Morning Report - News from Sept. 21, 1999

‘Full Monty,’ the Musical: Jack O’Brien will stage the premiere of a musical-comedy version of 1997 best picture Oscar nominee “The Full Monty,” with a script by Terrence McNally and a score by David Yazbek, at the end of the winter-spring season of the Old Globe Theatre’s main stage in San Diego, June 1-July 2. Also slated for the main stage are Tom Stoppard’s translation of Chekhov’s “The Seagull” (Feb. 10-March 12) and Joe DiPietro’s “Over the River and Through the Woods” (March 30-April 30). The smaller Cassius Carter Centre Stage lineup includes Conor McPherson’s “The Weir” (Feb. 5-March 12), Steven Dietz’s “Private Eyes” (March 25-April 30) and Jon Marans’ “Old Wicked Songs” (May 28-July 2).

POP/ROCK

Night No. 5 for the Boss?: Now that Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band’s long-awaited reunion tour has sold out four nights at the Staples Center, one question remains--how about a fifth night? On Saturday morning, promoters added two additional shows, Oct. 21 and 23, after the original Oct. 17 and 18 shows sold out in about 20 minutes. The added shows also promptly sold out. That leaves a crowded calendar for the opening week of the new 17,000-seat arena, with the L.A. Kings playing on Oct. 20, 22 and 24, but it does leave one night vacant: Oct. 19. Could that mean another night for the Boss? Probably not, says Bobby Goldwater, the venue’s general manager, because the Staples Center staff wants the down time to prepare for the first home hockey game. And promoter Brian Murphy of Avalon Attractions said, “At this point, I don’t see that we have that option [of a fifth show].” Thousands of fans across Southern California were frustrated Saturday when Ticketmaster’s service experienced delays and logjams caused by the overwhelming demand for tickets.

TV & MOVIES

Fighting Back: Attorneys for Sophia Loren have filed suit against 76 media companies, claiming they are using her name and image to lure visitors to pornographic Web sites. Loren’s business agent, CMG Worldwide, said the suit aims to shut down 130 Web sites currently being operated by those companies. “Some have digitally manipulated images while others just use her name to attract people to their pornographic sites,” said attorney Mark Roesler. “I am horrified by the disgusting actions of the offending companies,” Loren, who turned 65 on Monday, said in a statement.

Affectionate Barbs Can Hurt: NBC is raising a few eyebrows with an exchange on tonight’s season premiere of “Will & Grace” in which Megan Mullally’s character, Karen, calls her Salvadoran maid a “tamale.” “Oh, no,” said Federico Subervi, a University of Texas media professor, after hearing of the exchange. “It’s an ethnic slur. . . . What’s in their heads? The writers and the network executives . . . don’t get it. They really do not get it.” Lisa Navarrete of the National Council of La Raza said: “It’s unfortunate that a show that has done quite a bit to break stereotypes about gays would resort to such cheap shots at the Latino community.” An NBC spokesperson said Monday that the network meant no offense, and that the exchange is indicative of the back-and-forth insults thrown between the maid and her boss, who actually have a very close relationship. The reference will not be edited from tonight’s broadcast, the spokesperson said.

‘Brownout’ Ends: A one-week boycott of network television spearheaded by a coalition of Latino groups to protest the lack of racial diversity in new shows appears to have ended without having a significant impact on viewership. According to Nielsen Media Research, there was no dramatic decline in ratings last week, the targeted period for the boycott. The campaign provoked little concern from industry executives because the week is historically one of the lowest-rated weeks in network television, with the networks airing mostly repeats in preparation for the new fall season, which officially started Sunday. The National Council of La Raza, an umbrella group representing 3 million people, had called for the so-called “brownout” protest, lambasting the dearth of Latino faces on TV and the even greater lack of positive images. Raul Yzaguirre, president of the organization, said he was pleased with the brownout, saying the effort resulted in national exposure and notice from the Hispanic Congressional Caucus, the media and others. He added that efforts targeting the networks would continue. The NAACP has announced plans for a similar boycott during the November ratings sweeps of a network to be announced.

QUICK TAKES

The mother of best-selling rapper Eminem has sued him for $10 million over stories about his childhood that he told several magazines and radio’s “Howard Stern Show.” Debbie Mathers-Briggs says her 26-year-old son, whose real name is Marshall Bruce Mathers III, implied in the interviews that she was an unstable, lawsuit-happy drug user who moved around aimlessly during the rapper’s formative years. Eminem’s publicist said he had not seen the lawsuit and could not comment. . . . “American Beauty,” which drew excellent critical reviews last week, won the Toronto International Film Festival’s People’s Choice Award on Sunday. . . . Adam Sandler will chat with fans on Thursday at 5 p.m. on America Online (keyword: AOL Live or Adam Sandler). The chat coincides with his new CD, “Stan and Judy’s Kid.” . . . HBO will air last Saturday’s Oscar De La Hoya/Felix Trinidad fight this coming Saturday at 6:45 p.m.