DISNEY'S PIGGYBACK RIDE ON `BABE'.After garnering a Best Picture nomination, it seemed only natural that anyone and everyone would try to cash in on the success of ``Babe,'' the sweet story of a pig who dreams of being a champion sheepdog sheepdog: see working dog. sheepdog In general, any dog breed developed to herd sheep; specifically, the border collie. Most sheepdog breeds stand about 2 ft (60 cm) and weigh over 50 lbs (23 kg). . But Disney? Believe it. The entertainment giant wasn't about to let ``Babe,'' released on video by MCA/Universal last week, hog the sales shelves and has launched a new promotion of its own talking-pig video movie, ``Gordy,'' in order to siphon off Verb 1. siphon off - convey, draw off, or empty by or as if by a siphon siphon, syphon draw, take out - take liquid out of a container or well; "She drew water from the barrel" some of the attention. But one can't blame Disney's reasoning. Industry sources expect ``Babe'' to sell at least 10 million units and as many as 13 million, which would move it ahead of MCA's second-best-selling video of all time, ``E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,'' and into the top 10 list. ``Gordy'' sold 1 million units in the first couple of weeks after its video release in November and has sold another 1 million units since. ``Gordy,'' in case you missed it, was released theatrically by Miramax (a Disney company) three months before ``Babe'' last year, and bombed, grossing less than $4 million at the box office. Meanwhile, ``Babe'' has checked in with $62 million so far. The piggyback piggyback 1. A broker trading in his or her personal account after trading in the same security for a customer. The broker may believe the customer has access to privileged information that will cause the transaction to be profitable. 2. ride actually began a few month back when Disney capitalized on the popularity of the initial release of ``Babe'' by redesigning the artwork for the video to resemble the prized porker porker the class of pig judged to be most suitable for conversion to pork. The target age and weight vary too much between localities to make a general statement worthwhile. and adding ``Disney Presents'' to the videocassette A removable magnetic tape module for storing video data. The cassette contains supply and takeup reel (hubs) in the same housing. See VCR. cover of the movie. While some industry observers call Disney's coattails coat·tail n. 1. The loose back part of a coat that hangs below the waist. 2. coattails The skirts of a formal or dress coat. Idiom: on the coattails of 1. marketing clever and opportunistic, Disney has taken umbrage in the past with independent video distributors that have packaged old or original programs to look like Disney titles, going to the point of suing Goodtimes Home Video in 1992 for the supplier's misleading marketing of Goodtimes' ``Beauty and the Beast'' title. That title not only used the same name but also used artwork that more closely resembled Disney's ``Beauty and the Beast'' than the actual content of the Goodtimes video. Although Disney spokeswoman Tania
SOURCE: - Hollywood Reporter LETTERS TO L.A. LIFE Lord Zedd supports the arts Phil Rosenthal This article is about the columnist. For the television producer, see Philip Rosenthal Phil Rosenthal (born 1963) has been media columnist for the Chicago Tribune since the spring of 2005. has definitely gotten back into my and I'm sure my fellow artists' good graces with his (March 19) column. Thank you for a socko sock·o adj. Slang Impressive and effective; excellent. [From sock2.] , boffo bof·fo Slang adj. Extremely successful; great. n. pl. bof·fos See boff1. [Alteration of boff1.] Adj. 1. , ``Morphin''-nomenal piece regarding sustaining the arts. Say, let's go Let's Go may refer to: Television
- Robert Axelrod a k a the voice of Lord Zedd, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Mighty Morphin Power Rangers ("MMPR") is an American live-action television series, created for the American market, based on the sixteenth installment of the Japanese Super Sentai franchise, Kyōryū Sentai Zyuranger. Sherman Oaks Let nature take charge in choosing baby's sex Regarding the (March 17) cover story, ``Want to pick your baby's sex?'' I must say that picking your child's gender is wrong. The article tells of one family whose family tree was made up of almost all females. The parents decided to undergo a medical procedure that would promote the odds of their having a boy. Teri Lundin, the mother of three girls, states that she was not really comfortable with the whole thing, but she did it for her husband. The Lundins were successful on their first try. They had a boy. People should not be able to pick their child's sex. It should be completely natural. Our technology will expand and in 30, 40 years we will probably be able to choose everything about our babies from their sex to their hair color. People will become artificial. The whole process is wrong. If more people want one gender over the other, the world will be overpopulated o·ver·pop·u·late v. o·ver·pop·u·lat·ed, o·ver·pop·u·lat·ing, o·ver·pop·u·lates v.tr. To fill (an area, for example) with excessive population to the detriment of the inhabitants, resources, or environment. with that sex. Life is a delicate balance. We should respect that and not upset it. - Elana Fishman La Canada The blue language of `Primary Colors' Behind the closed doors of a presidential campaign, do the movers and shakers of election politics really spend their time murdering our mother tongue and exercising their very limited vocabularies of foul expletives? After reading and hearing all the glowing reviews and comments on the book, ``Primary Colors'' I could hardly wait to feast my eyes on it. But now that I have read it, I can appreciate the author's desire to remain anonymous. If I had written a manuscript simulating authenticity about would-be presidents and loaded with gutter talk for dialogue, I would certainly not wish my name associated with it. In one short chapter, the ``f'' word was repeated 55 times. I counted them. In the same chapter there were more than 30 other expressions that are usually confined to hard-core pornography, and these numbers do not include the more commonly used swear words like ``dammit'' and ``hell.'' The chit-chat in the book abounded with words like ``gotta,'' ``gonna,'' ``shoulda,'' ``lemme The Lemme is a 35 km torrent, a right tributary of the Orba, which flows through the Province of Alessandria in northern Italy. Its source is near Monte Calvo; from there it passes through the communes of Fraconalto, Voltaggio, Carrosio, Gavi, San Cristoforo, Francavilla ,'' ``outta,'' etc. The author has practically rewritten our spelling books. If ``Primary Colors'' truly delineates the way our politicians think and converse, and the highest officials in our land surround themselves with these people, our country's education system is in a sorry state. It makes me doubt the wisdom of making our students suffer through lessons in nouns and conjugating verbs. ``Primary Colors'' hints obliquely at being a factual representation of the lives of candidates. If it is, heaven help us. - Georgia Malone Westlake Village CAPTION(S): 2 Photos Photo: (1) Kristy Young and James Cromwell talked to the animals this year in ``Gordy'' and ``Babe,'' respectively. |
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