David Beckham's soccer season might be over. While this certainly matters to the L.A. Galaxy, and possibly to England's national team, does it make any difference to Beckham's planned conquest of America? Probably not.

Yesterday morning I saw "The Brave One," the upcoming movie with Jodie Foster as a woman who begins killing bad guys as a way of dealing with her own feelings of victimization after being brutally beaten. (See trailer below) ...

I have been badgering the "Office" fans in my office into watching this three-minute bit. Very funny, and a great way to get revved up for the new season. (Another great way is the upcoming DVD of the third season, where the deleted scenes are copious and as funny as stuff they left in.)

Full list after the jump. (Feel free to compare it to the "leaked" version from TMZ, posted below.) ...

Selected Bob Marley tunes are now available as ringtones. Announcement after the jump, including a list of the songs Verizon is offering. Which leads to this question: If you were trying to match a given Marley ringtone with someone, what would be a good match?

Here's the list -- not yet officially announced -- according to TMZ:
Aaron Carter, Wayne Newton, Mark Cuban, Jane Seymour, Mel B (not dancing, but playing a role on the show), Tori Spelling, Jennie Garth, Floyd Mayweather, Jr., Lou Ferrigno, Nia Peeples,
Richard Quest, Giselle Bundchen, Helio Castroneves, Sabrina Bryan.

I took Friday off to help younger son move into his college room, followed by errands, chores and a little bit of extra sleep on Saturday and Sunday. I did write my weekend HeldenFiles columns, and caught up on some TV viewing, but did not get around to the blog.

Of course, there are always things to blog about. For example, the current reports that Owen Wilson has been hospitalized; CNN isn't giving a reason at the moment, but the National Enquirer is promoting "exclusive" news that it was a suicide attempt. We shall see.

It's the "dance-along" version! Announcement after the jump ...

DVD completed, enthusiasm diminished ...

News from FX ...

I've lost track of how long I've been meaning to write a column about movie (and possibly TV) romances where the wrong couple ends up together. Not a situation where, as happens on TV, the wrong couple is together but breaks up a season later, but ones where the whole thing ends and you're just going, that's so wrong.

Among the items on my list: "Reality Bites," since Ben Stiller was obviously the best guy for Winona Ryder; "Gentleman's Agreement," where Celeste Holm was by every measure the better woman for Gregory Peck, and "Pretty in Pink," where Molly Ringwald should have ended up with Jon Cryer -- and the original script for the movie apparently had it that way, before the final product wimped out and went with the more crowd-pleasing, pretty-boy ending. Not that I'm bitter about it or anything. But you can see how I think there's more to talk about.

Since I've made clear my admiration for Barry Corbin and Frances Sternhagen as Brenda's parents on "The Closer," I'll try not to belabor the point here. ...

Tonight we got through three more episodes: "Run," "Unexpected" and "Company Man." At first I thought we had hit a slump ...

Complete list after the jump ..

The casting news first: Kristen Bell of Veronica Mars is joining the show. Full announcement after the jump...

If you want to post your thoughts about high-school movies and TV shows, which I wrote about here, just use the comments section with this post. You can also see what other folks have to say. I'll be reading and may add some comments here and there. Enjoy!

(A brief explanation: The story that ran Sunday was supposed to have a note urging readers to add their thoughts about high-school-themed movies here. Then, apparently, the note didn't run.)

They figured to be big, and Disney says they were ..

My review of "High School Musical 2" is here. My review of "Superbad" is here.

After the jump, Barry Corbin, and the perils of magazine deadlines ... and a new part 2, with "Damages," "Mad Men," "Rescue Me" (so beware of spoilers if you haven't caught up)...

Well, a hum-along, anyway, since the world is better off when I do not put voice to tune. Still, I've been giggling through a preview disc of "The Simpsons: Testify: A Whole Lot More Original Music From the Television Series," which collects songs from the last nine seasons. It's due in stores on Sept. 18.

We're talking "O Pruny Night." "Homer and Marge." Shawn Colvin singing "He's the Man." "Everybody Hates Ned Flanders." Ricky Gervais's tongue-twisting "Lady." And many, many others. Announcement and song list after the jump.

I liked "Superbad" more than "HSM 2." Does that make me a bad person?

Songs from the series, coming to CD ..

From my late twenties into my early forties I lived in and around Schenectady, NY. One of the benefits during many of those years was the sheer vastness of TV sports, especially baseball, on cable: not only Ted Turner's Braves on WTBS but the Red Sox on WSBK, the Mets on WOR, the Yankees on WPIX. It was a channel-flipper's dream; while I spent most of my time watching the Red Sox, there were nights and days when I would tune into the Yankees as well. Which meant, of course, listening to Phil Rizzuto. And now Scooter has died. (One obit here.)

Joe Mantegna is coming in as Mandy Patinkin leaves the TV drama. There have already been reports about Mantegna's hiring, but the CBS announcement has some details about his character and his arrival. After the jump ...

The salute includes Griffin's work as a producer and a game-show host. Details after the jump ...

This has been expected, but NBC has made it official, starting on Sept. 10. The announcement, posted after the jump, notes that stations will carry the fourth hour either at 10 -- leading out of the other three hours -- or at 11, after an hour of station programming. In Cleveland, the plan is for the fourth hour at 11. ...

I had a short piece about David Duchovny's "Californication" in Sunday's Beacon Journal, but it doesn't appear to be on ohio.com yet, so I'll just put the text after the jump. (Short review: I'm not enthused.) Also thoughts about "Weeds," which like the Duchovny series begins new episodes tonight. I think you'd be better off with IFC's "Jackie Woodman" or HBO's "Flight of the Conchords" ...

Fox Searchlight is backing a movie about the Notorious B.I.G. and holding an open casting call for the role. You can find out more at http://foxsearchlight.com/notorious.

Audition requirements include performing scenes and freestyle rapping. You also have to be over 18.

But I'm not sure how you'll feel about the site's claim that he's ''the greatest rapper of all time."

The bride and I finally got to "Live Free or Die Hard," which has been on our viewing list for some time, but which always seemed to bump against another obligation. The watching not only included a reasonable amount of over-the-top action but a few thoughts about James Cameron, and the parallels between "Live Free" and "The Bourne Ultimatum."

The entertainer, talk-show host and mogul has died. (One story is here.) A couple of Merv encounters, after the jump ...

I'm still holding onto my old "MSCL" DVD's, OK? But if you missed out, it's coming back, and with new extras. Announcement after the jump ...

Since I've mentioned control-freak behavior by celebrities and studios, I should also take note of this item about a control-freak reporter. (Acknowledgement: I saw it thanks to Jim Romensko's media site.) ...

You would think that a member of the press would have accepted another organization's coverage. But you could also think that it as another demonstration of the entitlement some writers come to expect once they work for the New York Times.

Had it not been for that scene with Susan Sarandon, I would probably be done with these guys ...

The House of Heldenfels has included three cats: Oliver, Sabrina and Lucy. On Wednesday morning, after a night in which it was clear that she was fading, Lucy passed away ...

I've been meaning to write something about this week's "Saving Grace." I wasn't crazy about the episode as a whole -- once again, the cops-and-crooks part of it felt a little weak. But Holly Hunter just knocked my socks off in the scene where she so seductively interrogated the guy who'd been spying on the motel. Leon Rippy -- who plays Earl --was hitting it pretty hard, too. And I not only like Lorraine Toussaint, I like that what the show is doing with her character so far.

All of which is a roundabout way of getting to TNT's announcement today that it has ordered 15 more episodes of "Grace." More about that after the jump ...

"Brad Womack, 34, a successful, self-made entrepreneur, has been selected to star in the 11th edition of ABC’s popular romance reality series," says ABC. And he's a Texan. Full announcement after the jump.

On the series premiere of "Power of 10," Drew Carey was an affable host and clearly a supporter of the contestants. (One spoiler after the jump)

Looks like oodles of extras on the set, arriving Sept. 4. Announcement after the jump ...

Details of the DVD, coming Aug. 28 and bargain-priced, after the jump ...

In some of my recent public appearances, I've more than once mentioned "Evan Almighty." The reason: It's a good example of the financial definitions of Hollywood success. According to Boxofficemojo.com, it has so far taken in more than $97 million at the U.S. box office (about $109 million when you throw in international revenues). But, since it cost an estimated $175 million to make, it is so far a financial flop -- and it will need to sell a lot of DVDs to show a profit.

I was thinking about this again today because Forbes has done a financial analysis of stars' box-office clout. Best value: Matt Damon among men, Jennifer Aniston among women. ...

Interesting piece about the contemporary challenges of the celebrity interview in the Washington Post.

Since the piece talks about Gay Talese's landmark "Frank Sinatra Has a Cold," I have added an excerpt after the jump, and some remarks of my own.

ABC does well, Fox not -- although Fox gets a bit of praise that highlights the real meaning of diversity. More after the jump ...

"New Amsterdam" gets bumped and other news, after the jump ...

I might also call it "The 40 Year Old Virgin" for teens. Or the realistic "Can't Hardly Wait." Or "Seth Rogen Is a Softie at Heart." But ...

TNT has renewed the series for a fourth season. Announcement after the jump ...

"Saving Grace," "The Closer," "Damages" and tonight's "Rescue Me," after the jump ...

Official announcement after the jump ...

Several different packages, described after the jump ...

When the Quentin Tarantino/Robert Rodriguez double feature comes to DVD, the movies will be split into separate sets ...