Category: Polls

Will Smith voted 2008’s top moneymaking movie star
NEW YORK ñ No name on the marquee was more pleasing to theater owners in 2008 than Will Smith, according to a survey of movie exhibitors.
Smith, star of “Hancock” and “Seven Pounds,” was voted the star who generated the most box office revenue for theaters in an annual survey by Quigley Publishing Co.
Smith is only the second black actor to be chosen in the Quigley poll, which since 1932 has asked movie exhibitors to vote on the 10 stars who brought in the most business. Sidney Poitier topped the poll in 1968.
Smith’s superhero summer blockbuster, “Hancock,” grossed $228 million. “Seven Pounds,” currently in theaters, has pulled in a somewhat lackluster $39 million in two weeks.
Following Smith, in order, were Robert Downey Jr. (“Iron Man,” “Tropic Thunder”), Christian Bale (“The Dark Knight”), Shia LaBeouf (“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”) and LaBeouf’s “Indiana Jones” co-star Harrison Ford.
The top 10 were rounded out by Adam Sandler, Reese Witherspoon, George Clooney, Angelina Jolie and Daniel Craig.
Last year’s winner, Johnny Depp, who didn’t have a film released this year, didn’t make this year’s poll, nor did seven-time winner Tom Cruise.
Anne Hathaway (“Rachel Getting Married”) was voted the top “star of tomorrow” along with Chris Pine of “Bottle Shock.”

Ledger’s death voted top 2008 entertainment story
Heath Ledger’s death was voted 2008’s top entertainment story by U.S. newspaper and broadcast editors surveyed by The Associated Press.
Here are the top 10:
1. HEATH LEDGER DIES: When the Australian actor was found dead Jan. 22 at 28, shock and confusion over the circumstances of his death followed. The autopsy concluded Ledger’s death was accidental, the result of a toxic combination of prescription drugs. His legacy continued, though, in a roundly acclaimed performance as the Joker in the year’s biggest box office hit “The Dark Knight.”
2. WRITERS STRIKE ENDS: The Writers Guild of America took to the picket lines Nov. 5 of last year. The strike played havoc on the industry, from award shows to network TV schedules, and didn’t conclude until Feb. 12. When an agreement was finally reached, the Academy Awards were saved and scripted television slowly returned to the airwaves.
3. BOFFO BOX OFFICE FOR “DARK KNIGHT”: As the release of Christopher Nolan’s second Batman installment “The Dark Knight” neared, anticipation over Ledger’s performance mounted. The film went on to gross $528 million domestically, second all-time only to “Titanic.” Unlike most blockbusters, it also appeared on many critics’ top 10 lists.
4. POLITICAL COMEDY SHINES: The long campaign was highlighted by late-night hosts (David Letterman chastising John McCain for missing his scheduled guest appearance), satire veterans (Tina Fey’s Sarah Palin impression on “Saturday Night Live”) and new media sensations (“Obama Girl”). “SNL,” “The Daily Show” and “The Colbert Report” all charted their best ratings.
5. BRITNEY SPEARS’ DOWNWARD SPIRAL: Though by year’s end Spears had rebounded with a new album and successful TV appearances, her 2008 started at a low point. After a custody dispute with Kevin Federline, Spears was hospitalized and held for psychiatric evaluation. The chaos eventually subsided and in November she released the aptly titled album “Circus.”
6. PAUL NEWMAN DIES: Newman, one of the most beloved actors of the 20th century, died Sept. 26 at 83 after a fight with lung cancer at his longtime home in Westport, Conn. In the days after, tributes were paid to the charismatic actor in his various worlds: theater, movies, auto racing and philanthropy.
7. TV NETWORKS EMBRACE THE WEB: Online video turned pro in 2008. Networks increasingly embraced the Web, making many of their most popular shows available to stream online. News Corp. and NBC Universal banded together to created Hulu.com, while ABC and CBS continued to beef up their sites.
8. GEORGE CARLIN DIES: The truth-telling comedian ó widely considered one of the greatest ever ó died June 22 at 71. “He was more than just a comic,” said Paul Rodriguez. “His routines became part of the American lexicon.”
9. TIM RUSSERT DIES: Reaction to the unexpected June 13 death of Tim Russert at 58 was widespread and felt throughout Washington by Republicans and Democrats. Tom Brokaw delivered the news live on NBC, and would later temporarily take Russert’s spot on “Meet the Press.” David Gregory recently became the full-time moderator for the show, the longest-running on TV.
10. JENNIFER HUDSON’S FAMILY TRAGEDY: Days after the release of her film “The Secret Life of Bees,” tragedy befell the family of the “American Idol” finalist. Her mother, brother and nephew were killed in a shooting at their Chicago home. Police have charged William Balfour, the estranged husband of Hudson’s sister Julia, with the murders.

Diva Dion’s AC/DC cover deemed worst ever: guitar mag
CÈline Dion has a dubious distinction to add to her myriad awards and achievements: world’s worst song cover, according to a popular European guitar magazine.
British-based Total Guitar conducted a poll that named the French-Canadian singer’s rendition of You Shook Me All Night Long the No. 1 “worst cover song,” editor Stephen Lawson said, according to Agence France-Presse.
Performed about six years ago during her hit Las Vegas run, the diva’s version of the classic AC/DC anthem was sung as a duet with U.S. pop singer Anastacia. The magazine dubbed the cover “sacrilege” and an “offence.”
Other cover songs the magazine scoffed at include:
British girl groups Sugababes and Girls Aloud performing Walk This Way, made famous by Aerosmith and Run DMC.
British boy band Westlife’s rendition of rock ballad More Than Words by Extreme.
Pop Idol winner Will Young’s version of Light My Fire by The Doors.
Oasis hit Wonderwall as performed by easy-listening lounge act The Mike Flowers Pops.
Flops aside, the poll also highlighted a handful of the most successful song tributes.
“The best covers are unlikely choices and they do something radical,” Lawson said.
Electric-guitar legend Jimi Hendrix’s version of Bob Dylan’s All Along the Watchtower came in first, followed by the Beatles version of Twist and Shout ó originally recorded by U.S. R&B group The Top Notes.
Rounding out the best five were:
The Guns N’ Roses cover of Live and Let Die, by Paul McCartney and Wings.
Nirvana’s rendition of David Bowie’s The Man Who Sold the World.
British rock band Muse’s version of Feeling Good, written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse for the 1965 musical The Roar of the Greasepaint ó the Smell of the Crowd.
Total Guitar, touted as the bestselling guitar magazine in Europe, is known for regularly carrying tablatures (guitar-music notations) of popular music, reviews of guitar equipment and interviews with prominent guitarists.

Oasis beats the Beatles in new best British album poll
Rock band Oasis, which some have criticized as a Beatles wannabe group, has surpassed the Fab Four in a new poll of the U.K.’s top albums of the past 50 years.
Oasis’s 1994 Definitely Maybe and its 1996 followup (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? nabbed the first and second spots, respectively, in a poll to find the 50 best British albums ever.
Another two Oasis albums ó Don’t Believe the Truth and Be Here Now ó also placed in the top 25 (14th and 22nd, respectively).
“It’s clear that, having polled three times more votes than any other act, Oasis are undoubtedly the nation’s most loved band,” according to Paul Rees, editor of music magazine Q, which spearheaded the poll along with music retailer HMV.
“Similarly, it’s evident just who music fans believe the classic and most enduring British acts of each era to be,” he added.
Radiohead placed third with their acclaimed 1997 album OK Computer, with the Beatles’ Revolver achieving fourth place and the Stone Roses’ self-titled album landing fifth on the rock-dominated list.
Rounding out the top 10 are:
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, the Beatles.
London Calling, the Clash.
Under the Iron Sea, Keane.
Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd.
Urban Hymns, the Verve.
Troubled singer Amy Winehouse, who was recently celebrated at the Grammy Awards, was the only female singer to make the cut (for her album Back to Black, which placed 35th).
Other artists on the list range from classic acts like the Clash, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, the Who, the Rolling Stones and Queen, to newer bands such as Keane, Arctic Monkeys, Coldplay, the Libertines and Muse.
Though most album polls have tended to put classic acts like the Beatles and the Stone Roses at the top, the new poll reflects the changing perspective of music fans and a growing appreciation for more contemporary acts, like Oasis, according to Rudy Osorio, HMV’s head of music.
The Q-HMV poll surveyed 11,000 people.
A 2006 survey by the annual publication British Hit Singles & Albums also named Oasis’s Definitely Maybe the greatest album of all time, leaving the Beatles in second (Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band) and third place ( Revolver).
Later that year, another British poll named Sgt. Pepper’s the No. 1 chart topper of all time.

Prince’s Purple Rain reigns over movie soundtrack list
Purple Rain, the film that starred hit recording artist Prince at the height of his 1980s-era success, has topped a list of Hollywood’s greatest movie soundtracks compiled by the editors of Vanity Fair.
The magazine revealed the top 10 soundtracks Wednesday that made the cut out of 50 albums that will be explored in a one-off publication entitled Movies Rock.
The special issue, featuring actor Bill Murray’s impression of rock and roll icon Elvis Presley on the cover, will be published in November. Issues will be sent to subscribers of 14 titles published by Vanity Fair’s publisher CondÈ Nast.
Editors described Prince’s 1984 Purple Rain soundtrack as a combination of “funk, R&B, pop, metal and even psychedelia” that became “a sound that defined the ’80s,” according to a Reuters report.
However, while hailing the list’s soundtracks, the editors also acknowledged the cinematic faults of several of their selections.
The editors described Purple Rain, which netted Prince an Oscar, a Grammy and other trophies, as “perhaps the best badly acted film ever.”
Along the same lines, in the write-up of the eighth-ranked Saturday Night Fever, the magazine called the disco-era film’s soundtrack “required listening,” while at the same time poking fun at the iconic white suit star John Travolta dons in the movie.
The magazine’s list of the top 10 greatest soundtracks is:
1) Purple Rain
2) A Hard Day’s Night
3) The Harder They Come
4) Pulp Fiction
5) The Graduate
6) Superfly
7) Trainspotting
8) Saturday Night Fever
9) American Graffiti
10) The Big Chill
In conjunction with the special magazine issue, CondÈ Nast Media Group will host a concert featuring artists such as Elton John, Carrie Underwood and BeyoncÈ Knowles performing famous music from the movies.
“We wanted to create an extraordinary show that would pay tribute to the indelible impact music has on film,” CondÈ Nast Media Group president Richard Beckman said in a statement issued Wednesday.
Others set to participate include Mary J. Blige, John Legend, Fergie, Jennifer Hudson and John Williams.
The Movies Rock concert will take place Dec. 2 in Los Angeles at the Kodak Theatre, home of the Academy Awards. The event will be broadcast as a two-hour television special on CBS on Dec. 7.

Sting tops list of worst lyricists
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Maybe Sting should start writing more instrumentals.
The school teacher-turned-rock star topped Blender’s list of the worst lyricists, thanks to lines that betray “mountainous pomposity (and) cloying spirituality,” the music magazine said.
The survey, contained in the November issue that hits newsstands next week, placed Rush drummer Neil Peart at No. 2, Creed frontman Scott Stapp at No. 3, Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher at No. 4, and soft-rocker Dan Fogelberg at No. 5.
Blender assailed Sting for such alleged sins as name-dropping Russian novelist Vladimir Nabokov in the Police tune “Don’t Stand So Close to Me,” quoting a Volvo bumper sticker (“If You Love Someone Set Them Free”), and co-opting the works of Chaucer, St. Augustine and Shakespeare.
A spokeswoman for the English rocker, who is currently in Belgium on the Police’s reunion world tour, did not respond to a request for comment.
Blender described Canadian rocker Peart’s lyrics as “richly awful tapestries of fantasy and science,” and said Gallagher “seemed incapable of following a metaphor through a single line, let alone a whole verse.”
Further down the ranks, Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant (No. 23) was derided for his Tolkienesque musings on Gollum and Mordor in “Ramble On.”
Carly Simon (No. 31) was mocked for rhyming “yacht,” “apricot” and “gavotte” in “You’re So Vain.”
Paul McCartney made No. 38, thanks in part to “Ebony and Ivory,” his socially conscious duet with Stevie Wonder.

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

“Die Hard” tops magazine list of best action films
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – “Die Hard,” starring Bruce Willis as a tough cop battling terrorists, was named the best action film ever by Entertainment Weekly magazine — two weeks before the series’ fourth installment, “Live Free or Die Hard,” hits theaters.
The magazine on Thursday unveiled a list of top 25 action movies picked by its writers and editors spanning a wide range of films: from 1938’s “The Adventures of Robin Hood” to director Akira Kurosawa’s “Seven Samurai” in 1954 (No. 6) and the 2004 computer-animated film, “The Incredibles” (No. 25).
Space adventure “Aliens” followed “Die Hard” in the No. 2 slot with “Raiders of the Lost Ark” at No. 3 and “The Road Warrior” and “The Matrix” at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively.
But it was 1988’s “Die Hard,” starring Willis as tough-as-nails New York cop John McClane who battles terrorists in a Los Angeles high-rise, that blew the biggest Hollywood fireball for the magazine’s staff.
Back in summer 1988, “Die Hard” was notable mostly for its gun battles and explosions, including blowing up an L.A. high-rise. The movie raked in $138 million worldwide and made Willis a major movie star.
Two sequels, “Die Hard 2: Die Harder” and “Die Hard With a Vengeance,” followed in 1990 and 1995, respectively.
The fourth film, “Live Free or Die Hard,” lands in theaters on June 27, and this time McClane is saving the world from a mad genius mounting a digital attack on computer networks.
An Entertainment Weekly spokeswoman said the list was picked without any regard to “Live Free’s” opening date or its interview with Willis that hits newsstands on Friday.
“After we finalized the list, we asked for interviews with key players in the movies we picked,” the spokeswoman said. “‘Die Hard”‘ was going to be No. 1 anyway.”
Some of the more recent films making the top 25 included “Spider-Man 2” and “Kill Bill — Vol. 1,” while older titles ranged from 1964 James Bond movie “Goldfinger” to 1973’s martial arts flick “Enter the Dragon,” starring Bruce Lee.

Timberlake, Alba on list of sexy celebs
NEW YORK – Another day, another list. But what the heck, this one is a “What is Sexy?” rundown from Victoria’s Secret. “SexyBack” singer Justin Timberlake is sexiest male musician; Jessica Alba, who starred in “Sin City,” is sexiest actress; and David Beckham, who has three sons with his wife, Victoria, is sexiest dad.
The list of sexy entertainers and athletes was announced Thursday. It was compiled by a team of Victoria’s Secret executives, designers and supermodel spokeswomen, including Heidi Klum and Karolina Kurkova. Klum and Kurkova were to host a party in Las Vegas on Thursday to celebrate the list-makers.
“I still think my husband (Seal) is the sexiest dad for our children, but (that’s) beside the point,” Klum, 33, told The Associated Press.
Matthew McConaughey was honored for his “beach body.”
“You know, he has his shirt off a lot lately,” said Klum, host of Bravo’s “Project Runway.”
Other sexy celebs: Eric Dane (actor), Carrie Underwood (female musician), speed racer Danica Patrick (female athlete), Yankee Derek Jeter (male athlete), Kate Hudson (mom), and Jay-Z and Beyonce (couple).
Sienna Miller won props for her trendsetting style, Josh Duhamel for his smile and Adrian Grenier for his eyes. Cameron Diaz has the sexiest legs, while Jennifer Hudson was singled out in the lips category.
The ABC medical drama “Grey’s Anatomy” ó surprise, surprise ó has the sexiest cast.

Hayek tops best nude scenes of ’06
Sure, Jennifer Aniston took a nude walk through an apartment building, but it was Salma Hayek’s covorting in the water with Colin Farrell that won Mr. Skin’s love for 2006.
As people start bundling up as the mercury drops, Mr. Skin has compiled his Top 10 picks for the year’s best scene in which actresses took it off. Topping his list of the topless was Hayek in “Ask the Dust.”
Hayek, who caused boiling water cooler talk the next day after her brassiered appearance on “Ugly Betty,” gave it all up on screen for “Ask the Dust,” a Depression-era drama that … well, never mind that. The bottom line is that Hayek skinny dips with Colin Farrell and then bares all for a follow-up sex scene.
The usually blonde Gretchen Mol won second place recognition for taking chances as the brunette star of “The Notorious Bettie Page,” playing the titular pin-up model and fetish queen. Numerous “artistic” poses abound, including a yuletide one to get viewers in the mood this holiday season.
The remainder of the Top 10 follows:
3. Brittany Daniel in “Rampage: The Hillside Strangler Murders” – This straight-to-DVD release shows the “Joe Dirt” actress in a menage a trois and some tub soaking.
4. Bai Ling in “Edmond” – She gives William H. Macy and the viewers an eyeful at a peep show.
5. Jennifer Aniston in “The Break-Up” – Rent the full-screen version for more of her butt during her windy walk.
6. Barbara Nedeljakova in “Hostel: Unrated Version” -You get your pick of five actresses who show skin in this film, but Barb had Mr. Skin’s vote for her sex and sauna scenes.
7. Kelly Brook in “Survival Island” – A woman, her husband and their manservant engage in lots of outdoor action.
8. Kyra Sedgewick in “Loverboy” – Kevin Bacon directs his wife getting it on in the library and in various other scenes. Bonus footage of Marisa Tomei in a bath.
9. Amanda Righetti in “Angel Blade” – Shot in 2002, but released to DVD this year, this “O.C.” guest star plays a stripper who likes sex and showering.
10. Lauren Lee Smith in “Lie With Me” -Alone, with a partner, with a partner and an audience … she just likes getting nude.
Mr. Skin and his team of “skinvestigators” view all non-adult titles for their nudity content and rates them on their “skintensity.” The celluloid skin expert is also known for his Anatomy Awards, which honored Anne Hathaway for 2005’s best nude scene in her straight-to-DVD film “Havoc.”