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‘Lost’ is losing
key character

'Lost" is set to lose at least one character this season. Creator J.J. Abrams says there will "definitely be a death ... and it won't be a dream." It's unrealistic to have all 14 characters survive the first season, Abrams went on to say. A source says a main character will be the killer.

The doomed cast member is unaware of his -- or her -- upcoming demise.

ABC has ordered one extra episode, to bring the season order to 23 (or 25, if you count the two-part pilot). That means the production will have spent in Hawaii more than $53 million, including a reported $10 million for the pilot, or nearly one-third of the state's $161 million in production expenditures last year ...

"North Shore" producers continue to pitch ideas to Fox executives for a second season. Producer Harry Bring says the earliest network execs will make a decision is by the end of this month.

Meanwhile, the Hawaii Film Studio looks more like a ghost town than a production center. It's been cleared out in preparation for an 11-month demolition/renovation slated to begin this month ...

Filmmaker Edgy Lee will direct Grammy nominee Kealii Reichel's upcoming concert DVD at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center Saturday night. It will be recorded in Dolby 5.1 and shot in the latest Blue Ray high definition technology for HDTV. Several bonus features will be included on the DVD, which will be released late summer. Local broadcast of the performance is also likely ...

Dan Sackheim, who directed NBC's "Hawaii" pilot, will direct ABC's drama pilot "The Night Stalker" ...

Dan Strickford, VP of publicity and promotions for Blaise Noto & Associates on Maui, is handling West Coast PR for Court TV, including its coverage of the Michael Jackson trial in Santa Maria, Calif. ...

Mavis Leno, wife of "Tonight Show" host Jay, will speak from 5 to 6 p.m. Feb. 12 at the University of Hawaii-Manoa's College Hill in "An Evening in Solidarity with Afghan Women and Girls," a fund-raiser for Afghan women. She is an advocate for the rights of Afghan women. To buy tickets, e-mail the Afghan Women's Hui at afghanwomenshui@yahoo.com ...