Web posted on:
Wednesday, November 25, 1998 1:39:39 PM EST

• Pavarotti will sing 'Tosca' at the Met
• Director sues Edward Norton, New Line for $200 million
• Schwarzenegger film gives L.A. something it doesn't need
• Grodin signs with MSNBC through 2000

Pavarotti

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Luciano Pavarotti has agreed to sing three performances of Puccini's "Tosca" at the Metropolitan Opera later this season. The announcement follows his successful 30th anniversary gala in which the Italian superstar, considerably slimmed down and sounding in surprisingly sturdy voice, sang fully staged acts from three different operas.

The 63-year-old Pavarotti was to have sung the "Tosca" role three times earlier this month but canceled because he was still recuperating from hip and knee replacement surgery. He was replaced by Richard Leech -- and now it is Leech who will be replaced by Pavarotti. Met general manager Joseph Volpe announced Tuesday that Pavarotti would appear as the painter Cavaradossi on March 16, 20, and 25.

"American History X"

LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- A editorial squabble over the movie "American History X" has led the film's director to file a $200 million lawsuit against actor Edward Norton and New Line Cinema. Tony Kaye alleges he wasn't allowed to remove his name from the movie's credits after Norton insisted on making several changes that lengthened his role.

"What would have been a great film is now a good film," Kaye said in filing the suit that alleges breach of contract, and violations of the First, Fifth and 14th Amendments, as well as the Labor Management Relations Act and federal copyright laws. Kaye contends the Directors Guild of America was silent when New Line and Norton interfered with his work.

Kaye, 46, also claims he used more than $718,000 of his own money to complete the film, but New Line has not reimbursed him. Norton, who could not be reached for comment Tuesday night, has said the film was changed "no more than 5 percent."

Schwarzenegger

LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- Hollywood is accustomed to Arnold Schwarzenegger giving it blockbusters. On Monday, the actor gave Los Angeles commuters a headache when filming for his latest movie, "End of Days," tied up downtown rush-hour traffic. "I hated that," said city Public Works accounts manager Abe Rasheed, whose usual 25-minute commute from Pasadena stretched to nearly an hour.

Despite the traffic, Monday's filming of "End of Days" was too good a deal to refuse, said Michael Bobenko of the Entertainment Industry Development Corp., which issues film permits for the city. If the city had refused, it could have lost the $100 million movie and its cast of hundreds to New York, he said.

Grodin

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Charles Grodin has signed a two-year pact to continue as host of his self-titled weekend talk show on MSNBC. The extension will keep the actor-turned-host yakking it up through the year 2000. He will also do several specials a year for the channel. Ratings expectations were low when his show went to MSNBC, but it has turned out to be one of MSNBC's top-rated shows, boosting the network's Nielsen ratings in the 8 p.m. slot by an impressive 84 percent.

Reuters contributed to this report.