"King Kong" Set To Sweep Sony Empire Awards

From: www.news.com.au

KING Kong is set to sweep the board at this year's Empire awards - after receiving five nominations.

After being snubbed by the Oscars, the Golden Globes and the Bafta's, the remake of the 1933 monster movie has been nominated for a host of top honours, including Best Film, Best Director and Best Actor.
Pride and Prejudice, Crash, and Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit also faired well with four nominations each.

The Best Actor category will be a fight between Matt Dillon for his performance in Crash, Batman Begins' star Christian Bale, Johnny Depp for his portrayal of Willy Wonka in Charlie And The Chocolate Factory and Viggo Mortensen in the critically acclaimed A History Of Violence.

Similarly, the Best Actress category will be an equally tough choice between Dillon's Bafta-winning Crash co-star Thandie Newton, Pride and Prejudice's Keira Knightley, Renee Zellweger for her role in Cinderella Man, Hilary Swank for turn in Million Dollar Baby and King Kong star Naomi Watts.

The Sony Ericsson Empire Awards - which will be presented by British comedian Bill Bailey - will take place at the Hilton London Metropole on March 13.


Full list of Sony Ericsson Empire Awards nominees:



Best Newcomer

Leo Gregory (Stoned)
Kelly Reilly (Mrs. Henderson Presents/Pride & Prejudice)
Georgie Henley (Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe)
James McAvoy (Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe)
Nathan Fillion (Serenity)


Sony Ericsson Scene of the Year

Wallace & Gromit: The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit - The Dogfight
War Of The Worlds - Arrival of the First Tripod
The Descent - First Attack of the Crawlers
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith - Birth of Vader
Crash - The Car Rescue



Best Comedy

The Wedding Crashers
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy
The League Of Gentlemen's Apocalypse
Team America: World Police
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit



Best Thriller

The Constant Gardener
Sin City
Batman Begins
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang
A History Of Violence



Best Horror

The Skeleton Key
The Descent
Land Of The Dead
Wolf Creek


Best Sci-fi/Fantasy

King Kong
Serenity
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe
Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire


Best Director

Steven Spielberg - War Of The Worlds
Peter Jackson - King Kong
Christopher Nolan - Batman Begins
Ron Howard - Cinderella Man
Nick Park and Steve Box - Wallace & Gromit: The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit
Joe Wright - Pride & Prejudice


Best Actor

Christian Bale - Batman Begins
Johnny Depp - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Andy Serkis - King Kong
Matt Dillon - Crash
Viggo Mortensen - A History of Violence


Best Actress

Naomi Watts - King Kong
Keira Knightley - Pride & Prejudice
Thandie Newton - Crash
Renee Zellweger - Cinderella Man
Hilary Swank - Million Dollar Baby


Best British Movie

Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
The Descent
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Pride & Prejudice
Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire
Stoned


Best Film

King Kong
War of the Worlds
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
Crash
Sin City

Hilary Swank - What Will She Wear This Time?

As the 78th Annual Academy Awards approach, the question I have is what will Hilary Swank wear? All I can say is last year, she was totally hot in this blue body fitting dress. I'll bet she got so many date offers it screwed up her marriage to Chad Lowe. Note to Chad: you're still friends; be the dog! Go after that bone!

Breaking News From CNN: Pat Tillman's Death Focus of Criminal Probe

A criminal probe is being opened into the death of former NFL star Pat Tillman, who was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan.

Jack Nicholson Joins Presenters for 78th Annual Academy Awards

My question: will he wear sunglasses?

Presenters Announced
for 78th Academy Awards®

Beverly Hills, CA — Academy Award® - winning actor Jack Nicholson will join Oscar® nominee Jake Gyllenhaal, Eric Bana, Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Stiller, John Travolta and Ziyi Zhang as presenters at the 78th Academy Awards ceremony, telecast producer Gil Cates announced today.

These presenters will join Hilary Swank, Jamie Foxx, Morgan Freeman, Jessica Alba, Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, Jennifer Aniston, Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Keanu Reeves, Will Ferrell, Queen Latifah, Terrence Howard, Meryl Streep, Will Smith, Steve Carell, Nicole Kidman, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Uma Thurman, Charlize Theron, Naomi Watts, Lily Tomlin, Reese Witherspoon, George Clooney, Jennifer Lopez and Salma Hayek on the telecast.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2005 will be presented on Sunday, March 5, 2006, at the Kodak Theatre at the Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network beginning at 5 p.m. PST. A one-hour red carpet arrivals show will precede the telecast at 4 p.m.

# # #

A.M.P.A.S.
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
8949 Wilshire Boulevard Beverly Hills, CA 90211-1972
(310) 247-3000
www.oscars.org
publicity@oscars.org

78th Annual Academy Awards Are Tommorrow

Yep, it's that time again. I'll be attending the Academy of Friends Gala in San Francisco. I'll also take my camcorder, so stay tuned.

I've already figured out my picts, and while I will not show them, I think it's going to be close between George Clooney and Paul Giamatti for Best Supporting Actor.

Read more at the Entertainment Blog.

Madea's Family Reunion Rules Week's Box Office

Wow! This is a sure sign of the changing tastes of the American public. Madea's Family Reunion, a movie about, well here's the plot line: "While planning her family reunion, a pistol-packing grandma (Perry) must contend with the other dramas on her plate, including the runaway who has been placed under her care, and her love-troubled nieces." --but really features a black man -- Tyler Perry -- in drag, is a hit as he explores black issues and family matters in a humorous way. But in a (thankfully) increasingly interracially mixed America, Perry plays to a wide audience.

Weekly:
Feb. 24 - Mar. 2, 2006
in millions

1 Madea's Family Reunion
$35.1

2 Eight Below
$19.2

3 The Pink Panther
$13.0

4 Date Movie
$10.9

5 Curious George
$8.6

6 Firewall
$8.3

7 Final Destination 3
$7.0

8 RUNNING SCARED
$4.6

9 Doogal
$4.2

10 Freedomland
$3.8

Expanded 'Idol' rolls again
Morning Ratings Flash - Rick Kissell

By RICK KISSELL - Variety.com

With the hot "American Idol" again accounting for more than 75% of its sked, Fox cruised to victory on Wednesday in key young-adult demos, while the night's top scripted dramas delivered low-range scores.

According to preliminary nationals from Nielsen, "American Idol" averaged roughly a 12.1 rating/31 share in adults 18-49 and 29.4 million viewers overall from 8 to 9:31, dominating in each half-hour. That big score provided nice sampling for a special preview episode of slacker comedy "Free Ride" (roughly 6.1/14 in 18-49, 13.5 million viewers overall), which will regularly air on Sundays.

"Idol" seemed to have an effect on both ABC hit "Lost" (roughly 6.9/16 in 18-49, 16.5 million viewers overall from 9 to 10:03), which hit a firstrun season low, and CBS drama "Criminal Minds" (3.6/9 in 18-49, 12.4 million viewers overall), which posted its second lowest tally.

The Eye was also on the low end but still won as usual at 10 with "CSI: NY" (4.4/12 in 18-49, 13.7 million viewers overall), topping NBC's "Law & Order" (4.0/11 in 18-49, 12.4 million viewers overall) and ABC's "Barbara Walters Oscar Special" (roughly 3.8/10 in 18-49, 9.8 million viewers overall); latter had run on the night of the Academy Awards prior to this year.

From 8 to 9, NBC's "Deal or No Deal" (3.3/9 in 18-49, 10.6 million viewers overall) placed second to "Idol" with the net's best series showing opposite "Idol" in the hour since May 2004.

Preliminary 18-49 averages on the night: Fox, 10.6/27; ABC, 4.3/11; CBS, 3.3/9; NBC, 3.2/8; WB, 1.2/3; UPN, 0.7/3.

In total viewers: Fox, 25.5 million; CBS, 11.1 million; ABC, 10.8 million; NBC, 10.4 million; WB, 3.0 million; UPN, 1.7 million.

Night Before ups its score - Oscar eve party wraps up $6 million

By NICOLE LAPORTE - Variety.com, March 3, 2006

The annual Night Before party, held on Oscar eve at the Beverly Hills Hotel, continues its ascent as the hottest pre-Academy Awards ticket. This year's event has raised more than $6 million, up from $4 million last year.
Proceeds from the party benefit the Motion Picture & Television Fund. The Night Before accounts for more than a third of the $15 million the MPTF has raised over the last year.

"The numbers are staggering, given the fact that (the Night Before) didn't exist four years ago," said MPTF chief exec Ken Scherer.

Because of fire marshal-enforced safety requirements, guest list is limited to about 800. Among those who will be attending are Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, George Clooney, Jamie Foxx, Hilary Swank and Night Before host Jeffrey Katzenberg.

Producers, directors, studio executives and lawyers also will be part of the crowd. The only non-invitees are press agents and members of the press -- an attempt to keep things more personal and low-key.

"What we set out to do four years ago was provide an environment where people could talk and have conversations," Scherer said. "We wanted to make it a real community effort."

The Night Before was started by Katzenberg and Variety in 2002 as a charitable solution to what was always a fairly dull evening in Hollywood -- the night before the Oscars, when industryites are typically recovering from Friday night events, such as Ed Limato's pre-Oscar party, and preparing for post-Oscar fetes, such as the Vanity Fair party and the Governors Ball, held on Sunday.

Another tradition is the Night Before the Night Before, on Friday, when there'll be a dinner at Spago for sponsors. Border Grill chef-owners Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger will be on hand to teach guests how to make tamales; Mariah Carey will perform after dinner.

The number of Night Before corporate sponsors has grown by two and includes Variety, McDonald's, L'Oreal, Lexus, Hewlett-Packard, Target and AOL.

Scherer said the surge in raised funds resulted from the increase in sponsors, which each contribute $350,000, and from a greater number of contributors who made a five-year commitment of $10,000 a year to the MPTF (in exchange for getting their names placed on retirement cottages on the fund's Woodland Hills campus).

Tickets to the Night Before start at $25,000 for a group of four.

Katzenberg also has rallied to raise money.

"He's the man," Scherer said of the DreamWorks Animation head. "Jeffrey and (wife) Marilyn both step up and give the same amount that sponsors give. More importantly, his passion for this charity is so strong -- he just spends hours calling people and making sure people support the organization, which is so critical to our success."

Besides charity, of course, there's swag, and the Night Before ranked high on the free goodies list last year, with guests taking away expensive sneakers and computers. This year Lexus is giving away a car, Hewlett-Packard has donated 58-inch plasma TVs and color printers and AOL is giving away a Fender guitar.

The nonprofit MPTF, headquartered in Woodland Hills, was founded in 1921 to offer charitable relief for those in the film industry who had fallen on hard times. Today, the fund provides the industry with a full-scale residential retirement community and child-care center, as well as health care, human services and financial assistance.

Fomer FEMA Director Michael Brown on CNN - Now

The person who turned out to be a scapegoat for the failure of the President of The United States to respond to the Katrina Disaster, Michael Brown, is on CNN now telling his side of the story to Wolf Blizer and a CNN correspondent I who's name I don't know.

I got in this at the tail end, but it seemed that he's had a hard time but did respond to all of his questions. He also explained that he started a new consulting firm on Homeland Security and has clients. Why? He's seen it all from the best of times to the worst of times and knows what to do.

I just wonder how all of this is going to impact President Bush.

Collins and Other NFL Players Safe for Three More Days

The NFL extended the start of the Free Agency period by three days to give teams like the Oakland Raiders time to work out contract problems.

Rumor: Raiders To Release QB Kerry Collins Today

Quarterback Kerry Collins, whose cap value for '06 is $12.898 million, remains with the Raiders but he's expected to be among the cuts later today -- mostly for economic reasons.

The Raiders have until midnight to remove their current $14.8 million excess over the salary cap.

NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue Press Conference - Special League Meeting

This is from NFL Media.com. The big news to me is that 56 percent was never a number. Where did it come from?
New York Grand Hyatt Regency Hotel
March 2, 2006

Good morning. Obviously we concluded a short but important meeting with our owners. As I think you all know, we came here to explain to them why we're deadlocked with the Players Association. The Players Association has on the table a demand which doesn't recognize the reality of our league's economics today. It's a very excessive and unrealistic demand. So we went through that. The membership endorsed the conclusion that our labor committee -- the eight owners on our Management Council Executive Committee -- had reached when we met with them late yesterday afternoon and last evening. We are indeed deadlocked because of the excessive elements of the Players Association's economic demand and that demand did not provide a basis for any further negotiations. That conclusion of the Management Council Executive Committee was unanimously endorsed by the entire membership. Any questions?

Q: What is the difference between 56 (percent of revenues) and 60 (percent)?

PT: It's not the difference between 56 and 60. I don't know where those numbers come from. It's the fact that, in the last half dozen years, we've created a structure that has enabled us to build an unprecedented number of new stadiums, great stadiums, many of them with very large investments by owners and the league of private resources. Those stadiums, coupled with our TV revenues, have been the engine that has provided prosperity for the players. And the proposal that the Players Association has on the table basically is kind of a "have your cake and eat it, too" proposal. They want to have all the revenues that come out of these facilities and that come out of our growing media rights, but they do not in any way, shape or form recognize the cost to the owners of building those stadiums and investing in all of the things that it takes to generate the revenues. So it's just an untenable economic proposition from the owners' standpoint.

Q: Have you come to terms on what the revenue pool should be and now it's a matter of determining a percentage?

PT: Until you have an agreement, you haven't agreed to anything. We've got sort of tentative understandings that the revenue pool that would go into the salary cap would be certainly much broader than the old DGR concept, but the key thing is that they don't recognize either in the definition of the revenue pool or in their economic proposal the cost structure that goes into generating the revenue.

Q: Is there a fundamental difference in opinion among the owners on revenue sharing?

PT: Nothing could be further away than that (assessment). The revenue sharing issue has never been an impediment in the past to getting an agreement with the Players Association. We've had this agreement in place now with a salary cap and free agency for 13 seasons. I think '06 is the thirteenth season. The revenue sharing issue has never been an impediment, and it's not an impediment now to an agreement with the Players Association. The difference between now and the past is the fundamental change in the way they are defining their expectations as to the percentages that should go to the players and the unwillingness in this proposal, or inability, to recognize the very real costs that are associated with doing all the things the league has done to build new stadiums, generate revenues, invest in a whole range of enterprises that produces the revenue.

Q: What concerns you most about the current situation?

PT: We don't have an agreement and there is a deadline at midnight tonight.

Q: What is the next step from here?

PT: We're going to go back and talk about next steps, but I think at this point, it's not about making phone calls. It's about the Players Association fundamentally changing the character of their proposal and the character of their demands.

Q: How dire a situation is it?

PT: It's about as dire as dire can be. We feel that one of the very positive things about the National Football League since the early '90s has been our Collective Bargaining Agreement, one that works for both sides. We've put a proposal on the table that would extend that through 2011. We recognize that the last year of the current agreement is certainly not ideal in terms of operational realities. Without an extension, it's certainly not a good situation for anybody.

Q: What kind of new rules for free agency will be in place during the uncapped year in 2007?

PT: We don't have any new rules. I think I've basically covered everything that is important today. There has to be a fundamental change in their proposal for anything further of a constructive nature to begin to take place.