Live Earth Concert in Rio May Be Canceled
A concert in Rio de Janeiro for Live Earth, the series of celebrity-packed shows around the world on Saturday intended to raise awareness of climate change, may be canceled because of security concerns, Reuters reported. Brazilian authorities have obtained a court injunction suspending the concert, which Live Earth organizers expected to bring one million fans to Copacabana Beach to see Lenny Kravitz, Macy Gray, Jorge Ben Jor and Xuxa. The Rio de Janeiro state prosecutor’s office said yesterday that there were not enough police officers for the concert because all security efforts would be concentrated on preparations for the Pan-American Games, which begin on July 13. A spokesman for Live Earth in New York said the organization was working with the Rio authorities to arrange for the necessary security. Last month Istanbul was dropped from a list of nine concert sites because of a lack of interest and security concerns.
A Botswana Sleuth on the Screen
The best-selling “No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith, below right, about a folksy female sleuth in Botswana, is to be adapted by the Academy Award-winning director Anthony Minghella (“The English Patient”), The Associated Press reported. The American R&B singer Jill Scott, right, is to play the detective, whose professional philosophy is: “We help people with the problems in their lives. We are not here to solve crimes.” The film, which is being shot in Botswana with the backing of the government, was designed as a television movie, according to The Hollywood Reporter. ... Mr. Minghella, who directed a production of “Madama Butterfly” at the Metropolitan Opera last fall, is to direct and write the libretto for a work by the Argentinian composer Osvaldo Golijov at the Met, The Associated Press reported.
‘Hannah’ CD Beats Kelly
The newest “Hannah Montana” soundtrack beat Kelly Clarkson for the top spot on the Billboard chart this week. “Hannah Montana 2: Meet Miley Cyrus” (Disney) sold 326,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. This two-disc set is split between music from the popular television show and what is presented as the debut solo album by its 14-year-old star, Miley Cyrus, above, who on the show plays a girl with a secret alter ego as a pop singer. Ms. Clarkson’s “My December,” the subject of wide interest in the news media because of reports of a conflict between the singer and her record label, RCA, sold 291,000. Bon Jovi’s “Lost Highway” (Island Mercury Nashville), last week’s No. 1, fell two spots with 125,000 sales, and “Easy Tiger” (Lost Highway), the critically acclaimed new album by the alt-country singer Ryan Adams, opened at No. 7 with 61,000.
Strike Delays Art Trial
The trial in Rome of Marion True, the former curator of antiquities at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, and the antiquities dealer Robert Hecht took an early summer recess, after yesterday’s hearing was canceled because of a lawyers’ strike. “When I told my client about the strike, he was very surprised,” said Alessandro Vannucci, Mr. Hecht’s lawyer. “I don’t think these things happen in the United States.” The lawyers are striking to protest the Italian government’s changes to the legal system, which they fear could compromise their independence. The trial of Ms. True and Mr. Hecht, who both deny charges that they handled looted antiquities, is to resume in September. ELISABETTA POVOLEDO
A Home in Milan
For Toscanini Orchestra
The Arcimboldi Theater, in a suburb of Milan, will become the permanent home of the Symphonica Toscanini, the Italian news agency ANSA reported. The theater was built as a replacement during the restoration of La Scala Opera House, which was closed for renovations from 2001 to 2004, and the 200-piece orchestra, with mostly young performers, will play at least 20 dates there next year. Lorin Maazel, its music director for life, has pledged to dedicate himself to the orchestra once he retires from the New York Philharmonic after the 2008-9 season. ELISABETTA POVOLEDO
A ‘Vampire Hunter’ Fix
Book 15 of the best-selling “Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter” series of novels by Laurell K. Hamilton was released last month, but fans looking for their next feeding are in luck. “Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Guilty Pleasures, Vol. 1,” a collection of the comic book adaptation of the first book, will be published in hardcover today by Marvel, with a bonus: an original nine-page comic story written by Ms. Hamilton. Writing in the comic format made it “one of the fastest stories I’ve done,” she said in an interview. “It’s just dialogue.” Her next comic, “The First Death,” a two-part story on Anita’s early days that Ms. Hamilton wrote with her husband, Jonathon Green, comes out next week. GEORGE GENE GUSTINES
Gains for Cable News
All three major cable news networks posted prime-time ratings increases for the quarter that ended on Sunday, but CNN and MSNBC remained far behind the dominant network, Fox News, according to Nielsen Media Research. CNN had a 35 percent rise over its ratings from the same period last year among adults 25 to 54, the demographic most sought by advertisers, while MSNBC had 31 percent and Fox News 18 percent. Fueled by its most-watched program, “Countdown With Keith Olbermann,” MSNBC was up an even more pronounced 49 percent when the weekend was excluded from the data. Fox News — the fourth-ranked network in all basic cable, behind USA, TNT and TBS — had an average of 1.5 million viewers, more than CNN (756,000) and MSNBC (462,000) combined. Among Fox News’ total viewer audience, 340,000 were in the target demographic of adults 25-54, compared with 241,000 for CNN and 175,000 for MSNBC. Fox News has led the cable news ratings for 22 consecutive quarters. BENJAMIN TOFF
Footnotes
Luciano Pavarotti, below, who has pancreatic cancer, is working on a recording of sacred songs, The Associated Press reported. The recording of classical religious music should be finished by the end of August or September, and the recording should be available early next year, his London manager, Terri Robson, said. ... A Belgian couple will open a nonprofit museum in Beijing in November to showcase contemporary Chinese art, Bloomberg News reported. The collectors, Guy and Myriam Ullens, would not say how much they are investing, but they are selling 14 Turner watercolors at auction in London worth $20 million to $30 million to provide “financial flexibility” for the plan. The museum will be in a former military-electronics complex in Beijing’s trendy area known as Factory 798 or Dashanzi.
