Answering the question, "When is 10,000 less than 300?", Warner Bros. big-budget 10,000 B.C. opened with a less-than-stunning $35.7 million over the weekend, about half what last year's 300 took in over the comparable weekend. Most box-office forecasters had figured that the movie was a sure bet to take in at least $40 million and a few said it had a reasonable chance of overtaking 300 to set a new March record. The studio itself had predicted a conservative $30 million, and Warner Bros. distribution chief Dan Fellman remarked in an interview with today's (Monday) Los Angeles Times, "We hit our mark." Coming in second was Disney's family flick College Road Trip with about $14 million, slightly less than what most analysts had predicted. Also opening was Lionsgate's favorably reviewed The Bank Job, which took in $5.7 million, on the low end of analysts' predictions. Perhaps the biggest disappointment of all was the quick play-out of last weekend's Semi Pro, which dropped 62 percent from its woeful opening to just $5.8 million, hammering another nail into New Line Cinema's coffin. Overall, the box office was down significantly for the fourth week in a row versus a year ago with total revenue for the top-twelve films estimated at $91.8 million, down 35 percent from the same weekend last year. Ticket sales are predicted to increase over the next few weeks as spring break comes early due to the early arrival of the Easter holiday this month.

The top ten films Ú for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Media by Numbers: 1. 10,000 B.C., $35.7 million; 2. College Road Trip, $14 million; 3. Vantage Point, $7.5 million; 4. Semi-Pro, $5.8 million; 5. The Bank Job, $5.7 million; 6. The Spiderwick Chronicles, $4.8 million; 7. The Other Boleyn Girl, $4 million; 8. Jumper, $3.8 million; 9. Step Up 2 the Streets, $3 million; 10. Fool's Gold, $2.8 million.

The major studios are close to reaching agreement with the major exhibitors on a deal that would bring digital cinema to some 14,000 movie screens within the next year, Reuters reported on Sunday, noting that the changeover will cost an estimated $1.1 billion. A total of about 37,000 screens exist in the U.S. The 14,000 involved in the deal are owned by Regal Entertainment, Cinemark, and AMC Entertainment. Once in place digital projection systems could also be upgraded to show 3-D movies, the Reuters report observed. It quoted Michael Lewis, chairman of Real D projection systems, as saying, "3-D is the big game changer and the compelling reason for doing digital cinema." Currently there are fewer than 1,000 theaters capable of showing movies using the 3-D digital system.

Paramount has spent the past year selecting and cataloguing short clips from the thousands of movies it has produced during its long history (it is the oldest studio in Hollywood) and will make them available on Facebook beginning today (Monday), the Viacom-owned studio said over the weekend. The clips require the use of an application called VooZoo that will allow viewers to order a DVD of the whole film online. The Facebook project was reportedly developed by a Los Angeles-based company, FanRocket, which has indicated that it is in talks with other studios to bring them under the VooZoo banner, too.

Granted immunity from prosecution in return for her testimony, a former employee of Anthony Pellicano on Monday acknowledged that she transcribed wiretapped conversations recorded by the former Hollywood private eye. Tarita Virtue also said that she was able to use a software program, called Telesleuth and developed by Pellicano, that also allowed her to convert touch-tone beeps made over the telephone when Pellicano's targets made phone calls, paid for goods over the phone, or checked their bank accounts or credit-card accounts from home. She is due to resume testimony today (Monday).

The stage version of the movie Hairspray received top honors at the Olivier Awards, Britain's equivalent of the Tony Awards, Sunday night. Hairspray won for best new musical, best actor in a musical (Michael Ball), best actress in a musical (Leanne Jones), and best supporting performer in a musical (Tracie Bennett).

Asked by Home Media magazine what his "defining memory" of Star Wars was, Harrison Ford responded, "The day my accountant convinced me that the success of the film and the two sequels that I was in meant I would never be poor again. It was a very Scarlett O'Hara moment considering prior to that I was making more of a living as a carpenter than an actor." Ford indicated that he had little confidence while he was making Star Wars that it would become successful. "Whenever we would ask [director George] Lucas what we were shooting at or fleeing from he'd just tell us the special effects will be put in much later and that will explain everything," he said, adding: "George will never be known as an actor's director."

Oprah's Big Give did not give ABC the big ratings it did a week ago when it debuted, but they were still strong enough to keep ABC ahead of its competitors Sunday night. The charity/game/reality show posted a 7.7 rating and a 12 share at 9:00 p.m., down 21 percent from the 9.8/15 that it registered last week. The audience grew only slightly from ABC's 8:00 p.m. offering, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, which scored a 7.3/12. ABC's Here Come the Newlyweds, which successfully rode Oprah's coattails last week, saw its numbers decline 19 percent Sunday night as it finished in second place at 10:00 p.m. with a 6.8/12.

After relatively brief negotiations, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists has reached a tentative three-year agreement with ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC on a new contract covering all programs except those that are broadcast during primetime. Joint talks with the Screen Actors Guild covering primetime programs is expected to begin with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers later this month or early April, despite reluctance by SAG leaders to begin early bargaining. The current pact expires at the end of June. In a press release, AFTRA President Roberta Reardon called the agreement "extraordinary for performers" and noted that it included new media jurisdiction and compensation. Details were not disclosed.

The defunct WB network will be brought back to life on the Internet next month, the Hollywood Reporter reported Sunday. The trade publication said that such series as Gilmore Girls, Everwood, Dawson's Creek, Felicity and Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, will become available via streaming video on WB.com. Visitors to the site will be able to watch the programs free, except that they will be accompanied by commercials that viewers will presumably be unable to skip. The WB network merged with UPN, each of which had called itself the "Fifth Network" in 2006, forming an actual fifth broadcast network, The CW.

After denying for months a spate of rumors that his show was about to be canceled by MSNBC, Tucker Carlson has acknowledged that it has indeed been yanked and will likely go off the air at the end of this week. Several websites said over the weekend that Carlson will become a roving correspondent for the network, focusing initially on the presidential campaigns. Reporting on the shutdown, the conservative New York Post observed, "The lone conservative at the cable news channel apparently doesn't fit in at the increasingly left-leaning outfit." Although Carlson told several reporters that a formal announcement of his departure would likely be made on Tuesday, he himself provided few details about his dismissal. The Post said that he had agreed to take a substantial pay cut to remain employed.

It can be expensive to stop manufacturing a product, Japan's Pioneer Corp. indicated today (Monday) as it cut its full-year financial forecast taking into account the cost of shutting down the plants that produced its plasma TV monitors. The company took a nearly $200-million charge following the decision to close down its plasma TV operations, resulting in a net loss of about $140 million for the year versus a previous forecast of about a $60-million profit. Following the announcement, Pioneer shares dropped 8.8 percent on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, its biggest single-day drop in nearly four years.

The switch to daylight saving time over Saturday night/Sunday morning did not come off smoothly in areas of New York served by Time Warner cable, the New York Times reported today. Television shows were running on schedule, but the onscreen guide, which many people use to access those shows, was running an hour behind. Time Warner told the newspaper that the problem originated in the settop boxes, which, the Times reported, were "thrown by the adjustment to the new time, through human error, technical failure or gremlins yet to be identified."