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After days of anticipation, the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, has gone into labour and been admitted to a private maternity wing at St. Mary?s hospital, royal officials have confirmed.
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SAN DIEGO (AP) ? Moviegoers were ready for a fright this weekend, sending "The Conjuring" into first place at the box office, while "R.I.P.D." became the summer's latest big-budget action film to bite the dust.
"The Conjuring," a haunted-house thriller from Warner Bros., debuted with $41.5 million in North American ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday. Starring Vera Farmiga, Lili Taylor, Patrick Wilson and Ron Livingston, "The Conjuring" unseated two-week box-office champ "Despicable Me 2," which dropped to second place with $25 million.
"The Conjuring" was among four new releases tempting moviegoers this weekend. The newest animated offering, Fox's "Turbo," opened with $21.5 million, good for third place. Fox's head of domestic distribution, Chris Aronson, characterized the opening as "a very promising start," noting that the film won't open in Europe until the fall.
But Universal's big-budget crime caper "R.I.P.D." opened with a disappointing $12.76 million. The film reportedly cost more than $130 million to make, compared to only about $19.5 million for "The Conjuring."
Starring Jeff Bridges and Ryan Reynolds, "R.I.P.D" joins the year's other mega-budget summer flops, including "Pacific Rim," ''White House Down," ''After Earth" and "The Lone Ranger."
Overall box office totals are up, though, said Paul Dergarabedian of box-office tracker Hollywood.com.
"Despite the fact there have been some high-profile, high-budget flops, the summer to date is up 12 percent from last year," he said. "For mid-July, to have a modestly budgeted horror film top the weekend tells you how important it is for audiences to have options."
The Adam Sandler-produced Sony comedy "Grown Ups 2," starring Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade and Salma Hayek, held onto fourth place in its second week of release, earning $20 million.
Summit Entertainment's "Red 2," which stars Bruce Willis and Helen Mirren as retired CIA operatives, debuted in fifth with $18.5 million.
"The Conjuring" was originally set for release in the winter, but audience tests proved so positive that the studio moved the film to the heat of summer movie season.
"It was really a bold choice, no question about it," said Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros. executive vice president of theatrical distribution. "With three other movies against us this week with high price tags and high expectations associated with them, this result is even more impressive."
Still, there was no chance for this weekend's movies to match box-office totals for the same weekend last summer, when "The Dark Knight Rises" opened with $161 million domestically.
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Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released on Monday.
1. "The Conjuring," $41.5 million.
2. "Despicable Me 2," $25 million ($35.4 million international).
3. "Turbo," $21.5 million ($22.6 million international).
4. "Grown Ups 2," $20 million.
5. "Red 2," $18.5 million ($7.6 million international).
6. "Pacific Rim," $15.95 million ($34.8 million international).
7. "R.I.P.D.," $12.76 million ($6.8 million).
8. "The Heat," $9.3 million.
9. "World War Z," $5.2 million ($12 million international).
10. "Monsters University," $5 million ($20.7 million international).
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Estimated weekend ticket sales at international theaters (excluding the U.S. and Canada) for films distributed overseas by Hollywood studios, according to Rentrak:
1. "Despicable Me 2," $35.4 million.
2. "Pacific Rim," $34.8 million.
3. "Turbo," $22.6 million.
4. "Monsters University," $20.7 million.
5. "The Lone Ranger," $12.3 million.
6. "World War Z," $12 million.
7. "After Earth," $8.3 million.
8. "Now You See Me," $7.9 million.
9. "Red 2," $7.6 million.
10. "R.I.P.D.," $6.8 million.
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Universal and Focus are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of Comcast Corp.; Sony, Columbia, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; Paramount is owned by Viacom Inc.; Disney, Pixar and Marvel are owned by The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is owned by Filmyard Holdings LLC; 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight are owned by News Corp.; Warner Bros. and New Line are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a group of former creditors including Highland Capital, Anchorage Advisors and Carl Icahn; Lionsgate is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; IFC is owned by AMC Networks Inc.; Rogue is owned by Relativity Media LLC.
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Follow AP Entertainment Writer Sandy Cohen at www.twitter.com/APSandy .
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/conjuring-scares-41-5m-top-box-office-164007427.html
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Kerry Washington's wedding was ''simple and sweet''.
The 'Scandal' actress recently tied the knot with NFL star Nnamdi Asomugha, 32, in a secret ceremony in Idaho and one of the wedding guests has revealed some details about the big day.
The insider told People: ''Everything was held at one of Kerry's friend's houses. They flew a few people out on this little private plane. The house was beautiful.
''It was small, just family and close friends. They said their own vows, people stayed at the house. It was really simple and sweet.
''The dress was plain white, slim-fitting, like it could have been off a rack. It was really regular.''
Kerry, 36, recently opened up about her desire to live a normal life and revealed she was always reluctant to be an actress because she didn't want to be famous.
She said: ''I'm the daughter of a professor, so ... well, I think acting's not a real job. I come from this sort of academic, working middle-class family where you make something respectable of your life ... I always loved acting, but I think for a long time, in my brain, the desire to be an actor was equivalent to the desire to be famous. I did not want to be famous. I did not want to be that girl. I thought that if you wanted to be an actress, you had to want to be on the front cover of magazines, otherwise you shouldn't do it.
''I'm lucky I come from a really grounded family and I have the three best friends from high school who have made it their job to remain unimpressed by everything I do. If I started being super-diva Kerry, they would be like, 'What is that?' ''
Source: http://www.exposay.com/v/74167/kerry-washingtons-simple-sweet-wedding
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DAVIE, Fla. (AP) ? Miami Dolphins top draft pick Dion Jordan is sitting out the start of training camp because his surgically repaired right shoulder has not fully healed, and he has been placed on the non-football injury list.
The defensive end and linebacker from Oregon wore uniform No. 95 Sunday but watched the first practice from the sideline. He and coach Joe Philbin declined to say how long Jordan is likely to be sidelined.
"It's really frustrating to not be out there," Jordan said, "but I understand my health is the main concern."
Jordan can join the active roster at any time before the regular season. If he isn't activated by then, he must remain out for the first six weeks of the season.
The third overall pick in the draft, Jordan signed a $20.6 million, four-year contract Saturday that included a $13.3 million signing bonus. He said he was told in the past couple of days that he would be placed on the NFI list.
"Coach and the people in the training room decided it was best for me," he said. "I want to be able to have a good career, a long career. I'm going to do what I have to do right now to make sure that's possible."
Jordan, who totaled 14? career sacks at Oregon, missed playing time last season because of his ailing shoulder and underwent surgery in February. He has been in South Florida for the past two months working out with teammates, but he sat out all of the Dolphins' offseason OTA practices.
Miami's first training camp workout drew a standing-room-only crowd of 2,700. Fan expectations are high after four consecutive losing seasons and a flurry of offseason moves.
"It's a good group," second-year coach Philbin said. "There are some good pieces to work with."
The Dolphins started camp earlier than most teams because they play a fifth exhibition game against Dallas in the Hall of Fame Game on Aug. 4. The regular season begins in seven weeks on Sept. 8 at Cleveland.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/top-dolphins-pick-jordan-misses-1st-practice-160421067.html
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DETROIT (Reuters) - Less than 24 hours after Detroit filed the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history, the two men behind the historic action - Michigan Governor Rick Snyder and Detroit Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr - defended the move in an interview with Reuters.
While insisting the state had no plans to bail out the city, the Republican governor pledged that Lansing would become a "partner" with Detroit on specific projects such as public safety and parks.
Orr, meanwhile, said suburbanites were already rallying around the city, even as he conceded that municipal unions may never fully support the initiative.
Reuters: What impact will Detroit's filing have on the borrowing ability and interest rates for the state and other Michigan municipalities?
Snyder: Detroit is a unique situation ... $18 billion in liabilities. The system is set up where each jurisdiction should be borrowing on its own capacity. And so, as a practical matter, it should not impact on the surrounding municipalities.
Reuters: Now that Detroit has filed, have you changed your mind about what role the state needs to play in the process? Do you have support from Republicans?
Snyder: If you're asking, are we going to bail out the city of Detroit, the answer is no. Neither the federal government nor the state of Michigan should bail it out. There are $18 billion in liabilities. To simply put more money into a situation - where? Towards $18 billion? It's not going to work.
The real thing that we can do - and we are doing very actively, and I think is critically important - is we're being a strong partner in particular projects that improve the life and the quality of services to the citizens of Detroit. We're doing blight removal, we're doing things in public safety, we're doing things in parks, we're doing things with education. The list goes on in terms of things we're partnering with the city on.
Reuters: How do you get suburbanites, especially white suburbanites, to buy into the city's plight and to consider pitching in and being part of its recovery?
Orr: I don't know if it's a white or black issue. I've actually heard a lot of support for Detroit, irrespective of someone's hue or color. Frankly, the suburban community, many of whom are customers for the (city's) water department, have already been supporting the city. I think everyone throughout the state wants to see this city thrive. This is a very storied and historic city in America. I think people of good faith have already bought in. They just want the problem resolved.
Reuters: How do you keep thousands of Detroit retirees on your side if you kill or drastically cut their pensions?
Orr: I don't know if we're going to kill their pensions. The issue we're talking about is the unfunded aspect, the unfunded pension actuarial liability. In other words, how much money is missing from the pension fund to meet their anticipated obligations in the coming years? It's going to be very difficult for some of them to recognize this has to be done. But we don't have a choice. We have about $12 billion in unsecured debt, and $9 billion of it has to do with healthcare and pension liabilities. We've got to get at that in some fashion or another.
Reuters: When General Motors and Chrysler went through bankruptcy in 2009, one of the keys was getting the union buy-in. Why does it seem so different with Detroit's bankruptcy? Why does it seem like the unions are so hostile? And what can you do to get them to work with the city on this process?
Orr: First of all, there are different (bankruptcy) chapters. ... You have different issues. They're not exactly parallel. But to get to the gist of your question, how do you get the union ? I'm not sure we're going to get them completely bought in. But we have to get them partly to the point of recognizing there's no other way. We can't pay benefits with money that's not there. It can't be done.
Snyder: I think everyone is tired of watching Detroit go downhill, of having this continuation of saying things are only getting worse. Without this action taking place, Detroit was going to continue to decline every single day. And getting the stability and getting the growth makes a tremendous difference.
(Reporting by Paul Lienert; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/governor-emergency-manager-defend-detroit-bankruptcy-001550392.html
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