• Best Picture winner Slumdog Millionaire will open in an additional 2,500-plus theaters this Friday. Now you'll know why everyone in your office is shouting "Jai Ho."
• Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail topped the box office with $41 million. Look for the franchise to continue with Madea Goes to Camp, Madea Meets Dracula, and Madea Takes out a Small Business Loan at a High Interest Rate.
• The end credits of last night's Oscars gave viewers a peek at clips from Sherlock Holmes, Angels & Demons, Public Enemies and a bevy of other '09 movies. You're excused if you didn't make it all the way to the end of the show.
• Mike Meyer's The Love Guru won The Razzie for worst picture of the year. Paris Hilton was a double acting winner, scoring for The Hottie and the Nottie and Repo: The Genetic Opera. She really is the Kate Winslet of The Razzies.
• The Dark Knight broke $1 billion in worldwide ticket sales. The blockbuster has prestigious company -- only Titanic, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest share this honor.
• Heath Ledger's family accepted the late actor's posthumous award during last night's Oscar ceremony.
• While actors were honored by the Academy, their guild rejected the "last, best, final offer" from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
• Mickey Rourke gave a memorable (and obscenity-laden, NSFW) speech at the Independent Spirit Awards, where he implored the audience to hire his pal Eric Roberts. If only he'd won the Oscar, maybe C. Thomas Howell would've gotten a shout out.
• A release date has been set for Eclipse, the third installment in the Twilight saga. Look for it in 2010, around the time you are officially sick of this franchise.
• The new trailer for Judd Apatow's Funny People has been released. Ironically, it's mostly a drama.
BIZ
from The Hollywood Reporter - Music by By Katy Bachman, Mediaweek
Radio ended 2008 with a 10% revenue decline to $16.5 billion. Factoring in off-air and network revenue, the medium was down 9% to $19.5 billion, according to figures released by the Radio Advertising Bureau.
Disney's ESPN faces rising rights fees: report (Reuters)
from Yahoo! News: Entertainment News
Reuters - Walt Disney Co's ESPN cable sports network, which has broadcasting deals for events ranging from the National Football League to Nascar, is facing higher costs while renewing some of the contracts amid falling advertising revenue, the Wall Street Journal said on Monday.
Big studios complain of favoritism
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 22 (UPI) -- Expectations that "Slumdog Millionaire"
will win a best picture Oscar Sunday reflect a growing favoritism toward
independent movies, U.S. film executives say.
SAG rejects producers' proposal
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 22 (UPI) -- The U.S. Screen Actors Guild says it has rejected the "last, best and final offer" the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers made last week.
Will CEOs chime in on SAG impasse?
from Variety.com
Business News: SAG board rejects offer from studios -- Will the CEOs parachute in, again? That's the question being pondered over Oscar weekend after SAG negotiations with the majors hit yet another impasse, leaving the guild with few options and killing industry hopes that the new regime would bring a swift end to the guild's 8-month-old contract drama.
SAG-AFTRA commercials talks starting up
from Hollywood Reporter by By Jay A. Fernandez
Fresh from addressing the AMPTP's "last, best and final
offer" on its TV-theatrical contract at a national board meeting Saturday,
SAG will join with AFTRA in starting negotiations with the advertising industry
for a new broadcast commercials contract.
Big
Opening for 'Madea' Lifts a Struggling Studio
from NYT > Movies by By BROOKS BARNES
Lionsgate opened "Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail" to a record-setting $41.1 million in sales at domestic theaters.
No sign of recession at pre-Oscar gift suites
from Reuters: Entertainment News
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Not everyone nominated for an Academy Award will take home an Oscar on Sunday, but even the losers don't have to go home empty handed.
FESTIVALS
Springsteen to headline UK's Glastonbury festival
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
LONDON (AP) -- Organizers say Bruce Springsteen will headline Glastonbury, Britain's leading summer music festival....
AWARDS
TV Ratings: Telecast improved from last year's record low -- Powered by strong showings in the country's biggest markets, the 81st annual Academy Awards telecast on ABC produced improved ratings Sunday night -- rising by about 6% in Nielsen's metered-market overnights vs. last year's record low.
Oscar doesn't carry the same weight
Peter Bart: Winning an award no longer cements career -- Nothing we own today is worth what it was a year ago -- not our houses, our 401Ks, not even our careers. So with the Oscar noise at last dying down, it's worth asking whether even an Oscar is worth what it used to be.
'Slumdog' claims historic Oscar night success
"Slumdog Millionaire" won best picture Sunday night, earning a total of eight Oscars at the 81st annual Academy Awards. Sean Penn won best actor, Kate Winslet won best actress and the late Heath Ledger won best supporting actor.
Dev Patel & Freida Pinto On 'Slumdog's' Big Oscar Night,
Meeting Brad, Angelina & Will Smith
from Access Hollywood - Movies
"Slumdog Millionaire" took home eight Oscars Sunday night, including Best Picture and Best Director, and when Access Hollywood caught up with stars Dev Patel and Freida Pinto after the show, the magnitude of their big night was still sinking in.
Watching The Oscars From The Slums of Mumbai
from /Film by orfilms@gmail.com (slashfilm.com)
The Huffington Post has some photos from the slums outside of Mumbai showing neighbors of some of the child actors from Slumdog Millionaire watch the Oscar telecast live.
From slums of Mumbai to the Academy Awards
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ... by By BETH HARRIS
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- There was 9-year-old Rubina Ali, beaming proudly from a huddle with her "Slumdog Millionaire" co-stars on the world's most glamorous stage, not three days removed from the deplorable conditions that have defined her young life.
'Slumdog Millionaire' kids will hit the books after the Oscars
from Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider by Hollywood Insider
Quick reality check: The Slumdog Millionaire kids just swung by, and when I asked what they were working on next, they said "exams," which start as soon as they get back.
Red carpet no-shows irk photogs
from Variety.com - Award Central News
Award Central News: Some stars entered Oscars off-camera -- Among those less than enthused with the changes to this year's Oscarcast were the red carpet photographers.
Oscars host Hugh Jackman gave the job his all
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ... by By FRAZIER MOORE
NEW YORK (AP) -- Don't blame Hugh Jackman....
Spain full of pride at Penelope Cruz's Oscar
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ... by By JORGE SAINZ
MADRID (AP) -- Spain gushed with pride Monday over Penelope Cruz's Oscar for best supporting actress....
Oscar speeches served up emotion and a whistle
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ... by By ERIN CARLSON
Sunday's Oscar speeches were a balancing act, walking the line between the playful and emotional. Here are some notable moments:...
While the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been celebrating film's best and brightest for more than 80 years, the glamour we associate with the Oscars truly started in the 1950s, when stars such as Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly and Janet Leigh brought high style to the ceremony.
Oscars backstage: Kate Winslet hugs, Sean Penn on Mickey
Rourke, more!
from Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider by Adam B. Vary
While the Academy Awards ceremony was full of musical numbers, visual innovations, and new ways of presenting old categories, the backstage press room was the regular mix of foreign tongues, tears, awkward moments and long-winded behind-the-scenes winners.
Opening-number prop fetches $20,000 at Elton John party auction
from Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider by Hollywood Insider
That box that Academy Awards host Hugh Jackman sang on during the Milk portion of his opening number? It just sold for a whopping $20,000 at Elton John's exclusive Oscar party. Someone also paid $60,000 to be Sir Elton's date.
Spirit Awards for Cruz, Rourke, Leo
from EW.com: Today's Latest Headlines by Sean Smith
Three Oscar nominees take acting prizes at ceremony honoring indie film; ''The Wrestler'' named best feature
Spirit Awards: The stars let their indie flags (and profanity)
fly
from Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider by Josh Rottenberg
"Hooray, independents!" This final line of Melissa Leo's Best Actress acceptance speech summed up the overall feeling inside the tent on Santa Monica Beach, where Saturday's Independent Spirit Awards were held.
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 21 (UPI) -- "The Love Guru" won three Razzie Awards, including for worst picture of 2008, at a ceremony in Los Angeles Saturday.
MOVIES
Weekend Box Office: February 20-22, 2009
from Box Office Mojo - Current Box Office Results
Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail tops the box office with an estimated $41.1 million
'Button' wins int'l b.o. crown for third weekend
from Hollywood Reporter by By Frank Segers
With its 13 Academy Award nominations, Warners' "The
Curious Case of Benjamin Button" remained atop the international boxoffice
for a third straight weekend.
from Box Office Mojo - Top Stories by by Brandon Gray
The Dark Knight finally hit the $1 billion mark worldwide.
Video: Re-Creating the Comic Book World of 'Watchmen'
from Wired: Entertainment by John Scott Lewinski
From making Rorschach's mask to building the Owl Ship, behind-the-scenes clips detail the enormous effort put into bringing Zack Snyder's faithful adaptation to the movie screen.
Schwarzenegger planning a cameo in Stallone film
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ...
WASHINGTON (AP) -- He said he'd be back - and soon he will be. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger says he'll be shooting a cameo appearance soon for a new movie by friend Sylvester Stallone.
Third
'Twilight' Dawns Summer 2010
from Box Office Mojo - Top Stories by by Brandon Gray
The Twilight Saga's Eclipse is set to open only seven months after New Moon...
'Twilight' exclusive: Chris Weitz will not direct third film,
'Eclipse'
from Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider by Joshua Rich
Chris Weitz will not direct the third film in the Twilight series, Eclipse, a source close to the production tells EW.com exclusively.
'Twilight' star Robert Pattinson talks 'New Moon' at the Oscars
from Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider by Hollywood Insider
EW caught up with Twilight star -- and Oscar presenter -- Robert Pattinson at the Academy Awards' Governors Ball on Sunday night.
Ghostbusters 3 To Begin Shooting Fall 2009?
from /Film by orfilms@gmail.com (slashfilm.com)
It appears that the project is still moving forward and
according to Dan Aykroyd, who appeared in Boston this weekend for the opening
of a new House of Blues, they "hope to be in production by late fall 2009″.
Iron Man 2: Emily Blunt Officially Out? American Gladiator/Pro
Wrestler Matt Mogan as a Villain?
from /Film by orfilms@gmail.com (slashfilm.com)
While Iron Man director Jon Favreau was walking the red carpet at the Oscars, the director apparently revealed to E! that Emily Blunt is officially out as Black Widow in Iron Man 2.
Superman Returns Sequel To Be Titled Superman Unleashed?
from /Film by orfilms@gmail.com (slashfilm.com)
/Film reader Alex Litel just sent me a link to a password protected page from the official Legendary Pictures website that lists "Superman Unleashed" as one of their upcoming films in development.
1978 Battlestar Galactica Big Screen Movie?
from /Film by orfilms@gmail.com (slashfilm.com)
IGN is reporting a rumor that Universal Pictures is planning to turn the old Battlestar Galactica television series (1978-80) into a feature film. Series creator Glen A. Larson will be working on the script and is also expected the produce.
The Wonderous World of Laundry
from Variety.com
Film Reviews: Bleak present-day realities clash with dreams of a brighter future in docu "The Wondrous World of Laundry," which examines the drab but dignified lives of several femme workers at an industrial laundry in Poland.
TELEVISION
What to Watch for week of February 23 to March 1, 2009
from EW.com: TV
By Jessica Shaw
A day-to-day guide to notable programs*
Dying star's TV marriage grips Britain
The marriage of a dying reality television star has gripped Britain, but as of Saturday night it was not completely clear that Jade Goody, who is suffering from terminal cancer, would be well enough to make the ceremony.
Sayles red hot for HBO's 'Scar'
Music News: Multihyphenate to write Kiedis series -- Multihyphenate John Sayles has been tapped to write HBO's series project based on the childhood of Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis.
from Forbes.com: Media News by Lacey Rose
Thanks to an ongoing legal dispute, ''Project Runway'' tapes its finale without a premiere date or network home.
Slew of pilots flesh out casts
from Hollywood Reporter by By Nellie Andreeva
Jimmy Wolk has landed the lead in ABC's untitled Daniel Cerone pilot, and Joel McHale has been cast as the lead on NBC's comedy pilot "Community," which Anthony and Joe Russo have signed on to direct.
Adam Carolla's pilot picked up at CBS
from Hollywood Reporter by By Nellie Andreeva
CBS is hoping to score an "Ace in the Hole" with a
last-minute pickup to a comedy starring comedian/radio host/actor Adam Carolla.
'Dollhouse' drops in second week
from Hollywood Reporter
The numbers are disheartening, if not entirely surprising.
The second episodes of Fox's "Dollhouse" and "Terminator"
failed to improve on their premieres.
Did TV news miss point in covering stimulus plan? (AP)
from Yahoo! News: Entertainment News
AP - There were plenty of familiar faces on-screen during TV coverage of President Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan, people like James Carville, Laura Ingraham, Karl Rove, Sen. Lindsey Graham, Joe Trippi and Dick Morris.
San Francisco man faces fallout from `Wife Swap'
from AP Top Entertainment News At 11:05 ... by By EVELYN NIEVES
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- It's safe to say Stephen Fowler probably wishes he never appeared on "Wife Swap."...
ABC puts brakes on 'Farsi,' 'Lucy' pilots
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
BURBANK, Calif., Feb. 21 (UPI) -- The pilots "Funny in Farsi" and
"Planet Lucy" have been put on hold by ABC after production
requirements were not met, the U.S. TV network says.
'Fringe' moves production to Canada
from Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider by Lindsay Soll
EW has learned that Fringe, J.J. Abrams' sci-fi series on Fox―which is set in Boston but films in New York―is planning a move to Vancouver, Canada in the event that it is picked up for a second season.
from L.A. Times - TV News
They just go to the Radio & Television Museum in Bowie, Md., which details the evolution of the set.
MUSIC
Apple blamed for leak of Clarkson album
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 21 (UPI) -- Apple Inc.'s iTunes store may have leaked a copy of U.S. singer Kelly Clarkson's new album, "All I Ever Wanted," onto the Internet, an industry source says.
Singer Aiken leaves RCA Records
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
NEW YORK, Feb. 21 (UPI) -- U.S. pop singer Clay Aiken, who rode the "American Idol" TV competition to fame, has left RCA Records, the singer's representative says.
New Music: Yeah Yeah Yeahs: "Heads Will Roll"
[MP3/Stream]
from Pitchfork Media - Today by Marc Hogan
Or nod, anyway. Yeah Yeah Yeahs take over the dancefloor with "Heads Will Roll", the second track (um, unless you count the full album leak, for which heads will no doubt roll) to emerge from forthcoming third album It's Blitz!.
from Pitchfork Media - Today by Ian Cohen
Jane's Addiction played a small club show in L.A. last week and Pitchfork was there to see how it all went down. The band also taped the show and provided video of six of its classic songs, including "Mountain Song", "Stop", and "Ain't No Right", all of which can be viewed here.
In the Studio: Green Day's Ambitious "21st Century
Breakdown"
from Rolling Stone : Rock and Roll Daily by Daniel Kreps
Nearly five years after their last album, Green Day will return this May with their latest punk masterpiece, 21st Century Breakdown ― an album Rolling Stone's David Fricke describes as even "more ambitious" than their Grammy-winning concept opus American Idiot
ONLINE
Hollywood Struggles to Find Wealth on the Web
from Wired: Entertainment by By Alex Dobuzinskis
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - After more than a decade of hype about the Internet being the next great stage for mass entertainment, it remains dominated by amateurs with most Hollywood stars watching from the wings.
Levin defends TMZ's use of leaked Rihanna pix
from Los Angeles Times - Celebrity News
What do you think? Should TMZ have run this photo?
GOODBYE: Defamer Merging Into Gawker
from Nikki Finke's Deadline Hollywood Daily by Nikki Finke
Coincidence that Nick Denton did this on the day of the
Oscars? Hardly. I'd been hearing for awhile that the Gawker empire
founder and chief exec was trying to sell Defamer, which accounts for only 2%
of total traffic of his network ofInternet websites and had been flat for the
past year
ETC...
Clooney to discuss Darfur with Obama
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
WASHINGTON, Feb. 21 (UPI) -- Actor George Clooney says he will lobby U.S. President Barack Obama to pick up the diplomatic pace to find a solution in Darfur.
Models not immune to economic woes
from Entertainment News - UPI.com
MIAMI, Feb. 22 (UPI) -- Several fashion models living in Miami say the recession has impacted their industry to the point where work has become sparse.
