Celebrate John Wayne’s Centennial with the Exclusive Special Presentation,
Along with a 100-Hour Movie Marathon Beginning Saturday, May 26, 2007

To commemorate what would be his 100th birthday, Encore Westerns presents “100 Years of John Wayne,” an original special which premieres as part of “100 Years/100 Hours: The John Wayne Centennial” a 100-hour movie marathon of Wayne’s films including The Searchers; Chisum; The War Wagon; Angel and the Badman; Cahill, U.S. Marshal and others.

The University of Arizona was at the pinnacle of college basketball from Sean Elliot's junior year in the 1987-1988 season that ended against Oklahoma in Lute Olson's first trip to the Final Four with the Wildcats.

The Hall of Fame coach also took Iowa to the Final Four.

Their end as one of the eilte programs ended on the same night Duke's ticket to the elite level was punched. It was the 2001 NCAA Championship Game when the Blue Devils won over the Wildcats. Neither program has been back to the Championship Game since.

Is Lute Olson a better coach than he was twenty years ago when he had his first 20 win season? I think so. The question that irks me is this: is he a better coach today than he was five years ago?

When the 'Cats were rolling, the first five minutes of the second half was their signature time. Adjustments were made in the locker room and the team came out hungry to take control of the game. There were role players like Joe Turner, Craig McMillan, Wayne Womack, Matt Muelbach, Matt Othick, Jarvis Kelley, Joe Mclean and Gene Edgerson who stepped onto the court and made their presence felt.

For years, I believe, Olson was simply the best coach around. Players like Steve Kerr, Jud Buechler, Sean Rooks, Ed Stokes, Jason Terry and Channing Frye became NBA prospects, all of whom had some time in the league, because he brought their talent out like no other coach could.

When his teams lost to guard oriented teams in the first rounds of '91 and '92, he became guard oriented to keep up. Then U of A became point guard U. The names are amazing: Khlaid Reeves, Reggie Geary, Damon Stoudamire, Mike Bibby and Jason Terry all were drafted by NBA teams. Jason Gardner played in Europe.

We come to the first concern. Is Lute ready to re-invent himself again? The drive for the title pushed him after Santa Clara, led by Steve Nash, knocked his number 2 seeded squad out in the first round of the 1992 tournament. He reached that pinnacle in 1997 with three guards, Bibby, Miles Simon and Michael Dickerson (he might have been a small forward since the two positions are interchangeable in Lute's system). A couple of overacheiving big men, Bennet Davison and AJ Bramlett, and Jason Terry coming off the bench, did just enough while Miles Simon made every play on the court to beat three number 1 seeds on the way to the title.

Since Coach Olson has started his run at Arizona, there have been many schools that have been seeded number 1 in the brackets at tourney time. Auburn, St. Joe's, Missouri, Wake Forest, Villanova, Cincinnati, Stanford and Washington have all been ranked as one of the four best teams from 1988 to 2001. Arkansas, Maryland, UNLV and even UCLA all won titles only to miss the tourney a few years later.

The landscape of college basketball has changed. In 1988, when Sean Elliot finished his amazing junior season, there was no question he was coming back for his senior year. Center Anthony Cook was not talking to agents to see if he would be drafted. Now, after one season, Marcus Williams was thinking about going pro. Chase Budinger has a look at the big time right now too and coaches now know that it is silly to try and tell them not to take the money.

I really blew this one

        The Dallas Mavericks are on pace to win 70 games this season. They need to go 8-0 and probably will fall short but only one other team, with eight games to go in their season, had a shot at 70.

        Michael Jordon led the Bulls to 72 wins that season so at 72-10, they almost had single digit losses for a season. An old school Philadelphia 76er team went 9-73 one season. The only modern day equivalent of a team that bad would be the Knicks of last season. I wonder what the gap in pay is between those two horrible teams. At least as many zeroes as there are starting basketball players.

Walt Disney Pictures' epic adventure, "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," from Jerry Bruckheimer Films, landed in the global box office record books and laid claim to the biggest opening in industry history, with an unprecedented gross of $401,000,000 in its first six days of release, it was announced today by Mark Zoradi, president of Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Marketing and Distribution.

This figure surpasses the previous record of $382 million set by the six-day opening of "Spiderman 3" earlier this year. "Pirates" continues to please audiences around the world with exceptionally strong exit polls.

Celebrate John Wayne’s Centennial with the Exclusive Special Presentation,
Along with a 100-Hour Movie Marathon Beginning Saturday, May 26, 2007

To commemorate what would be his 100th birthday, Encore Westerns presents “100 Years of John Wayne,” an original special which premieres as part of “100 Years/100 Hours: The John Wayne Centennial” a 100-hour movie marathon of Wayne’s films including The Searchers; Chisum; The War Wagon; Angel and the Badman; Cahill, U.S. Marshal and others.

This evening, during one of the year's most exciting live international television events, a star-studded panel of judges chose Miss Japan, Riyo Mori, as MISS UNIVERSE (R) 2007.

Ms. Mori is 20 years-old and has been dancing since she was 4. She loves traveling the world and enjoys visiting museums and watching musicals.

The judging panel for the 2007 Miss Universe Pageant included NBC's "Heroes" James Kyson Lee, NBC's "Deal or No Deal" briefcase model Lindsay Clubine, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, rocker Dave Navarro, World and Olympic figure skating champion Michelle Kwan, fashion designer Marc Bouwer, Novela Star Mauricio Islas, "Project Runway" judge and Elle magazine fashion director Nina Garcia, and former Miss Universes Dayanara Torres (1993) and Christiane Martel (1953).

Throughout the two-hour event, contestants from 77 countries around the world competed in three categories: swimsuit; evening gown; and personality interview. Zuleyka Rivera, Miss Universe 2006, crowned her successor at the conclusion of the two-hour primetime telecast, before an estimated worldwide viewing audience of more than 1 billion in over 170 countries.

Final Results: First Runner Up: Miss Brazil, Natalia Guimaraes will assume the duties of MISS UNIVERSE 2007 if the titleholder for some reason cannot fulfill her responsibilities.

Second Runner Up: Miss Venezuela, Ly Jonaitis

Rest of Top Five: Miss Korea, Honey Lee; and Miss USA, Rachel Smith.

Rest of Top Ten: Miss India, Puja Gupta; Miss Angola, Micaela Reis; Miss Tanzania, Flaviana Matata; Miss Nicaragua, Xiomara Blandino; and Miss Mexico, Rosa Maria Ojeda Cuen.

Rest of Top Fifteen: Miss Thailand, Farung Yuthithum; Miss Denmark, Zak lina; Sojic; Miss Slovenia, Tjasa Kokalj; Miss Ukraine, Lyudmyla Bikmullina; and Miss Czech Republic, Lucie Hadasova.

Miss Photogenic Award: Miss Philippines, Anna Theresa Licaros. The general public voted on www.nbc.com for the delegate who exemplifies beauty through the lens of a camera. She received a $1,000 cash prize and a trophy from Rogaska Crystal.

Congeniality Award: Miss China, Ningning Zhang. This award reflects the respect and admiration of the delegate's peers, who voted for her as the most congenial, charismatic and inspirational participant. She also received a $1,000 cash prize and a trophy from Rogaska Crystal.

The MISS UNIVERSE (R) 2007 prize package includes: Official Miss UNIVERSE Mikimoto pearl tiara; 2 Year Scholarship from The NY Film Academy in NYC; custom designed wardrobe by Tadashi; National and International multi-media advertising campaign and a complete denim wardrobe from YMI Jeanswear; Swimsuit wardrobe from BSC Swimwear Thailand; Shoe wardrobe from Nina; A Ritmo Mundo Jumbo Jet Mystery Dial time piece; Year-long supply of hair care products and tools from Farouk Systems; Membership to Gravity Fitness and papering at John Barrett Salon; Fashion Portfolio by leading fashion photographer Fadil Berisha; Consultation with stylist Billie Causieestko; New York City apartment for the year of her reign including living expenses; professional representation by the Miss Universe Organization and Trump Model Management; and a personal appearance wardrobe.

The Miss Universe Organization, producers of the MISS UNIVERSE(R), MISS USA (R) and MISS TEEN USA (R) competitions, is a Donald J. Trump and NBC Universal partnership. Utilizing its global grass roots infrastructure, the Miss Universe Organization is committed to increasing HIV/AIDS awareness by focusing on women's health and reproductive issues.

By forging relationships with organizations committed to research and education such as the Latino Commission on AIDS, Global Health Council and God's Love We Deliver, Miss Universe is armed to impact women today. Source: The Miss Universe Organization

Five Finalists For First-Ever UGC Category 'Best Movie Spoof' Have Been Selected

Voting For The Five Finalists Begins Today at mtvmovieawards.yahoo.com

Winner Announced Live at '2007 MTV Movie Awards' on Sunday, June 3, 2007 at 8PM/7c From the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA

> It is all about the fans at the "2007 MTV Movie Awards," as MTV in conjunction with Yahoo! Movies and Mark Burnett Productions, is one step closer in the quest for the next creative new filmmaker and showcasing new talent. After nearly 400 film spoofs were submitted, the five finalists for the first-ever user generated category, "BEST MOVIE SPOOF" have been chosen.

The final five, receiving nearly 500,000 viewers combined, offers unbridled and hilarious talent with high-end quality productions. Viewers will see their peer's creations which spoof a variety of films from a combo of Casino Royale and Pulp Fiction, to the gory yet funny take on Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets a Broadway musical, to the manic combination of Grindhouse intertwined with Little Miss Sunshine. The undiscovered talent will be revealed to the world during the LIVE broadcast of the "2007 MTV Movie Awards" from the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA on Sunday, June 3rd at 8pm/7c. Voting for the five finalists begins today on http://mtvmovieawards.yahoo.com/.

"The fans are the most important part of the MTV Movie Awards," said Christina Norman, President, MTV. "It's their show and not only are we giving them a voice to celebrate their favorite movies, stars and moments, but we are truly making them the stars of the show with the 'Best Movie Spoof' category." "There are no sidelines at this year's Movie Awards, everyone is in the game!"

The lucky finalists who will have the chance to realize their dreams of standing on stage at the "2007 MTV Movie Awards" to accept the legendary golden bucket of popcorn in front of Hollywood's movers and shakers are ...

-- QUENTIN TARANTINO'S LITTLE MISS SQUIRTGUN - Skylar Stone-Clipner, St. Louis, Missouri - Lil' Miss Sunshine wins tickets to the MTV Movie Awards and goes on a trip to meet Angelina Jolie.

-- TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE: THE REHAB - Noah Harald, Mill Meadow, California - You drink - you die! No, no, no - you won't want to go to the Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Rehab.

-- CASINO ROYALE WITH CHEESE - Bill Caco, Cleveland, Ohio - James Bond gets teamed up with an unlikely partner on his very first mission.

-- TEXAS CHAINSAW MUSICAL - Zan Passante, Dumont, New Jersey - Pleatherface discovers a twinkle in his eye for musicals and learns life is more than a massacre.

-- UNITED 300 - Andy Signore, Ambler, Pennsylvania - Flight 300 has some unexpected visitors ... Shot in 5 hours, for just over $1000 bucks.

"This has been a fantastic opportunity for burgeoning filmmakers to not only create original work but also have a national platform to get it noticed," said Karin Gilford, Yahoo!'s general manager of Entertainment. "We are incredibly pleased with the results, as we have had hundreds of submissions of truly inspired spoofs. The hard part will be picking the winner out of so many great candidates!"

The excitement of the fans continues to grow and the proof can be seen on MTV.com, where the Movie Awards was up 35% increase from week prior. To-date the movie awards area of the site has received nearly 700K visits and nearly 3.7 million pageviews.

Through "MTV Movie Awards on Yahoo!," aspiring filmmakers were given the opportunity to showcase their twisted genius and story-telling talent by submitting their own original movie shorts parodying films from the past year. Starting April 23rd, viewers had the opportunity to submit their own original movie shorts parodying films from the past year where visitors were able to rate and discuss the submissions. Fans can vote for "BEST MOVIE SPOOF" by visiting http://mtvmovieawards.yahoo.com/ beginning today, May 29th through Saturday, June 2nd.

In addition to the movie spoof award, the interactive site encourages viewers to create their own culture of sorts -- whether it's commenting on the user-generated submissions or posting videos. Select content from the site will also take center stage at the awards on a "Video Wall" that will be integrated into the live broadcast, putting the power back in the hands of the fans.

Mark Burnett serves as Executive Producer for the "2007 MTV Movie Awards." Salli Frattini is Executive Producer for MTV. Audrey Morrisey and Ted Smith are Producers, Joe DeMaio is the Director and Kathy Flynn serves as Event Producer.

About MTV Networks

Hit Comedy Short Makes Its Television Debut On Spike TV Tonight

Star Wars Fan Movie Challenge Awards Announced During Star Wars Celebration IV in Los Angeles

To View All Fan Movies, Visit the Official Fan Movie Challenge Site: http://starwars.atomfilms.com "Chad Vader: Day Shift Manager" received the coveted George Lucas Selects Award on Sunday night in the "Star Wars Fan Movie Challenge" presented by Lucasfilm Ltd. and AtomFilms(R), a division of MTVN Entertainment Group, a unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE:VIA.B) .

The five-minute comedy short by Aaron Yonda and Matt Sloan, featuring Darth Vader's younger brother as a grocery store clerk, will make its television debut at 11:25 p.m. ET/PT May 29, 2007 on Spike TV.

Celebrate John Wayne’s Centennial with the Exclusive Special Presentation,
Along with a 100-Hour Movie Marathon Beginning Saturday, May 26, 2007

To commemorate what would be his 100th birthday, Encore Westerns presents “100 Years of John Wayne,” an original special which premieres as part of “100 Years/100 Hours: The John Wayne Centennial” a 100-hour movie marathon of Wayne’s films including The Searchers; Chisum; The War Wagon; Angel and the Badman; Cahill, U.S. Marshal and others.

Apple (R) today launched iTunes (R) Plus -- DRM-free music tracks featuring high quality 256 kbps AAC encoding for audio quality virtually indistinguishable from the original recordings -- for just $1.29 per song. iTunes Plus is launching with EMI's digital catalog of outstanding recordings, including singles and albums from Coldplay, The Rolling Stones, Norah Jones, Frank Sinatra, Joss Stone, Pink Floyd, John Coltrane and more than a dozen of Paul McCartney's classic albums available on iTunes for the first time.

iTunes will continue to offer its entire catalog, currently over five million songs, in the same versions as today -- 128 kbps AAC encoding with DRM -- at the same price of 99 cents per song, alongside the higher quality iTunes Plus versions when available. In addition, iTunes customers can now easily upgrade their library of previously purchased EMI content to iTunes Plus tracks for just 30 cents a song and $3.00 for most albums.

Apple (R) today announced the launch of iTunes (R) U, a dedicated area within the iTunes Store (www.itunes.com) featuring free content such as course lectures, language lessons, lab demonstrations, sports highlights and campus tours provided by top US colleges and universities including Stanford University, UC Berkeley, Duke University and MIT.

"iTunes U makes it easy for anyone to access amazing educational material from many of the country's most respected colleges and universities," said Eddy Cue, Apple's vice president of iTunes. "Education is a lifelong pursuit and we're pleased to give everyone the ability to download lectures, speeches and other academic content for free."

"Drive Thru" DVD Review By Steve Andersonthevideostoreguy@columnist.com

"Drive Thru" is going to be one of the best cases of grand theft movie you've ever seen.

In the scenic and wholly boring, at least to its teenage denizens, Orange County suburbia of Blanca Carne (White Meat! Ha!), something's going very wrong for some of those teenage denizens. Namely, they're getting killed. And in an extremely messy, horror-movie-style fashion with loads of dismemberment, lacerations, and blunt force trauma like no tomorrow. Behind the killings is the mascot for the local burger chain, Hella Burger.

Apple (R) today announced that it's bringing the Internet's most popular originally-created content from YouTube to the living room with Apple TV (TM). Beginning in mid-June, Apple TV will wirelessly stream videos directly from YouTube and play them on a user's widescreen TV.

Using Apple TV's elegant interface and simple Apple Remote, viewers can easily browse, find and watch free videos from YouTube in the comfort of their living room. "This is the first time users can easily browse, find and watch YouTube videos right from their living room couch, and it's really, really fun," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "YouTube is a worldwide sensation, and Apple TV is bringing it directly from the Internet onto the widescreen TV in your living room."

Celebrate John Wayne’s Centennial with the Exclusive Special Presentation,
Along with a 100-Hour Movie Marathon Beginning Saturday, May 26, 2007

To commemorate what would be his 100th birthday, Encore Westerns presents “100 Years of John Wayne,” an original special which premieres as part of “100 Years/100 Hours: The John Wayne Centennial” a 100-hour movie marathon of Wayne’s films including The Searchers; Chisum; The War Wagon; Angel and the Badman; Cahill, U.S. Marshal and others.

Exclusive Four-DVD Set Offers Music Lovers Seven Hours of Concert Footage and New Music

The best selling concert tour of all time, A Bigger Bang, is coming to living rooms across the country as one of the most ambitious music DVD sets in history. The Rolling Stones and Best Buy are joining forces to release, The Biggest Bang, a four-DVD set featuring seven hours of content including two full length concerts, two behind-the- scenes documentaries and classic favorites such as, "Honky Tonk Women," "Sympathy for the Devil," and "Satisfaction."

The Biggest Bang will be available starting June 12 for $29.99 exclusively at all Best Buy stores in the United States and at online www.BestBuy.com. Customers can pre-order the four DVD set. It will also be available in Canada at Best Buy stores as well as Future Shop stores. The Biggest Bang will be released internationally mid-summer.

Premiering LIVE Sunday, June 3, 2007 at 8PM/7c From the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA

We're not worthy!! The "2007 MTV Movie Awards" surrenders to Mike Myers with the coveted "MTV Generation Award" for his amazing contribution to Hollywood and for entertaining the MTV audience for years.

From generation to generation, Mike Myers has kept the MTV viewers crying with laughter since bursting onto the scene in his first major film role in Wayne's World in 1992 through this year's Shrek The Third.

The "MTV Generation Award" is the MTV Movie Awards' highest honor, acknowledging an actor who has captured the attention of the MTV audience throughout their career. Past recipients include Tom Cruise and Jim Carrey. Hosted by Sarah Silverman, the "2007 MTV Movie Awards" airs LIVE on June 3rd at 8:00pm/7c from the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA.

        Yeah, you know Blinverted. Sorry about the title thing.

        It seemed with the ease Spider-Man 3 was inserted into the franchise that I would come up with a great title to show that and that turned out not to be the case.

        Not in the least.

        It all starts with the script and the writing for the third installment was superb. Sam Raimi (he wore many hats during production)(producing and directing as well) and Alvin Sargent wrote a massive in scope story involving numerous characters and it flowed nicely.

MTV pushed the limits for the "2007 MTV Movie Awards" as it aired LIVE for the first time welcoming stars, celebrities and fans alike. Hosted by the incomparable Sarah Silverman, the sixteenth annual ceremony celebrated the audiences' favorite performances and films, and most importantly honored the fans for the first time ever.

The 2007 MTV Movie Awards welcomed legendary actors Jack Nicholson and Johnny Depp as they made their first-ever appearance at the ceremony. The night also featured heart-stopping and eye-popping performances by Rihanna, featuring Jay-Z as they performed "Umbrella," the #1 song in the country. And making her first-ever live U.S. television debut, British singer/songwriter Amy Winehouse brought the house down with her electrifying performance of hit single, "Rehab."

By Steve Anderson
thevideostoreguy@columnist.com

Suddenly, I feel much like the falling bowl of petunias in "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". I'm staring at the box for "Curse of the Zodiac", and all I can think is:

"Oh no, not again."

And the reason I'm feeling like a quasi-sentient bowl of petunias is because, once again, I'm talking about yet another film from horror's very own short bus, Ulli Lommel.

I confess, I had some hope this time around. This is the story of the most notorious serial killer in United States' history that hasn't been caught yet! For all we know, the Zodiac Killer is living right next door to any one of us, just waiting for his next psychological brain fart to lead to all our deaths! Maybe, just maybe, the sheer suspense of knowing that Zodiac may still be out there and reading this right now might mean that even Ulli Lommel couldn't screw this up too badly!

Marks His Fifth #1 Pop Debut and Eighth #1 R&B Album

Highest First Week Sales Of The Year For An R&B Solo Artist

R. Kelly's Double Up debuts this week as the #1 selling album on both Billboard's Top 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop album charts. The #1 debut of Double Up marks the highest first-week sales of the year for any R&B solo artist.

Double Up is R. Kelly's eighth top 5 debut and his fifth #1 album as a solo artist. The smash first single "I'm A Flirt" has been burning up the charts and radio airwaves for close to 16 weeks. The follow-up single "Same Girl," a duet with Usher, is already Top 10 at urban radio.

The critics have weighed in and Double Up has received knock out praise. Reviews include:

New York Times "... he has affirmed his position as one of the era's greatest ..."

USA Today "... vintage R Kelly ..."

NY Post "... Kelly's not only smooth enough for the ladies, but rough enough for the fellas ..."

The Philadelphia Inquirer "The album provides plenty of examples of the real reason that Kelly's career continues to thrive ... he keeps serving up the hot jams."

US Weekly- "... the smooth vocals and sizzling hip-hop beats are hype- worthy."

Washington Post "[the] microdramas are so masterfully executed that it's easy to forget how great the music is ..."

A prolific songwriter and producer R. Kelly has sold in excess of 36 million albums worldwide. Over the span of his career he has amassed several multi-platinum albums, 12 Play - (6x), R. Kelly - (5x), R. - (8x), TP-2.COM - (4x), Chocolate Factory - (2x), Happy People/U Saved Me - (3x). R. Kelly has collected multiple Grammy, American Music, Billboard and Soul Train awards and has teamed up with some of the biggest artists in the world - Celine Dion, Snoop Dogg, The Game, Young Jeezy, Ciara, and Diddy.

For Double Up R. Kelly expands his hit-making collaborative efforts and enlists a diverse roster of musical guests that includes Usher, Kid Rock, Nelly, Chamillionaire, T.I., T-Pain, Huey, Ludacris, Keyshia Cole, and Swizz Beatz. Double Up is R. Kelly's ninth solo release since his smash solo debut 12 Play.

Source: Jive Records

The Walt Disney Studios has entered into an exclusive multi-year first look deal with "Spider-Man" creator and producer Stan Lee and his production company POW! Entertainment, it was announced by Dick Cook, chairman, The Walt Disney Studios.

Under the terms of the agreement, Lee and his production company will develop and produce all forms of entertainment.

"As the father of such renowned comic book heroes as Spider-Man, The Hulk, X-Men among others, Stan is considered one of the most creative and inventive forces in the industry today. His innate talent of tapping into the human qualities of his super hero characters has certainly struck a chord with generations of audiences and readers around the world," stated Cook in making the announcement. "We are honored to be working with someone as formidable as Stan and his production company and welcome them to the Disney family."

More than 33 Million Persons Used Mobile Web and 8 Million Persons Viewed Mobile Video in the Past 30 Days

The Nielsen Company today announced that it will begin measuring mobile phone users through a new service called Nielsen Wireless. This service will measure how many people use content services such as mobile Internet and mobile video and what impact this has on established media behavior. Nielsen Wireless is led by Nielsen Vice President Jeff Herrmann, who also leads Nielsen Games, Nielsen's video game measurement service. Nielsen Wireless is designed specifically for the wireless industry and also complements Nielsen's Anytime Anywhere Media Measurement (A2/M2) initiative, which will measure television usage on all television and video platforms, including personal video devices such as mobile phones.

Federal Judge Barbara Jones ruled yesterday that Visa's Settlement Service Fee ("SSF"), implemented in the wake of the settlement of the merchant lawsuit in 2003, was unlawful and must be repealed, MasterCard reported today.

"This is a significant win for MasterCard and its customers," said Noah J. Hanft, MasterCard general counsel. "With this roadblock out of the way, financial institutions will not be deterred by this coercive fee and can make decisions based on their best judgment about quality of service, strength of brand and other competitive factors that benefit their cardholders."

JC Unit 1, Johnny Cash's tour bus that's "been everywhere," will take its place in history at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. Originally built and restored in Ohio, the coach comes full circle when it also takes its final resting place in Ohio.

Cash used the vehicle for all his tours, including the 1991 Highwayman Tour, where the vehicle also ferried Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson. Johnny sold the bus three months before his death in 2003 to the American Heritage Music Foundation in Blytheville, Arkansas.

They in turn sold it to MotoeXotica in St. Louis, Missouri, who auctioned it on e-Bay in 2005. The bus was purchased by Dave Wright, a collector of vintage motor coaches. Wright had Creative Mobile Interiors, a custom conversion specialist in Grove City, Ohio, restore the bus.

LOS ANGELES, June 9, 2007 /PRNewswire/ -- Paris Hilton issued the following statement:

"Today, I told my attorneys not to appeal the judge's decision. While I greatly appreciate the Sheriff's concern for my health and welfare, I intend to serve my time at L.A. County Jail.

Being in jail is by far the hardest thing I have ever done. During the past several days, I have had a lot of time to think and I believe that I am learning and growing from this experience. I have also had time to read the mail from my fans.

I very much appreciate all of their good wishes and hope they will keep their letters coming. Thank you as well to my family who has always stood by me. I love you and miss you so much!

The Springs Preserve (Preserve), a $250 million non-gaming cultural attraction located a few miles off the Las Vegas Strip, opened Friday after nearly a decade of development. With 180 acres of museums, botanical gardens, galleries, trails and entertainment venues, the Preserve will fill a niche in Las Vegas as a new cultural hub for locals as well as for tourists seeking an off-Strip experience.

For its upcoming Canada cruise schedule from New York aboard the 102,000-ton Carnival Victory -- which kicks off tomorrow with a new itinerary, four-day voyages to Bay of Fundy/Saint John -- Carnival Cruise Lines will offer an unprecedented 70 exciting and attractive shore excursion choices, including more than 20 new selections.

The Carnival Victory's popular Canada cruise program kicks off next week with a special four-day cruise to the Bay of Fundy/Saint John departing Tuesday, June 12, 2007 (the ship begins its regular four-day "long weekend" Bay of Fundy/Saint John cruises departing Thursdays June 21, 2007). The schedule also includes five-day cruises to the Bay of Fundy/Saint John and Halifax, Nova Scotia departing Mondays and Saturdays. The Carnival Victory's four- and five-day Canada cruises run through September 3, 2007.

The Tucson Sidewinders baseball franchise will turn over its assets to SK Baseball this fall, according to Jay S. Zucker, President/CEO for Tucson Baseball, LLC.

Zucker will be retained as a consultant for the 2008 season and plans to continue the growth and progress Tucson Baseball has created over the last eight seasons.

Tucson Baseball LLC has retained the rights to the Tucson Toros and Zucker considers redeveloping the team as an independent professional Tucson baseball franchise.

Continue reading...

Budget Rent A Car System, Inc., the first rental car company to offers its customers a travel web log (aka "blog"), today unveiled its new road-trip-themed blog to provide travelers with an online forum to share road trip stories, receive free travel ideas and tips, find great money-saving deals, and enter to win a variety of prizes being awarded daily.

The travel blog, called "Up Your Budget," now in its third year with an all-new theme and prizes, is located at http://www.upyourbudget.com/, and features daily contests where visitors can win prizes including coupons towards Budget car and truck rentals, and gift certificates for Dunkin' Donuts, Baskin-Robbins or Perkins Restaurants.

First Artist in Nielsen Top 40 History to Chart Four #1 Hits From One Album

Global Roll Out of 'LoveStoned/I Think She Knows' Video Kicks off June 13

Good Charlotte Announced as Opening Act for 2nd U.S. Leg

Jive Records' recording artist Justin Timberlake returns to familiar territory with "Summer Love" the #1 song in the U.S. radio charts. The multi-Grammy winning artist/musician continues to break chart records with his fourth consecutive #1 hit from his critically lauded sophomore effort FutureSex/LoveSounds.

Stephen Stills is one of rock and roll's pre-eminent guitar virtuosos -- he's #28 on Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Guitarists Of All Time" -- and one of its most legendary singer-songwriters. For four decades, through his solo work and as a member of a stellar array of iconic groups -- including The Buffalo Springfield, Manassas, Crosby, Stills & Nash and CSN&Y -- Stills has helped shape the popular music landscape and remained one of its most enduring artists. This summer, fans will have the chance to experience Stills' extraordinary music first-hand as he embarks on the second leg of his solo tour, "An Evening With Stephen Stills," beginning with a June 15 date at the Music Hall in Toronto.

Decaydance/Fueled By Ramen recording group The Academy Is... has unveiled initial details of their eagerly anticipated fall tour.

The coast-to-coast headline trek -- dubbed the "Sleeping With Giants Tour" -- will take off September 5th in Milwaukee, with dates running non-stop through a Chicago hometown finale on November 28th. A full itinerary and on-sale information will be announced shortly. Joining The Academy Is... on the trip will be special guests The Rocket Summer, Sherwood, and the band's longtime friends, Armor For Sleep.

Selected as one of AOL Music's "Breakers," The Academy Is... is now on the road wowing crowds as part of this year's Honda Civic Tour alongside Fall Out Boy, +44, Paul Wall, and Cobra Starship. The massive 42-city itinerary will continue to travel North America through July 2nd at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

Rush -- Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart -- kick off their much-anticipated "SNAKES & ARROWS TOUR" on June 13th in Atlanta. The launch of the global trek -- the band's first full-scale world tour since 2004 -- follows an impressive #3 debut on the Billboard 200 for the band's new Anthem/Atlantic album, "SNAKES & ARROWS."

Rush has just announced advance ticket sales for their September 17th show at Madison Square Garden in New York City -- the final U.S. date on the tour (see itinerary). Advance tickets are available through an exclusive Rush fan pre-sale beginning today and ending this Thursday, June 14th. In addition, American Express Cardmembers can purchase tickets this week before they go on sale to the general public on June 16th.

Multi-platinum singer Josh Groban will be heading back to the U.S. in July to continue part two of his hugely successful AWAKE Tour, it was confirmed today by Reprise Records.

Groban, who has been performing all over Europe and Australia in conjunction with his worldwide hit album "AWAKE" (currently No. 12 in the UK), will be resuming his performances in the States beginning July 17 in Greenville, SC.

The Festival's Cinema Tent Takes on New Dimensions AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) , Superfly Productions and A.C. Entertainment have announced that AT&T blue room music will host the exclusive live webcast of the 2007 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival.

From Friday, June 15, through Sunday, June 17, fans not fortunate enough to attend this year's festival can still take part in the Bonnaroo experience by going to AT&T blue room music to see exclusive, live performances from the event. The site will be the next best thing to being on the 700-acre farm in Manchester, Tenn.

more info