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| UK police arrest comic Starr in Savile abuse case: TV Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 12:34 PM PDT LONDON (Reuters) - British police arrested comedian Freddie Starr on Thursday as part of an investigation triggered by allegations that late BBC presenter Jimmy Savile sexually abused children, media reported. Police said in a statement they had arrested a man in his 60s on suspicion of sex offences. The man was identified by Sky News and ITV News as Starr, who earlier had offered to talk to police. ... Full Story | Top |
| NJ's Springsteen, Bon Jovi join Sting in Sandy concert Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 12:27 PM PDT  NEW YORK (Reuters) - New Jersey natives Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi will join Sting and other top music stars on Friday for a special television benefit concert on NBC to aid victims of Sandy, the giant storm which killed scores and devastated large sections of the U.S. Northeast, the network announced on Thursday. Springsteen and Bon Jovi are both New Jersey natives who have often taken inspiration from their home state and used their star platform to highlight both its charms and challenges. ... Full Story | Top |
| Cablevision says Sandy power outage hit half of its customers Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 12:26 PM PDT (Reuters) - Cable operator Cablevision Systems Corp said about half of its 3.3 million customers in the New York, Connecticut and New Jersey area had lost power in the wake of superstorm Sandy, causing widespread disruptions to its service. Cablevision said in a statement on Thursday that 1.6 million of its customers were without power while 7,265 of the remaining 1.65 million customers who were not affected by power outages still had no access to Cablevision's service. ... Full Story | Top |
| Kardashian boosts "X Factor" ratings, but wins few fans Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 12:15 PM PDT  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Khloe Kardashian's first outing as the new co-host of "The X Factor" helped boost the show's audience by 30 percent, yet the reality star got mixed reviews for a nipple-baring debut that made headlines - but many TV critics found awkward. Kardashian, 28, best known for starring with socialite sisters Kim and Kourtney in "Keeping Up with the Kardashians," shocked some viewers by wearing a sheer purple blouse without a bra on Wednesday's first live episode of the TV singing contest. "I think the air conditioning is on high tonight. ... Full Story | Top |
| Playboy Clubs to enter India, without the bunny costumes Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 11:38 AM PDT MUMBAI (Reuters) - The Playboy club is coming to India -- but with "bunnies" in non-revealing outfits. "The costumes of the bunnies, who are integral to the Playboy culture, will be based on Indian sensibilities and morals," Sanjay Gupta, CEO of PB Lifestyle, which is bringing the brand to India through a licensing agreement, told Reuters. India has strict censorship laws and there is no Indian version of Playboy, the magazine launched by Hugh Hefner that became as known for its pictures of naked women as for the hedonistic lifestyle propagated by its founder. ... Full Story | Top |
| Rhode Island sues Schilling over failed 38 Studios deal Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 11:28 AM PDT BOSTON (Reuters) - Rhode Island is suing former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling and the former head of the state's economic development agency over a $75 million loan guarantee the agency made to the baseball player's failed video game company 38 Studios. The suit was filed in Superior Court on Thursday and listed Schilling, who named the company after his former jersey number, Keith Stokes, the former head of the state's Economic Development Corporation (EDC), several banks and law firms as defendants in the case. ... Full Story | Top |
| Amy Winehouse wedding dress stolen: family foundation Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 11:02 AM PDT  LONDON (Reuters) - Two dresses worn by late British singer Amy Winehouse have been stolen from her house, her family's charitable foundation told Reuters on Thursday. The two dresses were due to be auctioned as part of charity events later this year and next in London and New York to raise money for The Amy Winehouse Foundation, which funds a number of concerns including children's hospices and drug counseling. One of the Back to Black singer's stolen frocks was the dress she wore to marry Blake Fielder-Civil in 2007 and the other was a newsprint cocktail dress. ... Full Story | Top |
| Netflix tells Icahn its open to his input Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 10:04 AM PDT LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Netflix Inc responded on Thursday to billionaire Carl Icahn's investment in the company, saying it was open to input from all shareholders. "We have many shareholders, now including Mr. Icahn, and we're always open to their perspective on how to build on our success," a Netflix statement said. Icahn disclosed in a regulatory filing on Wednesday that he had bought shares and call options that gave him a 10 percent stake in the video rental company. ... Full Story | Top |
| Murdoch re-elected to BSkyB board as profit climbs Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 08:10 AM PDT  LONDON (Reuters) - James Murdoch was re-elected to the board of BSkyB on Thursday, ensuring his family's media empire retains a direct influence at Britain's biggest pay-TV company despite being weakened by a phone hacking scandal. James Murdoch, forced to quit as BSkyB chairman in April over his role in the scandal at his father Rupert's News Corp, was re-elected as a BSkyB director with around 95-percent support in a shareholder vote at an annual meeting. ... Full Story | Top |
| "The Details" Review: Airless All-Star Comedy is Devilishly Dull Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 06:43 AM PDT  LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The devil is in "The Details," but only in that this smug and airless comedy feels like 91 minutes in hell. The first few minutes promise a Rube Goldberg whirligig of bad behavior, unhappy coincidences and plain old rotten luck, but all writer-director Jacob Aaron Estes ("Mean Creek") can deliver is a group of jerks acting like jerks. ... Full Story | Top |
| George Lucas Plans to Donate Portion of Disney Sale Proceeds to Education Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 06:40 AM PDT  LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - George Lucas plans to put a sizable portion of his windfall from the $4 billion sale of his Lucasfilm to Disney into a foundation supporting education, Lucasfilm said in a statement Wednesday. Lucas is currently the chairman of Edutopia, part of the George Lucas Educational Foundation. Lucas could put money into the foundation or create a new foundation funded from the sale. In 2006, the George Lucas Educational Foundation donated $175 million to the filmmaker's alma mater USC. ... Full Story | Top |
| The Devil's General? German film seeks to debunk Rommel myth Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 05:55 AM PDT  BERLIN (Reuters) - Erwin Rommel, the World War Two German field marshal celebrated as the brilliant and humane "Desert Fox", is portrayed in a new film as a weak man torn by his loyalty to Adolf Hitler and the dawning realization that he was serving a devil. The drama, due to be broadcast on the public ARD television on Thursday, has angered Rommel's son and granddaughter who believe it underplays his role in the resistance against Hitler. ... Full Story | Top |
| Walter Scott's "Ivanhoe" adapted for 21st century Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 05:44 AM PDT EDINBURGH (Reuters) - In a bid to resurrect Walter Scott's historical novel "Ivanhoe", retired Scottish medical professor David Purdie unsheathed his scalpel to cut out the early 19th century verbiage and deliver a new edition for 21st century readers. Ivanhoe is a romantic tale of fair maidens, bold knights-at-arms, merry friars, skulduggery, enmity between Saxons and Norman barons, and even a cameo appearance by Robin Hood during the reign of England's Richard I in 1194. ... Full Story | Top |
| James Murdoch retains place on BSkyB board Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 05:18 AM PDT  LONDON (Reuters) - James Murdoch's seat on the board of pay-TV group BSkyB was opposed by just 5 percent of voting shareholders at the company's annual investor meeting in London on Thursday. Murdoch, who stepped down as chairman over a phone hacking scandal at News Corp's British newspapers arm, was present at the meeting. News Corp is a major investor in BSkyB. Ealier on Thursday BSkyB reported strong first-quarter earnings growth as price rises and the sale of additional products to subscribers helped reassure investors who had been fearing a slowdown. ... Full Story | Top |
| Book Talk: "Fun" bestsellers a big switch for Justin Cronin Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 04:32 AM PDT TOKYO (Reuters) - Justin Cronin was writing literary fiction when he and his daughter, then eight, dreamed up a vampire trilogy set in a post-apocalyptic world just for fun - until he belatedly realized what they'd put together, and sat down to write. Cronin said he's still a little astonished by the success of "The Passage," which began the series, and now "The Twelve," which just came out last month, both of which have been bestsellers. Cronin spoke with Reuters about the book, about writing, and what it was like to make the transition from literary fiction to genre writing. ... Full Story | Top |
| Songwriter Bill Dees,"Oh, Pretty Woman" co-writer, dead at 73 Thursday, Nov 01, 2012 02:46 AM PDT LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Singer-composer Bill Dees, best known for his songwriting collaboration with Roy Orbison on the hits "Oh, Pretty Woman" and "It's Over," has died at age 73 in Mountain Home, Arkansas, according to an obituary posted online by a local funeral home. Dees, a Texas native who got his start in the 1950s with a high school band called the Five Bops, is credited with writing scores of songs in all, some recorded by such performers as Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn and Glen Campbell. ... Full Story | Top |
| George Clooney is distant cousin of Abraham Lincoln Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 11:10 PM PDT  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Aunt Rosemary was not George Clooney's only famous relative. You can add a certain Civil War American president to the Oscar-winning actor's family tree. Politics has apparently run in the activist actor's blood for centuries, as website Ancestry.com on Thursday revealed that the "Ocean's 11" star is distantly related to President Abraham Lincoln. According to Ancestry.com, Clooney is the half-first cousin five times removed from Lincoln, the 16th president. ... Full Story | Top |
| ABC News seeks dismissal of Beef Products' defamation lawsuit Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 06:29 PM PDT NEW YORK (Reuters) - ABC News on Wednesday asked a federal court to throw out claims it defamed a meat processor through a series of television reports about lean finely textured beef, a product that critics have dubbed "pink slime." In court papers, lawyers for the U.S. network said a September lawsuit by Beef Products Inc (BPI) seeks to inhibit free speech. They said the lawsuit poses a challenge to the right of a news organization "to explore matters of obvious public interest -- what is in the food we eat and how that food is labeled. ... Full Story | Top |
| "A Late Quartet" Review: classical-music drama gets soapy but actors avoid the false notes Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 05:45 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "A Late Quartet," as it turns out, has more than one meaning: The film's musicians spend most of the movie grappling with Beethoven's Opus 131, the String Quartet No. 14 in C# Minor, which was one of the composer's "late quartets," completed the year before his death. But the title also refers to a foursome of players whose relationship as a performing entity could very well reach its demise at any moment. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Wilfred' Gets 3rd Season From FX Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 05:42 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - "Wilfred" will bark once more. FX has given the series, which stars Elijah Wood as a struggling young man who befriends his neighbor's curiously human-like dog, a third season, the cable network said Wednesday. The 13-episode third season will debut in June 2013. In addition to the third-season order, writers/producers Reed Agnew and Eli Jorné have been promoted to executive producers and showrunners for the show. ... Full Story | Top |
| Evan Rachel Wood marries "Billy Elliot" star Jamie Bell Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 05:39 PM PDT  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hollywood actress Evan Rachel Wood has quietly married Briton Jamie Bell - star of the 2000 "Billy Elliot" dance movie - in a ceremony in California, Wood's spokeswoman said on Wednesday. "The bride wore a custom dress by Carolina Herrera. It was a small ceremony with close family and friends," the spokeswoman said in a statement, adding that the wedding took place on Tuesday. In a Twitter posting on Wednesday, Wood, best known for her roles in "The Wrestler" and coming of age movie "Thirteen," said "Words cannot describe the happiness I am feeling. Overwhelming. ... Full Story | Top |
| Shirley MacLaine, Christopher Plummer set for latin Box-Office hit remake "Elsa & Fred" Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 05:37 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Michael Radford ("Il Postino") is set to direct Shirley MacLaine and Christopher Plummer in the English-language remake of the Spanish-Argentine box-office hit, "Elsa & Fred," the filmmakers announced on Wednesday at the American Film Market. The romantic comedy features Elsa (MacLaine) as a gregarious retiree who is as lively as the New Orleans streets outside her apartment. When straight-laced widower Fred (Plummer) moves into her building, conflict ensues. ... Full Story | Top |
| Kevin Pollack heads "Chez Upshaw" cast for Global Media Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 05:36 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The Global Media Group has added "Chez Upshaw" with Kevin Pollack to their American Film Market slate, the company announced on Wednesday. Ileana Douglas co-stars in this comedy about a married couple that owns a failing bed and breakfast but turn their luck around by getting into the business of assisted suicides. Greg Grunberg, Molly Sims and Shane Johnson co-star. Written and Directed by Bruce Mason, the film is produced by Marvin Acuna, Bruce Mason, Tina Palvides & Kevin Pollak. ... Full Story | Top |
| Two plead guilty in Miami to trying to sell stolen Matisse Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 04:02 PM PDT MIAMI (Reuters) - A man and woman have pleaded guilty to charges of trying to sell a stolen painting by French master Henri Matisse worth $3 million nearly 10 years after it went missing from a Venezuelan museum, authorities said on Wednesday. FBI undercover agents arrested Pedro Antonio Marcuello Guzman, 46, of Miami, Florida, and Maria Martha Elisa Ornelas Lazo, 50, of Mexico City, Mexico, during a sting operation at a Miami Beach hotel in July. ... Full Story | Top |
| Liam Neeson thriller "A Walk Among The Tombstones" sells worldwide at AFM Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 02:15 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Exclusive Media has sold its thriller, "A Walk Among The Tombstones," starring Liam Neeson, to a number of overseas territories, it was announced Wednesday on the first day of the American Film Market in Santa Monica. "Liam Neeson is at the top of his game achieving worldwide box office success with ‘Taken 2' and his other recent titles," said Alex Walton, president of international sales and distribution. "This film is a smart, gripping, edge of your seat thriller loaded with international appeal and we are thrilled with its performance so far. ... Full Story | Top |
| All Broadway shows likely playing by Thursday Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 02:14 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Broadway will be back in full force by Thursday, predicts Broadway League Executive Director Charlotte St. Martin. Though the Great White Way stayed dark from Sunday night through Tuesday while New York City braced for Hurricane Sandy, the theater district believes that the time has come to turn on the marquee lights. "There is a tradition on Broadway that the show must go on," St. Martin told TheWrap. "It goes to the core of our actors, producers, stage hands and the people who work on Broadway. It's a century old, and it's what we've always done. ... Full Story | Top |
| Ralph Nader to Stephen Colbert: Give me your Super PAC cash! Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 02:13 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Stephen Colbert's super PAC is sitting on nearly $778,000 in cash, and five-time presidential candidate Ralph Nader knows exactly where to spend it. On Ralph Nader. If only Colbert would listen. The longtime consumer advocate told TheWrap in an exclusive interview that he has been trying to get the "Colbert Report" host to donate the money remaining in Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow's coffers to the nonprofit American Museum of Tort Law he plans to build. ... Full Story | Top |
| Isabel Lucas, Jim Sturgess top "Electric Slide" cast Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 02:12 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Myriad Pictures has taken on sales duties on the Jim Sturgess and Isabel Lucas starrer "Electric Slide," which is currently shooting in Los Angeles. The film is a Myriad Pictures presentation of a Killer Films Production in association with Media House Capital and Myriad Pictures. The film is based on a true, 1980s- story of high-living, charismatic Dodson (Sturgess), the owner of a posh Los Angeles furniture store who robbed a bank to impress his new girlfriend (Lucas). ... Full Story | Top |
| Disney bets "Star Wars", "Indiana Jones" still home-entertainment juggernauts Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 02:04 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The chance to make fresh "Star Wars" films and pepper theme parks with space creatures from a "galaxy far, far away" was the big "get" in the Walt Disney Company's $4.05 billion purchase of Lucasfilm this week. Less heralded, but equally important was that more than 30 years after they first rocketed across screens, Luke, Leia and Han Solo's stars have not dimmed in the home-entertainment universe. ... Full Story | Top |
| "Cheers" star George Wendt hospitalized, drops out of play after suffering chest pains Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 02:03 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - If you recently heard a rousing chorus of "Norm!" coming from a Chicago-area hospital, now you'll know why. "Cheers" star George Wendt, who played portly barfly Norm Peterson on the NBC sitcom, was hospitalized Sunday night and is receiving medical treatment after suffering chest pains, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. According to the paper, Wendt is expected to make a full recovery, but the 64-year-old actor has been forced to drop out of the stage production "The Odd Couple" at the Northlight Theatre, located in the Chicago suburb of Skokie. ... Full Story | Top |
| Hurricane Sandy: outdoor filming in NYC halted until at least Friday Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 02:02 PM PDT LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The cameras still aren't rolling Wednesday on many television and film productions in New York City, and the devastation left by Hurricane Sandy may push delays further into the week. For the time being, those films and shows that do resume shooting will have do so on a set and not on the streets of the Big Apple. Mayor Michael Bloomberg's administration announced that it will not issue permits for outdoor filming in the city's five boroughs until Friday at the earliest, citing the ongoing cleanup and safety concerns. ... Full Story | Top |
| "Anger Management" makes syndication deal Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 02:01 PM PDT NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Here's a deal Charlie Sheen isn't mad at: the FX series "Anger Management" is getting syndicated to Fox Television Stations beginning in September 2014 - after airing for just one season. The Fox stations will have plenty of episodes to re-air. Under an unusual deal, the series was picked up for 90 episodes after meeting a ratings threshold set by FX in its first season, which premiered in June. Fox Television Stations acquired the off-network rights from Debmar-Mercury in a cash and barter deal. No terms were disclosed. The show will air on nine Fox stations. ... Full Story | Top |
| 'Suits,' 'White Collar,' 'Necessary Roughness' Get January Return Dates Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 01:59 PM PDT NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - USA has announced that its sunny dramas "Suits," "Necessary Roughness" and "White Collar" will return within days of each other in the dead of winter. The top-rated cable network will bring back "Suits" for the second half of its second season on Thursday, January 17 at 10/9c. Six episodes remain in the season. "White Collar" will be back for the second half of its fourth season on Tuesday, January 22 at 10/9 c. It will also air six episodes. "Necessary Roughness" will wrap its second season with five episodes beginning Wednesday, January 23 at 10/9c. Full Story | Top |
| ProSieben attracts three offers for TV channels: sources Wednesday, Oct 31, 2012 01:04 PM PDT FRANKFURT/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - ProSiebenSat.1 has attracted three offers worth more than 1.3 billion euros ($1.7 billion) for its Nordic TV channels, two people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, which may help to reduce the group's debt. The bidders are private equity firms Nordic Capital and Providence Equity Partners as well as cable network Discovery Communications, three people said. Binding offers are due to be submitted by the start of December, and with bids at this level, a sale will likely succeed, one of the people familiar with the process said. ... Full Story | Top |
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