Following in the high-heeled footsteps of "Sex and the City: The Movie" comes another film that's sure to make boyfriends around the world run for cover. Prepare thyself for "Friends: The Movie." Mwa ha ha!

That's right, kids. Rumor has it that there is renewed interest in bringing the six fabulously perky and quirky New Yorkers to the big screen. You can either thank or blame "Sex and the City" for this news. The success of that franchise's recent flick reportedly inspired the cast to bring their beloved sitcom back from the dead.

According to Current, Jennifer Aniston "is believed to have dragged her heels" on the project, but has since changed her mind. Filming should start within the next 18 months. Or will it? Another blog reports that Warner Bros. denied the "Friends" movie rumor, "and there's no confirmation from anyone around town that anything is even being considered."

So, is there hope for all the haters who thought they'd seen the last of Ross, Rachel, and that stupid monkey? Maybe, but remember: When it comes to rumors, they're often denied, but usually true. Sorry.

"Rain Man" was an Oscar-winning film about an autistic man and his self-absorbed brother getting to know each other. Now, in an acknowledgement that the theatrical community is just as starved for ideas as Hollywood, the film is being adapted for an on-stage production at London's West End.

Near as we can tell, it's not a musical. So, you needn't worry about a ballad dedicated to Judge Wapner or a rousing refrain on "excellent drivers." Phew! Here's what we do know: Entertainment Weekly reports that former "it-boy" Josh Hartnett will play Tom Cruise's role. The part of Raymond (aka Rain Man) will be tackled by Adam Godley best known for his work in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" and the upcoming "X-Files" film. The curtain goes up this September.

For many, the 1988 movie with Cruise and Dustin Hoffman marked the first time they'd ever heard of autism. The disability is still very much in the news due to concerns that childhood vaccines may somehow cause autism. Could that anxiety have played a part in bringing the film to the stage? We're not sure, but terms like "autism causes," "what is autism," and "autism symptoms" continue to be big in Search.

Before Dawson went up a Creek, before the Girls who Gossiped, before we were rudely welcomed to "The O.C." there was "Beverly Hills, 90210." As you've probably heard, the granddaddy of all teen angst dramas is getting a reboot. And rumor has it that Shannen Doherty may return to the zip code that made her a star.

Several sources within the Buzz are in a tizzy over the news. iVillage writes that Shannen is interested in reprising her role as "bratty Brenda Walsh," provided she likes the script (and the money). If the devilish diva does return, she would join fellow alums Jennie Garth and Tori Spelling who have already hopped aboard the career lifeboat.

Of course, one can't write, whisper, or even think about Shannen without conjuring up memories of her notorious on-set antics. Entertainment Weekly notes that Shannen "allegedly once engaged in a fistfight" with Ms. Garth. Additionally, the bad girl brunette was fired from "90210" in 1994. Should the return really happen, it'll be fun to see if bratty Brenda has truly changed her ways. For the sake of the Buzz, here's hoping she hasn't.

Today is a big day in California and Washington. Drivers who chat on their cell phones must use a handsfree device or speaker phone or they risk facing the wrath of John Q. Law.

The new law is no surprise—drivers have had ample warning, and many have taken the opportunity to acquire (or at least search for) the necessary equipment. Queries for "bluetooth headsets" have soared 2,751% during the past 30 days. Related lookups for "handsfree cell phones" and "mobile headsets" have also surged. Clearly, those who want to (legally) talk while behind the wheel are adapting to the new reality. Darwin would be proud.

We browsed through the Buzz and found a variety of articles on the new law. TechCruch writes that Californians face a $20 fine for their first offense. According to Boing Boing, the fine goes up to $50 for additional infractions. Oh, and California Highway Patrol definitely plans to enforce the rule, so don't test them.

Leading June's fastest moving searches, newsman Tim Russert's unexpected death triggered an astonishing outpouring online. His passing was followed by comedian and cultural commentator George Carlin.

The international soccer tournament besieged Search, while Tiger Woods bogged down Internet traffic during his knee-buckling win. Meanwhile, Gina Gershon moved from entertainer to newsmaker with the stroke of one Vanity Fair article and much political buzz.

In the entertainment world, "Battlestar Galactica" paused midway in its fourth and final season, but launched hysteria over actress Katee Sackhoff. Here are the terms that attracted searches and moved fast in the month of June. 

June searchers also followed Mother Nature's rampage as she turned from Asia to the American Midwest. Look-ups surged for "iowa dot" and towns under siege like Cedar Rapids (+5,799%), Waterloo (+1,355%), Ames (+806%), and others including Burlington, Coralville, Dubuque and Waverly. The reflex to blame climate change shifted to point to modern practices of depleting wetlands and other natural protections.

Another chapter of history closed when Senator Hillary Clinton ended her campaign to be the first female president, and Senator Barack Obama continued his quest to be the first biracial Commander in Chief. Another political figure making the top 500 terms—not Republican contender John McCain, but Michelle Obama, whose image revamp included an appearance on "The View."

Giving birth is a miracle unlike any other. Alas, for the woman performing the miracle, it's also a bit painful.

Women in labor need all the comfort they can get, so it's no surprise that many expectant moms want to choose the music they'll hear in the delivery room. Think of it as a "birthing soundtrack." Nicole Kidman's selection of tunes recently hit the Web and caused a stir in the Buzz.

Nicole's musician husband, Keith Urban, will get plenty of airplay during her upcoming hospital stay. However, according to several articles in the Buzz, the country crooner won't be the most prominently played artist. That honor belongs to famed flautist James Galway.

The New York Daily News quotes a friend of Nicole's as saying Mr. Galway's melodies are often heard at her home. Searches on Mr. Galway are scant at the moment, but may hit a high note in the coming weeks. In the meantime, the Irish legend can only hope his greatest hits will keep his biggest fan relaxed in her hour of need. No pressure, Jimmy.

Rising dairy prices, disappearing honey bees, and ice cream truck gas prices. These threats to America's favorite frozen dessert are enough to make you scream.

Grim news greets National Ice Cream Month. Most notable is the apiarian connection: The loss of bee hives means less workers to aid crops (and flavors) like almonds, cherries and strawberries. Haagen Dazs is raising research funds from proceeds of its honey vanilla edition, making ice cream consumption an environmental act.

And look on the bright side—all these obstacles simply means appreciating the dairy confection all the more. Save the honeybees, and enjoy this Buzz sampler of ice cream goodness.

Ice Cream Buzz
People get a cold chill searching on their adored ice cream brands. Cold Stone Creamery holds a solid lead over runner-ups Ben & Jerry's, Blue Bell, Dairy Queen and Bruster. Of course, nothing beats the neighborhood scoop.
• Step into America's best parlors... and feel free to add to the itinerary.
• Don't fret if your favorite flavor is among the six most fattening; lower-fat alternatives exists. (Find out your recommended fat intake here.)
• If you've longed for a precise scoop, consider the efficiency of the Cuisipro Ice Cream Scoop and Stack.

Churn It Up
Making your own batch is becoming more popular: Homemade ice cream searches are a third higher than last year. Among the Buzz recipe tips:
• A good pan, a nice scald, and an ice bath are among the musts in stirring up fresh ice cream.
• Tart up ice cream to keep down the fat, in this pastry recipe.

Luscious Trivia
• Exposed! The confection is really a foam. Find out what else lies within delicacy's inner workings.
• Ice cream may have come west via Marco Polo from China. Now the frozen dairy may be one of the few U.S. investments that China can make without stirring up national security protests.
• Ben & Jerry turned 30 on May 5, the same day that Baskin-Robbins co-founder Irv Robbins died.

Flavor Fever
Peach has dropped out of the top 5, making room for banana and green tea. Other trends since we last skimmed searches in 2007:
In: Oreo. Out: Ginger.
In: Cherry. Out: Pineapple.
In: Blackberry. Out: Mint.
Always in: Peanut Butter.

Top Ice Cream Flavors, Past 30 Days

Why would MTV invite Britney Spears back to the Video Music Awards? Why did Amy Winehouse lunge at a fan? And why in the world are honeybees disappearing? This past weekend, Buzz visitors wanted answers.

A comeback to a comeback?
Britney's comeback attempt at last year's Video Music Awards was, for lack of a better word, disturbing. You'd think MTV wouldn't want to subject its audience to another spectacle, but you might be mistaken. According to Access Hollywood, the folks at Music Television may want to give the train wreck another try at this year's gala. No word on whether Britney is interested, but the booming buzz indicates the gawking public certainly is.

Hands off the hair.
Last week, Tim McGraw nearly came to blows with a belligerent concertgoer. This past weekend, the always interesting Amy Winehouse took a swing of her own. According to Us Weekly, Winehouse threw a punch at a fan who grabbed her hair at the Glastonbury Festival in Somerset, England. The incident didn't garner the same buzz as Tim McGraw's dustup, but more than a few folks took notice of Amy's strictly enforced "keep your hands off my hair" policy.

Hug a bee (not literally).
Unless they're threatening to sting you, honeybees aren't something most people bother to think about. Maybe they should. CitizenSugar and the Huffington Post reported that honeybees are disappearing at an alarming rate. In case you think this is good news, remember—fewer bees, less pollination. Less pollination, fewer crops. Fewer crops, higher food prices. Fortunately, there is some good news. Haagen-Dazs is doing its darnedest to alert the public. 

Also buzzing this weekend...
• Bill Gates, the billionaire founder of Microsoft, officially retired from day-to-day operations on Friday. Various articles detailing his last day "working for the man" scored big in the Buzz.
• When word leaked that Verne Troyer (best known as Mini-Me from the Austin Powers films) made a randy sex flick, folks searched for confirmation. The bad news: It's true. The good news: A judge halted its release. Who says the justice system is broken?

Of all the politicians to put a damper on fireworks, who knew it'd be Arnold?

Governor Schwarzenegger, as Californians say with a straight face, recently pled with residents to abstain from pyrotechnics because of wildfires plaguing the Golden State.

Maybe that'll dissuade a few do-it-yourselfers who have been looking online for ways to fire up the Fourth. Besides checking out brands like “phantom” and “tnt," people have been pondering "how to make fireworks," "how to transport fireworks," "fireworks laws" and, whew, "fireworks safety". (Feeling indestructible? Watch the Consumer Product Safety Commission re-enact fireworks accidents by abusing fruit and decapitating mannequins.)

For those who prefer to leave the sky show to the professionals, “july 4th fireworks” queries have climbed 116% in the past 7 days. Californians may want to catch a flight to Motor City, which puts on the most popular spectacle in the U.S. of A: Searches for “detroit fireworks 2008” have skyrocketed 483%, surpassing online enthusiasm for Chicago’s “navy pier fireworks.”

As a country singer, a radio shock jock, and a basketball star each stirred up (or responded to) his own kind of skirmish this week, two women drew attention for their well-cut style. Getting in trouble, getting out of it, and looking good—welcome to the past seven days in Buzz.

Tim McGraw ain't looking for trouble
But he ain't shrinking from it, either. When a front-row audience member got rough during a Tim McGraw concert, the country crooner hauled the offending fan on stage and shoved him toward security guards. What did the southern singer belt out immediately after? "I ain't looking for trouble." Footage of the fracas, complete with a brief face-off between the fan and the star, blew to the top of Buzz.

Maria Sharapova goes for the formal look
Maria Sharapova may have lost Wimbledon, but she triumphed in the style stakes. Though buzz on the other players' fashionable outfits also spiked throughout the tennis championship, it was an article on the blonde Russian's bib-front shirt and low-cut, tuxedo-style shorts that scored with Buzz readers.

Color Don Imus unhappy
While chatting on air about Dallas Cowboys player Pacman Jones and his multiple arrests, Don Imus asked his co-host "what color" the athlete is. Upon hearing that Pacman is African-American, the shock jock replied, "Well, there you go, now we know." The radio provocateur explained himself the next day, but buzz on the comments continued to turn up the volume all week.

Also sparking buzz over the past seven days...

• Shaquille O'Neal took the stage at a New York nightclub to rap. In the process, he launched more than a few zingers aimed at his former teammate Kobe Bryant. Video footage of the freestyle slap-down instantly sparked searches and articles.

• Jackie Kennedy made fashion designer Oleg Cassini an international star. Could Michelle Obama do the same for Maria Pinto? A Wall Street Journal profile looks at the Chicago-based designer who is gaining renown for dressing Mrs. Obama in brightly colored shifts and classic lines.

Washington, D.C. is many things. Mature ain't one of 'em. Name-calling is rampant and holding grudges may as well be the official sport. Still, we never knew how much American politics resembled the typical eighth grade classroom until recently.

Consider the blessing and the curse that is Barack Obama fandom. Probably the closest thing politics has to a rock star, the candidate has received many celebrity endorsements. One of the most intriguing came from Scarlett Johansson. The senator reportedly sent an email to the stunning starlet thanking her for her support. A purely innocent and thoughtful gesture. Still, before you know it, people were calling the two "email buddies." Obama refutes the claim, but, of course, that hasn't stopped the buzz.

Barack Obama got Oprah Winfrey's approval and Hillary Clinton nabbed her husband's (least he could do). You'd think bygones would be bygones, but remember—these are politicians we're talking about. According to the New York Post, Mr. Clinton and Ms. Winfrey, who used to be close, barely acknowledged each other at a recent birthday party for Nelson Mandela. Reps claim the two talked beforehand, hence the lack of words. The tiff might not be real, but the gossip certainly is. In Washington, as in eighth grade, perception is reality.

How does this look on a TV producer's resume: short-listed for an Emmy, didn't make the nominee cut?

The Academy of Television Arts & Science, still smarting over the leaks that put its 2007 list online ahead of schedule, released this year's top 10 finalists four weeks early. The short list will then be chopped down by half for the formal July 17 announcement.

Is this unprecedented move the savviest political action? Will contenders given this slim sunshine ray of hope feel irked if they don't make the final? Will other shows that didn't even make this list feel doubly snubbed... like "Battlestar Galactica" (SciFi), "Desperate Housewives" (ABC), "Heroes" (NBC) or "How I Met Your Mother" (CBS)? Will the so-called Academy Blue Ribbon panel, whose opinion counts for 50%, look even more out of touch if it cuts out critical favorites?

Critics and fans have sounded a positive note on "The Wire" (HBO) making its last shot after being dissed during its five-season run. The Washington Post says basic cable shows—or a non-HBO cable show—may finally have a shot at winning best series... if either "Mad Men" (AMC), "Damages" (FX), or Showtime's three maybes make it past the voting committee.

Which fan base will be the most outraged come July 17? One clue may lie in a show's Search popularity during the Emmy qualifying period (June 1, 2007-May 31, 2008). Below are the shows ranked thusly. If online interest determined the nomination process, "The Wire" would make a snubs sweep.

As we barrel toward the start of the Summer Olympics, buzz for the games is building.

Over the past week, hundreds of articles have zeroed in on the August events, covering everything from China's handling of the sporting extravaganza to the line-up of the U.S. men's basketball team. In Search, demand for "2008 olympics" and "2008 olympic trials" continues to mount.

However, not all medal mania is focused on the opening ceremonies in Beijing. In fact, a surprising number of searchers are looking to the past.

Over the last seven days, we've logged a rise in buzz for games gone by. In particular, the balance-beam and uneven-bars set has captured searchers' attention. Queries for "1996 olympics gymnastics" and "2004 olympics gymnastics" have vaulted upwards. Driven, no doubt, by recent inductions into the Olympic Hall of Fame and Olympic ads on NBC, searchers recently boosted '96 gold-medal winner Kerri Strug into our top movers. Mary Lou Retton and Bela Karolyi have also sprung upwards.

Moving from the mat to the rink, interest in "1980 u.s. hockey team" has kept the "Miracle on Ice" squad skating through the Search box. After all, no less a source than Sports Illustrated once called that U.S. triumph "the single most indelible moment in all of U.S. sports history." Besides the '80s-era guys, queries for Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan have reignited that icy scandal.

Besides individual sports and athletes, a host of general lookups for yesteryear's Olympics have picked up. Below, we list the top 10 historical games that drew searchers—and excited buzz—this week...

1. 2004 Olympics
2. 1996 Olympics
3. 2000 Olympics
4. 2004 Summer Olympics
5. 1972 Olympics
6. 1988 Olympics
7. 1992 Olympics
8. 1980 Olympics
9. 2006 Winter Olympics
10. 1936 Olympics

Yin-yang rules the Buzz Multiplex this week in another double-release, as well-intentioned assassins face down a lovable trash compactor. This could get ugly-cute.

1. "Wanted" (R). The massive Angelina Jolie appeal has been probed at length, so let us move on to why else the "brotherhood of assassins" might have a killer box-office weekend. For one thing, Russian-Kazakh director Timur Bekmambetov brings his cult-following cred. Besides Jolie, star power also glows in Search for James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman, Common, and Kristen Hager. Finally, while Newsweek calls the film's "overamped style... oppressive," outlets like Rolling Stone unashamedly embrace the addictive trash.

2. " Wall-E" (G). A strong second, but the animated entry could pull in the bigger audience this weekend, given critical superlatives: AP says "boldest," Roger Ebert adds "enthralling," and the Hollywood Reporter says the Oscar race can now begin. The excitement has also spurred searches for the entire Pixar library, especially "Ratatouille" and "Cars." Overall searches aren't in the same league as Iron Man's pre-premiere following, but the family movie of the week still hovers near the top 1,000 searches.

A Hollywood writer goes on strike, and summer television overflows with the stench of reality TV. Who knows then what horrors await should the Screen Actors Guild strike in July.

The New York Times reports that while the writers' strike actually helped some TV shows get ahead, major film projects may be endangered. We can imagine: Would director Ridley Scott be forced to defy Hollywood tradition and hire an actual Englishman to play Robin Hood for his film "Nottingham"? Will all comic-book ensemble movies end once and for all if the Justice League project dies? The upside: A delay could help knock Judd Apatow off the Farrelly and Wachowski brothers' creative downward spiral.

Slate doesn't believe any walkoffs will happen, but in the event they do, Tinseltown talent could take up a summer project: Follow the Weinsteins down the Great White Way. The movie producers plan to make Broadway shows, including "Finding Neverland," "Shakespeare in Love," and "Chocolat." Check off-Broadway for Michael Myers for his chainsaw serenade in "Phantom of the Opera: Halloween Special."