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(10/12/06 3:11am)
President George W. Bush on Wednesday called ex-Rep. Mark Foley's approaches to House male pages "disgusting" and backed Speaker Dennis Hastert's efforts to learn how officials handled the problem. Peggy Sampson, the supervisor of the page program, was questioned for less than two hours before the House ethics committee. The panel is investigating Foley's inappropriate electronic messages to former pages and if House officials covered up Foley's come-ons.
(10/12/06 2:37am)
Joan "Josie" Orr, who spent eight years as Indiana's first lady while her husband, Robert Orr, was governor, has died. She was 85.\nOrr died Tuesday, Alpha Funeral Services in Indianapolis said.\nHer husband, a Republican, was governor from 1981 until 1989, following eight years as lieutenant governor.\nShe married him in 1944, after spending part of World War II as a pilot ferrying airplanes across the country on their way to Europe. They lived in Evansville when Robert Orr entered the family business, Orr Iron Co., and became active in politics.\nThe Orrs had three children and divorced in 2000. Gov. Orr died in 2004 at the age of 86.\nGov. Mitch Daniels said Josie Orr "lived a one-of-a-kind life."\nFuneral arrangements were not immediately announced. Daniels directed that flags at state offices be lowered to half-staff through the day of Orr's funeral.
(09/21/06 4:00am)
- From Associated Press reports\nLOS ANGELES -- There is an irony to a movie about a little boy whonever gives up being made by a couple who themselves worked together to overcome the odds.\nThe opening this week of the animated baseball film "Everyone's Hero" marks the final project -- and message -- from Christopher and Dana Reeve, who both died during the making of the movie.\nThe film's message mirrors the final years of their lives, say those who worked with the couple. Reeve, paralyzed in a horseback riding accident, and his wife worked tirelessly to find a cure for spinal-cord injuries, always believing the actor would walk again.\n"It has a great message, which is really the philosophy that Chris and Dana Reeve had: Never give up," said actor and director Rob Reiner, whose role on this film was to voice a talking baseball. "We are getting the chance to realize Chris Reeve's last vision and dream, which is to get this message out."\nThe movie tells the story of Yankee Irving, a boy who grows up during the Depression idolizing Babe Ruth despite always striking out himself.\nThe boy is ready to quit baseball when he finds himself in possession of the legendary player's bat, and must hit the open road by himself and against all odds return the bat in time for the Babe to use it in the last game of the 1932 World Series. Along the way, Yankee learns that "no matter where life takes you, always keep swinging."\n"The fact you know it's Chris Reeve's last project, it resonates with the film," Reiner said.\nReeve died in 2004 while directing the film. His wife, who served as the film's executive producer and lent her voice to one of the characters, died in March of lung cancer before the film was finished.\nThe story began as a bedtime story that Howard Jonas of IDT Entertainment wrote for his children years ago. When he decided to make a film about the story, he said there was only one person he wanted to direct the film.\n"To me, there is no bigger hero that Christopher Reeve," Jonas said.\nAfter Reeve died, his wife encouraged the production company and others to carry on in her husband's footsteps.\n"I think what made it a lot easier was that his wife was executive producer. She, too, had that spirit," said Colin Brady, who took over as co-director of the film after Reeve's death. "It was kind of like having Christopher's blessing."\nThe movie, from IDT Entertainment and released by 20th Century Fox, owned by News Corp., underwent restructuring after an early executive screening, said Dan St. Pierre, a first-time movie director who was brought in with Brady to work on the movie.\n"We had to stop and break everything down, and rebuild the movie," he said. "The most important thing was maintaining Christopher's original theme and his original vision."\nThe restructuring, he added, was overseen by Dana Reeve. Many of the actors voicing roles signed on either gratis or at lower-than-normal scales because of the Reeves, producers said. Reeve's son, Will, also had a bit vocal role in the movie.\nNeither director ever met Reeve and relied on those who knew him, especially his wife, to help them keep his spirit alive during the production process. But when Dana Reeve died, it threw the movie into more uncertainty.\n"She passed away before we completely recorded her lines. There was some discussion about whether we wold recast her voice," Brady said. \nBut the cast and crew felt Dana Reeve was too important _ both to the production and the character _ to recast her role. To complete her lines, Brady and St. Pierre sifted through her outtakes to piece together her unfinished lines.\nThroughout the film, there are small salutes to Christopher and Dana Reeve. The movie poster features a baseball flying through the air -- much like Superman, Reeve's most famous role. In the movie, the talking baseball, Screwie, says "up, up and away," the Superman catch phrase, a she makes his own heroic gesture to help Yankee.\n"That was on very succinct nod to Christopher's legacy," Brady said.
(09/21/06 3:58am)
- From Associated Press reports\nLOS ANGELES -- There is an irony to a movie about a little boy whonever gives up being made by a couple who themselves worked together to overcome the odds.\nThe opening this week of the animated baseball film "Everyone's Hero" marks the final project -- and message -- from Christopher and Dana Reeve, who both died during the making of the movie.\nThe film's message mirrors the final years of their lives, say those who worked with the couple. Reeve, paralyzed in a horseback riding accident, and his wife worked tirelessly to find a cure for spinal-cord injuries, always believing the actor would walk again.\n"It has a great message, which is really the philosophy that Chris and Dana Reeve had: Never give up," said actor and director Rob Reiner, whose role on this film was to voice a talking baseball. "We are getting the chance to realize Chris Reeve's last vision and dream, which is to get this message out."\nThe movie tells the story of Yankee Irving, a boy who grows up during the Depression idolizing Babe Ruth despite always striking out himself.\nThe boy is ready to quit baseball when he finds himself in possession of the legendary player's bat, and must hit the open road by himself and against all odds return the bat in time for the Babe to use it in the last game of the 1932 World Series. Along the way, Yankee learns that "no matter where life takes you, always keep swinging."\n"The fact you know it's Chris Reeve's last project, it resonates with the film," Reiner said.\nReeve died in 2004 while directing the film. His wife, who served as the film's executive producer and lent her voice to one of the characters, died in March of lung cancer before the film was finished.\nThe story began as a bedtime story that Howard Jonas of IDT Entertainment wrote for his children years ago. When he decided to make a film about the story, he said there was only one person he wanted to direct the film.\n"To me, there is no bigger hero that Christopher Reeve," Jonas said.\nAfter Reeve died, his wife encouraged the production company and others to carry on in her husband's footsteps.\n"I think what made it a lot easier was that his wife was executive producer. She, too, had that spirit," said Colin Brady, who took over as co-director of the film after Reeve's death. "It was kind of like having Christopher's blessing."\nThe movie, from IDT Entertainment and released by 20th Century Fox, owned by News Corp., underwent restructuring after an early executive screening, said Dan St. Pierre, a first-time movie director who was brought in with Brady to work on the movie.\n"We had to stop and break everything down, and rebuild the movie," he said. "The most important thing was maintaining Christopher's original theme and his original vision."\nThe restructuring, he added, was overseen by Dana Reeve. Many of the actors voicing roles signed on either gratis or at lower-than-normal scales because of the Reeves, producers said. Reeve's son, Will, also had a bit vocal role in the movie.\nNeither director ever met Reeve and relied on those who knew him, especially his wife, to help them keep his spirit alive during the production process. But when Dana Reeve died, it threw the movie into more uncertainty.\n"She passed away before we completely recorded her lines. There was some discussion about whether we wold recast her voice," Brady said. \nBut the cast and crew felt Dana Reeve was too important _ both to the production and the character _ to recast her role. To complete her lines, Brady and St. Pierre sifted through her outtakes to piece together her unfinished lines.\nThroughout the film, there are small salutes to Christopher and Dana Reeve. The movie poster features a baseball flying through the air -- much like Superman, Reeve's most famous role. In the movie, the talking baseball, Screwie, says "up, up and away," the Superman catch phrase, a she makes his own heroic gesture to help Yankee.\n"That was on very succinct nod to Christopher's legacy," Brady said.
(09/07/06 4:00am)
(09/07/06 3:03am)
(08/31/06 4:00am)
LOS ANGELES -- Hollywood may wish it had kept a great ape, a lion, a witch or a wizard in the bullpen for this fall, whose movie lineup has just two really familiar names: James Bond and Santa Claus.\nThe movie industry's prestige period, when studios trot out their big Academy Award contenders, also has become a steady blockbuster season with such recent hits as "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, most of the "Harry Potter" flicks and last year's "King Kong" and "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe."\nLacking any of those entries, the fall schedule is led by "Casino Royale," Daniel Craig's first outing as British superspy Bond.\nInheriting the license to kill from Pierce Brosnan, Craig is the sixth actor to play 007. Adapted from Ian Fleming's first Bond novel, "Casino Royale" takes James back to his beginnings as a young operative taking on a terrorist ring being financed at an exotic gambling hall.\nNot yet the casual womanizer of later years, Bond is assigned a gorgeous woman as ally -- Vesper Lynd (Eva Green), a bean-counter dispatched by British intelligence to keep tabs on the money he's gambling with.\nUncharacteristically, Bond falls in love -- and gets his heart stomped on.\n"We're kind of meeting him for the first time, and a number of things need to be explained. His attitude toward women, how he becomes what he becomes," Craig said. "He meets Vesper, this very beautiful, very complex, very mysterious girl who steals his heart then double-crosses him. It may explain the distrust of Bond for women later."\nHollywood revives a handful of other film franchises this fall, including Tim Allen's "The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause," in which Jack Frost (Martin Short) makes a play to steal Christmas from St. Nick.\nWithout the big fantasy spectacles that have been Hollywood's fall mainstays in recent years, real-world stories will have to take up the slack. Luckily for film fans, there's an interesting crop of possibilities:\n-- "All the King's Men," a fresh take on Robert Penn Warren's novel of a Southern political boss inspired by Huey Long, stars Sean Penn as the idealistic leader whose rise to power is poisoned by corruption. "Schindler's List" screenwriter Steven Zaillian directs a cast that includes Anthony Hopkins, Jude Law, Kate Winslet and James Gandolfini.\n-- Clint Eastwood, who directed Penn to a best-actor Oscar in "Mystic River," follows his best-picture champ "Million Dollar Baby" with the World War II saga "Flags of Our Fathers." Starring Ryan Phillippe, Paul Walker, Barry Pepper and Jamie Bell, the film tells the story behind one of the most enduring war photographs: The soldiers who raised the American flag at Iwo Jima.\n-- Martin Scorsese reunites with Leonardo DiCaprio and brings along Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon and Martin Sheen for "The Departed," the director's return to the cops-and-mobsters tales that have been his strong suit. DiCaprio plays a cop who's undercover in Nicholson's crime gang, while Damon plays a mob member who's infiltrated the police department.\n-- After lip-synching to Ray Charles' voice for his Oscar-winning turn in "Ray," Jamie Foxx gets to do some singing of his own in "Dreamgirls," an adaptation of the stage musical that co-stars Beyonce Knowles, Eddie Murphy and "American Idol" finalist Jennifer Hudson. The film follows the triumphs and trials of a trio of female soul singers in the 1960s.\nDirector Bill Condon ("Gods and Monsters") skillfully blends story and character with show-stopping musical numbers and takes singer Knowles and comic Murphy to places audiences have never seen them, Foxx said.
(08/31/06 2:54am)
EVANSVILLE — Supporters of immigrant rights waved small American flags while others called for strict border control during a federal hearing on immigration.\nMore than two dozen hearings by the House Judiciary Committee have been held around the country during the last two months, including the one in Evansville attended by 200 people Tuesday night.\nHouse GOP leaders called the hearings to highlight differences between the enforcement-only bill that the House passed in December and a Senate bill approved in May, which would establish a guest worker program and a path to citizenship for many who are in the country illegally.\nBut Democrats and immigrant groups have questioned the need for the hearings because such meetings are typically held before legislation is passed — not after. Critics call the hearings an election-year tactic to delay negotiations on the competing immigration bills passed by the House and Senate.\nRep. John Conyers, D-Mich., the lone Democrat among the four congressmen who heard testimony Tuesday in Evansville, urged a compromise with the Senate.\n"We must roll up our sleeves and get to work on solving the problems created by the Bush administration instead of spreading fear of immigrants and driving further wedges between our citizens," he said.\nBut Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., and Reps. John Hostettler, R-Ind., and Steve King, R-Iowa, said tough employer sanctions and penalties would drive illegal residents out of the country by eliminating their jobs.\nOutside The Centre in the southwestern Indiana city, supporters of immigrant rights carried small American flags and displayed signs supporting the Senate bill.\nFreddie Peralta, a Dominican Republic native who said he is a legal immigrant living in Lexington, Ky., distributed flags and talked with people waiting in line to enter.\n"The current immigration system is broken," Peralta said. "It doesn't work, so people are forced to come to this country without documentation."\nBut Evansville resident Gene Thweatt disagreed.\n"We must control our borders or we're no longer a sovereign nation," said Thweatt, 73. "We did (amnesty) in 1986, and this is the result."\nThe recent immigration hearings have generally involved officials, academics and activists discussing the issue, and Evansville's was no different.\nSteven Camarota, director of research for the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Immigration Studies, said a recent study shows immigration reduces wages by 4 percent for all workers and 7 percent for those lacking a high school education.\n"Why do illegals reduce wages? The main reason is not so much that they work for less," Camarota said. "Instead, it's basic economics: Increase the supply of something — in this case less-educated workers — and you lower its price."\nRicardo Parra of the Midwest Council of La Raza cited studies that he said dispute such claims.\n"Immigrant labor is needed to fill jobs in the U.S. that an older, more educated American work force is not willing to fill, especially at the low wages and poor working conditions many unscrupulous employers offer," Parra said.
(08/31/06 2:16am)
LOS ANGELES -- Hollywood may wish it had kept a great ape, a lion, a witch or a wizard in the bullpen for this fall, whose movie lineup has just two really familiar names: James Bond and Santa Claus.\nThe movie industry's prestige period, when studios trot out their big Academy Award contenders, also has become a steady blockbuster season with such recent hits as "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, most of the "Harry Potter" flicks and last year's "King Kong" and "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe."\nLacking any of those entries, the fall schedule is led by "Casino Royale," Daniel Craig's first outing as British superspy Bond.\nInheriting the license to kill from Pierce Brosnan, Craig is the sixth actor to play 007. Adapted from Ian Fleming's first Bond novel, "Casino Royale" takes James back to his beginnings as a young operative taking on a terrorist ring being financed at an exotic gambling hall.\nNot yet the casual womanizer of later years, Bond is assigned a gorgeous woman as ally -- Vesper Lynd (Eva Green), a bean-counter dispatched by British intelligence to keep tabs on the money he's gambling with.\nUncharacteristically, Bond falls in love -- and gets his heart stomped on.\n"We're kind of meeting him for the first time, and a number of things need to be explained. His attitude toward women, how he becomes what he becomes," Craig said. "He meets Vesper, this very beautiful, very complex, very mysterious girl who steals his heart then double-crosses him. It may explain the distrust of Bond for women later."\nHollywood revives a handful of other film franchises this fall, including Tim Allen's "The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause," in which Jack Frost (Martin Short) makes a play to steal Christmas from St. Nick.\nWithout the big fantasy spectacles that have been Hollywood's fall mainstays in recent years, real-world stories will have to take up the slack. Luckily for film fans, there's an interesting crop of possibilities:\n-- "All the King's Men," a fresh take on Robert Penn Warren's novel of a Southern political boss inspired by Huey Long, stars Sean Penn as the idealistic leader whose rise to power is poisoned by corruption. "Schindler's List" screenwriter Steven Zaillian directs a cast that includes Anthony Hopkins, Jude Law, Kate Winslet and James Gandolfini.\n-- Clint Eastwood, who directed Penn to a best-actor Oscar in "Mystic River," follows his best-picture champ "Million Dollar Baby" with the World War II saga "Flags of Our Fathers." Starring Ryan Phillippe, Paul Walker, Barry Pepper and Jamie Bell, the film tells the story behind one of the most enduring war photographs: The soldiers who raised the American flag at Iwo Jima.\n-- Martin Scorsese reunites with Leonardo DiCaprio and brings along Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon and Martin Sheen for "The Departed," the director's return to the cops-and-mobsters tales that have been his strong suit. DiCaprio plays a cop who's undercover in Nicholson's crime gang, while Damon plays a mob member who's infiltrated the police department.\n-- After lip-synching to Ray Charles' voice for his Oscar-winning turn in "Ray," Jamie Foxx gets to do some singing of his own in "Dreamgirls," an adaptation of the stage musical that co-stars Beyonce Knowles, Eddie Murphy and "American Idol" finalist Jennifer Hudson. The film follows the triumphs and trials of a trio of female soul singers in the 1960s.\nDirector Bill Condon ("Gods and Monsters") skillfully blends story and character with show-stopping musical numbers and takes singer Knowles and comic Murphy to places audiences have never seen them, Foxx said.
(08/30/06 4:16am)
Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy remains confident with his team's running game, even though it has only gained an average of 64 yards in three preseason games.\nMaking that stat look worse is that neither of the two running backs most likely to replace the departed Edgerrin James is even leading the team in rushing.\nDungy, however, is steadfast that the team will be able to run the ball effectively in the Sept. 10 season opener against the New York Giants.\n"I think the running game is really going to be in pretty good shape. I like where our runners are for the most part," Dungy said. "All in all, I think our running game is about where it's been in the past."\nThe rushing attack has looked weak in preseason games. The Colts managed just 60 yards in 38 attempts against New Orleans on \nSaturday.\nWhile the Colts are looking to use Dominic Rhodes and first-round draft choice Joseph Addai to succeed James, they rank second and third, respectively, on the team with 46 and 32 yards rushing. They trail backup Kory Chapman, who has 51 yards in 17 carries.\nDungy maintains the Colts' rushing statistics during the preseason have been skewed by the way opposing teams set up their defenses.\nSt. Louis and New Orleans both played defenses that led the Colts to pass more, but Dungy noted the team ran effectively against Seattle in the second preseason game.\n"People play us a little differently in the preseason than they do in the regular season," he said. "And we know that we're going to get some good looks to run against in the regular season. And when we do, I think we'll run effectively"
(08/29/06 9:21pm)
Two Indiana University trustees who investigated Bob Knight were acting as attorneys and do not have to reveal details that led to the firing of the former basketball coach, a judge ruled Tuesday.\nThe decision was a defeat for The Indianapolis Star's 5-year-old lawsuit, which contended that IU violated the state's open records law in its refusal to release the unfiltered information related to Knight's dismissal in May 2000.\nSpecial Judge Jane Craney of Morgan County ruled that the records were exempt from the state's Access to Public Records Act because they were "work product" protected by attorney-client privilege.\nThe ruling echoed the argument made in August 2005 in testimony by former IU President Myles Brand, now president of the NCAA.\nIf Carney had decided that Fred Eichhorn and John Walda were acting as trustees during the investigation, the information they gathered could have been made public.\nWalda and Eichhorn interviewed current and former players, managers, coaches and athletic staff and enlisted a private investigator and videotape expert to help. The trustees were not paid but were reimbursed for expenses.\nThe investigation looked into allegations against Knight by former player Neil Reed. Reed claimed in a television interview that Knight choked him in practice, ordered Brand out of Assembly Hall and waved soiled toilet paper at players.\nCraney first ruled in favor of IU, but the Indiana Court of Appeals said the Reed documents should be disclosed if Walda and Eichhorn acted as trustees when they investigated.\nKnight, now the coach at Texas Tech, was fired by Indiana in 2000 after he angrily grabbed the arm of a student who greeted him by his last name.
(08/28/06 2:53am)
Los Angeles - Mel Gibson's apology for making drunken anti-Semitic remarks isn't enough to redeem him, actor-producer Rob Reiner said.\nThe actor also must acknowledge that "his work reflects anti-Semitism," particularly the 2004 hit movie "The Passion of the Christ," Reiner told Associated Press Radio.\n"When he comes to the understanding that he has done that and can come out and say, you know, `My views have been reflected in my work, and I feel bad that I've done that,' then that will be the beginning of some reconciliation for him," Reiner said.\nSome critics attacked Gibson's movie as portraying Jews as evil. Supporters said the movie was merely being faithful to Gospel accounts of Jesus' arrest and crucifixion.\nA call to Gibson's publicist seeking comment was not immediately returned Friday.\nGibson publicly apologized for an anti-Semitic tirade he unleashed when he was arrested for drunken driving in Malibu on July 28. He has called the remarks "despicable."\nEarlier this month, Gibson pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge in a deal that calls for alcohol rehabilitation, fines and probation.\nReiner, however, said Gibson also must do some "major soul-searching."\n"It's not a matter of just apologizing for some words you've said," said Reiner, who is Jewish. "It's to really understand why it is you're anti-Semitic and where those feelings came from."\n"I believe that people can be redeemed and people can change, but that's going to be a very long process," he added.
(08/23/06 3:16am)
NASHVILLE, Ind. — Jurors convicted a Brown County man of charges that he strangled his wife in their hot tub and then claimed she died accidentally.\nThe jury deliberated about three hours Monday before returning the guilty verdict against Michael B. Smith, 61, after hearing 10 days of testimony.\nProsecutors maintained that Smith killed his 55-year-old wife, Linda, as their business was failing and he wanted to collect more than $300,000 from her life insurance policies.\nBrown County Prosecutor Jim Oliver said during closing arguments Monday that while defense attorneys had raised several opposing theories about Linda Smith's death, no one else had a motive to kill her.\n"Michael Smith had 312,000 motives to kill Linda Smith," Oliver said.\nThe couple co-owned Custom Mats of America, which made floor mats and wall hangings with corporate logos.\nSmith, who did not testify during the murder trial, called 911 for help in the early hours of Nov. 9, 2003, saying there had been an accident at his home in northern Brown County, about 40 miles south of Indianapolis. He was not charged until February of this year.\nDefense attorney Andrew Roesener asked jurors to consider nearly a dozen alternative theories as to how Linda Smith died, ranging from a slip-and-fall accident to a drug addict searching for something to steal who happened upon her in the hot tub in an outbuilding on the couple's property.\n"There is an appalling lack of evidence in this case," Roesener said.\nA pathologist for the prosecution testified Linda Smith was strangled, while a pathologist called by defense attorneys said he believed that she had drowned in an accident.\nThe judge scheduled sentencing for Sept. 21, with Smith facing a prison term of 45 to 65 years.
(07/06/06 12:04am)
INDIANAPOLIS -- A 34-year-old Indianapolis Star photographer died Monday evening after he collapsed at the newspaper's downtown office.\nMpozi Mshale Tolbert, an award-winning photographer, joined The Star in November 1998, the newspaper reported Tuesday.\nThe Philadelphia native, who stood 6 feet 6 inches tall with waist-long dreadlocks, was known for bringing humanity to his images.\n"Everything he shot had heart," said fellow Star photographer Bob Scheer. "It really had a soul to it."\nNewspaper staff said the cause of Tolbert's death was still being investigated.\nAn avid downhill bicyclist, Tolbert was also a fixture at a Broad Ripple club where he worked as a DJ.\nHe began his career in high school, later publishing photos in The City Paper, the Philadelphia Gay News and The Tribune.\nHe won two Keystone Awards from the Pennsylvania Press Association for a photo essay on the AIDS quilt and for an image about housing discrimination.\nTolbert also shot photos for the premier album of the acclaimed Philadelphia-based hip-hop group The Roots. He can be heard as a background voice on the band's "Do You Want More?!!!??!" album.\nTolbert is survived by his mother, father, stepmother and four siblings.
(09/15/05 4:00am)
LOS ANGELES -- ABC viewers will get "Lost" in translation as part of a plan to make all the network's primetime entertainment available in Spanish starting this season.\nThe move is an acknowledgment of the expanding U.S. Hispanic population and its potential as a source of viewers. Previously, "George Lopez" was the only ABC series that aired in both English- and Spanish-language versions.\n"We wanted to move beyond toe-dipping and really dive in," ABC entertainment chief Stephen McPherson said in a statement. "Almost half of the 41 million Hispanics in this country watch only or mostly Spanish-language television, and we want to bring that audience to ABC."\nABC, using both dubbing and closed captioning, will be the first of the major English-language broadcasters to provide its full primetime entertainment lineup in Spanish. Most other networks offer few shows in the language.\nThe cost is "not inexpensive," McPherson said in an interview Thursday, declining to provide a specific figure. But he said the return could be significant in terms of viewership.\n"If you look at the performance of Spanish-language stations in a lot of the big (TV) markets, they're doing very well. In some markets they're beating the broadcast networks," he said.\nHispanics are the fastest-growing minority in the United States and represent one-seventh of the population, according to a recent Census Bureau report.\n"Desperate Housewives," "Lost," "George Lopez" and the new comedy "Freddie," starring Freddie Prinze Jr., will be dubbed into Spanish, as will the network's theatrical movie premieres and some specials. Casting has already begun for actors to voice the Spanish dialogue.\nThe rest of ABC's primetime entertainment schedule, which debuts next week as the 2005-06 season officially begins, will be available with closed-captioned subtitles in Spanish, the network said.
(09/15/05 4:00am)
LOS ANGELES -- "The Exorcism of Emily Rose" bedeviled its competition in its box-office debut this weekend, hauling in $30.2 million with its mix of courtroom drama and classic horror.\nThe film, inspired by true events, follows a Catholic priest on trial for negligent homicide following the death of a satanically possessed 19-year-old.\nIts PG-13 rating and cast, including Oscar nominees Tom Wilkinson, Laura Linney and Shohreh Aghdashloo, helped give it wide appeal, bumping last week's newcomer, "Transporter 2," from the No. 1 spot, according to studio estimates.\nOverall revenue for this weekend's top 12 films was up 16 percent from the same period last year, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.\n"Transporter 2" fell to third place with three-day estimated ticket sales of $7.2 million. The action sequel dropped below "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," which held on to the No. 2 spot in its fourth week with $7.9 million, boosting its total domestic gross to $82.3 million.\nThe critically panned "The Man," a buddy comedy that throws together federal agent Samuel L. Jackson and dental supply salesman Eugene Levy to solve a murder, opened in sixth place with $4.0 million.\n"An Unfinished Life," which stars Robert Redford, Morgan Freeman and Jennifer Lopez in the story of a rancher reluctantly reunited with his estranged daughter-in-law, opened well in limited release, with $1.0 million and a per theater average of $7,264.\nMeanwhile, "The Constant Gardener," starring Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz and based on a John le Carre novel, moved to fourth place in its second week. The film took in $4.8 million, bringing its total to $19.1 million, while playing on fewer than half the number of screens given to "The Exorcism of Emily Rose"
(09/15/05 1:59am)
LOS ANGELES -- "The Exorcism of Emily Rose" bedeviled its competition in its box-office debut this weekend, hauling in $30.2 million with its mix of courtroom drama and classic horror.\nThe film, inspired by true events, follows a Catholic priest on trial for negligent homicide following the death of a satanically possessed 19-year-old.\nIts PG-13 rating and cast, including Oscar nominees Tom Wilkinson, Laura Linney and Shohreh Aghdashloo, helped give it wide appeal, bumping last week's newcomer, "Transporter 2," from the No. 1 spot, according to studio estimates.\nOverall revenue for this weekend's top 12 films was up 16 percent from the same period last year, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.\n"Transporter 2" fell to third place with three-day estimated ticket sales of $7.2 million. The action sequel dropped below "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," which held on to the No. 2 spot in its fourth week with $7.9 million, boosting its total domestic gross to $82.3 million.\nThe critically panned "The Man," a buddy comedy that throws together federal agent Samuel L. Jackson and dental supply salesman Eugene Levy to solve a murder, opened in sixth place with $4.0 million.\n"An Unfinished Life," which stars Robert Redford, Morgan Freeman and Jennifer Lopez in the story of a rancher reluctantly reunited with his estranged daughter-in-law, opened well in limited release, with $1.0 million and a per theater average of $7,264.\nMeanwhile, "The Constant Gardener," starring Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz and based on a John le Carre novel, moved to fourth place in its second week. The film took in $4.8 million, bringing its total to $19.1 million, while playing on fewer than half the number of screens given to "The Exorcism of Emily Rose"
(09/15/05 1:55am)
LOS ANGELES -- ABC viewers will get "Lost" in translation as part of a plan to make all the network's primetime entertainment available in Spanish starting this season.\nThe move is an acknowledgment of the expanding U.S. Hispanic population and its potential as a source of viewers. Previously, "George Lopez" was the only ABC series that aired in both English- and Spanish-language versions.\n"We wanted to move beyond toe-dipping and really dive in," ABC entertainment chief Stephen McPherson said in a statement. "Almost half of the 41 million Hispanics in this country watch only or mostly Spanish-language television, and we want to bring that audience to ABC."\nABC, using both dubbing and closed captioning, will be the first of the major English-language broadcasters to provide its full primetime entertainment lineup in Spanish. Most other networks offer few shows in the language.\nThe cost is "not inexpensive," McPherson said in an interview Thursday, declining to provide a specific figure. But he said the return could be significant in terms of viewership.\n"If you look at the performance of Spanish-language stations in a lot of the big (TV) markets, they're doing very well. In some markets they're beating the broadcast networks," he said.\nHispanics are the fastest-growing minority in the United States and represent one-seventh of the population, according to a recent Census Bureau report.\n"Desperate Housewives," "Lost," "George Lopez" and the new comedy "Freddie," starring Freddie Prinze Jr., will be dubbed into Spanish, as will the network's theatrical movie premieres and some specials. Casting has already begun for actors to voice the Spanish dialogue.\nThe rest of ABC's primetime entertainment schedule, which debuts next week as the 2005-06 season officially begins, will be available with closed-captioned subtitles in Spanish, the network said.
(08/30/05 4:51am)
WASHINGTON - Coffee not only helps clear the mind and boost energy, it also provides more healthful antioxidants than any other food or beverage in the American diet, according to a study released Sunday.\nOf course, too much coffee can make people jittery and even raise cholesterol levels, so food experts stress moderation.\nThe findings by Joe A. Vinson, a chemistry professor at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania, give a healthy boost to the warming beverage.\nAntioxidants, which are thought to help battle cancer and provide other health benefits, are abundant in grains, tomatoes and many other fruits and vegetables.\nHis team analyzed the antioxidant content of more than 100 different food items, including vegetables, fruits, nuts, spices, oils and common beverages. \nThey concluded the average adult consumes 1,299 milligrams of antioxidants daily from coffee. The closest competitor was tea at 294 milligrams. Rounding out the top five sources were bananas, 76 milligrams; dry beans, 72 milligrams; and corn, 48 milligrams. According to the U.S. Agriculture Department, the typical adult American drinks 1.64 cups of coffee daily.\nThat does not mean coffee is a substitute for fruit and vegetables.\n"Unfortunately, consumers are still not eating enough fruits and vegetables, which are better for you from an overall nutritional point of view due to their higher content of vitamins, minerals and fiber," Vinson said.
(08/30/05 4:31am)
NEW YORK -- Wall Street rallied Monday after Hurricane Katrina weakened, easing concerns about refinery outages along the Gulf of Mexico and pulling oil prices back from record highs.\nStocks opened lower but quickly rebounded as crude oil futures cooled after surging past $70 a barrel in early trading on news that the storm shut down about 8 percent of U.S. refining capacity. A barrel of light crude settled at $67.20, up $1.20 on the New York Mercantile \nExchange.\nInvestors found some relief in reports that President Bush was mulling whether to offset the supply disruption with oil from the nation's petroleum reserve, but energy and insurance stocks still came under pressure as the market tried to gauge the hurricane's financial impact.