‘ISHTAR’: BOOS & !!!!!!

So what does Calendar really think of “Ishtar?”

First Outtakes (May 17) basks in the printing of negative reviews from Time magazine to the Herald-Examiner, but somehow failing to mention that its own critic (yes, Sheila Benson, May 15) liked the movie and (gasp) even recommended it. Then we get not just a story on why “Ishtar” will fail to make money until the mid-1990s, but a cover story (“ ‘Ishtar’ and the High Cost of Comedy,” by Pat H. Broeske, May 31).

What did Warren Beatty-Dustin Hoffman-Elaine May (or was it Columbia) do to warrant such affection? I know, I bet you’re all Pepsi drinkers. How a letter (May 24) from someone who actually liked the movie ever got printed is beyond me.

It’s just too bad Calendar doesn’t use its valuable space to write about really good non-$50-million budget movies coming out this summer, like “La Bamba,” “Adventures in Babysitting” and “Roxanne,” all excellent movies that hopefully the audiences will find.

LIPS MALONE

Los Angeles