Return to Transcripts main page
Showbiz Tonight
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT For June 27, 2005, HEADLINE NEWS
Aired June 27, 2005 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
A.J. HAMMER, CO-HOST: I`m A.J. Hammer.
KARYN BRYANT, CO-HOST: I`m Karyn Bryant. TV`s only live entertainment news show starts right now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRYANT (voice-over): A Supreme Court stunner -- a dramatic decision on Internet file sharing. Tonight, how today`s ruling could affect the way you get your music and movies.
HAMMER (voice-over): Tom Cruise`s anti-psychiatry crusade. Tonight, will his words hurt the "War of the Worlds" at the box office?
BRYANT: The Hollywood baby boom. Hollywood moms in the spotlight. The challenges, the perks, and what it`s like to go back to work.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was nerve-wracking for me, because I thought I`m not going to feel as passionately about work anymore.
BRYANT: The "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" special series begins tonight.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi, I`m Teri Hatcher. If it happened today, it`s on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Hello, I`m A.J. Hammer.
BRYANT: I`m Karyn Bryant.
HAMMER: Tonight a Supreme Court shocker, a download decision on the trading of music and video that is sending shockwaves through the Internet.
BRYANT: The nation`s highest court today ruled for the entertainment industry and against the file sharing company, and SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is here to tell you what it all means. Our coverage begins with SHOWBIZ TONIGHT`s David Haffenreffer who joins us live with the latest on the historic decision.
DAVID HAFFENREFFER, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT CORRESPONDENT: Indeed historic Karyn and A.J., so how do you get your music? Do you swap songs even videos illegally with strangers? Well listen up, that could all come to an end. The case today pitted media giant MGM against a file-sharing site named Grokster and Grokster got rocked.
The court ruling for the entertainment industry and if you use sites like Grokster to download music, movies and more illegally, all that could change.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC)
HAFFENREFFER (voice-over): Hollywood is very happy. Today it won a battle it`s been fighting for years, the battle against illegal downloading which it says has really hurt its sales.
DOUG ISENBERG, GIGALAW.COM: Today may be looked at as the day the illegal music files died.
HAFFENREFFER: It may not be totally dead, but fire-sharing sites like Grokster could dry up for good.
(MUSIC)
HAFFENREFFER: They are called peer-to-peer sites, offering access to what some call illegal downloads of movies, video games, and music. Today`s Supreme Court ruling could hold them liable for anything you might download without permission. It`s a huge coup for the entertainment industry because until now it`s been almost impossible to target peer-to-peer sites. That`s because all of the files are stored on users computers.
ISENBERG: It`s next peers. That is individuals all over the country all over the world so that they can exchange music files and other digital content one-to-one, without actually going through a central server.
HAFFENREFFER: Before today the recording industry fought against peer-to- peer by suing individual down-loaders, a move that some say has proven costly and less effective. But today`s ruling changes all that.
ISENBERG: As a result, the Grokster and Screen House (ph) software may dry up. That is anyone who distributes it may face legal liability, so those companies that do distribute it may stop doing so and as a result it will become significantly more difficult for millions of people to engage in music file sharing in the first place.
HAFFENREFFER: It`s not the first time the technology and the entertainment industries have duked it out in the Supreme Court. Turn the clock back to 1984, when the entertainment world was up in arms over a newfangled gadget called the VCR. They didn`t want the viewers to record television shows at home, so they sued Sony and lost, but in 2001 they won and shut down the very first file-trading network, Napster. It`s a struggle that technology companies say is stifling innovation, but Isenberg doesn`t agree.
ISENBERG: I think today`s court ruling actually gives a big boost to the music and entertainment industry and reinforces that entertainers will have legal protection on the Internet.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAFFENREFFER: Now even though musicians may benefit from the ruling, some warn that it will stunt the growth of cutting edge tech gadgets kind of like the iPod. A.J. back to you.
HAMMER: All right. David thanks very much.
Well, for tonight`s SHOWBIZ in-depth, we`re going to take a closer look at a how today`s court ruling will affect the music, movies or other media that you may be downloading.
Here in New York joining us live is Susan Butler. Susan is the legal and music publishing editor for "Billboard" magazine. Live in Los Angeles Steve Gottlieb is the founder and CEO of TVT Records. And in Washington joining us live, Ali Aydar, who used to work for Napster, the original file sharing company, of course, that was shut down by the courts, as we just mentioned. Aydar -- I`m sorry about that Ali -- is now with "Snocap". It`s a company that helps promote legal Internet file sharing.
And let me start with you, Ali. Of course, Napster, your former company was really at the center of the original file sharing battle. Tell me how this ruling today, what is the practical net effect for the at-home down- loader?
ALI AYDAR, SNOCAP: Well, I think that today`s ruling, what it tells us is that p-to-p can`t continue as it exists today and...
HAMMER: And by p-to-p, just to clarify, it`s peer-to-peer...
AYDAR: Right. Peer-to-peer, that`s right. And peer-to-peer is -- needs to evolve and move forward into a context where legitimate file sharing occurs, where artists get paid, but consumers still get access to the content that they can find on peer-to-peer networks.
FIEGER: Susan, anything you want to add to that?
SUSAN BUTLER, "BILLBOARD" MAGAZINE: Well, I think the lawsuits are going to continue. I think the user should be aware that those probably won`t stop because they are trying to create an atmosphere to get people to understand what`s right and wrong, so I think that there will still be lawsuits against the operators, but they`re still going to go against the users as well.
HAMMER: OK. Steve, David Haffenreffer mentioned in his piece that Sony was sued some 20 years ago over the VCR in sort of a similar type of thing and of course, the decision went in favor of Sony. What`s the essential difference between what happened 20 years ago with the VCR case and what happened today?
STEVE GOTTLIEB, TVT RECORDS: Well, I think the difference was this business of file sharing and selling ads, related to file sharing was entirely about stealing money that should have gone to the artists and creators of the music being swapped. This wasn`t done -- this wasn`t a not-for-profit but was really siphoning off money that was -- should have been going to the rightful creators of that music being swapped. So I think that inherent unfairness of the enterprise was part of what led to the court`s decision.
HAMMER: Susan, do you agree? Is that essentially how you see it as being different?
BUTLER: Yes, I do. I think the music industry, the executives and lawyers that I`ve been talking to today, really see this decision as clarifying what`s wrong and what`s right and they often see it as a gateway. They see it as an opportunity for them now to move onto other focuses, like working on their business models, getting the kinks out of those, and being able to use p-to-p themselves to make money off of them and for legitimate uses.
HAMMER: Ali, I want to ask you, Napster, of course, was shut down and then it started back up legitimately and since then even all this file sharing has just strived and as the technology has improved, it`s only gotten bigger and more global. Can it actually be stopped, in your opinion?
AYDAR: Well in my opinion it`s not about it being stopped, but being moved into a world where artists get paid for the swapping, while at the same time, consumers still having access to music that they want in the way that they want it through peer-to-peer.
HAMMER: Steve, do you agree? Do you think it can actually be curtailed at some point or changed?
GOTTLIEB: I don`t think it`s a question of curtailing. I think it`s a question of migrating people to legitimate peer-to-peer services. I think this is a challenge now for the record industry as well as the peer-to-peer services, to now find ways to still do what they are doing but get artists compensated.
HAMMER: OK. Steve thanks very much. Ali and Susan, we appreciate you going in depth with us tonight on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
BRYANT: Well tonight actress Rosie O`Donnell is speaking out on two controversies, involving Oprah and Tom Cruise. On her blog site Rosie comments on how Oprah reacted to getting rejected entry to the designer boutique Hermes in Paris.
Rosie writes, Oprah, a poor overweight, sexually abused troubled black female child from a broken home suffered one of the most humiliating moments of her life? (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
And on Tom`s comment on Brooke Shields use of antidepressants Rosie writes, shout out to Brooke. Stand tall girl, you saved a lot of women by telling your truth, but about Tom she writes, after watching Tom on "O", of course Oprah, and everywhere else in the free world, Rosie says, I think I might need to up my meds.
HAMMER: Well, what Tom Cruise had to say about meds and psychiatry was still the talk of the day this morning on the "Today" show. On Friday, of course, Cruise created this firestorm after calling psychiatry a pseudo science, saying there was no such thing as a chemical imbalance and he criticized Brooke Shields for taking medication for her postpartum depression. Well this morning Matt and Katie were still talking about what Tom had to say after playing some of Friday`s show. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATIE COURIC, CO-HOST, "TODAY" SHOW: That was intense...
(CROSSTALK)
MATT LAUER, CO-HOST, "TODAY": It was unusual. Let`s say that. We talked about his new movie "War of the Worlds", his new fianc' Katie Holmes, and then the subject turned to things like scientology and his views on psychiatry. Take a look.
Maybe there are too many kids on Ritalin. Maybe electric shock...
TOM CRUISE, ACTOR: Too many kids on Ritalin? Matt...
LAUER: I`m just saying, but...
CRUISE: Matt...
LAUER: ... aren`t there examples where it works?
CRUISE: Matt, Matt, Matt, you don`t even -- you are glib, you don`t even know what Ritalin is. To say that there are too many children...
LAUER: See I thought I was being smug not glib.
COURIC: Yes, I was going to say that`s a weird use of the word glib, but whatever.
LAUER: That`s OK. He was trying to make a point. Anyway...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Well, if you were with us on Friday show, perhaps you participated in the SHOWBIZ TONIGHT poll on exactly what Tom said because it got an extraordinary response. This afternoon we got the final numbers in. The question was Tom Cruise, psychiatry is a pseudo science, do you agree. Some 85,000 people responded. Here are the results. Twenty-eight percent agree that psychiatry is a pseudo science; 72 percent disagreed with what Cruise had to say. It`s pretty amazing...
BRYANT: And our question tonight is also about Tom Cruise. We want to know if your feelings about what he said will keep you away from his new movie, which opens on Wednesday. Our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT question of the day is -- Cruise on psychiatry, will you still see "War of the Worlds"? You can vote at cnn.com/showbiztonight. You can also send your e-mails our way, showbiztonight@cnn.com. Is the address and we`ll read some of your thoughts later in the show.
HAMMER: Well how do star controversies affect business at the box office. That is coming up in the show`s biz.
BRYANT: Plus our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT special series on the Hollywood baby boom. Tonight how some of the most famous moms balance motherhood and Hollywood. That is coming up.
HAMMER: Plus, do you remember this classic Coke commercial? Well, Coke would like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony one more time. We`re going to show you the new ad coming up.
Now it`s tonight`s "Entertainment Weekly" great American pop cultural quiz. In which film did Nicole Kidman make an uncredited voice appearance? Was it "The Fellowship of the Ring", "The Two Towers", "Shrek 2", or "Panic Room"? We`ll be right back with the answer.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. Once again, tonight`s "Entertainment Weekly" great American pop culture quiz. In which film did Nicole Kidman make an uncredited voice appearance? Was it "The Fellowship of the Ring", "The Two Towers", "Shrek 2", or "Panic Room"? The answer is D, "Panic Room".
BRYANT: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. I`m Karyn Bryant.
Tonight, the Hollywood baby boom. It is a SHOWBIZ TONIGHT special series this week. Now more and more often we seem to be reporting that another big name actress has given birth. So many lately that it`s hard to keep track, but bringing up a baby has a different set of demands in Hollywood.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT`s" Brooke Anderson joins us live from Hollywood to kick it all out for us.
BROOKE ANDERSON, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT CORRESPONDENT: Karyn, like all moms, the stars are juggling the stress and strains of work and family. But, in Tinseltown, all of that is played out right in front of the camera. Denise Richards, Kate Hudson, and Reese Witherspoon are a few of the super- glamorous women who are successfully balancing Hollywood with motherhood.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON (voice-over): Gwyneth Paltrow, Reese Witherspoon, Kate Hudson, Hollywood`s most watched pregnancies are now Hollywood`s most watched moms. They sparked a fascination with motherhood and pregnancy like never before, and it seems everybody is doing it. So what`s in the water? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT went to "Working Mother" magazine Carol Evans to get to the bottom of the Hollywood baby boom.
CAROL EVANS, "WORKING MOTHER" MAGAZINE: Hollywood moms used to feel like they couldn`t have a baby and continue with their career, but so many role models are out there of great successful working moms in Hollywood.
ANDERSON: Pregnant actors used to be out of the spotlight now they`re out on the red carpet. Times have changed, but challenges remain. Britney Spears will be a young mom. The pop star is pregnant with her first, as you may have heard, due this fall. Denise Richards, a single mom. She filed for divorce from actor Charlie Sheen in March and gave birth to the couple`s second child earlier this month.
Heidi Cloom (ph) will have to get back to her slim model figure. She`s pregnant with her second child due in September. Her first with music star Seal (ph) and "Six Feet Under" Rachel Griffiths , who just gave birth to her second child last Thursday told SHOWBIZ TONIGHT losing the weight gets competitive.
RACHEL GRIFFITHS, MOTHER OF TWO CHILDREN: You watch some TV shows and you know there`s like this massive, you know, competition going between you know, God, she`s lost three pounds, oh she`s now lost five pounds (UNINTELLIGIBLE) she`s lost even more, and you know there`s this like skinny thing that happens and they all start kind of whittling down.
ANDERSON: Griffiths went back to work just six weeks after having her first child. Hollywood moms return immediately. Actress Cate Blanchett, her sons are 1 and 3, told us the return to work wasn`t easy.
CATE BLANCHETT, MOTHER OF TWO CHILDREN: I went back to work relatively quickly after our first child was born. It was nerve-racking for me because I thought I`m not going to feel as passionately about work any more, because my life is so rich and full and this amazing creature has just entered our lives.
ANDERSON: Uma Thurman, mother of two kids, ages 3 and 6, told SHOWBIZ TONIGHT she finds the work/motherhood balance tough.
UMA THURMAN, MOTHER OF TWO CHILDREN: It`s a challenge, you know. It`s a challenge. It really is. I want to be a full-time parent, and I also do something I love to do and need to make a living and all those things like you know a lot of professional women. And so it`s very hard because, you know, you want to kind of do 100 percent of everything and you can`t always do that, so you just have to try, you work so hard, do your best.
ANDERSON: Another challenge, bringing babies to the set. Actresses don`t have normal schedule, but "Will & Grace" star Debra Messing who gave birth to baby boy Roman in April of last year, told us Hollywood is becoming more accommodating.
DEBRA MESSING, MOTHER OF ONE: I was lucky enough to be able to have a nursery right next to my dressing room with a little door in between.
ANDERSON: Reese Witherspoon, mother of 5-year-old Ava and 19-month-old Diegan (ph), has said traveling for work can be a hurdle but it`s nice to have long breaks between projects.
REESE WITHERSPOON, MOTHER OF TWO CHILDREN: We just take our daughter to ballet classes and hang out and go to the bookstore. So we get a lot of concentrated time when we`re not working.
ANDERSON: But the biggest challenge of them all, the paparazzi. Now celebrities are fighting back, sending out their own pictures to quench the public`s thirst for a first look. Here`s Courtney Cox`s pick of new baby Cocoa Arquette (ph) born last June. Sharon Stone just released this pick of her newly adopted son in May. Denise Richards sent out this shot from the hospital bed just this month.
Britney Spears showed off her new bump on the cover of "People" magazine, and it`s rumored that Gwyneth Paltrow planned this public stroll with baby Apple (ph) after her birth last May just for the camera. But in the scripted world of Hollywood, the motherhood experience can keep things real. We asked Gwyneth what meant more her career or motherhood.
GWYNETH PALTROW, MOTHER OF ONE: It`s much more. I could never have understood what it is to be a mother until I had her and that incredible depth of feeling. It`s just unlike anything I`ve ever experienced.
ANDERSON: Angelina Jolie who adopted son Maddox from Cambodia in 2002 says being a mom gives her perspective.
ANGELINA JOLIE, MOTHER OF ONE: It`s just put focus in my life where it should be, just on, you know, family and life and raising a kid and being a mom is -- makes everything else so much less important and it takes the pressure off. So yes, life is just better.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: One of the busiest and most famous celebrity moms is Kelly Ripa. She`s got two day jobs -- one co-hosting with Regis Philbin, and the other, starring in a sitcom and she does it all while managing three kids and a husband. Karyn, that`s a lot to handle for anyone.
BRYANT: It certainly is Brooke Anderson. Thanks for reporting from Hollywood.
Now in Brooke`s report you heard from actress Rachel Griffiths. Tomorrow in our Hollywood baby boom series SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is with the "Six Feet Under" star at her photo shoot for "Fit Pregnancy" magazine. She tells us that when it comes to being a mom in Hollywood, she really can`t complain.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRIFFITHS: Part of me really identifies with, you know, working women and what we all have to juggle, but the other half knows I`m exceptionally privileged, that my workplace says you know we built a nursery for you and you can take any nursing breaks you need and just, you know, let us know the schedule you are on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRYANT: We will hear more from Rachel Griffiths tomorrow and the Hollywood baby boom all this week as part of our special series.
HAMMER: Bats and witches topping the box office, but this weekend shattered a 20-year-old record that`s really not one the film industry wanted to break -- 18 weeks in a row of lower grosses than the previous year. Here`s a look at the top five, which is just out this afternoon.
"Batman Begins," with Christian Bale and Tom Cruise`s fianc' Katie Holmes, of course, took in more than $27 million in its second week out. Nicole Kidman and Will Ferrell`s "Bewitched" is in second place, with a $20 million opening. Brad and Angelina`s "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" in third. Lindsay Lohan`s "Herbie Fully Loaded," which opened up on Wednesday, came in fourth. And "Land of the Dead," the fourth movie of the night of "The Living Dead" series, in fifth place.
BRYANT: "War of the Worlds" hits theaters Wednesday, but will Tom Cruise`s anti-psychiatry crusade have any effect at the box office? We`ve got some answers coming up.
HAMMER: Plus, Lindsay Lohan`s many off-screen dramas, a special report on the life of Lindsay, that`s coming up as well.
BRYANT: And Alanis unplugged. Does Alanis Morissette still strike a chord without electric guitars? We`ll find out when we sit down with "People" magazine`s picks and pans. That`s next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BRYANT: It is time for the "Showbiz Guide," where throughout the week we help you decide where to spend your dollars on movies, music, DVDs and more. Tonight, in "People" magazine`s picks and pans, new music. We`ve got Dwight Yoakam`s latest, Billy Corgan goes solo, and Alanis Morissette mixes the old with something new.
Joining us from "People" magazine senior editor, Julie Dam. Thanks for getting to it with us. Dwight Yoakam, "Blame the Vein", this is his new album. A lot of people who don`t necessarily like country seem to always like Dwight. What`s the deal with that?
JULIE DAM, "PEOPLE" MAGAZINE: Yes, you know he`s kind of playful, kind of fun. In fact, one of the songs on the album that`s really funny is something called "Intentional Heartache", which is about a woman who was jilted by her man and drives her car into his pickup truck...
BRYANT: OK.
DAM: You know that`s the kind of sense of humor and like the title song is about how you can blame the vein for what you wear, and he has another song about just doing nothing, so he puts a little fun into it.
BRYANT: All right, but musically similar to his other records or...
DAM: Yes, it`s a good album.
BRYANT: It`s a good album. Well speaking of similarity to other albums, Alanis Morissette has basically re-recorded "Jagged Little Pillar" (ph), a record that`s sold over 30 million copies...
DAM: Yes...
BRYANT: ... worldwide. Is it worth buying again?
DAM: Well it`s the tenth anniversary, and what you do find out from this new album is that the songs really hold up, but it`s kind of for you know die-hard fans only. Because it`s weird to hear you ought to know without the guitars you know that`s totally stripped down. It loses its edge, so you know what it really makes you want to do is go back and get the original album and listen to that again.
BRYANT: OK, so for diehards...
DAM: Yes.
BRYANT: Moving on to Billy Corgan, the former front man of Smashing Pumpkins, has recently talked about getting that band back together. Smashing Pumpkins were always known for this rich layered sound. What is his solo work like?
DAM: Well, you know, it`s a good thing that they are getting back together...
(CROSSTALK)
DAM: ... this one is a little lackluster. I mean he has this sort of trendy neo new wave sound but it lacks a bit of fun. It`s a little bit of going on a little too much, although you have to give him (UNINTELLIGIBLE) for doing a cover of a "Bee Gees song, "To Love Somebody"...
BRYANT: Really?
DAM: ... with Robert Smith and "The Cure" (ph)...
(CROSSTALK)
BRYANT: And how is it?
DAM: It`s interesting. It`s weird in a good way.
BRYANT: OK. All right. Well you seem a little hesitant on that one, but Dwight you are saying is worth it.
DAM: Yes.
BRYANT: OK. Well Julie Dam, thank you for joining us here for "People`s" picks and pans. Now for more picks and pans, you can pick up a copy of "People" magazine. It`s on newsstands now.
HAMMER: So the question we`re all wondering is what does Johnny Depp find to be very, very, very weird? That`s coming right up.
Plus, do you remember the old Coke commercial? Come on, everybody sing along. "I`d like to buy the world...
All right, well you know how -- times have changed, but the jingle basically has stayed the same. Well, the words did, anyway. You have to see the new commercial to believe it. That`s coming up as well.
And, Google sets out to revolutionize the Internet, once again. What have they done? What`s it all about? We`re going to explain it in plain English coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN HEADLINE NEWS ANCHOR: Hi, everybody. I`m Renay San Miguel. Here`s your "Headline Prime Newsbreak."
Authorities are stepping up patrols in the Florida panhandle after a second shark attack in just 48 hours. Doctors had to amputate the leg of a 14-year-old boy attacked earlier today while fishing in waist-deep water. The attack occurred about 80 miles from where a girl was killed by a bull shark over the weekend.
A pair of rulings from the Supreme Court on the hot button issue of separation of church and state. The justices say displays inside Kentucky courthouses violate the separation of church and state, but they say a monument outside the Texas statehouse is OK.
In Aruba, another man detained in the disappearance of American Natalee Holloway has been released. Disc jockey Steve Croes was freed this afternoon, a day after Aruban Judge Paul Van Der Sloot was released for lack of evidence. Van Der Sloot`s son and two others are still being held. Holloway`s been missing since May 30th.
That`s the news for now. I`m Renay San Miguel. Now back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
HAMMER: Will the war of the words hurt the "War of the Worlds"? It`s soapbox versus box office for Tom Cruise. His new movie opens up on Wednesday on the heels of some pretty fiery comments.
BRYANT: Life under the radar: how "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" star Johnny Depp avoids the Hollywood circus and reaps the Hollywood benefits.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANGELA BASSET, ACTRESS: Hi, I`m Angela Bassett. If it happened today, it`s on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRYANT: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, TV`s only live entertainment movie show. It`s 31 minutes past the hour. I`m Karyn Bryant.
HAMMER: I`m A.J. Hammer. Here are tonight`s "Hot Headlines." The Supreme Court ruled unanimously today against Internet file-sharing services. Well, now peer-to-peer sites that offer downloads of music, movies and other media could be held responsible for your online swapping.
BRYANT: Here she is, on Country Music Television, the orphaned Miss America Pageant has found a home on CMT. ABC had ditched the beauty queens last year after a dip in viewership. Country Music Television plans to give the pageant a reality-TV-style makeover.
HAMMER: Thank you for singing. That was nice.
Rosie O`Donnell has a few words of her own for Tom Cruise. In her blog, O`Donnell defended Brooke Shields against Cruise`s anti-psychiatry comments. O`Donnell says, after watching Cruise these past few weeks, she may need to up her own meds.
BRYANT: Well, Tom Cruise isn`t the only actor whose personal life has gotten more press than his new movie lately. Just take a look at Katie Holmes in "Batman Begins," Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," and Lindsay Lohan in "Herbie: Fully Loaded." All three of those movies did well this weekend.
So is there an upside to negative publicity? Joining us live from Hollywood for the answer, the answer man, Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box office tracking firm, Exhibitor Relations.
Paul, like I just said, three of the top four movies star people who have been involved in controversies. Katie, Lindsay, Brad and Angelina, what`s the deal? Is the gossip selling the tickets?
PAUL DERGARABEDIAN, PRESIDENT, EXHIBITOR RELATIONS: Well, I think it`s a combination of factors. Obviously, when you see Tom Cruise on these shows, you associate him with this upcoming movie.
Now, it can be a double-edged sword, because sometimes if you get too much coverage and it`s negative, that bad press may not translate into big box office, because some people may feel kind of a backlash towards that star and just say, "Hey, I don`t want to have anything more to do with them."
But on the other hand, I think, in most cases, it comes down to the movie and the marketing. If people want to see "War of the Worlds," they are going to go, regardless of what Tom Cruise says or does on a talk show or Lindsay Lohan does in her personal life. It comes down to the movie and the marketing.
BRYANT: Now, I want to talk about that a little bit more with Tom Cruise. You know, this is your industry. I`m just curious what you`re feeling the pulse is out there. Will people still be going to see Tom Cruise and "War of the Worlds"? I know it`s a big Spielberg picture. Do you think that there`s any negative effect on what the possible box office is going to be on that film?
DERGARABEDIAN: Well, you know, it`s almost difficult -- I mean, it`s almost impossible, I should say, to quantify what effect all this gossip and all these television appearances, some of which have been kind of controversial, will have on the box office. You just don`t know.
And obviously, like we were talking about -- you know, you were saying earlier with Lindsay Lohan, her movie opened fine. And you know, people were saying, "Well, gee if it doesn`t do well, it must be because people are staying away."
But people spend their $10 to see a movie not to buy a tabloid. They ultimately want to have a satisfying movie-going experience. If the marketing for "War of the Worlds" gets people excited, and they love that concept, and they want to see that Spielberg, they`re going to go, regardless of what Tom Cruise may do. Unless a star does something particularly egregious or something that no one can forgive, I think it`s still about the movie. People are going to go.
BRYANT: So in a way, too, it seems -- I`m going to wrap this up -- but it seems, though, that there`s no such thing as bad publicity?
DERGARABEDIAN: There isn`t to a point. I mean, if it`s something, like, I said, that`s really so horrible that nobody can get around it, then that hurt a movie. I think in this case, as we`ve seen from "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" and these other films, these films are all doing well because those marketing campaigns for those films worked and people wanted to see the films.
BRYANT: All right, thanks very much. Paul Dergarabedian in Hollywood.
Well, we were just talking about Tom Cruise and whether his new movie will be helped or hurt by his bad publicity and all of the things he`s been doing. It leads to our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day": Cruise on psychiatry, will you still see "War of the Worlds"? You can keep voting at CNN.com/showbiztonight, and you can write to us at showbiztonight@cnn.com. Your e-mails are you coming up at 54 past the hour.
HAMMER: All right, Karyn. Well, from celebrities who seem to thrive on being in the spotlight to one who really has always preferred to keep himself a lot more, shall we say, low profile, Johnny Depp`s going to play Willy Wonka in the new film, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."
And SHOWBIZ TONIGHT`s Dave Haffenreffer is back with us again tonight live. Dave was just hanging out with Depp in the Bahamas this past weekend where he`s shooting the sequel to the "Pirates" movie.
Hey, low profile isn`t so bad.
DAVID HAFFENREFFER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," Johnny Depp plays candy man Willy Wonka, of course, the unusual, mysterious recluse who runs this factory from closed doors. Depp told me, when he`s between projects, he prefers to stay out of the limelight. That`s a nice change. Choosing to spend time with his girlfriend, Vanessa Paradis, and two children.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNNY DEPP, ACTOR: Because I have chosen to distance myself from the Hollywood social scene, when events come up that you should go to, that you have to go to or whatever, because it`s so foreign to me and so far away from me, I actually kind of enjoy it, you know, because it`s like, you know, it`s like going into some kind of weird carnival ride for a little while, knowing that you are going to come out the other side and escape immediately.
So I don`t -- I`m not a particularly social animal in the Hollywood sense. I don`t like to do that. But when I do have to go to these events and stuff, it`s kind of fun, you know, because it`s so weird. They are so weird.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAFFENREFFER: We`ll have more with my sitdown with Johnny Depp tomorrow might on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," by the way, opens July 15th -- A.J.?
HAMMER: All right, David Haffenreffer, thank you very much.
Well, the original "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factor," starring Gene Wilder, came out in 1971. and that is the same year this Coca-Cola ad hit the airwaves and became one of the most famous ads of all time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SINGERS: I`d like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony. I`d like to buy the world a Coke and keep it company.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Ah, yes, are you singing along in the living room right now? Well, Coke is putting a new school twist on that old school hilltop ad. It`s for the company`s Coke Zero product.
It`s just out today. This one`s called "Chill Top" and is redone by music`s G. Love.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SINGERS: I`d like to teach the world to chill, to try to stop and smile. I`d like to...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRYANT: OK, well, there you have it. Coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, former "American Idol" contestant Corey Clark has another run-in with the law.
HAMMER: Plus, do you Google? Well, now you can Google for video with the new online service. We`ve got the details, coming up.
BRYANT: And her hair may be a different color, but Lindsay Lohan says her head is squarely on her shoulders. That`s coming up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PARIS HILTON, HEIRESS: Hi, I`m Paris Hilton. And I am watching "The Simpsons," because I have loved it for years. And Homer is hysterical.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
Well, it`s an historic day for the Internet. On the very same day that the Supreme Court rules Internet file-sharing services can be sued for encouraging users to swap songs and video, Google is launching its own video service that essentially lets users, well, share video.
Some are saying Google`s move will likely revolutionize how people watch video on the internet. So here to explain it all, it`s co-editor for boingboing.net and correspondent for "Wired" magazine, Xeni Jardin.
So, Xeni, run it down for us. Exactly what is this new Google service all about?
XENI JARDIN, BOINGBOING.NET: Well, it`s pretty exciting stuff. Google`s video search engine has been in test mode for a few months. Today, they did something really exciting that people weren`t expecting.
The news broke on John Battelle`s Searchblog last night that Google was going to launch a video player. So you can actually now search for videos, but then also play them within your browser on an open-source player. In other words, not Windows Media, not RealPlayer, something that`s so far ad free and that people are free to develop and tinker around with.
So most of the video that you`re going to find here -- well, all of it now -- is stuff that people have submitted themselves. It`s a little bit different than Yahoo`s video search, in that Yahoo`s video search engine sort of scours the net like a spider looking for stuff that`s out there. Google search, these are things that people have submitted.
HAMMER: OK. The Supreme Court ruling, obviously, comes to mind, because the Supreme Court ruled today about the peer-to-peer sharing being illegal. Will this at all impact what Google is trying to do here?
JARDIN: You know, that`s a really interesting question. A number of technology advocates have raised the point that the Grokster decision puts into question, if you are going to develop a piece of technology, you`re going to have to think about whether someone out there could possibly use that for infringing uses.
Google may be putting itself in the line of fire with this. So far, it`s been reported that they have people reviewing each submission to make sure that there`s no adult content, to make sure that the content isn`t infringing. But that`s going to be hard to sustain, when a lot of people start using the service.
HAMMER: And if somebody is interested in the service, how do they find it?
JARDIN: Video.google.com.
HAMMER: OK, great. Thanks very much, Xeni Jardin, for explaining it all to us.
And I just want to make a small note. Google`s stock hit an all-time high of $304.10. Xeni Jardin, from boingboing.net, we appreciate you joining us tonight for the Google video explanation.
BRYANT: Well, the ex-"American idol" contestant who claims he had an affair with Paula Abdul almost went from songbird to jailbird. Corey Clark, who has an arrest record, was slapped with a misdemeanor battery charge, that is after a food fight with his female record company manager at a Sacramento hotel.
Other guests heard the commotion that ended in broken dishes and cuts and bruises for both Clark and the manager. They two were arguing about Clark`s Friday night`s concept. Clark avoided a jail booking, since the incident wasn`t serious.
HAMMER: Well, we`re getting our very first words from Michael Jackson himself, speaking out since his acquittal on child molestation charges. This is the very first time we`re hearing from him, and SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, of course, has it for you.
The King of Pop posted a statement on his Web site basically thanking God, his family, and his fans for their loyal support throughout this whole court ordeal. Jackson has not made a public appearance since the June 13th verdict came out. The singer did tell supporters, quote, "I will never forget you. Your ever-present love helped me, dried my tears, and carried me through. You are my inspiration."
And he signed it, quote, "Love, Michael Jackson."
BRYANT: Tonight, a "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" special report, Lindsay Lohan. As we mentioned, her new movie, "Herbie: Fully Loaded," opened over the weekend. Now, Lindsay has grown up before our eyes in the harsh glare in the spotlight and the pages of the tabloids.
Now, for this red carpet regular, the road to stardom has been a bumpy and wild ride. Here`s CNN`s Kyra Phillips for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JAMIE LEE CURTIS, ACTRESS: You think my life is perfect?
LINDSAY LOHAN, ACTRESS: You couldn`t last one day in my high school.
KYRA PHILLIPS, HOST: By 2003, with three Disney movies under her belt, 17-year-old Lindsay Lohan had made her mark as one of Hollywood`s youngest stars, but by her 18th birthday, Lindsay would transform from freckle-faced teen to sexy standout actress.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Shut up.
LOHAN: I didn`t say anything.
PHILLIPS: It would be her role in 2004`s "Mean Girls" that would catapult Lohan to serious stardom. In her first film foray away from Disney, Lindsay landed a new audience.
LEAH ROZEN, "PEOPLE" MAGAZINE: "Mean Girls" was a very smart comedy that I think worked both for the teenagers at whom it was intended and also for adults. And Lindsay Lohan was terrific. I mean, she carried that movie.
PHILLIPS: Lindsay also struck a chord off-screen. She released her first full-length album, "Speak," in late 2004. With songs like "Rumors," Lindsay`s record peaked at number four on the Billboard 200.
And Lindsay`s romantic life had the media buzzing. Lindsay was hot and heavy with the 24-year-old "That `70s Show" actor, Wilmer Valderrama, and the paparazzi didn`t miss a beat. A high-profile romance, a smash movie, and a hit album, Lohan was becoming a media darling.
But by her 18th birthday, the press was more intrigued with her figure than her career. Provocative photos in magazines like "Rolling Stone" and revealing red carpet arrivals had the tabloids speculating about breast augmentation, a claim Lohan denied.
And if Lohan wasn`t getting enough tabloid attention, her father`s endless brushes with the law put his daughter back on the gossip pages. Michael Lohan had been convicted of seven criminal charges in 2004, including an arrest for attacking his brother-in-law with a shoe at a family party.
Attorney Bruce Smirti represented Lohan for a domestic dispute in 2002. And though the two have become friends, he says he doesn`t understand Lohan`s recent actions.
BRUCE SMIRTI, LOHAN FAMILY FRIEND: Knowing Michael the way I do, I think he has an anger problem, he`s impulsive, he doesn`t think before he acts.
PHILLIPS: CNN contacted Michael Kohan for an interview, but according to his lawyer, a gag order prevented him from speaking about his family. Despite her family problems in 2004, Lindsay kept a strong front defending her father.
LOHAN: You know, my dad is a grown man. And he`s gone a little overboard with the some of the things he says. But I love him, and he`s my father.
PHILLIPS: But as her dad`s troubles continued, Lindsay became less understanding.
MICHAEL FLEEMAN, "PEOPLE" MAGAZINE: She used to be very forgiving of him, but as he started making more and more shrill allegations, Lindsay now basically doesn`t want to have anything to do with her father.
PHILLIPS: In 2005, Lohan was in trouble again. In February, he was arrested for DUI after cracking his car into a pole. Citing his recent criminal history, and the court`s previous leniency, Lohan was sentenced to up to four years in jail.
Family drama aside, Lindsay could not escape from the media spotlight. Barely dating a few months, the gossip pages were hot with the story of her breakup with Valderrama. And after her highly publicized breakup, the rumor mill began to portray Lindsay as a Hollywood party girl.
FLEEMAN: One week in April, we saw her at a different club every night of the week. When she`s filming a movie, she`s out very late. She is club hopping all the time.
PHILLIPS: While filming her latest movie, "Herbie: Fully Loaded," Lohan spent five days in the hospital. The gossip pages implied too much partying.
FLEEMAN: How many times can her publicist say, "Yes, she`s got a cold, or, yes, she`s working out, or, yes, she`s just a little bit tired." People care about her. They really want things to work out for her. They want her to be healthy. They want to see her in movies.
PHILLIPS: Despite the rumors, Lindsay says her sick leave from "Herbie" was do to pure exhaustion.
LOHAN: They can say drugs or anything they want, because that`s what I was hearing, or meningitis or whatever. You know, when you get tired -- I`m 18. And I`m still growing. And my body can`t handle like going out, and then working, and doing other stuff.
PHILLIPS: And the tabloids still hadn`t finished with Lohan. By early 2005, Lohan has transformed from busty red head to waifish blonde. The press chastised the new svelter Lindsay. Did she have an eating disorder?
FLEEMAN: She lost a lot of weight in a very short amount of time. And this was all around the time that she was working very hard on movies and partying very hard in clubs. I think there`s a real concern there among audiences that her lifestyle may be getting close to being out of control.
PHILLIPS: According to Camp Lohan, rumors of an eating disorder are a big, fat lie.
DINA LOHAN, MOTHER: She`s a little girl. We`re not big boned. And she lost 15, 20 pounds in the hospital. And when she came out, she liked how she looked. And when you`re that age, you know, you have to find your own space.
LOHAN: Everyone has their own reason for why they want to be thin or how they get that way. And I`m healthy. And I`m not an idiot. And I have people around me that many say, "Hey, stop it," that I can trust and that I will actually listen to.
PHILLIPS: Too thin or too busty, party girl or worn out actress, with the media circus that surrounds Lohan and her family, will her personal life continue to overshadow her career? Can she transcend the gossip?
FLEEMAN: Lindsey herself says that her dysfunctional family has actually weirdly helped her career. And she knows that these problems off- camera just add to the heat of her career.
PHILLIPS: Despite the sometimes harsh press, Lindsay Lohan has never been more popular. And the child-star-turned-teen-actress takes the glare of the spotlight like a pro.
LOHAN: There are a lot of misconceptions. And there will be. And I understand that. But don`t believe what you read. I just make sure that the people that I`m with, they know the truth, and I know the truth. And as long as I`m happy, then that`s all that matters.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRYANT: That was CNN`s Kyra Phillips for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. "PEOPLE IN THE NEWS" airs Saturday at 5:00 p.m. and Sunday 7:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN. You can also pick up a copy of "People Magazine" on newsstands now.
HAMMER: There is still some time for you to sound off in our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day, which is, Cruise on psychiatry: Will you still see "War of the Worlds"? Vote by going to CNN.com/showbiztonight, or write to us at showbiztonight@CNN.com. We`re going to read some of your e- mails live, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BRYANT: We`ve been asking you to vote online on our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day." Cruise on psychiatry: Will you still see "War of the Worlds"?
The vote so far, 44 percent of you say yes, you will see it, 56 percent of you say no, won`t.
We have gotten these e-mails. Amanda from Nova Scotia, Canada, writes, "I absolutely will not see `War of the Worlds.` I refuse to participate in anything that condones his recent behavior."
And David from Ohio writes, "I won`t let one person`s views on the world stop me from seeing the movie."
And Matthew has chimed in from Illinois saying, "I won`t be spending my money that has to do with Mr. Cruise."
You at home can keep voting at CNN.com/showbiztonight.
HAMMER: I don`t know about you. I barely made it through the weekend without hearing this voice.
BRYANT: I know.
HAMMER: Time to see what`s playing on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT tomorrow.
BRYANT: Let`s take a look at the SHOWBIZ marquee. Take it away, Marquee Guy.
MARQUEE GUY: Tomorrow, our Hollywood baby boom series continues with second-time mommy dearest Rachel Griffiths. The "Six Feet Under" star on pregnancy, motherhood, and staying fit as a fiddle, tomorrow.
Also tomorrow, and "Step by Step, Ooh, Baby," Joey McIntyre is dancing up a storm. The former New Kid on the Block is hanging tough on "Dancing with the Stars." He joins us live tomorrow on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
This is the Marquee Guy. First time was a great time, second time was a blast. I do this every night. Now I hope this lasts.
HAMMER: So do we.
BRYANT: That`s is for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. I`m Karyn Bryant.
HAMMER: I`m A.J. Hammer. Stay tuned for the very latest from CNN Headline News.
RENAY SAN MIGUEL, CNN HEADLINE NEWS ANCHOR: Hi, everybody. I`m Renay San Miguel. Let`s get you your "Headline Prime Newsbreak."
A blunt, graphic confession from the BTK serial killer. Dennis Rader waved his right to a trial today and pleaded guilty to ten counts of murder. The 60-year-old stunned the courtroom as he calmly detailed the brutal killings which once terrorized his hometown of Wichita, Kansas.
NASA has failed to meet new, tougher safety standards put in place after the Columbia disaster, that from the panel overseeing NASA`s return to the space shuttle flights. The panel previously hinted that NASA had met 12 of 15 safety recommendations. It`s unknown whether this means a planned July shuttle launch will be scrapped.
Big decisions today from the U.S. Supreme Court. It`s approving the use of the Ten Commandments of the display, so long as it does not promote religion, and ruling against Internet file-sharing services, which allow the illegal swapping of movie and music files. But despite wide speculation, none of the justices announced their retirements, as the court goes into summer recess.
That`s the news for now. I`m Renay San Miguel.
END
