• Over this past weekend I ran into several academy members who are really irked about how few DVD screeners they've received at home. "Frozen River" was the first one out this year, arriving in late September. Since then only "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" was shipped to the full membership, arriving about a week ago. "Elegy" was also sent in October, but only to members of the actors' and writers' branches.

At this point last year, all academy members already had received "The Namesake," "Waitress," "Once," "A Mighty Heart," "Breach," "Spider-Man 3," "Reign Over Me," "Zodiac," "Things We Lost in the Fire," "Freedom Writers," "Knocked Up" and "Across the Universe." Of course, those pix didn't fare well in the derby, so that might be the reason for the current delay, but other films shipped early in derby season in previous years did much better — like "Little Miss Sunshine." My guess is that studios are waiting this year because they want to reach voters after the U.S. presidential election, which may also explain why so many lead ponies will be released late to theaters compared to other recent years.

Right around this time last year voters also received the following screeners, but, quite frankly, I've forgotten which ones arrived during the last few days of October and the first few days of November: "Into the Wild," "3:10 to Yuma," "The Kingdom," "Elizabeth: The Golden Age," "Margot at the Wedding," "Starting Out in the Evening," "Away from Her" and "Bug." That batch fared much better with Oscar noms, of course.

• John Daly, an executive producer of the Oscar-winning "Platoon" and "The Last Emperor," has died at age 71. As the AP reports, "Over a career that spanned four decades, Daly helped to produce films that earned 13 Oscars and 21 Oscar nominations, as well as numerous Golden Globes and other awards. Daly's companies boosted the career starts of seminal directors such as Oliver Stone ('Platoon,' 'Salvador'), Bernardo Bertolucci ('The Last Emperor') and Robert Altman ('Images'), as well as actors Denzel Washington, Keanu Reeves and Julia Roberts. Associated Press

• Pete Hammond delivers an in-depth report on the AFI filmfest that is running in L.A. till Nov. 9. He says that "Doubt," a last-minute substitution for the pushed-back pic "The Soloist" as the opening-night film, generated "Oscar talk afterward for Streep, Hoffman, Davis and Adams as well as the picture, which is the kind of well-crafted adaptation of a Broadway play to Hollywood that the Academy used to honor all the time. Whether they still do in 2008 is the bigger question. Anyone remember 'The History Boys'? Seven Tonys, zero Oscar nominations. This one's got a lot more going for it, and producers should feel confident 'Doubt' will play particularly well with older voters and the actors branch." As Hammond points out, "It will compete for that crowd with Ron Howard's adaptation of Peter Morgan's play 'Frost/Nixon,' as both have been flawlessly transferred to the screen from their New York roots." He also highlights the upcoming fest schedule, which includes screenings of an edited "Che" as well as the premieres of "Last Chance Harvey" and "Defiance." Notes on a Season

• In September, the midseason laffer "Samantha Who?" yielded an Emmy win for supporting player Jean Smart and a nod for lead Christina Applegate. Applegate, a fan favorite and one-time guest actress Emmy winner ("Friends"), lost to critics darling Tina Fey ("30 Rock"). After a summer health scare for Applegate, the second season of this ABC Monday night comedy continues to do well in the ratings benefiting from the boffo success of lead-in "Dancing with the Stars." Now, the alphabet net has ordered another seven eps and as TV Guide reports, this "brings the full-season count to 20, two shy of the usual order. (The network isn't forgetting about Sam but rather says the smaller order is only a result of having a wealth of midseason shows, like 'Scrubs' and 'According to Jim' (groan), on deck.)" TV Guide

Sony Pictures Classics, Weinstein Co., Miramax