posted 09-10-2006 11:14 PM                    

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"Pirates" sequel third-biggest film of all time Sun Sep 10, 4:46 AM ET


The swashbuckler epic "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" has become the third film to pass $1 billion at the worldwide box office, distributor Walt Disney Co. said on Saturday.

The film starring Johnny Depp had sold $1.003 billion worth of tickets as of Friday, the company said in a statement. But it was unlikely to climb any higher up the rankings.

"Titanic," released in 1997, holds the record with $1.8 billion, followed by 2003's "Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" with $1.1 billion.

"Pirates," which has ruled the foreign box office for the last nine weekends, enters its final major market, Italy, on Wednesday. The first film, 2003's "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," earned $21 million there, and $656 million worldwide.

All told, the sequel has earned $415.1 million in North America, and $587.5 million internationally, the No. 1 film of the year by both measures.

A third film, "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," is shooting in Los Angeles with plans for release next May.

Key cast members including Depp, Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom are returning. Additionally, Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards has just flown in to shoot a cameo role, a source close to the set said.

Richards, on whom Depp modeled his flamboyant character, Captain Jack Sparrow, has long been asked by producers to play Sparrow's father. The source declined to say what role Richards was playing.

Reuters/VNU

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posted 09-13-2006 12:25 AM                       

quote: Bobby Henderson

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Who does Hollywood think they're still fooling with this nonsense anyway?

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posted 09-21-2006 09:01 PM                    

quote: Bobby Henderson

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Hollywood is decades overdue for counting tickets sold than dollars grossed.

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quote: Matt Whitney

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I completely agree. That's the way they do it in the record industry to determine gold and platinum sales.

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quote: Bobby Henderson

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They should have gone to this back in the 1960s when The Sound of Music was raking in lots of money and getting crowned the all time box office champ.

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The gamble paid off as "The Sound Of Music" grossed $43 million domestically in its first 12 months of release. (Before you snicker at that figure, ponder for a moment that it was earned with $2-3 adult tickets in no more than 151 theatres, each showing the film an average of ten times per week.)

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Many records and interesting box office statistics and trivia were established during the film's run including it becoming the first film to gross $100 million in a single release, a feat often mis-attributed to "Jaws" (1975).

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Among the unique information: the numerous engagements where the number of tickets sold in a given city exceeded that city's population, suggesting strong repeat business and people traveling from other cities to see the film.

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During the summer of 1966, only a year and a half after its premiere and several months prior to beginning a general nationwide release, "The Sound Of Music" surpassed "Gone With The Wind" and became the industry's top-grossing motion picture.

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The box office gross of "The Sound Of Music" has, of course, been eclipsed many times over in the four decades since its release. But for its time, its performance was nothing short of remarkable, with many moviegoers returning to see the movie again and again. A woman in Cardiff, Wales, as an (extreme) example, saw the movie a well-publicized 371 times!

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To this day, "The Sound Of Music" holds for a great many theatres the house record for longest-running and/or top-grossing engagement.

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