NEWS
courtesy of
Hollywood Reporter

Betty White to host 'SNL' in May
"Golden Girls" actress Betty White will host NBC's "Saturday Night Live" for the first time in her seven-decade career during May sweeps.

Starz extends licensing deal through 2015
Starz is extending its licensing agreement with Walt Disney Studios through 2015, giving the network access to titles from Marvel, Touchstone, Disney-Pixar and other divisions of the company.

Showtime lines up new feature film supplier
Showtime has lined up another feature film supplier.

Conan O'Brien to go on tour
Former "Tonight Show" host Conan O'Brien announced today that he will headline a 2-month, 30-city tour kicking off April 12.

Several pilots expand casts
"Monk" alumna Traylor Howard has been cast as the female lead opposite Dana Gould on Gould's comedy pilot at ABC, "How I Met Your Mother's" Lyndsy Fonseca will co-star opposite Maggie Q in the CW's "Nikita," and Will Sasso and Stephanie Lemelin have joined CBS' comedy pilot "Shit My Dad Says."

Elisha Cuthbert joins 'Happy Endings'
"24" alumna Elisha Cuthbert has been tapped as the female lead in ABC's comedy pilot "Happy Endings."

CW eyeing two competition reality series
The CW continues to bulk up its reality slate, developing two more competition series using popular unscripted subject matter.

Jason Segel, Ed Helms going 'Home'
EXCLUSIVE: Jason Segel and Ed Helms are starring in "Jeff Who Lives at Home," a stoner comedy from Mark and Jay Duplass.

ABC orders Mark Burnett game show pilot
EXCLUSIVE: Mark Burnett is back in the game show business. ABC has ordered a pilot from the prolific producer for "Trust Me, I'm a Game Show Host."

D-cinema group secures $660 million
Digital Cinema Implementation Partners said Wednesday that its $660 million loan syndication had closed. Led by JPMorgan Chase, the funding will be used to finance the rollout of d-cinema systems for 14,000 movie screens operated by the nation's three largest theater circuits: Regal, AMC and Cinemark.

Warner Bros. to make Da Vinci action pic
Warner Bros. is turning Leonardo into an action-adventure hero. No, not DiCaprio, but Da Vinci.

Iger keeping options open for ABC
At Disney’s annual shareholder meeting Wednesday, CEO Bob Iger faced off with disappointed “cast members” over health benefits, didn’t dismiss the idea of selling ABC, announced a new ride and rebuked one of the company’s classic animated films.

Bill Gates falls on world's-richest list
Bill Gates is no longer the richest person in the world. The Microsoft exec has dropped to No. 2 on Forbes magazine's annual list of the world’s billionaires.

Panasonic sells world's first 3D TV system
The 3D TV race among consumer electronics manufacturers found an apparent winner as Panasonic Corp. said Wednesday it sold the world's first 3D home entertainment system at a Best Buy in Manhattan.

Steve Martin eyeing 'Big Year' role
EXCLUSIVE: Steve Martin is in negotiations to go bird-watching in "The Big Year" alongside Jack Black and Owen Wilson.

'2012' debuts atop three video charts
The end-of-the-world drama "2012" debuted at the top of all three home video charts the week ending March 7, the first release in nearly a month with a boxoffice pedigree of more than $100 million.

Bravo greenlights four new shows
Bravo gave a series greenlight to four new shows Wednesday, including a Beverly Hills edition of its "Real Housewives" franchise.

Fox bumps Oliver Stone film
Fox is bumping Oliver Stone's Wall Street sequel to the fall.

MPAA: Domestic boxoffice up 10% in '09
Movies released in 3D accounted for 11% of domestic boxoffice in 2009, up from just 2% in 2008.<br />

Tribeca reveals 2010 lineup
"Shrek Forever After," Eliot Spitzer doc and "Virtual" program are all part of the Tribeca Film Festival's 2010 lineup.

Liberty CEO considers plans for Overture
Movies are "a hard business," and Liberty Media continues to explore options for its Overture Films unit, Liberty president and CEO Greg Maffei said Wednesday.

Corey Haim dies at 38
Corey Haim, a 1980s teen heartthrob for his roles in "Lucas" and "The Lost Boys" whose career was blighted by drug abuse, has died. He was 38.

Deluxe to roll out 3D Blu-ray prod'n services
Following the recent string of 3D Blu-ray Disc player and 3D TV launches, Deluxe Digital Studios is rolling out 3D Blu-ray production services next month, with capacity ramping up to finish four movies a month by the fourth quarter.

Nickelodeon picks up two comedy pilots
Nickelodeon has picked up two comedy pilots: the single-camera "Supah Ninja" and multicamera "Everyday Kid."

Charlie Sheen returning to work Tuesday
Charlie Sheen is expected to return to work on CBS' "Two and a Half Men" on Tuesday, according to his publicist.

Judy Greer joins Fox's 'Tax Man'
Judy Greer has been tapped to star opposite David Krumholtz in Fox's comedy pilot "Tax Man," Jerry O'Connell is set to star opposite Jim Belushi in the CBS pilot "Defenders," and Jason Biggs will lead the cast of CBS' comedy pilot "True Love," with Dan Fogler co-starring.

Deadline set for Miramax bids
One day after March 19 was set as the deadline for binding offers for MGM, the same date has emerged as a deadline in the latest round of bidding for Miramax. Disney hopes to select a winning bidder from offers received by that date and close on a sale of the one-time indie highflyer within 30 days of the deadline.

Keri Russell eyeing 'Wilde Kingdom'
Keri Russell is mulling a return to television. The "Felicity" star is in negotiations to star opposite Will Arnett in Fox's comedy "Wilde Kingdom."

Walter Salles to direct 'Our Wild Life'
Walter Salles is in negotiations to direct "Our Wild Life," an animal drama from New Line being produced by Mandalay Pictures' Peter Guber and Cathy Schulman.

Cable, satellite firms unite for retrans fight
Companies that deliver TV to subscribers are hoping that government intervention will help keep carriage fees low.

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