'Dreamgirls' leads nominees
LOS ANGELES, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- The musical "Dreamgirls," amassed eight nominations for the 79th Academy Awards Tuesday but wasn't given the nod for Best Picture.
Nominations for this year's Academy Awards, to be presented Feb. 25, found "Babel," "The Departed," "Little Miss Sunshine," "Letters From Iwo Jima" and "The Queen" the finalists for Best Picture.
Of the acting awards, "Dreamgirls" picked up nominations in the supporting categories for Jennifer Hudson and Eddie Murphy for their Golden Globe-winning performances.
Ten-year-old Abigail Breslin was nominated for her supporting role in "Little Miss Sunshine." If she wins, she would replace Tatum O'Neal as the youngest Oscar recipient.
Nominees for Best Actress were Penelope Cruz, "Volvar"; Judi Dench, "Notes on a Scandal"; Helen Mirren, "The Queen"; Meryl Streep, "The Devil Wears Prada"; and Kate Winslet, "Little Children."
In the Best Actor category, the nominees were Leonardo DeCaprio, "Blood Diamond"; Ryan Gosling, "Half Nelson"; Peter O'Toole, "Venus"; Will Smith, "The Pursuit of Happyness"; and Forest Whittaker, "The Last King of Scotland."
Revisit NC-17 rating, MPAA chief asks
PARK CITY, Utah, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- MPAA chairman Dan Glickman asked independent movie executives at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah to embrace the NC-17 movie rating for edgier fare.
The Motion Picture Association of America chief told the group that the Classification & Ratings Administration had appointed a liaison to help filmmakers with questions about the ratings process, Variety said. Independent filmmakers have expressed frustration with the Hollywood rating system, saying it is veiled in mystery.
Glickman's meeting Monday officially kicked off his campaign to make the MPAA ratings system more transparent and user-friendly.
Ratings have already come up during Sundance. The Weinstein Co. and Lionsgate picked up "Teeth," a dark comedy about a girl who has teeth in her vagina. Harvey Weinstein said he doesn't want to cut the movie for an R rating. Lionsgate can release an unrated movie since it's not a member studio of MPAA.
The NC-17 rating was created to take the stigma out of the X rating, but never caught on.
"We are going to talk about this with the Directors Guild of America and (National Association of Theatre Owners)," Glickman said. "It's one of our ratings, and I'd like to see it used more."
Caldecott, Newbery awards distributed
CHICAGO, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- A book by U.S. folk singer Pete Seeger and an underwater picture book were children's book winners announced by the American Library Association.
Seeger and co-author Paul DuBois Jacobs received the Schneider Family Book Award for "books that embody the artistic expression of the disability experience." "The Deaf Musicians" tells the story of a boy who, with other deaf performers, forms a jazz group that becomes a sensation for its nightly subway concerts.
The Randolph Caldecott Medal for best picture book went to "Flotsam," featuring photos taken by a vintage underwater camera and narrated by David Wiesner, now a three-time Caldecott winner.
The John Newbery Medal for overall excellence was awarded to Susan Patron's "The Higher Power of Lucky," which follows a 10-year-old girl in her search for a "Higher Power," the Chicago Tribune said Tuesday.
The young adult graphic novel "American Born Chinese" by Gene Luen Yang won the Michael L. Printz Award.
The Coretta Scott King award went to "Copper Sun" by Sharon Draper.
The late author-illustrator James Marshall won the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award for contributions to children's literature.
Lois Lowry received the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement.
Band, Coca-Cola settle in song, video use
LONDON, Jan. 23 (UPI) -- A British band reached a settlement with soft drink giant Coca-Cola over the company's use of the band's material in a television commercial.
The band, 7 Seconds of Love, argued that Coke used its song "Ninja" and kitten-filled video without permission in a South American advertisement, the BBC said.
Coca-Cola agreed to an out-of-court settlement of an undisclosed amount.
"They have a policy of not litigating against bands and we came to a nice agreement," said the band's lead singer and the video's animator, Joel Veitch.
Veitch told the BBC a portion of the settlement would be donated to two British charities, while the rest of the money would be spent on the band.
The video for the band's ska-tinged "Ninja" was created in 2005.
