In the news
Elizabeth Smart's parents sign book, movie deals
By Times Wires
© St. Petersburg Times
published August 22, 2003
SALT LAKE CITY - A two-hour CBS television movie about Elizabeth Smart's nine-month kidnapping ordeal is expected to be aired in November, her father said Thursday.
The story will be told from the viewpoint of her parents, Ed and Lois Smart, who have also signed a book deal about the kidnapping.
"We're pleased. We think CBS is going to do a good job," Smart told the Associated Press. He referred questions to CBS. The network refused comment Thursday.
The Smart parents have signed a deal with Doubleday Books to tell their story in Bringing Elizabeth Home: A Journey of Faith and Hope. That book is scheduled for release on Oct. 28, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Calls seeking comment from Doubleday were not returned Thursday.
Elizabeth, 15, was abducted from her bedroom June 5, 2002. In March, she was found in a Salt Lake suburb with her alleged kidnappers, Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee.
Albums by Studdard, Aiken get release dates
American Idol runner-up Clay Aiken's album will arrive in stores about a month before that of winner Ruben Studdard's Soulful.
Aiken's album, not yet titled, will hit stores Oct. 14. Studdard's album arrives Nov. 11.
Studdard told the Associated Press on Thursday that Aiken's disc is already finished, while he's still working on his.
"He got his album done fairly quickly; with me, I had my own press junket, so studio time was very limited," said Studdard, who is on the American Idol tour along with Aiken and other stars of the Fox television talent show.
Studdard narrowly beat Aiken in May to win the Idol contest.
Group: "CSI' least family-friendly show on TV
Television's most popular program, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, is also its least family-friendly, a watchdog group said Thursday.
The Parents Television Council criticized the CBS drama for stories about cannibalism, S&M sex clubs and snuff films.
What's worse is that CBS occasionally reruns the show at the 8p.m. hour when more children are likely to be watching, said Melissa Caldwell, research director for the 800,000-member organization that monitors sex and violence on TV. The group released its annual list of the best and worst prime-time shows.
CBS spokesman Chris Ender said that while the council's goals are noble, "to put the label worst in front of CSI in any capacity is pretty ridiculous. Thankfully, 26-million viewers a week don't agree."
The organization saluted CBS's Touched By an Angel, which just ended its nine-year run, as television's best show.
Bass player for the Searchers dies
Tony Jackson, bass player for the Searchers, a Liverpool band best known for the 1964 song Needles and Pins, has died. He was 63.
Mr. Jackson died Monday in a hospital in Nottingham, England, several newspapers and the Searchers' Web site reported. He had been ill for some time with ailments including arthritis and cirrhosis of the liver.
Mr. Jackson sang and played bass for the Searchers, a Liverpool band that briefly rivaled the Beatles for popularity in the early 1960s. Needles and Pins made the top 20 in the United States after it was released in 1964.
Mr. Jackson quit the group that year. His followup band failed to score and he drifted out of the music business.
There was no immediate word on survivors or funeral details.
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