Salon.com > Derrik J. Lang

“I am Legend” author Richard Matheson dies

Tue, 25 Jun 2013 13:12:00 +0000

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Richard Matheson, the prolific sci-fi and fantasy writer whose “I Am Legend” and “The Shrinking Man” were transformed into films, has died. He was 87.

A spokesman for the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films says Matheson died Sunday in Los Angeles. No other details were provided.

Several of Matheson’s works were adapted into movies, including “Hell House” and “What Dreams May Come.”

Matheson was also responsible for writing several episodes of “The Twilight Zone.” His installments included “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet,” which featured William Shatner as an airplane passenger who spots a creature on the plane’s wing.

Matheson’s sci-fi vampire novel “I Am Legend” inspired three film adaptations: 1964′s “The Last Man on Earth,” 1971′s “Omega Man” and 2007′s “I Am Legend.”

Minaj, Carey leaving “American Idol”

Fri, 31 May 2013 11:33:00 +0000

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nicki Minaj is following Mariah Carey out the door on "American Idol."

The hip-hop diva posted Thursday on Twitter that it was "time to focus on the music," just a few hours after Carey announced she wasn't coming back to the Fox talent competition so that she could focus on her upcoming tour.

Minaj and Carey became new judges on "Idol" this season, along with country singer Keith Urban. Minaj and Carey frequently bickered on the show, creating a feud that was uncomfortable for both viewers and contestants.

Fox and "Idol" producer FremantleMedia said in a statement Thursday that Minaj was "a superstar who brought a level of honesty and passion" to the show and that Carey "will remain an inspiration to 'Idol' hopefuls for many seasons to come."

Randy Jackson, the show's lone remaining original judge, announced earlier this month that he was leaving the show ahead of its 12th season finale, which crowned booming R&B vocalist Candice Glover as the latest "Idol."

Other judges who've departed the "Idol" panel include Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez and Simon Cowell.

“Oz” great and powerful at the box office

Mon, 11 Mar 2013 11:24:00 +0000

LOS ANGELES (AP) — "Oz the Great and the Powerful" clicked with moviegoers.

Disney's 3-D prequel to the classic L. Frank Baum tale "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" debuted in first place and earned $80.3 million at the weekend box office in the U.S. and Canada and $69.9 million overseas, according to studio estimates Sunday.

"Oz" tells the origin of James Franco as the wizard with Mila Kunis, Michelle Williams and Rachel Weisz as the trio of witches he encounters after crashing in the mystical realm of Oz.

The updated take on "Oz," which was directed by original "Spider-Man" trilogy mastermind Sam Raimi, was a gamble that looks like it will pay off for the Walt Disney Co. The film reportedly cost $200 million and opened a week after "Jack the Giant Slayer," another big-budget 3-D extravaganza that reimagines a classic tale, flopped in its opening weekend, debuting with $28 million at the box office.

"Oz" was also golden overseas. The film conjured up $69.9 million from 46 foreign markets, including Russia and the United Kingdom. "Oz" could follow in the footsteps of Disney's "Alice in Wonderland," another costly 3-D film, which opened on the same weekend in 2010 and went on to gross over $1 billion worldwide.

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler to host Golden Globes

Tue, 16 Oct 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are teaming up for the Golden Globes.

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, Dick Clark Productions and NBC announced Monday that the pair of "30 Rock" and "Parks and Recreation" stars have signed on to host the 70th annual Golden Globes ceremony after British comedian Ricky Gervais' three-year reign as the show's acerbic emcee.

"The unparalleled comedic timing of Tina and Amy will surely have viewers wanting to tune-in to see them in action," said Takla-O'Reilly, president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which honors film and TV at the Beverly Hills Hilton ceremony. "The HFPA is thrilled to have the magnetic duo be a part of the show's 70th anniversary!"

The funny lady duo previously starred together in the films "Mean Girls" and "Baby Mama" and on "Saturday Night Live." They co-hosted the NBC sketch comedy series' "Weekend Update" segment from 2004 to 2006.

"Having both Tina Fey and Amy Poehler on board to host this year's festivities is a major coup," said Paul Telegdy, president of alternative and late night programming at NBC. "Tina and Amy have a proven chemistry and comedic timing from their many years together on 'SNL' to their successful co-starring roles in 'Baby Mama.'"

Edward Norton, Snoop Dogg to play “Words with Friends” for charity

Wed, 26 Sep 2012 12:43:00 +0000

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Look out, Alec Baldwin.

Edward Norton, Jonah Hill, Snoop Dogg and several other stars are slated to play in a celebrity tournament of the popular online game "Words With Friends" for charity. The celebs will begin facing off against each other in matches of Zynga's Scrabble-like word-building game on Thursday.

Norton, who is playing for the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Fund, is confident that he will dominate the tournament, which also includes such celebrity players as Eva Longoria, Kristen Bell and John Legend — but not Baldwin — vying for $500,000 in prize money for their charities from American Express.

"I have to give myself time-outs on 'Words With Friends,'" said Norton in a telephone interview Monday. "I've gone through phases where I'm like, 'What am I doing? This is much too much of my day.'"

"Words With Friends" players will be able to join their favorite stars' teams during the "Words With Friends Celebrity Challenge," as well as watch the celebrity matchups online and donate to their charities through Norton's fundraising site, CrowdRise.com.

CBS going forward with ‘Glass House’ lawsuit

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 22:44:25 +0000

LOS ANGELES (AP) — CBS still wants to evict "The Glass House" from the airwaves.

The network amended its filing this week alleging that ABC copied elements of "Big Brother" for its reality TV competition series "The Glass House."

CBS added several "similarities" to its objections now that ABC has aired several episodes of the show.

A federal judge denied CBS' request to block "Glass House" from airing in June.

CBS is arguing "Glass House" violates copyrights and trade secrets. The network says ABC "stole every aspect" of the show's "tangible creative expression."

Both shows employ dozens of cameras to monitor a houseful of contestants vying for a cash prize.

The seventh episode of "Glass House" aired Monday.

The 14th season of "Big Brother" is currently airing three nights a week on CBS.

Aaron Sorkin defends HBO drama ‘The Newsroom’

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 00:53:10 +0000

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — Aaron Sorkin is confronting critics of his HBO drama head on.

The Oscar-winning writer-producer defended "The Newsroom" during a Wednesday gathering of the Television Critics Association and denied reports that he fired his entire writing staff. Sorkin said there were staff changes, but all the writers were not dismissed.

"They're coming to work early. They're being polite to me," he joked. "I want the old gang back."

Sorkin spent most of his 30 minutes in front of TV critics responding to those who lambasted the series starring Jeff Daniels as a cable news anchor for being inauthentic in its portrayal of women and the cable news industry. He said because the first season was written and filmed before it debuted in June, it was impossible to address any concerns.

"I completely get why you do what you do," Jeff Daniels told critics inside the International Ballroom at the Beverly Hills Hilton. "God bless you. You don't do it for me, and you never have. It took me a long time as an actor to stop reading you."

Sorkin announced he was hiring consultants with real-world newsroom experience for the second season.

"I think it can only add to the show," he said.

Colo. massacre casts ugly scar on Batman mythology

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 19:46:00 +0000

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Self-professed Bat-fan and comic-book historian Arlen Schumer is worried. He fears the mass shooting at a midnight screening of "The Dark Knight Rises" in Aurora, Colo., will forever be associated with the legend of Batman.

"After mourning and feeling sympathy for the families, taking a step back as a Batman fan and historian, I'm concerned that this will taint what I consider to be an American treasure of not only popular culture but of mythology," he says. "I don't want it to be the second line of the Wikipedia entry, like Watergate is to Nixon."

The role that Batman fiction might have played in motivating alleged attacker James Holmes in the theater shooting remains unclear nearly a week after the massacre that killed 12 and injured 58. Although investigators reportedly found a Batman mask inside Holmes' booby-trapped apartment, any connection to the storied comic character could be simple coincidence.

Or it could be a chilling aspect of the murderous plot.

Schumer and other Batman devotees caution against drawing premature parallels between the massacre and the ever-evolving history of Batman, a flawed human superhero who has been rooted in reality since his pulpy inception in 1939.

Bristol Palin, The Situation among “Dancing” stars

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 13:25:00 +0000

The mother of "The Brady Bunch," a former NFL quarterback, one of the self-proclaimed "guidos" from "Jersey Shore" and the daughter of Sarah Palin are among the celebrities who will cha-cha-cha on the 11th season of "Dancing with the Stars."

Tom Bergeron and Brooke Burke, hosts of the ABC ballroom competition, announced the cast Monday.

"The Brady Bunch" matriarch Florence Henderson, retired Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner, "Jersey Shore" co-star Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino and Bristol Palin are among the 12 celebrities who will be paired with professional dance partners and train before their prime-time premiere Sept. 20. How does Palin's mother feel about her dancing gig?

"She's excited for me," said Bristol. "She knows that this is going to be hard work, but she's excited."

Also competing for the mirrorball trophy will be: "When a Man Loves a Woman" singer Michael Bolton, comedian-actress Margaret Cho, former Los Angeles Lakers forward Rick Fox, "Dirty Dancing" actress Jennifer Grey, "Baywatch" actor David Hasselhoff, Disney Channel star Kyle Massey, singer-actress Brandy Norwood and "The Hills" co-star Audrina Patridge.

"I'm happy to be here," said Hasselhoff. "My two daughters love this show, and they convinced me."

“Inception” outclasses “Schmucks” at box office

Mon, 02 Aug 2010 12:37:00 +0000

"Inception" is still kicking at the box office.

The mind-bending Warner Bros. thriller starring Leonardo DiCaprio remained the No. 1 movie for the third-straight weekend with $27.5 million, bringing its total to $193.3 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. "Inception" edged out the weekend's new releases: "Dinner for Schmucks," "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore" and "Charlie St. Cloud."

"'Inception' has seeped into the cultural zeitgeist," said Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com. "It's something that everyone is talking about right now. When a movie is able to do that and something just clicks, it becomes a national -- even an international -- discussion, and it's seemingly impervious to any of the newcomers."

"Dinner for Schmucks," the Paramount comedy starring Steve Carell and Paul Rudd, followed closely behind "Inception" with $23.3 million, while the Warner Bros. 3-D sequel "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore" fetched $12.5 million in the No. 5 spot. "Charlie St. Cloud," the Universal Pictures drama starring Zac Efron, debuted at No. 6 with $12.1 million.

Lindsay Lohan to spend about two weeks in jail

Tue, 20 Jul 2010 22:19:00 +0000

Los Angeles sheriff's officials say Lindsay Lohan will likely spend about two weeks of her three-month sentence in jail.

Department spokesman Steve Whitmore says Lohan is likely to be released on Aug. 1 or 2. The projected release date reflects all the credits Lohan is likely to receive.

The department has said the actress was likely to serve a quarter of her sentence or less.

Lohan surrendered at a Beverly Hills courthouse on Tuesday and was immediately whisked away to an all-women's jail in Lynwood. She will serve her time in an isolation unit that has previously hosted Paris Hilton and Michelle Rodriguez.

The 24-year-old's jail sentence began two weeks after a judge sentenced her to three months in jail and another three months in rehab for a probation violation.

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McCartney reported from Beverly Hills.

“Iron Man 2″ blasts past original with $133.6M

Mon, 10 May 2010 12:14:00 +0000

Tony Stark piloted to the top of the box office but not the record books.

"Iron Man 2," the sequel starring Robert Downey Jr. as Marvel's gadget-happy billionaire superhero, earned $133.6 million domestically on its opening weekend, according to distributor Paramount Pictures' estimates Sunday. The opening rocketed past the original $98.6 million debut in 2008 and landed the record as the fifth-biggest opening weekend.

"We're thrilled with the combination of the way it's playing across the board," said Don Harris, Paramount's vice president of distribution. "It's playing as a fanboy movie, but it's also playing as family movie, too. I even know a bunch of people who are planning to take their mothers to see 'Iron Man 2' on Mother's Day, which really made me chuckle."

"Iron Man 2" has taken in $194 million overseas since it debuted in many international markets last week, bringing its worldwide total to over $327 million. While Hollywood blockbusters typically open around the same date in most countries, some get an overseas jump of a week or more on their U.S. debuts. The biggest opening came from China with $7.3 million.

Bret Michaels might be ready to rock in weeks

Fri, 30 Apr 2010 14:50:00 +0000

Bret Michaels could stage yet another comeback sooner than expected.

Doctors say it is possible that Michaels, the outspoken 47-year-old former Poison frontman currently competing on "The Celebrity Apprentice," could be healthy enough to appear on the NBC reality series' live finale on May 23. Michaels, one of seven stars remaining in the competition, has been in intensive care since suffering a brain hemorrhage last week.

"If all the studies he had done show no evidence of an aneurysm being found, it would really just depend on his energy level," said Dr. Ronald Benitez, director of cerebrovascular surgery at Overlook Hospital in Summit, N.J. "If all the tests were negative, and I was watching the show at the end of May, I personally wouldn't be surprised if he was on it."

Michaels, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 6 and underwent an emergency appendectomy April 12, was rushed to an undisclosed hospital last week with a severe headache. He was later diagnosed with a subarachnoid hemorrhage, which causes bleeding in the fluid-filled spaces around the base of the brain. The cause of the hemorrhage is still unknown.

Ebay to sell Michael Jackson portrait

Sat, 24 Apr 2010 17:06:00 +0000

An over-the-top portrait of Michael Jackson is going up for auction online.

The eBay.com auction of the fantastical 50-by-40-inch painting by Australian artist Brett-Livingstone Strong will launch Wednesday evening, the portrait's owner said Tuesday.

Titled "The Book," the colorful work is reportedly the only painting for which the King of Pop ever posed. It depicts Jackson, clad in a Renaissance-era red velvet jacket, seated amid a sweeping checkerboard floor underneath a magically translucent curtain at his Neverland Ranch.

"I've had it an awful long time," said toy inventor Marty Abrams, who acquired the painting with partner John Gentilly in 1992 from Japanese businessman Hiromichi Saeki as payment on a debt owed to them. "With the positive response to his music and the movie about him after his death, we thought it was a good time to sell it and for the world to see it."

For over 17 years, Abrams kept the painting in storage in a New Jersey warehouse. It was briefly on display at the Dancy-Power Automotive showroom in Harlem after Jackson's death last June. The painting, which also features the fairy character Tinkerbell hovering in the background, is hanging inside Abrams' home in Kings Point, N.Y.