News In Brief

HE DOESN'T DO DRUGS Robert Segal had ads printed and a toll-free phone number lined up to sell brooms from his home in New Germany, Nova Scotia. So, imagine his delight as all four lines quickly filled with incoming calls - then his dismay on finding that they were intended for an anti-drug hot line in faraway Massachusetts, which had been assigned the same number. Segal isn't one to sweep a problem like drug abuse under the rug, but until the mistake was corrected "all I could say was, 'Please be advised that yours truly is a telemarketer.'"

SURVIVAL TACTICS

In London, four volunteers are trying to spend 100 hours locked in separate rooms - in bathrobes and armed only with a credit card and an Internet-equipped personal computer apiece. The experiment is aimed at determining whether those tools are enough for them to clothe, feed, and entertain themselves. Each participant, who is being monitored by researchers, has at least some online experience.

'Mummy' silences film critics by setting box-office records

"The Mummy," which features an ancient Egyptian priest who returns from the dead, pulled in $43.4 million at North American theaters over the weekend - the biggest nonsummer opening in movie history and the ninth-richest of all opening weekends. The success of the Universal Pictures remake of a 1932 classic caught the industry by surprise. With lukewarm reviews, it was expected to do mediocre business before dropping out of sight when the "Star Wars" sequel opens May 19. Reported grosses at North American theaters May 7-9 (in millions):

1. "The Mummy" $43.4

2. "Entrapment" 12.3

3. "The Matrix" 5.9

4. "Election" 3.2

5. "Never Been Kissed" 3.0

6. "Analyze This" 1.7

7. "10 Things I Hate About You" 1.1

8. "Life" 1.0

9. "Cookie's Fortune" 0.9

10. "Shakespeare in Love" 0.8 - Exhibitor Relations Inc./AP