WEEKEND BOX OFFICE : ‘Home’ Still Alone at the Top

With ticket sales of $9.8 million, Fox’s “Home Alone” continued to pace the nation’s box office. After nine weekends, the comedy averaged a sturdy $4,549 on 2,157 screens. In contrast, Paramount Pictures’ “The Godfather Part III” took a dramatic slide. Its third weekend ticket sales of $4.3 million represent a drop of some 47% over the previous weekend’s receipts, and a tumble from second to sixth place. In release on 1,922 screens, it had a poor per-screen average of $2,245.

Among new releases, “Lionheart” showed muscle: starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, the action title was third with $7 million. “Green Card”--which widened to 149 screens--also continued strong, earning $1.5 million (for $10,317 per screen).

* Starring Sally Field, and based on the true story of a woman’s efforts to get her young daughter out of Iran, “Not Without My Daughter” opened with ticket sales of just $3.8 million--in seventh place--despite heavy promotion and obvious ties to current crisis in the Middle East.

Movie Weekend Screens/ Weeks in Total (Studio) Gross Average Release Gross 1. “Home Alone” $9.8 2,157 9 $181.4 (20th Century Fox) Million $4,549 Million 2. “Awakenings” $8.3 1,282 4 $10.0 (Columbia Pictures) Million $6,479 Million 3. “Lionheart” $7.0 1,462 1 $7.0 (Universal Pictures) $4,853 4. “Kindergarten Cop” $6.5 1,934 4 $53.5 (Universal Pictures) Million $3,400 Million 5. “Dances With Wolves” $5.5 1,285 10 $79.4 (Orion Pictures) Million $4,347 Million * “Not Without My Daughter” $3.8 1,137 1 $3.8 (MGM/UA) Million $3,346

SOURCES: Exhibitor Relations Co.