Box Office: 'Transformers 4' Enjoys Strong Friday for Shot at $100 Million Weekend

Michael Bay's Transformers: Age of Extinction is doing strong business at the Friday box office, where it could approach $40 million for the day, the best performance of the year. And if traffic holds on Saturday, the Paramount tentpole has a shot at becoming the first movie of 2014 to hit $100 million in its first weekend. 

Age of Extinction would have to best the $95 million launch of Captain America: The Winter Soldier in early April to score the top opening of 2014 to date. Overseas, Age of Extinction has already grossed $30 million, including record-setting Thursday midnight previews in China ($3.5 million) and a stellar $5.5 million Thursday start in Russia, the second biggest opening day of all time. Age of Extinction went to great lengths to prosper in China, including shooting at some of the country's most iconic sights, such as the Great Wall.

The $200 million-plus tentpole is a reboot of sorts in that it features a new leading man, Mark Wahlberg. He replaces Shia LaBeouf, star of the first three films in the Paramount and Hasbro toy-to-film series (as fate would have it, an out-of-control LaBeouf was arrested Thursday night and charged with disorderly conduct after disrupting a performance of Cabaret on Broadway). Paramount is trying to temper expectations by noting it's been three years since the last film in the series, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, played in theaters, taking in $97.9 million on its first weekend in 2011 (the studio is suggesting a debut in the mid-$90 million range). Sequel Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen grossed $108 million in its first weekend, a franchise best. Age of Extinction, costing upwards of $200 million to make and earning dismal reviews, took in $8.8 million Thursday night as it began rolling out in select theaters at 9 p.m. 

That didn't match the $13.5 million Tuesday night start of Dark of the Moon, but it's one of the best showings of summer 2014 after Godzilla ($9.3 million), which opened to $93.2 million. In May, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 earned $8.7 million on Thursday night on its way to a $91.6 million debut. Young stars Nicola Peltz and Jack Reynor also make their first appearance in the franchise. Age of Extinction takes place four years after a devastating face-off between the Autobots and the Decepticons in Chicago in the last film Dark of the Moon, and introduces the Dinobots (i.e., dinosaur robots) for the first time. No other movie dared go up against Age of Extinction and open nationwide this weekend, although a slew of specialty films begin their limited runs, including three from The Weinstein Co.: John Carney's Begin Again, starring Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo, Adam Levine and Hailee Steinfeld, Korean film Snowpiercer (a Radius-TWC release) and French biopic Yves Saint Laurent. 

Multi-storey Chennai building collapses; several feared trapped

The Hindu, CHENNAI, June 28, 2014

More than 25 people are feared trapped under the debris of a building under construction, on Moulivakkam near Porur on Kundrathur Main Road, which collapsed at 5.30 pm on Saturday.

One person, Marudhu Pandian (40) from Madurai is feared dead.

So far, Fire and Rescue Services personnel have managed to rescue eight people, who have been rushed to nearby hospitals. The rescue operations are still on.

The residential project ‘Trust Heights’, promoted by real estate developer Prime Sristi Housing Pvt. Ltd, had two 11-storey buildings under construction ‘The Faith’ and ‘The Belief’. According to Fire and Rescue service personnel, the ‘The Faith’ collapsed on an adjoining building. More than five people are believed to be trapped in it, they said.

More than 12 fire tenders with about 150 Fire and Rescue Service personnel are involved in the rescue work.

Some residents in the area felt the sudden rains on Saturday evening may have contributed to the collapse of the building. Quoting eyewitnesses, Fire & Rescue personnel said there were about 50 construction workers at the construction site at the time of the collapse.

Jayalalithaa statement

In a statement, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa said she had directed the police to initiate action against those responsible for the incident.

A national disaster management team from Arakkonam has rushed to the spot to assist the rescue. She also said that she sent Animal Husbandry minister T.K.M Chinniah to oversee the rescue operations.

(With inputs from Petlee Peter and Sruthisagar Yamunan)

Denny Hamlin airlifted to hospital, will stay overnight

FONTANA, Calif. — Denny Hamlin will remain hospitalized overnight after being airlifted to a local hospital after a hard single-car crash at the inside wall on the final lap of Sunday's Auto Club 400.

Hamlin was awake and alert in the infield care center before being transported, but was taken to the hospital after complaining of lower back pain. A helicopter was used due to post-race traffic.

The name of the hospital was not released.

Hamlin was helped from his car after the hard hit and seemed to collapse outside his car after he had pulled the window net down. He was taken by ambulance to the infield care center, where crew chief Darian Grubb hurried inside to check on the driver.

Hamlin's girlfriend, Jordan Fish, tweeted Sunday night: "Thank u everyone for your messages concerning Denny. Darian is keeping us posted. He's alert n awake, main concern is his back

Logano and Hamlin, who have traded barbs since the season opening Daytona 500, battled side by side, bumping and passing in the closing laps.

They were drag racing down the backstretch, but Logano got loose on the bottom and made contact. Logano went into the outside wall, Hamlin went into the inside wall and Busch sailed by for the win.

"After what happened last week, that's what (Hamlin) gets," Logano said following the race. "We have nothing to hang our heads about, that's for sure."

Logano left JGR to join reigning Sprint Cup champion Brad Keselowski at Penkse Racing to start the season.

The feud between Hamlin and Logano started at this season's Daytona 500, where Hamlin was unhappy with the way he claimed his former Joe Gibbs Racing teammate clogged traffic near the end of the race. In a Twitter message to Brad Keselowski, Hamlin referred to Logano as a "genius teammate."

Last week at Bristol Motor Speedway, Hamlin tapped Logano into a spin in Turn 2 while battling for second with 152 laps remaining. Logano went to Hamlin's No. 11 Toyota to confront him after the race before being separated by crewmembers.

"It's frustrating," Logano said. "We've got a freaking genius behind the wheel of the 11 car. Probably the worst teammate I've ever had. So I learn that now. He chose to run into the back of me. So whatever. I have a scorecard. I ain't putting up with that."

That escalated into a war of words on Twitter afterward with Logano writing, "Hey @dennyhamlingreat job protecting that genius brain of yours by keeping your helmet on." Hamlin responded with "Why's that ... what would u do?", prompting @joeylogano to reply "Show you some love and appreciation." Hamlin responded, "Need my address?" And then: "Last time I checked he had my cell and direct message button to choose from if he's got a problem ... Otherwise hush little child."

Though Hamlin showed slight remorse on Friday over some of his comments, Logano made it clear through short answers that the ill feelings aren't going away anytime soon.

In one-sentence responses, Logano vowed to race Hamlin "the way he raced me" and said there won't be any resolution "until anyone says anything to me personally."

"I haven't gotten a phone call, so he can tell you whatever he wants, right?" Logano said to reporters.

Minutes earlier, Hamlin told the media he regretted questioning Logano's driving ability because "I didn't need to give my opinion on that; I think it was kind of a low blow."

When the two were teammates at Joe Gibbs Racing, Hamlin said, they clashed on the racetrack several times but it was kept out of the spotlight.

"It never really was public, but we had times where it was like, 'Hey, why'd you race me that way?' or vice versa," Hamlin said. "I think I had just as much disappointment as him on the racetrack as teammates as he had in me. I think it was an even shake there.

"Off the racetrack, we'd see each other on the racetrack in Monday morning meetings and be like nothing ever happened."

It was Busch's first win of the season after he had flirted with winning several times in the first four races.

"They forgot about me. I knew they were going to," Busch said. "It's so fun to come out here and perform like this."

Busch acknowledged that he probably wouldn't have pulled out the victory if not for Logano and Hamlin's heated battle, which he called "golden."

"I was just thinking, hopefully I can get by before they wreck. I can make this happen," Busch said.

What is Florida Gulf Coast University?

It’s safe to say that a few weeks ago not many people outside South Florida had heard about Florida Gulf Coast University. Now, thanks to the school’s basketball team and its historic forward march in March Madness, it’s the new “it” school, at least for the moment. What exactly is it? And where is it?

Florida Gulf Coast University is a 760-acre accredited public comprehensive university located in South Fort Myers, on the southwest coast of the state. It has some 11,300 undergraduate students and 1,400 graduate students, 92 percent of whom are from Florida, and it offers 52 undergraduate degree programs, 30 graduate degree programs, two doctoral programs and on specialist program, according to its Web site. It has its own astronomical observatory

It was established in 1991 with the idea of being a commuter school where most students took classes online, but it did not start classes until August 1997. In 1999, the president, William C. Merwin, decided to turn the school into a more traditional four-year school that used technology both in class and elsewhere on campus. Dormitories were built and the campus has a number of lakes. The average SAT score for new students is 1530, and the average GPA for all students is 2.99, the school’s website says.

On Sunday, Florida Gulf Coast’s basketball team earned a place in the NCAA tournament’s Sweet 16, the first No. 15 seed to reach that round ever. Its next game is against another Sunshine State team: the University of Florida Gators.

Powerball mystery: Who is the lucky New Jersey resident who bought the lone winning ticket

 Some lucky New Jerseyan hit the $338.3 million Powerball jackpot.

A single ticket sold in the Garden State matched all six numbers in Saturday night’s drawing for the sixth largest Powerball prize in history.

The lucky numbers were 7, 29, 31, 52, 53 and Powerball 31. If the winner opts for a lump sum payout, he’ll receive $221 million after taxes.

 The New Jersey Lottery said it would release further information about the winning ticket Monday, including where it was purchased and if the winner had come forward.

Thirteen other tickets matched all but the final Powerball number Saturday night — each yielding a cool $1 million, pre-tax.

Those tickets were sold in New Jersey and 10 other states.

 The last Powerball jackpot was doled out in early February, when Dave Honeywell in Virginia bought the winning ticket and took a cash lump sum for his $217 million jackpot.

The largest Powerball jackpot ever came in at $587.5 million in November.

With News wire services