“More stars than there are in heaven” was once the slogan for Hollywood’s largest studio. Larger than life celebrities like Judy Garland, Clark Gable, Fred Astaire, Katharine Hepburn, Jean Harlow and Gene Kelly were common fixtures at MGM. Today, MGM is an IP outpost purchased by Amazon for $8.5 billion in 2022, but in its day, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer had the biggest lot in Hollywood and produced some of the most extravagant films. Located in Culver City, MGM’s famously sprawling lot began as it grew from the 40 acres owned by Samuel Goldwyn. The legendary MGM property was three miles long and housed more than 45 buildings and 14 stages, in addition to numerous outdoor sets that would be built over the years.
MGM was home to countless classic films, and in 1939 alone, the studio backed the timeless fantasy The Wizard of Oz, distributed the Oscar-winning Gone with the Wind, the Ernst Lubitsch/Greta Garbo comedy,...
MGM was home to countless classic films, and in 1939 alone, the studio backed the timeless fantasy The Wizard of Oz, distributed the Oscar-winning Gone with the Wind, the Ernst Lubitsch/Greta Garbo comedy,...
- 4/29/2024
- by Chris Yogerst
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In Hamilton McFadden's 1934 film "Stand Up and Cheer!," the unnamed off-screen president (actually Franklin D. Roosevelt) posits that the real reason for Great Depression was a sudden crisis of optimism. Additionally, wicked bankers were running amok and getting rich while the rest of the nation starved, leaving everyone nihilistic and horrified. The wasteful and corrupt Warren Harding administration followed by the Crash of '29 isn't mentioned, as McFadden's film sought to cheer people up, not make their depression — and the Depression — any worse. In "Stand Up and Cheer!," Fdr created a Department of Amusement and appoints a secretary (Warner Baxter) to oversee a feel-good, nationwide show to keep morale up.
The bulk of the 80-minute film is a series of auditions in the secretary's office wherein performers come in to sing and dance, effectively turning the movie into a revue. Modern audiences may bristle at some racist caricatures, notably actress...
The bulk of the 80-minute film is a series of auditions in the secretary's office wherein performers come in to sing and dance, effectively turning the movie into a revue. Modern audiences may bristle at some racist caricatures, notably actress...
- 4/17/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
It had all the elements of a good action movie – jeopardy, revenge, a mega budget – with even some casualties thrown in (albeit corporate).
The Bob Iger vs Nelson Peltz (who?) war is over now and Iger has won. But some filmmakers and ticket buyers might wonder: Did any of it matter? Would a modest change on the Disney board of directors have had any impact on the future of entertainment? (Peltz himself runs a hedge fund called Trian Partners and has no background in entertainment.)
To be sure, it’s been a good show, albeit a throwback to an era when Hollywood was run by Big Personalities, not monoliths like Amazon or Apple. The battles of that era were ego wars, not proxy wars — Redstone vs Diller or Murdoch vs Ted Turner, with bewildered stars and their reps huddled in the middle.
But now Iger has won – again. The onetime...
The Bob Iger vs Nelson Peltz (who?) war is over now and Iger has won. But some filmmakers and ticket buyers might wonder: Did any of it matter? Would a modest change on the Disney board of directors have had any impact on the future of entertainment? (Peltz himself runs a hedge fund called Trian Partners and has no background in entertainment.)
To be sure, it’s been a good show, albeit a throwback to an era when Hollywood was run by Big Personalities, not monoliths like Amazon or Apple. The battles of that era were ego wars, not proxy wars — Redstone vs Diller or Murdoch vs Ted Turner, with bewildered stars and their reps huddled in the middle.
But now Iger has won – again. The onetime...
- 4/4/2024
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
On Sunday night, for the 96th time, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will hand out Academy Award statuettes, which many have referred to since the early 1930s, and the Academy itself has described since 1939, as “Oscars.”
The Academy has long asserted that these shiny gold figurines — which are now the world’s most iconic prizes, even more recognizable than the Nobel or Pulitzer variety — depict a knight standing erect and holding, right hand over left, a crusader’s sword (in order to defend the film industry), which pierces beneath him a reel of film with five spokes (representing the original branches of the organization, producers, actors, directors, writers and technicians).
The nickname “Oscar,” meanwhile, has been variously attributed, without convincing evidence, to the Academy’s early executive director Margaret Herrick (who supposedly said it reminded her of an uncle named Oscar), actress Bette Davis (who claimed it...
The Academy has long asserted that these shiny gold figurines — which are now the world’s most iconic prizes, even more recognizable than the Nobel or Pulitzer variety — depict a knight standing erect and holding, right hand over left, a crusader’s sword (in order to defend the film industry), which pierces beneath him a reel of film with five spokes (representing the original branches of the organization, producers, actors, directors, writers and technicians).
The nickname “Oscar,” meanwhile, has been variously attributed, without convincing evidence, to the Academy’s early executive director Margaret Herrick (who supposedly said it reminded her of an uncle named Oscar), actress Bette Davis (who claimed it...
- 3/10/2024
- by Scott Feinberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
“That movie was the President’s idea, not mine, but it was a demand, not a suggestion.”
The speaker was Jack Warner in a 1947 foreshadowing of his Donald Trumpian style. I recalled his remarks this week as I drove onto the Warner Bros lot, the fabled arena where Warner long reigned.
In his heyday, Warner was a Trump pre-clone in terms of temperament and rhetoric – a man who boasted about his mental acuity yet, to Hollywood’s power players, seemed occasionally unhinged.
I was visiting Warner Bros this week to spend some time with David Zaslav, a figure who, in temperament and politics, is the mirror opposite of Warner but whose empire is nonetheless a product of Warner’s erratic vision. Some believe that Zaslav’s studio – Hollywood in general – might still glean some insight from its founder’s idiosyncrasies.
A career maverick, Warner promoted gangster movies like Public Enemy...
The speaker was Jack Warner in a 1947 foreshadowing of his Donald Trumpian style. I recalled his remarks this week as I drove onto the Warner Bros lot, the fabled arena where Warner long reigned.
In his heyday, Warner was a Trump pre-clone in terms of temperament and rhetoric – a man who boasted about his mental acuity yet, to Hollywood’s power players, seemed occasionally unhinged.
I was visiting Warner Bros this week to spend some time with David Zaslav, a figure who, in temperament and politics, is the mirror opposite of Warner but whose empire is nonetheless a product of Warner’s erratic vision. Some believe that Zaslav’s studio – Hollywood in general – might still glean some insight from its founder’s idiosyncrasies.
A career maverick, Warner promoted gangster movies like Public Enemy...
- 3/7/2024
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
Charles D. King made history tonight, becoming the first Black producer to accept the PGA Milestone Award. Watch his acceptance speech below.
It’s an award that’s bestowed to producers or production teams that have made historic contributions to the entertainment industry. The Producers Guild’s 2023 recipients were Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy. Other past honorees include Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy, Clint Eastwood, James Cameron and more.
When the Macro founder and boss said that when he first got the news of the honor, “I was a little shocked and surprised. I was without words. I was filled with tremendous gratitude.
“I stand on the shoulders of all the incredible producers, executives, my parents and our ancestors who kicked down doors, made sacrifices and blazed a trail for me to...
It’s an award that’s bestowed to producers or production teams that have made historic contributions to the entertainment industry. The Producers Guild’s 2023 recipients were Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy. Other past honorees include Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy, Clint Eastwood, James Cameron and more.
When the Macro founder and boss said that when he first got the news of the honor, “I was a little shocked and surprised. I was without words. I was filled with tremendous gratitude.
“I stand on the shoulders of all the incredible producers, executives, my parents and our ancestors who kicked down doors, made sacrifices and blazed a trail for me to...
- 2/26/2024
- by Anthony D'Alessandro and Fred Topel
- Deadline Film + TV
As a teenager, Barbra Streisand dreamt of being an actress while sitting on her bed in Brooklyn with a pint of coffee ice cream and a movie magazine. During those days, after school she would make a break for New York’s Astor Theatre, which showed black-and-white international movies. Another time, she ducked into a showing of Guys and Dolls at the Loew’s Kings Theatre in her neighborhood.
“Everything was so beautiful up on that screen,” Streisand said in opening her acceptance speech upon receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award during Saturday’s Screen Actors Guild Awards in Los Angeles. “That make-believe world was much more pleasant than anything I was experiencing. I didn’t like reality. I wanted to be in the movies, even though I knew I didn’t look like the other women on the screen. My mother said, ‘you better learn to type,’ but I didn’t listen.
“Everything was so beautiful up on that screen,” Streisand said in opening her acceptance speech upon receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award during Saturday’s Screen Actors Guild Awards in Los Angeles. “That make-believe world was much more pleasant than anything I was experiencing. I didn’t like reality. I wanted to be in the movies, even though I knew I didn’t look like the other women on the screen. My mother said, ‘you better learn to type,’ but I didn’t listen.
- 2/25/2024
- by Chris Gardner
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In a meditative and heartfelt speech, Barbra Streisand accepted the SAG Life Achievement Award on Saturday by paying tribute to the industry’s roots and extolling her abiding passion for the craft.
“For a couple of hours people could sit in a theater and escape their own troubles – what an idea! Moving pictures on a screen,” she said in remarks that followed a nearly 1-minute standing ovation as she took the stage.
“I can’t help but think back to the people who built this industry. Ironically, they were also escaping their own troubles,” she continued, in a contemplative but forceful tone. Samuel Goldwyn, Louis B. Mayer and the four Warner Brothers “were all fleeing the prejudice they faced in Easter Europe, simply because of their religion. And they were dreamers, too, like all of us here tonight.
“For a couple of hours people could sit in a theater and escape their own troubles – what an idea! Moving pictures on a screen,” she said in remarks that followed a nearly 1-minute standing ovation as she took the stage.
“I can’t help but think back to the people who built this industry. Ironically, they were also escaping their own troubles,” she continued, in a contemplative but forceful tone. Samuel Goldwyn, Louis B. Mayer and the four Warner Brothers “were all fleeing the prejudice they faced in Easter Europe, simply because of their religion. And they were dreamers, too, like all of us here tonight.
- 2/25/2024
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
“It Happened One Night,” which premiered at Radio City Music Hall on Feb. 22, 1934, helped usher in the screwball romantic comedy, changed the careers of stars Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert, director Frank Capra and screenwriter Robert Riskin and transformed the Poverty Row Columbia Pictures into a major player. And let’s not forget, “It Happened One Night” also made Oscar history winning five major Oscars: picture, director, adapted screenplay and both actor and actress. It would be 41 years before “One Flew of the Cuckoo’s Nest” would accomplish the same feat at the Academy Awards.
Based on the short story “Night Bus,” the smart, endearing road movie focuses on spoiled rotten Ellie Andrews (Colbert) who has gone against her wealthy father’s (Walter Connelly) wishes by marrying the gold-digging King Westley (Jameson Thomas). Before their wedding night, her father whisked her away to his yacht in Florida. She manages to...
Based on the short story “Night Bus,” the smart, endearing road movie focuses on spoiled rotten Ellie Andrews (Colbert) who has gone against her wealthy father’s (Walter Connelly) wishes by marrying the gold-digging King Westley (Jameson Thomas). Before their wedding night, her father whisked her away to his yacht in Florida. She manages to...
- 2/20/2024
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
As Hollywood neared the midpoint of the 1980s, the industry had abandoned the risk-taking ethos of the 1970s and unabashedly embraced formula filmmaking. Stars still mattered, but the pitch was king. Studio executives keen on becoming their generation's Jack Warner, Daryl Zanuck and Louis B. Mayer were through humoring unpredictable auteurs like Martin Scorsese and Hal Ashby. They wanted can't-miss high-concept projects powered by high-wattage stars that could play for months on end in theaters because, despite the skyrocketing value of home video and pay cable channels, theatrical was still king.
"Beverly Hills Cop" traversed a rocky path from inception to production, but producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer doggedly developed and re-developed the project until they paired a 23-year-old comedy superstar with a once-hot director who'd two years prior gotten himself fired off "WarGames." The particulars of the fish-out-of-water plot shifted many times over the years (it was nearly...
"Beverly Hills Cop" traversed a rocky path from inception to production, but producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer doggedly developed and re-developed the project until they paired a 23-year-old comedy superstar with a once-hot director who'd two years prior gotten himself fired off "WarGames." The particulars of the fish-out-of-water plot shifted many times over the years (it was nearly...
- 1/30/2024
- by Jeremy Smith
- Slash Film
If Hollywood truly suffers from a leadership malaise, as some charge, would the return of Monroe Stahr resuscitate the system? Filmmakers respect his judgment, stars his panache and investors his discipline, so Stahr’s return may ignite a new Irving Thalberg-like era.
Whoops — he’s not available.
The manic and manipulative hero of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Last Tycoon ruled MGM in its ‘30s heyday, but Stahr’s fictional reign was short-lived. So was Fitzgerald’s brilliant but never completed 1939 novel, which modeled Stahr after Thalberg.
Having achieved literary stardom with The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald’s decision to write a Hollywood novel, while simultaneously working as a script doctor, plunged the novelist into alcoholic paralysis. He never managed to finish his book and even his screenplays were unrealized.
The Last Tycoon briefly flickered back to life as a movie thanks to the great Elia Kazan, who cast Robert De Niro,...
Whoops — he’s not available.
The manic and manipulative hero of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Last Tycoon ruled MGM in its ‘30s heyday, but Stahr’s fictional reign was short-lived. So was Fitzgerald’s brilliant but never completed 1939 novel, which modeled Stahr after Thalberg.
Having achieved literary stardom with The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald’s decision to write a Hollywood novel, while simultaneously working as a script doctor, plunged the novelist into alcoholic paralysis. He never managed to finish his book and even his screenplays were unrealized.
The Last Tycoon briefly flickered back to life as a movie thanks to the great Elia Kazan, who cast Robert De Niro,...
- 1/4/2024
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
Nine decades ago this December, moviegoers were witnessing the beginning of one of the most successful movie teams, as well as the demise of one of the most dramatic.
Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers made box office magic during the Depression-era 1930s in nine Art Deco musical comedy delights from Rko including 1934’s “The Gay Divorcee” and 1936’s “Swing Time.” Their chemistry was unmatched, and they literally made beautiful musical together introducing countless standards including the Oscar-winning “The Continental” and “The Way You Look Tonight.” And their dancing was robust, romantic and heavenly-just check out the “Never Gonna Dance” routine from “Swing Time.”
It was 90 years ago this week, their first pairing “Flying Down to Rio” opened at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City. One of the big surprises is that the duo aren’t the stars of the lightweight pre-Code musicals: Dolores Del Rio, Gene Raymond...
Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers made box office magic during the Depression-era 1930s in nine Art Deco musical comedy delights from Rko including 1934’s “The Gay Divorcee” and 1936’s “Swing Time.” Their chemistry was unmatched, and they literally made beautiful musical together introducing countless standards including the Oscar-winning “The Continental” and “The Way You Look Tonight.” And their dancing was robust, romantic and heavenly-just check out the “Never Gonna Dance” routine from “Swing Time.”
It was 90 years ago this week, their first pairing “Flying Down to Rio” opened at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City. One of the big surprises is that the duo aren’t the stars of the lightweight pre-Code musicals: Dolores Del Rio, Gene Raymond...
- 12/28/2023
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
As My So-Called Life nears its 30th anniversary, Executive Producer Ed Zwick took a walk down memory lane Saturday to remind folks about working on the before-its-time drama that starred Claire Danes.
In a long X thread, Zwick shared an “origin story” about how he was first drawn to the work of Winnie Holzman before he would end up co-EPing her script with longtime producing partner Marshall Herskovitz. Zwick chronicles his work on My So-Called Life, as well as thirtysomething, The Last Samurai and Glory in his upcoming book “Hits, Flops and Other Illusions,” out in February.
“Kristy McNichol played ‘Buddy,’ an adolescent girl on ABC-tv’s Family,” Zwick began. “I’d write surly teenage dialogue and get network notes on my scripts with the initials N.O.B. meaning “not our Buddy.” I vowed someday I’d get to portray real adolescence.”
“Marshall wrote a provocative pilot for Showtime called “Secret Seventeen” about unruly,...
In a long X thread, Zwick shared an “origin story” about how he was first drawn to the work of Winnie Holzman before he would end up co-EPing her script with longtime producing partner Marshall Herskovitz. Zwick chronicles his work on My So-Called Life, as well as thirtysomething, The Last Samurai and Glory in his upcoming book “Hits, Flops and Other Illusions,” out in February.
“Kristy McNichol played ‘Buddy,’ an adolescent girl on ABC-tv’s Family,” Zwick began. “I’d write surly teenage dialogue and get network notes on my scripts with the initials N.O.B. meaning “not our Buddy.” I vowed someday I’d get to portray real adolescence.”
“Marshall wrote a provocative pilot for Showtime called “Secret Seventeen” about unruly,...
- 12/23/2023
- by Lynette Rice
- Deadline Film + TV
The Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced that their 2024 Milestone Award would go to Charles D. King, founder and CEO of MacRo, for his contributions to the film industry. The “They Cloned Tyrone” producer will accept the award at the 35th annual Producers Guild Awards on Sunday, February 25.
Past recipients of the Milestone Award, meant to recognize producers or production teams that have made historic contributions to the entertainment industry, include 2023 recipients Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy, the current co-CEOs of Warner Bros., as well as Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, Clint Eastwood, James Cameron, George Lucas, and Kathleen Kennedy, and Brian Grazer and Ron Howard. Its legacy goes far enough back to also include Hollywood legends Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney, and Alfred Hitchcock as past recipients.
“Charles King’s achievements in our industry are undeniable whether as an agent representing important voices or as the...
Past recipients of the Milestone Award, meant to recognize producers or production teams that have made historic contributions to the entertainment industry, include 2023 recipients Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy, the current co-CEOs of Warner Bros., as well as Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, Clint Eastwood, James Cameron, George Lucas, and Kathleen Kennedy, and Brian Grazer and Ron Howard. Its legacy goes far enough back to also include Hollywood legends Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney, and Alfred Hitchcock as past recipients.
“Charles King’s achievements in our industry are undeniable whether as an agent representing important voices or as the...
- 12/19/2023
- by Marcus Jones
- Indiewire
Annette Bening, who recently starred in Netflix’s biopic “Nyad,” will receive a special Golden Medallion tribute award from the Telluride Film Festival on Jan. 6, 2024. Meg Ryan will present the award to her at Netflix’s Tudum Theater in Los Angeles. The event will also feature a conversation focused on her career trajectory, which Bening’s “Nyad” co-star Jodie Foster will moderate.
Due to the actors strike, Bening was unable to accept the honor at the Telluride Film Festival in September, marking the first time Telluride has presented an honor outside of the dates of the festival. Previous Golden Medallion recipients include Cate Blanchett, Anthony Hopkins and Kate Winslet.
Bening was recently nominated for a Golden Globe for portraying Diana Nyad. She has also received Oscar nominations for “The Grifters,” “American Beauty,” “Being Julia” and “The Kids Are All Right.”
Charles D. King to Receive Milestone Award at 2024 Producers Guild...
Due to the actors strike, Bening was unable to accept the honor at the Telluride Film Festival in September, marking the first time Telluride has presented an honor outside of the dates of the festival. Previous Golden Medallion recipients include Cate Blanchett, Anthony Hopkins and Kate Winslet.
Bening was recently nominated for a Golden Globe for portraying Diana Nyad. She has also received Oscar nominations for “The Grifters,” “American Beauty,” “Being Julia” and “The Kids Are All Right.”
Charles D. King to Receive Milestone Award at 2024 Producers Guild...
- 12/19/2023
- by Jazz Tangcay, Valerie Wu, Jaden Thompson and Caroline Brew
- Variety Film + TV
The Producers Guild of America announced today that Charles D. King will be honored with the 2024 Milestone Award, citing “his immeasurable contribution to the film industry.” King will accept the award at the 35th Annual Producers Guild Awards on Sunday, February 25.
The Milestone Award recognizes producers or production teams that have made historic contributions to the entertainment industry. The 2023 recipients were Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy. Other past honorees include Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy, Clint Eastwood, James Cameron and more.
Related: 2023-24 Awards Season Calendar – Dates For Oscars, Emmys, Grammys, Tonys, Guilds & More
King is the Founder & CEO of Macro, a multiplatform media company representing the voices and perspectives of Black people, indigenous people, and people of color. The company’s business verticals include film (Macro Film Studios) and television studios (Macro Television Studios) that finance,...
The Milestone Award recognizes producers or production teams that have made historic contributions to the entertainment industry. The 2023 recipients were Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy. Other past honorees include Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy, Clint Eastwood, James Cameron and more.
Related: 2023-24 Awards Season Calendar – Dates For Oscars, Emmys, Grammys, Tonys, Guilds & More
King is the Founder & CEO of Macro, a multiplatform media company representing the voices and perspectives of Black people, indigenous people, and people of color. The company’s business verticals include film (Macro Film Studios) and television studios (Macro Television Studios) that finance,...
- 12/19/2023
- by Tom Tapp
- Deadline Film + TV
The Producers Guild of America will honor film producer Charles D. King with the Milestone Award at the 2024 PGA Awards.
King will accept the accolade, which is the PGA’s most prestigious honor, at the 35th annual awards show on Feb. 25.
The award recognizes producers or production teams that have made historic contributions to the entertainment industry. Early recipients of the Milestone Award include Hollywood legends Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as contemporary innovators Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy, Clint Eastwood, Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, and James Cameron. The PGA most recently honored Warner Bros. Picture Group co-chairs and CEOs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy with the award in 2023.
King is the founder and CEO of MacRo, a multiplatform media company representing the voices and perspectives of Black people, indigenous people, and people of color. The company...
King will accept the accolade, which is the PGA’s most prestigious honor, at the 35th annual awards show on Feb. 25.
The award recognizes producers or production teams that have made historic contributions to the entertainment industry. Early recipients of the Milestone Award include Hollywood legends Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as contemporary innovators Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy, Clint Eastwood, Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, and James Cameron. The PGA most recently honored Warner Bros. Picture Group co-chairs and CEOs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy with the award in 2023.
King is the founder and CEO of MacRo, a multiplatform media company representing the voices and perspectives of Black people, indigenous people, and people of color. The company...
- 12/19/2023
- by Tyler Coates
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Sony Pictures Entertainment is marking Columbia Pictures’ 100th anniversary with a new centennial logo inspired by the historic “Lady With the Torch” iconography.
Ahead of Columbia’s anniversary celebration on Jan. 10, 2024, the new logo has an enhanced glow to the torch to symbolize the vibrancy of the Hollywood studio’s history, Sony said in a statement.
“There is one thing that separates a major studio from all other content producers: history. At Columbia, that history is reflected in the countless cultural talismans created by thousands of people over now 100 years. All of us at Columbia are proud of that legacy and honored to celebrate it,” Tom Rothman, chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures’ Motion Picture Group, said in a statement on Tuesday.
The studio behind classic Hollywood movies like It Happened One Night, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and You Can’t Take it With You was founded by brothers...
Ahead of Columbia’s anniversary celebration on Jan. 10, 2024, the new logo has an enhanced glow to the torch to symbolize the vibrancy of the Hollywood studio’s history, Sony said in a statement.
“There is one thing that separates a major studio from all other content producers: history. At Columbia, that history is reflected in the countless cultural talismans created by thousands of people over now 100 years. All of us at Columbia are proud of that legacy and honored to celebrate it,” Tom Rothman, chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures’ Motion Picture Group, said in a statement on Tuesday.
The studio behind classic Hollywood movies like It Happened One Night, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and You Can’t Take it With You was founded by brothers...
- 11/14/2023
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Szmuel Gelbfisz. Lazar Meir. Hirsz Mojżesz Wonsal. Or as you know their instantly recognizable Americanized surnames as ones of the ment who built Hollywood: Samuel Goldwyn. Louis B. Mayer. Harry Warner. Hollywood was created by Jews who strove to fit into a non-Jewish-shaped box. Jews who wanted to un-Jew. Frankly, who could blame them? The United States was not overly friendly to Jews and un-Jewing was what you needed to do to get by. The trouble is that Hollywood is still stuck in their shadows and it’s a dangerous pattern to keep repeating.
The history of the Hollywood studios easily explains how we started down this road. The fantasy of the American Dream was upheld by Jews who held onto America for survival. The idealized world, the mythos that became “Hollywood,” was literally invented by people whose upbringing was defined by America — and what the “American Dream” had to...
The history of the Hollywood studios easily explains how we started down this road. The fantasy of the American Dream was upheld by Jews who held onto America for survival. The idealized world, the mythos that became “Hollywood,” was literally invented by people whose upbringing was defined by America — and what the “American Dream” had to...
- 10/18/2023
- by Archie Gottesman
- Variety Film + TV
In the early 1940s, a young Lena Horne began an engagement at an intimate L.A. club called Little Troc, where her silken voice — with her perfect enunciation and her sophisticated interpretation of the lyrics — dazzled the likes of Marlene Dietrich, Cole Porter, Lana Turner and Greta Garbo. Among the many eyes that observed her during her run were those of the astute, sensitive Roger Edens, who was an integral member of the Freed Unit at MGM Studios. Led by innovative producer Arthur Freed, the unit consisted of musical artists who created many of MGM’s great musicals from the golden age: It had recently produced Babes in Arms (1939) and would strike gold with An American in Paris (1951), Singin’ in the Rain (1952) and Gigi (1958).
Within the Freed Unit, Edens stood out as a highly respected composer, arranger and associate producer who eventually won three Academy Awards. After seeing Lena perform,...
Within the Freed Unit, Edens stood out as a highly respected composer, arranger and associate producer who eventually won three Academy Awards. After seeing Lena perform,...
- 10/12/2023
- by Donald Bogle
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
After years in development, actress Gal Gadot ("Wonder Woman") will star in the 8-episode TV series "Hedy Lamarr" chronicling Lamarr's life and movie career, set during World War II, for streaming on AppleTV+:
"...after a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial film 'Ecstasy' (1933)...
"...Lamarr fled from her husband, a wealthy Austrian ammunition manufacturer, and secretly moved to Paris.
"Traveling to London, she met Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio head Louis B. Mayer, who offered her a movie contract in Hollywood, where she became a film star from the late 1930's to the 1950's.
"Among Lamarr's best known films are 'Algiers' (1938), 'Boom Town' (1940), 'I Take This Woman' (1940), 'Comrade X' (1940), 'Come Live With Me' (1941), 'H.M. Pulham, Esq.' (1941) and 'Samson and Delilah' (1949).
"At the beginning of World War II, she and composer George Antheil developed a radio guidance system for Allied torpedoes.
"...after a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial film 'Ecstasy' (1933)...
"...Lamarr fled from her husband, a wealthy Austrian ammunition manufacturer, and secretly moved to Paris.
"Traveling to London, she met Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio head Louis B. Mayer, who offered her a movie contract in Hollywood, where she became a film star from the late 1930's to the 1950's.
"Among Lamarr's best known films are 'Algiers' (1938), 'Boom Town' (1940), 'I Take This Woman' (1940), 'Comrade X' (1940), 'Come Live With Me' (1941), 'H.M. Pulham, Esq.' (1941) and 'Samson and Delilah' (1949).
"At the beginning of World War II, she and composer George Antheil developed a radio guidance system for Allied torpedoes.
- 9/16/2023
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
Will the Hollywood studio become extinct?
One hundred years ago, Louis B. Mayer unfurled his grand idea to mobilize “all the stars in heaven” for his filmmaking adventure. His dream factory, once prolific, now seems adrift amid the economic debris of streamerville and linear TV.
The studio system still has its advocates, one of whom, Francis Coppola, attempted to re-invent the studio on three occasions. He’s still trying.
His intriguing, if bizarre adventure, is told in a gripping new book by Sam Wasson titled Path to Paradise, vividly chronicling how the director leveraged his two great movies into an assembly line of cinema.
Well, almost. Coppola’s effort to orchestrate the genius of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now into an enduring filmmaking enterprise was defeated by two realities: The eccentricity of his management style and the frailty of his infrastructure.
Zoetrope was to be owned and run by creatives...
One hundred years ago, Louis B. Mayer unfurled his grand idea to mobilize “all the stars in heaven” for his filmmaking adventure. His dream factory, once prolific, now seems adrift amid the economic debris of streamerville and linear TV.
The studio system still has its advocates, one of whom, Francis Coppola, attempted to re-invent the studio on three occasions. He’s still trying.
His intriguing, if bizarre adventure, is told in a gripping new book by Sam Wasson titled Path to Paradise, vividly chronicling how the director leveraged his two great movies into an assembly line of cinema.
Well, almost. Coppola’s effort to orchestrate the genius of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now into an enduring filmmaking enterprise was defeated by two realities: The eccentricity of his management style and the frailty of his infrastructure.
Zoetrope was to be owned and run by creatives...
- 9/14/2023
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
Swedish-born Greta Garbo became a star with a string of hit films throughout the 1920s and 1930s before disappearing from screens in 1941 at the age of 36. Though she appeared in only a handful of titles, enough have remained classics to give her a special place in history. Let’s take a look back at 10 of her greatest films, ranked worst to best.
Born in 1905, Garbo got her start in the silent era, acting in her native Sweden before coming to Hollywood at the behest of MGM studio chief Louis B. Mayer. She soon became a popular presence on the silver screen as a romantic leading lady. Her performance in “Flesh and the Devil” (1926) as a seductress who tears two friends apart proved she was a woman to die for.
Since English was not her first language, Mayer was rightfully nervous that the emergence of sound would destroy one of his biggest stars.
Born in 1905, Garbo got her start in the silent era, acting in her native Sweden before coming to Hollywood at the behest of MGM studio chief Louis B. Mayer. She soon became a popular presence on the silver screen as a romantic leading lady. Her performance in “Flesh and the Devil” (1926) as a seductress who tears two friends apart proved she was a woman to die for.
Since English was not her first language, Mayer was rightfully nervous that the emergence of sound would destroy one of his biggest stars.
- 9/14/2023
- by Zach Laws and Chris Beachum
- Gold Derby
Actress Gal Gadot continues developing "Hedy Lamarr" for a Showtime limited series, chronicling the 1940's film star's life and career, including her brilliant inventions that led to the development of 'WiFi' and 'Gps':
"...after a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial film 'Ecstasy' (1933)...
"...Lamarr fled from her husband, a wealthy Austrian ammunition manufacturer, and secretly moved to Paris.
"Traveling to London, she met Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio head Louis B. Mayer, who offered her a movie contract in Hollywood, where she became a film star from the late 1930's to the 1950's.
"Among Lamarr's best known films are 'Algiers' (1938), 'Boom Town' (1940), 'I Take This Woman' (1940), 'Comrade X' (1940), 'Come Live With Me' (1941), 'H.M. Pulham, Esq.' (1941) and 'Samson and Delilah' (1949).
"At the beginning of World War II, she and composer George Antheil developed a radio guidance system for Allied torpedoes.
"...after a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial film 'Ecstasy' (1933)...
"...Lamarr fled from her husband, a wealthy Austrian ammunition manufacturer, and secretly moved to Paris.
"Traveling to London, she met Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio head Louis B. Mayer, who offered her a movie contract in Hollywood, where she became a film star from the late 1930's to the 1950's.
"Among Lamarr's best known films are 'Algiers' (1938), 'Boom Town' (1940), 'I Take This Woman' (1940), 'Comrade X' (1940), 'Come Live With Me' (1941), 'H.M. Pulham, Esq.' (1941) and 'Samson and Delilah' (1949).
"At the beginning of World War II, she and composer George Antheil developed a radio guidance system for Allied torpedoes.
- 8/24/2023
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
“How did I become Tom Joad? I used to write for a living.”
Tom Joad was the hapless farmer in The Grapes of Wrath who fled the Dust Bowl to find a better life in California. The man who cited him this week is a successful screenwriter who’s been walking the picket line and asked that I not use his name.
While the cast of pickets might not mirror John Steinbeck’s characters in his great novel, still “the rhetoric of this strike has taken on a ‘rich against the poor’ obsession,” in the words of one studio CEO.
The bargaining jargon once focused on residuals, but now it’s about “land barons” and “tone-deaf greedy bosses” (the words of SAG-AFTRA’s Fran Drescher). Little wonder polling shows only 7% of the public siding with the “bosses.” The “class warfare” has passed the 100-day mark, with L.A. city workers joining in Tuesday.
Tom Joad was the hapless farmer in The Grapes of Wrath who fled the Dust Bowl to find a better life in California. The man who cited him this week is a successful screenwriter who’s been walking the picket line and asked that I not use his name.
While the cast of pickets might not mirror John Steinbeck’s characters in his great novel, still “the rhetoric of this strike has taken on a ‘rich against the poor’ obsession,” in the words of one studio CEO.
The bargaining jargon once focused on residuals, but now it’s about “land barons” and “tone-deaf greedy bosses” (the words of SAG-AFTRA’s Fran Drescher). Little wonder polling shows only 7% of the public siding with the “bosses.” The “class warfare” has passed the 100-day mark, with L.A. city workers joining in Tuesday.
- 8/10/2023
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
Christopher Nolan’s acclaimed “Oppenheimer,” which revolves around J. Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist considered the father of the atomic bomb, is one of the most highly anticipated films of the summer. Actually of the year. Over the decades there have been several films dealing with the Manhattan Project that culminated with the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki thus ending World War II on Sept. 2, 1945.
Soon after the global conflict ended MGM, Paramount and Twentieth Century Fox were rushing to be the first studio to greenlight a movie dealing with the birth of the atomic bomb that ushered in the Cold War. MGM quickly put a project in motion hiring Robert Considine to write a story . The studio was circling the likes of its “A’ stars Spencer Tracy, Clark Gable and Van Johnson. Meanwhile over at Paramount, producer Hal Wallis was preparing a $1.5 million atomic bomb film called “Top Secret.
Soon after the global conflict ended MGM, Paramount and Twentieth Century Fox were rushing to be the first studio to greenlight a movie dealing with the birth of the atomic bomb that ushered in the Cold War. MGM quickly put a project in motion hiring Robert Considine to write a story . The studio was circling the likes of its “A’ stars Spencer Tracy, Clark Gable and Van Johnson. Meanwhile over at Paramount, producer Hal Wallis was preparing a $1.5 million atomic bomb film called “Top Secret.
- 7/21/2023
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
Here’s looking at Warner Bros. which is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Earlier this year, Turner Classic Movies, which is a member of the Warner Bros. Discovery family, celebrated the centennial with a monthlong tribute to the studio that gave the world such landmark films as 1927’s “The Jazz Singer,” the first feature with synchronized recorded singing and some dialogue; the ultimate gangster flick 1931’s “Public Enemy,: the glorious 1938 swashbuckler “The Adventures of Robin Hood”; and the beloved 1942 “Casablanca.
And during its Golden Age, its roster of stars included such legends as Rin-Tin-Tin, John Barrymore, Edward G. Robinson, James Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, Bette Davis, Kay Francis, Joan Blondell, Ruby Keeler, Dick Powell, Paul Muni, John Garfield and Sydney Greenstreet.
Max is currently streaming the four-part documentary series “100 Years of Warner Bros.” (the first two episodes premiered at Cannes). And also arriving this week is the lavish coffee table book “Warner Bros.
And during its Golden Age, its roster of stars included such legends as Rin-Tin-Tin, John Barrymore, Edward G. Robinson, James Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, Bette Davis, Kay Francis, Joan Blondell, Ruby Keeler, Dick Powell, Paul Muni, John Garfield and Sydney Greenstreet.
Max is currently streaming the four-part documentary series “100 Years of Warner Bros.” (the first two episodes premiered at Cannes). And also arriving this week is the lavish coffee table book “Warner Bros.
- 5/30/2023
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
This is a dark moment for frazzled members of the writing fraternity.
Picketers in Hollywood and New York fear a prolonged standoff gripping film and TV. Also troubling, their colleagues in digital media are patching together their résumés as Vice Media and BuzzFeed prepare for crash landings. Will others follow?
Even a digital zealot like Ben Smith sees the moment as “a humbling experience.” His new book, titled Traffic, vividly revisits the picaresque adventures of the “muckrakers, dweebs and wing nuts” who set out to revolutionize legacy journalism. Some became at once rich and unemployed.
The New York Times liked Smith’s book, even though he quit that paper to start yet another digital adventure called Semafor — its fate still to be determined.
Here’s the irony: While Smith and his social media colleagues are making lots of noise for their next adventures, their colleagues in film and TV are frozen in silence.
Picketers in Hollywood and New York fear a prolonged standoff gripping film and TV. Also troubling, their colleagues in digital media are patching together their résumés as Vice Media and BuzzFeed prepare for crash landings. Will others follow?
Even a digital zealot like Ben Smith sees the moment as “a humbling experience.” His new book, titled Traffic, vividly revisits the picaresque adventures of the “muckrakers, dweebs and wing nuts” who set out to revolutionize legacy journalism. Some became at once rich and unemployed.
The New York Times liked Smith’s book, even though he quit that paper to start yet another digital adventure called Semafor — its fate still to be determined.
Here’s the irony: While Smith and his social media colleagues are making lots of noise for their next adventures, their colleagues in film and TV are frozen in silence.
- 5/4/2023
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
You are reading an exclusive WrapPRO article for free. Want to level up your entertainment career? Subscribe to WrapPRO now.
If you look at the coverage around the current Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike, or the one that took place in 2007-2008, it tends to revolve around television. With TV taking less time to produce more content, a strike of any significant length of time will affect that medium well before the big-budget world of film, where the average length of pre-production can range anywhere from six months to a year.
As the writer John Gregory Dunne once wrote in his essay “Hollywood: Opening Moves,” “From the earliest days of the motion picture industry … the screenwriter has been regarded at best as an anomalous necessity, at worst a curse to be born.” Though audiences starting in Hollywood’s earliest days came to know the names of some prominent screenwriters,...
If you look at the coverage around the current Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike, or the one that took place in 2007-2008, it tends to revolve around television. With TV taking less time to produce more content, a strike of any significant length of time will affect that medium well before the big-budget world of film, where the average length of pre-production can range anywhere from six months to a year.
As the writer John Gregory Dunne once wrote in his essay “Hollywood: Opening Moves,” “From the earliest days of the motion picture industry … the screenwriter has been regarded at best as an anomalous necessity, at worst a curse to be born.” Though audiences starting in Hollywood’s earliest days came to know the names of some prominent screenwriters,...
- 5/3/2023
- by Kristen Lopez
- The Wrap
Character actor Michael Lerner, known for his Oscar-nominated role in Joel and Ethan Coen's "Barton Fink," has died at the age of 81. Lerner passed away on Saturday, April 8, 2023. His nephew, "The Goldbergs" star Sam Lerner, confirmed the news in an Instagram post the following day (via Variety).
Michael Lerner was born in Brooklyn, New York, on June 22, 1941. In the 1960s, he appeared on sitcoms like "The Brady Bunch" and "The Doris Day Show" and studied at San Francisco's American Conservatory Theatre before landing his first film role in "Alex in Wonderland" in 1970. In the decade that followed, Lerner would continue juggling movies, TV shows, and TV movies, making a number of guest appearances on shows like "Ironside," "The Bob Newhart Show," "M*A*S*H," "The Odd Couple," "Starsky and Hutch," "The Rockford Files," "Kojak," and "Wonder Woman."
In the 1980s, Lerner costarred in "The Postman Always Rings Twice...
Michael Lerner was born in Brooklyn, New York, on June 22, 1941. In the 1960s, he appeared on sitcoms like "The Brady Bunch" and "The Doris Day Show" and studied at San Francisco's American Conservatory Theatre before landing his first film role in "Alex in Wonderland" in 1970. In the decade that followed, Lerner would continue juggling movies, TV shows, and TV movies, making a number of guest appearances on shows like "Ironside," "The Bob Newhart Show," "M*A*S*H," "The Odd Couple," "Starsky and Hutch," "The Rockford Files," "Kojak," and "Wonder Woman."
In the 1980s, Lerner costarred in "The Postman Always Rings Twice...
- 4/10/2023
- by Joshua Meyer
- Slash Film
Michael Lerner, the busy Oscar-nominated character actor who had memorable turns as bombastic types in Barton Fink, Harlem Nights, Eight Men Out and so much more, has died. He was 81.
Lerner died Saturday night, according to an Instagram post from his nephew, Sam Lerner, who is also an actor (ABC’s The Goldbergs). The cause of death was not immediately known.
“It’s hard to put into words how brilliant my uncle Michael was, and how influential he was to me,” Sam wrote. “His stories always inspired me and made me fall in love with acting. He was the coolest, most confident, talented guy, and the fact that he was my blood will always make me feel special. Everyone that knows him knows how insane he was — in the best way.”
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Sam Lerner (@samlerner)
Raised in a Brooklyn housing project as...
Lerner died Saturday night, according to an Instagram post from his nephew, Sam Lerner, who is also an actor (ABC’s The Goldbergs). The cause of death was not immediately known.
“It’s hard to put into words how brilliant my uncle Michael was, and how influential he was to me,” Sam wrote. “His stories always inspired me and made me fall in love with acting. He was the coolest, most confident, talented guy, and the fact that he was my blood will always make me feel special. Everyone that knows him knows how insane he was — in the best way.”
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Sam Lerner (@samlerner)
Raised in a Brooklyn housing project as...
- 4/9/2023
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Money may very well equal power, but so does information — especially the dirty kind. Hollywood understands this. From The Sweet Smell of Success to L.A. Confidential, the movies are laden with bullying blackmailers and influence-peddlers using muscle and corruption to scrub the tainted and gain an upper hand. The dynamic, of course, is quite real, and the gripping new two-part documentary Sin Eater: The Crimes of Anthony Pellicano provides a fine if troubling look at how it works in contemporary showbiz.
The latest production from FX’s The New York Times Presents series,...
The latest production from FX’s The New York Times Presents series,...
- 3/10/2023
- by Chris Vognar
- Rollingstone.com
Millions of moviegoers think the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has one purpose: To hand out Oscars. Members know that’s not true and veteran AMPAS exec Bruce Davis reveals that awards were initially a low priority for the organization, in his new book “The Academy and the Award: The Coming of Age of Oscar and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences” (Brandeis University Press) about the early decades of the group.
Davis also makes clear that the group, formed in 1927 as movies were undergoing seismic shifts, made decisions that forever changed the way we watch movies — but that had nothing to do with Oscar.
The org was the brainchild of MGM exec Louis B. Mayer, whose goal was “to stymie the formation of craft unions,” Davis writes.
So for several years the Acad became an arbiter of labor disputes, which nearly led to its downfall.
But even before that,...
Davis also makes clear that the group, formed in 1927 as movies were undergoing seismic shifts, made decisions that forever changed the way we watch movies — but that had nothing to do with Oscar.
The org was the brainchild of MGM exec Louis B. Mayer, whose goal was “to stymie the formation of craft unions,” Davis writes.
So for several years the Acad became an arbiter of labor disputes, which nearly led to its downfall.
But even before that,...
- 3/5/2023
- by Tim Gray
- Variety Film + TV
While most kids were going through elementary school, Shirley Temple was becoming the biggest movie star in America. Her talents as a performer and prepubescent charisma delighted audiences of all ages. And Fox leveraged Temple’s image to cultivate a brand around the actor in a way that was rare for the time.
Temple made a lot of money for the people around her. But she didn’t get to keep most of it. Her parents took control of the majority of her earnings. And their mismanagement of Temple’s funds resulted in the loss of millions of dollars.
Shirley Temple was an icon of 1930s cinema
Temple was only three when she made her first steps into the entertainment industry. Her parents Gertrude and George took her to classes at Meglin’s Dance School in Los Angeles. Temple’s performances in the class caught the attention of Charles Lamont,...
Temple made a lot of money for the people around her. But she didn’t get to keep most of it. Her parents took control of the majority of her earnings. And their mismanagement of Temple’s funds resulted in the loss of millions of dollars.
Shirley Temple was an icon of 1930s cinema
Temple was only three when she made her first steps into the entertainment industry. Her parents Gertrude and George took her to classes at Meglin’s Dance School in Los Angeles. Temple’s performances in the class caught the attention of Charles Lamont,...
- 3/1/2023
- by Garrett Burke
- Showbiz Cheat Sheet
Recommended New Books on Filmmaking: Bong Joon Ho, Avatar: The Way of Water, Alfred Hitchcock & More
Spring is on the horizon (yay!) but we’re still deep into winter (grr). And that means time for reading. Our latest roundup of noteworthy new books connected to the world of cinema features a typically diverse lineup: Bong Joon Ho, the art of James Cameron’s latest, screwball comedies, Alfred Hitchcock, and––’tis the season––Oscar history.
Bong Joon Ho: Dissident Cinema by Karen Han (Abrams)
In recent years Little White Lies and Abrams have released wonderfully comprehensive, immaculately designed books about Joel and Ethan Coen, Paul Thomas Anderson, David Fincher, and most recently Sofia Coppola. The latest subject, Bong Joon Ho, could not be more deserving of this treatment. Dissident Cinema is written by the ever-astute Karen Han, who shares Bong’s life story while diving into each entry of his filmography. Yes, there is much to be said about Parasite, The Host, Mother, Snowpiercer, Okja, and Memories of Murder.
Bong Joon Ho: Dissident Cinema by Karen Han (Abrams)
In recent years Little White Lies and Abrams have released wonderfully comprehensive, immaculately designed books about Joel and Ethan Coen, Paul Thomas Anderson, David Fincher, and most recently Sofia Coppola. The latest subject, Bong Joon Ho, could not be more deserving of this treatment. Dissident Cinema is written by the ever-astute Karen Han, who shares Bong’s life story while diving into each entry of his filmography. Yes, there is much to be said about Parasite, The Host, Mother, Snowpiercer, Okja, and Memories of Murder.
- 2/15/2023
- by Christopher Schobert
- The Film Stage
Oscar is 95 this year, meaning he’s been around longer than most of us. And many people assume the look of the award, his nickname and the structure of the annual voting … just kinda happened.
However, Bruce Davis details the thought and innovations behind these things in his authoritative new book, “The Academy and the Award: The Coming of Age of Oscar and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences” (Brandeis University Press).
Davis, who was AMPAS’ executive director for 20 years, dispels a lot of Oscar lore. No, neither Bette Davis nor the Academy’s Margaret Herrick came up with the nickname Oscar. No, Mexican actor Emilio Fernandez was not the model. Cedric Gibbons didn’t sketch out the design on the tablecloth at the Biltmore.
Davis also points out, “Contrary to widespread opinion, the Academy’s knight is neither naked nor bald.” Oscar is wearing a thong-like strap and has close-cropped hair.
However, Bruce Davis details the thought and innovations behind these things in his authoritative new book, “The Academy and the Award: The Coming of Age of Oscar and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences” (Brandeis University Press).
Davis, who was AMPAS’ executive director for 20 years, dispels a lot of Oscar lore. No, neither Bette Davis nor the Academy’s Margaret Herrick came up with the nickname Oscar. No, Mexican actor Emilio Fernandez was not the model. Cedric Gibbons didn’t sketch out the design on the tablecloth at the Biltmore.
Davis also points out, “Contrary to widespread opinion, the Academy’s knight is neither naked nor bald.” Oscar is wearing a thong-like strap and has close-cropped hair.
- 2/11/2023
- by Tim Gray
- Variety Film + TV
Robert Donat snagged an Oscar for this sentimental crowdpleaser, a Best Picture nominee in Hollywood’s ‘Golden Year’ of 1939. The genteel chemistry between Donat’s shy schoolteacher and the charming personality Greer Garson broke hearts, and made Ms. Garson one of MGM’s top names for the next decade. It’s one of the studio’s English productions, filmed in the shadow of the coming war. A glowing new digital restoration redeems 70 years of not-so-good TV prints.
Goodbye, Mr. Chips
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1939 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 115 min. / Street Date January 24, 2023 / Available at Amazon.com/ 21.99
Starring: Robert Donat, Greer Garson, Terry Kilburn, John Mills, Paul Henreid, Judith Furse.
Cinematography: Freddie Young
Art Director: Alfred Junge
Film Editor: Charles Frend
Original Music: Richard Addinsell
Written by R.C. Sherriff, Claudine West, Eric Maschwitz from the novel by James Hilton
Produced by Victor Saville
Directed by Sam Wood
No, it’s not about the terrible Chips Ahoy!
Goodbye, Mr. Chips
Blu-ray
Warner Archive Collection
1939 / B&w / 1:37 Academy / 115 min. / Street Date January 24, 2023 / Available at Amazon.com/ 21.99
Starring: Robert Donat, Greer Garson, Terry Kilburn, John Mills, Paul Henreid, Judith Furse.
Cinematography: Freddie Young
Art Director: Alfred Junge
Film Editor: Charles Frend
Original Music: Richard Addinsell
Written by R.C. Sherriff, Claudine West, Eric Maschwitz from the novel by James Hilton
Produced by Victor Saville
Directed by Sam Wood
No, it’s not about the terrible Chips Ahoy!
- 2/11/2023
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
The Academy Awards aren't just a ceremony where movie stars and filmmakers get little gold statues that honor their work. Over the vast 94-year history of the Oscars, the Academy Awards have taken on a rarefied air. They're a huge annual event that celebrates an industry that gives people entertainment, inspiration, and hope. Those statues that say things like "Best Picture" have become Hollywood's most coveted items, and symbols of greatness within a powerful, influential art form.
Not only that, but the Academy Awards drive so much of the conversation about cinema, with Oscar buzz dominating publications and periodicals for the last several months of each year, and the first several months of the next year. By the time the ceremony finally takes place and the Oscars are handed out, film festivals like Sundance have already got the buzz rolling for the next year's Academy Awards, and the process starts all over again.
Not only that, but the Academy Awards drive so much of the conversation about cinema, with Oscar buzz dominating publications and periodicals for the last several months of each year, and the first several months of the next year. By the time the ceremony finally takes place and the Oscars are handed out, film festivals like Sundance have already got the buzz rolling for the next year's Academy Awards, and the process starts all over again.
- 1/24/2023
- by William Bibbiani
- Slash Film
It seems kind of absurd to think about, but back in the late 1930s beloved starlet Katherine Hepburn was considered "box office poison." Yes, arguably the preeminent actress of her generation was dismissed by her industry after starring in a string of box office failures, which these days are considered classics. Back then, audiences were seemingly unimpressed with Hepburn's run at Rko, which ended with 1938's "Bringing Up Baby" — a Howard Hawks-helmed screwball effort that lost around 300,000 on its initial release.
Later that year, Hepburn's name showed up in a now-infamous trade magazine ad in which President of the Independent Theatre Owners Association, Harry Brandt, claimed that her and other actresses' "box office draw is nil." The term "box office poison" became synonymous with Hepburn, who a month later would show up in George Cukor's "Holiday," which failed to overcome the financial struggles that had dogged Hepburn's movies in recent years.
Later that year, Hepburn's name showed up in a now-infamous trade magazine ad in which President of the Independent Theatre Owners Association, Harry Brandt, claimed that her and other actresses' "box office draw is nil." The term "box office poison" became synonymous with Hepburn, who a month later would show up in George Cukor's "Holiday," which failed to overcome the financial struggles that had dogged Hepburn's movies in recent years.
- 1/22/2023
- by Joe Roberts
- Slash Film
Actress Gal Gadot continues developing the Showtime limited TV series "Hedy Lamarr" chronicling actress/inventor Lamarr's life and career, during World War II:
"...after a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial film 'Ecstasy' (1933)...
"...Lamarr fled from her husband, a wealthy Austrian ammunition manufacturer, and secretly moved to Paris.
"Traveling to London, she met Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio head Louis B. Mayer, who offered her a movie contract in Hollywood, where she became a film star from the late 1930's to the 1950's.
"Among Lamarr's best known films are 'Algiers' (1938), 'Boom Town' (1940), 'I Take This Woman' (1940)…”
…’Comrade X' (1940), 'Come Live With Me' (1941), 'H.M. Pulham, Esq.' (1941) and 'Samson and Delilah' (1949).
"At the beginning of World War II, she and composer George Antheil developed a radio guidance system for Allied torpedoes...”
Click the images to enlarge...
"...after a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial film 'Ecstasy' (1933)...
"...Lamarr fled from her husband, a wealthy Austrian ammunition manufacturer, and secretly moved to Paris.
"Traveling to London, she met Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio head Louis B. Mayer, who offered her a movie contract in Hollywood, where she became a film star from the late 1930's to the 1950's.
"Among Lamarr's best known films are 'Algiers' (1938), 'Boom Town' (1940), 'I Take This Woman' (1940)…”
…’Comrade X' (1940), 'Come Live With Me' (1941), 'H.M. Pulham, Esq.' (1941) and 'Samson and Delilah' (1949).
"At the beginning of World War II, she and composer George Antheil developed a radio guidance system for Allied torpedoes...”
Click the images to enlarge...
- 12/13/2022
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
Here’s something we’re not allowed to say about Ye/Kanye West’s recent series of antisemitic tirades: there’s a small grain of truth in them.
No, obviously not the conspiracy theories, Holocaust denial, or downright fascistic claims that people who don’t believe in Christ shouldn’t hold public office. Ye has clearly crossed over into either profound mental illness, or hatred, or both.
But it is true that Hollywood has a lot of Jewish people in it, right?
It should not be controversial to admit this.
No, obviously not the conspiracy theories, Holocaust denial, or downright fascistic claims that people who don’t believe in Christ shouldn’t hold public office. Ye has clearly crossed over into either profound mental illness, or hatred, or both.
But it is true that Hollywood has a lot of Jewish people in it, right?
It should not be controversial to admit this.
- 12/11/2022
- by Jay Michaelson
- Rollingstone.com
When Michael Eisner was making a ceremonial exit as Disney’s CEO in 2005 he acknowledged that the intrigues of succession had become “Shakespearean.” Rival corporate factions were vying for power. Some insiders were persuaded that Eisner never would actually depart.
Eisner himself heightened the drama by “forgetting” to introduce his announced successor, Bob Iger, at key functions. Iger famously stormed out from one of them.
Wall Street, too, was nervous about a transition. Under Eisner’s 20-year reign Disney’s revenues had increased from 1.6 billion to 30 billion and major investors doubted whether Iger or anyone else could successfully govern such a politicized Disney. Veteran employees openly yearned for a return to the peace and focus of old Walt’s tenure.
They still do. Now, with Iger assuming the helm a second time, some Disney denizens see similar Shakespearean subplots re-intruding in the script. Their question: Can anyone, even Iger, actually...
Eisner himself heightened the drama by “forgetting” to introduce his announced successor, Bob Iger, at key functions. Iger famously stormed out from one of them.
Wall Street, too, was nervous about a transition. Under Eisner’s 20-year reign Disney’s revenues had increased from 1.6 billion to 30 billion and major investors doubted whether Iger or anyone else could successfully govern such a politicized Disney. Veteran employees openly yearned for a return to the peace and focus of old Walt’s tenure.
They still do. Now, with Iger assuming the helm a second time, some Disney denizens see similar Shakespearean subplots re-intruding in the script. Their question: Can anyone, even Iger, actually...
- 12/1/2022
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
Ava Gardner is a peculiar actress from the golden age of Hollywood. Her name is familiar, yet if one were to try to answer what she was most known for or what her niche was, the answer would be difficult to come by. Her stunning beauty was arguably the stuff of legends. For the bulk of her career working under Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, her roles specifically focused on that legendary beauty, with the camera emphasizing her striking features to perfection.
As for the quality of her roles, that was another story. It's the kind of story that makes you crinkle your nose, throw up your hands in frustration, and put the book immediately back on the shelf.
To start with, Gardner was a difficult actress to find roles for. Earlier on in her career, she seemed destined to be the seductive siren type, landing back-to-back femme fatale roles in film noirs like "Whistle Stop.
As for the quality of her roles, that was another story. It's the kind of story that makes you crinkle your nose, throw up your hands in frustration, and put the book immediately back on the shelf.
To start with, Gardner was a difficult actress to find roles for. Earlier on in her career, she seemed destined to be the seductive siren type, landing back-to-back femme fatale roles in film noirs like "Whistle Stop.
- 11/27/2022
- by Sarah Musnicky
- Slash Film
Today marks the 75th anniversary of the Waldorf Declaration, which on November 25, 1947, officially launched the Hollywood Blacklist. On that day, the heads of the major studios, with a few notable exceptions, agreed after a contentious two-day conference at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City to ban the Hollywood Ten and to not “knowingly” employ Communists.
And so began one of the darkest chapters in Hollywood’s history.
Related Story Hollywood Blacklist: 75th Anniversary Of The Waldorf Declaration – Photo Gallery Related Story Donald Anthony St. Claire Dies: 'The Amazing Race' Oldest Competitor Was 87 Related Story Irene Cara Remembered By Colleagues, Friends And Fans
Just a few weeks earlier, the Hollywood Ten had denounced and refused to cooperate with the House Un-American Activities Committee and later were sent to federal prison for contempt of Congress.
“We will forthwith discharge or suspend without compensation those in our employ,” the Waldorf Declaration stated,...
And so began one of the darkest chapters in Hollywood’s history.
Related Story Hollywood Blacklist: 75th Anniversary Of The Waldorf Declaration – Photo Gallery Related Story Donald Anthony St. Claire Dies: 'The Amazing Race' Oldest Competitor Was 87 Related Story Irene Cara Remembered By Colleagues, Friends And Fans
Just a few weeks earlier, the Hollywood Ten had denounced and refused to cooperate with the House Un-American Activities Committee and later were sent to federal prison for contempt of Congress.
“We will forthwith discharge or suspend without compensation those in our employ,” the Waldorf Declaration stated,...
- 11/25/2022
- by David Robb
- Deadline Film + TV
After years in development, actress Gal Gadot ("Wonder Woman") will star in the 8-episode TV series "Hedy Lamarr" chronicling Lamarr's life and movie career, set during World War II, for streaming in 2023 on AppleTV+:
"...after a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial film 'Ecstasy' (1933)...
"...Lamarr fled from her husband, a wealthy Austrian ammunition manufacturer, and secretly moved to Paris.
"Traveling to London, she met Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio head Louis B. Mayer, who offered her a movie contract in Hollywood, where she became a film star from the late 1930's to the 1950's.
"Among Lamarr's best known films are 'Algiers' (1938), 'Boom Town' (1940), 'I Take This Woman' (1940), 'Comrade X' (1940), 'Come Live With Me' (1941), 'H.M. Pulham, Esq.' (1941) and 'Samson and Delilah' (1949).
"At the beginning of World War II, she and composer George Antheil developed a radio guidance system for Allied torpedoes...”
Click the images to enlarge...
"...after a brief early film career in Czechoslovakia, including the controversial film 'Ecstasy' (1933)...
"...Lamarr fled from her husband, a wealthy Austrian ammunition manufacturer, and secretly moved to Paris.
"Traveling to London, she met Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio head Louis B. Mayer, who offered her a movie contract in Hollywood, where she became a film star from the late 1930's to the 1950's.
"Among Lamarr's best known films are 'Algiers' (1938), 'Boom Town' (1940), 'I Take This Woman' (1940), 'Comrade X' (1940), 'Come Live With Me' (1941), 'H.M. Pulham, Esq.' (1941) and 'Samson and Delilah' (1949).
"At the beginning of World War II, she and composer George Antheil developed a radio guidance system for Allied torpedoes...”
Click the images to enlarge...
- 11/25/2022
- by Unknown
- SneakPeek
The Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced that the recipients of the 2023 Milestone Award will be Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy, the co-chairs and CEOs of Warner Bros. Pictures Group. The pair will accept the award, which recognizes their historic contributions to the film industry, both as individual producers and as a collaborative executive team, at the 34th annual Producers Guild Awards on Saturday, February 25, 2023, at The Beverly Hilton.
Past Milestone Award winners include 2022 recipients George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy, plus Hollywood legends like Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney, and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as current power players like Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, James Cameron, Ted Sarandos, Donna Langley, and Brian Grazer and Ron Howard.
“Michael and Pam are an incredible team, excelling as both trusted creative producers and successful studio heads,” Producers Guild of America Presidents Stephanie Allain and Donald De Line said in a joint statement. “As individual producers,...
Past Milestone Award winners include 2022 recipients George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy, plus Hollywood legends like Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney, and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as current power players like Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, James Cameron, Ted Sarandos, Donna Langley, and Brian Grazer and Ron Howard.
“Michael and Pam are an incredible team, excelling as both trusted creative producers and successful studio heads,” Producers Guild of America Presidents Stephanie Allain and Donald De Line said in a joint statement. “As individual producers,...
- 11/3/2022
- by Marcus Jones
- Indiewire
Newly crowned Warner Bros Film Group Co-Chairpersons and CEOs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy will receive The Producers Guild of America’s 2023 Milestone Award.
The honor is bestowed on those executives and creatives known for their countless contributions to the film industry, both as individual producers and as a collaborative executive team.
The duo will accept the prize at the 34th Annual Producers Guild Awards on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023 at The Beverly Hilton.
Recent Milestone Award honorees include George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy while previous recipients include Hollywood legends Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney, and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as contemporary innovators Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, Clint Eastwood, Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, James Cameron, Ted Sarandos, Donna Langley, and more.
“Michael and Pam are an incredible team, excelling as both trusted creative producers and successful studio heads,” said Producers Guild of America Presidents Stephanie Allain and Donald De Line...
The honor is bestowed on those executives and creatives known for their countless contributions to the film industry, both as individual producers and as a collaborative executive team.
The duo will accept the prize at the 34th Annual Producers Guild Awards on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023 at The Beverly Hilton.
Recent Milestone Award honorees include George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy while previous recipients include Hollywood legends Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney, and Alfred Hitchcock, as well as contemporary innovators Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, Clint Eastwood, Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, James Cameron, Ted Sarandos, Donna Langley, and more.
“Michael and Pam are an incredible team, excelling as both trusted creative producers and successful studio heads,” said Producers Guild of America Presidents Stephanie Allain and Donald De Line...
- 11/3/2022
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
The Producers Guild of America (PGA) will honor film producers Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy with the Milestone Award at the 2023 PGA Awards.
The duo will accept the accolade, which is the PGA’s most prestigious honor, at the 34th annual awards show on Feb. 25 at The Beverly Hilton.
The Milestone Award recognizes those who made historic contributions to the entertainment industry. Most recently, George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy were honored with the award, and other recipients include Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney, Alfred Hitchcock, Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, Clint Eastwood, Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, James Cameron, Ted Sarandos, Donna Langley and more.
“We are so grateful and humbled by this incredible honor. We want to thank Stephanie, Donald and every member of our precious family of Producers at the PGA, an organization we hold in the highest esteem...
The Producers Guild of America (PGA) will honor film producers Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy with the Milestone Award at the 2023 PGA Awards.
The duo will accept the accolade, which is the PGA’s most prestigious honor, at the 34th annual awards show on Feb. 25 at The Beverly Hilton.
The Milestone Award recognizes those who made historic contributions to the entertainment industry. Most recently, George Lucas and Kathleen Kennedy were honored with the award, and other recipients include Louis B. Mayer, Walt Disney, Alfred Hitchcock, Steven Spielberg, Bob Iger, Sherry Lansing, Clint Eastwood, Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, James Cameron, Ted Sarandos, Donna Langley and more.
“We are so grateful and humbled by this incredible honor. We want to thank Stephanie, Donald and every member of our precious family of Producers at the PGA, an organization we hold in the highest esteem...
- 11/3/2022
- by Beatrice Verhoeven
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
When nice guys turn nasty: ‘The Good Nurse’ could follow in the Oscar footsteps of ‘Night Must Fall’
Oscar-winning Eddie Redmayne (“The Theory of Everything”) has been testing out his darker side of late. The baby-faced 40-year-old British actor has made a name for playing nice, often complex guys. But last year, he turned that persona on its ear in London’s West End playing the smarmy and decadent Emcee in the revival of the musical “Cabaret.” He won the prestigious Olivier Award for his performance.
And now he’s giving a killer of a performance as a serial murderer in Netflix’s fact-based thriller “The Good Nurse.” Redmayne’s hospital nurse Charlie is friendly and sweet with a great bedside manner. But beneath this caring visage lurks a vicious mind who killed at least 400 patients at various hospitals over the years.
Doing a 180 from his usual fare, recalls Robert Montgomery’s shift with 1937’s “Night Must Fall.” Best known these days as the father of Elizabeth Montgomery of “Bewitched” fame,...
And now he’s giving a killer of a performance as a serial murderer in Netflix’s fact-based thriller “The Good Nurse.” Redmayne’s hospital nurse Charlie is friendly and sweet with a great bedside manner. But beneath this caring visage lurks a vicious mind who killed at least 400 patients at various hospitals over the years.
Doing a 180 from his usual fare, recalls Robert Montgomery’s shift with 1937’s “Night Must Fall.” Best known these days as the father of Elizabeth Montgomery of “Bewitched” fame,...
- 11/3/2022
- by Susan King
- Gold Derby
This story about the best film schools in the U.S. first appeared in the College Issue of TheWrap’s awards magazine.
Before diving into this list — TheWrap’s seventh annual film school rankings — keep one critical caveat in mind: The dream campus for one student can turn out to be an academic nightmare for another. It’s all subjective and to some degree a barrel full of apples and oranges. After all, the best schools for learning how to direct aren’t necessarily the best for learning how to write or produce. Just because a college or university has a high number on these pages doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right place for you.
That said, there is something of a science to how we put together these rankings. For starters, TheWrap reached out to every school listed and collected data points on everything from class size...
Before diving into this list — TheWrap’s seventh annual film school rankings — keep one critical caveat in mind: The dream campus for one student can turn out to be an academic nightmare for another. It’s all subjective and to some degree a barrel full of apples and oranges. After all, the best schools for learning how to direct aren’t necessarily the best for learning how to write or produce. Just because a college or university has a high number on these pages doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right place for you.
That said, there is something of a science to how we put together these rankings. For starters, TheWrap reached out to every school listed and collected data points on everything from class size...
- 10/31/2022
- by TheWrap Staff
- The Wrap
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