The Word Demon

Literary Settings Inspired by Real Places

2012-01-27T10:37:00.000-08:00

1. Growing up in the midwest means a field trip to Hannibal, Missouri, to see Mark Twain’s old haunting grounds—it was the highlight of my sixth-grade year. Twain has said there was no better place for a boy to grow up than Hannibal and was thus inspired to use many of the area’s landmarks in his writing, especially The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. What was called McDougal Cave in the book is called Mark Twain Cave today – a trip inside will reveal many of the details you might remember from Tom Sawyer.

2. If you want to visit the fictional West Egg from The Great Gatsby, you need only to get yourself to Great Neck, New York, where F. Scott Fitzgerald lived with his wife Zelda for almost two years. It’s thought that he modeled Nick’s “modest” house on his own. In fact, their house is still there today, though I have to say – modest? Really? Maybe in comparison to Jay Gatsby’.

3. Calling all Little House fans: DeSmet, South Dakota, may just be your next vacation location. Laura Ingalls Wilder grew up in the little pioneer town and took many of her series’ buildings, settings and locations straight from the roads of DeSmet. The Surveyors’ House from By the Shores of Silver Lake is still standing, and you can visit a reconstructed version of Laura’s own Little House. If you don’t think you’ll make it to S.D. anytime soon, never fear – there’s a virtual tour as well.

4. The New York Times wants to help you follow in Holden Caulfield’s footsteps – they’ve painstakingly recreated his route around the city, even though J.D. Salinger was often careful to create pseudonyms for places featured in Catcher in the Rye, especially hotels.

5. If I ever get to Portland, you can bet I’ll take a trip down Klickitat Street. That’s where Ramona Quimby grew up – and it’s not far from where her creator, Beverly Cleary, grew up.

6. Winnie-the-Pooh may not be real, but his home is. Charming Hundred-Acre Wood is based on a place in East Sussex, England, called Ashdown Forest. Many of the landmarks found in the A.A. Milne classics still exist there, including Poohsticks Bridge, Galleon’s Lap (called Gill’s Lap in real life), Roo’s Sandpit and Heffalump Trap. They even hold annual Poohsticks competitions there.

7. The House of the Seven Gables in Salem, Mass. – the oldest surviving mansion house in North America – inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel of the same name that was published in 1851. You can tour it and Hawthorne’s birthplace all for the same fee if you’re ever in Salem, though Hawthorne’s house was actually moved several blocks from the spot where it originally stood.

8. It’s thought that Seven Gables was a huge inspiration to H.P. Lovecraft, who in turn wrote his own tale of a spooky house based on one that really existed. Actually, Lovecraft’s The Shunned House was likely based on two abodes – a Providence, R.I., house Lovecraft’s aunt resided in, and a downright terrifying home in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Lovecraft once called it “a hellish place where night-black deeds must have been done in the early seventeen-hundreds — with a blackish unpainted surface, unnaturally steep roof, and an outside flight of stairs leading to the second story, suffocatingly embowered in a tangle of ivy so dense that one cannot but imagine it accursed or corpse-fed.” That house no longer stands today, but you can still check out the one in Providence, especially if you’re in the market – it’s for sale.

9. James Joyce once said that if Dublin somehow got wiped off the face of the map, you could rebuild it just by reading Ulysses and recreating all of the locations he mentions within its pages. Should you ever want to walk in Bloom’s footsteps, I’d make sure to do it on June 16 – that’s Bloomsday, when thousands of other Joyce fans gather in Dublin to retrace Leopold Bloom’s route.

10. Obviously Walden Pond, made famous by Henry David Thoreau, was never actually represented as a place of fiction, so maybe it doesn’t quite fit this list. But it’s still a location in a classic book that you can actually visit – never fear, it hasn’t been replaced by a parking lot or an apartment complex. Thoreau’s original cabin no longer stands, but you can step into a replica of it and you can see where the real thing once stood.

11. Back in Washington Irving’s time, Sleepy Hollow was known as North Tarrytown, New York. It’s a quaint little town, but I bet you still get the chills when you see the bridge that Irving imagined his Headless Horseman thundering across.

12. Hotels are great settings for mysteries and thrillers – just ask Stephen King. If you ever want to feel like you’re living in pages written by Agatha Christie, just book a room at the Imperial Hotel in Torquay, England. Christie stayed there often and just barely bothered to disguise it as “The Majestic Hotel” in at least three books: Peril at End House, The Body in the Library and Sleeping Murder.

2012 Academy Award Nominations

2012-01-24T06:26:00.000-08:00

Best Picture
The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse

Actor In a Leading Role
Demián Bichir, A Better Life
George Clooney, The Descendants
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

Actress In a Leading Role
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn

Actor In a Supporting Role
Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Nick Nolte, Warrior
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Max von Sydow, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

Actress In a Supporting Role
Bérénice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help

Directing
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
The Descendants: Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash
Hugo: Screenplay by John Logan
The Ides of March: Screenplay by George Clooney & Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon
Moneyball: Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin. Story by Stan Chervin
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy: Screenplay by Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan

Writing (Original Screenplay)
The Artist: Written by Michel Hazanavicius
Bridesmaids: Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig
Margin Call: Written by J.C. Chandor
Midnight in Paris: Written by Woody Allen
A Separation: Written by Asghar Farhadi

The Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition

2012-01-20T08:39:00.000-08:00

The Edgar Awards 2012

2012-01-19T11:14:00.000-08:00

Mystery Writers of America has announced the nominees for the 2012 Edgar Allen Poe Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction and non-fiction. The winners will be announced at a gala banquet on April 26 in New York.

Best Novel: The Ranger by Ace Atkins (G.P. Putnam's Sons); Gone by Mo Hayder (Atlantic Monthly Press); The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino (Minotaur Books); 1222 by Anne Holt (Scribner); Field Gray by Philip Kerr (Marion Wood Books).

Best First Novel by an American Author: Red on Red by Edward Conlon (Spiegel & Grau); Last to Fold by David Duffy (Thomas Dunne Books); All Cry Chaos by Leonard Rosen (The Permanent Press); Bent Road by Lori Roy (Dutton); Purgatory Chasm by Steve Ulfelder (Thomas Dunne Books).

Best Paperback Original: The Company Man by Robert Jackson Bennett (Orbit Books); The Faces of Angels by Lucretia Grindle (Felony & Mayhem Press); The Dog Sox by Russell Hill (Caravel Mystery Books); Death of the Mantis by Michael Stanley (Harper); Vienna Twilight by Frank Tallis (Random House Trade Paperbacks).

Best Fact Crime: The Murder of the Century: The Gilded Age Crime That Scandalized a City and Sparked the Tabloid Wars by Paul Collins (Crown); The Savage City: Race, Murder, and a Generation on the Edge by T.J. English (William Morrow); Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard (Doubleday); Girl, Wanted: The Chase for Sarah Pender by Steve Miller (Penguin Group); The Man in the Rockefeller Suit: The Astonishing Rise and Spectacular Fall of a Serial Imposter by Mark Seal (Viking).

Best Critical/Biographical: The Tattoed Girl: The Enigma of Steig Larsson and the Secrets Behind the Most Compelling Thrillers of our Time by Dan Burstein, Arne de Keijzer and John-Henri Holmberg (St. Martin's Griffin); Agatha Christie: Murder in the Making by John Curran (HarperCollins); On Conan Doyle: Or, the Whole Art of Storytelling by Michael Dirda (Princeton University Press); Detecting Women: Gender and the Hollywood Detective Film by Philippa Gates (SUNY Press); Scripting Hitchcock: Psycho, The Birds and Marnie by Walter Raubicheck and Walter Srebnick (University of Illinois Press).

Best Short Story: "Marley’s Revolution" – Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine by John C. Boland (Dell Magazines); "Tomorrow’s Dead" – Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by David Dean (Dell Magazines); "The Adakian Eagle” – Down These Strange Streets by Bradley Denton (Penguin Group USA – Ace Books); "Lord John and the Plague of Zombies" – Down These Strange Streets by Diana Gabaldon (Penguin Group USA – Ace Books); "The Case of Death and Honey" – A Study in Sherlock by Neil Gaiman (Random House Publishing Group – Bantam Books); “The Man Who Took His Hat Off to the Driver of the Train” – Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine by Peter Turnbull (Dell Magazines).

Best Juvenile: Horton Halfpott by Tom Angleberger (Abrams – Amulet Books); It Happened on a Train by Mac Barnett (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers); Vanished by Sheela Chari (Disney Book Group – Disney Hyperion); Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby (Scholastic Press); The Wizard of Dark Street by Shawn Thomas Odyssey (Egmont USA).

Best Young Adult: Shelter by Harlan Coben (Penguin Young Readers Group – G.P. Putnam’s Sons); The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson (Penguin Young Readers Group – G.P. Putnam’s Sons); The Silence of Murder by Dandi Daley Mackall (Random House Children’s Books – Knopf BFYR); The Girl is Murder by Kathryn Miller Haines (Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group – Roaring Creek Press); Kill You Last by Todd Strasser (Egmont USA).

The Simon & Schuster - Mary Higgins Clark Award: Now You See Me by S.J. Bolton (Minotaur Books); Come and Find Me by Hallie Ephron (William Morrow); Death on Tour by Janice Hamrick (Minotaur Books); Learning to Swim by Sara J. Henry (Crown); Murder Most Persuasive by Tracy Kiely (Thomas Dunne Books).

Only known photo of Poe Toaster

2012-01-19T06:03:00.000-08:00

The photo above is from a Life Magazine July 1990 article called ”Once Upon a Midnight Dreary” by Gary Smith. The photographer is Bill Ballenberg

Edgar Allan Poe (January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849)

2012-01-19T05:35:00.000-08:00

CAPTION

By Patrick Semansky, AP

After a mysterious stranger in black failed for the third straight year to appear at Edgar Allan Poe's gravesite on Jan. 19, the curator of the city museum dedicated to the writer is calling off the annual vigil, The Baltimore Sun reports.

CAPTION

Since at least the 1940s, a stranger in a wide hat and white scarf has left three roses and a half-drunk bottle of cognac at the author's Baltimore grave on his birthday.A note left in the 1990s, indicated that perhaps that a new generation had taken over the duty, but it wasn't until 2010 that no one at all showed up.

A crowd gathered outside the gates of the burial ground surrounding Westminster Hall during the night in hopes that would change this year, the Associated Press reports.
While three impersonators appeared, the real "Poe Toaster" did not, says Jeff Jerome, curator of the Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum, who has stayed up each Jan. 19 for 15 straight years awaiting the stranger.

The annual tribute was first mentioned in print in 1950 as an aside in an article in The Evening Sun about an effort to restore the cemetery, Jerome says. When Jerome spoke to older members of the congregation that once worshiped at the church, they recalled hearing about a visitor in the 1930s.

"I more or less resigned myself that it was over with before tonight," says Jerome, in declaring the vigil officially over, The Sun reports. "What I'll miss most is the excitement of waiting to see if he's going to show up."

Edgar Allan Poe

1809-1849

'Quoth the RavenNevermore'

Edgar Allan Poe is buried in the Westminster Cemetery, Baltimore, Maryland, USA. (See map...ref no. 3)

Monument to Edgar Allan Poe

In September 1849 Poe left Richmond and headed for New York to help a lady friend with her manuscripts. For reasons unknown he stopped at Baltimore on the way and on the 3rd October he was discovered in the street outside a polling station in a delirious and semi-conscious state. It is not known whether he was suffering from excessive alcohol, heart failure or epilepsy - or possibly a combination of all three.

Poe was taken to hospital but died four days later. His last words were: "Lord help my poor soul." He was buried the next day in the Baltimore Presbyterian Cemetery in an unmarked grave.

In 1875 a new monument to Poe was erected. Walt Whitman was present at the dedication ceremony and letters from Longfellow, Whittier and Tennyson were read out.

Several years later the remains of Virginia Poe (Poe's wife) were exhumed and brought from New York and added to those of Poe.
Poe's poetry was a major influence on the French symbolist poets. He was also admired in England by the likes of W.B. Yeats, Wilde, Swinburne and D.G. Rossetti.

Gravestone to mark the original site of Poe's grave. This was erected in 1913 by Orin C Painter but was not situated in the right place. It was moved to its present location in 1921..

" Leave my loneliness unbroken! -quit the bust above my door!

Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!"

Quoth the Raven "Nevermore"

From The Raven (Complete Poem)

Protest SOPA

2012-01-18T06:47:00.000-08:00

BAFTA 2012 nominations

2012-01-17T05:48:00.000-08:00

BEST FILM
THE ARTIST – Thomas Langmann
THE DESCENDANTS – Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor
DRIVE – Marc Platt, Adam Siegel
THE HELP – Brunson Green, Chris Columbus, Michael Barnathan
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY – Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Robyn Slovo

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM
MY WEEK WITH MARILYN – Simon Curtis, David Parfitt, Harvey Weinstein, Adrian Hodges
SENNA – Asif Kapadia, James Gay-Rees, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Manish Pandey
SHAME – Steve McQueen, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Abi Morgan
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY – Tomas Alfredson, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Robyn Slovo, Bridget O’Connor, Peter Straughan
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN – Lynne Ramsay, Luc Roeg, Jennifer Fox, Robert Salerno, Rory Stewart Kinnear

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER
ATTACK THE BLOCK – Joe Cornish (Director/Writer)
BLACK POND – Will Sharpe (Director/Writer), Tom Kingsley (Director), Sarah Brocklehurst (Producer)
CORIOLANUS – Ralph Fiennes (Director)
SUBMARINE – Richard Ayoade (Director/Writer)
TYRANNOSAUR – Paddy Considine (Director), Diarmid Scrimshaw (Producer)

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
INCENDIES – Denis Villeneuve, Luc Déry, Kim McGraw
PINA – Wim Wenders, Gian-Piero Ringel
POTICHE – François Ozon, Eric Altmayer, Nicolas Altmayer
A SEPARATION – Asghar Farhadi
THE SKIN I LIVE IN – Pedro Almodóvar, Agustin Almodóvar

DOCUMENTARY
GEORGE HARRISON: LIVING IN THE MATERIAL WORLD – Martin Scorsese
PROJECT NIM – James Marsh, Simon Chinn
SENNA – Asif Kapadia

DIRECTOR
THE ARTIST – Michel Hazanavicius
DRIVE – Nicolas Winding Refn
HUGO – Martin Scorsese
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY – Tomas Alfredson
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN – Lynne Ramsay

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
THE ARTIST – Michel Hazanavicius
BRIDESMAIDS – Annie Mumolo, Kristen Wiig
THE GUARD – John Michael McDonagh
THE IRON LADY – Abi Morgan
MIDNIGHT IN PARIS – Woody Allen

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
THE DESCENDANTS – Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash
THE HELP – Tate Taylor
THE IDES OF MARCH – George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon
MONEYBALL – Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY – Bridget O’Connor, Peter Straughan

LEADING ACTOR
BRAD PITT – Moneyball
GARY OLDMAN – Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
GEORGE CLOONEY - The Descendants
JEAN DUJARDIN – The Artist
MICHAEL FASSBENDER – Shame

LEADING ACTRESS
BÉRÉNICE BEJO – The Artist
MERYL STREEP – The Iron Lady
MICHELLE WILLIAMS – My Week with Marilyn
TILDA SWINTON – We Need to Talk About Kevin
VIOLA DAVIS – The Help

SUPPORTING ACTOR
CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER – Beginners
JIM BROADBENT – The Iron Lady
JONAH HILL – Moneyball
KENNETH BRANAGH – My Week with Marilyn
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN – The Ides of March

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
CAREY MULLIGAN – Drive
JESSICA CHASTAIN – The Help
JUDI DENCH – My Week with Marilyn
MELISSA MCCARTHY – Bridesmaids
OCTAVIA SPENCER – The Help

ORIGINAL MUSIC
THE ARTIST – Ludovic Bource
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO – Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross
HUGO – Howard Shore
TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY – Alberto Iglesias
WAR HORSE – John Williams

West of Memphis Official Trailer West Memphis 3

2012-01-13T14:15:00.000-08:00

Critics Choice Movie Awards

2012-01-13T08:35:00.000-08:00

BEST PICTURE
“The Artist”

BEST ACTOR
George Clooney – “The Descendants”

BEST ACTRESS
Viola Davis – “The Help”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christopher Plummer – “Beginners”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Octavia Spencer – “The Help”

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Thomas Horn – “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close”

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
“The Help”

BEST DIRECTOR
Michel Hazanavicius – “The Artist”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“Midnight in Paris” – Woody Allen

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“Moneyball” – Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin, Story by Stan Chervin

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY (TIE)
“The Tree of Life”
AND
“War Horse”

BEST ART DIRECTION
“Hugo”

BEST EDITING
“The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“The Artist”

BEST MAKE-UP
“Harry

The Joy of Books

2012-01-09T21:03:00.000-08:00

DGA Award Nominees for Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2011

2012-01-09T12:20:00.000-08:00

Los Angeles – Directors Guild of America President Taylor Hackford today announced the five nominees for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2011.

The winner will be named at the 64th Annual DGA Awards Dinner on Saturday, January 28, 2012, at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland. The nominees are (in alphabetical order):

WOODY ALLEN
Midnight in Paris
(Sony Pictures Classics)
Mr. Allen’s Directorial Team:
Unit Production Managers: Matthieu Rubin, Helen Robin
First Assistant Director: Gil Kenny
Second Assistant Director: Delphine Bertrand

DAVID FINCHER
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
(Columbia Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures)
Mr. Fincher’s Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: Daniel M. Stillman
First Assistant Director: Bob Wagner
Second Assistant Director: Allen Kupetsky
Production Manager (Sweden Unit): Karolina Heimburg
Second Assistant Directors (Sweden Unit): Hanna Nilsson, Pontus Klänge
2nd Second Assistant Director (Sweden Unit): Niklas Sjöström
2nd Second Assistant Director (U.S. Unit): Maileen Williams
Unit Production Manager (Zurich Unit): Christos Dervenis
Unit Production Manager (U.K. Unit): Lara Baldwin
Second Assistant Director (U.K. Unit): Paul Taylor

MICHEL HAZANAVICIUS
The Artist
(The Weinstein Company)
Mr. Hazanavicius’ Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: Antoine De Cazotte
Production Manager (FR): Ségoléne Fleury
First Assistant Director (FR): James Canal
First Assistant Director (US): David Cluck
Second Assistant Director (US): Dave Paige
Second Second Assistant Directors: Karla Strum, Ricky Robinson

ALEXANDER PAYNE
The Descendants
(Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Mr. Payne’s Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager: George Parra
First Assistant Director: Richard L. Fox
Second Assistant Director: Scott August
Second Second Assistant Director: Amy Wilkins Bronson

MARTIN SCORSESE
Hugo
(Paramount Pictures)
Mr. Scorsese’s Directorial Team:
Unit Production Managers: Charles Newirth, Georgia Kacandes, Angus More Gordon
First Assistant Director: Chris Surgent
Second Assistant Director: Richard Graysmark
Second Assistant Directors: Tom Brewster, Fraser Fennell-Ball
Production Managers (Paris Unit): Michael Sharp, Gilles Castera
First Assistant Director (Paris Unit): Ali Cherkaoui

Oscars® Trailer: "Off the Grid"

2012-01-06T10:37:00.000-08:00

2012 Writers Guild Awards Screen Nominees Announced

2012-01-05T10:27:00.000-08:00

LOS ANGELES, NEW YORK -- The Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) and the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) have announced nominations for outstanding achievement in writing for the screen during 2011. Winners will be honored at the 2012 Writers Guild Awards on Sunday, February 19, 2012, during simultaneous ceremonies in Hollywood and New York.

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

50/50, Written by Will Reiser; Summit Entertainment
Bridesmaids, Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig; Universal Studios
Midnight in Paris, Written by Woody Allen; Sony Pictures Classics
Win Win, Screenplay by Tom McCarthy; Story by Tom McCarthy & Joe Tiboni; Fox Searchlight
Young Adult, Written by Diablo Cody; Paramount Pictures

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

The Descendants, Screenplay by Alexander Payne and Nat Faxon & Jim Rash; Based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemming; Fox Searchlight
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Screenplay by Steven Zaillian; Based on the novel by Stieg Larsson, originally published by Norstedts; Columbia Pictures
The Help, Screenplay by Tate Taylor; Based on the novel by Kathryn Stockett; DreamWorks Pictures
Hugo, Screenplay by John Logan; Based on the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick; Paramount Pictures
Moneyball, Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin; Story by Stan Chervin; Based on the book by Michael Lewis; Columbia Pictures

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY

Better This World, Written by Katie Galloway & Kelly Duane de la Vega; Loteria Films
If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front, Written by Marshall Curry and Matthew Hamachek; Oscilloscope Pictures
Nostalgia for the Light, Written by Patricio Guzmán; Icarus Films
Pina, Screenplay by Wim Wenders; Sundance Selects
Position Among the Stars, Script by Hetty Naaijkens-Retel Helmrich, Leonard Retel Helmrich; HBO Films
Senna, Written by Manish Pandey; Producers Distribution Agency

SoundWorks Collection The Sound of Transformers Dark of the Moon

2012-01-02T14:05:00.000-08:00

Making of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 Sound Design

2012-01-02T14:04:00.000-08:00

84th Annual Academy Awards poster has been revealed!

2011-12-28T15:52:00.000-08:00

Van Halen is back!

2011-12-28T10:25:00.000-08:00

Van Halen is coming back. You remember Van Halen: Eddie and his brother Alex. Only back in 1984, when David Lee Roth was the lead singer, Eddie was married to reigning TV queen Valerie Bertinelli. Their son, Wolfgang, was born in 1991. Now hear this: Van Halen the band, with a reunited Roth, Eddie’s brother Alex, and Wolfgang, have finished a new album for Interscope. It was recorded all year — especially last winter and then mixed, and remixed–at Henson Studios in Hollywood with producer John Shanks.

Going by the enigmatic art work they’ve unveiled, the album will be released on February 7th, the Tuesday before the Grammy Awards. All signs point to a “surprise” appearance on the Grammy broadcast the following Sunday, February 12th.

Los Angeles’s The Golden Apple for sale

2011-12-27T11:05:00.000-08:00

If you have $679,000.00 sitting around, you can buy Los Angeles’s The Golden Apple, one of America’s best known and longest running comics specialty stores. It’s for sale on eBay right this minute. The sale price includes $300,000 in inventory in comics, games, toys and so on. You can make an offer.

Founded back in 1979 by Bill Liebowitz, one of the leading retailers in the rise of the direct market of the ’80s, The Golden Apple was a forward-facing store with a wide range of merchandise and a steady stream of events and signings – some of them historic. LA celebrity comics readers were regular customers over the years, and the store was frequently used as a film location when a comics shop was called for.

Liebowitz died in 2004, leaving the store to his wife, Sharon; son Ryan soon came in to run the business at a new location on Melrose Avenue and La Brea.
In a statement, Ryan wrote:

“My father passed away several years ago, Mom is nearing retirement age & I have many other career aspirations. I am currently a partner in a Production Company, Motion Comics company & a Catering business. I am looking for a chance to put the necessary time & effort into those and other projects.
“The fact is…Golden Apple is the most well-known Comic Shop in the world and we’re looking to sell it. We are NOT going out of business, bankrupt or ANYTHING that is negative.
“Moreover, we just had KISS sign autographs in the shop a few weeks ago and Tom Morello is scheduled for January 14…we are still THE PREMIER SHOP!
“We are simply selling our amazing precious rare collectible item on eBay…Golden Apple and ALL its assets.”

A brochure on the sale has several interesting factoids, including this product mix breakdown:

In the brochure, the Liebowitzes make it clear that running a comics shop is just not what they want to be doing at this time…but for the right person, this could be the opportunity of a lifetime.

Neil deGrasse Tyson Book List for Every Intelligent Person on the Planet

2011-12-26T14:38:00.000-08:00

“Which books should be read by every single intelligent person on planet?” one literary Reddit user asked Neil deGrasse Tyson last week.

The famous physicist and author responded with a concise list of classic books. If you are looking for books to fill your new eReader, we have collected links to free digital copies of all the books on his list. Follow the links below to download ePub, Kindle or text versions of the books.

Tyson summarized: “If read all of the works above, you will have profound insight into most of what has driven the history of the western world.” You can meet Tyson in the Symphony of Science Video embedded above–an autotuned version of a physics lecture.

Neil deGrasse Tyson Book List for Every Intelligent Person on the Planet
The Bible
The System of the World (Newton),
On the Origin of Species (Darwin),
Gulliver’s Travels (Swift),
The Age of Reason (Paine),
The Wealth of Nations (Smith), The Art of War (Sun Tsu),
The Prince (Machiavelli).

Merry Christmas Harry Houdini Style

2011-12-23T17:29:00.000-08:00

The 15 Biggest Box Office Flops of 2011

2011-12-23T17:12:00.000-08:00

The 15 movies THR selected as flops are:

Mars Needs MomsStudio: DisneyRelease Date: March 11, 2011Budget: $150 millionWorldwide Gross: $39 million

Sucker PunchStudio: Warner Bros.Stars: Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone, Vanessa HudgensRelease Date: March 25, 2011Budget: $82 millionWorldwide gross: $89.8 million

ArthurStudio: Warner Bros.Stars: Russell Brand, Helen Mirren, Jennifer GarnerRelease Date: April 8, 2011Budget: $40 million-plusWorldwide Gross: $45.7 million

Green LanternStudio: Warner Bros.Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Blake LivelyRelease Date: June 17, 2011Budget: $200 millionWorldwide Gross: $219.9 million

Cowboys & AliensStudio: DreamWorks/UniversalStars: Daniel Craig, Harrison FordRelease Date: July 29, 2011Budget: $163 millionWorldwide Gross: $178.8

Glee: The 3D Concert MovieStudio: FoxStars: Lea Michele, Chris Colfer, Darren CrissRelease Date: Aug. 12Budget: $9 millionWorldwide Gross: $18.7 millon

Conan the BarbarianStudio: LionsgateStars: Jason Momoa, Rose McGowanRelease Date: Aug. 19Budget: $90 millionWordwide Gross: $48.8 million

I Don’t Know How She Does ItStudio: WeinsteinStars: Sarah Jessica Parker, Greg KinnearRelease Date: Sept. 16Budget: $24 millionWorldwide Gross: $30.5 million

The ThingStudio: UniversalStars: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Joel EdgertonRelease Date: Oct. 14, 2011Budget: $38 millionWorldwide Gross: $27.4 million

The Big YearStudio: 20th Century FoxStars: Steve Martin, Jack Black, Owen WilsonRelease Date: Oct. 14, 2011Budget: $41 millionWorldwide Gross: $7.4 million

The Rum DiaryStudio: GK FilmsStars: Johnny Depp, Aaron EckhartRelease Date: Oct. 28, 2011Budget: $45 millionWorldwide Gross: $21.6 million

AnonymousStudio: Sony (U.S., most foreign territories)Stars: Rhys Ifans, Vanessa Redgrave, David ThewlisRelease Date: Oct. 28, 2011Budget: $30 millionWorldwide Gross: $14.8 million

Tower HeistStudio: UniversalStars: Eddie Murphy, Ben Stiller, Matthew BroderickRelease Date: Nov. 4, 2011Budget: $75 millionWorldwide Gross: $126.3 million

Happy Feet TwoStudio: Warner bros.Release Date: Nov. 18, 2011Budget: $135 millionWorldwide Gross to Date: $115 million

New Year’s EveStudio: New Line/Warner Bros.Stars: Ashton Kutcher, Zac Efron, Lea Michele, Halle Berry, Josh DuhamelRelease Date: Dec. 9, 2011Budget: $56 millionWorldwide Gross to Date: $54.9 million

HOW GREAT I AM

2011-12-22T09:20:00.000-08:00

Brilliant Writing

2011-12-22T09:11:00.000-08:00

Prometheus - Trailer Preview (HD)

2011-12-19T13:01:00.000-08:00

Harper Lee on How to Live a Good Life

2011-12-12T14:10:00.000-08:00

A young fan of 'To Kill a Mockingbird' named Jeremy wrote to Harper Lee in 2006, and asked for a signed photo. He didn't get one, but instead received this lovely piece of advice from the author that is far more precious.

Transcript follows. Image courtesy of Nate D. Sanders.

Transcript

06/07/06

Dear Jeremy

I don't have a picture of myself, so please accept these few lines:

As you grow up, always tell the truth, do no harm to others, and don't think you are the most important being on earth. Rich or poor, you then can look anyone in the eye and say, "I'm probably no better than you, but I'm certainly your equal."

(Signed, 'Harper Lee')

10 Acclaimed Authors Who Only Wrote One Book

2011-12-12T14:01:00.000-08:00

For many authors, a great novel is simply one part of a larger lifetime of creative work. For others, however, a great novel is a once in a lifetime blessing, one that was never followed up with another due to creative stagnation or circumstances out of his or her control. These books mark the greatest literary achievements of each author’s lifetime.

Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird: This notoriously reclusive author was terrified of the criticism she felt she would receive for this classic American novel. Of course, the novel didn’t tank and was an immediate bestseller, winning great critical acclaim, including the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1961. While Lee spent several years working on a novel called The Long Goodbye, she eventually abandoned it and has yet to publish anything other than a few essays since her early success and none since 1965.
Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man: Invisible Man is Ellison’s best known work, most likely because it was the only novel he ever published during his lifetime and because it won him the National Book Award in 1953. Ellison worked hard to match his earlier success but felt himself stagnating on his next novel that eventually came to encompass well over 2000 pages. It was not until Ellison’s death that this novel was condensed, edited and published under the title Juneteenth.
Boris Pasternak, Dr. Zhivago: Pasternak’s inclusion here by no means limits him as a one hit wonder, as he was and is known as one of the greatest poets of the 20th century. But when it came to writing novels, Pasternak was to only create one work, the epic Dr. Zhivago. It was a miracle that even this novel was published, as the manuscript had to be smuggled out of Russia and published abroad. Even when it won Pasternak the Nobel Prize in 1958, he was forced to decline due to pressure from Soviet authorities, lest he be exiled or imprisoned. Pasternak died two years later of lung cancer, never completing another novel.
Margaret Mitchell, Gone With the Wind: Margaret Mitchell never wanted to seek out literary success and wrote this expansive work in secret, only sending it to publishers after she was mocked by a colleague who didn’t believe she was capable of writing a novel. She turned out to be more than capable; however, and the book won a Pulitzer and was adapted into one of the best known and loved films of all time. Mitchell would not get a chance to write another novel, as she was struck and killed by a car on her way to the cinema at only 49 years of age.
Emily Brontë, Wuthering Heights: As part of a family of women who enjoyed writing, Emily did work on a collection of poetry during her life, though the vast majority of her work was published under a more androgynous pen name at first. While Wuthering Heights received criticism at first for it’s innovative style, it has since become a classic and was edited and republished in 1850 by her sister under her real name. It is entirely possible that Emily may have gone on to create other novels, but her poor health and the harsh climate she lived in shortened her life, and she died at 30 of tuberculosis.
Anna Sewell, Black Beauty: Sewell didn’t start off her life intending to be a novelist. Indeed, she didn’t begin writing Black Beauty until she was 51 years old, motivated by the need to create a work that encouraged people to treat horses (and humans) humanely, and it took her six years to complete it. Upon publication it was an immediate bestseller, rocketing Sewell into success. Unfortunately, she would not live to enjoy but a little of it as she died from hepatitis five months after her book was released.
Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray: Wilde is best known as a poet and playwright, but he did make one attempt at a novel during his life, the sometimes controversial The Picture of Dorian Gray. While his plays brought him the most success during his lifetime, it is this novel that has secured a place for him in literary history. Yet it was a bit too racy for Victorian society at the time, with critics calling it everything from "effeminate" to "unclean", largely due to the book’s homoerotic and hedonistic undertones. Because of this criticism, Wilde revised his novel, but he was never to undertake the task again, instead sticking to poetry and plays for the rest of his career.
John Kennedy Toole, A Confederacy of Dunces: John Kennedy Toole was a well-educated and intelligent man who taught at Dominican College in New Orleans. It was during this time he wrote his comic novel. Unfortunately, the stress of not being able to get his work published–book critics didn’t think it was about anything in particular–as well as other factors took their toll on his health, and Toole quit his job and descended into a deep depression, eventually committing suicide in 1969. It was not until 1980 that his work was published, finally earning him the recognition he desired and a posthumous Pulitzer Prize.
Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar: Sometimes a work of fiction can be a little too personal, as was the case with Plath’s The Bell Jar, published in 1963 under a pseudonym. While an accomplished poet, Plath struggled with bipolar depression, a condition made worse by an unfaithful husband and a miscarriage. In the acclaimed novel, the main character suffers a break and commits suicide, a fate Plath herself was to share, killing herself only months after the publication of the book. While this was to be her only novel, Plath did win the Pulitzer for her poetry in 1982, the first writer to ever posthumously do so.
Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things: This author is mentioned last because while she has to date only published one work of fiction–one that garnered her the Booker Prize–she is still working today. Much of the work she has published since her novel has been nonfiction and political essays as well as a number of screenplays. After a significant hiatus from her last book (13 years and counting), she is reported to be working on a new novel, though there is no guarantee that she will return to the novel-writing genre.

The Black Keys - Lonely Boy

2011-12-10T15:30:00.000-08:00

The Cabin in the Woods Trailer 2012 HD

2011-12-06T09:20:00.000-08:00

The Neverending Story

2011-12-06T07:27:00.001-08:00

An ingenious Etsy artist is selling eReader and iPad covers that look like the leather-bound magical book featured in The Neverending Story book and film.
In the popular book and movie, a boy enters a magical world by reading an imaginary book called The Neverending Story–the inspiration for the eReader cover. Follow this link to watch the discovery of The Neverending Story book in the 1984 film. The hero stumbles into a dusty bookstore, receiving some timely advice from a cranky bookseller: “The video arcade is down the street. Here we just sell small rectangular objects. They’re called books.”

Here’s more about the $$49.95 cover: “Modern digital book readers can holds thousands and thousands of books – truly a never-ending supply! Customize your reader with a cover that will for sure bring back the nostalgic moments of luck dragons, noble warriors, and epic quests. These book covers are hand-crafted from high quality leather and suedes and bound with filigree and an auryn on the cover, just like the book we all know and love. These are made to fit Kindles and Nooks. They are a perfect way to protect your reader and gives it a high level of protection while attracting a lot of attention and comments from friends and passersby.” (Via Reddit)

Unpacking My Library: Writers and Their Books

2011-12-06T07:21:00.001-08:00

Whats goin on..

2011-12-04T20:26:00.000-08:00

Giger Bar

2011-12-02T10:50:00.000-08:00

The world of surrealist painter and Oscar-winning visual effects wizard H.R. Giger is frightening for most of us. Known for dehumanizing bio-mechanical motifs that became the basis for the monsters in the Alien franchise, digesting Giger's imagery isn't an easy task, unless of course you've already knocked back a few...

It may have been with this in mind that the Swiss painter designed a bar for the museum that bears his name, after the H.R. Giger Museum.

The catch? Concept is everything, and for Giger this was just another opportunity to showcase his twisted world of the mechanical and biological fusion. Having already opened an H.R. Giger Bar in 1992 in Chur, Switzerland, completing the second bar at the site of his museum in Chateau St. Germain, Gruyeres, Switzerland was a piece of cake.

Walking inside is like being swallowed by a futuristic Moby Dick from hell. Spinal columns run the length of the interior, making it feel as though you're getting tipsy inside of a breathing organism. To see more photos of the interior, click here.

SHAME Trailer 2011 Michael Fassbender - Official [HD]

2011-12-02T08:03:00.000-08:00

Monsterpalooza

2011-12-01T07:17:00.001-08:00

ACTION COMICS #1 (1938) Sold For $2,161,000

2011-12-01T07:00:00.001-08:00

Some comic books go in and out of fashion. Action Comics #1 will never be one of those books. The most important comic book in the history of comics. The introduction of the archetype of all other heroes to come. Superman transcends comic books, transcends pop culture, he is an icon of Truth, Justice and The American Way! Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, it is said that Siegel's fathers' death after a robbery at his secondhand clothing store could have served as the inspiration for the Man of Steel. We are all in debt to these two visionaries for ushering in the age of the super hero.

M. Night Shyamalan

2011-12-01T06:40:00.001-08:00

John Carter (2012)

2011-11-30T06:44:00.000-08:00

Ask the Dust movie trailer.

2011-11-24T20:57:00.000-08:00

A Dangerous Method - Official Trailer [HD]

2011-11-23T07:06:00.000-08:00

Woody Allen: A Documentary - AMERICAN MASTERS | PBS

2011-11-17T13:51:00.000-08:00

National Book Awards - 2011

2011-11-17T08:25:00.001-08:00

From left, National Book Award winners Stephen Greenblatt, nonfiction; Thanhha Lai, young people's literature; Nikky Finney, poetry; and Jesmyn Ward, fiction. (Tina Fineberg, Associated Press / November 16, 2011)

WINNER: Jesmyn Ward, Salvage the Bones
(Bloomsbury USA)

FINALISTS:
Andrew Krivak, The Sojourn
(Bellevue Literary Press) - Interview

Téa Obreht, The Tiger's Wife
(Random House) - Interview coming soon.

Julie Otsuka, The Buddha in the Attic
(Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House) - Interview

Edith Pearlman, Binocular Vision
(Lookout Books, an imprint of the Department of Creative Writing at the University of North Carolina Wilmington) - Interview

Fiction Judges: Deirdre McNamer (Panel Chair), Jerome Charyn,
John Crowley, Victor LaValle, Yiyun Li

Van Halen has signed to Interscope Records

2011-11-14T12:56:00.001-08:00

David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen of Van Halen perform during the 11th Annual Tiger Jam at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino on April 19th, 2008

Lester Cohen/WireImage

Van Halen has signed to Interscope Records, a source with knowledge of the talks tells Rolling Stone. The news was first reported by the Hollywood Reporter which wrote that Interscope chairman Jimmy Iovine was personally involved with the negotiations, and quoted an "insider" as saying, "He heard the band was available and wanted to work with them. It was decided at the eleventh hour." The deal reportedly includes touring, merchandising, marketing and recording.

Steven Spielberg and John Williams tell stories by the score

2011-11-14T12:40:00.001-08:00

“AFI’s Master Class,” featuring Steven Spielberg and John Williams, will showcase their work on films like “Saving Private Ryan” (above), starring Tom Hanks, Matt Damon and Ed Burns.

You won’t necessarily learn how to create a master blend of movies and music from listening to Steven Spielberg and John Williams talk about how they’ve done it with films like “E.T.,” “Indiana Jones” and “Jaws."

TCM’s “AFI Master Class,” which the network hopes will become a series, premieres Tuesday night at 8 with an hour-long chat between two men who have unquestionably earned the “master” title.Their other work together includes “Temple of Doom,” “Schindler's List,” “Jurassic Park” and “Saving Private Ryan.”

It could also be argued persuasively that their work would be enshrined in movie history if they had only collaborated on the opening scene of “Jaws.”

BLACK SABBATH Reunion Announcement Special

2011-11-14T09:35:00.000-08:00

On the Road with Joe Bonamassa: Beacon Theater

2011-11-11T09:42:00.000-08:00

Hugo - Official Trailer [HD]

2011-11-07T08:10:00.000-08:00

THE HOUSE OF SILK: A Sherlock Holmes Novel

2011-11-02T09:03:00.000-07:00

Spec Script Sales Explode in October -- Highest Mark in 5 Years

2011-11-01T08:20:00.000-07:00

READ entire article from The Wrap

After three years of reboots, sequels and prequels, the market for original scripts is finally sizzling again in Hollywood.

No fewer than 18 spec scripts – screenplays written without a contract – were sold in October. That's the highest monthly tally since before the Writers Guild strike in 2007-2008.
The projects range from a biopic about code-cracking mathematician Alan Turing to a “found footage” thriller centering on killer hurricanes to a relationship counselor comedy that will likely star Ken Jeong of “The Hangover.”
“We already knew that 2011 was going to be the hottest spec market in five years, but October’s numbers are beyond all expectations,” said Jason Scoggins, author of the Scoggins Report and founder of ItsontheGrid.com, a division of TheWrap. “And when you add in pitch sales, buyers' appetites have never been stronger.”

In a robust sign of health for long-neglected screenwriters, studios are competing to bid for the hottest scripts and pitches.
In total, 86 spec scripts have been snatched up through October – more than the number that sold in all of 2009 or 2010.

“A lot of the safe bets in terms of branded [intellectual property], the Harry Potters or the Hasbro products, have had their run, or have not worked out,” Brooklyn Weaver, owner of the literary management company Energy Entertainment, told TheWrap. “When you look at things such as ‘Inception,’ what’s working is the original ideas from original voices.”

Neil Gaiman Explains All Hallow's Read

2011-10-22T13:08:00.000-07:00

Robert McCammon at home

2011-10-21T10:01:00.000-07:00

The Adventure of Tintin - Official Trailer 2 | HD

2011-10-20T11:58:00.000-07:00

National Day on Writing

2011-10-20T11:31:00.000-07:00

Recognizing the importance of writing in the lives of us all, NCTE established and celebrated its first National Day on Writing on October 20, 2009; the NCTE National Gallery of Writing was also unveiled on that day in 2009.

The urge to write can be a mysterious calling. There are so many different ways to understand not only the why of writing, but what one gets out of it. To celebrate the National Day on Writing, the NWP has joined The New York Times Learning Network and Figment to collect the thoughts of people from all walks of life—scientists, reporters, poets, teachers, and students—to discover why they write.

If you type the words "Why I Write" into Google, it's surprising how many results you'll get. Everyone from George Orwell to Joan Didion to Terry Tempest Williams and an assortment of other writers, famous and not so famous, have pondered this simple yet obviously meaningful act.

To learn. To explore the world. To keep from going insane. These are just a few reasons people have given for why they write.

Robert Towne: Screenwriting Legend lists Home

2011-10-20T10:34:00.000-07:00

The House that Jack Saved!

read the history HERE

SELLER: Robert Towne

LOCATION: Pacific Palisades, CA

SIZE: 10,000 square feet, 8 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms

PRICE: $14,000,000

While his (somewhat more recent writing gigs have revolved around money-minting Tom Cruise block blusters like Mission Impossible (I and II) and Days of Thunder, Mister Towne is (and should be) better known for his contributions to 1960s and 70s cinematic tour de forces such as Bonnie and Clyde, The Godfather, Personal Best, The Last Detail, Shampoo, and the utterly sublime Roman Polanski-directed Chinatown for which he received a much-deserved Academy Award.

2011 Don and Gee Nicholl Fellowships

2011-10-19T10:48:00.000-07:00

Seven writers have been selected as recipients of this year's Don and Gee Nicholl Fellowships in screenwriting, AMPAS announced Tuesday.

Each writer (or writing team) will receive a $30,000 prize, the first installment of which will be distributed at a gala dinner in Beverly Hills on November 3.

The 2011 Nicholl Fellows are:
Chris Bessounian & Tianna Langham, "Guns and Saris"
Dion Cook, "Cutter"
John MacInnes, "Outside the Wire"
Matthew Murphy, "Unicorn"
Abel Vang & Burlee Vang, "The Tiger's Child"

The winners were selected from a record 6,730 scripts submitted for this year's competition which is open to any individual who has not sold or optioned a screenplay or teleplay for more than $5,000, or received a fellowship or prize that includes a first look clause, an option, or any other quid pro quo involving the writer's work.

The Nicholl Committee, chaired by producer Gale Anne Hurd, is composed of writers Naomi Foner, Daniel Petrie, Jr., Tom Rickman and Dana Stevens; actor Eva Marie Saint; cinematographers John Bailey and Steven B. Poster; costume designer Vicki Sanchez; executive Bill Mechanic; producers Peter Samuelson and Robert W. Shapiro; marketing executive Buffy Shutt, and agent Ronald R. Mardigian.

Fellowships are awarded with the understanding that the recipients will each complete a feature-length screenplay during their fellowship year. The Academy acquires no rights to the works of Nicholl fellows and does not involve itself commercially in any way with their completed scripts.

I Don't Heart Huckabees

2011-10-18T09:08:00.000-07:00

Documentary Short Subject contenders for the 84th Academy Awards®

2011-10-14T08:11:00.000-07:00

Beverly Hills, CA – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that the field of Documentary Short Subject contenders for the 84th Academy Awards® has been narrowed to eight films, of which three to five will earn Oscar® nominations.

Voters from the Academy’s Documentary Branch viewed this year’s 35 eligible entries and submitted their ballots to PricewaterhouseCoopers for tabulation. The eight films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production company.

“The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement,” Purposeful Productions, Inc.

“God Is the Bigger Elvis,” Documentress Films

“In Tahrir Square: 18 Days of Egypt’s Unfinished Revolution,” Downtown Docs

“Incident in New Baghdad,” Morninglight Films

“Pipe Dreams,” Leslie Iwerks Productions

“Saving Face,” Milkhaus/Jungefilm

“The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom,” Supply & Demand Integrated

“Witness,” Buche

The 84th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Tuesday, January 24, 2012, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Stephen King's Bag of Bones - First Footage

2011-10-14T07:57:00.000-07:00

Grimm... comes alive

2011-10-13T07:39:00.000-07:00

Jim Harrison: The Last Lion

2011-10-10T12:58:00.000-07:00

The Last Lion

After 34 books, endless Hemingway comparisons, and too many battles with gout, legendary author Jim Harrison is unsurpassed at chronicling man's relationship with wilderness. His secret? Ample wine, cigarettes, fly-fishing—and an inability to give a damn about what anyone else thinks. Our author takes a literary pilgrimage to Montana.

By: Tom Bissell Photographer: Kurt Markus

Harrison in his Livingston, Montana, writing cabin

Complete article from Outside HERE

Letter From J. D. Salinger, One Sentence Long, Is Offered for $50,000

2011-10-10T12:54:00.000-07:00

History For Sale A letter said to be written and signed by J. D. Salinger, and being offered for sale on eBay.

We’ve heard that contributors to The New Yorker get paid handsomely for their work, but J. D. Salinger might outpace them all if a Las Vegas-based company realizes its asking price for a brief letter by that reclusive writer it is selling on eBay for $50,000.

The sale, which was reported by Reuters, was listed on Tuesday by History For Sale, a memorabilia company, and offers an “exceedingly rare handwritten letter” by Salinger, the author of “The Catcher in the Rye” and “Franny and Zooey,” on his monogrammed letterhead and dated March 12, 1989. In handwriting that even the most perceptive Glass family member might have difficulty deciphering, Salinger wrote: “Dear Mary — Please make sure all the errands are done before you go on vacation, as I do not want to be bothered with insignificant things. Thank you, J. D. Salinger.” It may not be the most enduring sentence composed by the author, who died in 2010, but it works out to about $2,083.33 a word (if you disregard the salutation and signature), a rate that even Malcolm Gladwell would have to envy.

Courtesy NY Times

THE RAVEN Trailer HD

2011-10-10T12:49:00.000-07:00

Steve Jobs Stanford Commencement Speech 2005

2011-10-05T16:57:00.000-07:00

R.I.P. Steve Jobs February 24, 1955 - October 5, 2011

2011-10-05T16:45:00.000-07:00

Apple.com's webpage tribute

George Harrison: Living in the Material World

2011-10-05T11:59:00.000-07:00

‘Girl With The Dragon Tattoo’ Score While Watching Razor One Sheet Created

2011-10-04T07:08:00.000-07:00

The marketing campaign for David Fincher‘s “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” has been pretty savvy thus far. Of course, there is the whole “fake” leak of the red band trailer this summer; the boob baring poster; the surprise showing of eight minutes of footage in front of “Straw Dogs” and most recently the nearly four-minute official trailer. But for the super obsessive, there has been even more to enjoy. Over at the unofficial/official Tumblr page Mouth Taped Shut tons of behind-the-scenes pics have dropped, as well as concept art by Neil Kellerhouse for posters for the film. But this latest unveiling is the meatiest offering yet.
More

George Harrison: Living In The Material World

2011-10-04T06:49:00.000-07:00

Martin Scorsese's stunning documentary, "George Harrison: Living in the Material World," will air on HBO Oct. 5-6. Among the locations selected for preview, Scorsese and Olivia Harrison chose a small Iowa town whose theatre audience was comprised of 500 meditators. Why?

The exclusive screening -- held Sunday evening in Fairfield, Iowa -- was a gift supporting the David Lynch Foundation's initiatives to teach Transcendental Meditation to veterans, inner-city school kids, homeless people, prisoners, Native Americans and other at-risk populations.

Fairfield is known as a middle-America oasis of progressive thought, entrepreneurship and sustainability -- dubbed "Silicon Valley of the Corn Belt" for its concentration of high tech businesses. The town boasts a community of over 2,000 meditators, and is home of the university founded by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who taught meditation to The Beatles.

Although George Harrison was a spiritual eclectic, ever exploring various disciplines and traditions, one element that remained consistent for him over the years was the meditation technique he learned from Maharishi, which he practiced throughout his life.

Huffington Post - more here

Nikola Tesla - The Untold Story

2011-10-03T09:05:00.000-07:00

The Rum Diary

2011-09-29T08:02:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Scott

2011-09-23T08:48:00.001-07:00

Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (September 24, 1896 – December 21, 1940) was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the twentieth century's greatest writers. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost Generation" of the 1920s. He finished four novels, This Side of Paradise, The Beautiful and Damned, Tender Is the Night and his most famous, the celebrated classic, The Great Gatsby. A fifth, unfinished novel, The Love of the Last Tycoon was publishedposthumously. Fitzgerald also wrote many short stories that treat themes of youth and promise along with despair and age.

Star Wars™ limited edition Moleskine

2011-09-22T11:20:00.000-07:00

The much-anticipated Star Wars™ limited edition Moleskine notebooks have landed! The classic saga is celebrated in two dramatic designs that commemorate both sides of the force: the Rebel Alliance and the Dark Side. The striking covers have special, metallic text, while the opening pages include quotes and space-scapes. Plus, a free print of the original 1977 movie poster is tucked inside the back pocket.

The Classic Saga has provided fantastic material to commemorate both sides of the Force. The Rebel Alliance and the Dark Side are portrayed in two dramatic designs, with the concept consisting of 4 notebooks: 2 formats (Pocket & Large, both ruled pages) with the Rebel Alliance design, and 2 formats (Pocket & Large, both plain pages) with the Dark Side design. The striking covers have special metallic text, while the opening pages include quotes and space-scapes. Plus, a free full color poster is tucked inside the back pocket.

The Grey

2011-09-22T09:13:00.000-07:00

New novel discovered from 'Mildred Pearce's' James M. Cain

2011-09-20T09:07:00.001-07:00

With HBO's miniseries Mildred Pierce sparking renewed buzz after Sunday's two Emmy wins, Hard Case Crime has announced that they have found a long lost crime novel from Pierce writer James M. Cain.

The Cocktail Waitress, scheduled for release next fall, is about a young woman whose husband suspiciously dies. To make ends meet, she becomes a waitress and meets two men: one who she loves, and one who she marries. Imagine the Kate Winslet potential!"For fans of the genre, The Cocktail Waitress is the Holy Grail. It's like finding a lost manuscript by Hemingway or a lost score by Gershwin – that's how big a deal this is," said Charles Ardai, founder and editor of Hard Case Crime, a line of mystery novels published by Titan books, in a statement.The news comes after Sunday's Emmys, where Winslet won best actress in a miniseries or movie and Guy Pearce was awarded supporting actor in the same category.

An Evening with Ray Bradbury (2001)

2011-09-20T07:12:00.000-07:00

Bleak House: A Conversation with Guillermo del Toro

2011-09-18T10:36:00.000-07:00

Nice Stephen King site

2011-09-16T10:27:00.000-07:00

TALKSTEPHENKING.BLOGSPOT.COM

From Carrie to Wind Through The Keyhole

Steven Spielberg: ‘Stanley Kubrick never really leaves’

2011-09-16T10:23:00.000-07:00

Steven Spielberg, left, and Stanley Kubrick shooting a scene from "A Clockwork Orange" in 1971. (Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images and TCM)

This year marks the 40th anniversary of “A Clockwork Orange,” and while some argue that the dystopian satire has lost a bit of its original shock value, Steven Spielberg says the years have only added to the effect of the ultraviolent Stanley Kubrick masterpiece.“The movie hasn’t worn out its welcome at all,” Spielberg said. “Like all of Kubrick’s films, it’s still a cautionary tale that continues to occur in the world. It was considered a revolutionary film when it came out but not really a prophetic film. But like all of Kubrick’s films it turned out to be more prophetic than is reasonable or comfortable.”

The film was also screened at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year and revisited by Warner Home Video with a lavish Blu-ray anniversary release.Spielberg recently visited London and spent time with Christiane Kubrick, the widow of the filmmaker who died in 1999. Spielberg and Stanley Kubrick were good friends and share a number of connections in their careers.“Stanley is still with all of us … he’s on my mind when I make a movie,” Spielberg said. “Stanley Kubrick never really leaves.”– Geoff BoucherCourtesy The LA Times

PREMIUM RUSH - Official Trailer

2011-09-16T10:09:00.000-07:00

Salinger Letter on Raiders of the Lost Ark

2011-08-26T14:49:00.000-07:00

Letter removed at the request of the J.D. Salinger literary trust.

We Sorry

It appears we were not the only ones...

HOME > PAGE SIX

A ‘Catcher’ not to buy

Last Updated: 12:20 AM, September 7, 2011

J.D. Salinger’s literary trust has threatened legal action against a Washingtonville, NY, memorabilia dealer, Gary Zimet, for posting on his site a 1957 letter he says was written by the reclusive author. The letter, which Zimet’s site, Moments in Time, keeps posted in full even though it was sold to a private collector, details why Salinger never allowed a film version of “Catcher in the Rye” during his lifetime. “Since there’s an ever-looming possibility that I won’t die rich,” the letter reads, “I toy very seriously with leaving the unsold rights to my wife and daughter as a kind of insurance policy. It pleasures me no end though, I might quickly add, to know that I won’t have to see the results of the transaction.” Zimet said the letter has been on his site for a year and two months, and he “was rather shocked to receive” the Salinger trust’s letter. He added that he “won’t remove the letter,” unless forced. “Any publication -- even online -- without express permission by my father and/or the Trust is a direct and clear infringement of my father’s, and now the Trust’s, intellectual property rights,” says a letter obtained by Page Six, written by Matt Salinger. His letter also questions the legality of selling the document in the first place, adding, “We have referred this matter to our [intellectual property] attorneys.” The letter, meantime, is being shopped by the collector for $125,000.

Long Live the Book

2011-08-23T10:03:00.000-07:00

American Horror Story

2011-08-22T08:08:00.000-07:00

James Patterson Tops Forbes’ Highest Paid Authors List

2011-08-17T10:34:00.000-07:00

This week Forbes published their annual list of the highest paid writers. Novelist James Patterson leads the pack with $84 million–a $14 million increase from last year.

Here’s more from the article: “The jump comes courtesy of a 17-book, $150 million deal Patterson signed with his publisher, Hachette Book Group, in 2009. The peerlessly prolific Patterson, who works with a team of co-authors to boost his output, published 10 of those books during this period. All told, including his backlist, he had an astonishing 20 titles on PW’s year-end lists of bestsellers, comprising more than 10 million copies.”

Like Patterson, Stephenie Meyer and John Grisham write both children’s and adult books; they both made the cut raking in $21 million and $18 million respectively. The authors on the list who write exclusively for children include Rick Riordan, Jeff Kinney, Suzanne Collins and J.K. Rowling. The list included three members of the Kindle Million Club. Below, you can check out the top five authors.
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Writer's Houses': Where Stories Live

2011-08-11T16:48:00.000-07:00

The Robert Frost Stone House, South Shaftsbury, Vermont

On the subject of Writers’ Houses, that dark genius Robert Frost would have understood the paradox I find myself inhabiting: that I hate them in general, but soften to something like affection in the face of particular places. Frost enjoyed mocking his own, and others’, ambivalences, especially when personal feeling interfered with principle. Whether or not he also would have enjoyed hearing my footsteps in his old parlor and study is another matter; I would guess not.

Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site, Philadelphia, PA

A Skeptic’s Guide to Writers’ Houses by Anne Trubek came out last year. Trubek, a professor of English at Oberlin College, writes well about the mixed feelings attending her visits to, among many other places, Walt Whitman’s shabby Camden, New Jersey home, Emerson’s house in Concord and the homes of Paul Dunbar (LaGrange, Ohio) and Jack London (Glen Ellen, California). I especially liked her chapter on Poe’s many residences. “It is, of course, common to consider authors’ houses haunted, and Poe’s houses most of all. But if the Philadelphia house is haunted, it is with an unlikely and thus charming contentedness.”

Since, like me, alas, Trubek is caught between exasperation and fascination, the book as a whole is somewhat incoherent. If one wants a more useful and straightforward guide to writer’s houses all over the world, I recommend the website writershouses.com, run by A.N. Devers.

Clive Barker: The Painter, the Creature, and the Father of Lies

2011-08-10T10:52:00.000-07:00

The Painter, the Creature, and the Father of Lies (2011)
A collection by Clive Barker
Edited by Phil and Sarah Stokes

Foreword by Clive Barker
Introduction by Phil and Sarah Stokes

Cover and interior art by Clive Barker

From the man who has brought you twenty books of dark fiction and fantasy, unforgettable horror movies such HELLRAISER and CANDYMAN, and countless paintings and illustrations, this is the first-ever collection of Clive Barker’s nonfiction. Representing more than 25 years of writing, THE PAINTER, THE CREATURE, AND THE FATHER OF LIES contains:

All the introductions he’s written for his own works (prefaces in fiction and non-fiction books, liner notes on CDs/laserdiscs/DVDs, introductions in graphic novel adaptations, text of theatre playbills, and more);
All the forewords and afterwords he’s written on other people’s works (books, graphic novels, etc.); and
Essays and articles written for magazines on the horror genre and other topics.

These have never been collected together and many are nearly impossible to track down. Furthermore, from Barker’s personal archives: a couple of unpublished pieces, including an unused self-penned introduction to Volume 1 of the BOOKS OF BLOOD from 1983 written from the point of view of a demon interviewing Clive Barker.

Rod Serling talks about Writing

2011-08-09T19:13:00.000-07:00

BOB AND THE MONSTER

2011-08-08T11:04:00.000-07:00

THE DARKEST HOUR - Trailer

2011-08-04T11:10:00.000-07:00

Spielberg Curriculum

2011-08-02T07:52:00.000-07:00

I would venture to say that, for many aspiring filmmakers, the chance to work with three-time Oscar winner Steven Spielberg would be considered the opportunity of a lifetime. But, aside from the “right place, right time” phenomenon that so often proves vital for many emerging industry players, what if there was another way to ensure that you catch the eye of one of the greatest filmmakers of all time? Like maybe, oh I don’t know, a list of required viewing that would allow the two of you to have more in common than how much both of you love his movies. While unconfirmed, a list known as the “Spielberg Curriculum” is currently making its way about the interwebs, claiming to be just the prerequisite you were looking for. Hit the jump to see how much work you have ahead of you.

If you thought you were going to impress the guy who brought the world Jaws and Saving Private Ryan because you majored in film theory and have a keen appreciation for Eisenstein’s montage theory, think again. Purportedly, the “Spielberg Curriculum” lists 206 movies that you need to have seen before the director is even going to consider taking you seriously.

Again, this is an unconfirmed list at best. I might even go so far as to guess that only a small percentage of people who actually have worked with Spielberg have viewed all 206 films. At the very least, though, it’s fun to peruse the curriculum and see how many of these undeniably important flicks you have seen.

Click here to check out the list in Google document form and let us know in the comments how you stack up. Thanks to Scott Myers’ Go Into the Story blog (via JoBlo) for passing this along and Collider for this piece.

Herman Melville‘s Moby Dick

2011-08-01T19:30:00.000-07:00

Today Encore will launch a three-hour adaptation of Herman Melville‘s Moby Dick, airing in time for the author’s 192nd birthday. Follow this link to download a free eBook copy of the classic novel.

The production stars William Hurt as Captain Ahab, Gillian Anderson as his wife and Ethan Hawke as Starbuck. Mike Barker directed and Nigel Williams wrote the script.

Here’s more about the miniseries: Moby Dick is set in Nantucket, 1850. Captain Ahab, a veteran whale hunter who lost his leg to Moby Dick, wants revenge. Twisted by bitterness, he’ll put the entire crew of the Pequod in extreme danger to hunt down the great white whale. And he’ll stop at nothing to kill his nemesis.”

Melville first published his novel in 1851. Legend has it that Moby Dick was inspired by a real life wife sperm whale called Mocha Dick.

CBS Sunday Morning Fountain Pen SuperShow

2011-07-31T12:23:00.000-07:00

Debut novel by former warehouseman wins place on Man Booker longlist

2011-07-26T13:12:00.000-07:00

Alan Hollinghurst is favourite to win the Man Booker prize, but Stephen Kalman has been nominated for his first novel. Photograph: Elisabetta Villa/Getty Images.

The debut novel by Stephen Kelman chronicling gang warfare in Peckham – which had languished on a literary agency's slush pile – has joined books by a former Man Booker winner, Alan Hollinghurst, and the novelist many people mistakenly think must have won, Julian Barnes, on this year's longlist for the prize.

Kelman, who was a warehouseman, care worker and local government administrator before taking up writing in 2005, was longlisted for Pigeon English, one of the more eye-catching titles in a line up that includes four first-time novelists.

The book follows the story of an immigrant Ghanaian family and draws heavily on the murder of 10-year-old Damilola Taylor in Peckham. Kelman has said he also used his own experiences growing up on a multicultural housing estate in Luton where poverty, violence and crime were commonplace.

Its inclusion will give hope to all would-be writers. It eventually became the subject of a bidding war between 12 publishers when it was picked up – shrewdly as it turns out – by Bloomsbury for a "high six-figure sum".
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Elmore Leonard: Ten rules for writing fiction

2011-07-25T13:24:00.000-07:00

1 Never open a book with weather. If it's only to create atmosphere, and not a character's reaction to the weather, you don't want to go on too long. The reader is apt to leaf ahead looking for people. There are exceptions. If you happen to be Barry Lopez, who has more ways than an Eskimo to describe ice and snow in his book Arctic Dreams, you can do all the weather reporting you want.

2 Avoid prologues: they can be annoying, especially a prologue following an introduction that comes after a foreword. But these are ordinarily found in non-fiction. A prologue in a novel is backstory, and you can drop it in anywhere you want. There is a prologue in John Steinbeck's Sweet Thursday, but it's OK because a character in the book makes the point of what my rules are all about. He says: "I like a lot of talk in a book and I don't like to have nobody tell me what the guy that's talking looks like. I want to figure out what he looks like from the way he talks."

3 Never use a verb other than "said" to carry dialogue. The line of dialogue belongs to the character; the verb is the writer sticking his nose in. But "said" is far less intrusive than "grumbled", "gasped", "cautioned", "lied". I once noticed Mary McCarthy ending a line of dialogue with "she asseverated" and had to stop reading and go to the dictionary.

4 Never use an adverb to modify the verb "said" . . . he admonished gravely. To use an adverb this way (or almost any way) is a mortal sin. The writer is now exposing himself in earnest, using a word that distracts and can interrupt the rhythm of the exchange. I have a character in one of my books tell how she used to write historical romances "full of rape and adverbs".

5 Keep your exclamation points under control. You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose. If you have the knack of playing with exclaimers the way Tom Wolfe does, you can throw them in by the handful.

6 Never use the words "suddenly" or "all hell broke loose". This rule doesn't require an explanation. I have noticed that writers who use "suddenly" tend to exercise less control in the application of exclamation points.

7 Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly. Once you start spelling words in dialogue phonetically and loading the page with apostrophes, you won't be able to stop. Notice the way Annie Proulx captures the flavour of Wyoming voices in her book of short stories Close Range.

8 Avoid detailed descriptions of characters, which Steinbeck covered. In Ernest Hemingway's "Hills Like White Elephants", what do the "American and the girl with him" look like? "She had taken off her hat and put it on the table." That's the only reference to a physical description in the story.

9 Don't go into great detail describing places and things, unless you're Margaret Atwood and can paint scenes with language. You don't want descriptions that bring the action, the flow of the story, to a standstill.

10 Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip. Think of what you skip reading a novel: thick paragraphs of prose you can see have too many words in them.

My most important rule is one that sums up the 10: if it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.

12 Timeless Writing Tips from Mark Twain

2011-07-24T18:24:00.000-07:00

When you’re first learning to write as a student, it can seem overwhelming that there are so many things you need to know and so few things with which you have any real experience. Who better to guide you through your growing pains when it comes to learning how to write than one of the literary greats, Mark Twain? Here, you’ll find 12 tips he offered other writers in his lifetime that still hold true today.

"Substitute "damn" every time you’re inclined to write "very." Your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be." Here, Twain offers some advice that can help writers young and old learn to express themselves more clearly. By eliminating unnecessary words, you’ll make your writing more precise and ultimately more effective, even if today we don’t find damn as objectionable as they did in Twain’s time.
"Write without pay until somebody offers to pay." If you’re going to be a writer, your reason for wanting to be a writer should always be because you love it. If you’re in it for the money you might wind up sorely disappointed.
"The time to begin writing an article is when you have finished it to your satisfaction. By that time you begin to clearly and logically perceive what it is that you really want to say." As a writer, you won’t have too many times in your life when the first draft of your story will be the one you ultimately end up going with. As Twain suggests here, the first draft is merely a chance to get your ideas on paper, after which you can really begin crafting a clear, well-organized and intelligent story.
"Anybody can have ideas–the difficulty is to express them without squandering a quire of paper on an idea that ought to be reduced to one glittering paragraph." Why say something in a page that you can say in a sentence? Economy of words is still considered a value in writing today, and was a value that Twain often espoused. If you can’t yet limit yourself to a few words, work at it. The best writers can say a whole lot with very little.
"It was by accident that I found out that a book is pretty sure to get tired along about the middle and refuse to go on with its work until its powers and its interest should have been refreshed by a rest and its depleted stock of raw materials reinforced by lapse of time." As in many creative fields, writers are subject to bouts of writer’s block and burnout. The cure? Twain offers it here: a break. Sometimes taking a break from a project, for a few hours or a few months, will let you return to it with more ideas and a fresh perspective. Twain often left books for years at a time only to return to them later, or sometimes, never again.
"Great books are weighed and measured by their style and matter, and not the trimmings and shadings of their grammar." While an understanding of grammar is surely an important asset to have as a writer, good grammar doesn’t make a good story. Focus more on your ideas, style and story, and hammer out the details of grammar later.
"As to the Adjective: when in doubt, strike it out." Twain felt there was no virtue in overly flowery, descriptive prose. While everyone has a unique style, using more adjectives than necessary likely won’t improve the quality of the story. Quality over quantity should always be the rule when it comes to writing.
"I notice that you use plain, simple language, short words and brief sentences. That is the way to write English–it is the modern way and the best way. Stick to it; don’t let fluff and flowers and verbosity creep in." While not everyone believes this is the best style, and many writers have had successful careers with fluff and flowers, in general, being clear, concise and to the point in your writing is the best route. If your writing becomes too superfluous or showy, you may bore readers and distract from the point of your story.
"Don’t say the old lady screamed. Bring her on and let her scream." Here, Twain is asking writers to do something fairly straightforward but sometimes difficult to accomplish. You don’t need to tell your story as though you were not there, it will distance your readers. Instead, describe a scene as if it were happening right in front of you. It will make your writing far more interesting.
"I don’t give a damn for a man that can only spell a word one way." While Twain might have seemed the type to shy away from such indulgences as creative spellings, here he encourages writers to play with language. After all, many words in the English language came from writers like Shakespeare who simply made them up. Grammar and spelling are fine, but don’t be afraid to have a little fun with the language as well.
"The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug." While this might be a bit of an extreme example, choosing the right words for what you mean in a piece of writing is essential. One word might be a synonym for another, but it doesn’t mean the two have exactly the same meaning or connotation. Spend some time working on your language to make sure each word is just right for where you’ve placed it.
"The more you explain it, the more I don’t understand it." Here, again, Twain presses for writers to be more clear, concise and brief when writing. You could write pages and pages on something and have it be more obtuse than one, simple, clearly written paragraph. If you’re struggling, start with the long version and figure out just what you can omit or change without changing the point.

Hitchcock interview from 1964

2011-07-24T18:21:00.000-07:00

The best 100 opening lines from books

2011-07-24T18:17:00.000-07:00

Literature's finest first words

There's nothing quite like a book that has you gripped from the very first line. As the first thing the reader reads, it's been said that the opening line sells a book whislt the closing line sells the author's next one.
With this in mind, we've raided the Stylist book shelf to put together our 100 best - and, in some cases, the most iconic - first lines from some of our favourite works of literature. From classics such as Little Women and Emma and landmark novels such as Virgina Woolf's A Room Of One's Own through to modern day works including Harry Potter and Atonement, these are lines to capture the imagination.
Click to launch the gallery

Cirque du Soleil's machine running at full steam

2011-07-24T18:00:00.000-07:00

Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" turns 30

2011-07-24T17:58:00.000-07:00

"I was starving before I hit Journey," Cain remembers. "Very, very rough times...I didn't know where the next pay check was gonna come. I sold stereos. I quit the business. I was so lost, you know? And I was borrowing money from my father, who wouldn't let me come back to Chicago. He said, 'You stay there. Something good is gonna happen. Don't stop believing.' And he would always say that to me. 'Don't stop believing, Jon.'"

Armed with his father's advice and the seeds of a song, Cain sat down with guitarist Neal Schon and then-lead-singer Steve Perry. Within an afternoon, Cain's catchy chorus was transformed into a rock'n'roll classic.

The House that Mickey (Walt) Built

2011-07-24T16:51:00.000-07:00

Hey, Mouseketeers--guess what just hit the market?

That's right: Disney's land. Located on a one-acre lot in the Los Feliz hills, the historic four bedroom, five bath French Normandy-style home was built by Walt Disney in 1932, and features painted ceilings, vaulted beamed ceilings, original stained leaded glass, billiards room, sleeping porch, swimming pool, and not surprisingly, a projection/screening room.

A virtual tour can be found here, and we also turned up a 1940 Better Homes & Gardens article about the home on a Danish blog called A. Film L.A. How much cheddar to own the house that Mickey built? It's listed at $3.65 million.

· 4053 WOKING Way [Redfin]
· Walt Disney LA Home [Official site]
· The Home and Garden of Walt Disney [A. Film L.A.]

Dream House (2011) Official HD Trailer

2011-07-22T08:56:00.000-07:00

"The Dark Tower" has gone dark

2011-07-21T18:43:00.000-07:00

Universal's ambitious adaptation of Stephen King's fantasy series has been canceled, TheWrap has confirmed.

The first film was slated to begin production this summer, but shooting was delayed last spring with the studio announcing that it needed to make the project more cost-effective.

That temporary delay became permanent this week, and now deprives Universal of a film series that it had hoped would become a linchpin for its film slate for years to come.

The studio declined to comment.

All told, the project was supposed to involve three movies and a television series. The filmmaking team will now have to find a different studio to back "The Dark Tower" if it wants to move forward with the films.

The scope of the production and King's bona fides attracted big talent.

Ron Howard was expected to direct and produce the first movie; Akiva Goldsman was lined up to produce and write and Brian Grazer was also on board as a producer. Javier Bardem was supposed to star.

Read more HERE