Harry Potter star Watson "felt sick" when told of riches

LONDON | Tue Nov 2, 2010 5:17am EDT

LONDON (Reuters Life!) - "Harry Potter" actress Emma Watson said that for years she had no idea how much money she was earning from her role as Hermione Granger in the hit movie franchise, and that she felt sick when she finally realized.

Watson, 20, told the British edition of Vogue magazine's December issue that she was 17 or 18 years old when she had a "money conversation" with her father.

"By the third or fourth film, the money was starting to get ... serious. I had no idea. I felt sick, very emotional. It was a real shock," the actress told Vogue in the interview.

Until then, she had been living on an allowance of about 50 pounds ($80) a week. She took a money management course and she now has an estimated fortune of about 20 million pounds.

Watson, who is currently a student at Brown university in the United States, is pictured on the front cover of British Vogue sporting her new pixie-style short haircut. The magazine hits news stands in Britain on Thursday.

She said she cut her hair after she finished shooting the final two movies in the "Harry Potter" series.

"For the nine years I was on 'Harry Potter' I was contractually obliged not to cut my hair, not to tan," she said. "All the normal things girls do, I couldn't. So when I got the chance to change my appearance, this is what I did."

The seventh film, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1" opens in Britain, the United States and much of the world on November 19. The final movie will be released in July 2011.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant and Mike Collett-White; Editing by Steve Addison)

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British singer Lily Allen loses baby

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Judd singers get OWN show on Oprah TV network

LOS ANGELES | Mon Nov 1, 2010 3:33pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Country music stars Naomi and Wynonna Judd, and father-daughter actors Ryan and Tatum O'Neal, are both getting their own reality TV shows on the upcoming Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) cable channel next year.

OWN announced the two shows on Monday as the cable TV venture jointly owned by the TV talk show host readies for its January 1 launch with an array of original series, advice and lifestyle shows -- and lots more of Winfrey herself.

The launch weekend on Jan 1-2, will give viewers a sneak peek of the new network's range of programing, including a program that looks behind-the-scenes of Winfrey's 25th and final season of the "The Oprah Winfrey Show" on ABC.

OWN viewers will also get a glimpse of a four-part special bringing together health, wealth and relationship experts Dr.Phil McGraw, Suze Orman and Dr.Mehmet Oz for "Ask Oprah's All-Stars" before a live studio audience.

Network chief executive Christina Norman said the launch weekend would give audiences "sneak peeks at the kinds of shows we believe really fulfill our mission to be entertaining and inspiring."

OWN, a much-delayed joint venture between Winfrey's company Harpo Inc. and Discovery Communications Inc, will be available in 80 million homes on what is currently the Discovery Health Channel.

Discovery earlier this year agreed to almost double its funding commitment to $189 million after Winfrey pledged to increase her on-air appearances. Top-rated "The Oprah Winfrey Show" on ABC will end in May 2011.

The popular talk show queen will appear later in 2011 in an OWN travel series called "Oprah's Next Chapter", and will have an on-screen role in a reality competition series "Your OWN Show" that looks for a next, new television producer.

"The Judds" follows mother and daughter Wynonna and Naomi Judd as they prepare for their first tour in 10 years. "Ryan and Tatum: The O'Neals" will trace the attempts by the father and daughter actors to reconcile after a 25-year estrangement.

Former "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" fashion guru Carson Kressley is getting a show called "Carson-Nation" in which he travels to small U.S. towns giving viewers make-overs.

Other OWN programs previously announced include a daytime talk show from Rosie O'Donnell due later in 2011, a series featuring Britain's Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson, and documentaries on social issues presented and executive produced by actresses Julia Roberts and Goldie Hawn.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

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Smokey Robinson goes "Go-Go" with Cracker Barrel

By Bob Tourtellotte

LOS ANGELES | Mon Nov 1, 2010 3:13pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Forty-five years after Smokey Robinson found himself "Going to a Go-Go," he is now headed into Cracker Barrel restaurants -- a sign of change not just in music but for the roadside diners, too.

The former lead singer of Motown sensations The Miracles released on Monday his latest album not through record outlets, but via a program offered by the chain of nearly 600 diners known for home-style cooking and selling folksy merchandise.

The album, called "Smokey Robinson Now & Then," mixes live performances of six classic Miracles' hits such as "Going to a Go-Go," "The Tears of a Clown" and "The Tracks of My Tears," with six studio-recorded tunes from Robinson's recent CD, "Time Flies When You Are Having Fun."

Robinson, 70, told Reuters the new songs, including "Time Flies" and "No Place Like That Place," were recorded about two years ago when, for fun, he rented a studio for himself, brought in some old friends and recorded the music that he had been writing for years but never formally put down on music tracks.

"I write all the time, and those are songs that I thought fit me," Robinson said. "We just had a ball (in the studio) and most all the material is original," except a version of Norah Jones' "Don't Know Why."

The old Motown tunes, of course, are standards that are well-loved and songs Cracker Barrel Olde Country Stores wanted for what is their first music release outside the country and bluegrass genres.

"With their patrons, they said the vintage songs would be great on the CD, and those are the songs I picked," Robinson said.

The distribution deal points to a shift at the stores and in the music industry where piracy and digital downloads of singles on PCs and iPods has sharply reduced CD sales. Singers and musicians now see much of their revenue via live performances and specialty programs like Cracker Barrel's.

Concerning Cracker Barrel, which was founded in Tennessee and prides itself in its country brand and image, it has been forced in recent years to defend itself against racial discrimination lawsuits and claims by former employees.

As part of his agreement, Robinson recently toured the company's headquarters and several of its restaurants, talking not only to management but to staff, as well.

"I am the first black guy they have done a deal with," Robinson said. "They've been known as discriminatory, but they are doing their best to change their image."

For its part, Cracker Barrel noted that while country and bluegrass music will remain a key part of their sales, the chain wanted to expand the program and Robinson's music appeals "across generations of music lovers."

In fact, Robinson said that at his live shows, it's not just parents and their kids who turn up. It is grandparents, parents, children and grandchildren. "My audiences are multi-racial and multi-age," Robinson said.

(Editing by Christine Kearney)

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"Saw 3D" makes the cut at Halloween box office

LOS ANGELES | Sun Oct 31, 2010 12:04pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The "Saw" horror franchise is not as sharp as it used to be, but the seventh -- and reportedly -- final entry in the annual Halloween franchise managed to take the top spot at the weekend box office in North America, according to studio estimates issued on Sunday.

"Saw 3D" earned $24.2 million during the three days beginning on Friday, in line with muted expectations, but still the series' third-lowest opening.

Last year's disappointing "Saw VI" launched to just $14.1 million, crushed by the "Paranormal Activity" chiller. The four entries before that all opened at No. 1 with more than $30 million each. The first film in distributor Lionsgate's lucrative series, opened at No. 3 in 2004 with $14.1 million.

Last weekend's champion, "Paranormal Activity 2," slipped to No. 2 with $16.5 million, taking the 10-day haul for Paramount Pictures' scary movie sequel to $65.7 million.

Summit Entertainment's Bruce Willis-led crime ensemble "Red" held at No. 3 with $10.8 million, giving it a $58.9 million total after three weekends.

The only other new entry in the top 10 was Fox Searchlight's Hilary Swank legal drama "Conviction," which jumped 15 places to No. 10 with $1.8 million in its first weekend of wide release.

Lionsgate is a unit of Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. Paramount Pictures is a unit of Viacom Inc. Summit Entertainment is privately held. Fox Searchlight Pictures is a unit of News Corp.

(Reporting by Dean Goodman; Editing by Sandra Maler)

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