LATEST ADDITIONS

Jack Valenti has officially announced the end of his tenure as president of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA). The silver-haired 82-year-old pitchman carved his niche in entertainment industry history as the originator of the movie rating system. He also fought hard against the VCR, a device he likened to "the Boston Strangler." In recent years, Valenti concentrated on a campaign against piracy—not only the wholesale industrial variety, but against small scale copying by movie fans for personal use, an effort that has not endeared him to the civil libertarian element among home entertainment enthusiasts.

Score one for Matsushita Electric Industrial Company. On July 1, Panasonic's parent organization became the first manufacturer to deliver a large-capacity high-definition DVD recorder—just in time for the Athens Olympic Games next month.

Mitsubishi's PD-5030 Diamond-series 50-inch-diagonal plasma monitor represents the company's long-awaited step into flat-panel TVs, ostensibly to expand their product line beyond the CRT rear-projection sets that for years have been their hallmark. Mitsubishi also makes 61- and 42-inch plasmas, and even a few LCD sets in smaller sizes.

Krell's new Resolution Series speakers are all about pure hedonistic pleasure. Think of them as the speaker equivalent of a fire-breathing, 500-horsepower Dodge Viper SRT/10. But hold on a sec: The Resolutions are more than an exercise in brute force engineering. Their manifest also includes incredible precision, hyperclarity, and ultra-low distortion. Forget the Viper; the Resolutions are closer to a Porsche 911 GT3.