Tyler Perry has good opening with 'Bad'

LOS ANGELES -- Being bad is good for Tyler Perry, whose latest movie, "I Can Do Bad All By Myself," opened at the top of the box office this weekend with more than $24 million.

The Lionsgate comedy stars Oscar nominee Taraji P. Henson ("The Curious Case of Benjamin Button") as a hard-drinking nightclub singer forced to care for her delinquent niece and nephews. Besides directing and writing the film, Perry co-stars as his brash, cross-dressing alter ego, Madea.

It's Perry's second film this year to open at No. 1. In February, "Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail" debuted at the top spot with $41 million, which stands as the biggest opening of his eight films.

"Tyler Perry has a special way of speaking to his audience, and it's unbelievable," David Spitz, Lionsgate's executive vice presiden, said Sunday. "He always knows what his audience wants, and I never underestimate him."

Spitz said the presence of the popular Madea character, plus a cast that included Mary J. Blige, helped put the movie on top. It also had the best critical reception of all of Perry's films, with 58 percent positive reviews on the Rotten Tomatoes Web site.

MTV Video Music Awards honors Jackson

NEW YORK — Michael Jackson, who was not only one of the most influential forces in MTV’s history but also provided its Video Music Awards with some of its most irreverent moments, got reverential treatment Sunday as Madonna and his sister Janet provided emotional tributes — one through words, one through song.

Madonna kicked off the show at Radio City Music Hall with a poignant speech about her relationship with Michael Jackson, which began when she was a youngster idolizing the then-child star, then morphed into a friendship when both were at the apex of their careers, and later, grew distant.

Madonna lamented the negative publicity that dogged him in his later years.

“Sometimes, we have to lose things before we can truly appreciate them,” said Madonna, dressed in black.

“Yes, Michael Jackson was a human being, but yes, he was a king,” she told the celebrity-studded crowd, which included Michael’s brother Jermaine and father Joe Jackson. “Long live the king.”

The musical tribute began afterward, as Jackson clones dressed in some of his signature outfits recreated his famous dance moves from videos like “Bad,” “Smooth Criminal” and “Thriller.”

Then, as “Scream,” his duet with Janet, appeared on a large screen, his sister came out to recreate the moves from their only video together as the crowd, including Beyonce, cheered her on. Afterward, she looked heavenward, and bowed.

It was a tender, special moment — a rarity for the Video Music Awards — that didn’t last for long. Kanye West, known for his awards show outbursts when he doesn’t win, had another one — this time, on behalf of Beyonce.

Beyonce, nominated for best female video for “Single Ladies,” was bested by country and pop sensation Taylor Swift. The 19-year-old was giddy when she won, saying: “I always wondered what it would be like to maybe win one of these someday, but never actually thought it would happen.”

But West ruined her moment when he jumped on stage, and protested.

“Taylor, I’m really happy for you, and I’m gonna let you finish, but Beyonce had one of the best videos of all time,” he said, as a shocked Beyonce looked on and the crowd began to boo West.

A crestfallen Swift didn’t finish her speech, but the crowd tried to cheer her own and applauded her.

Leno's new show already has TV community talking

LOS ANGELES -- Late-night grad Jay Leno's move to prime time is the most talked-about twist on the fall TV schedule.

And that goes double for members of television's creative community. For them, feelings run deep about the impact of five weeknight hours of NBC's schedule given over to "The Jay Leno Show" (beginning Monday at 10 p.m.) -- at the expense of scripted episodic series and the people who might have been working on them.

"Writers jobs, actors jobs, directors jobs will take a beating," predicted veteran actress Betty White, though she hastened to add, "I love Jay so much that you've got to hope it works for him, too."

For NBC, the decision is largely one of economics. Leno can fill five hours of prime-time real estate for roughly the cost of a single hour-long drama. And he'll be able to offer the audience a programming alternative to all those fictional lawyers, cops and doctors -- with fresh comedy 46 weeks of the year.

"Knowing that we all want to laugh, I think there's some upside to (Leno's show) right now," said actress Sharon Lawrence.