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Patrick Stewart, who has played Starship Enterprise Captain Jean-Luc Picard for almost 16 years now, said the events of Star Trek: Nemesis are appropriate closure for The Next Generation crew, Reuters reports. Stewart was in London for the European premiere of the film, the 10th installment in the Star Trek movie franchise. “I’m sure this is our final curtain,” Stewart said. “All of us are sensitive about not wanting to outstay our welcome.” The British actor added that there is no reason for the franchise should not go on indefinitely, but noted, “certain of us will fade out and move on.” Although Nemesis opened to disappointing box office figures in the United States, the 10 movies have grossed more than $1 billion at the box office.
Celebs
Elizabeth Hurley turned down the yearly payments of $159,900 her former beau, millionaire film producer Steve Bing, offered to shell out for their baby boy until he reached 18, Reuters reports. Hurley responded in a statement, “The money is not wanted or welcomed. Damian and I are managing very well by ourselves.” After learning of Hurley‘s response, a spokeswoman for Bing said, “Stephen will make the payments into a trust for his son if Miss Hurley refuses to take them.”
Bette Davis‘ Best Actress Oscar for the 1935 film Dangerous sold at an auction by Sotheby’s in New York last weekend for $207,500, The Associated Press reports. The statuette was among the memorabilia sold by the Planet Hollywood restaurant chain, which has emerged from bankruptcy protection. The company will use the $1.2 million the auction generated to pay off a lender.
Rap entrepreneur Sean “P.Diddy” Combs will open boutiques for his Sean John label in malls nationwide with a flagship store in Manhattan, the New York Post reports. The line has been in hot demand since it was launched in 2000 in Bloomingdale’s department stores. Combs has been nominated for the Council of Fashion Designers of America awards for the past three years.
Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon and Danny Mozes, her boyfriend of 15 years, welcomed their second child Monday in New York, People.com reports. The boy, Charles Ezekiel Mozes, weighed 7 lbs. 10 oz. A spokesperson for HBO said everyone is doing fine, including Nixon, who is currently on hiatus from the show.
Movies
Sopranos star James Gandolfini is in negotiations to star opposite Ben Affleck in Surviving Christmas for DreamWorks. According to Variety, the film follows a wealthy young man (Affleck) who, stricken with a variety of neuroses that prevent him from having a normal family life, hires a family with which to share the holidays. Gandolfini is set to play the family patriarch.
The 1984 “mockumentary” This Is Spinal Tap is one of 25 films that will be preserved this year by the National Film Registry, the AP reports. Others films on the list include the children’s classic The Black Stallion, the surf classic The Endless Summer and the sci-fi groundbreaker Alien. The registry now contains 350 films, which are recognized for their importance in American film and cultural history. Making the list ensures that the films will be preserved for all time either through the library’s preservation program or through collaborations with other archives, motion picture studios and independent filmmakers.
Warner Bros. Pictures will start production on its first Chinese-language film, Turn Right, Turn Left, on Dec. 26 in Taiwan and then continue in Hong Kong and mainland China, Variety reports. The film is based on the best-selling illustrated love story of the same name by author/artist Jimmy Liao. Warner Bros. will distribute the picture, which stars Takeshi Kaneshiro, worldwide.
Tube
Liza Minnelli and her husband David Gest are going ahead with a $10 million lawsuit against cable music channel VH1 over the cancellation of their planned reality series, Liza & David, Reuters reports. The suit, which also names Viacom and its unit MTV Networks, alleges that VH1 breached their contract to do the show and that an anonymous Viacom employee defamed Gest in an interview. In October, the network said in a statement it was canceling the show because “we were not given the cooperation and access that we were promised.”
