‘Museum’ fun to film for cast and crew

When a film cast includes names like Ben Stiller, Robin Williams and Owen Wilson, a bit of improvisation on set is to be expected. “I think the movie is really only 25 percent scripted, maybe even less than that,” said Shawn Levy, director of the new film “Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian,” which boasts those comedic actors and several others. “It just so happens that the scenes that get some of the biggest laughs are the improvised scenes, so it feels like more than that, but we had a very good script and it’s still very much there.” The sequel to 2006’s “Night at the Museum” welcomes back the trio and director as well as other original cast members, including British actor Ricky Gervais, while also adding fresh faces such as Hank Azaria (as a villainous pharaoh) and Amy Adams (as Amelia Earhart)

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Another Night at the Museum: More Monkey Business

“People love what’s next,” says Ricky Gervais’ fussy museum manager, explaining why many of the beloved old-fashioned exhibits at the American Museum of Natural History are being shipped off to storage at the Smithsonian Institute, to be replaced by holograms. Even Ben Stiller’s Larry Daley, the former night guard at the museum, seems to have moved on. He’s now the infomercial king, hawking such wares as the Glow in the Dark Torch in excruciatingly stilted exchanges with George Foreman

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Ida: Humankind’s Earliest Ancestor! (Not Really)

From the beginning, Ida’s unveiling has been a master class in ballyhoo. A week ago, the first breathless press releases began to arrive, portending the presentation of the now famous 47-million-year-old primate fossil from Germany: “MEDIA ALERT,” the notice shouted in all caps. “WORLD RENOWNED SCIENTISTS REVEAL A REVOLUTIONARY SCIENTIFIC FIND THAT WILL CHANGE EVERYTHING.” The press releases were followed by an international press conference at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, the publication of a book, The Link: Uncovering Our Earliest Ancestor , an ABC News exclusive and on May 25 a primetime television special on the History Channel

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