ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT REPORTS FROM THE TIMES, NEWS SERVICES AND THE NATION’S PRESS.
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Carson Recuperating From Bypass: Johnny Carson, 73, has undergone successful quadruple heart-bypass surgery and doctors expect him to recover fully, a spokeswoman at Santa Monica’s Saint John’s Health Center said Wednesday. The surgery was performed last Friday to treat coronary artery disease. “The operation went very well and his heart is functioning normally,” the spokeswoman said, adding that the longtime “Tonight Show” host was expected to be released in a few days.
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No Happy Loser: In a Brazilian TV interview Tuesday, Fernanda Montenegro, a best actress nominee for Brazil’s “Central Station,” accused Hollywood of favoritism in awarding the Oscar to Gwyneth Paltrow and said Roberto Benigni’s “Life Is Beautiful” wasn’t worthy of its best foreign film victory. Montenegro, 69, described Paltrow as “this romantic figure, thin, pure, virginal,” calling her win “an investment.” As for “Life Is Beautiful,” Montenegro said: “It didn’t deserve to win. I think even Benigni recognized this. As a film it was weak. . . . I thought it was just him that won, not the film itself.”
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Dench Tickets Moving Fast: Spiked by Dame Judi Dench’s supporting actress Oscar win for “Shakespeare in Love,” advance ticket sales to see the British star on Broadway in David Hare’s “Amy’s View,” opening April 15, have zoomed past $4 million--out-grossing Nicole Kidman’s appearance in Hare’s now-closed “The Blue Room,” this season’s previous box-office record-holder. “Before the Oscars we were doing about $70,000 a day in ticket sales, but we are now doing $100,000,” said an “Amy’s View” spokesman. “I’ve never seen ticket sales quite like this.”
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Missing at the Oscars: When the best original song Oscar went to “When You Believe” from DreamWorks’ “The Prince of Egypt,” why wasn’t composer Stephen Schwartz there to accept? In the weeks leading up to the Oscars, Schwartz had been involved in a controversy with fellow Grammy Award-winning composer Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, who had complained that Schwartz’s refusal to co-sign an application made Edmonds ineligible for the Oscar. The flap led to an uncomfortable situation in which Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey performed the song at the Oscars knowing that Edmonds--who wrote some additional material for an alternate pop version of the song--wouldn’t be able to go onstage if it won. Schwartz’s office said he had another commitment Sunday night in New Haven, Conn. Edmonds, meanwhile, released a post-awards statement saying “the situation speaks for itself.”
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Pop Chart: TLC’s “Fanmail” continues to pile up. The hip-hop trio’s album is the nation’s No. 1 album for the fourth consecutive week after logging sales of 193,000 last week, according to SoundScan. Detroit rapper Eminem’s “Slim Shady” sold 173,000 copies, edging teen pop singer Britney Spears by about 5,000 for No. 2.
QUICK TAKES
Five-time Oscar winner “Saving Private Ryan” will be released on video (for rental only) on May 25, through DreamWorks Home Entertainment. . . . Ray Heacox has been named president and general manager of KNBC-TV, replacing Carole Black, who is now heading cable’s Lifetime Television. Heacox, who takes the post immediately, was most recently executive vice president of sales for the NBC Stations group. . . . John Kobylt and Ken Chiampou, who left their six-year afternoon-drive show on KFI-AM (640) last Friday, signed contracts Tuesday night to begin their 5 to 9 a.m. morning-drive show on KABC-AM (790) on July 1. KABC also said that Marc “Mr. KABC” Germain, who had been hosting the morning show, will soon return to his 9-10 p.m. Monday-Friday show, with Joe Crummey to be the interim replacement.
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