“Marvel’s The Avengers” has reached another milestone. Last Sunday, the superhero ensemble flick hit the $1 billion mark worldwide. It did so in only 19 days, according to Box Office Mojo. Meanwhile, “The Avengers” clobbered the competition in the domestic box office over the weekend, by holding onto the number one spot with a haul of $103 million.

Far behind in second place, “Dark Shadows” with a debut of $29.6 million. This is a  take-off on the Gothic TV soap opera, “Dark Shadows,” but despite having Tim Burton as the director and Johnny Depp as its star, the film stumbled. The word is this horror comedy has some funny moments yet fails  because of a disjointed script.

Meanwhile,  the romantic comedy, “Think Like a Man,” is continuing to pack them in at theaters. The movie earned $5.8 million, good enough for third. In a month, “Think Like a Man” has collected $81.4 million. “The  Hunger Games” took fourth with $4.5 million, and rounding out the top five in the weekend box office derby, “The Lucky One” with $4.1 million.

Photo: Terje "Terry" Canavarro/Freelance Photog -- Crowds greeted President Obama as he arrived by motorcade in Studio City for a star-studded fundraiser at actor George Clooney's house May 10, 2012

President Barack Obama boarded Air Force One at LAX  this morning, headed for Reno, Nevada. Obama’s visit to the Southland was brief, but lucrative. Last night, the president was the main attraction at a posh dinner party at the Studio City home of actor George Clooney, which reportedly raised $15 million for his re-election bid — the most ever for a campaign fundraiser.

Local freelance photographer Terje “Terry” Canavarro got pictures of  the presidential motorcade arriving in Studio City around 7 p.m. last night.  Terry shot his photos from the balcony of a restaurant near Ventura and Laurel Canyon Boulevards.  Here are more of his photos.

Photo: Terje "Terry" Canavarro/Freelance Photog --A crowd gathered at Ventura and Laurel Canyon Boulevards in hopes of seeing the president's motorcade go by in Studio City May 10, 2012

Photo: Terje "Terry" Canavarro/Freelance Photog --President Obama's motorcade in Studio City May 10, 2012

Photo: Terje "Terry" Canavarro/Freelance Photog -- Crowd cheered and waved at President Obama as his motorcade traveled Studio City streets May 10, 201

The most detailed and interesting report about the Studio City fundraiser, including observations from the White House press pool, is over on Deadline.com. President Obama reportedly spoke for about 20 minutes before going around to chat with the guests at each of the 14 tables (among them Hollywood stars and major players like Robert Downey Jr. and Barbra Streisand).  First, however, he gave some shout-outs to Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, San Fernando Valley Congressman Howard Berman, DreamWorks’ Jeffrey Katzenberg, and of course the host, George Clooney.

President Obama:

“… let’s face it, we raised a lot of money because everybody loves George.  (Laughter.)  They like me; they love him.  (Laughter.) And rightfully so.  Not only is he an unbelievable actor, but he is one of those rare individuals who is at ease with everybody, seems to just occupy a constant state of grace, and uses his extraordinary talents on behalf of stuff that’s really important.  And he takes time to actually figure out the facts and the issues.  (Applause.)  And so we couldn’t be prouder of George.  Thank you.  (Applause.)  And I couldn’t be prouder of him as a friend.”

Also, the president gave some props to the American people and their steadfastness during the past three years or so of tough economic times.

“And one of the great privileges of being President is you travel around the country and every day there’s an affirmation of how decent and how strong and how caring the American people are.  They’re not always paying attention to the babble in Washington.  They don’t have the time to read big briefing books on the latest ideas for Medicare reform.  But they have good instincts about what’s right and what’s true.  And it’s those instincts and it’s that resilience that really has enabled this country to weather an extraordinary storm.”

Photo: Bettina Hansen/The Seattle Times -- President Obama waved to crowd before stepping into a vehicle in a motorcade at Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington May 10, 2012

President Obama’s first stop on the West Coast today was in Seattle, Washington. Air Force One touched down at Boeing Field just before noon. During his stop over, Obama will attend two fundraisers, one a brunch at a private home and the other at a large performing arts theatre where folks lined up hours before the event, according to The Seattle Times.

President Obama is scheduled to leave Seattle around 6 p.m. this evening for the next part of his campaign trip, here in the Southland. Meanwhile, the “lockdown” as the Daily News calls it, has begun around actor George Clooney’s Studio City home — where one of the biggest presidential fundraisers ever is set to get underway this evening. More here on the street closures and traffic drama in the area.

The nominees for the 39th annual Daytime Entertainment Emmy Awards were announced this morning on the NBC “Today Show.” The ceremony is scheduled for next month, on Saturday, June 23 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, but oddly a decision on who will carry the live broadcast has not been made yet.

ABC collected the most nominations with 56, followed by PBS with 51. ABC’s long running soap, “General Hospital,” got the most nomination this time around. In second, “Sesame Street” and “The Young and the Restless” tied with 16 each. A list of all the nominations here. Also, The Hollywood Reporter has more on the nominations and the uncertain telecast.

Photo: FLLewis/Media City G -- Ticket holders for "Marvel's The Avengers" had to wait in specially designated lines at the AMC Burbank 16 May 04, 2012

“Marvel’s The Avengers” had an incredible weekend debut according to the final figures released yesterday. The superhero team-up of  Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and the Hulk earned a record breaking $207.4 million last weekend — easily becoming the number one film in the country. The mega-hit centers on what happens when the Avengers assemble to fight Thor’s evil brother Loki who is trying to take over Earth. The stars include Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, and Samuel L. Jackson.

“Marvel’s The Avengers” captured the crown for the top grossing opening weekend. It smashed previous records for fastest film to reach $100 million, $150 million, and $200 million. More on the superhero flick’s monumental achievements since opening last Friday on Box Office Mojo.Oh, the film has quickly scooped up $447 million in foreign markets. The big question now is how quickly will “The Avengers” hit the one billion dollar mark worldwide?

As for the rest of the top five, the romantic comedy “Think Like a Man,” slipped from first to second place with $8.1 million — for a total of $73 million in three weeks at the domestic box office. “The Hunger Games” came in third with $5.58 million, followed closely by “The Pirates! Band of Misfits” $5.5 million and “The Lucky One” with $5.3 million.

Photo: FLLewis/Media City G -- A very long line at the ticket window of the AMC Burbank 16 Friday evening May 4, 2012

As expected “Marvel’s The Avengers” is off to a very fast start at the domestic box office. Yesterday, opening day, the superhero ensemble film packed them in at the theaters across the nation to the tune of an estimated $80.5 million. Some of those moviegoers waited in long lines to see “The Avengers” at the AMC Burbank 16 over on East Palm Avenue in downtown.

“The Avengers’” is now second only to “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″ for opening day grosses. That Potter finale holds the record with $91.1 million on opening day.

Photo: FLLewis/Media City G -- Special lines were set up for "The Avengers" ticket holders at the AMC Burbank 16 Friday May 4, 2012

No doubt “The Avengers” will be the box office champ this weekend. The question is how much will the blockbuster earn? Estimates are running as high as $175 and even $200 million. Wow!

“Marvel’s The Avengers” is the big movie this weekend. The superhero ensemble flick reportedly raked in around $18 million at midnight shows last night. If you are not into comic books or you missed some of the other superhero movies like “Iron Man,” “Captain America,”  ”Thor,” or you just need a refresher on who’s who and what’s at stake — check out the witty guide on The Wrap called “‘The Avengers’: 5 Things You Need to Know If You Don’t Read Comic Books.” The post proves background on the bigger-than-life main characters and answers the important question of what is a tesseract?

Actress and TV talk show host, Ricki Lake, has had plenty of life drama. In her new memoir, “Never say never: Finding a life that fits,” Lake shares the lessons learned from a painful childhood, weight issues, divorce, and the struggle to find a comfort level in her own skin. “Never say never” hit stores last week. Lake is out and about promoting her new book with TV appearances as well as stops in stores. Tonight at 7 p.m., she’ll be at the Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles. More on Lake, her new book, and appearances here.

A surprise at the domestic box office. The big sci-fi hit, “The Hunger Games” got kicked to the curb this weekend by romantic comedy, “Think Like a Man.” After four consecutive weeks in the number one spot, “The Hunger Games” got dethroned by “Think Like a Man, ” which pulled in $33.6 million on its debut weekend, according to the final figures released today. “Think Like a Man” was produced on a small budget of $12 million.

“Think like a Man” is based on the runaway bestseller “Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man,” by comedian Steve Harvey. The self-help relationship book, written for women about how to deal with men, was a  New York Times bestseller and a publishing phenomenon. It had broad appeal and apparently so does the movie it inspired. Opening last Friday on only 2, 015 screens, there were reports of sold out theaters for “Think Like a Man.” Also, this romantic comedy about the battle of the sexes had a very funny trailer, which is not always the case with the rom coms.

“Think Like a Man” centers on several women who shake up their relationships with men when they begin following the advice in Harvey’s book, “Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man.”  The cast includes Michael Ealy, Regina Hall, Kevin Hart, Taraji P. Henson, Gabrielle Union, Terrence J, Jerry Ferrara, Meagan Good, and Romany Malco.

In second place, the new romantic drama, “The Lucky One,” starring Zac Efron, Taylor Schilling, and Blythe Danner. It opened with $22.5 million. “The Lucky One” is the adaptation of  the best seller of  the same name by popular romance author, Nicholas Sparks. In the movie, a U.S. Marine returns home from Iraq to search for a woman in a photo he found in the war rubble — a photo that became his good luck charm.

“The Hunger Games” landed in third with $14.6 million. In a month, the blockbuster based on the young adult novel by Suzanne Collins, has collected around $573 million worldwide.  In fourth, the new nature documentary narrated by Tim Allen, “Chimpanzee” with $10.6 million. The doc is about the adventures of a young chimpanzee named Oscar.

Rounding out the top five, “The Three Stooges” with $9.7 million.

Photo: "Parks and Recreation" cast from NBC.com

NBC’s popular comedy series, “Parks and Recreation,” is among the winners of the 71st Annual Peabody Awards, one of the most prestigious honors in electronic media. The list, announced today, includes other entertainment programs such as the Showtime’s terrorism drama, “Homeland,” and the dark fantasy-epic on HBO, “Game of Thrones.”

The George Foster Peabody Awards recognizes excellence and distinguished achievement by radio and television stations, networks, webcasters, producing organizations, and individuals. The awards for the best in electronic media 2011 will be formally presented at a luncheon ceremony in New York City on May 21. Sir Patrick Stewart, star of two Peabody winners, “Star Trek: The Next Generation”and “Macbeth”, will be the host.

“White House Down” — Huge payday for hot screenwriter James Vanderbilt. In fact, the $3 million dollar script deal is being called the biggest so far this year. The  action spec script is described as a cross between “Die Hard” and “Air Force One.” Apparently there was some heated bidding for the script with Sony Pictures finally closing a deal this week.  Vanderbilt was the scribe on the reboot of “Amazing Spider-Man” and “Total Recall.” Also, he got the gig to pen the remake of “RoboCop.”  Vanderbilt is repped by WME and manager Mikkel Bondesen at UFUSE Entertainment. More details on Variety.

“Untitled Cop Action Script” —  Screenwriter Katie Dippold scored a mid-six-figure script deal with Chernin Entertainment. Script is a comedy/buddy story focusing on the antics of two female cops. Dippold is the TV writer and producer of “Parks and Recreation.”  Dippold is repped by WME and manager Greg Walter at 3 Arts Entertainment. More on Deadline.com

The final numbers are out today and “The Hunger Games” turned out to be the hottest movie ticket over the weekend. The film adaptation of the bestselling young adult novel dominated the domestic box office with a final tally of $152.5 million — which ranks third on the list of best opening weekends. “The Hunger Games” is set in the U.S. following an apocalypse and involves a deadly game in which a young teenage girl must fight to survive against more than 20 other teens. The author of  ”The Hunger Games” series is Suzanne Collins.

“21 Jump Street” took fourth place with $20.4 million, followed by “Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax”  $13.1 million, “John Carter” $5 million, and rounding out the top five  ”Act of Valor” $2 million.

Who says romance doesn’t sell in Hollywood? “Fifty Shades of Grey,” a bestselling erotic romance novel trilogy, with BDSM (bondage, discipline, sadism, masochism) elements, reportedly has sold to Universal Pictures and Focus Features. The X-rated book series was inspired by the hugely popular “Twilight” book saga and is written by British author E. L. James. The romance is about a female college student and a young intriguing billionaire who has some dark sexual desires. The  other two novels in the series are ” Fifty Shades Darker” and “Fifty Shades Freed.”

Deadline.com is reporting that the price tag is in seven figures, probably in the neighborhood of $3 million. There was apparently a bidding war for this book series with as many as 10 Hollywood studios throwing down money on the table for it. Deadline has some details on that here.

“The Signal” — Deadline has an exclusive report on a big money deal for hot scribe, Brad Ingelsby. Just a few years ago, Ingelsby was working for his father’s Pennsylvania insurance business, then he got his Hollywood break as a screenwriter. This deal is said to be in the high six-figures and is for a pitch, which revolves around a family weekend getaway with a sci-fi twist. The AFI grad is repped by WME and Energy Entertainment. More on Ingelsby’s story and new deal here.

“Thaw” — Vik Weet has scored a deal to write this horror thriller for legendary rap producer/music mogul, Dr. Dre.  Story focuses on a terrible evil that is unleashed on the world  from a sudden and rapid melting of the ice in Canada’s wild Yukon Territory. Dr. Dre will produce under his Crucial Films banner with partner Daniel Schnider. Weet is represented by United Talent Agency and New Wave Entertainment in the deal. Both Weet and Dr. Dre are busy with other projects as well. Details on MTV.

Photo: FLLewis/Media City G -- Actor Arlow Stewart in Abraham Lincoln Park 300 North Buena Vista Street Burbank February 25, 2012

There’s a ton of great talent in the Southland. So we’re going to be giving shout-outs to some of  that talent in a new feature called Media City G Profiles.  First up: Actor Arlow Stewart.

I heard Arlow Stewart give a cold reading during a community event here in Burbank a short while ago. I was impressed with his skill. Others there commented on his strong vocal delivery as well.

At the age of 16, Stewart and his mother took what he called “a risk of faith” by leaving Oklahoma City for Hollywood. Stewart enrolled at John Burroughs High School in Burbank where he graduated with the class of 2000. Also, he beat the odds and quickly broke into the acting field. He got work in commercials and in television series like “Chicago Hope,” “Judging Amy,” “The Practice,” “ER,” and “Without A Trace.”  His movie credits include the 2003 action film, “S.W.A.T. “  In addition, Stewart says, “I have a love for live performance… ” such as local theater.

Photo: FLLewis/Media City G -- Actor Arlow Stewart in Abraham Lincoln Park 300 North Buena Vista Street Burbank February 25, 2012

NEW CONTACT INFO:

Manager
Griffith Talent
Shaunna Griffith
(818) 415-4169

Agent
Nancy Chaidez Agency
(323) 467-8954

Arlow Stewart, Jr.
(818) 272-6870
arlow.b.stewart@my.csun.edu

Photo: Courtesy www.oscars.com -- Octavia Davis accepted the Oscar for best supporting actress and gave a heartfelt emotional speech at the 84th Academy Awards ceremony in Hollywood February 26, 2012

As expected “The Artist” collected the major prize of best picture last night at the 84th Academy Awards ceremony in Hollywood. However, one of the best moments of the night occurred when Octavia Spencer won the best supporting actress Oscar for her work as a feisty maid in “The Help.”

Octavia Spencer received her golden statuette from last year’s best supporting actor, Christian Bale, and she joked about it.

“Oh, thank you! Thank you, Academy, for putting me with the hottest guy in the room.

“I have to thank my families. My family in Alabama, the state of Alabama… um… my L.A. family, watching at Steven’s or at Gada, my ‘Help’ family,Tate, Brunson, Kathryn, Allison Janney, thank you for being in my life. I share this with everybody. Thank you Steven Spielberg for changing my life, thank you Stacey Snider for changing my life.”

“Please wrap up, I’m wrapping up. I’m sorry, I’m freakin’ out. Thank you world! Oh God, and thank you to WME, and Viewpoint L.A. I’m sorry guys, thank you, I love you.”

Davis did wrap-up with tears in her eyes and golden boy in her hand. Also, she got a well deserved standing ovation from the audience.

Meryl Streep picked up her third Academy Award for best actress for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady” and Jean Dujardin bagged best actor for “The Artist” and 82-year-old Christopher Plummer took home best supporting Oscar for the “Beginners.” For more winners,photos, speeches, glittery fashions, and highlights from the show and the red carpet click over to the official Oscar website.

The Best Picture Oscar is the most-coveted prize at this Sunday’s 84th Academy Awards ceremony. The odds-on favorite to win best picture is “The Artist,”  the homage to Hollywood ’s silent film era. However,  most Americans believe “The Help,” the story of two African-American maids living in Mississippi during the civil rights movement,  should walk away with that honor, according to a survey by The Harris Poll.

Last week, 2,239 adults were surveyed online by Harris and 21 per cent said “The Help” should win best picture. “War horse” got 9 per cent of the vote, “Moneyball 7 per cent, “The Artist” 6 per cent, “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” 5 per cent, “The Descendants” 5 per cent, “Hugo” 3 per cent, and “The Tree of Life” 2 per cent.  Oh, 34 per cent were not sure who should win and 6 per cent said none of the nominated films should be the victor. Here are poll results for two more major categories.

Best Actor

George Clooney “The Descendants” 23%
Brad Pitt “Moneyball” 16%
Gary Oldman “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” 10%
Jean Dujardin “The Artist” 7%
Dimian Bichr “A Better Life”  1%

The rest did not know who should win or felt none of the nominated should get the award

Best Actress

Viola Davis “The Help” 23%
Meryl Streep “The Iron Lady” 22%
Rooney Mara “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” 11%
Michelle Williams “My Week with Marilyn” 7%
Glenn Close “Albert Nobbs” 4%

The rest did not know who should win or felt none of the nominated should get the award

Some good news for veteran host Billy Crystal and the Academy. Fifty per cent of those who participated in this poll feel Crystal will be better compared to host from the previous years.

Last Sunday, February 19, the Writers Guild of America West and East announced the winners of the 2012 Writers Guild Awards for outstanding achievement in writing for screen, television, radio, news, promotional, videogame, and new media writing. Simultaneous ceremonies were held at Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles and the B.B. King Blues Club in New York City.

SCREEN WINNERS

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Midnight in Paris, Written by Woody Allen; Sony Pictures Classics

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Descendants, Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash; Based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemmings; Fox Searchlight

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY
Better This World, Written by Katie Galloway & Kelly Duane de la Vega; Loteria Films

For more 2012 WGA winners go here .

NAACP Image Awards

The 43rd NAACP Image Awards ceremony was broadcast  Friday, February 17, 2012 from The Shrine Auditorium in Downtown Los Angeles.

Outstanding Motion Picture
The Help
DreamWorks Pictures/Participant Media/Touchstone Pictures

Outstanding Actor in a Motion Picture
Laz Alonso
Jumping the Broom
TriStar Pictures

Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture
Viola Davis
The Help
DreamWorks Pictures/Participant Media/Touchstone Pictures

A full list of the winners as well as highlights from the Image Awards event here .

SAG Winners

The 18th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards took place last month, Sunday, January 29 at The Shrine Auditorium in Downtown Los Angeles. The top honor of the night, outstanding performance by a cast went to “The Help.”  The other two major awards, outstanding performance by an actor to  Jean Dujardin for “The Artist” and outstanding performance by a leading actress to Viola Davis for “The Help.” The complete list of winners on the SAG Awards website.

2012 DGA winner

Michel Hazanavicius won the 2012 DGA Award for feature film achievement for “The Artist” at the 64th Annual DGA Dinner in Hollywood on Saturday, January 28, 2012,  making him the leading contender to pick up the Best Director Oscar this Sunday at the 84th Annual AcademyAwards glamfest.

The nation’s largest cable company, Comcast, announced  a sweeping deal today with four new minority-owned network with some famous names like Earvin “Magic “Johnson, Sean “Diddy”Combs, and filmmaker, Robert Rodriguez. Comcast did not suddenly decide to reach out to minorities. The deal was part of the conditions of last month’s controversial approval by the government of that mega-merger of Comcast/NBC Universal.

The Comcast press release, states the four proposals were selected from a field of over 100. Comcast agrees to distribute the selected networks on its cable systems between April 2012 and January 2014. Two of the networks have major African American owners and the other two,  have Hispanics as the majority owners.

Here are brief descriptions of the four networks:

Aspire: Headed by entrepreneur and NBA Hall of Famer, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, in partnership with GMC TV. “Aspire will be a network that encourages and challenges African-Americans to reach for their dreams and will appeal to all generations. Aspire will celebrate our heritage, our groundbreaking achievements and the fearless talent that has shaped American culture. I’m most excited about Aspire creating opportunities for the new voices, new visions and the next generation of storytellers,” according to “Magic” Johnson.

REVOLT: Project from superstar and entrepreneur Sean “Diddy” Combs and MTV veteran Andy Schuon. Combs says, “… REVOLT will be live, like all great moments in television history.  REVOLT will also be immediate, like today’s social networks…”

El Rey by Hollywood movie director Robert Rodriguez and FactoryMade Ventures executives John Fogelman and Cristina Patwa. ”We are passionate about creating a wildly entertaining destination that we can be proud of by appealing to both Latino and mass market audiences,” said Robert Rodriguez and CEO of FactoryMade Ventures John Fogelman.

BabyFirst Americas proposed by Spanish language television veteran Constantino “Said” Schwarz. Constantino “Said” Schwarz, CEO and Chairman BabyFirst Americas explains, “BabyFirst Americas aims to bring the essential academic building blocks for kindergarten readiness into the home, making it accessible for families all across the U.S.”

David L. Cohen, Executive Vice President, Comcast Corporation,“Comcast is committed to delivering programming that reflects the interests of our customers, and we look forward to integrating these great networks into our rich programming line-up.”

Ten scribes for the first Fox Writers Intensive program have been announced. The names of the lucky writers appear on Deadline.com. The program is “… designed to introduce experienced writers with unique voices, backgrounds, life and professional experiences that reflect the diverse perspectives of the audiences we create to a wide range of Fox staff writers, showrunners, directors, screenwriters and creative executives,” according to the Fox Network. These are not newbies, but writers with plenty of connections as well as relevant experience on their resumes.

Oh, employment is not guaranteed, but the network claims the goal is “… to provide the accepted writers with intensive creative and professional development and exposure that would best equip him or her to succeed at Fox.”

The winners were selected from 300 submissions. More details Deadline.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are looking for a producer/editor to handle the producing and editing of video content to be used in stadium, online and for marketing and broadcast.  For details on qualifications go to the team’s website www.dodgers.com

The deadline to apply is Saturday, February 25, 2012.