Fifteen Minutes

File Under: TDI NewsWire

Welcome to Fifteen Minutes, TDI's premiere entertainment NewsWire. We bring you the latest from the movie and TV industries, with a little music and celebrity thrown in for good measure. It's not stupid entertainment news... It's the type of news you LIKE to hear! It's never dull, always fascinating, and it's worth giving these people their Fifteen Minutes in the limelight. Without further ado, here is our signature entertainment NewsWire!

FOX wants to destroy all humans. The FOX Broadcasting Co. has acquired the rights to turn THQ's best-selling sci-fi video game "Destory All Humans!" into a computer-animated comedy. This will be the first time a video game will be used as the basis for a primetime network TV show. The game is set in the 1950's, as a alien who has landed on Earth and is intent on destroying it. The game is billed as a spoof of Hollywood B-movies. Since it launched in June, the game has shipped more than 1 million units worldwide.

Everybody has their own reality TV show. So why shouldn't the Muppets? ABC has ordered a script and five episode outlines for "America's Next Muppet," a half-mock reality competition program in which viewers can help choose the newest member of the Muppet family. The Muppets first got their start on a national level on Sesame Street in 1969, and then branched off into The Muppet Show, which aired from 1976-1981, and have had more than 4 full-length feature movies. I'm hoping that Sam the Eagle and the two old hecklers are the judges for this show.

Getting their 15 today is Warner Brothers, who announced that they have reorganized it's home video and digital distribution efforts into one unit. The Warer Bros. Home Entertaint Group, leg by Kevin Tsujihara, will also encompass games, wireless, Internet strategy and anti-piracy efforts. WB is also forming Warner Bros. Digital Distribution, a unit to concetrate on video-on-demand and wireless distribution of entertainment. So basically, they have one unit for movies, one for TV, and one for everything else. Glad we have that cleared up.

(Finally, a story where I can have a picture of people!) The so-called "mega-churches" do have all the fun... They get to screen movies! About 3,200 churches across the United States and Canada saw Left Behind: World at War, a straight-to-video sequal to Left Behind. The distributor is projecting about 1.8 million people attended the screenings. They're hoping that this type of screening will help promote the DVD sales of the movie. One distributor said: "Instead of bringing Christians to the theaters, we brought the theaters to the Christians."

The rapper DMX (known on his tax forms as Earl Simmons) faces 60 days in prison after pleading guilty to violating the conditions of his release following a car crash last year at JFK Intl. Airport. DMX is scheduled to be sentanced November 17. He was also taking Valium when he smashed his car into a gate at the airport. He also told a parking lot attendant that he was a federal agent! He was sentanced to conditional discharge, meaning further violations within a year could land him in jail. Well, since then, eh's been cited twice for traffic violations including, one of which clocked him going 104 mph. Expect jailhouse rap albums from him sometime early next year.

Editorial: President Mac, how could you fire her? Tuesday night's Commander in Chief, President Mac fired her Attorney General (played by Leslie Hope), after the Attorney General and the creepy Nathan Templeton (Donald Sutherland) congratulated her on allowing torture of a terror suspect (unbeknownst to Mac). What was great about this episode was that Leslie Hope stared in season 1 of 24 as the wife of Jack Bauer, played by Keifer Sutherland, Donald's son. And Bauer's character is known for torturing terror suspects! But, bloody hell, she fired her! (as if she didn't need to hire enough new people already!) Here's hoping the former Attorney General can join Templeton's staff.

The Rolling Stones needs some quick cash, apparently, and will release an album full of rare tracks next months at Starbucks and retail shops. "Rarities 1971-2003" will be released on November 22 everywhere. In the past, Starbucks has had some deals with artist to have the album as an "exclusive", at least, for a few weeks. The new album also has live versions of some of their songs, plus dance remixes of songs like "Miss You" and "Harlem Shuffle". The album cover is shown to your left.

Is it irony? Tonya Harding called 911 after getting into a tussle with a man she describes as her boyfriend. The boyfriend was charged with assult and pleaded not guilty in court on Monday. Harding was found with a small cut over her right eye and an abrasion on her left cheek. The boyfriend says that Harding threw him down and bit his finger when eh said that she had too much to drink. Initially, Harding had told authorities that she was attacked by two masked men who came to her home and assulted her. Of course, Harding is best known for helping to get Nancy Kerrigan clubbed with a baton in 1994, and was thus banned from ice skating. Harding is now a boxer.

Hey! How'd they get in twice? Warner Bros. has announced that they're planning on releasing the sequel to Batman Begins (the Christian Bale one) on June 20, 2008. There's a rumor out there that the actor who signed on to play Harvey Dent (Two-Face) in the sequel has signed on for two pictures, and that they may film 2 movies simultaneously (a la Matrix 2 & 3). The Joker is a confirmed villian for the next flick. Batman is about a superhero who spends his downtime brooding in a luxurious mansion, so he's a character we can all relate to.

That's going to have to do it for this NewsWire. Thanks for reading, and stay tuned to TDI throughout the week for more news, features, and other updates!

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