Variety articles from March 2002, page 7

Variety archives from March 2002

Necessary Targets. (Off Broadway).
March 4, 2002... (VARIETY ARTS THEATER; 499 SEATS; $60) NEW YORK A Harriet Newman Leve, Willa Shalit and Bob Boyett presentation, in association with Suze Orman, Melissa Howden, Dozoretz/Fonda/Mitchell and Berinstein/ Teitelbaum, of the Hartford Stage...

My One And Only. (Abroad).
March 4, 2002... (PICCADILLY THEATER; 1,200 SEATS; 55 [pounds sterling] ($78) TOP) LONDON An Ambassador Theater Group, Triumph Entertainment Partners, Nederlander Producing Co. (England) and Pre-Eminence presentation of a musical in two acts with music...

I'll Be Seeing You. (Resident).
March 4, 2002... (KIMMEL ARTS CENTER INNOVATION STUDIO; 199 SEATS; $40 TOP) PHILADELPHIA A Mcarlyle Prods. presentation, in association with Retrofit Prods., of a musical in two acts with music, lyrics and book by Diane Tauser. Directed by Michael Unger....

Tea At Five. (Resident).
March 4, 2002... (HARTFORD STAGE CO.; 489 SEATS; $60 TOP) HARTFORD, Conn. A Hartford Stage Co. presentation of a play in two acts by Matthew Lombardo. Directed by John Tillinger. Set, Tony Straiges; costumes, Jess Goldstein; lighting, Kevin Adams; music...

Scalpers are asking up to $2,325 per ticket on the Internet to Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick's final turn in "The Producers" March 17.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Scalpers are asking up to $2,325 per ticket on the Internet to Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick's final turn in "The Producers" March 17. Those bargain-basement $480 ducats aren't available, either: Broadway Inner Circle gave up its 50...

"I'm Not Rappaport," currently at the Paper Mill Playhouse.(Broadway opening moved to July)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... "I'm Not Rappaport," currently at the Paper Mill Playhouse with Judd Hirsch and Ben Vereen, will open on Broadway in mid-July, rather than in April as previously announced.

Royal visit planned. (Late News).(The Royal Shakespeare Co.)(Broadway)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... NEW YORK The Royal Shakespeare Co. is planning a 2003 production of "Othello," directed by Gregory Doran, that would open Stateside with a British-American cast before traveling to the U.K. The more would be a first for the company. ...

Divas in distress. (Late News).(Kate Mulgrew, Anne Bancroft: ill)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Anne Bancroft is skedded to return to Edward Albee's "Occupant" March 19, in time to finish the last three weeks of the run. Bancroft came down with pneumonia shortly after previews began. No new opening date has been set. And Kate...

Gov't nixes a move for Abbey: Dublin theater also makes waves with Barry's `Hinterland'. (Legit).(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... If success were measured in column inches, Ireland's national theater would be the most accomplished in Europe: The Abbey has been making headlines for a month solid. The current wave of Abbey-centered interest began in early February,...

B.O. up; `42nd' 903g. (Broadway Grosses).(Industry Overview)(Statistical Data Included)
March 4, 2002... NEW YORK Broadway grosses continued to climb during Week 39 (Feb. 18-24), notching a 9.5% rise to $12,577,952. Attendance of 207,807 rose by a still stronger 14.5%. The roster continue to expand, with a trio of tuners -- "One Mo' Time,"...

Biz off; `graduate' 812g. (Road Grosses).(theater)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
March 4, 2002... NEW YORK Road grosses declined during Week 39 (Feb. 18-24), with totals for the 23 shows reporting slipping by 5.9% to $13,857,393. "The Graduate" had a strong week as it moved to Boston, taking $812,419 of a potential $845,835 at the...

NAT picks up pace: Randall's company moves to Off B'way home. (Legit).(National Actors Theater)(Tony Randall)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Tony Randall's nearly moribund National Actors Theater has a new home and a new lease on life but it's bidding goodbye to Broadway. Mayor Michael Bloomberg took the podium at a news conference Feb. 21 to unveil the company's new home at...

Art & ideas New Haven sets lineup. (Legit).(Connecticut; Intl. Festival of Arts & Ideas 2002)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... SOUTHBURY, Conn. -- Palestine's Al-Kasaba Theater, Israel's Inbal Pinto Dance Co., London's multiracial music theater company the Shout and France's Transe Express are among newcomers to New Haven's annual Intl. Festival of Arts & Ideas (aka...

Bob's big bow. (Noises Off).(producer Bob Boyett)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... NEW YORK Having made his debut as a Broadway producer last fall with "Hedda Gabler," Bob Boyett has no fewer than seven shows opening on the Great White Way in the next two months. Granted, he is not lead producer on any of them. But wait...

Ch-ch-changes. (Glass Alliances).(Philip Glass)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Mary Zimmerman, whose "Metamorphoses" opens on Broadway this week, is readying an opera with Philip Glass, "Galileo, Galilei," for a June world premiere at the Goodman Theater. An engagement at the Brooklyn Academy of Music will follow. ...

Walk on Wildhorn side. (Legit Bits).(Frank Wildhorn)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Frank Wildhorn and friends kicked off Riot Entertainment's Monday "Dark Night" concert series last week at Studio 54, with a repeat perf March 4. In addition to familiar songs, tunes were heard from his Broadway-bound "Dracula" and his...

`So-long' segs are aud faves. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(Academy Awards telecast)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... As if putting together an Oscar telecast isn't challenging enough, Academy Awards producer Gil Cates inspired extra anxiety for the Academy and ABC more than a dozen years ago when he first suggested the program include an In Memoriam...

Calendar.(2002 major movie awards, functions)(Calendar of Events)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... MARCH 3 PGA Awards at Century Plaza Hotel MARCH 8 Screen Actors Guild final ballots due MARCH 9 DGA Awards at Century Plaza Hotel MARCH 10 SAG Awards at Shrine Auditorium Oscar nomination screenings end...

With a little bit of Puck: chef sheds old tent tensions as he feeds 1,650 in new site. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(Academy Awards - Governors Ball)(Wolfgang Puck in charge of food service at Governors Ball)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... If Oscar has found new digs at Hollywood's Kodak Theatre, then Wolfgang Puck is equally at home in its kitchens. After years of cooking Governors Ball chow in tents adjacent to the Shrine Auditorium or the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Puck...

Oscars not a Kodak moment. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(Academy Awards telecast)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... The words "Kodak Theatre" will be heard more than seen at the 74th Academy Awards. Although the company paid $75 million to put its name on the theater over 20 years, that payment didn't include the right to have the main Hollywood Boulevard...

Thank you, for being brief. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(Academy Awards telecast)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... To be a poet and not know the trade, / To be a lover and repel all women; / Twin ironies by which great saints are made, / The agonising pincer-jaws of heaven." Russell Crowe read those lines of Patrick Kavanagh poetry when accepting his...

`Fellowship' down to three. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(selecting three producers to represent 'The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring')(includes other nominee information)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... The fellowship of "The Ring" just got smaller. Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh and Barrie M. Osborne are the official Oscar nominees as producers of New Line's "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," according to the exec committee...

What's won what. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(motion pictures, actors, filmmakers awards, prior to the 2002 Academy Awards)(Brief Article)(Illustration)
March 4, 2002... What's won what PICTURE "A Beautiful Mind": BFCA, GG (drama) "In the Bedroom": LAFCA, GS (drama) "Gosford Park": LFCC (British film), BAFTA (British film) "The Lord of the Rings": AFI, BAFTA "Memento": OFCS (tie), Toronto,...

`Lord' of the BAFTAs. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(British Academy Film Awards )(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... BAFTA's bid to become an Oscar barometer won't be known until the Academy Awards later this month, but the people behind "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" have to hope it is. New Line's fantasy adventure epic took five...

The screening room. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(2002 Academy Awards screening schedule: London, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco)(Illustration)
March 4, 2002... THE SCREENING ROOM * AMPAS screenings open to Academy members only -- no RSVP required. All other screenings are open to Academy and guild members. For full listings, visit Variety.com/awards2002. LONDON The Affair of the...

High visibility. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(director Peter Jackson's hectic schedulek, just prior to the 2002 Academy Awards)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Call him Action Jackson. "The Lord of the Rings" director-producer Peter Jackson has been almost everywhere recently to promote his pic's Oscar chances, even while shuttling back and forth to New Zealand to oversee editing of the series'...

ACEs for `Rouge'. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(American Cinema Editors 'Eddie' awards, 2002)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Jill Bilcock ("Moulin Rouge") and Pietro Scalia ("Black Hawk Down") took top honors Feb. 24 at the 52nd annual American Cinema Editors Eddie Awards, nabbing nods in the comedy/musica and dramatic categories, respectively. Eddies were...

Animation producers set. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has completed the nominee roster for the 74th Oscars, listing producers for two of the three nominees for animated feature, a decision that has been pending since noms were announced Feb. 12. ...

Art directors make their picks. (The countdown: the insider's guide to the awards season).(Art Directors Guild awards, 2002)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Moulin Rouge's' Catherine Martin and "Amelie's" Aline Bonetto, both up for Oscar's art directing prize, took the top kudos at the Art Directors Guild's sixth annual awards gala Feb. 23 in Beverly Hills. Martin, who's also up for the...

Grammys '02 rewards the big sellers: Keys, U2, `O Brother' dominate, a nod to tradition and strong craftsmanship.(2002 Grammy Awards)
March 4, 2002... The music industry likes concepts it can get its arms around. So it was hardly surprising on Feb. 27 that when the 44th annual Grammy Awards went down, three embraceable acts split the votes and walked away with the lion's share of the...

Obituaries.(Obituary)
March 4, 2002... JOHN THAW ACTOR John Thaw, British thesp best known as the star of the detective series "Inspector Morse," died in London Feb. 21 after a prolonged battle with throat cancer. He was 60. Globally popular "Morse" ran on ITV in the U.K....

Reviews on the web.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... REVIEWS ON THE WEB For reviews of the following films, go to: Variety.com/filmreviews Fellini Carmen Piccini Italy-U.S. PALM SPRINGS FEST Do Not Go Gentle Emlyn Williams ...

Hot shots poised for top slots: clutch of go-getters could be studio leaders. (The A List).(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... It's a truism that just about everyone feels he can run a studio. All one has to do is choose the right material and get it into the hands of the right actors. Of course, if it were that easy the studios' batting averages would be a lot...

New old works.(productions scheduled for Broadway)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... This season will see 11 plays and three tuners revived, a five-year high. That tally nearly totals the number of new works (10 plays, six musicals). In other words, nearly half of Broadway's "new" work is old. UPCOMING One Mo' Time,...

Clock is running.("The 24-Hour Plays" at the Henry Fonda Theater, Los Angeles, California)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD With his playlet closing "The 24-Hour Plays" at the Henry Fonda Theater, Bruce Vilanch seemed a bit stunned as the lights came up. Perhaps, as he said, it was just amazement at seeing it staged for the first time. More likely,...

Kudos count.(awards ceremonies)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... KUDOS COUNT Events Honors MONTH'S TALLY 29 415 YEAR'S TALLY 64 948 AWARDS FOR FEB. 1-28 Tiger Awards 8 MTV Asia Awards 21 Goyas ...

Brits put on the ritz.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... LONDON Movie stars don't impress Mother Nature, as Feb. 24's British Academy Film Awards ceremony at the Odeon Leicester Square and post-kudos dinner at Grosvenor House vividly (and wetly) demonstrated. But wind and rain couldn't keep an...

Cinema toppers head for Sin City. (ShoWest: exhibs and distribs confab on global issues in Las Vegas).(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD Whether in the Las Vegas-staged trade show's formal sessions or in more comfortable confines of nearby watering holes or even while astride the city's well-manicured golf links, exhibs and distribs once again will take the annual...

Open door to China? Policy is looser, but pic distrib'n remains limited. (Intl. Exhibition: China Focus).(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... SHANGHAI "China is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow for a lot of foreign production companies," laughs an official at local distribbery Shanghai Film Group. "They keep heading toward it, but they haven't reached it yet." For...

`Amelie' helmer's fabulous year feted. (Intl. Filmmaker of the Year).(filmmaker Jean-Pierre Jeunet recounts his year with the runaway smash)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... PARIS Like Amelie, the heroine of his Oscar-nominated smash hit, French helmer Jean-Pierre Jeunet confesses he "likes collecting things." And that includes awards. A shelf in his airy Parisian loft apartment groans under the weight of...

Hoyts chief takes cinema loop on distribution ride. (Intl. Exhibitor of the Year).(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... SYDNEY The looming digital cinema revolution will present exhibs with an exciting extra hook for patrons -- but it will entail some risks. So says Paul Johnson, the 20-year industry vet and CEO of Hoyts Cinemas, whose empire of nearly...

Oz pampers parents with baby-friendly screenings. (ShoWest: exhibs and distribs confab on global issues in Las Vegas).(Australia - morning movie theater showings)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... MELBOURNE When the general manager of boutique arthouse Cinema Nova, Sue Ristovski, was pregnant she realized that she soon wouldn't be able to engage in her favorite activity -- going to the movies. The unhappy contemplation got her...

Short pix get Paris palace. (ShoWest: exhibs and distribs confab on global issues in Las Vegas).(Cinealternative Theater)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... PARIS The first movies ever to thrill paying audiences were French shorts: 50-second hand-cranked silent marvels from the Lumiere brothers. Some 106 years after the Lumieres began luring customers, exhibber Herve Lopez is aiming to do the...

MPAA chief says: `exhibit patience'. (ShoWest: exhibs and distribs confab on global issues in Las Vegas).(Motion Picture Assn. of America)(Jack Valenti)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD It will take more than a few years, as Jack Valenti sees it, but China will become a major market for American films. "They've got a billion-and-a-half people, most of them living in rural China, which isn't going to be a...

China relations. (ShoWest: exhibs and distribs confab on global issues in Las Vegas).(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Four people who know a thing or two about navigating the little-charted waters of the Chinese distrib and exhib biz: Ellen Eliasoph Head of Warner Bros., Asia Having guided WB through years of involvement in the mainland including TV...

Independents play Vegas. (ShoWest: exhibs and distribs confab on global issues in Las Vegas).(ShoWest Indie film Showcase)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... This year's ShoWest Indie Showcase, unspooling March 4, will feature five films from specialty distribs. Each will have two showings at Las Vegas' Century Orleans 12 Theater, one at 7 p.m. and another at 10 p.m., with a reception hosted by...

Agenda highlights. (ShoWest: exhibs and distribs confab on global issues in Las Vegas).(Calendar of Events)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... Venues: Paris & Bally's Hotels, Las Vegas Monday, March 4 7 a.m.: Al Lapidus golf tournament 8:15 a.m.: Intl. Day Breakfast, keynote: Millard Ochs, prexy, Warner Bros. Intl. Theaters; industry address: Andrew Cripps, UIP 9...

Whoopi's prepared for her fourth fling. (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(Academy Awards telecast - Whoopi Goldberg emcees)(Whoopi Goldberg)(Academy Awards telecast)(Brief Article)(Interview)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD Whoopi Goldberg hadn't planned on hosting the 74th annual Academy Awards -- having hosted the 66th, 68th and 71st telecasts, she figured the third time was the charm -- but that was before the events of Sept. 11. "I probably...

Best hosts balance sly humor with class: the host can't come off as too much of a Hollywood insider, at the risk of alienating viewers at home. But the host can't be too much of a Hollywood outsider, either. (Commentary).(Academy Awards telecast)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD If host Whoopi Goldberg is in dire need of inspiration during this year's Academy Awards telecast, she just has to ask herself one simple question: What would Johnny do? Johnny is, of course, Carson, and his five turns as emcee...

74th edition to zero in on old-style glamour. (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(Academy Awards telecast)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD After a 40-year absence, Oscar is headed back to Hollywood for the 74th annual Academy Awards, and there's plenty more changes in store. For one, the event will be held at the new Kodak Theater located at the Hollywood &...

H'wood venue opens a new chapter on parties. (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(Academy Awards telecast)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD As decisions are being finalized for the annual Governors Ball in the Grand Ballroom of the new Hollywood & Highland location after the 74th annual Academy Awards, planners are relishing the opportunities that the location provides....

Charity event expands to 38 U.S. cities. (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(2002 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD If there is one night a year when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences could be forgiven for forgetting about the rest of the world, it's Oscar night. Yet far from the carpets and the Governors Ball, the evening brings one...

Kudos-related options multiply on TV: by the end of the night, the simplicity of Shaker life may look like just the ticket for some award-weary viewers. (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(2002 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD This year, more than ever before, Academy Awards addicts can get their fix without leaving the house. Cable television offers a month of Oscar programming that should satisfy even the worst Oscar obsession. ABC has the official...

Local businesses thrive on awards-day madness. (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(2002 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD For a very few lucky people, Academy Awards night means going home with Oscar. For a few others, it means regret drowned in champagne. And for a whole lot of other people, it means cold, hard cash. Hollywood's biggest night...

Thesp's career revisited as turning point: Honorary Oscar: Sidney Poitier: (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(2002 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD A stargazer since he was a boy growing up in the quiet rural hinterlands of Cat Island, Bahamas, Sidney Poitier must have figured that the stars had aligned Feb. 12, when the Oscar nominations revealed that, for only the second time...

Academy embraces the Sundance kid: honorary Oscar: Robert Redford. (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(2002 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD Robert Redford has always been more complex than his screen persona might indicate. And when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences presents him with an honorary Oscar on March 24, it will not only be for his work in front of...

Helmer passionate about social justice: Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award Recipient: Arthur Hiller. (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(2002 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD The Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, first initiated in 1956, has not been presented to anyone since 1994. It took a person with Arthur Hiller's social conscience and compassion to stimulate the Academy of Motion Picture Arts &...

Camera inventor clicks another Oscar: Gordon E. Sawyer Award. (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(2002 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD If you noticed the candlelit photography in "Barry Lyndon" or the p.o.v. shots of Jack Nieholson's character careening through "The Shining," you've seen products of engineer Edmund M. DiGiulio's remarkable career. DiGiulio,...

Final thoughts on this year's collection: everyone can make predictions, but only with Monday-morning quarterbacking can the winners be said to be "inevitable." (Eye on the Oscars down to the wire).(2002 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards)
March 4, 2002... HOLLYWOOD few years back, Randy Newman (currently enjoying his 15th and 16th nominations) had this to say about the Academy Awards: "It's one of the strangest events that humans have created." One of the strangest things about the awards...

Golden age. (Eye on the Oscars down the wire).(2002 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards)(Statistical Data Included)
March 4, 2002... Actor Youngest Nominee Jackie Cooper (9; "Skippy" 1931-32) Youngest Winner Richard Dreyfuss (29; "The Goodbye Girl" 1977) Oldest Nominee Richard Farnsworth (80; "The Straight Story" 1999) Oldest Winner Henry Fonda...

74th Annual Academy Awards Ballot. (Eye on the Oscars down the wire).(2002 Academy Awards preview)
March 4, 2002... Location: Kodak Theater, Hollywood & Highland Date: Sunday, March 24 Time: 7 p.m., broadcast on ABC Host: Whoopi Goldberg PICTURE [] A Beautiful Mind, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard (Universal/ Dreamworks) []...