NEW YORK (Billboard) – It’s the evening of Thursday, April 1, and, no foolin’, Broadway’s St. James Theater is packed. Previews of the musical “American Idiot” started little more than a week ago in anticipation of an April 20 opening, and the theater has been close to capacity every night.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Hip hop band Cypress Hill still see themselves as ambassadors of marijuana, just like the old days.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – His new movie opened in theaters on Friday, but already comedian Chris Rock has set his sight on a new film venture that takes aim at consumers’ love of credit, which Rock calls the devil.

LONDON (Reuters) – The Rolling Stones will release “Plundered My Soul,” a track never heard before, as a limited edition vinyl single to mark Record Store Day Saturday which aims to support struggling music retail outlets.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Until he reached the age of 40, Simon Tolkien was sure of one thing; he could not write.

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – The proudly vulgar comic-book adaptation “Kick-Ass” is hoping for an eponymous opening weekend at the box office in North America.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Rock singer Melissa Etheridge has split from her partner Tammy Lynn Michaels after nearly nine years together.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Known as a champion of independent filmmakers, the Tribeca Film Festival shifts into a new gear and embraces the future of film when it opens next week with a 3D “Shrek” movie and online streaming for Web audiences.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Sir Elton John will headline a star-studded TV charity fund-raiser next week organized by “American Idol” to benefit U.S. and international charities aimed mostly at helping children.

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – Who says youth is wasted on the young? As Hollywood gears up to shoot nearly a dozen projects aimed at the under-25 set, young actors and actresses are at the top of casting directors’ lists.