Jan11

Emmanuel Lubezki, ASC, AMC, (CHILDREN OF MEN), Dick Pope, BSC (THE ILLUSIONIST), Robert Richardson, ASC (THE GOOD SHEPHERD), Dean Semler, ASC, ACS (APOCALYPTO), and Vilmos Zsigmond, ASC (THE BLACK DAHLIA) are vying for top honors in the feature film category at the 21st Annual American Society of Cinematographers Outstanding Achievement Awards competition. The winner will be announced during the awards gala on February 18 at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel.

"There is no textbook formula for artful cinematography," says Russ Alsobrook, ASC who chairs the organization's Awards Committee. "It takes talent and skill to mas

ter a complex craft, as well as a collaborative spirit. These five, amazingly talented individuals were selected by their peers who believe they have set the standard for artful visual story-telling in a sharply competitive field from 2006."

This is the eighth ASC nomination for Richardson, the third for Zsigmond, the second for Lubezki and Semler, and the first for Pope. They were nominated for movies that occur in different places and eras, with themes varying from pure fantasy to stark reality.

Okada also points out that all five nominees trace their origins to different countries. Semler was born and launched his career in Australia, Zsigmond in Hungary, Lubezki in Mexico, Richardson in the United States, and Pope in England where he still resides.

The ASC was founded in 1919. There are some 290 members from many nations today, and approximately 140 associate members from allied sectors of the industry.

For more information about the 21st Annual ASC Outstanding Achievement Awards, visit www.theasc.com or call 323-969-4333.

Source: American Society of Cinematographers

 Carly Simon's new album Into White, a collection of best-loved pop standards and traditional songs, has just entered the Top Internet Sales chart at #1, according to SoundScan, and is debuting on the Billboard Top 200 with the highest-ranking chart position (#15) of any album debuting on that chart this week.

Carly Simon, an Academy Award, Golden Globe and Grammy-winning singer and composer, is slated to appear on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" on Tuesday, January 16 (check your local listings). Sally Taylor and Ben Taylor (each an accomplished songwriter and performer in her/his own right) will join their mother on "Oprah" to perform a new rendition of James Taylor's "You Can Close Your Eyes" (a song from Into White originally appearing on Taylor's 1971 album Mud Slide Slim and the Blue Horizon).

Into White is a soothing return to Carly's primary musical roots, a pure and evocative showcase of best-loved songs, old and new, performed in the trademark dusky vocal style that's unmistakably Carly. The album has been drawing rave reviews from the music and mainstream press:

"Entering the world of Carly Simon's new album Into White (Columbia) is like tiptoeing into an enchanted garden," wrote The New York Times, calling the album "luminous" while noting: "Singing quietly in a low throbbing alto caressed by an exquisite folk-pop arrangement, Ms. Simon projects the warmth and intimacy of a parent caught up in the magic of the bedtime stories she is reading to her children."

USA Today observed that "Simon has covered a lot of musical terrain, but no album has flattered her soft, warm alto more fetchingly than this collection of lyrical ballads ... " while the San Francisco Chronicle said " ... she shows her genius for interpreting a song and turning it into an object of intimacy and awe."

Taking its title from a wistful Cat Stevens song from the legendary 70's singer/songwriter's Tea For The Tillerman album, Into White conjures a series of gentle moods in a collection of unforgettable tunes drawn from many sources including "Over The Rainbow," "All I Have To Do Is Dream"/"Devoted To You," "Blackbird," "Jamaica Farewell" and "You Can Close Your Eyes" (written by James Taylor and sung as a trio with Ben and Sally Taylor). Also included is Stephen Foster's classic "Oh! Susanna" along with other traditional folk airs: "Hush Little Baby"/"My Bonnie," "I Gave My Love A Cherry [The Riddle Song]" and "Scarborough Fair."

Carly rounds out the album with "Love of My Life" (a song she first wrote and recorded for the film "This Is My Life"), "Quiet Evening" (written by David Saw) and "I'll Just Remember You" (written by David Saw and Ben Taylor). Both "Quiet Evening" and "I'll Just Remember You" were written during the course of recording Into White and Carly was so enthused about both of them that she stopped the record in its tracks and went out of her way to include them on the record.

Produced by Carly Simon, and engineered and mixed by Jimmy Parr, the songs on Into White are performed by an intimate group of friends and family including Teese Gohl (who not only contributed all the keyboard and synthesizer parts but also arranged strings and played kalimba on the album), Peter Calo on guitar and dobro, Jan Hyer on cello, David Saw on guitar, and Jimmy Parr on various percussion.

www.carlysimon.com

www.columbiarecords.com

Source: Columbia Records

Barbie(R), the most popular doll in the world(2) stars as the beautiful and brilliant flower fairy Elina(TM) in the all-new movie "Barbie(TM) Fairytopia(TM): Magic of the Rainbow(TM)," premiering on DVD on March 6, 2007, from Universal Studios Home Entertainment. A magical new tale, "Barbie(TM) Fairytopia(TM): Magic of the Rainbow(TM)" follows Elina(TM) as she discovers the secrets of the mysterious Crystal Palace. The third Barbie(TM) adventure set in the luminously magical world of Fairytopia(TM), "Barbie(TM) Fairytopia(TM): Magic of the Rainbow(TM)" is a shimmering blend of music, dance, color and mystery.

Fun, fantasy and friendship bring together a group of fairies in a quest to learn the Flight of Spring and create the season's first rainbow. The cast features more fairies than any previous "Barbie(TM) Fairytopia(TM)" story, including new friends Glee(TM), a sweet wood nymph, Lumina(TM), a blue-violet fairy with wings shaped like moons, and a spunky sparkle fairy named Sunburst(TM). Elina(TM) fairy's cuddly puffball Bibble(TM) joins the adventure making his own new friends with a new puffball named Dizzle(TM). A must-own addition for every Barbie(TM) DVD collection, "Barbie(TM) Fairytopia(TM): Magic of the Rainbow(TM)" is sure to capture fans' hearts with its inspiring story of teamwork, as well as entertaining bonus features.

"Barbie(TM) Fairytopia(TM): Magic of the Rainbow(TM)" represents the third distinct entertainment property to come out of the collaboration between Universal and Mattel, following the successful 2006 releases of "Barbie(TM) in the 12 Dancing Princesses" and "PollyWorld(TM)," said Craig Kornblau, President, Universal Studios Home Entertainment. "We are confident it will make a highly appealing Easter season offering and will create further velocity for this burgeoning, profoundly creative brand."

"We are delighted to offer girls and parents a choice when it comes to quality home entertainment and, with more than 37 million units of movies sold worldwide since 2001, Barbie is a clear favorite among families," said Richard Dickson, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Media and Entertainment Worldwide for Mattel. "The valuable lesson surrounding the spirit of teamwork makes 'Barbie(TM) Fairytopia(TM): Magic of the Rainbow(TM)' a truly memorable experience that only Barbie(TM) can deliver."

In "Barbie(TM) Fairytopia(TM): Magic of the Rainbow(TM)", Elina(TM) and an entire new group of imaginatively-rendered, fantastical friends face down her evil nemesis Laverna(TM) in a race to save Fairytopia(TM). Elina(TM) must learn important lessons about the power of friendship, courage and teamwork in order to prevent 10 years of dark and gloomy winter from enveloping the colorful fairy world. The DVD is priced at $19.98 SRP. Preorder close is February 6, 2007.

BONUS FEATURES WILL WORK THEIR MAGIC ON BARBIE(TM) FANS

The "Barbie(TM) Fairytopia(TM): Magic of the Rainbow(TM)" DVD includes special features that will captivate Barbie(TM) fans for hours, including:

* Rainbow Adventure(TM) Mini-Games -- Explore the remarkable land of

Fairytopia(TM) with two interactive DVD games from Mattel's

"Fairytopia(TM) Rainbow Adventure(TM) Elina(TM) Doll and DVD Game."

* Groovy Memory Moves with Bibble(TM) -- Elina(TM) fairy's puffball

Bibble(TM) sure has some of the coolest dance steps in Fairytopia(TM).

After he demonstrates his style for players, they try to repeat the

order of his moves. If they get them all right, Bibble(TM) will

perform a delightful congratulatory dance.

* PLUS Downloadable Extras including interactive coloring pages and

enough printable fun pages to keep kids happy for hours.

SYNOPSIS

Join Barbie(TM) as Elina(TM) in an all-new Fairytopia(TM) adventure! Elina(TM) travels with her puffball Bibble(TM) to Fairy School at the magnificent Crystal Palace. There, she meets the other fairy apprentices, chosen to learn the annual Flight of Spring and magically create the first rainbow of the season. But when the evil Laverna(TM) tries to stop the Flight, threatening to plunge Fairytopia(TM) into ten years of bitter winter, Elina(TM) and her new friends must learn that "together we are strong." But are they strong enough to defeat Laverna(TM) and bring the rainbow to life? And will Bibble(TM), who has a loose tooth, fall in love with the adorable puffball Dizzle(TM)?

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

DVD

Street Date: March 6, 2007

Pre-Order Close: February 6, 2007

Copyright: 2007 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

Price: $19.98 SRP

Selection Number: 63100594

Running Time: 1 Hr. 15 Mins.

Layers: DVD-5 (Single Sided)

Aspect Ratio: Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)

Rating: Not Rated

Technical Info: English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, English Dolby

Digital 2.0 Stereo, French Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo, Spanish Dolby

Digital 2.0 Stereo, English SDH

About Universal Studios Home Entertainment

Universal Studios Home Entertainment is a unit of Universal Pictures, a division of Universal Studios (www.universalstudios.com). Universal Studios is a part of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. Formed in May 2004 through the combining of NBC and Vivendi Universal Entertainment, NBC Universal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company, significant television production operations, a leading television stations group, and world-renowned theme parks. NBC Universal is 80%-owned by General Electric, with 20% owned by Vivendi.

About Mattel

Mattel, Inc., (NYSE:MAT) (www.mattel.com) is the worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of toys and family products, including Barbie(R), the most popular fashion doll ever introduced. The Mattel family is comprised of such best-selling brands as Hot Wheels(R), Matchbox(R), American Girl(R), Radica(R) and Tyco(R) R/C, as well as Fisher-Price(R) brands (www.fisher-price.com), including Little People(R), Rescue Heroes(R), Power Wheels(R) and a wide array of entertainment-inspired toy lines. With worldwide headquarters in El Segundo, Calif., Mattel employs more than the 30,000 people in 42 countries and sells products in more than 150 nations throughout the world. Mattel's vision is to be the world's premier toy brands -- today and tomorrow.

MATTEL, BARBIE, FAIRYTOPIA and associated trademarks and trade dress are owned by, and used under license from Mattel, Inc. (C) 2006 Mattel, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

There has never been anything like it. Independent U.S. sales figures released by the NPD Group today confirmed a red-hot launch for the new Wii(TM) system by Nintendo, and the crowning of the portable Nintendo DS(TM) as the best-selling video game device of any type for both the holidays and all of 2006.

Along with stunning success for The Legend of Zelda(R): Twilight Princess and historic sales of accessories, including more than 1.5 million extra controllers for Wii alone, Nintendo recorded the most successful across-the-board holiday performance in U.S. video game history.

Among key results:

* Consumers purchased every Wii console available at retail -- more than

a million in just the 44 days between U.S. launch and year end.

* With sales of another 1.6 million systems in December alone, Nintendo

DS achieved full year sell-through of 5.3 million.

* The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was purchased by an

extraordinary 86 percent of Wii buyers, or more than 900,000 games for

that system alone. Coupled with the companion version released in

December for Nintendo GameCube(TM), the two versions of the newest

Zelda title totaled approximately 1.5 million unit sales in less than

seven weeks, which would represent one of the five best-selling games

for the entire year.

* Wii owners also purchased an average of three additional games from a

wide library of choices, in addition to the Wii Sports title packed in

with every hardware system.

* Two Nintendo DS titles, New Super Mario Bros.(R) and Brain Age(TM):

Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day, also were top-10 sellers for the

year.

* Throughout the November/December holiday shopping period, Nintendo

accounted for more than half of all video game hardware systems sold in

America.

Earlier this week, Nintendo increased its projected worldwide financial performance for the year ending on March 31 to be the best in company history.

"Millions of players, both hard-core and brand-new, are already enjoying the unique entertainment provided by Wii, but demand for the system remains incredibly high," says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. "So our work is just beginning. We're dedicating ourselves to maximizing both manufacturing and distribution full bore throughout 2007, to make sure everyone who wants to experience the future of video gaming can do so just as soon as possible."

The momentum behind Wii will continue unabated through the early weeks of 2007, with retail debuts of WarioWare(TM): Smooth Moves, Wii Play(TM) and Mario Party(R) 8 from Nintendo; a host of third-party releases; and a steady stream of classic games made available via download with the Wii Shop Channel.

The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii(TM), Nintendo DS(TM), Game Boy(R) Advance and Nintendo GameCube(TM) systems. Since 1983, Nintendo has sold nearly 2.2 billion video games and more than 387 million hardware units globally, and has created industry icons like Mario(TM), Donkey Kong(R), Metroid(R), Zelda(TM) and Pokemon(R). A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, visit the company's Web site at www.nintendo.com.

 MTV: Music Television announced today that revolutionary, Emmy Award(R) winning producer, Mark Burnett will executive produce the 2007 MTV MOVIE AWARDS. The network also announced that for the first time in Movie Awards history, the sixteenth annual show will premiere live on MTV, Sunday June 3rd from Los Angeles, California. With the legendary golden popcorn up for grabs in such eccentric categories as "Best Kiss," "Best Villain," and "Best Comedic Performance," along with the debut of several new awards, the 2007 MTV MOVIE AWARDS promises to be as memorable as ever.

Salli Frattini, who has served as executive producer of the Movie Awards for the past 10 years, will return and work closely with Burnett as well. The star-studded event is MTV's irreverent nod to the typical awards shows celebrating the year's best in movies, stand-out musical performances and more. Hailed for clever, one-of-a-kind film parodies, sexy lip locking moments from the likes of Sarah Michelle Gellar and Selma Blair, and outrageous acceptance speeches such as Jim Carrey's comedic rant surrounded by 60 angels, the MTV Movie Awards has produced some of the most unforgettable and outrageous moments in award show history!

One of the driving forces behind reality television and a true visionary, Mark Burnett has enjoyed a long history of executive producing Emmy Award(R)- winning television, with "Survivor," "The Apprentice," "Rock Star," "Contender" and the upcoming "On The Lot." Burnett's entrepreneurial spirit pioneered the success of the reality "unscripted" drama series, garnered skyrocketing ratings and introduced millions worldwide to an entirely new television genre. He is also credited with revolutionizing product integration on television and creating new multimedia platforms, such as "Gold Rush" for advertisers and online audiences.

"Mark has great ideas and vision for the Movie Awards, and I know he's going to bring some fresh energy to the show," said Christina Norman, President, MTV. "I can't wait to see how his vision comes together to create a one of a kind experience for the Movie Awards, on television and on line."

"I began my career at MTV with Eco-Challenge and worked closely with Salli Frattini on every aspect of that project. I love MTV and I especially love its Movie Awards, so when you combine MTV, Salli Frattini and movies it was easy to say yes," said Mark Burnett. "Adding a live element to the Movie Awards irreverence and spoofs, it simply means ... anything can happen. Buckle your seatbelts!"

Location and nominees for the 2007 MTV MOVIE AWARDS will be announced in the spring.

About MTV Networks

MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE:VIA.B) , is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. MTV Networks, with more than 100 channels worldwide, owns and operates the following television programming services - MTV: MUSIC TELEVISION, MTV2, VH1, mtvU, NICKELODEON, NICK at NITE, COMEDY CENTRAL, TV LAND, SPIKE TV, CMT, NOGGIN, VH1 CLASSIC, LOGO, MTVN INTERNATIONAL and THE DIGITAL SUITE FROM MTV NETWORKS, a package of 13 digital services, all of these networks trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks connects with its audiences through its robust consumer products businesses and its more than 95 interactive properties worldwide, including online, broadband, wireless and interactive television services and also has licensing agreements, joint ventures, and syndication deals whereby all of its programming services can be seen worldwide.

About Mark Burnett Productions

Mark Burnett Productions (MBP) is a leading production company in content for both primetime television and the internet. MBP revolutionized television with hits such as Eco-Challenge, Survivor, The Apprentice, The Contender, Rock Star: INXS, Rock Star: Supernova and its upcoming co-production with Steven Spielberg and DreamWorks Television, On The Lot. MBP has also partnered with AOL on the highly successful adventure Gold Rush, the first-ever unscripted project to be produced exclusively for the internet. MBP also successfully reintroduced product placement as an integral part of each of its shows and has garnered a total of 42 Emmy nominations since 2001. Mark Burnett was listed as the #1 Most Valuable Player by TV Guide and was named one of the Top 100 most influential people in the world today by Time Magazine.

Source: MTV

 As the first hip-hop group ever to win an Oscar for Best Song, a music career defined by multi-platinum success, and recognized by millions of loyal fans across the globe, some may say hip-hop super group Three 6 Mafia has accomplished it all. However, it is only the beginning for this hip-hop powerhouse as MTV follows them on their biggest adventure yet -- Hollywood, CA. Leaving the comforts of their Memphis home behind, Juicy J, DJ Paul, and their entourage of friends hit the road to conquer Tinseltown and try to become major Hollywood players in the new comedic-reality series, "Adventures In HollyHood" premiering March 14th at 10:30pm ET/PT.

The series begins as Three 6 Mafia and their entourage pack their bags in their hometown of Memphis, Tennessee, and head west to Hollywood, California. Along with maintaining their success as multi-platinum hip-hop artists, finishing their anticipated follow-up album, and keeping true to themselves and their southern ways, the group tries to make the most of their fame by pursuing everything that Hollywood has to offer. The guys have set out however, to make sure the fame and fortune don't go to their heads as they put the "hood" into Hollywood ... Three 6-style. Audiences will be introduced to the following cast of characters never before seen on television: Juicy J and DJ Paul, the Oscar-winning members of Three 6 Mafia; Big Treice, their personal assistant; Computer, their internet consultant; and finally Project Pat, Three 6 Mafia's rap protege and underground hip-hop superstar.

In addition, fans will be able to experience a completely un-televised side of Three 6 Mafia and their adventures as they visit http://www.hollyhood.mtv.com/, along with MTV Mobile services, MTV VOD and more. On these platforms MTV will showcase completely original content including the comedic Cooking With Three 6 Mafia, as they showoff their hilarious down-home culinary skills. Fans will also be able to watch as the guys face new 'firsts' in Hollywood, as well as showcase the new music from their forthcoming album, "Last 2 Walk," due in Spring 2007. At http://www.hollyhood.mtv.com/, visitors will also be able to watch the premiere and finale episodes of "Adventures In HollyHood," as well as read cast bios, see photos, preview Three 6 Mafia's new album, and much more.

Three 6 Mafia's beginnings date back to the early '90s, as their underground mix tapes quickly made a name for themselves on the streets and in the clubs of Memphis, TN. The group made their proper debut in 1995 with the album entitled "Mystic Stylez." In the years since, the group has left a trail of gold and platinum records, exploding out of the local Memphis scene, and carrying their inventive southern, hip-hop sound to the masses around the world. Together DJ Paul and Juicy J have remained at the core of the group, not only as acclaimed rappers themselves, but also as renowned music producers, lending their skills to some of rap's elite including Mike Jones, Ludacris and the Ying Yang Twins. However, it was Sunday, March 5, 2006 when the rap ensemble truly secured its place in hip-hop history when, in a surprise upset, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences awarded "It's Hard Out Here For A Pimp," from acclaimed MTV Film "Hustle & Flow," the Oscar for Best Achievement In Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Song). Propelled to a new level of success, now Three 6 Mafia takes on Hollywood with their own MTV series, "Adventures In HollyHood," and gears up for the anticipated release of their next album "Last 2 Walk," in Spring 2007 on Hypnotize Minds/Columbia Records.

For more information about MTV's "Adventures In HollyHood," visit http://www.hollyhood.mtv.com/.

Rod Aissa, Kevin Lee and Melanie Graham are executive producers. Ashton Kutcher, Jason Goldberg and Karey Burke are executive producers for Katalyst Films. Aaron Rosenberg and Three 6 Mafia are co-executive producers. "Adventures In HollyHood" is developed by Rod Aissa, Aaron Rosenberg, and Three 6 Mafia. Lois Curren is EVP, MTV Series Entertainment & Programming.

MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE:VIA.B) , is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. MTV Networks, with more than 130 channels worldwide, owns and operates the following television programming services - MTV: MUSIC TELEVISION, MTV2, VH1, mtvU, NICKELODEON, NICK at NITE, COMEDY CENTRAL, TV LAND, SPIKE TV, CMT, NOGGIN, VH1 CLASSIC, LOGO, MTVN INTERNATIONAL and THE DIGITAL SUITE FROM MTV NETWORKS, a package of 13 digital services, all of which are trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks connects with its audiences through its robust consumer products businesses and its more than 200 interactive properties worldwide, including online, broadband, wireless and interactive television services. The network also has licensing agreements, joint ventures, and syndication deals whereby all of its programming services can be seen worldwide.

 For 16 years, America has been riveted by the outrageous guests and topics that make up "The Jerry Springer Show." It showcases some of America's most colorful characters, wild relationships and truly amazing stories.

Now, for the first time, backstage cameras capture life behind the curtain with VH1's new docu-soap, "The Springer Hustle," an in-depth, insider's look at how America's most controversial television show is put together.

Premiering Sunday, March 4 at 10 PM*, the 8 half-hour episodes will focus on the dedicated team of producers in the eye of the Springer hurricane; a tight-knit family charged with filling the show with the wildest real American stories possible. There's Selena, the beautiful and obsessively driven producer who works relentlessly to make her shows shine. Toby, one of the show's top producers, whose recent run of bad luck has sent him into an emotional tailspin. Annette, one of the original producers, who left the show for a few years, only to be drawn back by the day-to-day mayhem she couldn't find anywhere else. And all of them, practically working round the clock to impress their demanding boss Richard Dominick, who is stingy with the compliments, but loyal to the core.

"The Jerry Springer Show" is a tough place to work. The office is far from glamorous. The daily grind of making the magic happen takes its toll. Yet this devoted crew digs deep to present a rogues' gallery of the most outrageous people ever to sit down in front of a TV camera.

At the center of it all, ringmaster Jerry Springer, the icon whose name has become synonymous with the never-ending parade of human oddities we've come to know and love. Springer is currently hosting "The Jerry Springer Show's" 16th season in national syndication.

For additional show content, log onto VSPOT (http://vspot.vh1.com/), VH1's broadband channel.

Mike Maloy and Richard Dominick serve as executive producers for NBC Universal Domestic Television Distribution. Jim Ackerman and Michael Hirschorn serve as executive producers and Christian McLaughlin serves as supervising producer for VH1.

VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in nearly 88 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital services including VH1 Classic and VH1 Soul. Connect with VH1 at http://www.vh1.com/.

VH1 is a registered trademark of MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom International Inc. MTV Networks also operates and offers joint ventures, licensing agreements and syndication deals whereby its programming can be seen worldwide.

"We are honored to win an Emmy -- this award confirms The N's leadership in both fantastic video content and creative software," said Kenny Miller, EVP and Creative Director, MTV Networks Global Digital Media. "MTV Networks has a storied record of developing new forms of entertainment, and The N is continuing this tradition in producing interactive content for our digital audience."

The nominees for "Outstanding Achievement in Advanced Media Technology for the Non Synchronous Enhancement of Original Television Content" were The N's Video Mixer - The N / http://www.the-n.com/; CNN Enhanced - CNN; Fantasy Football Tracker - BIAP Systems Inc.; Passions Vendetta - NBC.com; Sopranos: Crime. Organized - Deep Focus/HBO and The Cultivated Life: Thomas Jefferson & Wine - NetBlender.

"This is a thrilling achievement for The-N.com and we are over the moon with our very first Emmy," said Sarah Tomassi Lindman, SVP and GM, The N. "This award is a reflection of how our brand continues to speak to our millions of viewers across all platforms."

The Emmy Award-winning website, The-N.com is the ultimate resource for fans of The N's hit shows. More than just a TV network site, The-N.com features behind-the-scenes interviews, pictures and videos, and a robust community of two million members who interact with message boards, user profiles and blogs. It is also a premiere destination for gaming online, featuring hit games such as Avatar Prom, Avatar High and The Hookup. The site makes extensive use of user-generated content, creating a site for the audience, of the audience, by the audience.

The National Television Academy presented the Emmy Awards for Technology & Engineering for six achievements as selected by a panel of industry experts at the Computer Electronics Show on Monday, January 8 in Las Vegas. The award honors excellence in the technical development of programming across broadcast, cable, broadband, portable devices and other non-traditional delivery platforms.

The N, the nighttime network for teens, is a programming arm of MTV Networks and is currently available in 54 million households via cable, digital cable and satellite television. The N's mission is to be the authentic voice for teens and help them figure out their lives with relevant, topical programming on-air and online at the network's Emmy Award winning web site www.The-N.com. The N airs everyday from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. (ET). The N and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.

Source: The N

 Welcome to the Hotel California!! Rock 'n Roll Fantasy Camp (RRFC) goes Hollywood (Presidents' Day Weekend, 2/15-19) -- giving campers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to learn rock from the masters. Over five-days -- and guided by a Who's Who of rock legends -- campers of all musical abilities and backgrounds will form bands, hone their skills, jam with their idols and become "rock stars." The camp culminates in a Battle of the Bands blowout at the House Of Blues on Sunset.

The camp's professors of rock include: Paul Stanley (KISS), Brian Wilson (Co-founder, The Beach Boys), Mickey Hart (The Grateful Dead), Bret Michaels (Poison), Dickey Betts (Allman Bros), Scott Ian (Anthrax), legendary guitar player Steve Vai, Simon Kirke (Bad Company/Free), Spike Edney (Queen), Kelly Keagy (Night Ranger), Bruce Kulick (KISS), Jane Wiedlin (Go-Go's), Artimus Pyle (Lynyrd Skynyrd), Sully Erna (Godsmack), Spencer Davis. Mark Slaughter (Slaughter) and Clem Burke (Blondie).

When RRFC comes to Hollywood, there will be events galor to make rock dreams come true:

-- Grateful Dead Night (2/17) -- Featuring the Grateful Dead's drummer

Mickey Hart leading a jam with each band.

-- Beach Boys Night (2/18) -- Beach Boy's co-founder Brian Wilson serves

as judge as the bands compete in a play-off featuring Beach Boys songs.

-- Original Song Contest (2/18) -- Each band will perform its original

song -- which will be judged, mixed, recorded, and put on CD and on

iTunes!

-- House of Blues Battle of the Bands (2/19) -- Paul Stanley (lead singer,

guitarist and songwriter of KISS) will perform a KISS song on stage

live with every band at the House of Blues Battle of the Bands. Dickey

Betts of The Allman Brothers will join each band for some Southern

rock.

The RRFC dawn-to-midnight schedule includes master classes, private sessions, dinners with the stars, late night jams with renowned studio musicians and special guests. Offering pointers throughout are some of rock's royalty, who help the bands come together, collaborate and create. Campers get the opportunity to rock with their idols on top-notch instruments and stay at the glamorous Hollywood Renaissance Hotel. Cost for this five-day experience is $9499.

The RRFC frenzy doesn't stop in Hollywood-coming up is RRFC London (5/24-29, Memorial Day Weekend), where campers -- joined by English rockers including Jack Bruce (Cream) and Gary Brooker (Procol Harum) -- will have the incredibly rare chance to record at London's Abbey Road Studios and perform at the legendary Cavern Club in Liverpool, where the Beatles got their start.

Further information on Rock 'n Roll Fantasy Camp is available at 1-888 ROC-BAND (762-2263); http://www.rocknrollfantasycamp.com/.

Source: Rock 'n Roll Fantasy Camp

 Lifetime Television has ordered production of 13 episodes of "Army Wives," from The Mark Gordon Company and Touchstone Television. The new ensemble drama series about the struggles, dreams and friendships of a diverse group of women -- and one man -- living with their spouses and families on an active army post and the pressures and traditions of the military on those who are left behind while their partners serve their country. "Army Wives" premieres in June on Lifetime Television.

Filmed on location in Charleston, South Carolina, the series stars Kim Delaney ("NYPD Blue"), Sally Pressman ("Shark"), Brigid Brannagh ("Over There"), Brian McNamara ("The O.C."), Sterling K. Brown ("Starved"), Wendy Davis ("Commander in Chief"), Drew Fuller ("Charmed") and Catherine Bell ("JAG"). Mark Gordon ("Grey's Anatomy," "Criminal Minds") and The Mark Gordon Company's President of Production, Deborah Spera ("Criminal Minds") serve as executive producers. Samantha Corbin-Miller ("Kevin Hill") also serves as executive producer and show runner. The pilot, directed by Ben Younger ("Prime"), was written by Katherine Fugate ("The Prince & Me"), who created the series and also serves as executive producer. The series is based on the book Under the Sabers: The Unwritten Code of Army Wives by Tanya Biank, who serves as a consultant. "Army Wives" is produced by Touchstone Television.

"We're pleased to bring an entertaining and relevant drama series in 'Army Wives' to our viewers. This show will resonate strongly with our audience as Mark, Deb and Katherine have created authentic, relatable and powerful characters set in a highly charged and complex environment," said Susanne Daniels, President, Entertainment, Lifetime Entertainment Services, in making the announcement.

"Building on Touchstone Television's cable business model and growth strategy to produce on all platforms, this deal is a key opportunity to expose the studio's quality content to new audiences," said Mark Pedowitz, president, Touchstone Television. Adding, "Lifetime has proven a crucial partner in the expansion of Touchstone's hits 'Desperate Housewives' and 'Grey's Anatomy' into syndication and we plan to aggressively develop this engrossing original drama into a franchise success for the network."

In "Army Wives," an unlikely tribe is formed when four women and one man create a bond based on one common theme: they all love a soldier who could die at any moment. Yet, they are all isolated by secrets that buck the armed forces system. They include: Claudia Joy Holden (Delaney), strong and respected wife of Colonel Michael Holden (McNamara), who the other women admire; Denise Sherwood (Bell), a devoted homemaker to her Major husband and teenage son, who harbors a shocking secret; Pamela Moran (Brannagh), a former cop, now earning money as a surrogate, who must keep her secret or face blackballing by the other women in their tight knit community; Roxy LeBlanc (Pressman), a feisty woman from the wrong side of the tracks who marries a soldier, Trevor (Fuller), after only knowing him for a few days. Now instantly living with her children on the post, she quickly experiences the politics of being housed in an ultra competitive environment. The "wives" also includes one husband, Roland Burton (Brown), who is trying to adapt to his Lieutenant Colonel wife's (Davis) post-traumatic stress syndrome after her return from the war.

Executive Producer Mark Gordon stated, "All of our shows are driven by characters that audiences fall in love with and look forward to immersing themselves in every week. Katherine Fugate has created a show that moves you to laugh, cry, and thoroughly entertain the audience."

Said Creator/Executive Producer Katherine Fugate, "This entire experience has been magic-filled, starting with the opportunity to tell the often-untold and unseen stories of female (and male) empowerment from the 'Army Wives' point of view, rather than that of the soldiers at war. Then, working with Mark Gordon, Deb Spera and Marshall Persinger, as well as the executives at Touchstone Television and finally Lifetime Television, all of whom have been so nurturing and highly supportive in our shared vision to tell the best stories we can tell. Lastly, I cannot be more thrilled with the cast we've assembled, all unique in their voice and talent. This truly is an opportunity of a lifetime and I can't wait for it all to unfold."

Touchstone Television has established itself as one of Hollywood's leading production companies, producing critically acclaimed, quality entertainment to the television industry. Since the Touchstone banner first appeared on the sitcom "Golden Girls" over 20 years ago, the studio has produced many of the most recognizable television programs in the world. Currently, "Grey's Anatomy," "Lost" and "Desperate Housewives" are international sensations while "Ugly Betty" and "Brothers & Sisters" have launched as two of the most popular new series this season. Touchstone is currently in production on an additional 13 programs including fan favorites "According to Jim" and "Scrubs..." both in their sixth year on television, the popular CBS dramas "Criminal Minds" and "Ghost Whisperer," ABC Family's most watched original series "Kyle XY," and ABC's late-night talk show "Jimmy Kimmel Live." Touchstone Television is part of Disney-ABC Television Group, a division of The Walt Disney Company.

Lifetime is the leader in women's television and one of the top-rated basic cable television networks. A diverse, multi-media company, Lifetime is committed to offering the highest quality entertainment and information programming, and advocating a wide range of issues affecting women and their families. Lifetime Television, LMN, Lifetime Real Women, Lifetime Home Entertainment and Lifetime Online (www.lifetimetv.com) are part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, a 50/50 joint venture of The Hearst Corporation and The Walt Disney Company.

Source: Lifetime Television

 Treat Williams (Brothers & Sisters," "Everwood"), Samaire Armstrong ("Entourage," "The O.C.") and Kevin Pollak ("The Usual Suspects") star in the Lifetime Original Movie, "The Staircase Murders," a provocative drama based on the famed murder case of Michael Peterson, the novelist accused of killing his socialite wife in their North Carolina home. Production is underway in Louisiana. Produced by Lionsgate, "The Staircase Murders" premieres Sunday, April 8 at 9PM ET/PT with a special encore airing on Monday, April 9 at 9PM ET/PT on Lifetime Television.

"This is a fascinating story with lots of bizarre twists and turns. It has all the gripping elements of great drama with mysterious deaths, sensational rumors and shocking revelations," said Libby Beers, Vice President, Original Movies. Beers continues, "Treat Williams and Kevin Pollak are perfectly cast to capture the complex mind of Michael Peterson and his skeptical lawyer David Rudolf, while Samaire Armstrong sensitively portrays the determination of the grieving daughter."

In "The Staircase Murders," loving father, aspiring politician and successful New York Times best-selling novelist Michael Peterson (Williams) was the picture perfect husband to his wife Kathleen. But when a panic- stricken Michael frantically calls 911 to report Kathleen has accidentally fallen down the stairs, investigators arrive at their home to discover several suspicious findings at the crime scene and soon begin to question the truth about Kathleen's death.

Michael's children, biological sons Todd and Clayton from a previous marriage, adopted daughters Margaret and Martha and step-daughter Caitlin (Armstrong), quickly rally to their father's defense until autopsy findings reveal Kathleen's injuries could not have been sustained by a fall. Shocked and betrayed by her accused father's actions, Caitlin breaks rank with the family to publicly accuse Michael of murder.

All the while, Michael consistently maintains his innocence, even going so far as to allow cameras into his home to document his legal team's defense strategies. But as the trial looms, shocking discoveries about Michael's sexuality, previous marriage, war service and the mysteriously similar circumstances of an old friend are revealed, making even his own lawyer, David Rudolf (Pollak), question his client.

Treat Williams is an accomplished Broadway stage, theatrical and television actor, appearing most recently in the ABC drama series "Brothers & Sisters." Previously, Williams starred in the critically acclaimed WB drama, "Everwood," as Dr. Andrew Bowen, a role that won him two SAG Award nominations. He scored his first Golden Globe nomination for his part in the smash Broadway musical "Hair." He later went on to earn two additional nods - one for the feature film "Prince of the City," and the other for the television adaptation of "A Streetcar Named Desire." Williams also received an Emmy nomination for Best Actor for his role on the HBO film "The Late Shift." Williams is also a director, winning two festival awards for his direction of "Texan" in Showtime's Chanticleer series.

Samaire Armstrong is best known for her role as sassy co-ed Anna on the Fox drama series "The O.C." She began acting in high school productions before attending Parsons School of Design which fostered her passion for design and fashion. Later, she moved to Los Angeles where she was cast in "Freaks and Geeks," "NYPD Blue," "Judging Amy" and "CSI: Miami." Armstrong has a recurring role as Emily on HBO's "Entourage." She was recently seen in the theatrical "Just My Luck" opposite Lindsay Lohan.

Stand-up comedian and actor Kevin Pollak landed his film debut in George Lucas' "Willow." Pollak received critical acclaim for his work in "Avalon," but gained wide recognition for his role in Rob Reiner's "A Few Good Men." Pollak also won fans with his appearances on the cult classic "The Usual Suspects" and "Casino." Pollak later co-created and co-executive produced "The Underworld." Recently, he starred alongside Bruce Willis and Matthew Perry in "The Whole Ten Yards."

"The Staircase Murders" is produced by Lionsgate for Lifetime Television. Judy Polone ("Widow on the Hill," "Infidelity") serves as executive producer and Judy Cairo ("One Day") produces. Aphrodite Jones, who wrote the book "A Perfect Husband" on which this movie is based, serves as co-producer. Tom McLoughlin (Lifetime Television's "Odd Girl Out," "Murder in Greenwich") serves as director and Donald Martin ("The Amber Frey Story," "Family Sins") wrote the screenplay.

Lionsgate (NYSE:LGF) is the leading independent filmed entertainment studio, winning this year's Best Picture Academy Award(R) for CRASH, generating two consecutive years of $300 million-plus domestic theatrical box office, operating a $500 million-plus home entertainment business and producing a broad slate of primetime television series for fiscal 2007. It is a premier producer and distributor of motion pictures, television programming, home entertainment, family entertainment, and video-on-demand content. Its prestigious and prolific library is a valuable source of stable, recurring revenue and is a foundation for growth of the Company's core business. The Lionsgate brand name is synonymous with original, daring quality entertainment in markets around the globe.

Lifetime is the leader in women's television and one of the top-rated basic cable television networks. A diverse, multi-media company, Lifetime is committed to offering the highest quality entertainment and information programming, and advocating a wide range of issues affecting women and their families. Lifetime Television, LMN, Lifetime Real Women, Lifetime Home Entertainment and Lifetime Online (www.lifetimetv.com) are part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, a 50/50 joint venture of The Hearst Corporation and The Walt Disney Company.

Reigning CMA Female Vocalist of the Year Carrie Underwood begins the New Year with another incredible accomplishment as her Arista Records/Arista Nashville/19 Recordings debut album, "Some Hearts," vaults to RIAA Quintuple-Platinum certification for sales of five million units. The record-setting milestone earns Carrie the fastest 5x Platinum certification of any female country debut in history.

With this accomplishment, "Some Hearts" has now become the best-selling, single-disc country album by a solo female in the new millennium.

"Some Hearts" is also the best-selling, single-disc country album by a solo artist (male or female) in the last six years -- since Tim McGraw's "Greatest Hits" released in November of 2000.

And with January 10 SoundScan information, "Some Hearts" earns the further distinction of becoming the best-selling, single-disc country album by any artist (solo, male, female, group, duo, etc.) since the Dixie Chicks' "Home" released in August of 2002.

Released November 15, 2005, "Some Hearts" has now logged a total of 20 weeks at #1 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart, beginning and ending 2006 at #1 and holding the top country spot for 14 weeks last year -- more than any other artist.

In 2006, Underwood's chart-topping singles also led all country artists as she tallied a whopping 11 weeks at #1 on the country airplay charts.

Carrie's sales and airplay success were celebrated across multiple charts in Billboard's year-end recap, which recognized the Best New Artist GRAMMY nominee at #1 among Top New Country Artists, Top Country Artists -- Female, and Top Billboard 200 Artists -- Female. "Some Hearts" garnered the #1 spot amid year-end Top Country Albums and, impressively, #1 on the all-genre chart of Top Billboard 200 Albums.

In addition to her recent GRAMMY nomination in the all-genre category of Best New Artist, the ACM Top New Female Vocalist winner earned a GRAMMY nomination as Best Country Female Vocalist, for her six-week #1 single, "Jesus, Take the Wheel" (which also garnered songwriter nominations as Song of the Year and Best Country Song).

Fans can soon be listening for Carrie's upcoming single, "Wasted," hitting country radio in February.

Source: Arista Records

 Kirstie Alley ("Cheers," "Fat Actress") will star in and executive produce the upcoming Lifetime Original Movie "And She Was," a satiric comedy about a middle-aged screenwriter who learns she is all washed up in Hollywood because she is considered too old. She enlists the help of her 20-something nephew who passes himself off as the writer of her scripts. But when he falls in love with a studio executive, her plan to reveal that she is, in fact, the talented wordsmith, is jeopardized. "And She Was" will premiere this summer on Lifetime Television.

In making the announcement, Susanne Daniels, President, Entertainment, Lifetime Entertainment Services said, "This movie's audacious humor deftly skewers the entertainment industry's unfortunate age bias that sidelines so much creative talent." She added, "The caliber of Kirstie's comedic talents and unique perspective into our industry, offers a great lense for this wonderfully funny material."

In "And She Was," Birdie Landgon (Alley) is an Academy Award(R)-winning writer approaching her 50th birthday who gets continually stonewalled finding work in an industry that prizes youth above all else. In desperation, she dreams up a plan to have her attractive car-salesman nephew Neil (Eric Christian Olsen, "The Loop," "Tru Calling") pose as a screenwriter using her scripts. The ruse succeeds perfectly. But just as Birdie begins to feel twinges of conscience, Neil falls for a studio development executive named Andrea. If Birdie decides to expose the deception, it could cost Neil his budding relationship and Andrea her job. While she struggles with her quandary, Birdie discovers for herself, and demonstrates to others, that being a woman of a certain age does not mean life is over, and that there are second chances for everyone.

Kirstie Alley's career has been punctuated by multiple awards and success in top-grossing films and highly acclaimed television programs. Alley most recently appeared in her own Showtime series "Fat Actress" and the television movies "Family Sins" and "While I Was Gone." She is best known for her portrayal of Rebecca Howe on NBC's "Cheers," for which she won Emmy(R), Golden Globe(R), and People's Choice(R) Awards during her six years on the hit comedy. Other television credits include "Veronica's Closet," the CBS movie "David's Mother," for which she won an Emmy(R) and two miniseries "The Last Don" and "Salem Witch Trials." In 2003, Alley portrayed the mentally disabled Donna Lee Shelby Thornton in the CBS film "Profoundly Normal." Alley's film credits include "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan," "Look Who's Talking," "Look Who's Talking Too," "Look Who's Talking Now," "Deconstructing Harry," "Drop Dead Gorgeous" and "For Richer or Poorer."

Eric Christian Olsen was most recently seen in the FOX series "The Loop" and had a recurring role on "Tru Calling." He will soon be seen in the feature films "License to Wed" and "The Comebacks." His additional film credits include "The Last Kiss" with Zach Braff, "Beerfest," "Cellular," "Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd," "The Hot Chick," "Local Boys," "Not Another Teen Movie" and "Pearl Harbor."

"And She Was" is produced by Jaffe/Braunstein Films for Lifetime Television. Executive producers are Howard Braunstein, Michael Jaffe (Lifetime's "Not Like Everyone Else" and "Odd Girl Out"), Richard Fischoff (Lifetime's "For One Night") and Kirstie Alley. Graeme Clifford ("Profoundly Normal") directs from a script written by George Beckerman ("Man of the People").

Lifetime is the leader in women's television and one of the top-rated basic cable television networks. A diverse, multi-media company, Lifetime is committed to offering the highest quality entertainment and information programming, and advocating a wide range of issues affecting women and their families. Lifetime Television, LMN, Lifetime Real Women, Lifetime Home Entertainment and Lifetime Online (www.lifetimetv.com) are part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, a 50/50 joint venture of The Hearst Corporation and The Walt Disney Company.

*Photography is available at www.lifetimepress.com

-- Amino, leading IPTV platform supplier, and Orb Networks, the software developer whose MyCasting service unlocks all digital content on the home PC to be enjoyed on any Internet- enabled device, announced a partnership during the Consumer Electronics Show that will give consumers the freedom to enjoy all of the personal digital media on their PCs directly on their living room TV screens.

The two companies plan to integrate Amino's AmiNET series of set-top boxes (STBs), among the most proven and widely deployed in the world, with Orb's software and roll out a series of product offerings throughout the year. The combination of technologies will close the gap between the STB and the PC, using the Orb MyCasting application platform as the bridge. Orb and Amino also are working to improve the consumer experience by providing an enhanced user-friendly interface.

"This integration of technologies really unleashes the power of what IPTV ever promised to be," said Joe Costello, Chairman and CEO of Orb Networks. "People increase their media consumption when you give them more control of the type of digital content they want to enjoy -- they get to mix and match their programs. Grandparents can look at home movies on their big screen TV, powered by Amino and streamed from the Orb PC of their grandchildren, thousands of miles away. This opens up so many options for how consumers can unleash all of their digital media -- and how service operators can bring their own customers to participate in the promise of IPTV."

"The partnership between Orb and Amino reemphasizes they way the video over IP industry is headed," said Karthik Ranjan, Vice President, Internet TV, Amino. "Consumers are looking for a lot more than just 'traditional media.' They want to access video content on the open internet as well as user generated media which is on their PC. The Orb application combined with our STB has finally enabled this to be a reality."

About Amino

Amino Communications ( www.aminocom.com ) supplies the AmiNET(TM) series of set-top boxes renowned for their low-cost and reliability. The AmiNET range materially reduces service operators' capital expenditure, whilst offering the full range of specification required. The high performance coupled with the innovative design of Amino's set-top boxes, have brought the series industry accolades and the company a leading position within the IPTV market.

The AmiNET series of IPTV set-top boxes has been used by more than 600 customers in commercial deployments and trials in over 50 countries worldwide. The set-top boxes have also been sampled by another additional 800 customers. Amino Communications' principal customers are telecommunications, broadcast and hospitality service operators. Generally, AmiNET products are supplied with the IntAct(TM) IPTV software stack pre-loaded.

Amino Communications is a wholly owned subsidiary of Amino Technologies plc. listed on the London Stock Exchange AIM, symbol AMO. Amino is based near Cambridge, UK, and has offices in Atlanta (Georgia) and Hong Kong.

About Orb Networks, Inc.

Orb Networks is an award-winning developer of software and services that unlock the digital media stored on personal computers. Orb MyCasting gives consumers secure, free, instant, and everywhere-access to everything from their photos and video to TV and music on virtually any Web-enabled device. The company's partners and affiliates include: AOL Winamp, AMD, Creative Labs, Hauppauge, Hutchison, Nokia, Orange and Vodafone. Orb Networks is a privately held company in Emeryville, Calif. For more information about Orb Networks and the Orb MyCasting service, please visit www.orb.com.

www.Orb.com

NOTE: Orb and MyCast are trademarks of Orb Networks, Inc. All other trademarks and/or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Source: Orb Networks, Inc.

Macworld, the world's foremost Mac authority in print and on the Web, revealed the annual Best of Show award winners during the 2007 Macworld Conference and Expo on Wednesday, January 10, 2007 in San Francisco. And, for the first time ever, the Macworld Best of Show awards were showcased as a feature presentation in front of an audience of approximately 1,000 Expo attendees. Hosted by Macworld VP/Editor in Chief Jason Snell and Macworld.com News Director Jim Dalrymple, the 11 winners were announced through short video clips created by the editors discussing the award-winning attributes of honorees interspersed with live demos on stage.

The 2007 Macworld Best of Show winners are:

Photoshop - Adobe

Premiere - Adobe

Apple TV - Apple

iPhone - Apple

Prey - Aspyr Media

ModBook - Axiotron and Other World Computing

George - Chestnut Hill Sound

IntelliScanner mini - IntelliScanner

LCD2690WUXi - NEC

Parallels Desktop for Mac - Parallels

Toast 8 - Roxio

"Each year, Macworld editors see more imaginative, innovative, and inspired products in the Mac market," said Jason Snell, VP/Editor in Chief of Macworld. "The 2007 Best of Show honorees are some of the most creative we've ever seen -- these winners help define industry standards and raise the bar for creativity in the future. Congratulations to everyone!"

To qualify for an award, products must be making their first major trade show appearance and must be recognized by Macworld's editors as among the most notable products being displayed at Macworld Conference and Expo. Hundreds of products were considered before the field was narrowed down to the 11 winners.

About Mac Publishing, LLC:

Headquartered in San Francisco, Mac Publishing, LLC publishes the world's leading independent Macintosh publication and Web sites. Every month Macworld, winner of the Folio: 2005 and 2006 Gold Eddie award for best consumer technology/computing magazine and WPA's 2006 Maggie award for best computer/consumer magazine, reaches 1.2 million Macintosh professionals and enthusiasts while the Mac Publishing Web presence garners an average of over 3.5 million unique visitors. The Mac Publishing sites include: Macworld.com, PlaylistMag.com, MacOSXHints.com, MacworldProductFinder.com, and MacUser.com.

A subsidiary of International Data Group (IDG), the world's leading technology media, events, and research company, more information about Mac Publishing, LLC can be found at www.macworld.com.

About IDG:

International Data Group (IDG) is the world's leading technology media, research, and event company. A privately-held company, IDG publishes more than 300 magazines and newspapers including Bio-IT World, CIO, CSO, Computerworld, GamePro, InfoWorld, Network World, and PC World. The company features the largest network of technology-specific Web sites with more than 400 around the world. IDG is also a leading producer of more than 170 computer-related events worldwide including LinuxWorld Conference & Expo(R), Macworld Conference & Expo(R), DEMO(R), and IDC Directions. IDC provides global market research and advice through offices in 50 countries. Company information is available at http://www.idg.com/ .

NOTE: All product and company names are trademarks of their respective companies.

Contact: Heidi Tanaka, +1-415-978-3168, or htanaka@macworld.com.

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060914/SFTH066LOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com

Source: Macworld; International Data Group

VH1 Digital Grooves Into 2007 With New Installments of Its 'Box Set' and 'Live@Vh1.Com' Series

 VH1's "Box Set," a made-for- broadband original music program, is migrating to VH1's linear channel this month for the first time with "Box Set: Gwen Stefani," a music retrospective that includes a compilation of the artist's music videos, performances, and exclusive interview clips. "Box Set: Gwen Stefani" will premiere on VH1 on Wednesday, January 24 at 11 PM*. It will also be available on demand on VSPOT, VH1's broadband channel beginning the same day.

"Box Set" joins other VH1 music series and programs such as "You Oughta Know," "Hear Music First," and "Live@VH1.com" in the growing list of VH1's made-for-broadband franchises that have made the uncommon shift from online to on-air. Included in "Box Set: Gwen Stefani" are exclusive, never-before-seen interview clips of the artist as she walks through the videos she's created as a solo artist, including the latest hits from her second solo album, The Sweet Escape (Interscope).

VH1's in-studio performance series "Live@VH1.com" kicks off the new year with "Live@VH1.com: Norah Jones," launching on VSPOT on January 16. The Grammy-winning artist will perform acoustic versions of "Little Room," "Until The End," "Thinking About You," and "Sinking Soon" -- four songs from her upcoming third album, Not Too Late (Blue Note). Additionally, beginning January 23, fans can stream Norah Jones' Not Too Late in its entirety, exclusively on VH1.com through its "Hear Music First" program, one week before the album is released.

*** For up-to-the-minute and archival press information

including releases and photographs, visit VH1's press-only Web site at

www.vh1.com/press ***

About "Live@VH1.com" and VSPOT's "Boxset"

VSPOT's "Boxset" and "Live@VH1.com" music series have propelled VSPOT growth throughout 2006. Average monthly streams for the "Boxset" and "Live@VH1.com" franchises have grown 61 percent and 81 percent, respectively (2005 vs. 2006).

Recent "Live@VH1.com" in-studio performances include: John Legend, Beck, Snow Patrol, Corrine Bailey Rae, John Mayer, The White Stripes, Evanescence, Stephen and Damien Marley, Talib Kweli, KT Tunstall, Nickelback, Blue October, and Hinder. VH1's online performance series began in 2003 and has welcomed close to 150 artists to the VH1 studios for striped-down and acoustic versions of their most popular songs. To view the archived Live@VH1.com events on demand visit http://www.vh1.com/music/live_at_vh1/.

VSPOT's "Boxset" compilations include a selection of videos, combined with exclusive interview footage and live performances from today's hottest artists. Recent "Boxsets" include: Beyonce, Beastie Boys, Dixie Chicks, Justin Timberlake, Weird Al Yankovic and Pearl Jam. More than 40 "Boxset" compilations launched in 2006 and archived at http://www.vh1.com/music/boxset/.

*all times are ET/PT

VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in nearly 88 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital services including VH1 Classic and VH1 Soul. Connect with VH1 at www.VH1.com.

VH1 is a registered trademark of MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom International Inc. MTV Networks also operates and offers joint ventures, licensing agreements and syndication deals whereby its programming can be seen worldwide.

VSPOT at VH1.com (http://vspot.vh1.com/) -- VH1's broadband channel -- brings viewers the richest music and pop-culture video content while it's happening: live events, series sneak peeks, exclusive celeb Q&A's, movie trailers, in-studio performances and original series, not to mention thousands of music videos, customizable play lists and artist interviews.

 VH1, Jack Black and the team from Channel101.com have announced the first step in reforming the runaway user-generated content movement with the newly formed "Acceptable TV." The "Department" will be responsible for a website that will launch in February 2007 followed by a weekly TV series premiering on VH1 Friday, March 23 at 10 PM*.

Jack Black, Dan Harmon and Rob Schrab became pioneers of the do-it-yourself TV movement with Channel 101, a competitive forum for digital shorts founded in 2003, anticipating the YouTube revolution by a several years. Realizing they could not stand by while the tidal wave of user-generated content threatened to overwhelm the internet, "Acceptable TV" on the principle that, in Black's words, "some stuff is just not acceptable."

Harmon compared this post-YouTube era of media to the dawn of the automotive age. "There was a time when there were so few cars that we didn't even need stop signs. A handful of rich people drove where they wanted as fast as they wanted. Then came a day when so many people had cars that drivers needed to be licensed. That day has come with digital media. We are the DMV of camcorders."

"Acceptable TV" builds off the innovations of Channel 101. Each week viewers will see new three-minute episodes of six proposed TV series -- most produced by the "Department" staff, some produced by web users. Viewers will then be able to vote, via the Web site www.acceptable.tv, for three of those series to return with a new episode. The three with the least votes are cancelled and replaced by three new pilots the following week. All shows -- acceptable and unacceptable -- will be shown on the website. The best of these shorts could eventually grow to a full series on VH1.

"Over the years, Dan Harmon and Rob Shrab have assembled an incredible group of young filmmakers at their internet event, Channel101.com," said actor and series producer Jack Black. Channel 101 alumni include Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone, who were recently brought on board Saturday Night Live, where they created the infectious 'Lazy Sunday' digital short. "They have mastered the art of the three-to-five minute entertainment power nugget. I am proud to be a producer of this breakthrough television series. This is the first show in TV history to be programmed by the audience," he continued. "For their brave choice to put this on the air, the executives at VH1 should be applauded, and then fired."

"The formation of the 'Department' places VH1 and its viewers again at the forefront of the user-generated content revolution. VH1 tapped into the online video explosion early with our weekly 'Web Junk 20' series nearly a year ago. The show found the funniest videos on the internet and shared them with our viewers -- thousands of whom uploaded their own videos to us," said Brian Graden, President, Entertainment, MTV Networks Music Group and Logo. "Now our viewers can be part of the overall development process in any way they want ... from playing TV programmer and voting online for their favorite entries to actually creating a pilot to evaluated by this community of devout television fans."

"Yes, this show will be web-savvy, viral and cross-platform compliant through 2010. You'll be able to watch it on your wristwatch, iPod or subdermal sex offender GPS unit. But honestly, it's just going to be a funny TV sketch show. You're going to be able to tune into VH1 for a half hour and get a couple belly laughs and then get on with your week. That's our goal," stated Harmon.

Users of the site will be able to do more than vote on their favorite videos. They can join the "Department" and rise through the ranks by finding quality entertainment on the web, or by making their own shows, uploading them to the site, and getting the support and votes of other users.

"Acceptable TV" is executive produced by Jack Black, Dan Harmon, and Rob Schrab. Benjamin Cooley will oversee for Electric Dynamite Productions. VH1 senior vice president of films and scripted series, Maggie Malina, will oversee television production for VH1, along with Michael Hirschorn, executive vice president of production and programming for VH1. Writers for the series include Dan Harmon (co-creator of "Heat Vision and Jack"), Justin Roiland (creator of the early viral video sensation "House of Cosbys") and JD Ryznar (creator of equally early, equally viral, and equally sensational "Yacht Rock").

VH1 will produce 8 episodes to premiere Friday, March 23 at 10PM* with its companion website, www.acceptable.tv to launch in February 2007.

VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in 90 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital services including VH1 Classic, VH1 Soul and VSPOT, VH1's broadband channel. Connect with VH1 at www.VH1.com.

VH1 is a registered trademark of MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom International Inc. MTV Networks also operates and offers joint ventures, licensing agreements and syndication deals whereby its programming can be seen worldwide.

*All times at ET/PT

Iconic performer and Grammy Award winning singer Engelbert Humperdinck has defined romance for countless generations and this month he celebrates a milestone with the 40th anniversary of his first international breakout hit, "Release Me." Beating out The Beatles song "Strawberry Fields Forever" by early February of 1967, "Release Me" was an instantaneous hit that topped the British music charts at number-one and soared in the U.S. music charts for 56 consecutive weeks. In its peak the powerful ballad sold an unprecedented 85,000 copies daily.

"When I first heard Engelbert perform 'Release Me,' I knew a legend was being born. His unmistakable voice, magnetism and ability to mesmerize an audience made it clear he was and always will be a class act. I had the pleasure of going to one of Engelbert's concerts last year and his voice and showmanship has improved and matured like a fine wine," said producer, Richard Perry.

"Release Me" sparked Engelbert's impressive career that has spanned 40 years. In the late 60's and early 70's, he set the standard for Las Vegas-style glamour with his extravagant and lavish stage shows. With his signature sideburns, swanky wardrobe and rich 3-1/2 octave range, he was a bigger than life heartthrob who drove female fans wild. He also performed alongside fellow musical legends of the time including his personal friend Elvis Presley (who stole his sideburns) and Dusty Springfield.

Engelbert Humperdinck continues to perform over 100 dates a year. He has made 77 albums and generated sales in excess of 130 million records, including 64 gold albums and 24 platinum. He's received four Grammy's, a Golden Globe (Entertainer Of The Year, 1989) and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Engelbert has performed for the Queen of England and royal heads of state around the world.

Engelbert has lived up to his "King Of Romance" moniker with countless hits over the years including: "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You," "Misty Blue," "After The Loving," "Spanish Eyes" and "Quando, Quando, Quando." Last year he added his personal imprint to the theme song ("Little Boxes") for the popular television hit, "Weeds."

As Engelbert gears up to celebrate the 40th anniversary of "Release Me," he continues to make music he loves. Last month he appeared in his first U.S. commercial in a national Staples holiday campaign. He recently released a new single in the UK, "Jerusalem" which will be featured in the "World Rugby Cup." He went back into the studio to celebrate his anniversary in the business and his roots with a new CD, "Best of British Composers", produced by Richard Perry and Lauren Wild. For more information go to: http://www.engelbert.com/

Source: EH Productions

The Scoop: The celebrity presenters at the Golden Globe Awards may look

especially radiant this year, as they will be given the

opportunity to experience t'Zerah(TM), the luxurious

award-winning skin care line based on pure plant based

ingredients, during rehearsals the two days prior to the

show!

t'Zerah has been selected to be the exclusive skin care line

at the "Backstage Creations Retreat during the 2007 Golden

Globe Awards." Celebrity presenters will have the opportunity

to sample the brand's full line of luxurious, couture-quality

natural skin care, and will go home with a complete t'Zerah

skin regimen, including Or' l'Or de Nuit Illuminating Lifting

Serum, made with pure white powder gold and inspired by the

Golden Globes themselves!

When: Saturday, January 13th and Sunday, January 14th, 2007.

Where: Backstage Creations Retreat at the 2007 Golden Globe Awards

Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, CA

BY INVITATION ONLY

What: The 60 celebrity presenters at the 2007 Golden Globes will be

invited to experience the t'Zerah line on-site at the Beverly

Hilton Hotel during the two days of rehearsals prior to the

live broadcast on Monday January 15th. They will then go

home with an exclusive collection of t'Zerah products

presented in a custom made ivory silk box filled with flower

petals and wrapped in hand made Japanese rice paper.

The collection will feature 7 products, including:

-- Creme Bois de Rose Velvet Hydrating Cream, made with pure

rose water, skin-smoothing Panama tree extract and rose

wood essential oil.

-- Serum Grenade Intensive, a night repair serum rich in

pomegranate and perilla oils, plant extracts and naturally

occurring salicylic acid to exfoliate, decongest and

even-out skin tone and texture. This "does it all"

treatment is clinically proven to make skin not only look

younger, but actually behave like younger skin.

-- Or l'Or de Nuit Illuminating Lifting Serum, a luxurious

skin treatment made with pure white powder gold, marine

algae and pure plant extracts to instantly tighten and

lift while softly diffusing light for a glamorous glow.

Background: t'Zerah is a luxurious couture-quality line of skin care

inspired by the ancient knowledge of the restorative power of

plants. It is made in France, in small batches, using only

the freshest, purest essences of flowers, plants and natural

minerals carefully selected for their ability to harmonize

with the skin. You can truly feel the difference -- the

products have a freshness and vitality that has become the

t'Zerah signature.

t'Zerah was awarded "Best Natural Product" at the brand's

Extracts Trade Show launch in New York City earlier this

year, and is available in select specialty boutiques, at

makeup.com, and at the brand's own website www.tzerah.com. In

2007 t'Zerah will debut at one of the world's premier

prestige department stores.

Backstage Creations is the leading company providing

corporate clients an exclusive opportunity to personally

introduce their products and services to celebrities. Invited

celebrities visit custom designed "Retreats" to relax and

choose products selected by event organizers as "thank-you"

gifts. Backstage Creations has created celebrity retreats at

various industry events including the Golden Globes Awards,

People's Choice Awards and Billboard Music Awards

 The POND'S(R), the anti-aging skin care line has teamed up with USA Network for THE STARTER WIFE, a major television event that celebrates the sexiness, sassiness and confidence of the 40-something woman. Starring Debra Messing, and chronicling the life and times of the newly single and utterly fabulous Molly Kagan, the six-hour television event premieres on Thursday, May 31 at 9pm/8c and runs through Thursday, June 28 on USA Network.

With a lineup of anti-aging products that gives women the beauty "edge," POND'S and THE STARTER WIFE are perfectly aligned: both celebrate the grown-up beauty of women who are full of life and life's experience. In fact, according to a recent POND'S survey, 80 percent of 40-something women say that they are more self-confident now than their former 20-something selves.

Nationwide Search for Fabulous 40-somethings

To encourage women to tune in, POND'S is unleashing a coast-to-coast search for the five 40-something women who best embody the POND'S brand of grown-up beauty. "These women know exactly what their assets are and know how to play them up because when you look good, you feel good and the confidence shows," said Srini Sripada, Unilever, marketing director.

To enter The Starter Wife 40s and Fabulous Contest presented by POND'S, women can log onto http://www.ponds-thestarterwife.com/ from Wednesday, February 7 to Friday, March 16 to share how their sassiness and confidence shines through in their own lives. Each of the five winners will be featured in separate on-air vignettes highlighting their unique stories and beauty philosophies, which will air during THE STARTER WIFE.

Along with the vignettes, the five winners also will receive the "star treatment" with a weekend of glitz, glamour and grown-up beauty in Los Angeles. From their red carpet Hollywood "debut" at the exclusive, star-studded THE STARTER WIFE premiere party in May to a hair, make-up and clothing makeover with a stylist, the winners will have an action-packed three-day, two-night experience with POND'S. Gigi Levangie Grazer, author of THE STARTER WIFE and executive producer, will be one of four judges.

Saying "I do" to Grown-Up Beauty

POND'S also is giving THE STARTER WIFE viewers the chance to win dazzling right hand diamond rings -- the ultimate symbol of empowerment and confidence for 40+ women. Starting in May, consumers can look for specially marked packages of POND'S products featuring a sticker with a unique game code. One winning code will be revealed each week during THE STARTER WIFE on USA Network (May 31-June 28).

THE STARTER WIFE also stars Tony(R) winner and Emmy(R) nominee Joe Mantegna ("Joan of Arcadia"), Golden Globe(R) winner, Emmy Award winner and Academy Award(R) nominee Judy Davis ("Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadow"), Tony winner Anika Noni Rose ("Dreamgirls"), Miranda Otto ("Lord of the Rings") and Emmy winner Peter Jacobson ("As Good As It Gets"), Stephen Moyer ("Quills"), Aden Young ("The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course") and Chris Diamantopoulos ("Boston Legal") and is directed by Jon Avnet ("Fried Green Tomatoes"). Sara Parriott and Josann McGibbon ("Runaway Bride") penned the project which is produced by NBC Universal Television Studio in association with 3 Arts Entertainment. Stephanie Davis ("The Caveman's Valentine") and Howard Klein ("The Office," "Carnivale") serve as executive producers for 3 Arts, with Jon Avnet, Gigi Levangie Grazer, Josann McGibbon and Sara Parriott also serving as executive producers. Jeff Hayes serves as co-executive producer.

About POND'S(R):

With a rich heritage for more than 100 years, POND'S(R), a Unilever trusted face care brand, was first made famous for its classic Cold Cream. Today, the POND'S product line consists of anti-aging cleansers and moisturizers as well as several classics that meet the needs of women whose faces have begun to show signs of aging. POND'S keeps skin looking its best and helps women feel confident by delivering significant and noticeable skin benefits through innovative and effective ingredients. POND'S products are available at drug, mass merchandisers, club stores and supermarkets nationwide. Suggested retail price ranges from $3.99 to $19.99. For more information and skin care tips on POND'S products, visit http://www.ponds.com/.

About Unilever:

Unilever (NYSE:UL) (NYSE:UN) , one of the world's largest consumer products companies, aims to add vitality to life by meeting everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene and personal care. Each day, around the world, consumers make 150 million decisions to purchase Unilever products. The company has a portfolio of brands that make people feel good, look good and get more out of life.

In the United States these brands include recognized names such as: Axe, "all," Ben & Jerry's, Bertolli, Breyers, Caress, Country Crock, Degree, Dove personal care products, Hellmann's, Lipton, Knorr, Popsicle, Promise, Q-Tips, Skippy, Slim-Fast, Snuggle, Suave, Sunsilk and Vaseline. All of the preceding brand names are registered trademarks of the Unilever Group of Companies. Dedicated to serving consumers and the communities where we live, work and play, Unilever in the United States employs approximately 15,000 people in 66 office and manufacturing sites in 24 states and Puerto Rico- generating more than $9 billion in sales in 2005. For more information visit http://www.unileverusa.com/.

About USA Network:

USA Network is cable television's leading provider of original series and feature movies, sports and entertainment events, off-net television shows, and blockbuster theatrical films. The #1 basic cable network across the board for 2006, USA Network is seen in 90 million U.S. homes. The USA Network Web site is located at http://www.usanetwork.com/. Characters Welcome.

USA Network is a program service of NBC Universal Cable a division of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience.

Source: USA Network

 There's a new ruler in the Kingdom of Sexy. Prince. He, and his iconic gender-melding symbol, tower some twenty stories over Las Vegas. Twenty years after the inauguration of his Purple Reign, the illustrious icon and King of Sexy is back commanding the music scene in Las Vegas. This four-time Grammy winner is performing to sold out shows at The Rio Las Vegas' new 3121 nightclub. On Wednesday nights, the singer/songwriter/producer hosts and presents various artists whom he has signed.

Prince, The Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino and Pepsi has enlisted Sky Tag, the innovators of the largest Tall Walls and Building Wraps, in producing Prince's Mega Mural which dominates the Las Vegas

 The launch of M*A*S*H on TV Land proved to be a "major major" smash! The series, which kicked off with a week-long "Major Major M*A*S*H Marathon" on Monday, January 1 through Sunday, January 7, scored spectacular ratings in prime time for the week, attracting an average of 1.3 million total viewers and scored double-digit increases in demo rating and delivery. The marathon showcase also included all the major episodes from the series; the original major motion picture of the same name; the 20th and 30th major reunion specials and the major landmark series finale, all of which scored huge numbers for the network. TV Land's "Major Major" marathon made TV Land a Top Ten ranked network in all of basic cable among Adults 25-54 for the week in prime.

According to Nielsen Media Research, for the week in prime time (8 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET/PT), the marathon averaged 1.3 million total viewers, up +24% over last year. It posted a 0.6/587,000, up +50% in rating and +38% in delivery among its core A25-54 demo over last year for the week. Among Boomers (Adults 40-54), the showcase posted a 0.8/443,000, up +60% in rating and +62% in delivery over last year.

"The show's strong delivery and ratings are a true testament to how M*A*S*H continues to stand the test of time," states Larry W. Jones, President, TV Land. "As the #1 show among Boomers, M*A*S*H remains one of the most beloved and enduring series ever."

Highlights for the week of TV Land's "Major Major M*A*S*H marathon" include the following:

* On Tuesday, January 2, TV Land aired the M*A*S*H series finale at 10

p.m., posting a 0.7/685,000 among A25-54, up +75% in rating and +100%

in delivery over last year. Among total viewers, the telecast averaged

over 1.3 million, up +102% vs. YAGO. Among Boomers, Adults 40-54, the

finale posted a 1.0/519,000, up +150% in rating and +184% in delivery

compared to last year.

* M*A*S*H's 20th Anniversary retrospective, which aired on Wednesday,

January 3 at 10 p.m., boasted triple-digit increases for the network in

prime, averaging a 0.8/838,000 among A25-54, an increase of +300% in

rating and +284% in delivery over YAGO. Among total viewers, TV Land

attracted an average of over 1.5 million, up a whopping +222% over last

year. The special continued to perform among Boomers as well, scoring

a 1.1/560,000 among A40-54, up +267% in rating and +286% in delivery

vs. YAGO.

* TV Land aired the series' 30th Anniversary reunion special on Thursday,

January 4 at 10 p.m., posting a 0.7/692,000 among A25-54, up +75% in

rating and +85% in delivery over last year. Additionally, the network

averaged over 1.4 million total viewers, an increase of +73% vs. YAGO.

Among the A40-54 Boomer audience, it scored triple digit gains, with a

1.0/513,000, up +150% in rating and +158% in delivery over last year.

* The original M*A*S*H movie, which inspired the landmark series, aired

on Friday, January 5 at 10 p.m., averaging 906,000 total viewers, up

+25% over 2006. The film scored a 0.5/473,000, up +25% in rating and

+39% in delivery over last year. Among A40-54, it posted a 0.7/368,000,

up +75% in rating and +70% in delivery versus YAGO.

TV Land and all related logos and titles are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.

About TV Land

Now seen in over 88 million U.S. homes, TV Land is a division of MTV Networks. TV Land's program mix features original programming, popular dramas, sitcoms, westerns, Retromercials and a TV-referential interstitial environment, all programmed to superserve Baby Boomers -- the first generation of Americans to grow up watching television. TV Land Productions was created in 2003 to develop original programming that complements the network's successful acquired programming slate. TV Land Productions has produced The TV Land Awards Show (March 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006) and Chasing Farrah (Spring 2005). In 2006, TV Land premiered several original productions including Generation Boom, I Pity The Fool starring Mr. T and Sit Down Comedy with David Steinberg. The network features all-time Classic hits like All in the Family, M*A*S*H, I Love Lucy, The Andy Griffith Show and Bonanza.

MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE:VIA.B) , is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. MTV Networks, with more than 130 channels worldwide, owns and operates the following television programming services - MTV: MUSIC TELEVISION, MTV2, VH1, mtvU, NICKELODEON, NICK at NITE, COMEDY CENTRAL, TV LAND, SPIKE TV, CMT, NOGGIN, VH1 CLASSIC, LOGO, MTVN INTERNATIONAL and THE DIGITAL SUITE FROM MTV NETWORKS, a package of 13 digital services, all of these networks trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks connects with its audiences through its robust consumer products businesses and its more than 200 interactive properties worldwide, including online, broadband, wireless and interactive television services and also has licensing agreements, joint ventures, and syndication deals whereby all of its programming services can be seen worldwide.

Source: TV Land

Apple(R) today announced that more than two billion songs, 50 million television episodes and over 1.3 million feature-length films have been purchased and downloaded from the iTunes(R) Store (www.itunes.com), making it the world's most popular online music, TV and movie store.

"iTunes has crossed another major milestone by selling over two billion songs -- with over a billion of them sold in the last year alone -- making it by far the world's most popular music store," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "And by selling 50 million TV shows and over 1.3 million movies to date, iTunes is already the largest online video store in the world as well."

The iTunes Store now features the world's largest catalog by far with over four million songs, 250 feature films, 350 television shows and over 100,000 podcasts. Beginning today, iTunes has added more than 100 movies from Paramount Pictures priced at just $9.99 including "School of Rock," "The Italian Job," "Mean Girls," "Zoolander," "Coach Carter," "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events," "Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life," "Chinatown" and "Breakfast at Tiffany's."

The world's most popular music jukebox, iTunes 7 delivers stunning features such as the new album and Cover Flow views of music, TV shows and movies, enabling users to quickly find titles in their library as well as casually browse through and re-discover titles they already own. Videos purchased from the iTunes Store are downloaded in near-DVD quality at a resolution of 640 by up to 480, depending on the content's aspect ratio. And now with Apple TV, you can wirelessly play all your favorite iTunes content from your Mac(R) or PC, including movies, TV shows, music, photos and podcasts on your widescreen TV.

With Apple's legendary ease of use, pioneering features such as integrated podcasting support, iMix playlist sharing, seamless integration with iPod and groundbreaking personal use rights, the iTunes Store is the best way for Mac and PC users to legally discover, purchase and download music and video online.

Pricing & Availability

iTunes 7 for Mac and Windows includes the iTunes Store and is available as a free download from www.itunes.com. Purchase and download of content from the iTunes Store for Mac or Windows requires a valid credit card with a billing address in the country of purchase. Television shows and feature films are available in the US only, and video availability varies by country. Games are available for download in the 22 countries in which iTunes operates and play on the fifth generation iPod(R). New release feature films are $14.99 (US) each and other feature-length films are $9.99 (US) each, television shows are $1.99 (US) per episode, music videos and short films are $1.99 (US) each and games are $4.99 (US) each.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning desktop and notebook computers, OS X operating system, and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital music revolution with its iPod portable music players and iTunes online store.

NOTE: Apple, the Apple logo, Mac, Mac OS, Macintosh, iTunes and iPod are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

FCMN Contact: hoover1@apple.com

Source: Apple Computer, Inc.

Every mom or dad thinks their baby is the cutest ... and "Live with Regis and Kelly" is giving parents the chance to turn their cute baby into a cover baby! "Live" and Parenting magazine invite proud parents to enter their little ones in "Live's Beautiful Baby Search 2007." Five finalists will be featured on "Live with Regis and Kelly" and the winner will be showcased as the cover model on a future issue of Parenting.

Beginning today, January 9, 2007, parents of beautiful babies between the ages of 6 months and 48 months will be able to enter their children in the contest by submitting a non-professional photo of their little one online at www.liveregisandkelly.com, where full details and contest rules are available. Entries also can be mailed to LIVE'S BEAUTIFUL BABY SEARCH, Ansonia Station - P.O. Box 234027, New York, NY 10023-9490.

"Live" producers and Parenting editors will narrow down the competition to ten finalists. Voting then will be turned over to "Live's" viewing audience, who will vote online to determine the five finalists. The final five beautiful babies will travel to New York to appear on "Live With Regis and Kelly" the week of February 19, 2007, and take part in a professional photo shoot hosted by Parenting. Hosts Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa will announce the picture-perfect winner on February 23, and he or she will be showcased on the cover of a future issue of Parenting.

Parenting, with a guaranteed circulation of 2,150,000 and a readership of over 11 million, is the nation's leading magazine for moms. It provides the emotional support and affirmation they want and the mom-tested information and ideas they can really use. Parenting is the flagship magazine of The Parenting Group, which includes the monthly Babytalk magazine and its siblings Babytalk First Months and Babytalk Mom-to-Be. The Parenting Group's other extensions include: a sampling operation, First Moments; a website, Parenting.com; a custom publishing unit, and MomConnection(R), an online research community. Taken cumulatively, Parenting Group properties deliver over 20 million consumer touchpoints each month. The Group is a division of Time Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc.

"Live with Regis and Kelly" is executive produced by Michael Gelman, and has been distributed in national syndication by Buena Vista Television since 1988. Produced by WABC-TV in New York, "Live with Regis and Kelly" airs in more than 200 markets across the country.

Source: Buena Vista Television

 Apple(R) today premiered Apple TV(TM), an easy to use and fun way to wirelessly play all your favorite iTunes(R) content from your Mac(R) or PC on your widescreen TV, including movies, TV shows, music, photos and podcasts. Using Apple TV's stunning new interface, anyone can quickly browse and view their entire collection of digital media from across the room using the simple and intuitive Apple Remote. Apple TV easily connects to almost all modern widescreen televisions, and will be shipping in February for just $299.

"Apple TV is like a DVD player for the 21st century -- you connect it to your entertainment system just like a DVD player, but it plays digital content you get from the Internet rather than DVDs you get from a physical store," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "Apple TV plays the same iTunes content that users enjoy on their computers and iPods, so now they can even watch part of a movie in their living room, and watch the rest later on their iPod."

Apple TV has a 40GB hard drive to store up to 50 hours of video, 9,000 songs, 25,000 photos or a combination of each and is capable of delivering high-definition 720p output.* Apple TV is easy to connect to a broad range of widescreen TVs and home theater systems and comes standard with HDMI, component video, analog and optical audio ports. Using high-speed AirPort(R) 802.11** wireless networking, Apple TV can auto-sync content from one computer or stream content from up to five additional computers right to your TV without any wires.***

The seamless integration of Apple TV and iTunes lets users choose from over 250 feature-length movies and 350 TV shows in near DVD quality; four million songs, 5,000 music videos, 100,000 podcasts and 20,000 audiobooks. Users can enjoy their favorite music on a home entertainment system and view slideshows of their photo albums on a widescreen TV. Apple TV makes it easy for users to explore their entire media collection with an easy to use and intuitive new interface. With the Apple Remote, consumers can easily browse through their favorite movies, TV shows, music and photos from up to 30 feet away.

Pricing & Availability

Apple TV, which includes the Apple Remote, will be shipping in February through the Apple Store(R) (www.apple.com), Apple's retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers for a suggested retail price of $299 (US).

Apple TV requires iTunes 7 or later running on a Mac with Mac OS(R) X version 10.3.9 or later, or a Windows PC with Windows XP Home/Professional (SP2). An 802.11b/g/n wireless network using AirPort, AirPort Extreme(R) or 10/100 Base-T Ethernet networking required. Internet access is required and a broadband connection is recommended. Apple TV requires an enhanced-definition or high-definition widescreen TV. iPod(R) games will not play on Apple TV. iTunes is available in the US and select countries.

*Video playback based on 640x480 iTunes video content. Music capacity based on four minutes per song and 128-Kbps AAC encoding. Photo capacity based on Apple TV viewable photos transferred from iTunes. Actual capacity varies by content.

**Compatible with 802.11b/g/n. Based on an IEEE 802.11n draft specification.

***Wireless video streaming requires an 802.11g/n network.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning desktop and notebook computers, OS X operating system, and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital music revolution with its iPod portable music players and iTunes online store.

NOTE: Apple, the Apple logo, Mac, Mac OS, Macintosh, iTunes, Mac, Apple TV, AirPort, Apple Store, AirPort Extreme and iPod are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Source: Apple Computer, Inc.

Apple(R) and Cingular announced that Cingular, the largest wireless carrier in the US, will be Apple's exclusive US carrier partner for Apple's revolutionary iPhone unveiled today. As part of this multi-year partnership, Apple and Cingular are working together to provide innovative new features to mobile phone users, such as iPhone's pioneering and unique Visual Voicemail, a first on any mobile phone in the world.

"Apple chose Cingular because they are the best and most popular carrier in the US," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "We are thrilled to be offering our revolutionary new iPhone exclusively with Cingular, and look forward to working together with them to create some wonderful new features for our customers."

"By partnering with Apple, we are continuing our commitment to raising the bar for customers," said Stan Sigman, Cingular's president and CEO. "We think the iPhone is one of the most innovative devices ever created, and we look forward to letting our customers be the first in the world to experience the future of mobile phones."

iPhone's unique Visual Voicemail was co-developed by Apple and Cingular. Visual Voicemail makes voicemail as fast and convenient as email by allowing users to go directly to any of their voice messages without listening to any of the prior messages.

iPhone will be available in the US beginning in June 2007 in a 4GB model for $499 and an 8GB model for $599, and will work in combination with Apple's iTunes(R) running on either a PC or Mac(R).

iPhone will be sold in the US through Apple's retail and online stores (www.apple.com), and through Cingular's retail and online stores (www.cingular.com).

Cingular wireless is the largest wireless carrier in the United States, serving 58.7 million customers. Cingular is solely owned by AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) , a premier communications holding company in the united states and worldwide. Cingular has the largest digital voice and data network in the nation -- the Allover Network -- and the largest mobile-to-mobile community of any national wireless carrier. Cingular is a leader in third generation wire- less technology, featuring the first widely available HSDPA (high speed downlink packet access) service in the world. Cingular is the only US wireless carrier to offer Rollover, the wireless plan that lets customers keep their unused monthly minutes.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning desktop and notebook computers, OS X operating system, and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital music revolution with its iPod portable music players and iTunes online store.

NOTE: Apple, the Apple logo, Mac, Mac OS, Macintosh and iTunes are trade- marks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Source: Apple Computer, Inc.

 Apple(R) today introduced iPhone, combining three products-a revolutionary mobile phone, a widescreen iPod(R) with touch controls, and a breakthrough Internet communications device with desktop-class email, web browsing, searching and maps-into one small and lightweight handheld device. iPhone introduces an entirely new user interface based on a large multi-touch display and pioneering new software, letting users control iPhone with just their fingers. iPhone also ushers in an era of software power and sophistication never before seen in a mobile device, which completely redefines what users can do on their mobile phones.

"iPhone is a revolutionary and magical product that is literally five years ahead of any other mobile phone," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "We are all born with the ultimate pointing device -- our fingers -- and iPhone uses them to create the most revolutionary user interface since the mouse."

iPhone is a Revolutionary Mobile Phone

iPhone is a revolutionary new mobile phone that allows users to make calls by simply pointing at a name or number. iPhone syncs all of your contacts from your PC, Mac(R) or Internet service such as Yahoo!, so that you always have your full list of up-to-date contacts with you. In addition, you can easily construct a favorites list for your most frequently made calls, and easily merge calls together to create conference calls.

iPhone's pioneering Visual Voicemail, an industry first, lets users look at a listing of their voicemails, decide which messages to listen to, then go directly to those messages without listening to the prior messages. Just like email, iPhone's Visual Voicemail enables users to immediately randomly access those messages that interest them most.

iPhone includes an SMS application with a full QWERTY soft keyboard to easily send and receive SMS messages in multiple sessions. When users need to type, iPhone presents them with an elegant touch keyboard which is predictive to prevent and correct mistakes, making it much easier and more efficient to use than the small plastic keyboards on many smartphones. iPhone also includes a calendar application that allows calendars to be automatically synced with your PC or Mac.

iPhone features a 2 megapixel camera and a photo management application that is far beyond anything on a phone today. Users can browse their photo library, which can be easily synced from their PC or Mac, with just a flick of a finger and easily choose a photo for their wallpaper or to include in an email.

iPhone is a quad-band GSM phone which also features EDGE and Wi-Fi wireless technologies for data networking. Apple has chosen Cingular, the best and most popular carrier in the US with over 58 million subscribers, to be Apple's exclusive carrier partner for iPhone in the US.

iPhone is a Widescreen iPod

iPhone is a widescreen iPod with touch controls that lets music lovers "touch" their music by easily scrolling through entire lists of songs, artists, albums and playlists with just a flick of a finger. Album artwork is stunningly presented on iPhone's large and vibrant display.

iPhone also features Cover Flow, Apple's amazing way to browse your music library by album cover artwork, for the first time on an iPod. When navigating your music library on iPhone, you are automatically switched into Cover Flow by simply rotating iPhone into its landscape position.

iPhone's stunning 3.5-inch widescreen display offers the ultimate way to watch TV shows and movies on a pocketable device, with touch controls for play-pause, chapter forward-backward and volume. iPhone plays the same videos purchased from the online iTunes(R) Store that users enjoy watching on their computers and iPods, and will soon enjoy watching on their widescreen televisions using the new Apple TV(TM). The iTunes Store now offers over 350 television shows, over 250 feature films and over 5,000 music videos.

iPhone lets users enjoy all their iPod content, including music, audiobooks, audio podcasts, video podcasts, music videos, television shows and movies. iPhone syncs content from a user's iTunes library on their PC or Mac, and can play any music or video content they have purchased from the online iTunes store.

iPhone is a Breakthrough Internet Communications Device

iPhone features a rich HTML email client which fetches your email in the background from most POP3 or IMAP mail services and displays photos and graphics right along with the text. iPhone is fully multi-tasking, so you can be reading a web page while downloading your email in the background.

Yahoo! Mail, the world's largest email service with over 250 million users, is offering a new free "push" IMAP email service to all iPhone users that automatically pushes new email to a user's iPhone, and can be set up by simply entering your Yahoo! name and password. iPhone will also work with most industry standard IMAP and POP based email services, such as Microsoft Exchange, Apple .Mac Mail, AOL Mail, Google Gmail and most ISP mail services.

iPhone also features the most advanced and fun-to-use web browser on a portable device with a version of its award-winning Safari(TM) web browser for iPhone. Users can see any web page the way it was designed to be seen, and then easily zoom in to expand any section by simply tapping on iPhone's multi- touch display with their finger. Users can surf the web from just about anywhere over Wi-Fi or EDGE, and can automatically sync their bookmarks from their PC or Mac. iPhone's Safari web browser also includes built-in Google Search and Yahoo! Search so users can instantly search for information on their iPhone just like they do on their computer.

iPhone also includes Google Maps, featuring Google's groundbreaking maps service and iPhone's amazing maps application, offering the best maps experience by far on any pocket device. Users can view maps, satellite images, traffic information and get directions, all from iPhone's remarkable and easy- to-use touch interface.

iPhone's Advanced Sensors

iPhone employs advanced built-in sensors -- an accelerometer, a proximity sensor and an ambient light sensor -- that automatically enhance the user experience and extend battery life. iPhone's built-in accelerometer detects when the user has rotated the device from portrait to landscape, then automatically changes the contents of the display accordingly, with users immediately seeing the entire width of a web page, or a photo in its proper landscape aspect ratio.

iPhone's built-in proximity sensor detects when you lift iPhone to your ear and immediately turns off the display to save power and prevent inadvertent touches until iPhone is moved away. iPhone's built-in ambient light sensor automatically adjusts the display's brightness to the appropriate level for the current ambient light, thereby enhancing the user experience and saving power at the same time.

Pricing & Availability

iPhone will be available in the US in June 2007, Europe in late 2007, and Asia in 2008, in a 4GB model for $499 (US) and an 8GB model for $599 (US), and will work with either a PC or Mac. iPhone will be sold in the US through Apple's retail and online stores, and through Cingular's retail and online stores. Several iPhone accessories will also be available in June, including Apple's new remarkably compact Bluetooth headset.

iPhone includes support for quad-band GSM, EDGE, 802.11b/g Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0 EDR wireless technologies.

iPhone requires a Mac with a USB 2.0 port, Mac OS(R) X v10.4.8 or later and iTunes 7; or a Windows PC with a USB 2.0 port and Windows 2000 (Service Pack 4), Windows XP Home or Professional (Service Pack 2). Internet access is required and a broadband connection is recommended. Apple and Cingular will announce service plans for iPhone before it begins shipping in June.

Learn More About iPhone

To learn more about iPhone, please visit Apple.com or watch the video of the iPhone introduction at www.apple.com/iphone/keynote.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award- winning desktop and notebook computers, OS X operating system, and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital music revolution with its iPod portable music players and iTunes online store.

NOTE: Apple, the Apple logo, Mac, Mac OS, Macintosh, iPod, iTunes, Apple TV and Safari are trademarks of Apple. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

The convention that boasts the largest collection of naughty pleasures and hottest entertainers from around the globe -- the 2007 AVN Adult Entertainment Expo -- opens tomorrow at the Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas, Nevada and will run through Saturday. With thousands of adult stars, industry leaders, and fans from around the world scheduled to attend, what happens in Vegas this week won't stay in Vegas for long.

The Expo will kick off with Jenna Jameson, the adult industry's famous star and business executive, and her Club Jenna Girls, cutting the ribbon to open the show in front of Hall A at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, January 10.

For many attendees, the highlight of the show will be meeting and getting autographs from their favorite adult stars. More than 250 of the most famous adult actresses and actors will be on hand to greet their fans.

To date, more than 340 companies are scheduled to exhibit at the show, including the adult industry's leading entertainment producers. Please refer to www.AdultEntertainmentExpo.com for a complete list of exhibitors.

At the nine seminars scheduled, some of the adult industry's leading business people and attorneys will be present to discuss important topics such as censorship, techniques to curb growing piracy, recordkeeping requirements, how to build and expand business in adult products, technological advancements that are revolutionizing the adult entertainment market, and the rapid growth of female consumers in the market.

The 2007 AVN Adult Entertainment Expo is sponsored by Adult Video News and produced by Home Entertainment Events.

Also to be held in conjunction with the event is the GAYVN Expo, a designated portion of the show floor devoted to this thriving segment of the adult industry. Additional information can be found at www.GAYVNExpo.com.

Adult industry trade attendees can register for the show by going to www.AdultEntertainmentExpo.com. Trade registration is $145 per person.

Fan tickets are available onsite. One-day fan passes cost $75. New this year is the 3-day fan pass, available for $160. Onsite VIP tickets cost $100.

This year's Golden Globe Award winners will be going green on January 15 as they celebrate at the EMA & E! Golden Green Party Presented by Lexus @ 9900 Wilshire Beverly Hills. The party @ 9900 Wilshire Beverly Hills will be the first "green" party in the history of the Golden Globe Awards and is expected to attract environmentally-friendly Golden Globe winners, nominees, celebrities and high-profile industry executives. New Pacific Realty, owner and developer of 9900 Wilshire Beverly Hills, donated use of the site to the Environmental Media Association (EMA) for the Golden Globe Awards event to help raise awareness about green living and building green.

"Green living has become a way of life for many of today's celebrities," noted Debbie Levin, President of the EMA, "and we are proud to be the first ones to step up and create a party that unites talent and social responsibility. We are not only celebrating the best that Hollywood has to offer, but also their commitment to making a positive difference to our environment."

9900 Wilshire Beverly Hills is the perfect place for the Golden Green Party because the site, a former Robinsons-May department store, is being developed into the first luxury residential project of its kind in the Western United States to qualify for the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED(TM) (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold rating. Developer New Pacific was recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council-L.A. with its 2006 Visionary Leadership Award. 9900 Wilshire was also a winner of a 36th annual L.A. Architectural Award and a 2006 Urban Solutions Award.

Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Richard Meier, 9900 Wilshire is sure to become one of the hottest addresses in the world, combining innovative, environmental technologies with landmark architecture. Meier is at home designing for celebrities, having created residences for Nicole Kidman, Martha Stewart and Calvin Klein, among others. Located at the western entrance to the City of Beverly Hills, 9900 Wilshire will set the standard for luxury and environmental sustainability.

The EMA and E! party being hosted at 9900 Wilshire will be a truly eco-friendly affair, incorporating gourmet organic food and recycled party materials and decorations, set in a landscape of sustainable plants and flowers. To promote the green message even further, Tree People will plant a tree for each attendee. Tree People is a nonprofit organization that has been serving the Los Angeles area for over three decades, helping nature heal cities by offering sustainable solutions to urban ecosystem problems.

"We are pleased to donate use of the site to the EMA charity to create the first Globes Green party in history," said David P. Margulies, chief executive officer of New Pacific Realty. "When Hollywood embraces Green, it helps to promote awareness around the world, and we are indeed pleased that so many have already planned to make their future residence at 9900 Wilshire."

About 9900 Wilshire - Beverly Hills

9900 Wilshire Beverly Hills will become the first residential project of its kind in the Western United States to qualify for the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED(TM) (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold rating. It is being developed by New Pacific Realty and designed by Pritzker award-winning architect Richard Meier, renowned for the Getty Center in Los Angeles, the Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art in Barcelona, Spain, and the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia, among many others. The future home of a veritable Who's Who of green-minded celebrities and industry executives, 9900 Wilshire has already received the 2006 Visionary Leadership Award from the United States Green Building Council-LA; the 2006 Los Angeles Architecture Award and the 2006 Urban Solutions Award. Located at the western entrance to the City of Beverly Hills on the site of the former Robinsons-May department store, 9900 Wilshire will set the standard for future sustainable green luxury residential projects in the world. Beverly Hills-based New Pacific Realty is led by principals David P. Margulies and Arnold S. Rosenstein, who have acquired and developed more than 5 million square feet of prime commercial and residential space in Southern California since 2002, valued in excess of $2 billion. For more information on 9900 Wilshire, please visit www.9900wilshire.com.

About EMA

The Environmental Media Association (EMA) mobilizes the entertainment industry in a global effort to educate people about environmental issues and inspire them into action. EMA was created in 1989, as a non-profit 501(c) 3, with the simple but powerful concept that through music, television and film, the entire entertainment community could influence the environmental awareness of millions of people. Through the use of weaving environmental messages within entertainment programming and utilizing "celebrity" for positive role modeling, EMA continues to have a profound effect on how the public receives environmental information. EMA serves as a valuable link between the entertainment industry and the environmental community. For more information, please visit www.ema-online.org.

About E! Networks

Based in Los Angeles, E! Network is the world's largest producer and distributor of entertainment news and lifestyle-related programming. The company operates E! Entertainment Television, the 24-hour network with programming dedicated to the world of entertainment; Style Network, the destination for women 18-49 with a passion for the best in relatable and inspiring lifestyle programming, and E! Online, located at Eonline.com. E! is currently available to over 89 million cable and direct broadcast satellite subscribers in the United States. Style Network currently counts over 50 million subscribers. Internationally, E! programming can be seen in more than 120 countries worldwide, reaching 600 million homes. In addition to its ventures for locally programmed E! branded channels outside the U.S., the company operates the E! International Network, a 24-hour English language global entertainment channel available via satellite in Europe, Africa, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. Earlier this year, E! launched the E! Everywhere initiative underscoring the company's dedication to making E! content available on all new media platforms any time and anywhere -- from online to broadband at The Vine @ E!Online to wireless to satellite radio to VOD.

Source: New Pacific Realty

Warner Music Group Corp. (NYSE:WMG) and MobiTV, Inc., the global leader in mobile and broadband television and music services, today announced the exclusive availability of WMG artist-branded TV channels across MobiTV's vast mobile and broadband platforms.

Beginning in February, MobiTV subscribers in the United States can view unique video programming conceived and created by their favorite WMG artists.

WMG artists including Linkin Park are expected to go behind the camera and direct original video programming to populate their personally branded MobiTV channels. Content will include original video filmed by and featuring artists, as well as music videos from the expansive WMG catalogue. Videos will be updated on a monthly basis.

"Our partnership with a mobile leader like MobiTV is another way that WMG is harnessing the promise of the mobile platform to better connect our artists to their fans' video watching experience," said George White, Senior Vice President, Strategy and Product Development, WMG.

"We want to stimulate the music industry with the best videos, TV shows and artist programming, while ensuring all parties get paid in the process," said Nancy Levin, executive producer of Music Television for MobiTV. "Because of this partnership we are able to sweeten our library even more for our one million plus subscribers and we look forward to a long, successful partnership with WMG."

MobiTV subscribers currently can view video content from WMG's extensive library of music videos, including videos from artists Green Day, Mana, My Chemical Romance, Pretty Ricky, Red Hot Chili Peppers, directly to their mobile phones and personal computers.

Initially, MobiTV will offer the additional content provided by WMG on its four genre-focused music channels in the areas of hip-hop, pop, rock & metal, and alternative.

About MobiTV

MobiTV, Inc. (www.mobitv.com ) is leading the convergence of television, film and music content across the mobile and personal computing markets. The Emmy(R) Award winning service has more than one million subscribers and offers popular TV and digital radio channels from top labels, networks and cable providers. The MobiTV(R) service is available in the US through AT&T, Sprint, Cingular, Alltel; the UK through 3UK and Orange; in Canada through Bell Canada, Rogers and TELUS Mobility; in Latin America through America Movil, Claro and Telcel; and other regional carriers internationally. Founded in 1999, MobiTV is a privately-held company headquartered in Emeryville, CA.

About Warner Music Group

Warner Music Group became the only stand-alone music company to be publicly traded in the United States in May 2005. With its broad roster of new stars and legendary artists, Warner Music Group is home to a collection of the best-known record labels in the music industry including Atlantic, Bad Boy, Elektra, Lava, Maverick, Nonesuch, Reprise, Rhino, Rykodisc, Sire, Warner Bros. and Word. Warner Music International, a leading company in national and international repertoire operates through numerous international affiliates and licensees in more than 50 countries. Warner Music Group also includes Warner/Chappell Music, one of the world's leading music publishers. For more information, visit www.wmg.com .

NOTE: MobiTV and the MobiTV logo are trademarks, service marks, and/or registered trademarks of MobiTV, Inc. in the United States and in other countries. All other trademarks, service marks, and product names used herein are the property of their respective owners.

Source: MobiTV, Inc.

TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ:TIVO) , the creator of and a leader in advertising solutions and television services for digital video recorders (DVRs), today announced that its Interactive Advertising Platform was presented with the Emmy Award for Outstanding Innovation and Achievement in Advanced Media Technology.

"TiVo's interactive advertising features and custom advertising applications, such as Product Watch, Interactive Tags, and Program Placement, are prime examples of TiVo's ability to lead the industry in helping advertisers reach the fast forwarding consumer which increasingly defines advertising consumption in the household," said TiVo's CEO, Tom Rogers. "As we have continued to build out our advertising business, we have taken great strides to ensure that we continue to innovate and provide consumers with product and service information on their own time. We have proven that consumers will opt in to an advertising message if relevant and provided the ability to not miss their favorite shows. TiVo has successfully created a way for advertisers to reach viewers in an opt-in environment and we are proud to have our interactive advertising features receive recognition from the National Television Academy."

This year's Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards recognized seven categories, including nominations in the areas of interactive television, On Demand television, the Internet, and personal media display and presentation technology. Other finalists in the specific category of Outstanding Innovation and Achievement in Advanced Media Technology for Best Use by Commercials in Creation and Use in Non Traditional Platforms and Technologies included ABC.com's Full Episode Streaming Player and Ravenstoke by Turner Broadcasting Systems, Inc.

"This is a truly dynamic time for the television industry, and we are recognizing the significant contributions made by technology and engineering professionals in enhancing and redefining the consumer's experiences with the media," said Peter Price, President/CEO, National Television Academy. "This year, we are particularly pleased to commend those who are contributing to the technical development of television anytime, anywhere through the advancement of broadband and portable delivery platforms."

The Technology & Engineering Emmy(R) Awards were presented at the opening evening event of the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) on Monday, January 8, 2007. CES, the world's largest consumer technology tradeshow, is celebrating its 40th anniversary and is currently being held in Las Vegas.

About National Television Academy

The National Television Academy is a professional service organization dedicated to the advancement of the arts and sciences of television and the promotion of creative leadership for artistic, educational and technical achievements within the television industry. It recognizes excellence in television with the coveted Emmy Award for News & Documentary, Sports, Daytime, Creative Arts, Public & Community Service, Technology & Engineering/Advanced Media and Business & Financial Reporting. Excellence in Primetime programming and international programming is recognized by its affiliate, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Regional Emmys are given in 19 regions across the United States. Beyond awards, the National Television Academy has extensive educational programs including National Student Television and its Student Award for Excellence for outstanding journalistic work by high school students, as well as scholarships, publications, and major activities for both industry professionals and the viewing public. For more information, please visit the website at www.emmyonline.tv .

About TiVo Inc.

Founded in 1997, TiVo pioneered a brand new category of products with the development of the first commercially available digital video recorder (DVR). Sold through leading consumer electronic retailers, TiVo has developed a brand which resonates boldly with consumers as providing a superior television experience. Through agreements with leading satellite and cable providers, TiVo also integrates its full set of DVR service features into the set-top boxes of mass distributors. TiVo's DVR functionality and ease of use, with such features as Season Pass (TM) recordings and WishList(R) searches and TiVo KidZone, has elevated its popularity among consumers and has created a whole new way for viewers to watch television. With a continued investment in its patented technologies, TiVo is revolutionizing the way consumers watch and access home entertainment. Rapidly becoming the focal point of the digital living room, TiVo's DVR is at the center of experiencing new forms of content on the TV, such as broadband delivered video, music and photos. With innovative features, such as TiVoToGo(TM) transfers and online scheduling, TiVo is expanding the notion of consumers experiencing "TiVo, TV your way.(R)" The TiVo(R) service is also at the forefront of providing innovative marketing solutions for the television industry, including a unique platform for advertisers and audience measurement research. The company is based in Alviso, Calif.

NOTE: TiVo, TiVoCast, 'TiVo, TV your way.' Season Pass, WishList, TiVoToGo, Series2, Series3 and the TiVo Logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of TiVo Inc. and its subsidiaries worldwide

Jan 4

Scientific and Technical Achievements to Be Honored with Academy Awards®

Beverly Hills, CA — The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced the 15 winners of Scientific and Technical Academy Awards, which will be presented at the Beverly Wilshire hotel on Saturday, February 10.

Awards Administration Director Rich Miller said that unlike other Academy Awards, achievements receiving Scientific and Technical Awards do not have to have been developed and introduced during 2006. “The achievement can be a device or a discovery, a formula or a method, but it must demonstrate a proven record of contributing significant value to the process of making motion pictures,” Miller said.

Academy Awards for Scientific and Technical achievements for 2006 are:

To Joshua Pines and Chris Kutcka of Technicolor Digital Intermediates for the design and development of the TDI process for creating archival separations from digital image data.

The TDI process is based on the production of digital separation negatives creating archival elements that can be scanned and digitally recombined in the future.

To Bill Feightner and Chris Edwards of E-Film for the design and development of the E-Film process for creating archival separations from digital image data.

The E-Film process is based on the production of digital separation negatives creating archival elements that can be scanned and digitally recombined in the future.

To Albert Ridilla, Papken Shahbazian, Ronald Belknap and Jay McGarrigle for the design and development of the Hollywood Film Company Brumagic MPST Densitometer.

The Brumagic MPST was designed specifically to measure density in the motion picture soundtrack and has become the densitometer of choice for reading soundtrack negative and positive densities worldwide.

To Klemens Kehrer, Josef Handler, Thomas Smidek and Marc Shipman Mueller for the design and development of the Arriflex 235 Camera System.

Designed for handheld photography, the features of this small, lightweight MOS camera also allow it to be used as a secondary production camera.

To Florian Kainz for the design and engineering of OpenEXR, a software package implementing 16-bit, floating-point, high dynamic range image files.

Widely adopted, OpenEXR is engineered to meet the requirements of the visual effects industry by providing for lossless and lossy compression of tiered and tiled images.

To Walter Trauniger and Ernst Tschida for the design and engineering of the Arri WRC wireless remote lens control system.

This highly modular system permits accurate and reliable wireless control with multiple hand controls of all lens functions.

To Christian Tschida and Martin Waitz of cmotion for the design and engineering of the cmotion Wireless Remote System.

The graphical user interface of the cmotion system eases the difficult task of following focus and the unique lens tag system recalls the calibration for each lens.

To Peter Litwinowicz and Pierre Jasmin for the design and development of the RE: Vision Effects family of software tools for optical flow-based image manipulation.

A unique user interface and relatively low cost have made these tools ubiquitous in the visual effects community.

To Phillip J. Feiner, Jim Houston, Denis Leconte and Chris Bushman of Pacific Title and Art Studio for the design and development of the Rosetta process for creating digital YCM archival masters for digital film restoration.

With elements that may be recombined either digitally or optically, the Rosetta separations process offers a uniquely great versatility in achieving high quality results for digital YCM archiving.

To Steve Sullivan, Colin Davidson, Max Chen and Francesco Callari for the design and development of the ILM Image-based Modeling System.

This highly integrated system facilitates interactive construction and editing of 3D models from digital photographs and addresses the three-dimensional scanning needs of motion pictures in unique and innovative ways.

To Dr. Bill Collis, Simon Robinson, Ben Kent and Anil Kokaram for the design and development of the Furnace integrated suite of software tools that robustly utilizes temporal coherence for enhancing visual effects in motion picture sequences.

The Furnace toolset’s modularity, flexibility and robustness have set a high standard of quality for optical flow-based image manipulation.

To Howard Preston and Mirko Kovacevic for the design and engineering of the Preston Cinema Systems FI+Z wireless remote system.

Pioneering unprecedented reliability and flexibility in wireless lens and camera operation, the FI+Z has continued to be a leader in innovation since its introduction in 1994.

To Ioan Allen, J. Wayne Anderson, Mary Ann Anderson, Ted Costas, Paul R. Goldberg, Shawn Jones, Tom Kuhn, Dr. Alan Masson, Colin Mossman, Martin Richards, Frank Ricotta and Richard C. Sehlin for their contributions to the environmentally responsible industry conversion from silver-based to cyan dye analog soundtracks.

To Richard Edlund for his “outstanding service and dedication in upholding the high standards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.”

To Ray Feeney for his “technological contributions, which have brought credit to the motion picture industry.”

# # #

©A.M.P.A.S.®

Format wars far from over. Warner Bros. DVD will play rival formats

Warner Bros. is set to introduce a high definition DVD disc that can hold films and TV shows in rival and incompatible formats, the latest sign that the yearlong format war is long from over.

Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc., said it developed the "Total HD Disc" to help break the stalemate between HD DVD, developed by a consortium led by Toshiba Corp., and rival Blu-ray, backed by Sony Corp (NYSE:SNE - news). Both deliver sharper pictures and increased space for special features.

All but the most adventurous consumers have stayed away from choosing sides in the battle for fear of being stuck with the losing technology, much the same as happened when VHS and Betamax battled it out for videotape dominance in the 1980s.

Initially, Hollywood studios lined up behind one or the other formats. Warner Bros. first backed HD DVD, but then decided to release films and TV shows on both formats.

Some studios, such as Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc., have followed Warner Bros. in backing both formats. Only Universal Studios, a division of General Electric Co., is releasing films exclusively in HD DVD.

Sony Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp., 20th Century Fox, which is owned by News Corp., and The Walt Disney Co. have remained staunch defenders of Blu-ray.

Retailers and others had hoped the rival camps would compromise on one format, or that one would prove dominant.

But the decision by Warner Bros. to accommodate confused consumers by placing both formats of films on a single disc shows that the battle continues.

"The Total High-Definition Disc allows consumers to fully embrace high-definition viewing," Ron Sanders, President of Warner Home Video said in a statement Thursday. "Warner Bros. was a force in creating the current market dominance of the standard DVD, and we hope that THD will make it easier for the average consumer to enjoy this next level of technology."

Details of the disc, such as whether Warner Bros. would license the technology to rival studios, are set to be released next week at the International Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas.

Other compromise solutions are in the works.

LG Electronics said this week they plan on marketing a dual format DVD player. Other electronics makers are expected to follow suit.

Warner Bros. has also patented a disc that can contain three versions of a film — one in each of the rival high-def formats and a third that can be viewed on standard definition players.

P 3  & P 10

The production company for BOBBY should be MGM/The Weinstein Company, not The Weinstein Company.

P 3
The Dreamgirls cast should have read:

DREAMGIRLS                             Paramount Pictures

Hinton Battle                               Wayne
Jamie Foxx                                 Curtis Taylor, Jr.
Danny Glover                              Marty Madison
Jennifer Hudson                          Effie White
Beyoncé Knowles                        Deena Jones
Sharon Leal                                 Michelle Morris
Eddie Murphy                              James “Thunder” Early
Keith Robinson                           C.C. White
Anika Noni Rose                         Lorrell Robinson

P 7

The Desperate Housewives ensemble should have read:

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES                         ABC
 
Andrea Bowen                                                 Julie Mayer
Mehcad Brooks                                                Matthew Applewhite
Richard Burgi                                                   Karl Mayer
Ricardo Antonio Chavira                                   Carlos Solis
Marcia Cross                                                    Bree Hodge
James Denton                                                  Mike Delfino
Teri Hatcher                                                     Susan Mayer
Josh Henderson                                               Austin McCann
Zane Huett                                                       Parker Scavo
Felicity Huffman                                                Lynette Scavo
Kathryn Joosten                                               Mrs. McCluskey
Nashawn Kearse                                              Caleb Applewhite
Brent Kinsman                                                 Preston Scavo
Shane Kinsman                                               Porter Scavo
Joy Lauren                                                       Danielle Van De Kamp
Eva Longoria                                                   Gabrielle Solis
Kyle MacLachlan                                              Orson Hodge
Laurie Metcalf                                                  Carolyn Bigsby
Shawn Pyfrom                                                  Andrew Van De Kamp
Doug Savant                                                    Tom Scavo
Dougray Scott                                                  Ian Hainsworth
Nicollette Sheridan                                           Edie Britt
Brenda Strong                                                 Mary Alice Young
Kiersten Warren                                               Nora
Alfre Woodard                                                  Betty Applewhite

P 8

The Weeds ensemble should have read:

WEEDS                                                          SHOWTIME                                                       

Martin Donovan                                                Peter Scottson
Alexander Gould                                              Shane Botwin
Allie Grant                                                        Isabelle Hodes
Indigo                                                              Vaneeta
Justin Kirk                                                        Andy Botwin
Romany Malco                                                 Conrad Shepard
Andy Milder                                                      Dean Hodes
Kevin Nealon                                                   Doug Wilson
Maulik Pancholy                                               Sanjay
Mary-Louise Parker                                          Nancy Botwin
Hunter Parrish                                                  Silas Botwin
Tonye Patano                                                  Heylia James
Elizabeth Perkins                                             Celia Hodes
Eden Sher                                                       Gretchen

Los Angeles, California - Nominations for the 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® for outstanding performances in 2006 in five film and eight primetime television categories were announced this morning in Los Angeles at the Pacific Design Center’s Silver Screen Theater in West Hollywood.

Screen Actors Guild President Alan Rosenberg introduced Sandra Oh (Grey’s Anatomy) and Elijah Wood (Bobby, Happy Feet), who announced the nominees for this year’s Actors®.

Screen Actors Guild will honor its own at the 13th Annual Actors® ceremony on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2007, at the Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Center, simulcast live nationally on TNT and TBS at 8 p.m. ET/PT, 7 p.m. CT, and 6 p.m. MT.

Of the top industry accolades presented to performers, only the Screen Actors Guild Awards® are selected purely by actors’ peers. Two randomly selected panels–one for television and one for film--each comprised of 2,100 Guild members from across the United States, chose this year’s Actor® nominees. The secret ballots were mailed Friday, Dec. 1, 2006, by Integrity Voting Systems, the Awards’ official teller. Voting was completed by noon Jan. 2, 2007.

Awards ballots will be mailed on January 5, 2007. The entire active membership of the Guild across the country will vote on all acting categories.  Votes must be received by Integrity Voting Systems by noon Friday, Jan. 26, where results will be tallied and sealed until they are opened by the presenters at the 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® ceremonies on Jan. 28.

The Screen Actors Guild Post-Awards Gala, benefiting the Screen Actors Guild Foundation, will be hosted for the 11th consecutive year by People Magazine and by the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF).

The complete list of nominations for the 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® follows. A replay of the announcement will be available for viewing on www.tnt.tv <http://www.tnt.tv>  and www.tbs.com <http://www.tbs.com> .
 

13TH ANNUAL SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS® NOMINATIONS

THEATRICAL MOTION PICTURES

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role

Leonardo DiCaprio / BLOOD DIAMOND – Archer                                                       Warner Bros. Pictures
Ryan Gosling / HALF NELSON – Dan Dunne                                                              THINKFilm
Peter O’Toole / VENUS – Maurice                                                                                Miramax Films
Will Smith / THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS – Chris Gardner                                     Sony Pictures
Forest Whitaker / THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND – Idi Amin                                    Fox Searchlight Pictures
 
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role

Penelope Cruz / VOLVER – Raimunda                                                                        Sony Pictures Classics
Judi Dench / NOTES ON A SCANDAL – Barbara Covett                                            Fox Searchlight Pictures
Helen Mirren / THE QUEEN – The Queen                                                                   Miramax Films.
Meryl Streep / THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA – Miranda Priestly                                    20th Century Fox
Kate Winslet / LITTLE CHILDREN – Sarah Pierce                                                       New Line Cinema              
 
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role

Alan Arkin / LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE – Grandpa                                                      Fox Searchlight Pictures
Leonardo DiCaprio / THE DEPARTED – Billy                                                               Warner Bros. Pictures
Jackie Earle Haley / LITTLE CHILDREN – Ronnie J. McGorvey                                  New Line Cinema
Djimon Hounsou / BLOOD DIAMOND – Solomon                                                        Warner Bros. Pictures
Eddie Murphy / DREAMGIRLS – James “Thunder” Early                                              Paramount Pictures
 
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role

Adriana Barraza / BABEL – Amelia                                                                             Paramount Vantage
Cate Blanchett / NOTES ON A SCANDAL – Sheba Hart                                              Fox Searchlight Pictures
Abigail Breslin / LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE – Olive                                                     Fox Searchlight Pictures
Jennifer Hudson / DREAMGIRLS – Effie White                                                           Paramount Pictures
Rinko Kikuchi / BABEL – Chieko                                                                                Paramount Vantage

Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture

BABEL                                                Paramount Vantage                                         
 
                                                            Adriana Barraza                                               Amelia
                                                            Cate Blanchett                                                 Susan
                                                           Gael García Bernal                                          Santiago          
                                                           Rinko Kikuchi                                                   Chieko
                                                           Brad Pitt                                                           Richard
                                                           Kôji Yakusho                                                    Yasujiro

BOBBY                                                The Weinstein Company                                  
 
                                                            Harry Belafonte                                                Nelson
                                                           Joy Bryant                                                        Patricia
                                                           Nick Cannon                                                    Dwayne
                                                            Emilio Estevez                                                  Tim Fallon
                                                           Laurence Fishburne                                         Edward Robinson
                                                            Brian Geraghty                                                 Cooper
                                                            Heather Graham                                              Angela
                                                           Anthony Hopkins                                              John Casey
                                                            Helen Hunt                                                       Samantha
                                                           Joshua Jackson                                               Wade
                                                           David Krumholtz                                               Phil
                                                            Ashton Kutcher                                                Fisher
                                                           Shia LaBoeuf                                                   Jimmy
                                                            Lindsay Lohan                                                 Diane
                                                            William H. Macy                                                Paul
                                                           Svetlana Metkina                                             Lenka Janacek
                                                            Demi Moore                                                      Virginia Fallon
                                                           Freddy Rodriguez                                             José
                                                           Martin Sheen                                                   Jack
                                                            Christian Slater                                                 Timmons
                                                           Sharon Stone                                                  Miriam
                                                            Jacob Vargas                                                   Miguel
                                                            Mary Elizabeth Winstead                                  Susan Taylor
                                                           Elijah Wood                                                      William
 
THE DEPARTED                                  Warner Bros. Pictures                                       
 
                                                            Anthony Anderson                                           Brown
                                                           Alec Baldwin                                                    Ellerby
                                                            Matt Damon                                                     Colin
                                                            Leonardo DiCaprio                                           Billy
                                                            Vera Farmiga                                                   Madolyn
                                                           Jack Nicholson                                                 Costello
                                                            Martin Sheen                                                   Queenan
                                                            Mark Wahlberg                                                 Dignam
                                                            Ray Winstone                                                   Mr. French
 
DREAMGIRLS                                    Paramount Pictures                                          
 
                                                            Jamie Foxx                                                       Curtis Taylor, Jr.
                                                            Danny Glover                                                   Marty Madison
                                                            Jennifer Hudson                                               Effie White
                                                            Beyoncé Knowles                                            Deena Jones
                                                            Eddie Murphy                                                   James “Thunder” Early
                                                            Keith Robinson                                                C.C. White
                                                            Anika Noni Rose                                              Lorrell Robinson

LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE                   Fox Searchlight Pictures                                   
 
                                                            Alan Arkin                                                        Grandpa
                                                            Abigail Breslin                                                 Olive
                                                            Steve Carell                                                     Frank
                                                            Toni Collette                                                     Sheryl
                                                            Paul Dano                                                        Dwayne
                                                            Greg Kinnear                                                   Richard

PRIMETIME TELEVISION

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries

Thomas Haden Church / BROKEN TRAIL – Tom Harte                                               AMC
Robert Duvall / BROKEN TRAIL – Print Ritter                                                              AMC
Jeremy Irons / ELIZABETH I – Earl of Leicester                                                          HBO
William H. Macy / NIGHTMARES & DREAMSCAPES – Clyde Umney                         TNT
Matthew Perry / THE RON CLARK STORY – Ron Clark                                               TNT

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries

Annette Bening / MRS. HARRIS – Jean Harris                                                             HBO
Shirley Jones / HIDDEN PLACES – Aunt Batty                                                           Hallmark Channel
Cloris Leachman / MRS. HARRIS – Tarnower’s Sister                                                 HBO
Helen Mirren / ELIZABETH I – Elizabeth I                                                                   HBO
Greta Scacchi / BROKEN TRAIL – Nola Johns                                                           AMC

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series

James Gandolfini / THE SOPRANOS – Tony Soprano                                               HBO
Michael C. Hall / DEXTER – Dexter Morgan                                                                Showtime
Hugh Laurie / HOUSE – Dr. Gregory House                                                                 FOX
James Spader / BOSTON LEGAL – Alan Shore                                                         ABC
Kiefer Sutherland / 24 – Jack Bauer                                                                           FOX
 
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series
 
Patricia Arquette / MEDIUM – Allison Dubois                                                               NBC
Edie Falco / THE SOPRANOS – Carmela Soprano                                                      HBO
Mariska Hargitay / LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT – Det. Olivia Benson     NBC
Kyra Sedgwick / THE CLOSER – Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson                                TNT
Chandra Wilson / GREY’S ANATOMY – Dr. Miranda Bailey                                         ABC
 
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
 
Alec Baldwin / 30 ROCK – Jack Donaghy                                                                   NBC
Steve Carell / THE OFFICE – Michael Scott                                                                NBC
Jason Lee / MY NAME IS EARL – Earl Hickey                                                             NBC
Jeremy Piven / ENTOURAGE – Ari Gold                                                                     HBO
Tony Shalhoub / MONK – Adrian Monk                                                                       USA

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series

America Ferrera / UGLY BETTY – Betty Suarez                                                         ABC
Felicity Huffman / DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES – Lynette                                         ABC
Julia Louis-Dreyfus / THE NEW ADVENTURES OF OLD CHRISTINE
 – Christine Campbell                                                                                                   CBS
Megan Mullally / WILL & GRACE – Karen Walker                                                      NBC
Mary-Louise Parker / WEEDS – Nancy Botwin                                                           Showtime
Jaime Pressly / MY NAME IS EARL – Joy                                                                  NBC
 
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series

24                                                        FOX
                                                      
                                                      Jayne Atkinson                                                Karen Hayes
                                                       Jude Ciccolella                                                 Mike Novick
                                                      Roger Cross                                                     Curtis Manning
                                                      Gregory Itzin                                                    Charles Logan
                                                      Louis Lombardi                                                Edgar Stiles
                                                      James Morrison                                                Bill Buchanan
                                                     Glenn Morshower                                             Aaron Pierce
                                                      Mary Lynn Rajskub                                           Chloe O’Brian
                                                      Kim Raver                                                        Audrey Raines
                                                      Jean Smart                                                      Martha Logan
                                                     Kiefer Sutherland                                             Jack Bauer
                                                     
BOSTON LEGAL                                 ABC
                                                            
                                                            Rene Auberjonois                                            Paul Lewiston
                                                            Candice Bergen                                               Shirley Schmidt
                                                            Craig Bierko                                                     Jeffrey Coho
                                                            Julie Bowen                                                     Denise Bauer
                                                            William Shatner                                                Denny Crane
                                                            James Spader                                                  Alan Shore
                                                            Mark Valley                                                      Brad Chase

                                                           
DEADWOOD                                       HBO                                                                  

                                                            Jim Beaver                                                       Ellsworth
                                                            Powers Boothe                                                Cy Tolliver
                                                           Sean Bridgers                                                  Johnny Burns
                                                           W. Earl Brown                                                  Dan Dority
                                                           Dayton Callie                                                    Charlie Utter
                                                           Brian Cox                                                         Jack Langrishe
                                                            Kim Dickens                                                     Joanie Stubbs
                                                           Brad Dourif                                                       Doc Cochran
                                                           Anna Gunn                                                      Martha Bullock
                                                           John Hawkes                                                   Sol Starr
                                                           Jeffrey Jones                                                   A.W. Merrick

                     Paula Malcomson                                             Trixie
                     Gerald McRaney                                              George Hearst

                                                           Ian McShane                                                   Al Swearengen
                                                           Timothy Olyphant                                             Seth Bullock
                                                           Molly Parker                                                     Alma Garret
                                                           Leon Rippy                                                      Tom Nuttall
                                                           William Sanderson                                            E.B. Farnum
                                                           Brent Sexton                                                    Harry Young
                                                           Bree Seanna Wall                                            Sofia Metz
                                                           Robin Weigert                                                  Calamity Jane
                                                           Titus Welliver                                                    Silas Adams

GREY’S ANATOMY                             ABC
 
                                                            Justin Chambers                                              Alex Karev
                                                            Eric Dane                                                         Mark Sloan
                                                           Patrick Dempsey                                              Derek Shepherd
                                                           Katherine Heigl                                               Isobel “Izzie” Stevens
                                                           T.R. Knight                                                       George O’Malley
                                                            Sandra Oh                                                       Cristina Yang
                                                           James Pickens, Jr.                                           Richard Webber
                                                           Ellen Pompeo                                                  Meredith Grey
                                                            Sara Ramirez                                                   Callie Torres
                                                           Kate Walsh                                                      Addison Montgomery Shepherd
                                                            Isaiah Washington                                           Preston Burke
                                                           Chandra Wilson                                                Miranda Bailey

THE SOPRANOS                                 HBO                                                                 
 
                                                            Sharon Angela                                                 Rosalie Aprile
                                                           Lorraine Bracco                                                Dr. Jennifer Melfi
                                                           Max Casella                                                     Benny Fazio
                                                           Dominic Chianese                                            Corrado “Junior” Soprano
                                                           Edie Falco                                                        Carmela Soprano
                                                            James Gandolfini                                             Tony Soprano
                                                           Joseph R. Gannascoli                                      Vito Spatafore
                                                           Dan Grimaldi                                                    Patsy Parisi
                                                           Robert Iler                                                        Anthony Soprano, Jr.
                                                           Michael Imperioli                                               Christopher Moltisanti
                                                            Steven R. Schirripa                                          Bobby “Bacala” Baccalieri
                                                            Jamie Lynn Sigler                                             Meadow Soprano
                                                            Tony Sirico                                                       Paulie “Walnuts” Gaultieri
                                                            Aida Turturro                                                    Janice Soprano-Baccalieri
                                                            Steven Van Zandt                                            Silvio Dante
                                                            Frank Vincent                                                   Phil Leotardo

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES               ABC

 
                                                            Andrea Bowen                                                 Julie Mayer
                                                            Mehcad Brooks                                                Matthew Applewhite
                                                            Ricardo Antonio Chavira                                   Carlos Solis
                                                            Marcia Cross                                                    Bree Hodge
                                                            James Denton                                                  Mike Delfino
                                                            Teri Hatcher                                                     Susan Mayer
                                                            Josh Henderson                                               Austin McCann
                                                            Zane Huett                                                       Parker Scavo
                                                            Felicity Huffman                                                Lynette Scavo
                                                            Kathryn Joosten                                               Mrs. McCluskey
                                                            Nashawn Kearse                                              Caleb Applewhite
                                                            Brent Kinsman                                                 Preston Scavo
                                                            Shane Kinsman                                               Porter Scavo
                                                           Joy Lauren                                                       Danielle Van De Kamp
                                                           Eva Longoria                                                   Gabrielle Solis
                                                            Kyle MacLachlan                                              Orson Hodge
                                                            Laurie Metcalf                                                  Carolyn Bigsby
                                                            Shawn Pyfrom                                                  Andrew Van De Kamp
                                                            Doug Savant                                                    Tom Scavo
                                                            Dougray Scott                                                  Ian Hainsworth
                                                            Nicollette Sheridan                                           Edie Britt

                                        Brenda Strong                                                 Mary Alice Young

                                                           Kiersten Warren                                               Nora
                                                           Alfre Woodard                                                  Betty Applewhite

ENTOURAGE                                      HBO

                                                            Kevin Connolly                                                 Eric Murphy
                                                            Kevin Dillon                                                      Drama              
                                                           Jerry Ferrara                                                     Turtle
                                                            Adrian Grenier                                                  Vincent Chase
                                                            Rex Lee                                                            Lloyd
                                                            Debi Mazar                                                       Shauna
                                                            Jeremy Piven                                                   Ari Gold
                                                           Perrey Reeves                                                 Mrs. Ari

THE OFFICE                                       NBC

                                                            Leslie David Baker                                           Stanley Hudson
                                                            Brian Baumgartner                                           Kevin Malone
                                                            Steve Carell                                                     Michael Scott
                                                            David Denman                                                 Roy Anderson
                                                            Jenna Fischer                                                  Pam Beesly
                                                            Kate Flannery                                                  Meredith Palmer
                                                            Melora Hardin                                                   Jan Levinson
                                                            Mindy Kaling                                                    Kelly Kapoor
                                                           Angela Kinsey                                                  Angela Martin
                                                            John Krasinski                                                  Jim Malpert
                                                            Paul Lieberstein                                               Toby Flenderson
                                                            B.J. Novak                                                       Ryan Howard
                                                            Oscar Nunez                                                    Oscar Martinez
                                                            Phyllis Smith                                                     Phyllis Lapin
                                                            Rainn Wilson                                                    Dwight Schrute

UGLY BETTY                                      ABC

                                                            Alan Dale                                                         Bradford Meade
                                                            America Ferrera                                                Betty Suarez
                                                            Mark Indelicato                                                 Justin
                                                            Ashley Jensen                                                 Christina
                                                            Eric Mabius                                                      Daniel Meade
                                                            Becki Newton                                                   Amanda
                                                            Ana Ortiz                                                          Hilda
                                                            Tony Plana                                                      Ignacio
                                                            Kevin Sussman                                                Walter
                                                            Michael Urie                                                     Marc
                                                            Vanessa Williams                                             Wilhelmina Slater

WEEDS                                              SHOWTIME                                                       
 
                                                            Martin Donovan                                                Peter Scottson
                                                            Alexander Gould                                              Shane Botwin
                                                            Justin Kirk                                                        Andy Botwin
                                                            Romany Malco                                                 Conrad Shepard
                                                            Kevin Nealon                                                   Doug Wilson
                                                            Mary-Louise Parker                                          Nancy Botwin
                                                            Hunter Parrish                                                  Silas Botwin
                                                            Tonye Patano                                                  Heylia Jones
                                                            Elizabeth Perkins                                             Celia Hodes

Screen Actors Guild Awards 43rd Annual Life Achievement Award

Julie Andrews


13th ANNUAL SCREEN ACTORS GUILD AWARDS®

NOMINATIONS FACT SHEET

ACTORS WITH MULTIPLE NOMINATIONS - THEATRICAL MOTION PICTURES
AND PRIMETIME TELEVISION

STEVE CARELL                                  3         MALE COMEDY – The Office
                                                                       ENSEMBLE COMEDY – The Office
                                                                       CAST – Little Miss Sunshine

ALEC BALDWIN                                   2       MALE COMEDY – 30 Rock
                                                                        CAST – The Departed

WILLIAM H. MACY                               2       MALE TV MOVIE/MINI – Nightmares & Dreamscapes
                                                                        CAST – Bobby
 
HELEN MIRREN                                   2       FEMALE LEAD – The Queen
                                                                      FEMALE TV MOVIE/MINI – Elizabeth I

ACTORS WITH MULTIPLE NOMINATIONS - THEATRICAL MOTION PICTURES

LEONARDO DiCAPRIO                       3       MALE LEAD – Blood Diamond
                                                                   MALE SUPPORT – The Departed
                                                                        CAST – The Departed

ALAN ARKIN                                       2         MALE SUPPORT – Little Miss Sunshine
                                                                   CAST  – Little Miss Sunshine

ADRIANA BARRAZA                            2       FEMALE SUPPORT – Babel
                                                                   CAST – Babel

CATE BLANCHETT                              2        FEMALE SUPPORT – Notes on a Scandal
                                                                        CAST – Babel

ABIGAIL BRESLIN                              2        FEMALE SUPPORT – Little Miss Sunshine
                                                                        CAST – Little Miss Sunshine

JENNIFER HUDSON                            2        FEMALE SUPPORT – Dreamgirls
                                                                       CAST – Dreamgirls

RINKO KIKUCHI                                   2        FEMALE SUPPORT – Babel
                                                                       CAST – Babel

EDDIE MURPHY                                  2         MALE SUPPORT – Dreamgirls
                                                                       CAST -- Dreamgirls

MARTIN SHEEN                                   2        CAST – Bobby
                                                                       CAST – The Departed

ACTORS WITH MULTIPLE NOMINATIONS - PRIMETIME TELEVISION

AMERICA FERRERA                            2        FEMALE COMEDY – Ugly Betty
                                                                        ENSEMBLE COMEDY – Ugly Betty

EDIE FALCO                                        2         FEMALE DRAMA – The Sopranos
                                                                         ENSEMBLE DRAMA – The Sopranos

JAMES GANDOLFINI                          2         MALE DRAMA – The Sopranos
                                                                        ENSEMBLE DRAMA – The Sopranos

FELICITY HUFFMAN                            2       FEMALE COMEDY – Desperate Housewives
                                                                        ENSEMBLE COMEDY – Desperate Housewives

MARY-LOUISE PARKER                      2        FEMALE COMEDY – Weeds
                                                                   ENSEMBLE COMEDY – Weeds

JEREMY PIVEN                                   2          MALE COMEDY – Entourage
                                                                        ENSEMBLE COMEDY -- Entourage

JAMES SPADER                                 2          MALE DRAMA – Boston Legal
                                                                       ENSEMBLE DRAMA – Boston Legal

KIEFER SUTHERLAND                        2        MALE DRAMA – 24
                                                                       ENSEMBLE DRAMA – 24

CHANDRA WILSON                             2        FEMALE DRAMA – Grey’s Anatomy
                                                                       ENSEMBLE DRAMA – Grey’s Anatomy

THEATRICAL MOTION PICTURES WITH MULTIPLE NOMINATIONS

BABEL                                                              3
DREAMGIRLS                                                  3
LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE                                 3
BLOOD DIAMOND                                           2
THE DEPARTED                                              2
LITTLE CHILDREN                                           2
NOTES ON A SCANDAL                                   2
 

PRIMETIME TELEVISION PROGRAMS WITH MULTIPLE NOMINATIONS

BROKEN TRAIL                                              3
THE SOPRANOS                                            3
24                                                                    2
BOSTON LEGAL                                             2
DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES                           2
ELIZABETH I                                                   2
ENTOURAGE                                                   2
GREY’S ANATOMY                                          2
MRS. HARRIS                                                  2
MY NAME IS EARL                                          2
THE OFFICE                                                    2
UGLY BETTY                                                   2
WEEDS                                                            2

NOMINATIONS BY STUDIO FOR THEATRICAL MOTION PICTURES

FOX SEARCHLIGHT PICTURES                     6
WARNER BROS. PICTURES                           4
PARAMOUNT PICTURES                                3
PARAMOUNT VANTAGE                                 3
MIRAMAX FILMS                                             2
NEWLINE CINEMA                                           2
20TH CENTURY FOX                                      1
SONY PICTURES                                            1
SONY PICTURES CLASSICS                         1
THINKFILM                                                      1
THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY                           1

NOMINATIONS BY NETWORK FOR PRIMETIME TELEVISION

HBO                                                                10
ABC                                                                 8
NBC                                                                 8
AMC                                                                 3
FOX                                                                 3
SHOWTIME                                                     3
TNT                                                                  3
CBS                                                                 1
HALLMARK                                                     1
USA                                                                 1

NOMINEE SAG AWARDS™ HISTORIES
(Note: “Total” tallies include this year’s nominations)
THEATRICAL MOTION PICTURES

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role

Leonardo DiCaprio / Blood Diamond
Total nominations in this category                    2
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                7
Concurrent nominations this year:
Male Support - The Departed
Motion Picture Cast - The Departed
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Motion Picture Cast - The Aviator
2005 - Male Lead - The Aviator
1998 - Motion Picture Cast - Titanic
1997 - Motion Picture Cast - Marvin’s Room

Ryan Gosling / Half Nelson
This is his first nomination.

Peter O’Toole / Venus
This is his first nomination.

Will Smith / The Pursuit of Happyness
This is his first nomination.

Forest Whitaker / The Last King of Scotland
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                3
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2004 - Male T.V. Movie or Miniseries - Deacons for Defense
1995 - Male T.V. Movie or Miniseries - The Enemy Within

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role

Penelope Cruz / Volver
This is her first nomination.
 
Judi Dench / Notes on a Scandal
Total nominations in this category                    4
Previous Actors®                                              2
Total Actor® nominations:                                10
Previous Actors®:
2001 - Female Support - Chocolat
1999 - Motion Picture Cast - Shakespeare in Love
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Female Lead - Mrs. Henderson Presents
2002 - Female Lead - Iris
2002 - Female Support - The Shipping News
2001 - Motion Picture Cast - Chocolat
2001 - Female T.V. Movie or Miniseries - The Last of the Blonde Bombshells
1999 - Female Support - Shakespeare in Love
1998 - Female Lead - Mrs. Brown

Helen Mirren / The Queen
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              2
Total Actor® nominations:                                 7
Concurrent nominations this year:
Female TV Movie or Miniseries - Elizabeth I
Previous Actors®:
2002 - Female Support - Gosford Park
2002 - Motion Picture Cast - Gosford Park
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2004 - Female T.V. Movie or Miniseries - The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone
2003 - Female T.V. Movie or Miniseries - Door to Door
2000 - Female T.V. Movie or Miniseries - The Passion of Ayn Rand

Meryl Streep / The Devil Wears Prada
Total nominations in this category                    5
Previous Actors®                                             1
Total Actor® nominations:                                9
Previous Actors®:
2004 - Female TV Movie or Miniseries - Angels in America
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2003 - Motion Picture Cast - Adaptation
2003 - Motion Picture Cast - The Hours
2000 - Female Lead - Music of the Heart
1999 - Female Lead - One True Thing
1997 - Motion Picture Cast - Marvin’s Room
1996 - Female Lead - The Bridges of Madison County
1995 - Female Lead - The River Wild

Kate Winslet / Little Children
Total nominations in this category                    3
Previous Actors®                                              1
Total Actor® nominations:                                8
Previous Actors®:
1996 - Female Support - Sense and Sensibility
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Female Lead - Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
2005 - Motion Picture Cast - Finding Neverland
2001 - Female Support - Quills
1998 - Motion Picture Cast - Titanic
1998 - Female Lead – Titanic
1996 - Motion Picture Cast - Sense and Sensibility

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role

Alan Arkin / Little Miss Sunshine
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                 2
Concurrent nominations this year:
Motion Picture Cast - Little Miss Sunshine

Leonardo DiCaprio / The Departed
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                7
Concurrent nominations this year:
Male Lead - Blood Diamond
Motion Picture Cast - The Departed
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Motion Picture Cast - The Aviator
2005 - Male Lead - The Aviator
1998 - Motion Picture Cast - Titanic
1997 - Motion Picture Cast - Marvin’s Room

Jackie Earle Haley / Little Children
This is his first nomination.
 
Djimon Hounsou / Blood Diamond
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                3
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2004 - Motion Picture Cast - In America
2001 - Motion Picture Cast - Gladiator

Eddie Murphy / Dreamgirls
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                 2
Concurrent nominations this year:
Motion Picture Cast - Dreamgirls

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role

Adriana Barraza / Babel
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                 2
Concurrent nominations this year:
Motion Picture Cast - Babel

Cate Blanchett / Notes on a Scandal
Total nominations in this category                    3
Previous Actors®                                              2
Total Actor® nominations:                                 9
Concurrent nominations this year:
Motion Picture Cast – Babel
Previous Actors®:
2005 - Female Support - The Aviator
2004 - Motion Picture Cast - The Lord of the Rings:  The Return of the King
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Motion Picture Cast - The Aviator
2003 - Motion Picture Cast - The Lord of the Rings:  The Two Towers
2002 - Female Support - Bandits
2002 - Motion Picture Cast - The Lord of the Rings:  The Fellowship of the Ring
1999 - Female Lead - Elizabeth

Abigail Breslin / Little Miss Sunshine
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                 2
Concurrent nominations this year:
Motion Picture Cast - Little Miss Sunshine

Jennifer Hudson / Dreamgirls
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                 2
Concurrent nominations this year
Motion Picture Cast - Dreamgirls

Rinko Kikuchi / Babel
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                 2
Concurrent nominations this year:
Motion Picture Cast – Babel

PRIMETIME TELEVISION

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries

Thomas Haden Church / Broken Trail
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              1
Total Actor® nominations:                                3
Previous Actors®:
2005 - Motion Picture Cast - Sideways
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Male Support - Sideways

Robert Duvall / Broken Trail
Total nominations in this category                    2
Previous Actors®                                              1
Total Actor® nominations:                                5
Previous Actors®:
1999 - Male Support - A Civil Action
Previous Actor® Nominations:
1998 - Lead Male - The Apostle
1997 - Motion Picture Cast - Sling Blade
1997 - Male T.V. Movie or Miniseries - The Man Who Captured Eichmann

Jeremy Irons / Elizabeth I
This is his first nomination

William H. Macy / Nightmares & Dreamscapes
Total nominations in this category                    3
Previous Actors®                                              1
Total Actor® nominations:                                8
Concurrent nominations this year:
Motion Picture Cast - Bobby.
Previous Actors®:
2003 - Male T.V. Movie or Miniseries - Door To Door
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Male T.V. Movie or Miniseries - The Wool Cap
2004 - Motion Picture Cast – Seabiscuit
2000 - Motion Picture Cast - Magnolia
1998 - Motion Picture Cast - Boogie Nights
1997 - Male Support - Fargo
 
Matthew Perry / The Ron Clark Story
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              1
Total Actor® nominations:                                 8
Previous Actors®:
1996 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Friends
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2004 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Friends
2003 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Friends
2002 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Friends
2001 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Friends
2000 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Friends
1999 - Comedy Series Ensemble – Friends

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries

Annette Bening / Mrs. Harris
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              2
Total Actor® nominations:                                4
Previous Actors®:
2000 - Female Lead - American Beauty
2000 - Motion Picture Cast - American Beauty
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Female Lead - Being Julia

Shirley Jones / Hidden Places
This is her first nomination

Cloris Leachman / Mrs. Harris
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                2
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Female Support - Spanglish

Helen Mirren / Elizabeth I
Total nominations in this category                    4
Previous Actors®                                              2
Total Actor® nominations:                                7
Concurrent nominations this year:
Female Lead Motion Picture - The Queen
Previous Actors®:
2002 - Female Support - Gosford Park
2002 - Motion Picture Cast - Gosford Park
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2004 - Female T.V. Movie or Miniseries - The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone
2003 - Female T.V. Movie or Miniseries - Door to Door
2000 - Female T.V. Movie or Miniseries - The Passion of Ayn Rand

Greta Scacchi / Mrs. Harris
This is her first nomination

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series

James Gandolfini / The Sopranos
Total nominations in this category                     6
Previous Actors®                                              3
Total Actor® nominations:                                13
Concurrent nominations this year:
Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
Previous Actors®:
2003 - Male Drama Series - The Sopranos
2000 - Male Drama Series - The Sopranos
2000 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
2005 - Male Drama Series - The Sopranos
2003 - Male Drama Series - The Sopranos
2002 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
2002 - Male Drama Series - The Sopranos
2001 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
2001 - Male Drama Series - The Sopranos
1996 - Motion Picture Cast - Get Shorty

Michael C. Hall / Dexter
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              2
Total Actor® nominations:                                6
Previous Actors®:
2004 - Drama Series Ensemble - Six Feet Under
2003 - Drama Series Ensemble - Six Feet Under
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Drama Series Ensemble - Six Feet Under
2005 - Drama Series Ensemble - Six Feet Under
2002 - Drama Series Ensemble - Six Feet Under

Hugh Laurie / House
Total nominations in this category                    2
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                2
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Male Drama Series - House
 
James Spader / Boston Legal
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                4
Concurrent nominations this year:
Drama Series Ensemble - Boston Legal
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Male Comedy Series - Boston Legal
2005 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Boston Legal

Kiefer Sutherland / 24
Total nominations in this category                    5
Previous Actors®                                              2
Total Actor® nominations:                                8
Concurrent nominations this year:
Drama Series Ensemble - 24
Previous Actors®:
2006 - Male Drama Series - 24
2004 - Male Drama Series - 24
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Male Drama Series - 24
2005 - Drama Series Ensemble - 24
2003 - Male Drama Series - 24
2003 - Drama Series Ensemble - 24

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series

Patricia Arquette / Medium
Total nominations in this category                    2
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                 2
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Female Drama Series - Medium
 
Edie Falco / The Sopranos
Total nominations in this category                     6
Previous Actors®                                              3
Total Actor® nominations:                                12
Concurrent nominations this year:
Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
Previous Actors®:
2003 - Female Drama Series - The Sopranos
2000 - Female Drama Series - The Sopranos
2000 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
2005 - Female Drama Series - The Sopranos
2003 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
2002 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
2002 - Female Drama Series - The Sopranos
2001 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Sopranos
2001 - Female Drama Series - The Sopranos
 
Mariska Hargitay / Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Total nominations in this category                    3
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                3
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Female Drama Series - Law & Order: SVU
2004 - Female Drama Series - Law & Order: SVU
 
Kyra Sedgwick / The Closer
Total nominations in this category                    2
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                3
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Female Drama Series - The Closer
2006 - Drama Series Ensemble - The Closer
Chandra wilson / Grey’s Anatomy
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                3
Concurrent nominations this year:
Drama Series Ensemble - Grey’s Anatomy
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Drama Series Ensemble - Grey’s Anatomy

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series

Alec Baldwin / 30 Rock
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                6
Concurrent nominations this year:
Motion Picture Cast - The Departed
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005 - Motion Picture Cast - The Aviator
2004 - Male Support - The Cooler
2001 - Male T.V. Movie or Miniseries - Nuremberg
1996 - Male T.V. Movie or Miniseries - A Streetcar Named Desire
 
Steve Carell / The Office
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                3
Concurrent nominations this year:
Comedy Series Ensemble - The Office
Motion Picture Cast - Little Miss Sunshine

Jason Lee / My Name is Earl
Total nominations in this category                    2
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                4
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Male Comedy Series - My Name Is Earl
2006 - Comedy Series Ensemble - My Name Is Earl
2001 - Motion Picture Cast - Almost Famous

Jeremy Piven / Entourage
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                2
Concurrent nominations this year:
Comedy Series Ensemble - Entourage

Tony Shalhoub / Monk
Total nominations in this category                    4
Previous Actors®                                              2
Total Actor® nominations:                                4
Previous Actors®
2005 - Male Comedy Series - Monk
2004 - Male Comedy Series - Monk
Previous Actor® Nominations
2003 - Male Comedy Series - Monk

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series

America Ferrera / Ugly Betty
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                2
Concurrent nominations this year:
Comedy Series Ensemble - Ugly Betty

Felicity Huffman / Desperate Housewives
Total nominations in this category                    2
Previous Actors®                                              2
Total Actor® nominations:                                6
Concurrent nominations this year:
Comedy Series Ensemble - Desperate Housewives
Previous Actors®
2006 - Female Comedy Series - Desperate Housewives
2006 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Desperate Housewives
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Female Lead Role - Transamerica
2000 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Sports Night
 
Julia Louis-Dreyfus / The New adventures of Old Christine
Total nominations in this category                    6
Previous Actors®                                              5
Total Actor® nominations:                                10
Previous Actors®
1998 - Female Comedy Series - Seinfeld
1998 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Seinfeld
1997 - Female Comedy Series - Seinfeld
1997 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Seinfeld
1995 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Seinfeld
Previous Actor® Nominations
1999 - Female Comedy Series - Seinfeld
1996 - Female Comedy Series - Seinfeld
1996 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Seinfeld
1995 - Female Comedy Series - Seinfeld

Megan mullally / Will & Grace
Total nominations in this category                    7
Previous Actors®                                              4
Total Actor® nominations:                                12
Previous Actors®
2004 - Female Comedy Series - Will & Grace
2003 - Female Comedy Series - Will & Grace
2002 - Female Comedy Series - Will & Grace
2001 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Will & Grace
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Female Comedy Series - Will & Grace
2005 - Female Comedy Series - Will & Grace
2005 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Will & Grace
2004 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Will & Grace
2003 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Will & Grace
2002 - Comedy Series Ensemble - Will & Grace
2001 - Female Comedy Series - Will & Grace

Mary-Louise Parker / Weeds
Total nominations in this category                    2
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                5
Concurrent nominations this year:
Comedy Series Ensemble - Weeds
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Female Comedy Series - Weeds
2004 - Female T.V. Movie or Miniseries - Angels in America
2003 - Drama Series Ensemble - West Wing

Jaime Pressly / My Name is Earl
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                2
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 - Comedy Series Ensemble - My Name is Earl
 
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series

24
Total nominations in this category                    3
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                 3
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005, 2003

Boston Legal
Total nominations in this category                    1
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                2
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006 (in Comedy Series Ensemble; Boston Legal changed its submission category this year)

Deadwood
This is the ensemble’s first nomination.

Grey’s Anatomy
Total nominations in this category                    2
Previous Actors®                                              0
Total Actor® nominations:                                2
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2006
 
The Sopranos
Total nominations in this category                   6
Previous Actors®                                             1
Total Actor® nominations:                                6
Previous Actors®
2000
Previous Actor® Nominations:
2005, 2003, 2002, 2001

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series

Desperate Housewives
Total nominations in this category                    3
Previous Actors®                                             2
Total Actor® nominations:                                3
Previous Actors®:
2006, 2005                                                                 

Entourage
This is the ensemble’s first nomination.
 
The Office
This is the ensemble’s first nomination.
 
Ugly Betty
This is the ensemble’s first nomination.
 
Weeds
This is the ensemble’s first nomination.
 

 

 

 Jan 3

 

18TH ANNUAL PRODUCERS GUILD AWARDS
SATURDAY, JANUARY 20, 2007
CENTURY PLAZA HOTEL

PRODUCERS GUILD AWARDS 2007

THEATRICAL MOTION PICTURE and LONG-FORM TELEVISION nominees:

The Darryl F. Zanuck Producer of the Year Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures

BABEL (Paramount Vantage)

Alejandro González Iñárritu

Steve Golin

Jon Kilik

THE DEPARTED (Warner Bros.)

(Warner Bros.)

Graham King

DREAMGIRLS (Dreamworks SKG/Paramount Pictures)

(Dreamworks SKG/Paramount Pictures)

Laurence Mark

LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE (Fox Searchlight)

(Fox Searchlight)

Marc Turtletaub

David T. Friendly

Peter Saraf

Albert Berger & Ron Yerxa

THE QUEEN (Miramax Films)

(Miramax Films)

Andy Harries

Christine Langan

Tracey Seaward

(Paramount Vantage) (Warner Bros.) (Dreamworks SKG/Paramount Pictures) (Fox Searchlight) (Miramax Films)

The Producers Guild of America Producer of the Year Award in Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures

CARS (Walt Disney Pictures/Pixar Animation)

Darla K. Anderson

FLUSHED AWAY (Dreamworks Animation)

(Dreamworks Animation)

Cecil Kramer

Peter Lord

HAPPY FEET (Warner Bros.)

(Warner Bros.)

Doug Mitchell

George Miller

Bill Miller

ICE AGE: THE MELTDOWN (20^th Century Fox Animation)

(20 Century Fox Animation)

Lori Forte

MONSTER HOUSE (Sony Pictures Animation)

(Sony Pictures Animation)

Steve Starkey

Jack Rapke

(Walt Disney Pictures/Pixar Animation) (Dreamworks Animation) (Warner Bros.) (20 Century Fox Animation) (Sony Pictures Animation)

The David L. Wolper Producer of the Year Award in Long-Form Television

BLEAK HOUSE (PBS/BBC)

Nigel Stafford-Clark

ELIZABETH I (HBO)

(HBO)

Suzan Harrison

George Faber

Charles Pattinson

Barney Riesz

FLIGHT 93 (A&E Television)

(A&E Television)

David Gerber

Clara George

HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL (The Disney Channel)

(The Disney Channel)

Bill Borden

Barry Rosenbush

MRS. HARRIS (HBO)

(HBO)

Elizabeth Karlsen

Pamela Koffler

Christine Vachon

11/9/06: Ron Meyer To Receive Milestone Award

11/20/06: Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher To Receive David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures

(PBS/BBC) (HBO) (A&E Television) (The Disney Channel) (HBO)

12/5/06: Episodic Television Nominees Announced

12/5/06: An Inconvenient Truth To Receive Stanley Kramer Award

12/11/06: Jerry Bruckheimer To Receive Norman Lear Achievement Award in Television

12/13/06: Ken Ehrlich To Receive Visionary Award

12/14/06: Will Wright To Receive Vanguard Award

 

 

Marvel to Present at Citigroup Entertainment, Media & Telecom Conference Wed. Jan. 10th at 9:45 AM PST

 Jan. 3, 2007 Marvel Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: MVL), a global character-based entertainment and licensing company, today announced that David Maisel, Executive Vice President, Office of the Chief Executive, and Peter Cuneo, Vice Chairman, will present at Citigroup's 17th Annual Entertainment, Media & Telecommunications Conference on Wednesday, January 10th at 9:45 a.m. PST. The conference is being held at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Live Webcast and Replay:

Via http://www.veracast.com/webcasts/citigroup/emt07/75205116.cfm or via http://www.marvel.com/company/index.htm?sub=webcasts_current.php. An archived version of the webcast will be available at these locations for thirty days.

Slide Presentation:

The slide presentation that Marvel management will use at the conference will be available for download that day at http://www.marvel.com/company/index.htm?sub=webcasts_current.php.

About Marvel Entertainment, Inc.

With a library of over 5,000 characters, Marvel Entertainment, Inc. is one of the world's most prominent character-based entertainment companies. Marvel's operations are focused on utilizing its character franchises in licensing, entertainment, publishing and toys. Areas of emphasis include feature films, DVD/home video, consumer products, video games, action figures and role-playing toys, television and promotions. Rooted in the creative success of over sixty years of comic book publishing, Marvel's strategy is to leverage its character franchises in a growing array of opportunities around the world.

 

 

Amanda Bynes Set to Star in the New Comedy 'Sydney White' for Morgan Creek Productions

The Film is Scheduled to Begin Principal Photography in Orlando, Florida on February 12, 2007

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Amanda Bynes has landed the starring role in the new Morgan Creek comedy "Sydney White," it was announced today by James G. Robinson, Chairman and CEO of Morgan Creek Productions.

This modern retelling of the classic fairytale follows a beautiful college freshman as she pledges her late mother's once dignified sorority. But after discovering that today's sisterhood is not what it used to be, Sydney finds her new home away from home with seven outcasts. With the help of her socially challenged new friends, Sydney will take on the reigning campus queen to attempt to transform the school's misguided social hierarchy.

The film will be directed by Joe Nussbaum ("American Pie Presents: The Naked Mile," "Sleepover") and is scheduled to begin principal photography on February 12, 2007 in Orlando, Florida. The film also stars Sara Paxton ("Darcy's Wild Life") and Matt Long ("Jack and Bobby"). The screenplay was written by Chad Creasey ("Great Lengths") and will be produced by James G. Robinson. David Robinson and Clifford Werber will also serve as producers with Morgan Creek's Guy McElwaine executive producing. The film will be distributed domestically by Universal Pictures and internationally by Morgan Creek International and Universal Pictures International.

Amanda Bynes recently completed shooting the feature film "Hairspray," opposite John Travolta, Queen Latifah and Michelle Pfieiffer, where she plays Tracey Turnblad's best friend Penny Pingleton. She also starred in the romantic comedy "She's the Man;" the trans-Atlantic comedy "What a Girl Wants," with Colin Firth and Kelly Preston; lent her voice to the animated film "Robots;" and starred with Frankie Muniz and Paul Giamatti in the family comedy "Big Fat Liar." On television, Bynes played the impetuous Holly in the comedy series "What I Like About You," as well as "The Amanda Show," which earned her the Favorite Television Actress honor four years in a row from Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Awards.

On December 22, the Morgan Creek production "The Good Shepherd" opened in theatres nationwide, starring Matt Damon, Angelina Jolie and Robert De Niro. Georgia Rule, starring Jane Fonda, Lindsay Lohan and Felicity Huffman will hit theatres on May 11, 2007.

 

 

 

Mario Steps Into First Starring Role Alongside Hilary Swank in 'Freedom Writers,' Out January 5, 2007

R&B Star Preps Third Album Go! for Release in March 2007

NEW YORK, Jan. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- R&B sensation Mario steps into his first starring film role in Freedom Writers, the real-life story of teenagers in gang warfare-plagued Los Angeles whose lives are changed through writing. Oscar-winning actress Hilary Swank stars as the inspirational teacher who reaches Mario's troubled teen Andre and his classmates. The Paramount Pictures/MTV Films movie premieres January 4, 2007 in Los Angeles and opens January 5, 2007.

Mario's first serious film role is one that is close to his heart. His character's struggle to deal with an incarcerated brother and drug-addicted mother struck a chord with Mario, who dealt with his own mother's drug use for much of his childhood.

"I came from the same mentality as my character in Freedom Writers," Mario explains of his approach to the role of Andre. "Thankfully, like Andre, I was given an opportunity for change and I recognized that. This movie really shows people that regardless of your situation, you have the right to free yourself."

While his character Andre finds an outlet for his frustrations in writing, music is what inspired Mario, who became a star at the young age of 15 when he released his debut album, 2002's Mario. His platinum follow-up Turning Point spawned a #1 single "Let Me Love You" and launched Mario from teen sensation to bona fide R&B star. Now 20 and with his first serious film role under his belt, Mario is prepping his third album, Go!, due out in March 2007. The album will feature songs produced by Pharrell Williams, Akon, Polow Da Don, Scott Storch, and more.

For more info on Freedom Writers, please visit: www.freedomwriters.com

For more info on Mario's Go!, please visit: www.mario2u.com

Source: Mario

 

Mario Lopez Dances his way into the Miss America Spotlight as Host of the 2007 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT

Live on CMT from The Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas

 Jan. 3 Television star Mario Lopez ("Dancing With The Stars," "Nip/Tuck") has been tapped to host the 2007 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT, airing live from The Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas on Monday, January 29 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT* on CMT. Don Mischer Productions will produce the 2007 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT.

Sarah Brock, CMT executive producer and vice president, production, music and events, notes: "Mario Lopez is a fantastic choice to host the 2007 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT. With his soaring popularity, his former hosting experience and his undeniable charm, he will certainly excel as this year's host."

Sam Haskell III, chairman of the board for the Miss America Organization, adds: "We are pleased that immediately following his successful star turn on "Dancing With the Stars," Mario Lopez has agreed to host the Pageant. Our executive producers Sarah Brock and Don Mischer did an outstanding job securing Mario, and we are honored to welcome him into the Miss America family."

The 2006 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT premiered on CMT last January and ranks as the most-watched telecast in CMT's history with total viewers*. Since its premiere, re-airings of the Pageant have been seen by more than 27 million different viewers.

Lopez recently danced his way into America's heart on the hit ABC program "Dancing With the Stars" and has since signed a talent deal with the CW network and, under this deal, Lopez will continue to be a recurring host of "Weekend Extra." And to keep up with his acting, Lopez has a recurring role in the popular series "Nip/Tuck." Born in San Diego, Lopez began his career as the younger brother on the 1984 television series "A.K.A. Pablo." Throughout the years, he has become well known to television audiences through his roles on NBC's "Saved by the Bell" as AC Slater and USA Network's "Pacific Blue." Lopez brought the bachelor's view to NBC's "The Other Half" and helped bridge the gap between sports and entertainment on "ESPN Hollywood."

Judges for the 2007 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT include: Debbie Allen (actress, director, producer, choreographer, singer, dancer and multiple Emmy Award- winner), Nigel Barker ("America's Next Top Model"), Delta Burke ("Designing Women" and recently "Boston Legal"), Michael Feinstein (singer, composer, producer), Chris Matthews (MSNBC's "Hardball with Chris Matthews" and "The Chris Matthews Show") and Susan Powell (Miss America 1981, Discovery Channel's "Home Matters").

For the first time in its 85 year history, the 2006 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT took place outside of Atlantic City and debuted in Las Vegas. Jennifer Berry, of Oklahoma, is the current Miss America.

CMT offers fans the opportunity to learn more about each of the 2007 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT contestants at www.missamerica.cmt.com. The CMT Web site features contestant photos, videos, bios, and a chance to win $1 million dollars by correctly predicting the winner in CMT's Pick & Win Game. In addition, fans can tune in to CMT on VOD for short video bios starring each of the contestants.

CMT, America's No. 1 country music network, carries original programming, specials, and live concerts and events, as well as a mix of videos by established country music artists and new cutting-edge acts, including world premiere exclusive videos. Founded March 6, 1983, CMT, owned and operated by MTV Networks, reaches more than 83 million households in the United States. Go to country music's biggest web site at www.cmt.com.

The Miss America Organization is one of the nation's leading achievement programs and the world's largest provider of scholarship assistance for young women. Last year, the Miss America Organization and its state and local organizations made available more than $45 million in cash and scholarship assistance. For more information, go to www.missamerica.org.

*The 2007 MISS AMERICA PAGEANT will air live at 8 p.m. Eastern; 7 p.m. Central; and will be tape delayed to air at 8 p.m. Pacific; and 9 p.m. Mountain.

 

 

SAG Awards™ Unique Collectibles, Red Carpet Bleacher Seats and VIP Backstage Tours Auctioned to the Public
at www.sagawards.org/auction to Benefit the SAG Foundation

The Screen Actors Guild Awards® will kick off its seventh annual eBay auction to benefit the SAG Foundation on Thursday, Jan. 4, at www.sagawards.org/auction. The month-long weekly auction series features one-of-a-kind SAG Awards television and movie memorabilia, red-carpet bleacher seats and VIP backstage tours for this year’s Actors® ceremonies.

The Screen Actors Guild Foundation provides a meaningful way for SAG members to contribute to the literacy of children in their communities through BookPALS (Performing Artists for Literacy in Schools) and its online component, Storyline. SAG Foundation programs provide emergency relief to members in economic distress, video and audio preservation of the creative legacy of SAG members, scholarships for performers and their children and emergency funds for members with catastrophic illnesses. (For details, visit sagfoundation.org and bookpals.net.)

Lucky bidders of the first week’s auction will have a chance to see the stars on the SAG Awards’ red carpet, take a VIP backstage tour of the awards venue or enjoy sets of men’s must-have items from PEOPLE Magazine’s Holiday Gift Guide. Autographed collectibles up for bid beginning Jan. 4 include Monk DVD sets signed by cast, Seinfeld scripts signed by Julia Louis-Dreyfus, an autographed Walk the Line poster, a Brokeback Mountain signed poster and three posters from Crash, signed by the cast and writer/producer/director Paul Haggis. Also up for bid in the auction’s first week are a tote bag autographed by many of the actors who attended the 12th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® this past January, as well as 12th Annual SAG Awards™ hats, programs and press kits.

The benefit auction will also include great items from the hot, up-to-the minute entertainment news outlets, including Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood, E! News, Extra, The Insider and the TV Guide Channel. Also up for bid those weeks are 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards hats, press kits, posters and tote bags.

For the final week beginning Jan. 25, the SAG Awards auction staff will, as it did last year, gather unique collectibles from this year’s nominated casts and ensembles. Last year’s best-sellers included a Desperate Housewives set visit and the shirt Shannon wore when she met her untimely death on Lost. The online bidding will close Feb. 1.

Nominations for the 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards® will be announced on Thursday, Jan. 4 at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood and will be carried live on TNT, E! Entertainment Television, TNT.TV and TBS.COM.

The 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards will be simulcast live from the Los Angeles Shrine Exposition Center by TNT and TBS on Sunday, Jan. 28, at 8 p.m. (ET/ PT), 7 p.m. (CT) and 6 p.m. (MT).

The Screen Actors Guild Awards auction to benefit the SAG Foundation is hosted by eBay Giving Works and managed by Auction Cause.

The 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards are produced by Jeff Margolis Productions in association with Screen Actors Guild. Jeff Margolis is the executive producer and Kathy Connell is the producer. Yale Summers, Daryl Anderson, Shelley Fabares, Paul Napier and JoBeth Williams are producers for SAG. Gloria Fujita O’Brien and Mick McCullough are supervising producers. Benn Fleishman is executive in charge of production.

Screen Actors Guild (SAG) is the nation’s largest labor union representing working actors. Established in 1933, SAG has a rich history in the American labor movement, from standing up to studios to break long-term engagement contracts in the 1940s to fighting for artists’ rights amid the digital revolution sweeping the entertainment industry in the 21st century. With 20 branches nationwide, SAG represents nearly 120,000 working actors in film, television, industrials, commercials, video games, music videos and other new media. The Guild exists to enhance actors’ working conditions, compensation and benefits and to be a powerful, unified voice on behalf of artists’ rights. Headquartered in Los Angeles, SAG is a proud affiliate of the AFL-CIO.  More information is available online at www.sag.org.

Turner Network Television (TNT), television’s destination for drama and one of cable’s top-rated networks, offers original movies and series, including the blockbuster detective series The Closer, starring Emmy, Golden Globe® and Screen Actors Guild Awards nominee Kyra Sedgwick, and next year’s eagerly anticipated television event The Company, executive-produced by Ridley Scott and starring Chris O’Donnell, Michael Keaton and Alfred Molina.  TNT is also home to powerful one-hour dramas, such as Without a Trace, Law & Order, Las Vegas, Cold Case, ER, Charmed and Judging Amy; broadcast premiere movies; compelling prime-time specials, such as the Screen Actors Guild Awards® and championship sports coverage, including NASCAR and the NBA. TNT is also available in high-definition.

TBS, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., is television’s “very funny” network.  It serves as home to such hot contemporary comedies as Sex and the City, Everybody Loves Raymond, Family Guy, Seinfeld and Friends; original comedy series like My Boys and 10 Items or Less; specials and special events, such as The Comedy Festival in Las Vegas; blockbuster movies; and hosted movie showcases.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, is a major producer of news

 

Clooney, Parker, Stamos and Weisz Set as Presenters at Golden Globe Awards

"The 64th Annual Golden Globe Awards" Will Be Telecast Live on NBC Monday, January 15

 January 03, 2007 -- George Clooney and Rachel Weisz (2006 Golden Globe recipients for Best Performance by an Actor and Actress in a Motion Picture Supporting Role), Sarah Jessica Parker and John Stamos have been set as presenters at "The 64th Annual Golden Globe Awards" to be telecast live on NBC Monday, January 15 (8 - 11:00 p.m. EST) at The Beverly Hilton.

They join previously announced presenters Felicity Huffman, Salma Hayek, Ben Stiller, Justin Timberlake and Reese Witherspoon.

Warren Beatty will receive this year's Cecil B. DeMille Award from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for his "outstanding contribution to the entertainment field."

The Golden Globe Awards will be seen in more than 150 countries worldwide and is one of the few awards ceremonies that span both television and motion picture achievements.

"The 64th Annual Golden Globe Awards" will be produced by dick clark productions in association with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Philip Berk is President of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Allen Shapiro and Barry Adelman are executive producers. Chris Donovan is director. Al Schwartz is consulting producer. Ken Shapiro is producer. Ron Weed is co-producer

 

Jan 2

 

Troy Tomlinson: A "Song Guy" Takes the Reins at Sony/ATV Music Publishing
By Crystal Caviness

 

© 2007 CMA Close Up News Service / Country Music Association, Inc.

Day in, day out, Troy Tomlinson asks himself the same question when making decisions in his Music Row office as President and CEO of Sony/ATV Music Publishing. "Does this contribute to an environment that is healthy for our writers and our employees?"

"Every decision we make must pass through that filter," Tomlinson said. "It's about putting our writers and employees top of mind in all decisions."

The music business is in Tomlinson's blood. As far back as the Portland, Tenn., native can remember he has been around creative types. His earliest memories involve drinking his fill of pink lemonade and then falling asleep backstage at the Grand Ole Opry, while his brother played bass with Opry star Hank Snow.

When he was 20 years of age, Tomlinson got an opportunity to make his own mark in the music business when friend Cliff Williamson of Multimedia Publishing hired him as the tape copy guy/song plugger, a job that led Tomlinson to two independent publishing companies: Don King Music and Rick Hall Music.

In 1988, Tomlinson went to work for Jerry Bradley at Acuff-Rose Music. He held several positions there, before being named Executive Vice President in 1999. "Jerry Bradley is truly my mentor," Tomlinson said. "He gave me so many opportunities to grow."

In 2002, Gaylord Entertainment sold Acuff-Rose to Sony/ATV Music Publishing, where Tomlinson was hired as Vice President of the Creative Department.

Tomlinson was named President and CEO on Jan. 1, 2006, when Donna Hilley retired from the position after a 31-year career that had distinguished her as one of the Country Music industry's most influential and well-loved leaders.

"Donna's shoes will never be filled," Tomlinson said. "She burned a path not only for publishers in general, but for a female executive to rise to the level she rose to in this company and to have the ability to effect change and influence people's lives, she really was a trailblazer."

One year into his new office and responsibilities, asking that question of himself and others at the publishing company has resulted in moving the company closer to Tomlinson's overall goal of creating "a place of excellence."

"I want the best song pluggers in Nashville to say 'Man, I'd give anything to be over at Sony/ATV working that catalog,'" Tomlinson said. "I want the best writers to say 'I'd give anything to write for Sony/ATV,' and the basis for that has already been laid by Donna and her predecessors."

"Tweaking the creative department," Tomlinson said, as well as making aesthetic changes to the creative building and writers' building and implementing an aggressive plan to exploit Sony/ATVs' music catalog for film, television and advertising opportunities are first steps toward his vision of making Sony/ATV a place of excellence. He's especially excited about the creation of the new Sync Department.

"When I got this position, I felt we had to be more proactive in marketing our copyrights from Nashville," Tomlinson said. "Sony/ATV has a great Sync Department in Los Angeles and they work our songs, but it was important to me to have a sync executive in the Nashville office talking to me about national ads, film spots, TV show spots. I wanted a person who would be in New York, Chicago, L.A., Dallas, Atlanta, getting to know the creative departments at these ad agencies so we could make sure that our music was top of mind when they had a need for music."

Enter Marc Wood. Tomlinson had worked with Wood at Acuff-Rose, where Wood had held positions in its Royalty, International Business and Synchronization Licensing Departments.

"Nobody in town is better qualified than Marc to actively market our impressive catalog," Tomlinson said.

In recent months, Wood and his team have placed Sony/ATV music in ad spots for Hallmark TV and Dr. Pepper; major films ("Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" with Will Ferrell, "RV" with Robin Williams and the Johnny Cash biopic "Walk the Line") and numerous songs in HBO's popular series "The Sopranos."

Tomlinson is clear about the "business" part of the music business.

"It is a business," he said. "I tend to surround myself with people who take as seriously as I do what we are about everyday. I can't afford to spend my time with those who aren't taking this seriously."

Hit songwriter Tom Douglas (Tim McGraw's "Grown Men Don't Cry" and Collin Raye's "Little Rock") respects Tomlinson foremost for being a "song guy."

"Look at the writers that he has signed since he's been in the business," Douglas said.  "He signed Kenny Chesney as a songwriter before he was a major star. He's been surrounded by stellar songwriters, such as (veterans) Dean Dillon and Skip Ewing. He attracts those guys. He's a great song guy and when you love songs, it brings out the best in songwriters."

Brooks & Dunn, Chesney, Rascal Flatts and Gretchen Wilson are among the artists/songwriters signed to Sony/ATV, along with new talents including Eric Church, Miranda Lambert and Taylor Swift.

Business savvy notwithstanding, Tomlinson's most evident trait on the job is his love for songs, which he views not so much as a businessman, but as a caretaker for the catalog of legendary tunes and new hits he oversees.

"Songs are the children of our writers," Tomlinson said. "As publishers who understand their obligation to writers, I see the role as a steward of those children."

The care Tomlinson gives the catalog is not lost on Douglas.

"When you have a big company like this, it can become impersonal," Douglas said. "Troy represents yesterday, today and tomorrow. We've got Hank Williams' songs, which is a really sacred thing. But at the same time, he's signing brand new artists. We're blessed to have him in that position."

On the Web: www.sonyatv.com

 

Slim Thug and Boss Hogg Outlawz to Release New Album, "Serve & Collect," on KOCH Records on February 27th, 2007

 January 02, 2007 -- KOCH Records is proud to announce the release of "Serve & Collect," the new album by Slim Thug and Boss Hogg Outlawz on February 27th, 2007. "Serve & Collect" features Slim Thug on 12 new songs.

One of Houston's most popular underground hip-hop labels, Slim Thug's Boss Hogg Outlawz is back with the release of its independent album, "Serve & Collect." This album features Slim Thug, original Boyz N Blue members, PJ Tha Rap Hustla, Sir Daily, Chris Ward and Killa Kyleon. Also on the album are newcomers J-Dawg, Young Black and the R& B Tunes of Rob Smallz.

Slim Thug made a name for himself on the numerous mixtapes he was featured on for Swishahouse Records in his native Houston, TX. Slim then formed his own label, Boss Hogg Outlawz, and has continued to release highly successful mixtapes. Slim Thug's debut album, "Already Platinum," debuted at #2 on the Billboard charts, and has sold over 500,000 copies. The album features the hit singles "Like a Boss," "Three Kings," "I Ain't Heard Of That," and "Incredible Feeling."

The tracklisting for "Serve & Collect" is:  1.  "Recognize A Playa" feat. PJ, Chris Ward, Slim Thug, Sir Daily 2.  "Back 2 Front" feat. Killa Kyleon, Slim Thug, Sir Daily 3.  "Boss Hoggin" - Slim Thug 4.  "Cheatin" - Rob Smallz feat. Slim Thug 5.  "Side To Side" - Killa Kyleon, Slim Thug, Sir Daily 6.  "Pockets Full of Paper" - PJ feat. Slim Thug 7.  "Give It Up" - Slim Thug, PJ, Chris Ward 8.  "I'm A G" - Slim Thug, PJ, Young Black, Chris Ward 9.  "Heat On My Side" - Killa Kyleon, J Dawg, PJ 10. "Straight Outta Texas" - Sir Daily, PJ, J Dawg 11. "For The G's" - Chris Ward, Black, PJ, Slim Thug 12. "Keep It Real" - Chris Ward 13. "I'm A Hogg" - Slim Thug, Sir Daily, PJ, Chris Ward 14. "Ridin 4's" - J Dawg feat. Slim Thug 15. "Wood Wheel" - Sir Daily 16. "Got To Get It" - Slim Thug, PJ, B Chris, Young Black, Chris Ward 17. "Plan To See" - Killa Kyleon 

About KOCH Records

KOCH Records is a division of KOCH Entertainment, the fastest-growing music company and the market leader among independents in North America. The KOCH Entertainment corporate umbrella encompasses the KOCH Records label, KOCH Vision home video, KOCH Music Publishing and KOCH Entertainment Distribution with operations in both the U.S. and Canada. KOCH Records proudly claims the largest number of Billboard charting albums among independents for each of the last six years (2001-2006). For additional info on the KOCH Records label and its roster of artists, please visit www.kochrecords.com

 

Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls - South Africa Celebrates Its Official Opening

Former South African President Nelson Mandela Attends Ceremonial Program

Jan. 2 Former South African President Nelson Mandela and local dignitaries will join Oprah Winfrey in celebrating the opening of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls - South Africa -- a private learning and residential environment for grades 7-12 that engenders high standards of academic achievement and service leadership for girls who show outstanding promise despite their social circumstances. The Leadership Academy, which is located in Henley-on-Klip in Gauteng Province, opens on Tuesday, January 2, 2007.

As part of the opening welcoming events, Oprah Winfrey will raise the Leadership Academy's 

flag along with the first 152 students -- from grades 7 and 8, who represent all nine South 

African provinces -- followed by a ceremonial program in the campus' theatre. It is her vision 

that the Leadership Academy will help develop the future women leaders of South Africa.

"I know that this Academy will change the trajectory of these girls' lives," said Oprah Winfrey. "They will excel and pass their excellence on to their families, their nation, and our world."

"This school will provide opportunities to some of our young people they could never imagine, had it not been for Oprah. The key to any country's future is in educating its youth. Oprah is therefore not only investing in a few young individuals but in the future of our country. We are indebted to her for her selfless efforts. This is a lady that has, despite her own disadvantaged background, become one of the benefactors of the disadvantaged throughout the world and we should congratulate her for that," said Nelson Mandela.

In December 2000, during a visit with Nelson Mandela, Oprah Winfrey pledged $10 million to build a school for girls in South Africa, for which she broke ground on December 6, 2002. As that commitment broadened, she established The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy Foundation, to which she has contributed more than $40 million toward the creation of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls - South Africa. Initially a public-private partnership with the Gauteng Department of Education, the Leadership Academy was signed over to become an independent school on August 20, 2006.

Among its 28-building campus, the Leadership Academy includes state-of-the-art classrooms, computer and science laboratories, a library, a theatre, a gymnasium, sports fields, a wellness center, modern dormitory facilities and a dining hall. The curriculum includes math, natural science and technology; arts and culture; social, economic and management sciences; life orientation and leadership; and languages. All of the teachers are South African.

 

 

For rating reasons, go to FILMRATINGS.COM, MPAA.ORG. Parents, please refer to PARENTALGUIDE.ORG © 2007 Layout and Design Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved. Blu-ray Disc is a trademark of the Blu-ray Disc Association

 

The Secret's Out! Nicktoons Network to Premiere New Original Animated Series The Secret Show

13 Half-Hour Episodes From Award-Winning Collingwood O'Hare Entertainment to Premiere Saturday, January 20 at 8:30 P.M. (ET)

Jan. 2 No longer classified information, Nicktoons Network, Nickelodeon's 24-hour animation network, reveals 13 original half-hour episodes of The Secret Show, it was announced today by Keith Dawkins, Vice President and General Manager of Nicktoons Network. The new series, which is packed with covert missions, layers of secrecy and original storylines, will premiere Saturday, January 20 at 8:30 p.m. (ET). The series will air regularly Saturdays at 8:30 p.m. (ET) on Nicktoons Network.

Commissioned by the BBC and produced by Collingwood O'Hare Entertainment, The Secret Show is a fast-paced, animated secret agent series about secret people doing secret things. Best described as Get Smart meets Monty Python in retro-styled animation, it's a show within a show masked behind a fictional onscreen series, 'The Fluffy Bunny Show'. Special agents Victor Volt and Anita Knight work for U.Z.Z protecting the world against the evil forces of T.H.E.M. Victor and Anita manage to save the world, once or sometimes even twice a week with the help of their boss whose name is literally changed daily and his technical egghead Professor Professor. Not only do they work for a secret organization, but the show itself is full of secrets.

"We love to super-serve our viewers with diverse styles of animation, themes and characters and The Secret Show is a great addition to our line-up," said Dawkins. "The show feels fresh. Everything from the fictional 'Fluffy Bunny Show' to the super secret agents makes us laugh out loud. We think our audience will find the show's mix of wit, humor and retro style animation as exciting as we do."

In the first part of the premiere episode, "The Secret Thing," the Impostors, creatures capable of replicating humans as "hard copy holograms," try to steal The Secret Thing. Victor and Anita must protect The Secret Thing at all costs. But what is The Secret Thing? And how can Victor tell the difference between the real Anita and the villainous Impostor?

The second part of the premiere episode, "Who Stole Switzerland," follows Martian gravity thieves who are sucking up the Earth's gravity into trucks and flying it off to planet Mars so they can have 'falling down parties.' Entire countries are floating around, weightless. Mars, however, is becoming so gravitational that all the Earth's countries are slowly being sucked towards it on a collision course. Victor and Anita must get the Earth's gravity back before the two planets collide.

BBC Worldwide owns the global cross-media rights for The Secret Show, including program distribution, merchandising and DVD rights.

BBC Worldwide Limited is the main commercial arm and a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The company exists to maximise the value of the BBC's assets for the benefit of the licence payer and invest in public service programming in return for rights. The company has seven core businesses: Global Channels, Global TV Sales, Magazines, Content & Production, Home Entertainment, Children's and Digital Media. In 2005/06, BBC Worldwide generated profits of 89 million pounds Sterling on sales of 784 million pounds.

Collingwood O'Hare Entertainment Ltd is one of Europe's leading producers for children's entertainment. Established in 1988 by Tony Collingwood (Writer/Director) and Christopher O'Hare (MD/Producer) the company has earned a prestigious international reputation for award-winning, high-quality animated series, specials and television features. This year Collingwood O'Hare Entertainment first series of Gordon The Garden Gnome premiered on CBeebies/CBBC, starring much loved TV personality Alan Titchmarsh. In 2001, 2002 and 2004 Collingwood O'Hare won BAFTA Awards for Best Pre-School Animation for Animal Stories, Eddy & The Bear and Yoko! Jakamoko! Toto! respectively. COE's other production credits include their multi-award winning debut film Rarg, Emmy nominated/CableACE winner Dr. Seuss's Daisy- Head Mayzie, BAFTA nominated Dennis & Gnasher from The Beano, The Magic Key, Oscar's Orchestra, Pond Life and The King's Beard. http://www.collingwoodohare.com/

Nicktoons Network is the fastest growing kids' network* and offers a 24- hour schedule featuring programming such as the Nicktoons Network Animation Festival, Skyland, Kappa Mikey, Thumb Wrestling Federation, Corneil and Bernie and Martin Mystery, as well as a roster of hits that have defined kids' and animation lovers' TV, including The Angry Beavers, Yakkity Yak, Invader Zim, SpongeBob SquarePants, The Fairly OddParents and Jimmy Neutron. Nicktoons Network is a part of the MTV Networks expanded suite of channels available for digital distribution. The new channels include MTV Hits, MTV Jams, Nicktoons Network and VH1 Mega Hits, expanding and strengthening MTV Networks' digital offerings to thirteen services.

Nicktoons Network currently reaches 42 million homes via cable, digital cable and satellite, and can be seen on Cablevision, Charter Communications, Comcast Cable, Cox Communications, DirecTV, DISH Network and Time Warner Cable. Nicktoons, and all related titles and logos are property of Viacom, Inc.

*Source: *Nielsen Media Research, 8/29/05-8/27/06 vs. 8/30/04-8/28/05 (Live+SD) AA(000). NKTNS Selling Daypart: Mon-Fri/2-11p; Sat-Sun/9a-11p. K6-11 & K9-14 Nick & Toon Tot Prg Day. DSNY, FAM, TDSNY (M-Su 6a-11p) CBS, WB, FOX, NBC based on Kids Type Codes. Tribune; DIC Kids thru 8/13/06.

Source: Nicktoons Network

 

 

Nobody Does it Better: Carly Simon to Make QVC(R) Debut

Simon's Latest Release 'Into White' Offered to QVC Shoppers

Jan. 2  Music lovers worldwide have enjoyed the sounds of Grammy and Academy Award-winning singer and songwriter Carly Simon for more than four decades. Now QVC viewers will get a special treat as Simon is scheduled to make her QVC debut on Friday, January 5 at 7 PM (ET). During the 30-minute broadcast, Simon, accompanied by her two kids, Sally Taylor and Ben Taylor, is scheduled to perform a selection of songs from her recently released "Into White" CD.

Simon is forever known for her biggest hits, including "You Belong to Me," "Jesse," "Nobody Does it Better," and "You're So Vain." Simon's newest album, "Into White," is a 14-song collection of beloved pop favorites and heartfelt tunes that will appeal to both adults and children alike.

Simon's children with James Taylor, Sally and Ben, both accomplished singers and songwriters in their own right, are scheduled to join their mother for this special performance.

"Carly Simon's music is woven into the tapestry of American culture," said Rich Yoegel, director of merchandising for QVC. "QVC is thrilled to bring her latest release to our customers with this very special live performance."

The Carly Simon "Into White" CD (QVC Item # E02126) will be available through QVC at 800.345.1515 or http://www.qvc.com/ while supplies last.

About QVC:

QVC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation attributed to the Liberty Interactive Group (NASDAQ:LINTA) , is one of the largest multimedia retailers in the world, with annual revenue of more than $7 billion. QVC is committed to providing customers with thousands of the most innovative and contemporary beauty, fashion, jewelry and home products. Its programming is distributed to more than 160 million homes worldwide. The company's website, QVC.com, is ranked among the top general merchant Internet sites. With subsidiaries in the United Kingdom, Germany and Japan, West Chester, PA-based QVC has shipped close to a billion packages in its 20-year history.

Source: QVC, Inc.

 

Top 100 Nightclubs and Bars for 2007 Selected By Editors of Nightclub & Bar Magazine

Venues to be Honored at "The Show" in Las Vegas

 Jan. 2 Oxford Publishing Inc., publisher of national trade magazine Nightclub & Bar, has named its Editors' Choice Top 100 bars and clubs in the United States, which will be honored with a special party at the Nightclub & Bar/Beverage Retailer Beverage and Food Convention & Trade Show ("The Show") in Las Vegas, held March 4-7, 2007.

Nightclubs and bars from all over the United States were chosen based on a number of criteria, including annual revenues, marketing and advertising effectiveness, promotional expertise, uniqueness to market, food and beverage programs and much more. This list is NOT a ranking of just the most high-end, of-the-moment nightclubs; instead, it is a dynamic mixture of clubs, neighborhood bars, sports bars, family-oriented venues and more that for one reason or another deserve notice.

The following bars and clubs, listed in alphabetical order, made the Editors' Choice Top 100 for 2007. The city designated for each is the city in which it is located, or, if the concept has multiple locations, the city of its first location.

  230 Fifth - New York City   40 Watt - Athens, Ga.   8150 - Vail, Colo.   The Abbey - Hollywood, Calif.   AJ's Seafood & Oyster Bar - Destin, Fla.   Aria - Boston, Mass.   Avalon/Spider Club - Hollywood, Calif.   Beach Bar at the W - San Diego   B.E.D. - Miami   Billy Bob's Texas - Fort Worth, Texas   Blue Martini - Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.   the bosco - Ferndale, Mich.   Body English - Las Vegas   Bombay Club - New Orleans   Broken Spoke Saloon - Sturgis, S.D.   Brother's Bar & Grill - Lacross, Wis.   Butter - San Francisco   Cabo Wabo - Lake Tahoe, N.V.   Casbah - Atlantic City   Cherry - Las Vegas   Chilkoot Charlie's - Anchorage, Alaska   Coyote Cantina - Santa Fe, N.M.   Coyote Ugly - New York City   Crobar - Chicago   The Crocodile Cafe - Seattle   Diablo's Downtown Lounge - Eugene, Ore.   e4 - Scottsdale, Ariz.   Eight 75 - Biloxi, Miss.   El Gaucho - Seattle   Elements the Lounge - Seabright, N.J.   ESPN Zone - Baltimore, Md.   Excalibur - Chicago   Fado Irish Pub - Atlanta   Flatiron Lounge - New York City   The Flying Saucer - Memphis, Tenn.   Fox Sports Grill - Scottsdale, Ariz.   Galapagos Art Space - Brooklyn, N.Y.   ghostbar - Las Vegas   Good Hurt - Los Angeles   The Green Parrot - Key West, Fla.   The Greene Turtle - Ocean City, Md.   Ground Zero Blues Club - Clarksdale, Miss.   The Helix - Washington, D.C.   House of Blues - New Orleans   Iguana's Cantina - New York City   Ivan Kane's Forty Deuce - Hollywood, Calif.   JET - Las Vegas   Kahunaville - Las Vegas   Key Club - Hollywood, Calif.   Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop - New Orleans   The Library Bar & Grill - Tempe, Ariz.   Light - Las Vegas   Lotus - New York City   Louie's Backyard - South Padre Island, Texas   Mango's Tropical Café - Miami   Mantra - Milwaukee, Wis.   Marquee - New York City   McGillin's Olde Ale House - Philadelphia, Pa.   Mercy Wine Bar - Addison, Texas   Midnight Rodeo - San Antonio, Texas   Mie N Yu - Washington, D.C.   MIXX - Atlantic City   mur.mur - Atlantic City   The New Crown & Anchor - Providencetown, Mass.   The New Sheridan - Telluride, Colo.   Ocean Club - Honolulu, Hawaii   Pangaea - Hollywood, Fla.   Pat O' Brien's - New Orleans   Pavilion Bar & Café - Charleston, S.C.   Pin-Up Bowl - St. Louis, Mo.   Pink Elephant - New York City   The Playboy Club - Las Vegas   Pure - Las Vegas   Purple Moon - Flint, Mich.   Rockit Bar & Grill - Chicago   Ruby Skye - San Francisco   rumjungle - Las Vegas   Sharkeez - Huntington Beach, Calif.   Sherlock's Baker Street Pub - Houston, Texas   Sloppy Joe's - Key West, Fla.   Snatch/Suite - Miami   Stingaree - San Diego   Stubb's Bar-B-Q - Austin, Texas   Studio 54 - Las Vegas   Tabu Ultra Lounge - Las Vegas   Tangerine - Las Vegas   TAO - Las Vegas   Therapy - New York City   Tini Bigs - Seattle   Tipitina's - New Orleans   Tongue & Groove - Atlanta   Tryst - Las Vegas   VICCI - Austin, Texas   Vine Street Lounge - Hollywood, Calif.   The Viper Room - Los Angeles   Walnut Room - Philadelphia, Pa.   Whiskey Blue - Los Angeles   Worship - Atlantic City   Yard House - Long Beach, Calif.   Zinc Lounge - Manhattan Beach, Calif.  

Oxford Publishing Inc., based in Oxford, Miss., publishes national trade publication Nightclub & Bar magazine and produces the nation's largest beverage and food industry trade show, the Nightclub & Bar Beverage and Food Convention & Trade Show ("The Show") in Las Vegas each year. OP also produced "The Show" in Atlantic City recently and hosts other trade shows throughout the nation.

Source: Oxford Publishing Inc.

 

DEC 29

 

The Walt Disney Studios Celebrates Record Performance in 2006 With Worldwide Hit Films, Top Selling DVDs and CDs, and New Stage Hits

 Dec. 29 The Walt Disney Studios (NYSE:DIS) posted a record-breaking performance in 2006 as worldwide box office revenues climbed to a sensational $3.26 billion (as of 12/27/06) with Walt Disney Pictures "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" capturing the #1 spot all over the world; Buena Vista Worldwide Home Entertainment setting an unprecedented domestic milestone with the top three bestselling DVD titles -- "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest," "Cars" and "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe"; "High School Musical" and "Rascal Flatts" becoming the year's number one and number two top-selling CD titles across all genres; and Disney Theatrical Productions celebrating the successful Broadway debuts of "Tarzan" and "Mary Poppins," it was announced today, Thursday, December 28, by Dick Cook, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios.

Commenting on the announcement, Cook said, "In every area and on every level, 2006 was an extraordinary year for The Walt Disney Studios. At the worldwide box office, moviegoers everywhere were captivated by the latest incredible 'Pirates of the Caribbean' adventure and there's more surprises and thrills in store this coming May with 'Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.' John Lasseter's exciting, inventive, and heartfelt film, 'Cars,' further demonstrated the worldwide appeal of Pixar's great characters and storytelling. With the acquisition of Pixar, and the benefit of John and Ed Catmull's leadership at Disney and Pixar, the Studio can look forward to a steady flow of great animated films for many years to come. Our worldwide home entertainment division continued to benefit from the Studio's great box office successes and added some impressive new milestones of their own with the year's three top domestic titles. Buena Vista Music Group enjoyed a record year with enormous hits from Rascal Flatts, 'High School Musical,' and 'Hannah Montana,' and had the top two selling CDs of the year across all genres. 'Mary Poppins' and 'Tarzan' had their bows on Broadway, adding to Buena Vista Theatrical Group's amazing track record. And Miramax Films returned to its roots as a provider of quality independent and modestly budgeted films from outstanding filmmakers. The critical acclaim for films like 'The Queen' and 'Venus' are among their latest successes. I am very proud of the Studio's phenomenal performance in 2006, and salute all the great members of the team that worked so hard to make this possible."

At the box office, Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" became Buena Vista's top domestic grosser of all-time with a tally of more than $423 million, while BVI posted a new record with its gross-to-date of $642 million. It was only the third film in industry history to cross $1 billion in global box office and in record time. Additionally, "Pirates" ranked number one for nine consecutive weeks at the international box office -- the longest consecutive week reign of any film this century. Disney/Pixar's latest computer-animated offering, "Cars" also revved up the box office, crossing the domestic finish line in second place with $244 million in ticket sales. The global performance of over $462 million made "Cars" the fifth consecutive Disney/Pixar production to achieve more than $400 million at the worldwide box office. The one-two punch of "Pirates" and "Cars" represents the first time in 20 years that the same studio had the year's number one and two films domestically.

Buena Vista Pictures Distribution has passed the $1 billion mark for the 10th time, more than any other studio, and Buena Vista International marked an unprecedented 12th consecutive year with a 2006 box office gross of more than $1 billion.

Buena Vista Worldwide Home Entertainment achieved an industry milestone by having the top three selling DVDs in the domestic market. With over 10.5 million units sold in the first week alone, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" was on track to become the #1 live-action DVD seller of all-time, the #1 DVD of the year, and the #1 DVD of the holiday season. Disney/Pixar's "Cars" was the worldwide best-selling animated title on DVD for 2006, and the year's #2 top performer domestically. "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" dominated the charts for the first half of 2006, and was the year's #3 domestic best-seller. The home entertainment release of "High School Musical," became the biggest TV movie DVD of all-time in most markets. Internationally, BVWHE performed well holding many of the top selling DVDs in most markets, with "Pirates," "Narnia," and "Cars" leading the pack.

Buena Vista Music Group achieved unprecedented success in 2006, culminating in 11 Grammy nominations -- the most ever in the music group's history. The Group's biggest success for the year was the soundtrack to the hit Disney Channel Original Movie, "High School Musical," which is the #1 top-selling album across all genres for the year-to-date, and has been certified triple platinum. Country superstars Rascal Flatts new CD, "Me and My Gang" also went triple platinum and holds the 2006 record for highest-selling debut week. The soundtrack to "Hannah Montana" is BVMG's third #1 album of the year, and was recently certified double platinum.

Miramax Films took home the Oscar for Best Foreign-Language Film this year for its hard-hitting drama, "Tsotsi." "The Queen," directed by Stephen Frears and starring Helen Mirren, has received critical acclaim and nominations (including four Golden Globes -- Best Motion Picture, Best Director, Best Performance by an Actress and Best Screenplay) from numerous critics around the world. The year-end release of "Venus," starring Peter O'Toole has received similar attention.

Buena Vista Theatrical Group added to its impressive track record with the Broadway debuts of "Tarzan" and "Mary Poppins." "Beauty and the Beast" celebrated its 12th anniversary on Broadway and became the sixth longest-running show in Broadway history. In 2007, "The Lion King" will celebrate its 10th year in New York. It has been seen by nearly 40 million people worldwide. A new musical based on the 1989 animated film, "The Little Mermaid," will make its world premiere in Denver in June 2007 

 

 

Most Popular Celebrities Worldwide

LONDON, December 29-- Madonna was the most popular celebrity in 2006.

She beat the likes of Charlotte Church and Robbie Williams to top a survey of the most popular personalities requested by people searching on the entertainment search engine Celebrities Worldwide. Richard Brecker of www.celebritiesworldwide.com said: "The results show quite emphatically that more people were interested in Madonna than any other celebrity or reality star this year." Her ability to stay ahead is phenomenal - particularly in such a difficult year."

The singer attracted great controversy over the much publicised adoption of her son David from Malawi and has also reportedly faced marriage difficulties with her husband Guy Ritchie.

It has not been a good year for David Beckham who has slipped from No 4 ranking as the most requested name in 2005 to his current number 11 spot.

Beckham relinquished his captaincy of the England soccer team following their poor showing in the World Cup, has been dropped from the squad by new manager Steve McLaren and has struggled to hold a regular place in the first team at Real Madrid.

But some consolation - Becks still finishes five places higher this year than his publicity hungry wife Victoria

Little Britain TV star Matt Lucas in 10th position proves a bigger hit than his co-star David Walliams who trails four places behind Simon Cowell and Sharon Osbourne, star judges on the hit TV series "X Factor" battle it out at 31st and 32nd spot respectively. One time showbiz outcast Noel Edmonds has catapulted back into the reckoning through the success of his TV show "Deal or No Deal"

Celebrities Worldwide is accepted as a benchmark of celebrity status and popularity and its website attracts more than 4 million visitors per year.

TOP 100 NAMES of 2006

         1.  Madonna     2.  Charlotte Church     3.  Jamie Oliver MBE     4.  Robbie Williams     5.  Jonathan Ross OBE     6.  Billie Piper     7.  Ricky Gervais     8.  Jeremy Clarkson     9.  Stephen Fry     10.  Matt Lucas     11.  David Beckham OBE     12.  Gordon Ramsay OBE     13.  Trinny Woodall     14.  David Walliams     15.  Fearne Cotton     16.  Victoria Beckham     17.  Elton John     18.  Kylie Minogue     19.  David Tennant     20.  Rachel Stevens     21.  Peter Kay     22.  Davina McCall     23.  Graham Norton     24.  Paul McCartney     25.  Dawn French     26.  Russell Brand     27.  Paul O'Grady     28.  Coleen McLoughlin     29.  Noel Edmonds     30.  Richard Hammond     31.  Simon Cowell     32.  Sharon Osbourne     33.  Nigella Lawson     34.  Ewan McGregor     35.  David Attenborough     36.  Vernon Kay     37.  Chris Moyles     38.  Terry Wogan     39.  Catherine Tate     40.  Michael Palin CBE     41.  Keira Knightley     42.  Chris Evans     43.  Zoe Ball     44.  Chantelle Houghton     45.  Elizabeth Hurley     46.  Bill Bailey     47.  Brad Pitt     48.  Bob Geldof KBE     49.  David Hasselhoff     50.  Vic Reeves     51.  Jarvis Cocker     52.  Kevin Spacey     53.  Paul Merton     54.  George Clooney     55.  Kate Moss     56.  Jo Brand     57.  Lenny Henry     58.  Bruce Forsyth CBE     59.  Angelina Jolie     60.  Victoria Wood     61.  Johnny Vegas     62.  Will Young     63.  Jade Goody     64.  Edith Bowman     65.  Kelly Holmes     66.  Johnny Depp     67.  Joanna Lumley     68.  Cliff Richard     69.  Emma Bunton     70.  Denise Van Outen     71.  Jude Law     72.  Ian McKellen     73.  Patrick Stewart OBE     74.  John Cleese     75.  Ian Hislop     76.  Janet Street-Porter     77.  Martine McCutcheon     78.  Meera Syal MBE     79.  Paris Hilton     80.  Jools Holland     81.  Jordan     82.  Steve Coogan     83.  Cilla Black     84.  Dermot O'Leary     85.  Richard Branson     86.  Tom Cruise     87.  Myleene Klass     88.  George Michael     89.  Cat Deeley     90.  Ainsley Harriott     91.  Kate Winslet     92.  Ray Winstone     93.  Sting     94.  Geri Halliwell     95.  Sara Cox     96.  Jeremy Paxman     97.  Gary Lineker     98.  Carol Vorderman MBE     99.  Bono     100. Dannii Minogue 

Source: www.celebritiesworldwide.com

 

 

 

BET Commemorates the Life of Legendary Entertainer James Brown

BET News Presents Two Special Tributes Honoring the Life, Legacy and Impact of The Godfather of Soul

 Dec. 29  In immediate response to the passing of one of the greatest contributors to American music, BET NEWS has prepared two remarkable specials reflecting on the life and impact of the author of soul, James Brown. Premiering on Saturday, December 30, 2006 @ 9 p.m. ET/PT, SOUL BROTHER #1: REMEMBERING JAMES BROWN will be the ultimate tribute with highlight footage and loving retrospect from political activist, Rev. Al Sharpton; Actress, Rosie Perez; R&B singers, Omarion and Full Force; Cultural Critics, Nelson George and Harry Allen; funk bassist and singer, Bootsy Collins and many more. BET will provide an inside look at the many accomplishments framing the singer's success. In a final salute to a true icon, on Sunday, December 31, 2006 @ 9:30 a.m. ET/PT, THE GODFATHER OF SOUL: CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF JAMES BROWN will re-cap the public memorial and celebration in Augusta, Georgia with BET NEWS correspondent, Andre Showell. Tune in as we remember the life of one of music's most influential performers, James Brown.

       BET NEWS SPECIAL -- SOUL BROTHER #1: REMEMBERING JAMES BROWN    PREMIERE:        Saturday, December 30 @ 9 p.m. ET/PT (half hour special)                   (Re-air Sunday, December 31 @ 2 a.m. ET/PT)                   (Re-air Sunday, December 31 @ 9 a.m. ET/PT)                   (Re-air Monday, January 1 @ 11:30 p.m. ET/PT) 

BET NEWS SPECIAL - THE GODFATHER OF SOUL: CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF JAMES BROWN

  PREMIERE:        Sunday, December 31 @ 9:30 a.m. ET/PT (half hour special)                   (Re-air Monday, January 1 @ 11:30 p.m. ET/PT)    BET EXECUTIVES IN CHARGE:   Reginald Hudlin, President of Entertainment                               Stephen Hill, EVP of Music and Entertainment                               Byron Philips, EVP of Entertainment                               Keith Brown, VP of News    EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS:        Selwyn Hinds (Soul Brother #1: Remembering                                 James Brown)                               Greg Branch (Soul Brother #1: Remembering                                 James Brown)                               Pamela Gentry (The Godfather Of Soul:                                 Celebrating The Life of James Brown)  

At the 3RD ANNUAL BET AWARDS in 2003, BET honored Brown with its Lifetime Achievement Award, the highest honor bestowed by the network on any individual. During that telecast, one of the most memorable moments in music television history occurred when pop star Michael Jackson surprised millions of viewers by joining Brown on stage in a spontaneous outpouring of dance and song in salute to the icon's amazing career that spanned more than five decades.

ABOUT BET NETWORKS

BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom, Inc. (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE:and) (NYSE:VIA.B) , is the nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel reaches more than 83 million households according to Nielsen media research, and can be seen in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of businesses extensions: BET.com, the Number 1 Internet portal for African Americans; BET Digital Networks -- BET J, BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Event Productions, a full-scale event management and production company; BET Home Entertainment, a collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs and video-on-demand; BET Mobile, a service venture into the lucrative world of ring tones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, an extension of BET network programming for global distribution.

Visit us @ www.BET.com

Source: BET Networks

 

CICAK-MAN

 Ozura Mobile, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nextnation Communication and a leading international publisher and developer of mobile entertainment recently launched the Cicak-Man Mobile Game in an integrated media collaboration with KRU and DiGi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd (“DiGi”). In the wake of the launch, this tournament based competitive game has been gradually but steadily building up to determine the Grand Prize Winner who will win a trip for two to Disneyland, Hong Kong .

Cicak-Man is the dawn of Malaysia ’s very first “Action Hero Movie” produced by KRU and presented by DiGi.  The movie depicts the lives of two best friends where one of them came to inherit superpowers accidentally. The screenplay revolves around how Hairi, or Cicak-Man copes with the transition from normal everyday life to superhero stardom.

The Cicak-Man Mobile Game, offered exclusively to DiGi customers, captures the action-comedy essence of the movie into an enriching mobile gaming experience. Characters from the movie are featured in the gameplay, where each character possesses their own distinctive form of defense and attacking skills. For instance, Danny a lab technician has a unique attacking skill called the ‘Giant Syringe Poke’ and can attack his opponents by tossing test tubes. Another notorious character is Professor Klon, who has a history of illegal VCD peddling and can attack his enemies by using the ‘Multiple Illegal VCD Throws’.

“This is yet another exciting venture for Ozura to be a part of Malaysia ’s first action hero movie. We would like to thank KRU and DiGi for giving us the opportunity to apply our creative technology in integrating the diverse worlds of movie and mobile industry,” said Lion Peh, Chief Executive Officer of Ozura Mobile who is also a producer of the game. “Both movie and game are developed and produced locally, so the ideal alliance of KRU and Ozura ignites new levels of creativity not only in Malaysia but in the global entertainment industry.”

“With the creative driving force of Ozura, we are able to bring the characters of the movie to life in the game. Each prominent character in the movie similarly has a unique identity in the game so players can opt to take on a vast range of personalities. In line with the traits of comic superhero stereotypes, the core mechanics of the game stresses on the craft of combat and unique skill moves of the individual players,” said Peh.

Yohani Yusof, DiGi’s Head of Segment Marketing said, “Our sponsorship of Cicak-Man allows us to reward our customers with special privileges and opportunities to participate in events associated with this much lauded movie. We are always delighted to support efforts to give our customers different experiences, which extends the entertainment and enjoyment beyond the movie. The Cicak-Man Mobile Game is an exciting platform to engage Malaysians, especially DiGi customers, in a fun and interactive way.”

In addition to the game, players can compete with one another by uploading their scores to an online tournament scoreboard. Eight weekly prizes of Samsung SGH-E690 mobile phones will be awarded to players with the highest weekly scores from now until 31^st January 2007. Additionally, the player with the highest score within this eight-week tournament period will walk away with the grand prize of two return tickets to Disneyland, Hong Kong . There is no limit to the number of score uploads, thus allowing gamers unlimited number of tries to obtain the highest ranking on the scoreboard.

“As a pioneer provider of mobile gaming community platforms in Malaysia , we have always been in the forefront of developing new technologies to enhance mobile gameplay and the whole mobile gaming experience,” added Peh.

Powered by Ozura’s proprietary mobile gaming platform – FunlogiX™, the Cicak-Man mobile game is compatible with more than 450 different mobile handsets. The mobile game is supported by a suite of mobile content that includes wallpapers and ringtones and is backed by a comprehensive marketing campaign sponsored by DiGi.

DiGi users are able to download the game by sending “G<space>CICAK” to 2000 and participate in the Cicak-Man online game tournament until 31^st January 2007. More information will be available on DiGi’s website http://www.digi.com.my and WAP site.

About Ozura Mobile
Ozura is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nextnation Communication and is a leading international developer and publisher of mobile games. Ozura is also a specialist in the development and provision of mobile gaming engines (platform). The company creates games for mobile phones based on J2ME, BREW and Symbian platforms. Ozura’s games are available internationally in more than 130 countries. It is expected that the growth of mobile phones supporting these platforms will exceed one billion units worldwide in 2008. For more information, visit http://www.ozura.com

About DiGi
DiGi is Malaysia’s fastest growing mobile operator focusing on innovations, simplicity and best value to enrich lifestyles through DiGi Prepaid, DiGi Postpaid and DiGi Business. It constantly develops exciting mobile broadband solutions to impact the future.

About Cicak-Man the movie
Cicak-Man is Malaysia ’s first action-hero genre film, with a strong dose of comedy from a cast featuring a collection of the most popular actors & actresses in the industry.

Shot on true-HD, and with extensive use of CGI, including 40% of the content shot on green-screen, CICAKMAN promises the viewers a unique and memorable film. Based in the make-believe city of Metrofulus , CICAKMAN evolves around the lives of two best friends, and how they cope with the superpowers our unlikely hero inherits by accident. The elaborate production of the movie featured the involvement of a whole compendium of production components, including Motion Control, Costume Design, Stunts & Rigging, Scenic Painting, set design and a host of other eye-opening elements, as well as 3D animation, compositing and a rousing music scores.

About Nextnation Communication
Nextnation Communication‚ a mobile application service provider‚ enables businesses and individuals to access‚ connect‚ and transact across today's complex global mobile networks. Its core product MINDCEP™ Platform is a mobile multimedia communication platform‚ facilitating and enabling mobile data transmission worldwide using WAP‚ MMS‚ SMS and Java technologies. MINDCEP™ is connected to some of the largest premium messaging networks in the world in order to offer a broad range of services from content distribution to mobile m-commerce and place the company at the forefront of this rapidly growing messaging market. Additional news and information about the company is available at www.nextnationnet.com.

 

 

Dec 28

 

Pat Boone Issues Statement Over the Death of James Brown, Says the Singer Was a ' ... comet blazing across the night sky ... '

 Dec. 28 Music giant Pat Boone like millions of Americans was hit by shock, over the death of legendary icon R&B singer James Brown. Boone recently released his new CD Pat Boone R&B Classics -- We Are Family that featured James Brown in a new-recorded version of "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag."

"My friend James Brown was a comet, blazing across the night sky for 50 years. Thankfully, we can still enjoy the brilliance long after the star burns out. I'll forever treasure the private time we shared in Augusta when we recorded one of his classics together; he was deeper and more spiritual than many realized. I'm looking forward to our next meeting." --Pat Boone

James Brown always referred to Boone as "Soul brotha' No. 2." He would often kid Boone about Boone's parents' appetite for chitlins.

Ollie E. Brown, producer for Boone's recent music project, shares in Boone's sorrow. Brown was also a personal friend to James Brown.

Source: Boone Enterprises

 

 

BEST AND WORST VIDEO GAMES OF 2006

1. "Okami" (Capcom, for the PlayStation 2): This utterly original adventure delivered a perfect blend of puzzles and action in a mesmerizing tale based on Japanese mythology. The gorgeous graphics, inspired by classic Japanese art, look like nothing else you've ever seen in a video game.

2. "The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion" (Bethesda Softworks, for the Xbox 360): Two hundred hours in and I still feel like I haven't scratched the surface of this wide-ranging medieval role-playing adventure. With a compelling main story and hundreds of side missions, it's the first must-have game of the 360 era.

3. "The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess" (Nintendo, for the Wii, GameCube): The "Zelda" is a satisfying combination of the familiar (clever weapons, diabolical dungeons) and the new (Link is now a werewolf!). We always anticipate great things from "Zelda," but "Twilight Princess" delivers well beyond expectations.

4. "Gears of War" (Microsoft, for the Xbox 360): The second must-have for the 360 is "Gears of War," a riotous shooter that pits a team of human grunts against an insectoid army. It's gory, scary and thrilling, especially if you enjoy slicing up aliens with a chain saw.

5. "Xenosaga Episode III: Also Sprach Zarathustra" (Namco, for the PlayStation 2): The finale of the ambitious (some say pretentious) "Xenosaga" trilogy tackles religion, philosophy, metaphysics and more topics you wouldn't expect a game to address. It's really fun if you don't mind having your mind blown.

6. "Wii Sports" (Nintendo, for the Wii): Nintendo's new Wii console has gotten a lot of attention from people who don't normally play games. "Wii Sports," which is packed with the system, is an effective demonstration of its motion-sensing remote, and I have yet to meet anyone who can resist playing once they see it in action.

7. "New Super Mario Bros." (Nintendo, for the DS): The lovable plumber returns to his 2D roots in this side-scrolling running-and-jumping adventure. A blast for those of us who loved the original "SMB," and a real challenge for just about any player, with dozens of levels and tons of secrets.

8. "Final Fantasy XII" (Square Enix, for the PlayStation 2): I'm not completely sold on the new real-time battle system introduced in this installment, but it delivers everything — grandiose story, lavish graphics and generous gameplay — you expect from a "Final Fantasy" epic.

9. "LocoRoco" (Sony, for the PlayStation Portable): jellylike blobs ooze their way across colorful landscapes, splitting and recombining to get past obstacles. With its vibrant look and catchy soundtrack, it's the year's most endearing puzzle game

10. "Resistance: Fall of Man" (Sony, for the PlayStation 3): "Ratchet & Clank" creators Insomniac Games juice up the World War II shooter with alien invaders and flamboyant weapons. The best of the PS3 launch titles.

___

WORST OF 2006

1. "25 to Life" (Eidos, for the Xbox, PlayStation 2): The only way an urban gangsta can escape to a better life is by killing hundreds of cops. The goriest, most reprehensible of the street crime sagas trying to rip off "Grand Theft Auto."

2. "Torino 2006" (2K Sports, for the Xbox, PlayStation 2): Fifteen winter games, all made crushingly dull by this halfhearted attempt to cash in on Olympic fever. Designers, you have three years to create a decent curling simulation before the Vancouver games.

3. "Jaws Unleashed" (Majesco, for the Xbox, PlayStation 2): Glitchy graphics, unnecessarily complicated controls and stupid missions take all the fun out of swimming around and chomping on innocent humans.

4. "Bomberman Act: Zero" (Konami, for the Xbox 360): That misplaced colon in the title was indicative of this slipshod production, which turned a colorful, lively party game into a morbid, unplayable mess.

5. "Superman Returns" (Electronic Arts, for the Xbox 360, Xbox, PlayStation 2): The 1999 "Superman 64" is often called the worst video game ever. "Superman Returns" is a little — just a little — better.

 

The following is a list of the bestselling products on Amazon.com in 2006 by total units sold:

 

• Books: Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap ... and Others Don't by Jim Collins
• Music: Taking The Long Way by Dixie Chicks
• DVD: Pirates of the Caribbean - Dead Man's Chest (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
• Software: World of Warcraft
• Electronics: Apple iPods (various)
• Home & Garden: Calphalon Commercial Hard-Anodized 12-Inch Everyday Pan with Lid
• Health & Personal Care: Pampers Cruisers (various sizes)
• Grocery: Senseo Douwe Egberts Dark Roast Coffee Pods
• Computer & Video Games: Nintendo DS Lite - Polar White
• Automotive: Sylvania DOT-it Self-Adhesive Bright White LED Light
• Apparel & Accessories: Levi's(R) 501(R) Button Fly Jeans
• Shoes: Rockport Men's Clarksdale Oxford
• Sports & Outdoors: Razor A Kick Scooter
• Jewelry: 14k White Gold, Round, Diamond Stud Earrings
• Watches: Bulova Women's Diamond Bezel Chronograph Watch
• Beauty: Bare Escentuals Get Started Kit
• Baby: Contoured Changing Pad
• Toys: Radica 20 Questions

Most-Loved Products

 

The following is a list of products that were reviewed most positively by Amazon.com customers in 2006:

 

• Books: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book 1) by J.K. Rowling
• Music: Josh Groban by Josh Groban
• DVD: Mean Girls (Full Screen Edition)
• Electronics: Sony DSCF707 Cyber-shot 5MP Digital Still Camera w/ 5x Optical Zoom
• Home & Garden: Microplane Grater/Zester
• Health & Personal Care: Omron HJ-112 Digital Premium Pedometer
• Computer & Video Games: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64)
• Apparel & Accessories: Lee Jeans Women's Missy One True Fit Basic Flare
• Automotive: Actron CP9125 PocketScan Diagnostic Code Scanner for OBDII (Post-1996) Vehicles
• Watches: Invicta Men's Automatic Pro Diver S2 Watch #8926
• Beauty: Aquolina Pink Sugar
• Toys: Fisher Price Learning Home
• Baby: Healthy Care Booster Seat
• Grocery: Senseo Douwe Egberts Dark Roast Coffee Pods

Most Wished-For Products

 

The following is a list of products that appeared most often on the Wish Lists of Amazon.com customers in 2006:

 

• Books: Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt
• Music: Taking The Long Way by Dixie Chicks
• DVD: Pirates of the Caribbean - Dead Man's Chest (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
• Electronics: Apple 30 GB iPod with Video Playback Black (5th Generation)
• Home & Garden: AeroGrow AeroGarden Garden Kit, Black
• Health & Personal Care: Philips Norelco BG2020 Men's Bodygroom
• Computer & Video Games: Nintendo Wii
• Software: The Sims 2: Open for Business expansion pack
• Tools & Hardware: Black & Decker AAW100 8-Inch Auto Wrench
• Apparel & Accessories: cashmere pashmina shawls
• Sports & Outdoors: Baby Einstein Discover & Play Activity Gym
• Jewelry & Watches: Sterling Silver Open Double Flower Pendant, 18"
• Beauty: Bare Escentuals Get Started Kit - Fairly Light/Light

Most Popular Gift Products

 

The following is a list of products most frequently purchased as gifts by Amazon.com customers in 2006:

 

• Books: The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream by Barack Obama
• Music: Duets: An American Classic by Tony Bennett
• DVD: Pirates of the Caribbean - Dead Man's Chest (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
• Electronics: Apple 30 GB iPod with Video Playback
• Home & Garden: Weber 87886 Chimney Starter
• Health & Personal Care: Omron HJ-112 Digital Premium Pedometer
• Computer & Video Games: Xbox 360 Console (20GB)
• Tools & Hardware: Black & Decker AAW100 8-Inch Auto Wrench
• Software: Microsoft Flight Simulator X Deluxe DVD (CD)
• Apparel & Accessories: MIR Women's Kimo Cashmere 12x60 Woven Scarf
• Sports & Outdoors: Razor A Kick Scooter
• Jewelry: Sterling Silver Open Double Flower Pendant, 18"
• Watches: Invicta Men's Automatic Pro Diver S2 Watch #8926
• Automotive: LifeHammer Original Emergency Hammer
• Beauty: Burt's Bees Head To Toe Starter Kit
• Shoes: Disney Cars Toddler Boys' McQueen Slipper
• Toys: IlluStory: Write and Illustrate Your Own Book!
• Baby: Ocean Wonders Aquarium Bouncer
• Grocery: Senseo Douwe Egberts Dark Roast Coffee Pods

About Amazon.com

 

Amazon.com, Inc., (Nasdaq: AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth's Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth's most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as health and personal care, jewelry and watches, gourmet food, sports and outdoors, apparel and accessories, books, music, DVDs, electronics and office, toys and baby, and home and garden.

Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de, www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, and www.joyo.com.

As used herein, "Amazon.com," "we," "our" and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.

Forward Looking Statement

This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management's expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, significant amount of indebtedness, inventory, limited operating history, government regulation and taxation, payments, fraud, consumer trends, and new business areas. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in Amazon.com's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005, and all subsequent filings.

 

 

Oscar’s® Docs Arrive in NYC

Marjoe (1972)

— The 2007 “Monday Nights with Oscar” series will kick off with “Oscar’s Docs: An Evening with Sarah Kernochan,” including screenings of Kernochan’s Academy Award®-winning documentaries, “Marjoe” and “Thoth,” on Monday, January 8, at 7 p.m. at the Academy Theater at Lighthouse International in New York City.

The presentation, hosted by historian and journalist Perry L. van der Meer, will feature a post-screening conversation with the two-time Oscar-winning producer-director.

The program will begin with a screening of the documentary short subject “Thoth” (2001), from the original print submitted for Academy Award consideration, followed by the documentary feature “Marjoe” (1972), from a new print preserved by the Academy Film Archive. Complementing the screenings will be historical footage from past Academy Awards® presentations.

“Thoth” profiles Stephen Kaufman, aka Thoth, a performance artist in New York’s Central Park. Dressed in nothing more than a gold loincloth and warrior headdress, Thoth performs his one-man operas, or “prayformances,” with violin accompaniment, in what he describes as an attempt to bring divine inspiration and healing to the world.

“Marjoe” tells the story of Marjoe Gortner, an extraordinarily charismatic fire-and-brimstone preacher who candidly reveals the tricks of his trade and his personal belief that religion is really just another business.

“Monday Nights with Oscar” is a monthly series showcasing high-quality prints of films that have been nominated for or won Academy Awards.

The Academy Theater at Lighthouse International is located at 111 East 59th Street in New York City. Tickets for the screening are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. All seating is unreserved.

Tickets may be reserved by calling 1-888-778-7575. Depending on availability, tickets may be purchased the night of the screening. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.

# # #

©A.M.P.A.S.®
 

 

 

 Eminem to Host New Year's Eve Countdown on His Shade 45 Channel
Exclusively on SIRIUS Satellite Radio

Dec 28, 2006 -- Eminem will share and count down 25 of his favorite hip-hop tracks on
SIRIUS Satellite Radio channel Shade 45 on New Year's Eve.



This end-of-year special will feature the most successful artist in
hip- hop history "stating the facts and playing the tracks" on his SIRIUS
music channel, Shade 45. Eminem and SIRIUS (Nasdaq: SIRI) launched
Shade 45, the freshest and most adventurous, uncensored hip-hop channel in
radio, in October 2005.

2006 ended on a high note for Eminem, with the triumphant chart-topping
release of the album Eminem Presents The Re-Up and a GRAMMY(R)
nomination with Akon for "Smack That."

His Shady New Year special will be broadcast exclusively on SIRIUS on
New Year's Eve, December 31, from 8 to 10 pm ET, on Shade 45 / channel
45. It will be re-broadcast at 10 pm ET, and again on New Year's Day,
January 1 at 12 am, 12 pm, 2 pm and 8 pm ET.

For more information, visit http://www.sirius.com/shade45.

About SIRIUS

SIRIUS, "The Best Radio on Radio," delivers more than 130 channels of
the best programming in all of radio. SIRIUS is the original and only
home of 100% commercial free music channels in satellite radio, offering
69 music channels. SIRIUS also delivers 65 channels of sports, news,
talk, entertainment, traffic, weather and data. SIRIUS is the Official
Satellite Radio Partner of the NFL, NBA and NHL and broadcasts live
play-by-play games of the NFL, NBA and NHL. All SIRIUS programming is
available for a monthly subscription fee of only $12.95.

SIRIUS Internet Radio (SIR) is a CD-quality, Internet-only version of
the SIRIUS radio service, without the use of a radio, for the monthly
subscription fee of $12.95. SIR delivers more than 75 channels of talk,
entertainment, sports, and 100% commercial free music.

SIRIUS products for the car, truck, home, RV and boat are available in
more than 25,000 retail locations, including Best Buy, Circuit City,
Crutchfield, Costco, Target, Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, RadioShack and at
shop.sirius.com.

SIRIUS radios are offered in vehicles from Audi, Bentley, BMW,
Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, Infiniti, Jaguar, Jeep(R), Land Rover, Lexus,
Lincoln-Mercury, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, MINI, Nissan, Rolls Royce, Scion, Toyota,
Porsche, Volkswagen, and Volvo. Hertz also offers SIRIUS in its rental
cars at major locations around the country.

Click on http://www.sirius.com to listen to SIRIUS live, or to purchase
a SIRIUS radio and subscription.

Any statements that express, or involve discussions as to,
expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance
with respect to SIRIUS Satellite Radio Inc. are not historical facts
and may be forward-looking and, accordingly, such statements involve
estimates, assumptions and uncertainties which could cause actual results
to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking
statements. Accordingly, any such statements are qualified in their entirety
by reference to the factors discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K
for the year ended December 31, 2005 and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q
for the quarters ended June 30, 2006 and September 30, 2006 filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission. Among the key factors that have
a direct bearing on our operational results are: our dependence upon
third parties, including manufacturers of SIRIUS radios, retailers,
automakers and programming partners, our competitive position and any events
which
affect the useful life of our satellites. 


    P-SIRI

 

The box office for the four-day period was off about 2 percent compared with the same period last year.

The Ben Stiller comedy "Night at the Museum" pulled in $42.2 million in its debut, while Sylvester Stallone's "Rocky Balboa" took home a purse of $17 million in its opening weekend.

Two films opened Christmas Day. The horror flick "Black Christmas" earned $3.3 million, and the somber "Children of Men" took in $179,268 at 16 locations.

The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Monday, followed by distribution studio, four-day gross through Monday, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross through Tuesday and number of weeks in release, as compiled by Media By Numbers LLC are:

1. "Night at the Museum," Fox, $42,212,651, 3,685 locations, $11,455 average, $55,718,681, one week.

2. "The Pursuit of Happyness," Sony, $22,554,220, 2,863 locations, $7,878 average, $67,957,778, two weeks.

3. "Rocky Balboa," MGM , $17,003,904, 3,017 locations, $5,636 average, $26,697,118, one week.

4. "The Good Shepherd," Universal, $14,142,760, 2,215 locations, $6,385 average, $18,262,685, one week.

5. "Charlotte's Web," Paramount, $9,568,033, 3,728 locations, $2,567 average, $32,223,586, two weeks.

6. "Eragon," Fox, $9,334,259, 3,030 locations, $3,081 average, $42,898,705, two weeks.

7. "Dreamgirls," Paramount, $8,953,734, 852 locations, $10,509 average, $15,378,852, two weeks.

8. "We Are Marshall," Warner Bros., $8,582,508, 2,606 locations, $3,293 average, $12,555,528, one week.

9. "The Holiday," Sony, $6,855,456, 2,635 locations, $2,602 average, $39,206,574, three weeks.

10. "Happy Feet," Warner Bros., $6,565,747, 2,565 locations, $2,560 average, $162,982,116, six weeks.

11. "The Nativity Story," New Line, $5,800,000, 1,824 locations, $3,180 average, $33,955,000, four weeks.

12. "Blood Diamond," Warner Bros., $4,775,689, 1,920 locations, $2,487 average, $28,289,933, three weeks.

13. "Apocalypto," Disney, $4,479,914, 2,144 locations, $2,090 average, $37,449,628, three weeks.

14. "Casino Royale," Sony, $4,350,706, 1,588 locations, $2,740 average, $146,352,994, six weeks.

15. "Black Christmas," MGM, $3,307,602, 1,278 locations, $2,588 average, two-day total not available.

16. "The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause," Disney, $1,319,624, 801 locations, $1,647 average, $82,636,908, eight weeks.

17. "Unaccompanied Minors," Warner Bros., $1,069,848, 1,125 locations, $951 average, $13,360,339, three weeks.

18. "Deja Vu," Disney, $1,043,787, 839 locations, $1,244 average, $60,391,598, five weeks.

19. "Borat," Fox, $801,273, 458 locations, $1,750 average, $124,679,625, eight weeks.

20. "Curse of the Golden Flower," Sony Pictures Classics, $711,336, 60 locations, $11,856 average, $859,246, one week.

 

BEST & WORST VIDEO GAMES OF 2006

 

 

DIRECTV Lands Agreement To Distribute Programming Throughout Denver International Airport

Denver International Airport is site for DIRECTV's First Airport Retail Kiosk- Launch Event to be Held On Dec. 28 to Celebrate Grand Opening Dec 28, 2006 -- For the first time, the more than 900,000 travelers expected to pass through the Denver International Airport (DIA) this holiday season, will experience digital-quality DIRECTV(R) programming while waiting for their flights. DIRECTV has signed a multi-year agreement with the DIA to be the sole provider of programming in select areas throughout the airport. In addition, DIRECTV is holding a launch event today at DIA to celebrate the opening of its first airport retail kiosk, which will be located on Concourse B. From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. passengers who visit the new DIRECTV kiosk will receive free DIRECTV logo merchandise, as well as a $5 coupon good toward select food vendors located near the kiosk. "Travelers arriving earlier and spending more time in airports waiting for their flights now have a new way to enjoy their down time and experience DIRECTV first-hand," said John Suranyi, president, Sales and Service, DIRECTV, Inc. "Customers who are interested in learning more about DIRECTV can speak with a representative who will be on hand at our kiosk to answer any questions. In addition to learning about our service, passengers who are traveling through DIA will have the opportunity to enjoy the same DIRECTV digital-quality programming that millions of families across the country experience in their homes." The new retail kiosk will showcase DIRECTV's high-definition and DVR services to travelers waiting for their flights. Passengers who visit the kiosk will have the opportunity to sign up for both residential and/or commercial business services from DIRECTV. Denver International Airport celebrated 10 years of operation on February 28th, 2005. Encompassing 53 square miles of land, DIA is twice the size of Manhattan Island and larger than the city boundaries of Boston, Miami, or San Francisco. Ranked as the 10th busiest airport in the world, DIA is home to more than 30 airlines, including regional and charter carriers, which served more than 43.4 million passengers in 2005. About DIRECTV, Inc. DIRECTV, Inc., the nation's leading satellite television service provider, presents the finest television experience available to more than 15.6 million customers through exclusive content, industry-leading customer service (which has surpassed cable for six years running) and superior technologies. Each day, DIRECTV subscribers enjoy over 250 channels of 100% digital picture and sound; exclusive programming and the most comprehensive collection of sports programming available anywhere including NFL SUNDAY TICKET(TM), and MLB EXTRA INNINGS(TM). DIRECTV (NYSE:DTV) also leads the digital television technology revolution with exclusives such as NFL SUNDAY TICKET SuperFan(TM), US Open Interactive and YES Network Interactive and will soon have the capacity to offer over 150 channels in HD. DIRECTV is approximately 39 percent owned by News Corporation. For the most up-to-date information on the Company, please visit directv.com. SOURCE: DIRECTV, Inc.

Oscar® Pre-show Producer Named

Pamela Oas Williams (Photo by Susan B. Landau)

 Pamela Oas Williams has been appointed producer of the 79th Academy Awards® pre-show by Oscar telecast producer Laura Ziskin. This will be Williams’s second outing in charge of the Oscar pre-show, having served as co-producer for the 74th Academy Awards pre-show.

“Pam is a fantastic producer and the perfect person to collaborate with me on the pre-show,” said Ziskin.

Williams is Ziskin’s producing partner at Laura Ziskin Productions. As senior vice president of film and television, she oversees the company’s development slate, including the upcoming “Me & My Monster” for Columbia Pictures and “The Katharine Graham Story” for HBO. Prior to working with Ziskin, Williams ran George Clooney’s television company, Maysville Pictures, where she executive produced, with Clooney and Ziskin, the live television film “Fail Safe.”

The red carpet arrivals show will air on Sunday, February 25, 2007 on the ABC Television Network at 5 p.m. PST, immediately preceding the live Oscar telecast.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2006 will be presented on Sunday, February 25, 2007, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®.

Editors: Please note that downloadable images are available at http://photos.oscars.org.

# # #

307 Feature Films in Competition for 2006 Oscar®

— Three hundred seven feature films are eligible for the Academy Award® for Best Picture of 2006, it has been announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

To be eligible for 79th Academy Awards® consideration, feature films have until midnight, December 31, to open in a commercial motion picture theater in Los Angeles County and begin a minimum run of seven consecutive days.

Under Academy rules, a feature-length motion picture must have a running time of more than 40 minutes and must have been exhibited theatrically on 35mm or 70mm film, or in a qualifying digital format.

Films that receive their first public exhibition or distribution in any manner other than as a theatrical motion picture release are not eligible for Academy Awards in any category.

Nominations for the 79th Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, January 23, 2007, at 5:30 a.m. PST in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2006 will be presented on Sunday, February 25, 2007, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network at 5 p.m. PST, beginning with a half-hour arrivals segment, “The Road to the Oscars.”

# # #

©A.M.P.A.S.®

Posted by Bill at 10:34 AM | Permalink

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  Jan 17

Red Hot Chili Peppers Set Record for Most Number Ones in Modern Rock Radio Chart History With Current Single "Snow (Hey Oh)"

BURBANK, CA --  January 17, 2007 -- With the Red Hot Chili Peppers' latest single, "Snow (Hey Oh)" claiming the top spot on Billboard's Modern Rock chart this week, the Los Angeles quartet have set the astounding record for the artist with the most Number One hits in Modern Rock radio chart history with eleven chart topping songs.

Indeed, Red Hot Chili Peppers have made musical history by holding the record for the most amount of weeks at Number One at Modern Rock Radio (all singles combined) for a total of 77 weeks! In addition to the three Number One singles from "Stadium Arcadium," there are also the smashes from 1991's "Give It Away," 1993's "Soul to Squeeze," 1995's "My Friends," 1999's "Scar Tissue" (which holds the record for the song with the longest run at Number One with 16 weeks), 2000's "Californication," 2000's "Otherside," 2002's "By the Way," and 2002's "Can't Stop."

This impressive feat also marks the first time the Red Hot Chili Peppers have scored three Number One Modern Rock singles in a row from one album. "Snow (Hey Oh)" is the third hit single, following "Dani California" and "Tell Me Baby," from the band's platinum-selling 2-CD set "Stadium Arcadium." The much-lauded album has been nominated for six 2007 Grammy Awards, including "Album of the Year," "Best Rock Album" and "Best Rock Song" for the smash "Dani California." Tune in to the Grammy telecast, which airs on February 11th at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CBS to see the band perform live on the awards show.

Red Hot Chili Peppers are currently on a three-month tour -- with fellow multiple-Grammy nominees Gnarls Barkley -- that runs through February and March.

www.redhotchilipeppers.com

The Cast

HUGH GRANT (Alex Fletcher) is an award-winning actor who has received acclaim for his work in a wide range of film roles.  Grant first gained international stardom in 1994 when he starred in Mike Newell’s comedy smash “Four Weddings and a Funeral.”  Grant won a Golden Globe Award and a British Academy Award for his performance in that film, opposite Andie MacDowell.  He has since earned two more Golden Globe nominations: one for his work in the 1999 romantic comedy hit “Notting Hill,” opposite Julia Roberts; and more recently for his work in the Weitz brothers’ acclaimed comedy drama “About a Boy.”

Hailing from England, Grant attended Oxford University and made his feature film debut in “Privileged.”  His breakthrough role came in the 1987 Merchant-Ivory film “Maurice,” based on E.M. Forster’s novel.  Grant won the Best Actor Award at the Venice Film Festival for his portrayal of a young man confronting his homosexuality in the Edwardian age.  That led to leading roles in such films as “The Dawning,” with Anthony Hopkins; Ken Russell’s “The Lair of the White Worm”; Roman Polanski’s “Bitter Moon”; “Night Train to Venice”; and the award-winning Mercent-Ivory drama “The Remains of the Day,” with Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson.

Grant’s additional film credits include the British comedy “An Awfully Big Adventure,” for director Mike Newell; the critically acclaimed “The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain,” written and directed by Christopher Monger; Ang Lee’s Oscar-winning adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Sense and Sensibility”; Chris Columbus’ comedy “Nine Months,” with Julianne Moore and Robin Williams; Woody Allen’s “Small Time Crooks” and Michael Apted’s thriller “Extreme Measures,” with Gene Hackman, which he also produced.

Grant previously worked with director Marc Lawrence when he starred with Sandra Bullock in the romantic comedy “Two Weeks’ Notice.”  His recent film credits also include “Bridget Jones’s Diary” and its sequel, “Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason,” both with Renee Zellweger; the ensemble comedy hit “Love Actually”; and “American Dreamz.”


DREW BARRYMORE (Sophie Fisher) has been a favorite of film audiences for more than two decades. Behind the camera, she is also enjoying success as a producer under her own Flower Films banner, with such hits as “Never Been Kissed,” “Charile’s Angels” and “50 First Dates.” In addition to producing the films, Barrymore joined Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu to star in both “Charlie’s Angels” and “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle,” which, together, grossed more than half a billion dollars worldwide.

She has also earned praise from both critics and audiences for her performances in a wide range of comedies, most recently including the romantic comedies “Fever Pitch,” in which she starred with Jimmy Fallon under the direction of the Farrelly brothers, and “50 First Dates,” opposite Adam Sandler. Barrymore also starred in the dark comedy “Duplex,” opposite Ben Stiller, for director Danny De Vito; George Clooney’s widely acclaimed biographical satire “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind,” with Sam Rockwell; Penny Marshall’s “Riding in Cars With Boys”; “Never Been Kissed,” which marked Barrymore’s producing debut; “Home Fries,” opposite Luke Wilson; and the smash hit comedy “The Wedding Singer,” opposite Adam Sandler.

Barrymore made her feature film debut at the age of five in the science fiction thriller “Altered States.” However, it was her scene-stealing performance as the precocious Gertie in Steven Spielberg’s 1982 blockbuster “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” that catapulted the young actress to stardom. She went on to star in the thriller “Firestarter” and the comedy “Irreconcilable Differences,” for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

Her other film credits include “Stephen King’s Cat’s Eye”; “Far From Home”; “Poison Ivy”; “Guncrazy,” for which she received another Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress; “Bad Girls”; Herbert Ross’ “Boys on the Side”; “Mad Love”; “Batman Forever”; Woody Allen’s “Everyone Says I Love You”; and Wes Craven’s horror hit “Scream,” which launched a successful franchise. Barrymore next stars opposite Eric Bana in Curtis Hanson’s “Lucky You,” due out in March 2007.


BRAD GARRETT (Chris Riley) won three Emmy Awards in the category of Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for his work on the hit CBS comedy “Everybody Loves Raymond.”  Starring on the show for nine seasons, Garrett also received two more Emmy nominations and a Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award nomination for his work in the role of Ray’s brother, Robert.  He also shared in a SAG Award for Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series.  In addition, Garrett earned Emmy and SAG Award nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Movie or Miniseries for his portrayal of the legendary Jackie Gleason in the television biopic “Gleason.” 

Garrett is currently starring in the Fox comedy series “`Til Death.”  His television credits also include HBO’s “Don King: Only in America” and Showtime’s “Club Land.”
           
On the big screen, Garrett recently co-starred in the hit feature comedy “The Pacifier.”  He was earlier seen in such films as “Stuart Little 2”; “George B,” which was a finalist at the 1997 Sundance Film Festival; “Suicide Kings”; and Woody Allen’s “Sweet and Lowdown.”
           
With his distinctive voice, Garrett is also one of the busiest voiceover actors in the industry.  He can be heard in the recently released fantasy comedy “Night at the Museum,” and also includes among his long list of film and television credits the hit animated features “Finding Nemo” and “A Bug’s Life.”  He also lent his voice to the upcoming animated films “Ratatouille” and “Underdog.”

Garrett began his career performing a stand-up act at various Los Angeles comedy clubs.  His first appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson” at age 23 made him one of the youngest comedians ever to perform on the program.  From that appearance, Garrett’s stand-up career took off, bringing him headline gigs at national venues as well as opening spots for such legends as Frank Sinatra, Diana Ross, Julio Iglesias, Liza Minnelli and Sammy Davis, Jr.

In the fall of 2005, Garrett made his Broadway debut in the revival of Neil Simon’s “The Odd Couple,” starring with Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick.
 

KRISTEN JOHNSTON (Rhonda) is currently making her West End debut in the John Crowley-directed play, “Love Song,” opposite Cillian Murphy, Neve Campbell and Michael McKean.

Starring as Sally Solomon on the hit television series “3rd Rock from the Sun,” Johnston won two Emmy Awards and received Golden Globe Award, Screen Actors Guild Award and American Comedy Award nominations over the course of the series' six-year run. More recently, she had a recurring role on “ER” and a memorable guest starring role on “Sex and the City.”

Johnston made her film debut in the short film “The Debt,” which won a number of awards at international film festivals, including the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. Her other film credits include “Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me,” “Austin Powers: Goldmember,” “The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas,” and the feature film version of “Strangers with Candy.”

Johnston studied theater with the Atlantic Theater Company Acting School, founded by playwright David Mamet and actor William H. Macy. Her theater credits include “Baltimore Waltz,” “Much Ado About Nothing,” “Aunt Dan and Lemon,” “The Women,” “The Smell of the Kill,” “The Skin of Our Teeth,” “Baby Anger,” “Hot Keys,” and the Lincoln Center production of “The Lights,” for which she received a Drama Desk Award nomination.


CAMPBELL SCOTT (Sloan Cates) has been recognized for his work as both an actor and a director. He earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination and won the National Board of Review Award for Best Actor for his work in the film “Roger Dodger,” which he also executive produced. Stepping behind the camera in 1996, Scott teamed with Stanley Tucci to direct the acclaimed independent film “Big Night,” earning a Spirit Award nomination for Best First Feature and winning the New York Film Critics Award for Best New Director.

Scott made his film acting debut in “From Hollywood to Deadwood,” immediately followed by the highly praised drama “Longtime Companion” and Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Sheltering Sky.” His additional credits include Kenneth Branagh’s “Dead Again”; Joel Schumacher’s “Dying Young,” opposite Julia Roberts; Cameron Crowe’s “Singles”; John Schlesinger’s “The Innocent”; Alan Rudolph’s “Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle,” for which he earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination; David Mamet’s “The Spanish Prisoner”; “The Imposters”; “Hi-Life”; “Other Voices”; “The Secret Lives of Dentists”; “Loverboy”; “Duma”; and “The Exorcism of Emily Rose.” Scott has also produced and directed “Off the Map” and “Final.”

On television, Scott recently starred in the series “Six Degrees.” He has also starred in such longform projects as “Final Days of Planet Earth,” “The Pilot’s Wife,” “The Tale of Sweeney Todd,” “The Love Letter” and “The Kennedys of Massachusetts,” and directed, produced and starred in the title role of “Hamlet,” for the Odyssey Network.

An accomplished theatre actor, Scott has appeared on Broadway in “Long Day’s Journey Into Night,” with Jason Robards and Colleen Dewhurst, “Ah! Wilderness,” “Hay Fever” and “The Queen and the Rebels.” He has also been seen off-Broadway in “The Last Outpost,” “Copperhead,” “A Man for All Seasons” and “On the Bum.” His extensive stage repertoire also includes “Measure For Measure” at Lincoln Center, and the title role of “Pericles” at the New York Shakespeare Festival, in addition to numerous regional productions.


HALEY BENNETT (Cora Corman) makes her feature film debut in “Music and Lyrics.” In addition, Bennett is in the process of recording her first album, under the direction of producer Chris Contogouris.

Bennett was born in Fort Myers, Florida and grew up in Naples where she studied both music and acting. In 2005, she came to Los Angeles with her mother to pursue her career. Soon after, Bennett landed the role of Cora Corman, beating out dozens of other hopefuls for the part.

Mike Jones' Highly Anticipated New Album -- "The American Dream" -- Due in April

 January 16, 2007 -- Rap superstar Mike Jones will release a new album, titled "The American Dream," in April on Swishahouse/Asylum/Warner Bros. Records. Fans of the Houston-born MC have been eagerly awaiting new music ever since Jones took the hip-hop world by storm in 2005 with his double-platinum, chart-topping debut "Who is Mike Jones?"

The album's addictive first single, "Mr. Jones," which was produced by Myke Diesel (Master P., Lil Romeo), features a shuffling synth and drum groove and Jones' confident rap: "You haters hate but they don't really wanna see the steel / Had a million in my bank before Asylum brought the deal / Before I came out they said the streets wouldn't feel / The s**t that I'm spittin', the s**t that's real."

The track will also appear in Jones' feature film debut, also titled "The American Dream," which is scheduled to come out shortly after the album is released. Executive produced by Jones, Warner Bros., and Asylum, the film, which Jones co-directed with Derrick Dixon (2004's "Survival of the Illest"), is loosely based on the rapper's life, depicting his rise from humble beginnings in Houston to hip-hop luminary.

After years of underground success, Jones broke through on a national level thanks to savvy self-promotion and the drowsy smash hit anthem "Still Tippin'," which featured fellow H-Towners Slim Thug and Paul Wall. Jones followed it up with "Back Then," which cracked the Top Ten on Billboard's Hot Rap Tracks chart, scored heavy rotation on BET and MTV, and led to the double-platinum certification of "Who is Mike Jones?" With his gregarious personality, knack for self-promotion (his T-shirts emblazoned with "Who is Mike Jones?" and his actual cell phone number are legend), and guest star turns (Ying Yang Twins' "Badd," T-Pain's "I'm N Luv (Wit A Stripper)"), Jones became one of the first artists to break out of the Houston hip-hop scene in years.

In addition to filming "The American Dream" last fall, Jones also appeared on the Anger Management Tour, was featured on the Fox TV show "Prison Break," and opened a thriving club in the Houston Metro area called Ice Age, which has attracted celebrities such as Vivica A. Fox, Morris Chestnut, Meagan Good, Chingy, and Tracy McGrady.

The Doris Day Collection Volume 2 Available April 10 from Warner Home Video

 Jan. 2, 2007 Doris Day, America's sweetheart of the '40s, '50s and '60s, returns to DVD on April 10 as Warner Home Video releases The Doris Day Collection Volume 2 featuring six more new-to-DVD titles, focusing on Miss Day's golden years at Warner Bros., where her film career began. The collection contains her blockbuster screen debut Romance on the High Seas, as well as such audience favorites as My Dream is Yours, I'll See You in My Dreams, On Moonlight Bay, By the Light of the Silvery Moon, and Lucky Me -- films which contain a treasure chest of musical standards.

All the DVDs have been remastered, with all new digital transfers and entertaining bonus features such as Oscar(R) -nominated cartoons and vintage shorts. The gift set will sell for $59.92 SRP, and each title is also available separately for $19.97 SRP.

Romance on the High Seas

Doris Day plays a little-known singer named Georgia Garrett whose musical career may not be going anywhere, but she is -- on a cruise, sailing under the name Mrs. Elvira Kent while the real Elvira secretly stays home to spy on her presumably philandering hubby.

My Dream is Yours

Radio talent agent Doug Blake (Jack Carson) walks away from his arrogant singing star and scrambles to discover another who will shine even brighter. He finds effervescent songstress Martha Gibson (Ms. Day).

I'll See You in My Dreams

Danny Thomas and Doris Day play famous songwriter Gus Kahn and his devoted wife Grace, in this musical story of Kahn's life from the day he walked into a music publishing house to public triumphs, private failures, career decline and comeback. The title song, plus "It Had to be You," "Makin' Whoopee" and "Love Me or Leave Me" lead a 23-song cavalcade.

On Moonlight Bay

This comedy is a tuneful, romantic view of Midwestern life featuring Doris Day and Gordon MacRae -- the story of a tomboy who suddenly wants to trade her pants for petticoats to impress the boy next door.

By the Light of the Silvery Moon

This is the sequel to the hugely popular On Moonlight Bay. The irresistible pair of young lovers Doris Day and Gordon MacRae return in this remembrance of World War I-era Americana.

Lucky Me

Struggling performer Candy Williams (Day) finds many ways to ward off bad luck. Maybe that's why the most lopsided, unlucky day of her life turns out to be the luckiest.

Synopses

LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA
January 12 (expansion)

(Warner Bros. Pictures / DreamWorks Pictures)

Director: Clint Eastwood
Writers: Screenplay by Iris Yamashita, Story by Iris Yamashita & Paul Haggis, Based on “Picture Letters from Commander in Chief” by Tadamichi Kuribayashi, Edited by Tsuyuko Yoshida, Published by Shogakukan-Bunko
Producers: Clint Eastwood, Steven Spielberg
Executive Producer: Paul Haggis

Cast: Ken Watanabe, Kazunari Ninomiya, Tsuyoshi Ihara, Ryo Kase, Shidou Nakamura

Drama. Sixty-one years ago, U.S. and Japanese armies met on Iwo Jima.  Decades later, several hundred letters are unearthed from that stark island’s soils.  The letters give faces and voices to the men who fought there, as well as the extraordinary general who led them, Tadamichi Kuribayashi (Ken Watanabe).  With little defense other than sheer will and the volcanic rock of the island itself, Gen. Kuribayashi’s unprecedented tactics transform what was predicted to be a quick and bloody defeat into nearly 40 days of heroic and resourceful combat.  In an effort to explore an event that continues to resonate with both cultures, Clint Eastwood was haunted by the sense that making only one film, Flags of Our Fathers, would be telling only half the story.  With this unprecedented dual film project, shot back-to-back to be released in sequence, Eastwood seeks to reveal the battle of Iwo Jima – and, by implication, the war in the Pacific – as a clash not only of arms but of cultures.

This film has been rated “R” for “graphic war violence.”

THE GOOD GERMAN
January 19 (expansion)

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Virtual Studios)

Director: Steven Soderbergh
Writer: Screenplay by Paul Attanasio, Based on the novel by Joseph Kanon
Producers: Ben Cosgrove, Gregory Jacobs
Executive Producer: Benjamin Waisbren, Frederic W. Brost

Cast: George Clooney, Cate Blanchett and Tobey Maguire            

Dramatic Thriller.  Based on the novel by Joseph Kanon, The Good German takes place in the ruins of post-WWII Berlin, where U.S. Army war correspondent Jake Geismer (George Clooney) becomes embroiled with Lena Brandt (Cate Blanchett), a former lover who is trying to escape her past in the aftermath of the war.  Intrigue mounts as Jake tries to uncover the secrets Lena may be hiding in her desperation to get out of Berlin.  Tully (Tobey Maguire), a soldier in the American army motor pool assigned to drive Jake around the city, has black market connections that may be Lena’s way out – or lead them all into even darker territory.

This film has been rated “R” for “language, violence and some sexual content.”

MUSIC AND LYRICS
February 14

(Castle Rock Entertainment / Village Roadshow Pictures)

Director: Marc Lawrence
Writer: Marc Lawrence
Producers: Martin Shafer, Liz Glotzer
Executive Producers: Nancy Juvonen, Hal Gaba and Bruce Berman

Cast: Hugh Grant, Drew Barrymore, Brad Garrett, Kristen Johnston, Campbell Scott

Romantic Comedy. Alex Fletcher (Hugh Grant) is a washed-up 80s pop star who’s been reduced to working the nostalgia circuit at county fairs and amusement parks. The charismatic and talented musician gets a chance at a comeback when reigning diva Cora Corman invites him to write and record a duet with her, but there’s a problem – Alex hasn’t written a song in years, he’s never written lyrics, and he has to come up with a hit in a matter of days. Enter Sophie Fisher (Drew Barrymore), Alex’s beguilingly quirky plant lady, whose flair for words strikes a chord with the struggling songwriter. On the rebound from a bad relationship, Sophie is reluctant to collaborate with anyone, especially commitment-phobe Alex. As their chemistry heats up at the piano and under it, Alex and Sophie will have to face their fears – and the music – if they want to find the love and success they both deserve. The film co-stars Brad Garrett as Alex’s steadfast manager, and Kristen Johnston as Sophie’s sister, Rhonda. Newcomer Haley Bennett plays young, pop-princess Cora Corman.

This film has been rated “PG-13” for “some sexual content.”

THE ASTRONAUT FARMER
February 23

(Warner Bros. Pictures)

Director: Michael Polish
Writer: Mark Polish & Michael Polish
Producers: Mark Polish, Paula Weinstein, Len Amato, Michael Polish
Executive Producer: J. Geyer Kosinski

Cast: Billy Bob Thornton, Virginia Madsen, Bruce Dern, Tim Blake Nelson

Family Adventure. Dismissed from NASA’s space program, former astronaut-in-training Charles Farmer (BILLY BOB THORNTON) pursues his lifelong dream by building his own rocket, in the Polish Brothers’ family film “The Astronaut Farmer.”  On the eve of his launch, Farmer must battle foreclosure on his ranch and a small-town community of disbelievers, while simultaneously drawing heavy scrutiny and surveillance from the FBI, CIA, FAA and the U.S. military, all of which see him as a potential risk to civilian safety and will take the necessary steps to shut down his operation. But he remains determined to reach his goal and instill in his children the courage to pursue their own dreams, no matter the odds.

This film has been rated “PG” for “thematic material, peril and language.”

300
March 9

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Legendary Pictures / Virtual Studios)

Director: Zack Snyder
Writers: Zack Snyder & Kurt Johnstad and Michael B. Gordon, Based on the Graphic Novel by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley
Producers: Gianni Nunnari, Mark Canton, Bernie Goldmann, Jeffrey Silver
Executive Producers: Deborah Snyder, Frank Miller, Craig J. Flores, Thomas Tull, William Fay, Benjamin Waisbren

Cast: Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, David Wenham and Dominic West
Action Drama. Based on the epic graphic novel by Frank Miller, 300 is a ferocious retelling of the ancient Battle of Thermopylae in which King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) and 300 Spartans fought to the death against Xerxes and his massive Persian army. Facing insurmountable odds, their valor and sacrifice inspire all of Greece to unite against their Persian enemy, drawing a line in the sand for democracy. The film brings Miller’s (Sin City) acclaimed graphic novel to life by combining live action with virtual backgrounds that capture his distinct vision of this ancient historic tale.

This film has been rated “R” for “graphic battle sequences throughout, some sexuality and nudity.”

LUCKY YOU
March 16

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Village Roadshow Pictures)

Director: Curtis Hanson
Writers: Screenplay by Eric Roth & Curtis Hanson, Story by Eric Roth
Producers: Denise Di Novi, Curtis Hanson and Carol Fenelon
Executive Producer: Bruce Berman

Cast: Eric Bana, Drew Barrymore, Robert Duvall, Debra Messing

Drama. In the world of high-stakes poker, Huck Cheever (Eric Bana) is a blaster—a player who goes all out, all the time. But in his personal relationships, Huck plays it tight, expertly avoiding emotional commitments and long-term expectations.  When Huck sets out to win the main event of the 2003 World Series of Poker—and the affections of Billie Offer (Drew Barrymore), a young singer from Bakersfield—there is one significant obstacle in his path: his anger toward his father, L.C. Cheever (Robert Duvall), the poker legend who abandoned Huck's mother years ago.  As these two rivals progress toward a final showdown at the poker table, Huck learns that to win in the games of life and poker, he must try to play cards the way he has been living his life and live his life the way he has been playing cards.

This film has been rated “PG-13” by the MPAA for “some language and sexual humor.”

TMNT
March 23

(Warner Bros. Pictures / The Weinstein Company)

Director: Kevin Munroe
Writers: Kevin Munroe
Producers: Thomas K. Gray, Galen Walker and Paul Wang
Executive Producers: Francis Kao, Peter Laird, Gary Richardson and Frederick U. Fierst

CGI Action Adventure. After the defeat of their old arch nemesis, The Shredder, the Turtles have grown apart as a family. Struggling to keep them together, their rat sensei, Master Splinter, becomes worried when strange things begin to brew in New York City. Tech-industrialist Max Winters is amassing an army of ancient monsters to apparently take over the world. And only one super-ninja fighting team can stop them—those heroes in a half shell—Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello and Raphael! With the help of old allies April O’Neil and Casey Jones, the Turtles are in for the fight of their lives as they once again must face the mysterious Foot Clan, who have put their own ninja skills behind Winters’ endeavors. Making this new incarnation of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles truly cutting-edge, the film will be created entirely with state-of-the-art CG animation, giving them a completely new look for the 21st century.

THE REAPING
March 30

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Dark Castle Entertainment / Village Roadshow Pictures)

Director: Stephen Hopkins
Writers: Screenplay by Carey W. Hayes & Chad Hayes, Story by Brian Rousso
Producers: Joel Silver, Robert Zemeckis, Susan Downey, Herbert W. Gains
Executive Producers: Erik Olsen, Steve Richards, Bruce Berman

Cast: Hilary Swank, David Morrissey, Idris Elba, AnnaSophia Robb, Stephen Rea

Supernatural Thriller. In The Reaping, Hilary Swank plays a former Christian missionary who lost her faith after her family was tragically killed, and has since become a world-renowned expert in disproving religious phenomena. But when she investigates a small Louisiana town that is suffering from what appear to be the Biblical plagues, she realizes that science cannot explain what is happening and she must regain her faith to combat the dark forces threatening the community.

SPRING BREAKDOWN
April 13

(Warner Bros. Pictures)

Director: Ryan Shiraki
Writers: Screenplay by Ryan Shiraki, Story by Rachel Dratch & Ryan Shiraki
Producers: Larry Kennar, Rick Berg
Executive Producers: Mike Rachmil, Ryan Shiraki, Rachel Dratch

Cast: Amy Poehler, Parker Posey, Rachel Dratch, Amber Tamblyn, Seth Meyers, Sophie Monk, Missi Pyle, Jane Lynch

Comedy. Spring Breakdown follows the vacation adventure of Gayle (Amy Poehler), Becky (Parker Posey) and Judi (Rachel Dratch), three thirty-something best friends who’ve always dreamed of being fabulous, but never grew out of being geeks. So when Becky gets the opportunity to unofficially chaperone her boss’ daughter, Ashley (Amber Tamblyn), to the college spring break destination of South Padre Island, the ladies decide to try and turn their tragically un-hip lives around and party with the beer and bikini set. Through keg-stands, hook-ups and foam parties, Becky, Gail, Judi and Ashley are about to discover that it’s better to stand out, than to fit in.

OCEAN’S THIRTEEN
June 8

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Village Roadshow Pictures)

Director: Steven Soderbergh
Writers: Brian Koppelman & David Levien
Producers: Jerry Weintraub
Executive Producers: Susan Ekins, Frederic W. Brost, Gregory Jacobs, Bruce Berman

Cast: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, Ellen Barkin, Al Pacino, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Eddie Jemison, Shaobo Qin, Carl Reiner, Elliot Gould

Action Adventure. In the new sequel to Ocean’s Eleven and Ocean’s Twelve, the cast is reunited with director Steven Soderbergh and producer Jerry Weintraub. Joining the cast for the new adventure are Al Pacino and Ellen Barkin.

NANCY DREW
June 15

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Virtual Studios)

Director: Andrew Fleming
Writers: Screenplay by Andrew Fleming and Tiffany Paulsen, Story by Tiffany Paulsen, Based on Characters Created by Carolyn Keene
Producers: Jerry Weintraub
Executive Producers: Susan Ekins, Mark Vahradian, Benjamin Waisbren

Cast: Emma Roberts, Josh Flitter, Max Thieriot, Rachael Leigh Cook, Tate Donovan

Family Mystery Adventure. Based on characters created by Carolyn Keene, Nancy Drew follows Nancy (Emma Roberts) as she accompanies her father, Carson Drew (Tate Donovan), to Los Angeles on one of his business trips and stumbles across evidence about a long-unsolved crime involving the mysterious death of a beautiful movie star. Nancy’s resourcefulness and personal responsibility are put to the test when she finds herself in the middle of the fast-living, self-indulgent world of Hollywood.

This film has been rated “PG” by the MPAA for “mild violence, thematic elements and brief language.”

LICENSE TO WED
July 4

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Village Roadshow Pictures)

Director: Ken Kwapis
Writers: Screenplay by Kim Barker and Tim Rasmussen & Vince DiMeglio, Story by Kim Barker & Wayne Lloyd
Producers: Mike Medavoy, Arnold Messer, Nick Osborne, Robert Simonds
Executive Producers: Bradley J. Fischer, David Thwaites, Kim Zubick, Dana Goldberg, Bruce Berman

Cast: Robin Williams, Mandy Moore, John Krasinski, Eric Christian Olsen, Christine Taylor, Josh Flitter

Comedy. License to Wed follows newly engaged Ben Murphy (John Krasinski) and his fiancée, Sadie Jones (Mandy Moore), who has always dreamed of getting married in a traditional wedding at her family church. The problem is St. Augustine’s only has one wedding slot available in the next two years, and its charismatic pastor, Reverend Frank (Robin Williams), won’t bless Ben and Sadie’s union until they pass his patented, foolproof marriage-prep course. Through outrageous classes, outlandish homework assignments and some pious manipulation, Ben and Sadie are about to find out if they really have what it takes to make it to the altar… and live happily ever after.

HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
July 13 - In Theatres and IMAX

(Warner Bros. Pictures)

Director: David Yates
Writers: Screenplay by Michael Goldenberg, Based on the Novel by J.K. Rowling
Producers: David Heyman, David Barron
Executive Producer: Lionel Wigram

Cast: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane, Ralph Fiennes, Michael Gambon, Richard Griffiths, Jason Isaacs, Gary Oldman, Alan Rickman, Fiona Shaw, Maggie Smith, Timothy Spall, Imelda Staunton, David Thewlis, Emma Thompson, Julie Walters

Fantasy. In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry returns for his fifth year of study at Hogwarts and discovers that much of the wizarding community has been denied the truth about the teenager’s recent encounter with the evil Lord Voldemort. Fearing that Hogwarts’ venerable Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, is lying about Voldemort’s return in order to undermine his power and take his job, the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, appoints a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher to keep watch over Dumbledore and the Hogwarts students. But Professor Dolores Umbridge’s Ministry-approved course of defensive magic leaves the young wizards woefully unprepared to defend themselves against the dark forces threatening them and the entire wizarding community, so at the prompting of his friends Hermione and Ron, Harry takes matters into his own hands. Meeting secretly with a small group of students who name themselves “Dumbledore’s Army,” Harry teaches them how to defend themselves against the Dark Arts, preparing the courageous young wizards for the extraordinary battle that lies ahead.

NO RESERVATIONS
July 27

(Castle Rock Entertainment / Village Roadshow Pictures)

Director: Scott Hicks
Writers: Screenplay by Carol Fuchs, Based on the original screenplay entitled "Mostly Martha" by Sandra Nettelbeck
Producers: Kerry Heysen, Sergio Aguero
Executive Producers: Susan Cartsonis, Hal Gaba, Bruce Berman

Cast: Catherine Zeta-Jones, Aaron Eckhart, Abigail Breslin, Patricia Clarkson

Romantic Drama. Master chef Kate Armstrong (Catherine Zeta-Jones) lives her life like she runs her kitchen at a trendy Manhattan eatery—with a no-nonsense intensity that both captivates and intimidates everyone around her. Kate’s perfectionist nature is put to the test when she “inherits” her nine-year-old niece Zoe (Abigail Breslin), while contending with a brash new sous-chef who joins her staff. High-spirited and freewheeling, Nick Palmer (Aaron Eckhart) couldn’t be more different from Kate, yet the chemistry between them is undeniable. Rivalry becomes romance, but Kate will have to learn to express herself beyond the realm of her kitchen if she wants to connect with Zoe and find true happiness with Nick.

THE INVASION
August 17

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Village Roadshow Pictures)

Director: Oliver Hirschbiegel
Writers: Screenplay by David Kajganich, based on the novel The Body Snatchers by Jack Finney Producers: Joel Silver
Executive Producers: Roy Lee, Doug Davison, Susan Downey, Steve Richards, Ronald G. Smith, Bruce Berman

Cast: Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Jeremy Northam

Sci-fi Action Thriller. The Invasion tells the story of a mysterious epidemic that alters the behavior of human beings. When a Washington D.C. psychiatrist (Nicole Kidman) discovers the epidemic’s origins are extraterrestrial, she must fight to protect her son, who may hold the key to stopping the escalating invasion.

ONE MISSED CALL
August 24

(Alcon)

Director: Eric Valette
Writer:  Screenplay by Andrew Klavan, Based on a Story by Miwako Daira and Yasushi Akimoto
Producers: Broderick Johnson, Andrew A. Kosove, Scott Kroopf, Jennie Lew
Tugend, Lauren C. Weissman 
Executive Producers:  Timothy M. Bourne, Shinya Egawa, Martin Schuermann, Josef Lautenschlager, Andreas Thiesmeyer

Cast:     Ed Burns, Shannyn Sossamon, Ana Claudia Talancon, Ray Wise, Azura Skye, Johnny Lewis, Jason Beghe, Margaret Cho

Supernatural Thriller. What will it sound like when you die? In “One Missed Call,” a chain of people receive terrifying cell phone messages of their own final fatal moments. Though the messages can be deleted, their number is up. Beth Raymond (Shannyn Sossamon) is traumatized when she witnesses the gruesome deaths of two friends just days apart. Even more disturbing, she knows that both of them had received chilling cell phone messages—actual recordings of their own horrifying last moments. Impossibly, the calls were received days before they died, but each death occurred precisely when and how the messages foretold. The police think Beth is delusional—except for Detective Jack Andrews (Edward Burns) whose own sister was killed in a freak accident that bears a strange similarity to the deaths of Beth’s friends. Together, Jack and Beth work feverishly to unravel the mystery behind the ominous calls. But even as they get closer to the truth, Beth’s cell phone begins to ring with an eerie tune, and the readout says One Missed Call…

MICHAEL CLAYTON
September 14

(Warner Bros. Pictures)

Director: Tony Gilroy
Writer: Tony Gilroy
Producers: Sydney Pollack, Steve Samuels, Jennifer Fox, Kerry Orent
Executive Producers: Steven Soderbergh, George Clooney, Jim Holt, Anthony Minghella

Cast: George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, Sydney Pollack

Drama. Michael Clayton (George Clooney) is an in-house “fixer” at one of the largest corporate law firms in New York. A former criminal prosecutor, Clayton takes care of Kenner, Bach & Ledeen’s dirtiest work at the behest of the firm’s co-founder Marty Bach (Sydney Pollack). Though burned out and hardly content with his job as a fixer, his divorce, a failed business venture and mounting debt have left Clayton inextricably tied to the firm. At U/North, meanwhile, the career of litigator Karen Crowder (Tilda Swinton) rests on the multi-million dollar settlement of a class action suit that Clayton’s firm is leading to a seemingly successful conclusion. But when Kenner Bach’s brilliant and guilt-ridden attorney Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson) sabotages the U/North case, Clayton faces the biggest challenge of his career and his life.

This film has been rated “R” by the MPAA for “language including some sexual dialogue.”

THE BRAVE ONE
September 28

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Village Roadshow Pictures)

Director: Neil Jordan
Writer: Screenplay by Cynthia Mort and Neil Jordan, story by Roderick Taylor & Bruce A. Taylor
Producers: Joel Silver, Susan Downey
Executive Producers: Herbert W. Gains, Dana Goldberg, Bruce Berman

Cast: Jodie Foster, Terrence Howard, Naveen Andrews, Mary Steenburgen

Psychological Thriller. New York radio host Erica Bain (Jodie Foster) has a life that she loves and a fiancé she adores. All of it is taken from her when a brutal attack leaves Erica badly wounded and her fiancé dead. Unable to move past the tragedy, Erica begins prowling the city streets at night to track down the men she holds responsible. Her dark pursuit of justice catches the public’s attention, and the city is riveted by her anonymous exploits. But with the NYPD desperate to find the culprit and a dogged police detective (Terrence Howard) hot on her trail, she must decide whether her quest for revenge is truly the right path, or if she is becoming the very thing she is trying to stop.

TRICK ‘R TREAT
October 5

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Legendary Pictures)

Director: Michael Dougherty
Writer: Michael Dougherty
Producers: Bryan Singer
Executive Producers: Thomas Tull, Jon Jashni, Bill Fay, Alex Garcia, Michael Dougherty, Dan Harris

Cast: Anna Paquin, Brian Cox, Dylan Baker, Leslie Bibb

Horror thriller. It is said that Halloween is the night when the dead rise to walk among us and other unspeakable things roam free. The rituals of All Hallows Eve were devised to protect us from their evil mischief, and one small town is about to be taught a terrifying lesson that some traditions are best not forgotten. Nothing is what it seems when a suburban couple learns the dangers of blowing out a Jack-o-Lantern before midnight; four women cross paths with a costumed stalker at a local festival; a group of pranksters goes too far and discovers the horrifying truth buried in a local legend; and a cantankerous old hermit is visited by a strange trick-or-treater with a few bones to pick. Costumes and candy, ghouls and goblins, monsters and mayhem…the tricks and treats of Halloween turn deadly as strange creatures of every variety—human and otherwise—try to survive the scariest night of the year.

FRED CLAUS
November 9

(Warner Bros. Pictures)

Director: David Dobkin
Writer: Dan Fogelman
Producers: Joel Silver, David Dobkin, Jessie Nelson
Executive Producers: Paul Hitchcock

Cast: Vince Vaughn, Paul Giamatti, Miranda Richardson, Elizabeth Banks, John Michael Higgins, Rachel Weisz, Kathy Bates, Kevin Spacey

Comedy. Fred Claus (Vince Vaughn) has lived almost his entire life in his little brother’s very large shadow. Fred tried, but he could never live up to the example set by the younger Nicholas (Paul Giamatti), who was just a perfect…well…Saint. True to form, Nicholas grew up to be the model of giving, while Fred became the polar opposite: a repo man who then steals what he repossesses. Now Fred’s dirty dealings have landed him in jail. Over Mrs. Claus’s objections, Nicholas agrees to bail his big brother out on one condition: that he come to the North Pole and work off his debt making toys. The trouble is that Fred isn’t exactly elf material and, with Christmas fast approaching, this one bad seed could jeopardize the jolliest holiday of the year. Has Fred finally pushed his little brother to the brink? This time, what Fred may have stolen is Christmas itself, and it is going to take more than Rudolph to set things right.

I AM LEGEND
December 14

(Warner Bros. Pictures / Village Roadshow Pictures)

Director: Francis Lawrence
Writer: Screenplay by Mark Protosevich and Akiva Goldsman, based on the novel by Richard Matheson
Producers: Akiva Goldsman, James Lassiter, Erwin Stoff, David Heyman, Neil Moritz
Executive Producers: Michael Tadross, Hal Gaba, Bruce Berman

Cast: Will Smith, Alice Braga, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Willow Smith, Charlie Tahan

Sci-fi Action Adventure. Robert Neville (Will Smith) is a brilliant scientist, but even he could not contain the terrible virus that was unstoppable, incurable…and manmade. Somehow immune, Neville is now the last human survivor in what is left of New York City…and maybe the world. But he is not alone. He is surrounded by “the Infected”—victims of the plague who have mutated into carnivorous beings who can only exist in the dark and who will devour or infect anyone or anything in their path. For three years, Neville has spent his days scavenging for food and supplies and faithfully sending out radio messages, desperate to find any other survivors who might be out there. All the while, the Infected lurk in the shadows, watching Neville’s every move, waiting for him to make a fatal mistake. Perhaps mankind’s last, best hope, Neville is driven by only one remaining mission: to find a way to reverse the effects of the virus using his own immune blood. But his blood is also what The Infected hunt, and Neville knows he is outnumbered and quickly running out of time.

Posted by Bill at 08:39 PM | Permalink

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Merry Christmas from everyone at MBN www.montebubbles.net

Joyce,William,Silvia,Otto,Wilhelm and BD 

Pictures by William Hoehne & Joyce Chow (C) MBN 2006

Posted by Bill at 10:52 AM | Permalink

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Jan 19

NFL STAR AND UN FOOD AGENCY TEAM UP TO SCORE TOUCHDOWN AGAINST WORLD HUNGER

 New York, Jan 19 2007 6:00PM National Football League star Reggie Bush and the United Nations World Food Programme WFP) have partnered up to raise awareness in the United States about global hunger. Mr. Bush, a running back in his rookie year for the New Orleans Saints, appears in a new televised Public Service Announcement and print advertisement in which he cooks his perfect meal: “pigskin,” or a US football, on a plate. The spot, targeted at raising awareness of global hunger across the United States, ends with the proclamation, “Unfortunately, not everyone can live off football – help those who can’t.” “These days, more people are worried about their waistlines than the problem of global hunger,” said WFP Director of Communications Neil Gallagher. Worldwide, there more than 800 million people – more than the combined populations of the United States and the countries of the European Union – who are hungry. Children account for half of all deaths, approximately 25,000 daily, attributed to hunger and hunger-related causes. “I want to do whatever I can do to help,” Mr. Bush announced. “It’s surprising but there are more hungry kids in the world than ever before. They need our help.” The television ad uses music by the Rolling Stones who performed at the halftime show of the 2006 Super Bowl, the pinnacle of US football. The band has given the WFP the rights to use one of their songs. 2007-01-19 00:00:00.000

UN STAFF CAN SOON SEEK JOBS IN BAN KI-MOON’S OFFICE AS PART OF PUSH FOR MORE MOBILITY New York, Jan 19 2007 6:00PM Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced plans today to circulate advertisements within the United Nations system for a dozen positions in his own office as part of his broader campaign to encourage staff mobility. Staff will have 10 days to express their interest for any of the positions, which range in seniority from the lowest professional rank to the grade immediately below Assistant Secretary-General, once they are advertised, Mr. Ban’s spokesperson Michele Montas said. In a letter to staff, to be published on the UN’s internal web portal, Mr. Ban said “as I undertake these efforts to lead by example, I look to all senior managers to follow suit and promote mobility among their staff, beyond the requirements of managed mobility.” 2007-01-19 00:00:00.000 ___________________ For more details go to UN News Centre at http://www.un.org/news To listen to news and in-depth programmes from UN Radio go to: http://radio.un.org/

UN’S LIBERIA MISSION CALLS FOR IMMEDIATE INVESTIGATION INTO POSSIBLE SEXUAL ABUSE New York, Jan 19 2007 6:00PM The United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) has called for an immediate internal investigation after receiving information about possible sexual exploitation by some of its staff, a UN spokesperson said today. “The UN Mission in Liberia has requested the Office of Internal Oversight Services to conduct an immediate investigation, following the Mission’s receipt of information suggesting that some of its personnel have been involved in sexual exploitation and abuse,” Michele Montas told reporters at UN Headquarters in New York. “The UN is deeply concerned by this development and wishes to reiterate its determination to take action against any of its personnel who are found to have committed any act of sexual exploitation or abuse.” The world body maintains a zero tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and has worked to stamp it out wherever it occurs, whether in the various UN headquarters worldwide or perpetrated by any of the nearly 200,000 people from well over 100 countries that rotate through its peacekeeping missions every year. This latest move by the UN in Liberia comes a day after the world body agreed with the Government of Sudan to set up a joint task force to deal with the issue there, which in turn followed recent media reports of abuses by UN peacekeepers in southern Sudan. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and other top officials have declared that any form of sexual exploitation will not be tolerated and the UN has set up conduct units in all of its major peacekeeping operations to address the problem. 2007-01-19 00:00:00.000

Jan 16

RECORD NUMBER OF COUNTRIES CONTRIBUTE RECORD AMOUNT TO UN POPULATION FUND

New York, Jan 15 2007 6:00PM One hundred and eighty countries contributed $360 million to the regular resources of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) last year, the highest number of donors and the largest total since the organization began its operations in 1969 to promote a raft of activities from ensuring safe births to reducing poverty. “We are very thankful for the continuous and growing support from nearly all United Nations Member States,” <"http://www.unfpa.org/news/news.cfm?ID=925">UNFPA Executive Director Thoraya Ahmed Obaid said today. “We take this new record as a solid sign of the global commitment to our work and mandate. It also highlights the importance of sexual and reproductive health, as well as HIV prevention, for development.” The number of UNFPA donor countries has steadily increased over the last few years, from 69 in 1999, to 172 in 2005, to last year’s record. The top six donors were the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, the United Kingdom, Japan and Denmark. In addition, every nation in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as all sub-Saharan Africa, pledged funds to UNFPA in 2006. In 2005, co-financing income, earmarked to specific projects, reached $158 million, which included contributions for two highly visible emergencies, the 2004 Asian tsunami and the 2005 Pakistan earthquake. Co-financing income in 2006 reached the same high level, even though there were no emergencies of the same scale. The number of donors committed to multi-year funding also rose from 55 countries in 2005 to 73 countries in 2006. “Achieving universal access to reproductive health is vital for poverty eradication, and it requires partnerships and efforts from governments and the civil society,” Ms. Obaid said. “Seeing so many different countries supporting our work is heart-warming, and I hope this support will continue to grow in the years to come.” UNFPA promotes the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. It supports countries in using population data for policies and programmes to reduce poverty and to ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every birth is safe, every young person is free of HIV/AIDS, and every girl and woman is treated with dignity and respect. 2007-01-15 00:00:00.000

WOMEN AND GIRLS MUST BE PROTECTED FROM VIOLENCE, UN OFFICIAL TELLS RIGHTS COMMITTEE

New York, Jan 15 2007 6:00PM States who have signed on to the United Nations international bill of rights for women must continue to press for an end to gender-based violence, a senior UN official today told experts gathering in New York to evaluate compliance with the treaty. “Regrettably, violence against women and girls remains unabated in whatever form and manifestation, depriving them of the full enjoyment of their human rights,” said Rachel Mayanja, the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women, according to the text of her remarks. Ms. Mayanja was addressing the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, a panel comprising 23 international experts on women’s issues, which opened a two-week session at UN Headquarters in New York. Established in 1982, the Committee tracks the status of women in countries that have ratified the 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Currently, the Convention has 185 States parties. Ms. Mayanja also welcomed Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s appointment of three women in top posts within the Organization. “His tenure as Secretary-General has started very auspiciously for women,” she said. “Of the five appointments he has made so far three are women, translating into 60 per cent.” She pointed out that Deputy Secretary-General designate Asha-Rose Migiro previously served as Committee member. During this session, the Committee’s 37th, panel members will examine the reports of 15 countries – Austria, Azerbaijan, Colombia, Greece, India, Kazakhstan, Maldives, Namibia, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Peru, Poland, Suriname, Tajikistan and Viet Nam – regarding their implementation of measures to eliminate discrimination against women. 2007-01-15 00:00:00.000

‘EXTREME MARATHON’ RUNNERS CROSS TWO THIRDS OF SAHARA IN UN BID TO FOCUS ON WATER NEEDS

 New York, Jan 15 2007 6:00PM Running the equivalent of two marathons a day in some of the harshest conditions on Earth, three young athletes have pounded approximately two thirds of their way across the Sahara Desert in a United Nations-backed bid to raise awareness of the burgeoning global water crisis. Charlie Engle of the United States, Ray Zahab of Canada and Kevin Lin from Taiwan, province of China, crossed from Niger into Libya on Saturday, completing some 3,800 kilometres of their 6,437-kilometre-long extreme quest that is taking them from Senegal on the Atlantic Ocean to Cairo, UN Development Programme (UNDP) spokesperson Irena Mihova told the UN News Service today. They expect to cross into Egypt on 13 February, reaching the Red Sea on 23 February before turning north to Cairo, in an awareness-raising odyssey that will be the subject of a feature documentary film, “Running the Sahara,” directed by Oscar winner James Moll and narrated by another Oscar laureate, Matt Damon, executive producer, with UNDP as co-producer. Pounding over endless sands and camel tracks, past towering dunes, stark rock mountains and mud-brick mosques, through oases and nomad settlements, the three left St. Louis in Senegal in early November and passed through Mauritania, Mali and Niger before reaching Libya. “For the runners, water is a daily necessity,” Ms. Mihova said. “For the people of the Sahara, and throughout the developing world, it is a lifelong concern.” This is made clear in the UNDP 2006 Human Development Report – Beyond scarcity: Power, poverty and the global water crisis – which offers fresh new data on how many poor people go without water and sanitation, the inequality of access within and between nations, and how clean water affects child survival rates. It calls on the Group of Eight (G-8) developed nations to spearhead an urgent global action plan to resolve the world’s growing water and sanitation crisis, which causes nearly 2 million child deaths every year and holds back countries’ development, especially in Africa. Against the backdrop of the world-wide challenges the water crisis presents to development, the three athletes are interacting with the people who live in the 5.6 million square kilometres of the Sahara, witnessing some of the work by UNDP and others in the region. “Each runner brings his own unique story and motivations, but all unite around a love for Africa and a profound desire to make a difference in the lives of the people of the Sahara in the best way they know how – by risking their lives running coast-to-coast across the Sahara Desert to prove that the impossible is possible; and in the process bring people into a new relationship with the Sahara and its people,” UNDP said. Among projects by the agency and Global Environment Facility, an independent financial organization, that the runners have already visited or will soon visit during their extreme marathon are water-management, governance and peace-building efforts in Mali and Niger, a conservation project for medicinal plants in Egypt, dam construction in Mauritania and a school in Senegal. In addition to the 90-minute film, slated for international release in late 2007, a Web site tracks the progress of Engle, Zahab and Lin, providing information about the people and projects they visit. Web visitors can also pledge support on a per-mile basis for water projects through H2O Africa, the charitable component of Running the Sahara. 2007-01-15 00:00:00.000

UN’S AFGHANISTAN ENVOY HAILS NAMING OF NEW POLICE OFFICIALS AS STEP TOWARDS STABILITY

 New York, Jan 15 2007 6:00PM The senior United Nations envoy to Afghanistan has welcomed a Presidential decree confirming the appointment of 40 new police officials to the country's national force as a step towards stability. "Strengthening the rule of law across Afghanistan needs to be a priority for all our efforts in 2007, reform of the Afghanistan National Police is central to this if we are to build a police force able to serve the people of Afghanistan with professionalism and integrity," Tom Koenigs said in a statement released in Kabul on Saturday. All of the officials had been selected based on "merit, integrity and experience," he said, voicing confidence that "their skills, experience and commitment to public service will serve them well as they continue the work of cementing much needed peace and stability across Afghanistan." Mr. Koenigs heads the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), a political operation with some 1,000 personnel. The vast majority of those staff members -- 80 per cent -- are Afghan nationals, reflecting UNAMA's focus on building capacity within the country rather than hiring expatriates. 2007-01-14 00:00:00.000

Jan 13

CHINA AND RUSSIA VETO US/UK-BACKED SECURITY COUNCIL DRAFT RESOLUTION ON MYANMAR

New York, Jan 12 2007 7:00PM China and Russia today vetoed a draft resolution in the Security Council – the first use of multiple vetoes at the Council since 1989 – that had called on Myanmar to release all political prisoners, begin widespread dialogue and end its military attacks and human rights abuses against ethnic minorities. Sponsored by the United States and the United Kingdom, the text received nine votes in favour, the necessary number for a majority. Those in favour were Belgium, France, Ghana, Italy, Panama, Peru, Slovakia, the UK and the US. But the permanent members China and Russia issued vetoes, and South Africa also voted against the resolution. There were three abstentions: Indonesia, Qatar and the Republic of the Congo. Opponents of the text said that while Myanmar was experiencing clear social and economic problems, the country was not a serious threat to international peace and security and therefore the issue should not be dealt with by the Security Council. Speaking before the vote, Chinese Ambassador Wang Guangya said the problems in Myanmar were largely the internal affairs of a sovereign State and the Government and other groups should be allowed to continue their efforts towards reconciliation. Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said the issue would be better handled by other UN organs, particularly the Human Rights Council, the General Assembly and humanitarian agencies such as the World Health Organization (WHO). The ambassadors also said the resolution would hamper diplomatic efforts being carried out through the good offices of the Secretary-General, which included the recent visit to Myanmar by Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari. After the vote, US Acting Ambassador Alejandro Wolff and UK Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry both expressed deep disappointment, saying the resolution would have sent a much-needed signal from Council members. Mr. Wolff said Myanmar’s military regime “arbitrarily arrests, tortures, rapes and executes its own people, wages war on minorities within its own borders, and builds itself new cities, while looking the other way as refugee flows increase, narcotics and human trafficking grow, and communicable diseases remain untreated.” But Myanmar’s Ambassador Kyaw Tint Swe said the draft resolution was based on “patently false” information and, citing UN Development Programme (UNDP) data, said his country was making economic gains. He added that the Council was clearly exceeding its mandate by considering the issue. The draft text called on Myanmar to release all political prisoners, including the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been under house arrest for 10 of the past 16 years, and to allow the National League for Democracy (NLD) and other political parties to operate freely. It also demanded an end to human rights violations against the members of ethnic minorities, “including widespread rape and other forms of sexual violence carried out by members of the armed forces.” Last September the Council agreed to focus on the situation inside Myanmar in a vote taken during a procedural meeting, in which no member’s vote has the power of veto. The most recent Council veto was used in November, when the US blocked a draft resolution that would have called, among other measures, for the withdrawal of Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip. Sponsored by Qatar, that text followed an Israeli military operation in the town of Beit Hanoun that killed 18 civilians. The last time multiple vetoes were used was in 1989, when the US, the UK and France blocked a resolution on the situation in Panama. The last time China and Russia both vetoed a resolution was in 1972, and that concerned the Middle East. 2007-01-12 00:00:00.000

Jan 12

SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN URGES ALL SIDES IN BANGLADESH CRISIS TO ‘REFRAIN FROM VIOLENCE’

New York, Jan 10 2007 7:00PM Warning that the political crisis in Bangladesh has “severely jeopardized the legitimacy” of this month’s planned elections, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today urged all sides to refrain from violence and seek compromise, adding he hopes the army will continue to play a neutral role. “The announced cancellation of numerous international observation missions is regrettable. The United Nations has had to suspend all technical support to the electoral process, including by closing its International Coordination Office for Election Observers in Dhaka,” Mr. Ban’s spokesperson said in a <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=2405">statement referring to the country’s capital. “The United Nations is deeply concerned by the deteriorating situation in the country, and urges all parties to refrain from the use of violence. It is hoped that the army will continue to play a neutral role, and that those responsible for enforcing the law act with restraint and respect for human rights.” “The United Nations urges the non-party Caretaker Government and Election Commission to create a level playing field and ensure parties can have confidence in the electoral process.” “The United Nations is concerned that Bangladesh’s democratic advances and international standing will be negatively affected if the current crisis continues. It urges all concerned to seek a compromise that will serve the interests of peace, democracy and the country’s overall well-being.” The impoverished South Asian nation is slated to hold national elections on 22 January, but demonstrations and clashes between supporters of rival political groups since late October have left many people dead, according to media reports. A multi-party opposition alliance has also reportedly boycotted the polls. 2007-01-10 00:00:00.000

SECURITY COUNCIL STRESSES NEED FOR POLITICAL DIALOGUE AND INCREASED AID FOR SOMALIA

New York, Jan 10 2007 7:00PM Voicing concern at the instability and violence across strife-torn Somalia, the Security Council today called for greater humanitarian assistance and more inclusive political dialogue and reiterated its backing for the creation of an African protection and training mission to the volatile nation. Speaking to the press following a closed-door briefing from Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari, Ambassador Vitaly Churkin of Russia, which holds this month’s Council presidency, said members regarded the situation in Somalia – which has been beset by fighting and widespread displacement in the past month – as one of its top priorities. The United Nations announced yesterday it is sending a humanitarian assessment mission to Somalia’s border area with Kenya, where thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs) have gathered to escape fighting between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and supporters of the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC). The assessment team will examine how to re-start humanitarian deliveries into Somalia and how to handle the large-scale population movements that have followed the intense fighting in recent weeks as the Government, backed by Ethiopian troops, has reclaimed the capital, Mogadishu. Aid operations had to be suspended and international staff evacuated because of the dangers posed by the fighting. Mr. Churkin said the Council’s 15 members agreed that inclusive political dialogue among Somalia’s various political forces is necessary to end the deadly clashes and alleviate the humanitarian situation in one of Africa’s most impoverished nations. Last month the Council unanimously adopted a resolution authorizing the creation of an African protection and training mission to help protect Somalia’s transitional federal institutions. To be known as IGASOM, the new force is to be set up by the African Union (AU) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), an east African group, and will have an initial mandate of six months. No countries bordering Somalia will be able to deploy troops. Mr. Gambari told journalists he stressed during his Council briefing that IGASOM must be deployed as soon as possible to stabilize Somalia, and he added that several countries, including Nigeria, South Africa and Malawi, are considering committing troops. 2007-01-10 00:00:00.000

UN’S CÔTE D’IVOIRE MISSION EXTENDED WITH NEW MANDATE TO COOPERATE ON LIBERIAN BORDER

 New York, Jan 10 2007 7:00PM The Security Council today extended through June the mandate of the United Nations Operation in Côte d’Ivoire (UNOCI) and French forces supporting it while authorizing them to cooperate with blue helmets in Liberia in preventing arms from crossing the border. By a unanimously <"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2007/sc8937.doc.htm">adopted resolution, the Council adjusted the tasks carried out by the mission, which has been deployed in Côte d’Ivoire since April 2004 helping the parties to implement a peace agreement signed in January 2003 ending their north-south civil war. The country has been divided between the rebel-held north and government-controlled south since 2002. Under today’s resolution, UNOCI will coordinate closely with the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) in carrying out a voluntary repatriation and resettlement programme for foreign ex-combatants. This is part of UNOCI’s efforts to bolster the Ivorian Government in its bid to disarm former fighters, which the Council said should be carried out “with special attention to the specific needs of women and children.” UNOCI will be responsible for destroying any weapons, ammunition or other military materiel surrendered by the former combatants, according to the resolution. The UN’s Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia missions will also work together in implementing an arms ban including “by inspecting, as they deem it necessary and without notice, the cargo of aircraft and of any transport vehicle using the ports, airports, airfields, military bases and border crossings.” UNOCI must “carry out its mandate in close liaison with UNMIL, including especially in the prevention of movements of arms and combatants across shared borders and the implementation of disarmament and demobilization programmes,” the Council said. In helping the relief effort for the beleaguered people of Côte d’Ivoire, UNOCI will “facilitate the free flow of people, goods and humanitarian assistance,” including by helping to establish the necessary security conditions and taking into account the special needs of vulnerable groups, especially women, children and the elderly. The mission is also tasked with supporting the organization of “open, free, fair and transparent elections, presidential and legislative, by 31 October 2007 at the latest.” The most recent report of the Secretary-General to the Council, issued last month, contained a strong call to the parties to restart their stalled peace process and resolve their disputes. The report emphasized that the mandate of both Prime Minister Charles Konan Banny and President Laurent Gbagbo was renewed for a “final transition period not exceeding 12 months” and called on the two leaders to “eschew confrontation and maintain a constructive working relationship.” As of late last year, UNOCI had nearly 9,000 uniformed personnel supported by some 360 international civilian personnel, 500 local staff and 220 UN Volunteers. 2007-01-10 00:00:00.000

BUSINESS COMMUNITY AND UN MUST CARRY ON PARTNERSHIP, SAYS SECRETARY-GENERAL

New York, Jan 10 2007 6:00PM Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today stressed the symbiotic relationship between business and the United Nations at a meeting in New York with leading executives from the private sector. “We need your innovation, your initiative, your technological prowess,” Mr. Ban said in an <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=2400">address over breakfast at the Grand Hyatt hotel to the UNA-USA Business Council for the United Nations and the Association for a Better New York. “But business also needs the United Nations,” he added. Business is driven by growth and profit incentives, while the UN is concentrates on peace and security, poverty reduction and human rights, Mr. Ban said. However, “many of our objectives are the same: building and supporting strong economies and communities, providing opportunities for people to pursue a livelihood, and ensuring that everyone can live in dignity,” he pointed out. The Secretary-General identified the UN Global Compact, an initiative started in 1999 advancing business practices rooted in good corporate citizenship and universal principles, as the embodiment of the partnership between the business world and the UN. Mr. Ban, who took office on 1 January, took the opportunity to thank New York City for its support of the Organization and for welcoming him to his new post. Having served as an officer in his country’s Permanent Mission to the UN in New York in the past, as well as having been in the city in 2001 at the time of the September 11th attacks, he stated, “I am glad to be back here again, and proud to call New York my home.” The UN Headquarters in New York will undergo a massive renovation at a cost of over $1.8 billion, scheduled to begin in this year and conclude in 2014. The refurbishment, widely viewed as essential from a health and security standpoint, is forecast to save costs in the long-run. The Secretary-General expressed his gratitude to the people of the City and to Mayor Michael Bloomberg for their cooperation in the project and for their understanding of the possible disruptions to both the neighbourhood and commuters an undertaking of this scale could cause. Today’s meeting with Mr. Ban was part of the “United Nations and Corporate Global Issues Breakfast Series” sponsored by the UNA-USA Business Council for the United Nations, a New York-based organization which promotes stronger ties between its member companies and the UN. 2007-01-10 00:00:00.000

DARFUR: UN ENVOY HOLDS ‘CONSTRUCTIVE’ TALKS WITH SENIOR SUDANESE FIGURES

 New York, Jan 10 2007 6:00PM Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Special Envoy for Darfur met the Sudanese Foreign Minister, a key former rebel and other senior figures today as he continues his mission to promote United Nations efforts to find a permanent solution to the conflict that has killed more than 200,000 people and displaced 2.5 million others. Jan Eliasson, the former Swedish foreign minister and General Assembly president, described today’s talks in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, as fruitful and constructive, UN spokesperson Michele Montas told journalists. Mr. Eliasson met with Foreign Minister Lam Akol and Minni Minawi, a senior presidential assistant and the chairman of a wing of the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) that signed the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) last May. He also spoke with two presidential advisers. Tomorrow Mr. Eliasson is scheduled to hold talks with Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir, who informed the UN last month that Khartoum accepts a three-phase plan culminating in the deployment of a hybrid UN-African Union (AU) peacekeeping force to replace the existing AU monitoring force. Such a force is expected to comprise up to 17,000 troops and 3,000 police officers. The envoy is then scheduled to head to El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state. Mr. Eliasson was appointed last month to help re-energize diplomatic efforts to obtain a durable solution, based on the DPA, to a conflict that has left more than 4 million people dependent on outside aid. Fighting erupted in 2003 between Government forces, allied militias and rebel groups seeking greater autonomy for Darfur, an arid and impoverished region roughly the size of France on Sudan’s western flank. Several rebel groups have not signed the DPA and deadly clashes have continued since the pact was struck in May. Senior UN officials have repeatedly described Darfur as the scene of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, and Mr. Ban has called the crisis one of his top priorities in office. The conflict and resulting massive displacement is threatening the stability of neighbouring Chad and the Central African Republic (CAR), and this morning Security Council members heard a closed-door briefing from Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hédi Annabi about the work of a UN team examining the situation on the Chadian-Sudanese border. The Secretary-General’s latest progress report to the Council on the situation in Darfur, covering the period from the start of October to mid-December, concluded that “the time has come to turn declarations into actions” so that the violence stopped and Darfur’s inhabitants can “live a normal life, free of fear, with hope for a better future.” The report detailed the grim conditions on the ground, with villages being destroyed, killings and other human rights abuses continuing and rampant impunity for such acts. 2007-01-10 00:00:00.000

Jan 5

 SUSPECTED KILLER OF TWO BLUE HELMETS IN HAITI ARRESTED BY UN MISSION, NATIONAL POLICE

New York, Jan 5 2007 3:00PM The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and the country’s national police today announced the arrest of a gang member wanted in connection with the killing last November of two blue helmets serving with the peacekeeping operation. The arrest of ‘Zachari’ took place following a joint operation which began at dawn in the Drouillard quarter of Cité Soleil, MINUSTAH said in a press release on Thursday. No shots were fired. The suspect is wanted in connection with the assassination of two Jordanian peacekeepers from MINUSTAH in November 2006. He is “is thought to be the chief of the cell responsible for kidnappings” within the Belony gang. Another presumed kidnapper was also arrested, according to MINUSTAH, and both suspects are being detailed by the Haitian National Police. “MINUSTAH and the Government of Haiti continue to work together to stop armed gangs and their criminal activities in the capital,” the mission said. On 10 November 2006, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a MINUSTAH patrol near the Port-au-Prince airport, fatally injuring Jordanian peacekeepers Ahmad Mohammed Hassan Ba’irat and Rami Wasif Taha Al Mohammed. Also last year, on 17 January, two other Jordanian blue helmets serving with MINUSTAH, Tareq Al Jaafreh and Rabi Merei, were shot and killed while manning a checkpoint in Cité Soleil. Armed gangs have been a constant concern of <"http://www.un.org/Depts/dpko/missions/minustah">MINUSTAH since it was set up by the Security Council to help to re-establish peace in the impoverished Caribbean country after an insurgency forced elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to go into exile in February 2004. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

TANZANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER NAMED NEW UN DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL

New York, Jan 5 2007 3:00PM Tanzanian Foreign Minister Asha-Rose Migiro today became the third person – and second woman – in history appointed United Nations Deputy Secretary-General when she accepted the post offered to her by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. “Through her distinguished service in diverse areas, she has displayed outstanding management skills with wide experience and expertise in socio-economic affairs and development issues,” Secretary-General Ban <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=2392">said of Ms. Migiro, who was selected from a short list of candidates including men and women. Mr. Ban, who took office on 1 January with revitalization of the UN as a top priority, today stated that he intends to “delegate much of the management and administrative work” to Ms. Migiro “under a clear line of authority to ensure that the Secretariat will function in a more effective and efficient manner.” She has worked in the past with Secretary-General Ban when they both served as Foreign Ministers of their respective countries. He called her “a highly respected leader who has championed the cause of developing countries over the years.” Salim Ahmed Salim, the African Union (AU) Special Envoy on the Darfur conflict who is in New York for meetings with the Secretary-General, welcomed the appointment of Ms. Migiro, a fellow Tanzanian. Hailing her “skills and commitment,” Mr. Salim asserted, “I know she can do the job and I wish her well.” Dr. Migiro, who in her new capacity will be the highest ranking woman at the UN and the second-highest among all officials, also served as Minister of Community Development, Gender and Children's Affairs until she was asked to head the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in January 2006. She entered the Government of Tanzania after leaving her position as Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Law at the University of Dar-es-Salaam. Ms. Migiro, 50, replaces Mark Malloch Brown who took office in April 2006. Meanwhile, in another action pertaining to the creation of his cabinet, the Secretary-General today asked all assistant and under-secretaries-general, with a number of exceptions, to voluntarily tender their resignations. The aim, said his spokesperson, Michele Montas, is to “allow the Secretary-General the flexibility he needs in forming his new team.” She added that after reviewing the offers of resignation, he may decide to retain some senior officials. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

UN HOPES ISRAEL, PALESTINIANS AVOID VIOLENCE IN LIGHT OF ‘POSITIVE DEVELOPMENTS’ New York, Jan 5 2007 6:00PM The chief United Nations spokesperson today voiced the hope that Israel and the Palestinians would exercise restraint in the light of some recent positive developments and avoid violence such as yesterday’s Israeli military incursion into the main Palestinian West Bank town of Ramallah. In response to a question at the daily briefing, spokesperson Michele Montas referred specifically to last month’s meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Israel’s decision to release some Palestinian taxes and Mr. Olmert’s meeting yesterday with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. “We would hope that all parties would act with restraint to encourage these small steps back towards dialogue and away from violence, such as the Israeli military incursion into Ramallah yesterday,” she said. Last year, Israel stopped the transfer of Palestinian value added taxes (VAT) following the election victory of Hamas, which is committed to Israel’s destruction.

INTERNATIONAL GROUPING, INCLUDING UN, SAYS SOMALIA HAS ‘HISTORIC OPPORTUNITY’ New York, Jan 5 2007 7:00PM Meeting today for the first time since last week’s heavy fighting in Somalia, which may have given the Transitional Government of the long-troubled country the chance to establish its full authority, the International Contact Group for Somalia – which includes the United Nations – called the current moment “a historic opportunity.” In a communiqué issued in Nairobi, the Group welcomed a commitment by Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf to inclusive governance and the prevention of a resurgence of warlord activities. The communiqué also stressed the importance of immediately launching a process of political dialogue and reconciliation in the Horn of Africa country, which has not had a functioning government since the regime of Muhammad Siad Barre was toppled in 1991. Last month the Security Council adopted a <"http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=s/res/1725(2006)">resolution authorizing the creation of an African protection and training mission in Somalia to help protect its transitional federal institutions, and today’s communiqué emphasized the urgent need for that force. To be known as IGASOM, the new force is to be set up by the African Union (AU) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), an east African group, and will have an initial mandate of six months. No countries bordering Somalia will be able to deploy troops. Today’s meeting of the International Contact Group for Somalia was held following a wave of heavy fighting between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) – backed by Ethiopian troops – and the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) last month. The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia, Francois Lonsény Fall, represented the UN at the meeting. Yesterday, in a <"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2007/sgsm10824.doc.htm">statement released by his spokesperson, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on all sides in Somalia to “seize the moment and end the bloodshed” and urged the rapid deployment of IGASOM. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

UN WILL ENFORCE ‘ZERO TOLERANCE’ POLICY AGAINST SEXUAL ABUSE, PEACEKEEPING OFFICIAL SAYS New York, Jan 5 2007 6:00PM The United Nations, which fields nearly 200,000 people from well over 100 countries rotating through its peacekeeping missions every year, is determined to reinforce its policy of zero tolerance and remains constantly vigilant to fight the scourge, a senior official said today. “We recognize that this is a structural problem and that we need to deal with it structurally and systemically and that the behaviour of a relative few has tarnished the entire reputation of peacekeeping and we will not allow that to continue to occur,” Assistant Secretary-General Jane Holl Lute told a news briefing at UN Headquarters in New York following media reports of abuses in southern Sudan. “The reputation of UN peacekeeping is one of our most powerful assets, which is why we have responded over the past couple of years so strongly,” she said, stressing the UN’s three-point strategy of prevention, enforcement and remediation, with repetitive training and the establishment of complaint mechanisms. The UN has also set up conduct units in all of its major peacekeeping operations, including Sudan, specifically tasked with addressing the problem. The problem of sexual exploitation surfaced in 2004 when a UN report found that a “shockingly large number” of peacekeepers had engaged in such practices in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with payments for sex sometimes ranging from two eggs to $5 per encounter. The victims included many abandoned orphans who were often illiterate. Between January 2004 and November 2006, 319 peacekeeping personnel in all missions had been investigated, resulting in the summary dismissal of 18 civilians and the repatriation on disciplinary grounds of 17 police and 144 military personnel. Ms. Holl Lute noted that the most recent cases in Sudan were based on a 2005-2006 report by the UN Children’s Fund (<"http://www.unicef.org">UNICEF) and said the “the expectation is that these are not new allegations” but concern 13 ongoing incidents. Four Bangladeshis involved have already been sent home to be dealt with by their own authorities. “Every time I’m made aware of an allegation of sexual exploitation and abuse I’m outraged,” Ms. Holl Lute said. “I’m outraged at every level, as a peacekeeper, as a professional, as a colleague of the tens of thousands of men and women who serve honourably in peacekeeping. I share their anger that some of our number may be engaging in this behaviour. “I’m angry as a woman, I’m angry as a mother, I’m saddened that the world has not come as far as we would like to believe in our treatment of women and vulnerable populations and I’m determined to continue to do whatever it is we can to strengthen this comprehensive programme of prevention, enforcement and remediation,” she added. She underscored the considerable challenge the UN faced in deploying tens of thousands of peacekeepers to societies that have been wracked by conflict and war sometimes for generations. “It keeps happening because that potential is going to exist in this kind of an environment.” But, she stressed, “the record of peacekeeping is an honourable one, it’s a good one, it’s a strong one.” And she highlighted the crucial importance of “the collective message we are sending now as a community of international servants, international peacekeepers, international humanitarian aid workers, of the troop contributing countries, of all of the global organizations, of our determination that this behaviour will not be tolerated.” 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000  

SUSPECTED KILLER OF TWO BLUE HELMETS IN HAITI ARRESTED BY UN MISSION, NATIONAL POLICE

New York, Jan 5 2007 3:00PM The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and the country’s national police today announced the arrest of a gang member wanted in connection with the killing last November of two blue helmets serving with the peacekeeping operation. The arrest of ‘Zachari’ took place following a joint operation which began at dawn in the Drouillard quarter of Cité Soleil, MINUSTAH said in a press release on Thursday. No shots were fired. The suspect is wanted in connection with the assassination of two Jordanian peacekeepers from MINUSTAH in November 2006. He is “is thought to be the chief of the cell responsible for kidnappings” within the Belony gang. Another presumed kidnapper was also arrested, according to MINUSTAH, and both suspects are being detailed by the Haitian National Police. “MINUSTAH and the Government of Haiti continue to work together to stop armed gangs and their criminal activities in the capital,” the mission said. On 10 November 2006, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a MINUSTAH patrol near the Port-au-Prince airport, fatally injuring Jordanian peacekeepers Ahmad Mohammed Hassan Ba’irat and Rami Wasif Taha Al Mohammed. Also last year, on 17 January, two other Jordanian blue helmets serving with MINUSTAH, Tareq Al Jaafreh and Rabi Merei, were shot and killed while manning a checkpoint in Cité Soleil. Armed gangs have been a constant concern of <"http://www.un.org/Depts/dpko/missions/minustah">MINUSTAH since it was set up by the Security Council to help to re-establish peace in the impoverished Caribbean country after an insurgency forced elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to go into exile in February 2004. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

TANZANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER NAMED NEW UN DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL

New York, Jan 5 2007 3:00PM Tanzanian Foreign Minister Asha-Rose Migiro today became the third person – and second woman – in history appointed United Nations Deputy Secretary-General when she accepted the post offered to her by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. “Through her distinguished service in diverse areas, she has displayed outstanding management skills with wide experience and expertise in socio-economic affairs and development issues,” Secretary-General Ban <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=2392">said of Ms. Migiro, who was selected from a short list of candidates including men and women. Mr. Ban, who took office on 1 January with revitalization of the UN as a top priority, today stated that he intends to “delegate much of the management and administrative work” to Ms. Migiro “under a clear line of authority to ensure that the Secretariat will function in a more effective and efficient manner.” She has worked in the past with Secretary-General Ban when they both served as Foreign Ministers of their respective countries. He called her “a highly respected leader who has championed the cause of developing countries over the years.” Salim Ahmed Salim, the African Union (AU) Special Envoy on the Darfur conflict who is in New York for meetings with the Secretary-General, welcomed the appointment of Ms. Migiro, a fellow Tanzanian. Hailing her “skills and commitment,” Mr. Salim asserted, “I know she can do the job and I wish her well.” Dr. Migiro, who in her new capacity will be the highest ranking woman at the UN and the second-highest among all officials, also served as Minister of Community Development, Gender and Children's Affairs until she was asked to head the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in January 2006. She entered the Government of Tanzania after leaving her position as Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Law at the University of Dar-es-Salaam. Ms. Migiro, 50, replaces Mark Malloch Brown who took office in April 2006. Meanwhile, in another action pertaining to the creation of his cabinet, the Secretary-General today asked all assistant and under-secretaries-general, with a number of exceptions, to voluntarily tender their resignations. The aim, said his spokesperson, Michele Montas, is to “allow the Secretary-General the flexibility he needs in forming his new team.” She added that after reviewing the offers of resignation, he may decide to retain some senior officials. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

UN HOPES ISRAEL, PALESTINIANS AVOID VIOLENCE IN LIGHT OF ‘POSITIVE DEVELOPMENTS’

 New York, Jan 5 2007 6:00PM The chief United Nations spokesperson today voiced the hope that Israel and the Palestinians would exercise restraint in the light of some recent positive developments and avoid violence such as yesterday’s Israeli military incursion into the main Palestinian West Bank town of Ramallah. In response to a question at the daily briefing, spokesperson Michele Montas referred specifically to last month’s meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Israel’s decision to release some Palestinian taxes and Mr. Olmert’s meeting yesterday with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. “We would hope that all parties would act with restraint to encourage these small steps back towards dialogue and away from violence, such as the Israeli military incursion into Ramallah yesterday,” she said. Last year, Israel stopped the transfer of Palestinian value added taxes (VAT) following the election victory of Hamas, which is committed to Israel’s destruction.

INTERNATIONAL GROUPING, INCLUDING UN, SAYS SOMALIA HAS ‘HISTORIC OPPORTUNITY’

New York, Jan 5 2007 7:00PM Meeting today for the first time since last week’s heavy fighting in Somalia, which may have given the Transitional Government of the long-troubled country the chance to establish its full authority, the International Contact Group for Somalia – which includes the United Nations – called the current moment “a historic opportunity.” In a communiqué issued in Nairobi, the Group welcomed a commitment by Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf to inclusive governance and the prevention of a resurgence of warlord activities. The communiqué also stressed the importance of immediately launching a process of political dialogue and reconciliation in the Horn of Africa country, which has not had a functioning government since the regime of Muhammad Siad Barre was toppled in 1991. Last month the Security Council adopted a <"http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=s/res/1725(2006)">resolution authorizing the creation of an African protection and training mission in Somalia to help protect its transitional federal institutions, and today’s communiqué emphasized the urgent need for that force. To be known as IGASOM, the new force is to be set up by the African Union (AU) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), an east African group, and will have an initial mandate of six months. No countries bordering Somalia will be able to deploy troops. Today’s meeting of the International Contact Group for Somalia was held following a wave of heavy fighting between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) – backed by Ethiopian troops – and the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) last month. The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia, Francois Lonsény Fall, represented the UN at the meeting. Yesterday, in a <"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2007/sgsm10824.doc.htm">statement released by his spokesperson, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on all sides in Somalia to “seize the moment and end the bloodshed” and urged the rapid deployment of IGASOM. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

UN WILL ENFORCE ‘ZERO TOLERANCE’ POLICY AGAINST SEXUAL ABUSE, PEACEKEEPING OFFICIAL SAYS

 New York, Jan 5 2007 6:00PM The United Nations, which fields nearly 200,000 people from well over 100 countries rotating through its peacekeeping missions every year, is determined to reinforce its policy of zero tolerance and remains constantly vigilant to fight the scourge, a senior official said today. “We recognize that this is a structural problem and that we need to deal with it structurally and systemically and that the behaviour of a relative few has tarnished the entire reputation of peacekeeping and we will not allow that to continue to occur,” Assistant Secretary-General Jane Holl Lute told a news briefing at UN Headquarters in New York following media reports of abuses in southern Sudan. “The reputation of UN peacekeeping is one of our most powerful assets, which is why we have responded over the past couple of years so strongly,” she said, stressing the UN’s three-point strategy of prevention, enforcement and remediation, with repetitive training and the establishment of complaint mechanisms. The UN has also set up conduct units in all of its major peacekeeping operations, including Sudan, specifically tasked with addressing the problem. The problem of sexual exploitation surfaced in 2004 when a UN report found that a “shockingly large number” of peacekeepers had engaged in such practices in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with payments for sex sometimes ranging from two eggs to $5 per encounter. The victims included many abandoned orphans who were often illiterate. Between January 2004 and November 2006, 319 peacekeeping personnel in all missions had been investigated, resulting in the summary dismissal of 18 civilians and the repatriation on disciplinary grounds of 17 police and 144 military personnel. Ms. Holl Lute noted that the most recent cases in Sudan were based on a 2005-2006 report by the UN Children’s Fund (<"http://www.unicef.org">UNICEF) and said the “the expectation is that these are not new allegations” but concern 13 ongoing incidents. Four Bangladeshis involved have already been sent home to be dealt with by their own authorities. “Every time I’m made aware of an allegation of sexual exploitation and abuse I’m outraged,” Ms. Holl Lute said. “I’m outraged at every level, as a peacekeeper, as a professional, as a colleague of the tens of thousands of men and women who serve honourably in peacekeeping. I share their anger that some of our number may be engaging in this behaviour. “I’m angry as a woman, I’m angry as a mother, I’m saddened that the world has not come as far as we would like to believe in our treatment of women and vulnerable populations and I’m determined to continue to do whatever it is we can to strengthen this comprehensive programme of prevention, enforcement and remediation,” she added. She underscored the considerable challenge the UN faced in deploying tens of thousands of peacekeepers to societies that have been wracked by conflict and war sometimes for generations. “It keeps happening because that potential is going to exist in this kind of an environment.” But, she stressed, “the record of peacekeeping is an honourable one, it’s a good one, it’s a strong one.” And she highlighted the crucial importance of “the collective message we are sending now as a community of international servants, international peacekeepers, international humanitarian aid workers, of the troop contributing countries, of all of the global organizations, of our determination that this behaviour will not be tolerated.” 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

SUSPECTED KILLER OF TWO BLUE HELMETS IN HAITI ARRESTED BY UN MISSION, NATIONAL POLICE New York, Jan 5 2007 3:00PM The United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and the country’s national police today announced the arrest of a gang member wanted in connection with the killing last November of two blue helmets serving with the peacekeeping operation. The arrest of ‘Zachari’ took place following a joint operation which began at dawn in the Drouillard quarter of Cité Soleil, MINUSTAH said in a press release on Thursday. No shots were fired. The suspect is wanted in connection with the assassination of two Jordanian peacekeepers from MINUSTAH in November 2006. He is “is thought to be the chief of the cell responsible for kidnappings” within the Belony gang. Another presumed kidnapper was also arrested, according to MINUSTAH, and both suspects are being detailed by the Haitian National Police. “MINUSTAH and the Government of Haiti continue to work together to stop armed gangs and their criminal activities in the capital,” the mission said. On 10 November 2006, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a MINUSTAH patrol near the Port-au-Prince airport, fatally injuring Jordanian peacekeepers Ahmad Mohammed Hassan Ba’irat and Rami Wasif Taha Al Mohammed. Also last year, on 17 January, two other Jordanian blue helmets serving with MINUSTAH, Tareq Al Jaafreh and Rabi Merei, were shot and killed while manning a checkpoint in Cité Soleil. Armed gangs have been a constant concern of <"http://www.un.org/Depts/dpko/missions/minustah">MINUSTAH since it was set up by the Security Council to help to re-establish peace in the impoverished Caribbean country after an insurgency forced elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to go into exile in February 2004. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

TANZANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER NAMED NEW UN DEPUTY SECRETARY-GENERAL New York, Jan 5 2007 3:00PM Tanzanian Foreign Minister Asha-Rose Migiro today became the third person – and second woman – in history appointed United Nations Deputy Secretary-General when she accepted the post offered to her by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. “Through her distinguished service in diverse areas, she has displayed outstanding management skills with wide experience and expertise in socio-economic affairs and development issues,” Secretary-General Ban <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=2392">said of Ms. Migiro, who was selected from a short list of candidates including men and women. Mr. Ban, who took office on 1 January with revitalization of the UN as a top priority, today stated that he intends to “delegate much of the management and administrative work” to Ms. Migiro “under a clear line of authority to ensure that the Secretariat will function in a more effective and efficient manner.” She has worked in the past with Secretary-General Ban when they both served as Foreign Ministers of their respective countries. He called her “a highly respected leader who has championed the cause of developing countries over the years.” Salim Ahmed Salim, the African Union (AU) Special Envoy on the Darfur conflict who is in New York for meetings with the Secretary-General, welcomed the appointment of Ms. Migiro, a fellow Tanzanian. Hailing her “skills and commitment,” Mr. Salim asserted, “I know she can do the job and I wish her well.” Dr. Migiro, who in her new capacity will be the highest ranking woman at the UN and the second-highest among all officials, also served as Minister of Community Development, Gender and Children's Affairs until she was asked to head the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation in January 2006. She entered the Government of Tanzania after leaving her position as Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Law at the University of Dar-es-Salaam. Ms. Migiro, 50, replaces Mark Malloch Brown who took office in April 2006. Meanwhile, in another action pertaining to the creation of his cabinet, the Secretary-General today asked all assistant and under-secretaries-general, with a number of exceptions, to voluntarily tender their resignations. The aim, said his spokesperson, Michele Montas, is to “allow the Secretary-General the flexibility he needs in forming his new team.” She added that after reviewing the offers of resignation, he may decide to retain some senior officials. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

UN HOPES ISRAEL, PALESTINIANS AVOID VIOLENCE IN LIGHT OF ‘POSITIVE DEVELOPMENTS’ New York, Jan 5 2007 6:00PM The chief United Nations spokesperson today voiced the hope that Israel and the Palestinians would exercise restraint in the light of some recent positive developments and avoid violence such as yesterday’s Israeli military incursion into the main Palestinian West Bank town of Ramallah. In response to a question at the daily briefing, spokesperson Michele Montas referred specifically to last month’s meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Israel’s decision to release some Palestinian taxes and Mr. Olmert’s meeting yesterday with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. “We would hope that all parties would act with restraint to encourage these small steps back towards dialogue and away from violence, such as the Israeli military incursion into Ramallah yesterday,” she said. Last year, Israel stopped the transfer of Palestinian value added taxes (VAT) following the election victory of Hamas, which is committed to Israel’s destruction.

INTERNATIONAL GROUPING, INCLUDING UN, SAYS SOMALIA HAS ‘HISTORIC OPPORTUNITY’ New York, Jan 5 2007 7:00PM Meeting today for the first time since last week’s heavy fighting in Somalia, which may have given the Transitional Government of the long-troubled country the chance to establish its full authority, the International Contact Group for Somalia – which includes the United Nations – called the current moment “a historic opportunity.” In a communiqué issued in Nairobi, the Group welcomed a commitment by Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf to inclusive governance and the prevention of a resurgence of warlord activities. The communiqué also stressed the importance of immediately launching a process of political dialogue and reconciliation in the Horn of Africa country, which has not had a functioning government since the regime of Muhammad Siad Barre was toppled in 1991. Last month the Security Council adopted a <"http://www.un.org/Docs/journal/asp/ws.asp?m=s/res/1725(2006)">resolution authorizing the creation of an African protection and training mission in Somalia to help protect its transitional federal institutions, and today’s communiqué emphasized the urgent need for that force. To be known as IGASOM, the new force is to be set up by the African Union (AU) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), an east African group, and will have an initial mandate of six months. No countries bordering Somalia will be able to deploy troops. Today’s meeting of the International Contact Group for Somalia was held following a wave of heavy fighting between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) – backed by Ethiopian troops – and the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) last month. The Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Somalia, Francois Lonsény Fall, represented the UN at the meeting. Yesterday, in a <"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2007/sgsm10824.doc.htm">statement released by his spokesperson, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on all sides in Somalia to “seize the moment and end the bloodshed” and urged the rapid deployment of IGASOM. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

UN WILL ENFORCE ‘ZERO TOLERANCE’ POLICY AGAINST SEXUAL ABUSE, PEACEKEEPING OFFICIAL SAYS

 New York, Jan 5 2007 6:00PM The United Nations, which fields nearly 200,000 people from well over 100 countries rotating through its peacekeeping missions every year, is determined to reinforce its policy of zero tolerance and remains constantly vigilant to fight the scourge, a senior official said today. “We recognize that this is a structural problem and that we need to deal with it structurally and systemically and that the behaviour of a relative few has tarnished the entire reputation of peacekeeping and we will not allow that to continue to occur,” Assistant Secretary-General Jane Holl Lute told a news briefing at UN Headquarters in New York following media reports of abuses in southern Sudan. “The reputation of UN peacekeeping is one of our most powerful assets, which is why we have responded over the past couple of years so strongly,” she said, stressing the UN’s three-point strategy of prevention, enforcement and remediation, with repetitive training and the establishment of complaint mechanisms. The UN has also set up conduct units in all of its major peacekeeping operations, including Sudan, specifically tasked with addressing the problem. The problem of sexual exploitation surfaced in 2004 when a UN report found that a “shockingly large number” of peacekeepers had engaged in such practices in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with payments for sex sometimes ranging from two eggs to $5 per encounter. The victims included many abandoned orphans who were often illiterate. Between January 2004 and November 2006, 319 peacekeeping personnel in all missions had been investigated, resulting in the summary dismissal of 18 civilians and the repatriation on disciplinary grounds of 17 police and 144 military personnel. Ms. Holl Lute noted that the most recent cases in Sudan were based on a 2005-2006 report by the UN Children’s Fund (<"http://www.unicef.org">UNICEF) and said the “the expectation is that these are not new allegations” but concern 13 ongoing incidents. Four Bangladeshis involved have already been sent home to be dealt with by their own authorities. “Every time I’m made aware of an allegation of sexual exploitation and abuse I’m outraged,” Ms. Holl Lute said. “I’m outraged at every level, as a peacekeeper, as a professional, as a colleague of the tens of thousands of men and women who serve honourably in peacekeeping. I share their anger that some of our number may be engaging in this behaviour. “I’m angry as a woman, I’m angry as a mother, I’m saddened that the world has not come as far as we would like to believe in our treatment of women and vulnerable populations and I’m determined to continue to do whatever it is we can to strengthen this comprehensive programme of prevention, enforcement and remediation,” she added. She underscored the considerable challenge the UN faced in deploying tens of thousands of peacekeepers to societies that have been wracked by conflict and war sometimes for generations. “It keeps happening because that potential is going to exist in this kind of an environment.” But, she stressed, “the record of peacekeeping is an honourable one, it’s a good one, it’s a strong one.” And she highlighted the crucial importance of “the collective message we are sending now as a community of international servants, international peacekeepers, international humanitarian aid workers, of the troop contributing countries, of all of the global organizations, of our determination that this behaviour will not be tolerated.” 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

New York, Jan 5 2007 11:00AM United Nations agencies are helping to draw up an action plan to fight a new outbreak of Rift Valley Fever (RVF) in the Horn of Africa amid concerns that climate change with successive droughts and floods, some of it human-caused, could increase the 5-15 year cyclical frequency of the sometimes fatal viral haemorrhagic disease. “The outbreak of Rift Valley fever is just another example that requires a quick and coordinated answer,” the Manager of the new Crisis Management Centre (CMC) launched by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) last October, Karin Schwabenbauer, said of the current <"http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/YSAR-6X5N3B?OpenDocument">outbreak in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia. “I am glad that CMC was able to assist the team in the region in setting up the appropriate activities from the beginning of the outbreak,” she added of the battle against the mosquito-borne virus that primarily affects ruminant animals such as cattle, sheep, camels, goats, but can cause outbreaks in humans as well. Since the latest outbreak began there in November, 47 deaths have been reported in the flood-affected areas of Garissa, capital of Kenya’s North Eastern province. The Kenyan Ministry of Health, with international aid, is distributing mosquito nets and taking steps to reduce animal-to-human transmission through animal husbandry and slaughter. People become infected either by being bitten by mosquitoes or through contact with the blood, other body fluids or organs of infected animals. Such contact may occur during the care or slaughtering of infected animals or possibly from the ingestion of raw milk. Wind can sometimes help carry the virus-bearing insects long distances. <"http://www.fao.org/ag/aga/agah/empres/info/rvf/rvf198.htm">RVF can cause serious economic losses in livestock, particularly sheep and cattle, although goats, camels, Asian water buffaloes and wild antelopes may also be susceptible. Outbreaks often follow major flooding, since heavy rains trigger a kind of wake-up call for the mosquitoes that carry the disease. Since 1998, when flood-related RVF flared up in the Horn of Africa and encroached into the Arabian Peninsula, FAO has been working to demarcate the areas in sub-Saharan Africa at greatest risk and pinpoint hot spots across East and West Africa to forecast where the next outbreaks will occur and put adequate response strategies in place. Though RVF has historically occurred in 5-15 year cycles, climatic changes, including a succession of droughts and floods or human modifications of ecosystems, could change these intervals in the future, FAO said. Together with officials from the UN World Health Organization (<"http://www.who.int/en">WHO) and various international aid agencies present in the area, the FAO team is helping draw up preparedness, communication, surveillance and response activities. The <"http://www.fao.org/newsroom/en/news/2006/1000421/index.html">CMC was set up in collaboration with the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health (<"http://www.oie.int/eng/en_index.htm">OIE) to bring rapid-response capacity to trans-boundary animal and plant diseases amid growing concern at the rapid spread of bird flu. Supported by advanced communications technology and operating with a staff of up to 15 specialists and veterinarians who continuously monitor and update disease information from around the globe, the CMC can dispatch its experts to any hotspot in the world in under 48 hours of a suspected outbreak. 2007-01-05 00:00:00.000

Jan 4

SECRETARY-GENERAL ALARMED BY REPORTS OF SEXUAL ABUSE BY UN PEACEKEEPERS IN SUDAN

 New York, Jan 3 2007 6:00PM Voicing deep concern at media reports that United Nations peacekeepers in southern Sudan have engaged in sexual exploitation and abuse of locals, including children, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon soundly denounced the practice while pointing out that the world body’s own investigations have already resulted in the dismissal of four blue helmets there. In a <"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2007/sgsm10823.doc.htm">statement released by his spokesperson, Mr. Ban emphasized that “the UN standard on this issue is clear – zero tolerance, meaning zero complacency and zero impunity.” He said the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) was examining the substance of the press reports to determine if the allegations are new or refer to existing cases under investigation. “It is the UN’s policy to treat credible allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse as serious offences to be investigated by the Office of the Internal Oversight Services (OIOS),” the statement said. The statement added that OIOS already has a team based permanently in Sudan and that four UNMIS peacekeepers have been sent home over the past year as a result of the Office’s investigations. “The UN is working closely with local authorities and all operational partners, including our troop-contributing countries, to ensure that UN personnel adhere to the highest standards of accountability. When necessary, strong disciplinary action will be taken.” The problem of sexual abuse and exploitation by blue helmets surfaced in 2004, when a UN report found that a “shockingly large number” of peacekeepers had engaged in such practices in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with payments for sex sometimes ranging from two eggs to $5 per encounter. The victims included many abandoned orphans who were often illiterate. The UN responded with forceful policy decisions and disciplinary action. By the end of last November, 319 peacekeeping personnel in all missions had been investigated. These probes resulted in the summary dismissal of 18 civilians and the repatriation on disciplinary grounds of 17 police and 144 military personnel. 2007-01-03 00:00:00.000

BAN KI-MOON LEADS FIRST MEETING OF UN TASK FORCE ON DARFUR CRISIS

New York, Jan 4 2007 5:00PM Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will today chair the first meeting of the United Nations-wide Darfur Task Force, a new grouping set up by the Organization to help guide and streamline efforts to end the spiralling humanitarian and security crisis in the strife-torn Sudanese region. The Task Force includes the heads of the UN departments of peacekeeping, political affairs, public information, legal affairs, and safety and security, as well as the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (<"http://ochaonline.un.org/webpage.asp?Page=873&Lang=en">OCHA) and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (<"http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/news">UNHCR). The Special Adviser on Africa, Under-Secretary-General Legwaila Joseph Legwaila, and the Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, Juan Méndez, are also part of the grouping. Today’s inaugural gathering follows Mr. Ban’s meeting this morning with the UN envoy Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, who recently travelled to Khartoum for talks with the Sudanese Government about accepting an eventual hybrid UN-African Union (AU) peacekeeping force in Darfur. Mr. Ould-Abdallah and Jan Eliasson, the former General Assembly president and Swedish foreign minister who is acting as a separate UN envoy on the Darfur crisis, were both expected to take part in today’s Task Force meeting. Mr. Ban and Mr. Eliasson will also meet with AU envoy Salim Ahmed Salim in New York tomorrow to discuss ways to end the bloodshed in Darfur, a remote and impoverished region roughly the size of France. More than 200,000 people have been killed and 2 million others displaced from their homes since 2003 when clashes erupted between Government forces, allied militias and rebel groups seeking greater autonomy. The UN estimates that 4 million people now depend on humanitarian assistance. Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir informed the UN late last month, following the visit by Mr. Ould-Abdallah, that his Government had agreed to the hybrid force, which will take over from the existing AU monitoring force – which is known by the acronym AMIS. The new force is expected to comprise about 17,000 troops and 3,000 police officers. Meanwhile, the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) has reported that two AMIS personnel kidnapped during a carjacking early last month in Darfur – part of a wave of such incidents last year – remain missing. Some 118 vehicles were seized in 2006, according to the Mission, including five UN-marked vehicles. 2007-01-04 00:00:00.000

UN CALLS FOR SPEEDY ACTION IN TIMOR-LESTE ON COMMISSION REPORT INTO 2006 VIOLENCE

New York, Jan 4 2007 5:00PM Strongly backing last year’s inquiry into deadly violence in Timor-Leste, the United Nations today called for speedy action on its recommendations, which include further investigation as well as prosecution of those responsible for the clashes that led to at least 37 deaths and forced 155,000 people – 15 per cent of the population – to flee their homes. The Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Atul Khare, who heads the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT), stressed the need for the world body to work closely with the authorities on the findings of the Independent Special Commission of Inquiry report, which was released on 17 October and submitted to the Timorese parliament. “It is clearly of the greatest importance that the Government of Timor-Leste and the United Nations work together to ensure adequate follow-up to the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry,” he told a press conference in the capital Dili. “First and foremost, I must say that United Nations and UNMIT support the report of the Commission of Inquiry and strongly encourage expeditious action to be taken on its recommendations.” He voiced satisfaction at public acknowledgements of responsibility by some institutions and leaders regarding their roles in the crisis. The Parliament’s review of the Commission of Inquiry Report should address reparation for the victims and proposals for the establishment of independent oversight covering the police and military, he added. Mr. Khare also emphasized that UNMIT does “not support impunity for crimes committed in April and May,” referring to last year’s crisis that was attributed to differences between eastern and western regions of the small South-East Asian country that the UN shepherded to independence from Indonesia in 2002. He also said that the mission, along with the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and other partners, was working to strengthen the justice system, while UN police officers (UNPOL), who are in charge of policing throughout the country, continue to train national officers while helping to maintain law and order. Also speaking at today’s press conference was the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Security Sector Reform Rule of Law in Timor-Leste, Eric Tan Huck Gim, who confirmed that security in the country continues to improve, as he also looked ahead to this year’s elections. “The situation in Dili and across the country continues to be relatively stable with UNPOL being in control of the security. There were recent events surrounding New Year’s eve which caused a small spike in isolated events of security incidents around Dili but on the whole it was very good to see the citizens enjoying the New Year and welcoming the New Year with peace and calm.” 2007-01-04 00:00:00.000

FOUR PEACEKEEPERS ACCUSED OF SEX ABUSE ALREADY REPATRIATED – UN MISSION IN SUDAN

 New York, Jan 4 2007 5:00PM The United Nations Mission in Sudan (<"http://www.un.org/Depts/dpko/missions/unmis/">UNMIS) has already repatriated four of its peacekeepers to Bangladesh following investigations into allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse, and the cases of those personnel will now be dealt with by that country, the UN spokesperson said today. Michele Montas told journalists that the blue helmets were repatriated a few months ago as a result of investigations by a UN team that began in February last year. Inquiries are continuing into misconduct allegations – not all of which involve sexual exploitation – against 13 other staff at UNMIS, some dating back to 2005. Ms. Montas stressed that when individuals are accused of such acts they are halted from performing their regular duties pending the outcome of the investigations. She added that the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) will follow up with Bangladeshi authorities on the outcome of the cases of the four repatriated peacekeepers to find out what action has been taken. Investigators are looking into whether the cases of the Bangladeshi peacekeepers are the same as those discussed in recent media reports. In a statement released by his spokesperson yesterday Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon denounced the practice of sexual exploitation and promised that strong disciplinary action would be taken when necessary. “The UN standard on this issue is clear – zero tolerance, meaning zero complacency and zero impunity,” the statement said. Ms. Montas, who noted that the UN deploys tens of thousands of peacekeepers to broken societies, added today that DPKO has made definite efforts to change the culture, listen to alleged victims and conducting thorough investigations into accusations. The problem of sexual abuse and exploitation by blue helmets surfaced in 2004, when a UN report found that a “shockingly large number” of peacekeepers had engaged in such practices in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with payments for sex sometimes ranging from two eggs to $5 per encounter. The victims included many abandoned orphans who were often illiterate. The UN responded with forceful policy decisions and disciplinary action. By the end of last November, 319 peacekeeping personnel in all missions had been investigated. These probes resulted in the summary dismissal of 18 civilians and the repatriation on disciplinary grounds of 17 police and 144 military personnel. 2007-01-04 00:00:00.000

DARFUR: BAN KI-MOON EXPECTED TO MEET AFRICAN UNION ENVOY LATER THIS WEEK

 New York, Jan 3 2007 6:00PM Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today he may hold a meeting as early as Friday with envoys from the United Nations and the African Union (AU) about the continuing humanitarian and security crisis in the Sudanese region of Darfur. Mr. Ban spoke with his Special Envoy on the issue, the former General Assembly president and Swedish foreign minister Jan Eliasson, at UN Headquarters in New York this morning to discuss Mr. Eliasson’s work so far and his plans for the weeks and months ahead. Mr. Eliasson – who was appointed last month – has been tasked with working the diplomatic channels, especially outside Sudan, and encouraging governments in their home capitals to remain engaged on this issue. A spokesperson for Mr. Ban said the Secretary-General suggested a meeting be held with Mr. Eliasson and the AU Special Envoy for the Darfur conflict, Salim Ahmed Salim, possibly as soon as Friday. Mr. Ban has already spoken by telephone with Mr. Salim and with AU Commission President Alpha Oumar Konaré since taking office on Monday, and he told reporters yesterday that resolving the crisis in Darfur would be one of his top priorities. More than 200,000 people have been killed and 2 million others displaced from their homes since 2003 when clashes erupted in Darfur between Government forces, allied militias and rebel groups seeking greater autonomy. The UN estimates that 4 million people now depend on humanitarian assistance. Last month the Sudanese Government announced it had agreed to a three-phased approach leading to the deployment of a hybrid UN-AU peacekeeping force in Darfur, a remote and impoverished region on Sudan’s western flank. The eventual force is expected to comprise about 17,000 troops and 3,000 police officers. 2007-01-03 00:00:00.000

CHINESE BIRD FLU EXPERT TAKES OVER AS NEW HEAD OF UN HEALTH AGENCY

 New York, Jan 4 2007 11:00AM Margaret Chan, a Chinese doctor who played a key role in United Nations efforts to prevent bird flu from mutating into a deadly human pandemic, took office today as <"http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2007/pr01/en/index.html">head of the UN World Health Organization (WHO), vowing to improve the health of Africans and women worldwide – and pledging reform but not upheaval. “WHO has a long history of commitment to those in greatest need, including the most vulnerable groups,” the new Director-General of the 193-member state organization said on assuming office in Geneva. “I want my leadership to be judged by the impact of our work on the health of two populations: women and the people of Africa.” Dr. Chan was elected in November by the World Health Assembly, WHO’s decision making body, to succeed Lee Jong-wook, who died suddenly last May. She set out six priority areas on which she intends to focus WHO’s work: development for health, health security, building the capacity of health systems, developing better information and knowledge, enhancing partnerships, and improving the Organization’s performance. She told staff these priorities would not mean a major restructuring of WHO and she would be looking for ways in which different parts of the organization can work better together. “I will stick with my promise. Reform, yes. Upheaval, no,” she said. “I believe these are optimistic times for health. Never before has our work enjoyed such a high profile on the political agenda,” she added. One of the key challenges facing WHO is to “manage all this vigorous interest in health in ways that ensure lasting improvements and do not overburden recipient countries,” she said. “As the acknowledged leader in public health, we need to ensure that the growing number of health initiatives meets comprehensive health needs, in a coordinated way, in line with the priorities of countries and their populations.” Dr. Chan was previously WHO’s top official for communicable diseases and point person for pandemic influenza. In 2003, she became Director of the Department of Protection of the Human Environment, and in 2005 Director, Communicable Diseases Surveillance and Response, and Representative of the Director-General for Pandemic Influenza as well as Assistant Director-General for the Communicable Diseases cluster. She obtained her medical degree from the University of Western Ontario in Canada, joined the Hong Kong Department of Health in 1978, and in 1994 was appointed Hong Kong Director of Health. She effectively managed outbreaks of bird flu and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), a flu-like disease that over a nine-month period in 2002- 2003 infected more than 8,000 people, killing 774 of them, mostly in China and elsewhere in Asia. In her 30-year career in public health, she has covered all areas, ranging from health policy and chronic disease prevention and control to food and drug regulation and anti-tobacco work. Her first job was taking care of children and pregnant women. 2007-01-04 00:00:00.000

UN HUMAN RIGHTS EXPERT DEPLORES SADDAM’S TRIAL AND EXECUTION; CALLS FOR LEGAL OVERHAUL

New York, Jan 4 2007 11:00AM Citing “glaring flaws” in the trial of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, who was hanged on Saturday, and his co-defendants, an independent United Nations human rights expert has called on the Iraqi Government to halt the other executions and overhaul its judicial system to comply with international law. “The trial and execution of Saddam Hussein were tragically missed opportunities to demonstrate that justice can be done, even in the case of one of the greatest crooks of our time,” Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, <"http://www.unhchr.ch/huricane/huricane.nsf/view01/771742A22EA6FE2EC125725800678C7D?opendocument">said in a statement. He called for far-reaching reforms, and said a number of basic measures must be taken at once, including commuting the other death sentence to life imprisonment or other long terms, eliminating the Government’s powers to remove a judge “for any reason,” and amending the 30-day time period between final judgement and execution to ensure full respect for the right to appeal. Mr. Alston, a law professor at New York University, cited three major flaws. First, the trial was marred by serious irregularities denying Mr. Hussein a fair hearing. Secondly the Government “engaged in an unseemly and evidently politically motivated effort to expedite the execution by denying time for a meaningful appeal and by closing off every avenue to review the punishment,” he declared. “Finally, the humiliating manner in which the execution was carried out clearly violated human rights law,” he said. “The right not to be subjected to cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment was violated when Saddam Hussein Al-Majeed was mocked by his executioners and then shown to the world by video as a morbid, public spectacle.” While acknowledging “an understandable inclination to exact revenge in such cases,” he warned that “to permit such instincts to prevail only sends the message that the rule of law continues to be mocked in Iraq, as it was in Saddam’s own time. “If the current Government of Iraq is serious about marking a departure from the predetermined and arbitrary justice meted out by Saddam himself, a number of reforms should be adopted urgently,” he said, adding that as a first step, the reportedly imminent execution of two co-defendants, Barzan Ibrahim Al-Hassan and Awad Hamad Al-Bandar, should be halted. This echoed a <"http://www.ohchr.org/english/press/media.htm">call made yesterday by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour. Mr. Alston stressed that the trials “were characterized by glaring flaws” with the legal right of defendants to challenge evidence severely impeded. The statements of at least 23 prosecution witnesses were read into the court record without giving the defendants any opportunity to question them. He cited “the disarray” of the trial with an 80 per cent turnover among the judges and the murder of three defence lawyers. He said the right to have one’s conviction and sentence reviewed by a higher tribunal appears to have been treated as a mere formality, with all the complex issues disposed of in less than a month. “This undue haste mocks the due process requirements of international law. The process to date has given the clear sense of a predetermined rush to execute rather than of a commitment to achieve justice,” he declared. Special Rapporteurs are unpaid, independent experts who report to the UN <"http://www.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil">Human Rights Council. 2007-01-04 00:00:00.000

SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN REAFFIRMS UN SUPPORT FOR BURUNDI AS NEW OFFICE TAKES OVER

 New York, Jan 2 2007 6:00PM Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today congratulated the people of Burundi on the successful completion of the United Nations peacekeeping operation in the country, as he pledged the world body’s continuing commitment to help the impoverished nation shake off the ravages of civil war and political instability. The UN Operation in Burundi (ONUB) ended its mission on Sunday, when it was replaced by the UN Integrated Office (BINUB) and Mr. Ban said he looked forward to the new office working closely with the Government “to overcome the many remaining challenges.” In a <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/sgstats.asp?nid=2385">statement released by his spokesman, the Secretary-General congratulated Burundi on the successful implementation of ONUB and reaffirmed the UN’s continued commitment to assisting the country, “together with other partners, in efforts to overcome the many remaining challenges to the consolidation of peace.” He also voiced hope that the Government of Burundi “will extend its full cooperation in ensuring the successful implementation of BINUB’s mandate.” Late last month, a report to the Security Council warned that human rights abuses, political tensions and other “troubling developments” in Burundi could cause the hard-won peace process there to unravel. It added that despite the progress that has been made during the ONUB mandate, “the situation in Burundi is still fragile and major peace consolidation challenges remain.” Like neighbouring Rwanda, Burundi has also been ravaged by an ethnic conflict between its Hutu and Tutsi populations. Since gaining independence in 1962, the small Central African country has been the victim of violent coups and political instability. The death of some 300,000 people after the first free elections took place in 1993 led to increased international involvement and the establishment of the first UN mission in Burundi three years later. 2007-01-02 00:00:00.000

SECRETARY-GENERAL PLEDGES TO GIVE RESOLUTION OF DARFUR CRISIS HIS ‘HIGHEST ATTENTION’

York, Jan 2 2007 5:00PM Describing the Darfur crisis as one of his top priorities in office, the new Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced plans today to enter immediately into diplomatic efforts to end the bloodshed in the Sudanese region, holding a meeting with his senior envoy tomorrow and attending an African Union (AU) summit later this month. <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/offthecuff.asp?nid=964">Addressing reporters at UN Headquarters, Mr. Ban said he spoke to his Special Envoy, the former General Assembly president and Swedish foreign minister Jan Eliasson, by telephone yesterday and would discuss Darfur further during their meeting, scheduled for tomorrow morning. Mr. Eliasson – who was appointed last month – has been tasked with working the diplomatic channels, especially outside Sudan, and encouraging governments in their home capitals to remain engaged on this issue. More than 200,000 people have been killed and 2 million others displaced from their homes since 2003 when clashes erupted in Darfur between Government forces, allied militias and rebel groups seeking greater autonomy. The UN estimates that 4 million people now depend on humanitarian assistance. Mr. Ban said he hoped to meet Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir and other African leaders, including AU Commission President Alpha Oumar Konaré, when he attends the AU summit later this month. “I will pay my highest attention on this…. By engaging myself in the diplomatic process, I hope that we will be able to resolve peacefully, as soon as possible, this very serious issue,” he told reporters. Last week the former Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Mr. Bashir had accepted a three-phased approach leading to the deployment of a hybrid UN-AU peacekeeping force in Darfur. That agreement followed a visit to Khartoum earlier last month by the UN envoy, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, to press the Sudanese Government on the need for stronger and more urgent action to stop the suffering in Darfur. Under the first phase, which was already agreed upon, the UN is providing a $21 million “light support package” to the existing AU force in Darfur, known as AMIS. This includes the deployment of 24 police advisers and 43 staff officers. Mr. Ban’s spokesperson Michele Montas said the UN is working with the AU to submit details to the Sudanese Government of its plans for the second phase, which includes the deployment of several hundred UN military, police and civilian staff to help AMIS. The eventual hybrid force is expected to comprise about 17,000 troops and 3,000 police officers, compared to AMIS’ current total of just 7,000 troops to monitor an area roughly the size of France. Ms. Montas added that Mr. Ban is also expected to chair a taskforce meeting on Darfur on Thursday. The UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) reports today that the overall security situation inside Darfur has remained fairly calm so far during the Islamic period of Eid al-Adha, although there have been a number of isolated cases of killings and robberies. 2007-01-02 00:00:00.000

Jan 2

NEW SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN TAKES OVER AT UN’S NEW YORK HEADQUARTERS

New York, Jan 2 2007 10:00AM Passing an honour guard and welcomed with applause from staff, new United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived at the world body’s New York Headquarters today for his first official day of work. Mr. Ban, who succeeded Kofi Annan to become the UN’s eighth Secretary-General as the New Year came in on 1 January, smiled broadly as he entered the towering landmark building on New York’s East River. After paying tribute at the memorial for UN personnel who have fallen in the line of duty, he was to address staff on his hopes and aspirations. 2007-01-02 00:00:00.000

Dec 30

UN FOOD AGENCY RESUMES AID FLIGHTS TO SOMALIA

 New York, Dec 29 2006 11:00PM Following a temporary suspension caused by a recent flare up of violence in Somalia, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today announced a resumption of air aid deliveries to the country, where it is struggling to feed half a million people affected by floods. The UN Common Air Services (UNCAS) which is managed by WFP, resumed humanitarian flights into Somalia today with a plane leaving Nairobi for Hargeisa in northern Somalia carrying humanitarian workers and cargo. Another flight is planned for Saturday, with an aircraft scheduled to go from Nairobi to the southern Somali town of Wajid. These flights follow the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) giving permission for humanitarian flights to resume after declaring Somalia's land, air and sea borders closed on 25 December, WFP said in a news release. Despite the fighting between the TFG and the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) in Somalia -- where Ethiopia has also admitted sending troops -- the agency distributed an estimated 2,000 metric tons of food to 93,000 people affected by floods in Lower Shabelle and Middle and Lower Juba regions, largely thanks to improved access by land. A WFP-chartered ship loaded with 4,500 metric tons of WFP food docked in Mogadishu port on 26 December and started discharging the same day. On 27 December, WFP announced the suspension of its helicopter operation delivering humanitarian aid from the Somali port of Kismayo and both its air drop operation and passenger flights from Kenya into Somalia. "WFP hopes to resume all its air operations using airdrops and helicopters in Somalia as soon as possible and is in contact with authorities on the ground in an attempt to achieve this," according to the news release. More than 100 national staff in Somalia operating from 15 offices across the country are continuing to distribute food to victims of the floods and other vulnerable people. 2006-12-29 00:00:00.000

DEC 29

Brazilian soccer star Ronaldinho, one of the world’s best known
sports figures and a United Nations goodwill ambassador, has launched an
institute in Porte Alegre, Brazil, to help disadvantaged children through
sport and education, an initiative that shows the way forward in global
development, a senior UN official said in welcoming the move.

“With the launch of the institute, that dream of helping the most
vulnerable children and youth in Porto Alegre has come true,” said an
emotional Ronaldo Assis de Moreira, better known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho,
at Wednesday’s launch.

The UN is cooperating with the institute and will provide technical
advice and assist in recruiting professional staff before the programme
begins next March, as it shows the power of sport to help countries
achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), a set of targets to slash
poverty and other global ills by 2015, the world body said.

“The United Nations salutes Ronaldinho and his family for launching
this new initiative that shows how sport can contribute to improving the
lives of children and young people and progress towards achieving the
MDGs,” said Djibril Diallo, Director of the Office of Sport for
Development and Peace (UNOSDP), in a statement on behalf of Adolf Ogi,
Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on the same issue.

The Ronaldinho Gaúcho Institute aims to provide poor children and
youth access to education, health care and cultural activities, with a
capacity of 3,500 youngsters a month. These young people will take part in
football, tennis and other sports, as well as attending workshops on
information technology, languages, theatre, music and other classes.
Along with health care, the institute will also offer dental treatment.

Ronaldinho, who plays with the FC Barcelona team, met with
Secretary-General Kofi Annan and was appointed UN Spokesperson for Sport for
Development and Peace in August 2006 by UNOSDP, which is cooperating with his
initiative on behalf of the world body. He also serves as a UN World
Food Programme (WFP) Ambassador Against Hunger.

“If a young person develops his or her talent in sport through the
project, then that is great. However, this is not our main focus. We want
to create opportunities for growth and education,” said Roberto Assis
de Moreira, brother of Ronaldinho and Executive President of the
institute.

During Wednesday’s launch, names were collected for an auction to
raise funds for the institute involving items from the Nike 10R product
line developed especially for Ronaldinho. The auction will take place
from 5 to 15 January on the website of E-bay international at
www.ebay.com/ronaldinhogaucho.
2006-12-28 00:00:00.000

Dec 28

New York, Dec 28 2006 11:00AM The United Nations refugee agency is mobilizing staff and resources in preparation for a possible exodus of tens of thousands of people fleeing fighting in Somalia. Although no large-scale refugee movements have yet been recorded in neighbouring countries, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (<"http://www.unhcr.org/news/NEWS/459297094.html">UNHCR) is immediately positioning relief items in the region as well as trucks and emergency staff. The agency is reinforcing its operational capacity in north-eastern Kenya and Ethiopia in response to the worsening humanitarian situation in Somalia, where thousands of people have been displaced by recent fighting between Ethiopian forces aligned with the Somali Transitional Federal Government and the Islamic Courts Union. Relief items, including plastic sheets and jerry cans for up to 50,000 people, are being sent from UNHCR regional warehouses and positioned along the Somali border. At the same time, the agency’s fleet of vehicles is being expanded with the deployment of 10 extra trucks. Beyond the immediate pre-positioning of relief items, UNHCR will also increase its existing stockpiles in the region by purchasing enough supplies for a further 100,000 people, both refugees and internally displaced persons (<"http://www.unhcr.org/protect/3b84c7e23.html">IDPs). UNHCR emergency response teams are on standby, ready to be sent to the region from around the world, and staff on holiday have been recalled as agency offices in Kenya, Ethiopia and across the Gulf of Aden in Yemen closely monitor the situation for any increase in cross-border movements. So far, only small numbers of refugees have been crossing into both Kenya and Ethiopia. Inside Somalia, thousands of people fleeing the conflict are reported to be in a desperate situation. UNHCR staff in Puntland, in the north-east, report some 3,000 IDPs who fled the fighting further south. The agency has also received reports of several thousand IDPs in the Bay, Hirann, Mudug, Juba, and Shabelle regions and is particularly concerned about reports of civilians, including children, being forcibly recruited to join the fighting. On Tuesday, UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres expressed <"http://www.unhcr.org/news/NEWS/45914aaa4.html">concern at the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Somalia and appealed to all sides to respect humanitarian principles and the rights of the civilian population. Before the latest upsurge in fighting, more than 30,000 Somalis had already fled the conflict to north-east Kenya this year amid fears that the influx could climb to 80,000 by the end of 2006. The region already shelters some 160,000 Somalis who had fled earlier fighting and droughts. 2006-12-28 00:00:00.000

New York, Dec 28 2006 11:00AM The top United Nations envoy in Kosovo today voiced confidence on reaching a decision on the final status of the Albanian-majority Serbian province that the world body has run since Western forces drove out Yugoslav troops in 1999 amid ethnic fighting. “We have come a long way in the status process led by Special Envoy Ahtisaari,” Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Special Representative Joachim Rücker <"http://www.unmikonline.org/pio.htm">said in a message marking the Kurban Bajram Muslim festival, referring to former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, who is overseeing the status talks. “We have not reached the finish line yet, but I am confident that we will stick together and keep Kosovo on track as we reach the culmination of this process.” Independence and autonomy are among the options for the province, where Albanians outnumber Serbs and others by 9 to 1, but Serbia rejects independence. A UN proposal for the future status, which was to have been submitted this year, has been postponed until after Serbia’s parliamentary elections on 21 January. In his most recent report on the province last month, Mr. Annan said Kosovo’s provisional ethnic Albanian Government and Serbia remained “diametrically opposed” in their views of the future status. Mr. Rücker cited progress in implementing the so-called Standards, eight overall targets that include building democratic institutions, enforcing minority rights, creating a functioning economy and setting up an impartial legal system. He also noted that the economy had grown by almost 5 per cent, much higher than predicted at the beginning of the year, for the first time driven by the private sector. “Of course, this growth is not sufficient yet to reduce unemployment and we have to work even harder,” he said. “Important steps have been taken to attract foreign direct investment to Kosovo, especially in the energy sector, where we need it most.” He pledged to bring a successful conclusion to the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) by planning an orderly transition from international administration to institutions set up under the final status. “Everything we do continues to be a partnership between internationals, our partners in the PISG (provisional government) and you, the people of Kosovo,” he said. “It is this partnership that gives me confidence that we will overcome the challenges ahead, and keep Kosovo secure and a home to all of its people.” 2006-12-28 00:00:00.000

New York, Dec 28 2006 10:00AM The top United Nations envoy in Afghanistan today pledged the world organization’s support in entrenching fundamental human rights in the strife-torn country. Welcoming President Hamid Karzai’s recent decree confirming the appointment of three new commissioners to the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s Special Representative Tom Koenigs <"http://www.unama-afg.org/_latestnews/SRSG%20statement%20AIHRC.pdf">stressed the crucial role played by the rights body. “Since its establishment in June 2002, the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) has played a vital role in protecting and promoting the human rights of all of Afghanistan’s peoples,” he said in a statement. “I welcome President Karzai’s recent confirmation of three new appointments to the commission and hope that the new commissioners will continue their work with the same commitment and effort that the AIHRC has demonstrated since it was established. “The United Nations remains committed to supporting the work of the AIHRC and we will continue to work with the commission as it strives to build recognition and respect for fundamental human rights across Afghanistan,” he added. 2006-12-28 00:00:00.000

Dec 27

ETHIOPIA: UN BACKS MASS MEASLES IMMUNIZATION AMID CONCERN AT NEW CASES
New York, Dec 27 2006 11:00AM
A mass United Nations-backed measles immunization campaign is currently
underway in
<"http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/EVOD-6WUJ3Z?OpenDocument">Ethiopia,
targeting more than 5.8 million children aged under the age of 5
following growing fears earlier this year over the rise in new cases of the
disease.

The first phase of the campaign was conducted from May to June
targeting about 5.7 million children from 6 to 59 months with 91 per cent
coverage amid increased concern that the numbers of new cases could be the
result of low levels of routine immunization in 2005 with only 59 per
cent coverage.

Over 70 cases occurred from March to September 2006 in Addis Ababa, the
capital. Some 1,350 cases have been reported from other areas from
August to November as news of fresh outbreaks comes in.

The campaign is being carried out by federal and regional health
bureaus in collaboration with the UN Children’s Fund
(<"http://www.unicef.org/index2.php">UNICEF) and the UN World Health
Organization (<"http://www.who.int/en">WHO).
2006-12-27 00:00:00.000

DEC 26

Dec 26 2006 11:00AM
The United Nations marked the second anniversary of the devastating
Indian Ocean tsunami today with calls for enhancing early warning systems
that can save hundreds of thousands of lives, expressions of regret
that the catastrophe failed to unite Sri Lanka’s warring sides in
pursuit of peace, and an aid airlift for victims of new flooding.

In a cruel twist of fate UN humanitarian agencies are flying in food
and other aid to Indonesia’s Aceh province, the area worst hit by the
tsunami two years ago, after widespread flooding over the weekend struck
170,000 people, leaving over 100 dead, several hundreds more missing,
and nearly 130,000 displaced.

The head of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO), which has taken a leading role in setting up early warning
networks, noted that such a regional system now exists to warn authorities
in 27 countries of the impending arrival of another killer wave such as
that which left more than 200,000 people dead in a dozen nations on 26
December, 2004.


“This means that the future certainly looks safer,” UNESCO
Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura
<"http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php-URL_ID=36265&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html">said.
“But I must stress that this is no reason for complacency. After all,
the technology that makes up the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning System,
is only as good as the commitment of the people using it to make it work
over the long-term and for all.”


Experts say that if such a system – based on quake and tidal sensors,
fast communications, alarm networks ranging from radio to cell phones
and text-messaging, and disaster preparedness training of vulnerable
coastal populations – had existed two years ago, it could have saved
scores of thousands of lives.


It would have given hundreds of thousands of people several hours
between the time the quake spawned the tsunami off the Indonesian island of
Sumatra and its landfall in places like Sri Lanka and Thailand to flee
to higher ground.


Mr. Matsuura announced a new partnership between UNESCO’s
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
(<"http://ioc.unesco.org/iocweb/index.php">IOC), which has coordinated
planning and implementation of the system, and the global satellite
communications leader INMARSAT to provide free satellite links to 50
sea-level sensors in the Indian Ocean, the most advanced real-time sea-level
network in the world for such a warning project.


“However, accurate warnings can only be issued safely and surely when
all necessary data beamed up from this impressive array of instruments
are shared by all at the same time, without delay. This is still not
happening, and it remains a major handicap,” he said.


He warned that work remained to be done to ensure that vulnerable
communities are prepared for such catastrophes, with the means still lacking
in many places to get warnings to coastal populations in time. Public
information and education programmes are also needed to teach people how
to recognize the signs of an imminent tsunami, as are revised building
and development codes to limit physical and economic damage.


Secretary-General Kofi Annan regretted that the solidarity between
warring sides that emerged in the immediate aftermath of the catastrophe
did not last in Sri Lanka, where Government and Tamil separatists are
engaged in fierce fighting, even as it endured in strife-torn Aceh.


“I am deeply disheartened by this turn of events,” he said in a
message. “In Sri Lanka, more than 35,000 lives were lost on the fateful
day of the tsunami. More than 67,000 lives – 3,000 in the past year
alone – have been lost in over 20 years of conflict.


“No one could have prevented the tsunami’s wave of destruction. But
together, we can stem the tide of conflict, which threatens once again
to engulf the people of Sri Lanka. I urge all parties in Sri Lanka to
cease hostilities immediately, and return to the peace process,” he
added.


In Indonesia today, the UN humanitarian coordinator
<"http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/KHII-6WU4Y2?OpenDocument">called
for an extraordinary meeting of UN agencies, donors and
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Jakarta, the capital, to aid the victims of
Aceh’s latest floods. At the request of the Government, the UN is
leading the coordination of relief distribution in partnership with the
NGOs.


Yesterday, a UN helicopter brought in 1.5 metric tons of aid from the
UN World Food Programme
(<"http://www.wfp.org/english/?ModuleID=137&Key=1858">WFP), with a further
2.5 metric tons ready on the ground for delivery. In view of limited UN
air logistics, several NGOs have expressed support to fund chartering
an additional commercial helicopter.


A convoy of 21 WFP trucks loaded with approximately 40 metric tons has
left the provincial capital of Banda Aceh for the stricken area. Some
roads are still blocked while others are passable only for 4x4 vehicles,
and in some cases only for 10-wheel trucks.
Yesterday, the UN Central Emergency Response Fund
(<"http://ochaonline2.un.org/Default.aspx?alias=ochaonline2.un.org/cerf">CERF)
granted an initial $2 million for relief efforts.

The water level appears to be receding in most affected sub-districts
to the 30-60 centimetre level compared to the earlier 1.5-2 metres,
according to the latest UN field assessment.
2006-12-26 00:00:00.000

Dec 25

Dec 25 2006 12:00PM
Reaffirming the civilian status of journalists, the United Nations
Security Council has adopted a resolution urging warring parties to prevent
abuses against them and to respect their professional independence and
rights.

The Council's unanimously adopted measure comes amid numerous deadly
attacks on media professionals. Reporters without Borders said earlier
this month that in Iraq a total of 137 journalists and media assistants
had been killed since the start of the war in 2003.

The resolution recalled the Council's demand that "all parties to an
armed conflict comply fully with the obligations applicable to them under
international law related to the protection of civilians in armed
conflict, including journalists, media professionals and associated
personnel."

States and all other parties were urged "to do their utmost to prevent
violations of international humanitarian law against civilians,
including journalists, media professionals and associated personnel."

Parties were also urged to respect the professional independence and
rights of these individuals.

Pointing out that to deliberately target civilians and other protected
persons may constitute a threat to international peace and security,
the Council reaffirmed its readiness to take steps in response.

On the other side of the equation -- where the media is used to further
inflame a volatile situation -- the Council reaffirmed its condemnation
of all incitements to violence and the need to bring to justice
individuals responsible for it.

The resolution, adopted Saturday, also indicated the Council's
willingness when authorizing peacekeeping missions, to consider, "where
appropriate, steps in response to media broadcast inciting genocide, crimes
against humanity and serious violations of international humanitarian
law."


2006-12-25 00:00:00.000

Dec 23 2006 9:00PM
Capping months of intensive negotiations, the United Nations Security
Council today unanimously decided to impose a set of sanctions against
Iran in response to its uranium-enrichment activities, which Tehran says
are for peaceful purposes but which other countries contend are driven
by military ambitions.

The adoption of the sanctions resolution -- immediately rejected by
Iran -- came after successive reports by the UN International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA), the Vienna-based global nuclear watchdog, indicating
its inability to certify that the country's motives are entirely
peaceful. Agency Director-General Muhamad ElBaradei has said the IAEA is
unable to conclude that there are no undeclared nuclear materials or
activities in Iran.

Iran has not suspended all enrichment-related and reprocessing
activities or taken a number of other steps required by the Council to build
confidence, the resolution noted.

Iran's nuclear programme has been a matter of international concern
ever since the discovery in 2003 that it had concealed its nuclear
activities for 18 years in breach of its obligations under the Treaty on the
Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).

Today's resolution calls for steps required by the IAEA Board of
Governors, including re-establishing full and sustained suspension of all
enrichment-related and reprocessing activities and ratifying and
implementing the Additional Protocol, which grants the IAEA expanded rights of
access to information and sites, as well as additional authority to use
the most advanced technologies during the verification process.

The Security Council decided today that Iran must suspend the
"proliferation sensitive nuclear activities," including all enrichment-related
and reprocessing activities and work on all heavy water-related
projects. Both these steps are to be verified by the IAEA.

The Council banned trade with Iran of all items, materials, equipment,
goods and tech
enrichment-related, reprocessing or heavy water-related activities, or
to the development of nuclear weapon delivery systems.

States are also required to prevent the provision to Iran of any
technical assistance or training, financial assistance, investment, brokering
or other services, and the transfer of financial resources or services,
related to the supply, sale, transfer, manufacture or use of the
prohibited items, materials, equipment, goods and technology.

The Council called on all States "to exercise vigilance regarding the
entry into or transit through their territories of individuals who are
engaged in, directly associated with or providing support for Iran's
proliferation sensitive nuclear activities or for the development of
nuclear weapon delivery systems."

The resolution contains a list of persons and entities involved with
Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programmes that are subject to a
freeze on their financial assets, with some exceptions built in. It also
established a new Committee to monitor compliance with its terms, add to
the lists and rule on any exemptions.

The IAEA Director-General was requested to report within 60 days to the
Council on whether Iran has suspended uranium enrichment activities. If
that report shows that Iran has not complied with the resolution, the
Council threatens "further appropriate measures."

At today's Council session, Iranian Ambassador Javad Zarif delivered a
lengthy rebuttal of the premise for imposing the sanctions, and argued
that this action represented only the latest in a decades-long history
of bias against Iran.

"Bringing Iran's peaceful nuclear programme to the Council by few of
its permanent members, particularly the United States, is not aimed at,
nor will it help, seeking a solution or encouraging negotiations. Even
their stated objective has always been to use the Council as an
instrument of pressure and intimidation to compel Iran to abandon its rights,"
he said.

2006-12-23 00:00:00.000

Dec 23

Dec 22 2006 6:00PM
Expressing concern that around 150 Hmong tribes-people, over half of
whom are children, may be subjected to “serious human rights
violations” if forced to return home to the Lao People’s Democratic Republic,
the top United Nations rights official today urged Thailand to halt
their imminent deportation.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour called upon Thai
authorities to “fully respect” their international rights
obligations, pointing out that the whereabouts of 53 Lao Hmong deported from
Thailand last month, along with 26 Lao Hmong children deported last
December, remains unknown.

“The High Commissioner said it is believed the 152 Lao Hmong,
including 85 children, may be subjected to serious human rights violations if
returned to their country of origin,” Ms. Arbour’s office said in a
press release.

“The High Commissioner urged the Royal Thai Government to fully
respect the principle of non-refoulement prohibiting the return of a person
to a country where he or she faces persecution or the risk of serious
human rights violations.”

“The High Commissioner recalled that Thailand is party to a number of
international human rights instruments – including the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention on the Rights
of the Child – that contain the obligation of non-refoulement,” the
statement concluded.

Last month, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees
(<"http://www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/news">UNHCR) expressed its
concern over the fate of the 53 Hmong who were deported in November, and has
offered to help the Thai Government find viable solutions for the
roughly 6,000 Hmong living in makeshift camps.
2006-12-22 00:00:00.000

Dec 22 2006 7:00PM
In an effort to avoid any repeat of scandals involving United Nations
staff working in procurement, outgoing Secretary-General Kofi Annan
today put in place restrictions on current and former employees working in
its purchasing department, his spokesman announced, describing the
measures as “unprecedented.”

The restrictions, which will enter into force on 1 January 2007,
outline clear limitations on UN staff currently or formerly involved in the
“procurement process” in the broadest sense, including signing or
managing contracts, handling bids, reviewing contractor or vendor
performance to auditing the process.

“There are two lengths of ‘restriction:’ one year and two years
– one year of no employment with a company with which a staff member
has had procurement dealings, and two years of no retroactive contact
with the UN if the new job relates to his/her former responsibilities,”
spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters in New York.

“It also sets out sanctions, such as blacklisting of vendors who have
hired former staff with procurement dealings within these timeframes,
and placing a note in the personnel file to prevent future re-employment
of the individuals,” he said.

Responding to a question, Mr. Dujarric said the scope of these measures
is “unprecedented” for the UN Secretariat and on par with best
practices in the public sector.

UN procurement has been plagued by scandal in recent months. Most
recently, the Secretary-General waived the immunity of Sanjaya Bahel, a UN
procurement officer who has been the subject of an internal fact-finding
investigation into allegations of misconduct conducted by the
Organization’s Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS).

The November waiver came in response to a request from United States
authorities.

In January, then-UN Under-Secretary-General for Management Christopher
Burnham said OIOS was conducting some 200 investigations into UN
procurement activities, estimating that the funds involved could top the tens
of millions of dollars.
2006-12-22 00:00:00.000

UPSURGE IN SOMALI FIGHTING PROMPTS CONCERN FROM SECURITY COUNCIL AND
ANNAN

Dec 22 2006 7:00PM
The Security Council and Secretary-General Kofi Annan today each voiced
grave concern at the recent intensified fighting in Somalia between the
strife-torn country’s Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs) and
the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC).

Media reports say that hundreds of people may have been killed this
week during clashes between the two groups wresting for control of a State
that has not had a functioning national government since 1991.

In a
<"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2006/sgsm10815.doc.htm">statement released by his spokesman, Mr. Annan warned that the latest
outbreak of fighting “will have disastrous consequences for civilians, who
are already suffering from the effects of years and instability and
deprivation, compounded by the severe flooding that has recently affected
parts of the country.”

The Secretary-General urged both the UIC, which controls the nominal
capital, Mogadishu, and the TFIs, based in the provincial city of Baidoa,
to cease hostilities immediately and resume peace talks in the Sudanese
capital, Khartoum.

The third round of peace talks, to focus on security and power-sharing,
were slated to begin in October but then postponed after both sides
came with preconditions. They were then scheduled to resume this month.

Today’s statement added that Mr. Annan was particularly concerned
about “continuous reports of the involvement of foreign forces in the
current conflict,” and he called on all nations to respect Somalia’s
sovereignty and territorial integrity.

In a
<"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2006/sc8927.doc.htm">presidential statement issued today, the Council also voiced its concern about
the situation, and urged both the UIC and the TFIs to “refrain from
any actions that could provoke or perpetuate violence and violations of
human rights, contribute to unnecessary tension and mistrust, endanger
the ceasefire and political process, or further damage the humanitarian
situation.”

The 15-member body stressed that the Transitional Federal Charter
offers “the only route to achieving peace and stability in Somalia,” an
impoverished nation in the Horn of Africa region. The charter
emphasizes the need for institutions to be broad-based and widely representative
and for any political process to be inclusive.
2006-12-22 00:00:00.000

UN AND OTHER MEMBERS OF DIPLOMATIC ‘QUARTET’ BACK CONTINUED AID TO
PALESTINIANS

Dec 22 2006 7:00PM
Members of the diplomatic ‘Quartet’ on the Middle East – the
United Nations, the United States, the Russian Federation and the European
Union (EU) – today endorsed the continuation of a stop-gap measure
for providing aid directly to the Palestinian people.

In a statement, the Quartet backed the continuation for three months of
the Temporary International Mechanism, the means devised by the EU and
the World Bank to provide aid directly to the Palestinian people by
bypassing the Hamas-led Government, which has been isolated
internationally because it has not renounced violence and does not recognize Israel.

After the three-month period, the Quartet said it would “again review
the need for such a mechanism.”

Commending the World Bank and EU efforts to facilitate needs-based
assistance directly to the Palestinian people through the Mechanism, the
Quartet encouraged donors to “respond to humanitarian and other
assistance requests by international organizations, especially UN agencies,
active in the West Bank and Gaza.”
2006-12-22 00:00:00.000

ANNAN HOPEFUL OF SUDANESE GREEN LIGHT TO DEPLOYMENT OF HYBRID
UN FORCE

Dec 22 2006 7:00PM
Secretary-General Kofi Annan said today he was hopeful Sudanese
President Omar el-Bashir would indicate as early as tomorrow that he has
agreed to a full ceasefire in the war-torn Darfur region and to the eventual
deployment of a hybrid force of United Nations and African Union (AU)
peacekeepers.

In his
<"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2006/sgsm10813.doc.htm">farewell speech to the Security Council before he leaves office at the end
of the month, Mr. Annan said he “fervently hope[s] that we are now at
last close to rescuing the people of Darfur from their agony.”

Earlier this week he dispatched a senior envoy, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah,
to Khartoum for talks with Mr. el-Bashir and other senior Sudanese
Government ministers to clarify details of two recent agreements on how to
end the widespread suffering in Darfur.
Since 2003, more than 200,000 people have been killed and 2 million
others forced to flee their homes to escape fighting between Government
forces, allied militias and rebel groups seeking greater autonomy. An
estimated 4 million people now depend on outside humanitarian aid.

Mr. Annan told the Council that the reports he has received from Mr.
Ould-Abdallah “encourage me to think we may tomorrow receive a green
light from President Bashir for a full ceasefire, a renewed effort to
bring all parties into the political process, and deployment of the
proposed hybrid African Union-United Nations force to protect the
population.”

But the Secretary-General cautioned that it was important to wait to
see the letter from Mr. el-Bashir that Mr. Ould-Abdallah will bring with
him when he returns to New York.

“After so many disappointments I take nothing for granted. What I do
know is that the Council will work, ably helped by my successor [Ban
Ki-moon], on these and many other crises.”

At last month’s High-Level meeting on Darfur, held in the Ethiopian
capital, Addis Ababa, the UN, the AU and Sudan agreed that the UN would
provide extra support to the current AU peacekeeping mission – known
as AMIS – as part of a three-phase process culminating in AMIS
becoming a hybrid UN-AU mission.

The hybrid force is expected to have about 17,000 troops and 3,000
police officers, compared to the current AMIS strength of around 7,000.

Mr. Ould-Abdallah and Mr. el-Bashir also discussed the outcome of a
subsequent AU Peace and Security Council meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, which
endorsed the conclusions reached in Addis Ababa.
2006-12-22 00:00:00.000

DEPARTING ANNAN LAUDS SECURITY COUNCIL FOR EFFORTS TO RESOLVE OR
PREVENT CRISES

Dec 22 2006 8:00PM
Although some international crises continue to rage, many others have
been peacefully resolved, show signs of ending or were prevented from
even taking place thanks to the efforts of the Security Council,
departing Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the 15-member body today.

In his
<"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2006/sgsm10813.doc.htm">final address to the Council ahead of his retirement on 31 December after
10 years as Secretary-General, Mr. Annan said it had been his privilege
to work with its members, “both in success and in failure,” to try
to fulfil the UN’s stated duty to “save succeeding generations from
the scourge of war.”

Mr. Annan said the Council’s work has strengthened over the past
decade, giving the Secretariat more coherent and more robust mandates,
following up their decisions with greater vigilance, and more often
matching the enhanced mandates with close to the necessary resources.

“While change for the worse is often dramatic, change for the better
is generally incremental,” he said. “Many conflicts have been
peacefully resolved. Many have been at least brought under control, with
hope of better times on the horizon. And I believe – though this is much
harder to prove – that many have been prevented.”

Noting the ongoing fragility of the Middle East and the humanitarian
suffering in Darfur as two examples of continuing crises, he warned that
there was no room for complacency.

“We have all learned, from some bitter experiences, that we cannot
afford to take governments’ word for it when they assure us that all is
well in their country, or that they have the situation under control.

“We have also learned that the Council needs to be fully briefed on
issues of human rights, since gross violations of these not only occur
during conflict but are often harbingers of it.”

Later, Council members paid tribute to Mr. Annan by adopting by
acclamation a resolution acknowledging his contribution to international
peace, security and development.

Ambassador Nassir Abdulaziz al-Nasser of Qatar, which holds the
rotating Council presidency, then read a
<"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2006/sc8922.doc.htm">statement on
behalf of members expressing their appreciation for Mr. Annan.
2006-12-22 00:00:00.000

UN RELEASES RULES ON OIL-FOR-FOOD INQUIRY DOCUMENTS TO HELP STATES
STILL INVESTIGATING

Dec 22 2006 8:00PM
To facilitate continuing investigations by Member States into the
findings of the Independent Inquiry Committee (IIC) that examined the
scandal-ridden Iraq Oil-for-Food Programme, the United Nations today released
rules regarding the management, preservation and use of the myriad
documents and files produced by the Committee.

The 27 October final report of the Committee, under its former head
Paul Volcker, revealed a network of kickbacks and surcharges involving
companies registered in a large number of countries and Secretary-General
Kofi Annan called on Member States to take action against illegal
practices by companies under their jurisdiction.

Also in response to the report, the Secretary-General instituted a
number of reforms aimed at promoting greater transparency and
accountability across the UN system.
2006-12-22 00:00:00.000

UN AGENCY UPGRADES COMMUNICATIONS TO KICK-START AID RESPONSE TO
DISASTERS

Dec 22 2006 3:00PM
In a fast moving world that is increasingly struck by disasters, where
speedy communications can make the difference between life and death,
the United Nations World Food Programme
(<"http://www.wfp.org/english/?n=31">WFP) has teamed up with The Vodafone
Group Foundation (VGF) to enhance the humanitarian response to global
emergencies.

“When an emergency hits, technological support is critical in
kick-starting the disaster response initiative because being able to
communicate not only enables us to plan, prepare and provide humanitarian relief
as quickly as possible, but mostly saves lives,” WFP Director of
Information and Communications Technologies Ernesto Baca said.

Under the partnership a joint donation of $832,000 from VGF and the UN
Foundation is being used to train information and communications
technology (ICT) team leaders and technicians, develop new WFP technology and
best practices, and update the agency’s deployment technologies and
technical standards.

This funding will support UN emergency response teams around the world
and significantly affect the way the entire humanitarian community
copes with disasters.

“Communications technologies have become critical to every phase of
emergency response for the UN and we’re pleased to partner with the
World Food Programme as it continues to use these technologies to save
lives around the world,” UN Foundation President Timothy E. Wirth said.

“We’re proud that our partnership with The Vodafone Group
Foundation can foster public-private partnerships that pair valuable corporate
resources, knowledge, and experience with the lifesaving work of the
UN.”

VFG Director Andrew Dunnett noted that strengthening communications
resources for emergency response teams are essential in enhancing relief
operations.

“Vodafone Group Foundation has a long term commitment to this work
and we are pleased to be scaling this up with WFP,” he said.

WFP takes the lead role for the UN in emergencies for food, security,
communications and logistics. Amid devastation in almost every corner of
the globe – from the massive Indian Ocean tsunami to the drought and
locust infestation in Africa, the earthquake in Kashmir, the hurricanes
that have battered Central America, and the floods across Europe and
Asia, WFP is pivotal in ensuring rapid communications that save lives and
livelihoods.
2006-12-22 00:00:00.000

ASIA-PACIFIC ENVIRONMENT AT BOILING POINT; GREEN GROWTH CRUCIAL, UN
REPORT WARNS

Dec 22 2006 1:00PM
Asian and Pacific societies are already living beyond their ecological
means, and if they are to continue their much-needed economic
expansion, they will have to shift towards efficient ‘green growth’
patterns, according to a new United Nations report released today.

Meeting human development needs based on current ‘grow first, clean
up later’ economic growth patterns is likely to result in mounting
ecological problems, according to the latest regional State of the
Environment <"http://www.unescap.org/unis/press/2006/dec/g61.asp">report
published by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
(UNESCAP).

Problems cited include a population density 1.5 times the global
average, the lowest freshwater availability per capita of all global regions,
a biologically productive area per capita that is less than 60 per cent
of the global average, and arable and permanent crop land per capita
that is less than 80 per cent the global average.

Meanwhile several highly polluting industries are growing more rapidly
in regional developing countries than in regional developed countries,
agro-industry is highly chemical-, energy- and water-intensive and, as
incomes increase, lifestyles are becoming increasingly waste- and
energy- intensive.

While plantation forests advance, natural forests are retreating,
especially in South-East Asia, water extraction rates are already
unsustainably high in at least 16 countries and irrigation systems, the biggest
user of water, are highly inefficient and poorly maintained in most
countries.

The long term sustainability of the water supply is further threatened
by climate change, which may increase the severity and incidence of
drought and cause long-term reductions in water flows in freshwater
systems dependent on glacier melt.

The report stresses that more economic growth is needed and inevitable,
as nearly 670 million people are living on less than $1 a day, 665
million have no access to improved drinking water but countries must meet
the series of looming development challenges.

Countries in South Asia, over 40 per cent of the region’s population,
will face some of the toughest issues in coming decades as population
growth, changing water regimes and climates, and rising demand for
energy, water and other necessities all come to a head.

The report finds that, on the one hand, pollution control in production
is becoming more effective and market forces are pushing firms towards
greater resource efficiency as the prices of natural resources spiral
upwards. On the other hand, as incomes increase and as globalization
spreads, consumption patterns become less environmentally sustainable,
making more eco-efficient consumption crucial.
2006-12-22 00:00:00.000

Posted by Bill at 06:33 PM | Permalink

options

Dec 22

We are Marshall

Based on true events, “We Are Marshall” tells the inspiring story of how a small town in West Virginia struggled to cope with a devastating loss and restore their community after one of the worst disasters in the history of American sports.

On the evening of Saturday, November 14, 1970, a chartered jet carrying Marshall University’s football team, coaches and fans, was on its way home from a hard-fought game in North Carolina. Less than a minute before its scheduled landing at Tri-State Airport, the plane crashed in the Appalachian Mountains, killing everyone aboard: 37 players, eight coaches and university staff, the flight crew, and 25 prominent Huntington citizens who had made the trip as they always did to cheer their “Thundering Herd.”

In the aftermath of this stunning tragedy, university president Dedmon (DAVID STRATHAIRN) prepared to suspend the school’s football program for the season—perhaps indefinitely. Assistant coach Red Dawson (MATTHEW FOX), who narrowly missed the ill-fated flight, couldn’t face going back onto the field.

But in Huntington, Marshall football has always been more than a sport: it’s a way of life.

And this town would rally to save it.

After some initial setbacks, they found hope and strength in the leadership of outsider Jack Lengyel (MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY), a young coach determined to rebuild Marshall’s football program and, in the process, help to heal the community.

Less than a year later, on September 18, 1971, Marshall University’s brand new Thundering Herd was poised to stage one of the greatest comebacks in collegiate sports. A raw, youthful and inexperienced squad, patched together under the guidance of Lengyel and Dawson, they would defy overwhelming odds just to march onto the gridiron for the school’s first game since the accident.

Directed by...................................................McG

Screenplay by........................................JAMIE LINDEN

Story by................................CORY HELMS & JAMIE LINDEN

Produced by..........................................BASIL IWANYK

McG

Executive Producers................................BRENT O’CONNOR

JEANNE ALLGOOD

THOMAS TULL

SCOTT MEDNICK

WILLIAM FAY

Director of Photography.....................SHANE HURLBUT, A.S.C.

Production Designer.....................................TOM MEYER

Edited by.........................PRISCILLA NEDD FRIENDLY, A.C.E.

GREGG LONDON

Music by..........................................CHRISTOPHE BECK

Co-Producers.........................................JAMIE LINDEN

MARY VIOLA

Costumes Designed by................................DANNY GLICKER

Casting by.........................KIM DAVIS and JUSTINE BADDELEY

Unit Production Manager............................BRENT O'CONNOR

First Assistant Director............................RICHARD COWAN

Second Assistant Director....................DAVID "MUDDY" WATERS

CAST

Jack Lengyel..................................MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY

Red Dawson............................................MATTHEW FOX

Nate Ruffin........................................ANTHONY MACKIE

President Dedmon.................................DAVID STRATHAIRN

Paul Griffen..........................................IAN McSHANE

Annie Cantrell..........................................KATE MARA

Carole Dawson.......................................JANUARY JONES

Sandy Lengyel...........................KIMBERLY WILLIAMS-PAISLEY

Reggie Oliver.....................................ARLEN ESCARPETA

Tom Bogdan.........................................BRIAN GERAGHTY

Gene Morehouse....................................TOMMY CRESSWELL

Young Keith Morehouse...........................CHRISTIAN KANUPKE

Mrs. Morehouse.........................................NINA JONES

George Olson.........................................KEVIN ATKINS

Bill James............................................MARK PATTON

Randy Linden.......................................HUNTLEY RITTER

Lloyd Boone............................................BRETT RICE

Peter Lengyel......................................DALTON POLSTON

David Lengyel..............................ANDREW WILSON WILLIAMS

Julie Lengyel.......................................ELLIE ZELLERS

Ernie Salvatore.......................................MARK OLIVER

Lucas Booth..........................................BRIAN BEEGLE

Mickey Jackson....................................L. WARREN YOUNG

Hutch Davis...........................................DAVID DWYER

Chris Griffen...........................................WES BROWN

Bobby Bowden........................................MIKE PNIEWSKI

Danny..............................................CAFABIAN HEARD

Katie..................................................MANDY BEST

Jane...............................................NIKKY WILLIAMS

Julie..........................................LAURA-SHAY GRIFFIN

Ticket Taker.......................................KATIE KNEELAND

President's Secretary...........................ELISABETH OMILAMI

Man In The Rain......................................SCOTT HILLEY

Diner Student #1...................................ANDREW DiPALMA

Diner Student #2.....................................JEFF ADELMAN

Steel Worker.........................................DOLAN WILSON

Airport Booster #1....................................BILLY WOODS

Doris Stillwell....................................SHARALENE KILE

Gas Station Attendant..................................BILL CRABB

Man In The Car At The Theater........................PHILLIP IVEY

Fireman #1......................................WILBUR FITZGERALD

Barrier Policeman...................................JODY THOMPSON

Father...............................................DAVID RAMSEY

Mrs. Shaw...........................................RHODA GRIFFIS

Blake Smith.........................................BILLY BENNETT

Mr. Booth..........................................PATRICK PARKER

Beer Freshman..........................................JOEY NAPPO

W.V. Player.......................................MICHAEL DiFIORE

Xavier #19.........................................MAURICE BRYANT

Referee...............................................TIM CROWLEY

Janitor.................................................DON YOUNG

Trainer..................................................ALEX VAN

Jim McNally.....................................RON CLINTON SMITH

Steven Morehouse....................................TABER LATHROP

Freshman #1...........................................JAKE COOPER

Freshman #2........................................WILLIAM GORMAN

Freshman #3..........................................ANAIAH PETTY

Fireman #2...........................................JEFF PORTELL

Gail Morehouse......................................ALYSSA CAPUTO

Keith Morehouse...................................KEITH MOREHOUSE

Baseball Catcher.....................................MIKE RIBAUDO

Baseball Runner......................................BOBBY JORDAN

Terry Gardner........................................DOCK POLLARD

Player #3............................................BERT BEATSON

Player #4......................................BOBBY JON DRINKARD

Marshall #51...........................................RYAN SLOTH

Shalhoop.............................................BRENT GARBER

Game Announcer.........................................STEVE BARR

Stunt Coordinator......................................MARK ELLIS

Stunts..............................................DONALD MALLOY

ANDY ROLAND

LUKE POWELL

BRIAN GREENE

AARON ROSTENBACH BOONE

RECARDO WIMBUSH

NYLE WIREN

MARK WIGAL

Associate Producer................................ADOLFO MARTINEZ

Production Supervisor......................KELLY HELSTROM-MAXWELL

Art Director......................................JONAH MARKOWITZ

Assistant Art Director..............................THOMAS MINTON

Set Decorator.........................................MEG EVERIST

Art Department Coordinator.........................BRENDA FINDLEY

Lead.............................................DANIEL B. FOSTER

On Set Dresser.....................................JAMES BROTHERS

Set Designer.........................................MICHAEL WARD

Assistant Editors...................................MICHEL MARKUS

SHAUN APRAHAMIAN

LEE GRUBIN

ODIS McKINNEY

JOE BINFORD

Post Production Supervisor.........................CAROL DANTUONO

Script Supervisor.....................................GAIL HUNTER

Camera Operators................................ROBERTO DeANGELISPAUL VARRIEUR

GARY HATFIELD

STEPHEN ANDRICH

First Assistant Camera................................GLENN BROWN

ROB ROBINSON

Second Assistant Camera............................BRUCE ROBINSON

JOSH HANCHER

Video Playback.........................................GREG MORSE

Camera Department Assistant..........................PO KING CHAN

Production Sound Mixer.................................MARY ELLIS

Boom Operator.........................................DREW PONDER

Cable................................................JOSE SANCHEZ

Costume Supervisor...................................NANCY CAPPER

Dresser for Mr. McConaughey...........................DREW FULLER

Additional Wardrobe................................DANIELLA MOORE

LAYNE BRIGHTWELL

DANIEL GEORGE

Mr. McConaughey's Hairstylist.........................LOUISE MOON

Hair Department Head..............................JOANI YARBROUGH

Key Hairstylist..............................PHILLIP "MR. P" IVEY

Hairstylists.......................................BRYAN WHISNANT

TAYLOR KNIGHT

Make-up Department Head................................SARAH MAYS

Key Make-up.........................................DONNA PREMICK

Make-up Artists......................................SUSAN RANSOM

TERESA FOSHEE

Chief Lighting Technician............................DAN CORNWALL

Assistant Chief Lighting Technician...................DALE FOWLER

Rigging Gaffer....................................STEPHEN CROWLEY

Key Grip.............................................ROBERT KEMPF

Best Boy Grip........................................RIKO SCHATKE

Dolly Grip..........................................TRIPP PAIR II

Special Effects Coordinator........................DAVID FLETCHER

Special Effects........................................TOM KITTLE

2nd 2nd Assistant Director.......................HILLARY SCHWARTZ

Production Office Coordinator..........................DAY PERMUY

Assistant Production Office Coordinator...........TAKINA HOLLOMAN

Production Secretary..........................MICHAEL HOLDERFIELD

Production Accountant............................KATHERINE ZASLAW

Assistant Production Accountant...............TAFFY SCHWEICKHARDT

Assistant to McG.....................................ANDY SHAPIRO

Assistant to Mr. Iwanyk.................................ERICA LEE

Assistant to Mr. O'Connor...........................FLAVIA TOLEDO

Assistant to Ms. Allgood...........................ERICA ARBELAEZ

Assistant to Mr. McConaughey..........................JOHN CHANEY

Marshall University Consultant................DR. H. KEITH SPEARS

Location Manager..................................JOHN H. FINDLEY

W.V. Location Manager................................LAURA BRYANT

Assistant Location Managers..........................SCOTT MARTIN

TONY HOLLEY

Property Master.............................DWIGHT BENJAMIN-CREEL

Assistant Prop Master...............................SHAWN M. GRAY

Construction Coordinator.............................CURTIS CROWE

Transportation Coordinator...........................CINDY PARKER

Transportation Captain................................J.L. PARKER

Craft Service...................................STEPHANIE MORALES

ZACH KANE

PATRICK MORALES

Catering...................................SHOOTING STAR CATERING

Staff Assistants....................................SARAH DOCKSEY

JASON UNDERWOOD

JEREMY THOMAS

TERRY ZINN

TODD HAVERN

CHARLIE SPAHT

REBECCA CAMPBELL

CRAIG TOLLIS

MATTHEW SAKATA

CHAD CORK

KACEE PECUE

Extras Casting.....................................PATRICK INGRAM

Casting Associate......................................CATE ENGEL

Unit Publicist........................................ERNIE MALIK

Still Photographer.....................................FRANK MASI

Teacher.............................................ROSANNE STARK

Sound Design and Supervision.....................CAMERON FRANKLEY

Re-Recording Mixers..................................RON BARTLETT

D.M. HEMPHILL

1st Assistant Sound Editor...........................JON MICHAELS

Supervising ADR Editor.................................PETRA BACH

Supervising Foley Editor..........................RYAN B. JUGGLER

Assistant Sound Editor............................WARREN HENDRIKS

Dialogue Editors.....................................DOUG JACKSONJESSICA DICKSON

HELEN LUTTRELL

Sound Designer........................................AI-LING LEE

Sound Effects Editors..............................RANDALL KELLEY

ROLAND THAI, M.P.S.E.

Foley Artists....................................ALICIA STEVENSONDAWN FINTOR

Foley Mixer......................................DAVID BETANCOURT

Location Effects Mixer............................JOHN PAUL FASAL

ADR Mixers....................................THOMAS J. O'CONNELL

DOC KANE

TROY PORTER

GREG CRAWFORD

Visual Effects Supervisor.........................THOMAS J. SMITH

Visual Effects Producer..........................MELISSA BROCKMAN

Visual Effects by CIS.................................DAN KAUFMANDAVID REY

HEATHER ELISA HILL

ERIC PENDER

CHRISTOPHER RYAN

JASON WARDLE

RANDY BROWN

KAMA MOIHA

MATT WILSON

JAYNI BORGARO

LARRY GAYNOR

JOSH JOHNSON

KRISTINE LANKENAU

GREG SHIMP

Main Title Sequence Designed by.......IMAGINARY FORCES/KARIN FONG

Negative Cutter..........................................MO HENRY

Digital Intermediate by.....................................EFILM

D.I. Colorist.........................................STEVE BOWEN

Supervising Music Editor....................FERNAND BOS, M.P.S.E.

Music Editors........................................RICK ZIEGLER

STEVE GRIFFEN

KEVIN GLOBERMAN

Score Recorded and Mixed by...........................CASEY STONE

Orchestra Conducted by...............................PETE ANTHONY

Orchestrations......................................KEVIN KLIESCH

Additional Orchestrations...............................ADAM BLAU

JOHN THOMAS

"Sons of Marshall"

Performed by The Marshall University Marching ThunderCourtesy of Marshall University

"Cracklin' Rosie"

Written by Neil DiamondPerformed by Neil DiamondCourtesy of Geffen RecordsUnder license from Universal Music Enterprises

"If You Could Read My Mind"

Written by Gordon LightfootPerformed by Gordon LightfootCourtesy of Warner Bros. Records, Inc.

By arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV Licensing

"Draggin' The Line"

Written by Tommy James and Robert KingPerformed by Tommy JamesCourtesy of Rhino Entertainment CompanyBy arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV Licensing

"Lookin' Out My Back Door"

Written by John FogertyPerformed by Creedence Clearwater RevivalCourtesy of Fantasy RecordsUnder license from Concord Music Group, Inc.

"The Love You Save"

Written by Berry Gordy, Alphonso Mizell, Freddie Perrenand Deke Richards

Performed by Jackson 5Courtesy of Motown RecordsUnder license from Universal Music Enterprises

"Suite: Judy Blue Eyes"

Written by Stephen StillsPerformed by Crosby, Stills & NashCourtesy of Atlantic Recording Corp.

By arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV Licensing

"Peace Train"

Written by Yusuf IslamPerformed by Cat StevensCourtesy of Universal-Island Records Ltd.

Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

"The Good, The Bad and The Ugly"

Written by Ennio Morricone

"Groove Me"

Written by King FloydPerformed by King FloydCourtesy of Malaco Records

"Paranoid"

Written by John Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Terence Butlerand William Ward

Performed by Black SabbathLicensed Courtesy of Downlane Limited and Sanctuary RecordsGroup Limited

"Ventura Highway"

Written by Dewey BunnellPerformed by AmericaCourtesy of Warner Bros. Records, Inc.

By arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV Licensing

NBC News Archives

"The Newlywed Game" licensed by Sony Pictures TelevisionWest Virginia and Regional History CollectionWest Virginia University LibrariesCORBIS

The Herald-Dispatch

Made With Assistance From "The Georgia Film, Video AndMusic Office, A Division Of The Georgia Department OfEconomic Development"

Camera Dollies by CHAPMAN/LEONARD STUDIO EQUIPMENT, INC.

Filmed with PANAVISION ® Cameras and Lenses

Color by TECHNICOLOR ®

KODAK Motion Picture Products

FUJIFILM Motion Picture Products

DOLBY Digital (logo) DTS Digital (logo) SDDS (logo)

Approved #43100 (emblem)

Motion Picture Association of America

(IATSE LABEL)

This motion picture

© 2006 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Story and Screenplay

© 2006 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Original Score

© 2006 Warner-Hollywood Music, LLC

The Producers Wish to Thank:

Marshall UniversityThe State of West Virginia

In memory of the 75 men and women who perished in theMarshall plane crash on November 14, 1970.

Warner Bros. Distribution Closing Cloud Shield Logo

Based on true events, “We Are Marshall” tells the inspiring story of how a small town in

West Virginia struggled to cope with a devastating loss and restore their community after one of

the worst disasters in the history of American sports.

On the evening of Saturday, November 14, 1970, a chartered jet carrying Marshall

University’s football team, coaches and fans, was on its way home from a hard-fought game in

North Carolina. Less than a minute before its scheduled landing at Tri-State Airport, the plane

crashed in the Appalachian Mountains, killing everyone aboard: 37 players, eight coaches and

university staff, the flight crew, and 25 prominent Huntington citizens who had made the trip as

they always did to cheer their “Thundering Herd.”

In the aftermath of this stunning tragedy, university president Donald Dedmon (DAVID

STRATHAIRN) prepared to suspend the school’s football program for the season—perhaps

indefinitely. Assistant coach Red Dawson (MATTHEW FOX), who narrowly missed the ill-

fated flight, couldn’t face going back onto the field.

But in Huntington, Marshall football has always been more than a sport: it’s a way of life.

And this town would rally to save it.

After some initial setbacks, they found hope and strength in the leadership of outsider

Jack Lengyel (MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY), a young coach determined to rebuild Marshall’s

football program and, in the process, help to heal the community.

Less than a year later, on September 18, 1971, Marshall University’s brand new

Thundering Herd was poised to stage one of the greatest comebacks in collegiate sports. A raw,

youthful and inexperienced squad, patched together under the guidance of Lengyel and Dawson,

they would defy overwhelming odds just to march onto the gridiron for the school’s first game

since the accident.

That season, it didn’t matter whether Marshall won or lost. It didn’t even matter how

they played the game. All that mattered was that they played.

Warner Bros. Pictures presents, in association with Legendary Pictures, a Thunder Road

Film/Wonderland Sound and Vision production of a McG Film, “We Are Marshall,” starring

Matthew McConaughey (“Failure to Launch”), Matthew Fox (ABC’s “Lost”), Ian McShane

(Golden Globe Award winner, “Deadwood”), Anthony Mackie (“Million Dollar Baby”), Kate

Mara (“Brokeback Mountain”), January Jones (“The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada”),

Brian Geraghty (“Jarhead”) and David Strathairn (Oscar nominee, “Good Night, and Good

Luck.”).

“We Are Marshall” is directed by McG (the “Charlie’s Angels” films), from a screenplay

by Jamie Linden, story by Cory Helms & Jamie Linden. It is produced by Basil Iwanyk

(“Firewall”) and McG, with Brent O’Connor (“Scooby Doo 2”), Jeanne Allgood, Thomas Tull

(“Superman Returns”) and Scott Mednick (“Superman Returns”) serving as executive producers.

The creative behind-the-scenes team includes director of photography Shane Hurlbut

(“Drumline”), production designer Tom Meyer (“A Lot Like Love”), and editors Priscilla Nedd

Friendly (“Stuart Little 2”) and Gregg London. Music is by Emmy Award winner Christophe

Beck (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”). Costumes designed by Danny Glicker (“Transamerica”).

Score album on Varese Sarabande CDs.

Rated PG for “emotional thematic material, a crash scene and mild language.”

“We Are Marshall” will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner

Bros. Entertainment Company.

For more information, please visit www.wearemarshall-themovie.com

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

Honoring the Past, Building the Future

“‘We Are Marshall’ isn’t about a plane crash, or the evolution of a football team; it’s

about what happens to people who are handed a horrific loss and how they deal with it and

recover,” says producer Basil Iwanyk. “The restoration of the team and the football program at

Marshall, while true, becomes a metaphor for what’s happening in this small community where

so many lives are inter-connected.”

Barely six months old when the Marshall accident occurred, Iwanyk never felt its

headline-making impact and was only marginally aware of it as an adult, as part of sports history.

“I knew about the crash but didn’t know what happened afterwards,” he says. While researching

material for another potential sports-related project for his production company, Thunder Road,

he uncovered reports about the Marshall crash. His interest was piqued by accounts of the heroic

rebuilding efforts undertaken by the school and the Huntington community following the sudden

loss of so many of their loved ones, and realized that’s where the real story was.

Discovering that the only film record of the event was a little-known 2000 West Virginia

Public Television documentary, “Ashes to Glory,” Iwanyk says he felt strongly that, “This was a

story begging to be told.”

Screenwriter Jamie Linden became involved through an indirect connection to Marshall’s

assistant coach Red Dawson, who missed the fatal flight. Linden attended Florida State

University, Dawson’s alma mater and the school where the Hall of Fame gridiron star first made

a name for himself in the 1960s before becoming a coach. In 2000, on the 30-year anniversary

of the plane crash, the FSU student newspaper ran a commemorative article on Dawson, which

stirred Linden to delve deeper into the historic event.

“When I read the piece I was struck by the fact that I had never heard about what

happened to the Marshall team,” says Linden. “I was born after the crash. People of my parents’

generation may remember it, but it seems to have fallen out of public consciousness since then.”

Director Joseph McGinty Nichol, who goes by the moniker McG (“Charlie’s Angels” and

“Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle”), had a similar emotional reaction to the story, which he was

also hearing for the first time. “I’ve always been attracted to dramatic stories and this is one of

the most compelling I’ve ever come across. It’s about survival and what’s right with the human

condition.”

The facts alone hold such natural poignancy and drama, and so many moments of honest

inspiration that there was little need for embellishment. Says McG, “So much of what actually

happened is so unbelievable that if it wasn’t based on a true story you would assume it was pure

Hollywood hyperbole.”

One perfect example, near the end of the film, is a climactic last-minute pass in a football

game played by the newly formed Thundering Herd against rivals Xavier—only the second

game of their comeback season in 1971. “The way that game ends is nothing short of amazing,”

says Iwanyk. “It seems like a screenwriter’s fantasy, but is, in fact, a faithful reenactment of that

historic game. So many people in Huntington remember it, to this day, and for good reason.”

“We Are Marshall” has many such moments. As Linden acknowledges, the hardest part

of preparing the script was deciding what to leave out. “We worked hard to tell as many stories

as possible. This tragedy affected a whole town: a team, a school, a coaching staff, and their

families, friends and neighbors. By far, my toughest challenge was accepting that there were so

many individual details we had to omit. It actually kept me up nights. Editing is always hard,

but, with this movie, it was particularly painful because it wasn’t ‘material’ we were dealing

with—it was real people, and each of their stories is worthy.”

The screenwriter offers a glimpse into the myriad unpredictable ways this one event

touched so many Huntington families. “The team’s equipment manager, John Hagan, was

supposed to be on the plane but drove to Greenville instead, because the flight down was on

Friday the 13th, and he was superstitious. Eddie Carter, home to attend his father’s funeral,

missed the game and the flight, which saved his life. The team’s sophomore kicker, Marcelo

Lajterman, had secretly married his girlfriend, Mary Ellen Cook, and was planning to announce

the news at a party that Saturday night, but died on the flight before he had the chance.

“One of the most heartbreaking stories,” Linden continues, “was about two couples on

the plane, friends who were godparents to each other’s children. One couple had four children

and the other, five. Including those nine kids, when that plane went down, a total of 18 children

in that small town were orphaned. And there are so many stories like that. It was impossible to

fit them all in, but I think the stories that we did tell do a good job of representing the whole.

The sentiment is authentic and we had a lot of people on hand to keep it honest.”

Following the tragedy, there arose the question of whether or not to restore Marshall’s

decimated football program, with cogent and emotionally charged opinions on either side.

Says McG, “If we’ve done our job properly, audiences will understand the value of

moving forward with the program and, at the same time, the reasons for not moving forward with

it. They’re both valid positions. I believe there’s a natural spirit that takes over after a loss that

makes some people want to get back in right away and do something positive—in this case,

rebuild the team and play again. But if you look at it from the other side, you have to think that

every time the sounds of a football game echoed down the main streets of Huntington, mothers

would only be reminded of the sons they lost.”

“Either way,” offers Iwanyk, “it’s impossible to pass judgment on any of these people.”

“Life happens,” says Matthew McConaughey, who stars as Coach Lengyel. “The choice

then becomes how you deal with it, how you heal and move on. Everyone does it differently but

the important thing is to take that first step. You may not be sure where your foot’s going to

land, but you still have to take that step. That’s why this is such a powerful story; there is pain

and loss, but then, just to get back onto that field, just to put your shoes on in the morning and go

back to school or work is a way to start healing.”

McConaughey drew on personal experience for one insightful comment he makes as

Lengyel, in a scene where Dawson is questioning the sense of leading a losing team. Not a line

from Linden’s original script, it was a quote from McConaughey’s friend, University of Texas’

famed football coach Daryl K. Royal: “If you step out onto that field and lay it all out there, if

you give it everything you’ve got, then we cannot lose. We may be behind on the scoreboard by

the end of the game, but we cannot be defeated.”

As McG sees it, that comment, which represents McConaughey’s own driving

philosophy, “meshes perfectly with the theme of ‘We Are Marshall.’ It’s a beautiful, life-

affirming perspective, and the central idea of the film.”

Each Person Copes in His Own Way: Casting Real-life Roles and Some Composites

Jack Lengyel was considered by many to be the right man at the right time.

Matthew McConaughey spent time with the former coach in preparation for portraying

him, and describes Lengyel’s formidable influence in Western movie terms. “He was the

outsider who rode in with his own plan; he was a little unorthodox, but it was an unorthodox

situation. There isn’t a how-to book for coaches who lose an entire team. What he did was get

people to deal with reality and the present, step-by-step and play-by-play. He wasn’t reaching

for a good season but for a good day’s practice, then a week, then maybe a month. His goal was

just to take the field and they could worry about wins and losses later—and in the process, he

inspired morale.”

McG feels it was Lengyel’s outsider status that best served the situation, allowing him to

be compassionate but detached, respectful of the communal grief but not immobilized by it. “As

he wasn’t personally connected to the crash, he had the freedom to focus on rebuilding.”

“I’ve been looking to play a great character like this for years—a teacher, a coach, a

father,” says McConaughey. “To find a part like this, with a story so moving and exciting and

uplifting, and then to know that it’s not fiction, it was truly amazing. As soon as I finished the

script I knew I wanted to be a part of it, and then almost immediately afterwards I got in touch

with Jack Lengyel and immersed myself in the history, which I knew nothing about.”

Lengyel, who served as an advisor on the film, explains why he wanted the daunting

coaching job. Watching the drama unfold in the news from his coaching post at The College of

Wooster in Ohio, he felt, at the time, that the sport had afforded him a college coaching career

and this was “an opportunity to pay back what football had given to me, to give something back

by helping a school that really had some major problems. I felt I could help rebuild the football

program.”

It is a heartfelt commitment McConaughey fully embraced in his portrayal. “One of the

joys of watching Matthew in this role is how he brings such genuine passion to it,” says McG.

“You understand that Lengyel was a guy who was thrilled to be on the fresh-cut grass, doing

what he loved most. You feel that in every single take. Matthew was so immersed in this

character, and so prepared, he showed up every day in that mindset and he captured the full

spectrum—not only the philosophy and energy Lengyel brought to Marshall, but uniquely

personal details like his bearing and delivery, his gait, his style of speaking and that high-spirited

hand clap.”

Lengyel himself offered praise for McConaughey’s interpretation, although he did take

exception to one little element, saying, “I don’t think my sideburns were quite that long.”

Matthew Fox, himself a former football star at Columbia University, takes on the role of

Red Dawson, Lengyel’s assistant coach during the rocky 1971 season following the crash, in

which they had to recruit and train nearly an entire team of rookies. Dawson, only 27 at the time

and with just three seasons of coaching experience, had narrowly missed the downed plane and

was left not only with a profound sense of loss but a lingering case of survivor’s guilt. Of the 37

players aboard, 20 were boys Dawson had personally recruited.

“Red has been carrying the weight of that night with him for 36 years, and thinking about

the fact that he wasn’t on that plane,” says Fox. The actor developed a genuine rapport with

Dawson, who served as an advisor during production and even took on a cameo role as a coach

of Huntington rivals Morehead State. “I think that because of who he is, and the responsibility

he took for those kids, it’s been a very difficult thing to deal with and making this movie has

brought up things I believe Red has tried to keep inside.”

McG credits Fox for his ability, “to understand the power of stillness. That was

something specific to the Red Dawson character and I wanted an actor who understood what it

meant to stand tall, do something quietly and powerfully with his eyes, maybe just looking down

the bridge of his nose and communicating something he cannot say.”

In the film, Fox, as Dawson, offers a sentiment that is nearly verbatim what Dawson

himself recently expressed: “I went to 20 houses, sat in 20 living rooms and promised 20

mothers that I would look after their sons. They would have been the class of ’73. Twenty

kids… and not one of them is left. Tell me, how am I supposed to look a mother in the eye and

promise her anything again?”

At the same time, notes Fox, “Red feels an obligation to help rebuild the program and

knows that Lengyel needs him and that, ultimately, takes precedence over his own personal

feelings.” Fox also factored in another element of Dawson’s character, the part of him that never

stopped loving the game. “Talking to Red,” he says, “I got the sense that he was a very intense

guy on the field and the game was very important to him. I’ve been away from it myself for a

long time but I know that feeling.”

Cast as Red Dawson’s wife Carole is January Jones, who found the challenge of her role

was to reconcile the conflicting emotions she believes Carole Dawson must have experienced:

overwhelming joy for her husband’s survival and compassion for friends who were not as lucky.

In a dramatic onscreen moment, Carole is shocked to see Red come home the night of the

crash, having believed him to have perished with the others. Trying to imagine how that would

feel, it was Jones’ instinct, she says, to react physically. “If someone I loved had been taken

from me and then miraculously returned I would just want to pound on him, to feel he was

actually there. So you see me not speaking so much as hitting him, hugging him, making that

intense connection to confirm that he’s alive and he’s in my arms.”

Like Dawson, varsity player Nate Ruffin also missed the flight and suffered considerable

survivor’s guilt. Sidelined by a forearm injury, the 20-year-old defensive back had remained

behind when his teammates flew to North Carolina.

Ruffin is played by Anthony Mackie, who believes it was partly this sense of guilt that

fueled Ruffin’s relentless energy on the field. “In a situation like that, it’s natural to think ‘those

were my friends, my family, my teammates and I should have been with them. What makes me

so lucky that I wasn’t on that plane?’ Dealing with that creates a lot of pressure, and Nate was

one of those individuals who channeled that pressure into raising himself and his teammates to

another level of performance. That was his survival skill and his therapy.”

Nate Ruffin passed away in 2001, but his family and friends shared their memories of

him with the film company, even inviting Mackie to spend Easter at their home in Huntington.

“He was described by everyone as an old soul,” the actor relates. “He was a wonderful, spirited

person who loved to help people, kind of like the unofficial mayor of Huntington. People spoke

of him with such love, and that was something I wanted to express.”

At the time, not everyone in town was in favor of restoring the team. Some believed the

community should take time out to heal and re-evaluate, some considered it a dishonor to those

who died, and others were so consumed by grief that it just didn’t matter. This mix of emotions

is represented by the composite character Paul Griffen, played by Ian McShane as a widower

who lost his only child in the crash and actively lobbies the university board of directors to

suspend the football program.

“As much as Ian McShane is adept at playing villains,” notes Jamie Linden, “Paul

Griffen is definitely not a villain. There are a lot of people who went into forming that character

and they are as sympathetic and heroic as anyone else in this story. When a tragedy like this

occurs, people handle it differently. There isn’t a right way or a wrong way to grieve.”

The Griffen character is linked to another composite character, cheerleader Annie

Cantrell, played by Kate Mara, who has her own genuine football connections. Mara is the

great-granddaughter of NY Giants founder Timothy Mara, and Pittsburgh Steelers founder Art

Rooney, and often sings the national anthem at Giants home games.

Annie Cantrell represents the experiences of many young women who lost friends or

boyfriends in the crash—in Annie’s case, her fiancée, Chris, Paul Griffen’s son. Mara, who met

with former Marshall cheerleaders during production to get their impressions of that night, tried

to imagine the enormity of such a loss. “What would you do if you lost your fiancée in a plane

crash? Imagine having your whole life planned out and it’s just ripped away from you,” she

says. “I don’t think a person needs to have any interest in football to appreciate this story and be

affected by it. It’s just so moving.”

Meanwhile, amidst the post-crash turmoil and debate over whether or not to proceed with

the football program, as well as the practicalities of how to even accomplish such a thing,

university president Dedmon continued to carry out his increasingly difficult duties.

David Strathairn, who stars as Donald Dedmon, found few newspaper accounts that

mention the late university president, so expanded his research by talking with former school

administrators and Huntington residents who knew him, and ultimately formed in his mind a

picture of “a man who did his best and tried to put people before policy. It seems there were

conflicting opinions about how popular he was at the time, but, in retrospect, Dedmon came to

be lauded and highly respected for his involvement and his efforts.”

Adds McG, “We feel the fundamental goodness in every choice Dedmon makes.”

An outsider like Lengyel, Dedmon was an interim president and an academic with little

knowledge of football. Yet, says Strathairn, “He became inextricably entwined in the lives of the

community. During his brief tenure he had to make a decision about the future of football at this

university and he chose a man whose heart seemed to be in the right place. It was Dedmon’s job

to find a new coach and he came up with Jack Lengyel.”

Mirroring the sentiments of some of Huntington’s citizens hardest hit by the tragedy,

Brian Geraghty brings to life another fictional composite, the character of varsity player Tom

Bogdan. Like Nate Ruffin, Bogdan also missed the flight. But unlike Ruffin, who transforms

his grief into a fierce dedication to the new team, Bogdan is overcome by his loss and guilt.

Says Geraghty, “Bogdan just doesn’t have it in him anymore. For him, it was more than

football, it was a part of his life that he shared with these guys who had become his best friends

and he just didn’t want to be out there on the field without them. It would never be the same.”

Aside from the very few original varsity players who remained, most of the 1971 squad

were beginners, such as the Young Thundering Herd’s quarterback, Reggie Oliver, a real-life

character played by Arlen Escarpeta. Oliver was a Marshall freshman who suddenly became one

of the senior members of the team, as well as one of the first Black NCAA quarterbacks and a

future Marshall Hall of Fame player. His pass to Terry Gardner in the final seconds of

Marshall’s home game against Xavier in September of 1971, in a play that Coach Lengyel had

never used before, propelled fans to their feet with cheers they hadn’t expressed in a long time.

“Reggie Oliver made the choice to stay,” says Escarpeta. “That meant he had to accept a

whole new group of guys on their own merits as teammates and friends. That couldn’t have been

easy, when every number and every position on the field reminds you of someone else.”

Escarpeta and Oliver met when Oliver visited the set to watch the re-enactment of the

climactic play against Xavier, a scene that brought back vivid memories. “I was an 18-year-old

kid from Tuscaloosa,” Oliver says. “I like to think we put some of the first bricks in the wall

after the crash as Marshall rose from the ashes. It was a tough experience to be 18 and go from

being one of the youngest players on the team to one of the oldest, almost in the blink of an eye.”

“Just Get It Right”

“People refer to ‘six degrees of separation,’ but in Huntington it’s more like one or two

degrees,” says David Strathairn. “We met people everywhere who were connected in some way

to these events, who may have lost a parent or a friend or knew someone who had been killed,

and they were so forthcoming with their experiences and memories. There was a lot of sadness

but moments of celebration too, and some excitement that this story, their story, was going to be

told. It provided a kind of energy that we all felt.”

Dawson, who overcame some initial doubts to ultimately participate in bringing “We Are

Marshall” to the screen, revealed this mix of emotions when facing the prospect of watching the

completed film. “I’m really looking forward to it. But I think I’d better be by myself when I

first watch it through; my emotions are still pretty strong.”

Many of those directly affected by the crash still live in Huntington and even now, more

than three decades later, the impact and the aftermath of that night remain crystal clear. It’s a

memory they have protected a long time. As Matthew Fox observes, “When a community

endures this kind of tragedy, along with the grief and pain people feel, I think there’s a sense of

ownership that develops around it and a concern about how outsiders might perceive it. That

may have been somewhat of the reaction when Lengyel first arrived with his optimism and

energy, and it would be the same when word got out that a movie was being made.”

The filmmakers took an honest, sensitive and collaborative approach.

“When you find out who these people are and you understand how they endured and

recovered, why in the world would you not want their cooperation and support, and their

blessing?,” asks Iwanyk. “We didn’t want to let them down.”

Iwanyk and McG met with Jack Lengyel and Red Dawson, and interviewed family

members and former school administrators, making their presence known on campus and around

town well ahead of production. They invited university representatives, plus Lengyel and other

key participants, to preview the script prior to shooting.

“They didn’t need our permission to make this movie, but they wanted it,” confirms Dr.

H. Keith Spears, a former Marshall student and contemporary of classmates lost in the crash.

Now VP for Communications and Marketing at the University, he worked closely with Iwanyk

and McG to coordinate production on campus. “People were in favor of having a movie made

but their only concern was that ‘they just get it right.’ We had three essential parameters: first,

honor those who died; second, respect the people of Huntington and the state of West Virginia;

and third, help us guard the integrity of the university. Marshall was a great institution prior to

the plane crash and it was a great institution after. It is not ‘the university of the plane crash.’”

“It’s a subject that still touches the heart of this community,” adds Huntington native

Keith Morehouse, who was nine years old when he lost his father Gene, the radio announcer who

called all the Thundering Herd games and was on the plane with the team that night. Morehouse

followed in his father’s footsteps, entering the field of broadcasting, and has called Thundering

Herd football and basketball games on television while serving as sports anchor for the local

NBC television affiliate. He met his future wife, Deb Hagley, while the two attended Marshall

University. During their courtship, Morehouse recognized her surname as that of team doctor

Ray Hagley, who died on the plane with his wife, Shirley.

“After our initial conversations it was obvious to us that the filmmakers wanted the same

things we did. They were serious,” says Spears. “Jamie’s script was on target and it portrayed

our story in a manner that I think anyone who knows this legacy could recognize and appreciate.

They were very open to us and we, in turn, put out the red carpet for them.”

As Lengyel recalls, “They asked if there were any concerns and, if so, how to address

them, because they didn’t want to alienate anyone or cause any further hardship. I think the

actors’ and crew’s sensitivity and understanding of the Marshall story captured the ‘BIG

GREEN’ spirit of the university and the community.”

Perhaps nothing exemplified this more than an incident that occurred just prior to

filming—the discovery of an anonymous, handwritten letter, addressed to the production and left

at the memorial obelisk at Spring Hill Cemetery, an unmarked grave for six of the players whose

bodies could not be identified. Written in the collective voice of those who died and referring to

them as a family, it said, in part, “You guys have been given the challenge to tell my family’s

story to the rest of the world. I charge everyone involved to put their very soul into this

challenge. We may be gone from this earth, but we represent the hope of every son and daughter

of Marshall University and, like hope, our spirit will never die.”

Upon receipt of this letter, Jamie Linden distributed copies to every member of the cast

and crew, reinforcing their commitment and setting the tone for the entire production.

Local supporters turned out in great numbers for a huge block party the city hosted

downtown to welcome the film company on April 1, 2006, complete with a stage raised outside

the historic Keith Albee Theater where McG, Basil Iwanyk, Matthew McConaughey and David

Strathairn thanked the 8,000-strong crowd and joined them in their signature battle cry—“WE

ARE MARSHALL!”

“They shout it to the heavens,” observed Strathairn. “It’s how they introduce themselves

to the world and it’s their acknowledgement that they have moved on successfully—survived,

achieved and accomplished something from the ashes of that plane crash. It shows the spirit of

the town and the community.

Production Kicked Off at Marshall University Campus and

Other Authentic Huntington Locales

Filming on “We Are Marshall” began where the story unfolded 36 years ago: at Marshall

University in Huntington, West Virginia, and in the city of Huntington itself.

Production designer Tom Meyer recalls that McG felt so strongly about the authentic

locale, he didn’t want to proceed unless a significant portion of the film could be shot there.

“When I first met with McG, we flew out there together. It’s true what people say, that there’s a

certain feel to a place that you just cannot fully recreate on a soundstage.

“When we walked down the street,” Meyer continues, “people would approach us and

say ‘I remember the night of the crash,’ many with a direct connection and real loss. Those

emotions became instilled in us in a very powerful way, just as they did when we stood in front

of the memorial obelisk at Spring Hill Cemetery. We spent the first three weeks filming in

Huntington and by then I had been there half a dozen times. My designs were always altered by

my experience there.”

Among the practical sites on campus that Meyer incorporated were the student center and

the chapel, where townspeople congregated on the night of the crash. On the vacant third floor

of a building being renovated he uncovered three arched windows that had been dry-walled over

and created the boardroom for a scene in which Nate Ruffin challenges the university directors

on their decision to suspend the football program.

The campus became a set and Marshall students, staff and administrators became extras.

Spears, who took the lead in coordinating filming around class schedules and events,

recalls how, “As we began to bring the film crew into the Herd, making them part of Marshall

University, they began to make us part of them as well. You could see this organizational dance

taking place to make sure we didn’t hinder production and they didn’t stop classes. Campus

security, faculty, parking, plant operations—we were all involved, whether they needed a higher

voltage of electricity on the third floor of the Morrow Library or a place to park 40 trucks and

trailers. If they came to us and said, ‘We really like the Student Center but we want to change

the paint color,’ my only question was, ‘Will you re-paint it the original color afterwards?’”

With a mandate to capture exteriors in Huntington, Meyer’s 100-person crew restored the

downtown block of 4th Street to its 1970 look, designing an entire row of vacant storefronts,

displays and the large exterior signs of the period, from the Keith-Albee Theater and Frederick

Hotel to shoe stores and insurance offices. Luckily, Meyer found the “architectural bones” of the

period intact. “They hadn’t torn buildings down and replaced them with a brand new

McDonald’s. You could spin around 360 degrees and see buildings that had been standing for

30, 40 or 100 years, all the way back to the founding of the city. Old storefronts might be

boarded up, they might have dropped in a brand new awning or stuccoed over the brickwork, but

if you scraped that off, you found the original architectural elements and the natural beauty

underneath.”

When it came to recreating the crash site, Meyer accompanied McG and members of the

production team, plus Spears, on a scout of the area, and was struck by how close it was to the

airport. “You can see the airport runway from the crash site; it’s just a quarter mile away.

Realizing they were so close to a different outcome that night makes it all the more

heartbreaking,” he says. Ultimately it was decided that staging the crash at its original location

was inappropriate, and production moved to the Fulton County Airport/Brown Field in Atlanta, a

working commuter airfield six miles from downtown.

Matching the densely wooded hills that surrounded the actual crash site was a challenge.

Meyer began by using earth-movers to terraform a flat empty field for the impact of a jetliner.

Next, an old DC-9 fuselage from an airplane junkyard in the Mojave Desert was shipped to

Atlanta on six flatbed trailers. Then, a forest of 100 mature 50-foot trees previously harvested by

a timber company were planted and splintered by large hydraulic machinery to simulate the

violence of the crash. A team led by special effects coordinator David Fletcher laid more than

3,000 feet of propane pipeline connected to 25 hundred-pound gas tanks to generate controlled

fires scattered across the quarter acre. The firefighters in the scene were actually Atlanta-area

firefighters, manning vintage vehicles, including two trucks that were on the scene in West

Virginia on the night of November 14, 1970.

Wes Sarginson, veteran nighttime anchor at NBC affiliate WXIA-11 in Atlanta, had a

direct connection to the 1970 accident. As a 27-year-old correspondent for NBC, based in

Cleveland at the time, he was the first national reporter on the scene. When he visited Meyer’s

vivid, detailed re-creation, based on research from photos and TV footage, Sarginson reportedly

stared in disbelief, attesting on his news broadcast that evening, “It looks just like it did back

then.” His assessment was reinforced when, days before McG began filming the sequence, one

of the company’s crew was injured from a fallen tree limb, requiring a 911 emergency call. The

EMTs who arrived were shocked at the realism of the site, with one of them questioning why he

hadn’t heard anything about a plane crash over his radio.

Other key locations in Atlanta included a former Ford dealership downtown, within

whose gutted garage Meyer built Boone’s Diner, a place where locals gathered weekly to listen

to Herd games. Meyer’s design for the fictional diner was inspired by McG’s example of the

Edward Hopper painting “The Nighthawks,” and on an actual Huntington institution called

Jim’s, a family-owned restaurant that has served as a community meeting place for 60 years. By

building on location instead of on a soundstage, he was able to incorporate adjoining exteriors.

“There was a great 1950s-era building across the street, which was derelict and due for

demolishing,” says Meyer, who persuaded the owners to let his team restore it in period colors.

“That gave us our outside. We were then able to show cars driving up and down the street, with

headlights and the reflections of pedestrians shining through the windows, and offer the

immediacy of the town surrounding the restaurant.”

Two more of Meyer’s major sets were the team locker rooms at East Carolina and

Marshall, which, he says, he “wanted to help tell the story, beyond being just, sweaty, concrete

blocks of functionality. When we see the Marshall Herd at East Carolina before the crash, it’s a

losing team with a terrible record and they don’t know the tragedy that is about to befall. So the

locker room has a heavy feeling. The ceiling is low and the shadows prominent. When we get

to the Marshall locker room, I wanted it to evoke a cathedral atmosphere, with high clerestory

windows that allow natural light to arc through and illuminate woven mesh lockers dusted with

metallic bronzing powder which we lit up light jewels. I put in arched, ‘flying buttress’ vaulted

ceilings to give a sort of spiritual lift to the space so that when the team gets down on their knees

for the pre-game prayer, it would feel as though they were in a church.”

The film’s Xavier game and practice sequences were filmed at Morris Brown College,

which, along with Morehouse and Spellman Colleges and Clark Atlanta University, is part of the

city’s historic Atlanta University Center Institutions, the nation’s oldest and largest consortium

of African-American private institutions of higher learning, founded in 1929.

Morris Brown’s modern purple-and-white Herndon Stadium, cast as Marshall’s Fairfield

Stadium, got a green-and-white period make-over. 1,200 feet of contemporary mesh rail was

replaced with tongue-and-groove wood panel and cap; plastic seats were replaced; and LED and

largescreen displays were swapped for fully-animated vintage scoreboards. A new field was

seeded and all 6,400 square yards painted shades of green to match the period field design and

color saturation to stay within the specific Kodachrome palette.

Suiting up Again in the Green and White

“If I had to use one word to describe the fashion of that time it would be ‘transitional,’”

says costume designer Danny Glicker. “When people think of the ‘70s, they conjure up very

specific images of crazy and outrageous designs, but most of that came later. Plus, Huntington,

like any small town, would naturally have been a little bit behind the curve. Essentially, it was

more of a late-1960s look we were after. We worked exclusively from period research from the

region, allowing us to recreate subtle details that would speak to everyone.”

For Matthew Fox’s portrayal of Red Dawson, Glicker reflected the character’s reserved

manner by taking a conservative tack, sticking to classic pegged pants and slender ties, with just

a hint of the wider shirt collars that heralded the new decade. For Matthew McConaughey, as

the coach coming in from Ohio with some new ideas, he provided a counterpoint by introducing

such fashion-forward elements as slightly wider ties and bolder prints.

Glicker’s biggest challenge was restoring Marshall’s fighting colors, the green and white.

“The Marshall green of the 1970s, a very bright Kelly green, no longer exists. It fell out

of vogue because it’s difficult to dye fabrics that green with colorfastness, not to mention that

some of the chemicals commonly used then are no longer legal,” he explains.

Nevertheless, compromise was not an option. “Anyone knowledgeable about Marshall

University speaks about the green with a lot of affection and there’s a real yearning to see that

again so, even though it took a lot of work and the help of a lot of talented dyers, I’m very

excited about being able to put the true green and white back on the field.”

The designer got a break when it came to recreating the period letterman jackets.

Working initially from old photos, he experimented with various fabrics and stitch-work to

create several prototypes but still didn’t feel he was getting it right. Then, typical of the

atmosphere of cooperation that had developed between the community and the film crew,

someone in town volunteered his own vintage jacket as a pattern.

Glicker also reproduced uniforms for three rival school teams—Morehead, Xavier and

East Carolina—and outfitted thousands of extras.

He found one retro-wear fan in Anthony Mackie, who fondly remembers, as a kid,

raiding his father’s closet to make Halloween costumes. “When they told me it would be

polyester slacks and button-down collars, it sounded like a dream come true,” says Mackie, with

a laugh. “I put my bid in early for certain things. They don’t make leather jackets like they used

to, with the funky patchwork, and platform shoes for men—you can’t even find those anymore.”

24, 19, 32… Hut, Hut… Hike!

It fell to renowned sports-action coordinator Mark Ellis (“The Longest Yard,”

“Invincible”) to make sure the teams not only looked the part, but played it. “We Are Marshall”

includes portions of three significant gridiron contests: the away-game played at East Carolina

on the day of the crash; the game against Morehead ten months later, which marked the

reconstructed team’s inauspicious debut; and the surprising Xavier game, which followed.

But it’s not just generic football action. Says Ellis, “The story is about relationships and

community, and the games support that; they’re part of the rebuilding process. It’s about a new

group of players and freshmen coming in and taking on the positions of those who were lost.”

McConaughey, who worked with Ellis, McG, Linden and Lengyel on staging the

sequences, notes that, “Each executed play had to represent exactly what Lengyel had coached,

and had to be specific to certain players. When we change offense from the power-I to the veer,

you have to see that evolve in the game. You have to see it work and you have to see it fail.”

Ellis studied archival footage of the Marshall games and consulted former coaches,

including Lengyel, for their first-hand knowledge. “I asked, ‘What was the terminology? What

were the cadence calls? What was your philosophy?’ And that became our blueprint.”

Following a two-week open call that yielded more than 4,000 applicants, with additional

recruiting across the country, Ellis ended up with a couple hundred potential actor/players to

represent the home and opposing teams on screen. After traditional NFL-style tryouts, that

number narrowed to the necessary 65. It then became Ellis’ job to turn them into working units.

“These guys became a team in the two weeks of hell I put them through in the Atlanta

heat doing two-a-days,” he says. “That’s when they started bonding. We didn’t have air

conditioning in the locker rooms. I ran ‘em in the morning, I ran ‘em in the afternoon and then

we watched film. I barely fed ‘em for lunch. They were killing each other.”

Although, in a pure sense, the players were acting and knew exactly who was going to

make the interception and who was going to get tackled on the 32-yard line, Ellis points out, “If

they don’t treat it like a real play, like live, wide-open football, they’re going to lose their

credibility. There’s no way to fake this stuff. They have to pin their ears back and play as hard

as they can and look like they intend to win every second. Once they understand that, you have

the makings of a great action sequence.”

The Legacy

The Thundering Herd did not recover quickly. Despite two unexpected and thrilling

victories that first comeback season, Marshall University football was, as Spears admits, “a

losing team. Even leading up to the crash we had our troubles—NCAA violations, the longest

losing streak in the nation— and rebuilding from all that seemed insurmountable. Lengyel and

his staff were the first step in that process, but there were plenty of naysayers.”

What Lengyel, Dawson, the players, other coaches and administration understood, was

that their purpose in 1971 was not necessarily to win football games but to lay a solid foundation

for the future so that, one day, winning would be possible again. And they were right.

In 1984, Marshall finished 6-5, its first winning season in 20 years. In 1987, the

Thundering Herd earned its first national exposure in Division 1-AA with a playoff appearance,

a feat it repeated the following year. In the six seasons from 1990 through 1995, under coach

Jim Donnan’s tenure, the Herd was 64-21 and made the Division I-AA championship game four

times. It won its first I-AA championship in 1992 and again in 1996, when former Marshall

player Bobby Pruett coached the team to an undefeated 15-0 season, with the help of future NFL

talent Randy Moss.

After being the losingest team in the country in the 1970s, with only 23 wins in 10 years,

remarkably, Marshall became the winningest team in the 1990s, with a 114-25 record.

“After we won the Mid-America Conference championship in ’97, the fans were

exuberant. They stormed the field and tore down the goal posts,” recalls Spears, who was there

at the time. “I remember thinking, ‘well, there go the goal posts. They’ll probably carry ‘em

down the street and we’ll have to go pick them up later.’ But we couldn’t find them. We finally

located them the next day. They were at the cemetery, laid at the obelisk with a sign saying,

‘Here’s the championship that was denied you.’”

Though Jack Lengyel left Marshall in 1975 and went on to numerous career heights, most

notably as athletics director for the U.S. Naval Academy, he still considers Marshall his second

home and has returned to commemorate the tragedy’s 20- and 30-year anniversaries.

Red Dawson fulfilled his promise to stay the year, then left upon completion of the 1971

season. He never returned to the game, though he continued to live in Huntington and remained

a loyal Herd fan. Known to frequent tailgate parties and then leave the stadium, he did not attend

another Marshall game until 2000. He and Lengyel stayed in touch, having shared the

indescribable bond of that very difficult and rewarding time.

“When you live with a story like this, maybe you don’t want to talk about it right away,

maybe that’s why it took 36 years before this story found its way onto the screen,” notes Basil

Iwanyk. “Maybe it needed a full generation of time to pass.”

Ultimately, “Pain can last a moment. It can last a day, a week or years, but it cannot last

forever. The only thing that can last forever is if you quit,” offers McG, recalling a sentiment

expressed by Lance Armstrong. “If you want to honor those who have fallen, I believe the best

thing you can do is move forward and live the best life you can, knowing that’s what they would

want for you.”

ABOUT THE CAST

MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY (Jack Lengyel) earned a People’s Choice Award in

2005 for his starring role in the hit film “Sahara,” co-starring Penelope Cruz and Steve Zahn.

“Sahara,” which opened at the top of the weekend box office, also marked the first major motion

picture produced by his production company, j.k. livin productions. McConaughey followed

with a starring role opposite Al Pacino in the drama “Two for the Money,” before closing the

year as People Magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive.”

Among his film credits are the popular romantic comedies “Failure to Launch,” with

Sarah Jessica Parker, and “How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days,” opposite Kate Hudson; the

ensemble “Thirteen Conversations About One Thing”; the horror thriller “Frailty,” written and

directed by Bill Paxton; the sci-fi adventure “Reign of Fire”; and Adam Shankman’s hit romantic

comedy “The Wedding Planner,” with Jennifer Lopez.

McConaughey also starred in Steven Spielberg’s “Amistad,” Robert Zemeckis’

“Contact,” Ron Howard’s “EDtv,” Richard Linklater’s “Dazed and Confused” and Joel

Schumacher’s critically acclaimed courtroom drama “A Time to Kill,” as well as “Angels in the

Outfield,” “Lone Star,” “Glory Days” and “U-571.”

He is currently in production with co-star Kate Hudson on the romantic adventure

“Fool’s Gold,” directed by Andy Tennant and scheduled for a 2008 release.

McConaughey’s production company is currently in development on numerous projects

with Warner Bros. Pictures, Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures and Imagine Entertainment.

j.k. livin also executive produced the feature documentary “Hands on A Hard Body.”

MATTHEW FOX (Red Dawson) currently stars as the conflicted, heroic doctor, Jack

Shepherd, on the hit ABC series “Lost.” For his work on the Emmy-winning Best Drama, Fox

shared the 2005 Screen Actors Guild Ensemble Award and was nominated for Golden Globe and

Television Critics Association Awards for achievement in dramatic acting.

Previously, Fox starred in Golden Globe Award-winning series “Party of Five.”

In 1999, he won attention for his touching turn opposite Donald Sutherland in the made-

for-television drama “Behind the Mask,” then returned to episodic work as a private investigator

whose near-death experience bridges a gap to the spirit world in “Haunted.”

Fox will next star in the political thriller “Vantage Point,” opposite Dennis Quaid, Forest

Whitaker and William Hurt, set for a 2007 release.

IAN McSHANE (Paul Griffen) won the 2005 Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a

Television Drama and earned Emmy and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for his

performance as the charismatic Al Swearengen in the second season of HBO’s hit series

“Deadwood.” For his work during the series’ 2004 debut season, McShane received the

Television Critics Association Award, with a second nomination for the 2005 season, and was

named one of GQ Magazine’s “Men of the Year.”

McShane has starred in over 25 films over a long and distinguished career, including

“The Battle of Britain,” “The Last of Sheila,” “Villain,” co-starring Richard Burton, “Exposed,”

and “Agent Cody Banks.” In Jonathan Glazer’s acclaimed “Sexy Beast,” he gave a riveting

performance as the sinister gangster Teddy Bass, opposite Sir Ben Kingsley and Ray Winstone.

Recently, he joined the ensemble cast of writer-director Rodrigo Garcia’s drama “Nine

Lives” and co-starred in the Woody Allen film, “Scoop.” He will next lend his vocal talents to

the upcoming animated feature “Shrek The Third,” as Captain Hook, the animated fantasy

“Coraline,” and the animated comedy “Kung Fu Panda,” with an all-star voice cast including

Jackie Chan. Among his upcoming screen appearances are the action comedy “Hot Rod,” and

the thriller “Case 39,” opposite Renée Zellweger, both scheduled for a 2007 release.

McShane has also enjoyed a long career in both British and American television,

including a role in David Wolper’s seminal 1970s miniseries “Roots.” Last season, he was seen

on both BBC and BBC America’s comedy series “Trust.” A starring turn in “Whose Life Is It

Anyway?,” for Granada TV, the role of Heathcliff in “Wuthering Heights” for the BBC, and

Harold Pinter’s Emmy-winning “The Caretaker” are among his other television highlights. He

has also portrayed Judas in NBC’s “Jesus of Nazareth,” directed by Franco Zeffirelli; Prince

Rainer in the network’s “The Grace Kelly Story”; and the title role in Masterpiece Theatre’s

“Disraeli.” His additional miniseries credits include “Charlie the Kid,” “A.D.,” “The Great

Escape II,” “Marco Polo,” “Evergreen” and Dan Curtis’ “War and Remembrance.”

In the late 1980s, he formed McShane Productions, which produced the much-adored

“Lovejoy” for the BBC and A&E, a project that gave him a vehicle in which to star as well as

produce and direct. He followed by producing and starring in the lead role of Madson in the

comedy drama “Soul Survivors,” for BBC and Showtime.

In 2000, McShane returned to London’s West End for his musical stage debut in

Cameron Mackintosh’s successful production of “The Witches of Eastwick,” as Darryl Van

Horne. His stage career has included roles as Hal in the original cast of “Loot,” the title role of

“The Admirable Crichton” at the Chichester Festival, Tom in Tennessee Williams’ “The Glass

Menagerie” and Charlie in “The Big Knife.” He co-starred with Dame Judi Dench and Sir Ian

McKellen in “Promise,” which successfully played London before moving to Broadway. In Los

Angeles, he starred in three productions at The Matrix Theatre, including the world premiere of

Larry Atlas’ “Yield of the Long Bond” and two others for which he received the Los Angeles

Drama Critics’ Circle Award: “Inadmissible Evidence” and “Betrayal.”

ANTHONY MACKIE (Nate Ruffin) had five features on movie screens in 2006. In

addition to “We Are Marshall,” he starred in “Half Nelson,” with Ryan Gosling adapted from

director Ryan Fleck’s Sundance-winning short “Gowanus Brooklyn”; in Preston Whitmore’s

“Crossover”; in Frank E. Flowers ensemble crime drama “Haven,” opposite Orlando Bloom and

Bill Paxton; and in the film adaptation of Richard Price’s “Freedomland,” starring Samuel L.

Jackson.

He will next play Olympic track-and-field legend Jesse Owens in a biopic to shoot next

summer.

Classically trained at the Juilliard School of Drama, Mackie made an auspicious film

debut as Eminem’s nemesis, Papa Doc, in Curtis Hanson’s “8 Mile.” His performance caught

the attention of Spike Lee, who subsequently cast Mackie in the recent Toronto Film Festival

Masters Program selection “Sucker Free City” and “She Hate Me.” He also appeared in Clint

Eastwood’s Academy Award-winning “Million Dollar Baby,” opposite Hilary Swank, Morgan

Freeman and Eastwood, as well as in Jonathan Demme’s “The Manchurian Candidate,”

alongside Denzel Washington and Liev Schreiber, and the comedy “The Man,” starring Samuel

L. Jackson.

Mackie earned IFP Spirit and Gotham Award nominations for his performance in Rodney

Evans’ “Brother to Brother,” which won the 2004 Special Dramatic Jury Prize at the Sundance

Film Festival and Best First Feature at the Independent Spirit Awards. In 2005, he appeared

opposite David Strathairn, Timothy Hutton and Leelee Sobieski in “Heavens Fall,” based on the

historic Scottsboro Boys’ trials, an independent feature that premiered at the 2006 SXSW Film

Festival in Austin.

KATE MARA (Annie Cantrell) is currently filming “Shooter,” opposite Mark Wahlberg,

scheduled for a 2007 release.

Most recently, she appeared as Heath Ledger’s daughter in Ang Lee’s Academy Award-

winning drama “Brokeback Mountain,” and co-starred in a five-episode arc on the Fox

Television Emmy Award-winning series “24.”

Mara began acting at the age of 14. She first appeared in Sydney Pollack’s romantic

drama “Random Hearts.” She then co-starred in Gary Winick’s coming-of-age film “Tadpole,”

which earned 2002 Sundance Film Festival honors for both director and film, and co-starred in

the independent feature “The Californians.”

Also an accomplished singer, Mara made her professional debut at the Williamstown

Theatre Festival in “Landscape of the Body,” with Lili Taylor.

JANUARY JONES (Carole Dawson) most recently earned acclaim for her co-starring

role opposite Tommy Lee Jones in Jones’ feature directorial debut, “The Three Burials of

Melquiades Estrada,” which screened at the Cannes Film Festival.

She will next be seen in the independent film “Swedish Auto,” with Lukas Haas.

Jones made her screen debut as Gary Sinise’s love interest in “It’s the Rage.” Since then,

she has played supporting roles in Barry Levinson’s comedy “Bandits,” Steven Soderbergh’s

“Full Frontal,” and the Jack Nicholson/Adam Sandler comedy, “Anger Management.” She also

had a small role in Richard Curtis’ comedy “Love, Actually.”

Jones was selected from thousands of aspiring talents to be cast as Cadence Flaherty, the

sister of the not-so-blushing bride in “American Wedding,” the third installment in the

“American Pie” series. Following that, she appeared in “Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights.”

For television, Jones recently completed a recurring role in the debut season of

Showtime’s acclaimed series “Huff” and, in 2007, will be seen on AMC in its first original

drama series, “Mad Men,” written and executive produced by Matt Weiner, a writer on “The

Sopranos.”

BRIAN GERAGHTY (Tom Bogdan) most recently starred in Emilio Estevez’s biopic

“Bobby,” which centers on the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy. Geraghty, whose

performance in the film was selected by The New York Times as scene-stealing and a

breakthrough, was part of the film’s ensemble cast, which included Anthony Hopkins, Sharon

Stone, Demi Moore, Lindsay Lohan and Elijah Wood.

Earlier this year he appeared in director Andy Davis’ “The Guardian,” opposite Kevin

Costner and Ashton Kutcher; in “Conversations with Other Women,” with Aaron Eckhart and

Helena Bonham Carter; and in Terry Zwigoff’s “Art School Confidential,” starring John

Malkovich, Jim Broadbent and Anjelica Huston.

Among his feature credits are the Sam Mendes adaptation of “Jarhead,” in which he

starred opposite Jake Gyllenhaal, Jamie Foxx and Peter Sarsgaard; the horror remake of “When a

Stranger Calls”; “Stateside,” with Val Kilmer; “The Optimist,” with Leelee Sobieski; and “Cruel

World,” opposite Edward Furlong.

Prior to launching his screen career, Geraghty had guest-starring roles on several top

television series, including HBO’s award-winning “The Sopranos,” NBC’s Emmy-winning

“Law & Order” and the critically acclaimed, offbeat comedy series “Ed.”

He began his professional career on stage with credits that include roles in productions of

“Berlin,” “Midnight Moonlight,” “Snipers” and “Romeo and Juliet.”

Geraghty is an active supporter of the Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit environmental

organization working to preserve our oceans, waves and beaches.

DAVID STRATHAIRN (President Dedmon) most recently won the Volpi Cup at the

Venice Film Festival and earned nominations from the Academy, Golden Globe, Screen Actors

Guild, BAFTA and Independent Spirit Awards for his compelling portrait of legendary CBS

news broadcaster Edward R. Murrow in George Clooney’s 2005 Oscar-nominated drama “Good

Night, and Good Luck.”

His 2005 Independent Spirit nomination was the fourth in a stellar career that dates back

to his 1980 motion picture debut in John Sayles’ first film, “The Return of the Secaucus Seven.”

Strathairn subsequently collaborated with Sayles on seven titles, winning the IFP honor for his

supporting performance in “City of Hope,” while collecting two additional nominations for

“Passion Fish” and “Limbo.”

His early screen efforts included supporting roles in Mike Nichols’ “Silkwood,” Fred

Schepsi’s “Iceman,” James Foley’s “At Close Range” and Robert M. Young’s “Dominick and

Eugene,” as well as Sayles’ acclaimed dramas “Matewan” and “Eight Men Out,” and his 1984

satire, “The Brother from Another Planet.”

Turning the decade, Strathairn continued a busy screen career with co-starring roles in

several critically acclaimed films, including Tim Robbins’ directorial debut, “Bob Roberts”;

Penny Marshall’s “A League of Their Own”; “Losing Isaiah”; Sydney Pollack’s “The Firm”;

“Sneakers”; Taylor Hackford’s adaptation of the Stephen King novel “Dolores Claiborne”; and

Jodie Foster’s “Home for the Holidays”; as well as two projects with Curtis Hansen: “The River

Wild” and the Oscar-winning “L.A. Confidential,” in which Strathairn shared a Screen Actors

Guild Award nomination with the all-star ensemble cast. His additional movie credits include

“Memphis Belle,” “A Map of the World,” “Simon Birch,” “Lost in Yonkers,” “Missing in

America,” Michael Hoffman’s adaptation of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” Phil Kaufman’s

“Twisted” and “The Notorious Bettie Page.”

He has also maintained a high profile in the theatrical world, with roles at such venues as

the Manhattan Theatre Club, the New York Shakespeare Festival, SoHo Rep, the Hartford Stage

Company, Ensemble Studio Theatre and Seattle Repertory. He will next be seen in Gregory

Hoblit’s thriller “Fracture.”

ARLEN ESCARPETA (Reggie Oliver) earned critical acclaim for his breakout role of

an honor student caught with a handgun at school in the independent drama “American Gun.”

The film, which premiered at the 2005 Toronto Film Festival, also starred Forest Whitaker,

Marcia Gay Harden and Donald Sutherland.

His earlier film credits include a role in Carl Franklin’s courtroom thriller “High Crimes,”

opposite Morgan Freeman and Ashley Judd.

Following “We Are Marshall,” Escarpeta will star opposite Oliver Platt in the

independent comedy spoof “The Ten,” from director David Wain of “Wet Hot American

Summer.”

Best known for his three-season role as charismatic college athlete Sam Walker on

NBC’s “American Dreams,” Escarpeta made his television debut as a guest star on “Boston

Public.” He has since appeared in guest-starring roles on hit shows such as CBS’ “Judging

Amy,” F/X’s “The Shield,” G4TechTV’s “Players” and, more recently, NBC’s long-running

“ER” and the hit CBS drama “Cold Case.” He also appeared in the pilot episode of NBC’s

“Boomtown.”

Escarpeta is a volunteer for the Young Saints Scholarship Foundation and is heavily

involved in charities, including the Starlight Starbright Children’s Foundation and the Union

Station Foundation.

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS

McG (Director / Producer) made his feature film directorial debut with “Charlie’s

Angels,” which boasted the biggest box office opening for a first-time director. The film

debuted at #1 in the U.S. with over $40 million at the box office, and also opened at #1 in 31

territories internationally, grossing over $250 million worldwide. McG also directed the sequel

“Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle,” which went on to gross another $265 million.

With two hit films and over $500 million at the box office, McG formed a production

company, Wonderland Sound and Vision, which has a first-look film deal with Columbia

Pictures, a television deal with Warner Bros. Television and a record deal with Warner Music.

Wonderland most recently released the low budget feature “Stay Alive,” which opened at $10.7

million. The company is currently shooting “Revenge of the Nerds” for an August 2007 release.

For television, Wonderland produces the primetime phenomenon “The O.C.,” which had

its fourth season premiere in November, and “Supernatural,” which is currently in its second

season on The CW. Together with Steven Spielberg, Wonderland produced “The Dan Finnerty

Show,” a special that aired on Bravo last year.

McG began his career producing records for rock group Sugar Ray, directing

commercials for The Gap and Coca Cola, as well as directing over 50 music videos for a wide

array of recording artists including Sublime, Korn and Wyclef Jean. These music videos have

contributed to the sale of over 100 million albums worldwide.

Born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, McG grew up in Newport Beach, California. He

graduated from University of California Irvine with a degree in psychology.

BASIL IWANYK (Producer) currently heads his own production company, Thunder Road

Pictures, where he most recently produced the Harrison Ford thriller “Firewall.”

Iwanyk began his film industry career as an agent trainee at United Talent Agency.

He joined Warner Bros. Pictures in 1995 as a creative executive and was promoted to Vice

President of Production two years later. During his tenure at the studio, Iwanyk was involved

with several films, including the Oscar-winning “Training Day,” “Ocean’s Eleven,” “Batman &

Robin” and the Christopher Nolan thriller “Insomnia.” He was named an “executive to watch”

by The Hollywood Reporter in their annual Next Generation issue that profiles young executives

with promising futures in the entertainment industry.

In 2000, Iwanyk became President of Worldwide Production at Intermedia Films,

overseeing a wide variety of projects, including “K-19: The Widowmaker,” “Basic,”

“Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,” Spike Jonze’s Oscar-winning “Adaptation,” “Dark Blue,”

“National Security,” “The Life of David Gale,” “Welcome to Mooseport,” “Laws of Attraction,”

Renny Harlin’s thriller “Mindhunters” and the Oscar-nominated drama “The Quiet American.”

JAMIE LINDEN’s (Screenwriter / Story) first script, “Things To Do Before I Die,” was

purchased by Warner Bros. Pictures and led to a writing deal with the studio. This, in turn, led to

an introduction to producer Basil Iwanyk, who shared Linden’s interest in making a film about

the Marshall University plane crash.

Linden recently finished adapting the bestseller Dogs Of Babel for producer David

Heyman. He will next re-team with Iwanyk for an upcoming adaptation of “Ski To Die: The Bill

Johnson Story,” depicting the life and times of one of America’s most celebrated downhill skiers,

who scored Olympic Gold in the 1984 winter games.

“We Are Marshall,” is Linden’s first produced script.

CORY HELMS (Story) is currently working on another script. “We Are Marshall” is

his first motion picture credit.

JEANNE ALLGOOD (Executive Producer) is currently the executive in charge of

motion picture development and production for Wonderland Sound & Vision, filmmaker McG’s

multimedia production company. This is her first feature film producing credit.

Allgood has worked on more than 20 films as a production executive with such

companies as Jersey Films, Outlaw Productions and DreamWorks SKG.

She began her career as an assistant to theater legend Michael Kahn, Juilliard’s Drama

Director and the Artistic Director of the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, DC. Encouraged

by Kahn to pursue her love of movies, Allgood left for Los Angeles, where a chance introduction

to Danny DeVito won her a job at Jersey Films.

After eighteen months, she joined producers Bobby Newmyer and Jeff Silver as a

creative executive at their Warner Bros.-based company, Outlaw Productions. Her two-year

tenure at Outlaw was followed by four years with Cathy Konrad at her Sony-based production

company, where Allgood worked on such films as “The Sweetest Thing,” starring Cameron

Diaz, and “Kate and Leopold,” with Meg Ryan, as well as James Mangold’s 2003 thriller

“Identity.” Allgood next moved into a production executive post at DreamWorks, supervising

such projects as Wes Craven’s hit thriller “Red Eye,” the comedy “She’s the Man” and the

inspirational drama “Dreamer.”

She joined McG in his production entity a year ago and was the one who obtained the

“We Are Marshall” script from Basil Iwanyk for development through Wonderland.

BRENT O’CONNOR (Executive Producer) reunites with producer Basil Iwanyk after

their recent collaboration on the Harrison Ford thriller “Firewall.”

O’Connor was an executive producer on the 2005 action thriller “Elektra,” starring

Jennifer Garner, and the 2004 family adventure “Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed.” His coproducing

credits include “K-19: The Widowmaker,” starring Harrison Ford and Liam Neeson,

and “Bulletproof Monk,” starring Chow Yun-Fat and Seann William Scott.

Early in his career, O’Connor served as an electrician and business agent. He was

production manager on a variety of feature films, including the Arnold Schwarzenegger thriller

“The Sixth Day”; the comedic romp “Rat Race,” starring Cuba Gooding Jr., Whoopi Goldberg,

John Cleese and Rowan Atkinson; Gus van Sant’s Academy Award-winning “Good Will

Hunting,” starring Matt Damon, Robin Williams and Ben Affleck; and “Seven Years in Tibet,”

with Brad Pitt. His other credits as production manager include “Eye See You,” “Jumanji,”

“Deep Rising,” “Disturbing Behavior” and “Andre.”

THOMAS TULL (Executive Producer) is the Chairman and CEO of Legendary Pictures,

which recently entered into a five-year, 25-picture deal with Warner Bros. Pictures. Legendary

reaped resounding success with their first joint effort, “Batman Begins,” and went on to

collaborate in 2006 on Bryan Singer’s “Superman Returns” and M. Night Shyamalan’s “Lady in

the Water.” Among their upcoming projects are “300,” the film adaptation of Frank Miller’s

graphic novel of the same name; “Trick ‘r Treat,” written and directed by “Superman Returns”

co-writer Michael Dougherty and produced by Bryan Singer; Roland Emmerich’s “10,000 B.C.”;

“Where the Wild Things Are,” directed by Spike Jonze; and Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark

Knight,” the follow-up to “Batman Begins.”

Tull was previously president and a director of The Convex Group, a media and

entertainment holding company in Atlanta that invests in new media networks, launched by

WebMD founder Jeff Arnold. He executed M&A activity, including the acquisitions of content

company How Stuff Works and content distribution platforms LidRock and FlexPlay, and

developed the company’s relationships and partnerships with motion picture, music and

videogame companies. Prior to Convex, Tull was a principal at the Southeast Interactive

Technology Funds, the largest venture-capital IT fund in the Southeast.

Tull’s first foray into Hollywood came when he was a partner at a North Carolina-based

investment fund that specialized in media and technology. In 1996, he helped craft the deal

creating Red Storm Entertainment, which made games based on Tom Clancy’s books. He relied

on his experience as a venture capitalist to raise the initial capitalization for Legendary Pictures

from a consortium of blue chip investors—ABRY Partners, Banc of America Capital Investors

and AGI Direct Investments among them. Tull architected the unique structure of the company,

which was awarded the prestigious Deal of the Year in the entertainment industry in 2005 by

IDD Magazine.

SCOTT MEDNICK (Executive Producer) is a member of the management team of

Legendary Pictures, the production company which in 2005 entered into a five-year, 25-picture

deal with Warner Bros. He was an executive producer of this past summer’s “Superman

Returns,” and is an executive producer on the upcoming films “300,” Roland Emmerich’s

“10,000 B.C.” and “Where the Wild Things Are,” being directed by Spike Jonze.

Mednick has been a leader in the entertainment, marketing and technology sectors for the

last 25 years. He has been involved in the marketing for almost 200 films, including “Jerry

Maguire,” “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” “This Is Spinal Tap,” “X-Men” and “Dirty Dancing.” His

individual entertainment clients have included Tom Cruise, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Denzel

Washington. Additionally, Mednick has created the logos for such Hollywood entities as Sony

Pictures, Columbia Pictures, TriStar Pictures and Legendary Pictures.

He is also the former President and CEO of Peter Guber’s Mandalay Branded

Entertainment. Prior to Mandalay, Mednick founded THINK New Ideas, Inc., a marketing and

communications company for the Information Age which serviced the communications and

interactive needs of major corporations including Oracle, Coca-Cola, Reebok, Sega, Time

Warner, Sony, Pioneer Electronics, Disney, Chrysler and many others. As Chairman and CEO,

Mednick oversaw the quintupling of THINK’s billing and market cap within 18 months of its

initial public offering. In addition, the company was named as one of the top ten interactive

agencies of the year by both Adweek magazine and the Advertising Club of New York in its first

year of operations.

In addition to his corporate responsibilities, Mednick was invited to be a part of the

President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities Task Force for Children and Youth at Risk

under President Clinton, chaired by the First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. He served for 10

years on the National Board of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Inner City Games Foundation and now

sits on the board of directors of After-School All-Stars, founded by Governor Schwarzenegger.

Mednick served on the Board of Directors of Earth Day 1990, for which he also created the logo

and communications materials. He is a founding member of the Board of ECO (Earth

Communications Office), which mobilizes the entertainment industry on behalf of the

environment. He also serves as a trustee of the University of Santa Monica.

Mednick, a Boston native, has an M.A. in Applied Psychology and a B.F.A. in Graphic

Design, and was named Print Art Director of the Year/West by Adweek. Mednick has had four

pieces of his work selected for inclusion in the permanent collection of the Library of Congress.

SHANE HURLBUT (Director of Photography) earned an A.S.C. Award nomination for

his first feature, HBO’s award-winning biopic “The Rat Pack,” directed by Rob Cohen and

starring Ray Liotta, Joe Mantegna and Don Cheadle. The citation distinguished him as the

youngest cinematographer ever nominated for the award for a debut feature, and the second

youngest cameraman ever nominated.

Hurlbut and Cohen reunited on the thriller “Skulls,” followed by John Stockwell’s

critically acclaimed romantic drama “crazy/beautiful” and Charles Stone III’s popular marching

band extravaganza “Drumline.” He re-teamed with Stone on the Bernie Mac sports comedy

“Mr. 3000” and continued his association with director Stockwell on the underwater treasure

hunting film “Into the Blue.” Hurlbut also guided camera work on the features “11:14,” Bill

Paxton’s period sports drama “The Greatest Game Ever Played,” and the recent feature releases

“Something New” and writer/director Vondie Curtis-Hall’s crime thriller “Waist Deep.”

One of the industry’s most in-demand commercial cinematographers, Hurlbut has also

guided camera work on TV spots for such clients as Disneyworld, Verizon, KFC, Dunkin

Donuts, Pizza Hut, McDonalds, and Burger King, collaborating with such directors as McG, Bob

Giraldi, Charles Stone III and Jan de Bont.

In the music video genre, Hurlbut employed cutting-edge visuals in projects for such

musical artists as Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, The Rolling Stones, Filter, Tori Amos,

Semisonic, Salt-N-Pepa and Smashing Pumpkins.

TOM MEYER (Production Designer) has designed for such feature films as “A Lot Like

Love,” “Blue Crush,” “Catch That Kid” and the short film “Whatever We Do,” a 2003 Sundance

Film Festival entry produced by Tobey Maguire. Meyer made his debut as a designer on the

2002 comedy crime caper “Welcome to Collinwood,” directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, and

produced by George Clooney and Steven Soderbergh. Meyer’s next project, with Clooney and

Soderbergh serving as executive producers, is Scott Burns’ “The Half Life of Timofey Berezin,”

set for a March 2007 release.

Meyer’s credits as an art director include John Stockwell’s “crazy/beautiful”; Christopher

McQuarrie’s directorial debut, “The Way of the Gun”; “The Crow: Salvation”; and “No

Vacancy.” He also logged small-screen credits for a variety of commercials, music videos and

series pilots.

He began his career as a 13-year-old intern at the famed Actors Studio of Louisville, one of

the country’s most honored regional theaters. With a dozen years in the theatre world, Meyer

was a resident design associate at the Seattle Repertory from 1993-96, where he designed such

stage productions premieres as Arthur Laurents’s “Jolson Sings Again,” Jon Robie Baitz’s “A

Fair Country” and Wendy Wasserstein’s “An American Daughter,” all directed by award winner

Daniel Sullivan, as well as “Bill Irwin’s Experiments,” “Pretty Fire” and “Suburbia.”

PRISCILLA NEDD FRIENDLY (Editor) studied film editing at the American Film

Institute, and began her career as an assistant editor in television before moving on to feature

films. Her big break came when she was hired by Academy Award-winning editor Peter Zinner

to serve as the associate editor on Taylor Hackford’s Oscar-nominated drama “An Officer and A

Gentleman.”

Through Hackford’s recommendation, Nedd Friendly gained her first solo editing

assignment on “Eddie and the Cruisers,” a year later. She went on to edit such films as “The

Flamingo Kid,” for director Garry Marshall; Jerry Schatzberg’s “Street Smart”; David Seltzer’s

“Lucas”; “Tucker: The Man and His Dream,” for director Francis Ford Coppola; “Pretty

Woman,” which reunited her with Garry Marshall; Irwin Winkler’s “Guilty By Suspicion”; and

Michael Caton-Jones’ “Doc Hollywood.”

Nedd Friendly more recently edited the hit comedy “American Pie,” directed by Paul and

Chris Weitz. She reteamed with the Weitz brothers on “Down to Earth,” starring Chris Rock,

then collaborated with director Rob Minkoff on the films “Stuart Little 2” and “The Haunted

Mansion.” Nedd Friendly most recently edited the hit comedy sequel “Big Momma’s House 2.”

GREGG LONDON (Editor) most recently served as additional film editor on the

comedy “Big Momma’s House 2,” starring Martin Lawrence. He has compiled ten associate

editor credits dating back to the 1991 comedy “Doc Hollywood,” starring Michael J. Fox. His

more recent projects include the romantic comedy “Down to Earth,” starring Chris Rock and

Regina King, as well as the 2003 family comedy thriller “The Haunted Mansion” and the

BAFTA Award-nominated “Stuart Little 2,” both directed by Rob Minkoff.

London edited the 2000 Vince Van Patten comedy “The Flunky” and completed the first

cut of “The Woman in the Moon,” starring Maria de Madeiros and Portia de Rossi, as well as the

thriller “The Perfect Nanny.”

CHRISTOPHE BECK (Music) has scored numerous films in virtually every genre,

from the remake of “The Pink Panther” and “The Sentinel,” earlier this year, to “Under the

Tuscan Sun,” the film adaptation of the best-selling novel.

Beck began his scoring career on the Canadian television series “White Fang,” and from

there went on to score the television series “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” seasons two through

four. He earned an Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for his work on “Buffy”

in season three (1998) and, after completing one more season on the show, moved into film

scoring.

His recent film credits include “Elektra,” “Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and

Fabulous,” and “Two for the Money.” Previously, he scored “Garfield,” “Cheaper by the

Dozen,” “Just Married,” “Confidence,” “The Alarmist,” “Guinevere,” and “Bring It On.”

MARY VIOLA (Co-Producer) has served as Vice President of Thunder Road Pictures

for the last three years. Previously, she worked in the development department of Jerry

Bruckheimer Films on movies such as “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “Bad Boys 2” and “Black

Hawk Down.” She got her start working for director Barry Sonnenfeld on “Wild Wild West.”

Viola is currently co-producing “Einstein’s Children” for Gold Circle Films.

DANNY GLICKER (Costume Designer) was honored by the Costume Designers Guild

with their Excellence in Contemporary Film Award for his work on the 2005 drama

“Transamerica,” which starred Golden Globe winner Felicity Huffman.

He gained early experience in his teens working on Broadway shows such as “The Secret

Garden,” “Nick & Nora” and the Tony Award-winning musical “Grand Hotel.” He segued into

the movie arena while still an undergraduate at the Rhode Island School of Design, assisting

costume designer Kathy O’Rear on Robert Redford’s 1994 Oscar-nominated drama “Quiz

Show.”

Glicker went on to design Michael Cuesta’s celebrated and controversial drama, “L.I.E.”

He then began an ongoing collaboration with the Polish Brothers on their visionary

“Northfork,” which starred James Woods and Nick Nolte, and proceeded to design for a number

of acclaimed films that include Craig Lucas’ drama “The Dying Gaul” and Marcos Siega’s black

satire “Pretty Persuasion.”

Glicker’s most recent credits include Jason Reitman’s directorial debut, “Thank You for

Smoking,” starring Aaron Eckhart, Maria Bello, Robert Duvall and William H. Macy, as well

as the horror hit “The Hills Have Eyes.”

His work will next be seen in the Polish Brothers’ “The Astronaut Farmer,” starring Billy

Bob Thornton and Virginia Madsen, and the highly anticipated, as-yet untitled project written

and directed by Academy Award winner Alan Ball and starring Aaron Eckhart, Maria Bello,

Toni Collette, and newcomer Summer Bishil.

MARK ELLIS (Stunt Coordinator) is co-founder and president of ReelSports, a leader

in sports entertainment production that has redefined the depiction of sports action in media,

from movies and television to commercials and video games. During his career as a second unit

director and sports action coordinator, Ellis directed and/or coached a number of award-winning

actors and Hall of Fame athletes in such movies as “Miracle,” “The Longest Yard,” “The

Rookie,” “Coach Carter,” “The Replacements,” “Any Given Sunday,” the hit comedy “The

Benchwarmers” and, earlier this year, the football drama “Invincible,” starring Mark Wahlberg.

His more than 30 film and television credits also include “Mr. 3000,” “Rebound,” “The

Perfect Score,” “Radio,” “Hardball” and “Summer Catch.” A wide receiver at Appalachian State

before transferring to Guilford College and, subsequently, the University of South Carolina, Ellis

envisioned a career as a college coach before Hollywood drafted him in 1992 with a job as

assistant football coordinator on the gridiron drama “The Program,” starring James Caan, filmed

at Ellis’ alma mater.

Over the next nine years, Ellis worked on film and television projects including

“Varsity Blues,” “Rise and Walk: The Dennis Byrd Story,” “Jerry Maguire” and “The

Waterboy.” Recognizing the opportunity to capitalize on a new niche in the entertainment/sports

industry, Ellis formed ReelSports in 2001, the only multi-sport film company in the world. He

has consulted on almost every major sports genre portrayed in motion pictures, including

football, basketball, baseball and hockey. His collaborative work has been honored with five

ESPY nominations, with “The Rookie” and “Miracle” chosen as Best Sports Movie of the Year.

JACK LENGYEL (Technical Advisor) has made a lasting and positive influence at

numerous institutions during his four-decade career that encompasses roles as football coach and

university administrator.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education from Akron in 1957 and a Master’s

degree in education from Kent State three years later. He received a commission in the U.S.

Army after completing the ROTC program at Akron, where he was the Distinguished Military

Graduate, and later spent 12 years in the U.S. Air Force Reserve, achieving the rank of captain.

Although he has worked for numerous universities, Lengyel is best known as the athletics

director at the U.S. Naval Academy, where he served 13 years, from 1988-2001, as the first

civilian to hold that post. He played a major role in improving the athletics facilities at the

Academy, one of the nation’s largest athletics departments, with 30 sports. During his tenure at

Annapolis, the Midshipmen won 60% of their contests, including a 76% winning record vs.

Army during his last four years as athletics director. Lengyel is currently a member of the Naval

Academy Foundation Trustees.

His efforts to promote the Naval Academy’s varsity athletic program included overseeing

the production and national airing of a one-hour documentary on the history of Navy football,

“Anchors Aweigh for Honor and Glory,” produced by NFL Films, which aired on CBS to critical

acclaim.

Previously, Lengyel gained national recognition as associate athletics director at the

University of Louisville and the University of Missouri, and was director of athletics at Fresno

State University and the University of Missouri. He has served as a head coach in football,

lacrosse, baseball, wrestling and swimming, over his 16-year college coaching career.

Lengyel arrived at Marshall University in 1971, a few months after the November 1970

tragedy, and is credited with rebuilding the football program while restoring its four-year class

structure. He left Marshall after the 1974 season.

In addition to his successful coaching career, Lengyel has also served in a number of

administrative capacities throughout the college community. He is a former president of the

National Association of College Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and currently serves on its

Executive Committee. He received the prestigious James J. Corbett Award from NACDA and

the Homer Rice Award from the Division 1A Directors of Athletics for a distinguished career

and contributions to college athletics. He has also received the National Football Foundation’s

Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football Award in 1997, and the John Toner Award for

superior administrative abilities and outstanding dedication to college football. An NFF

Executive Committee and Board member, Lengyel is the chairman of the Divisional Honors

Court, which annually selects the College Football Hall of Fame Divisional Class. Additionally,

he has received honorary degrees from the Sports Management Institute (SMI) and the United

States Sports Academy.

Since his retirement at Navy, Lengyel has served as interim director of athletics at

Temple University, Eastern Kentucky University and the University of Colorado.

W. A. “RED” DAWSON (Technical Advisor) served as Marshall University’s defensive

football coach, working with the late Rick Tolley, into the 1970 season. He then served as

quarterback receiver coach with Tolley’s successor, Jack Lengyel, the following season, his final

year at Marshall.

Dawson had a stellar football career while playing at Florida State University. He was

elected to the Seminoles’ Hall of Fame and earned All-American honorable mention honors at

FSU before professional stints with the AFL’s Boston Patriots and Orlando Panthers.

After resigning his post as a Marshall assistant coach following the 1971 season, Dawson

started his own construction company in Huntington, where he still resides.

“We Are Marshall” es una historia de la vida real. La película, cuenta la

inspiradora historia de una pequeña ciudad en Virginia del Oeste, completamente

avocada al tradicional juego de fútbol americano universitario. Los ciudadanos, tratan de

rehacerse tras una de las más devastadoras pérdidas en la historia deportiva

norteamericana.

La noche del sábado 14 de noviembre de 1970, un avión que transportaba a los

entrenadores, a los hinchas y a los jugadores del equipo de fútbol americano de la

universidad Marshall, volvía a Virginia, tras un muy peleado juego en el estado de

Carolina del Norte. A sólo un minuto del planeado aterrizaje en el aeropuerto Tri-State, el

avión se cayó en las montañas Apalaches, y se murieron todos: 37 jugadores, 8

entrenadores, personal de la Universidad, la tripulación de avión, y 25 ciudadanos

prominentes de la ciudad de Huntington, que habían acompañado al equipo, como

siempre lo hacían, para vivar a su equipo, Thundering Herd.

Como consecuencia de tal espantosa tragedia, el decano de la universidad, Donald

Dedmon (DAVID STRATHAIRN), se preparó para suspender el programa de fútbol de

la temporada, tal vez indefinidamente. El entrenador asistente, Red Dawson

(MATTHEW FOX), que había decidido no tomar el infortunado vuelo ese día, no podía

soportar volver a la cancha nuevamente.

Sin embargo, en Huntington, el fútbol americano siempre había sido mucho más

que un deporte: era un estilo de vida. Los ciudadanos se juntarían para conservarlo.

Tras algunos contratiempos iniciales, encuentran esperanza y liderazgo en un

forastero, Jack Lengyel (MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY), un joven entrenador

determinado a volver a levantar al equipo de Marshall y a su programa, y con ello, ayudar

a cerrar las heridas de la comunidad.

A poco menos de un año del accidente, el 18 de Septiembre de 1971, el nuevo

equipo Thundering Herd (Manada Estruendosa) de la Universidad Marshall se preparaba

para volver a competir en juegos ínter universitarios. El nuevo equipo, joven e

inexperimentado, siguiendo las direcciones de Lengyel y Dawson, iba a desafiar

aplastantes situaciones, para entrar en la cancha y jugar el primer partido de la

universidad, tras el infausto accidente.

Para los muchachos de Marshall no era importante ganar o perder el campeonato

esa temporada. Ni siquiera era importante cómo jugaran el juego. Lo único realmente

importante era que jugaran.

Warner Bros. Pictures en asociación con Legendary Pictures, presenta una

producción Thunder Road Film/Wonderland Sound and Vision, una película del director

McG , “We Are Marshall” , protagonizada por Matthew McConaughey (“Failure to

Launch”), Matthew Fox (“Lost” del canal ABC), Ian McShane (ganador del Globo de

Oro, “Deadwood”), Anthony Mackie (“Million Dollar Baby”), Kate Mara (“Brokeback

Mountain”), January Jones (“The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada”), Brian Geraghty

(“Jarhead”) y David Strathairn (nominado para el Oscar, “Good Night, and Good Luck”).

“We Are Marshall” fue dirigida por McG (películas de “Charlie’s Angels”), a

partir del guión de Jamie Linden, sobre una historia de Cory Helms & Jamie Linden.

Producida por Basil Iwanyk (“Firewall”) y McG, y los productores ejecutivos Brent

O’Connor (“Scooby Doo 2”), Jeanne Allgood, Thomas Tull (“Superman Returns”) y

Scott Mednick (“Superman Returns”).

El grupo creativo tras la pantalla incluye al director de fotografía Shane Hurlbut

(“Drumline”), el diseñador de producción Tom Meyer (“A Lot Like Love”), y el montaje

de Priscilla Nedd Friendly (“Stuart Little 2”) y Gregg London. Música de Christophe

Beck (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) ganador del Premio Emmy. Vestuario diseñado por

Danny Glicker (“Transamerica”).

“We Are Marshall” será distribuida mundialmente por Warner Bros. Pictures,

una compañía Warner Bros. Entertainment. Para más información por favor visite:

www.wearemarshall-themovie.com

SOBRE LA PRODUCCIÓN

Honrando el pasado, construyendo el futuro

-“‘We Are Marshall’ no se trata de un accidente de avión, o de la evolución de un

equipo de fútbol americano. Se trata de lo que le pasa a la gente que sufre una inmensa

pérdida, y lo que hacen para tratar de recuperarse”- comenta el productor Basil Iwanyk “

El volver a integrar el equipo e implementar el programa en Marshall, si bien fue un

hecho, se convirtió en una metáfora de lo que sucede en una pequeña comunidad, donde

la vida de tantos seres está interconectada”.

Como el productor Iwanyk tenía tan sólo seis meses de vida cuando sucedió el

accidente de la Universidad de Marshall, nunca sintió el impacto de los titulares de la

noticia. Ya siendo adulto, tenía un vago conocimiento del hecho, como parte de la

historia deportiva.

-“Yo sabía sobre el accidente, pero no sabía lo que había sucedido después”- dice

Iwanyk. Mientras que buscaba material para otro posible proyecto sobre deportes para su

compañía productora Thunder Road, descubrió documentos acerca del accidente ocurrido

en Marshall. Los heroicos esfuerzos de reconstrucción que hizo la escuela y la comunidad

de Huntington tras la repentina desaparición de sus seres queridos, llamó poderosamente

su atención. Entonces se dio cuenta de que había una verdadera historia para contar.

Iwanyk descubrió que el único archivo filmado del evento, fue un documental

poco conocido, llamado “Ashes to Glory”, realizado en el año 2000 por la Televisión

Publica de Virginia del Oeste. Entonces sintió que verdaderamente - “esta era una historia

que merecía ser contada”.

La guionista Jamie Linden llegó a ser parte del proyecto de la película, a través de

una conexión indirecta con Red Dawson, el entrenador asistente de Marshall, que había

perdido el vuelo fatal. Linden había estudiado en la Universidad Estatal de Florida, alma

mater de Dawson y la escuela en donde la estrella de fútbol americano del Pasillo de la

Fama, se había vuelto famoso en la década de 1960, antes de convertirse en entrenador.

En el año 2000, durante el 30avo aniversario del accidente de avión, el periódico

estudiantil de la FSU (Florida State University) escribió un artículo conmemorativo sobre

Dawson, el cual conmovió a Linden, motivándola a investigar a profundamente el evento

histórico.

-“Cuando leí el artículo, me sorprendí, porque nunca había escuchado lo que le

había pasado al equipo de Marshall”- dice Linden -“Yo nací después del accidente. Gente

de la generación de mis padres tal vez lo recuerden todavía, sin embargo este hecho

parece haberse borrado de la conciencia pública “.

El director Joseph McGinty Nichol, más conocido por el apodo McG (“Charlie’s

Angels” y “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle”), tuvo una reacción similar después de haber

escuchado la historia por primera vez. -“Siempre me atrajeron las historias dramáticas, y

esta es una de las historias más impresionantes que escuché. Trata sobre supervivencia y

de la parte buena de los seres humanos “.

Los hechos de por sí tienen tal profundidad natural y drama, y tantos momentos

de honesta inspiración, que no había necesidad de agrandarlos. McG dice: -“Mucho de lo

que realmente pasó es tan increíble, que si no estuviera basado en una historia real uno

creería que era pura historia de Hollywood”.

Un ejemplo perfecto, casi al final de la película, es un tenso pase de pelota en el

último instante de un partido de fútbol americano, jugado por el nuevo equipo

Thundering Herd, contra sus rivales del equipo Xavier. Ese era tan sólo su segundo juego

de la temporada después de haber reaparecido en 1971. Al respecto Iwanyk dice-“La

forma en que termina el juego es nada menos que sorprendente. Es como la fantasía de

todo guionista, sin embargo es la fiel reconstrucción de ese juego histórico. Mucha gente

recuerda ese día en Huntington, y por muy buenas razones”.

“We Are Marshall” tiene muchos de esos momentos. Tal como Linden reconoce,

la parte más difícil de preparar el guión fue decidir qué parte excluir. -“Trabajamos muy

duro para tratar de contar todas las historias posibles. Esta tragedia afectó a toda la

ciudad: al equipo de fútbol, a la escuela, a los entrenadores y a todos los familiares,

amigos y vecinos. Por lejos, lo más difícil fue aceptar que muchos detalles individuales

iban a tener que ser omitidos. Eso no me dejaba dormir por las noches. Editar es siempre

difícil, pero con esta película fue particularmente doloroso, porque no se trataba de cosas

sino de gente real, y cada una de sus historias era valiosa”.

La guionista, ofrece una mirada al gran número de maneras impredecibles en que

este evento afectó a muchas familias de Huntington. John Hagan, el director del equipo

de fútbol, debería haber estado en el avión ese día, pero como el vuelo era un viernes 13 y

él era muy supersticioso, prefirió ir en auto a Greenville. Eddie Carter había vuelto a su

casa para presenciar el funeral de su padre, por ese motivo se perdió el partido y el avión,

lo cual le salvó la vida. El goleador del equipo Marcelo Lajterman, que estaba en su

segundo año de escuela superior, se había casado con su novia Mary Ellen Cook en

secreto. El estaba planeando dar a conocer la noticia en una fiesta el sábado por la noche,

pero lamentablemente, murió en el vuelo antes de tener la oportunidad de hacerlo.

-“Una de la historias más desgarradoras” - continua Linden –“fue la de cuatro

personas que viajaban en el avión. Eran dos parejas de amigos, que eran padrinos

mutuamente de los hijos de los otros. Una de las parejas tenia cuatro hijos, y la otra,

cinco. Cuando se cayó el avión, además de esos 9 muchachos, otros 18 niños de la

pequeña ciudad se quedaron huérfanos. Hay muchas historias como esta. Era imposible

contarlas todas, pero tratamos que las que sí contamos, representaran en la mejor manera

posible, a todas. El sentimiento era auténtico y tuvimos mucha gente a mano, que nos

ayudó a contar las cosas como realmente sucedieron”.

Después de la tragedia, surgió la pregunta de si se debía o no restablecer el

diezmado programa de fútbol de la Universidad de Marshall, y en el debate, se

escucharon opiniones cargadas de emoción, y muy convincentes de cada lado.

McG dice: -“Si nosotros hicimos bien nuestro trabajo, la gente va a entender el

valor que tenía seguir adelante con el programa, y al mismo tiempo, también van a

entender las razones para no hacerlo. Ambas eran posiciones valederas. Yo creo que

después de una pérdida, sobreviene un espíritu natural, que hace que algunas personas

quieran rápidamente ir y hacer algo positivo. En este caso, fue reconstruir al equipo de

fútbol y volver a jugar. Por otro lado, uno tiene que pensar que cada vez que los ruidos de

un partido de fútbol americano se sienten en las principales calles de Huntington, las

madres sólo recuerdan a los hijos que perdieron”.

-“En todos los casos” -propone Iwanyk- “es imposible juzgar a cualquiera de esas

personas”.

“En la vida suceden cosas” -dice Matthew McConaughey, quien encarna al

entrenador Lengyel - “La elección entonces es cómo enfrenta uno la situación, cómo

cicatriza las heridas y cómo sigue adelante. Cada uno lo hace en forma diferente pero lo

importante es dar el primer paso. Tal vez uno no sepa a dónde lo va a llevar ese paso,

pero aun así lo debe tomar. Por esa razón esta es una historia poderosa, tiene dolor y

pérdida, pero después, al volver al campo de juego, al ponerse los zapatos en la mañana e

ir a la escuela o al trabajo, ellos comienzan a curar”.

En una escena donde Dawson cuestiona el sentido de liderar un equipo perdedor,

McConaughey recurrió a su experiencia personal, para contestar - interpretando el papel

de Lengyel - con un comentario profundo. Ese comentario era una frase de un amigo de

McConaughey, el famoso entrenador de fútbol americano de la Universidad de Texas.

Daryl K. Royal, y no estaba en el guión original de Linden: “Si salimos al campo de

juego y ponemos allí todo lo que tenemos, si damos todo lo que somos absolutamente, no

podemos perder. Tal vez quedemos atrás en el marcador al final del juego, pero no

podremos ser vencidos “.

Para McG, ese comentario, representa la propia filosofía impulsora de

McConaughey, y “encaja perfectamente con el tema de ‘We Are Marshall’ Es una

hermosa perspectiva que afirma la vida y la idea central de la película”.

Cada persona trata de enfrentar las cosas como puede:

Selección de los actores para personajes verídicos

Mucha gente considera que Jack Lengyel era el hombre apropiado en el momento

justo.

Matthew McConaughey pasó mucho tiempo con el verdadero ex – entrenador,

para prepararse para personificarlo. Lengyel tuvo una espectacular influencia en las

películas occidentales. “El era alguien que no pertenecía a la ciudad, que vino con su

propio plan; él era un tanto inortodoxo, pero la situación no era ortodoxa. No hay un

manual de instrucciones para los entrenadores que pierden absolutamente todo su equipo.

Lo que Lengyel hizo, fue lograr que la gente pudiera vivir con la situación y el presente,

paso a paso, partido a partido. A él no le importaba lograr una buena temporada, sino un

día de buena practica, después una semana y después tal vez un mes. Su meta era poner el

equipo en la cancha, ya después se preocuparía por ganar o perder. Esa iba a ser la

manera de levantar la moral.

Por su lado, McG piensa que el que Lengyel no perteneciera a la ciudad, ayudó en

mucho a la situación. Eso le permitía tener compasión pero a la vez ser imparcial, tener

respeto por la tristeza de todos, sin quedar inmovilizado por ella. -“Como el no había

estado personalmente conectado con el accidente, tenia la libertad de poder concentrarse

en la reconstrucción”.

-“Por muchos años busqué poder interpretar un gran personaje como este: un

maestro, un entrenador, un padre”- dice McConaughey- “Haber encontrado un personaje

como este, dentro de una historia tan conmovedora, apasionante y edificante, y luego

enterarme que no era ficción- fue realmente impresionante. Cuando terminé de leer el

guión, yo sabía que quería hacer la película. Inmediatamente después contacté a Jack

Lengyel y me sumergí en la historia, de la cual no sabía nada”.

El verdadero Lengyel, quien era asesor para la película, explica porqué él quiso

ser el entrenador del equipo, conciente del riesgo de que podía llegar a ser muy

desmoralizante. El cuenta que, siendo entrenador en Wooster College en Ohio, al mirar

las noticias, vio la cobertura del accidente y el drama que se había desplegado como

consecuencia. En ese momento, él sintió que el fútbol americano le había permitido hacer

una carrera como entrenador universitario, y esta era -“la oportunidad de devolver lo que

el deporte me había dado a mí, de devolver algo ayudando a una escuela que realmente

tenía grandes problemas. Yo sentí que podía ayudar reconstruyendo el programa de

fútbol”.

McConaughey tomó su papel con mucha seriedad y se sumergió en el personaje

con mucha dedicación. -“Mirar a Mathew actuar este papel es una delicia, en el sentido

que él le brindó toda su pasión”- dice McG - “A través de él, uno se da cuenta que

Lengyel era un tipo que se sentía a gusto sobre el pasto recién cortado, haciendo lo que a

él más le gustaba. Uno puede sentirlo en cada una de las escenas. Matthew se había

compenetrado completamente con el personaje y se había preparado con entusiasmo para

desarrollarlo. Cada día, aparecía para trabajar con la mente puesta en ello, y así, logró

transmitir no sólo la filosofía y la energía que Lengyel llevó a Marshall, sino hasta los

detalles personales únicos del entrenador, como su perseverancia y su entrega, su manera

de andar, su manera de hablar y su alto espíritu”.

Lengyel elogió la buena interpretación de McConaughey, a excepción de un solo

detalle: -“Yo no creo que mis patillas eran tan largas”.

Matthew Fox, alguna vez fue estrella del equipo de fútbol de la Universidad de

Columbia, y es quien interpreta el papel de Red Dawson, el ayudante del entrenador

Lengyel, durante la difícil temporada de 1971 tras el accidente. Ellos tuvieron que

reclutar y entrenar a un equipo en el cual casi todos los jugadores eran novatos. El

verdadero Dawson tenía 27 años cuando sucedió todo, y sólo tres temporadas de

experiencia como entrenador. El había perdido el avión que se cayó y en consecuencia,

había quedado con un profundo sentimiento de pérdida y culpa persistente, por haber

sobrevivido. De los 37 jugadores a bordo, 20 eran muchachos que Dawson había

reclutado el personalmente.

-“Red ha acarreado en su alma el peso de esa noche durante 36 años, pensado en

el hecho que él no había estado en el avión” - dice Fox, quien desarrolló una verdadera

conexión con ex - entrenador. Dawson fue asesor durante la producción, y hasta hizo un

cameo en el papel del entrenador del equipo rival de Huntington, los Morehead State. –

“Pienso que siendo quien Dawson es, y debido a la responsabilidad que él tomó sobre

esos muchachos, ha sido algo muy difícil de sobrellevar. Al hacer esta película, se

revolvieron cosas que yo creo que Red ha tratado de mantener dentro suyo”.

McG da crédito a Fox diciendo: -“tiene la habilidad de entender el poder del

silencio. El personaje de Red Dawson tenía algo específico y yo, quería un actor que

entendiera qué significaba mantener la dignidad y transmitir algo silenciosa pero

poderosamente con los ojos, tal vez simplemente bajándolos para comunicar algo que él

no podía decir”.

En la película, Fox actuando como Dawson, comenta casi con las mismas

palabras que utilizó Dawson recientemente, y dice: “Fui a 20 casas, me senté en 20 salas,

y la prometí a 20 madres que yo cuidaría a sus hijos. Ellos hubieran terminado siendo la

clase del ’73. Veinte muchachos…y no quedó ni uno de ellos. Dígame, ¿cómo puedo yo

mirar a la cara de una madre y prometerle algo alguna otra vez?”.

Al mismo tiempo, Fox comenta: -“Red siente que tiene la obligación de volver a

reconstruir el programa, y sabe que Lengyel lo necesita. Eso es lo que finalmente

prevalece sobre sus propios sentimientos personales”. El actor, también se explayó sobre

otro elemento del personaje de Dawson, la parte de él que nunca dejó de amar el juego. “

Al hablarle a Red” – dice Fox- “me dio la sensación de que él es un tipo muy intenso en

el campo, y que para él el juego era muy importante. Yo ya hace mucho que no juego,

pero conozco el sentimiento perfectamente”.

En el papel de la esposa de Red Dawson, Carole está January Jones. Para ella, el

desafío de su papel, era reconciliar las emociones conflictivas que ella cree que Carole

Dawson tuvo: felicidad porque su esposo sobrevivió, y compasión por los amigos que no

habían tenido esa suerte.

En su momento más dramático en escena, Carole se queda pasmada al ver a Red

regresar la noche del accidente, dado que ella creía que se había muerto con todos los

otros. Para tratar de imaginarse cómo se hubiese sentido, Jones usó su instinto, para poder

reaccionar físicamente: -“Si alguien a quien quiero me fuera sacado y luego me fuera

devuelto milagrosamente, yo lo golpearía para saber que es él en verdad. Por eso me van

a ver tanto hablándole como golpeándolo, abrazándolo, y conectándome con él para

confirmar que él está vivo, y entre mis brazos”. Al igual que Dawson, el jugador

universitario Nate Ruffin, perdió el vuelo, y en consecuencia, sufrió profunda culpa de

sobreviviente. Para curarse de una herida en la rótula, el jugador defensivo de 20 años

dec edad, había tenido que quedarse en su casa cuando sus compañeros tomaron el vuelo

hacia Carolina del Norte.

Anthony Mackie da vida a Ruffin, y él piensa que en parte era este sentimiento de

culpa lo que le daba una energía inacabable en el campo. -“En una situación como esa, es

natural pensar que esos eran mis amigos, mi familia, mis compañeros de equipo, y que yo

debería haber estado con ellos. ¿Por qué yo tengo tanta suerte de no haber estado allí?

Tener que afrontar eso crea mucha presión, y Nate era uno de esos individuos que

canalizaba la presión obligándose a él mismo y a sus compañeros a subir el nivel de

rendimiento en el campo. Ese era su método de supervivencia y su terapia”.

Nate Ruffin murió en el año 2001, pero su familia y amigos compartieron sus

memorias con los realizadores y actores de la película. Inclusive, invitaron a Mackie a

pasar las Pascuas en su casa en Huntington. -“Todos lo describían como un alma vieja”-

comenta el actor –“Era un persona maravillosa y llena de espíritu, que ayudaba a la gente,

casi como si fuera un alcalde no oficial de Huntington. La gente hablaba de él con mucho

amor, y eso fue algo que yo quise transmitir a través de mi personaje”.

Sin embargo, no todos en la ciudad querían volver a restaurar el equipo. Algunos

pensaban que la comunidad debería tomarse el tiempo para curar y re-evaluar las cosas,

otros lo consideraban un deshonor para con aquellos que habían muerto, y otros estaban

tan consumidos por el dolor, que ya nada les importaba. Esta mezcla de emociones, es

representada por el personaje complejo de Paul Griffen, interpretado por Ian McShane.

Griffen es un viudo que perdió a su único hijo en el accidente. Ahora, presiona

activamente a la junta de directores de la universidad, para que suspendan el programa y

el equipo de fútbol americano.

-“Si bien Ian McShane es especial para interpretar papeles de malo” – dice Jamie

Linden- “Paul Griffen definitivamente no es malo. Hay mucha gente tiene que ver con la

formación de ese personaje, y ellos son comprensivos y heroicos, como muchos en esta

película. Cuando ocurre una tragedia, la gente la enfrenta de maneras distintas. No hay

una mejor ni una peor manera de sufrir”.

El personaje de Griffen está ligado con otro personaje complejo, la porrista Annie

Cantrell, interpretada por Kate Mara, quien tiene sus propias y genuinas conexiones con

el fútbol. Mara es la biznieta del fundador de los Giants de Nueva York, Timothy Mara, y

del fundador de los Steelers de Pittsburg, Art Rooney. Frecuentemente ella canta el

himno nacional en al apertura de los juegos de los Giants.

Annie Cantrell representa las experiencias de muchas jovencitas, que perdieron

amigos, o novios en el accidente—en el caso de Annie, a su novio Chris, el hijo de Paul

Griffen. Mara, se juntó con las ex-porristas de Marshall durante la producción, para

enterarse de cómo las impresionó esa noche en el pasado. Por su lado, ella trató de

imaginarse la inmensidad de tal pérdida. “¿Qué harías si tu novio se muriera en un

accidente de avión? Imagínate haber planeado tu vida y que de pronto te arrebaten eso” –

dice ella- “Pienso que para poder apreciar esta historia y que afecte, una persona necesita

tener interés en el fútbol americano. Es realmente muy conmovedora”.

En medio de la gran agitación causada por el accidente, y del debate sobre si

seguir o no con el programa de fútbol Americano – al margen de los detalles de cómo

lograr tal cosa, de ser aprobado –el decano de la universidad, Dedmon continuó

desarrollando sus cada vez más difíciles tareas. David Strathairn, que actúa como Donald

Dedmon, buscando información sobre su personaje, encontró algunos diarios que

mencionaban al ya fallecido decano de la Universidad. Continuó informándose hablando

con gente que había trabajado en la administración de la Universidad, y con residentes de

Huntington que lo conocían. Finalmente logró tener la imagen en su mente del –“hombre

que hacía lo que podía para poner a la gente antes que a los reglamentos. Parecen haber

opiniones enfrentadas sobre cuán popular era en ese momento, pero en retrospectiva,

Dedmon aparece como una persona altamente respetada y alabada por su dedicación y

sus esfuerzos”.

McG agrega: -“Nosotros podemos sentir el beneficio fundamental en cada opción

que Dedmon toma”.

Para un extraño como Lengyel, Dedmon era un presidente interino y un

académico con muy pocos conocimientos de fútbol americano. No obstante, Strathairn

dice: -“El comenzó a estar profundamente involucrado con las vidas de la gente de la

comunidad. Durante su corto cargo en el lugar, tuvo que tomar la decisión sobre el futuro

del fútbol en su universidad, y también debió elegir al hombre cuyo corazón estuviese

realmente interesado en el caso. Dedmon debía encontrar un nuevo entrenador, y

encontró a Jack Lengyel”.

Reflejando los sentimientos de algunos de los personajes de Huntington, tocados

de cerca por la tragedia, Brian Geraghty da vida a un personaje ficticio: el jugador

universitario Tom Bogdan. Al igual que Nate Ruffin, Bogdan también perdió el vuelo.

Pero todo lo contrario que Ruffin, transforma su dolor en profunda dedicación en el

nuevo equipo. Bogdan no puede más soportar la pérdida y la culpa.

Geraghty dice al respecto: -“Bogdan ya no lo tiene adentro. Para él, era mucho

más que fútbol, era parte de su vida, la cual compartía con esos muchachos que eran sus

mejores amigos. El no quería salir al campo a jugar sin ellos. Ya nunca sería lo mismo”.

Al margen de los pocos jugadores originales del equipo que habían quedado, la

mayoría del equipo de 1971 eran principiantes, como por ejemplo el mariscal de campo

del nuevo Thundering Herd, Reggie Oliver, personaje de la vida real interpretado por

Arlen Escarpeta. Oliver estaba en su primer año en Marshall cuando de repente pasó a ser

uno de los miembros del equipo senior, uno de los primeros mariscales de campo negros,

dentro de la Asociación Nacional de Deportes inter-universitarios NCAA, y un futuro

jugador del Pasillo de la Fama de Marshall. El pase que le hace a Terry Gardner - una

jugada que el entrenador Lengyel nunca había usado anteriormente- en los segundos

finales del partido entre Marshall y Xavier, en septiembre de 1971, levantó a los

espectadores de sus bancos, y los hizo vivar y entusiasmarse como no lo habían hecho en

mucho tiempo.

-“Reggie Oliver eligió quedarse” – dice Escarpeta- “Eso significaba que debía

aceptar al nuevo grupo de muchachos, por sus propios méritos, como jugadores y como

amigos. Eso no debió haber sido fácil, cuando cada número y cada posición en el campo

le recordaba a otra persona”.

Escarpeta y Oliver se conocieron cuando Oliver fue a visitar el lugar de filmación,

para ver el acto de reconstrucción del caluroso juego contra los Xavier. Esa escena le

trajo muchos recuerdos. -“Yo era un chico e 18 años de Tuscaloosa” – dice Oliver - “A

mí me gusta pensar que pusimos algunos de los primeros ladrillos en la pared tras el

accidente de Marshall, para levantarnos de nuestras cenizas. Fue muy duro tener 18 años

y pasar a ser de uno de los más jóvenes jugadores del equipo, a uno de los mayores, en un

abrir y cerrar de ojos”.

“Háganlo bien”

David Strathairn dice: -“En Huntington todo el tiempo uno se encuentra con gente

que estuvo conectada a los hechos de una u otra manera, ya sea que perdieron un padre,

un amigo, o alguien a quien conocían y que se murió en el accidente. Ellos son muy

abiertos para relatar sus experiencias y recuerdos. Había mucha tristeza, pero también

momentos de celebración y entusiasmo al pensar que está era su historia, e iba a ser

relatada. Proveyó una especie de energía que todo el mundo sintió”.

Al principio Dawson tuvo muchas dudas en participar para llevar “We Are

Marshall” a la pantalla. El confesó que tenía sentimientos encontrados ante la posibilidad

de ver la película terminada. -“Me gustaría verla terminada. Sin embargo, creo que

preferiría está solo cuando la vea por primer vez, porque mis heridas todavía no

cerraron”.

Muchas de las personas afectadas directamente por el accidente, todavía viven en

Huntington. Hoy, a tres décadas de lo sucedido, el impacto y las consecuencias de lo

ocurrido en esa noche, todavía están a flor de piel. Es un recuerdo que protegieron por

mucho tiempo. Al respecto, Matthew Fox comenta: -“Cuando una comunidad debe

enfrentarse a este tipo de tragedia, junto con el dolor y la angustia, creo que la gente

comienza a tener un sentimiento de ‘propiedad’ sobre lo sucedido, y una preocupación

sobre cómo lo ven los otros. Ese es el tipo de reacción que la gente debió haber tenido

cuando Lengyel llegó con todo su optimismo y energía. Lo mismo también debe haber

sucedido cuando ellos se enteraron que se iba a hacer una película sobre el tema”.

Los cineastas tomaron una posición honesta, sensible y abierta a la colaboración.

Iwanyk dice: -“Cuando uno comienza a enterarse de quiénes son esas personas, se

puede comprender por lo que pasaron y cómo se recobraron. Entonces, ¿cómo no querer

su cooperación y apoyo, y su bendición para llevar a cabo el proyecto? No queríamos

decepcionarlos”.

Iwanyk y McG se juntaron con Jack Lengyel y Red Dawson, y entrevistaron a las

familias y ex-administradores de la universidad, para que hicieran saber a la gente de su

presencia en el campus y en la ciudad, antes de comenzar la producción. Ellos invitaron a

representantes de la universidad, a Lengyel y a otros participantes clave, para revisar el

guión y corregirlo antes de la filmación”.

-“No necesitaban nuestro permiso para realizar esta película. Pero lo querían”dice

H. Keith Spears, un ex estudiante de Marshall y contemporáneo de la gente que

murió en el accidente. Ahora él es Vice Presidente de Comunicaciones y Marketing de la

universidad. El trabajó junto con Iwanyk y McG, para coordinar la filmación dentro del

campus. -“La gente estaba a favor de que se hiciera la película. Su única preocupación

era ‘que la hicieran bien’. Había tres parámetros esenciales para ello: primero el honor de

los que murieron, segundo el respeto por la gente de Huntington y el estado de Virginia

del Oeste, y tercero salvaguardar la integridad de la universidad. Marshall era una gran

institución antes del accidente de avión, y también lo fue después. Pero no es ‘la

universidad del accidente de avión”.

-“El tema todavía toca los corazones de la comunidad”- agrega el nativo de

Huntington, Keith Morehouse, quien tenía nueve años cuando perdió a su padre Gene,

quien era el relator de radio que transmitía los juegos del equipo Thundering Herd. El

estaba en el avión junto con el equipo esa noche. Morehouse siguió los pasos de su padre,

y pasó a ser el relator de radio de Marshall en WRVC-AM/FM, y también el presentador

de noticias para los deportes 11 PM para la repetidora de televisión de NBC. El conoció a

su futura esposa, Deb Hagley, cuando los dos estudiaban en la universidad Marshall.

Durante su noviazgo, Morehouse reconoció el apellido de ella, como el del médico del

equipo perdido, Ray Hagley, que también murió en el avión junto a su esposa, Shirley.

-“Luego de las primeras conversaciones, era obvio que los cineastas querían saber

algunas cosas que hicimos. –“Eran serios”- dice Spears -“el guión de Jamie era certero, y

retrataba nuestra historia de una manera que yo creo que, cualquiera que conozca su

legado, va a reconocer y a apreciar. Fueron muy abiertos con nosotros, y a cambio, les

facilitamos las cosas”.

Lengyel recuerda: -“Preguntaron si había alguna preocupación, y si así era, cómo

debían manejarse. Ellos no querían alienar a nadie, o causar mayor dolor. Creo que

tuvieron muchas consideraciones para incorporar a la comunidad de Marshall en la

película. Ellos realmente pudieron captar el espíritu de la escuela y de la ciudad”.

Tal vez, un incidente que ocurrió antes de comenzar a filmar, sea el mejor

ejemplo para demostrar esto. Se descubrió una carta escrita a mano, en el obelisco del

cementerio Spring Hill, en la tumba de seis jugadores cuyos cuerpos no pudieron ser

identificados. La misiva era anónima, y estaba dirigida al equipo de producción en

general. Estaba escrita con el tono de voz colectiva de aquellos que murieron,

refiriéndose a ellos como familia, y en una parte decía: “Ustedes tienen ahora el desafío

de contar la historia de mi familia al mundo. Hago responsables a todos los que están

involucrados en esta producción, de poner su alma entera en realizarla. Tal vez nos

hayamos ido de la tierra, pero representamos la esperanza de cada hijo y cada hija de la

universidad de Marshall, y al igual que la esperanza, nuestro espíritu nunca morirá”

Al recibir esta carta, Jamie Linden distribuyó copias a cada miembro del equipo

de producción y del reparto, reforzando así su cometido, y sentando el espíritu con el que

se debía trabajar durante todo el tiempo que durase la producción.

Partidarios locales se reunieron en un gran grupo para celebrar en una gran fiesta

que organizó la ciudad en su centro. Era para dar la bienvenida a la compañía de

filmación el 1° de abril del 2006. Se levantó un escenario afuera del teatro histórico Keith

Albee, en donde McG, Basil Iwanyk, Matthew McConaughey y David Strathairn

agradecieron a una multitud de 8 mil personas, que se unieron a ellos con su grito de

batalla, “WE ARE MARSHALL!” (¡Nosotros somos Marshall!)

-“Lo gritaron con todas sus ganas”- relata Strathairn - “Así se presentaron al

mundo, y es su reconocimiento de que han podido continuar con sus vidas exitosamente,

han sobrevivido, alcanzado y logrado algo, renacido de las cenizas de ese avión.

Mostraron el espíritu de una ciudad y una comunidad”.

La producción en el Campus de la Universidad de Marshall y otros lugares

auténticos de Huntington

La filmación de “We Are Marshall” comenzó en donde los hechos sucedieron 36

años atrás: en la universidad de Marshall en Huntington, Virginia del Oeste, en la propia

ciudad de Huntington.

El diseñador de producción Tom Meyer recuerda que McG quería dentro de lo

posible, filmar en los lugares reales, y no hubiera seguido adelante con la producción si

eso no hubiera sido posible, en su mayoría. -“Cuando me junté con McG por primera vez,

volamos al lugar. Es cierto lo que se dice que, los lugares tienen un algo especial que no

se puede recrear en un estudio”.

-“Al caminar por las calles”- continúa Meyer-“la gente se nos acercaba y nos

decía ‘Yo me acuerdo de la noche del accidente’, o ‘Yo recuerdo el primer partido que

jugamos después del accidente’. Esas emociones nos llegaron de una manera poderosa,

tal como sucedió cuando nos paramos frente al obelisco recordatorio en el cementerio

Spring Hill. Pasamos tres semanas filmando en Huntington, y para entonces ya había

estado en el lugar una docena de veces. Mis diseños se iban alterando según mis

experiencias allí”.

Entre los lugares verdaderos del campus que Meyer incorporó en la película, están

el centro de estudiantes y la capilla en donde la gente de la ciudad se congregó la noche

que el avión se estrelló. Meyer también utilizó un edificio vacío como sala de reuniones,

a para la escena en la que Nate Ruffin desafía la decisión de los directores de la

universidad, de suspender el programa de fútbol americano. El campus mismo se

convirtió en un escenario, y los estudiantes de Marshall se convirtieron en extras.

Spears, quien era el responsable de la coordinación de la filmación permitiendo

que se pudieran mantener las clases y eventos regulares en la universidad, recuerda ahora:

-“Cuando comenzaron a traer el equipo de filmación al campus, la gente del equipo

comenzó a ser parte de la universidad de Marshall, y a sus vez ellos comenzaron a

hacernos parte de ellos. Se convirtió en una danza organizada para asegurar que ellos no

interrumpieran las clases, y nosotros no interrumpiéramos la filmación. La gente de

seguridad del campus, los profesores, el personal de las playas de estacionamiento, los

operadores de las plantas: todos estaban involucrados, ya sea por el equipo e producción

necesitaba mayor voltaje en el tercer piso en la antigua biblioteca, o si necesitaban mayor

espacio para estacionar cuarenta camiones, y casas rodantes. Si ellos venían y nos decían

‘A nosotros nos gusta el Centro de Estudiantes, pero nos gustaría cambiarle el color”, mi

única pregunta era ‘¿Lo van a volver a pintar del color original al terminar?’”

Meyer era el responsable del aspecto de los exteriores de Huntington, y con un

equipo de 100 personas, restauró la manzana de la ciudad en la calle 4th, para darle la

apariencia de la década de 1970. Duplicó cada negocio, desde el teatro Keith-Albee hasta

el hotel Frederick, desde las zapaterías, a las oficinas de seguros. Fue una suerte para,

Meyer encontrar las estructuras de base de la época todavía intactas. -“No habían

derribado edificios ni los habían reemplazado con un nuevo McDonald’s. Uno podía girar

en 360 grados, y ver a su alrededor edificios que habían estado allí desde hacía 30, 40 ó

100 años, hasta los basamentos mismos de la ciudad. Las viejas fachadas de edificios tal

vez habían sido tapadas, tal vez habían instalado un toldo flamante o habían recubierto

las paredes con estuco o ladrillo. Pedro si uno rasguñaba un poco eso, allí estaban los

elementos de la arquitectura original y su belleza natural”.

Para recrear el lugar en donde se estrelló el avión, Meyer fue junto con McG,

miembros del equipo de producción y con Spears, a inspeccionar el área, y cuán cerca

estaba del aeropuerto. -“Uno puede ver las pistas del aeropuerto desde el lugar del

accidente, sólo queda a un cuarto de milla de distancia. Al ver lo cerca que estaban esa

noche de haber tenido un final más feliz, hacía al hecho todavía mucho más

estremecedor”- dice Meyer. Finalmente se decidió que filmar en el lugar del accidente no

iba a ser apropiado, y el equipo de producción se mudó al aeropuerto Brown Field del

condado de Fulton en Atlanta, un campo de aviación de conexión, completamente

funcional, a seis millas del centro de la ciudad.

Meyer compró un Viejo fuselaje de DC-9 de una chatarrería de aviación en el

desierto de Mojave. Se hizo enviar las piezas a Atlanta en seis camiones. Un equipo

liderado por el coordinador de efectos especiales, David Fletcher, instaló más de 3 mil

pies de cañerías de gas propano, conectados a tanques de gas de 2500 libras, para generar

fuegos controlados, a lo largo de un cuarto de acre. Los bomberos que aparecen en la

película son bomberos verdaderos del área de Atlanta, que condujeron antiguos carros de

bomberos, entre ellos dos camiones que en verdad, estuvieron en las escenas de Virginia

del Oeste, el 14 de noviembre de 1970.

Wes Sarginson, presentador veterano de noticias de la repetidora WXIA-11 de

NBC en Atlanta, tuvo conexión directa con el accidente en 1970. El era corresponsal para

NBC, y tenía entonces 27 años. El estaba basado en ese tiempo en Cleveland, y fue el

primer reportero nacional en el lugar de la escena. Al visitar los escenarios vívidos que

había recreado Meyer, basándose en fotos y películas de televisión, Sarginson no podía

creer sus ojos. En su reporte de noticias esa noche, dijo: -“Se vé igual que como fue en el

pasado”. Ese comentario se constató días después, cuando antes de que McG comenzara

a organizar una secuencia, un hombre del equipo de producción se hirió con una rama de

árbol caída. Se llamó entonces a una ambulancia. Los enfermeros que llegaron, quedaron

impresionados por el realismo del lugar, y uno de ellos, hasta preguntó porqué a ellos no

les habían avisado de la caída de un avión en el área.

Otros exteriores que se utilizaron en Atlanta, fueron el edificio de la Asociación

Nacional del Colegiado Deportivo en Midtown, que hizo las veces de las oficinas

administrativas de la universidad de Marshall; y una antigua concesionaria de autos Ford

en el centro de la ciudad, cuyo garaje fue convertido por Meyer en el restaurante Boone’s

Diner, un lugar en donde la gente del lugar se juntaba durante la semana para escuchar

los juegos del equipo Herd. Para construir este restaurante ficticio, Meyer se basó en un

ejemplo que le había presentado McG, de una pintura de Edward Hopper, llamada“The

Nighthawks”. También se basó en una verdadera institución de Huntington llamada Jim,

un restaurante cuyos dueños eran una familia, cuyo restaurante había servido a la

comunidad como lugar de reunión durante 60 años. Al utilizar verdaderos lugares en vez

de escenarios construidos en estudios, él pudo incorporar parte de los exteriores

adyacentes.

-“Había un maravilloso edificio de los años ’50, que estaba en ruinas y listo para

ser demolido”-dice Meyer. El convenció a los dueños que dejaran que su equipo lo

restaurase, y lo pintara con los colores de la época. -“Eso nos dio nuestra fachada. Nos

permitió entonces mostrar autos yendo por la calle, con los faros que se reflejaban en las

ventanas, y mostar la dinámica de la ciudad que rodeaba al restaurante”.

Otros dos escenarios clave de Meyer, eran los vestuarios de los equipos de fútbol,

en Carolina del Este y los de Marshall. Meyer relata: -“Queríamos mostrar en la historia

algo más que unas cuantas cuadras funcionales. Cuando se vé el equipo de jugadores de

Marshall en Carolina del Este, antes del accidente, ellos están perdiendo lastimosamente,

y no saben de la tragedia que les espera. Entonces el vestuario tiene un ambiente lúgubre.

El techo es bajo y hay grandes sombras. Con respecto al vestuario de Marshall, yo quería

evocar el ambiente de una catedral. Había una luz alta y clara que pasaba por las ventanas

e iluminaba los armarios, los cuales brillaban como joyas. Puse techos abovedados, para

darle un cierto toque espiritual al lugar, entonces, cuando los jugadores se arrodillan para

rezar antes del partido, parecería que están en una iglesia”.

Las escenas de partidos de fútbol americano se filmaron en la universidad Morris

Brown, la cual, junto con las universidades Morehouse y Spellman y la Clark Atlanta,

son parte de las instituciones históricas del centro universitario de la ciudad de Atlanta, el

consorcio más grande de la nación de instituciones privadas afro-americanas para más

alta educación, fundada en 1929. El estadio Herndon, de color violeta y blanco de la

universidad Morris Brown hizo las veces del estadio Fairfiel de la universidad Marshall,

por lo que se pintó verde y blanco para la película, y también se le instaló un tablero

marcador antiguo.

El Verde y el Blanco de los trajes

-“Si yo tuviera que usar una sola palabra para describir la moda de ese tiempo, yo

diría “transitoria”- dice el diseñador de vestuario Danny Glicker- “Cuando la gente piensa

en los años ’70, le vienen a la mente imágenes de diseños locos y escandalosos, pero la

mayor parte de eso llegó más tarde. Además, Huntington, al igual que cualquier otra

ciudad pequeña, naturalmente debía estar un tanto atrasada en moda. En esencia, era más

la moda de los últimos años de la década de1960 lo que queríamos mostrar”.

Para el personaje de Matthew Fox, Red Dawson, Glicker eligió un aspecto

conservador, y se apegó a los clásicos pantalones con tachas, y las corbatas angostas, con

cuellos un tanto más anchos, que marcaron la nueva década. Para Matthew

McConaughey, como era un entrenador que venía desde Ohio, Glicker eligió corbatas un

poco más anchas y estampados más audaces.

El desafío más grande de Glicker fue restaurar los colores de batalla de Marshall,

verde y blanco.

El diseñador explica: - “El verde de Marshall de los años’70, es un verde brillante

que ya no existe. Se fue de moda porque es muy difícil teñir las telas de ese color al que

son resistentes. Eso sin mencionar que muchos de los químicos que se usaban para lograr

ese color, ahora están prohibidos”.

Sin embargo, cambiarlo no era una opción. Glicker dice: -“Cualquiera que

conozca la Universidad de Marshall, habla del verde con cariño, y existe un verdadero

deseo de volver a verlo nuevamente. Aunque tomó un montón de trabajo, y las artes de

talentosos profesionales, tengo que decir con orgullo que pudimos lograr los verdaderos

verde y blanco, y ponerlos de vuelta en la cancha”.

Fue más fácil para el diseñador el estilo de chaquetas que usaban. Basándose en

antiguas fotos de la época, él experimentó con varias telas y puntadas, para crear varios

prototipos. Sin embargo no estaba conforme con los resultados. Entonces, en una muestra

más de la típica atmósfera de colaboración que abundaba, entre la comunidad y el equipo

de filmación, una persona de la ciudad ofreció su propia chaqueta original para que fuera

utilizada como patrón.

Glicker también reprodujo los uniformes de tres equipos de universidades rivales,

Morehead, Xavier y Carolina del Este, y los hizo a medida para los extras.

El descubrió un fanático de la ropa retro en Anthony Mackie. El actor recuerda

con orgullo que cuando era niño, le gustaba revolver en el ropero de su padre, para

hacerse disfraces de Halloween. -“Cuando me dijeron que iban a usar pantalones de

polyester y cuellos abotonados, creí que era un sueño hecho realidad” – dice riéndose-

“Yo sé que ya no se fabrican esas chaquetas de cuero, a la manera que se hacían antes, ni

con los remiendos que solían tener. Tampoco es fácil encontrar los zapatos con

plataforma típicos de entonces. Esa cosas ya no se encuentran más”.

24, 19, 32…¡Hip, Hip…Hurra!

El coordinador de acción deportiva Mark Ellis (“The Longest Yard”,

“Invincible”), tuvo la responsabilidad de que los equipos de jugadores no solamente

actuaran su papel sino que además, jugaran debidamente. “We Are Marshall” muestra

tres escenas de enfrentamientos significativos en la cancha: el partido del equipo visitante

jugado en Carolina del Este el día del accidente; el partido contra los Morehead diez

meses después, el cual fue el desfavorable partido debut del reconstruido equipo; y el

sorpresivo juego que siguió, de los Xavier.

No se trataba de simple acción de fútbol. Ellis explica: -“La historia trata de

relaciones y la comunidad, y los partidos se apoyan todos ello. Son parte del proceso de

reconstrucción. Este es un nuevo equipo de jugadores, de muchachos en su primer año

universitario que llegan y deben tomar el lugar de aquellos que se fueron”.

McConaughey, que trabajó junto con Ellis, McG, Lindel y Lengyel para orquestar

las escenas, comenta: -“Cada partido jugado debía representar exactamente lo que yo les

había enseñado, y debía ser muy específico para ciertos jugadores. Cuando cambiamos la

ofensiva, por ejemplo cambiando la dirección de la pelota, uno debe ver ese cambio en el

juego. Uno debe ver qué efecto tiene para ver que funciona, o que no funciona”.

Ellis estudió películas de archivo de verdaderos juegos de Marshall, y consultó

con los entrenadores, entre ellos Lengyel, para tener conocimiento de primera mano. -“yo

pregunté ‘¿Cuál era la terminología entonces? ¿Cuáles eran las canciones que cantaban

los fanáticos? ¿Cuál era su filosofía? Esos fueron nuestros patrones”.

Se hizo una llamada abierta para reclutar actores potenciales a través del país,

durante dos semanas. El resultado fueron más de 4,000 personas de los alrededores, más

otros que se ofrecieron de otras partes del país. Ellis eligió unos cientos de ellos, para

representar los equipos locales y los visitantes. Luego de las tradicionales pruebas al

estilo de la Liga Nacional de Fútbol (NFL), el número se redujo a los necesarios 65.

Entonces comenzó el trabajo de Ellis para convertirlos en equipos que jugaran.

-“Estos muchachos se convirtieron en equipos en dos semanas de infierno, en las

que tuvieron que soportarme, durante los calurosos días de Atlanta” – comenta él“

entonces comenzaron a unirse entre sí. No teníamos aire acondicionado en los

vestuarios. Yo los hacía correr en la mañana, y a la tarde, y luego miraba la película de

ello. Apenas les daba nada para el almuerzo. Casi se mataban entre sí”.

Si bien de una manera los jugadores sólo estaban actuando, y sabían quién iba a

interceptar la pelota con un tackle en la línea de 32 yardas, o quién iba a ganar o perder,

si no jugaban como realmente debía ser, como en la vida real, no iba a ser un partido

creíble”- explica Ellis –“No existe una manera de fingir estas cosas. Ellos deben jugar tan

duro como lo harían en realidad, con la ambición de ganar a cada momento. Una vez que

entendían eso, había que lograr la acción de la escena”.

La Herencia

Tal como se muestra en la pantalla, la realidad fue que el equipo Thundering Herd

no se recuperó inmediatamente. Pese a dos inesperadas y excitantes victorias en la

primera temporada desde su vuelta, el equipo de la universidad Marshall era perdedor,

admite Spears:- “Inclusive antes del accidente teníamos problemas, y violaciones

reglamentarias. Fue la seguidilla de derrotas más larga de la nación. Volver a reconstruir

tras todo ello, parecía una tarea imposible. Lengyel y su equipo fueron los primeros en

entrar en el proceso de reconstrucción, pero había muchos que se negaban a hacerlo”.

Lengyel, Dawson, los jugadores, otros entrenadores y los administradores sabían

que su propósito no era ganar los partidos en 1971, sino establecer la base para el futuro,

para que un día ganar fuera posible nuevamente. En eso tenían razón.

En 1984, Marshall terminó 6-5, en la primera temporada que ganaron en 20 años.

En 1987 tuvieron su primera oportunidad nacional en la División 1-AA para un

desempate, lo cual se repitió al año siguiente. Desde 1990 a 1996, bajo las directivas del

entrenador Jim Donnan, el equipo estaba a 64-21 y llegó a la División I-AA del juego del

campeonato cuatro veces. Ganaron su primer campeonato I-AA en 1992 y nuevamente en

1996, cuando el ex jugador de Marshall, Bobby Pruett entrenó al equipo, y logró una

temporada invencible 15-0 y el segundo título I-AA, con la ayuda de los futuros talentos

de la NFL Randy Moss y Chad Pennington.

Tras haber sido el equipo más perdedor del país de la década de 1970, habiendo

ganado sólo 22 veces en 10 años, increíblemente Marshall se convirtió en equipo ganador