Nickelodeon

Paul Clinton BURBANK -- Organizers of the Burbank International Children's Film Festival expect great things from the event the first time out. With a full schedule of movies that began showing Friday night and will continue through Oct. 19, the festival is generating a buzz in Burbank and Hollywood. "This has become more than a film festival," festival spokeswoman Carole Myers said. "It really is a celebration of children." Myers said about 100,000 visitors are expected during the weeklong event, headquartered at the Media City Center mall.

THE DARKEST DAY REMEMBERED The morning after Sept. 11, 2001, Americans woke up a changed people. Our shared goals and our values as a nation were profoundly and inalterably changed in the fires of that terrible day. Like most Americans, Burbankers responded by leaping into action: giving money, donating blood and organizing fund-raisers for the victims. We rallied behind Old Glory as our soldiers marched off to war. On the anniversary of one of the darkest days in American history, the Leader will take a look at how Burbank has changed since Sept.

The following items were taken from Burbank Police Department reports: 200 block of West Olive Avenue: A 45-year-old Burbank man reported on Tuesday the theft of $6,000 in computer equipment from Nickelodeon. 5400 block of Corteen Place: A 23-year-old Valley Village man was arrested on Wednesday on suspicion of possession of an explosive device. 400 block of East Tujunga Avenue: A 28-year-old Burbank man was arrested on Wednesday on suspicion of possession of marijuana for sale.

Woman escorted from 'Tonight Show' A 31-year-old Santa Monica woman was escorted off of the set of NBC's "Tonight Show with Jay Leno" Thursday after confronting a show guest during filming, Burbank Police Department Sgt. Kevin Grandalski said. The woman reportedly walked up on stage in an attempt to give the guest, actor Colin Farrell, what looked like a book, Grandalski said. Security officers took the woman out of the studio and escorted her off of the premises, he said.

Robert Blechl MEDIA CITY CENTER -- After buying a book on how to select a dog, Wendy Reid and her son, 4-year-old Christopher, took a trip to The Adopt-A-Pet Holiday House at Media City Center mall to put their new-found knowledge to the test. Adjacent to the carousel on the first floor, the house is the site of the Burbank Animal Shelter's holiday pet adoption program, which is running from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. daily through Dec. 23. "I've been thinking about this for Christmas and heard about the crisis with dogs," Reid said Thursday.

At Moore's Deli in Burbank, Homer Simpson can be found eating a burger while Dora the Explorer dreams up her next quest, “Adventure Time's” Lumpy Space Princess raves about the deli's tuna and “Futurama's” Bender smokes a cigar. Restaurant owner Robert Moore harbors a hidden cultural gem in Media City - the four white walls of the deli's back dining room are covered with original artwork by cartoonists for powerhouse media companies with local headquarters or production offices, including Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon and Warner Bros.

CTN-X to open Nov. 20 in Burbank The Creative Talent Network, a virtual community of professional artists from the animation gaming, film and video industries, has announced the launch of the first Creative Talent Network Animation Expo from Nov. 20 to 22 at the Burbank Marriott Convention Center. Burbank has partnered with Creative Talent Network to declare the event “Animation Week,” where attendees can see local and international talent and an opportunity to interact with more than 50 presenters from major animation studios, including DreamWorks, the Walt Disney Co., Sony and Nickelodeon.

Lolita Harper MEDIA CITY CENTER -- The legendary Houdini was famous for getting himself out of seemingly impossible situations. But Houdini the dog found himself trapped at an animal shelter with little hope for adoption. In the last hour of the Adopt-A-Pet program, Houdini's life as an orphan disappeared when a young man, looking for a dog to watch football with, adopted him. "We were on a mission to get this dog adopted," said program director Ellie Knapp.

Only first half was funny Geoff Nuanes of Tujunga is a freshman at Providence High School in Burbank. "Snow Day," a Nickelodeon movie starring Chevy Chase, was obviously made to appeal to children under the age of 8, but it has parts that appeal to every age group. In the first half of the film, I thought is was kind of interesting and funny, but throughout the rest of the movie, I not only became uninterested, but I also stopped laughing. And I wasn't the only one. Most of the audience seemed to be as bored as I was with the film's un-funny humor.