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Showbuzz
Web posted on:
Tuesday, January 05, 1999 2:14:43 PM EST
Today's buzz stories:
HOLLYWOOD (CNN) -- A careless mistake nearly disqualified Mexico's "A Spell" ("Un Embrujo") from the Oscar foreign-language stakes. Producers of the film accidentally submitted a print that lacked subtitles, which is against contest rules. On Monday, an official from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences called the the film's producer, Salamandra Prods., to say "A Spell" was out of the Oscar race.
But one of the producers convinced the official that it was a simple mix-up -- that their copy of the print, complete with English subtitles, was sitting in a Los Angeles lab and would be sent right away. The Academy relented. The movie, directed by Carlos Carrera, is the tale of a young man's coming of age in pre-World War II Mexico.
NEW YORK (CNN) -- A new study by the Project for Excellence in Journalism suggests local television news doesn't necessarily need to emphasize blood-and-guts crime reporting to land viewers. However, tabloid-oriented broadcasts also do well, indicating that the stations that suffer are the ones confused about which direction to take.
The study ranked newscasts at 61 stations in 21 cities. The results should cause television news directors to question
old ideas, including the axiom that "if it bleeds, it leads" local newscasts, said Tom Rosensteil, a former media critic and the project's director.
"I hope that they begin to question some of the conventional wisdom that is kicked around in local TV about flash, crime, brevity and infotainment," he said. The study also found that contrary to popular belief, viewers' attention spans are not shrinking. In fact, researchers found a correlation between longer stories and rising ratings.
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Jean
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BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CNN) -- Wyclef Jean continues to seek new musical horizons. Jean, the former Fugees member who has worked with artists like Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston, says he plans to do a project with the calypso band Square One. "There are deep subliminal messages within their songs," he said.
Jean recently co-wrote and produced the title track, "My Love is Your Love," for Houston's latest album. He is also currently producing an album for Earth, Wind and Fire. Jean said he is confident in the Square One project, "Because once I set my mind to doing something, I always make it happen."
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Milano
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LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- Alyssa Milano, star of the WB series "Charmed," married musician Cinjun August Tate at a plantation home in Rosewood, Louisiana, on New Year's Day, according to Milano's publicist, Cece Yorke. Guests included Milano's "Charmed" co-stars, Shannen Doherty and Holly Marie Combs. Milano, 25, grew up on television, playing Samantha Micelli for eight years on "Who's the Boss." She also played vixen Jennifer Mancini on "Melrose Place." The couple will continue to live in Los Angeles, Yorke said in the Monday announcement.
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Simmons
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Even fitness gurus get junk food cravings. Richard Simmons admits he craves pizza, and often goes undercover to get it. "It's terrible because where can Richard Simmons go to get pizza?" Simmons said in Monday's USA Today. "There's a Domino's about four blocks from my house, so I lower my voice and say, 'Hi, this is Mr. Reveles, and I'd like to get a pizza.'"
Television fitness expert Denise Austin and aerobics video star Donna Richardson also came clean about their junk food habits. The two admitted they crave Krispy Kreme doughnuts. "They just melt in your mouth," Austin said. "I eat well 80 percent of the time and eat junk the other 20 percent of the time," she said. "I work out, and that keeps my metabolism up. ... I don't do 20 more minutes of exercise because I ate one doughnut."
Reuters Limited and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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