A2322 v. 105:r>o 14i hoh L The Battalion A GGIELIFE -least;! supej lually: ssica | mania| ■aris ' | -erer i ^ becal acce:| inclucife hankol •get can in. (® rom 3t SiM | wntryf itryrr.| Twitty m ?cor:.v ie tirri ver ai plasti. inallyl ecorc;| ne," 1 gazirtl or hisi 'e." : efil iritie Notting Hill battles Star Wars for top of charts, box office dollars LOS ANGELES (AP) — The new Star Wars film topped the $200 million mark in a record 13 days while Notting Hill took in $27.8 million with its mix of Julia Roberts and romance, according to indus try estimates Monday. The only other new film in wide release. The Thirteenth Floor, opened in fifth place. The science fiction film noir had a disap pointing $4.3 million. Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace topped the four-day Memorial Day holiday box office with $64.8 million, for a total gross of $205 million in less than two weeks. It took Independence Day 30 days to reach the mark in 1996. The movie’s average ticket sales per screen were through the roof at $21,436, indicating packed houses. “The movie is like a thor oughbred. We put it on the track every day and it doesn’t disappoint you,†Tom Sherak, distribution head for 20th Century Fox, said. Sherak said now that hardcore fans have seen it, families are the key to the repeat business the movie will need to thrive as it faces the summer block buster season in a month or so. Meanwhile, counterprogramming paid off big- time for Notting Hill. Its gross of $27.8 million was the best opening ever for a Julia Roberts movie. Her comedy My Best Friend’s Wedding opened with $21.7 million over three days in 1997, while the comparable three-day figure for Notting Hill was $22.2 million. Notting Hill was playing on about 600 more screens than Wedding and ticket prices are higher. “We are absolutely thrilled,†Nikki Rocco, head of distribution for Universal, said. The Love Letter, also billed as a romantic alter native, tanked in its second week, dropping out of the Top 10 list with a meager gross of $1.3 million. One reason: The Love Let ter starred Tom Selleck. Not ting Hill had Roberts. Polled audiences said “the main rea son they came was for Julia Roberts and the second rea son they came was for the ro mance,†Rocco said. She had no qualms about putting Notting Hill up against the second week of Star Wars. Star Wars locked up the children’s audience and the “thrill ride†fans, Rocco said, while the love story between Roberts as a Hollywood star and Hugh Grant as a quirky British bookstore owner drew an older crowd. Universal’s strategy to open ahead and behind of Star Wars paid off. The Mammy, the studio’s own thrill ride movie, was in third place with $12.7 mil lion. It has grossed $117.1 million in four weeks. Play ing on an enormous 3,395 screens, the movie take per theater was a respectable $3,741, although it was dwarfed by the $10,128 average for Notting Hill. 1. Star Wars: Episode I — The Phantom Menace, $64.8 million. 2. Notting Hill, $27.8 million. 3. The Mammy, $12.7 million. 4. Entrapment, $6.3 million. 5. The Thirteenth Floor, $4.3 million. 6. The Matrix, $3.1 million. 7. William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, $2,004 million. 8. Never Been Kissed, $2 million. 9. Life, $1.4 million. 10. Election, $1.38 million. From left: Lloyd plays Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars, D’Onofrio and Bierko face off in The Thirteenth Floor, Con nery and Zeta-Jones team up in Entrapment and Berrymore takes popularity lessons from Arquette in Never Been Kissed. is ant ie 5Kc old dal Mary.' Hi she I sel o’t wal ningtof ain. of he' real rt Jiis mi estler i| restlinf ccidenf mesa lice sai 5/TV i Editot Editor jim’on E ;ity pus" prod- ierson; J (ariuit r- Meier. i. leaux. son Pun Publica^:, !; Fax; 8^®'' M jnd thouis^-' ttalion i®'?' ton,lX Jr . Strut Your Future WORK PRRT- Time now... fiPPLV FOR fl FULL-Time oppoRTumiY when you GRADUATE! UCS is continuing expansion into College Station. Our newest facility is open and we are hiring for part-time positions in these departments: Client Service Equipment Repair Shipping/Receiving Inventory Software Distribution Hardware Assembly Office Administration PC Software Support UCS offers: Competitive salary and flexible shifts Excellent work experience Career opportunities after graduation Paid weekly To Apply, Call (409) 595-2609 or stop by our hospitality room at MSC 138 from 9-4 p.m. June 1 st & 2 nd to pick up an application. 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