RIKER'S PEAK
Trek fans can bust out that Romulan ale. After
months of hush-hush negotiations, Paramount has finally picked a
director for the next Star Trek movie, and you could say he was
the ''No. 1'' choice. Jonathan Frakes, better known to the
franchise's legions of fans as Commander Riker (a.k.a. No. 1),
will follow in the footsteps of former Trekkers Leonard Nimoy
(Spock) and William Shatner (Captain Kirk) and helm the $40
million flick due this Thanksgiving. ''They wanted someone
familiar with the language of Trek,'' says Frakes, 43, who's
logged many hours directing episodes of Next Generation, Voyager, and Deep Space Nine. ''I'm under strict orders to bring
the fun back.'' Though Frakes reveals that all of the Next Gen cast members will return, he's mum on the subject of the crew's
alien foe. ''I can't say,'' he insists. ''But beware the
Borg...they're like cockroaches. They always come back.''
— Chris Nashawaty
STATUS OF SYMBOL
Joel and Ethan Coen's upcoming black comedy Fargo includes a most curious end credit: Listed as ''Victim in Field'' (an innocent bystander shot in the back after witnessing
a cop's murder) is [symbol for the artist formerly known as
Prince]. Could it be...? ''Oh, no, it wasn't actually Prince,''
says producer Ethan Coen. ''Believe me, I would've noticed.'' The
symbol, explains Coen, belongs to the Storyboard Artist Formerly
Known as J. Todd Anderson, a crew member who changed his name
just in time for his acting debut. But Coen says the Purple One
needn't fear his mark being usurped. ''It's not the same,'' says
Coen. ''Prince's symbol is sort of longways; J. Todd Anderson's
is sideways.'' Anyway, adds Coen, ''I don't think you can
copyright a name. There are a lot of people named J. Todd whom
J. Todd never took legal issue with.''
— Chris Willman
DOCU DRAMA
Crumb director Terry Zwigoff has been thwarted in
his plan to chronicle yet another thin, geeky genius. The
filmmaker was hired by Woody Allen's producer and longtime
friend Jean Doumanian to make a documentary about Allen and his
jazz band. But last week Zwigoff abruptly left Allen's $500,000
vanity project. At issue: who had final cut. ''They were like,
'Who do you think you are, Orson Welles?' '' says Zwigoff, adding
that any planned rehashing of Allen's tabloid headaches had
nothing to do with the split. ''I told [Allen] I wouldn't take it
easy on him,'' says Zwigoff. ''And he told me that that's what
made Crumb such a good film.'' Doumanian insists it's simply a
matter of ''company policy. No one gets final cut, except for
Woody.''
— Chris Nashawaty
