HOLLYWOOD - It looks like the entertainment world is starting to rebound from last Tuesday's terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.The 53rd annual Primetime Emmy Awards have been rescheduled for Oct. 7, three weeks later than the original date of Sept. 16. Ellen DeGeneres will still host the television awards ceremony at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
Perhaps in need of an escape, moviegoers headed to theaters this weekend.
While business on Friday was slow because of memorials and candlelight vigils, Paramount's baseball drama Hardball starring Keanu Reeves grossed $10.1 million for the three days starting on Friday. Ticket sales in New York alone were particularly strong.
"I looked at Hardball on Friday night and the screen average in L.A. was $2,000 and the number two market was New York at $1,800 (per theater for Friday). And usually that's the normal pattern," Warner Bros. distribution president Dan Fellman told Martin Grove.
Ticket sales by key films were approximately $61.2 million, up about 29 percent from the comparable weekend last year's total of $47.4 million.
These actions signify much more than the fact that Americans are ready to be entertained again. Hollywood--and the nation--seem to be ready to begin the healing process and do what it takes to return to a "normal" life.
Television networks are leading the way.
Back to Normal. Sort of.
Rosemary Keenan, a spokeswoman for The Late Show with David Letterman told The Associated Press that taping would resume Monday at the Ed Sullivan Theater in midtown Manhattan. The show, along with other late-night entertainment shows, stopped taping after the attacks on Sept. 11.
"Both the mayor and the president have asked America to get back to business," Keenan said. "Therefore, we will be back on the air Monday night."
CBS' Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn will also resume taping on Monday in Los Angeles. The show, however, will not include Kilborn's comic monologue and is eliminating its satirical news segment.
Conan O'Brien's Late Night and Jay Leno's Tonight Show will begin taping Tuesday.
Broadway producers, meanwhile, have said that all 23 shows did, in fact, go on Sunday night after a moment of silence.
Lending a Hand
Plans are also underway for networks to help in relief efforts.
After airing non-stop commercial-free news coverage in the days following Tuesday's attacks, major networks are talking about the possibility of airing an industry-wide telethon Friday to raise money for relief and recovery from the terrorist attacks. According to AP, the show would last two or three hours and would be broadcast on as many cable networks as possible.
George Clooney and Jim Carrey have reportedly agreed to participate; other performers have not been confirmed, but organizers don't believe it will be difficult to get cooperation.