywood are not the actors that deliver the biggest returns," Forbes senior editor Michael Ozanian said in a statement Monday.

Russell Crowe is at the bottom of the list. His last three films — "A Good Year," "Cinderella Man" and "Master and Commander" — averaged just $5 in gross income for every dollar spent on the Oscar winner, Forbes said.

Movies starring the two Toms — Hanks and Cruise — averaged $12 and $11 of gross income, respectively. Will Smith and Denzel Washington each brought in $10.

On the comedic front, Adam Sandler brought in $9 per dollar earned, Will Ferrell and Jim Carrey $8 each).

Forbes.com calculated the net revenue for a film by adding the worldwide box office and revenues from U.S. DVD and video rentals and then subtracting its budget. The net revenue was divided by the actor's total compensation to derive gross income. The average gross income of an actor's last three films produced their box-office return.

The "Ultimate Star Payback" list was posted Monday.

New CD Releases, Aug. 7: Jonas Brothers, Constantine Maroulis, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals

Jonas Brothers "Jonas Brothers"

The New Jersey siblings--Kevin, Nick and Joe Jonas--deliver a self-titled set that marks the pop-rock band's second album, following 2006's "It's About Time."

The Jonas Brothers are a big hit with younger listeners, thanks in large part to appearances on television. They've been featured on MTV, Nickelodeon, the Cartoon Network and the Disney Channel. Furthermore, the Disney Channel is set to air a new series starring the Brothers--"J.O.N.A.S!"--in which the young musicians will be cast in the roles of government-hired spies.

The band has had many chart-toppers on Radio Disney, including "Year 3000," "Hold On" and "Kids of the Future." All of those songs are on "Jonas Brothers," which is why this record has a good chance at debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard charts.

* * *
Constantine Maroulis "Constantine"

Fans of "American Idol" might have been wondering, "Whatever happened to Constantine Maroulis?" Well, this week brings an answer: the two-year-in-the-making solo outing "Constantine."

Maroulis, who competed during the fourth season of Fox-TV's "American Idol," is striking out on his own after having previously fronted the New York-based rock quartet Pray for the Soul of Betty.

Despite being a fan favorite, Maroulis finished in sixth place on "Idol." That explains the name for his record label, 6th Place.

* * *
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals "This Is Somewhere"

The Vermont-based group, which combines blues, funk and rock and is often lumped into the "jam band" category, returns with a follow-up to 2006's "Nothing But the Water."

Led by vocalist Grace Potter, who also is capable with keyboards and guitar, the troupe has a Jammy Award to its credit. The band won the Jammy for "Best New Groove" in 2006.

* * *
Robben Ford "Truth"

The Northern California blues great, who has backed such mega-stars as Joni Mitchell and George Harrison, picks up his guitar and strums out the "Truth." The album features fellow blues-guitar champ Susan Tedeschi on "One Man's Ceiling is Another Man's Floor."

* * *
Bruce Hornsby "Camp Meeting"

Having recently released an album with bluegrass star Ricky Skaggs, the ever-restless Hornsby now takes a turn toward jazz music. "Camp Meeting" features the pianist leading a jazz trio of bassist Christian McBride and drummer Jack DeJohnette. The threesome is touring in support of the album.

* * *
More new releases:
Kat DeLuna, "9 Lives" (Sony)
Drowning Pool, "Full Circle" (Eleven Seven)
Fuel, "Angels and Devils" (Epic)
Billie Holiday, "Remixed and Reimagined" (Sony)
Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, "Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes: Live in Concert" (Soul Concerts)
Plies, "The Real Testament" (Atlantic)
John Pinette, "Making Lite of Myself" (Uproard)
The Receiving End of Sirens, "The Earth Sings Mi Fa Mi" (Triple Crown)
Diana Ross, "Last Time I Saw Him" (Hip-O)
Joe Satriani, "Surfing with the Alien" (Sony)
Slightly Stoopid, "Chronchitis" (Megaforce)
Third Day, "Chronology, Vol. 2" (Essential)
Throwdown, "Venom and Tears" (Trustkill)
UGK, "Underground Kingz" (Jive)
Jennifer Warnes, "Famous Blue Raincoat: 20th Anniversary Edition" (Shout Factory)

Van Halen Tour To Be Announced Next Week?

Sources say a Hollywood press conference in one week will announce a 50-date American arena tour by Van Halen to begin in early October. The tour will feature founding Van Halen members David Lee Roth, Eddie Van Halen and Alex Van Halen, with Eddie's son Wolfgang on bass.

A proposed summer amphitheater tour by the group, first tipped here in late January, never got off the ground, with Eddie Van Halen entering a rehabilitation facility for undisclosed reasons in March.

In the months since, the artist has been seen publicly looking healthy and fit, and Billboard.com reported a month ago that several arena holds were in place in major markets for potential Van Halen dates.

Van Halen last toured in 2004 with vocalist Sammy Hagar, grossing nearly $40 million, according to Billboard Boxscore. Roth has not fronted the band on tour in more than 20 years.

"Bourne" slays Homer in biggest August film opening

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The amnesiac assassin Jason Bourne is back, and this time he clobbered Homer Simpson on his way to scoring the biggest film opening ever for the month of August.

"The Bourne Ultimatum," the third movie in the espionage action series starring Matt Damon as a one-time CIA hit man searching for his past, grossed $70.2 million its first weekend to rank as North America's top film at the box office, according to studio estimates on Sunday.

That tally far exceeded the debut ticket sales generated by the first two films in the Universal Pictures franchise.

By comparison, "The Bourne Identity" opened at No. 2 with $27.1 million in June 2002, and the "The Bourne Supremacy" landed at No. 1 in July 2004 with $52.5 million. Those two films went on to gross nearly $485 million worldwide combined.

The latest "Bourne" total marks the biggest first weekend ever for a movie in August, surpassing the $67.4 million opening posted by "Rush Hour 2" the same weekend in 2001.

"Bourne Ultimatum," which like its immediate predecessor was directed by British filmmaker Paul Greengrass, clearly benefited from the rave reviews it earned for its tightly wound, heart-pounding action.

Exit polls showed the movie played to a slightly older crowd than much of the summer's high-profile popcorn fare, with 57 percent of its audience over the age of 30.

HOT SUMMER

"This is beyond all of the special-effects films that are in the marketplace. It offered a different kind of entertainment that's very satisfying," said Nicki Rocco, president of domestic distribution for Universal, which is controlled by General Electric Co.

"Bourne's" robust debut continued what has been a very healthy summer for Hollywood, with domestic ticket receipts since May 1 up nearly 6 percent compared with last year, according to box office tracking service Media By Numbers. This weekend's cumulative gross for all films is up about 25 percent year on year.

Last week's domestic box office champion, "The Simpsons Movie," a feature-length version of the long-running TV cartoon, slipped to second place in its second weekend with $25.6 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales.

Despite its 65 percent drop-off from week to week, "The Simpsons," from News Corp.'s 20th Century Fox, has now racked up about $128.6 million domestically and $315.5 million worldwide.

Another new wide release, the canine superhero comedy "Underdog," arrived at No. 3 on the box office chart with $12 million in ticket sales for Walt Disney Co.'s Buena Vista Pictures.

Paramount Pictures' "Hot Rod," featuring "Saturday Night Live" star Andy Samberg in his big-screen debut as a self-proclaimed stuntman, grossed $5 million its first weekend to land at No. 9.

"Bratz: The Movie," a live-action 'tween comedy based on the popular fashion doll line, opened at No. 10 with $4.3 million for Lionsgate, a unit of Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.

The Couch Potato Report - August 4th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report peels four foreign films and one Hollywood epic about some foreigners.

I'll start The Report off this week with a question: Do you know who Johnny Halliday is?

Until recently, I had no idea who he was.

But I am not from France, I don't live in Quebec, and I don't listen to very much French music.

For if I did, I would have known that Johnny Halliday is an icon to our French friends.

Some even consider him to be the French equivalent of Elvis Presley.

Johnny Halliday has had a 40-year career in the music industry and is one of France's biggest stars. He has made 400 tours, had 18 platinum albums, performed in front of 15 million people, and sold 100 million discs since the beginning of his career.

Yet Hallyday remains largely unknown outside of France and the French-speaking world, being often nicknamed in English-speaking countries as "the biggest rock star you've never heard of".

As I said, I hadn't heard of Johnny Halliday until recently, and I learned of him because of one of the most entertaining films I have seen this year.

The French film JEAN-PHILIPPE.

At the start of the movie we meet Fabrice. He is the biggest Johnny Hallyday fan in the world. He listen's to Johnny's songs as he travels to work, he carries an autograph around in his wallet, and he even has a room in his house full of memorabilia...complete with lifesize cardboard cut-outs of the man.

He's a fan, his family knows he's a fan and he work colleagues all know it too.

But one day he wakes up in a world that - on the surface - only seems a bit different. But in this new reality, it is a whole different world.

Instead of working on the right side of the office he shares, he works on the left, and his daughter now wants to be called Marion, and not Laura.

But the biggest difference is that fact that his music idol doesn't exist!

In this new world no one has heard of Johnny Halliday.

So Fabrice tries to find out what happened to Jean-Philippe Smet, the man he knows as Johnny Hallyday.

And he finds him!

In this world Jean-Philippe is an ordinary average Joe running a bowling alley.

But Fabrice doesn't want to live in a world without his beloved Johnny, so he makes it his mission to resurrect his idol, no matter the cost!

As I said a few minutes ago, JEAN-PHILIPPE is one of the most entertaining films of the year!

It was fun, charming, romantic, and if you have ever loved a singer so much that you can't imagine your world without that person or their songs, then you will be able to relate to it.

Plus, Johnny Halliday plays himself, giving the movie an extra layer of enjoyment.

JEAN-PHILIPPE isn't a film that you will find in every store you go into, but if you see it, watch it. It is that good!

Another movie you won't find in every store is the remastered edition of the classic MOTHRA VS. GODZILLA.

But if you are a fan of this 1964 Japanese monster movie, you should search it out as well, becuase the new DVD features remastered versions of both the original movie and the English version.

MOTHRA VS. GODZILLA has great new packaging, the films look and sound tremendous, and the bonus features are all informative and entertaining as well.

Plus, the English version also features extra footage not in the Japanese version!

If you are a Godzilla fan, don't hesitate to pick it up! Again, you may have to search for it, but it is worth your time!

The next two films this week are also worth your time, and the good news is you won't have to search for them as they are everywhere!

I am referring to the hilarious British movie HOT FUZZ, from the makers of SHAUN OF THE DEAD, and the epic Hollywood action film 300 - based on Frank Miller's graphic novel.

Let me start with HOT FUZZ.

Nicolas Angel is a highly decorated London police officer who is so good at his job that he is shunted off to an assignment in the country.

Sanford would seem to be an impossibly idyllic place, winner several times of the top village in England award. But it is a town that houses mysteries.

It also houses a wide array of unique characters.

HOT FUZZ is an action film...and a mystery...but it is primarily a satire on the genre of loud and explosive Hollywood action films.

The film also contains numerous references to other movies, making it a treat for those who love action movies.

Plus, it is incredibly well-written, kinetically edited, and very funny too.

HOT FUZZ is absurd, and priceless! It is one of the most entertaining films of the year!

And so is 300!!

The first time I saw this film all I said was: Wow! That was a unique cinematic experience.

The second, third, and now fourth times I saw it, I thought exactly the same thing!

300 is a spectacular cinematic experience...even it you are watching it at home!

Filmed primarily in Montreal 300 is based on Frank Miller's graphic novel, and both are a retelling of a battle that took place in 480 B.C.

An inferior number of Spartan soldiers - 300 to be exact - under the command of King Leonidas fought a vastly superior Persian force - that was estimated to be anywhere between 200,000 and 2,000,000.

300 is a film about heroism in the face of insurmountable odds, but it is also so much more than that.

In order to try and duplicate the imagery of the original graphic novel, the filmmakers have created masterpiece of images, style, and testosterone.

It has soldiers, action, fighting and death.

It also has beautiful woman and men.

300 is not a film for you if you have a problem with action movies or bloodshed...but if you have no issues with those things, I think you will agree - it is a unique cinematic experience.

Finally this week is our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD.

With movies already appearing from France, Japan and Britain, and 300 about warriors in Greece, this week's selection is a little bit less of a Foreign film than some of our other selections.

RENAISSANCE PARIS 2054 is a Foreign film, it was also made in France so that fact makes it eligible, but the DVD also features an English language track with many well-known English speaking actors, including JAMES BOND's DANIEL CRAIG, so it is more half and half than truly foreign.

But all of it is interesting to look at.

Set in the city of Paris in the year 2054, RENAISSANCE features a world that is not unlike the one established in the science-fiction classic BLADE RUNNER.

In the city, all movement is monitored and recorded and a giant corporation has a hold in every aspect of human life.

For the most part, RENAISSANCE PARIS 2054 is classic film noir - there is a lady in peril, a sister trying to find her, and an honest cop fighting for truth and justice.

RENAISSANCE is visually impressive, it is a black and white animated film with no grey...it is all black or white, but toward the end the story lets the visuals down.

I am not saying there aren't any surprises, because there are a few inspired ones, but around the time the cop gets suspended - as cops do in these types of films - his story starts to be the least interesting one.

All that said, it is still a very interesting film, and you won't see animation like this in any of this year's summer movies, and that si why it is this week's entry in our Foreign Film Festival on DVD.

RENAISSANCE PARIS 2054, the classic Japanese film MOTHRA VS. GODZILLA, the unique cinematic experience 300, the very entertaining HOT FUZZ and the French film JEAN-PHILIPPE, one of the most entertaining films I have seen this year, are all available now on DVD.

Coming up on the next Couch Potato Report

MANUFACTURING DISSENT is a Canadian made documentary that tries to distinguish what is fact, fiction, legend, and otherwise about American filmmaker Michael Moore.

The classic John Woo Hong Kong action film HARD BOILED is now available in a TWO-DISC ULTIMATE EDITION.

STARTER FOR 10 is a bittersweet comedy about life at a British university in the 1980s.

And our FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD continues with the Polish film GUYS DON'T CRY.

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!

Movie-going in Canada dropped in 2005: StatsCan

The lustre of the silver screen wasn't enough to draw movie-goers to Canadian theatres in 2005, as attendance plunged by 7.8 per cent from the previous year, according to a new survey.

In a year of films such as Brokeback Mountain, Crash, Syriana and The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Canadian cinemas sold just under 105.2 million tickets, Statistics Canada said Friday.

The sharp decline followed a year of modest gains in 2004 and came despite Famous Players' policy of lowering the adult ticket price to $10 in most of Canada.

The industry reported that Canadians could not be lured into the cinema in the summer, and the blockbusters that were released — including Star Wars: Episode III, Batman Begins and War of the Worlds — were less successful than the summer films of other years.

The growing popularity of cheaper home entertainment equipment, such as DVD players, may also have kept Canadians home.

This year's crops of summer releases, including the fifth Harry Potter film, Hairspray and a new edition of Die Hard, are expected to be more successful at the box office.

In 2005, each Canadian made an average of 3.2 visits to the movies in 2005, with Albertans the most avid movie-goers, at 5.2 visits a year.

Attendance at cinemas in Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan exceeded the national average, while Canadians in Ontario and Eastern Canada made fewer visits to the cinema.

Theatres in Ontario accounted for 40 per cent of cinema revenue, and Quebec, with a steep decline in consumer spending on movie tickets, accounted for 20 per cent.

Declining ticket sales cut into earnings for Canada's major theatre chains — with revenue down 5.3 per cent to $1.2 billion, and a huge profit drop, to $29 million from $110 million in 2004.

Fans vote Toronto onto Spice Girls world tour

The Spice Girls have added a Toronto date to their world tour next year after thousands of fans voted to add Toronto to their schedule.

The newly reunited girl-power group had already scheduled a Dec. 2 concert in Vancouver as part of their tour.

Toronto Spice Girls fans outvoted fans in Rio, Chicago, Paris, Baghdad and Alice Springs in an online contest to get the group to perform in the city.

"We are delighted to be going to Toronto. We have such incredible fans there and we are amazed at such a positive reaction. It's a great place and we can't wait to get back there. Well done Toronto," the Spice Girls said on their website.

Toronto was named as the chosen Spice City on Friday after more than three million fans from around the world voted to get one of the group's remaining tour dates.

The exact date for the Toronto concert has yet to be confirmed, but it will be in January.

The British group, which had hits such as Wannabe, Say You'll Be There and 2 Become 1 in the 1990s, announced a reunion tour in June.

All five original members — Melanie Brown (Scary), Melanie Chisholm (Sporty), Geri Halliwell (Ginger), Emma Bunton (Baby) and Victoria Beckham (Posh) — will be back on the tour.

John Fogerty Eyeing October For 'Revival'

John Fogerty's first new studio album as part of his fresh deal with Fantasy Records will arrive in the fall. "Revival," due Oct. 2, was recorded in a 12-day session with drummer Kenny Aronoff, guitarist Junter Perrin, bassist David Santos and keyboardist Benmont Tench.

"It just seemed like all the records I have made since Creedence Clearwater Revival have all been sort of pushed off center," Fogerty says. "I felt like I was dancing around the outskirts of what is my true center. With this album, I really wanted to stay on the mark, right in the middle, right where rock'n'roll is."

Among the tracks appearing on "Revival" include opener "Don't You Wish It Was True," a knowing nod to his past titled "Creedence Song," "Gunslinger," the gospel-tinged "The River Is Waiting" and "I Can't Take It No More."

Fogerty rejoined Fantasy in 2005 after years of bigger legal disputes over the Creedence back catalog. The label issued a retrospective late that year, "The Long Road Home."

"Revival" is the follow-up to 2004's "Deja Vu All Over Again," which debuted at No. 23 on The Billboard 200.

Shrek to Set Fourth in 2010

Good things come in threes—or in Shrek's case, every three years.

With Shrek the Third gobbling up more than $720 million in worldwide ticket sales since being unleashed in May, DreamWorks Animation and Paramount Pictures have penciled in May 21, 2010, as the release date for the fourth adventure of the not so jolly green giant and his fairy-tale friends.

Shortly after the latest installment debuted, DreamWorks cochair Jeffrey Katzenberg confirmed plans for not only a fourth, tentatively titled The Next Shrek, but a fifth Shrek, now slated for 2013.

The principal voices—including Mike Myers as the lovable ogre, Cameron Diaz as Princess Fiona, Eddie Murphy as sidekick Donkey and Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots—are all expected back for the sequels.

May has proven a lucky month for Shrek and Co..

The original hit theaters in May 2001 and went on to win the inaugural Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. All told, the first three entries in the irreverent 'toon franchise have grossed more than $2.1 billion worldwide.

Shrek the Third scored a $121.6 million opening weekend, the third largest of all time and the biggest debut ever for an animated film. The CGI film has tallied $320 million domestically and $400 million internationally; it remains in release.

So far, DreamWorks and Paramount's rivals aren't challenging the May 21 date for any of their big summer tentpoles. Then again, it's three years away—the average time it takes to shepherd a Shrek tale from storyboard to screen.

To make sure the ogre and pals remain in the public consciousness, DreamWorks is teaming with ABC on Shrek the Halls, a half-hour animated holiday special featuring Myers, Diaz, Murphy and Banderas. It's scheduled to premiere, of course, in December.

New "Bourne" set to lead weekend box office

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Jason Bourne, the amnesiac political assassin, should find himself in familiar territory atop the North American box office this weekend with "The Bourne Ultimatum," the third film in the spy saga.

Although Hollywood also is fielding three other wide releases and two more modest platform launches, "Bourne" should outrun the competition and force the previous weekend's chart-topper, "The Simpsons Movie," into second place.

Universal Pictures' "Ultimatum," which takes the globe-trotting Bourne (Matt Damon) to Tangier and New York, looks poised to hit the high-$50 million range, possibly even pushing into $60 million territory.

The first film in the series, "The Bourne Identity," opened to $27.1 million in 2002. "The Bourne Supremacy" bowed to $52.5 million three summers ago. Both "Supremacy" and "Ultimatum" were directed by Paul Greengrass.

20th Century Fox's "Simpsons," which bowed last weekend to a resounding $74 million, will likely follow with a haul in the $33 million-$37 million range. The animated movie is expected to cross the century mark Friday.

In a bid for the family audience, Walt Disney Pictures is unleashing "Underdog," a live-action version of the 1960s cartoon series about a canine superhero. It should open in the $11 million-$14 million range.

Paramount's "Hot Rod," in which breakout "Saturday Night Live" star Andy Samberg makes his big-screen debut as an Evel Knievel wannabe, is expected to race off with about $7 million-$10 million.

And then there's "Bratz: The Movie," a live-action tween comedy based on the popular doll line. Handicappers will be surprised if the Lionsgate release rises much higher than the $5 million mark in its first weekend.

Utilizing a more selective rollout, Picturehouse is raising the curtain on the musical drama "El Cantante," a biopic about salsa singer Hector Lavoe starring Marc Anthony. Jennifer Lopez, who is married to Anthony, produced and also stars in the R-rated film, which should find favor among Latino audiences as it debuts in 542 theaters.

Miramax Films also will introduce "Becoming Jane," a period romance in which Jane Austen (Anne Hathaway) takes center stage. It will dance into 100 theaters.

On 25 screens, ThinkFilm is venturing out with the R-rated "The Ten," a skit comedy built around outrageous infractions of the Ten Commandments.

Irish singer Tommy Makem dies at 74

DOVER, N.H. - Irish singer, songwriter and storyteller Tommy Makem, who teamed with the Clancy Brothers to become stars during the folk music boom, has died of cancer. He was 74.

Makem died Wednesday in Dover, where he lived for many years, his son Conor said Thursday. He had battled lung cancer.

The Irish-born Makem, who came to America in the 1950s to seek work as an actor, grew to international fame while performing with the band The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. The brothers, also from Ireland, were Tom, Liam and Paddy Clancy.

Armed with his banjo, tinwhistle, poetry, stagecraft and his baritone voice, Makem helped spread stories and songs of Irish culture around the world.

He brought audiences to tears with "Four Green Fields," about a woman whose sons died trying to prevent strangers from taking her fields. Other songs included "Gentle Annie" and "Red Is the Rose."

"He just had the knack of making an audience laugh or cry. ... holding them in his hands," Liam Clancy told RTE Radio in Dublin, Ireland.

The New York Times wrote in 1967 called them "an eight-legged, ambulatory chamber of commerce for the green isle they love so well. ... At one point, Irish teenagers were paying as much homage to them as to the Beatles."

After touring for about nine years as The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem, he struck out on his own, but he remained friends with the brothers. Tom Clancy died in 1990 and Paddy in 1998.

Back in the 1950s, Makem and his friends, saw their first few albums — "The Rising of the Moon" and a collection of drinking songs — as a fluke.

In a 1994 Associated Press interview, Makem recalled he was astonished when a Chicago club offered him more money to sing for a week than he was getting for acting with a repertory company.

"I was the opening act for Josh White. I felt sort of silly, coming out and singing unaccompanied, and then Josh coming out and almost making the guitar talk," he said.

As their fame spread, they appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show" and other major TV shows, and headlined concerts at Carnegie Hall and London's Royal Albert Hall.

A young Bob Dylan was one of the folk singers who got to know Makem and the Clancys during the early 1960s.

"Topical songs weren't protest songs," Dylan wrote in his memoir "Chronicles Volume One." "What I was hearing pretty regularly, though, were rebellion songs, and those really moved me. The Clancy Brothers — Tom, Paddy and Liam — and their buddy Tommy Makem sang them all the time."

In 1992, Makem and the Clancys were among the stars performing in a gala tribute to Dylan at New York's Madison Square Garden. Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Tracy Chapman and Dylan himself also took part.

President Mary McAleese of Ireland led the tributes to Makem after his death. "Always the consummate musician, he was also a superb ambassador for the country, and one of whom we will always be proud," McAleese said.

Even while battling cancer, he was maintaining a performance schedule, and he visited Belfast last month to receive an honorary degree and returned to his native Armagh.

"He had very much wanted to get over there," said his son Conor. "I think he knew it might have been his last time over."

Canyon, newcomer Shane Yellowbird lead CCMA nominations

Newcomer Shane Yellowbird, from Hobbema, Alta., has earned five nominations for 2007 Canadian Country Music Association Awards, equalling the number for veteran country star George Canyon.

Yellowbird, whose feel-good tune Pickup Truck is the No. 1 music video on Country Music Television, released his debut album, Life is Calling My Name, in November 2006.

Now Yellowbird, a Cree whose parents participated in the rodeo circuit, has earned nominations for album of the year and the Rising Star Award, the CCMA announced Tuesday.

His album has been named for album of the year, and Pickup Truck has nominations for single of the year and earned a SOCAN Songwriter of the Year nomination for Joni Delaurier and Troy Kokol.

Nova Scotia-born Canyon, a perennial fan choice award winner at both the CCMA and East Coast Music Association Awards, has been nominated for male artist of the year and the fan choice award.

His Somebody Wrote Love is nominated for best album, and I Want You to Live, with its video showing soldiers serving overseas, has been nominated for both song of the year and video of the year.

Other multiple nominees for the CCMA Awards, to be presented Sept. 10 in Regina, include Paul Brandt, Doc Walker, Emerson Drive, Brad Johner and Carolyn Dawn Johnson, each with four nominations.

In the male artist of the year category, Canyon is competing against Calgary singer-songwriter Brandt, Vancouver-born Aarong Pritchett, hot soloist Johner, formerly a member of the duo The Johner Brothers, and Glasgow-born, Canadian-bred Johnny Reid.

Johnson, a Deadwood, Alta., native and multiple CCMA award winner, is named for female artist of the year, with Vancouver singer-songwriter Lisa Brokop, veteran star Terri Clark, Montreal's Patricia Conroy and newcomer Jessie Farrell.

The nominations for the top indie artists of the year — with Johner, Reid, Yellowbird, Brokop and Conroy turning up again — are so similar to the lists for male and female artist of the year that the CCMA is considering changing the criteria for the indie awards.

Heather Ostertag, chair of the CCMA, said the overwhelming move to independent recording by Canada's country artists has meant many well-established stars are turning up in the indie categories, originally created to give recognition to newcomers.

"It's one of the big discussions we have to have in Regina this year," she told CBC News. "Perhaps we might have to change the criteria for this award … so it focuses more on the emerging artists."

The other nominees for male artist of the year are Gord Bamford and Corb Lund, while Diane Chase, Lisa Hewitt and Beverley Mahood are on the nomination list of indie female singers.

Winnipeg band Doc Walker, a Fan Choice nominee, is also up for group or duo of the year, with country trio Ambush, Emerson Drive of Grande Prairie, Alta., Ontario's The Road Hammers and The Wilkinsons of Belleville, Ont.

Ambush and The Wilkinsons are also among the indie group nominees, with The Cruzeros, the Poverty Plainsmen and veteran band Prairie Oyster.

Country Music Week will be held Sept. 7-10 in Regina.

"We are excited to return to a community that the CCMA has not been to in 30 years," Ostertag said.

The award ceremony on Sept. 10 will be broadcast on CBC and CMT and here is the complete list of nominees.

Male artist
Paul Brandt
George Canyon
Brad Johner
Aaron Pritchett
Johnny Reid

Female artist
Lisa Brokop
Terri Clark
Patricia Conroy
Jessie Farrell
Carolyn Dawn Johnson

Group or duo
Ambush
Doc Walker
Emerson Drive
The Road Hammers
The Wilkinsons

Roots artist
The Cruzeros
Sean Hogan
Corb Lund
Prairie Oyster
Jimmy Rankin

Rising Star
Jason Blaine
Jessie Farrell
Jo Hikk
Brett Kissel
Donny Parenteau
Shane Yellowbird

Indie male artist
Gord Bamford
Brad Johner
Corb Lund
Johnny Reid
Shane Yellowbird

Indie female artist
Lisa Brokop
Diane Chase
Patricia Conroy
Lisa Hewitt
Beverley Mahood

Indie group or duo
Ambush
The Cruzeros
The Poverty Plainsmen
Prairie Oyster
The Wilkinsons

Best single
Driving With the Brakes On, Doc Walker
I Want You to Live, George Canyon
I'd Rather Be Lucky, Brad Johner
Moments, Emerson Drive
Pickup Truck, Shane Yellowbird

Best album
Countrified, Emerson Drive
Doc Walker, Doc Walker
Life Is Calling My Name, Shane Yellowbird
Love & Negotiation, Carolyn Dawn Johnson
Somebody Wrote Love, George Canyon

Johansson Won't Play Jameson

Scarlett Johansson has laughed off claims she will play porn star Jenna Jameson in a Hollywood biopic.

Jameson herself prompted reports at the Comic Con convention in San Diego, California in July, when she said of the actress' performance in Lost In Translation, "I remember thinking to myself, this girl has such a sexuality without even really trying to be sexy. I was like, 'This girl could play me.' I love her. She's amazing. She's smart, she's funny. ... She's stunning. I don't want someone who's going to go in there and be like bouncing around. I want someone who can bring some depth."

But Johansson knows nothing of the film project - based on Jameson's book How to Make Love Like A Porn Star - which is to be titled Heartbreaker.

Her representative tells People.com, "Scarlett has never seen a script nor been approached about this project. She also has no interest in playing this role."

China passes on Chan's `Rush Hour 3'

HONG KONG - Jackie Chan's new action comedy, "Rush Hour 3," won't be shown in China.

"We think the market for the movie is relatively weak," Xiao Ping, a vice president at state-run China Film Group's import and export arm, said Tuesday.

The Chinese government carefully screens foreign media content and allows only about 20 foreign films a year to be shown.

Ping said "Rush Hour 3" was up against some tough competition.

China has already imported several Hollywood blockbusters, including "Transformers," "Spider-Man 3" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End."

But Hollywood trade publication Variety reported on its Asian Web site Tuesday that Chinese officials believe "Rush Hour 3," which stars Chan and Chris Tucker as buddy cops taking on a Chinese crime family in Paris, is "fundamentally anti-Chinese."

Xiao said she didn't know whether film executives were concerned about scenes of Chinese gangsters.

New Line Cinema said it had no comment.

Chan, 53, and Tucker, 34, have co-starred in all three "Rush Hour" movies. The trilogy, directed by Brett Ratner, began in 1998.

The loss of the China market isn't a major blow to filmmakers. Chinese box-office income remains much smaller than in the U.S. A movie that makes tens of millions of U.S. dollars in China can be considered a hit, while U.S. box office winners can make hundreds of millions.

"Rush Hour 3" is set for release in the U.S. on Aug. 10.

Movie critics' Web site to post reviews

CHICAGO - Thanks to the Web, the balcony will never close. Clips of movie reviews from the TV show that made the thumb the most prestigious of digits are being posted online.

More than 20 years of televised reviews by newspaper film critics Roger Ebert and the late Gene Siskel and columnist Richard Roeper will be available beginning Thursday at the Web site www.AtTheMoviesTV.com.

The site is touted as the largest collection of video-based movie reviews online. Searchable by movie title, director or actor, it features about 5,000 lively — sometimes very lively — discussions of movies that always end with the reviewers' "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" evaluation.

"For years, this was a dream," Ebert said in a statement. "Now I am exhilarated that it is a reality, thanks to the enormous effort of digitizing something like 1,000 programs."

Visitors to the Web site can see just how often Siskel, the Chicago Tribune's film critic, and Ebert, his counterpart at the Chicago Sun-Times, disagreed and how passionately they did so on "Siskel & Ebert at the Movies." They also can watch "Ebert & Roeper," the show Ebert and the Sun-Times columnist have taped since 2000, the year after Siskel's death.

The site includes recent shows featuring Roeper and guest reviewers, such as Jay Leno and New York Times film critic A.O. Scott, who have appeared while Ebert recovers from serious health problems.

"It is always fascinating to go back and see what was being said about a film before it opened," Ebert said.

The 65-year-old Ebert has had a series of surgeries in recent years, including a tracheostomy, which left him unable to speak. He has written that he is waiting for another operation that he hopes will restore his speech.

Since last summer, Ebert has not appeared on "Ebert & Roeper." But he has written some reviews in the Sun-Times, where he has been the film critic since 1967 and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1975.

Whoopi officially joins ABC's `The View'

NEW YORK - Whoopi Goldberg, officially named Wednesday as the new moderator of "The View" as the show puts Rosie O'Donnell in its rearview mirror, said her new job is a "big ol' thrill for me."

Goldberg jogged down the aisle of the New York studio, slapping hands with the audience, when the announcement was made live on the air by show creator Barbara Walters.

"I love this show," said Goldberg, one of a select few performers to win an Oscar, Emmy, Tony and Grammy award. "I love coming on it. I love hanging out with you guys."

O'Donnell announced this spring she was leaving ABC's daytime talk show after less than a year filled with controversy and feuds with Donald Trump and co-star Elisabeth Hasselbeck.

Despite O'Donnell's polarizing presence — or maybe because of it — ratings went up last year.

Goldberg, 51, gives "The View" a big name to fill the slot of moderator, who generally steers the discussion.

She may not reach O'Donnell's level, but Goldberg is no stranger to political controversy. She was dumped from a Slim-Fast advertising campaign in 2004 after making a speech mocking the Bush administration at a political rally, at one point using the president's surname as a sexual reference.

"The View" is in "ongoing discussions" with several people for another cast slot, a spokesman said. That would fill the chair left unoccupied since the stormy departure of Star Jones Reynolds last year.

Among the candidates for that role is actress Sherri Shepherd, who has appeared on "The View" as a sub several times over the past month.