NEWSMAKERS

NEWSMAKERS

Clooney film finishes Cincinnati-area scenes

CINCINNATI

Hometown hero George Clooney and the cast and crew of “Ides of March” have finished filming in the Cincinnati and northern Kentucky areas and are moving on to Detroit.

The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that, over three-and-a-half weeks ending Friday, as many as 20 sites were filmed, including Xavier University and Fountain Square in Cincinnati and Miami University in Oxford, where students were extras in a scene depicting a presidential primary debate.

Clooney acts in and directs the film about a presidential campaign. It’s his first movie to have filming in the area where he grew up.

The Oscar-winning actor was born in Lexington, Ky., and grew up in Cincinnati-area communities.

Film publicist Tracey Schaefer says about 90 percent of the story is set in Cincinnati, northern Kentucky and Oxford.

Paper: Kate chooses McQueen designer

LONDON

A leading British newspaper reported Sunday that Sarah Burton, creative director of the Alexander McQueen fashion house, has been chosen to design Kate Middleton’s wedding gown.

Both Burton and the company’s chief executive deny the claim.

The Sunday Times story said Burton has received the plum assignment, then quotes her and McQueen CEO Jonathan Akeroyd saying this is not the case. Both flatly denied the McQueen house is involved.

The paper did not name any sources, suggesting the information had reached the newspaper after Akeroyd told a colleague about receiving the royal gig.

A Paris-based publicist for the McQueen house dismissed the report in an e-mail to The Associated Press, saying “We can confirm this story is untrue.”

The contradictory story, which buzzed throughout Facebook and Twitter, did not clarify one of the central mysteries surrounding the April 29 wedding of Middleton and Prince William: Who will actually design the gown she wears for her transformation from commoner to princess?

The emphatic denials from the top people at McQueen would seem to indicate that the story is not true, but the circumstances surrounding the fashion assignment of the year (or perhaps the decade) make the situation somewhat cloudy.

Just two weeks ago, British Fashion Council chief executive Caroline Rush told The Associated Press that whoever had been chosen would be bound by the terms of the agreement to do everything possible to keep their role secret until Middleton walks down the aisle before the eyes of 1,900 invited guests and a vast global television audience.

h ‘Rango’ corrals $38M at box office

LOS ANGELES

“Rango” has lassoed the top spot at the box office.

The animated Paramount film featuring Johnny Depp as the voice of a Wild West chameleon sheriff rode into town with a $38 million debut, according to studio estimates released Sunday.

“Rango,” which was directed by “Pirates of the Caribbean” film franchise maestro Gore Verbinski, is the first animated feature from Industrial Light and Magic, the special effects studio founded by George Lucas in 1975.

Universal’s thriller “The Adjustment Bureau,” starring Matt Damon and Emily Blunt, debuted in the No. 2 spot with $20.9 million. CBS Films’ fantasy tale “Beastly” with Alex Pettyfer and Vanessa Hudgens opened at No. 3 with $10.1 million, rounding out the weekend’s top three films.

The raunchy Warner Bros. comedy “Hall Pass” stayed committed in its second weekend in the No. 4 position with $9 million. The 3-D animated Walt Disney romance “Gnomeo and Juliet” also kept that loving feeling going in its fourth weekend with $6.9 million in the No. 5 spot, despite an animated showdown against “Rango,” which wasn’t released in 3-D.

Associated Press