October 28, 1995
Web posted at: 6:55 a.m. EDT
From Correspondent Dennis Michael
Natalie Cole is the Good Witch, Debra Winger is the Wicked Witch of the West, and Roger Daltrey will play the Tin Man in a new all-star concert version of "The Wizard of Oz." The concert will tape at New York's Lincoln Center in early November and air on TNT at the end of next month. The updated "Wizard" will also feature Jackson Browne as the Scarecrow and Joel Grey as the Wizard.
Thomas Hayden Church is taking flight from "Wings." The actor has played the mechanic Lowell for six seasons on the Paramount situation comedy, and is now the lead in the Fox series "Ned and Stacey." Church's final episode of "Wings" runs Tuesday.
Matt Groening, creator of "The Simpsons," managed to be in four places at once Wednesday night. The cartoonist appeared to sign a new comic book at the Golden Apple Comix store in Los Angeles, but was linked via Compuserve to stores in Chicago, Honolulu, and North Carolina at the same time.
"The Simpsons" is getting some unexpected depth. Thanks to the work of Pacific Data Images, this weekend's episode of the long-running animated situation comedy features Homer and Bart in three-dimensional computer animation.
High honors for Sharon Stone. The actress has been honored with the Order of the Chevalier of Arts and Letters by the French Government. The actress, praised by the French culture minister as "the absolute star," is honored for serving world culture as an actress and producer.
Rutger Hauer is back at work. The actor is starring in "Crossroads," a special effects thriller about war in another dimension. Josh Charles, recently seen in "Threesome," co- stars. Shooting began this week.
Whitney Houston has a new screen project. The singer and actress has paid a six-figure option for "Dorothy Dandridge -- a Biography." Daily Variety reports the singer hopes to play the '50s movie queen in a film version of the biography, which is due to be published next year.
Page and Plant are wrapping it up ... but not necessarily calling it quits. Jimmy Page and Robert Plant will finish up their U.S. tour in New York over the weekend, but plans are already in place for tours of Japan and South America. India and Australia are under consideration. The pair's album "No Quarter" has gone platinum.
Mariah Carey isn't topping the charts in Europe. That honor goes to "Simply Red." The band's new album "Life" is top of the charts on the continent, according to the Amsterdam-based "Music and Media" magazine. Carey's "Daydream" is in second place on the album charts; her hit single "Fantasy" is number six.
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