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Oscar-winner Al Pacino (Scent of a Woman) has been nominated a total of nine times for Academy Awards over the course of his illustrious career. However, the beloved thespian recently revealed that he had the "most fun" acting in Dick Tracy, while his "favorite" role was playing the foul-mouthed Tony Montana in Scarface (1983) — despite the accolades he has garnered for his award-winning performances over the years. The Hollywood heavyweight made his selections while attending a special 50th anniversary screening of his must-see film, Dog Day Afternoon (1975) in Santa Monica, California. Pacino said during the film's Q&a at the American Cinematheque Aero Theatre afterward:

"Straight out, I just say nothing touches Scarface. And really the reason I feel that way is, I remember passing a movie house in Los Angeles, the Tiffany (West Hollywood) — it’s not there anymore — where they played all the old films, and they played Scarface...

Joseph Wambaugh, whose experience as an LAPD officer enabled him to bring a warts-and-all realism to his novels about policing and the movies and TV shows like “Police Story,” died Friday in Rancho Mirage, Calif. He was 88.

The cause was esophageal cancer, a family friend told the New York Times.

Wambaugh’s work in novels such as “The New Centurions,” “The Blue Knight” “The Choirboys” and best seller “The Onion Field” rendered the flat, idealized portrait of the Los Angeles Police Dept. presented in “Dragnet” and “Adam-12” permanently outdated, and yet cops felt they understood him and got the way they talked, and they remained among his biggest fans over the course of his career as a novelist.

A highlight of Wambaugh’s relationship with Hollywood was the Harold Becker-directed feature “The Onion Field” (1979), with Wambaugh penning the screenplay based on his own true-crime novel. The book had faithfully...

For the bulk of his career, Leslie Nielsen was best known for his stern, dramatic roles. His tall stature and low voice had casting directors offering him parts as commanders, leaders, and even heavies. Many might recall Nielsen's stone-faced turn in 1956's "Forbidden Planet" as the captain in "The Poseidon Adventure," or playing a cop in the 1972 cop drama "The Bold Ones: The Protectors." In 1977's "Day of the Animals" he plays a manly outdoorsman who loses his mind and, quite darkly, declares insane dominion over animals and women. Some might recall that he can hold his breath a long time, as he declared in "Creepshow." Many will be shocked to witness Nielsen beat and assault Barbra Streisand in the 1987 drama "Nuts." 

However, Nielsen did appear in a handful of comedies, most notably, playing Dr. Rumack in the Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker farce "Airplane!" The parody proved that he had a talent for deadpan comedy,...

After leading a mixed career as a dramatic actor, Leslie Nielsen experienced one of the greatest career shifts in Hollywood when he reinvented himself as a comedy star, beginning in 1980's Airplane!. Soon after, the actor took on a variety of roles in some of the funniest movies of the next two decades, from police parodies to superhero spoofs. As a result, he has remained one of the most beloved comedy actors of the era, particularly for his deadpan performances.

While his comedy career had its share of hits and misses, Leslie Nielsen always made sure to be the most memorable part of his projects, even if he didn't have a leading role. Under comedy directors like Jim Abrahams, David & Jerry Zucker and Mel Brooks, Nielsen gave audiences the sillier side of humor. While his films might be seen as too low-brow for some viewers, others continue to embrace what...

When Charles Durning appeared on NCIS in 2004, he was neither a stranger to acting nor without knowledge of the military. The WWII veteran was a long-time presence on big and small screens. Durning's role as Corporal Earnie Yost on NCIS stood apart from many of his other roles, however, because it earned him a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.

His appearance on NCIS wasn't Durning's first nomination in the category. He was previously nominated for playing Michael Gavin on Rescue Me and Thomas Finnegan on Homicide: Life on the Streets. Additional praise for Durning came with Oscar nominations for his roles in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982) and To Be or Not to Be (1983).

In the minds of many, Durning will always be remembered for NCIS and the emotional intensity he brought to the role of Yost. Personal and powerful alike, Durning demonstrated...

Quick Links'ncis' Has Seen 22 Seasons of Success"Call of Silence" Is a Great 'NCIS' EpisodeWhy "Call of Silence" Is the Best 'NCIS' Episode

On December 16, 2024, NCIS went on hiatus for six weeks following Season 22, Episode 9, "Humbug." The episode concerns the NCIS team investigating a former U.S. Marine's claim that a squad leader neglected his duties, calling to mind the long-running procedural's best hour of television. Almost 20 years to the day, "Humbug" was released after "Call of Silence," arguably the best-acted and the most compassionately moving NCIS episode ever made.

With NCIS Seasons 1-5 and 12-17 recently added to Netflix, fans new and old must see Charles Durning's tour-de-force performance in "Call of Silence," the highest-rated episode of arguably the finest season in show history. Drawing on his real-life experience as a WWII veteran, Durning's unforgettable turn proves that few NCIS episodes marry story and...

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This February, Tubi is bringing you a lot of entertainment, from the brilliant epic space opera film Dune: Part One to the classic sci-fi action film The Terminator. However, this article only includes the films coming to Tubi this month with a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score. So, check out the ten best films coming to Tubi in February 2025 with a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score.

Licorice Pizza (February 1) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 90% Credit – United Artists Releasing

Licorice Pizza is a coming-of-age romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. The 2021 film is set in the 1970s in California’s San Fernando Valley, and it follows Gary Valentine, a teen actor who falls for Alana Kane, an older girl. Licorice Pizza stars Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, Sean Penn, Tom Waits, Bradley Cooper, and Benny Safdie.

Leaving Las Vegas...

The 2025 Academy Award nominations have been announced after delays caused by the devastating fires in Los Angeles, and the numerous nods got us thinking about how the Star Trek movies have fared at the Oscars. And the answer is… terribly. Not counting Section 31, which can be classified as a telemovie, there are 13 features spanning from The Motion Picture in 1979 to Beyond in 2016. Together, they have been nominated for a grand total of 16 Oscars, all in tech or makeup categories. And they've won exactly one Oscar. You read that right. One Oscar.

And the Oscar went to Barney Burman, Mindy Hall, and Joel Harlow, who triumphed in the Best Makeup category for their work on Star Trek (2009). Interestingly, Star Trek (2009) accounted for a full quarter of all of the Star Trek franchise’s Oscar nominations, as it was also up for Best Visual Effects, Best Sound, and Best Sound Editing.

The...

What do Kim Novak, Jim Carrey, John Turturro, and the late Donald Sutherland all have in common? Well, aside from being acclaimed actors, these stars have never (we repeat: never) been nominated for an Academy Award. And that crime is now being celebrated by the annual anti-awards season festival, hosted by the Museum of the Moving Image.

The beloved museum announced its third iteration of the popular “Snubbed” screening series, which reexamines films that have been overlooked by the Academy. The 2025 theme is centered on actors and titled “Snubbed Forever: Great Actors, No Nominations.” The program will run February 1 through March 9, and feature 21 films starring actors who have never been nominated for an Oscar.

Highlights include Kim Novak in the enduring “Vertigo,” John Turturro and John Goodman in “Barton Fink,” Rita Hayworth in “The Lady from Shanghai,” Jim Carrey in “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” and Danny DeVito in “Batman Returns.

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Few filmmakers had a better 1970s than Sidney Lumet. While he was more prolific than most of the decade's top directors, knocking out 11 movies over a 10-year span, and did find time to helm one of the worst musicals in motion picture history (a badly bungled adaptation of "The Wiz"), when Lumet got ahold of the right material, he made classics like "Serpico," "Dog Day Afternoon," and "Network."

There isn't a more electric movie in Lumet's oeuvre than "Dog Day Afternoon." Based on a true story, the 1975 critical and commercial hit centers on a bank robbery in Brooklyn carried out by Sonny Wortzik, an amateur crook desperate to pay for his lover's gender-affirming surgery. When the heist quickly goes south, Sonny and his associates find themselves stuck holding hostages while cops swarm the building. The defiant Sonny scrambles to negotiate...

Launched in 2003, NCIS is one of the few shows that has consistently drawn in crowds from every section of the world, giving birth to five spin-off shows and countless seasons. The CBS procedural series has been forever entrenched in our pop culture dictionary due to its enduring presence in television history.

NCIS [Credit: CBS]

For a show of such magnitude, the awards consideration alone would be too huge a number to think of. However, unfortunately for the series and its producers, NCIS has never been lucky enough to snag a Primetime Emmy – the greatest of all award recognitions in the realm of television entertainment.

The enduring legacy and popularity of NCIS A still from NCIS Season 3 [Credit: CBS]

In the years since its launch, the CBS procedural series NCIS has achieved an impossible feat by establishing a steady television presence that has endured among shifting demographics and changing times. Throughout the past 22 years, the...

Quick Links Does 'O Brother, Where Art Thou' Adapt 'The Odyssey?' Why Is It So Hard to Adapt 'The Odyssey,' and How Did the Coen Brothers Try? 'O Brother, Where Art Thou' Is One of the Best 'Odyssey' Reimaginings

Christopher Nolan’s first post-Oppenheimer project is coming together. After months of speculation alongside announcements of a superstar cast, including Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Charlize Theron, and Robert Pattinson, Universal confirmed this week that the film will be a new adaptation of Homer’s epic Greek poem, The Odyssey. Considering many have long considered the source material to be unadaptable, it’s an ambitious undertaking for Nolan to take after winning his long-awaited Oscar, but if anyone can handle the scope of such a project, it’s him.

Yet there actually have been several loose adaptations of The Odyssey over the years. Considering how it’s one...

Earl Holliman, an actor whose scores of credits spanning a half-century ranged from 1950s films Forbidden Planet and Giant to Police Woman and others popular ’70s and ’80s TV dramas and starred in the first episode of The Twilight Zone, died Monday in Los Angeles after a short illness. He was 96.

His niece, Theresa Mullins Harris, announced the news on social media, writing in part: “His dream at 5 years old of becoming a movie star came true, more than he ever could have imagined.”

Holliman got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame won a Supporting Actor Golden Globe for 1957’s The Rainmaker and was nominated for the short-lived early-’90s ABC sitcom Delta, starring Delta Burke. He was a series regular on the latter, playing the understanding owner of a bar where aspiring country singer Delta Bishop (Burke) worked while trying to make it.

Born on September 11, 1928, Holliman...

Pressman Film, the indie producer founded by the late Edward Pressman and behind classics from Wall Street to American Psycho, has broken new ground in film financing with the first slate listed on popular investment platform Republic.

The offering launched Sept. 5 with a goal of $1.5 million to develop a minimum of six new projects. It’s raised over $1.7 million and could see additional coin by the time it closes on Friday.

This is not crowdfunding but equity investment from — so far — 295 investors with Pressman offering rather generous returns if a project does make it into production as the indie seeks to create a brand and attract a pool of followers and potential financiers going forward. Investors can also reap premiums at other milestones including a portion of Pressman Film’s producing fee and a portion of their share of the net profits.

“We’re the first slate they [Republic] offered in this way,...

Edd Griles, who directed Cyndi Lauper in the bouncy music video for “Girls Just Want to Have Fun,” the singer’s breakthrough hit and a wildly popular tune in the early days of MTV, has died. He was 78.

Griles died Tuesday at the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, New Jersey, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s, his daughter, Allyson Monson, told The Hollywood Reporter.

The New York native also directed music videos for Huey Lewis and the News (“The Heart of Rock & Roll,” “If This Is It,” “Stuck with You”); Eddie Murphy (“Party All the Time”); Lee Greenwood (“God Bless the USA”); Peter Wolf (“Come as You Are”); Sheena Easton (“Jimmy Mack”); Deep Purple and Rainbow; and others.

He also produced the inaugural MTV Video Music Awards in 1984; the first Espy Awards in 1993; and from 1996-99, the Miss Universe, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA pageants.

Griles began directing...

Horror cinema has long been divided into a variety of sub-genres, from the supernatural to body horror and creature features. However, few categories are as synonymous with horror as much as the slasher. First perfected in the early 1960s with films like Psycho and Peeping Tom, the slasher's formula is simple: a single or group of characters pitted against a malevolent killer, typically one who wears a mask, such as Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees.

While slashers can take a variety of forms, with some embracing the supernatural with seemingly invincible killers, others strive for a sense of brutal realism. Either way, these films remain some of the most iconic and terrifying in the horror genre, thanks to the use of the cat-and-mouse-inspired trope of a killer stalking young people. The 2000s gave fans a surprisingly strong output of these movies following a '90s slump, and some of its gems endure to this day.

Killer Collectibles highlights five of the most exciting new horror products announced each and every week, from toys and apparel to artwork, records, and much more.

Here are the coolest horror collectibles unveiled this week!

Godzilla 4K Uhd from Criterion

Godzilla will celebrate its 70th anniversary in style, as The Criterion Collection is bringing Toho’s 1954 Japanese kaiju classic to 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray on November 5.

The film has been newly restored in 4K with uncompressed monaural sound. A high-definition restoration of Terry Morse’s 1956 American reworking of the film, Godzilla, King of the Monsters, is also included.

Ishirō Honda directs from a script he co-wrote with Takeo Murata. Eiji Tsuburaya (Ultraman) helmed the special effects. Akira Takarada, Momoko Kōchi, Akihiko Hirata, and Takashi Shimura star with Haruo Nakajima and Katsumi Tezuka as Godzilla.

Special features include: commentary by film historian David Kalat; interviews with Takarada, Nakajima, special effects technicians Yoshio Irie and Eizo Kaimai,...

There were bigger movie stars than Al Pacino in the 1970s, but between 1971 and 1975, he gave six utterly electric performances that placed him in the American film acting stratosphere alongside the likes of Marlon Brando, Dustin Hoffman, Jack Nicholson, and Robert De Niro. And as brilliant as those guys were, the virtuosity on display in "Panic in Needle Park," "The Godfather," "Scarecrow," "Serpico," "The Godfather Part II" and "Dog Day Afternoon" made a solid case for Pacino as the best of the bunch. He could be seductive, sympathetic, vulnerable, pathetic and terrifying –- sometimes all in the same movie. And his peers were dazzled enough to nominate him for four straight Oscars.

The full range of Pacino's genius can be found in Michael Corleone's journey from principled World War II returnee to brother-killing monster, but for sheer thespian fireworks, you can't top his live-wire portrayal of bank robber Sonny Wortzik...

There's just something about Jim Henson's Muppets that makes them so special. From Sesame Street to the rest of the Muppets (now owned by Disney), people of any age light up when Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie or any of the other characters show up somewhere. While there have been many series and films starring these characters, The Muppet Movie the musical ensemble's first foray into the big screen is still a timeless classic 45 years after it first hit theaters.

The film is very silly, as any Muppet caper should be. Even better, the inimitable Henson, the other performers and the filmmakers imbued the story with real emotion and heart. The villain here is Doc Hopper (Charles Durning), a restauranteur who wants Kermit to be the "spokesfrog" for his franchise food empire built on frog legs. That's one of the movie's many silly parts. However, as the Muppets that fans...

Several top stars put their careers on hold and their lives on the line to serve during World War II including Jimmy Stewart, Clark Gable, Henry Fonda, Robert Taylor, Alan Ladd, William Holden, Robert Ryan and Robert Montgomery. And numerous young men who weren’t yet actors during the global conflict including Lee Marvin and Charles Durning saw action and suffered severe injuries.

With the 80th anniversary of D-Day, which was the largest amphibious invasion in military history with five naval assault divisions invading the beaches of Normandy, France, on June 6, let’s look at some actors who participated in the massive operation.

Charles Durning

The versatile character actor, who earned supporting actor Oscar nominations for 1982’s “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas” and 1983’s “To Be or Not to Be” and nine Emmy nominations, was just 21 when he was one of the first group of soldiers to land and...

Earlier this year, I looked back at Shirley MacLaine’s Best Actress Oscar win for 1983’s “Terms of Endearment.” Just to quickly recap, she had everything working in her favor. She was a beloved and overdue veteran with a showy role in the year’s Best Picture. She had a couple of killer scenes. And there was just no one in the lineup who could challenge her. Shirley surely had it in the bag.

But the Best Supporting Actor win by MacLaine’s co-star Jack Nicholson is slightly more intriguing. He was already in possession of a Best Actor Oscar for 1975’s “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.” He risked splitting votes with a fellow cast mate (John Lithgow). And he was the only previous winner in the category. Wouldn’t it have made sense for the academy to try and spread the wealth?

To mark the 40th anniversary of his triumph,...

Jodie Foster On Robert Downey Jr. (Photo Credit – Instagram)

Whoever works with Robert Downey Jr has something interesting to say about it. Some celebrities praise his dedication, while some can’t get enough of his wit and attitude. Now, director-actress Jodie Foster has something to say about the Iron Man star. Foster talked about how she was concerned about his career during his initial days when he was dealing with drug addiction, months before his career sank. She also praised Robert for his work ethic now.

Jodie Foster and Robert Downey Jr worked together in 1995 for the film Home For The Holidays. Jodie directed the family comedy-drama, which stars Rdj, Holly Hunter, Anne Bancroft, Charles Durning, Dylan McDermott and others. In an interview, Foster recalls her conversation with the Avengers: Endgame actor while working on the film.

Robert Downey Jr in Home For The Holidays

Trending Oscar Winner Robert Downey...

Jodie Foster opened up to Esquire magazine as part of its Robert Downey Jr. cover story about what it was like directing him in the 1995 Thanksgiving comedy “Home for the Holidays.” The film marked Foster’s second outing as a feature film director after 1991’s “Little Man Tate.” Production kicked off in early 1995, which overlapped with Downey’s addiction struggles. He’d be arrested the following year for possession of heroin, cocaine and an unloaded gun.

At one point during the production of “Home for the Holidays,” Foster “took him aside” and told Downey: “Look, I couldn’t be more grateful for what you’ve given in this film. But I’m scared of what happens to you next. Right now you are incredibly good at balancing on the barstool. But it’s really precarious, and I’m not sure how that’s going to end.”

“What was so interesting...

When it comes to lone acting Oscar nominations, the category with the fewest examples is Best Supporting Actor. After two consecutive years of there being no new additions to that subgroup, Brian Tyree Henry (“Causeway”) became its 54th member in 2023 after having been largely ignored by other awards bodies over the preceding weeks. He directly followed Tom Hanks, who is the only other entrant from the last five years.

Within the last decade, this club has only grown by seven, with those who preceded Hanks and Henry being Robert Duvall, Sylvester Stallone, Michael Shannon, Willem Dafoe, and Christopher Plummer. 2018 marked the fifth instance of two men accomplishing the feat at once, thus tying the category’s record for most bids of this kind in a single year. Contextually, the corresponding Best Supporting Actress record is three, while that of both lead categories is four.

As it happens, the Best Supporting...

Norby Walters, a music agent who worked with Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Marvin Gaye, Kool & the Gang and Public Enemy before gaining renown in Hollywood for his annual “Night of 100 Stars” Oscar party and weekly poker game, has died. He was 91.

Walters died Dec. 10 of natural causes at an assisted living facility in Burbank, his son, producer Gary Michael Walters (Whiplash), told The Hollywood Reporter.

Walters hosted his first Oscar night gala in 1990 and the last in 2017, most often inside the Beverly Hilton’s Crystal Ballroom. Among those who attended were Shirley Jones, Robert Forster, Charles Bronson, Patricia Neal, Richard Dreyfuss, Eva Marie Saint, Martin Landau, Louis Gossett Jr., J.K. Simmons, Cliff Robertson, Red Buttons, Jon Voight and Allison Janney.

Walters for years also presided over a weekly poker game at his West Hollywood high-rise condo. The low-stakes $2 game was, his son said, “designed to be a place where actors could kibbutz,...

Chris Sarandon would consider reprising his role as Detective Mike Norris in Child's Play, but believes that Norris is currently retired. Sarandon was hooked after reading the screenplay for Fright Night, and that collaboration led to him teaming up again with director Tom Holland on Child's Play. Despite not appearing in any of the sequels, remakes, or the streaming series Chucky, Sarandon remains an active member of the horror movie community via film fests and conventions.

Chris Sarandon portrayed one of the most beguiling vampires any horror film can offer scary movie fans. After Sarandon’s stint as the suave yet ever-so dangerous, apple-eating creature of the night, Jerry Dandrige, in Tom Holland’s Fright Night, the two creatives reunited three years later to collaborate on yet another enduring classic from the genre, Child’s Play (1988). Sarandon played the part of Detective Mike Norris and matched wits with the pint-sized Chucky (Brad Dourif) during his bloody,...

Peter S. Fischer, the late-blooming TV writer and producer who co-created Murder, She Wrote after serving on such other crime-solving series as Columbo, Baretta and Ellery Queen, has died. He was 88.

Fischer died Monday at a care facility in Pacific Grove, California, his grandson Jake McElrath announced.

He became a prolific novelist after he exited Hollywood, writing murder mysteries, of course.

Fischer, who had worked with Columbo co-creators Richard Levinson and William Link on the iconic Peter Falk series as well as on the Jim Hutton-starring Ellery Queen, accompanied the pair to a meeting with CBS executives in 1984, he recalled in a 2011 interview.

“CBS wanted to do a murder mystery and they called Dick, who was our ringleader. He said, ‘Ok, I’ll bring the boys,'” Fischer said. “We went over there and pitched a premise called Blacke’s Magic, about a retired magician who solves mysteries. It became...

Pressman Film is a production company that was founded by Ed Pressman, a prolific producer of over 90 films, including the likes of Wall Street, American Psycho, and The Crow. Sadly, Pressman passed away earlier this year at the age of 79. Now his son Sam Pressman is the CEO of Pressman Film, which recently rebooted The Crow – and landed an eight-figure domestic distribution deal for the film with Lionsgate. Moving forward, the company is working with Antoine Fuqua on a project called The Street, which was written by Goodfellas‘ Nicholas Pileggi, and planning an adaptation of the 1975 Edward Abbey novel The Monkey Wrench Gang, which will be directed by Catfish‘s Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman. They’re also trying to figure out how they can exploit titles in the Pressman Film library… and in a recent article, Deadline mentions that endeavor might involve remakes of the 1980 holiday horror film Christmas Evil...

Scare Flair Records, in partnership with Klaatu Records, has just announced this week that they’ll be releasing the Glenn Paxton soundtrack for the 1981 made for television classic Dark Night of the Scarecrow on vinyl for the first time.

Scare Flair notes, “Dark Night of the Scarecrow is a 1981 horror film directed by Frank De Felitta and starring Larry Drake, Charles Durning, and Lane Smith. The film was originally meant to be an independent feature but was purchased by CBS – turning it into a made for television film. The film was released on Saturday October 24, 1981 – as part of their Halloween line-up – and was very well received by critics and audiences. Dark Night of the Scarecrow is credited to have started the horror subgenre of the killer scarecrow.

“Despite being a made for television film, it got a VHS release through Key Video in the mid 80s, as well as a...

The Screen Actors Guild presented legendary comic actor Eddie Cantor with the first annual Life Achievement Award back in 1962. Over the past six decades, the award for ‘outstanding achievement in fostering ideals of the acting profession” has been given to such Hollywood icons as Stan Laurel, Bob Hope, Barbara Stanwyck, Gregory Peck, Jimmy Stewart, Frank Sinatra, James Cagney, Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. More recently, Mary Tyler Moore, Charles Durning, Debbie Reynolds, Rita Moreno, Carol Burnett, Helen Mirren and Robert De Niro have received the honor.

Two-time Oscar and three-time Emmy Award winning Sally Field is the latest recipient of the Life Achievement Award. The 76-year-old actress, who came to fame as the ultimate teenager “Gidget” in the 1965-66 ABC sitcom, is currently starring with Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Rita Moreno in the hit feature comedy “80 for Brady.” She appeared with Jim Parsons last year in the drama...

Robert F. Lyons plays a bored law student turned drug dealer in Paul Williams’s 1972 drama. Based on a pseudonymous novel by Michael Crichton and his brother Douglas, the film co-stars Barbara Hershey, and John Lithgow—in his film debut—as a sleazy theater director. Charles Durning and Paul Sorvino round out the colorful cast.

The post Dealing, or the Berkeley to Boston 40 Brick Lost Bag Blues appeared first on Trailers From Hell.

Jean Veloz, the innovative Lindy Hop dancer who dazzled in Swing Fever and other Hollywood musicals of the 1940s, has died. She was 98.

Veloz died Sunday at her home in Los Angeles, her friend, agent and manager Rusty Frank told The Hollywood Reporter. Frank co-produced the 2010 event A Tribute to the Groovie Movie, which celebrated Veloz and her contribution to dance.

“Jean innovated a style of swing dance that was admired around the world,” Frank said. “It was silky smooth and greatly contrasted the more jitterbug style prevalent during the 1930s-’40s.”

Generations of dancers idolized her.

In MGM’s Swing Fever (1943), Veloz whirled with servicemen portrayed by Lennie Smith and Don Gallagher in the high-octane number “One Girl and Two Boys,” accompanied by Kay Kyser’s band and sandwiched between Marilyn Maxwell’s singing.

She also did the jitterbug in Where Are Your Children? (1943), starring Jackie Cooper; danced with...

Prior to 1989, actor Leslie Nielsen was still best known for playing heavies and villains. Even when he appeared in comedy classics like "Airplane!" in 1980 or "Police Squad!" in 1982, his comedic power was derived from his ability to stay stonefaced while absurdity explodes around him. 1989, however, saw the release of "The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad!" a film adaptation of the TV show. In that film, Nielsen played the role of Lt. Frank Drebin broadly, doing a lot of mugging and pratfalls. "The Naked Gun" was an enormous hit the year it was released, and Nielsen went full-bore into slapstick roles and spoof movies after that. 

During the 1990s, Nielsen appeared in a litany of gloriously silly flicks like "Spy Hard," "Wrongfully Accused," "Repossessed" (a classic), "Dracula: Dead and Loving It," two of the "Scary Movie" sequels, and many others. Not all of these films were good, but...

Writer Richard Eustis died On Monday, Oct. 31, at the age of 86 in Thousand Oaks, Calif, show writing partner Michael Elias confirmed to TheWrap.

The Emmy Award-winning screenwriter was best known for his ABC high school sitcom “Head of the Class,” which he co-created alongside Elias, his longtime writing partner. The series, which ran for five seasons from 1986 to 1991, was picked up for a 10-episode reboot in 2021 for HBO Max.

The original series detailed the stories of a group of bright students who live in Manhattan and attend the fictional high school Millard Fillmore High School in the Individualized Honors Program. The revival show — released Nov. 4 on HBO Max — was developed by Amy Pocha and Seth Cohen. The show wasn’t picked up for a second season.

Before his journey in television in Los Angeles, Eustis started off with a career in journalism. Some of his other work includes writing episodes...

Fans are getting ready for upcoming cozy holiday films like A Magical Christmas Village, A Kismet Christmas, and Noel Next Door. Few television phenomena are as popular year after year as the comfort food that is the Hallmark Channel's annual slate of Christmas movies. For over a decade, millions upon millions of viewers have been tuning in to watch couples fall in love and families come together around the holiday season.

It's true that many of these movies recycle the same tropes and themes, but it's also clear that Hallmark has a real preference for certain cast members as well. From Luke McFarlane to Tyler Hynes and Ryan Paevey, fans often debate the most popular Hallmark male actor, and they all lend some holiday cheer and magic to each project. The best Hallmark actors always leave viewers with a smile on their faces.

Updated on October 26th, 2022 by Aya...

When you see a real actor performing with The Muppets, it is easy to think that would be a straightforward process. You show up and goof around with some puppets for a bit and don't have to take things too seriously. While this can work for a sketch on "The Muppet Show," it's not really the case when it comes to a real-life actor with a sizable role in a feature film. Sure, Steve Martin or Mel Brooks can come in for one scene in "The Muppet Movie" and do a schtick, but the weight of the story does not rest on them. Charles Durning as Doc Hopper and Austin Pendleton as Doc's sidekick, Max, cannot afford to be knowingly silly. They are ostensibly the antagonists of the movie, and if they do not play the film straight, there are no stakes to the picture. Therefore, there's no drama and no reason to care.

Animation legend Genndy Tartakovsky joins Josh Olson and Joe Dante to discuss his favorite silent sequences from great movies.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Infested (2002)

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) – Brian Trenchard-Smith’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

The Godfather (1972) – Ernest Dickerson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings

Apocalypse Now (1979) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Hotel Transylvania (2012)

A Fistful of Dollars (1964) – John Badham’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray reviews

Once Upon A Time In The West (1968) – John Landis’s trailer commentary

The Birds (1963) – Eli Roth’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

The Good, The Bad And The Ugly (1966) – Ernest Dickerson’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray reviews

Conan The Barbarian (1982)

Conan The Destroyer (1984)

The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)

The Party (1968) – Michael Lehmann’s trailer commentary

The Pink Panther...

Paul Dano has been a professional actor since age 12 when he appeared in a 1996 Broadway revival of "Inherit the Wind" with Charles Durning and George C. Scott. In film, Dano broke out in 2001 playing the lead role in Michael Cuesta's hard-hitting sexual drama "L.I.E." opposite Brian Cox in a career-best performance. Since then, Dano has made a career playing intense outsiders and occasional weirdos in a long string of highly acclaimed dramas. His appearance as a mute, Nietzsche-obsessed teen in 2006's "Little Miss Sunshine" was a highlight in a film full of them, and his oddball turn as a not-so-timid preacher in Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood" was gloriously off-center. As an actor, he has worked with Ang Lee, Spike Jonze, Kelly Reichardt, Paolo Sorrentino, Denis Villeneuve, Steve McQueen, and Bong Joon-ho.

To date, Dano has directed one feature film: 2018's "Wildlife," based on the 1990 novel...

It was an unusual ceremony, in which an Emmy rule change pitted series regulars against one-episode guest stars. In addition, two of the most awarded comedies of all time battled it out, a favorite drama lost the top spot and one of the most celebrated talk shows of all time finally received a top honor. This was also the last year that the Big Four networks received all the nominations for Best Drama Series and Best Comedy Series. We’re throwing it back three decades to August 30, 1992, when Tim Allen, Kirstie Alley and Dennis Miller hosted the 44th Primetime Emmy Awards on Fox. Read on for our Emmys flashback 30 years ago to 1992.

Between 1989 and 1992, “Cheers” and “Murphy Brown” volleyed the Best Comedy award back and forth. This was “Murphy’s” year, winning in this category for the second and final time. The other sitcoms up were “Brooklyn Bridge,” “Home Improvement” and “Seinfeld.

"Dog Day Afternoon" is one of the greatest achievements of naturalistic 1970s filmmaking. Taking place over the course of one sweltering summer day, the film is based on the true story of Sonny Wortzik, whose attempt to rob a Brooklyn bank devolves into a media circus, hostage situation, and law enforcement standoff. Al Pacino's tour de force performance anchors the film with a razor-sharp tension and wit, alongside an equally intense supporting cast of John Cazale, Chris Sarandon, Charles Durning, and more. The entire cast has an electric connection and propulsive energy that brings gritty New York characters to life. 

What makes the actors'...

The post The Script For Dog Day Afternoon Was Packed With Al Pacino Improv appeared first on /Film.

Actor/Producer Neal McDonough discusses a few of his favorite movies with Josh Olson and Joe Dante.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Masters of the Universe (1987) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary

Boon (2022)

The Warrant (2020)

The Warrant: Breaker’s Law (2022)

The Cowboys (1972) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary

The Shootist (1976) – John Landis’s trailer commentary

The French Connection (1971) – Mark Pellington’s trailer commentary, Dennis Lehane’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings

The Sting (1973)

Jaws (1975) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary

Minority Report (2002)

Red Stone (2021)

A History Of Violence (2005)

Greater (2016)

Unforgiven (1992)

There Will Be Blood (2007)

The Mule (2018) – Dennis Cozzalio’s 2018 year-end review

Gran Torino (2008)

War And Peace (1966) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Duel (1971) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary

Nobody (2021)

Caddyshack (1980) – Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairings

Caddyshack II (1988)

Natural Born Killers (1994)

Back To School (1986)

Stripes (1981)

Bullitt (1968) – Alan Spencer’s trailer commentary

True Grit (1969) – Stuart Gordon’s trailer...

Exclusive: SAG-AFTRA won’t be handing out a SAG Life Achievement Award this year for the first time in 40 years. It’s not that no one was deserving – this year of all years – but because of the pandemic and a shortened TV timeslot for its awards show, the union decided that it would be better to skip a year and present the award live and in-person next year.

Going into this awards season, SAG-AFTRA had planned for its 27th annual SAG Awards to be a two-hour show, as it had been in years past. The home page for the Screen Actors Guild Awards noted initially that it would be a “fast moving two-hour show.” This year’s pre-taped, one-hour show, featuring 13 awards presentations, will air April 4 on TNT and TBS.

The SAG Life Achievement Award is the union’s most prestigious honor, presented for “outstanding achievement in fostering...

Bill C. Davis, whose 1981 Broadway hit play Mass Appeal was adapted for a 1984 feature film starring Jack Lemmon and Željko Ivanek, died Feb. 26 following a brief illness, his family announced. He was 69.

Born in Ellenville, NY, and raised in the state’s Hudson Valley, Davis attended Catholic schools and, after graduating from Poughkeepsie’s Marist College, worked at a residential community for developmentally disabled and emotionally disturbed adults in Rhinebeck, NY. He wrote Mass Appeal, about the conflicting personalities of a stern, conservative priest and a younger, rebellious seminarian, during his time in Rhinebeck.

The play originally was produced Off Broadway in 1980 at the Manhattan Theatre Club, starring Milo O’Shea and Eric Roberts and directed by Geraldine Fitzgerald. Mass Appeal moved to Broadway the following year, with Michael O’Keefe taking over for Roberts.

The Broadway production earned Tony Award nominations for O’Shea and Fitzgerald.

Showbiz & Media Figures We’ve...

Since 1972, Ben Johnson has held the record for shortest Oscar-winning performance in the Best Supporting Actor category. His screen time in “The Last Picture Show” falls just under 10 minutes, and his is the only performance to win the award without hitting that mark. Yet, there are 16 other supporting males who have been nominated for even shorter roles, and Johnson has placed outside of the list of 10 shortest nominees since 1986. Here is a look at the current roster, which has been in place for just two years (and here are the 10 shortest winners):

10. Sam Elliott (“A Star Is Born”)

8 minutes, 45 seconds (6.45% of the film)

When Mahershala Ali won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 2019, his one-hour, six-minute, and 38-second performance in “Green Book” became the longest to ever win in the category. Some of his competitors also made history, with the year marking the first time that two actors with...

There have been few dramatic performances in an episode of television that are as good as what Glynn Turman did late in the first season of In Treatment. There has likely not been a better one.

In a 2008 episode of the HBO psychiatry drama titled “Alex: Week Eight,” Turman plays Alex Prince, Sr., father of Alex Jr. (Blair Underwood), recently-deceased patient of Gabriel Byrne’s Dr. Paul Weston. Prior to his apparent suicide, Alex had spent many of his sessions telling Paul horror stories about his abusive, domineering old man,...

Marge Champion, a dancer who achieved nationwide television fame in the 1950s with her husband and dance partner Gower Champion and even then had already contributed to cinema history as a movement model for three classic Walt Disney animated films, died Wednesday in Los Angeles. She was 101.

Her death was announced by her son Gregg Champion. A cause was not specified.

The daughter of a Hollywood dance coach, Champion was already performing in public when she was recruited by Disney to serve as the movement model for the lead character in 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the same year she entered a three-year marriage to Disney animator Arthur Babbitt. Champion would also provide the movements for the Blue Fairy in 1940’s Pinocchio and the ballet-dancing hippos in 1940’s Fantasia.

But if her work had already been seen by millions, Champion didn’t become recognizably famous until the late 1940s,...

In the summer of 1990, one of Hollywood’s most-anticipated film events was Warren Beatty’s adaptation of the classic comic book Dick Tracy. Beatty directed and starred in the film, with an all-star supporting cast that included Dustin Hoffman, James Caan, Mandy Patinkin, Paul Sorvino, Kathy Bates, Charles Durning, and Dick Van Dyke. But the co-stars [...]

The post ‘Dick Tracy’ Rewind: Warren Beatty On Madonna & Accidentally Casting Al Pacino appeared first on Hollywood Outbreak.

The producer of Narcos takes us on a walk through some of the movies that made him.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Contagion (2011)

Panic In The Streets (1950)

Rififi (1955)

Night And The City (1950)

Thieves’ Highway (1949)

Never on Sunday (1960)

The Karate Kid (1984)

The Game (1997)

The Dirty Dozen (1967)

The Great Escape (1963)

Children of Men (2006)

Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory (1971)

If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969)

Charlie And The Chocolate Factory (2005)

The Wild Bunch (1969)

The Godfather (1972)

Apocalypse Now (1979)

Animal House (1978)

An American Werewolf In London (1981)

Trading Places (1983)

Z Channel: A Magnificent Obsession (2004)

Fellini Satyricon (1969)

The Beastmaster (1982)

Sheena (1984)

High Risk (1981)

Ghostbusters (1984)

The Masque of the Red Death (1964)

Piranha (1978)

Gallipoli (1981)

Witness (1985)

The Killing Fields (1984)

Mad Max (1980)

Max Max 2: The Road Warrior (1981)

Picnic At Hanging Rock (1975)

The Last Wave (1978)

Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

The Lord of the Rings (1978)

The Hobbit (1977)

The Return of the King (1980)

Class (1983)

The Great Santini (1979)

Fast Times At Ridgemont High...

Here are many more movies to watch when you’re staying in for a while, featuring recommendations from Steven Canals, Larry Karaszewski, Gareth Reynolds, and Alan Arkush with special guest star Blaire Bercy from the Hollywood Food Coalition.

Please support the Hollywood Food Coalition. Text “Give” to 323.402.5704 or visit https://hofoco.org/donate!

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Master of the Flying Guillotine (1976)

Groundhog Day (1993)

Kung Fu Mama a.k.a. Queen of Fist (1973)

Ali: Fear Eats The Soul (1974)

Portrait Of A Lady On Fire (2019)

In The Mood For Love (2000)

Hunger (2008)

The Sweet Hereafter (1997)

Fargo (1996)

Night of the Lepus (1971)

Dolemite Is My Name (2019)

Soylent Green (1973)

Silent Running (1972)

Canyon Passage (1946)

McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)

The Professionals (1966)

Ride Lonesome (1959)

Carrie (1952)

The Heartbreak Kid (1972)

Hello Down There (1969)

The Brass Bottle (1964)

The Trouble With Angels (1966)

Pollyanna (1960)

Tiger Bay (1959)

The Parent Trap (1961)

Endless Night (1972)

The Family Way (1966)

Take A Girl Like You (1970)

Freddy Got Fingered...

Filmmakers/authors discuss the movies they wish more people were familiar with.

Movies Referenced In This Episode

Eurocrime! The Italian Cop and Gangster Films That Ruled the ’70s (2012)

Live Like A Cop, Die Like A Man (1976)

Island of Lost Souls (1932)

Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley’s Island of Dr. Moreau (2014)

Top Gun (1986)

Water Power (1977)

Taxi Driver (1976)

In Fabric (2018)

A Climax of Blue Power (1974)

Forced Entry (1975)

Once Upon A Time In America (1984)

Nashville Girl (1976)

Ms .45 (1981)

Act of Vengeance a.k.a. Rape Squad (1974)

High Plains Drifter (1973)

Design For Living (1933)

Trouble In Paradise (1932)

Melody (1971)

Oliver! (1968)

Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

That’ll Be The Day (1973)

Stardust (1974)

The Errand Boy (1961)

Looney Tunes: Back In Action (2003)

The Bellboy (1960)

Which Way To The Front? (1970)

Hardly Working (1980)

A Night In Casablanca (1946)

The Cocoanuts (1929)

Duck Soup (1933)

Boeing Boeing (1965)

Confessions of a Young American Housewife (1974)

Cockfighter (1974)

The Second Civil War (1997)

I, A Woman (1965)

The Devil At Your Heels (1981)

The...