Notebook: Jul. 7, 1997

WINNERS & LOSERS

THE SUPREMES RULE

[WINNERS]

BILL CLINTON Court allows line-item veto. Now we'll see if Trent Lott gets ship-building dough for his district

ONLINE SEX GEEKS Free speech lives on the World Wide Web. Constitution apparently protects #!$&.com

JOHN C. CALHOUN His spirit marches on with court's votes for states' rights

[& LOSERS]

HILLARY CLINTON What privilege? Court passes on attorney-client confidentiality, and now she has to cough up notes

SEXUAL PREDATORS Forget the 14th Amendment. "Mentally abnormal"? Lock 'em up and throw away the key

THOMAS JEFFERSON Court blurs his cherished line between church and state

POPULAR CULTURE

DOMESTIC BOMB, BUT BOFFO ABROAD

Ah, those steamy summer weekends, when a battalion of bustling, big-budget Hollywood movies hits the theaters--and many of them tank. But don't feel sorry for those forlorn moguls. Just because a movie stumbles in the U.S. doesn't mean the rest of the world should be spared it. In fact, the voracious appetite for American celluloid in Europe, Asia and South America is turning many a domestic dog into a foreign blockbuster. Herewith a sampling of recent films that enjoyed just such overseas turnarounds.

FILM U.S. WORLD GAINED

Striptease 33.1 80.2 142% Judge Dredd 34.7 78.8 127% Spy Hard 26.6 57.2 115% Diabolique 17.1 35.3 106% Street Fighter 33.5 66.0 97% Waterworld 88.2 166.4 89% The Juror 22.7 40.3 78% Johnny Mnemonic 19.1 33.3 74% Highlander III 13.8 22.9 66%

*Figures are for box-office grosses, in millions of dollars Source: Variety

HEALTH REPORT

THE GOOD NEWS

COLD COMFORT People with wide social ties seem to be less susceptible to colds than those who are more isolated--even though they're probably exposed to more germs. Why? Researchers suspect that a support network may help keep immune systems strong.

A STRIKE AGAINST STROKES Drugs like Zocor and Pravachol that help prevent heart attacks by lowering cholesterol also seem to reduce the risk of strokes.

PARKINSON'S BREAKTHROUGH For the first time, researchers have identified a gene abnormality that causes some cases of Parkinson's disease--a finding that raises real hope for new treatments.

Sources: Journal of the American Medical Association; Archives of Internal Medicine; Science

THE BAD NEWS

DIABETES REDEFINED New guidelines use a lower level of blood sugar to identify diabetes. Result: 2 million more people will be found to have the disease. Earlier testing is also recommended, starting at age 45.

KID QUANDARY Babies who sleep on their back or side take longer to learn to roll over than kids who sleep on their stomach. But stomach sleeping can be a problem too: the position is linked with sudden-infant-death syndrome.

SKIN-CANCER RISE Among Caucasians, the incidence of squamous-cell carcinoma is climbing faster than expected. Since the mid-'80s, rates have doubled in women and gone up one-quarter in men.

Sources: Diabetes Care; Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine; Archives of Dermatology

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