Daily Variety back issues from January 2008:
Box office hits the bubbly: 'Treasure' pours it on to stir year-end B.O.
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The five-day New Year's frame continued the late-year boost to the film biz, with Disney sequel "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" leading and 20th Century Fox's surprise hit "Alvin and the Chipmunks" overtaking Warner Bros.' "I Am Legend" for the No. 2 ...
Tentpoles tops o'seas.
Jan 02, 2008; ... International moviegoers played a starring role for Hollywood studios in 2007, driving foreign box office to record levels. Offshore biz remained robust throughout the year thanks to a combo of world wide franchise titles, midrange pics that found solid traction and the positive ...
Par rides DreamWorks to pole position.
Jan 02, 2008; ... For the first time since 1998, Paramount ended the year No. 1 in market share, a victory made possible because it owns DreamWorks and distributes its movies. In another milestone, six majors crossed the $1 billion mark at the domestic box office in the same year, besting the ...
Letterman deal brings latenight wakeup call.
Jan 02, 2008; ... The competition in latenight ratchets into another dimension this week, as the network mainstays return in an unprecedented haves and have-nots scenario. CBS' "Late Show With David Letterman" and "The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson" go back on air with original segs tonight ...
'Shot' fills MTV's glass.
Jan 02, 2008; ... MTV is bellying up to the bar for another "Shot at Love," the bisexual dating show starring MySpace phenom Tila Tequila that turned into the cabler's biggest hit in over two years. In addition to renewing "Shot," MTV has inked a multiseries production commitment with series exec ...
Will latenight hosts strike out?
Jan 02, 2008; ... THE LATENIGHT TALKSHOWS sign on again this week and, as is so often the case, Johnny Carson's shadow looms large over them. Carson reluctantly returned to "The Tonight Show" in 1988--after staying away a few months because of that year's writers strike--saying he could no longer ...
Republican pollster Frank Luntz literally wrote the book on communicating messages effectively: "words that work: it's not what you say it's what people hear.(FRANK LUNTZ )(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008 ... REPUBLICAN POLLSTER FRANK LUNTZ literally wrote the book on communicating messages effectively: "Words That Work: It's Not What You Say It's What People Hear." So he tends to fixate on how words are used and what he sees as the unproductive rhetoric slung back and forth during the strike. ...
Strike front at standstill.(WGA STRIKE)
Jan 02, 2008; ... With the writers strike headed into its third month, there's no signal of a cease-fire any time soon between the WGA and the majors. Even the holiday break saw hostilities break out as the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers announced that its calculation of how ...
Gov't issues coupons for digital converters.
Jan 02, 2008 ... With the start of the new year, the government began distributing millions of $40 coupons to help television owners who don't get cable or satellite service buy special converter boxes to receive digital signals. Beginning Feb. 18, 2009, anyone who does not own a digital set and ...
Wal-Mart logs off pic biz.
Jan 02, 2008 ... With no fanfare and a barely noticeable posting on its website, Wal-Mart has exited the movie-download biz, less than a year after jumping in. The largest seller of DVDs in the U.S. posted a short message on the website of its movie-download service saying the operation had ...
27 Dresses.(Movie review)
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A 20th Century Fox release of a Fox 2000 Pictures and Spyglass Entertainment presentation of a Birnbaum/Barber production. Produced by Roger Birnbaum, Gary Barber, Jonathan Glickman. Executive producers, Bobby Newmyer, Becki Cross Trujillo, Michael Mayer, ...
Passion to censor? Risque grows riskier for China pics.
Jan 02, 2008; ... Chinese censors say producers of erotic movies face being banned from the biz and will not be allowed to compete for any domestic film awards--an interesting development as porn, nudity and anything risque are already major taboos. According to the Beijing News, regulator the ...
Big hopes for China Olympics.
Jan 02, 2008; ... For China, 2008 is the year of the Olympics, plain and simple, and the government kicked off the new year with stirring testimony to the positive changes wrought in the country because of the Beijing Games, which open Aug. 8. China says the Games will show just how far the ...
FCC OKs Citadel's buyout of Ion Media.
Jan 02, 2008 ... WASHINGTON -- The FCC on Monday cleared a private equity group's buyout of TV station operator Ion Media Networks, denying an investor complaint that would have stopped the transaction. The Federal Communications Commission approved the transfer of Ion's 60 television station ...
Wife accuses TV anchor.(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008; ... China state broadcaster CCTV and media watchdogs are reeling from an Internet clip of the country's top TV sports anchor being lambasted by his wife and accused of having an affair at a high-profile Olympics press conference. Speaking in a controlled voice. Hu Ziwei. wife of ...
'Trial' moving to top Spielberg's docket?(Inside Moves)(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008; ... Could "The Trial of the Chicago Seven" be Steven Spielberg's next picture? Spielberg has been developing the DreamWorks project, about anti-Vietnam War activists arrested at the 1968 Democratic Convention, for some time. Now it looks as if he has found his hippie ringleader. ...
Specialty deliveries: 'Juno' sees jolt as kudo contenders rise.
Jan 02, 2008; ... The awards race has just gotten more exciting--at least in terms of box office. In a year-end surge, a handful of awards hopefuls found their stride at theaters during the extended holiday frame, including Fox Searchlight's "Juno," which was the fifth highest grossing film of ...
WBTV ups marketing VEEP.
Jan 02, 2008; ... Warner Bros. TV has upped Sonia Borris to senior VP of marketing and operations for its worldwide marketing group. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In the newly created post, Borris will oversee the group's daily operations, including marketing, promotions and product ...
Patriots' streak rallies trio of nets.
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The New England Patriots' pursuit of perfection produced more boffo ratings Saturday night, as the team's final regular-season contest scored nifty Nielsens on a trio of networks. Unprecedented simulcast on the NFL Network, CBS and NBC averaged ...
'Dirty' dances at B.O.(LEGIT BITS)(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Echoing its blockbuster success in Sydney, London and Hamburg, Germany, the North American premiere production of "Dirty Dancing--The Classic Story on Stage" has broken box office records in Toronto. The musical adaptation of the 1987 ...
How to Look Good Naked.
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (Reality; Lifetime; Fri. Jan. 4 at 9 p.m.) Filmed on location in California by RDF Media for Lifetime Television. Executive producers, Riaz Patel, Alex Fraser, Jim Sayer, Jo Rosenfelder, Greg Goldman, Chris Coelen; co-executive producer, Carson ...
Blackbird.(Theater review)
Jan 02, 2008; ... (Wharf Theater I, Sydney; 364 seats; A$73 ($64) top) A Sydney Theater Company presentation of a play in one act by David Harrower. Directed by Cate Blanchett. Set, Ralph Myers; costumes, Myers; lighting, Nick Schlieper, original music Max Lyandvert; sound, Lyandvert. Opened Dec ...
Lissi and the Wild Emperor.(Movie review)
Jan 02, 2008; ... (Lissi und der wilde Kaiser) (Animated--Germany) A Constantin Film release of a HerbX Film production. Produced by Michael Bully Herbig. Executive producer, Michael Waldleitner. Directed by Michael Bully Herbig. Sceenplay, Herbig, Alfons Biedermann. Camera (color, ...
Top This Party: Orange County.(Television program review)
Jan 02, 2008; ... (Reality; Lifetime; Fri., Jan. 4, 10p.m.) Filmed on location in California by Intuitive Entertainment for Lifetime Television. Executive producer, Mechelle Collins, Kevin Dill; co-executive producers, Blake Levin, Jennifer Colbert; executive in charge of production, Tony Cabalu; ...
Matched in Manhattan.
Jan 02, 2008; ... (Reality; Lifetime; Fri., Jan. 4; 9:30p.m.) Filmed on location in New York by Markmark Productions for Lifetime Television. Executive producers, Mark Efman, Mark Farrell, Sara Chazen-Leand; co-executive producer, Amy Kohn; supervising producer, Richard Van Meter; producers, Gil ...
Movie music's banner year, sans gold trim: tune-driven pix roared in '07 but much of their fuel cannot light Oscar's torch.(V PLUS: EYE ON THE OSCARS: SONG AND SCORE)
Jan 02, 2008; ... Once upon a time, Oscars were routinely given to music directors who supervised the transition of musicals from Broadway to the movies (think "West Side Story," "The Sound of Music") or for the use of existing musical material as a score (the 1920s tunes of "The Great Gatsby," the ...
The rules they are a-changin'.(V PLUS: EYE ON THE OSCARS: SONG AND SCORE)
Jan 02, 2008; ... Exactly how to recognize excellence in adapting pre-existing music for the film medium has plagued the Academy music branch from the very beginning. No category in Oscar history has been so endlessly tinkered with, undergoing near-constant changes in title and eligibility rules over nearly ...
And in the end ... the days are numbered for the closing credit song as shameless marketing tool.(FITTING CODA OR ANTICLIMAX?)
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When the filmmakers behind Disney's "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" were looking for a song to play during the film's end credits, they commissioned an original song from rocker Daughtry. But when "Feels Like Tonight" was matched up with the film, ...
Bending the rules: marketers get creative in face of Acad restrictions.(END AROUND)
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Where there's a will, there's a way. When NBC Universal music chief Kathy Nelson wanted to tout "Do You Feel Me," the Diane Warren-penned track in "American Gangster," she combined homevideo footage of crooner Anthony Hamilton singing the song with ...
For a song: exposure on the mother of all kudocasts presents a win-win for artist and film.(WHOLE WORLD IS WATCHING)
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] An Oscar-winning best song walks the line between living a longer life than the fill it's being lauded for or working in perfect harmony with a movie's success. One of the gold standards of the latter synergy remains James Homer's best song "My Heart Will ...
Scripter gets animated over scribes' respect: "Ratatouille' mastermind chafes at misconceptions about animation scripts.(TOON TITAN: BRAD BIRD)
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Since Brad Bird is writer-director of three of the best animated films of the past decade, "The Iron Giant," "The Incredibles" and "Ratatouille," it's no surprise to hear him extol the virtues of both Warner Bros. toon legend Michael Maltese and "Lawrence ...
Solving the screenplay puzzle: cinema's relentless ticking clock keeps the best scripts lean and lithe.(WRITER ON WRITING)
Jan 02, 2008; ... Michael Cunningham, novelist ("The Hours"), screenwriter and a teacher of writing, spoke to Variety features editor David S. Cohen for Cohen's upcoming book "Screen Plays: How 25 Scripts Made It to a Theater Near You--For Better or Worse." Cunningham saw David Hare's adaptation ...
Hard time for kids' crimes.(PARALLEL PICS)
Jan 02, 2008; ... Rarely has the race for the screenwriting Oscar seen two stories with parallels as strong as those between "The Kite Runner" and "Atonement." The jumping-off point of both stories is a terrible transgressive act by a child. In both films, the wronged parties are condemned to ...
The ultimate Oscar writer quiz: how much do you know about the Acad's history with screenwriters? Here are 21 questions to test your mettle.(V PLUS: EYE ON THE OSCARS: WRITERS ROUNDUP)
Jan 02, 2008 ... THAT THING YOU DO (1) Name the Oscar-winning screenplay suggested by each of the following lists: (a) Cigarette, tent, two shirts on the Same hanger (b) Briefcase, hypodermic needle, Samurai sword (c) Sleigh, X-ray machine, bags of mail ...
Stu Nahan.(Obituaries)
Jan 02, 2008 ... Longtime Los Angeles sportscaster Stu Nahan, also familiar to movie fans for his appearances in the series of "Rocky" films, died Wednesday in Studio City, Calif. He was 81. He had battled lymphoma since being diagnosed in January 2006. Nahan started doing nightly ...
Fred Dressier.(Obituaries)
Jan 02, 2008 ... Longtime cable TV exec Fred Dressler died Dec. 24 of pancreatic cancer in New Haven, Conn. He was 66. Dressler had recently retired as executive VP of programming at Time Warner Cable. An influential figure in the cable business, he was a founder of E! Entertainment, Sun Sports ...
Ruth Wallis.(Obituaries)
Jan 02, 2008 ... Ruth Wallis, whose naughty musical numbers between the 1940s and 1960s inspired the musical revue, "Boobs! The Musical," died of Alzheimer's-related causes Dec. 22 in Wallingford, Conn. She was 87. She sang in the Isham Jones and Benny Goodman orchestras and became known as a ...
Jeanne Carmen.(Obituaries)(Obituary)(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008 ... Jeanne Carmen, who became a 1950s pinup and actress and hobnobbed with Frank Sinatra and other stars, died Dec. 20 of lymphoma in Irvine, Calif. She was 77. Born in Paragould, Ark., Carmen picked cotton with her family before running away at 13. Carmen was still a ...
Jillian Kesner-Graver.(Obituaries)(Obituary)(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008 ... Jillian Kesner-Graver, actress and widow and collaborator of cinematographer Gary Graver, died Dec. 5 in Irvine, Calif., of complications of a staph infection, which she contracted after having been diagnosed with leukemia. She was 58. A memorial service will be held 4-6 p.m ....
Charles Tolep.(Obituaries)
Jan 02, 2008 ... TV distribution exec Charles Tolep died Dec. 16 of cancer in Boynton Beach, Fla. He was 70. Tolep attended Brooklyn College and went to work for Screen Gems, at the time the TV division of Columbia Pictures. He rose to director of worldwide TV distribution, where he was ...
Joseph Viertel.(Obituaries)(Obituary)(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008 ... Joseph M. Viertel, playwright, novelist, and father of Broadway producers Tom and Jack Viertel, died of complications due to kidney failure on Dec. 11. He was 92. Born in New York, Viertel graduated from Harvard and did post-graduate work at the Yale School of Drama. In 1937 his ...
U.K. tops format biz: U.S. makes market gains.(World News)
Jan 02, 2008; ... Blighty continues to dominate the global market in TV formats, but mainland Europe and the U.S. are catching up. The U.K.'s share of the market was 33% for the first nine months of 2007, according to research by FremantleMedia, whose international bestsellers include the "Idols" ...
BBC1 has a very merry Christmas.(World News)(British Broadcasting Corp.)(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008; ... A special Christmas edition of "Doctor Who," featuring a guest appearance from Kylie Minogue, cemented a strong festive perf for the BBC's flagship channel, BBC1. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Nine of the 10 most popular shows on Christmas Day in the U.K. were aired by ...
TF1 taps Canuck producer.(World News)(TF1 International)(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008; ... Top-rating Gallic broadcaster TF1 has tapped Canadian producer Andre Beraud artistic director of fiction. He will report to Takis Candilis, TF1's head of French fiction and entertainment. Beraud, who leaves Canuck production shingle Cirrus Communication, where he produced dramas ...
Sogecable picks Orange for pact.(SPAIN)
Jan 02, 2008; ... Spanish pay TV leader Sogecable has inked with Orange for Sogecable satcaster Digital Plus to become part of Orange's triple-play and 3G cell-phone offers in Spain beginning in early 2008. Gallic giant France Telecom's Orange will sell Digital Plus service alongside broadband ...
Indie fest cries Wolf.(ARGENTINA)
Jan 02, 2008; ... Sergio Wolf has been named director of the Buenos Aires Festival of Independent Film, the biggest film event in Argentina. He will replace critic-archivist-programmer Fernando Pena, who stepped down Monday. Wolf comes to the post from a chief programming position at the fest ...
Italo admissions get boost in 2007.(World News)(Brief article)
Jan 02, 2008; ... By NICK VIVARELLI ROME Driven by a local pic resurgence, Italo admissions are expected to close 2007 up 13% to 114 million, making it a benchmark year for the Italian industry. Seven Italo titles are among the 2007 top 20, with national box office compiler Cinetel ...
Mississippi Chicken.
Jan 02, 2008; ... (Docu) A Reversal Fills presentation of a John Fiege production. Produced by Fiege, Anita Grabowski, Victor Moyers. Executive producers, Jeffrey E. Cole, Dustin D. McCartney. Directed by John Fiege. Written by Fiege, Grabowski. Camera (color, Super-8mm), Fiege; ...
Timecrimes.(Movie review)
Jan 02, 2008; ... (Los cronocrimenes) (Spain) A KV Entertainment, ZIP, Fine, Arsenico production, with participation of ETB, TVC. (International sales: Magnolia Pictures, New York.) Produced by Esteban Ibarretxe, Javier Ibarretxe, Eduardo Carneros, Santi Camunas, Jorge Gomez, Jordi Rediu, Norbert ...
The Singing Revolution.(Movie review)
Jan 02, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (Docu- US.-Estonia) An Abramorama (in U.S.) release of a Mountain View Prods. (U.S.) production in association with Allfilm (Estonia)/Northern Light Prods. (U.S.). Produced by Maureen Castle Tusty, James Tusty, Bestor Cram, Artur Talvik, Piret ...
Scribes' global warfare: guild stands firm on awards picketing.
Jan 03, 2008; ... So much for the Christmas spirit. The town's first day back at work started with reports that the Golden Globes would go on as scheduled thanks to a waiver from the striking Writers Guild. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Then the WGA was heard from: No way would ...
B'way on a roll.
Jan 03, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The tourist-fueled holiday frame lavished its usual gifts on Broadway's box office, with total grosses rocketing to $30 million and records broken left and right along the Rialto. Perennial top dog "Wicked" ($1,839,950) officially claimed the ...
Specialty biz takes a dip in '07.
Jan 03, 2008; ... Sequels had their day in the sun in 2007, but specialty films found dwindling auds. Among studio specialty arms, total box office receipts for 2007 were down 4% from 2006, according to Rentrak. That's despite a 5% overall box office bump. Traditional market leaders ...
The chat is back.
Jan 03, 2008; ... Latenight's leading lights took up the WGA's cause in their return to the airwaves on Wednesday, with Gotham-based David Letterman and Conan O'Brien delivering the most overt statements of support to mainstream viewers since the strike began more than two months ago. ...
Oscar goes to tech titan.(Brief article)
Jan 03, 2008; ... David A. Grafton will receive the Gordon A. Sawyer Award at this year's Sci-Tech Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences announced Wednesday. He will receive the honor, an Oscar statuette, at the Scientific and Technical Awards dinner on Feb. 9. [ILLUSTRATION ...
Fox alters spring sked.
Jan 03, 2008; ... With no resolution in sight. Fox is bracing for a lengthy Writers Guild strike by tweaking its midseason schedule. Newcomers "New Amsterdam" and "Canterbury's Law," which had initially been given berths on Friday night--arguably Fox s weakest--will now bow in safer Monday-night ...
Cashmere Mafia.(Televesion: Brian Lowry)(Television program review)
Jan 03, 2008 ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (Series; ABC, Sun. Jan. 6, 10 p.m.) Filmed in New York by Darren Star Prods., Back East Pictures and Gall Katz Prods. in association with Sony Pictures Television. Executive producers, Star, Kevin Wade, Jeff Rake, Michael Pressman, Katz, Peyton ...
Champian Fulton--David Berger and the Sultans of Swing.(Concert review)
Jan 03, 2008; ... (Birdland; 150 capacity; $30) Presented inhouse. Band: David Berger, Jay Brandford, Matt Hong, Dan Block, Mark Hynes, Carl Maraghi, Bob Millikan, Brian Pareschi, Irv Grossman, Tatum Greenblatt, Wayne Goodman, Ryan Keberle, Marshall Gilkes, Isaac ben Ayala, Jennifer Vincent, ...
Loins of Punjab presents.(Movie review)
Jan 03, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] (India) A Horn OK Please Entertainment production. (International sales: Horn OK Please, Mumbai.) Produced, directed by Manish Acharya. Screenplay, Anuvab Pal, Acharya. Camera (color), Arvind Kannabiran; editor, Christopher Dillon; music, ...
Brit CD sales suffer as downloads soar.
Jan 03, 2008; ... Buoyed by a record sales week, the British music biz saw sales of individual tracks soar 47.8% in 2007 and sales of CDs slump by about 10%. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The British Phonographic Industry reported that 77.6 million songs were downloaded legally in the U.K ....
Westport's A.D. ankles.(Westport Country Playhouse )(Brief article)
Jan 03, 2008; ... Tazewell Thompson has ankled as a.d. of the Westport Country Playhouse due to "artistic and professional differences" with the board of the Connecticut not-for-profit theater. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Joanne Woodward and Anne Keefe, who helped transform the summer ...
Wolfe's new 'Blood': author parting with longtime publisher.
Jan 03, 2008; ... Bestselling scribe Tom Wolfe has left the nest of longtime publisher Farrar, Straus & Giroux after the two sides were unable to agree on a price for his next book, "Back to Blood." Little, Brown and Co. said Wednesday that it has acquired North American rights to the novel, set ...
Sony logs a tech honcho.
Jan 03, 2008; ... Sony Pictures has tapped Chris Cookson, Warner Bros.' top tech exec, to take on a newly created role as president of Sony Pictures Technologies. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Cookson, a 15-year WB vet who has been chief technology officer since 1999, will focus on ways in ...
Rachel Nichols.(Players)
Jan 03, 2008; ... Rachel Nichols has been cast in Stephen Sommers' "G.I. Joe" alongside Sienna Miller. She'll play a skilled martial artist who ...
T.J. Thyne.(Players)
Jan 03, 2008; ... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] T.J. Thyne has joined the cast of two films, "The Human ConWaet, written, directed and ...