Sandler Has Good Feature Debut

Adam Sandler says he’s tired of “Saturday Night Live” and is considering a movie career.

Well, with Sandler’s first starring feature “Billy Madison” jumping into the No. 1 spot among the week’s releases, his moving to the big screen might be a good idea.

“Billy Madison” earned a modest $6.6 million, which was good enough to surpass the gross of another premiere, Sam Raimi’s neo-Western “The Quick and the Dead.” Raimi’s film, which stars Sharon Stone as a vengeful woman bent on entering a gunfighter contest, came in second with a $6.5 million take.

The success of the two top premieres, while not outstanding, was at least enough to oust “Legends of the Fall” from the No. 1 spot that it had occupied for better than a month. “Legends” finished No. 3 with earnings of $4.5 million.

What effect Monday’s Oscar nominations will have on the box office won’t be known until next week. Best Picture nominees such as “Forrest Gump” and “Quiz Show,” which will re-open in Spokane today, might experience a new boost.

But the Oscar nods are bound to have some effect on such smaller films as “The Madness of King George,” which opens today at the Magic Lantern Cinemas.

“King George,” which stars Best Actor nominee Nigel Hawthorne, has earned $3.1 million in seven weeks of limited release.