Entertainment Industry News

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - In a possible preview of similar battles to come, TV station group Lin TV yanked the signals of 15 stations in 11 markets from Time Warner Cable systems, affecting about 2.7 million of the cable giant's subscribers.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The principals behind DreamWorks SKG and Paramount Pictures sealed their parting of ways on Sunday, allowing the DreamWorks studio to tie up with Reliance ADA Group of India to start a new film company.

PARIS - Paris Fashion Week ended on Sunday, capping a season which saw designers play it safe to coax customers into stores despite the global financial crisis.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Canine comedy "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" was top dog at the North American box offices, digging up $29 million in ticket sales in its first weekend in theaters, according to studio estimates on Sunday.

PARIS - Italian fashion house Valentino said on Saturday it had named its in-house accessories designers as joint creative directors of the brand. Outgoing designer Alessandra Facchinetti said she learned about her dismissal from press reports.

NEW YORK - Who's running for president, anyway?

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Time Warner Cable Inc said on Friday it lost the right to carry some broadcast channels on its cable systems in 13 U.S. cities after it failed to reach an agreement with broadcaster LIN TV Corp.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German pay-TV broadcaster Premiere expects to make a core loss this year and is talking to banks about a debt restructuring, cutting its share price in half on Friday.

(Reuters) - CNET Networks Inc founder Halsey Minor is suing Sotheby's for not disclosing an alleged economic interest in a painting he bought, court documents showed.

-Yesterday's Winners: Bones (Fox), Criminal Minds (CBS), America's Got Talent (NBC), CSI: NY (CBS)

The long-awaited returns of NBC dramas Chuck and Life were left out in the cold on Monday, Sept. 29, with their second season-openers as follows:

Fox has picked-up recently introduced drama Fringe for the remainder of the season, with a back-end order for nine additional episodes. Fringe is now the second freshman series to be renewed for the full season, with the CW's 90210 the first.

-Yesterday's Winners: NCIS (CBS), House (Fox), Dancing With the Stars (ABC), The Mentalist (CBS), Without a Trace (CBS)

FRANKFURT, Germany - Bertelsmann AG said Thursday that it had completed the sale to Sony Corp. of its 50 percent stake in music venture Sony BMG in a $900 million deal.

Led by five hours of Dancing With the Stars, and the top-rated season-premieres of Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives, ABC won this first week of the 2008-09 season, finishing first in households, total viewers and the three key demos -- adults 18-49, adults 25-54 and adults 18-34 (tied with NBC). Compared to premiere week in 2007 (and keeping in mind that DVR penetration has increased from 20 to 28 percent), ABC was close to year-ago levels. ...

LOS ANGELES - The Screen Actors Guild's negotiating committee voted Wednesday to support a strike authorization vote, a tactic meant to break stalled contract talks with Hollywood studios.

-Friday's Winners: The Mentalist R (CBS), The Presidential Debate – an average (and estimated) 29.53 million viewers from 9-10:30 p.m.

HARTFORD, Conn. - Paul Newman broached the subject of his philanthropic legacy several years ago while fishing with friends Robert Forrester and David Horvitz off the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Four writers involved with a Writers Guild of America organizing effort at writer-director-producer Tyler Perry's cable TV show "House of Payne" have been fired.

-Yesterday’s Winners: Dancing With the Stars (ABC), Criminal Minds (CBS), CS: NY (CBS)

LOS ANGELES - The reality fashion show "Project Runway" will not be able to strut its stuff on the Lifetime TV channel, a judge ruled Friday.

-Yesterday's Winners: Dancing With the Stars (ABC), Two and a Half Men (CBS), CSI: Miami (CBS)

MINNEAPOLIS - A federal judge granted a new trial to a Minnesota woman convicted of pirating music files in the nation's first file-sharing trial, ruling Wednesday he made an error in the jury instructions that "substantially prejudiced" her rights.

AMC's Mad Men and NBC's 30 Rock, as predicted, were named Outstanding Drama and Comedy Series at the 60th Annual Prime-time Emmy Awards last night. Hosted by fellow reality nominees Tom Bergeron, Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel, Jeff Probst and Ryan Seacrest, rushing through the key categories at the end of the telecast (Bryan Cranston as Lead Actor in a Drama Series, in particular) would not have been necessary without the mindless (and painfully awkward) opening. Rule of thumb for next year and beyond: stick to one host.

NEW YORK - The crisis on Wall Street has been good for books about financial disasters.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Sony Corp on Thursday said it reached a deal for three studios to back its cinema technology in the latest example of Hollywood's ramped up efforts to switch to digital projection.

-Countdown to the Start of the New Season: 4 days (less than 100 hours!)

NEW YORK - A Sunday night football clash between Dallas and Green Bay helped NBC win its seventh straight week in the television ratings, its longest streak since spring 2002.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Film and television actors ratcheted up pressure on Hollywood's major studios on Wednesday when negotiators, stalled in labor talks with producers, sought backing to put a strike authorization vote to guild members.