The annual September blahs continued unabated at the box office as the top film, Sony's Gridiron Gang, earned just $15 million and the No. 2 film, The Black Dahlia resembled the flower itself with just $10.4 million, according to studio estimates. Other films debuting over the weekend fared even worse -- far worse. The animated Everyone's Hero was no one's, as it came in at No. 3 with $6.2 million, while moviegoers kissed off The Last Kiss with $4.7 million, which tied last weekend's top film, The Covenant for fourth place.According to Exhibitor Relations, the top 12 films earned $62 million, down 12 percent from the comparable weekend a year ago. The weekend did represent a landmark for Sony, which registered its 10th No. 1 opening of the year, establishing an industry record. The studio stands a shot of continuing its charmed season with the Sean Penn starrer All the King's Men next weekend. However, odds favor the Paramount comedy Jackass: Number Two.

The top ten films for the weekend, according to studio estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations: 1. Gridiron Gang, $15 million; 2. The Black Dahlia, $10.4 million; 3. Everyone's Hero, $6.2 million; 4. The Last Kiss, $4.7 million; 4. (tie) The Covenant, $4.7 million; 6. Invincible, $3.9 million; 7. The Illusionist, $3.8 million; 8. Little Miss Sunshine, $3.4 million; 9. Hollywoodland, $2.7 million; 10. Crank, $2.7 million.

Stunning the filmmaker and critics alike, the Toronto Film Festival on Saturday gave first-time director Alejandro Gomez Monteverde its prestigious People's Choice award for his romantic film Bella. Accepting the award, Monteverde, a 29-year-old Mexican-born director who came to the U.S. as a teenager, said: "I really hope that this is not a dream and that I don't wake up at film school. This festival is my first festival, it's my first film, it's my first everything." The film has yet to be picked up by a distributor. The controversial -- and most-talked-about -- film of the festival, Death of a President, which imagines the assassination of George W. Bush in October 2007, won the Prize of the International Critics. Earlier in the week, the film was bought by Newmarket Films, which distributed Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ. Receiving the award, British director Gabriel Range said, "I'm thrilled that the film is going to be shown in theaters. ... That's proof that people can see beyond the premise and see that it's a film about this post-9/11 world that we live in."

For the first time in 2,500 years, the Acropolis in Greece will become the setting for a movie. The country's archaeological council reportedly has given the go-ahead to the Tom Hanks-produced My Life in Ruins starring Nia Vardalos. According to Britain's Guardian newspaper, Vardalos herself lobbied Greek officials to permit production of the comedy, arguing that it would increase tourism and that the ancient monuent would be treated with respect. The Guardian observed that the decision was regarded as "startling" since her hit film, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, created controversy among Greeks over the way "their ethnic cousins in the U.S. were portrayed."

The increasing availability of movies for online downloading is not expected to affect business for Netflix, which pioneered online DVD rentals, according to a study by the research firm Cowen and Co. Indeed, the study predicted that Netflix would eventually lead the field with a subscription model for "rental" downloads, once such a model is technologically viable.

Tenants of an apartment in Rome have held up production of a new movie after learning that it stars Nicole Kidman. According to the Rome newspaper Corriere della Sera, the tenants had originally agreed to accept $8,000 from the producers but changed their minds when Kidman arrived. "If it's her, they're going to have to pay us more," one of the tenants told the newspaper. As Kidman holed up in her trailer, the producers renegotiated their deal with the tenants, who finally agreed on a payment of $32,000, according to the report.

CBS's most famous news anchor has given his blessing to its latest one. In an interview with the Baltimore Sun, Walter Cronkite said that Katie Couric "is doing a great job." He also approved the change in the format of the CBS Evening News, which now offers fewer hard-news reports and more in-depth coverage and features, calling it "somewhat revolutionary." He added, "I hope that the daring new presentation, I guess, is successful, as to me, they deserve to be." Cronkite was visiting Annapolis, MD, where he was honored by the new National Sailing Hall of Fame. Meanwhile, in an interview with the Associated Press, CBS News chief Sean McManus acknowledged that news program's decision to give only passing mention to a Senate report concluding that Saddam Hussein was hostile to al-Qaeda may have been open to question. "If you're going to do something different, you have to occasionally be willing to not do something that the other two networks are doing," McManus explained. "But if you've been No. 3 for 10 years, I'm not sure why you wouldn't do that."

Reverberations are still being felt from last week's airing of the controversial miniseries The Path to 9/11, as American Airlines confirmed that it is considering withdrawing all of its advertising from ABC and its affiliated stations to protest against a scene in the drama that depicted American personnel allowing terrorist ringleader Mohammed Atta aboard a plane at Boston's Logan Airport despite being flagged as a security risk. In fact, Atta passed through security in Maine aboard U.S. Airways earlier that morning. Following the airing of the film, American pointed out that the actual facts were spelled out in the 9/11 Commission Report and added, "This misrepresentation of facts dishonors the memory of innocent American Airlines employees and all those who lost their lives as a result of the tragic events of 9/11." American also sent messages to several websites that pointed out the error saying that it was "looking at possible legal actions" and that it was "outraged by this situation." The American statement concluded: "That the film directly contradicts the findings of the 9/11 Commission is troubling. That it defames dedicated public officials is tragic. But the fact that it misleads millions of people about the most tragic and consequential event in recent history is disgraceful."

ABC, which reportedly dropped Monday Night Football after years of earning $150 million less than it took in from the telecasts, apparently saw at least $30 million of its savings fly out the window when it was unable to find sponsorship for its controversial The Path to 9/11. "That was a fair amount of money for something that didn't have a demonstrable return," Jason Maltby of ad buyers Mindshare told today's (Monday) Los Angeles Times. According to the newspaper, the network also spent more than $200 million on producing pilots for 38 shows this season, then selecting 15 to put on the air. "But if you don't take risks you will never truly know what the upside is," said Maltby. "No guts, no glory." Today officially marks the beginning of the fall season. Forty-one shows are scheduled to premiere this week on all of the networks.

Culminating an eight-week televised casting search for an actress/singer to play the role of Maria in Andrew Lloyd Webber's upcoming production of The Sound of Music in London, 23-year-old Connie Fisher was chosen for the job Saturday night. The London Sunday Times commented: "The real winner of the contest, however, is the composer and producer, who may not have written a hit musical for several years but whose skills at self-promotion have never been sharper. Lloyd-Webber's quest for a leading lady for his stage version of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical produced 12 hours of free publicity. ... He has already sold more than [$10 million] worth of tickets." Fisher will reportedly "share" the role with Emma Williams, an established stage performer. The production is scheduled to open at the London Palladium in November.