FRIGHT FLICKS TO DO BATTLE ON HALLOWEEN

Hollywood is getting set for a scary Halloween encounter when Paramount releases Paranormal Activity 2 on October 22, the same day that Lionsgate launches Saw VII 3D. Daily Variety said that Paramount didn’t even sign a director (Tod “Kip” Williams) until last week and that the movie has only just begun casting. (The original Paranormal […]

“DANCING” STARTS ABC OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT

ABC, which had been languishing in last place in the ratings for most of the season, appeared revitalized last week, thanks to its competition series Dancing with the Stars, its resurging drama Castle, and its long-running Grey’s Anatomy.. Last week, Dancing edged out Fox’s American Idol for the top spot on the Nielsen ratings chart. […]

“IDOL” AND “DANCING” GO HEAD-TO-HEAD

American Idol once again dominated the ratings Tuesday night, counting 21.33 million viewers. The figure, however, was down 16 percent from the comparable night a year ago when Idol drew 24.41 million viewers. ABC gave it tough competition. Its Dancing with the Stars results show finished in second place with 14.09 million viewers. That was […]

STUDY: 30% OF VIEWERS NOW WATCH NEW SHOWS ON DVR’S

Fewer people are making appointments with their TV sets to view their favorite programs while they are being broadcast. According to market research firm The Diffusion Group, only 48 percent do. According to a new study, 30 percent of viewers use their DVRs to watch new programs; 10 percent access them online; and about 12 […]

RUSSIAN TV FAILS TO REPORT ON MOSCOW TERRORIST ATTACKS

Russia’s primary television stations virtually ignored the terrorist attacks on Moscow Monday morning that killed 39 people and shut down part of the city’s subway system, the New York Times reported today (Wednesday). Channel 1 briefly mentioned the attacks at 8:30 a.m. but said nothing about them again until noon, the Times said. A spokeswoman […]

“NANNY MCPHEE” KNOCKS “ALICE” OFF THRONE IN U.K.

Suggesting that big-budget 3D productions are not invincible at the box office, the relatively low-budget Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang, starring Emma Thompson and Maggie Gyllenhaal took over the top spot at the British box office over the weekend with $3.92 million, according to Screen International. The result pushed Alice in Wonderland down to […]

THE END MAY BE NEAR FOR THE “HOLLYWOOD REPORTER”

Richard Beckman, the head of e5 Global Media, whose assets include the Hollywood trade publication The Hollywood Reporter, informed the THR staff late Tuesday that publisher Eric Mika was stepping down as publisher. Mika’s ouster has been rumored for weeks, and Beckman’s “official” announcement was first reported by Nikki Finke on the Deadline Hollywood blog. […]

ICAHN TOSSES IN THE (BLOCKBUSTER) TOWEL

Activist investor Carl Icahn is apparently tossinging in the towel in his longtime battle to restore Blockbuster as a force in the entertainment industry. According to an SEC filing, Icahn, the company’s largest shareholder, has sold more than 13 million shares of the Dallas-based video rental chain for pennies on the dollar. In 2005 he […]

EARLIER DELIVERY FOR “ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY”

In order to compete more effectively against syndicated TV entertainment shows and celebrity websites, Time Inc.’s Entertainment Weekly is tightening its production schedule so that it can got to press after 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday and get copies to its 1.7 million subscribers by Friday. Copies will hit newsstands and supermarket check-out counters by Thursday […]

ABC TAKES OVER OWNERSHIP OF MONDAY NIGHT

ABC’s Dancing with the Stars wiped the floor with its rivals Monday night, clobbering the usual Monday-night winners on CBS soundly. A two-hour edition averaged 22.56 million viewers, peaking in the final half hour at 9:30 p.m. with 24.89 million. Ratings for the show were up 9 percent from a year ago and 12 percent […]

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