'Marley' stays top dog
Jennifer Aniston, Owen Wilson and their little dog have not lost their box office bite.
The family tale Marley & Me, starring Aniston and Wilson as owners of a mischievous pooch, took in $24.1 million to finish as the No. 1 movie for a second-straight weekend, according to studio estimates yesterday.
The 20th Century Fox flick raised its total to $106.5 million since opening Christmas Day.
With no new wide releases, the weekend shaped up largely like the previous one, with Disney's Adam Sandler comedy Bedtime Stories in second place with $20.3 million.
Rounding out the top five again were Paramount's Brad Pitt romantic drama The Curious Case of Benjamin Button ($18.4 million), MGM's Tom Cruise World War II saga Valkyrie ($14 million) and the Warner Bros. Jim Carrey comedy Yes Man ($13.9 million).
Travolta issues statement
In his first public statement since his 16-year-old son's death, John Travolta thanked people for their support and said he and his wife, Kelly Preston, were "heartbroken that our time with him was so brief."
A caretaker found Jett Travolta unconscious in a bathroom at the family's vacation home on Grand Bahama late Friday morning, and he was later pronounced dead at a Freeport hospital.
"Jett was the most wonderful son that two parents could ever ask for and lit up the lives of everyone he encountered," said a statement posted yesterday on Travolta's Web site. "We will cherish the time we had with him for the rest of our lives."
Police Superintendent Basil Rahming said in a statement that the youth was last seen entering the bathroom on Thursday, but an attorney for the actor said he doesn't believe that Jett, who reportedly suffered from a rare illness and was prone to seizures, was in the bathroom for a substantial amount of time.
"[Jett] was spectacularly supervised," said Michael McDermott, who said he has not had the chance to talk to the two nannies himself.
TODAY'S BIRTHDAYS
Actor Robert Duvall, 78.
Talk show host Charlie Rose, 67.
Actress-director Diane Keaton, 63.
Actress Pamela Sue Martin, 56.
Actress Heather Paige Kent, 40.
Rock singer Marilyn Manson, 40.