Goree Girls

Jennifer Aniston, who is to star and produce 'The Goree Girls', will also sing in the prison musical.

The 40-year-old actress will star in the movie based on the real-life story of a 1940s Texas country band comprising eight female prisoners -- and according to director Michael Sucsy, she'll sing too, reported mirror.co.uk.

"She can sing, and she's going to learn how to play the dobro," said Sucsy. The film starts shooting in January.

--- IANS

The yearly Perseid meteor shower

The yearly Perseid meteor shower is expected to put on a good show this week for those willing to get up in the wee hours of the morning and wait patiently for the shooting stars.

In North America, the best time to watch will be between midnight to 5 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 12, but late Tuesday night and also Wednesday night could prove fruitful, weather permitting.

The Perseids are always reliable, and sometimes rather spectacular. The only things that puts a damper on the August show are bad weather or bright moonlight. Unfortunately this week, as the Perseids reach their peak Tuesday and Wednesday nights, the moon will be high in the sky, outshining the fainter meteors.

Still, skywatchers around the globe will have a good chance of spotting the brighter meteors. Some already are enjoying the show.

Already underway

The Perseids are bits of debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle, which has laid down several streams of debris, each in a slightly different location, over the centuries as it orbits the sun. Every August, Earth passes through these debris streams, which spread out over time.

"They are typically fast, bright and occasionally leave persistent trains," says Joe Rao, SPACE.com's Skywatching Columnist. "And every once in a while, a Perseid fireball will blaze forth, bright enough to be quite spectacular and more than capable to attract attention even in bright moonlight."

Low numbers of Perseids, including some bright fireballs, have already been reported as Earth began entering the stream in late July. Seasoned observers have counted up to 25 per hour already, or nearly one every two minutes.

Most meteors are no bigger than a pea. They vaporize as they enter Earth's atmosphere, creating bright streaks across the sky.

The Perseids appear to emanate from the constellation Perseus, which rises high in the sky around midnight and is nearly overhead by dawn. Like most meteor showers, the hours between midnight and daybreak are typically the best time to watch, because that's when the side of Earth you are on is rotating into the direction of Earth's travels through space, so meteors are "scooped up" by the atmosphere at higher rates, much like a car's windshield ends the lives of more bugs than does the rear bumper.

Astronomers expect up to 200 meteors per hour in short bursts of up to 15 minutes or so. But many of the fainter meteors will simply not be visible due to moonlight, and rates will go down even more for those in urban areas. More likely a typical observer under reasonably dark skies might hope to see a meteor every couple minutes when the bursts come, and fewer during lulls.

When to watch

The best time to watch is between midnight and dawn Wednesday. Forecasters say the best stretch could come between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. ET (1-2 a.m. PT), which would be after daybreak in Europe. Some Perseids might be visible late Tuesday night, and Wednesday night into Thursday morning could prove worthwhile, too.

Meteor forecasting is still in its infancy, however, so the best bet for anyone truly hungry to spot shooting stars is to get in as much observing time as possible from around 11 p.m. Tuesday night until dawn Wednesday, and if you miss that show, try the same time frame Wednesday evening into Thursday morning.

Meteors should be visible in the pre-dawn hours, weather permitting, all around the Northern Hemisphere.

"Earth passes through the densest part of the debris stream sometime on Aug. 12," said Bill Cooke of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office. "Then, you could see dozens of meteors per hour."

Viewing tips

The best location is far from city and suburban lights. Ideally, find a structure, mountain or tree to block the moon. Then scan as much of the sky as possible. The meteors can appear anywhere, heading in any direction. If you trace their paths backward, they'll all point to the constellation Perseus.

People in locations where any chill might occur should dress warmer than they think necessary to allow for prolonged viewing.

Seasoned skywatchers advise using a blanket or lounge chair for comfort, so you can lie back and look up for long periods. Allow at least 15 minutes for your eyes to fully adjust to the darkness. Then expect meteors to be sporadic: You might see two in a row, or several minutes could go by between shooting stars.

Avid meteor watchers might want to try scanning the northeastern horizon from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. local time (your local time, wherever you are) for Perseids that graze the horizon.

"Earthgrazers are meteors that approach from the horizon and skim the atmosphere overhead like a stone skipping across the surface of a pond," Cooke explained. "They are long, slow and colorful – among the most beautiful of meteors." He notes that an hour of watching may net only a few of these at most, but seeing even one can make the whole night worthwhile.

A daughter for Christina Aguilera

A daughter for Christina Aguilera. The blond bombshell singer, who has a 17-month-old son Max Liron with husband Jordan Bratman, is keen to expand her family but doesn't want to sacrifice her career. Christina recently set up her own radio station , recorded a new album and has landed a role in new musical movie 'Burlesque', but is confident she can juggle work and motherhood. A source said: "Christina loves her family time with Jordan and Max and now she has a studio at home, being a mother and working at the same time is a real possibility - but she doesn't know if she wants to give up her other pursuits just yet. "She has just signed for a new movie and has her radio venture too, so she feels now's not a good time to have another baby - although she would adore another one. Especially a little girl." Christina recently revealed she loves being a mother and has embraced the changes in her body since giving birth. The 28-year-old blond beauty said: "Since becoming a mom, I feel I have more knowledge and that makes me feel beautiful. I feel more centered, which makes me feel confident and sexy.

Christina Aguilera feels sexier. "The other night, my husband and I were in the bathroom getting ready for bed. I mentioned something on my body that was different before I had the baby. I said, 'That was never like that before!' And he said, 'Are you kidding me? That's what makes you even sexier. The fact that you're a mom and that your body has gone through all those changes, that makes you even sexier.' "

Paul McCartney’s silly love songs

Fans may have had enough of Paul McCartney’s silly love songs - and the novelty of seeing a concert at Fenway Park [map] may have worn off.

Unlike Bruce Springsteen, the Police, Dave Matthews and the Rolling Stones, all of whom sold out Fenway Park in minutes, there are still plenty of affordable tickets available for Sir Paul’s shows tonight and tomorrow.

“The economy has taken its toll,” said James Holzman, president of Ace Tickets.

It’s unclear how many tickets are available for the two shows or whether fans can buy seats at the Fenway Park box office.

Heidi Collins at Live Nation, the concert promoter, said the shows were not sold out but refused to disclose any details. She referred calls to McCartney’s New York publicist. But Michelle Barrera, McCartney’s spokeswoman, said in an e-mail, “We do not have that information.”

One thing is clear, however. The concert promoters are scrambling to publicize the show with last-minute commercials on the radio.

The Rolling Stones, who performed at Fenway in 2005, hold the record for the highest average ticket price there at $334, according to StubHub, the online marketplace for ticket buyers and sellers.

A check of Ticketmaster late yesterday found dozens of $69 seats available for McCartney on both nights. An e-mail this week said new tickets had been released “due to production modifications.”

FanSnap.com, a search engine that provides links to tickets from ticket agents, has 1,800 McCartney tickets for the two nights available yesterday starting at $75 and tickets were being offered on the Craigslist Web site for below face value.

Michael Janes, FanSnap’s CEO, said the former Beatle faces tough competition from summer tours. “I’ve never seen so many concerts in one summer,” he said. “There’s lots of musicians competing for the fan’s dollar.”

Gary Bongiovanni, editor-in-chief at Pollstar, a music industry trade magazine, said that selling 80,000 tickets over two nights is a daunting task even in a go-go economy.

“Perhaps people have already seen McCartney before, and if you have to make hard economic choices, maybe you don’t go again,” he said.

Sony bids $50 million for Jackson rehearsal film (AP)

LOS ANGELES - Sony Corp.'s movie studio has bid $50 million to acquire the worldwide distribution rights to a film based on rehearsal footage for Michael Jackson's "This Is It" comeback concert series, according to a person familiar with the bid.

The person said Monday that the bid came after several studios, including Paramount, Universal and 20th Century Fox, were shown footage starting early last week. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the bidding had not been completed. None of the studios would comment on the record.

The winning studio would produce the film with Jackson's concert promoter, AEG Live, and his estate. It would go a long way to helping AEG Live recoup some of the $30 million to $32 million it spent producing the concert before Jackson died June 25.

The bidding was reported earlier by the Los Angeles Times and industry blogger Nikki Finke.

Sony Pictures has a leg up on other bidders because Sony Music distributes Jackson's music and is in a 50-50 partnership with his estate in Sony/ATV Music Publishing. Sony's bid is on par with the cost of making a mid-range budget movie, and is offset by the fact that the Sony group of companies would benefit from the music licensing rights attached to the film.

There is also massive interest in Jackson material worldwide. An estimated 31 million viewers in the U.S. alone watched the Jackson memorial service live earlier this month, according to Nielsen Media Research. That's just shy of the 33 million U.S. viewers who watched Princess Diana's funeral.

"This type of a story, if put together right, could be very compelling and draw a very, very wide audience," said Mark Fleischer, an entertainment attorney with Venable LLP and former executive at MGM Studios.

The estate and AEG Live are also negotiating with several television networks and pay-per-view outlets on a TV special that would be a stage show featuring Jackson's music and dancing. It would be directed by "This Is It" director Kenny Ortega.

The selling price being discussed for the rights to show the TV special is also in the tens of millions of dollars.

General Electric Co.'s NBC has been in talks on the TV show, but the concept, air date and cost for the rights has not been finalized, said NBC spokeswoman Rebecca Marks.

"We have no deal for the rights to the Michael Jackson special," Marks said.

The special administrators of Jackson's estate, attorney John Branca and former music executive John McClain, have been moving quickly to secure Jackson's assets and cut deals to capitalize on the surge in interest in the pop star since he died.

Last week, Branca and McClain received signed court papers authorizing them to act on his estate's behalf until another hearing Aug. 3. McClain has been sorting through unreleased Jackson recordings, while Sony Music is interested in releasing a commemorative album. Music sales have soared.

Jackson's 2002 will named Branca and McClain as executors and directs all of his assets to be placed in a trust that will benefit his mother Katherine Jackson, his three children, and unnamed children's charities. The estate is estimated to be worth more than $500 million.

But Katherine Jackson's lawyers on Friday sought a judge's ruling on whether she can challenge the authority of the men without triggering a "no contest" clause in the trust that would cause her to be disinherited.

'Harry Potter' smashes 'Spider-Man' records

Mon, Jul 20 08:16 AM

Harry Potter cast a spell over moviegoers worldwide as the sixth entry in the fantasy franchise set a new opening record of $396.7 million, a clear sign that the lucrative franchise has lost none of its magic.

"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" earned $159.7 million in the United States and Canada, the sixth-biggest opening for a five-day period, distributor Warner Bros. Pictures said on Sunday.

The international component stands at $237 million from 84 markets, also setting a new record.

The old records were held by "Spider-Man 3" in 2007 when its global bow of $381.7 million included foreign sales of $230.5 million.

In North America, the new film outpaced its predecessor, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," which opened to $139.7 million two years ago. That picture ended with $938 million worldwide, the seventh-biggest movie of all time before accounting for inflation.

But while the five-day sum was impressive, it was dwarfed by the $200 million opening for "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" last month, which was just $3.8 million behind the record set last year by "The Dark Knight."

Top international markets for the new film included Britain with $32.4 million, Germany with $23 million, France with $20.2 million and Japan with $18.2 million.

"We are thrilled with the record-setting international results this weekend, showing that Harry Potter's audiences continue to grow as the characters mature with every installment in the series," said Veronika Kwan-Rubinek, president of international distribution at the Time Warner Inc -owned studio.

BILLION-DOLLAR QUESTION

The big issue is whether the new film will become the first in the franchise to crack the $1 billion mark. The biggest movie was the first one, 2001's "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," which finished with $975 million, the fifth-biggest movie of all time. (Internationally, the title was "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.")

The new film cost $235 million to make, the priciest yet in the lucrative franchise. The first five movies generated $4.5 billion in ticket sales worldwide. DVD sales send the tally even higher.

The new film opened worldwide on Wednesday, not a moment too soon for fans of the boy wizard and his pals. It was originally scheduled to open in November, but Warner Bros. decided to delay it until summer, devastating Potterphiles around the globe.

The action revolves around secret plots involving Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) and his nemesis Draco (Tom Felton), as the visually stunning film takes viewers deeper into the dark side. There are also budding romances among the young stars. It marks the second consecutive Harry Potter film directed by David Yates.

For the traditional three-day weekend, Friday through Sunday, the new "Harry Potter" film earned $79.5 million in North America, not far ahead of the $77.1 million haul for "Order of the Phoenix." Comparisons with the other movies in the franchise are difficult because those opened on Friday while the latter two opened on Wednesday.

Last weekend's North American champion, Universal Pictures' "Bruno," tumbled to No. 4 with $8.4 million for the three-day period, losing a hefty 73 percent of its opening-weekend audience. Movies generally hope for a 50 percent fall in their second weekend. The 10-day haul for British satirist Sacha Baron Cohen's risque look at gay culture stands at a modest $49.6 million.

20th Century Fox's "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" was steady at No. 2 with $17.7 million. The total for the cartoon rose to $152 million. The studio said it is the biggest film of the year internationally, with sales of $429 million, ahead of Paramount's "Transformers" sequel with $398 million.

But the robot picture has earned $363.9 million in North America, bolstered by a $13.8 million weekend, good enough for a second round at No. 3.

Universal is a unit of General Electric Co's NBC Universal. Fox is a unit of News Corp. Paramount Pictures is a unit of Viacom Inc

Employment rate increases by 0.6 per cent in Jan-March

New Delhi, Jul 8 (PTI) The Government today said employment rate in India in some sectors grew by 0.6 per cent during the first quarter of this year notwithstanding the recession, with non-export units generating more jobs than the export units. During the January-March period, employment in gems and jewellery units grew by 3.08 per cent, in textiles by 0.96 per cent, in IT-BPO by 0.82 per cent and in automobiles by 0.10 per cent, Minister of Labour and Employment Harish Rawat informed the Rajya Sabha.

In a written reply, he, however, said the leather, metals and the transport sector observed a decline in employment. Notably, the gems and jewellery, transport and automobile sectors were the worst affected during the October-December period last year with rate of employment declining by 8.53 per cent, 4.03 per cent and 2.42 per cent respectively, he said.

During that period, about half a million workers lost their jobs due to the recession, the Minister said quoting a study conducted by the Labour Bureau of the Ministry. To a question on steps to prevent retrenchment, he said as retrenchment fall under the "state sphere", state governments have been asked to make their conciliation machinery more effective and implement labour laws in appropriate manner.