Show The Herald Journal Logan Utah Saturday August 17 2002 — B7 SHERMANS LAGOON ‘G reek Wedding’ parties all summer at box office mrmpoFN PRowcauterou? wornnamum NKXC00KIN6 INTO a viouNr mmm LOS ANGELES (AP) — In a summer of huge movies that last just a few weeks in theaters and are lucky to break even one little film won't quit The celebration has lasted all summer for “My Big Fat Greek Wedding" a micro-budgetromantic comedy with great that has steadily climbed from 20th chart to No 8 last the box-offion place ed word-of-mou- CATHY HO HAW tW MECe&MKWl th weekend The film about a woman who defies the traditions of her loud Greek family by marrying a man who isn’t Greek cost only about $5 lion to produce It has collected nearly $45 million since its April debut and the end of the honeymoon is nowhere in sight “I feel like 1 connected with absolute strangers across America That's what I love more than anything” said Nia Vardalos the star and writer who adapted the film from her stage show “The money is like ’Yeah yeah’ That works in the Hollywood system" she added “But this is the greatest feeling in the world: when women are coming up and saying Tm one-wom- an BEETLE BAILEY you’” Vardalos 39 said she had thought the film would cover' its cost and maybe tum a small profit “1 thought I could just die happy that I movie and I actually made a in it and that’s to star it” she said got While “Men in Black II" and “Minority Report" have earned three times as much as Vardalos’ film they also cost about 20 times more to produce Once marketing costs are factored in those movies will likely show a profit only on home video By comparison “My Big Fat Greek WedGreek-Americ- HAGAR THE HORRIBLE an ding" playing in only 723 theaters continues THAT 2UY WITH THE BRIEFCASE IS aprea cawybr ME WRITES ALL-AA- thg BUSINESS THBR O O0 & TO EXPLAIN THE LAN0UAC&E IN HlS CONTRACT© TO THE AVERAGE PERSON I V to add screens and draw packed houses Brian FusQn analyst for The Holit said hold a spot in could lywood Reporter the top 10 for several more weeks a few more theaters “It was a slow roll-oeach week building its way up” said Fuson “It's basically what every small independent film hopes will happen" The project developed after actor Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson who is box-offi- ce ut Greek-Ame- r- ican saw Vardalos’ Los Angeles stage play in ' 1998 liked it much that so Hanks purchased They PEANUTS YOU D0NT HWE TO SM 'LOUSY FIRST SERVE" hr ter The Northern California city where Schulz lived and worked has planned a weekend of fun to remember its adopted son complete with free Snoopy movies and a pancake break- i fast Other stops for serious fans might include j the cartoonist’s studio the “Peanuts” themed ice skating rink Schulz gave to the city and the bronze statue of Snoopy and Charlie Brown in a downtown park The museum chronicles Schulz’ life and the evolution of the enduring comic strip that debuted on Oct 2 1950 The musings and misadventures of Charlie Brown Linus LUcy and their friends eventually ran in more than 2600 newspapers reaching millions of readers in 75 countries IWo galleries at the'museum will feature ' exhibits of original strips and memorabilia There’s also a research library archives of “Peanuts” material a Snoopy labyrinth in the outdoor gardens and a tile mural of Charlie : -- - FOXTROT ' m I BUT HI WAS ALWAYS So SUSY WITH WORK THAT WE’D PUT IT OFF AMD PUT IT OFF AND IN THE END WE NftER WENT WHEN S WAS A ALWAYS WANTED MV FATHER To SO CAMPMS WITH ME THERE’S A LESSON THERE FELLAS WE NEED TO SET SUMMER P-I- REAL UFE ADVENTURES T WAS C0UeCTNS Alt tHC NEW QUARTERS FROM Att 7W STATES THEN REALIZED IT WOULD BE J 300 YEARS BEFORE THEY WERE WORTH MORE THAH ZS CENTS (EACMySOZ BOOtHT A TWELVE-PAC-k WITH THEM SOT 4 V CLOSE TO HOME it'' ' force-feedin- perhaps something along the lines of “My Big Fat Greek Honeymoon” and has received numerous other acting offers Vardalos is reluctant to specify future plans ' or take a guess at her movie's final box-offitake She doesn’t want to jinx anything “I’m a Greek tragedian so we’re scared of stuff like that” she said ce New mecca for ‘Peanuts’ lovers opening in California SANTA ROSA Calif (AP) — It’s missing the shag carpet and classical columns but to “Peanuts” fans the new Charles M Schulz museum has pH the lure of Elvis’ Graceland “I have been a Snoopy fan for life” said Bridget Feeley a Chicago native who sports a growing colSnoopy tattoo and cherishes lection of “Peanuts” Christmas ornaments and art “I plan to visit by the end of the year”' Plenty of others can’t wait Thousands are expected at Saturday's grand opening of 27300-squar- e foot museum and research cen- MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM the rights through his production company Playtonc Co and agreed to let Vardalos adapt the story and take the starring role Other producers had shown interest in the story but most wanted to change the family's ethnicity to Hispanic or Italian saying Greeks wouldn't resonate with mainstream audiences Vardalos said “They came to me and said 'We saw your play' and it's almost like the subtext was: ’And now we’re gonna wreck Vardalos said “They said ’Greek Italian — it's the same isn’t it?’" The difference may just he the details — baklava vs cannoli — but Vardalos wanted to express pride in her heritage while poking fun at universal idiosyncrasies: prying parents overprotective brothers oddball aunts and uncles and the ritualistic g found at big family gatherings Raised in Winnipeg Canada Vardalos started her career studying musical theater and worked in the box office of the Second City comedy troupe in Chicago When one of the actors missed a perfor- mance one night she filled in because she knew all the lines The next day the group hired her as a performer and the rest played out like a Holly- wood movie: Among the Second City performers was her future husband Ian Gomez who appear in the movie as her fiance’s best friend Her own traditional Greek wedding — full of boisterous relatives oodles of food and the grudging fusion of cultures — inspired her stage act She is considering a sequel set in Greece Brown making his ever-futi- le run to kick a football from Lucy’s outstretched hands Schulz a St Paul Minn native died of colon cancer on Feb 12 2000 just hours before readers saw his farewell strip featuring Snoopy typing a letter thanking fans for their ' support Schulz saw to it that no one would create new “Peanuts” strips after his death but reruns of “classic” strips still appear in the world's funny pages The strip’s influence reaches across many languages and cultures Collectors can indulge themselves at Snoopy shops iii Japan Taiwan Hong Kong and Shanghai that feature apparel stuffed dolls and even bone china tea sets: There is a Snoopy Place restaurant in Singapore The widespread fan base has translated into ongoing value for the Schulz estate handled by Charles M Schulz Creative Associates Forbes magazine this week ranked Schulz the second-riche-st deceased celebrity with $20 million in earnings for 2000 — right behind Elvis Pres- -' ley’s $35 million Internet message boards reveal collectors and enthusiasts from Belgium England Mexico and France Ashley Lindsay a freshman majoring in computer science at the University of Chicago launched such a site while in high school and is excited to make a second trip to Santa Rosa ' “It’s just universal Everything that Schulz ' tackled in his comic strip it seems like everybody can identify with” Lindsay said : Win at bridflo By Phillip Alder pool England Since the tour- -' expected the jack dropped nament was sponsored by the Adelman claimed an over-- : ’trick Thwaites beer company the Sherlock Holmes claimed: 02002 NEA ' winners didn’t need to spend “From a drop of water a logician could infer the possibility money in the bar after the North of an Atlantic ora Niagara' evening sessions A without having seen or heard Why didn’t East win the' V A J 10 9 second trick with her heart of one or the other” 4 875 18 7 Logicians make good bridge' queen and returri a club to defeat the contract? 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