A woman judge was appointed to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday for the first time in the judicial history of Bangladesh.
Justice Nazmun Ara Sultana—who passed order directing BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia to vacate her cantonment house—is the country’s first woman
judge in the Appellate Division.
The government on Tuesday also appointed three more new judges to the Appellate Division of the SC. They are Justices MA Wahhab Miah, Syed Mahmud Hossain and M Imman Ali. All of them were High Court judges prior to this appointment.
Justice M Imman Ali has become famous for handing down many historic judgments, including one directing the government to release all juvenile prisoners from prisons across the country.
President Zillur Rahman appointed them SC judges as per recommendation of Chief Justice ABM Khairul Haque.
The chief justice is likely to administer oath to the new judges this morning.
The total number of judges in the Appellate Division stands at eight including the new ones.
As per rules, the Appellate Division should have 11 judges but it had only four judges, including one who remains abroad on leave, prior to appointment of the new judges.
A bench comprising the chief justice and two judges is not enough to expedite disposal of a total of 5,000 cases, which has been remained pending in the Appellate Division.
SC lawyer Manzill Murshid said the Appellate Division could be divided into two benches —one headed by the chief justice and another led by a senior judge— to dispose of the pending cases quickly if the government appoints three more judges.
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Steps soon to remove teacher crisis in govt medical colleges in Bangladesh
The government will start the process of appointment and promotion of teachers in the government medical colleges through the departmental promotion committee (DPC) immediately to reduce teacher crisis, Health Minster AFM Ruhal Haque said on Tuesday.
Promotions in medical colleges remained stagnant due to the lengthy Public Service Commission (PSC) process which ultimately made the crisis acute. The appointment and promotion of teachers will be speeded up soon after having the approvals of President and Prime Minister on DPC, he added.
The minister said this while inaugurating a daylong workshop on “Finalising the training manual for the health care providers,” organised by the Community Clinic Project of the government at the Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons, Mohakhali in city.
State minister for health Captain (Retd) Dr. Mojibur Rahman Fakir, director of the Community Clinic project Dr. Mukh-duma Nargis chaired the session while Health Secretary Md Humayun Kabir, secretary general of Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) Prof Dr Sharfuddin Ahmed, WHO Representative Dr Arun Thapa and director general of Family Planning (DGFP) Dr MM Neaz Uddin also spoke on the occasion.
The minister called upon the DGHS and DGFP to work collectively to reactivate community clinics to ensure necessary healthcare services for the common people.
Addressing the work-shop, Captain (Retd) Dr Mojibur Rahman Fakir said that every clinic has to be turned into a coordinated unit of service delivery for providing health, nutrition and family planning services to the people.
He said providing healthcare service is possible to about 80 percent of people if the community clinics can be reactivated. He asked the concerned officials to complete the appointment process of 13,500 community healthcare providers at the earliest.
The training manual that was formally launched, mention clearly about primary health care, communicating with the local people, health educ-ation and counselling, environment development, hygienic residence etc.
The manual also provides a guideline for neonatal care, child health, reproductive and maternal health, family planning services etc.
Read the original story on The Daily Sun
Promotions in medical colleges remained stagnant due to the lengthy Public Service Commission (PSC) process which ultimately made the crisis acute. The appointment and promotion of teachers will be speeded up soon after having the approvals of President and Prime Minister on DPC, he added.
The minister said this while inaugurating a daylong workshop on “Finalising the training manual for the health care providers,” organised by the Community Clinic Project of the government at the Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons, Mohakhali in city.
State minister for health Captain (Retd) Dr. Mojibur Rahman Fakir, director of the Community Clinic project Dr. Mukh-duma Nargis chaired the session while Health Secretary Md Humayun Kabir, secretary general of Bangladesh Medical Association (BMA) Prof Dr Sharfuddin Ahmed, WHO Representative Dr Arun Thapa and director general of Family Planning (DGFP) Dr MM Neaz Uddin also spoke on the occasion.
The minister called upon the DGHS and DGFP to work collectively to reactivate community clinics to ensure necessary healthcare services for the common people.
Addressing the work-shop, Captain (Retd) Dr Mojibur Rahman Fakir said that every clinic has to be turned into a coordinated unit of service delivery for providing health, nutrition and family planning services to the people.
He said providing healthcare service is possible to about 80 percent of people if the community clinics can be reactivated. He asked the concerned officials to complete the appointment process of 13,500 community healthcare providers at the earliest.
The training manual that was formally launched, mention clearly about primary health care, communicating with the local people, health educ-ation and counselling, environment development, hygienic residence etc.
The manual also provides a guideline for neonatal care, child health, reproductive and maternal health, family planning services etc.
Read the original story on The Daily Sun
Bangladesh parliamentary body for enactment of deep seaport authority act
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Shipping Ministry has recommended enactment of deep seaport authority act within one month and asked the ministry to present the draft act before the committee soon.
It also suggested that a provision for authorising the deep seaport authority should be incorporated in the proposed act to supervise construction of the third seaport in the country’s southern part besides looking after the construction work of other seaports in future.
The parliamentary watchdog made the suggestions at its 23rd meeting held at the Parliament Building on Tuesday.
Meeting sources said in November last year the shipping ministry sent the draft act to the ministries concerned but the law ministry is yet to give its final opinion in this regard.
The shipping ministry has already started communicating with the donor organisations after preparing a Tk 15,986 crore pre-development project proposal.
Some 22 international consultation firms expressed their eagerness to prepare the design of the deep seaport. The ministry has started examining the documents submitted by these organisations.
The Chittagong seaport authority will bear the expenses for preparing the detailed design of the deep seaport, the meeting sources said.
The meeting also discussed allotment for the country’s land ports and their earnings. It also asked the ministry to submit a report on the allotment and earnings of the land ports in future.The parliamentary watc-hdog opined that Mongla Port has been incurring losses every year as no industries have been set up on 460 acres of the port land that was given lease to the EPZ authority.
It also suggested a discussion to determine whether the port land can be given lease to local entrepr-eneurs for setting up industries there.
The committee also suggested that the ministry should prepare a ‘priority list’ to implement the recom-mendations of the com-mittee. It asked the ministry to present a ‘priority list’ in its next meeting.
Committee chairman Noor-e-Alam Chowdhury presided over the meeting which attended by members Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan, Mohammad Shah Alam, Habibun Nahar, Shamsul Huq Chowdhury, Md Abu Jahir and Nazrul Islam Babu. Officials concerned including Shipping Secretary Abdul Mannan Hawlader was also present.
Read the original story on The Daily Sun
It also suggested that a provision for authorising the deep seaport authority should be incorporated in the proposed act to supervise construction of the third seaport in the country’s southern part besides looking after the construction work of other seaports in future.
The parliamentary watchdog made the suggestions at its 23rd meeting held at the Parliament Building on Tuesday.
Meeting sources said in November last year the shipping ministry sent the draft act to the ministries concerned but the law ministry is yet to give its final opinion in this regard.
The shipping ministry has already started communicating with the donor organisations after preparing a Tk 15,986 crore pre-development project proposal.
Some 22 international consultation firms expressed their eagerness to prepare the design of the deep seaport. The ministry has started examining the documents submitted by these organisations.
The Chittagong seaport authority will bear the expenses for preparing the detailed design of the deep seaport, the meeting sources said.
The meeting also discussed allotment for the country’s land ports and their earnings. It also asked the ministry to submit a report on the allotment and earnings of the land ports in future.The parliamentary watc-hdog opined that Mongla Port has been incurring losses every year as no industries have been set up on 460 acres of the port land that was given lease to the EPZ authority.
It also suggested a discussion to determine whether the port land can be given lease to local entrepr-eneurs for setting up industries there.
The committee also suggested that the ministry should prepare a ‘priority list’ to implement the recom-mendations of the com-mittee. It asked the ministry to present a ‘priority list’ in its next meeting.
Committee chairman Noor-e-Alam Chowdhury presided over the meeting which attended by members Shipping Minister Shahjahan Khan, Mohammad Shah Alam, Habibun Nahar, Shamsul Huq Chowdhury, Md Abu Jahir and Nazrul Islam Babu. Officials concerned including Shipping Secretary Abdul Mannan Hawlader was also present.
Read the original story on The Daily Sun
Bangladesh Law Commission yet to decide on 49 laws
Firoz Al Mamun
The government sent 49 drafts of constitutionally obligatory laws to the Law Commission for recommendations six months ago but the commission is yet to respond.
Prof. Dr M Shah Alam, chairman of the commission, said they decided to give recommendations on the draft laws after getting the reprinted constitution.
“The government is reprinting the constitution including and excluding many provisions. A parliamentary standing committee is also examining it,” said Shah Alam.
He said the commission felt the necessity to enact three laws primarily on the specific qualifications of the High Court judges, powers of parliamentary standing committee and balance of power between the president and the chief adviser during the caretaker government.
The constitution made it obligatory for the government to enact some laws to run the state smoothly and avoid unwarranted political disputes. But no government over the last four decades took initiatives to enact the laws.
“It is difficult to establish constitutional rule completely without these laws,” said Suranjit Sengupta, chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on law, justice and parliamentary affairs ministry.
A parliamentary panel observed that as per the constitution some laws are needed to be enacted on the privileges of lawmakers, jurisdiction of parliamentary standing committees [especially in case of enforcing the attendance of witnesses and interrogating them on oath and compelling the production of documents], qualifications of judges of the Supreme Court and advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and qualifications of election commissioners.
As per a decision taken by the legislative panel on law, justice and parliam-entary affairs in May last year, the government sent a list of constitutional oblig-atory laws to the Law Commission for scrutiny.
The parliamentary panel also asked the law ministry to take necessary measures to comply with the provisions of the constitution to which a total of 14 amendments were made after it was adopted on November 4, 1972.
As there is no specified law on the appointment of election commissioners, the quasi-judicial Election Commission requested the government to enact a law to this end. The EC had earlier prepared a draft outlining the criteria for appointment of future election commis-sioners.
Supreme Court lawyer Manzill Murshid said a constitutionally obligatory law on appointment of an ombudsman was passed in 1980 but it did not come into effect.
About the tenure of the caretaker government, he said the government should make law clarifying that the CG will resign or hand over power to the president in absence of an elected PM if it fails to hold poll within 90 days.
Apart from these, the SC should make rules as stated by Article 107 of the constitution to regulate practice and procedure of the High Court Division and the Appellate Division.
Read the original story on the Daily Sun
The government sent 49 drafts of constitutionally obligatory laws to the Law Commission for recommendations six months ago but the commission is yet to respond.
Prof. Dr M Shah Alam, chairman of the commission, said they decided to give recommendations on the draft laws after getting the reprinted constitution.
“The government is reprinting the constitution including and excluding many provisions. A parliamentary standing committee is also examining it,” said Shah Alam.
He said the commission felt the necessity to enact three laws primarily on the specific qualifications of the High Court judges, powers of parliamentary standing committee and balance of power between the president and the chief adviser during the caretaker government.
The constitution made it obligatory for the government to enact some laws to run the state smoothly and avoid unwarranted political disputes. But no government over the last four decades took initiatives to enact the laws.
“It is difficult to establish constitutional rule completely without these laws,” said Suranjit Sengupta, chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on law, justice and parliamentary affairs ministry.
A parliamentary panel observed that as per the constitution some laws are needed to be enacted on the privileges of lawmakers, jurisdiction of parliamentary standing committees [especially in case of enforcing the attendance of witnesses and interrogating them on oath and compelling the production of documents], qualifications of judges of the Supreme Court and advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and qualifications of election commissioners.
As per a decision taken by the legislative panel on law, justice and parliam-entary affairs in May last year, the government sent a list of constitutional oblig-atory laws to the Law Commission for scrutiny.
The parliamentary panel also asked the law ministry to take necessary measures to comply with the provisions of the constitution to which a total of 14 amendments were made after it was adopted on November 4, 1972.
As there is no specified law on the appointment of election commissioners, the quasi-judicial Election Commission requested the government to enact a law to this end. The EC had earlier prepared a draft outlining the criteria for appointment of future election commis-sioners.
Supreme Court lawyer Manzill Murshid said a constitutionally obligatory law on appointment of an ombudsman was passed in 1980 but it did not come into effect.
About the tenure of the caretaker government, he said the government should make law clarifying that the CG will resign or hand over power to the president in absence of an elected PM if it fails to hold poll within 90 days.
Apart from these, the SC should make rules as stated by Article 107 of the constitution to regulate practice and procedure of the High Court Division and the Appellate Division.
Read the original story on the Daily Sun
Dhaka to evacuate its nationals from Libya
Dhaka will evacuate its 50,000 nationals from Libya including 5,000 from the city of Benghazi as the African nation has been witnessing a pro-democracy upsurge.“We have decided to evacuate our nationals from Benghazi, now the most troubled city of Libya... the process has started already,” Foreign Minister Dr Dipu Moni told a group of journalists at her office here on Tuesday.
Dipu said Dhaka was closely monitoring the situation in Libya and keeping constant contact with Bangladesh mission in Tripoli, while talks were opened with the relevant international organisations for emergency evacuation. Expatriates Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Engineer Mosharraf Hossain at a separate briefing at his office on the day said the government had taken “All steps required to ensure security of Bangladeshi workers” in Libya and Middle Eastern countries.
“There is nothing to be panicked. If needed, UN assistance would be sought,” he told the press briefing at his office at Bangladesh Secretariat. He was, however, quick to hold that the situation not such as to warrant UN intervention at the moment.
He said the government was trying to contact the Libyan authorities through the official channel following the publication of a report in newspapers that 100 Bangladeshis had been held hostage in a community centre in Benghazi.
Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes at a briefing later on the day, however, ruled out reports that Bangladeshis had been taken hostage saying according to the “latest information we received, all Bangladeshis in Libya are safe, none were injured or kept hostage”.
Hossain said the Bangladesh mission opened a control room to take measures for security of 50,000 expatriate Bangladeshis and monitor their conditions, he said while his office was also in contacts with the overseas recruiting agencies.
“They (recruiting agencies) have been asked to shift the Bangladeshi workers to safer places,” the expatriates welfare minister said.
Officials earlier said the number of Bangladeshi nationals in Libya was more than 50,000. They were residing in different cities and industrial regions across the country.
Meanwhile, the foreign ministry on Tuesday also issued a statement saying “our Embassy (in Tripoli) is in touch with the Bangladeshi expatriates throughout Libya (and) the safety of Bangladesh nationals is of prime interest to the government of Bangladesh” while Dhaka was closely following current development in Libya.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is exploring all options to ensure safety and security of all Bangladesh nationals in Libya. A cell has been opened in the Ministry to coordinate emergency response, if and when necessary,” it said.
The statement also said that Bangladesh was concerned at the onset of violence and hoped that all concerned would exercise restraint and bring about a peaceful resolution of the present crisis as Dhaka looked forward and to an early return of normalcy in Libya.
Read the original story on The Independent
Dipu said Dhaka was closely monitoring the situation in Libya and keeping constant contact with Bangladesh mission in Tripoli, while talks were opened with the relevant international organisations for emergency evacuation. Expatriates Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Engineer Mosharraf Hossain at a separate briefing at his office on the day said the government had taken “All steps required to ensure security of Bangladeshi workers” in Libya and Middle Eastern countries.
“There is nothing to be panicked. If needed, UN assistance would be sought,” he told the press briefing at his office at Bangladesh Secretariat. He was, however, quick to hold that the situation not such as to warrant UN intervention at the moment.
He said the government was trying to contact the Libyan authorities through the official channel following the publication of a report in newspapers that 100 Bangladeshis had been held hostage in a community centre in Benghazi.
Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes at a briefing later on the day, however, ruled out reports that Bangladeshis had been taken hostage saying according to the “latest information we received, all Bangladeshis in Libya are safe, none were injured or kept hostage”.
Hossain said the Bangladesh mission opened a control room to take measures for security of 50,000 expatriate Bangladeshis and monitor their conditions, he said while his office was also in contacts with the overseas recruiting agencies.
“They (recruiting agencies) have been asked to shift the Bangladeshi workers to safer places,” the expatriates welfare minister said.
Officials earlier said the number of Bangladeshi nationals in Libya was more than 50,000. They were residing in different cities and industrial regions across the country.
Meanwhile, the foreign ministry on Tuesday also issued a statement saying “our Embassy (in Tripoli) is in touch with the Bangladeshi expatriates throughout Libya (and) the safety of Bangladesh nationals is of prime interest to the government of Bangladesh” while Dhaka was closely following current development in Libya.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is exploring all options to ensure safety and security of all Bangladesh nationals in Libya. A cell has been opened in the Ministry to coordinate emergency response, if and when necessary,” it said.
The statement also said that Bangladesh was concerned at the onset of violence and hoped that all concerned would exercise restraint and bring about a peaceful resolution of the present crisis as Dhaka looked forward and to an early return of normalcy in Libya.
Read the original story on The Independent
Navigability in Padma diminishing
The plying of water vessels in the river Padma near Paturia ghat is at stake, as navigability in the river of Padma between Paturia and Daulatdia ghats dwindles on a rapid decline of the water level.
Consequently, ferries are risking accidents and frequently being stuck in shoals. About 1,000 vehicles were seen waiting on both sides of the river on Tuesday. Ferry crisis and bad weather created a huge traffic jam at both the ghats. Several hundred vehicles, including buses, were stranded on both the sides of the river for hours causing immense sufferings to passengers, especially women and children.The Water Development Board showed the February 21 water level at Aricha point at 2.52 centimetres, which made the navigability perilous. It causes a regular traffic congestion on both sides—Paturia ghat in Manikganj and Daulatdia ferry terminal in Rajbari.
Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) began dredging of the river targeting removal of 15 lakh cubic metres of sediments.
The government allocated Tk 156 per cubic metre of sediment. Two BIWTA dredgers are working on smoothening the route. On the ferry crisis, Ashraf Ullah Khan, BIWTC manager (Commerce), said the crisis turned worse when two ferries—Bir Shrestha Jahangir and Bir Shrestha Hamidur Rahman—became inoperative on Monday.
The ferry service is under a pressure of excess transports due to the ‘urs’ at Biswa Jaker Monjil at Atroshi in Faridpur, Khan pointed out. He said a ferry could carry 20 trucks or big size buses when there is sufficient water in the channel. Now, a ferry is carrying 10/12 trucks or seven big size passenger buses for the lack of the navigability.
Read the original story on The Independent
Consequently, ferries are risking accidents and frequently being stuck in shoals. About 1,000 vehicles were seen waiting on both sides of the river on Tuesday. Ferry crisis and bad weather created a huge traffic jam at both the ghats. Several hundred vehicles, including buses, were stranded on both the sides of the river for hours causing immense sufferings to passengers, especially women and children.The Water Development Board showed the February 21 water level at Aricha point at 2.52 centimetres, which made the navigability perilous. It causes a regular traffic congestion on both sides—Paturia ghat in Manikganj and Daulatdia ferry terminal in Rajbari.
Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) began dredging of the river targeting removal of 15 lakh cubic metres of sediments.
The government allocated Tk 156 per cubic metre of sediment. Two BIWTA dredgers are working on smoothening the route. On the ferry crisis, Ashraf Ullah Khan, BIWTC manager (Commerce), said the crisis turned worse when two ferries—Bir Shrestha Jahangir and Bir Shrestha Hamidur Rahman—became inoperative on Monday.
The ferry service is under a pressure of excess transports due to the ‘urs’ at Biswa Jaker Monjil at Atroshi in Faridpur, Khan pointed out. He said a ferry could carry 20 trucks or big size buses when there is sufficient water in the channel. Now, a ferry is carrying 10/12 trucks or seven big size passenger buses for the lack of the navigability.
Read the original story on The Independent
Bangladesh cell to prevent cellphone crime
The home ministry will form a monitoring cell to prevent mobile phone-based crimes and unauthorised sale of SIMs, says the state minister.
“The cell will work to put an end to mobile phone crimes. Home ministry joint secretary (political) will head the body to be formed with representatives from law-enforcing agencies, detective agencies and mobile operators,” Shamsul Haque Tuku said on Wednesday.
“The government is serious to deal with such crimes,” he told reporters after a meeting with officials of six mobile operators at the Secretariat.
The mobile phone operators on Wednesday urged the state minister to lift the provision that requires showing the national identity card for buying SIMs (Subscriber Identification Modules) while the sale only by authorised dealers and retailers.
The government imposed the rules in October last year, a decision that the operators claim has reduced their sale of SIMs.
They proposed Tuku to allow also certificates from public representatives and other identity cards as proofs of identity.
Tuku assured the operators that he would raise the issue with the national committee on mobile phone.
He, however, warned that those selling SIMs without specific documents will be caught and detained.
The monitoring cell will look into mobile phone-related crime cases and the illegal sale of SIMs, he added.
There are 751 dealers and 185,100 retailers collectively authorised by the mobile operators in the country.
Read the original story on The Independent
“The cell will work to put an end to mobile phone crimes. Home ministry joint secretary (political) will head the body to be formed with representatives from law-enforcing agencies, detective agencies and mobile operators,” Shamsul Haque Tuku said on Wednesday.
“The government is serious to deal with such crimes,” he told reporters after a meeting with officials of six mobile operators at the Secretariat.
The mobile phone operators on Wednesday urged the state minister to lift the provision that requires showing the national identity card for buying SIMs (Subscriber Identification Modules) while the sale only by authorised dealers and retailers.
The government imposed the rules in October last year, a decision that the operators claim has reduced their sale of SIMs.
They proposed Tuku to allow also certificates from public representatives and other identity cards as proofs of identity.
Tuku assured the operators that he would raise the issue with the national committee on mobile phone.
He, however, warned that those selling SIMs without specific documents will be caught and detained.
The monitoring cell will look into mobile phone-related crime cases and the illegal sale of SIMs, he added.
There are 751 dealers and 185,100 retailers collectively authorised by the mobile operators in the country.
Read the original story on The Independent
PM Sheikh Hasina against pressuring traders
Prime minister Sheikh Hasina has said that she is not in favour of putting pressure on businessmen with regard to the rise of prices of essential items.
Responding to queries at parliament during the weekly question-answer hour for the premier on Wednesday, Hasina said she had been trying to convince the business community to make only reasonable profits.
The prime minister, however, said her government would act tough against the businessmen indulging in hoarding.
“I am not in favour of taking action against businessmen,” said Hasina replying to a question from Awami League MP Shah Alam, who asked whether she would act against the people responsible for pushing the prices of essentials.
Every businessman would make profit, she said. “But it should not hurt people. They should keep prices within the purchasing power of the people,” she added.
The premier said that she sat with businessmen and listened to them.
“We are trying to do what they suggested to us,” said Hasina who promised to keep prices of essentials in check.
“We should not pressure the businessmen only. We have to understand their problems too. But we will take necessary action against the people found hoarding for increasing price levels,” she said.
The prime minister said her government had taken adequate measures to enhance the purchasing power of the people.
Read the original story on The Independent
Responding to queries at parliament during the weekly question-answer hour for the premier on Wednesday, Hasina said she had been trying to convince the business community to make only reasonable profits.
The prime minister, however, said her government would act tough against the businessmen indulging in hoarding.
“I am not in favour of taking action against businessmen,” said Hasina replying to a question from Awami League MP Shah Alam, who asked whether she would act against the people responsible for pushing the prices of essentials.
Every businessman would make profit, she said. “But it should not hurt people. They should keep prices within the purchasing power of the people,” she added.
The premier said that she sat with businessmen and listened to them.
“We are trying to do what they suggested to us,” said Hasina who promised to keep prices of essentials in check.
“We should not pressure the businessmen only. We have to understand their problems too. But we will take necessary action against the people found hoarding for increasing price levels,” she said.
The prime minister said her government had taken adequate measures to enhance the purchasing power of the people.
Read the original story on The Independent
Neeson's 'Unknown' leads long weekend with $25.5M
AP, LOS ANGELES: Liam Neeson's thriller "Unknown" debuted as the No. 1 movie with $25.5 million over the long Presidents' Day weekend.
"Unknown" finished barely ahead of a holdover that opened the previous weekend, the animated comedy "Gnomeo & Juliet," which was No. 2 with $25.4 million.
The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Monday, followed by distribution studio, gross, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Tuesday by Hollywood.com are:
1. "Unknown," Warner Bros., $25,453,015, 3,043 locations, $8,364 average, $25,453,015, one week.
2. "Gnomeo and Juliet," Disney, $25,415,717, 3,014 locations, $8,433 average, $56,436,249, two weeks.
3. "I Am Number Four," Disney, $22,755,854, 3,154 locations, $7,215 average, $22,755,854, one week.
4. "Just Go With It," Sony, $21,581,024, 3,548 locations, $6,083 average, $64,136,988, two weeks.
5. "Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son," Fox, $18,735,026, 2,821 locations, $6,641 average, $18,735,026, one week.
6. "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never," Paramount, $16,364,188, 3,118 locations, $5,248 average, $51,236,937, two weeks.
7. "The King's Speech," Weinstein Co., $8,063,897, 2,086 locations, $3,866 average, $104,775,873, 13 weeks.
8. "The Roommate," Sony Screen Gems, $4,468,309, 2,160 locations, $2,069 average, $33,061,873, three weeks.
9. "The Eagle," Focus, $4,333,044, 2,296 locations, $1,887 average, $15,840,242, two weeks.
10. "No Strings Attached," Paramount, $3,576,797, 1,966 locations, $1,819 average, $66,490,084, five weeks.
11. "True Grit," Paramount, $2,885,736, 1,465 locations, $1,970 average, $164,603,239, nine weeks.
12. "Sanctum," Universal, $1,968,990, 1,377 locations, $1,430 average, $22,277,775, three weeks.
13. "The Green Hornet," Sony, $1,938,216, 1,265 locations, $1,532 average, $95,600,502, six weeks.
14. "The Fighter," Paramount, $1,910,835, 759 locations, $2,518 average, $88,322,333, 11 weeks.
15. "Black Swan," Fox Searchlight, $1,608,916, 656 locations, $2,453 average, $101,817,991, 12 weeks.
16. "The Rite," Warner Bros., $1,312,299, 1,048 locations, $1,252 average, $31,574,684, four weeks.
17. "The Mechanic," CBS Films, $1,194,515, 952 locations, $1,255 average, $28,077,208, four weeks.
18. "Cedar Rapids," Fox Searchlight, $1,089,297, 102 locations, $10,679 average, $1,490,775, two weeks.
19. "Barney's Version," Sony Pictures Classics, $884,317, 322 locations, $2,746 average, $4,602,754, six weeks.
20. "Tangled," Disney, $743,090, 389 locations, $1,910 average, $194,306,677, 13 weeks.
"Unknown" finished barely ahead of a holdover that opened the previous weekend, the animated comedy "Gnomeo & Juliet," which was No. 2 with $25.4 million.
The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Monday, followed by distribution studio, gross, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Tuesday by Hollywood.com are:
1. "Unknown," Warner Bros., $25,453,015, 3,043 locations, $8,364 average, $25,453,015, one week.
2. "Gnomeo and Juliet," Disney, $25,415,717, 3,014 locations, $8,433 average, $56,436,249, two weeks.
3. "I Am Number Four," Disney, $22,755,854, 3,154 locations, $7,215 average, $22,755,854, one week.
4. "Just Go With It," Sony, $21,581,024, 3,548 locations, $6,083 average, $64,136,988, two weeks.
5. "Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son," Fox, $18,735,026, 2,821 locations, $6,641 average, $18,735,026, one week.
6. "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never," Paramount, $16,364,188, 3,118 locations, $5,248 average, $51,236,937, two weeks.
7. "The King's Speech," Weinstein Co., $8,063,897, 2,086 locations, $3,866 average, $104,775,873, 13 weeks.
8. "The Roommate," Sony Screen Gems, $4,468,309, 2,160 locations, $2,069 average, $33,061,873, three weeks.
9. "The Eagle," Focus, $4,333,044, 2,296 locations, $1,887 average, $15,840,242, two weeks.
10. "No Strings Attached," Paramount, $3,576,797, 1,966 locations, $1,819 average, $66,490,084, five weeks.
11. "True Grit," Paramount, $2,885,736, 1,465 locations, $1,970 average, $164,603,239, nine weeks.
12. "Sanctum," Universal, $1,968,990, 1,377 locations, $1,430 average, $22,277,775, three weeks.
13. "The Green Hornet," Sony, $1,938,216, 1,265 locations, $1,532 average, $95,600,502, six weeks.
14. "The Fighter," Paramount, $1,910,835, 759 locations, $2,518 average, $88,322,333, 11 weeks.
15. "Black Swan," Fox Searchlight, $1,608,916, 656 locations, $2,453 average, $101,817,991, 12 weeks.
16. "The Rite," Warner Bros., $1,312,299, 1,048 locations, $1,252 average, $31,574,684, four weeks.
17. "The Mechanic," CBS Films, $1,194,515, 952 locations, $1,255 average, $28,077,208, four weeks.
18. "Cedar Rapids," Fox Searchlight, $1,089,297, 102 locations, $10,679 average, $1,490,775, two weeks.
19. "Barney's Version," Sony Pictures Classics, $884,317, 322 locations, $2,746 average, $4,602,754, six weeks.
20. "Tangled," Disney, $743,090, 389 locations, $1,910 average, $194,306,677, 13 weeks.
Forest Whitaker fights crime on 'Suspect Behavior'
AP, NEW YORK: Forest Whitaker is one terrific actor. From his start two decades ago in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High," he has logged powerful performances in such films as "Platoon," "Bird," "The Crying Game" and "Ghost Dog: Way of the Samurai," and in a season-long arc of the acclaimed TV drama "The Shield." For his portrayal of mad Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in 2006's "The Last King of Scotland," he won an Oscar for best actor.
But don't think of Whitaker as only an actor. Think of him as a student — he does.
"Constantly, constantly," he says in his disarming, feathery voice. "I like to continue to explore."
Now for Whitaker the exploration is continuing on, of all things, a spinoff of the 6-year-old CBS procedural "Criminal Minds."
In "Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior" (which premiered to a hit-size audience last week and airs Wednesday at 10 p.m. EST, right after its progenitor), Whitaker plays Special Agent Sam Cooper, who heads up an elite team of agents within the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, charged with capturing the nation's most nefarious criminals (or at least some of the bad guys the other show doesn't nab).
The new CBS series follows a tried-and-true storytelling formula. But Whitaker, who says he signed on early in the development process and helped shape his role, sees "Suspect Behavior" as a character study as much as a procedural.
"My character is trying to uncover light," Whitaker says over diet colas in Manhattan last week. "He feels every person has inside of him a light, and he's stripping away all the things that cover it in shadows so he can get to the source. And from that discovery he hopefully can find a common ground."
That's a lot to expect for anybody — bonding one week with a lowlife who abducts little girls, another week with a psycho who gouges out the eyes of her victim.
But as Sam Cooper says to a colleague on the show, "You have to know them. Can't be afraid."
And in a future episode, even Cooper himself becomes the perpetrator.
"In a way, at least, I'm put in that position," Whitaker confides. "The writers are confronting the question, 'What are any of us capable of?' If we can get understanding, we can find compassion, and if compassion occurs and grows big enough, theoretically you should find love. That's what I'm really looking for: Where we're all one thing."
With that, he chuckles at himself and his lofty-sounding talk.
In person, the 49-year-old Whitaker doesn't come across as an actor of kaleidoscopic proportions. At 6 feet and 2 inches, he is more like an oversized teddy bear, with a friendly manner, his distinctive drooping eyelid (he was born with it) and a blinding smile.
Born in Longview, Texas, Whitaker grew up in Los Angeles, where his success in high school football landed him an athletic scholarship at Cal State Fullerton. Then he transferred to the University of Southern California to study voice on a music scholarship. Then he made the shift to drama.
But along with what he learned in drama classes, he applied knowledge gleaned from martial arts and Eastern philosophy, which he began studying as a youngster.
He cites this lesson be borrowed from the dojo: "You should understand that everything doesn't go in a straight line, that some things go down and up and move around in order to get to a target.
"Of any principle in acting," says Whitaker, "I think of that more than anything else."
Whitaker's dodgy path to discovering a character typically leads him through exhaustive preparation.
"When I start a part, normally, I don't know where to begin," he notes. "And always I figure, I better try to start with the truth. So I find out some information."
To prepare for his role on "Suspect Behavior," he spent time at the FBI Academy at Quantico, Va.
But in the past, such as "Last King," he was known to withdraw into his rigorously created character, on- and off-set throughout a film's production. That's a total-immersion process he's rejecting on the new series.
"At times, I was more of a hermit, kind of socially inept," he explains, adding, "I'm better with people than I used to be," and speaks happily of being part of a family on "Suspect Behavior" that might be together for years. Having wrapped the 13 episodes of its first season, he reports, "I like the cast and the crew and the writers."
Meanwhile, he has found time within his series commitment to pursue other projects. The director of several films, he aims to do more, and among his credits as producer is "Brick City," a Peabody Award-winning docuseries aired by Sundance Channel focusing on Newark, N.J., and that troubled city's charismatic mayor, Cory Booker.
It's all part of Whitaker's devotion to being a student.
"When I was a little kid," he recalls, "I wanted to be an ethologist. I had learned that word for an animal behaviorist and I remember saying to my mom, 'If you really look at people and listen to them, you can discover who they are and where they live and what they've done.'
"So, in a way, what I'm doing now is pursuing that. I've got the perfect job to keep exploring what I'm interested in."
But don't think of Whitaker as only an actor. Think of him as a student — he does.
"Constantly, constantly," he says in his disarming, feathery voice. "I like to continue to explore."
Now for Whitaker the exploration is continuing on, of all things, a spinoff of the 6-year-old CBS procedural "Criminal Minds."
In "Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior" (which premiered to a hit-size audience last week and airs Wednesday at 10 p.m. EST, right after its progenitor), Whitaker plays Special Agent Sam Cooper, who heads up an elite team of agents within the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, charged with capturing the nation's most nefarious criminals (or at least some of the bad guys the other show doesn't nab).
The new CBS series follows a tried-and-true storytelling formula. But Whitaker, who says he signed on early in the development process and helped shape his role, sees "Suspect Behavior" as a character study as much as a procedural.
"My character is trying to uncover light," Whitaker says over diet colas in Manhattan last week. "He feels every person has inside of him a light, and he's stripping away all the things that cover it in shadows so he can get to the source. And from that discovery he hopefully can find a common ground."
That's a lot to expect for anybody — bonding one week with a lowlife who abducts little girls, another week with a psycho who gouges out the eyes of her victim.
But as Sam Cooper says to a colleague on the show, "You have to know them. Can't be afraid."
And in a future episode, even Cooper himself becomes the perpetrator.
"In a way, at least, I'm put in that position," Whitaker confides. "The writers are confronting the question, 'What are any of us capable of?' If we can get understanding, we can find compassion, and if compassion occurs and grows big enough, theoretically you should find love. That's what I'm really looking for: Where we're all one thing."
With that, he chuckles at himself and his lofty-sounding talk.
In person, the 49-year-old Whitaker doesn't come across as an actor of kaleidoscopic proportions. At 6 feet and 2 inches, he is more like an oversized teddy bear, with a friendly manner, his distinctive drooping eyelid (he was born with it) and a blinding smile.
Born in Longview, Texas, Whitaker grew up in Los Angeles, where his success in high school football landed him an athletic scholarship at Cal State Fullerton. Then he transferred to the University of Southern California to study voice on a music scholarship. Then he made the shift to drama.
But along with what he learned in drama classes, he applied knowledge gleaned from martial arts and Eastern philosophy, which he began studying as a youngster.
He cites this lesson be borrowed from the dojo: "You should understand that everything doesn't go in a straight line, that some things go down and up and move around in order to get to a target.
"Of any principle in acting," says Whitaker, "I think of that more than anything else."
Whitaker's dodgy path to discovering a character typically leads him through exhaustive preparation.
"When I start a part, normally, I don't know where to begin," he notes. "And always I figure, I better try to start with the truth. So I find out some information."
To prepare for his role on "Suspect Behavior," he spent time at the FBI Academy at Quantico, Va.
But in the past, such as "Last King," he was known to withdraw into his rigorously created character, on- and off-set throughout a film's production. That's a total-immersion process he's rejecting on the new series.
"At times, I was more of a hermit, kind of socially inept," he explains, adding, "I'm better with people than I used to be," and speaks happily of being part of a family on "Suspect Behavior" that might be together for years. Having wrapped the 13 episodes of its first season, he reports, "I like the cast and the crew and the writers."
Meanwhile, he has found time within his series commitment to pursue other projects. The director of several films, he aims to do more, and among his credits as producer is "Brick City," a Peabody Award-winning docuseries aired by Sundance Channel focusing on Newark, N.J., and that troubled city's charismatic mayor, Cory Booker.
It's all part of Whitaker's devotion to being a student.
"When I was a little kid," he recalls, "I wanted to be an ethologist. I had learned that word for an animal behaviorist and I remember saying to my mom, 'If you really look at people and listen to them, you can discover who they are and where they live and what they've done.'
"So, in a way, what I'm doing now is pursuing that. I've got the perfect job to keep exploring what I'm interested in."
PBS music series begins third season April 1
AP, NEW YORK: PBS opens the third season of "Live From the Artists Den" on April 1 with an Elvis Costello concert in a venue most associated with quiet.
Costello and his band, the Sugarcanes, perform at the New York Public Library in Manhattan.
The music series is known for hosting artists in shows at unusual, intimate settings.
Other artists lined up for the third season include Robert Plant, Ray LaMontagne, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Daniel Merriweather, A Fine Frenzy and Lisa Hannigan.
Plant plays at the War Memorial Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn.
Says the former Led Zeppelin singer: "To work your craft, you've got to be close with your musicians. So I enjoy intimacy now. I can't say that I'd be in a hurry to go back to Madison Square Garden again."
Costello and his band, the Sugarcanes, perform at the New York Public Library in Manhattan.
The music series is known for hosting artists in shows at unusual, intimate settings.
Other artists lined up for the third season include Robert Plant, Ray LaMontagne, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Daniel Merriweather, A Fine Frenzy and Lisa Hannigan.
Plant plays at the War Memorial Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn.
Says the former Led Zeppelin singer: "To work your craft, you've got to be close with your musicians. So I enjoy intimacy now. I can't say that I'd be in a hurry to go back to Madison Square Garden again."
Judge bars website from live TV, baseball streams
Reuters, NEW YORK: An upstart website has been blocked by a federal judge from streaming broadcast network shows and live broadcasts of Major League Baseball games in violation of federal copyright law.
The ruling by U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald against ivi Inc came 20 days after U.S. prosecutors seized 10 popular websites that they said illegally streamed live sports and pay-per-view events over the Internet.
Tuesday's preliminary injunction blocks Seattle-based ivi from providing feeds to clients who download its TV player and pay a $4.99 monthly fee.
In response to the ruling, ivi told subscribers it will shut down most of its broadcast channel offerings.
Chief Executive Todd Weaver in an emailed statement said the company will appeal the Manhattan judge's ruling.
The plaintiffs included content providers such as Walt Disney Co's ABC, CBS Corp, Comcast Corp's NBC, News Corp's Fox, Tribune Co, the Public Broadcasting Service, Spanish language broadcaster Univision Communications Inc and Major League Baseball.
Ivi had filed a pre-emptive lawsuit against the broadcasters last September 20, one week after the company's launch, seeking a ruling that its broadcasts did not infringe their copyrights.
It said the U.S. Copyright Act allowed it to transmit copyrighted works from stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle.
Viewers could access more than 20 channels for $4.99 per month, plus an additional 99 cents for the ability to pause, rewind and fast-forward.
But Buchwald said it is "extraordinarily unlikely" that ivi might ultimately qualify as a cable system entitling it to broadcast the shows.
A contrary result "essentially means that anyone with a computer, Internet connection, and TV antenna can become a 'cable system,'" Buchwald wrote. "It cannot be seriously argued that this is what Congress intended."
Ivi, she added, "cannot seriously argue that the existence of thousands of companies who legitimately use plaintiffs' programing and pay full freight means that ivi's illegal and uncompensated use does not irreparably harm plaintiffs."
The case is WPIX Inc et al v. Ivi Inc, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 10-07415.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; additional reporting by Jennifer Saba, editing by Matthew Lewis)
The ruling by U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald against ivi Inc came 20 days after U.S. prosecutors seized 10 popular websites that they said illegally streamed live sports and pay-per-view events over the Internet.
Tuesday's preliminary injunction blocks Seattle-based ivi from providing feeds to clients who download its TV player and pay a $4.99 monthly fee.
In response to the ruling, ivi told subscribers it will shut down most of its broadcast channel offerings.
Chief Executive Todd Weaver in an emailed statement said the company will appeal the Manhattan judge's ruling.
The plaintiffs included content providers such as Walt Disney Co's ABC, CBS Corp, Comcast Corp's NBC, News Corp's Fox, Tribune Co, the Public Broadcasting Service, Spanish language broadcaster Univision Communications Inc and Major League Baseball.
Ivi had filed a pre-emptive lawsuit against the broadcasters last September 20, one week after the company's launch, seeking a ruling that its broadcasts did not infringe their copyrights.
It said the U.S. Copyright Act allowed it to transmit copyrighted works from stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Seattle.
Viewers could access more than 20 channels for $4.99 per month, plus an additional 99 cents for the ability to pause, rewind and fast-forward.
But Buchwald said it is "extraordinarily unlikely" that ivi might ultimately qualify as a cable system entitling it to broadcast the shows.
A contrary result "essentially means that anyone with a computer, Internet connection, and TV antenna can become a 'cable system,'" Buchwald wrote. "It cannot be seriously argued that this is what Congress intended."
Ivi, she added, "cannot seriously argue that the existence of thousands of companies who legitimately use plaintiffs' programing and pay full freight means that ivi's illegal and uncompensated use does not irreparably harm plaintiffs."
The case is WPIX Inc et al v. Ivi Inc, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 10-07415.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; additional reporting by Jennifer Saba, editing by Matthew Lewis)
Former Marines film bounty hunter show in Utah
AP, SALT LAKE CITY: Two former Marines are filming a reality bounty hunter show in Utah called "Rock-n-Lock."
KTVX-TV reports John Murray and Monika Zajac star in the reality show based on Rebel Bail Bonds in Utah.
The show features the former marines learning how to be bail enforcement agents.
Murray guarded singers like Bret Michaels of Poison and Kid Rock for 15 years. He also appeared in the VH1 reality show called "Rock of Love" with Michaels.
Zajac appeared in the movie "Vengeance."
"Rock-n-Lock" producers say the program will make its Utah debut in six weeks. They are still negotiating when and where it will air.
KTVX-TV reports John Murray and Monika Zajac star in the reality show based on Rebel Bail Bonds in Utah.
The show features the former marines learning how to be bail enforcement agents.
Murray guarded singers like Bret Michaels of Poison and Kid Rock for 15 years. He also appeared in the VH1 reality show called "Rock of Love" with Michaels.
Zajac appeared in the movie "Vengeance."
"Rock-n-Lock" producers say the program will make its Utah debut in six weeks. They are still negotiating when and where it will air.
Larry King to tour with a one-man show
AP, NEW YORK: Larry King is not done talking.
The former talk-show host, who retired last year after 25 years at CNN, will be taking the stage in seven communities to dish about his storied career in a one-man show.
The 77-year-old will offer theatergoers an inside look at his life and the ability to ask questions of the Emmy Award winner when "Larry King: Stand Up" kicks off April 14 in Torrington, Conn.
The show will then make stops in Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland, New Jersey and Nevada, ending June 11 at the Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas.
King was a weeknight fixture with his signature suspenders on CNN since 1985.
The former talk-show host, who retired last year after 25 years at CNN, will be taking the stage in seven communities to dish about his storied career in a one-man show.
The 77-year-old will offer theatergoers an inside look at his life and the ability to ask questions of the Emmy Award winner when "Larry King: Stand Up" kicks off April 14 in Torrington, Conn.
The show will then make stops in Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland, New Jersey and Nevada, ending June 11 at the Mirage Hotel in Las Vegas.
King was a weeknight fixture with his signature suspenders on CNN since 1985.
CBS sets deal with Netflix to stream some TV shows
Reuters, NEW YORK: CBS Corp struck a partnership with Netflix Inc allowing the online video company to stream CBS library content including television shows "Cheers," "Frasier," "The Andy Griffith Show," and "The Twilight Zone" to Netflix subscribers.
Terms of the two-year, nonexclusive agreement were not disclosed.
"This deal recognizes the increasing value of our content in today's marketplace," Scott Koondel, president of distribution, CBS Television Distribution, said in a statement. "More and more, people want to be able to access our programing on a wide variety of platforms."
(Reporting by Jennifer Saba, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)
Terms of the two-year, nonexclusive agreement were not disclosed.
"This deal recognizes the increasing value of our content in today's marketplace," Scott Koondel, president of distribution, CBS Television Distribution, said in a statement. "More and more, people want to be able to access our programing on a wide variety of platforms."
(Reporting by Jennifer Saba, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)
Colo adventurer goes on game show, attends Oscars
AP, ASPEN, Colo: Aron Ralston, the Colorado adventurer who amputated his arm to escape from a remote canyon, is going Hollywood.
Ralston appears Wednesday on the NBC game show "Minute to Win It" and attends the Academy Awards on Sunday.
A movie about his ordeal, "127 Hours," has been nominated for six Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actor.
Ralston cut off his right arm after it became pinned under a boulder in a Utah canyon in 2003. He feared he wouldn't be found and would die there if he didn't get free.
The Aspen Times reports Ralston is donating his winnings from the game show to the Wilderness Workshop, a Colorado conservation group.
Ralston's episode has already been taped, but he says he can't reveal how much he won until it airs.
Ralston appears Wednesday on the NBC game show "Minute to Win It" and attends the Academy Awards on Sunday.
A movie about his ordeal, "127 Hours," has been nominated for six Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actor.
Ralston cut off his right arm after it became pinned under a boulder in a Utah canyon in 2003. He feared he wouldn't be found and would die there if he didn't get free.
The Aspen Times reports Ralston is donating his winnings from the game show to the Wilderness Workshop, a Colorado conservation group.
Ralston's episode has already been taped, but he says he can't reveal how much he won until it airs.
'127 Hours' adventurer goes to game show, Oscars
AP, ASPEN, Colo: A Colorado adventurer is going Hollywood after his story about amputating his arm to escape from a remote canyon inspired a movie.
Aron Ralston appears Wednesday on the NBC game show "Minute to Win It" and plans to attend the Academy Awards on Sunday.
The movie about his ordeal, "127 Hours," has been nominated for six Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actor.
Ralston cut off his right arm after it became pinned under a boulder in a Utah canyon in 2003. He feared he wouldn't be found and would die there if he didn't get free.
The Aspen Times reports Ralston is donating his winnings from the game show to the Colorado conservation group Wilderness Workshop.
Aron Ralston appears Wednesday on the NBC game show "Minute to Win It" and plans to attend the Academy Awards on Sunday.
The movie about his ordeal, "127 Hours," has been nominated for six Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Actor.
Ralston cut off his right arm after it became pinned under a boulder in a Utah canyon in 2003. He feared he wouldn't be found and would die there if he didn't get free.
The Aspen Times reports Ralston is donating his winnings from the game show to the Colorado conservation group Wilderness Workshop.
Sandra Bullock's ex-husband to pen memoir
Reuters, NEW YORK: The ex-husband of actress Sandra Bullock who admitted infidelities caused the collapse of their marriage has signed a deal to pen a memoir, Simon & Schuster's Gallery Books imprint said on Tuesday.
Jesse James, 41, has signed a deal for a tell-all book tentatively titled "American Outlaw," that will be released later this year.
A spokeswoman for Gallery Books would not comment on what the deal was worth.
James was vilified by the media when his five-year marriage to Bullock ended days after the popular actress won a best actress Oscar in March 2010 for "The Blind Side." He later admitted cheating on Bullock and their divorce was finalized last June.
Last month the tattooed, motorcycle-riding James announced he was engaged to tattoo artist and reality star Kat Von D. They have been dating since last summer.
"2010 was actually the best year of my life because I fell in love with my best friend. An amazing woman who stood behind me when the world turned their backs," James, 41, told People magazine in January.
(Reporting by Christine Kearney, editing by Patricia Reaney)
Jesse James, 41, has signed a deal for a tell-all book tentatively titled "American Outlaw," that will be released later this year.
A spokeswoman for Gallery Books would not comment on what the deal was worth.
James was vilified by the media when his five-year marriage to Bullock ended days after the popular actress won a best actress Oscar in March 2010 for "The Blind Side." He later admitted cheating on Bullock and their divorce was finalized last June.
Last month the tattooed, motorcycle-riding James announced he was engaged to tattoo artist and reality star Kat Von D. They have been dating since last summer.
"2010 was actually the best year of my life because I fell in love with my best friend. An amazing woman who stood behind me when the world turned their backs," James, 41, told People magazine in January.
(Reporting by Christine Kearney, editing by Patricia Reaney)
Minnie Driver to star in CBS pilot "Hail Mary"
Reuters, LOS ANGELES: Minnie Driver has signed on to star in CBS' drama pilot "Hail Mary," in which she will play a suburban single mom who teams up with a hustler to solve crimes in Atlanta.
Driver previously starred on the small screen in FX's 2007-08 drama "The Riches," a role that earned her an Emmy nomination. Her recent film credits include "Conviction" and "Barney's Version."
Driver previously starred on the small screen in FX's 2007-08 drama "The Riches," a role that earned her an Emmy nomination. Her recent film credits include "Conviction" and "Barney's Version."
Alyssa Milano expecting her first child
AP, LOS ANGELES: Alyssa Milano is becoming a mom.
A spokeswoman for Milano says the 38-year-old actress is expecting her first child with husband David Bugliari.
Milano confirmed the news on Twitter Tuesday, writing that she "couldn't be happier."
She and Bugliari, who is an agent with Creative Artists Agency, were married in August 2009.
Milano starred in TV's "Who's the Boss?" and "Charmed." She can next be seen in the movie "Hall Pass," in theaters Friday.
A spokeswoman for Milano says the 38-year-old actress is expecting her first child with husband David Bugliari.
Milano confirmed the news on Twitter Tuesday, writing that she "couldn't be happier."
She and Bugliari, who is an agent with Creative Artists Agency, were married in August 2009.
Milano starred in TV's "Who's the Boss?" and "Charmed." She can next be seen in the movie "Hall Pass," in theaters Friday.
Kiefer Sutherland to star in supernatural TV drama
Reuters, LOS ANGELES: Kiefer Sutherland, who starred for eight seasons on "24," will star in a drama pilot from the creator of "Heroes."
"Touch" centers on a father who discovers that his autistic, mute son can predict events before they happen. Sutherland will also serve as an executive producer of the Fox project, which comes from Tim Kring.
Because of Sutherland's duties on Broadway where he currently stars in a revival of the Jason Miller's "That Championship Season," "Touch" is expected start production in late May-early June. That would make "Touch" a contender for midseason where "24" was a long-time staple.
"Touch" centers on a father who discovers that his autistic, mute son can predict events before they happen. Sutherland will also serve as an executive producer of the Fox project, which comes from Tim Kring.
Because of Sutherland's duties on Broadway where he currently stars in a revival of the Jason Miller's "That Championship Season," "Touch" is expected start production in late May-early June. That would make "Touch" a contender for midseason where "24" was a long-time staple.
Oscar telecast nixing montages, elaborate tributes
Reuters, LOS ANGELES: As preparations for next Sunday's Academy Awards move into high gear, the show's producers have booted a number of familiar elements.
Gone will be the movie montages -- like last year's salute to horror movies -- that often contribute to the broadcast's unwieldy running time. While there will be film clips from the ten best picture nominees and brief filmed introductions to different segments of the show, "Within the body of the show, we are not doing any film montage sequences," said Bruce Cohen, who will produce with Don Mischer.
Gone too will be the relatively new tradition, established just two years ago, of using five presenters to offer tribute testimonials about each of the best actor and actress nominees. "We're not going to do that this year," Cohen told the Hollywood Reporter. "What we did love about it was that it was a moment where each of the nominees really gets their due. (But) we found a version of that, without using the five people on stage, from the 1970 Oscars, and we stole it."
The producers also have enlisted the nominees' mothers to participate in promotion and pre-show activities, and some of them will be in the audience for the telecast.
This year's producing team is restoring individual performances of the four nominated songs, which were eliminated last year. Producers were upset that Cher, a major audience draw, was not nominated for her Burlesque ballad, "You Haven't Seen the Last of Me."
"We were surprised, and we were disappointed," Cohen says when of the song, which won its composer Diane Warren a Golden Globe but failed to earn an Academy nomination.
They have lined up most of the other names associated with the songs that were nominated, though: Oscar perennial Randy Newman will perform his "We Belong Together" from "Toy Story 3"; Mandy Moore and Zachary Levy, who sang the duet "I See The Light" on the "Tangled" soundtrack will reteam with composer Alan Menken; and Gwyneth Paltrow, who sings "Coming Home" in "Country Strong" will reprise that tune on the broadcast.
Because English pop singer Dido, who was nominated along with Rollo Armstrong and A.R. Rahman for the song "If I Rise," from "127 Hours" was not available, the producers have drafted Florence Welch from Grammy-nominated act Florence + the Machine to appear with Rahman.
"We feel we really lucked out, and this is a good year to bring the best song performances back," Cohen says.
Gone will be the movie montages -- like last year's salute to horror movies -- that often contribute to the broadcast's unwieldy running time. While there will be film clips from the ten best picture nominees and brief filmed introductions to different segments of the show, "Within the body of the show, we are not doing any film montage sequences," said Bruce Cohen, who will produce with Don Mischer.
Gone too will be the relatively new tradition, established just two years ago, of using five presenters to offer tribute testimonials about each of the best actor and actress nominees. "We're not going to do that this year," Cohen told the Hollywood Reporter. "What we did love about it was that it was a moment where each of the nominees really gets their due. (But) we found a version of that, without using the five people on stage, from the 1970 Oscars, and we stole it."
The producers also have enlisted the nominees' mothers to participate in promotion and pre-show activities, and some of them will be in the audience for the telecast.
This year's producing team is restoring individual performances of the four nominated songs, which were eliminated last year. Producers were upset that Cher, a major audience draw, was not nominated for her Burlesque ballad, "You Haven't Seen the Last of Me."
"We were surprised, and we were disappointed," Cohen says when of the song, which won its composer Diane Warren a Golden Globe but failed to earn an Academy nomination.
They have lined up most of the other names associated with the songs that were nominated, though: Oscar perennial Randy Newman will perform his "We Belong Together" from "Toy Story 3"; Mandy Moore and Zachary Levy, who sang the duet "I See The Light" on the "Tangled" soundtrack will reteam with composer Alan Menken; and Gwyneth Paltrow, who sings "Coming Home" in "Country Strong" will reprise that tune on the broadcast.
Because English pop singer Dido, who was nominated along with Rollo Armstrong and A.R. Rahman for the song "If I Rise," from "127 Hours" was not available, the producers have drafted Florence Welch from Grammy-nominated act Florence + the Machine to appear with Rahman.
"We feel we really lucked out, and this is a good year to bring the best song performances back," Cohen says.
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