Hollywood Digest

RON HOWARD BACK ON ALAMO 'PROJECT'?

Maybe Ron Howard will not forget "The Alamo" after all.

Following reports that the Oscar-winning director ("A Beautiful Mind") had decided to leave it to someone else to direct a big-budget epic about the 1836 siege at what has become known as Shrine of Texas Liberty, there is now word that Howard is reconsidering.

After Howard let it be known that he would not direct the picture, Disney turned to John Lee Hancock -- the director of this year's surprise feel-good hit, "The Rookie," who happens to hail from Texas. Now, Daily Variety reports that Howard and his Imagine Entertainment partner Brian Grazer are still working with "Traffic" writer Stephen Gaghan on a screenplay -- and keeping open the possibility that Howard might direct "The Alamo."

According to Variety, unresolved issues include budget questions and whether the movie will carry an R-rating. Howard reportedly wants to retain the option of delivering an R-rating, with a production budget in the neighborhood of $125 million.

The paper said that if Disney decides not to do it Howard's way, the studio simultaneously runs the risk of losing a marquee name from the project. Russell Crowe was reportedly set to play Alamo hero Sam Houston so he could work again with his "Beautiful Mind" director -- and would not be expected to stay on board if Howard does not direct "The Alamo."

MORE BLUES FOR BASEBALL

Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig's decision to call Tuesday's All-Star Game after 11 innings was seen by a record-low number of viewers.

Fox TV's telecast easily won the Tuesday night ratings race, but it did so with the lowest rating ever for the Midsummer Classic -- with an average of 14.65 million viewers. That represents a 9 percent drop from last year, and a 1 percent drop from the previous low, set in 2000 when NBC had the game.

At its peak -- 9:30 p.m. EDT -- the game only had 16.57 million viewers.

DANNY GLOVER'S NEW DEAL

Danny Glover ("Lethal Weapon," "Lonesome Dove") has signed a deal with CBS to develop and star in a series for the network in 2003-04.

If the deal actually leads to a show on CBS' primetime schedule, it would be Glover's first starring role in a series. He has been nominated for four Emmys -- for "Mandela" (1988), "Lonesome Dove" (1989), "Fallen Angels" (1996) and "Freedom Song" (2000).

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Screen Actors Guild have published the schedules for voting on the 75th Annual Academy Awards and the 9th Annual SAG Awards.

Dec. 2 is the deadline for the Academy to receive official screen credits to qualify feature films for 2002 Oscars. Nomination ballots will be mailed on Jan. 10, 2003 and nominations will be announced on Feb. 11.

The Academy will put the final ballots in the mail on Feb. 25. Voting members will have until 5 p.m. March 18 to return their ballots, and the Oscars will be presented on March 23, 2003 at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.

SAG will accept submissions for nomination until Nov. 22, and mail nominations ballots to members on Jan. 3. Nominations ballots must be returned by 12:00 p.m. PST on Jan. 24, and nominations will be announced on Jan. 28.

Final ballots will be mailed on Feb. 11, and must be returned by March 7. The SAG Awards will be presented on March 9.

HONORS FOR SCORSESE

Organizers of the Hollywood Film Festival have announced that the group will present Martin Scorsese with the Hollywood Outstanding Achievement in Directing Award at its Hollywood Movie Awards ceremony on Oct. 7 in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Scorsese -- a five-time Oscar nominee -- is being honored for a career that includes such modern day film classics as "Raging Bull," "Taxi Driver" and "GoodFellas." He will pick up the Hollywood Film Festival award at roughly the same time as he hits the promotion trail to push his upcoming holiday release, "Gangs of New York," starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis and Cameron Diaz.

Festival organizers also announced that Oscar-winning producer Douglas Wick ("Gladiator") and his producing partner Lucy Fisher ("Stuart Little 2") will receive the Hollywood Outstanding Achievement in Producing Award, and Oscar-winning writer Robert Towne ("Chinatown") will receive the Hollywood Outstanding Achievement in Screenwriting Award.

Two-time Oscar-winning cinematographer Janusz Kaminski ("Saving Private Ryan," "Schindler's List") will be honored with the Hollywood Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography Award. Five-time Oscar-nominee Marc Shaiman -- who composed the scores for "The American President," "The First Wives Club," "Patch Adams," "Sleepless in Seattle" and "South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut" -- will receive the Hollywood Outstanding Achievement in Music-in-Film Award.