‘Despicable Me 4’ Tops N.American Box Office on Opening Weekend

The fourth major installment of the Minions universe racked up $75 million in ticket sales in the United States and Canada since its Friday release by Universal Pictures. (Universal)
The fourth major installment of the Minions universe racked up $75 million in ticket sales in the United States and Canada since its Friday release by Universal Pictures. (Universal)
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‘Despicable Me 4’ Tops N.American Box Office on Opening Weekend

The fourth major installment of the Minions universe racked up $75 million in ticket sales in the United States and Canada since its Friday release by Universal Pictures. (Universal)
The fourth major installment of the Minions universe racked up $75 million in ticket sales in the United States and Canada since its Friday release by Universal Pictures. (Universal)

Animated comedy "Despicable Me 4" rose to the top of the North American box office on its first weekend in theaters, according to figures from industry watcher Exhibitor Relations published Sunday.

The fourth major installment of the Minions universe -- which features Will Ferrell voicing a new villain -- racked up $75 million in ticket sales in the United States and Canada since its Friday release by Universal Pictures.

"This is an outstanding opening for the 4th episode of an animation series, ranking only behind Toy Story 4," said box office analyst David A. Gross.

In second place with $30 million was "Inside Out 2," the coming-of-age Disney and Pixar film which was knocked off the top spot after enjoying three consecutive weekends there.

Apocalyptic horror "A Quiet Place: Day One" was in third place after taking in $21 million with its story of New Yorkers who must remain silent to survive an invasion by extraterrestrial creatures with acute hearing.

"MaXXXine," a slasher that sees a mysterious killer stalking an aspiring actress in Hollywood, took fourth place with $6.7 million in ticket sales.

Will Smith's action-comedy "Bad Boys: Ride or Die," which also stars Martin Lawrence, took the last top five spot as it earned $6.5 million.



George Harrison's Early Beatles Guitar Could Fetch $800,000 at Auction

George Harrison (R) jokes with Rolling Stones' Ron Wood during a tribute to Bob Dylan at Madison Square Garden in New York in this October 16, 1992 REUTERS/Jeff Christensen JC/MMR/AA/File Photo
George Harrison (R) jokes with Rolling Stones' Ron Wood during a tribute to Bob Dylan at Madison Square Garden in New York in this October 16, 1992 REUTERS/Jeff Christensen JC/MMR/AA/File Photo
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George Harrison's Early Beatles Guitar Could Fetch $800,000 at Auction

George Harrison (R) jokes with Rolling Stones' Ron Wood during a tribute to Bob Dylan at Madison Square Garden in New York in this October 16, 1992 REUTERS/Jeff Christensen JC/MMR/AA/File Photo
George Harrison (R) jokes with Rolling Stones' Ron Wood during a tribute to Bob Dylan at Madison Square Garden in New York in this October 16, 1992 REUTERS/Jeff Christensen JC/MMR/AA/File Photo

An electric guitar played by the late guitarist George Harrison in the early days of the Beatles will go up for sale at an auction next month where it could be sold for more than $800,000.
Bought from a music store in the band's birth city of Liverpool, Harrison played the Futurama guitar in the early 1960s when the band performed at the Cavern Club, toured Germany and made their first official records for Polydor.
The auctioneers say the Futurama guitar, with its sunburst finish, was one of his most played. They call it "one of the holy grails of historic Beatles guitars" and said it is expected to exceed its estimate price tag of $600,000-$800,000.
Harrison said the guitar was "very difficult" to play but he liked what he called its "futuristic" look.
"It had a great sound," he later told a journalist.
In 1964, he donated the instrument to a rock magazine as a competition prize, but it remained with the publication's editor when the winner opted for a cash prize instead of owning a piece of rock and roll history.
The guitar will be on display at The Beatles Story in Liverpool for the next fortnight before being shown at other museums across Europe. It is due to be auctioned from Nov. 20-22 in the United States.