Producers Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich have taken the wraps off Godzilla (1998), sanctioning USA Today's one-day-early look at the title star of their new movie, which opens tonight (Tuesday) with preview screenings (an even earlier preview bash took place at New York's Madison Square Garden Monday, officially declared "Godzilla Day" by Mayor Giuliani) and rolls out wide on Wednesday. Patrick Tatopoulos, who designed the creature, indicated that his original inspiration came from a "weird iguana" that lives in his house. He said he also gave it the nose and ears of a dog, the jaw of the tiger in Disney's Jungle Book, and human-like arms and hands. "It's not a dinosaur at all, " he told the newspaper. "It's like a dragon."

Meanwhile, today's New York Daily News reported that central to Sony's $100-million-plus marketing strategy for Godzilla (1998), is making sure that the studio will pull in $100 million by Sunday night. Analysts said that the strategy was sound. Cruttenden Roth's Lisa Dohner told the newspaper, "That first weekend is crucial, because there is going to be so much competition later on in the summer."

In a glowing review appearing in today's (Tuesday) Los Angeles Times, Kevin Thomas comments that Godzilla (1998) director Emmerich "avoids camp and condescension." While the movie has humorous scenes, he adds, "it is above all an expertly designed theme-park-ride-of-a-movie that packs nonstop thrills." As for the special effects, Thomas writes: "The spectacle that is Godzilla is simply stupendous ... yet the film never loses either momentum or its human scale." He also predicts that while it is hard to imagine Godzilla topping Titanic (1997), it "will surely give that box-office behemoth a healthy run for its money."

Saying that he intends to tell "the iceberg's side of the story, " spoof-movie writer Pat Proft (Naked Gun, Hot Shots) confirmed Monday that he is writing the screenplay for Titanic Too -- It Missed the Iceberg and may direct the film as well. Executives with Mirror Group, the British media company that publishes the London Daily Mirror, said that they had "lined up" David Hasselhoff and Priscilla Presley to star in the film, but it was not clear from reports whether their characters would be based on those played by Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio in the original or the Billy Zane character and the heroine's mother. Budgeted at $25 million, the film will be coproduced by Brad Krevoy, who helped explode Hollywood economics three years ago when he made a name-your-own-fee deal with Jim Carrey for Dumb and Dumber. New Line announced last week that it had bought a script for Gigantic, another Titanic spoof.

Frank Sinatra's children will inherit the bulk of his entertainment interests while his widow will receive his real estate and a Budweiser beer distributorship, the Associated Press reported Monday, citing unnamed sources.

Marking its entry into relatively big budget motion-picture production, the BBC announced Monday that it will produce a $25-million film about Mary, Queen of Scots. Today's (Tuesday) London Times quoted BBC Films chief David Thompson as saying that he would use the corporation's "brand name" as leveraging for co-financing. He said that the film would have a "top star-level" cast and he described the story line as dealing with "lust, power and intrigue."

Dutch-based Philips indicated Monday that it will announce on Thursday or Friday whether it has come to terms with Edgar Bronfman Jr. for the sale of PolyGram to Universal Studios. Bronfman has reportedly bid $10.7 billion. Meanwhile reports surfaced today that, to help fund the acquisition, Bronfman is considering the sale of Seagram's Tropicana fruit juice subsidiary and the company's remaining stake in Time Warner. Meanwhile, it was reported that a rival group linked to Michael Ovitz had decided to pass on making a bid for PolyGram. Today's (Tuesday) Wall Street Journal said that PolyGram couldn't meet the "risk and return criteria" of the two buyout firms that were reportedly considering the bid.

Responding to criticism that DreamWorks' production output to date has failed to live up to expectations, David Geffen has told today's (Tuesday) New York Times, "Our job is to make the audience happy, not the speculators in town happy. Other people's expectations of us are of no interest. We want to make worthwhile films, and we want to make a profit. And that's what we're doing." Partner David Katzenberg added, "Did we hope for and expect more, bigger, better? Certainly. All of our movies have gotten their money back or are making a profit. We didn't light up many rockets. We had no massive blockbusters. But we certainly feel good about what's happened so far." Geffen forecast that two upcoming features, Stephen Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan (1998) and Katzenberg's animated Prince of Egypt (1998) will emerge as both major moneymakers and artistic achievements. Spielberg was unavailable for the Times article.

Veteran British actor Derek Jacobi has faulted the current generation of filmmakers for relying on special effects and neglecting story telling in their productions. "Now that they have discovered effects, they can't let them alone, " he told a news conference at Cannes Monday (as reported in today's -- Tuesday -- London Times). "Even actors won't be needed eventually. They will recreate Marilyn Monroe or Humphrey Bogart. It's really spooky. ... They are keeping the eye interested rather than engaging the mind and the heart." Jacobi's Love Is the Devil (1997), in which he stars as Francis Bacon, is being premiered at Cannes.

Five new comedies and three new dramas are expected to be unveiled by ABC today as it presents its fall schedule to advertisers. The network is also planning to revamp its Sunday schedule, moving David E. Kelley's The Practice into the 10 p.m. hour from Monday nights, where it is being displaced by Monday Night Football. The network is retaining only one of the new series that it launched last fall, Dharma & Greg. Setting up a clash of veteran comedy hits, the network said it plans to move Home Improvement into the 8:00 period on Tuesday nights where it will face NBC's Mad About You.

NBC confirmed Monday that it will move Frasier into Seinfeld's 9:00 slot on Thursday nights. "Even without yadda yadda yadda, our goal is to remain the dominant channel on viewers' sets, " NBC West Coast president Don Ohlmeyer remarked in unveiling next fall's NBC schedule. Ad buyers appeared enthusiastic about the network's choice to replace Seinfeld. "For NBC to remain dominant, Frasier was the absolute best show to put in the time slot, " media buyer Paul Schulman told today's (Tuesday) New York Post. Appearing with Ohlmeyer at the presentation, Kelsey Grammer said that he was "excited" about the move and remarked, "From this day on, when I'm down on my knees saying my prayers at night, I will be thanking God and NBC."

The WB is expected to announce this morning (Tuesday) that it will pit a two-hour slate of urban comedies against NBC's Thursday-night powerhouse, including The Wayans Bros., The Jamie Foxx Show, The Steve Harvey Show and, a newcomer, For Your Love. The network had previously announced that it was planning to expand to Thursday nights beginning this fall.

Aug. 31 has been set as the launch date for Bud Paxson's Pax Net, which will feature all original shows on Saturday night, comprising the bulk of seven original series that the "seventh network" plans to air weekly, Pax Net chief Jeff Sagansky said in New York on Monday. The Saturday night schedule for the "family oriented" channel will include The Walt Disney World Magic Hour, Little Men, based on the Louisa May Alcott classic, a new version of Flipper and Neon Rider, described as a drama about troubled youths living on a ranch.

NBC is expected to tell its affiliates this week that it is phasing out its traditional compensation package which calls for more than $200 million to paid to its stations annually, the Los Angeles Times reported today (Tuesday). That amount would reportedly be reduced by 10 percent each year with the savings contributed to a partnership, NBC Affiliate Growth Opportunity Venture, that could pursue other money-making opportunities. Other networks are expected to make similar moves. The newspaper quoted CBS chief Les Moonves as saying, "The current economic model has outlived its usefulness. ... It no longer makes sense."

King World's Roger King announced Monday that his company, which syndicates Wheel of Fortune and The Oprah Winfrey Show among others, will launch a new talker starring Martin Short in the fall of 1999. Appearing with Short at a New York news conference, King, who also is packaging a talk show with Roseanne, remarked that "stars absolutely pull viewers." Short, who has had little success in starring roles in films, said that he felt TV talk shows were "the best forum for me." When asked how his will be different, he replied, "I'll be on it."

Britain's ITV was set to give its arch rival, the BBC, a free publicity present tonight when it airs the first British Academy Television Awards, which were held Monday night. (TV awards had previously been handed out along with film awards at a single ceremony.) The Beeb overwhelmingly dominated the awards winners, with ITV taking only 3 of the 16 non-technical trophies. Last year, ITV had battled for the rights to televise the ceremonies.