SEAGRAM SPLASHING INTO HOLLYWOOD?

Seagramreportedly is on the verge of paying about $6 billion to Matsushita for 80 percent of MCA, the Hollywood studio that produced "Jurassic Park" and "E.T." The Associated Press reports that a final deal is expected to be signed within days. But TIME business reporter Bernard Baumohl notes that MCA and Seagram still do not have any formal relationship and that Seagram is declining to comment on the reported sale. Seagram, the Canadian liquor, wine and juice company controlled by one of the world's richest families (the Bronfmans), is said to be financing a purchase of MCA with $8.8 billion it earned by selling its 25 percent stake in chemical conglomerate Du Pont. Oppenheimer analyst Roy Burry tells TIME that the tentative deal, as reported, is a poor one because the MCA purchase price is too high and Seagram got 16 percent below market value for the Du Pont shares.