Bike Crash Derails Joint Tour of Beasties, Rage

How badly have the Beastie Boys been sabotaged? The group’s Mike D is scheduled for surgery in New York today and Wednesday for injuries suffered last week in a bicycle crash, but he wasn’t the only one who took a hard fall--the MC’s shoulder and collarbone injuries have derailed plans for the Rhyme & Reason summer tour. The teaming of the New York-rapping Beasties with the Los Angeles-rocking Rage Against the Machine was slated to start Wednesday in Toronto, but the latest word is that Mike D’s rehabilitation will push that kickoff well into October or November. It’s not as simple as switching dates, either, because many of the scheduled venues are outdoor stadiums and amphitheaters, presenting a weather issue in colder climes. “The booking people are working feverishly now to get it all straightened out and moved around,” said a handler for Rage. “It’s not going to be easy.” The Southern California show or shows will likely be December or later. And in the meantime? The Beastie Boys Web site reports that Mike D will pass the time with some heavy reading (the site says “Tibetan Book of Living and Dying” is first on the list) while Rage is headed to an L.A. studio with producer Rick Rubin to record versions of some of the band’s favorite songs. Those will be bonus tracks added to an upcoming concert album, which will be recorded in San Francisco this month and released in mid-November--by which time, they hope, they’ll be on the road with the Beasties.

Quincy Jones’ NUE-TV, Partying With GOP

Hitting the Republican National Convention this week to provide endless reports and news analysis will be the usual suspects: Brokaw, Rather, Jennings. There will also be a new kid on the floor--the legendary producer, arranger and performer known as “Q.” Quincy Jones, along with several partners, will host a private reception Thursday at the Zanzibar Blue at the Bellevue in Philadelphia to introduce their new venture, NUE-TV, a network targeted for the so-called “urban market.” The network, which is only available now through satellite, also will be producing a daily two-hour news block at the convention. Robert L. Townsend, president and CEO of NUE-TV, said he, Jones and the partners are finalizing deals with multiple cable companies to broadcast the new outlet. Describing the venture as both “an alternative and a compliment” to the veteran Black Entertainment Network, he said NUE-TV is also getting ready to close deals with several Hollywood studios that will contribute programming. The network is geared toward the 18-to-49-year-old audience and will feature political coverage, classic jazz and R&B; shows, original movies, inspirational programs and in-depth coverage of major African American events and conferences. Said Townsend: “There’s an audience for what we want to do, and we’re very excited.” As for Jones, he has had both success and failure in the television arena: He was a key force behind the hit sitcom, “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” and he was also an executive producer behind the 1998 late-night talk show failure, “Vibe.”

These ‘Space Cowboys’ Are Long in the Tooth

Their combined age is 261. Clint Eastwood is 70. Tommy Lee Jones is 53. Donald Sutherland is 66. And James Garner is 72. Together, they are the stars of the new Warner Bros. high-tech adventure, “Space Cowboys,” which opens nationwide Friday. Some Hollywood wags have dubbed the film “Grumpy Old Men in Space.” In a publicity still put out by the studio, the actors, with their clipped hair and serious expressions, look like four guys you might see standing behind the complaint desk at the Los Angeles Police Department in the 1950s. It may seem improbable at a time when the studios market their high-profile action films to teenage boys. But here is Warner Bros. rolling out a big, summer action movie that features four aging actors playing former Air Force pilots who are called back into action by NASA to save a Russian satellite. Still, any film that stars Eastwood (who also produced and directed) and features state-of-the-art visual effects could easily turn into a hit. Eastwood could use one. “Unforgiven,” his Oscar-winning 1992 western, grossed $101.1 million domestically and he followed that up the next year with the action film, “In the Line of Fire,” which made $102.2 million. But he hasn’t achieved those heights since. “A Perfect World” made $31.1 million; “The Bridges of Madison County,” $71 million; “Absolute Power,” $50 million; and “True Crime,” $16.6 million. “Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil,” which he only directed, grossed $25.1 million in North America. Still, Eastwood is a legend, a well-respected director and is treated like a member of the family at Warner Bros., his deal sealed with a handshake. Even though former studio chiefs Bob Daly and Terry Semel have departed, new studio chief Alan Horn is also a longtime Eastwood admirer.

--Compiled by Times Staff Writers