A year of trials peeks at industry's underside

December 14, 2007 [...] the lawyers throw on the equivalent of a full trench coat, quietly settling or taking the case to private arbitration away from the public's excited eyes. On the studio side, a confidential film budget came to light in the trial of author Clive Cussler's dispute with billionaire financierPhilip Anschutz over the Paramount flop "Sahara." The budget included such eye-popping items as $237,386 in "courtesy payments," "gratuities" and "local bribes" distributed on location in Morocco, as well as $179,262 in travel expenses for star Matthew McConaughey's entourage.

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