LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder and Usher sang emotional farewells Tuesday to Michael Jackson, who was hailed as "the greatest entertainer that ever lived" and described by his tearful 11-year-old daughter Paris as "the best father you could ever imagine." Some 18,000 fans, family members and friends took part in a public memorial for Jackson in the Los Angeles sports arena where the singer had rehearsed the day before his death for a highly anticipated series of comeback concerts.
Pottermania returns with London world premiere
LONDON (Reuters) - The new Harry Potter film had its world premiere in London on Tuesday, ending a two-year wait for faithful fans who have been counting down the days before its theatrical release on July 15. Hundreds of people braved heavy rain in central London to watch the teenaged stars of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," the sixth of eight films based on the novels by British author J.K. Rowling, walk down a sodden red carpet.
Dan Brown moves to Washington for new thriller
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Author Dan Brown is moving to Washington D.C. for the follow-up to his successful conspiracy theory novel "The Da Vinci Code," publisher Random House said on Wednesday. Brown's latest novel, "The Lost Symbol," will be released on September 15 and again features the fictional, mystery-solving Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon, with the story taking place over a 12-hour period.
Nine Inch Nails to play more farewell shows
NEW YORK (Billboard) - Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor said Tuesday the band will play a final "handful of shows" in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles beginning August 22. While NIN originally planned to stop performing in the U.S. for good after the tour with Jane's Addiction that wrapped June 12, Reznor wrote in a post on the band's website that "the NIN/JA tour felt like we had to rush through sets due to a limited allotted set length and many shows were in daylight -- it just didn't feel right to end NIN that way." NIN also has dates scheduled across Europe and Asia through August 15.
"Camp Rock" sequel on track for 2010 debut
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The Jonas Brothers and Demi Lovato are headed back to "Camp Rock," but the sequel to last year's top-rated cable telecast will feature a new director and writer, not to mention a plot that borrows from Shakespeare. "Camp Rock 2 The Final Jam" will begin production this summer and debut next year on Disney Channel.
"Transformer"' hits $300 million at U.S. box office
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" on Tuesday became the first film of the year to gross more than $300 million at the domestic box office. The Paramount release passed the milestone after pushing its U.S. and Canadian coin to $299.8 million on Monday. That same day, the film's overseas box office topped $300 million. So the Michael Bay-directed blockbuster's worldwide tally stands north of $600 million.
Patrick Dempsey joins cast of "Valentine's Day"
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Patrick Dempsey is not a doctor, but he plays one on TV -- and now in the movies. Dempsey has joined the cast of New Line's romantic comedy "Valentine's Day," which is being directed by Garry Marshall.
With stores restocked, Michael Jackson's music sales climb
LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - On the day the world said goodbye to Michael Jackson, his star continued to shine on Billboard's charts, a testament to his lasting musical legacy and impact. Based on preliminary sales numbers from Nielsen SoundScan, Jackson's catalog of solo albums sold a whopping 800,000 copies in the U.S. in the tracking week that ended at the close of business Sunday (July 5). That's an increase of 90 percent from the previous week, when his combined albums sold 422,000.
"Potter" advance tickets outpace "Transformers"
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Advance sales of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" are outpacing those of current box-office champ "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" and of 2007's "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" at a similar point in their sales cycles. Eight days before its July 15 opening, "Prince" accounted for 65 percent of daily ticket sales, online ticketer Fandango said Tuesday.
Phillippe, Kilmer in talks for "MacGruber" film
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "MacGruber," the recurring "Saturday Night Live" skit that parodies the action series "MacGyver," is one step closer to going before cameras as a big-screen movie. Ryan Phillippe is in negotiations to star in the feature, with Val Kilmer in negotiations to join the Paramount and Relativity Media production. Will Forte and Kristen Wiig are reprising their roles from the skits.
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