LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- "Harry Potter" continues to be magic at the box office - and on bookshelves. J.K. Rowling, the author of the seven-book series about the young wizard's battles about the evil Voldemort, earned $300 million in the year between June 1, 2007 and June 1, 2008, placing her on top of Forbes magazine's list of this year's best-paid authors.
Overall, Rowling is reportedly a billionaire, with over 375 million copies of the series selling worldwide. The film adaptations have made a total of $4.5 billion at the box office, with three left to go, continuing with next summer's "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince."
See who else has a way with words... inside.
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Reuters - Robert Downey Jr. is to play Victorian super sleuth Sherlock Holmes in an upcoming blockbuster that studio Warner Bros. hopes will become a lucrative new franchise. more »
AP - "It was funny because tonight I didn't expect to be nervous because we've done all the previews, we've had all the critics here," Radcliffe said after Thursday's performance. "I thought, 'Oh, we'll do it tonight, it won't be so bad.' But I was terrified before we went out. I was like, 'Omigod, this is it.'" more »
AP - It sounds like Harry Potter will vote for the Labour Party when the boy wizard is old enough to cast a ballot. more »
AP - Daniel Radcliffe is talking about Alan Strang, the troubled young man he plays in "Equus," the Peter Shaffer drama now being revived on Broadway. more »
LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- It's a success story that's something to bite home about.
"Breaking Dawn," the fourth and final novel in the "Twilight" series, arrives in stores this weekend, concluding the vampire romance that's been keeping readers up all night since the series debuted in 2005. The books have a monster hit among young adults and beyond, with the first novel, "Twilight," selling 3.5 million copies, and "Eclipse," the third installment, topping even "Harry Potter" on the bestseller list. A film adaptation is due in December.
It's all been a lot to take in for author Stephenie Meyer, a wife and mother of three who told CBS News she never expected she'd be published - much less writing bestsellers.
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Not surprisingly, the fields of media and entertainment have spawned a handful of celebrity billionaires, including legendary movie director and producer Steven Spielberg, T.V. queen Oprah Winfrey, Star Wars creator George Lucas, and Harry Potter scribe J.K. Rowling. more »
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