Hill sorry for being 'playful' at CMAAs
NASHVILLE, Nov. 7 (UPI) -- Nashville superstar Faith Hill says she was kidding around when TV cameras at the Country Music Association Awards caught her grousing about losing an award.
When Carrie Underwood was revealed as the female vocalist of the year Monday night, ABC's cameras caught nominee Hill throwing up her arms and apparently shouting "What?" before moving out of camera range.
Hill released a statement Tuesday, saying: "The idea that I would act disrespectful towards a fellow musician is unimaginable to me.
"For this to become a focus of attention given the talent gathered is utterly ridiculous. Carrie is a talented and deserving female vocalist of the year."
Hill's manager, Gary Borman, said the cameras merely caught Hill "being playful while the nominations were being read and playful after."
Led Zeppelin pulls out of Jack Black film
CHICAGO, Nov. 7 (UPI) -- Led Zeppelin originally approved the use of "Stairway to Heaven" in the upcoming Tenacious D film, but demanded the song be pulled after the scene was filmed.
Jack Black wanted to use "Stairway to Heaven," as part of a gag in his new movie "Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny," the Chicago Sun-Times reported Tuesday.
The scene was set in a mock Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in California. All of the groups depicted in this fake museum had to give permission to use their name, music and song titles.
Black and his "D" partner, Kyle Gass, had a moment when they were going to climb a huge staircase with a flashing neon sign "Stairway to Heaven."
"The Beatles said yes to having their image in the scene. Many groups said no problem," said director Liam Lynch. "Zeppelin was a problem. They gave us permission and withdrew it after we filmed the scene with a huge 'Stairway to Heaven.' They said no and we had to re-shoot that part of the movie."
"We ended up calling the staircase 'Guitarway to Heaven,' " said Lynch. "And we were like f-- you. I don't really want to get into it more. We also had problems with the Sex Pistols."
Man sentenced to 4 years for DVD piracy
LONDON, Nov. 7 (UPI) -- A Chinese man has been sentenced to four years in jail for his role in a DVD piracy operation in London.
Zhong Li was given one of the strongest ever sentences for film piracy in Britain, he was also recommended for deportation at the end of his sentence, the Daily Variety reported Tuesday.
Li was sentenced to one year in prison for breaching the video recordings act, four years for an offense under the copyright, designs and patents act, one year under the Trade Marks Act and four years for contravening the obscene publications act. The sentences are to run concurrently.
About 30,000 DVDs were seized in the raid on Li's premises. Nearly half of them were pornographic, authorities said.
The director general of the Federation Against Copyright Theft, Kieron Sharp, told Daily Variety: "This result is a significant one as it shows that the courts are prepared to punish more severely those who aim to profit from film piracy. The strong custodial sentence sends a very strong reminder to film pirates at every level that this is a serious crime type being dealt with increasingly harshly."
'Shrek the Halls' on ABC
NEW YORK, Nov. 7 (UPI) -- ABC and DreamWorks Animation have teamed to produce a "Shrek" holiday special in December 2007 called "Shrek the Halls."
The half-hour special will pick up where the storyline to next summer's "Shrek the Third" leaves off, the Daily Variety reported Tuesday.
"Shrek the Halls" revolves around Christmas at the swamp as Shrek and his friends prepare for the holiday.
Mike Myers (Shrek), Cameron Diaz (Fiona), Eddie Murphy (Donkey) and Antonio Banderas (Puss in Boots), are signed to participate in "Shrek the Halls."
DreamWorks Animation Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Katzenberg said the idea for the special came from a conversation with ABC Entertainment President Steve McPherson.
"Steve and I were together one day, and he mentioned to me that he was trying to find a new Christmas special," Katzenberg told Daily Variety. "They had great success last Christmas with their holiday-themed specials. So I brainstormed with our team, and we came back to him with the idea of 'Shrek the Halls.'"
