MOVIESOpus No. 1: “Mr. Holland’s Opus” scored...

MOVIES

Opus No. 1: “Mr. Holland’s Opus” scored at the box office during Super Bowl weekend, which typically sidelines moviegoing. The Hollywood Pictures’ film starring Richard Dreyfuss took the top spot with $8.1 million, according to early industry estimates. New Line’s “Bed of Roses,” a romantic comedy with appeal to the non-Super Bowl crowd, was in second place its first weekend in release with $6.3 million. Miramax’s thriller “From Dusk Till Dawn” came in third with $5.1 million, down from first place last weekend. In fourth was Universal’s “12 Monkeys” with $4 million followed by Paramount’s “Eye for an Eye” with $3.8 million. A box-office note: The Samuel Goldwyn Co.’s “Angels and Insects,” which played in two theaters in New York City, did an impressive $18,860 per screen. The movie about the decadence of a Victorian family starring Patsy Kensit opens in Los Angeles on Feb. 9.

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A Reel Coincidence: If you ask filmmaker Neil Mandt, life really does imitate art. When Mandt heard that 10 rolls of film from actor-director Kevin Spacey’s upcoming movie “Albino Alligator” were stolen from the baggage claim area at LAX last week, the story sounded a little too familiar. Mandt is about to finish post-production on an independent movie about a production assistant who steals 10 reels of a feature film from LAX. The movie, “Hijacking Hollywood,” produced and directed by Mandt, stars Henry Thomas (“E.T.” and “Legends of the Fall.”). Mandt is planning to show his film at the Cannes Film Festival this spring. Meanwhile, the real missing rolls were still missing.

AWARDS

ACE in the Hole: Director John Frankenheimer (“The Manchurian Candidate,” HBO’s “The Burning Season”) will receive the American Cinema Editors’ coveted ACE Golden Eddie Filmmaker of the Year Award during the 46th annual Eddie Awards ceremonies March 16 at the Beverly Hilton. The special award recognizes individuals “who have made significant contributions to the advancement of motion pictures.” Previous honorees include Robert Altman, Francis Ford Coppola, Clint Eastwood, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg.

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Carrying the Torch: Producer-director Rob Reiner will be honored by the ACLU Foundation of Southern California at its annual Torch of Liberty Dinner on March 11 at the Century Plaza. Reiner will receive the Torch of Liberty award, which recognizes people in the entertainment field whose creative work affirms the democratic principles embodied in “liberty and justice for all.” The foundation will commend Reiner for accurately presenting the ACLU in the story line of his film “The American President.” The movie’s cast members Annette Bening, Michael Douglas, Richard Dreyfuss and Martin Sheen are set to attend the event, as is Rob’s famous father, Carl Reiner.

TELEVISION

Out of Colombia: Jorge Ramos, anchorman of the U.S.-based Spanish-language television news network Univision (KMEX-TV Channel 34 in Los Angeles), was escorted out of Colombia by state security police last week after receiving anonymous death threats. Ramos boarded a flight bound for Miami. The anchorman was one of a select group of television and print journalists who were granted interviews with Fernando Botero, President Ernesto Samper’s former defense minister and campaign manager. Botero, who is jailed and awaiting trial on drug-corruption charges stemming from Samper’s 1994 election campaign, broke a five-month silence in the interviews to say that Samper knowingly accepted money from the Cali drug cartel to help win the presidency.

POP/ROCK

Whole Lotta Controversy: Rocker Jerry Lee Lewis wants to stop a British theater production based on his music. “Whole Lotta Shakin’ ” was made without his consent and does not accurately portray his life, according to his lawyers, who are trying to prevent its opening at the Belgrade Theatre in Coventry on Tuesday. The theater says it’s selling $3,000 worth of tickets a day and insists the show will go on, claiming it doesn’t need Lewis’ approval.

QUICK TAKES

“Malibu Shores,” a new series from “Melrose Place” and “Beverly Hills, 90210” producer Aaron Spelling, will premiere on NBC March 9 with a two-hour broadcast at 8 p.m. The show’s regular time slot will be Saturdays at 8 p.m., the spot being vacated by “JAG,” which moves to Wednesdays on March 13. . . . Actress Kathy Najimy will be a guest star in three episodes of CBS’ “Chicago Hope” airing Feb. 5, 12 and 26. Najimy will play a psychiatrist battling her own manic depression. . . . Oscar-winning producer-director Robert Wise (“West Side Story,” “Sound of Music”) will host a five-part series on KCET-TV Channel 28 showcasing the best student work from four L.A. film schools--the American Film Institute, CalArts, UCLA and USC. “Fine Cut: A Festival of Student Art,” will air from 10-11 p.m. Feb. 19-23. . . . Soap opera creator and writer Agnes Nixon (“All My Children,” “One Life to Live”) will be saluted by Carol Burnett, Oprah Winfrey, Judith Light and others when she receives the annual Editors’ Award at “The 12th Annual Soap Opera Digest Awards,” airing Feb. 14 on NBC.