'Face the Nation' to remain an hour permanently

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — CBS News says "Face the Nation" will permanently become an hour-long program as a growing viewership in recent months has made it the top-rated Sunday morning public-affairs show.

A provisional expansion for the program anchored by Bob Schieffer began in April. Until then, the broadcast had been only 30 minutes in duration, half the length of rival shows "Meet the Press" on NBC and "This Week" on ABC.

Roughly one-third of CBS stations still aren't airing the second half-hour each week. But CBS News president David Rhodes said Sunday's announcement was meant to assure those holdouts that the show's expansion won't be short-lived.

The announcement was made at the Television Critics Association conference.

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NYC movie, pin-up collection slated for auction

NEW YORK (AP) — Movie Star News amassed a staggering amount of film stills, posters and negatives over the past 73 years — nearly 3 million, including 1,500 prints of Bettie Page, known as the queen of pin-ups. But last week, the once-lively store in lower Manhattan was lifeless. The classic movie posters that once covered its narrow 2,000-square-foot space were rolled up or covered in cellophane, its bins and racks empty. Everything was packed up in cardboard boxes that lined the floor.

The legendary Manhattan store credited with creating pin-up art had sold its entire inventory to a Las Vegas collectibles company.

The collection, regarded as one of the largest of its kind, is headed for the auction block. It will be sold in a series of sales slated to begin next year. The bulk of the collection covers the years 1939 to 1979; 11,500 movies and 5,000 actors are represented.

"This is the most important photo archive of Hollywood in existence. There are tens of thousands of negatives that have never been reproduced," said Stuart Scheinman, co-owner of Entertainment Collectibles, which bought the collection. "There are images here that have never been seen by the public."

There are 2,000 original prints and negatives of Frank Sinatra and Marlon Brando, 1,000 of Gary Cooper, 400 of Bette Davis, hundreds of movie images of "The Godfather" and "Gone With the Wind."

"This could literally take five to 10 years to go through it all," Scheinman said. He would only say the company purchased the collection for "seven figures." Its true value was anyone's guess, but he believed it easily was worth $150 million.

Movie Star News produced 8-by-10 glossy prints from the negatives, selling each for a few dollars in the store and through the mail. But the Internet has significantly cut down on demand.

"I make references to things when customers come in, and they have no idea what I'm talking about," said Ira Kramer, who took over the business that his mother, Paula, and uncle Irving Klaw, started in 1939. "Today, if you want a picture of a star you can go on the computer and download it. So what do you need me for?"

"The maintenance of the collection has been fastidious ... the way a fine library would maintain material," said Arlan Ettinger, president of Guernsey's and in charge of selling the collection.

As far back as the 1940s, Movie Star News had a mailing list of 100,000 names. World War II soldiers were big customers, buying prints for their lockers, Kramer said.

The entrepreneurial Klaw, who died in 1966, hit on the idea of selling pictures of Hollywood stars while operating a movie bookstore.

"He noticed that kids were tearing out the pictures of the movie stars, so he decided to sell their pictures rather than the books," Kramer said. Klaw started dealing directly with movie studios, RKO, Columbia and others, located in those days along Eleventh Avenue.

"He made arrangements to buy from them whatever they didn't want ... original negatives, original prints of 'Citizen Kane,' 'Three Stooges,'" he said. The studios were more than happy to be rid of the stuff for which they had no room.

Kramer's mother was the one who took the pin-up shots. But it was Klaw who launched that side of the business after a man approached him about making him a set of photographs of skimpily-clad girls posing with whips and ropes, said Kramer.

Page was Klaw's favorite model, and a suitcase of the 7-inch heels she wore in the photos, plus other bondage props, will be included in the auction.

The photos were tame by today's standards. In fact, the models were required to wear two pairs of underwear. But the FBI continuously harassed Klaw and he had to appear before the 1955 Senate Subcommittee on Obscene and Pornographic Materials.

"It was a big headache," Kramer said. Klaw finally decided to burn all the pin-up material — but Paula Klaw saved a lot of it.

___

Online:

Guernsey's: www.guernseys.com

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Charlie Sheen sitcom poised for 90-episode pickup

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — Charlie Sheen says he's not insane anymore.

Instead, these are good days for the "Anger Management" star, he declares, with his FX sitcom half-way through its initial 10-episode run and poised to get an order for 90 more.

Sheen told reporters Saturday that the prospect of continuing is as "exciting as hell," and added cheerily, "I don't think 90's gonna be enough."

With the expected pickup, FX plans to bring aboard Sheen's dad, Martin Sheen, as a recurring cast member. He will play the father of Charlie Goodson, the anger-management therapist played by Charlie Sheen. The veteran movie actor, who also played President Jed Bartlet on the drama series "The West Wing," is guest-starring on an "Anger Management" episode that airs Aug. 16.

"I think that was the best episode we did," his son said.

Adding Sheen's father to the series "will give an extra dimension and make it a multi-generational family show," FX boss John Landgraf said in making the announcement.

The production schedule would call for filming a total of 100 episodes in just two years. This kind of cost-saving routine means no time for rehearsals, said executive producer Bruce Helford.

"The actors get the lines, we see the scene, the writers make changes, the actors go to makeup, cameras are blocked, we come back together and shoot the scene," he explained.

At first, the cast members "felt like basically they were on the ledge. But by the third episode, everyone found the characters to the point that the writers were following their lead," Helford said.

"I feel like how we started, we just scratched the surface — barely," said Sheen, who arrived for his appearance at the Television Critics Association session clad in Bermuda shorts, a long-sleeve shirt and loafers without socks.

He likened his tumultuous departure from "Two and a Half Men" and the stormy aftermath last year to a dream he couldn't wake up from. Or like "a train I couldn't get off of, except that I was the conductor," he added, speaking in quick bursts and fidgeting in his chair.

He said he learned a lot from that period, including "stick to what you know." Referring to his disastrous "My Violent Torpedo of Truth/Defeat is Not an Option" tour in spring 2011, he got laughs from the group when he advised, "Don't go on the road with a one-man show in 21 cities without an act. "

"I'm not insane anymore," he summed up.

What's different now from Sheen's angry stretch on "Men," characterized by his much-publicized clashes with series creator Chuck Lorre?

Helford weighed in with a theory. On "Men," he ventured, "Charlie didn't really have a voice with creative input. It wasn't built that way."

On "Anger Management," Helford said he's forged a partnership with his star.

"We built this together," he said. "And when Charlie's on the stage, that's his stage. When you feel that, your creative juices are flowing, everything is better for you, because you have a say in what you're doing.

"When you don't control your destiny, things get screwed up in your head," he said as Sheen nodded.

On "Anger Management," Charlie Goodson thrives on chaos. Sheen was asked if he does, too, or if he longs for a simpler life.

"I can wish every minute for a simple life. It's not gonna happen," Sheen replied. "But I don't really look at it as chaos. I look at it as challenges."

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'Dark Knight' stays atop box office with $64M

LOS ANGELES (AP) — "The Dark Knight Rises" stayed atop the box office for the second straight weekend, making just over $64 million. But it's lagging behind the staggering numbers of its predecessor, 2008's "The Dark Knight."

The final piece in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy has now grossed more than $289 million in its first 10 days in theaters. It dropped 60 percent from its opening weekend of $160.9 million.

By comparison, "The Dark Knight" took a 53 percent drop in its second weekend with a gross of nearly $75.2 million and a 10-day cumulative gross of $313.8 million.

Dan Fellman, head of distribution for Warner Bros., declined to comment on the Sunday estimates again out of respect for the victims of the Aurora, Colo., shooting that left 12 people dead and another 58 injured at a midnight showing of the film on opening night.

But people are still going to the movies, and they did so even last weekend, said Hollywood.com analyst Paul Dergarabedian. If anything hurt the numbers for all movies this weekend, he said, it was Friday night's opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, which drew a record-setting 40.7 million viewers in the United States.

"For a film that opened as big as this did, considering the situation and what happened last weekend and all that, I would say this is a very strong showing," Dergarabedian said. "It's made almost $300 million in North America and its mid-week (attendance) is very strong. It made $19 million last Monday."

In second place this weekend was the animated family film "Ice Age: Continental Drift," which is still going strong in its third week. It made $13.3 million for a domestic total of nearly $114.9 million. The fourth movie in the 20th Century Fox franchise features the voices of Ray Romano, Denis Leary and Queen Latifah.

Both of the new movies in wide release opened weakly. The 20th Century Fox comedy "The Watch" came in third place with $13 million. Big-name comic actors Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Jonah Hill play a group of guys who come together to form a neighborhood watch; despite the star power, the film was panned critically, receiving only 14 percent positive reviews on the Rotten Tomatoes website.

And "Step Up Revolution" — the fourth film in the dance franchise, which is set in Miami this time — opened at No. 4 with $11.8 million. Richie Fay, Lionsgate's president of domestic distribution, said the number was a little disappointing because the studio expected it to end up in the mid-teens. But the core audience for the previous three "Step Up" films showed up: 63 percent was female and 71 percent was under age 24.

"The exit polls indicated that the audience that came out to see it liked it," Fay said. "Hopefully they'll get around to talking about it after they've had their fill of the Olympics. Someone suggested that that might feed into the gross — gymnastics and dance are so similar."

As for new movies in limited release, Fox Searchlight's "Ruby Sparks" grossed $151,881 in 13 theaters for a strong per-screen average of $11,683. Since its opening Wednesday, it's made $191,717. The romantic comedy from the directors of "Little Miss Sunshine" stars Paul Dano as a novelist with writer's block who creates his dream girl, played by Zoe Kazan, who also wrote the script.

And LD Entertainment's "Killer Joe," the NC-17-rated crime thriller from director William Friedkin, made $37,864 at three theaters in Manhattan for a $12,621 per-screen average. In his darkest performance yet, Matthew McConaughey plays a Dallas police detective with a side gig as a hit man. Emile Hirsch, Thomas Haden Church, Gina Gershon and Juno Temple co-star as the lowlifes who play crucial roles in this twisted plot.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. "The Dark Knight Rises," $64 million. ($122.1 million international.)

2. "Ice Age: Continental Drift," $13 million. ($49.4 million international.)

3. "The Watch," $13 million.

4. "Step Up Revolution," $11.8 million. ($5.2 million international.)

5. "Ted," $7.4 million. ($2.7 million international.)

6. "The Amazing Spider-Man," $6.8 million.

7. "Brave," $4.2 million. ($9.6 million international.)

8. "Magic Mike," $2.6 million. ($5.3 million international.)

9. "Savages," $1.8 million. ($2 million international.)

10. "Moonrise Kingdom," $1.4 million.

___

Estimated weekend ticket sales at international theaters (excluding the U.S. and Canada) for films distributed overseas by Hollywood studios, according to Rentrak:

1. "The Dark Knight Rises," $122.1 million.

2. "Ice Age: Continental Drift," $49.4 million.

3. "The Thieves," $15 million.

4. "Brave," $9.6 million.

5. "Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted," $6.6 million.

6. "Dr. Seuss' The Lorax," $5.7 million.

7. "Magic Mike," $5.3 million.

8. "Step Up Revolution," $5.2 million.

9. "Ted," $2.7 million.

10. "Savages," $2 million.

Online:

http://www.hollywood.com

http://www.rentrak.com

___

Universal and Focus are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of Comcast Corp.; Sony, Columbia, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; Paramount is owned by Viacom Inc.; Disney, Pixar and Marvel are owned by The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is owned by Filmyard Holdings LLC; 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight are owned by News Corp.; Warner Bros. and New Line are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a group of former creditors including Highland Capital, Anchorage Advisors and Carl Icahn; Lionsgate is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; IFC is owned by AMC Networks Inc.; Rogue is owned by Relativity Media LLC.

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Seinfeld back on Thursdays this fall with NY live shows

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fourteen years after his classic sitcom ended, Jerry Seinfeld is returning to Thursday nights in New York City.

He won't appear on primetime television, however. From October 4 to November 8, Seinfeld will perform a full stand-up comedy show in a different theater in the city's five boroughs nearly every Thursday, the night his hit show "Seinfeld" aired on NBC from 1990 to 1998.

Seinfeld hasn't performed a full show in the Big Apple since 1998, when he sold out the Broadhurst Theater on Broadway shortly after his sitcom ended.

"I was born in Brooklyn, went to school in Queens and started out as a comedian in Manhattan. I feel like New York City taught me how to be funny. I'm so excited to perform a special series of shows for my beloved home town," Seinfeld said in a press release on Wednesday.

Tickets for the five shows, which will open with comedian Colin Quinn, go on sale on Monday, July 30. (Reporting by Joseph O'Leary; Editing by Barbara Goldberg and Dale Hudson)

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Missy Franklin dedicates Olympic wins to Colorado

Missy Franklin dedicates Olympic wins to Colorado
CBS/AP) LONDON - Missy Franklin is dedicating all her Olympic races to her home state of Colorado.

The 17-year-old swimmer said Thursday she was affected by the cinema shootings in the Denver suburb of Aurora, where she attends high school and trains.

"Every single race I'm going to have that Colorado incident back on my mind," she said. "It's such a terrible thing and I'm so shaken by it. They're in my thoughts this entire process."

Franklin, who lives in Centennial, Colo., said she and her parents didn't know any of the 12 shooting victims or the 58 others who were injured.

"But Aurora and Colorado in general is such a close state that when something like that happens we're all affected by it, no matter who it is," she said, adding that she had never been to the cinema where the shootings took place. "It's hitting very close to home."

Franklin and the rest of the U.S. swimming team was training in France when she first heard about the shootings through Twitter. Because of the time difference, she had to wait several hours to find out if any of her friends had attended the midnight showing of the Batman movie.

One of them did but "thankfully he was not at that theater," she said.
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Robert Duvall to host Romney fundraiser with Ann Romney

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Robert Duvall is an unusual figure in the Hollywood milieu - he's a well-known entertainer who is willing to lend his star power to promoting a Republican politician.

The "Apocalypse Now" star is taking a cue from his left-leaning counterparts by hosting a fundraiser for presumptive GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney next month. According to an invitation spotted by National Journal, Duvall is opening his Middleburg, Va., home to Romney boosters - as long as they're willing to open their wallets - and "special guest" Ann Romney on September 6.

Tickets to the event start at $2,500 per person for entry to the general reception, $10,000 grants them access to the VIP photo reception and $25,000 saves them a spot at Duvall's dinner party for the presidential hopeful's wife and deep-pocketed supporters. Proceeds from the function will go to the joint fundraising committee Romney Victory, Inc.

A representative for Duvall said the actor wasn't reachable on Wednesday, as that was his first day filming his new movie.

By throwing in so publicly for Romney, Duvall bolsters his position among a relatively small group of Hollywood heavyweights, including Kelsey Grammer, Jon Voight, Drew Carey and Adam Sandler, who register (at least with their checkbooks) on the conservative side of the political spectrum.

According to OpenSecrets.com, Voight donated $3,500 to John McCain's campaign in 2008; Grammer contributed $4,600 to Rudy Giuliani and $2,300 to McCain during the last election cycle; Carey pitched in $2,300 for Ron Paul's campaign in 2007 and Sandler ponied up $2,100 for Giuliani's presidential run that same year.

The race to the White House is also heating up in Hollywood's Democratic camp, with several celebrities - Maria Bello, Ian Somerhalder, Aisha Tyler and Pete Wentz among them - financially backing Obama's bid for a second term.

August will be a busy month for Obama supporters like No Doubt singer Gwen Stefani, who is throwing a house party of her own in Beverly Hills on August 12 featuring First Lady Michelle Obama. Power producer Harvey Weinstein and Vogue editor Anna Wintour are reportedly joining forces on August 6 for their own high-end fund-raiser in Greenwich, Conn.

Meanwhile, cast members of "The Wire" are slated to meet pro-Obama donors at a private residence on Martha's Vineyard on August 15, and stage and screen star Nathan Lane will host an "East End for Obama" event, co-starring Vice President Joe Biden and actors Edie Falco and Julianne Moore, on August 24.

Finally, George Clooney, who held a smashingly successful Obama fundraiser at Clooney's house in Studio City, Calif. on May 10, will stump for the president again in Geneva, Switzerland at two fundraising events for American expatriates on August 27.

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Spirited queen happy to play Bond girl

LONDON (Reuters) - Queen Elizabeth needed little persuading in making her film debut, appearing with the country's most famous fictional spy James Bond during the London Olympic opening ceremony.

In a brief, tongue-in-cheek film broadcast to a packed Olympic stadium late on Friday - as well as a massive worldwide television audience - Bond actor Daniel Craig entered Buckingham Palace wearing his trademark tuxedo.

After a pause, Her Majesty turns from her writing desk and says simply: "Good evening, Mr. Bond."

She uttered just four words, but they were seen as a highly personal touch from a monarch once seen as aloof.

"The queen was delighted to be asked, and be involved in something so exceptional," a Buckingham Palace spokeswoman told Reuters on Saturday. "Very pleased to take part, and it was our Olympics and the queen was delighted to be part of it."

Princess Diana's death in 1997 was a low-point for the royal family, yet the huge crowds that greeted her during Diamond Jubilee celebrations in June were proof of how far the queen had recovered in the eyes of the public.

London Mayor Boris Johnson, who escorted the 86-year-old monarch around the Olympic Park during an official tour on Saturday, said that she was "thrilled" about the film and keen to know if people found her cameo role funny.

"My impression is that she loved it," the staunch royalist told reporters. "Maybe, you know, there won't be many film performances that she will give and whether she will get an Oscar, I don't know," he joked.

The pre-recorded clip also showed 007 escorting the queen to the stadium in a moment of levity rarely shared by the public, who can only read about her well-reported sense of humor.

CORGI CAMEOS

The 86-year-old monarch was happy for two of her beloved corgis, Monty, 13, and Holly, nine, to play a role. The depiction of her derring-do arrival was a quirky moment in an eclectic ceremony on Friday.

The opening shot showed the Queen sitting at a writing table in Buckingham Palace, welcoming Bond, played by Daniel Craig.

The pair made their way to a waiting helicopter in the grounds of the central London palace, apparently leaving her doting corgis on the doorstep.

The helicopter zipped across the city and a man dressed as Bond skydived down towards the Olympic Park in east London, followed by a figure in a pale peach dress matching that worn by the queen in the film.

She then appeared for real in the main stadium before 60,000 spectators - and without a hair out of place - before taking her seat.

The film was the brainchild of the ceremony's director Danny Boyle, but it was London organizing committee (LOCOG) chairman Seb Coe who first approached the palace in 2011.

When asked how much it took to persuade the queen to take part, a LOCOG spokeswoman said: "Not much."

"I think she really liked the whole concept Danny had put together."

Oscar-winning director Boyle shot the scenes in the palace's quadrangle, the Grand Entrance, the East Gallery, the Audience Room and the West Terrace, in March and April this year.

"You don't have to tell her something twice," Boyle was quoted as saying by British media.

"She picks it up straight away, about cameras and angles."

The queen was then given a viewing before its official showing.

"She was very happy to take part, she was happy to do what she did," the Buckingham Palace spokeswoman added.

MEDIA HIT

Her off-beat appearance was a hit with the British media.

"It's been received really well, we always knew it would," the palace spokeswoman added.

When asked if it might be the monarch's last appearance in a film, she said: "Never say never, but I imagine so, it was a very special one-off."

Other members of the Royal Family have had cameo appearances in long-running TV and radio soap operas.

Her stuntman Gary Connery said the part had been exciting, but he'd not been allowed to keep the dress.

"It's all part of it, and you just go with the flow," he told BBC television.

"Last night was the first time I'd actually had the make-up on.

"The process of making me the queen ... had been three to four months."

It capped off a successful year for the queen who in June marked 60 years on the throne with a weekend extravaganza that saw millions of flag waving Britons take to the streets to show their affection and appreciation for a monarch more normally renowned for her stately dignity.

(Reporting by Avril Ormsby; Editing by Mike Collett-White and Alison Williams)

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Facebook co-founder Saverin debuts on Singapore rich list

Germany's finance minister said in an interview published Sunday that he can't see room for further concessions to Greece, insisting anew that the country must implement far-reaching reforms and cut its budget deficit.

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Actor Gordon-Levitt changes masks for "Dark Knight Rises"

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Joseph Gordon-Levitt has come a long way from his television days playing a disguised extraterrestrial stranded on Earth, harnessing a chameleon-like ability to inhabit a variety of roles in independent films and big-budget blockbusters.

The actor, who gained fame on TV show "3rd Rock From the Sun," portrays Gotham police officer John Blake in Friday's "The Dark Knight Rises," the eagerly anticipated final installment of director Christopher Nolan's "Batman" trilogy.

While details about the film plot have been kept closely guarded, the actor told Reuters in a recent interview that fans can expect "a really excellent movie and a real ending" for the trio of Nolan's movies about the crime-fighting superhero.

"Sometimes they call something a trilogy, and it's not really a trilogy, it's another sequel to make money. But this really is a great ending, there's a beginning, a middle and an end," Gordon-Levitt said about Nolan's Batman movies.

Gordon-Levitt plays idealistic rookie cop Blake who becomes Commissioner Gordon's protégé. As trouble is unleashed on Gotham by the villain Bane, Blake becomes a key figure in joining Batman to save the city.

Following "Dark Knight," fans see Gordon-Levitt in several films over the next few months, including adrenaline-laced thriller "Premium Rush" in August and opposite Bruce Willis in sci-fi time travel thriller "Looper" in September, which reunited him with "Brick" director Rian Johnson.

"(Rian) wrote the part for me, and I've never had somebody write a part for me. That was an honor," Gordon-Levitt said.

In "Looper," both Gordon-Levitt and Willis play the same mob hitman called Joe, hired to kill targets through time travel. Gordon-Levitt took to the challenge of becoming Willis both physically and mentally, watching the "Die Hard" star's old movies, listening to his voice and spending time with him.

"My favorite part of acting is becoming something other than myself, and most of my favorite actors are the chameleons, the ones who disappear into their roles. You don't see the actor on screen, you see the character," Gordon-Levitt said, citing Gary Oldman, Meryl Streep and Daniel Day-Lewis as influences.

Director Johnson told Reuters that Gordon-Levitt put in a lot of "legwork and heavy lifting" to research and embody his characters thoroughly so that audiences don't feel like he is simply putting up an imitation.

FROM "3RD ROCK" TO BLOCKBUSTERS

Gordon-Levitt, 31, a native of Los Angeles, has spent most of his life in front of a camera, appearing on television regularly since the early 1990s and landing a lead role on NBC's alien comedy "3rd Rock" alongside John Lithgow.

The actor's transition to movies began with a breakout role in 1999 teen comedy "10 Things I Hate About You." Since then, he has worked non-stop across a variety of film genres, from 2004's gritty, low-budget drama "Brick" to playing a hopeless romantic in 2009 romantic comedy "(500) Days Of Summer." He broke into blockbusters with Stephen Sommers' "G.I. Joe: The Rise Of The Cobra" in 2009, and in Nolan's "Inception" in 2010.

"The reason he's been successful at it is that he applies the same criteria to big movies as he does to small movies, he's not just looking to break in and hop on board the latest big franchise, he chooses stories and filmmakers he's interested in," said Johnson, who is close friends with the actor.

Gordon-Levitt's range is wide. He portrayed a cancer sufferer in last year's comedy "50/50" and will be a bike messenger in the upcoming "Premium Rush," as well as Abraham Lincoln's son opposite Daniel Day-Lewis in Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln."

"I have an eclectic taste in the movies that I watch as well as the movies I'm inspired to want to work on. Variety is what keeps things interesting," the actor said. "I do work a whole lot and that's what I love to do, I'm very lucky to have a job that I love and that's pretty much what I do with my time."

Gordon-Levitt makes his directorial debut in "Don Jon's Addiction," exploring porn addiction, due in theaters next year starring Scarlett Johansson and Julianne Moore.

He also is heavily involved with his production company hitRECord, an online community of creative individuals who work on projects, including "The Tiny Book Of Tiny Stories," with volume 2 due out in November.

"There's plenty of people who don't have access to participate in the traditional entertainment industry and are great artists all the same, so hitRECord is a way for me to work with those people," said the actor.

(Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte; Desking by Andrew Hay)

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Katie Holmes gets back to work on Broadway

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Katie Holmes is returning to star on Broadway for the first time in four years starring in a new play, "Dead Accounts," set to open this fall, Broadway producers said on Thursday.

Holmes, who earlier this month reached a high profile divorce settlement with actor Tom Cruise, will star in Theresa Rebeck's new comedy, representatives for the show said in a statement.

Holmes, 33, will portray the role of Lorna in the five-character play that tackles "issues of corporate greed, small town values and whether or not your family will always welcome you back ... with no questions asked," the statement said.

The play will be directed by Tony Award winner Jack O'Brien.

Holmes made her Broadway debut in the 2008 production of Arthur Miller's "All My Sons."

(Reporting By Christine Kearney, editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

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Russell Brand to do community service over iPhone toss

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - British comedian and actor Russell Brand was ordered by a judge to do 20 hours of community service and pay a fine of $500 in New Orleans on Thursday over a charge related to throwing a photographer's iPhone through a window.

A lawyer for the brash "Get Him to the Greek" film star entered a plea of not guilty in New Orleans Municipal Court on a misdemeanor charge related to the phone-throwing incident. Brand, 37, did not appear in court.

After the plea was entered, the judge ordered the community service as an alternative to criminal prosecution. If Brand completes the community service, the charges will be dismissed.

Brand's lawyer, Robert Glass, told Reuters his client could complete the community service "at any charity or agency anywhere, whether it be California or England." An August 31 hearing date was set to report on the status of the community service.

New Orleans police arrested Brand on March 15 after a photographer accused the comedian of grabbing his iPhone and tossing it through a window, breaking the glass in a downtown law office.

Brand was charged with one count of misdemeanor criminal damage to property and released shortly after his arrest.

The charge of simple criminal damage to property valued under $500 carries a potential penalty of up to six months in prison and/or a $500 fine.

Brand has had other brushes with the law, including in 2010, when he was arrested for an attack on a paparazzo at a Los Angeles airport. Last year, he was deported from Japan over his criminal history when he tried to visit his then-wife Katy Perry on her concert tour in the country.

(Writing by Christine Kearney; Editing by Dale Hudson)

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UFO Spoted At The opening ceremony of the London Olympics

UFO Spoted At The opening ceremony of the London Olympics

Megaupload founder to Hollywood: "I'm not your enemy"

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - Kim Dotcom, the founder of the Megaupload online file-sharing site embroiled in U.S. piracy and fraud investigations, on Thursday accused Hollywood of being frightened of the internet and lobbying the U.S. government to vilify him.

In an open letter published in The Hollywood Reporter, Dotcom, a German national who wants to avoid extradition to the United States from New Zealand, argued he was looking for ways to improve online storage and privacy, while adding that he was not the enemy of the film industry.

"The Internet frightens you," he wrote in an open letter addressed to Hollywood published in the U.S. trade paper.

He added: "I am at the forefront of creating the cool stuff that will allow creative works to thrive in an Internet age. I have the solutions to your problems. I am not your enemy."

The letter was Dotcom's latest message to the U.S. film industry, which he accuses of pressuring the White House into launching the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) highest-profile investigation into online piracy, for which he says he has been made a scapegoat.

The FBI alleges that Dotcom, a German national who lives in New Zealand, led a group that has netted $175 million since 2005 by copying and distributing music, movies and other copyrighted content without authorization.

Lawyers for the flamboyant entrepreneur say the company simply offered online storage.

Acting on a request from the FBI, New Zealand armed police, backed by helicopters, swept into Dotcom's rented estate outside Auckland in January, confiscating computers and hard drives, art works, and luxury cars.

Dotcom and the three others were arrested, and Dotcom was kept in custody for a month before being granted bail. The New Zealand courts have since eased some restrictions on his movements, and he now has limited access to his multi-million dollar fortune.

Last month, a New Zealand court ruled that the warrants used in the search were illegal, and that the FBI's copying of evidence and sending it to the United States was also unlawful.

Tweeting earlier this month, Dotcom said he was willing to go to the United States to clear his name, provided Washington unfreezes his assets so he can pay his legal costs.

A New Zealand court is due to hear an application from the U.S. authorities to extradite Dotcom on internet piracy, money laundering, and breach of copyright charges in March, although the judge scheduled to hear the case has stepped down.

(Reporting by Naomi Tajitsu; Editing by Daniel Magnowski)

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Jordyn Wieber Out With Tears

Jordyn Wieber  Out With Tears

By The Associated Press

LONDON - This was not what the Americans expected.

Oh sure, being atop the standings by a comfortable margin after their qualifying session in women's gymnastics, that went according to plan. But world champion Jordyn Wieber, a heavy favorite to add the Olympic gold, won't even get to contend for the all-around title after finishing behind teammates Aly Raisman and Gabby Douglas. Countries are limited to two gymnasts in the all-around and event finals.

It was a stunner for Wieber, who had lost only two all-around competitions since 2008 -- though both to fellow Americans -- and it left her teammates reeling.

"I was really surprised, and I feel awful because she wanted it so bad," said Raisman, Wieber's closest friend on the team and the one who knocked her out of the all-around. "But she should still feel proud because she's an Olympian. We have to stay calm and focused on team finals."

The 17-year-old Wieber was sobbing as she made her way through the mixed zone, so distraught she couldn't speak to reporters. A quote attributed to her and distributed by the London Games' internal news agency said: "It is a bit of a disappointment. It has always been a dream of mine to compete in the all-around final of the Olympics."

The Americans finished with 181.863 points, more than 11 ahead of second-place Britain, even with a weak finish on floor exercise. But Russia, the 2010 world champion and runner-up to the Americans last year, European champion Romania and China are still to come.

The team final is Tuesday.

"That's what I told her, she's going to handle this with as much class as she handled the victories. Make no excuses," said John Geddert, the U.S. coach and Wieber's personal coach. "The job's not done yet. Team USA has got a big day on Tuesday."

The Americans have come into the last two Olympics as world champions, only to leave without gold. But this team is stronger, top to bottom, than the 2004 and even 2008 squads, and has a swagger LeBron and his buddies would appreciate. That starts with Wieber, who is normally as steady and reliable as a metronome.

If anyone was going to avoid the 16-year curse of world champions going without Olympic gold, it was going to be her.

But she's appeared vulnerable these last few months while Raisman and Douglas have been on the rise.

Read more at the source

Russell Brand charged in New Orleans over iPhone toss

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - British comedian and actor Russell Brand faced up to six months in prison on Wednesday when he was charged with a misdemeanor in New Orleans for throwing a photographer's iPhone through a window.

The "Get Him to the Greek" film star was scheduled to be arraigned on Thursday before Judge Sean Early, according to New Orleans Municipal Court spokesman Baptiste Souquet. It was unclear if Brand would be in the courtroom, or whether his attorney would be allowed to enter a plea on his behalf.

New Orleans police arrested the Brand on March 15 after a photographer accused the comedian of grabbing his iPhone and tossing it through a window, breaking the glass in a downtown law office.

Bail was set at $5,000 for Brand and he was released shortly after his arrest.

Brand's New Orleans lawyer, Robert Glass, could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.

District attorney's office spokesman Christopher Bowman said Brand was charged with one count of misdemeanor criminal damage to property.

The charge of simple criminal damage to property valued under $500 carries a potential penalty of up to six months in prison and/or a $500 fine. People familiar with similar cases say it is unlikely Brand, if convicted, will face jail time.

This is not Brand's first brush with the law. In 2010, he was arrested for an alleged attack on a paparazzo at a Los Angeles airport, and last year, he was deported from Japan over his criminal history when he tried to visit his then-wife Katy Perry on her concert tour in the country.

(Reporting By Kathy Finn; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Leslie Gevirtz)

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Jackson kids get new guardian in family power struggle

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Jackson's three children were given a new guardian on Wednesday in an escalating power struggle within the famous musical family involving the singer's multimillion-dollar estate and the well-being of his elderly mother.

Los Angeles Superior Court judge Mitchell Beckloff gave temporary guardianship of the children to their cousin Tito Jackson Jr., 34, at his request, after a chaotic week of conflicting reports over the health and whereabouts of family matriarch Katherine Jackson

Katherine Jackson, 82, who was appointed guardian of Prince Michael, 15, Paris, 14, and Blanket Jackson, 10, in her son's will, was reported missing by granddaughter Paris last week.

Paris said in a series of angry Twitter posts that she hadn't been able to speak to her grandmother for nine days, but Katherine was later said by family members to be resting under doctor's order at the Arizona home of one of her daughters.

Attorneys for both Tito Jackson Jr. and Katherine Jackson raised questions at Wednesday's court hearing over whether Katherine's absence from her Los Angeles home was voluntary.

Tito Jackson Jr., the son of Michael's older brother Tito, told Beckloff that he spoke on Tuesday to Katherine but that she was talking strangely and seemed to be speaking in code.

"I never heard my grandmother talk like that," he said. "I'd ask simple questions and she wasn't sharp."

Another brother, Randy Jackson, told ABC News in a phone interview earlier on Wednesday that Katherine Jackson was on her way back to Los Angeles after being ordered by doctors to "isolate herself from the world and rest."

ANGRY CONFRONTATION

The family dispute broke into the open earlier this week in an angry confrontation, seen on security video, between Paris and her aunt, singer Janet Jackson, at a large compound in Los Angeles owned by the family made famous by the Jackson Five brothers in the late 1960s and 1970s.

Janet Jackson, who enjoyed a hitmaking solo career, and four of her siblings are embroiled in a dispute over the validity of their brother Michael's will, which handed guardianship to his mother and placed his estate in the hands of two executors.

The will stipulated that money earned by the estate would benefit the "Thriller" singer's mother and his kids, but the siblings claim Jackson's signature was forged and that he was not in California on the date it was signed.

The executors of the estate - entertainment lawyer John Branca and music executive John McClain - insist the will is valid and said earlier this week they were concerned about protecting the kids from "undue influences, bullying and greed."

Since Jackson's death at age 50 in June 2009, the executors have approved numerous projects including a posthumous concert rehearsal film "This Is It", a Cirque du Soleil show, and releases of new and old Jackson music and videos. The estate also controls the rights to much of his music.

Music publication Billboard estimated in 2010 that the "Thriller" singer's estate generated about $1 billion in revenue in just the first year following his death from an overdose of the surgical anesthetic propofol.

According to financial documents filed recently with a Los Angeles probate judge, the estate has earned $475 million in gross profits since Jackson's death, and much of the singer's estimated $500 million debt has been resolved.

Katherine Jackson's attorney, Perry Sanders, said after Wednesday's court hearing that he will move quickly once his client returns to California to have her guardianship restored.

But Sanders also admitted to journalists that he had been unable to see Katherine after flying out to a spa in Arizona at the invitation of some of the Jackson siblings.

"They said she was there because of her high blood pressure and to get some R&R," he said. "I would have liked to have seen her."

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte, Dale Hudson and Marguerita Choy)

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Madonna voices love for tolerant France in Paris show

PARIS (Reuters) - Pop star Madonna treated fans to an intimate show at Paris' famed Olympia theatre on Thursday, voicing her love for a France that is open to minorities and artists and reinterpreting "Je t'aime moi non plus," a song laced with sexual innuendo.

Tickets for the surprise show - a last-minute addition to Madonna's "MDNA" tour - were offered first to members of her fan club and sold out within minutes. Some people began gathering outside the Olympia as early as Wednesday for the show, and anticipation was running high.

In the end, reaction was mixed and some in the audience voiced disappointment at the show's length, a mere 45 minutes. A few called for refunds as they left the 2,700-seat theatre, Paris' oldest surviving music hall which has welcomed iconic stars from Edith Piaf and Jacques Brel to the Rolling Stones.

The concert was expected to have a political overtone to it, and Madonna started off on a rebellious note.

"I have a special affinity with France, and I have for many years," the pop star shouted at the start. "It could go all the way to Napoleon because I think of myself as a revolutionary."

Yet there was no repeat of the performance she gave at the 80,000-seat Stade de France on July 14, which angered France's far right party leader Marine Le Pen by showing a picture of her with a swastika superimposed on her face.

France's National Front has since announced it will sue her.

On Thursday, Madonna offered only veiled criticism of the party's anti-immigrant stance, paying homage to a France which she said once "opened its arms to minorities."

"I know that I have made a certain Marine Le Pen very angry with me," she said, adding that her intention was not to make enemies. "We are entering some very scary times in the world. People are afraid, and what happens when people are afraid? They say 'get out! You're the reason. You're the problem. You're to blame,'" she told the audience.

LONG WAIT, SHORT SHOW

Tickets for the show, which included both classics and songs from her latest album "MDNA," started at 80 euros ($98) and were offered first to members of Madonna's fan club. They sold out in less than 5 minutes, organizers said, and the Olympia's website crashed several times due to heavy traffic.

Fans started gathering at noon on Wednesday to attend the show, with many pitching tents on the sidewalk to make sure they got as close as possible to the Material Girl.

Die-hard fan, 25-year-old Ally Gloser from Cologne, Germany, said she had bought tickets for 11 of Madonna's shows over the summer, at a cost of 2,500 euros.

"Normally, I'm a student. Now I'm a poor student," she said.

True to form, the 53-year-old offered up an array of sexy outfits and age-defying moves, at one point adding a French touch for Parisian fans with a black leather pencil skirt, red lipstick, and a French beret. She paid tribute to several French artists, including actor Alain Delon and singer Piaf.

"I walk in her footsteps, actually I crawl in her footsteps", she said of the "La Vie en rose" singer while kneeling on stage.

Under red lights and on an entirely empty stage, Madonna sang the famous French song, "Je t'aime moi non plus" ("I love you, neither do I") written by Serge Gainsbourg in the late 1960s. She tied a dance partner down on a chair and pretended to shoot him in the mouth.

Audience reaction to the show was mixed.

"The show itself was pretty good, but she didn't even sing for an hour", complained 33-year-old Guillaume Delaval. "She spoke for 15 minutes about tolerance, it's not the U.N. here."

Pierce Brosnan, the Irish actor who played in four James Bond movies, attended the show with his wife.

"We're fans. My wife wanted to come, so we bought tickets," he told Reuters, explaining he was in Paris to shoot a movie with Emma Thompson called "Love Punch."

Madonna will perform in Nice, France on August 21. After shows in the Middle East and Europe, the singer will give concerts in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Chile and Argentina.

(Reporting by Chine Labbe; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Stacey Joyce)

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Michael Jackson's mother denies kidnap in family power struggle

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Michael Jackson's three children were given a new guardian on Wednesday in an escalating power struggle within the famous musical family involving the singer's multimillion-dollar estate and the well-being of his elderly mother.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff gave temporary guardianship of the children to their cousin Tito Jackson Jr., 34, at his request, after a chaotic week of conflicting reports over the health and whereabouts of family matriarch Katherine Jackson

Hours after Wednesday's court hearing, Katherine Jackson gave her first TV interview since the often wild and conflicting reports surfaced, denying she had been kidnapped by her adult children and saying she was devastated that Prince Michael, 15, Paris, 14 and Blanket, 10, "have been taken away from me."

Katherine Jackson, 82, who was appointed guardian of the kids in her son Michael's will, was reported missing and unreachable by granddaughter Paris last week.

She was later said by family members to be resting under doctor's order at the Arizona home of one of her daughters.

"There are rumors going around about me that I have been kidnapped," she told ABC News in the interview.

"I am here today to let everybody to know that I am good and fine ... My children would never do anything to me like that," she added.

Katherine Jackson said the court ruling that gave temporary guardianship to her grandson Tito was "based on a bunch of lies."

"I am devastated that while I've been away, my grandchildren have been taken away from me, and I'm coming home," she added.

The family dispute broke into the open earlier this week in an angry confrontation, seen on security video, between Paris and her aunt, singer Janet Jackson, at the clan's large compound near Los Angeles.

Janet Jackson and four of her siblings are embroiled in a dispute over the validity of the will left by their brother Michael after his sudden death in 2009. The will placed his estate in the hands of two non-family executors.

TALKING STRANGELY

At Wednesday's court hearing, attorneys for both Tito Jackson Jr. and Katherine Jackson raised questions over whether her absence from her Los Angeles home was voluntary.

Tito Jackson Jr., the son of Michael Jackson's older brother Tito, told Beckloff that he spoke on Tuesday to Katherine Jackson but that she was talking strangely and seemed to be speaking in code.

"I never heard my grandmother talk like that," he said. "I'd ask simple questions and she wasn't sharp."

Another brother, Randy Jackson, said on Twitter Wednesday that suggestions his mother was being held against her will were "absurd."

"Enough already!! We've already lost one family member," Randy Jackson tweeted, claiming the executors of his brother's estate were using the media to "spin their lies and divide our family."

Michael Jackson's will stipulated that money earned by the estate would benefit his mother and his kids. But Randy, Janet and three other siblings say the pop star's signature was forged and that he was not in California on the date it was signed.

The executors of the estate insist the will is valid and said earlier this week they were concerned about protecting the kids from "undue influences, bullying and greed."

Since Jackson's death, the executors have approved numerous projects including a posthumous concert rehearsal film "This Is It", a Cirque du Soleil show, and releases of new and old Jackson music and videos.

Music publication Billboard estimated in 2010 that the "Thriller" singer's estate generated about $1 billion in revenue in just the first year following his death from an overdose of the surgical anesthetic propofol.

According to financial documents filed recently with a Los Angeles probate judge, the estate has earned $475 million in gross profits since Jackson's death, and much of the singer's estimated $500 million debt has been paid off.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Paul Simao)

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Olympic Games opening sparks betting flurry on filmmaker Boyle

LONDON (Reuters) - Bookmakers expect record gambling on the 2012 Olympics after the opening ceremony prompted a flood of bets on event mastermind Danny Boyle receiving a knighthood - and confusion over wagers laid on who would light the Olympic flame.

Since London won the Olympics in 2005 gamblers have forked out on the closely guarded secret of who would light the flame, with British five-times gold medalist, rower Steve Redgrave, the clear favorite.

But in the end, seven young athletes selected by seven British Olympians lit the flame in unison, causing divides in the bookmaking ranks over how to handle the bet.

Ladbrokes and Stan James decided to pay out on all seven of the British Olympians involved which included Redgrave, Daley Thompson and Kelly Holmes.

William Hill voided all bets and refunded about 50,000 pounds ($80,000) wagered on the event since 2005.

"It is a bit disappointing as we've been taking bets on this for years and in the end there is no winner. There is no way anyone could have predicted any one or all of the seven people chosen," William Hill spokesman Graham Sharpe said.

Stan James said it had voided all losing bets, meaning punters got their money refunded.

"It's a once in a lifetime occasion and we thought it appropriate to make this gesture after such an incredible start to the London Olympics," spokesman Rory Jiwani said.

Bookmakers said the success of the opening ceremony devised by Boyle, who won an Oscar for his movie "Slumdog Millionaire", had ignited a feelgood factor and already boosted gambling interest in the Olympics - and not just in the sports.

QUEEN ON FILM

Boyle, 55, is being tipped to be awarded a knighthood in the New Year Honours List by Queen Elizabeth, whom he somehow managed to persuade to take part in her first movie role.

During the opening ceremony, a film showed James Bond actor Daniel Craig arriving at Buckingham Palace and escorting the Queen to a helicopter. Minutes later a helicopter appeared over the stadium and released two parachutists. The Queen then walked into the stadium to huge cheers from the 60,000 crowd.

"Everyone was amazed and wowed at what Boyle did last night," Ladbroke's spokeswoman Jessica Bridge said. "Before this Danny Boyle was 2-1 to get a knighthood but due to the sheer volume of bets we have cut this to 5-4."

She said the largest bet so far was 5,000 pounds.

Coral spokesman David Stevens said they were running odds on Saturday of 6-4 that Boyle is knighted next year, having been 4-1 immediately after the opening ceremony.

Jirwani said the ceremony had boosted patriotic pride with odds of 4-5 that the British team will win more than 22 gold medals compared to 19 in Beijing which could push them above Russia to be third in medal table behind the United States and China.

Bookmakers are forecasting between 50-100 million pounds ($80-160 million) will be wagered on the London Games, which would be four to five times more than gambled at Beijing but still way short of other major sporting events.

They expected plenty of money on football and tennis with some interest in cycling after Bradley Wiggins' Tour de France victory.

The men's 100 meters race, a highlight of the Olympics, was not seen as a great draw for gamblers.

Mark Maydon, commercial director of the Sporting Index Group, said the odds were against Jamaica's Usain Bolt setting a new world record at this event after stunning the world with his 9.69 second win at Beijing. Bolt cut this to 9.58 a year later.

He predicted the 100 meters would be run in 9.71 seconds with only half of the 8-strong field running under 10 seconds.

Sharpe said gamblers were not enthusiastic about the race.

"It really is a two-horse race between Bolt and (fellow Jamaican) Yohan Blake and gamblers like to have a bit more competition than that," he said.

(Editing by Alison Williams)

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