• While the price of gold skyrockets, the Oscars are having to make this year's statues with less money in the kitty. Michael Cieply reports, "net assets for the fiscal year ended June 30 fell slightly, to $228.8 million, from $235.3 million the year before, as cash dwindled a bit and investments fell." And says Cieply, "Income from the Academy Awards rose about 3.5%, to $76.3 million from $73.7 million in 2008. Still, this year’s awards ceremony was more expensive. Awards-related expenses rose 6.8%, to $33.2 million from $31.1 million." NEW YORK TIMES

• Among the tasty tidbits offered up by Greg Ellwood in his comprehensive preview of the Golden Globes are the notion that Sandra Bullock ("The Proposal," "The Blind Side"), Meryl Streep ("Julie and Julia," "It's Complicated"), George Clooney ("The Men Who Stare At Goats," "Up in the Air") and Stanley Tucci ("Julie and Julia," "The Lovely Bones") "all have a legitimate shot at double acting nods" and that "global critical standouts such as Neil Bloomkamp's 'District 9' may receive the deserved recognition Oscar may deny them." HIT FIX

• Jeff Wells conducts a compelling interview with "Crazy Heart" star Maggie Gyllenhaal. Jeff prefaces his three-part video chat by commenting, "her performance works for everyone and then some, but is it leading or supporting? I saw it as supporting from the get-go, which didn't strike me as a problem in the least. The Fox Searchlight guys were feeling differently about this a week or two ago, but maybe they've come around." HOLLYWOOD ELSEWHERE

• Melinda Newman has put together a fun and fact-filled photo gallery of possible contenders for the new artist award at this year's Grammys. As Melinda notes in her intro, "Lady GaGa, the obvious winner, isn’t eligible because 'Just Dance' was nominated for best dance recording last year. Two other possible contenders, Phoenix and Kid Cudi, are also not eligible." HIT FIX

• "Superior Donuts," the well-received new play by Tracy Letts, is shuttering after just 16 weeks on Broadway. As Gordon Cox writes, "The show was Letts’ Rialto follow-up to his Tony and Pulitzer-winner 'August: Osage County,' but unlike that play, 'Donuts' never gained much momentum at the box office. Helmed by Tina Landau, 'Donuts' stars Michael McKean as the owner of a doughnut shop in a run-down part of Chicago. Co-star Jon Michael Hill has attracted attention for his well-reviewed perf as the shop owner’s young employee." VARIETY

• Pete Hammond reports, "Quentin Tarantino turned moderator for a SAG screening of 'Inglourious Basterds' Sunday, with 10 of his actors fielding questions at the post-screening Q&A. Guild members reportedly started lining up at 8:30 a.m. for the noon event that also featured a casual and bearded Brad Pitt, who was mobbed by paparazzi when the panel finally ended. Quentin, who loves doing this sort of thing, kept it going even after publicists were waving at him to end it for nearly 20 minutes." NOTES ON A SEASON

• Steve Pond does a crackerjack job interviewing Oscar contender Viggo Mortensen ("The Road"). Mortensen admitted, "I’ve never been in a movie where the character was dealing with this much sadness and dread all the way through. There are scary moments and entertaining moments, but still, inside he’s carrying a burden emotionally. How do you do that realistically, as an actor, and get it across so that it’s as real as the open wound of nature around us? That was a measuring stick. We couldn’t be any less real than what we were traveling through, these dead or dying landscapes." THE ODDS

Photos: HFPA, Playbill

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Just hours after the release of the new Michael Jackson single "This Is It" Monday, Paul Anka established his right to co-author credit on the song. Turns out the tune -- then titled "I Never Heard" -- was penned by Anka and Jackson back in 1983 when they were working together on songs for a new Anka album. As Reuters reports, "Both 'I Never Heard' and 'This Is It' share the same vocal and piano line, although the latter track boasts new overdubs from Jackson's brothers."

Paul Anka could be in for quite a payday now that he owns half of the copyright in "This Is It." But will it finally win the veteran singer-songwriter a Grammy Award? Though Paul Anka enjoyed a string of hits in the early years of the Grammys, he has never contended for any of the major awards. He was snubbed even for his 1969 English language lyrics for "My Way" -- a signature song for then Grammy favorite Frank Sinatra.

Critical response to "This Is It" has been mixed at best. Jon Pareles of the New York Times said: "No funk here: it’s the posthumous, all-sweetness-and-light Jackson that his family is determined to sell. But at least he sounds human, especially at the end, where he lets the vocal line take a few tentative leaps." Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune said, "Jackson cycles through a verse, pre-chorus and chorus several times during the track's 3:46 duration but never really develops any of the initial ideas." And for Ann Powers of the Los Angeles Times, "His high tenor billows and crests, but never breaks; this is ecstasy without resolution. It feels great, but unfinished. It simultaneously makes you want it to keep going and to become something else, something more."

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Barbra Streisand just debuted at the top of the Billboard album chart with her disc "Love Is the Answer." This jazz-themed album beat out a slew of new offerings for the top spot, including "Brand New Eyes" by "Twilight" rockers Paramore and "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel" from Mariah Carey. Streisand bettered her Billboard record of at least one No. 1 album in each decade stretching back to the 1960s. Before "Love Is the Answer," she last topped the charts with "Higher Ground" in 1997.

The question now is whether Barbra Streisand can parlay this sales success into another Grammy Award. She already has eight competitive Grammys on her crowded mantle (along with two honorary ones). The versatile Streisand has earned a total of 39 nominations across a dozen categories. Buoyed by the good reviews for "Love Is the Answer," Streisand could contend for the first time in the jazz vocal category.

Usually Babs produces her own albums, but this time around she let Diana Krall do the heavy lifting. Krall has a pair of Grammys herself for jazz vocal (1999) and jazz album (2002). And this Canadian talent contended for album of the year in 1999 for "When I Look in Your Eyes" -- she lost to "Supernatural" by Santana.

The top Grammy category has come to include albums representing many musical genres. Streisand has won album of the year only once -- for her self-titled debut disc way back in 1964. She has contended for this award another five times: "People" (1965), "My Name Is Barbra" (1966), "Color Me Barbra" (1967), "Guilty" (1980) and "The Broadway Album" (1986).

"Despite struggling with her vocals on "Good Morning America," Whitney Houston's latest album 'I Look To You' is projected to sell 200,000 copies and gain the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 chart," reports Billboard.

If Whitney pulls that off, it'll be a notable achievement, because she's competing against Miley Cyrus' new CD, "The Time of Our Lives," which might be restricted in sales by being released exclusively by Wal-Mart — and prematurely at that. "Lives" was supposed to debut this past Tuesday, but Miley confessed via Twitter that she's "kinda bummed" that Wal-Mart put it on shelves last Friday, triggering early sales of 62,000 copies.

If that helps Whitney to get back on top of the charts, it might give the former Grammy queen a big psychological push in the new awards derby. "I Look to You" debuted (on time) on the last day of Grammy eligibility so that it will be most fresh on voters' minds when they check off their nomination ballots in October. Whitney Houston won six Grammys, including the recording academy's two highest honors — best record ("I Will Always Love You") and album ("The Bodyguard") of the year (1993).

Miley Cyrus, by contrast, has won no Grammys.

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Since Grammy nominations for best record of the year are chosen by a secret committee of 25 people with uncertain tastes and agendas, they're not easy to predict. However, our kudos prophets David "Guru" Schnelwar and Darrin "DoubleD" Dortch, who moderate our forums, agree on three of the final five contenders: Black Eyed Peas ("Boom Boom Pow" or "I Gotta Feeling"), Lady Gaga ("LoveGame" or "Poker Face") and Taylor Swift ("Love Story" or "You Belong With Me").

I agree with DoubleD that Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody" is also a front-runner. Guru has it ranked merely as a possibility, but I'll be flabbergasted if it's not nominated in November. (I think it would win if voting occurred right now.) Awards will be presented on Jan. 31.

So . . . hmmm . . . maybe these nominees actually will be easy to predict this year, after all? Check out DoubleD's and Guru's predix for best album of the year here.

RECORD OF THE YEAR: DOUBLED'S PREDIX
(Front-runners)
"Boom Boom Pow" or "I Gotta Feeling," Black Eyed Peas
"Blame It," Jamie Foxx
"Use Somebody," Kings of Leon
"Poker Face," Lady Gaga
"Love Story" or "You Belong With Me," Taylor Swift
 
(Possible)
"Hometown Glory," Adele
"Halo" or "Single Ladies" (if eligible), Beyonce
"You Found Me," the Fray
"21 Guns," Green Day
"Pretty Wings," Maxwell
"Heartless," Kanye West
"Get On Your Boots," U2
 
DOUBLED'S COMMENTARY: I'd be surprised if the Black Eyed Peas and Lady Gaga weren't nominated for best record. Their songs have been ubiquitous this year. Plus, the Peas are past nominees in this category, and Gaga is this year's biggest breakout star.

After that, this category is up for grabs. Jamie Foxx or Maxwell will probably represent the R&B vote; my money's on Foxx since "Blame It" was such a huge hit. Earlier this year, Kings of Leon beat out some heavyweights (including Coldplay, Eagles, AC/DC and Radiohead) for the rock duo/group Grammy. "Use Somebody" is currently exploding on radio; it's in the top five on the Billboard Hot 100 and has brought the underrated band some surprising commercial success.

Finally, Taylor Swift is, arguably, the biggest pop/country star on the planet right now, and her country singles have done extremely well on the pop charts; she's a safe bet. If any of those choices fall though, expect any of the past nominees for record of the year — Beyonce, Kanye, U2, Adele, Green etc. — to return. Or the Fray's hugely popular "You Found Me" could surprise, though I suspect it'll end up in the song-of-the-year category instead.

RECORD OF THE YEAR: GURU'S PREDIX
(Front-runners)
"Halo"  or "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," Beyonce
"Boom Boom Pow" or "I Gotta Feeling," Black Eyed Peas
"21 Guns," Green Day
"Love Game" or "Poker Face," Lady Gaga
"Love Story" or "You Belong With Me," Taylor Swift

(Possible)
"Knock You Down," Keri Hilson featuring Ne-Yo & Kanye West
"Run This Town," Jay-Z featuring Rihanna & Kanye West
"Use Somebody," Kings of Leon
"Hot 'N' Cold" or "Waking Up in Vegas," Katy Perry
"Working on A Dream," Bruce Springsteen
"Get On Your Boots" or "Magnificent" or "I'll Go Crazy if I Don't Go Crazy Tonight," U2
"Heartless," Kanye West 
 
GURU'S COMMENTARY: Taylor Swift is the biggest country crossover artist since Shania Twain.  Swift started 2009 off with "Love Story" and now is getting huge airplay for "You Belong With Me."
 
Two-time record-of-the-year nominees the Black Eyed Peas just made Billboard Hot 100 chart history for "Boom Boom Pow" and "I Gotta Feeling," being No. 1 for a total of 20 weeks. The only negative is that both songs were not played on VH1.

2005 record-of-the-year winner Green Day is hoping for its third nomination in this category.

As another one of the hopefuls gets booted off of "American Idol" tonight, consider which of the remaining 10 is likely to match the achievements of Season 1 champ Kelly Clarkson. Her fourth album — "All I Ever Wanted" — just entered the Billboard charts at No. 1.That bounced U2 from the top of the perch. The Irish band ended up in the third position for the second week of sales for "No Line on the Horizon."

Kelly Clarkson pulled off this impressive feat with a flurry of promotional appearances, including singing her No. 1 single "My Life Would Suck Without You" on last week's live "American Idol." Back in January, she broke a Billboard record when that first cut from the album jumped 97 places in just one week. And while critics are divided about her return to a more familiar style, the impressive sales of that single, and to some extent the album, could help raise  Clarkson's profile come Grammy nominations time.

However, while it is tempting to tout this album as Kelly Clarkson's comeback, the first week sales are actually below those for her last effort — the introspective 2007 disc "My December." That album, which boasted a different sound from the pop princess, was met with confusion by critics and fans alike and barely went platinum in the end. That it was characterized as a disappointment was due more to the staggering success of her second album — "Breakaway" — than the failure of this third one.

After all, the breakthrough "Breakaway" sold 6 million copies and won Kelly Clarkson a pair of 2006 Grammy Awards for best female pop vocal performance ("Since U Been Gone") and pop album. By comparison, "Thankful" — the debut album that followed in the wake of her 2002 crowning as the first "American Idol" — went double platinum but failed to impress the critics.

Of the other six "American Idol" winners to date, only one really wowed the recording industry with their first efforts. That was Season 4 champ Carrie Underwood who was named best new artist at the 2007 Grammy Awards. And she has won three consecutive Grammys for female country vocal performance: 2007 ("Jesus, Take the Wheel"), 2008 ("Before He Cheats"), and 2009 ("Last Name").  Carrie Underwood has also won five American Music Awards, five Country Music Assn. Awards, six Academy of Country Music Awards, and six CMTs.

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Photo: RCA

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MOVIES

• Do you think Johnny Depp is the actor most overdue to win an Oscar?

• 'The Dark Knight' dominates Saturn Awards with 11 nods while 'Twilight' is almost shut out

• Jon Stewart and David Letterman: 'We think it's stupid' to host the Oscars

• When will we get to see 'Oscar's Greatest Moments: Volume 2'?

TV

• Will the ratings boost George Clooney gave 'ER' help with Emmy voters?

• George Clooney and rest of returning 'ER' cast can't compete as guest stars at Emmys

• Jon Stewart can't win an Emmy for his showdown with Jim Cramer

• Can Oscar winner Susan Sarandon earn an Emmy for guesting on tonight's 'ER'?

• 'Lost' leads at Saturn Awards with 11 nominations

• As usual, Showtime launches first major campaign of Emmy season

• Is this the year 'The View' co-hosts can finally win an Emmy?

• 'Desperate Housewives' Nicollette Sheridan waves goodbye to Wisteria Lane

MUSIC

• Our forum posters aren't in tune with the Grammy rule switcheroo

• Will 'No Line on the Horizon' get U2 a chance at a record third album of the year Grammy?

• Chris Brown takes his name off Kids' Choice Awards ballot

• Kelly Clarkson comes home to 'American Idol'

• Would a Rihanna-Chris Brown duet be a winning combination?

THEATER

• Is 'Irena's Vow' the next Holocaust awards champ?

• Jane Fonda is Tony Award front-runner for '33 Variations'

• Olivier Awards to 'Black Watch' and the Bard

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The new U2 album "No Line on the Horizon" debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts by selling 484,000 copies. The band's last album -- "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" -- moved 840,000 units in its first week of release back in November 2004. However, as the always insightful Todd Martens of the Pop & Hiss blog points out in this must-read story, "a closer look at U2's sales stats suggests that 'Atomic Bomb' was an aberration in the career of the Irish superstars." Turns out that U2 usually sells its albums over the long run rather than in a short burst in the first few weeks of release. All of its first 11 albums eventually went at least platinum. Interestingly, "Atomic Bomb" moved almost 30% of its 3 million copies in that first week.

Reviews for this new album were always respectful if not raves. Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Ann Power gave the disc three out of four stars. She thought, "U2's celebration of life has always also been a celebration of itself, and Bono still has a gift for radiating joy in a way that feels inclusive, not egotistical. At the same time, 'No Line on the Horizon' is most interesting when the band and its producers let their well-deserved wallowing become a drift down the river toward something different."

While part of the promotional effort had U2 appearing all last week on "The Late Show With David Letterman," the band premiered the first single -- "Get on Your Boots" --- on the Feb. 8 Grammy Awards telecast. Though that track has been only a modest success with 188,000 downloads, there are many more to come in the months ahead. And taken individually and as a whole, how many of these will figure in the Grammy nominations when they are announced at the end of the year?

Over the years, U2 has won 22 Grammys spread out over 11 categories. That haul ties the group with Stevie Wonder. However, Wonder has won three album of the year Grammys, as did Paul Simon and the late Frank Sinatra. U2 has taken this top honor twice -- for "The Joshua Tree" and "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb."

While the band's first five albums failed to break through with Grammy voters, all that changed with disc No. 6 — "The Joshua Tree." U2 won album of the year in 1987 and the first of seven rock duo or group awards (the other wins in that category came in 1988, 1992, 2000, 2001, 2004, and 2005).

U2's next studio album, "Achtung Baby," lost album of the year to Eric Clapton's "Unplugged" in 1992. While "Zooropa" won the alternative album award in 1993, U2's follow-up "Pop" went flat with Grammy nominators. "All That You Can't Leave Behind" contended for the top prize in 2001 but lost to the "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack. But "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" won album of the year in 2005.

Besides their two album of the year Grammys, U2 has won record of the year twice -- "Beautiful Day" (2000) and "Walk On" (2001) -- and song of the year twice as well: "Beautiful Day" (2000) and "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own" (2005). And in addition to those seven Grammys for rock group, U2 has won rock album twice -- "All That You Can't Leave Behind" (2001) and "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" (2005) -- and rock song twice: "Vertigo" (2004) and "City of Blinding Light" (2005). And they have three video wins -- performance ("Where the Streets Have No Name," 1988)' long-form ("Zoo TV," 1994), and short-form ("Vertigo," 2004) -- as well as single wins for alternative album ("Zooropa," 1993) and pop group ("Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of," 2001).

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Photo: Interscope Records

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Chris Brown has withdrawn from the upcoming Kids' Choice Awards. His representatives issued the following statement earlier today: "Chris very much appreciates the support of his fans and the honor they have paid him in the way of nominations for Favorite Male Singer and Favorite Song. Unfortunately, the controversy surrounding the incident last month has shifted the focus from the music to whether he should be allowed to be among those nominated. While Chris would like to speak to his fans directly about this and other issues, pending legal proceedings preclude his doing so at this time. Once the matter before him has been resolved, he intends to do so."

This surprise decision comes just a day after awards organizer Nickelodeon said it would not remove his name from the ballot despite growing pressure to do so following an alleged incident with Rihanna last month. As per Tuesday's Associated Press report, Nickelodeon spokesman Dan Martinsen said, "Like all our KCA nominees, Chris Brown was nominated by kids several months ago based on his body of work as a performer, and the kids who vote will ultimately decide who wins in the category."

Voting for these awards began at the official website on March 2. Chris Brown was in the running for the third year in a row as favorite male singer. He won the award last year after losing to Justin Timberlake in 2007. This year he was competing with 2006 winner Jesse McCartney, Kid Rock and T-Pain.

He was also a nominee for favorite song, as his No. 1 single "Kiss Kiss" went up against tracks by Beyonce ("Single Ladies"), Katy Perry ("I Kissed a Girl") and Rihanna, who contends with "Don't Stop the Music."

Rihanna is also competing for the first time as favorite female singer at the Kids' Choice Awards against last year's champ, Miley Cyrus, 2007 winner Beyonce and three-time nominee Alicia Keys.

There is no word as to whether Rihanna will be attending the March 28 ceremony, which will be telecast live on Nickelodeon and hosted by Dwayne Johnson. Both she and Brown skipped the NAACP Image Awards, which came only five days after the Grammy-eve incident that catapulted them into the headlines. At the Image Awards, Brown lost the male vocalist prize to Jamie Foxx and Rihanna was bested by Beyonce for female vocalist.

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Photo: Nickelodeon

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Rihanna and Chris Brown are reported by E News to be recording a duet together this week. How will the public and the music industry respond to this collaboration?

Before this latest revelation, Rihanna was on track to establish herself as a force to be reckoned with in the music business. She had already racked up nine Grammy nominations in just two years. Public sympathy was with her for the most part. She was being counseled via the airwaves by Oprah Winfrey while her mentor Jay-Z was said to be arranging a meeting for her with abuse survivor Tina Turner.

Chris Brown remains at risk of losing his carefully cultivated image as a teen idol. His core fans are young girls who swoon over his boy-next-door good looks and charm. Indeed, he is contending for the third year in a row as favorite male singer at the the upcoming Kids' Choice Awards. He won the award last year after losing to Justin Timberlake in 2007. This year he contends against 2006 winner Jesse McCartney, Kid Roc, and T-Pain.

Voting began at the official website last Monday, March 2. A day later, Chris Brown's MySpace page included a plea to his fans to vote for him. He is also a nominee for favorite song, as his No. 1 single "Kiss Kiss" goes up against tracks by Beyonce ("Single Ladies"), Katy Perry ("I Kissed a Girl") and Rihanna, who contends with "Don't Stop the Music."

Rihanna is also competing for the first time as favorite female singer at the Kids' Choice Awards against last year's champ Miley Cyrus, 2007 winner Beyonce, and three-time nominee Alicia Keys. However, her MySpace page makes no reference to the ongoing online voting.

There is no word as to whether either Chris Brown or Rihanna will attend the March 28 ceremony, which will be telecast live on Nickelodeon and hosted by Dwayne Johnson. However, if this latest report is true, it would not be surprising if they did appear together. They both skipped the NAACP Image Awards, which came only five days after the Grammy-eve incident that catapulted them into the headlines. At the Image Awards, Chris Brown lost the male vocalist prize to Jamie Foxx and Rihanna was bested by Beyonce for female vocalist.

The pair faced off against each other at the two most recent Grammy Awards. Last year, Rihanna and Jay-Z won the best rap/sung collaboration for "Umbrella" over, among others, Chris Brown and T-Pain for "Kiss Kiss." This year, they competed against each other for the pop vocal collaboration Grammy. Brown and Jordin Sparks were nominated for "No Air" while Rihanna and Maroon 5 were up for "If I Never See Your Face Again." Both duos lost to the night's big winners Robert Plant and Allison Kraus for "Rich Woman."