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Friday, May 21, 2002
Secrets Launched
''Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'' may be the least of the first four books in J.K. Rowling's ongoing saga. Lacking the new-world wonder of the first (''The Sorcerer's Stone''), the dark twists of the third (''The Prisoner of Azkaban''), and the epic grandeur of the fourth (''The Goblet of Fire''), the second ''Potter'' novel is, alas, just a jolly good yarn. Which is exactly why Chris Columbus finds it so magical. ''The first one was about introduction and discovery,'' says the director, whose film version of ''Sorcerer's Stone'' has grossed $966 million at box offices worldwide. ''This time, we jump right into the story. 'Chamber of Secrets' has a lot more humor and 10 times as much action.''
Thursday, May 30, 2002
Possible Director for Movie 3
Alfonso Cuaron, who directed the Spanish-language hit "Y Tu Mama Tambien," is high among the list of candidates. The Mexican director, known for the lush visuals and adult sophistication in pictures including "Great Expectations," also directed the kid-friendly "A Little Princess," based on Frances Hodgson Burnett novel.
Also on the list: Callie Khouri ("The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood") and hyphenate Kenneth Branagh, who plays Professor Gilderoy Lockhart, the new Defense of the Dark Arts instructor at Hogwarts, in the second picture.
Cuaron recently received a copy of scribe Steve Kloves' new (and carefully controlled) script for round three in the series, "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban," and is in conversations with Warner Bros. about his ideas for the picture.
Wednesday, May 29, 2002
Original Manuscript to be Displaced
IT DOESNT look much - just a scruffy bundle of typed and hand-written sheets of A4 paper. But J K Rowlings original manuscript for part of Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone will almost certainly be a key attraction at the National Library of Scotlands new show, This Book Belongs to Me.
Stained with what looks very like Edinburgh coffee-shop coffee, the manuscript shows Rowlings first attempt at writing the famous "Quidditch" chapter, in which her hero is nearly killed when an unseen enemy places a curse on his flying broomstick. The pages are thick with amendments and additions, and there are plenty of details that dont tally with the final novel.
For instance, in her rough draft, the author states that there are 749 ways of committing a foul in Quidditch and that all these dastardly manoeuvres were executed in a single, bad-tempered cup match in 1365. By the time the book was published, the number of ways of committing a foul had been amended to 700, and the date of the cup match was 1473. Its hardly an earth-shattering change, but it illustrates the point of the exhibition - the way that childrens stories evolve.
Blank Tapes Make Fans Unhappy
The New Zealand Herald Reports:
They waited months to see Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone on video but when the big day arrived the young wizard magically disappeared.
Yesterday's wintry blast created perfect conditions for a spot of Harry Potter watching and the nasty weather was timed magically with the nationwide release of the video.
However, fans of the wizard-in-training were cursing when they settled down to a morning of magic in front of the television only to find their video was blank.
Perhaps a spell was cast over Rotorua's Whitcoulls store -- its entire stash of videos were mysteriously blank.
Whitcoulls staff had donned witches' hats and cloaks and waved wands but they could not muster the power to undo the spell.
The 290 videos had to be sent back to Warner Brothers for replacement, assistant manager Jill Simpson said.
Warner Brothers replaced the videos in Whitcoulls yesterday afternoon.
Tuesday, May 28, 2002
DVD in America
I got the DVD last night at midnight! I just watched the movie and special features today. Contrary to most reviews, it is awesome.Though it does take about 15 minutes to get to the deleted scenes, it's worth it!
Owlsightings.com Reveals Winners
An e-mail from HarryPotter.com just arrived in my mailbox, announcing the 10 grandprize winners of the Owl Prowl game!
Monday, May 27, 2002
Reminder to Americans
The DVD/Video comes out 12:01 Tuesday sharp!
New Director For Third Movie
From Ananova.com:
The director of Y Tu Mama Tambien may direct the third Harry Potter film.
Chris Columbus has reportedly told Warner Brothers he doesn't want to direct any more Potter films after the second one.
According to www.variety.com, Alfonso Cuaron has been sent a copy of the script for Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban.
The trade paper claims he has been talking to the film's producers about his ideas for the film.
The second Harry Potter film, Harry Potter And The Chamber of Secrets, is due to be released in the UK in November.
Sunday, May 26, 2002
HP Flying in Tues.
Tuesday the USA finally gets its Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone DVD/VHS. I can't wait till me owl, see above come to my house with my DVD. If you haven't already pre-ordered, I suggest that you get to your local stores for their midnight release Monday night. Hey its a Holiday tomorrow so you can stay up all night if you want to. To get the best price at local stores this week, Check out CompUSA with the DVD for $9.99 and you get a free mousepad too! An other great price is Circuit City which has the DVD for $14.99. Otherwise expect to pay the standard $19.99. (Thanks to DarkMark for the picture)
DVD Out Early
Yahoo News Reports:
"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" won't hit store shelves until next Tuesday - but thanks to a foul-up at a retail outlet, many fans got their hands on it a few days early.
Stew Leonard's, a supermarket chain with locations in Yonkers and Connecticut, jumped the gun and sold off a host of tapes and DVDs Thursday and yesterday.
But when The Post started asking questions, the tapes and DVDs disappeared like magic.
Bit on the DVD
After setting sales records in the UK, this DVD finally arrives to placate those who've already read the first four books, the jokey paperbacks about Quidditch and ferocious creatures, the unauthorized bios of J.K. Rowling, and simply can't wait until Harry Potter 2 opens November 15. Marvelous casting - from the children to the all-star British supporting roles - saves this rather stiff rendition. It's so faithful to the text, you'd think you were watching one of those tiresome Biblical epics instead of a quick-witted fantasy film. For me, Alan Rickman (currently triumphing on Broadway in "Private Lives") steals every scene as Professor Snape. (And don't even ask about Book Five - that's been pushed back till next year.) Stop complaining and leave the poor woman alone. Maybe if she takes her time, she'll actually let someone edit her text this go-round and we won't suffer the niggling mistakes and overlong ramblings of Book Four.
Will HP Beat the Rest
Will Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone roar past the Lion King and sink the Titanic to become the top-selling video ever?
That depends on how many fans of the boy wizard grab up copies of the Harry Potter VHS videos and DVDs when they become available for sale and rental at midnight Monday.
For fans of author J.K. Rowling's creation who can't wait until Tuesday to buy or rent the movie, some Wal-Mart, Borders, Blockbuster, Kmart and other stores are keeping select locations open late Monday.
In South Florida, all Borders Books and Music stores will stay open past midnight Monday. The Blockbuster video stores at 1900 N. Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale and at 2885 N. Military Trail in West Palm Beach will stay open late Monday.
"We've got look-alike contests for any of the characters, we've got magicians and giveaways like wizard hats, magic wands and test tubes to make crystals," Blockbuster Inc. spokeswoman Susan Hamburg said. The Blockbuster stores will stay open at least an hour past midnight.
The Borders bookstores will stay open as late as needed to satisfy customer demand, Borders Group Inc. spokeswoman Emily Swan said. "Like when the book came out, we just stayed open until the line went down."
Potter fans apparently won't have to worry much about the supply running out. While Warner Bros. home video is not saying how many videos are being shipped, retailers said there haven't been limits put on orders. "They've allowed us to buy as much as we want," Kmart Corp. spokeswoman Dave Karraker said.
Only Kmart's 24-hour stores nationwide will stay open late Monday and since there are none in South Florida, area Kmart shoppers will have to wait till 8 a.m. Tuesday. But Karraker says all Kmart stores will have similar promotions, including free movie posters to the first 200 buyers of the movie at each store.
Judging by online and store preorders, Harry Potter -- the No. 7 box-office seller with $960 million in sales to date, may conjure up enough magic to break some sales records. Amazon.com, which has been accepting preorders since Feb. 5, said the Harry Potter DVD set sales records by generating more than 100,000 in preorders. Online sites, including Amazon.com, Barnes andnoble.com and Borders .com have promised those who preorder early enough that their VHS or DVD movie will be delivered Tuesday.
Saturday, May 25, 2002
Get the DVD at Midnight
Poughkeepsie Journal Reports:
If you want to be among the first to own ''Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone,'' you need to get to the store at an appropriate hour: midnight.
The official domestic release date of the first ''Harry Potter'' film on videotape and DVD is Tuesday. Stores around the country plan to stay open late Monday night so they can start ringing up sales at midnight for last year's top-grossing movie.
Friday, May 24, 2002
It's Harry on the Set
Jam!Showbiz Reports:
LONDON, England -- Near the town of Watford, at isolated Leavesden Studios two weeks ago, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) was getting dressed down by Prof. McGonigall (Maggie Smith) for performing an unsanctioned act of petrification.
Next stop: The office of Hogwart's School Headmaster Albus Dumbledore for punishment.
Except that Dumbledore (Richard Harris) was with me at London's King's Cross station, during a starry launch party for the DVD of Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, ebulliently announcing "I want food!... And champagne!" before he'd consent to
talk to the press.
Thursday, May 23, 2002
Fan Recieves Special Letter
A VERY special letter has arrived at the Tuffley home of little Charlotte Norridge - straight from the set of the Harry Potter film.
Charlotte, who is four, won a competition to win an authentic prop from the magical film - the letter posted to Harry to tell him he had been accepted into Hogwarts School.
And Charlotte's delight was evident as she was presented with the framed letter by Cathedral verger Simon Fitter, on the very spot where Daniel Radcliffe, who plays Harry in the film, and chums filmed their latest scenes.
Wednesday, May 22, 2002
Chamber of Secrets Game on XBox
EA Games has released the first screenshots of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Based on J.K. Rowling's second book in the worldwide best-selling series, players face a magical multitude of new challenges and mysteries as the famous "Boy Who Lived".
On the Xbox players enter fantastical free-roaming 3D environments from Harry's world. Players become Harry Potter and delve not only into Harry's world, but also into his personality, via an internal "voice." Conversing with unique characters like Moaning Myrtle, shopping in Diagon Alley, and exploring the convoluted corridors of Hogwarts, players make crucial and independent decisions within Harry's world.
Additionally, Harry can, of course, cast spells against foes - but these spells must be perfectly executed, or they could be miscast with humorous or critical consequences! Mini-games within levels can be revisited, so players can help Mrs. Weasley with "de-gnoming" her garden, challenge other students in Professor Lockhart's Dueling Club, or complete other mini-games again and again.
Tuesday, May 21, 2002
JKR Helps Save A Little Girl
A NINE-YEAR-OLD girl who had a life-saving transplant operation after a desperate last-minute appeal for a donor is recovering well - with a gift from JK Rowling her new most treasured possession.
Abbey Cape was given two weeks to live after a virus attacked her heart, leaving just eight per cent of it able to function. But the youngster is now making a good recovery and today her parents thanked well-wishers, including the Edinburgh author who sent a personal gift and a note .
The owl toy and a hand-written letter sent by the author of the Harry Potter books proved a big hit. "The owl hasnt left her side since she got it," they said.
Monday, May 20, 2002
J.K.Rowling Helps Raising Money
JK Rowling says she found it humiliating being poor.
She says her image as a struggling writer before her Harry Potter success has been wrongly romanticised.
Rowling is backing a new collection of short stories aimed at raising money for single parent families.
Sunday, May 19, 2002
Harry Potter the Main Book
It seems that although J. K. Rowling's best-sellers created the illusion of increasing book sales for children aged seven to 14, they actually cornered the market to the detriment of other authors.
Last year's Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire, Rowling's fourth book about the boy wizard, sold more copies in a single year than any other book in history.
But according to a survey conducted by Book Marketing Ltd, the total number of books purchased for children actually fell from 109 million in 2000 to 104 million in 2001.
Despite this decrease in total sales, the Harry Potter series has given the publishing industry a boost, according to Nicholas Clee, editor of industry bible The Bookseller.
Children's fiction had never been so respected within the industry, Clee said last week and that can only be a good thing for the future.
Regardless, the Harry Potter success continues, with the books filling three of the top four places in last week's official children's fiction list and accounting for a whopping 86 per cent of the total market.
Saturday, May 18, 2002
Rowling's Famous Fans Have Some Advice
...Spider-Man and Star Wars are just not going to be enough, no matter what Time magazine says.
The sadness turned to panic around the third paragraph of the AP story, when a spokeswoman for J.K. Rowling named Rebecca Salt was quoted as having "rejected any suggestion Rowling was suffering from writer's block."
Immediately, everyone knew Rowling is suffering from writer's block.
...People do get tired of writing the same thing, you know. But Jaykay's locked in. She's contracted for three more Harrys, and each one has to not only be a blockbuster but also spin off a blockbuster movie, as well as pump up the toy industry. This kind of pressure could give even the resilient Lord Voldemort a migraine.
Fortunately, Jaykay's peers have reacted with an unprecedented outpouring of sympathy and advice. Suggestions by the millions have flooded the London offices of Bloomsbury publishers, as the publishing/film/media community closes ranks in support of the beloved Rowling during her time of crisis. Due to his incomparable prestige and importance, Media Person has been allowed exclusive access to this remarkable correspondence so that he might share with you some of the more interesting counsel from well-known fans.
Tom Brokaw: A shift in focus would probably reinvigorate you. Why not write about Harry learning of the experiences of his parents' generation in the great war against the fascist wizards? Maybe he goes to interview the headmaster for the Hogwarts school paper and learns he was a parawizard, who dropped behind enemy lines and turned a whole platoon of evil sorcerers into warthogs. And so then Harry goes on interviewing until he has hundreds of inspiring war stories! And he realizes how useless his own spineless generation is compared to these hero wizards, and he is humbled and awed.
Tom Clancy: I know exactly how you feel. I had trouble getting Jack Ryan back to work the last time around. I thought, "Jeez, what, again?" But then I went over to the Pentagon, and they showed me some of the great new weapons being tested. (Actually got to drive the top-secret X-19 Nixon Fighting Vehicle and fire its laser cannon!) And I couldn't wait to get home and use that in the book. So ... three little words, babe: Upgrade your technology!
Robert A. Caro: What fascinates me is Dumbledore, the headmaster. Here is a venerable man who wields immense power in the wizard establishment, power that is unquestioned. Why? Is it respect, or is it fear? I say take us behind the magic curtain and dig into the back-room deals, the rumors of corruption, the sleazy maneuvering and arm-twisting that got Dumbledore to the top. And don't be afraid to dig deep. Even if it takes you 10 or 20 years, do it!
Stephen W. Hawking: Your inability to function is easy to understand. It is a matter of common experience that things get more disordered and chaotic with time. This tendency, known as entropy, affects individuals as well as the universe. A living being such as yourself consists of two elements: a set of instructions that tell the system how to sustain and reproduce itself, and a mechanism to carry out the instructions ... Say, are you following this? Wake up, damn it!
Steve Dunleavy: Look, sweetheart, here's what you do. Take a night off, hit the pub, have a few drinks, go home with a hunk. Then you're relaxed and ready to write. Now here's your plot: Voldemort comes back again because some bleeding-heart judge went soft on the bastard. Harry shoots him down like the pig deserves, but he's expelled by politically correct school bureaucrats because his gun was unregistered. So he becomes Harry Potter, Vengeance Wizard, fighting for justice in a world gone rotten. Not bad considering I'm plastered, eh?
Oprah Winfrey: It's always seemed to me there's something Harry is repressing. If you send him to the school psychologist, I have a feeling it will all spill out: Harry's a victim of child abuse! (I suspect that horrible uncle.) Unlocking Harry's awful secret will also unlock you. The words will pour out. You will be unblocked, and Harry will heal. Trust me, girl. I'm Oprah.
Friday, May 17, 2002
Draco Malfoy Speaks Up
CountingDown.com reports:
The Express reports that Tom Felton, otherwise known as Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter movies, has grown tired of acting:
Tom, 14, who plays Draco Malfoy, the meanest schoolboy at Hogwarts, said yesterday: "Harry Potter is fantastic but when this is over I don't think I'll carry on.
"I want to go to college to do fisheries studies.
I haven't accepted any other films outside of this because acting isn't the be-all-and-end-all for me. I think you have to keep your feet on the ground with this sort of stuff."
He added: "In spite of what Draco is like I really like school and I miss it a lot when I'm filming. I've a fair idea what I want to do for my GCSEs - I will definitely be doing music."
Thursday, May 16, 2002
CoS Game Looking Promising
Take the wheel of a flying car and don't be late for a second term at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry(TM) in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets(TM). Based on J.K. Rowling's second book in the worldwide best-selling series, players face a slew of new challenges and mysteries as the famous "Boy Who Lived." EA will be publishing games based on Chamber of Secrets this fall under the EA GAMES brand for the PlayStation 2 console, Nintendo GameCube, Xbox, PC, Game Boy Advance, PlayStation and Game Boy(R) Color. Each game will take advantage of the individual platform's hardware capabilities to deliver the ultimate Harry Potter experience, transporting gamers away from the non-magical world into an interactive adventure of wizards and wonder!
Wednesday, May 15, 2002
Harry Potter and Bridget Jones Take Over Britain
The Times of India Reports:
Book sales in Britain topped £1 billion ($1.4 billion) last year, largely thanks to films of Bridget Jones's Diary and JK Rowling's Harry Potter saga, which gave the books an even bigger audience.
Thanks iharrypotter.net for link.
Tuesday, May 14, 2002
2 Weeks Till DVD
Two weeks till the DVD comes out.
A Century's Worth of Pottermania
Yahoo! News UK Reports:
LONDON (Reuters) - From Beatrix to Harry, Pottermania has gripped kids around the world for a century.
Hollywood, too, has fallen for the charms of Britain's strong cast of storybook characters -- Peter Pan and Mary Poppins not least among them.
And when it comes to bears, nobody does it better than the British. Who could forget Winnie the Pooh and Paddington Bear?
So London's National Portrait Gallery has now decided to celebrate the unique contribution of British authors to children's literature in a new exhibition.
Amid the scrawled manuscripts and grainy photo portraits, curator Gyles Brandreth said: "Quite out of proportion to the size of the country, British children's writers swept the world in the 20th century. We should celebrate them."
The literary roll-call makes for impressive reading -- and the authors have intriguingly come full circle.
"In 1902, you have J.M. Barrie beginning to work on Peter Pan and you have Frank Richards writing the stories about Greyfriars School and the world of Billy Bunter," Brandreth told Reuters at Tuesday's press preview.
"Greyfriars School is like Hogwarts school in the Harry Potter stories and the whole world of magic is the world of J.M.Barrie," said the author and broadcaster reflecting on the literary symmetry.
The exhibition takes visitors down memory lane, starting with Beatrix Potter's 1902 manuscript for "The Tale of Peter Rabbit."
Enid Blyton's dilapidated typewriter pounded out up to 50 books a year. Roald Dahl took children into a much darker world. J.K. Rowling mixed humour and fantasy, teaching a whole new generation of children the joy of reading.
A.A. Milne wrote detectives stories, plays and novels -- but he would be immortalised for 70,000 words he wrote about a bear -- and that irked him.
"He was frustrated by the way Winnie the Pooh came to dominate him," said Brandreth, co-curator of the exhibition with his wife, writer and children's publisher Michele Brown.
Brandreth became a friend of Christopher Robin Milne, a man who was ill at ease with his fame as the hero of the Pooh books and once said his father built his reputation standing on a small boy's shoulders.
But the magic still rubs off on Brandreth.
"As I say to children who come to this exhibition: 'be sure to shake my hand before you go because I was a friend of Christopher Robin and you will be shaking the hand that shook the hand that held the paw of Winnie the Pooh.'"
Thanks to The Leaky Cauldron for the link!
Monday, May 13, 2002
CoS Quidditch
...fans will be pleased to know that Harry will once again be straddling his Nimbus 2000 in the next film, The Chamber Of Secrets. Indeed, one of the movie's producers has promised that the second 'Potter flick's Quidditch action will be bigger and better than ever.
"What we've got in the second film is, we've honed it a little bit, it'll be, I think the movement will be a little faster," he states, adding, "We're also incorporating a trench around the outside of the field which will be where a great portion of the action will take place, where Harry gets chased by a bludger throughout the field."
Sunday, May 12, 2002
HP DVD Made History In The UK
"Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone has become the most successful UK video and DVD release of all time.
Warner Home Video say more than 1.25 million copies were sold yesterday on the first day of its release.
The previous record was held by the film Titanic, which achieved 1.1 million sales in 1997."
Saturday, May 11, 2002
Harry Potter Fans Queue Overnight for DVD
LONDON - Young Harry Potter fans, or more probably their parents, queued overnight to buy the video or DVD of film hit "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" -- sales of which look set to break records, industry sources said.
From midnight on Friday May 10, 700 stores across Britain opened their doors to cope with the expected demand.
"It is looking like Harry Potter will break the previous record for the number of videos and DVDs sold in 24 hours," a spokeswoman for Warner Home Video said on Saturday.
"'Titanic' sold one million units and since ASDA (supermarket chain) has already sold more than half that figure it looks like the record will be beaten," she said. "Titanic" currently holds the record for first-day sales.
Some of the keenest buyers for the boy wizard's story were in London, where 250 Potter aficionados turned up at HMV's flagship Oxford Circus music store, eager to buy a copy of the film.
"Sales across the 15 HMV stores that traded through the night suggest that end-of-day's sales today will be between 10 and 20 times more than day-one sale for a typical release," said HMV's Gennaro Castaldo in a statement.
Warner Home Video said it expected to sell more than 2.5 million Harry Potter videos and DVDs in the first week.
HP DVD Release Dates
| North America |
Available |
| United States |
28-May-02 |
| Canada |
28-May-02 |
| Europe |
| United Kingdom |
11-May-02 |
| Benelux |
21-May-02 |
| Sweden |
11-May-02 |
| Finland, Denmark, Norway |
14-May-02 |
| Spain |
10-May-02 |
| Portugal |
30-May-02 |
| Germany/Austria/Switzerland |
11-May-02 |
| France |
5-Jun-02 |
| Italy |
Sep-02 |
| Iceland |
11-May-02 |
| Additional Markets |
| Croatia |
15-May-02 |
| Greece |
13-May-02 |
| Hungary |
14-May-02 |
| Israel |
14-May-02 |
| Middle East |
28-May-02 |
| Slovenia |
15-May-02 |
| South Africa |
31-May-02 |
| Yugoslavia |
28-May-02 |
| Russia |
July-02 |
| Turkey |
5-Sep-02 |
| Bulgaria |
4-Sep-02 |
| Czech Republic |
1-Aug-02 |
| Poland |
26-Aug-02 |
| Romania |
15-Sep-02 |
| Slovakia |
Sep-02 |
| Asia |
| Taiwan |
14-May-02 |
| Hong Kong |
14-May-02 |
| Korea |
14-May-02 |
| Japan |
14-May-02 |
| Latin America |
| Brazil |
11-May-02 |
| Central America |
28-May-02 |
| Columbia |
28-May-02 |
| Argentina |
29-May-02 |
| Chile |
29-May-02 |
| Paraguay |
29-May-02 |
| Peru |
6-Jun-02 |
| Venezuela |
1-Jun-02 |
| Mexico |
28-May-02 |
| Australia |
28-May-02 |
| New Zealand |
22-May-02 |
Friday, May 10, 2002
Selected Toy Stores To Open For UK DVD Release
"Select branches of Toys R Us are opening at midnight tonight to sell the new Harry Potter video and DVD.
The first 50 customers at each store will get a free audio cassette of Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone read by Stephen Fry.
Stores opening at midnight include Brent Cross, Croydon, Medway, Southampton, Bristol, Oldbury, Warrington, Metro Centre, Leeds and Edinburgh."
Thursday, May 9, 2002
More On Book 5 Release
YOUNG readers are facing a second barren summer without a new Harry Potter instalment because J K Rowling has still not completed the fifth book in the seven-volume series.
There had been strong expectations that Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix would be in the shops last summer.
It is unlikely, however, to be published until this autumn at the earliest and may be delayed until next summer, almost three years after the fourth volume, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire...
... Yesterday, associates said Miss Rowling was not revealing how she was progressing or when she expected to deliver the manuscript to her publishers, Bloomsbury Children's Books.
But Dotti Irving, Miss Rowling's publicist, denied that the author had writer's block. "She has been writing it for quite a while and she is writing it at her own pace. She is not sitting gazing at a blank wall in a panic. She loves writing but she wants it to be perfect.
"There was never any deadline set and there is no pressure. Everyone is being calm and quiet about it."
However, Scholastic, Miss Rowling's American publisher, has reportedly told its shareholders that Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix may not be published until June 2003.
A spokesman for Bloomsbury said yesterday: "They are just being extremely cautious. But they know no more than we do."
Wednesday, May 8, 2002
Owl Sittings
I just got a newsletter from the offical HP site, you can go to OwlSightings.com, which is giving away a free chance for a walk-on role in the CoS movie, though it's through a contest. Check it out!
Tuesday, May 7, 2002
Scholastic says no book 5 until 2003
"Attention, J.K. Rowling: Your fans are waiting. And waiting. After quickly turning out four Harry Potter books -- one per year since July 2000 -- the usually prolific author is months late in wrapping up her fifth entry into the sensational series, reports The New York Times. How late? It apparently will not be ready for its scheduled July 2002 publication. The only word about the book, to be called 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,' says The Times, is that its American publisher, Scholastic, has told its stockholders (as well as hungry young readers) that it expects to publish it some time before June 2003. This means it will come well after this fall's movie premiere of 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,' the sequel to the last year's 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.' 'Clearly we understand that her readers are eagerly waiting for it but you can't hurry the creative juices, and we understand that,' Scholastic spokeswoman Judy Corman told The Times. "She is writing. She is working hard on the book. We will be happy when we get it.' The Times reports that once Rowling, 36, turns in her manuscript, it will be another four or five months before the finished books hit stores."
Monday, May 6, 2002
Will Harry be home for Christmas?
HARRY Potter fans are rushing to reserve the next instalment of the boy wizards adventures at a city bookshop even though Edinburgh author JK Rowling is months from finishing it.
One of Ms Rowlings friends said: "Im surprised by this. She is still busy writing it as we speak. It hasnt even gone to the publishers yet. There has been no date set. She has no idea."
Sunday, May 5, 2002
Harry's Magic Fail
|
The Observer Reports:
J.K. Rowling bestsellers cornered the market at the expense of other authors, claims new survey.
"The Harry Potter magic was just an illusion. In spite of the success of J.K. Rowling's best-selling books, children are reading less, according to a new survey. For the fourth year in succession, fewer books have been bought for children.
Rowling's tales of a boy wizard were the book trade phenomenon of 2001 when, boosted by a top-grossing film, the fourth book in the series, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, sold more copies in a single year than any other author ever before.
Harry was hailed as the saviour of children's fiction, but official research by the industry has shown that the genre could be in more trouble now than before Potter burst on to the scene."
|
Saturday, May 4, 2002
| Spider-Man is Tipped to Knock 'Potter' Off Top |
|
icWales reports:
"SPIDER-MAN is tipped to take £70m in its first weekend, smashing the record set by last year's Harry Potter film.
The web-spinning superhero has won rave reviews for his big-screen debut which hit 7,000 screens across the United States yesterday.
CNN described it as an "escapist confection that's pure entertainment" and Hollywood Report Card dubbed it "absolutely, inescapably gorgeous".
Spider-Man creator Stan Lee, 79, who wrote the original series 40 years ago and has a cameo role in the film, said, "The film embodies all of what I think are the great qualities of the comic and so much more.
"It not only does the comic justice but it's really better than the comic, and I don't say that lightly."
Hollywood analysts said that with the help of a diehard fan base it could take up to £7m more than the current three-day record of £63m set by Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.
Tobey Maguire stars as high-school student Peter Parker who gains extraordinary powers after being bitten by a genetically altered spider.
Kirsten Dunst plays his love interest in the £110m production, directed by Sam Raimi, which opens in Britain on June 14.
Both Maguire, who trained in yoga, martial arts, fight choreography and weightlifting for the superhero role, and Dunst have already signed up for two Spider-Man sequels."
| Friday, May 3, 2002
JK Confirms The Books Will End At 7
Author JK ROWLING has confirmed that beloved kids' character HARRY POTTER will end after the seventh book.
Boy wizard Harry and his pals HERMIONE GRANGER and RON WEASLEY were immortalised last year (01) in HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE, the first film in a projected series.
But despite the character's massive international stardom, writer JK plans to let him go and try her hand at adult fiction, even though she has a cabinet full of notes that could be turned into future Potter yarns.
She says, "It is possible that I will finish Harry and go over to the filing cabinet where the notes are and think they're rubbish."
Thursday, May 2, 2002
WB Refused To Sell Rights
"The State-run Hanoi Movie Company had to postpone the Vietnam premiere of Harry Potter planned for the Lunar New Year period, as filmmaker Warner Bros in the United States refused to sell the rights for fear of breach of copyright.
"We have been forced to cancel our plans, as Warner Bros have refused the deal with us on the advice of its lawyers," company director Nguyen Thi Lien said.
The lawyers had discovered illegally made videotapes of US-made films imported from China and Cambodia for sale in Vietnam, including Harry Potter."
Wednesday, May 1, 2002
Zoe Wanamaker Speaks Out
Zoe Wanamaker has denied reports saying she didn't want to be in the new Harry Potter film.
Wanamaker played Madam Hooch in Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone, but will not be in the new film.
She spoke out against the amount of money some of the actors were paid.
Now Wanamaker says she would happily have reprised her role in Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets.
"I would have loved to do it again," she tells the Daily Express. "But they didn't ask me."
Tuesday, April 30, 2002
COS News
"Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets: The London Symphony Orchestra is scheduled to record the score this coming September."
Monday, April 29, 2002
Lizo's Verdict On HP DVD
BBCNewsround Reports:
Well, it's set to be one of the biggest, if not THE biggest DVD of the year.
The most exciting thing about the DVD is the scenes that didn't make it into the final movie...
... You have to get to this part of the DVD by using your Harry Potter knowledge, making it feel part game/part DVD.
And there's a short feature that has interesting interviews with the film makers...
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