Entertaining Posts

Monday, April 4, 2011

Show's potions and props bring Harry Potter to life

NEW YORK | Mon Apr 4, 2011 3:00pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stroll into Hogwarts, visit the Gryffindor common room and see Harry Potter's bed in the dormitory he shared with Ron Weasley in a new exhibition at Discovery Times Square.

The hundreds of artifacts, dozens of costumes, props and furniture from the film franchise used in "Harry Potter, The Exhibition" will transport fans of the boy wizard to the world where Harry, Hermione and Ron battle the evil Lord Voldemort.

Stretch out in Hagrid's oversized easy chair in the hut he shares with his dog Fang before creeping into the Forbidden Forest inhabited by unicorns, centaurs and Thestrals.

Sit beneath the floating candles of the Great Hall, where the sorting ceremony, feasts and Yule Balls are held.

Even those visitors not familiar with the J.K. Rowling books -- a publishing phenomenon credited with introducing a new generation to reading -- and the blockbuster film franchise based on them, are bound to be impressed by the artistry and detail of the more than 200 artifacts and props in the show.

"It's like your day at Hogwarts," said Eddie Newquist, the chief creative officer for Las-Vegas based Global Experience Specialists, Inc. (GES).

"You feel like you stepped into the movie."

The exhibition, which was years in the making and includes items from the final film, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2" which is to be released in July, is in New York until September 5, the final stop on its U.S. tour before moving overseas.

"We wanted to give fans something they have never seen before," said Newquist. "There is no better way to celebrate the imagination and creativity of the Harry Potter film series than to actually walk among the iconic costume and props that helped bring the world of the film to life."

Divided into several sections, the 14,000 sq ft (1,301 sq meter) exhibit covers all aspects of Harry's magical world and his adventures with Ron and Hermione.

The portrait gallery where the painting of The Fat Lady guards the entrance to the Gryffindor common room is recreated and the contents of Harry's trunk -- his glasses, family photo album and acceptance letter to Hogwarts -- are displayed.

Interactive displays in the Herbology class and in the section on Quidditch, the most popular wizard sport, also enable visitors to feel part of Harry's world.

"It is all real. They are all the things used on the sets," Newquist said.

CBS says talks on with Couric amid reports she's leaving

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Sunday, April 3, 2011

Miranda Lambert, Lady Antebellum win country awards

LAS VEGAS | Sun Apr 3, 2011 9:45pm EDT

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Leading nominee Miranda Lambert won three early prizes at the Academy of Country Music Awards on Sunday, all for her nostalgic hit song "The House That Built Me."

The tune picked up prizes for single, song and video of the year at the 46th annual awards ceremony. The award for single goes to the artist and producer, whereas the trophy for best song is given to the artist and composer.

The 27-year-old Texan leads the field with seven nominations, including her first bid for the coveted entertainer of the year award, a fan-voted honor. She will also defend her title as top female vocalist.

"The House That Built Me," written by Tom Douglas and Allen Shamblin, is a wistful remembrance of the memories encased in a childhood home. Lambert won a Grammy for the song in February.

The award for best new artist went to The Band Perry, a sibling trio from Mississippi. "Thank you so much for lending us your ears and your hard-earned dollars," said Kimberly Perry, flanked by her brothers Neil and Reid.

The announcement of winners took second place to a string of performances divided between two hotel venues, the MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay. The winner of the first award was not revealed until almost an hour into the three-hour ceremony.

The show was hosted by Reba McEntire and Blake Shelton.

Early performers paid tribute to veteran acts. Brad Paisley played his new song "Old Alabama" alongside the three members of veteran country group Alabama, who retired in 2004.

In an "American Idol" reunion of sorts, former champ Carrie Underwood dueted with newly installed judge Steven Tyler on his band Aerosmith's 1970s nugget "Walk This Way." Country music matriarch Naomi Judd was in the audience waving her fist in the air.

Different musical genres were also set to collide later in the ceremony with Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland joining R&B singer Rihanna on the latter's new single "California King Bed."

Country sweetheart Taylor Swift, sporting a banjo, won a standing ovation after taking on critics of her off-key vocal stylings in her new single "Mean," a tune that labels her detractors as "pathetic."

She will also vie for entertainer of the year, a field rounded out by Paisley, Jason Aldean, Toby Keith and Keith Urban. Swift received four nominations, and Urban three.

(Reporting by Dean Goodman in Los Angeles and Tim Pratt in Las Vegas; Editing by Paul Simao)

Charlie Sheen faces prospect of losing, duh

By Bob Tourtellotte and Bernie Woodall

LOS ANGELES and DETROIT | Sun Apr 3, 2011 6:57pm EDT

LOS ANGELES and DETROIT (Reuters) - Actor Charlie Sheen, whose assertion that he is always "winning, duh" has become a pop catchphrase, faced a new reality the day after his stage show bombed. Fans and critics said: "losing, really."

In March, Sheen was fired from his job as TV's highest-paid actor on the comedy "Two and a Half Men" after he publicly criticized producer Chuck Lorre and the show's makers at Warner Bros. Television.

He created the stage act -- a disorganized group of sketches, monologues and videos titled "My Violent Torpedo of Truth: Defeat is Not an Option" -- to prove to detractors that after months of drug and alcohol rehab, an assault on his ex-wife and probation, Sheen was still in shape to work.

While it may be true that he is able to perform, what he is doing, at least on stage, has failed to excite his audience.

During the show, whole sections of people in the balcony, chanted in unison, "Refund! Refund!" and after it ended, Joe Boland, 46, of Plymouth, Michigan, told Reuters: "They should have been chanting, "Rehearse! Rehearse!"

By Sunday on Twitter, numerous tweets appeared like this one by jackieedge 207: "Hahahahahahaha Charlie Sheen first night of his tour was a complete failure. losing".

One person conspicuously absent on the social networking website was Sheen himself who has used Twitter in recent weeks to fire off missives about anything that was on his mind. But there was no reaction from the actor or his handlers.

NO CLEAR DIRECTION

There was plenty to say from critics, including the New York Times' A.O. Scott, who was in the audience at Detroit's Fox Theater where "Torpedo" opened its planned, 20-city tour that next stops in Chicago on Sunday evening. Scott noted that the "multimedia event had no clear structure or direction."

The show was scheduled to start at 8 p.m. but got off late with opening comic Kirk Fox failing to finish some jokes due to audience rancor. His routine was the first of many during the night that were aborted before coming to their planned end.

Sheen took the stage nearly an hour after show time with his two girlfriends, "goddesses" Rachel Oberlin and Bree Olson, who locked lips in a passionate kiss. They also helped Sheen burn a "Two and a Half Men" bowling shirt.

Sheen donned a Detroit Tigers baseball jersey that on the back had printed his self-given nickname "Warlock," and fans cheered. But it would be one of the few moments that had them roaring their approval.

Throughout the night, a giant video screen was used to show images and interviews that the actor believed gave audiences insight into his recent career turmoil. There were scenes of shark attacks from the movie "Jaws," and videos of Sheen's recent TV news interviews in which he ranted at his bosses.

But the jokes seemed stale, and as the show progressed, some in the crowd of around 4,500 (4,700 tickets were sold) began to walk out.

"The usual Sheen-isms started to sound old and tired. From the men's restroom to the expensive seats in front, it was a restless crowd, delivering plenty of jeers and only a few cheers," wrote The Detroit Free Press in its coverage.

Sheen, who has sued Warner Bros. and Lorre for $100 million claiming he was wrongfully terminated from his job, now faces the reality of reloading his "Torpedo" or disarming it and admitting it was a lost cause.

(Editing by Paul Simao)

"Hop" skips and jumps to No. 1 at box offices

By Bob Tourtellotte

LOS ANGELES | Sun Apr 3, 2011 3:02pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Family film "Hop," about a music-loving teenage rabbit, jumped to No. 1 on North American box office charts with a strong $38 million ticket sales even as theaters continued seeing sluggish overall demand, according to studio estimates on Sunday.

The movie, which combines live-action with animation and features comedian Russell Brand in the voice of a young rabbit who will one day become the Easter Bunny, outdistanced the No. 2 film, thriller "Source Code," which collected $15 million.

Rounding out the top three was horror film "Insidious" with $13.5 million. All three movies were in their first weekends in theaters, and they entered during a months-long period of slumping ticket sales. The major studios are hoping their blockbuster summer movies will reverse that trend.

Overall ticket sales were down a sharp 27 percent this weekend compared to the same period last year, and year-to-date domestic box office is off just more than 20 percent, according to ticket sales tracker Hollywood.com Box Office.

One of the few bright spots has been the market for family films. Among some of the best performers have been movies such as "Hop" and the animated "Rango," in which Johnny Depp voices the character of a cowboy chameleon in the Wild West.

"Rango," in its fifth week in theaters, continues to play in the top 10 on box office charts. It landed at No. 8 this weekend with $4.6 million in ticket sales, pushing its cumulative total to nearly $114 million.

Last week's No. 1, youthful-minded "Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules," fell to No. 4 with a 57 percent drop in revenue to $10.2 million. Its total now stands at $38.4 million.

Rounding out the top 5 was another holdover, thriller "Limitless," which took in $9.4 million and pushed its total box office to $55.6 million in three weeks in theaters.

Hollywood also was closely watching the release of Oscar winner "The King's Speech" in a new version that extracted some of the strong language in order to appeal to younger fans who may not have been able to see the original.

The new version took in an estimated $1.2 million, down 23 percent from last weekend when the adult "King's Speech" raked in $1.5 million. Its overall sales now stand at $137 million.

(Reporting by Bob Tourtellotte; Editing by Deborah Charles)