Daily Variety articles from August 2007

Daily Variety archives from August 2007

Toon boon at D'Works.(DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc.)(Financial report)
August 1, 2007... DreamWorks may be having its problems with Paramount, but DreamWorks Animation is profiting handsomely from its relationship with the studio. Jeffrey Katzenberg-led toon studio reported Tuesday that revenue had tripled to $222.5 million...

Pricey but dicey: Dow's benefits to News Corp. murky.(Dow Jones & Co.)
August 1, 2007... Rupert Murdoch's apparently successful maneuvering for Dow Jones yields a more fundamental question: Now what? News Corp. still needs to win official approval from the full group of Dow Jones shareholders. But with the reported endorsement...

Arthouse icon had vision; Michelangelo Antonioni: 1912-2007.(Obituary)
August 1, 2007... Italian director Michelangelo Antonioni, who became an icon of arthouse cinema with films such as "L'avventura" and "Blowup" died Monday in Rome. He was 94. The enigmatic British-made drama "Blowup" (1966) took the Palme d'Or in Cannes,...

Radio dials away profit at the Eye.(CBS Corp.)(Financial report)
August 1, 2007... Radio was the culprit behind CBS' profit decline in its most recent quarter--but don't blame Don Imus. The company saw operating income drop 48% to $404 million vs. the second quarter last year, as the radio unit saw profit dive 18%. ...

Twain shall meet Lyceum.(Lyceum Theater to show Mark Twain's "Is He Dead?")(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... The little-known Mark Twain comedy "Is He Dead?" will live at the Lyceum Theater, where the play makes its Broadway bow in the fall. Norbert Leo Butz, in his first Rialto stint since taking home a Tony for "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" in...

Boffo summer.(Only at variety.com)
August 1, 2007... For the first time, five of the majors have hit $1 billion in overseas B.O., fueled by strong summer pics.

Toronto adds to docu slate.(Toronto International Film Festival)
August 1, 2007... Docs from Werner Herzog, Kevin Macdonald and Phil Donahue, and others with subjects including composer Philip Glass, screenwriter Dalton Trumbo and surf legend Dr. Dorian "Doc" Paskowitz, are among the 20 titles added Tuesday to the Real to...

'Heart' beats for thesp.(LEGIT BITS)(Off Broadway)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Kathleen Chalfant ("Angels in America") will topline Howard Barker's 1992 play "A Hard Heart;' the latest production from Off Broadway's Epic Theater Ensemble. Formerly known as Epic Theater Center, the troupe originated "No Child...,"...

Showbiz's Comic-Con conundrum.(Conference news)
August 1, 2007... REPORTERS SOMETIMES can't help but admire the talented people they cover, but they seldom preface questions with "You rock!" or "You guys are awesome," which occurred with notable frequency at Comic-Con in San Diego--for four days each July,...

Martha crafts a DIY deal.(Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc.)(DIY Net)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Martha Stewart will bring her crafting expertise to DIY Network beginning in November as part of a distribution deal between Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and the net. Set to premiere on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 22), half-hour series...

Sarkissian plays 'Tapes'.(Arthur Sarkissian acquires rights to make movie based on "The Anderson Tapes")(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... "Rush Hour 3" producer Arthur Sarkissian has optioned the Lawrence Sanders novel "The Anderson Tapes," previously made by Sidney Lumet into a 1971 film starring Sean Connery, with plans to hatch a new version. He's also optioned the book...

Sirius gains for Q2 revenue.(Financial report)
August 1, 2007... Sirius Satellite Radio shares gained ground on a tough Tuesday on Wall Street after the company posted strong second-quarter results. Net loss narrowed to $134.1 million from $237.8 million a year earlier. Revenue soared 51% from the...

Cable's hot summer: new shows fuel record.
August 1, 2007... Cable TV's record number of original series this summer is paying bigtime Nielsen dividends. Ad-supported cable, as a category, averaged its best-ever audience share in July of 62.6%, while broadcast nets hit a record-low 28.1%. That's...

'Kitchen' fires up Fox.
August 1, 2007... More scorching numbers for "Hell's Kitchen" kept Fox as primetime's demo leader for the 25th straight week. Net is also doing a better job of holding onto its summer and than its rivals. Fox is off just 4% in adults 18-49 vs. the first nine...

Mouse traps 'Pet Robots'.(Benderspink)(Walt Disney Co.)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Disney has picked up feature rights to the graphic novel "Pet Robots" and set it up with Chris Bender and JC Spink through their Benderspink banner. Benderspink's Jake Weiner will exec produce and Jon Silk will co-produce the high-tech...

'Greek' gets more weeks.(ABC Family Worldwide Inc. ABC Family Channel)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... It's all "Greek" to ABC Family, which has picked up 10 more episodes of the college-set drama. ABC Family initially greenlit 10 segs of "Greek"; the additional order, confirmed Tuesday, brings the show's season-one tally up to 20 episodes....

Richards rolls with Stones memoir deal.(Little, Brown and Company Inc.)(Keith Richard)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... It's only rock 'n' roll, but they like it. Little, Brown has scored world English-language fights (outside the U.K.) to the memoir of Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richard. The publisher declined to disclose the cost of the deal, but...

Shoot 'em up.(Movie review)
August 1, 2007... A New Line Cinema release of a Montford/Murphy production. Produced by Susan Montford, Don Murphy, Rick Benattar. Executive producers, Douglas Curtis, Toby Emmerich, Cale Boyter. Directed, written by Michael Davis. Camera (Deluxe color),...

Indie Sex.(Movie review)
August 1, 2007... (Documentary; IFC, Aug. 1-4, 12 a.m.) Produced by Orchard Films. Producer-directors, Lisa Ades, Lesli Klainberg; co-producer, Yammie Rhee; camera, Ruben O'Malley, John Tanzer, Peter Nelson; editor, Hope Litoff; music, Douglas J. Cuomo. 4...

International weekend box office.(Table)
August 1, 2007... International Weekend Box Office Reported Percent Number of Box Office Change Theaters Weekend ending in Box This...

The Black Eyed.(Theater review)
August 1, 2007... (New York Theater Workshop; 188 seats; $50 top) A New York Theater Workshop presentation of a play in one act by Betty Shamieh. Directed by Sam Gold. Set, Paul Steinberg; costumes, Gabriel Berry; lighting, Jane Cox; sound, Darron L. West;...

Showbiz stocks: Tuesday, July 31, 2007.(Statistical table)
August 1, 2007... Showbiz Stocks Tuesday, July 31, 2007 YTD Name Tkr PE Last Chg % Chg AccessIT AIXD ... 8.10 +.25 -7.1 AcmeCm ...

Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story.(Video recording review)
August 1, 2007... (Documentary; PBS, Wed. Aug. 1, 9 p.m.) Filmed in various locations by Tremolo Prods., Concord Music Group and Thirteen/WNET. Executive producer, David Horn; producers, Robert Gordon, Morgan Neville, Mark Crosby, John Walker; supervising...

Pushy questions for ... Kyra Sedgwick, Emmy-nominated actress for "The Closer," airing Mondays on TNT.(Interview)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Last book I bought: "Story of a Girl," by Sara Zarr Book I'm reading: "What Cops Know," by Connie Fletcher--again Total number of books I own: Easily 1,000 Three books that mean a lot to me: "Great Expectations," by Charles...

Nielsen primetime ratings report.(Table)
August 1, 2007... Nielsen Primetime Ratings Report abc eye Monday 5.86 6.92 8:00 Wife Swap (R) 4.40 How I Met Your 5.00...

Top shows in 18-49.(Table)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... TOP SHOWS IN 18-49 1. Hell's Kitchen (Fox) 4.2/12 2. Don't Forget the Lyrics-Thu. (Fox) 3.2/11 2. So You Think... Dance-Thu. (Fox) 3.2/10 2. Singing Bee (NBC) 3.2/09 5. ...

Top shows in 12-34.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... TOP SHOWS IN 12-34 1. Family Guy-9:30 (Fox) 3.7/12 1. Hell's Kitchen (Fox) 3.7/12 3. Family Guy (Fox) 3.2/11 4. So You Think... Dance-Wed. (Fox) 2.8/11 5. ...

Top cable nets.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... TOP CABLE NETS 18-49 Total rating Viewers * (rank) 1. USA 0.86 2.72 million (2) 2. TNT 0.76 2.47 million (3) 3. ...

Evening news.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... EVENING NEWS WEEK 45: July 23-27 Viewers Adults 25-54 ABC 7.53 million 1.8/8 CBS 5.93 million 1.4/6 NBC 7.17 million 1.7/8 * in millions. Each 18-49 ratings point...

Primetime scorecard.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Primetime Scorecard Week 9 Viewers * A18-49 A25-54 A18-34 abc 4.95 (-2%) 1.6/5 (-6%) 1.8/6 (-10%) 1.2/5 (-8%) eye 6.34 (-13%) ...

BSkyB buys set-top firm.(World News)(British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC)(Amstrad PLC)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Europe's leading paybox, BSkyB, has once again surprised the media industry--this time by shelling out $250 million to buy U.K. set-top box manufacturer Amstrad. Move should enable BSkyB to speed up the rollout of on-demand broadband...

Canucks log net gain.(World News)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... TV viewing was down slightly last year in Canada, while Internet penetration in the Great White North grew significantly. Canadians watched an average of 27.6 hours of TV per week in 2006, down from 28.1 a year earlier. But Canadians...

'Gateway' to the biz: Amritraj star of Indian reality TV skein.(World News)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Hollywood producer Ashok Amritraj is going to India to become a TV star. Amritraj, chairman-CEO of Hyde Park Entertainment, will take on the Donald Trump role in new reality series "Gateway," to be broadcast on PIX, a specialty movie net...

Laff fest boosts B.O.(Just for laughs)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Box office at the Montreal Just for Laughs comedy festival surged from C$9 million ($8.4 million) last year to $10.3 million this year, with total attendance of more than 2 million people. Attendance figure includes both ticketed and free...

Dutt jailed for terror attack.(World News)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt was jailed Tuesday after a court found him guilty of possessing weapons used in the 1993 terror attacks in Mumbai. Dutt, who was cleared of conspiracy charges, was sentenced to six years and fined $600 on the...

London fest bows with a 'Promise'.(UNITED KINGDOM)
August 1, 2007... David Cronenberg's London-set gangster thriller "Eastern Promise" will open the Times BFI London Film Festival on Oct. 17 before Pathe releases it in Blighty on Oct. 26. The crimer reunites Cronenberg with "A History of Violence" topliner...

Canal 5 on the air.(BRAZIL)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Argentine journo-lawyer Daniel Hadad today launched news feevee Canal 5 de Noticias (C5N), his first major venture since selling Buenos Aires TV broadcaster Canal 9 this year C5N has carriage on Cablevision, Multicanal and other cablers,...

Gallic niche pair woo Blighty auds.(World News)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Two French movies, Guillaume Carter's "Tell No One" and Oliver Dahan's "La Vie en rose," are the surprise specialized bits of the British summer. Released in June, both have broken the 1 million [pounds sterling] ($2 million) barrier at...

All Singin' All Dancin'.(Theater review)
August 1, 2007... (Town Hall; 1.500 seats; $45 top) A Town Hall presentation conceived, written and hosted by Scott Siegel. Directed and choreographed by Noah Racey. Musical director, Ross Patterson. Lighting, John Gordon; associate choreographer, Lorin...

Van Patten to 'Pacific'.(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Helmer Tim Van Patten ("Rome") is set to direct the first installment of HBO's 10-part WWII miniseries "The Pacific." Pay cabler is in talks with Carl Franklin, whose credits also include "Rome" to direct the fifth segment. Other directors...

Alphabet net knocking on Wolf's door.(American Broadcasting Companies Inc. signs deal with Scott Wolf)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... ABC is back in business with Scott Wolf, who toplined the net's buzzworthy-but-busted drama series "The Nine" last year. Alphabet and sibling ABC Studios have inked a talent-holding deal with Wolf. Goal is to develop a project built around...

Summit taps 2 exec VPs.(appointment of David C. Friedman)(promotion of Andrew Matosich )(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Summit Entertainment, which has relaunched as a full-service studio, has tapped David C. Friedman as its exec VP and general counsel, and promoted Andrew Matosich to exec VP of business affairs. Friedman will oversee legal affairs and...

Mouse ponies up for kids club.
August 2, 2007... The Walt Disney Co. was plucky in its third quarter, posting single-digit gains across its businesses during the earnings frame ended June 30. Along with earnings, the Mouse House on Wednesday announced its acquisition of Club Penguin, a...

Cable buoys Time Warner.
August 2, 2007... Cable once again rode to the rescue for Time Warner, offsetting softness in the film and AOL units as the company posted solid second-quarter results on Wednesday. Total revenues rose 6% to $11 billion in the quarter ended June 30....

EMI deal finally greenlit.(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... The record company of Coldplay and Norah Jones has been sold to private equity. Terra Firma's 3.2 billion[pounds sterling] ($6.4 billion) bid for EMI was officially accepted by 90% of shareholders, giving Terra Firma the right to buy the...

H'w'd drafts NFL: league joins producing game with biopic.(NAtional Football League enters movie production business, plans movie based on Vince Lombardi)
August 2, 2007... The NFL is looking to drive deep into the film biz with its first major foray into feature production. The league's become directly involved in a movie project for the first time, coming on to produce a biopic of one of the game's most...

U hunts down another spy mission.(Universal Studios Inc.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Universal Pictures has paid a seven-figure sum to acquire rights to a series of seven bestselling spy novels by Daniel Silva. Studio is eyeing 2006 thriller "The Messenger" to adapt as a possible first film and has set Pierre Morel to direct....

U puts Black in 'Adventure'.(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Universal Pictures has acquired the pitch "The Lost Adventures of Stone Perlmutter Jr.," with Peter Huyck and Alex Gregory to pen the script as a star vehicle for Jack Black. Black and partner Ben Cooley will produce through their U-based...

McG jets pix to Warner.(McGinty Nichol)(Warner Bros.)
August 2, 2007... McG is taking his film cans to Warner Bros.--where he already has a TV deal--under a new three-year first-look deal. He has set up three directing projects for his Wonderland Sound and Vision shingle under the deal: "Nighterawlers, an...

Stardust.(Movie review)
August 2, 2007... A Paramount release and presentation, in association with MARV Films, of a Matthew Vaughn/Lorenzo di Bonaventura production. Produced by Vaughn, di Bonaventura, Michael Dreyer, Neil Gaiman. Executive producers, David Womark, Kris Thykier, Peter...

Election Day.(Theater review)
August 2, 2007... (Second Stage Uptown; 98 seats; $40 top) A Second Stage Theater Uptown presentation of a play in one act by Josh Tobiessen. Directed by Jeremy Dobrish. Set, Steven Capone; costumes, Mattie Ullrich; lighting, Michael Gottlieb; sound, Jill BC...

'Hairspray' shines with sales bounce.(Financial report)
August 2, 2007... "Hairspray" was the big winner on the Nielsen SoundScan chart this week. Soundtrack to the New Line pic sold 101,000 copies, pushing it from No. 4 to No. 2. Collection of tracks from the musical remake has jumped 18 slots in the last two...

Northern exposure: Lionsgate, Canucks in $400 mil slate deal.(Lions Gate Television Inc.)
August 2, 2007... Lionsgate has set a four-year, $400 million slate financing pact with Societe generale de financement du Quebec, the government investment arm of the Canadian province. Under the deal, SGF will finance up to 35% of production costs of...

NBC U Int'l channels exec.(Roma Khanna appointed at NBC Universal Inc.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Roma Khanna, previously cohead of Chum Television in Canada, is joining NBC Universal Intl. as president, global networks and digital initiatives. Based in London, she will spearhead the recently announced strategy to launch 20 channels...

'Dream' director hurt in fall.(LEGIT BITS)(Helmer Daniel Sullivan)
August 2, 2007... Helmer Daniel Sullivan suffered four fractured ribs and a collapsed lung Tuesday after falling through the trap door on the stage of the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, where he is directing the Public Theater/New York Shakespeare Fest...

Lopez eyes pic at Hayek MGM shingle.(George Lopez)(Metro-Goldwyn Mayer Inc.)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... George Lopez is in talks to co-write, produce and star in one of the projects from Salma Hayek and partner Jose Tamez's new MGM-based shingle Ventanazul. Shingle is tapping hot young talent from Mexico, Chile and the U.S. for its first...

Vidgame pubs take hit.(Financial report)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Despite a booming videogame biz this year, two of the industry's biggest publishers saw their stocks come under pressure Wednesday after somewhat disappointing earnings reports. Electronic Arts, which recently lost its title as the No. 1...

Whoopi's point of "view".(Whoopi Goldberg )
August 2, 2007... After a year of Rosie ratings, ABC has tapped Whoopi Goldberg to help "The View" maintain its Nielsen momentum. Goldberg has inked a multiyear deal to replace O'Donnell in the key role of "View" moderator starting Sept. 4. Announcement,...

TV & cable production chart.
August 2, 2007... PRODUCTION CHART KEY Abbreviations: SUPR EXP-Supervising executive producer(s); EXP-Executive producer(s); CO-EXPCo-executive producer(s); SUPR PROD-Supervising producer(s); PROD-Producer(s); CO-PROD-Coproducer(s); DIB-Director(s);...

Showbiz stocks: Wednesday, August 1, 2007.(Statistical table)
August 2, 2007... Showbiz Stocks Wednesday, August 1, 2007 YTD Name Tkr PE Last Chg %Chg AccessIT AIXD ... 8.02 -.08 -8.0 AcmeCm ...

The Camden 28.(Movie review)
August 2, 2007... (Docu) A First Run Features release of an ECC Media production. Produced, directed, written by Anthony Giacchino. Camera (color/B&W, DV), David Dougherty; editor, Brandon Park; music, Michael Giacchino; sound designer, Rodney Wittenberg....

WGA writes off quick return to talks.(Writers Guild of America)
August 2, 2007... There's no rush back to the bargaining table for the Writers Guild and showbiz companies with talks not expected to resume for several more weeks. Plans for a re-start of contract talks between the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture &...

'Smallville' raises Cain.(Dean Cain)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Dean Cain is flying over to "Smallville." Thesp, who played the Man of Steel in ABC's "Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman," has booked a guest shot on the CW's update of the Superman franchise. He'll play Dr. Curtis Knox, a...

Tomas Arana.(Players)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Tomas Arana ("The Bourne Supremacy") has signed on to writer-helmer Ed Zwick's World War II drama "Defiance." Daniel Craig stars in the pie about four brothers in Nazi-occupied Poland who flee to Belarus and join Russian resistance fighters....

Katey Sagal.(Players)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Katey Sagal has booked roles in two features. She'll play the title character's mother in "Jack and the Beanstalk" alongside Christopher Lloyd and Wallace Shawn; then she stars opposite Danny DeVito in comedy "No Place Like Home." Sam Harper...

Omari Hardwick.(Players)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Omari Hardwick ("The Guardian") has landed a lead role in Sony's "Linewatch," starring Cuba Gooding Jr. The Kevin Bray-helmed pic concerns a former gang member turned Border Patrol agent (Gooding) who must go to great lengths to protect his...

Carice van Houten.(Players)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Carice van Houten ("Black Book") has been added to the cast of Boris Damast's "Vivaldi," alongside Joseph Fiermes and Gerard Depardieu. Produced by Hand Picked Films and Mechaniks, the biopic of the composer will shoot later this year. Cast...

Kala Alexander.(Players)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Kala Alexander has joined the cast of Universal's "Forgetting Sarah Marshall." He's also inked for a recurring role on HBO's "John From Cincinnati." Alexander narrates and stars in Fuel TV docu series "The 808," about surf culture in...

Cabler seals deal on 4th 'Closer' season.(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... TNT has renewed "The Closer" for a fourth season, coming off a July performance in which its four airings claimed the top four spots among the month's most-watched cable programs. The show, in which Kyra Sedgwick plays an offbeat LAPD...

Gaul seeks to rate fest pix.(French Commission for Film Classification )(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... The French Commission for Film Classification wants to extend its powers to include rating festival pics. The commission has asked the Culture Ministry to dew rests the exemption that allows them to dodge the age restrictions placed on pics...

C4 hangs up on quiz: crackdown follows net's own probe.(Worlds News)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Channel 4 has become the latest Brit broadcaster to crack down on the use of premium-rate phone-in competitions, after an internal probe revealed a string of problems with the net's "You Say, We Pay" quiz dating back to September 2004. ...

ITV docu fuels Brit fakery scandal.(Worlds News)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... A documentary that appeared to show the dying moments of an Alzheimer's patient has sparked further allegations of TV fakery in the U.K., after it emerged that the filmmaker was not present at the patient's death. Seasoned documaker Paul...

'Simpsons' grab a primetime slot.(GERMANY)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... After years of being relegated to afternoon timeslots, "The Simpsons" is going primetime following the huge success of"The Simpsons Movie" at the German box office. Local web ProSieben will air back-to-back episodes of the series on...

Canucks see less TV.(CANADA)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... TV viewing was down from 28.1 hours in 2005 to 27.6 hours in 2006 in Canada, according to a report from the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission. But Canadians increased their presence on the Internet last year, with...

GDH toons in web.(JAPAN)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Toon house GDH Wednesday launched toon channel Gonzo Doga on YouTube Japan. The channel started webcasting Gonzo and other GDH content, including toon promo clips, as well as linking users to online shopping site Gonzo Style and the...

Fund backs pics.(SPAIN)(Ibermedia funds movies)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Ibermedia, which funds Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American pics, has handed $200,000 each to Daniel Burman's "El Nido vacio" (The Empty Nest), Lisandro Alonso's "Liverpool" and AntonioPedro Vasconcelos' "Call Girl." Argentine pic...

Canuck distrib taps Theroux for prez post.(World News)(appointment of Patrice Theroux at Entertainment One)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... Entertainment One, the Canadian video distributor with aggressive plans to expand into the international theatrical business, has named Patrice Theroux prexy of its new filmed entertainment division. In a boardroom coup a year ago, Theroux...

Digging a 'Rush'.(Rush Hour 3's Chinese theater preem)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... After six years of waiting for New Line's "Rush Hour 3," anticipation for a fourth installment quickly emerged at Tuesday's Chinese Theater preem. Director Brett Ratner intro'd the actioner with an opening joke -"I'd like to welcome...

'Once' toots success.(V)(Brief article)
August 2, 2007... HOLLYWOOD -- Fox Searchlight's "Once," made for only $150,000, has been keeping itself afloat at the B.O. since May, so the Irish music pic received a congratulatory party Tuesday at the Landmark Theater. Offscreen, the movie's soundtrack...

Rolling out the red carpet.(V)
August 2, 2007... 'El Cantante' premiere THE LOCATION/DATE: The Directors Guild in L.A. on Monday THE GUEST LIST: Stars Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony, helmer Leon Ichaso and Picturehouse Prexy Bob Berney THE MENU: Cuban cuisine--mini sweet corn...

Hollywood standard time.(V)
August 2, 2007... Hollywood standard time Preem Skedded Actual Rush Hour 3 7:30 8:10 El Cantante 7:30 8:15 Underdog 6:00 6:10

'Spirit' has main man.(Frank Miller casts Gabriel Macht in the movie "Will Eisner's The Spirit")(Brief article)
August 3, 2007... Writer-director Frank Miller has tapped Gabriel Macht to star in "Will Eisner's The Spirit," the Miller-scripted adaptation of the classic Eisner comicbook series. Shooting on the movie cofinanced by Lionsgate and Odd Lot Entertainment...

Holding pattern: booming B.O. sets off screen frenzy.
August 3, 2007... Too much of a good thing at the summer box office is leaving studios in an unusual predicament. Pictures are holding so well and there's such a crowded pack of new entrants, so they're having to fight fiercely to keep still-strong films...

Next 'Auto' vidgame gets stuck.(Take-Two Interactive Software delays release of "Grand Theft Auto IV")
August 3, 2007... The vidgame biz got a shock on Thursday as publisher Take Two delayed the release of the highly anticipated "Grand Theft Auto IV" from October until March or April of next year. In a conference call with Wall Streeters, Take Two chairman...