'GREEK WEDDING' STILL GOLD.Byline: Greg Hernandez Staff Writer ``My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' led sales at most major retailers this week - its home-video debut week - selling an estimated 2.5 million copies on its first day alone, thanks largely to an unusually heavy number of presale orders Presale order An order to purchase part of a new municipal bond issue that is accepted by an underwriting syndicate before an official public offering. presale order , according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. industry sources. Meanwhile, the romantic comedy is still displaying box office steam by remaining in the top 20 after edging past its 300th day in theaters. Such dual theatrical and video success is unprecedented because films have usually long disappeared from theaters by the time they are released on home video, experts said Friday. ``Everything about this movie is unprecedented so what is happening now is no exception,'' said Brandon Gray, editor of Box Office Mojo Box Office Mojo is a website that tracks box office revenue in a systematic way. Brandon Gray started the site in August 1998 and claims to now receive over one million monthly visitors. .com. ``It's the movie that will not die.'' No film since ``Titanic'' has had the same kind of staying power. As of Thursday, ``Greek'' had earned $240.2 million at the box office and remained firmly entrenched en·trench also in·trench v. en·trenched, en·trench·ing, en·trench·es v.tr. 1. To provide with a trench, especially for the purpose of fortifying or defending. 2. among the top 20 earners. Its longevity has not only surprised the industry but also executives at Gold Circle Films who produced the independent romantic comedy with a budget of just $5 million. ``It's all rather mind-boggling but also completely delightful,'' said Paul Brooks, president of Gold Circle Films. ``I don't want to sound presumptuous pre·sump·tu·ous adj. Going beyond what is right or proper; excessively forward. [Middle English, from Old French presumptueux, from Late Latin praes but hopefully it's a virtual circle whereby some people who see the movie in the theater will then feel compelled to buy the DVD DVD: see digital versatile disc. DVD in full digital video disc or digital versatile disc Type of optical disc. The DVD represents the second generation of compact-disc (CD) technology. . ``Conversely con·verse 1 intr.v. con·versed, con·vers·ing, con·vers·es 1. To engage in a spoken exchange of thoughts, ideas, or feelings; talk. See Synonyms at speak. 2. , with all the marketing and advertising now ongoing for the video and DVD release, it's also pulling people back into the theaters. Regardless, we're obviously thrilled.'' Adding further good fortune to the movie was the Academy Award nomination earned Tuesday for Best Original Screenplay by Nia Vardalos Nia Vardalos (born September 24 1962) is a Golden Globe-nominated Canadian-American actress, Academy Award-nominated screenwriter and producer. Biography Personal life Vardalos, who is of Greek descent, was born Antonia Eugenia Vardalos who is also the film's star. The film about a Greek-American woman (Vardalos) who falls in love with a WASP wasp, name applied to many winged insects of the order Hymenoptera, which also includes ants and bees. Most wasps are carnivorous, feeding on insects, grubs, or spiders. They have biting mouthparts, and the females have stings with which they paralyze their prey. high school teacher (John Corbett) and struggles to get her eccentric family to accept him bowed in theaters back in April 2002 and became a word-of-mouth box office sensation. The records it has set include being the highest-grossing independent movie of all time and the biggest-grossing romantic comedy ever released. Gray predicts that as the film is in the 44th weekend of its theatrical run, it has a strong chance of remaining in the top 20 even though it will only be in 533 theaters nationwide, 438 fewer than last weekend. ``The reason why it will lose business is because it lost theaters but obviously there is still a demand since it made $1 million just last weekend,'' he said. The DVD version of the movie was easily the top-selling movie title this week for such major online retailers as WalMart.com, Amazon.com, Target.com, Barnes & Noble.com and Tower Records.com. It is also a hot rental title, said Blake Lugash, spokesman for Blockbuster Inc., the nation's largest video-store chain. ``We have brought in enough copies to meet demand because a lot of customers are asking for it,'' Lugash said. ``It's certainly going to be one of our top rentals.'' The home-video release precedes the Feb. 24 debut of the new CBS (Cell Broadcast Service) See cell broadcast. comedy ``My Big Fat Greek Life'' that stars Vardalos and most of the movie's original cast. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) no caption (``My Big Fat Greek Wedding'') |
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