Reuters - World premieres by directors Sofia Coppola and Darren Aronofsky as well as the hotly anticipated adaptation of cult novel "Barney's Version" will be among the highlights of this year's Venice film festival.
AP - Chris Nolan's "Inception" has been the No. 1 film every day since it opened earlier this month. Yet it could face a formidable challenge from the debuting comedy "Dinner for Schmucks" for the top spot at this weekend's box office.
Reuters - "American Idol" judge Ellen DeGeneres unexpectedly quit the top-rated television singing show on Thursday after just a year in the job, saying it was not the right fit for her.
Reuters - India's Reliance ADA Group is in talks with Universal Studios to build a $1.5 billion, 400 acre theme park and resort in India, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday citing a person familiar with the matter.
AP - A federal bankruptcy court on Thursday approved the $26 million sale of Ohio-based newspaper chain Brown Publishing Co. to a group of company insiders led by current President and Chief Executive Roy Brown.
Reuters - A day after he logged a fifth week atop the U.S. pop album chart, rapper Eminem on Thursday claimed the lead on the Hot 100 singles chart for a second week.
Playbill - On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, the 1965 musical with a reincarnation plot and a handful of beloved Alan Jay Lerner-Burton Lane songs, gets a second life July 29-Aug. 1 in Poughkeepsie, NY.
AP - Zac Efron and the rest of the crew behind "Charlie St. Cloud" want their movie to be weepy, soulful, inspirational, cathartic, ethereal, life-affirming and who knows what else on the New Age emotional barometer.
AFP - Actress Mia Farrow and models' agent Carole White will testify next month about a "blood diamond" Naomi Campbell is said to have been given by Liberia's Charles Taylor, court papers showed Thursday.
AP - Sofia Coppola's comic drama "Somewhere," and Darren Aronofsky's "Black Swan" will make their world premieres at the Venice Film Festival, among 22 titles that organizers announced Thursday will vie for the prestigious Golden Lion.
