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MORNING REPORT - News from Dec. 12, 2000

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TV & MOVIES

Downey Charged: Felony drug charges were formally filed Monday against actor Robert Downey Jr. stemming from his arrest last month at a Palm Springs hotel. Riverside County prosecutors chargxed Downey with felony possession of cocaine, felony possession of the prescription depressant diazepam (Valium), and a misdemeanor count of being under the influence of a controlled substance. Each felony count carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison, and the misdemeanor up to a year in jail, but the most state prison time Downey could serve consecutively if convicted on all charges is four years and eight months, the prosecutor said Monday. Downey’s lawyer said last week that the actor would enter a not-guilty plea at his arraignment Dec. 27. The soonest the case could go to trial is 90 days after the arraignment, the prosecutor said.

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Back on the Beat: ABC’s “NYPD Blue” kicks off its eighth season Jan. 9, with Garcelle Beauvais (“The Jamie Foxx Show”) joining the cast on Jan. 30 as an assistant district attorney who bumps heads with the show’s detectives. With “Blue” reclaiming its longtime Tuesday, 10 p.m. time slot, the Sela Ward-Billy Campbell drama “Once and Again,” which had been airing there, moves to Wednesdays at 10 p.m., starting Jan. 10. That pushes the hospital drama “Gideon’s Crossing,” with Andre Braugher, to Mondays at 10 p.m., starting Jan. 15.

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Frontier Survivors: PBS is continuing its take on the reality genre with “Frontier House,” a six-part series that will follow three groups of people living in primitive housing conditions from the 1800s. Unlike CBS’ “Survivor,” however, the PBS show won’t have a cash prize for its participants. Two families will be cast for the series, along with a third group that will either be friends or an unmarried couple. Set in a secluded area of Montana, participants will relive the lives of enrollees in the federal Homestead Act. Each group will receive 160 acres, livestock and either a very primitive frontier-style home or the materials to build one. They will have no modern appliances, grocery stores or plumbing, and will cook on open-flame stoves, plant gardens and make their own butter and soap. PBS’ film crews will document the six-month experience for airing in 2002. The series is a follow-up to the British “1900 House” that aired on PBS earlier this year, in which a modern-day family lived in turn-of-the-century fashion.

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‘Blair Witch’ Settlement: A producer who helped shape “The Blair Witch Project” has settled his lawsuit against other creators of the hit movie, receiving an undisclosed sum in addition to a “pre-production supervisor” credit on future releases and airings of the film, his publicist said. Sam Barber’s Barber’s Shop Productions also now has a three-picture “first-look” deal with “Blair Witch” distributor Artisan Pictures, which was also named in the suit. Barber had claimed that he spent thousands of dollars developing “Blair Witch,” and that writer-director Daniel Myrick and producer Gregg Hale cut him out when they shopped the movie.

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Black Film Fest: The Third Annual Hollywood Black Film Festival will be held Jan. 31-Feb. 4 at the Culver Theatre in Culver City. The event, presented by Black Talent News, will spotlight more than 50 feature, short, student and documentary films from veteran and up-and-coming filmmakers.

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Tube Notes: UPN will premiere “Gary & Mike,” a new stop-motion animation series from the producers of “The PJs,” on Jan. 12 in the Friday 8 p.m. time slot, replacing “Freedom,” which is being put on hiatus. “Gary & Mike” will also be previewed on Jan. 11 at 9:30 p.m. . . . NBC has changed the name of “Cursed” to “The Weber Show,” after star Steven Weber. The renaming, instituted because the show’s premise has changed, is effective this Thursday. . . . NBC has ordered four more episodes of its Tuesday night David Alan Grier-Delta Burke comedy “Dag.” . . . The creator of Fox’s “Malcolm in the Middle” is planning a big-screen version of the series, Daily Variety reports.

ART

Small Reprieve: The Carole & Barry Kaye Museum of Miniatures, which earlier this month revealed plans to close Jan. 1 after six years in operation, will use funds earned through a liquidation sale at its gift shop to keep the museum’s doors open through March 31, Barry Kaye said Monday. Kaye said he and his wife, who own and fund the private collection, are responding to the many calls and letters they’ve received since announcing plans to close because Carole Kaye wants to retire from managing the museum. Barry Kaye said the half-price, gift-shop sale netted $550,000--”Not enough to last, but we’re definitely going for three more months,” he said. Kaye said he hoped the public response would spur someone to take over and maintain the collection, which the Kayes have tried unsuccessfully to donate to the city or the county. The collection, which the Kayes spent $25 million to amass, is up for sale.

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Getty Gets Going Earlier: Starting today, the Getty Center will open to the public an hour earlier on weekdays in an effort to become “more visitor-oriented.” The museum’s new hours will be 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends.

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