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The Los Angeles Times Delivers ‘The Envelope’ for Season’s Entertainment Awards Race

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LOS ANGELES, November 5, 2007 – The Envelope (https://www.theenvelope.com/), the entertainment awards insider from the Los Angeles Times, heralds the arrival of awards’ season with today’s launch of the site’s redesigned homepage, new editorial staff, increased coverage, upgrades and online features. In addition, The Times unveils the editorial line-up for the return of its exclusive 11-part print series and debuts The Envelope Screening Series, Presented by Mercedes-Benz.

Online, in print and on screen The Envelope is further establishing itself as the leading source for up-to-the-minute inside information for all industry denizens actively engaged in the awards season race, while providing advertisers and movie studios a unique platform in reaching a highly influential and captivated audience. Uniquely, The Envelope is also the go-to destination for consumers drawn to the excitement of The Oscars®, Grammys®, Golden Globes®, etc. “The Envelope has made the Los Angeles Times the frontrunner for unique coverage of the race from the inside,” said Rob Barrett, general manager of latimes.com and vice president of the Los Angeles Times Media Group. “With these new enhancements, The Envelope provides both entertainment industry and savvy consumers’ fresh topical coverage of all the behind-the-scenes politicking and celebrity campaigning that accompany every award season.” TheEnvelope.com, known for its rich content, in-depth reporting, insider forums, weekly video reports, curated photo galleries, expert discussion blogs and analysis of award shows, has tapped Sheigh Crabtree as its new editor and brought in several new columnists, set to deliver a fresh take on the competition with “Notes on a Season,” Pete Hammond’s insider analysis on the Oscar® race and “Extended Play,” Todd Martens’ deeper music biz coverage and expert analysis on that industry’s major awards shows including the Grammy’s®, AMA’s and CMA’s as well as film-music awards showdowns at the Golden Globes® and Oscars®. In addition, visitors to the site can now find “Contender Countdown,” a weekly interactive feature showcasing editors picks for the top 10 films; “Awards Buzz and Rumors,” a daily collection of news and buzz from around the web written by Los Angeles Times contributor Mark Olsen; and increased multimedia coverage including “Red Carpet Reports,” video reports from premieres, private parties and events. These new features will run alongside The Envelope’s current favorites, including Hollywood award guru, Tom O’Neil’s “The Gold Derby” and “The Dish Rag,” penned by Elizabeth Snead. Complementing the web site in its second season will be an 11-part Times print series beginning with the Awards Preview issue on November 7th. Each edition will offer a lineup of new and regular features, including the addition of Patrick Goldstein’s “The Big Picture Conversation” with key industry leaders and existing reads such as the Buzzmeter chart, where a diverse group of industry pundits gauge who’s hot and who’s not in key awards races. Other issues will include: Best Actor (Part One) 11/14; Animation/Crafts 11/21; Best Song/Score 12/5; Writer/Director 12/12; Best Picture/Foreign Film/Documentary 12/19; Best Actor (Part Two) & SAG Awards™ 1/2; Golden Globes® 1/9; Nominations 1/30; Grammy’s® 2/6; and Oscar® Preview 2/20.

“The Los Angeles Times has always been a leading resource for in-depth coverage of the entertainment industry,” said John Montorio, managing editor, features at The Times. “With The Envelope we’re expanding our reach in providing readers with unparalleled access to Hollywood’s spectacular awards season race with compelling content and unrivaled news and commentary.”

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This year also marks the mid-November launch of the inaugural The Envelope Screening Series, Presented by Mercedes-Benz, an exclusive showcase of eight of this year’s leading award contenders selected in consultation with The Times editorial staff. Hosted at The Landmark, West Los Angeles’ elegant new theater complex and followed by intimate conversations featuring a mix of actors, writers and directors from each film, each event will be moderated by writers from The Times and The Envelope. Streaming video from the panel discussions will be made available on TheEnvelope.com, but attendance is limited to industry guild members and site promotion winners. Films showcased will include: “The Kite Runner,” followed by a conversation with screenwriter David Benioff and actors Shaun Toub and Atossa Leoni; “Reservation Road,” with special guest actor Mark Ruffalo; “The Savages,” with a conversation featuring actress Laura Linney and director Tamara Jenkins; “American Gangster,” followed by a discussion with producer Brian Grazer and screenwriter Steve Zaillian; “Juno,” featuring a discussion with director Jason Reitman, screenwriter Diablo Cody and actors Ellen Page and Jason Bateman; “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly,” with a conversation with director Julian Schnabel; “ Charlie Wilson’s War,” followed by a discussion with Aaron Sorkin; and “Atonement,” followed by Q&A with actor James McAvoy and director Joe Wright.

“Consumers can’t get enough of what goes on behind the scenes in Hollywood and The Envelope gives them a unique perspective on the inner workings of the business,” said Lynne Segall, vice president of entertainment and fashion advertising at The Times. “More importantly, The Envelope drives box office for movies in release and raises awareness for films soon to hit theaters as well as Academy consideration for award season contenders.”

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About the Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is the largest metropolitan daily newspaper in the country, with a daily readership of 2.2 million and 3.2 million on Sunday. The Los Angeles Times and its media businesses and affiliates – including latimes.com, The Envelope/theenvelope.com, Times Community Newspapers, Hoy, and California Community News – reach approximately 8.1 million or 62% of all adults in the Southern California marketplace.The Pulitzer Prize-winning Los Angeles Times, has been covering Southern California for over 125 years and is part of Tribune Company ( NYSE: TRB), one of the country’s leading media companies with businesses in publishing, the Internet and broadcasting. Additional information about the Los Angeles Times is available at www.latimes.com/mediacenter.

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