Quick Takes: Oscar narrows documentaries to 15

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Thursday announced its list of the 15 films that are still in the running for this year’s feature documentary Oscar.

The most visible documentaries of the year — Charles Ferguson’s “Inside Job” (about the financial system meltdown) and Davis Guggenheim’s “Waiting for ‘Superman’ ” (about the U.S. education system) — both made the cut after being left off the International Documentary Awards list of nominees.

Other veteran documentary filmmakers were recognized too: Alex Gibney’s “Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer” is on the list, as is “Waste Land” by Lucy Walker.

The other 11: “Exit Through the Gift Shop,” “Gasland,” “Genius Within: The Inner Life of Glenn Gould,” “The Lottery,” “The Tillman Story,” “Precious Life,” “Quest for Honor,” “Restrepo,” “This Way of Life,” “Enemies of the People” and “William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe.”

The documentary branch members will now select the five nominees, which will be announced in January. The Oscars will be handed out Feb. 27.

—Nicole Sperling

Mystery writers honor Paretsky

The Mystery Writers of America has chosen Chicago author Sara Paretsky to receive the group’s top honor next year.

The group announced Thursday that it would present Paretsky its Grand Master award in April in New York, lauding her for challenging a genre where “women typically played minor or passive roles.”

Paretsky created feisty female private detective V.I. Warshawski in the 1982 novel “Indemnity Only.” Her latest book, “Body Work,” was released earlier this year and is the 14th installment in the Warshawski series.

—Associated Press

Boyle matches

a Beatles feat

Singing sensation Susan Boyle has a No. 1 album in the United States and the United Kingdom simultaneously for the second time in a year — a feat not achieved for more than 40 years.

Her record label, Sony, said she is the first woman to reach the milestone achieved previously by the Beatles in 1969 and The Monkees in 1967.

Boyle said she has “never felt happier” than seeing “The Gift” match her first record’s successful debut. “The Gift” reached No. 1 in the U.K. on Sunday and topped the U.S. charts Wednesday.

The eccentric Scot shot to international fame after her audition for the TV show “Britain’s Got Talent” received more than 120 million views on YouTube. Boyle’s first album, “I Dreamed a Dream,” came out in 2009 and has sold more than 10 million copies.

—Associated Press

‘Glee’ announces Super Bowl plan

“Glee” may have decided to pass on doing a tribute episode for its post-Super Bowl outing, but it’s still finding a way to incorporate the King of Pop. The show will do a mash-up of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and another song for the post-Super Bowl episode, a Fox representative confirmed.

The episode will also feature covers of Black Eyed Peas, Lady Antebellum and Katy Perry songs.

In keeping with the sports-themed nature of the evening, the episode will revolve around the local football championship and Sue Sylvester’s cheerleading regionals.

—Vlada Gelman

Musician’s estate sues his first son

The Ray Charles Foundation has filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles against the late soul singer’s eldest child, Ray Charles Robinson Jr.

Robinson is accused of several acts of copyright infringement stemming from the use of a photograph and several of Charles’ songs in the book he released in June, “You Don’t Know Me: Reflections of My Father, Ray Charles.”

The foundation, which Charles assigned as the owner of his copyrights and intellectual property rights upon his death in 2004, alleges that Robinson’s book made use of the cover photo and titles and lyrics of four of his songs without permission.

The action filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles seeks $150,000 for each copyright violation and also names as defendants Crown Publishing and Crown’s parent company, Random House, and Robinson’s co-author, Mary Jane Ross.

Neither Robinson nor Random House officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

—Randy Lewis

Finally

Holiday music: The jingle bells are ringing at KOST-FM (103.5). The station launched its annual all-holiday-music playlist on Wednesday afternoon; it will continue through Christmas Day.

Painting prize: Actor Robert De Niro has established a $25,000 annual prize for a U.S. painter in honor of his artist father, who died in 1993.

Late night: Jay Leno and David Letterman tied for the lead in late-night audience last week, averaging 3.7 million viewers. Conan O’Brien averaged 2.9 million.