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Of Human Interest: News-lite

By PENNY NELSON BARTHOLOMEW, United Press International
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OSCAR, HOW WE LOVE YA'

Yes, movie fans will still be able to camp out on the sidewalks of Hollywood in hope of snagging coveted bleacher seats along the red carpet for the upcoming Oscars.

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But they'll have to jump through some hoops to get there.

For the first time, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will pre-assign bleacher seats by advance reservation only. Fans who want bleacher seats will first need to fill out an application and provide two forms of identification.

The new order is, in part, a response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, but academy spokeswoman Leslie Unger said it is primarily motivated by logistics. This year's awards are being presented for the first time at the Oscars' new permanent home, the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.

The application for bleacher seats will be available at the academy's Web site (oscars.org) beginning Wednesday. It will also be available by e-mail ([email protected]) or by telephone (310-247-3000, ext. 140). The paperwork must be returned to the academy by March 1. Bleacher seat reservations will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis -- and no one will get a seat without going through a security screening that will include passing through a metal detector.

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In the past, first come, first-served meant camping out in sleeping bags and tents outside the bleacher site for up to four days prior to the Oscars. The Kodak Theatre is located at Hollywood Blvd. and Highland Ave. -- in the heart of the Hollywood business district -- and local merchants made it clear to city officials and the academy that they don't want hundreds of people sleeping on the sidewalks in front of their stores for days before the Academy Awards.

(Thanks to UPI Hollywood Reporter Pat Nason)


SEPT. 11 MOVIE

CBS has acquired the rights to a never-before-broadcast video of the World Trade Center attack from French filmmakers Gedeon and Jules Naudet. The eyewitness story will air March 10 in a two-hour "CBS Special Presentation" (9-11 p.m. ET/PT).

On Sept. 11, the Naudet brothers were in lower Manhattan taping a documentary on the Engine 7, Ladder 1 firefighters when Jules suddenly heard a roar from above and turned his camera upward. In doing so, he captured the only known video of the first plane striking the World Trade Center.

Cameras still rolling, Jules followed the firefighters to what would soon become known as Ground Zero. Gedeon also rushed to the scene with members of Ladder 1.

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During the next several hours, Gedeon and Jules Naudet captured video unlike any broadcast since -- including 45 minutes of footage from inside the North Tower as the rescue effort was underway and dramatic scenes of escape in the minutes before the building collapsed.

The Naudet brothers, along with Ladder 1 firefighter James Hanlon, are donating proceeds from the project to the Uniformed Firefighters Association Scholarship Fund for the family members of firefighters. The March 10 broadcast will include information about how viewers can also support the fund.


BEAM ME UP, SCOTTY!

Paramount and EarthLink have joined forces to create the first "Star Trek"-themed Internet Service Provider.

The new online service, StarTrek.net, is being launched in conjunction with the premiere season of "Enterprise," the fifth TV series in the franchise (counting the Saturday morning cartoon show that ran in the early 1970s).

Besides EarthLink Internet access, subscribers to StarTrek.net will get authentic "Trek" theming of their online software and browser, a StarTrek.net e-mail address, desktop customization options, and access to exclusive "Star Trek" content.

(Sign-up is available through Paramount's StarTrek.com Web site or by calling 1-866-TREKLINK.)


REASONS TO CELEBRATE TODAY:

WEDNESDAY: This is Pay-A-Compliment Day.

And New Zealand celebrates the national holiday of Waitangi Day, which commemorates the 1840 signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. The pact between the native Maori people and European settlers allowed the development of New Zealand.

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(Thanks to Chase's 2002 Calendar of Events)


BY THE WAY...

Why are admirers of the late Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie called Rastafarians?

Selassie was formerly known as Ras Tafari; hence the name of the political/religious Rastafarian movement.

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