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American Morning

90 Second Pop

Aired June 02, 2003 - 07:42   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my gosh! Nemo is swimming out to sea!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nemo! What do you think you're doing? You're going to get stuck out there, and I'm going to have to get you before another fish does.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Enchantment under the sea at the box office this weekend as Disney's newest animation creation, "Finding Nemo," certainly found its place as the No. 1 movie in the country. It brought in $70.6 million. That is a lot of fish food.

Summer movies are just one of the hot topics we're going to cover right now. This is a new regular segment we're calling "90 Second Pop," featuring quick hits and all things entertainment from a panel of fast-talking, well-informed experts.

We have B.J. Sigesmund, he is "Newsweek's" entertainment reporter, Jill Bernstein, senior editor for "Premiere" magazine, and Christopher John Farley, "TIME" magazine senior editor. If you need to know what's going on, these are the three people you want to have.

Well, let's go ahead and start in Hollywood with the movies. And, Jill, that is going to be you. There is a fat cat, and it's a fat cat who is a fish.

JILL BERNSTEIN, SR. ED. "PREMIERE" MAGAZINE: A fat fish, yes. "Finding Nemo," it was the biggest opening for an animated film ever, and it's really not surprising. This is -- "Finding Nemo" is the latest movie from the partnership of Disney and Pixar. They brought us "Toy Story" and "Toy Story 2" and "Monsters, Inc." This film is fabulous. The underwater effects are phenomenal. There is humor there for adults and children and a real poignant story in the center of it. It's not surprising that it did so well.

KAGAN: Some of the other contenders out there: "Matrix Reloaded." Does "Matrix" need to reload? Where did this go? It had this huge opening, and then poof.

BERNSTEIN: It dropped into fourth place this weekend, which is very surprising...

KAGAN: Really? BERNSTEIN: ... although I do think that it still will be perhaps the biggest moneymaker of the summer, because people will want to see it before the third film comes out in November.

KAGAN: And talking about a fickle audience, last weekend the big movie was "Bruce Almighty" with Jim Carey. Did that have holding power?

BERNSTEIN: It dropped off I think almost about 50 percent, but it's still a family film (UNINTELLIGIBLE) see "Nemo" and "Bruce Almighty." These are weekends that with the weather is not great and people want to do something with the family, and these are the perfect things to do.

KAGAN: It actually sounds like "Nemo" has been pulling in people who don't even have families who just want to go out there and...

BERNSTEIN: That's true.

KAGAN: ... see some cute animation.

All right, let's move on to television. B.J., that puts you on the hot heat. Just what America needed, another reality show.

B.J. SIGESMUND, "NEWSWEEK: Exactly. This one is called "For Love or Money." It premiers tonight. This is a hybrid of "The Bachelor" and "Joe Millionaire."

KAGAN: The joke is on the guy this time.

SIGESMUND: Yes, 15 women come for love, but they find out on the first episode tonight that if they get chosen by him, they can actually cash him in for a million bucks if they're not interested. It sounds terrible, but, you know...

KAGAN: Yes, it does.

SIGESMUND: ... in the reality TV matchmaking world there is only a 40 percent chance that these relationships are going to work out, and that's in the short term. We haven't seen one marriage yet.

KAGAN: Yes.

SIGESMUND: So, you know, a smart woman knows that it might be worth a little bit of bad press to get the million bucks.

KAGAN: Did you hear that, Jill? Go for the money, forget the guy. Oh, that's just so raw.

For those of us who haven't had enough "American Idol," "America Juniors"...

SIGESMUND: Right.

KAGAN: ... and "American Seniors" also is coming up?

SIGESMUND: Right. Well, "America Juniors" is starting tomorrow night.

KAGAN: All right.

SIGESMUND: So, I'm filling out your whole week here.

KAGAN: All right.

SIGESMUND: "American Juniors" is almost just like "American Idol." They perform on Tuesday night and they get eliminated by America later Tuesday night, and then Wednesday night you find out the results. It's not quite the same. They narrow it down to five little kids who are going to be produced as a big band. So, it's sort of like...

(CROSSTALK)

KAGAN: Sort of like making the band.

KAGAN: Oh, I see, like -- kind of like make the band kind of thing.

SIGESMUND: Right.

KAGAN: From what I've seen of clips, I think some of the most entertaining stuff will be from the stage parents, you know.

(CROSSTALK)

SIGESMUND: Exactly. I don't know what parent would put their kid on a reality show. It's the worst thing you could ever to the child's psyche.

KAGAN: Sell your kid for a million bucks and put those two together.

And then finally, I have to ask you about NBC perhaps getting out a huge checkbook for "Law and order."

SIGESMUND: Yes, yes. There is breaking news this morning. The people behind "Law and Order" are asking NBC for $550 million a year. This makes "Law and Order" almost as expensive as "ER" was at its height. But, remember, there are three "Law and Orders" now on television. So, they're having to pay almost $8 million for each of three different versions of "Law and Order". So, this is an incredible price tag that Universal is giving NBC. But, you know, "Law and Order" is worth it.

KAGAN: Cha-ching (ph).

SIGESMUND: Cha-ching (ph), that's right.

KAGAN: Yes, cha-ching (ph), all right.

Christopher, let's bring you in. In terms of cha-ching (ph) for the movie tours, what's going to be the hot tours this summer? CHRISTOPHER JOHN FARLEY, SR. ED. "TIME" MAGAZINE: Well, I think one of the hot tours this summer is going to be the 50 Cent Jay-Z Rock the Mic Tour. I think it's going to appeal -- you've got Jay-Z, who is the veteran. You've got 50 Cent or the hottest newcomers. It's going to be sort of a cross-generational tour. You might actually see people over the age of 30 at this point.

KAGAN: Really?

FARLEY: Yes, I think so. We have our reporters on it, and we'll get back to you on it.

KAGAN: That would be some breaking news right there. What about albums? Any big releases we're looking for?

FARLEY: As far as big albums, one album I'm really looking forward to is the new Mary J. Blige album. She reunites with her original producer, Puff Daddy. It's kind of like bringing Michael Jordan and Pippin back together again for a run of the championship. That should be good.

And next week, Radio Head, one of the best bands on the planet, releases their new album. You know...

KAGAN: They're always kind of different every time. They kind of reincarnate themselves.

FARLEY: Yes, they always change themselves. You know, they're kind of like, you know, "The Terminator" and "The Terminator II," he keeps changing himself and transforming himself. Radio Head does the same thing. This new album is really good. It's a really strong album, and I think people keep saying rock and roll is dead, but they keep, you know, bringing the form back alive.

KAGAN: OK, in the final seconds we have left, and we're going to do a little cross-talk here, any particular movie or television show you're dying to see?

FARLEY: Well, you know, I'm very interested about the fact that "Law and Order" has sold for that much. I think that not all of the "Law and Orders" are really all that good. I think that "Criminal Intent" isn't that good a show. I wouldn't pay that much money for it. I think they should probably order those "Law and Orders" a la carte instead to buying them all as a package.

KAGAN: All right.

FARLEY: But that's just me.

KAGAN: And that's just you.

Jill, would you take the guy or would you take the money?

BERNSTEIN: I'll take the radio and CD.

KAGAN: There you go. Boy, that is a safe answer. Thanks to all of you, B.J., Jill and Christopher. Good to have you with us. And we're launching our first regular segment here this morning.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.







Aired June 2, 2003 - 07:42   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my gosh! Nemo is swimming out to sea!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nemo! What do you think you're doing? You're going to get stuck out there, and I'm going to have to get you before another fish does.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Enchantment under the sea at the box office this weekend as Disney's newest animation creation, "Finding Nemo," certainly found its place as the No. 1 movie in the country. It brought in $70.6 million. That is a lot of fish food.

Summer movies are just one of the hot topics we're going to cover right now. This is a new regular segment we're calling "90 Second Pop," featuring quick hits and all things entertainment from a panel of fast-talking, well-informed experts.

We have B.J. Sigesmund, he is "Newsweek's" entertainment reporter, Jill Bernstein, senior editor for "Premiere" magazine, and Christopher John Farley, "TIME" magazine senior editor. If you need to know what's going on, these are the three people you want to have.

Well, let's go ahead and start in Hollywood with the movies. And, Jill, that is going to be you. There is a fat cat, and it's a fat cat who is a fish.

JILL BERNSTEIN, SR. ED. "PREMIERE" MAGAZINE: A fat fish, yes. "Finding Nemo," it was the biggest opening for an animated film ever, and it's really not surprising. This is -- "Finding Nemo" is the latest movie from the partnership of Disney and Pixar. They brought us "Toy Story" and "Toy Story 2" and "Monsters, Inc." This film is fabulous. The underwater effects are phenomenal. There is humor there for adults and children and a real poignant story in the center of it. It's not surprising that it did so well.

KAGAN: Some of the other contenders out there: "Matrix Reloaded." Does "Matrix" need to reload? Where did this go? It had this huge opening, and then poof.

BERNSTEIN: It dropped into fourth place this weekend, which is very surprising...

KAGAN: Really? BERNSTEIN: ... although I do think that it still will be perhaps the biggest moneymaker of the summer, because people will want to see it before the third film comes out in November.

KAGAN: And talking about a fickle audience, last weekend the big movie was "Bruce Almighty" with Jim Carey. Did that have holding power?

BERNSTEIN: It dropped off I think almost about 50 percent, but it's still a family film (UNINTELLIGIBLE) see "Nemo" and "Bruce Almighty." These are weekends that with the weather is not great and people want to do something with the family, and these are the perfect things to do.

KAGAN: It actually sounds like "Nemo" has been pulling in people who don't even have families who just want to go out there and...

BERNSTEIN: That's true.

KAGAN: ... see some cute animation.

All right, let's move on to television. B.J., that puts you on the hot heat. Just what America needed, another reality show.

B.J. SIGESMUND, "NEWSWEEK: Exactly. This one is called "For Love or Money." It premiers tonight. This is a hybrid of "The Bachelor" and "Joe Millionaire."

KAGAN: The joke is on the guy this time.

SIGESMUND: Yes, 15 women come for love, but they find out on the first episode tonight that if they get chosen by him, they can actually cash him in for a million bucks if they're not interested. It sounds terrible, but, you know...

KAGAN: Yes, it does.

SIGESMUND: ... in the reality TV matchmaking world there is only a 40 percent chance that these relationships are going to work out, and that's in the short term. We haven't seen one marriage yet.

KAGAN: Yes.

SIGESMUND: So, you know, a smart woman knows that it might be worth a little bit of bad press to get the million bucks.

KAGAN: Did you hear that, Jill? Go for the money, forget the guy. Oh, that's just so raw.

For those of us who haven't had enough "American Idol," "America Juniors"...

SIGESMUND: Right.

KAGAN: ... and "American Seniors" also is coming up?

SIGESMUND: Right. Well, "America Juniors" is starting tomorrow night.

KAGAN: All right.

SIGESMUND: So, I'm filling out your whole week here.

KAGAN: All right.

SIGESMUND: "American Juniors" is almost just like "American Idol." They perform on Tuesday night and they get eliminated by America later Tuesday night, and then Wednesday night you find out the results. It's not quite the same. They narrow it down to five little kids who are going to be produced as a big band. So, it's sort of like...

(CROSSTALK)

KAGAN: Sort of like making the band.

KAGAN: Oh, I see, like -- kind of like make the band kind of thing.

SIGESMUND: Right.

KAGAN: From what I've seen of clips, I think some of the most entertaining stuff will be from the stage parents, you know.

(CROSSTALK)

SIGESMUND: Exactly. I don't know what parent would put their kid on a reality show. It's the worst thing you could ever to the child's psyche.

KAGAN: Sell your kid for a million bucks and put those two together.

And then finally, I have to ask you about NBC perhaps getting out a huge checkbook for "Law and order."

SIGESMUND: Yes, yes. There is breaking news this morning. The people behind "Law and Order" are asking NBC for $550 million a year. This makes "Law and Order" almost as expensive as "ER" was at its height. But, remember, there are three "Law and Orders" now on television. So, they're having to pay almost $8 million for each of three different versions of "Law and Order". So, this is an incredible price tag that Universal is giving NBC. But, you know, "Law and Order" is worth it.

KAGAN: Cha-ching (ph).

SIGESMUND: Cha-ching (ph), that's right.

KAGAN: Yes, cha-ching (ph), all right.

Christopher, let's bring you in. In terms of cha-ching (ph) for the movie tours, what's going to be the hot tours this summer? CHRISTOPHER JOHN FARLEY, SR. ED. "TIME" MAGAZINE: Well, I think one of the hot tours this summer is going to be the 50 Cent Jay-Z Rock the Mic Tour. I think it's going to appeal -- you've got Jay-Z, who is the veteran. You've got 50 Cent or the hottest newcomers. It's going to be sort of a cross-generational tour. You might actually see people over the age of 30 at this point.

KAGAN: Really?

FARLEY: Yes, I think so. We have our reporters on it, and we'll get back to you on it.

KAGAN: That would be some breaking news right there. What about albums? Any big releases we're looking for?

FARLEY: As far as big albums, one album I'm really looking forward to is the new Mary J. Blige album. She reunites with her original producer, Puff Daddy. It's kind of like bringing Michael Jordan and Pippin back together again for a run of the championship. That should be good.

And next week, Radio Head, one of the best bands on the planet, releases their new album. You know...

KAGAN: They're always kind of different every time. They kind of reincarnate themselves.

FARLEY: Yes, they always change themselves. You know, they're kind of like, you know, "The Terminator" and "The Terminator II," he keeps changing himself and transforming himself. Radio Head does the same thing. This new album is really good. It's a really strong album, and I think people keep saying rock and roll is dead, but they keep, you know, bringing the form back alive.

KAGAN: OK, in the final seconds we have left, and we're going to do a little cross-talk here, any particular movie or television show you're dying to see?

FARLEY: Well, you know, I'm very interested about the fact that "Law and Order" has sold for that much. I think that not all of the "Law and Orders" are really all that good. I think that "Criminal Intent" isn't that good a show. I wouldn't pay that much money for it. I think they should probably order those "Law and Orders" a la carte instead to buying them all as a package.

KAGAN: All right.

FARLEY: But that's just me.

KAGAN: And that's just you.

Jill, would you take the guy or would you take the money?

BERNSTEIN: I'll take the radio and CD.

KAGAN: There you go. Boy, that is a safe answer. Thanks to all of you, B.J., Jill and Christopher. Good to have you with us. And we're launching our first regular segment here this morning.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.