Daily Variety back issues from August 2007:
Toon boon at D'Works.(DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc.)(Financial report)
Aug 01, 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 and net income quadrupled to $61.8 million ...
Pricey but dicey: Dow's benefits to News Corp. murky.(Dow Jones & Co.)
Aug 01, 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 of well over 30% of Bancroft family ...
Arthouse icon had vision; Michelangelo Antonioni: 1912-2007.(Obituary)
Aug 01, 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, was Oscar-nommed for director and original ...
Radio dials away profit at the Eye.(CBS Corp.)(Financial report)
Aug 01, 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%. CBS Corp. prexy-chief exec Leslie ...
Twain shall meet Lyceum.(Lyceum Theater to show Mark Twain's "Is He Dead?")(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 2005, stars in the production, which is ...
Boffo summer.(Only at variety.com)
Aug 01, 2007 ... For the first time, five of the majors have hit $1 ...
Toronto adds to docu slate.(Toronto International Film Festival)
Aug 01, 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 Reel slate at the 32nd Toronto Film Festival. ...
'Heart' beats for thesp.(LEGIT BITS)(Off Broadway)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 ...," Nilaja Sun's solo show that went on to a ...
Showbiz's Comic-Con conundrum.(Conference news)
Aug 01, 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, the center of the pop-culture universe. ...
Martha crafts a DIY deal.(Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc.)(DIY Net)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 Martha Stewart Crafts" is a "best of" ...
Sarkissian plays 'Tapes'.(Arthur Sarkissian acquires rights to make movie based on "The Anderson Tapes")(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 "Everybody Eats There: Inside the ...
Sirius gains for Q2 revenue.(Financial report)
Aug 01, 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 year-ago quarter to $226.4 ...
Cable's hot summer: new shows fuel record.
Aug 01, 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 the word from Tim Brooks, exec ...
'Kitchen' fires up Fox.
Aug 01, 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 weeks of summer 2006, while ABC, CBS ...
Mouse traps 'Pet Robots'.(Benderspink)(Walt Disney Co.)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 comedy about futuristic robots that fall ...
'Greek' gets more weeks.(ABC Family Worldwide Inc. ABC Family Channel)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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. The new episodes will run ...
Richards rolls with Stones memoir deal.(Little, Brown and Company Inc.)(Keith Richard)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 published reports put it between $7 million ...
Shoot 'em up.(Movie review)
Aug 01, 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), Peter Pau; editor, Peter Amundson; music, ...
Indie Sex.(Movie review)
Aug 01, 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 HOURS, 10 MIN. Stretching ...
International weekend box office.(Table)
Aug 01, 2007; ... <Pre> International Weekend Box Office Reported Percent Number of Box Office ChangeTheaters Weekend ending in Box This TITLE/DISTRIBUTOR/COUNTRY7/29/07 ...
The Black Eyed.(Theater review)
Aug 01, 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; production stage manager, Rachel Zack ....
Showbiz stocks: Tuesday, July 31, 2007.(Statistical table)
Aug 01, 2007 ... <Pre> Showbiz Stocks Tuesday, July 31, 2007 YTD Name Tkr PE Last Chg% Chg AccessIT AIXD... 8.10 +.25 -7.1 AcmeCm ACME... 3.96 -.04...
Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story.(Video recording review)
Aug 01, 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 producer, Dylan Robertson; consulting ...
Pushy questions for ... Kyra Sedgwick, Emmy-nominated actress for "The Closer," airing Mondays on TNT.(Interview)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 Dickens "The Death of Ivan ...
Nielsen primetime ratings report.(Table)
Aug 01, 2007 ... <Pre> Nielsen Primetime Ratings Report abc eye Monday5.86 6.92 8:00 Wife Swap (R) 4.40 How I Met Your5.00 ...
Top shows in 18-49.(Table)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 2007 ... <Pre> 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.So You Think ... Dance-Wed. (Fox) 3.1/10 ...
Top shows in 12-34.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 2007 ... <Pre> TOP SHOWS IN 12-34 1.Family Guy-9:30 (Fox) 3.7/12 1.Hell's Kitchen (Fox) 3.7/12 3.Family ...
Top cable nets.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 2007 ... <Pre> TOP CABLE NETS 18-49 Total rating Viewers * (rank) 1.USA 0.86 2.72 million (2) 2.TNT 0.76 2.47 ...
Evening news.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 2007 ... <Pre> EVENING NEWS WEEK 45: July 23-27Viewers Adults 25-54 ABC 7.53 million 1.8/8 CBS 5.93 million 1.4/6 NBC ...
Primetime scorecard.(Statistical table)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 2007 ... <Pre> Primetime Scorecard Week 9 Viewers * A18-49 A25-54 A18-34 abc4.95 (-2%) 1.6/5 (-6%)1.8/6 (-10%)1.2/5 (-8%) eye 6.34 (-13%)1.8/6 (-14%)2.2/7 (-19%) 1.2/4 (-20%) ...
BSkyB buys set-top firm.(World News)(British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC)(Amstrad PLC)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 programming, cut costs in the supply chain ...
Canucks log net gain.(World News)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 increased their presence on the Web last ...
'Gateway' to the biz: Amritraj star of Indian reality TV skein.(World News)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 operated by Sony Entertainment ...
Laff fest boosts B.O.(Just for laughs)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 gigs. Event sold 240,000 tickets this ...
Dutt jailed for terror attack.(World News)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 possession charges. Judge P.D. Kode said ...
London fest bows with a 'Promise'.(UNITED KINGDOM)
Aug 01, 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 ...
Canal 5 on the air.(BRAZIL)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 ...
Gallic niche pair woo Blighty auds.(World News)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 the U.K. box office, a mark hit previously ...
All Singin' All Dancin'.(Theater review)
Aug 01, 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 Lafarro; production stage manager, Charles ...
Van Patten to 'Pacific'.(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 are yet, to be signed; ...
Alphabet net knocking on Wolf's door.(American Broadcasting Companies Inc. signs deal with Scott Wolf)(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 Wolf or to cast him in one of the ...
Summit taps 2 exec VPs.(appointment of David C. Friedman)(promotion of Andrew Matosich )(Brief article)
Aug 01, 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 Matosich will head business affairs. Both ...
Mouse ponies up for kids club.
Aug 02, 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 premium online kids community, for $350 million in ...
Cable buoys Time Warner.
Aug 02, 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. Adjusted operating income before depreciation ...
EMI deal finally greenlit.(Brief article)
Aug 02, 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 music firm and ensuring that the world's ...
H'w'd drafts NFL: league joins producing game with biopic.(NAtional Football League enters movie production business, plans movie based on Vince Lombardi)
Aug 02, 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 storied figures, Green Bay Packers coach ...
U hunts down another spy mission.(Universal Studios Inc.)(Brief article)
Aug 02, 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. Mark Gordon and Josh McLaughlin are ...
U puts Black in 'Adventure'.(Brief article)
Aug 02, 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 Electric Dynamite Prods. label. ...
McG jets pix to Warner.(McGinty Nichol)(Warner Bros.)
Aug 02, 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 action comedy about a neurotic father who ...
Stardust.(Movie review)
Aug 02, 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 Morton, Stephen Marks. Directed by ...
Election Day.(Theater review)
Aug 02, 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 Du Boil, production stage manager, ...
'Hairspray' shines with sales bounce.(Financial report)
Aug 02, 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 weeks. But the numbers ...
Northern exposure: Lionsgate, Canucks in $400 mil slate deal.(Lions Gate Television Inc.)
Aug 02, 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 television and feature film productions shot ...
NBC U Int'l channels exec.(Roma Khanna appointed at NBC Universal Inc.)(Brief article)
Aug 02, 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 across Europe, Asia and Latin America. ...
'Dream' director hurt in fall.(LEGIT BITS)(Helmer Daniel Sullivan)
Aug 02, 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 production of"A Midsummer Night's Dream." ...
Lopez eyes pic at Hayek MGM shingle.(George Lopez)(Metro-Goldwyn Mayer Inc.)(Brief article)
Aug 02, 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 three projects. Comedic fantasy "Bones ...
Vidgame pubs take hit.(Financial report)(Brief article)
Aug 02, 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 thirdparty publisher to Activision, said ...
Whoopi's point of "view".(Whoopi Goldberg )
Aug 02, 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, made by Barbara Walters during Wednesday's ...
TV & cable production chart.
Aug 02, 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); CASTING-Casting director. Affiliated production ...
Showbiz stocks: Wednesday, August 1, 2007.(Statistical table)
Aug 02, 2007 ... <Pre> Showbiz Stocks Wednesday, August 1, 2007 YTD Name Tkr PE Last Chg%Chg AccessIT AIXD ... 8.02-.08-8.0 AcmeCm ACME ... 3.97+.01 -20.9 Actvsn ...
The Camden 28.(Movie review)
Aug 02, 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. Reviewed on DVD, New York, July 17, 2007 ....
WGA writes off quick return to talks.(Writers Guild of America)
Aug 02, 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 & Television Producers had not come ...
'Smallville' raises Cain.(Dean Cain)(Brief article)
Aug 02, 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 villainous killer. Cain's ...
Tomas Arana.(Players)(Brief article)
Aug 02, 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 ...
Katey Sagal.(Players)(Brief article)
Aug 02, 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 ...