As my husband watches the original Star Trek movie in the background, I bring you this cool image from high about Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Los Angeles. It’s the LA premiere of the NEW Star Trek movie and I’ll have more red carpet pics for you a little later on.

In the meantime, how cool is this?

You know, with each passing technological evolution the traditional Nielsen ratings get just a little more outdated. Former entertainment lawyer Eric Belloni writes a column about Hollywood and the law at The Hollywood Reporter.

This week he looks at the shows that got illegally file shared the most and NBC’s embattled drama Heroes tops the list with an estimated with 1.6 million downloads. The top 10 also includes SFUniverse faves Supernatural, Smallville and Fringe. Second on the list is now canceled Prison Break, which was also suffering from low ratings. That is to say, at least the way we’re calculating ratings these days.

I’ve said for years that I don’t think we really know what the majority of people are watching out there. For all we know, the highest rated show on TV could be Samantha Who. 

NBC Photo: Adam Taylor

In case you haven’t heard, there’s a new Star Trek movie coming out and Entertainment Weekly has the whole scoop in their new issue.

“Oh, I feel the pressure,” says JJ Abrams. “In the eyes of a lot of fans, this is sacred material. Every shot, I’m wondering if this is where I’m going to f— it all up.”

Abrams said it was tough to do a full on space opera without turning it into Galaxy Quest (which has been re-released on DVD with lots of new features) but  he thinks he got it right. A self-described nonfan of Star Trek Abrams says he thought the show was a little “talkie” and thus had only one idea when Paramount came knocking on his door. “My first reaction was that it should be a story about Kirk and Spock – because I didn’t know anything else about Star Trek,” he says.

Abrams may have started the production not knowing tranya from Tribbles, but he ended up a supernerd. His movie is festooned with enough Easter-egg reference to classic Trek trivia to keep fansites humming for months. “The movie doesn’t shatter everything you know about the show,” says Zachary Quinto, aka young Spock. “It just comes at Star Trek from a different perspective. It straddles a line between giving people what they’ve known about these characters for 40 years and what they’ve wished they knew about them.”

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Supernatural: The Rapture

Air Date: April 30 on The CW

CASTIEL RETURNS TO HIS HUMAN FORM — Castiel (Misha Collins) appears to Dean (Jensen Ackles) in a dream and says he has something important to tell him but they need to meet somewhere private. Dean and Sam (Jared Padalecki) go searching for Castiel but instead find Jimmy, Castiel’s human vessel, who has only a spotty recollection of being an angel. Jimmy wants to return to his family and normal life, but Dean and Sam are concerned about his safety. Charles Beeson directed the episode written by Jeremy Carver (#3T7520).

“The Rapture” – Misha Collins as Castiel, Wynn Everett as Amelia in SUPERNATURAL on The CW. Photo: Michael Courtney/The CW©2009 The CW Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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Mark your calendars, folks, this Saturday, May 2 is Free Comic Book Day! On that day, comic book stores all over the United States will be handing out complimentary copies of some great new books for you try.

This year VIZ Media has something truly special planned, it’s a 32-page Shonen Jump sample (rated T for teens) featuring one chapter of Ultimo, one of the newest serialized manga adventures in the best-selling monthly manga anthology.

Manga, you say? But not just any manga. Ultimo is the historic collaboration between comic book legend Stan Lee, creator of many iconic superheroes, including Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, and the X-Men, and Hiroyuki Takei, the creator of the popular Shaman King manga series. The new series, which is serialized in Shonen Jump, is an incredible collaboration of East and West with the majesty of manga and the sultan of superheros.

Also included in the Sampler is a special look at every single SHONEN JUMP manga series, an Ultimo pinup (of a character that may look familiar to Stan Lee fans), and an insightful interview with both Stan Lee and Hiroyuki Takei.

So make sure you stop by your local comic book shop this Saturday to pick up the special Shonen Jump sampler and all of the free comics. For more information visit www.shonenjump.com or stop by www.freecomicbookday.com to locate a participating location near you.

Cover art courtesy of VIZ Media.

This economy is rough on everybody – even former Caped Crusaders. Tricked out Batcaves, Batmobiles, Bat Shark Repellent, none of that stuff is cheap. When things don’t go well and stately Wayne Manor’s property value dives, what do you do? Have a garage sale, of course. This clip comes from Will Ferrell’s Funny Or Die and it’s good stuff. Trust me, I’m an expert on superheroes – and being broke.

Essex County Sanatorium & Hospital / Newark, NJ

Join the TAPS team as they travel to they travel to Newark, NJ to investigate the Essex County Sanatorium and Hospital. After a century of use the psychiatric facility and hospital was abandoned in the 1990’s, and many wonder if the spirits of forgotten patients still roam the labyrinth of underground tunnels connecting the buildings. The highest level of activity has been reported in Building 11, which simultaneously housed the morgue and the criminally insane. Witnesses have reported seeing an apparition dressed in a nurse uniform roaming the halls and have reported hearing screams, bangs and direct threats to get off the property.

Pictured: (l-r) Jason Hawes, Grant Wilson — SCI FI Channel Photo: Chris Kontoes.

NOW CASTING: Ghost Hunters The Next Generation

SCI FI Channel is looking for college students interested in becoming the next Ghost Hunters! Applications and details are available online. Click here to see if there are ghosts in your future.

Oh, what a long, strange trip Season 3 has been. After starting the “Days of Future Past-ish” imprisonment of mutants- I mean, “ones of them,” the suddenly sainted Sen. Nathan Petrelli may be our last, best hope. 

Spoilers, intricate plot details and possibly (OK probably) some ranting about Season 3. So don’t read further if you don’t want to know!

NBC Photo: Chris Haston

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Supernatural: "Lucifer Rising"

THE BATTLE BEWTEEN HEAVEN AND HELL BEGINS — The apocalypse is coming, and Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) prepare for the fight in very different ways.  Sam joins Ruby (Genevieve Cortese) on a final run to kill Lilith (guest star Katherine Boecher), while Castiel (Misha Collins) and Zachariah (guest star Kurt Fuller) tell Dean it’s time to play his part in stopping Lucifer.  Eric Kripke wrote and directed the episode (#3T7522).

** I love the the juxtaposition of the two sets of photos. Dean is being tempted with beer and snacks in a bright, opulent room. Sam is in the dark, scary, place, creeping around, wary of danger. So perfect!

More behind the cut

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I’ve been waiting for this. . . the first picture of Leonard Nimoy as William Bell on Fringe. Here’s the scoop:

Setting the stage for the dramatic and revealing first season finale are a sudden and unexpected attack on someone with close ties to Fringe Division, the return of bioterrorist David Robert Jones (guest star Jared Harris) and the inexplicable disappearance of Walter. Find out more about the mysterious events surrounding our trio when questions are answered, observations made, loyalties are tested and the elusive William Bell (guest star Nimoy) is finally introduced in the “There’s More Than One of Everything” season finale episode of Fringe.

It all happens on May 12 at 9:01. Not 9:00, mind you, but 9:01.

©2009 Fox Broadcasting Co. CR: Craig Blankenhorn/FOX