'Jumper' lands in first

The globe-trotting thriller "Jumper" leaped to a box office win with $27.2 million on a weekend when Hollywood offered something for everyone, with new films for action fans, teens, family audiences, and the date-movie crowd. Starring Hayden Christensen and Samuel L. Jackson in the tale of a man who can teleport himself instantly to any spot on the planet, "Jumper" has rung up $33.9 million since opening Thursday, according to studio estimates released yesterday. The new wide releases opened a day early, Valentine's Day, to get a head start at what studio executives viewed as a long holiday weekend. Debuting in second place was Disney's teen dance sequel "Step Up 2 the Streets," which pulled in $19.7 million for the weekend and $26.3 million since Thursday. The family fantasy "The Spiderwick Chronicles," featuring Freddie Highmore and Mary-Louise Parker in the story of a mom and her kids who move into a house menaced by evil creatures, opened at No. 3 with a $19.1 million weekend. Since Thursday, it has taken in $26.8 million. Romance "Definitely, Maybe," with Ryan Reynolds as a dad looking back on his romantic life after he's served with divorce papers, premiered at No. 5 with a weekend haul of $9.7 million. The previous weekend's top movie, the Kate Hudson-Matthew McConaughey romantic comedy "Fool's Gold," fell to fourth place with $13.1 million, raising its 10-day total to $42 million. (AP)

Charlize Theron reflected '20s-style Hollywood glamour in the stunning beaded gown she wore to the 2004 Oscars, when she won as best actress for "Monster." But People magazine reports that for this year's ceremony, the South Africa-born actress (inset) has something different planned: Her pajamas. At the Dublin International Film Festival where her director/actor boyfriend Stuart Townsend's new movie, "Battle in Seattle," premiered, Theron was quoted by the British Press Association as saying that if you aren't up for an award you shouldn't take up a seat. "I don't think you go to those kind of award shows unless you are nominated," said Theron of the Feb. 24 Oscar ceremony. "I think it's a special thing if you get a nomination, or your film does. Then you go. But we don't have any nominations or anything like that . . . so we sit in our jammies and watch it on the couch."

Owners of The Carpenters' former home in Downey, Calif., aren't feeling on top of the world about the legions of fans who keep stopping by to pay tribute. The five-bedroom tract house, where siblings Karen and Richard Carpenter lived and penned some of their greatest hits, was featured on the cover of their 1973 hit album "Now & Then." It was also where an anorexic Karen Carpenter collapsed in 1983 before dying. Owners Manuel and Blanca Melendez Parra have submitted plans to officials in Downey to raze the 39-year-old main house, the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday. The Parras have already torn down an adjoining house and have begun construction on a larger home. The proposal to level the rest of the residence has angered fans. "This house is our version of Graceland," said Carpenters aficionado Jon Konjoyan. (AP)

First-time director Paul Sorvino doesn't understand why his investors are so jittery. More than two years ago, Lackawanna County agreed to partner with Sorvino on "The Trouble With Cali," an independent film he is producing and directing in northeastern Pennsylvania. Shot in the Scranton area in 2006, the low-budget movie has yet to hit theaters, prompting the cash-strapped county to ask Sorvino what he has done with its $500,000 investment. Sorvino says he's happy to provide a full accounting of the money. But, he adds, elected officials don't necessarily have a good understanding of the movie business. Sorvino says he has completed a "very rough cut" of the film and hopes to have it ready for a distributor within four months. (AP)