THE ZOCALO TODAY – January 21, 2006

BABYLON 5 NEWS

VOLUME 3 - BABYLON 5 SCRIPTS
Joe's funniest, most personal, and most revealing volume yet.
Over 60 pages of fresh insights including a lengthy discussion
of the change-over from Sinclair to Sheridan...and much, much,
much more.

For complete Volume 3 details, go to
http://www.babylon5scripts.com/vol03.html.
Be sure to check out all of the other wonderful items available
from Café Press at the site. There are calendars, mugs, t-
shirts, and much more. Don't miss the interview with Jaclyn
Easton, B5 script team leader posted out at the website.

JMS AND MARVEL
Here's a little clip from the B5 moderated newsgroup. JMS was
asked if he had attended the Marvel summit. His response:

There was a brief bit about this in Joe Q(uesada)'s Joe Fridays
column at newsarama.com, so yes, I was in NYC all week for
this...just got back tonight, exhausted. We planned out books
through 2007/2008. Much goodness coming. In addition to the
staff there was me, Bendis, Millar, Loeb, Ed Brubaker, and for a
bit, Joss Whedon.

BABYLON 5 PODCASTS
Be sure to drop over to BabylonPodcast
<www.babylonpodcast.com>. The first podcast was conducted
on January 15, 2006. Tim Callender, Jeffrey Willerth and
Summer Brooks are ready to bring you more discussion,
delving deep into the heart and soul of a show that touched us
all. There is no schedule for upcoming podcasts, but hopefully
they will be plentiful and prosper.

LOST
Daniel Dae Kim (Lt. Matheson on CRUSADE) and Yunjin Kim,
who play husband and wife on ABC's hit SF series LOST, took
the top TV acting honors at the 2006 Asian Excellence Awards,
to be broadcast Jan. 29 on AZN Television, TV Guide Online
reported.

KEEPING UP WITH CAST AND CREW

BILL MUMY
We all know how talented Bill is. He is not only a fabulous
actor, but he is a musician and writer as well. He recently
published a graphic novel LOST IN SPACE: VOYAGE TO THE
BOTTOM OF THE SOUL -- which got compliments from Stan Lee.
If you'd like to read more, go to
http://www.comicon.com/pulse/ for a recent interview where
he talks about acting, comics and more.

PATRICIA TALLMAN
Pat is starring in an upcoming performance of THE HUMAN
CHAIR (from a story by Edogawaa Rampo; written and directed
by Karla Boos) at the Quantum Theatre in Pittsburgh
(Carnegie-Mellon University).
When: January 19 - February 5. Opening and Press Night:
January 20.
Performances Wednesdays-Sundays (2 shows Saturdays at
5:30 & 9:00; Sundays at 2:00; all others at 8:00 p.m..)
Where: The Reese Building, 925 Penn Avenue, downtown.
Tickets: $26 ($22 Wednesdays and Thursdays) and a limited
number of $15 student tickets. Call 412-394-3353 or visit
www.proartstickets.org
Synopsis:
A great craftsman builds a chair with a secret: he's hiding
inside it.
A lonely woman is drawn into a secret and unspoken world.
The master of the Japanese horror story delivers a tale of two
people searching for contact in the modern age. Quantum
Artistic Director Karla Boos creates innovative theatre that
takes the audience inside this erotically charged piece… of
furniture. THE HUMAN CHAIR stars Patricia Tallman (Babylon 5,
Generations, Army of Darkness) – a CMU graduate who's
made her career for 20 years in Los Angeles – and Jeff
Monahan (Knives in Hens, Anna Karenina, and Six Characters
Looking for a Writer). Both actors have "cult horror" film and
television to their credit, including work with Pittsburgh's own
George Romero – Creepshow, Tales From the Darkside.
Patricia also starred in Romero's acclaimed remake of Night
of the Living Dead. Quantum sets The Human Chair in the very
funky Reese Building at 925 Penn Avenue in the Cultural
District. Reese Bros. designed it in the 1980s to be a state-of-
the-art call center. Employees working on phones and
computers sat at work stations custom-built in concentric
circles. The audience for Quantum's show will sit in an
environment designed by Tony Ferrieri which preserves this
configuration, and experience the play not only through the
actors' live performances but through video created by Buzz
Miller and seen on computer monitors. Scott Hay (Urinetown,
CMU) lights The Human Chair, sound is by Kevin Kornicki, and
costumes are by Laurie Johnson.
Special events: HUMP Night, Wednesday January 25th – ticket
purchase includes a pre-show reception with food, drink, and
entertainment for young professionals in the Reese Building;
Sunday 2:00 pm matinee on January 22nd has a post-show
talkback with artists.
The Human Chair is sponsored by Oxford Development
Company, The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, and Perlora.

WHAT'S ON THE TUBE TONIGHT

9:00pm on Discovery
'Terrorist Warnings'
Two shows about some very dangerous people. First, by
retracing the London bombers final, fateful journey and using
the latest psychological research on terror cells worldwide,
investigators piece together the psychological state of mind of
these men before they took their own lives. At 10pm, explore
how Al-Qaeda is using the internet.

9:00pm on Hallmark
'Mystery Woman: At First Sight' Series star Kellie Martin
directed this episode that reunites 'Mod Squad' stars Clarence
Williams III and Michael Cole. Samantha (Martin) needs to
know her family medical history. But she has never told
anyone that she was adopted. Assistant District Attorney
Cassie Thomas (Nina Siemaszko), and the son (Charlie
Schlatter) of the lawyer who arranged her adoption, help lead
her to the door of her birth mother (Kathryn Harrold). When
the local sheriff (Scott Michael Campbell) arrests her mother
for murder, Samantha suspects her new found family is hiding
some unsavory truths. Meanwhile, Philby (Williams), is
surprised by a visit from his former agency partner (Cole), on
the trail of a psychic spy whom Philby supposedly took out
years before.

9:00pm on SciFi
'Magma: Volcanic Disaster'
Things get hot, hot, hot when a covert government drilling
project goes horribly wrong, causing the Earth's core to
overheat. '24' victims Xander Berkeley and Reiko Aylesworth
join Amy Jo Johnson ('Felicity') in this volcano disaster film.

10:00pm on AMC
'Hustle'
'Hustle' is the story of five slick and stylish master con artists
who rule the streets of London. They're on the make and on
the take. Tonight, Danny Blue (Marc Warren) plays art dealer
as the gang picks gallery owner Meredith Gates (Orla Brady) as
their next mark. Gates is a huge fan of artist Piet Mondrian
and thinks nothing of blowing big money on one of his
paintings. The elaborate scam involves art theft as well as
calling in the services of a masterful but eccentric art forger.
Just when the gang thinks they've pulled it off, there comes a
twist one has to see to believe. Robert Vaughn stars as Albert
Stroller.

NEW DVDS COMING

THE PRETENDER – SEASON THREE

Fox Home Entertainment will release THE PRETENDER Season
Three on February 14, 2006. This will be a four-disc DVD set
featuring all 24 episodes, including select episode
commentary by writers Craig W. Van Sickle and Steven Long
Mitchell, and a three-part "Making Of" featurette. In case you
missed this show, Jarod is a Pretender - a genius whose
exceptionally high I.Q. allows him to master virtually any
profession. Still on the run from his ex-captors, Jarod
continues to help innocent victims even as he digs deeper into
his own background and the secret inner workings of the
Centre. At the same time, he also uncovers disturbing facts
about Miss Parker's family, which cause her to question her
own life's work. But in the end it is Jarod's long-lost father who
suddenly reappears with news of the Centre's latest project -
a shocking cloning experiment that has father and son
teaming up in a desperate effort to shut down the research
facility once and for all.

THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN, THE COMPLETE SECOND
SEASON
The Adventures of Superman, the Complete Second Season
(Warner Home Video, $39.99)
Before actors Dean Cain and Tom Welling assumed the
television role of the Man of Steel, George Reeves delighted
1950s viewers with his interpretation of DC Comics'
unstoppable superhero. The 1953 second season of the series
arrives on DVD in a five-disc set and delivers all 26 black-and-
white episodes, which will make younger viewers scratch their
heads at the lame effects and corny plots but allow older fans
to take a nostalgia trip into wholesome family entertainment.
The season marked the return of actress Noel Neill as Lois
Lane (having previously played her in the 1948 serial and a 1950
film) and plots including Superman battling kryptonite and
Earth-destroying meteors and helping a little girl regain her
sight. Slick menus mixing comic book page panels and footage
from the show lead not only to the individual episodes but
extras such as a segment on Noel Neill as Lois, a 12-minute
Superman show from 1954 used to promote the U.S. Treasury
Department's Saving Stamp program and optional
commentary tracks on two episodes by Noel Neill and Jack
Larson (Jimmy Olsen).

HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE
Warner Home Video has announced that HARRY POTTER AND
THE GOBLET OF FIRE will debut on DVD March 7. Director Mike
Newell (Mona Lisa Smile) and screenwriter Steve Kloves take
audiences on a journey from the Quidditch World Cup to
Hogwarts and into the thrilling competition of the Triwizard
Tournament.
Based on J.K. Rowling's award-winning fourth novel, HARRY
POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE takes Harry and his friends
on an adventure filled with more danger and action than ever
before. This $282 million box office smash features great
performances from the returning cast of Daniel Radcliffe
(Harry Potter), Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) and Emma
Watson (Hermione Granger). Fresh new faces in the magical
Triwizard Tournament include Clemence Poesy (Fleur
Delacour), Robert Pattinson (Cedric Diggory) and Stanislav
Ianevski (Viktor Krum). Veteran actor Brendan Gleeson
(Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody) joins the renowned cast of
Hogwarts professors including Robbie Coltrane (Rubeus
Hagrid), Alan Rickman (Severus Snape), Maggie Smith (Minerva
McGonagall) and Michael Gambon (Albus Dumbledore) in this
suspenseful latest installment of the "Harry Potter" film
series.
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire will be available on a
Single-Disc DVD for $28.98 SRP in full frame and widescreen
formats. The 2-Disc Special Edition DVD will be available at
$30.97 SRP and the "Harry Potter Special Edition 4-pack" at
$73.92 SRP; both in widescreen format only. Harry Potter and
the Goblet of Fire will also be available in UMD format for PSP.

NEW NOVELS COMING

STARGATE SG-1: SIREN SONG
Stargate SG-1: Siren Song is due out in a couple of weeks -- 7
February 2006. The novel revisits Aris Boch, one of our
favourite baddies. Better yet, this book was written by two
new authors who we found through our open submissions
policy. We're very pleased to welcome Holly Scott and Jaimie
Duncan as Fandemonium writers and hope to see more books
from them in the future. For more information about Stargate
SG-1: Siren Song, click on this link:
www.stargatenovels.com/sg1-sirensong.shtml.

Books are not available in North America, but you can order
them through Amazon.com.uk.

INSIDE SCI-FI THIS WEEK:

SMALLVILLE
As the 100th episode gets closer to airing (see it on Thursday
night), there is more and more speculation about which major
star will die! If you don't mind spoiler information, go to
www.comics2film.com. There are a lot of pictures -- and yes,
spoiler information. TV Guide also has spoiler information
included in the latest issue, so if you don't want to know --
don't read the TV Guide this week.

SUPERMAN RETURNS
Warner Bros. has released some fantastic photos from the
upcoming SUPERMAN RETURNS film. Go to
http://media.filmforce.ign.com/media/033/033915/imgs_1.html
for a look at the latest pics. The one with Bryan Singer in the
middle of a model city is fabulous.

300
For an exclusive look at 300 Video Journal #2, go to . The clip
features production designer Jim Bissell talking about the look
of the film. You can also get more information about the
movie by going to 300themovie.WarnerBros.com.
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. Directed by Zack Snyder, the movie also
stars Lena Headey, David Wenham, Vincent Regan, Rodrigo
Santoro and Dominic West.

NEW JAMES BOND
In a recent interview with the Reuters news service, Judi
Dench gave her approval to new Bond Daniel Craig. She told
Reuters, "You will have to wait and see" how she treats Craig
as James Bond in their first screen encounter in CASINO
ROYALE. Dench went on to add, "The chemistry happens the
moment you meet them or it doesn't happen when you meet
them. And I have met him (Craig) and I liked him enormously.
We had a laugh and that always bodes well."

NEW INDIANA JONES
According to MTV.com, writer-producer George Lucas
indicates that writing continues on a proposed fourth Indiana
Jones movie and adds: "Hopefully this year we will have a
start date, and we will have a script that we all love, and
hopefully it will come out next year."

FINAL DESTINATION 3
Although Tony Todd, the veteran character actor who played a
sinister morgue attendant in the first two films, James Wong,
co-writer and director of the FINAL DESTINATION 3 found a
unique role for him in the latest installment. Wong said, "The
ride, the coaster, in the movie, is called 'Devil's Flight,' and
there's this huge Devil that sits at the entrance to the ride. At
amusement parks they always have that creepy voice that
lures you into the rides. And Tony Todd will be the voice of the
Devil." In FINAL DESTINATION 3, a group of high school students,
including Wendy (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and Kevin (Ryan
Merriman), are about to ride a monstrous roller coaster when
Wendy has a premonition of a horrible accident that will kill
them all. They escape, only to find themselves stalked by an
unseen force that wants them all dead. No other characters
from the first two films appear in this third installment. Wong
said that, unlike the recent spate of horror movies that have
been rated PG-13 in order to reach the widest possible
audience, FINAL DESTINATION 3 will be released with an R
rating. "This is a definite R," Wong said. "I think the difference
between this movie and PG-13 will be very apparent after the
first death. But the one thing I want to add to that is that the
deaths are terrifying and intense, but there's also a very high
degree of entertainment to the movie. It's not a dark and grim
movie, even though there are these really scary and graphic
deaths. I think that's also maybe the difference between FINAL
DESTINATION 3 and maybe the SAW movies." FINAL
DESTINATION 3 opens at theaters on Feb. 10.

SUPERNATURAL
The WB's SUPERNATURAL is adding a new recurring female
character for the second half of the season. Jensen Ackles,
who co-stars with Jared Padalecki in series, said, "The
character of Meg, played by Nicki Aycox. That's going to be a
really interesting multiple storyline, a nice little arc there. ...
We're planting some nice seeds for some good arcs." In the
recent episode "Scarecrow," Aycox (Jeepers Creepers II, Over
There) first made an appearance as a hitchhiker who makes a
connection with Padalecki's Sam Winchester. At the end of
the episode, it is revealed that Meg is more than meets the
eye. In a separate interview, Padalecki said that "Scarecrow"
is one of his favorite episodes of the series so far, and he's
looking forward to Meg's return. SUPERNATURAL airs on The
WB Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

SPIDER-MAN 3
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Bryce Dallas Howard
(LADY IN THE WATER) is in negotiations to play Peter Parker's
love interest Gwen Stacy in Columbia Pictures' SPIDER-MAN 3.
Sam Raimi is directing the movie, which is scheduled to roll this
month. Gwen is pivotal in Spider-Man lore as Peter's high-
school crush, his first girlfriend and his first love. She ended up
being kidnapped by the Green Goblin and died during a
bridgetop battle in Amazing Spider-Man issue 121. In the Spider-
Man film franchise, Columbia put Mary Jane Watson, a later
love interest of Peter's who was a model, in the Gwen role,
casting Kirsten Dunst as the high-school crush. The movie
featured the famous battle on the bridge with the Green
Goblin, though a Hollywood ending was added, and the
character survived. Columbia is keeping a tight lid on the third
movie's storyline, though it is known that Gwen is the third
part of a love triangle and that the character does survive.
Tobey Maguire, Dunst and James Franco are reprising their
roles, and Topher Grace and Thomas Haden Church have been
cast as the villains. Howard, the daughter of director Ron
Howard, stars in M. Night Shyamalan's upcoming LADY IN THE
WATER and also headlined Shyamalan's THE VILLAGE.

KIDNEY STONE AUCTIONED
Reuters reports that STAR TREK's William Shatner sold a
kidney stone to an online casino for $25,000 to benefit
charity. Yes, Capt. James T. Kirk sold the stone to
GoldenPalace.com, and proceeds of the sale will go to Habitat
for Humanity. "When I was contacted about selling my kidney
stone to GoldenPalace.com for an original price of $15,000, I
turned it down, knowing that my tunics from Star Trek have
commanded more than $100,000," Shatner said, adding that he
countered by offering to sell the ring-sized stone for $25,000.
GoldenPalace.com plans to send the stone on tour with a
collection of other unusual items.

THE NUMBER 23
Variety reports that New Line has tapped Virginia Madsen
(Sideways) to star opposite Jim Carrey in the fantastical
thriller THE NUMBER 23 for director Joel Schumacher. Madsen
will replace Elisabeth Shue in the movie, which is due to begin
shooting on Jan. 23. Danny Huston and Rhona Mitra also star.
Fernley Phillips wrote the script. Carrey will portray a man
who becomes obsessed with a book that seems to be about
his life, but ends with a murder, with the number 23 woven
through the plot.

WITHOUT REMORSE
The Hollywood Reporter indicates that John Singleton has
signed on to adapt and direct the Tom Clancy espionage
thriller WITHOUT REMORSE for Paramount Pictures. The film,
which Paramount envisions as part of a possible franchise,
marks the Hollywood return of Michael Ovitz, who will serve
as producer. WITHOUT REMORSE centers on former Navy SEAL
and CIA operative John Kelly, code- named Mr. Clark, who first
appeared in CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER (played by Willem
Dafoe). The novel, which was published in 1993 by Putnam,
spawned a previous film version, which was in development at
Savoy Pictures and was shut down during preproduction in
1995. Singleton said he aims to make the film in line with the
Phillip Noyce-helmed Clancy thrillers he is a fan of, CLEAR AND
PRESENT DANGER and PATRIOT GAMES. Singleton said he is
looking to cast a young and athletic actor who can grow with
the picture.

JAMES BOND
Reuters reports that James Bond will once again drive an
Aston Martin. His car in CASINO ROYALE will be the Aston
Martin DBS. Daniel Craig visited the Aston Martin headquarters
in Gaydon, Warwickshire, last week to check out his new ride.
The carmaker stated, "It is great news that Bond will drive an
Aston Martin again and we have built him something special to
enable him to do his job in style." Bond fans will remember the
original Aston Martin DB5 driven by Sean Connery in
Goldfinger in 1964. The last Bond film, "Die Another Day",
featured Aston Martin's flagship model, the Vanquish.

SUPERNATURAL
In an interview at the TV Critics Association winter press tour,
Jensen Ackles, who co-stars in The WB's SUPERNATURAL, said
the second half of the first season will offer some answers to
the show's underlying mystery. "That's going to start building
towards the surface in the back nine [episodes]," Ackles
said. "Everything's going to kind of come close to the surface,
and things are going to start coming together more. We
actually get to interact with our father in the episode that
we're filming now, which is a huge step for us. Now where that
takes us we're not quite sure, but it's definitely a big step in
the right direction, I think." Ackles stars as Dean Winchester in
the series alongside Jared Padalecki as his brother, Sam, who
travel around the country in search of their father while
battling against supernatural forces. The first half of the
season established the mythology behind the Winchester
family. According to Ackles, upcoming episodes will fill in some
of the history that has been hinted at so far. "[I] think it can be
very much a faux pas to drag it out season over season over
season," Ackles said. "I think that these things need to be
resolved and things need to surface, at least within a season,
and I think [creator and executive producer] Eric Kripke's on
the same page. I think he's against that whole dragging
audiences ... across many, many seasons of storylines. So I
definitely know that he's on the same page about resolving
things and moving on to bigger and more interesting
problems." SUPERNATURAL airs on The WB Tuesdays at 9 p.m.
ET/PT.

CBS MICRO-SERIES
CBS announced Tuesday it will create a "micro-series" to air
in seven installments of a minute or less and be available
online and by cell phone. "The Courier," described by the
network as a serialized drama about a man risking his life to
rescue his kidnapped wife, will debut Tuesday, Jan. 24, during
the first-act commercial break of "CSI: Miami" (9 p.m. EST) and
conclude during "Criminal Minds" on Feb. 1. The first chapter
will be 60 seconds; the rest will be 40 seconds in length and
will air in the first-act break after 9 p.m. EST on series
including "Cold Case." It won't air on Jan. 28 or Jan. 31. In the
series, a "mystery man" named iiro follows clues and
performs "a sequence of death-defying tasks" to save his wife,
the network said.

THE GHOULY BOYS
According to Variety, Mandate Pictures has optioned the film
rights to comic book series The Ghouly Boys, with Benderspink
attached to produce. Created, written and illustrated by the
artist known as Christopher, The Ghouly Boys was first
published in 2004 by Slave Labor Graphics Publishing. The
comics are based on four sweet, young monsters -- a wolf
boy, a kid zombie, a young sea monster and a third-generation
boogie man -- who have a hard time fitting in with
the "normal" human kids. When they find each other, they set
out, accompanied by their loyal, flight-challenged pet bat, on
an adventure of their own.

ROGUE
Production Weekly reports that Jason Statham will
topline "Rogue", an action-thriller with his "The One" co-star
Jet Li in the title role. The storyline centers on Jack Crawford
(Statham), whose partner Tom Lone and Lone's family are
killed by an assassin for the Chang crime family. Crawford
becomes obsessed with finding the elusive and brutal killer,
Rogue (Li). Music video director Philip Atwell will make his
helming debut, and Corey Yuen ("The Transporter") is
choreographing and directing the action scenes. Production is
scheduled to begin in March on location in Vancouver.

THERE WILL BE BLOOD
Day-Lewis will star in "There Will be Blood", which writer-
director Paul Thomas Anderson is in advanced talks to produce
and direct. In the film, the "Gangs of New York" star will play a
turn-of-the-century Texas oil prospector in the early days of
the oil business. The sprawling period piece, which Anderson
has spent several years writing, is loosely adapted from Upton
Sinclair's 1927 novel "Oil!" Budgeted at more than $25
million, "Blood" will be jointly financed and distributed by
Paramount's specialty films division and Miramax Films,
according to Paramount specialty division president John
Lesher. "It's an ambitious film and a compelling, relevant story
about family, greed, religion and oil," Lesher tells The
Hollywood Reporter. "Paul is an incredible talent, exactly the
kind of filmmaker the new division wants to be in business
with."

GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS
The Hollywood Foreign Press Association presented the 63rd
Annual Golden Globe Awards on Monday evening. BROKEBACK
MOUNTAIN topped the awards count with four for Best Drama,
Best Director (Ang Lee), Best Screenplay and Best Original
Song. WALK THE LINE dominated the Musical or Comedy
category, winning three awards for Best Picture, Best Actor
(Joaquin Phoenix) and Best Actress (Reese Witherspoon). Best
Actor in a Drama went to Philip Seymour Hoffman for CAPOTE
and Felicity Huffman won the award for Best Actress in a
Drama. Best Supporting film roles went to George Clooney for
SYRIANA and Rachel Weisz for THE CONSTANT GARDENER. John
Williams' score for MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA won as well.
Best Television Drama Series went to LOST while DESPERATE
HOUSEWIVES won in the Musical or Comedy category. Geena
Davis took home Best Actress in a Drama for COMMANDER IN
CHIEF and Hugh Laurie Best Actor for HOUSE. In the Musical or
Comedy category, Steve Carell won for THE OFFICE and Mary-
Louise Parker for WEEDS, shutting out the four DESPERATE
HOUSEWIVES actresses. Best Supporting Television awards
went to Paul Newman for EMPIRE FALLS and Sandra Oh for
GREY'S ANATOMY. Anthony Hopkins received the Cecil B.
DeMille Award for his "outstanding contribution to the
entertainment field.

24 PREMIERE
Jack Bauer's latest marathon workday got off to a good start
Sunday, ratings-wise. The Fox drama "24" notched its most-
watched episode ever with its fifth-season premiere with the
first of two back-to-back episodes that got a boost from a
primetime overrun (in East Coast and Midwestern markets) of
the NFL's NFC divisional playoff game between the Carolina
Panthers and Chicago Bears. Airing from about 8:13-9:11 p.m.
EST, the first episode of "24" averaged 17 million viewers and a
7.3 rating in the adults 18-49 demographic (demographic share
data for Sunday was not available Monday because of the
Martin Luther King Jr. holiday), according to preliminary
estimates from Nielsen Media Research. The second hour
of "24," which ended at about 10:13 p.m. EST, held onto the
majority of its lead-in to finish out with 15.5 million viewers
and a 6.7 in adults 18-49.

CITY OF THE BEASTS
Walden Media has hired David Rothenberg to adapt CITY OF
THE BEASTS by Isabel Allende. BEASTS, which is the first book in
a trilogy, focuses on a 15-year-old adventurer and his 12-year-
old sister who discover "People of the Mist" and the mythical
city of El Dorado.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE:
GLORY ROAD took the top spot at the box office this past
weekend with $13.5 million gross. LAST HOLIDAY opened in
second with $13 million and HOODWINKED came in third with
$12.2 million. THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA landed in the number
four spot with $10.1 million and rounding out the top five was
HOSTEL with $9.6 million ticket sales. Here are the estimated
ticket sales for the weekend along with some of the totals to
date*:
1. Glory Road - $13.5 million
2. Last Holiday - $13 million
3. Hoodwinked - $12.2 million
4. The Chronicles of Narnia - $10.1 million ($261.4 million)
5. Hostel - $9.6 million ($34.8 million)
6. Fun With Dick and Jane - $8.6 million
7. King Kong - $7.3 million
8. Tristan and Isolde - $6.6 million
9. Brokeback Mountain - $5.8 million
10. Cheaper by the Dozen 2 - $5.1 million

INTERNATIONAL MOVIE SALES
THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE
WARDROBE brought home the #1 spot at the box office for the
fourth consecutive weekend. Buena Vista's film crossed the
$580 million boxoffice mark globally, and is increasingly
inspiring talk of a new film franchise. The weekend estimate
for the adaptation of the C.S. Lewis classic is $20.1 million,
pushing "Narnia's" total international cume to $319 million
(the domestic cume to date is $261.4 million). The
international arena's second biggest grosser this weekend
was "King Kong, which yielded a weekend estimate of $15
million at 6,900 screens in 57 territories, for a 32-day
international cume of $296 million. The Peter Jackson remake
had a strong opening in China, $3.1 million at 315 screens, and
moved from No. 5 to No. 3 in the U.K. market on Friday with
$2.3 million at 438 screens.

1984
In a recent interview with "Empire Online", Tim Robbins
(Zathura) said that he wants to mount a new movie version of
George Orwell's classic dystopian SF novel 1984. "I've got a
screenplay of it," Robbins told the site. "And now I'm starting
the process of trying to put it together." Robbins is currently
directing a stage version of the book, written by Michael Gene
Sullivan, for his Los Angeles theater troupe, The Actors' Gang.
That runs from Feb. 11-April 8. "In the book, Big Brother says
we're not really concerned about 85 percent of the people,
because they're so stupefied by poverty and overwork that
they're never going to be part of the problem," Robbins
said. "What they're really worried about is the other 15
percent." Robbins added: "When we think about the
authoritarian world that Orwell painted, the catchphrases are
one thing, but when you read the book again, the specifics and
relevance for now are stunning."

CONVENTION CALENDAR

January 28-29, 2006
FX: The Florida Extravaganza
Central Florida Fairgrounds Exposition Park
Place: Orlando, FL
Guests include Jorge Garcia (Lost), Summer Glau,
(Firefly/Serenity), Peter Mayhew (Star Wars), Corin Nemec
(Stargate SG-1)
For more information, go to www.fxshow.com

February 17-19, 2006
FarPoint
Place: Hunt Valley Marriot
City: Baltimore, Maryland
Guests: Harve Bennett, Executive Producer, "Wrath of Kahn";
Jack Stauffer, original Battlestar Galactica
For more information, go to http://www.farpointcon.com

February 19, 2006
Los Angeles Comicbook and Science Fiction Convention
Place: Shrine Auditorium, Expo Center (700 West 32nd St., Los
Angeles, CA )
Show Hours: 10:00 A.M.-5:00 P.M
Babylon 5 Guest: Bill Mumy
Bill will be signing his new graphic novel, LOST IN SPACE:
JOURNEY TO THE BOTTOM OF THE SOUL
For more information, go to http://www.comicbookscifi.com

February 24-26, 2006
MegaCon
Orange County Convention Center
Place: Orlando, FL
B5-related Guests: Jason Carter, Mira Furlan, Tracy Scoggins
Other guests include John Schneider, Tony Amendola,
(Stargate SG-1), Cirroc Lofton (DS9), Marina Sirtis
(TNG/Stargate SG-1), Steve Bacic (Andromeda/Stargate SG-1)
For more information, go to www.megaconvention.com

I guess that's about it for now. Be sure to drop over to the
website at http://www.isnnews.net to get the latest scifi
news.

Have a fabulous weekend.
Be safe,
Sandy

Sandra Bruckner
Editor/Publisher
ISN News: The Zocalo Today
http://www.isnnews.net