“Recent hits like [Meryl] Streep’s ‘Julie & Julia,’ along with [Katherine] Heigl’s ‘The Ugly Truth’ and [Sandra] Bullock’s ‘The Proposal,’ … show that when it comes to star-driven films, female actresses have consistently outperformed their male counterparts. They also tend to cost less to produce and market, meaning a bigger profit margin for studios.”
Author: Laura Collins Hughes
New Moon Director Takes Woman’s Side In Piracy Arrest
“Veteran director Chris Weitz told the Sun-Times he’s dismayed about Samantha Tumpach’s arrest Nov. 28 at a Rosemont movie theater on a felony charge of illegally copying his new hit film, and he’s contacted the film’s studio about his concerns.”
Steady Rain Auds Opened Wallets Wide For B’way Cares
In only six weeks of curtain appeals at “A Steady Rain,” Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig raised a record-breaking $1,549,953 for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.
For Unemployed Film Critics, Focus Groups Now Pay
“Critical Focus Exchange, a service in which critics and film reporters offer their expertise to producers and studios looking for feedback on niche and arthouse movies,” is a new source of income — $100 per screening — for out-of-work film critics in New York and Los Angeles.
Calif. Arts License Plates Qualify For A Tax Deduction
“The Franchise Tax Board said in a Nov. 25 letter that individuals can treat as a charitable contribution the difference between the amounts paid for a special arts plate,” proceeds of which support the underfunded California Arts Council, “and a regular California tag.”
A Skateboard Park In The Shadow Of The Watts Towers?
Los Angeles officials who must decide whether the Watts Towers should get a skateboard park as a neighbor “figure to get an earful from advocates for the arts and backers of youth recreation, debating an immediate benefit for youngsters and a longer-range dream of a cultural district, anchored by the towers.”
Two Publishers Put Time Delay On E-Book Releases
Simon & Schuster and Hachette Book Group will fight back against the $9.99 e-book by releasing their digital books several months after the hardcovers. “I can’t sit back and watch years of building authors sold off at bargain-basement prices,” Hachette’s chief executive said. “It’s about the future of the business.”
Global Trend: Making Choral Music Of Everyday Complaints
“Recently a group of about 100 Tokyo residents put their complaints into a pile and a composer, Okuchi Shunsuke, turned them into a song. About 80 of the complainers (accompanied by an accordion, a bass cello and a tambourine) then performed the composition at various sites around the city, becoming the latest example of what has become known as a complaints choir.”
Raphael And Rembrandt Have A Record-Setting Night
At Christie’s Old Masters auction in London last night, a “Raphael study fetched 29.2 million pounds, the most at a public sale for any work on paper; the Rembrandt made 20.2 million pounds, an artist record at auction.”
Victor Pinchuk On What Inspired His $100,000 Art Prize
“Financial crisis is the moment of truth for real collectors and true artists,” the Ukrainian billionaire said on a walk through the Museum of Modern Art. “That’s why we do the prize: to discover new talent.”